Who would you rather be in the company of?

[Madrid]

Who would you rather be in the company of?

A) A person who believes that there are omniscient & omnipotent powers, believes that Jesus died for our sins, believes that God created man and the earth, but is dishonest to himself & others, cheats, steals, is disrespectful toward others & hits others.

B) A person who doesn't care one iota whether or not there are omniscient & omnipotent powers, doesn't care one iota about Jesus and doesn't care how man & the earth came into existence, but is honest to himself & others, is very generous with his time & money, is trustworthy, is reliable & treats others with respect.

[Slug1]

Both actually... one I can plant a seed in and as God wills, lead them to Christ. Since the 1st option seems to be a majority of Christians these day, I'll continue to counsel and help them understand their walk with Christ better. How their walk with Christ can be easier the more they allow Him to work in them so that they can get closer to Him by understanding how their sinful actions distance them from Jesus.

[Reynolds357]

Who would you rather be in the company of?

A) A person who believes that there are omniscient & omnipotent powers, believes that Jesus died for our sins, believes that God created man and the earth, but is dishonest to himself & others, cheats, steals, is disrespectful toward others & hits others.

B) A person who doesn't care one iota whether or not there are omniscient & omnipotent powers, doesn't care one iota about Jesus and doesn't care how man & the earth came into existence, but is honest to himself & others, is very generous with his time & money, is trustworthy, is reliable & treats others with respect.

Believing in God is nothing special. The Demons believe in Him. Hopefully, I can make a difference in the lives of both your above mentioned individuals. Sounds to me that they both need a Savior.

[chisel]

Hi Madrid,

The question is actually quite pointless because the voting only determines who is most pleasant to be around, and not who is right. The only logical conclusion that
one can draw is that Christians, just like everybody else would rather be around pleasant people.

Suppose we all choose that we'd rather be with the lying, cheating, disrespectful believer...Would that prove belief in the Christian God right? Not at all.

One can create these dilemma type questions on any subject, take for instance the following:

Madrid, where would you rather stay?

Option A: The Hilton Hotel Maldives, where everybody believes that 1 + 1 = 11.
Option B: The prison in downtown La Paz, where everybody believes that 1 + 1 = 2.

Naturally any clear thinking person would choose option A, so then what do we conclude? That maths isn't important? That maths is wrong?

Or is there something wrong with the design of the question?

[Firefighter]

Both are hopelessly lost without Christ, but at least one of them is honest about it. I tend to prefer spending time in the world with the lost than to spend time with hypocrites.

[The Mighty Sword]

The beauty is: Both A and B can change, so I would have to say both.

[RabbiKnife]

The question is a bit of a false dichotomy, as there is no need to choose either to the exclusion of the other.

Both need to understand Jesus, as it is obvious from the description that neither does.

[Frecs]

The demons believe and tremble. Both of the individuals you describe need a SAVING knowledge and RELATIONSHIP with Jesus Christ. I'd spend time with both in hopes of helping them reach that point.

[Madrid]

Hi Madrid,

The question is actually quite pointless because the voting only determines who is most pleasant to be around, and not who is right. The only logical conclusion that
one can draw is that Christians, just like everybody else would rather be around pleasant people.

Suppose we all choose that we'd rather be with the lying, cheating, disrespectful believer...Would that prove belief in the Christian God right? Not at all.

One can create these dilemma type questions on any subject, take for instance the following:

Madrid, where would you rather stay?

Option A: The Hilton Hotel Maldives, where everybody believes that 1 + 1 = 11.
Option B: The prison in downtown La Paz, where everybody believes that 1 + 1 = 2.

Naturally any clear thinking person would choose option A, so then what do we conclude? That maths isn't important? That maths is wrong?

Or is there something wrong with the design of the question?

The point of the question is to show that Christianity places more emphasis on one's beliefs when it comes to the existence of omniscient & omnipotent powers, the history and origin of the earth, how man came into existence and whether or not Jesus rose from the dead rather than whether or not one is true to themselves and true to others.

Why do you prescribe to a body of thinking in which your views on omniscience, omnipotence, the origin of man, the origin of the world, Jesus and the Bible are paramount than to whether or not you are true to yourself and true to others?

[Madrid]

Both are hopelessly lost without Christ, but at least one of them is honest about it. I tend to prefer spending time in the world with the lost than to spend time with hypocrites.

Which is the lost and which is the hypocrite?

