If your not religious, where do you go when you die?

**JiGGaMaN** · 02-02-2009, 01:57 AM

It has been hypothesized i will go to the lake of fire when i die.

**BuffedGuy** · 02-02-2009, 02:07 AM

Originally Posted by gst528i

Too bad there were'nt camera's back than. God chose the perfect time " to talk to prophets"

Faith is the belief in the Unseen.

The Quran says:

"This is the Scripture whereof there is no doubt a guidance unto those who fear God and believe in the Unseen." (Quran, 2:2-3)

The Bible says in a very beautiful verse:

"Blessed art those who have not seen and yet believed." (John, 20:29)

**gst528i** · 02-02-2009, 02:18 AM

but isn't that so convinent. Like god chose the perfect time when humans could not record. It would solve so many issues, and cut the wars by half including the genocides.

So when is the next " man who can talk to god " going to be here. Although i doubt anyone would belive him.

HMMMMMm maybe i can be a new prophet

**BuffedGuy** · 02-02-2009, 02:22 AM

Originally Posted by gst528i

but isn't that so convinent. Like god chose the perfect time when humans could not record. It would solve so many issues, and cut the wars by half including the genocides.

We had this atheist professor in university who taught a class on Christianity. And he would always say "how convenient!" whenever any miracle was being discussed. His sarcasm actually caused one Christian girl to cry and leave class. Nobody challenged the professor, until he said something against Judaism, and then the Jews in the class protested and shut him down. He went back to Christian bashing then.

Anyways, this has nothing to do with the topic, lol. Just reminiscing.

**gst528i** · 02-02-2009, 02:28 AM

Originally Posted by BuffedGuy

We had this atheist professor in university who taught a class on Christianity. And he would always say "how convenient!" whenever any miracle was being discussed. His sarcasm actually caused one Christian girl to cry and leave class. Nobody challenged the professor, until he said something against Judaism, and then the Jews in the class protested and shut him down. He went back to Christian bashing then.

Anyways, this has nothing to do with the topic, lol. Just reminiscing.

I am not an atheist, but i do think some of the stuff is convenient. There is no way history of any religion is correct 100 percent. History shows we are full of shyt.

**Howard Stern** · 02-02-2009, 02:29 AM

"...if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing." -- Galatians 5:2

**BuffedGuy** · 02-02-2009, 02:29 AM

Originally Posted by gst528i

I am not an atheist, but i do think some of the stuff is convenient. There is no way history of any religion is correct 100 percent. History shows we are full of shyt.

So you believe in God but not organized religion?

**gst528i** · 02-02-2009, 02:36 AM

Originally Posted by BuffedGuy

So you believe in God but not organized religion?

Yup. You can't think but know there is a higher being to explain alot of things. But religions just keep us back. Hold us back and keep us frome seeing the big picture.
They cause more problems then they solve.

sorry op

**BuffedGuy** · 02-02-2009, 02:43 AM

Originally Posted by gst528i

Yup. You can't think but know there is a higher being to explain alot of things. But religions just keep us back. Hold us back and keep us frome seeing the big picture.
They cause more problems then they solve.

sorry op

If you believe in God, then what do you believe happens to us after we die?

(I don't know if you already answered this in the thread...I had to lower my gaze from the thread after someone posted what one of the virgins of Paradise will look like, lol.)

EDIT: At least, I'm pulling it back to the original topic.

**Tock** · 02-02-2009, 02:51 AM

I have written in my will that after I'm cremated, my ashes are to be sprinkled in Hell, Michigan
http://www.hell2u.com/
So, I know for a fact that I'm going to Hell after I die . . .

**"Maximus"** · 02-02-2009, 10:20 AM

According to the Bible, there is no activity, feeling, emotion, or thought when someone is dead (Ecclesiastes 9:5, 6, 10).

