YouTube - 2.1 Deconversion: Prayer

Here is another post in my series answering Evid3nc3's Youtube videos discussing why he walked away from Christianity. It's been a while so in case you didn't see the other posts or Evid3nc3's series let me just say that this is a great series of videos describing the process that one man underwent in leaving Christianity. In the following video, he discusses why prayer led him away from God.




I am very surprised that I have read that many apostates and atheists find these arguments good. The main problem with his arguments it makes me wonder if he understood what the Assemblies of God teach about prayer. Like him I grew up thinking that prayer was as he initially defined it. But like him I was a child at the time. Also like him, I also came to the conclusion that we much pray according to God's will. But there is several differences between what the Assemblies of God teaches and what you he has has presented.

1. God's will isn't subjective. If you want to know God's plan for your life and your purpose, you can know it. One way to know is to see if what you think God's will is lines up with the Bible. If it does not then you know it's you who is wrong.
2. Why would God grant the selfish prayers we pray? If the point of prayer is for us to commune with God and to draw closer to God, then why would God give us superpowers or make us a robot or and flight of fancy we might imagine? How would that help us? It wouldn't. Thankfully he seemed to have realized that.
3. God does not want us to just pray for things that might happen anyway. I learned that God does supply our needs.  Sometimes not the way we expect but what is best.
4. I also notice  that people just amaze me when they talk about prayer. Can this guy really say all the time in Church he never experienced nor ever seen God move miraculously and intervene in his life or anyone he knows? Has he never seen the peace of God manifested in the life of one whom has not natural reason to be peace of mind? I've seen God bless and help me and those I know in ways that defy description or understanding. Just for starters. One of my first cousins was murdered 5 years ago and my aunt blesses and praises God (as we all do) for keeping her and comforting her. I know people God healed of cancer after medical science gave up on them. I myself was healed of juvenile arthritis. Our church mother was hit by a hummer 3 years ago and was told she would never fully recover, but she has. I could go on and on. All of these things build a relationship with God founded on the fact that God shows us that no matter what happens we can trust God.
5. That's the number one thing I hear missing from the stories ex-Christians tell: a relationship. Where God talks and they listen.

I've spent some time thinking about apostasy. The Bible talks about becoming a Christian from the point of view of a complete change. The Bible uses the same language as in a caterpillar turning into a butterfly. Once a caterpillar becomes a butterfly the animal can never turn back into a caterpillar. Same thing is true of a born-again Christian.

Romans 12:2 says

²Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

The word translated "transformed" is "Metamorphoo" and we get the word "metamorphosis" from it.  You can't undo this once God starts this process. This is also how we know that the will of God is. 


One last thing: How do we know that the purpose is for prayer and living this Christian life is? the Bible tells us.

²⁸And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. ²⁹For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. - Romans 8:28-29

Why would I not serve a God I can trust?

YouTube - 2.1 Deconversion: Prayer

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Responding to YouTube - Evid3nc3's Channel part 2

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.Here is the next part of my series of post answering videos on Evid3nc3's channel concerning Atheism and Christianity The videos were pointed out to me hudsonryan on Twitter. He challenged me to watch all of them. I think the best way to handle this is to respond to many of them. In this video a worldview and a concept of God is explained. I find almost nothing to disagree with. He is right. I don't think anyone gives up believing in God when they once did by one "magic argument". It is most likely a progression. And I also agree that the "nodes" in his network makes sense and those are the main points of attacks on atheism and historically is where most atheists argue against Christianity. I look forward to interacting with his videos regarding those arguments and why I don't think those arguments do not work

Responding to YouTube - Evid3nc3's Channel part 1

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Here is the first part of my series of post answering videos on Evid3nc3's channel concerning Atheism and Christianity The videos were pointed out to me hudsonryan on Twitter. He challenged me to watch all of them. I think the best way to handle this is to respond to many of them. So far I find that the first three videos very interesting. It's a man person explaining why he is no longer a Christian. In the following video he attempts to explain and prove that he used to be real, born-again Christian. Watch the video below:






