How does an Atheist becomes a Christian.

I do not believe in God, yet I find the scriptures very comforting. I could cope better with the death of loved ones and my own death if I could force myself somehow to believe in God and become a Christian.

I wish I believed in God. I like the idea of it all.

How does one who absolutely does not believe in God can become a believer in order to appease his mind about death and the afterlife?

Try Roman's Road....

www.gotquestions.org...

A set of versus, out of Roman's easily describes the salvation path. You don't have to click the link at the bottom, but they send additional info.

Essentially Roman's road is simply beleiving in Christ and his attonement for sins, confessing your sins, and accepting that this is God's free gift, salvation to eternal life after death. It's so simple, no one really gets it. If you have additional questions let me know here or U2U me.

What an interesting topic...and I'm not sure i have the correct answer for you.

I can only say, that if you want to believe in God, reach out to him with your whole heart, mind and soul in prayer, and ask him to guide you.

reply to post by WhisperingWinds




Well I do not believe in God. So my question is how can I start believing. I have read the bible many times and still do after I lost my little brother. It is from an highly egoistical point of view that I wished I could believe in him, I am aware of it. If God is real did he Chose from birth who would believe in him and who would not?

You don't have to believe in God to take comfort in the scriptures. There are MANY wonderful stories in the bible, parables, lessons, guiding words and beautiful philosophies.One of my favorites is something Jesus said:

"Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me."

This is one verse that reminds me to be charitable to those in need. I'm an atheist.

I find it rather simple.

I believe in a higher power, but refuse to label it, I look back on history and appreciate the messengers that come to share the love and the light.

I do not fall for the various distortions that have happened to their teachings over time though.

Just know the truth in your heart and you shall not be over looked by the creator, no body can run or hide from the creator, it is inevitable.

Please don't feel the need to turn to conformist religion out of fear, that's the cancer that has gripped the human race through all our history.

reply to post by AdamLaw


Also, if you are in confusion over beleive, try reading this book.

www.amazon.com... hvrand=932752781184462824&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=b&ref=pd_sl_3txbqh163x_b

The author, Lee Strobel was a journalist with a masters from Harvard who set about trying to DISPROVE the claims of Christ using US legal laws of allowable evidence. The problem was, he found that, even when applying US legal doctrine to all of the evidance, he couldn't come to that conclusion. Instead, beyond a reasonable doubt, the evidence showed Christ is exactly who HE said HE was.

There is a movie version too. I have seen it at blockbuster. Clips are on youtube. Here is the author's website:
www.leestrobel.com

If your really serious then watch this series. 72 parts but worth it!
Here is one of my favorite quotes by dmx.
"Because i found the devil here i know that GOD is real."

And here is a another video i find inspirational.
www.abovetopsecret.com...
Check out the second video in that thread i find that munkey from korn is pretty damn cool.



Also here is another tread that can be enlightening but is simple!

Originally posted by AdamLaw
I do not believe in God, yet I find the scriptures very comforting. I could cope better with the death of loved ones and my own death if I could force myself somehow to believe in God and become a Christian.

I wish I believed in God. I like the idea of it all.

How does one who absolutely does not believe in God can become a believer in order to appease his mind about death and the afterlife?

edit on 5-10-2012 by AdamLaw because: (no reason given)

edit on 5-10-2012 by AdamLaw because: (no reason given)

Id say that first an Atheist must become a Theist then a Christian. I suggest listening to Dr. Ravi Zacharias for great arguments against Atheism.

Originally posted by deadeyedick
If your really serious then watch this series. 72 parts but worth it!
Here is one of my favorite quotes by dmx.
"Because i found the devil here i know that GOD is real."

And here is a another video i find inspirational.
www.abovetopsecret.com...
Check out the second video in that thread i find that munkey from korn is pretty damn cool.

Ok thank you. Will watch it, but again, as interesting as it is, the main problem is I do not believe it is real. I just wish it was real.

There are many non-denominational worship centers around. Here you will find a variety of all people from the scum of the earth wanting redemption to the best around. They believe in God just not your different sects. You might be at ease to talk to one of the minsters or pastors for a second as they are regular people.

