Sometimes I wonder what the conversation between God and the person who's right on the cusp between Heaven and Hell.

I'd imagine that out of billions of people the bottom ranked person who eked into Heaven and the best individual who sits in Hell would be very close in comparison. I mean I guess God would just say, "I got to draw the line somewhere, I'm sure you'll understand?"

Poor Mendoza

Everybody is the cusp of Heaven and Hell.

Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;

Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour;

That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life. - Titus 3:5-7

God doesn't grade on a curve. If you don't live a perfect, sinless life, then Hell is your portion for eternity.

But Christ paid the penalty for your sins, which you can appropriate today, right now(!), but putting your trust in Him and Him alone!

That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. - Romans 10:9

And imagine a loving god demanding perfection or else the loving "justice" is torture forever. And we put that right out there unabashedly because we are miming doctrine instead of thinking about the nature of this. Sacrifices, scapegoats, torture ... are part of the great loving plan. Uh-huh. Sure is.

It is because God is love that He demands perfection!

And it is because God is love that He sent His only begotten Son to live a perfect life on Earth, be crucified on our behalf, and to rise again from the dead, conquering death for everyone who puts their trust in Jesus Christ!

I appreciate the response. Thank you.

My pleasure, sir.

People like lagtight honestly scare me.

I'm not just saying that for effect. The fact that there are people in our world who actually think that way (and many of them in positions of power over the rest of us) is chilling.

If it is of any help there is a large group of reasonable, open-minded Christians in the US. You may even be friends or co-workers with them and not know it. In
my opinion they are just not as outspoken and as arrogant or as extreme as the Fundamentalists sect.

I happily confess to being unapologetically outspoken and extreme. Jesus was both of those things, and my job as an evangelist is to preach the Good News.

As a sinner saved by grace, I am certainly no better than anyone else; just better off than those who have not accepted God's free gift of salvation. Perhaps having extreme views combined with being outspoken about them comes across as arrogant?

I see myself as a beggar trying to tell other beggars where to find bread.

.200

Sometimes the long way around is the shortest way home (or something like that).

Dr. William Lane Craig makes a useful distinction between knowing that something is true, and showing that something is true.

In my case, I know that Christianity is true because the moment that I became a born-again believer (on September 5, 1988), I was at once indwelt by the Holy Spirit. I experienced a new way of looking at my life and the world; over time I experienced the peace and joy that the Bible promises. Taste and see that the Lord is good..

Showing that Christianity is true, is an endeavour to demonstrate to the unbeliever that faith in Christ isn't a "blind faith", but is rather a "reasonable faith" (which is the title of a book by Dr. Craig, and also the name of one of his websites). Conversion only comes by a supernatural work by the Holy Ghost. Yet, God can use a variety of means to "grease the slide", that is to say, to open a seeking heart to at least hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and be converted.

I see my 37 points as an introduction to the idea that a Christian faith grounded in Scripture isn't a blind faith. The vast majority of unbelievers will be unpersuaded by my arguments for the Bible. For some, however, the "greasing of the slide" may include such argumentation. For others, it might be an act of kindness by a Christian. For others, it might be by contemplating a beautiful sunset. For others, it might be seeing the evil and suffering all around them, and in despair asking themselves, "Is there a solution to all this pain and suffering?". Still others might be struck by the vastness of the universe, and might ask themselves, "Did all this really just come about by chance?"

Food for thought.

(more to come....)

Like many who evangelize, you say that you are a sinner but seem to clearly see yourself, not as a sinner, but as someone who is “saved”. If you really would look at yourself as a sinner, then you would be more skeptical of your intentions and would identify the propagandist within who is steering the wheel. The propagandist wants to add bodies to their group for the sake of additional cover and an increased sense of power.

It is fine for Christians to see themselves as “saved” as long as they continue to see themselves as a sinner. This means that they have to be open to the idea that, as a sinner, they were mistaken about their salvation.

Anyone not capable of that will inevitably become disconnected from the existential reality checks which are the foundation of spiritual development. In other words, they will close themselves off from real-time, objective feedback and oppose it with social and/or subjective beliefs.

All of that is nested within the dilemma of how much of existence or life are we willing to open ourselves to? Also, how much loss, suffering, and death are we willing to open ourselves up to? Those two are the same question. It is the fundamental question.

Does the Bible say this is the "fundamental question?"

When god killed every fetus on earth, was it loving and righteous? And is this mass killing a problem for using the Bible as the source of a pro-life doctrine? Is this not like using Adolph Hitler as the exemplar of Jewish rights?

Are these questions reality checks for you? Or is this just koolaid to the millionth power?

Yahweh is not my God. The stories in the Bible are to serve humanity, not Yahweh. The world, humanity, and the stories in the Bible did not come into existence for the sake of Yahweh. They came into existence for the sake of the Son of Man, or the hero.

Oh, for real. Who's the Son of Man and what does that appellation mean?

The Son of Man represents the next stage of human evolution, but it’s based on a different selection mechanism than nature selecting for fitness. It’s the Logos selecting for story.

Is it right for Fundamentalists to judge 80 million US voters in this way?
Is this a humble view or self-righteous one?
Is it a Christ-like statement?
Is this the “Good News” they bring?

Yes, I am very aware of that...I have several in my family. They even respect the separation of church and state and they acknowledge science (e.g. evolution). I definitely wasn't referring to all Christians. I have absolutely no problem with anyone's belief until it encroaches on my life. (As Hitchens once said, "Enjoy your toys. Just please don't insist that I play with them.")

But the fundies really do scare me. They want a theocracy and they relish the prospect of end of days. They must be kept marginalized from mainstream (sane) society.

I enjoy sharing good news, especially when it is THE Good News!

It is God who has all the power.

I have no idea what "additional cover" means. Explain please.

My "intention" is to obey my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ by sharing the Good News!

As you are well aware, your experience is no different to ppl of other religions, and of ppl that once considered themselves Christians and later stopped believing.

YOU weren't persuaded by your arguments for the Bible, so why expect anyone else would?!

As I've said before, apologetics is a process whereby someone who already believes gives a completely different set of reasons to believe than what persuaded them, and then seem surprised that they're ineffective. Apologetics is clearly for reinforcing one's own beliefs and for trying to bring believers who are beginning to doubt.

If God passes me over, is there anything I can do myself to avoid eternity in hell?

1. I'm almost certain that you have no idea what a fundamentalist is, in a Christian context. Do you know when and why conservative Christians were identified as Fundamentalists?

2. If you did know what a fundamentalist is, you would know that they oppose theocracy.

No, judging 80 million voters that way would be wrong and un-Christlike. There are many Christians who are Democrats. The "progressive" wing of the party specifically and proudly declares their support a woman's "right" to kill her unborn baby. Ever heard of Baal?

One can declare what is righteous (based on Scripture) without being self-righteous. For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. - Romans 3:23

Christ had the annoying habit of calling out evil-doers. Calling a particular group a brood of vipers (which Jesus did) doesn't mesh well with the Kindergarten Sunday School version of Jesus Christ.

No. The Good News is even sinners like you and me can be saved!