So per what the Bible says, it's safe to say that when someone dies, their consciousness returns to exactly the same state it was before we were alive. Just as Adam was told after he disobeyed God, "for dust you are and to dust you will return.” (Genesis 3:19) In that sense, humans are no different from animals. Regarding the condition of the dead, it is just as the Bible says: “There is no superiority of the man over the beast” (Ecclesiastes 3:19, 20).

However, I do believe in resurrection and like the Bible clearly shows, I'll be in a deep comma-like sleep when I die.

Just read the following and think about it objectively, whether you're Christian or not!

Max

Virtually everyone considers death to be an unpleasant subject. Most people especially seem to avoid discussing their own death or even thinking about it. On the other hand, they are bombarded by television and movie scenes of people dying in every imaginable way and by stories and images of real deaths featured by the media.

As a result, the death of strangers may appear to be a normal aspect of life. Still, when it comes to the death of a loved one or to our own death, there is nothing normal about it. This is because humans have a deep-seated natural desire to live. We also possess a keen sense of time and a perception of eternity. King Solomon wrote that God “has planted eternity in men’s hearts.” (Ecclesiastes 3:11, The Amplified Bible) Under normal circumstances we want to keep living indefinitely. We want life with no expiration date. There is no indication that animals have such a yearning. They live with no awareness of the future.

The Enormity of Human Potential

Humans not only desire to live indefinitely but also have the potential to remain busy and productive forever. There seems to be no limit to a person’s capacity to learn. It has been said that nothing in nature compares with the human brain when it comes to complexity and resilience. Unlike animals, we have creative minds capable of reasoning and understanding abstract concepts. Scientists have barely scratched the surface when it comes to understanding the potential of the human brain.

Much of this potential remains as we grow older. Neuroscientists have recently learned that most brain functions remain unharmed by the aging process. Researchers working for The Franklin Institute’s Center for Innovation in Science Learning explain: “The human brain is able to continually adapt and rewire itself. Even in old age, it can grow new neurons. Severe mental decline is usually caused by disease, whereas most age-related losses in memory or motor skills simply result from inactivity and a lack of mental exercise and stimulation.”

In other words, if we could keep the brain intellectually stimulated and free from disease, it could keep working indefinitely. “‘The brain,’ declares molecular biologist James Watson, co-discoverer of the physical structure of DNA, ‘is the most complex thing we have yet discovered in our universe.’” A book by neuroscientist Gerald Edelman explains that a section of the brain the size of a match head “contains about a billion connections that can combine in ways which can only be described as hyperastronomical—on the order of ten followed by millions of zeros.”

Does it seem logical that although endowed with such potential, humans should live just a few decades? This sounds as unreasonable as using a powerful locomotive with a long train of freight cars to transport a grain of sand across a distance of just a few inches! Why, then, does mankind have such an enormous capacity for creative thought and learning? Could it be that humans, unlike animals, are not supposed to die at all—that they were created to live forever?

Hope From the God of Life

The fact that we have an inborn desire to live and an enormous capacity to learn leads to a logical conclusion: Humans are designed to live much longer than a mere 70 or 80 years. This, in turn, leads us to another conclusion: There must be a Designer, a Creator, a God. The immutable laws of the physical universe and the unfathomable complexity of life on earth fully support belief in the existence of a Creator.

If, in fact, God created us with the capacity to live forever, why do we die? And what happens after death? Is it God’s purpose to bring the dead back to life? It would seem logical that a wise and powerful God would provide us with answers to these questions, and he has. Consider the following:

▪ Death was not part of God’s original purpose for mankind. The first mention of death in the Bible indicates that dying was not what God originally intended for humans. The Bible account of Genesis explains that to allow the first human couple, Adam and Eve, opportunity to manifest their love and loyalty, God placed a simple test upon them. It consisted of a prohibition against eating from one particular tree. God said: “In the day you eat from it you will positively die.” (Genesis 2:17) Adam and Eve would die only if they rebelled, thus failing the test. The Bible account reveals that they proved disloyal to God, and therefore they died. In this way, imperfection and death were introduced into the human family.

