Conquer Club

I'm curious,how seriously do the Christians on this forum,or in general, take the obligation as expressed in their holy book, ie 1 peter 3;15?As I read it,it is a call to explain to all who ask,the reason for the hope in their hearts.

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chang50 wrote:I'm curious,how seriously do the Christians on this forum,or in general, take the obligation as expressed in their holy book, ie 1 peter 3;15?As I read it,it is a call to explain to all who ask,the reason for the hope in their hearts.

I most certainly do. Whenever I am asked why I'm alright in a tough situation, the first thing they will hear is that God is sovereign, he is my strength and my comfort. And no situation can take that away from me. I live for him because he lived for me!!

The reason I asked was this seems like a clear obligation yet it is widely ignored by so many who are just 'nominally' Christian,or Christian-lite.The lack of responses here shows this.I asked,all Christians who saw it were obliged to reply,very few did.

chang50 wrote:The reason I asked was this seems like a clear obligation yet it is widely ignored by so many who are just 'nominally' Christian,or Christian-lite.The lack of responses here shows this.I asked,all Christians who saw it were obliged to reply,very few did.

I think you may have misunderstood the verse, and, of course, people don't always like responding to a demand for a reply.

Symm, are you suggesting that if we were digging new out house holes and one of us was whistling, then the other asked, "What are you so happy about?" it would be different from this thread?

2dimes wrote:Symm, are you suggesting that if we were digging new out house holes and one of us was whistling, then the other asked, "What are you so happy about?" it would be different from this thread?

The intricacies of Christian theology often elude me, so I'd have to say "maybe".

chang50 wrote:As I read it,it is a call to explain to all who ask,the reason for the hope in their hearts.

do you find christians who do this admirable or irritating?

Symmetry wrote:

chang50 wrote:The reason I asked was this seems like a clear obligation yet it is widely ignored by so many who are just 'nominally' Christian,or Christian-lite.The lack of responses here shows this.I asked,all Christians who saw it were obliged to reply,very few did.

I think you may have misunderstood the verse, and, of course, people don't always like responding to a demand for a reply.

Possibly I have misunderstood it although it seems clear,and the demand,or obligation to reply, appears to come from the bible itself not the inquirer.

john9blue wrote:

chang50 wrote:As I read it,it is a call to explain to all who ask,the reason for the hope in their hearts.

do you find christians who do this admirable or irritating?

Given that they were asked first,entirely admirable,even if I disagree with their reasons or beliefs.This verse does not allow Christians the option of ignoring the question if I interpret it correctly..

chang50 wrote:

Symmetry wrote:

chang50 wrote:The reason I asked was this seems like a clear obligation yet it is widely ignored by so many who are just 'nominally' Christian,or Christian-lite.The lack of responses here shows this.I asked,all Christians who saw it were obliged to reply,very few did.

I think you may have misunderstood the verse, and, of course, people don't always like responding to a demand for a reply.

Possibly I have misunderstood it although it seems clear,and the demand,or obligation to reply, appears to come from the bible itself not the inquirer.

I'm not sure I see it as a demand or obligation to reply in quite the same way you do. A suggestion for a better Christian, rather than a command.

I wouldn't think anyone a bad Christian if they held back or turned the other cheek.

Symmetry wrote:

chang50 wrote:

Symmetry wrote:

chang50 wrote:The reason I asked was this seems like a clear obligation yet it is widely ignored by so many who are just 'nominally' Christian,or Christian-lite.The lack of responses here shows this.I asked,all Christians who saw it were obliged to reply,very few did.

I think you may have misunderstood the verse, and, of course, people don't always like responding to a demand for a reply.

Possibly I have misunderstood it although it seems clear,and the demand,or obligation to reply, appears to come from the bible itself not the inquirer.

I'm not sure I see it as a demand or obligation to reply in quite the same way you do. A suggestion for a better Christian, rather than a command.

I wouldn't think anyone a bad Christian if they held back or turned the other cheek.

Perhaps a Christian could shed some light on this?

Why would they want to?

Symmetry wrote:Why would they want to?

Why not?

chang50 wrote:

Symmetry wrote:Why would they want to?

Why not?

It's not exactly a hospitable environment you've set up to trap them in.

Symmetry wrote:

chang50 wrote:

Symmetry wrote:Why would they want to?

Why not?

It's not exactly a hospitable environment you've set up to trap them in.

Honest debate was more what I had in mind.

chang50 wrote:

Symmetry wrote:

chang50 wrote:

Symmetry wrote:Why would they want to?

Why not?

It's not exactly a hospitable environment you've set up to trap them in.

Honest debate was more what I had in mind.

Really? You came across as trying to set up a trap so that you could use a set of arguments you'd already prepared.

Symmetry wrote:

chang50 wrote:

Symmetry wrote:

chang50 wrote:

Symmetry wrote:Why would they want to?

Why not?

It's not exactly a hospitable environment you've set up to trap them in.

Honest debate was more what I had in mind.

Really? You came across as trying to set up a trap so that you could use a set of arguments you'd already prepared.

I'm sorry you have such a low opinion of me but its moot anyway as it appears hardly anyone is prepared to pick up the gauntlet contrary to what seems a clear obligation to do so..btw did I respond inhospitably to swimmerdude or 2dimes or attempt to trap them?

chang50 wrote:

Symmetry wrote:

chang50 wrote:

Symmetry wrote:

chang50 wrote:

Symmetry wrote:Why would they want to?

