Atheists

[AndersonD]

My colleague at work is an atheist. Anyone have suggestions how to converse about God? I feel like I am casting my pearls before swine. He's stunned that I am a creationist, believe in an afterlife, don't swear, etc.. and anyone who believes in God is using him as their crutch. To believe in God is to be lazy and simple minded.

[AndersonD]

I asked him if he believes in good and evil. "No, society determines what is right and wrong." I asked him if he ascribes to Lennon's "Imagine". Well, sort of.

[Soloist]

Prove to them otherwise by your personal conduct. Answer when asked but there isn’t any reason to challenge them unless they are actually looking. Don’t beat at walls, wait till they open the gate.

[AndersonD]

Another example after I shared that I believe in two forces, good and evil. "So, why didn't God destroy Satan, just kill him?".

Asked him if he believes in miracles or has experienced a miraculous event in his life "No, I have never experienced a miracle."

[AndersonD]

Do you fear death? Atheists, "Yes, I fear death." Then he looked at me, "Do you fear death?" To which I said, "Yes, I fear death. It's so final." And then shared that I look forward to the next life. His response, "Why would anyone want to live eternally? I certainly don't!"

My colleague is polite, funny and smart. We're friends but when he tells me that religion is the single worst construct by humanity, I am left speechless.

[NedFlanders]

As an atheist most my life maybe I could help?

It sounds like you’re asking too much on a moral basis which to Him is so subjective. You will go no where.

For me I didn’t know what love was because to the world it is mostly emotion. Try to maybe define things more. I like the example of love because when you start digging into it Christ’s sacrifice of Himself for the benefit of others is the perfect picture of an act of love to help a person see.

Don’t let him settle at the point that he is good enough because morally he thinks he is. This has to be done without hell condemnation which doesn’t point to the kingdom of God but to fear. Fear is something that happens in a persons conscience as the Spirit applies pressure and shouldn’t necessarily be something we strive to give them.

The Gospel isn’t about salvation or save me from hell. That never works. The Gospel Christ preached was the Gospel of the kingdom of God according to scripture. If you don’t get this or your not sharing the complete Gospel then stop and go back to scripture with much prayer. People need transformation and translation into the kingdom now that Paul mentions in Colossians 1. If you aren’t offering them this then you have offered them nothing - especially a smart reasoning atheist.

[AndersonD]

As an atheist most my life maybe I could help?

It sounds like you’re asking too much on a moral basis which to Him is so subjective. You will go no where.

For me I didn’t know what love was because to the world it is mostly emotion. Try to maybe define things more. I like the example of love because when you start digging into it Christ’s sacrifice of Himself for the benefit of others is the perfect picture of an act of love to help a person see.

Don’t let him settle at the point that he is good enough because morally he thinks he is. This has to be done without hell condemnation which doesn’t point to the kingdom of God but to fear. Fear is something that happens in a persons conscience as the Spirit applies pressure and shouldn’t necessarily be something we strive to give them.

The Gospel isn’t about salvation or save me from hell. That never works. The Gospel Christ preached was the Gospel of the kingdom of God according to scripture. If you don’t get this or your not sharing the complete Gospel then stop and go back to scripture with much prayer. People need transformation and translation into the kingdom now that Paul mentions in Colossians 1. If you aren’t offering them this then you have offered them nothing - especially a smart reasoning atheist.

Thank you for your input.

I am afraid that I don't understand, "the Gospel isn't about salvation". So I should focus instead on "the kingdom of God"?

[NedFlanders]

Do you fear death? Atheists, "Yes, I fear death." Then he looked at me, "Do you fear death?" To which I said, "Yes, I fear death. It's so final." And then shared that I look forward to the next life. His response, "Why would anyone want to live eternally? I certainly don't!"

My colleague is polite, funny and smart. We're friends but when he tells me that religion is the single worst construct by humanity, I am left speechless.

But he is right. One definition of religion is - a common belief system. The belief system of not submitting ourselves wholly to God is the worst mistake of human that results in the worst construct that he speaks of.

An atheists perspective needs to change and that largely done by reconsidering what things actually mean. Maybe we need that more than we realize too in order to engage with them that they maybe right if we listen to their intent.