▪ The Bible compares death to sleep. It speaks of ‘falling asleep in death.’ (Psalm 13:3) Prior to resurrecting his friend Lazarus, Jesus explained to his apostles: “Lazarus our friend has gone to rest, but I am journeying there to awaken him from sleep.” And Jesus did just that! The Bible says that when he called, “the man [Lazarus] that had been dead came out” from the “memorial tomb”—fully alive once again!—John 11:11, 38-44.

Why did Jesus speak of death as a sleep? Because a sleeping person is inactive. During deep sleep, there is no consciousness of surroundings or of the passing of time. There is no pain or suffering. Similarly, in death there is no activity or consciousness. But the comparison goes further. With sleep, one expects to wake up. And that is exactly the hope that the Bible offers for the dead.

The Creator himself promises: “From the hand of Sheol [the common grave] I shall redeem them; from death I shall recover them. Where are your stings, O Death? Where is your destructiveness, O Sheol?” (Hosea 13:14) Another Bible prophecy states that God “will actually swallow up death forever, and the Sovereign Lord Jehovah will certainly wipe the tears from all faces.” (Isaiah 25:8) This process of bringing dead ones back to life is called resurrection.

▪ Where will resurrected ones live? As discussed earlier, mankind has a natural desire to live continuously. Where would you want to live forever? Would you be satisfied knowing that after death you would keep on living as part of an abstract universal life force, as some religions teach? Would you desire to continue your existence as a different person, with no memories of who you were before dying? Does it appeal to you to come back to life as an animal or a tree? Given the choice, would you really want to live in a world devoid of all human experience and earthly joys?

Under ideal conditions, would you not love to live on a paradise earth? The hope offered in the Bible is exactly that, namely, to live forever right here on earth. God created the earth for that purpose—to be inhabited by those who will love and serve him forever in happiness. That is why the Bible says: “The righteous themselves will possess the earth, and they will reside forever upon it.”—Psalm 37:29; Isaiah 45:18; 65:21-24.

▪ When will the resurrection take place? The fact that death is compared to sleep indicates that the resurrection does not usually take place immediately after death. A period of “sleeping” takes place between the time of death and the resurrection. In the Bible, a man named Job raised the question: “If an able-bodied man dies can he live again?” Then he answered: “I shall wait [in the grave] until my relief comes. [God] will call, and I myself shall answer.” (Job 14:14, 15) What a joy it will be when that time arrives and the dead are reunited with their loved ones!

No Need for Morbid Fear

Admittedly, the hope that the Bible offers does not necessarily remove all fear of death. It is natural to be apprehensive about the pain and distress that sometimes precede death. Understandably, you may fear the loss of a loved one. And if you fear the sad consequences that your own death might have on your loved ones, that is also natural.

Still, by revealing the true condition of the dead, the Bible helps us to dispel any morbid fear of death. There is no need to fear an afterlife of torture by demons in a burning hell. No need to fear a dark ghostly realm where souls wander restlessly forever. And you need not fear that all the future has to offer is an eternal state of nonexistence. Why? Because God has a limitless memory, and he promises to bring all the dead who are in his memory back to life here on earth. The Bible guarantees this with the words: “The true God is for us a God of saving acts; and to Jehovah the Sovereign Lord belong the ways out from death.”—Psalm 68:20.

***D7M*** · 02-02-2009, 10:27 AM

Hey Maximus, you're not a JW by any chance are you?

**TTexas** · 02-02-2009, 11:01 AM

**Bojangles69** · 02-02-2009, 11:06 AM

OMG texas! funny shit right there

**xlxBigSexyxlx** · 02-02-2009, 11:22 AM

lol....The pope is a funny man

**IronReload04** · 02-02-2009, 09:59 PM

Originally Posted by gst528i

How do you know animals don't think of afterlife? Last time i checked we couldn't read brains.
course i don;t think they can but u never know.
Humans are afraid of death and afraid of nothing after death. Thats why we need to believe in an afterlife.
I would love it if there was an after life and everyone learns every religion is the wrong one and that god had nothing to do with any religions. I would just love that...