No one can force you to believe...A belief in a higher power can not be forced and it is honestly a very soul searching decision. I know many atheists "who grew up" as they put it, they asked for a sign and received it...or they stumbled on it during meditation.Only you know what is true for you and your soul... No one can make that decision for you....

I do not believe in a God...I believe in many..
There are lots of good lessons to be found in all religious matter.
I hope you find what you are looking for.......

Originally posted by Sinny
I find it rather simple.

I believe in a higher power, but refuse to label it, I look back on history and appreciate the messengers that come to share the love and the light.

I do not fall for the various distortions that have happened to their teachings over time though.

Just know the truth in your heart and you shall not be over looked by the creator, no body can run or hide from the creator, it is inevitable.

Please don't feel the need to turn to conformist religion out of fear, that's the cancer that has gripped the human race through all our history.

edit on 5-10-2012 by Sinny because: (no reason given)

Ditto...
There are some very comforting scriptures (and some crazy junk) but I have found God in so much more than a book. Go out on a very dark night let your eyes adjust and behold the majesty of the heavens, there are countless suns surrounded by countless worlds. The universe in all the chaos and harmony helped me believe in a Creator, albeit one of all Religions however.

reply to post by AdamLaw

First and foremost, Christian faith is about committing yourself to God in trust,
The "believing that something is true" is almost secondary, a side-effect.
So if you're not yet convinced about what is true, but want to believe, why not try the act of trust on its own?
It will do as a starting point.
Remember the father's cry in the gospel story- "Lord, I believe- help thou my unbelief"?

I was an atheist who did become a Christian, and recently wrote a thread about it, but in my case I didn't actually want to become a Christian until it was happening.

Originally posted by AdamLaw
I do not believe in God, yet I find the scriptures very comforting. I could cope better with the death of loved ones and my own death if I could force myself somehow to believe in God and become a Christian.

I wish I believed in God. I like the idea of it all.

How does one who absolutely does not believe in God can become a believer in order to appease his mind about death and the afterlife?

edit on 5-10-2012 by AdamLaw because: (no reason given)

edit on 5-10-2012 by AdamLaw because: (no reason given)

On your own you can't come to him, he has to draw you to him or you won't believe. How does he draw you to him you might ask? Reflect back on your life, acknowledge the things you did wrong, the things you said or did that hurt other people, things you can't take back no matter how much you try but wish you could. Do you feel sorry for your wrongs and wish to change so you no longer do them? Do you desire redemption and salvation from yourself?

Speaking from my own point of view i was agnostic to the point i didn't believe either 2 years ago but i did go to sunday school as a kid, but i did alot of bad things in my life, things i wish i could undo but could not, i hurt other people in my own pain and anger, even my own family. Only one choice offered me redemption from the things i did and said and that is Jesus the Christ. You are not without hope, he is your only hope. Neither are you without faith, because it takes even a small portion of faith to make the step you did to acknowledge you do not know everything about what comes after death.

If you want to believe, go into a room and shut the door alone and pray. Your prayer can consist of asking Jesus to forgive you for your wrongs, reflect back on them and knowledge your wrong doings, to come into your heart and change your spirit so that you can do his will. You can ask him to show you who he is. If you can hit your knees and ask him, then you can believe all you have to do is surrender to him and humble yourself before the King and let him have all your pain, let go your hate and your anger and your grudges and ask him for his inner peace and joy.

The same way a Christian becomes an atheist. Examine your beliefs. Ask yourself why you believe what you believe.

I do not believe in God, yet I find the scriptures very comforting. I could cope better with the death of loved ones and my own death if I could force myself somehow to believe in God and become a Christian.

Interesting. I have found I handle death easier now than when I was a Christian. That aside, you either believe or you don't. There is no forcing. There are some wise words in the bible. There are also some crazy ones.

How does one who absolutely does not believe in God can become a believer in order to appease his mind about death and the afterlife?

You don't. Not to appease your mind anyway. Either you believe "God" is speaking to you personally, and has given you a desire to know more about him, or you don't. Either you make a choice to follow a path that teaches you more about "God", to see if it's a path you want your life to take, or you don't. It's all about choices. And you have to make them.

I personally do not believe in a "God". However, I feel I must make allowances for the possibility of a being that is far beyond my comprehension. I just don't see it as being worthy of worship, or divinity. And I see genuine religion as mans attempt to understand and know something that is far beyond their grasp.