After you agree with him that religion is awful then tell him that there are different religions though. And that the scripture tells us what is the right and good religion. And since James says about visiting the fatherless and widows and being unspotted and different from the world (which he knows is evil) he likely will be the one speechless, as I have never had anyone disagree even the most staunch atheist after responding this way.

[NedFlanders]

As an atheist most my life maybe I could help?

It sounds like you’re asking too much on a moral basis which to Him is so subjective. You will go no where.

For me I didn’t know what love was because to the world it is mostly emotion. Try to maybe define things more. I like the example of love because when you start digging into it Christ’s sacrifice of Himself for the benefit of others is the perfect picture of an act of love to help a person see.

Don’t let him settle at the point that he is good enough because morally he thinks he is. This has to be done without hell condemnation which doesn’t point to the kingdom of God but to fear. Fear is something that happens in a persons conscience as the Spirit applies pressure and shouldn’t necessarily be something we strive to give them.

The Gospel isn’t about salvation or save me from hell. That never works. The Gospel Christ preached was the Gospel of the kingdom of God according to scripture. If you don’t get this or your not sharing the complete Gospel then stop and go back to scripture with much prayer. People need transformation and translation into the kingdom now that Paul mentions in Colossians 1. If you aren’t offering them this then you have offered them nothing - especially a smart reasoning atheist.

Thank you for your input.

I am afraid that I don't understand, "the Gospel isn't about salvation". So I should focus instead on "the kingdom of God"?

Christ said that he who seeks to save his life will lose it. If we preach a save me Gospel to avoid hell fire we fail these people because it has a selfish intent to it.

Christ said to first seek the kingdom of God and His righteousness. In John 3, Christ tells us being born again is about seeing and entering the kingdom of God. In Romans Paul tells us the Kingdom of God is peace, righteousness and joy in the Holy Ghost. In the Lord’s Prayer Christ prays for God’s kingdom to be present here on earth.
The peace of God that passes all understanding is something God wants to give us now and that is yes through the sacrifice of Christ.
Presenting the Gospel of the kingdom of God that the scripture says Christ preached paints a compelling picture of the attributes of God playing out in our lives because we are wholly surrendered to Him and His will. It gives something for people to give their lives to, to be a part of - not just something to get. It gives them purpose - atheists that don’t believe in the afterlife don’t have an eternal purpose. A save me Gospel doesn’t give them a reason to live - Christ came to give us life and to give it more abundantly - not to give us roses and ease but purpose and excitement about being a part of something so much greater than ourselves.

[Neto]

Do you fear death? Atheists, "Yes, I fear death." Then he looked at me, "Do you fear death?" To which I said, "Yes, I fear death. It's so final." And then shared that I look forward to the next life. His response, "Why would anyone want to live eternally? I certainly don't!"

My colleague is polite, funny and smart. We're friends but when he tells me that religion is the single worst construct by humanity, I am left speechless.

The only atheist I know well is one that used to be a Christian, so I think it's pretty much a completely different situation. So maybe I don't have anything to add to what others have already said. I'll just say two things.

1.) re; fearing death
Personally, I am not afraid of death, although I may experience some fear when it comes close, or at that moment. (The reason I'm not is mostly due to having gone through years of depression, where I begged God to take me, especially when things were going well in my life. I wanted to die happy.) Eternal life is not really about never dying - it is about being with Jesus. There is also the big thing of being free of temptation, and the transformation when Christ returns in the air. Escaping hell is a thing too, of course, but if someone doesn't love God now, then being in heaven with him might not be all that great. (And those are the only two options.)

2.) re: his comment about religion:
I would ask him to describe his view of Christianity, being prepared to answer him back, IF he asks how you view it yourself. (That is, I don't think I'd get into an argument with him about it. I don't know, maybe someone else here would suggest asking him if he would like to hear your view of what Christianity is, what it involves, what it does for you, etc. But I'd for sure let him talk first, and hear him. Listen not so much for errors in what he says, but for hints as to hurts in his life that Jesus can heal.) I for sure would not do the "Christianity is not a religion, it is a relationship" argument. Maybe it works for some people, but I don't think it is really accurate, from the Biblical standpoint. It IS a religion. James talks about what 'True Religion" is, and he's actually talking to believers.