Well, that does not answer the question of why or how humans have the capacity to ponder an afterlife. Can animals do it? come on man, you said it yourself.

um yeah, I would say God, if he exists, is not responsible for all the ****ed up religions. You have muslums, christians, jews....All would slice each others throats in the name of their beliefs. Yet their beliefs all revolve around the same origin if I am not mistaking. Thats humans gone wrong. You cant blame God for that.

Jesus came down to earth, did some things (if you believe that), and the human abuse of power and authority, combined with the low intelligance of the average person, really screwed things up royally. Their is a little bit of responsibility that us humans just completely failed at. But some of us are bright enough to see past this and take things for what they are, and understand what Jesus was truly about.

**rockinred** · 02-02-2009, 10:02 PM

Originally Posted by IronReload04

Well, that does not answer the question of why or how humans have the capacity to ponder an afterlife. Can animals do it? come on man, you said it yourself.

um yeah, I would say God, if he exists, is not responsible for all the ****ed up religions. You have muslums, christians, jews....All would slice each others throats in the name of their beliefs. Yet their beliefs all revolve around the same origin if I am not mistaking. Thats humans gone wrong. You cant blame God for that.

Jesus came down to earth, did some things (if you believe that), and the human abuse of power and authority, combined with the low intelligance of the average person, really screwed things up royally. Their is a little bit of responsibility that us humans just completely failed at. But some of us are bright enough to see past this and take things for what they are, and understand what Jesus was truly about.

WOW! I am impressed... that was pretty good. I agree with you for the most part.

**amcon** · 02-02-2009, 10:14 PM

Originally Posted by Howard Stern

"...if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing." -- Galatians 5:2

that was directed to the jews... the pharesees and scribes - it was directed to show us and them that with out faith we have nothing...

**BuffedGuy** · 02-02-2009, 10:48 PM

GST528i, can you answer this question here:

Originally Posted by BuffedGuy

If you believe in God, then what do you believe happens to us after we die?

(I don't know if you already answered this in the thread...I had to lower my gaze from the thread after someone posted what one of the virgins of Paradise will look like, lol.)

EDIT: At least, I'm pulling it back to the original topic.

**0tolerance** · 02-02-2009, 11:05 PM

I'd like to believe that I could re-unite with my family and friends once we are all dead, butthats just my wishful thinking. As others said "lights out" and it's all over. I wish as the years went on that my memories of my loved ones didn't fade away.

**amcon** · 02-02-2009, 11:37 PM

Originally Posted by 0tolerance

I'd like to believe that I could re-unite with my family and friends once we are all dead, butthats just my wishful thinking. As others said "lights out" and it's all over. I wish as the years went on that my memories of my loved ones didn't fade away.

you will bro, it says in the bible old and new test that you will recognize people...

one example: is when the elite of israel tested Christ with a hard question about a wife and marriage and several dead husbands who were brothers, who would she belong to in heaven? thus, we will recognize each other up there...

***RAGE*** · 02-02-2009, 11:41 PM

Originally Posted by amcon

you will bro, it says in the bible old and new test that you will recognize people...

one example: is when the elite of israel tested Christ with a hard question about a wife and marriage and several dead husbands who were brothers, who would she belong to in heaven? thus, we will recognize each other up there...

that is good to know.....

**Kale** · 02-03-2009, 12:09 AM

Originally Posted by Howard Stern

"...if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing." -- Galatians 5:2

Damn I really am fvcked then !!!

**"Maximus"** · 02-03-2009, 09:21 AM

Originally Posted by derek7m

Hey Maximus, you're not a JW by any chance are you?

In short, yes! Well, I still have a long way to go to be a true JW but I'm getting there one step at a time. It's good to see others share similar beliefs like I do..

***D7M*** · 02-03-2009, 09:25 AM

Originally Posted by "Maximus"

In short, yes! Well, I still have a long way to go to be a true JW but I'm getting there one step at a time. It's good to see others share similar beliefs like I do..

