Answering Email from Atheists

Dear Family, Friends, and Fellow seed sowers. Here's another great witnessing encounter. I hope it encourages you to boldly share the gospel, and gives you ideas on what you could say to objections or questions you encounter as you witness for Christ.

This was an email conversation I had with an atheist last night, via a conglomerate evangelism ministry that I volunteer at. I was glad to answer their objections and hope that they would gain some understanding as to why there must be a Creator (justice and righteousness must prevail), as well as how we should have such gratitude towards such a wonderful God and Savior; for doing what He didn't need to do, and for offering something to us that we don't deserve, and not giving us what we do deserve.

Dear Ms. Sanza,

Thank you for visiting our site to investigate Jesus more. Surrendering your life to God is the most important decision anyone will ever make in their life. I am here to help you to know God better. Let me start by answering your questions and sharing some things with you to consider.

Aren’t you lying about a God who doesn’t exist?

God most certainly does exist. All you have to do is look out side and see the creation. Just as a painting has a painter, and a building has a builder, so creation has a Creator. He is the master Scientist. His amazing design weaved into creation shows a brilliant intelligent God. This is so very evident if you look into anything in creation, for example the complexity of DNA and the little microscopic like machinery that makes the tiniest parts of our being work and reproduce. God is so very evident in creation.

Where does God define marriage the "Bible?

God defined marriage when he instituted it in the beginning. See the book in the Bible called “Genesis”. This is where God created man and woman and told them to multiply and fill the earth with more people.

If there was a God he/she/it would never allow the kind of hate and things you people spread on it’s behalf anyway.

First, God does not teach us to hate others. He cares about people and that is why he sends his Christians to share the gospel of Love with everyone. Also, God clearly tells us throughout the Scriptures that He is a “He”. Jesus himself in the flesh was a male. However, the Triune God, as a spirit has no sexual gender. Only created beings do. However when Jesus came to earth he took on the masculine form. We were created in God’s image. The first human created by God was a male.

You should be ashamed of spreading lies about God, instilling fear and hate in the hearts of people...

Believers are not ashamed of “the gospel of truth” because it truly offers “truth and life”. By this, God offers us a personal relationship with Him and it is available through the Savior Lord Jesus Christ. We only share what God has said. *Note: We are not ashamed or feel guilt any longer over our sins, because God has removed our crimes against Him forever, by the work of Jesus on the cross.

God is so kind that he offers us a warning about our sins and where it will lead us. Just as a parent tells a child to stay away from the fire or they’ll get burned. Since we have sinned “one time” in our life… the decision to rebel against God, (committing a crime against Him), has caused us to be in trouble with Him. Serious trouble.

This God who created all we have, all we see and has given us the blessings in this life that are good… He deserves our respect, honor, and has every right to call us to be accountable for our lives. He has every right to govern over all that he has created and make the rules for those he created and placed into the world that he owns and rules over. The fear we have towards God is a good and useful fear, just as one who knows a cliff is up ahead on the path along a mountain trail (ie. it is good to fear going near the edge for it will end their life if they slip and fall to their death). So it is good to fear offending God and causing his wrath to abide upon us, to fear the consequences (because we know we are guilty). However, God in his love, grace and mercy has offered us a way out of this serious situation… We are criminals who will be called to the eternal court room to have justice served in our court case before God. However, we can escape this Judgment Day if we are humble and gratefully receive the free gift God offers in Jesus Christ; forgiveness of all sins, right standing with God and eternal life in Heaven. Instead of what we rightly deserve – eternal punishment in Hell for our crimes against God. What a wonderful God and Savior! We do not deserve what he is offering us. God himself came to earth to save us from himself, from his wrath and the consequences of the Law of sin and death. He is not only gracious to warn us of the punishment that is coming, and telling us what it is, but also to offer us a way of rescue and escape from that deserved fate…by the shed blood of Jesus Christ and his death on the cross, and victory that came from His resurrection.

This information alone should melt your heart towards God, and assist you to move from the realm of hating God, to having gratitude for all that God has done for you through Jesus Christ. You can have a right relationship with God, know God personally and live free from sin (by way of life and liberty and freedom) that is found only in Jesus Christ. Your sins and the guilt you have over them can be removed permanently, and so can your case before God – if you (1) repent of your sins, forsake them and stay away from sinning against God, (2) by trusting in Jesus Christ. So, Turn to Jesus and cling to him as you would a parachute…knowing the jump is near. Perfect love in Jesus Christ casts out all your fears and allows you to rejoice and thank God for all he has done for you, as he has for me too.

To learn more about you crimes against God visit http://www.needgod.com/ and see the real reason why you need Jesus Christ.

I hope this helps you in your search for the truth.

May you be blessed!

PS> If you have any other questions please feel free to email me. I will answer any reasonable and thoughtful questions you have that will assist you in your search for the truth. However, you will find many answers to your questions through the below reference materials which are available online or at local (or online) libraries. So check them all out first. They will probably answer all your questions or objections.