Why not?

It's not exactly a hospitable environment you've set up to trap them in.

Honest debate was more what I had in mind.

Really? You came across as trying to set up a trap so that you could use a set of arguments you'd already prepared.

I'm sorry you have such a low opinion of me but its moot anyway as it appears hardly anyone is prepared to pick up the gauntlet contrary to what seems a clear obligation to do so..btw did I respond inhospitably to swimmerdude or 2dimes or attempt to trap them?

I don't think you're all that sorry.

Perhaps more people will reply if you're more sincere about what you want.

chang50, I wouldn't recommend getting bogged with Symmetry because of the diminishing returns (i.e. posts with Sym quickly become too costly with each additional post).

To turn this around, let's examine the passage:

1 Peter 3:15

New International Version (NIV)

15 But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,

here

1. Worship Christ
2. Prepare to answer questions about your Christian 'hope'

(A) 'Hope' as in hope of eternal salvation?

3. But be nice about it.


Is that about it?

BigBallinStalin wrote:chang50, I wouldn't recommend getting bogged with Symmetry because of the diminishing returns (i.e. posts with Sym quickly become too costly with each additional post).

Chang50, we're not talking to BigBallinStalin anymore, come and hang out on my side of the schoolyard.

I responded... care to reply to that?

swimmerdude99 wrote:I responded... care to reply to that?

I'd be interested in chang50's reply too!

The idea of getting one's strength from God (but not one's self) stems all the way from St. Augustine in the 4th century AD or so (recall his writings on the City of God and the City of Earth). The impact and durability of his ideas are truly amazing!

chang50 wrote:I'm curious,how seriously do the Christians on this forum,or in general, take the obligation as expressed in their holy book, ie 1 peter 3;15?As I read it,it is a call to explain to all who ask,the reason for the hope in their hearts.

Well if you look back over the history of this forum, Christians have showed up in debates and discussions almost unfailingly when people express a sincere desire to learn about Jesus and the Bible. Some have even become Christians partially as a result of the witness here (such as CoffeCream here couple years back). You do, however, need to read that verse in context with the rest of the New Testament, especially the parable of casting pearls before swine (wasting a precious message on scorners and mockers); Jesus' message of the sower and the rocky ground and fertile ground (Mark 4:1-10); and Jesus' example throughout his ministry which primarily focused on the fertile ground of the laypeople around Him. For me personally, that fertile ground is the people who I interact with around me every day at college, at the places where I volunteer, or on the workplace throughout the summer. For example, when I was working at the lab this summer, some of my coworkers were joking around about some dirty sexual act and asking each other if they had done it. I ignored it until eventually my Chinese friend asked me, I said no, at which the rest of my coworkers snickered and reminded him that I was a Christian. He asked if I went to church, where I went, and if he could come with me. It turned out he had come from China a couple years back where he had been force-fed atheism his whole life, and he wanted to know more about this God of the Bible so he could maybe become a Christian. There is a hunger there and yearning to know more; Christians are happy to hear this and share when the door is open!

However throughout my time here on this forum, I have found that generally the regulars here on the forum already heard the gospel message, have checked out the arguments for Christianity, but for various reasons have chosen to reject them. I have no need to waste my time repeating what is already open and available to any earnest seeker; especially when there are resources readily available which can explain the reasons to believe much more clearly than I can. This isn't like Saudi Arabia or some other repressive country where most people have never heard the good news of Jesus. Many here actually have come from a Christian background and turned to atheism/agnosticism as a as a reaction to their strict upbringing or hypocritical parents/family/others around them claiming to be Christians but not living the life. To people like that, the best witness is usually to just live a normal Christian life next to them, be there for them when they're in need, and be ready to share when the opportunity arises. Otherwise I might end up chasing them even farther from the Truth by sharing my faith when it's not wanted or by feeding one of the many trolls who is quite happy to ridicule and mock any religious person. Also there's the aspect of people who try to respond to anything that has the possibility of being contrary to their beliefs and end up talking about things which they know nothing about; take a look at some of the evolution/evidence for God threads if you're wondering what I'm talking about. I personally try to avoid that kinda thing because it doesn't help anyone either.

In addition, if you're wondering why a Christian like myself doesn't post around here more frequently, I'm taking engineering in college right now and it's busy enough as it is. Real life should always takes precedence over an an online forum. I tend to spend an extraordinary amount of time trying to perfect every post I make here, so unfortunately this site ends up being one of the biggest time-wasters of my life. It's hard to stay away, though...as you may have noticed, I usually post a few times, realize how much time I've spent on the forum, and then leave for a period of time until I get lured back in again by some interesting discussion.

BigBallinStalin wrote:

swimmerdude99 wrote:I responded... care to reply to that?

I'd be interested in chang50's reply too!

The idea of getting one's strength from God (but not one's self) stems all the way from St. Augustine in the 4th century AD or so (recall his writings on the City of God and the City of Earth). The impact and durability of his ideas are truly amazing!

I started reading the City of God online a few years back, but had a hard time seeing the application or carry-over to the present day and didn't end up finishing it. I keep hearing about how much theology developed as a result of his writings...I should look more at it again sometime soon.