Good luck in your search for appeasement. But I think you'll find more of it within, than without.

My last piece of advice is if you want to become a Christian you need to believe Jesus Christ is your savior...and many denominations will argue other petty things like works and prayers and what not but that is it. Profess that Jesus is your savior.

Now believing in God to me is a little more universal and that is accepting you have a creator and that world and Universe was created by this creator (without all the doctrine, scriptures and prophets).

Originally posted by AdamLaw
reply to post by WhisperingWinds

 

Well I do not believe in God. So my question is how can I start believing. I have read the bible many times and still do after I lost my little brother. It is from an highly egoistical point of view that I wished I could believe in him, I am aware of it. If God is real did he Chose from birth who would believe in him and who would not?

edit on 5-10-2012 by AdamLaw because: (no reason given)

well..if you don't believe in God, perhaps you can start with a prayer..telling him that you don't believe , but you would like to? Is that not what this thread is about..or do you have hidden agendas and are just being manipulative about it?

If he is real, I'm sure you will get some sort of answer.

If you are just being manipulative , you will reap what you sew..is my guess.

reply to post by Klassified

I personally do not believe in a "God". However, I feel I must make allowances for the possibility of a being that is far beyond my comprehension. I just don't see it as being worthy of worship, or divinity. And I see genuine religion as mans attempt to understand and know something that is far beyond their grasp.

Good luck in your search for appeasement. But I think you'll find more of it within, than without.

Klass, this is brilliant, and deserves repeating.

Thanks for your input (not even my thread, but thanks!)

To the OP:
Study, read, explore, and open your mind.....objectively. Even if you don't "become" a Christian, you will find comfort among other religions. I believe we reincarnate until our souls are "ready", and then reunite with the Divine.

No religion yet has explained it well; but, the Tibetan Book of the Dead really resonated with me.

Keep digging. You'll find what you need.

reply to post by deadeyedick

"Because i found the devil here i know that GOD is real."

hello, the quote above sums it up for me, i too always wanted to believe in God but i wanted proof. i also always used to ask ''why would God let all these people in the world suffer'', but it was only when i began to see the corruption involved in everything that i realised God wasn't the one causing the suffering in the world, one of the main things that shocked me to the core and really woke me up to reality was when i watched a programme on PSTV called ''the true history of marijuana'' by massimo mazzucco, this explained how bankers, oil companies, pharma companies and the government used propaganda to make marijuana illegal and how the environment, economy and peoples health have seriously deteriorate and suffered as a direct consequence.

this then lead me on to various other astonishing revelations such as the truth about 9/11 and the ''Cancer The Forbidden Cures'' also by massimo mazzucco, and many many other topics.

i couldn't for the life in me understand how other humans could be so evil, just pure evil, this then made me realise that the devil was real, and therefore so is God.

The best lie Satan ever told was that he didn't exist

I also firmly believe that choosing a religion is not important as we are all the same at the end of the day and i don't particularly agree with giving groups of people lables, to me this just causes separation, and the elite of this world use religion as a tool to control and separate us.

I would also like to point out that before all of the above ocurred a colleague of mine suggested to me and my husband that if we really want to believe in God then all we have to do is ask Him to show us the truth, we both did, although neither of us told each other we had. When we did start our learning curve and saw the evil we both realised in the same instant that we knew God was without a shadow of a doubt real

But believe me, it shook us to the core at first and our whole world turned up side down as it was completely life altering, but things have got much easier as we started to process all of the new information we had learnt and i wouldn't go back to my old way of life for anything at all

i hope this is of some help, thank you

One of my very favorite threads on the whole of ATS--- a fine testament of genuine humility, regardless of your personal religious beliefs, or lack thereof.

How An Atheist Became A Christian

Personally, I believe that there is a God-shaped hole in all of us. However, many try to fill it with a variety of substitutes--- money, pride, reason, lust, religion, children, possessions, work, food, drugs, alcohol, hobbies-- you name it, and someone has used it at one time or another as a make-shift God-hole filler.
Belief in God denotes accountability, therefore, especially nowadays, mankind avoids that reckoning altogether.