Oh I'm not a JW.

I do not subscribe to any religious tradition.

I could just tell from your post that you were a JW.

**DSM4Life** · 02-03-2009, 05:04 PM

**BuffedGuy** · 02-03-2009, 05:08 PM

Originally Posted by derek7m

I could just tell from your post that you were a JW.

Nice call, Derek. Impressive.

**magic32** · 02-03-2009, 08:34 PM

I see.

Originally Posted by "Maximus"

According to the Bible, there is no activity, feeling, emotion, or thought when someone is dead (Ecclesiastes 9:5, 6, 10).

So per what the Bible says, it's safe to say that when someone dies, their consciousness returns to exactly the same state it was before we were alive. Just as Adam was told after he disobeyed God, "for dust you are and to dust you will return.” (Genesis 3:19) In that sense, humans are no different from animals. Regarding the condition of the dead, it is just as the Bible says: “There is no superiority of the man over the beast” (Ecclesiastes 3:19, 20).

I really like your thought processes, and I certainly agree with all of your cut and pasted material, but your independent interpretations below are incorrect and your supporting statements were taken out of context. For example, the "dust to dust" reference is with regard to the body which was made from dust and shall return to it, not your expanded explanation of the soul/spirit. So how does the Bible distinguish man from animals? Simple! All were fashioned by God, but ONLY man had his dust-fashioned body breathed into by God giving us as you put it “consciousness” or the spirit/life part of God that is also eternal. No other creature is promised eternal life:

Gen 2:7 And the LORD God formed man [of] the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.
1Jo 5:13 These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.

Let’s consider your supporting verses and subsequent extrapolations individually:

"for dust you are and to dust you will return.” (Genesis 3:19)
It appears the author meant body, but admittedly this whole verse is confusing. Nevertheless, and as is often the case reading further enhances clarity as expressed by Ecc and supported in numerous places but I'll cite Isa:

Ecclesiastes 12:7 “Then shall the DUST RETURN to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.”
Isa 26:19 Thy dead [men] shall live, [together with] my dead body shall they arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust: for thy dew [is as] the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead.

In that sense, humans are no different from animals. Regarding the condition of the dead, it is just as the Bible says: “There is no superiority of the man over the beast” (Ecclesiastes 3:19, 20).
Genesis 2, clearly illustrates both man’s separatism (creation in His image) and superiority over all other creation by continually speaking of man’s dominion:

26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.
28 And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.

However, I do believe in resurrection and like the Bible clearly shows, I'll be in a deep comma-like sleep when I die.
How can you reconcile your belief in man’s equality with animals with a human-ONLY resurrection? Why only humans? Shouldn’t Spot and Fluffy also be resurrected as equals? This is indicative of if not superiority at least separatism/favoritism and the very reason Christ died, i.e. to provide man’s (not Fido’s) way back to God.

***D7M*** · 02-03-2009, 08:40 PM

damn, Magic, I'm impressed.

**magic32** · 02-03-2009, 08:48 PM

Quote:
Originally Posted by Howard Stern
"...if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing." -- Galatians 5:2

Originally Posted by Kale

Damn I really am fvcked then !!!

This just means that circumcision has no redemptive/salvation value. Many people think that their acts will get them into Heaven, i.e. circumcision, baptism, generosity, not lying, etc. Biblically speaking there is only one way, namely Christ. More specifically, belief in the deity of Christ, and the following of His commandments.

This is not to say that if you truly believe, but break a commandment you are lost, because He died for our past, present and future sins. However, the Bible says that God knows the hearts of man, and will not be mocked. So if you're not truthful and/or continue bangin' your woman regularly but trying to use the loophole by asking forgiveness (via confession, prayer, etc.) you're not really being repentant and will not receive said forgiveness.

Gen 6:5 And GOD saw that the wickedness of man [was] great in the earth, and [that] every imagination of the thoughts of his heart [was] only evil continually.
Gal 6:7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.