How to Know God Exists http://www.livingwaters.com/Merchant2/merchant.mv?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=160

Intelligent Design vs. Evolution http://www.amazon.com/gp/search?index=books&linkCode=qs&keywords=0882701665

Scientific Facts in the Bible http://www.amazon.com/gp/search?index=books&linkCode=qs&keywords=0882708791

Real Evidence and Answers http://www.amazon.com/gp/search?index=books&linkCode=qs&keywords=0882709054

Reasonable Discussion about Evolution for Grown Ups http://www.livingwaters.com/Merchant2/merchant.mv?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=163

There are no Atheists http://www.amazon.com/gp/search?index=books&linkCode=qs&keywords=0882709224

Again, I hope this helps you as you seek to find the real truth.

God tells us all that" if we will seek him with all our heart we will find Him". And His Truth will set you free!

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FIREPROOF (the movie) helps Prepare you to Protect your Marriage

My whole family and I went to see it together. It is great for preparing people for the struggles that can take place in a marriage; especially when a spouse becomes selfish. If you plan to get married one day, are engaged, or have been married for years...go see it. I highly recommend this movie!

I am very thankful that the movie was a positive option for families to enjoy; without the fear of blasphemous language, nudity, and things that are offensive to God and those who follow Christ. Knowing that Kirk Cameron, who met his real wife on the set of Growing Pains, came to Christ, and has a ministry that proclaims the biblical gospel… I decided to see the movie.

Kirk Cameron plays the leading role, where much of the plot was focused, his professional experience and quality acting made “Fireproof’s” overall a quality movie. Once the story line “grabbed” me… I was sucked in and enjoyed the movie and the lesson they were teaching the audience. There were several very good action scenes, and one that really shocked me. The seriousness was also broken up at the right times with some well-placed moments of humor. There were several twists and turns in the movie which made me realize in the end, that there were actually several plots taking place all along in many of the earlier scenes. This aspect makes me want to see it again so I can see those plots in more detail in the early parts of the movie.This movie hit on more serious and theological elements than other Christian movies out there. The most obvious was the scene where the gospel message was presented. Leading up to this scene, credibility was given to the gospel by having true Christian character being witnessed by others. In one previous scene, Kirk says to one firefighter, about the faith of another, “You may not agree with him, but you and I both know he is the ‘real deal’.” A comment that all Christians should hope others would say about them.

In the scene where Kirk hears the gospel - I was most impressed. The gospel was presented to him in the correct biblical way (as someone who has violated the commandments of God and is in need of redemption). In a great play on words, after hearing the gospel, Kirk vents to his dad about his wife and their problems, and the words he uses to describe his wife are the very words God uses to describe a sinner’s attitude toward God. The holiness of God and the desperation of man in need of a Savior were clearly articulated in this scene. It gave me goose-bumps to be honest. I prayed that any man in the audience who was not saved and treated his wife as Kirk’s character did, (or a man who claims to be a Christian and yet treats his wife that way), would fall to his knees before Jesus Christ in prayer repenting of his attitude and behavior towards his wife, get right with God, and without any pre-requirements he may think of for his wife… put those aside and be the husband he was created and called to be in Christ.

Another Biblical aspect of the movie that I really liked was the clear demonstration of how the gospel truly changes someone. Paul says that we are “new creations” when we are “in Christ” (2 Cor. 5:17). Contemporary evangelical Christianity often promotes the idea that Christians should behave like the world in order to be “relevant.” The attitude of “You’re cool, and I’m cool, and I like Jesus, so you probably would like Jesus too, why don’t you try Jesus and see how cool He is,” has become a common false “gospel” of our day. This often leads to professing Christians continuing in sin and being a part of the world, when in reality the Bible teaches us to be holy, forsaking sin, and be among the world but not like those in this evil world.

In “Fireproof” the message is very clear that sinners are expected to act like sinners, but that the gospel changes one’s desires from loving their sin to hating their sin, and from hating righteousness to hungering and thirsting after righteousness. It achieves this. The reality of how hard the Christian life can be comes out and brings more Biblical credibility to the story. The movie demonstrates well that “the way of the transgressor is hard” (Proverbs 13:15) and that “obeying God often prevents sinful consequences”, and it does it without insinuating that becoming a Christian will fix all the problems that person has or will have in life (as the false gospel does).

Biblical messages are highlighted throughout the movie in the wisdom of mature Christians. The Biblical idea that “love” is not a feeling or an emotion, but is a decision, is demonstrated both in the gospel presentation, as what Christ has done for us, as well as in how we should love others. Forgiveness also is demonstrated Biblically, not as simply forgetting what others have done to us, but as a decision to not hold anything against others or use the things from the past to harm the relationship; just as Christ has done for us.

“Fireproof” succeeds in showing that the gospel is powerful in killing sinful desires and wrong motives, and in saving sinners for the glory of God. While the movie adequately moved me unto the end, I felt like I had been in a Biblically-centered two-hour counseling session when I left. That may sound negative to some, but I don’t mean that in a negative way. The messages were very clear and Biblically sound and demonstrated how powerful the true gospel of Christ is in repairing relationships as well as in saving lost souls.

I would highly recommend the movie to anyone, as well as the “Love Dare” bible study materials for church study groups. Besides the new movies “The Gospel of John” and “Time Changer”, Fireproof is now one of my top favorite Christian movies. May the messages in it reach the hearts and minds of spouses in this country, and world, as well as in Christian homes –for the saving of souls and the complete transformation of personalities and mind frames within the family unit.