Several things stand out to me that bear mentioning. I think that he is totally sincere. I also think that he explains what it means to be a Christian almost perfectly. Under his definition, I think he's right he really was a Christian. However does his definition of Christianity match what the Bible says? Let us table the discussion for later as to whether or not the Bible is truly God's word and instead consider if it matches what he says. I'm in a great position to comment on his experience as he has related it. I grew up in the Church of God in Christ which is the sister denomination of the Assemblies of God. The story of the split between the two is a story for another time, but suffice to say they began at the same time in history under the same leadership and the same circumstances! I can honestly say that I heard everything he has said before about the "born-again" experience and the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. These are important to me also...however it is not important to every single Christian. Under the Biblical definition, you don't have to have these things and still be a Christian. As a matter of fact, I've seen people have experiences like these every Sunday and not claim to be saved. They have profound emotional responses, yet there is no change in their lifestyle or thought patterns when they leave the church until the next time they come back. They most likely believe in God but they are not Christians. They have a relationship with God but it's not like the relationship the Bible describes.

Let me be clear: Nothing described in the video is enough to qualify for being a true Christian. Let us see what the Bible has to say.

1. Believing that God exists is neccessary but not sufficient in being a Christian.

You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.James 2:19

2. Believing that Jesus atoned for your sins is what makes you a Christian - True. But how do you know when it's genuine and not just head knowlege?

¹⁸Dear children, this is the last hour; and as you have heard that the antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come. This is how we know it is the last hour. ¹⁹They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us. - 1 John 2:18-19

People leaving the church is nothing new. It is nothing to get concerned over nor proves that Christianity isn't true.


3. The video does not talk about the man's life or whether or not it changed from before he gave his life to Christ. I myself experienced much change. I stopped  being as concerned with myself and began to care about others and fulfilling God's plan for my life. I no longer had some of the same sinful desires and attitudes that I had before salvation. And those things that I still have/had I experienced the desire to put those under control and to work at overcoming them. This is what the Bible says.

¹⁶So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. ¹⁷For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want. ¹⁸But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law.
 ¹⁹The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; ²⁰idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions ²¹and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
 ²²But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. ²⁴Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. ²⁵Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. ²⁶Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other. - Galatians 5: 16-26

Let me make sure I'm clear: if your life is nor characterized by verses 22-25, you are not saved. I'm not saying that the person in the video lived or lives like verses 19-21 but it is my experience that people who live like that are not going to be calling themselves a Christian for long.

4. A personal relationship with God  is important but I've got to ask how deep was it? Did God ever give you direction on how to witness? Did God ever tell you change what you do? To be honest, I realize such questions does not mean anything to a non-Christian. However even if you disagree, you can't argue with what the Bible says. A relationship with God transforms you. You learn more about God and He makes you more like Jesus,.

 ¹Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. ²Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. Romans 12:1-2

And what is the point of this relationship with God?

²⁸And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. ²⁹For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. - Romans 8:28-29

Unfortunately, this conviction has two responses: we either accept it and begin our relationship with God in Christ or we miss it - despising the gift and deserving the condemnation and the guilt. I never understood how anyone could accuse Christianity of trying to control people through guilt because it is about freeing people from guilt and shame.

¹Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, ²because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. ³For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in sinful man, ⁴in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit. - Romans 8:1-4

Again for clarification - argument is that according to scripture once a person becomes born-again and is transformed - he can't become unborn-again. I'm more than willing to agree that a person can think they are born again but when the chips are down, they fall away. One thing that comes to mind as evidence for a relationship with God is that when God says "No, you can't have this." Or  "No, I have something else in mind." you not only realize that these are just as viable and as possible as God saying "Yes" to a prayer but that you don't get mad. God is not obligated to do anything we want. It's the other way around. And the closer we get to him, those desires change to align with those of God himself as in Romans 12:1,2.

6.The Bible clearly shows one cannot be a believer and die an apostate. If you stop believing than you never believed in the first place

 ⁴It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, ⁵who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age, ⁶if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance, because to their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace.- Hebrews 6:4-6

Responding to YouTube - Evid3nc3's Channel

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I've been challenged by hudsonryan on Twitter by a serious of videos on YouTube that he believes proves atheism is the only honest worldview that a person can hold and is true while the Christian World view is false. Unfortunately, he assumes because I am a Christian I have not and will not consider any other view point. In an attempt to open a dialog and rise above the assertions being leveled without proof, I have begun a new series of articles that will answer some of these videos. I will post the video and respond to it. It is my hope the hudsonryan and others will respond to my posts and explain their viewpoint insuring a useful dialogue. I welcome comments on the post themselves or full responses on their own  blog.

YouTube - Evid3nc3's Channel