Actually, I thought I spelled it out clearly. One of the two does believe that Jesus died for the sins of others. He also believes in God. He prays, he goes to church, yet he lies, steals, cheats and is a child beater.

[Madrid]

The question is a bit of a false dichotomy, as there is no need to choose either to the exclusion of the other.

There is no need to do anything. It's a desire to participate in this thread which should allow you to choose one above the other. Then again, it's possible you could enjoy the company of either equally.

Both need to understand Jesus, as it is obvious from the description that neither does.

One lives a life Jesus should approve of - he's respectful, kind, honest, generous. The other lives a life Jesus shouldn't approve of - he lies, steals, cheats, beats children, is disrespectful. Which one would you want your child to grow up to be like? The good person who doesn't believe in Jesus or the bad person who does believe in Jesus?

[chisel]

The point of the question is to show that Christianity places more emphasis on one's beliefs when it comes to the existence of omniscient & omnipotent powers, the history and origin of the earth, how man came into existence and whether or not Jesus rose from the dead rather than whether or not one is true to themselves and true to others.

Why do you prescribe to a body of thinking in which your views on omniscience, omnipotence, the origin of man, the origin of the world, Jesus and the Bible are paramount than to whether or not you are true to yourself and true to others?

I don't really think that being true to oneself is the same as one's preferences of the company one keeps. I can be true to myself and be with pleasant people or I can be true to myself and be in unpleasant company, so the question doesn't really speak to the issue of being true to oneself. It is only concerned with whom one would rather spend time with.
Looking from another angle, I can be a Christian and be with an atheist and still be true to my faith. Christians aren't supposed to be isolated, so nothing prohibits me from hanging around an atheist or a buddhist or whatever. So I'm not being untrue to myself by keeping company with unbelievers.

That's precisely why I believe the question is pointless.
Choosing pleasant company or unpleasant company doesn't affect the veracity of our beliefs either way. They're not connected, yet the question is based on the hidden assumption that such a connection exists.

Think about it from our p.o.v. though, if there really is a Creator and one chooses to believe that He doesn't exist, wouldn't that be the greatest way one could possibly be untrue to oneself? Is there really a question which is more important than that?
So from my perspective, and in answering your question, I believe one can only be true to oneself, if one has searched the greatest of all truths and submitted to it.

I'd also like to ask you something with regard to the questions you asked earlier. Why should a person not lie, not cheat and not disrespect others? We've all agreed that those are virtues, but why are they virtues? What rule dictates that one shouldn't lie, shouldn't cheat and shouldn't be disrespectful?

[Frecs]

Madrid,

You miss the point. The demons believe in God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit and all their attributes. Many, when facing Jesus at the Judgement time, will say “I believed in you, I attended church, I tithed, I gave to charity, I was a good person, I never stole, I loved my neighbor, etc etc etc” and yet, Jesus will say “I never knew you.”

It’s not about what we believe or what we do or don’t do. It’s not about whether we are nice and likable or the best neighbor you ever had. It’s not about our theological knowledge or morality. It’s about one thing and one thing only: FAITH. Did you allow that knowledge of God change your heart and did you then make Jesus Lord and Savior. Did you have RELATIONSHIP with Jesus Christ. If not, all the good deeds, good behavior, and right theology in the world will do you not one ounce of good.

[watchinginawe]

Who would you rather be in the company of?

A) A person who believes that there are omniscient & omnipotent powers, believes that Jesus died for our sins, believes that God created man and the earth, but is dishonest to himself & others, cheats, steals, is disrespectful toward others & hits others.

B) A person who doesn't care one iota whether or not there are omniscient & omnipotent powers, doesn't care one iota about Jesus and doesn't care how man & the earth came into existence, but is honest to himself & others, is very generous with his time & money, is trustworthy, is reliable & treats others with respect.

If the situation existed in reality for me, I would choose B. I would probably choose B for most other potential matchups as well, especially for those that might be in the line of fire of "hitting".

However, I disagree that "B" lives a life that Jesus would approve of, you are mistaking there. Think about how pleasant B would potentially be among man and God if Jesus saved them? That would take some real miracle probably but it does happen from time to time.

[TomH]

We are told as Christians to go into the world and give the Good News to the unbeliever.

So hi Madrid.

The believer that lies cheats, and steals, is ultimately the responsibility of the church body. We are not told to either correct nor accept them as individuals. They are to be dealt with by the authorities of the church. (pastor, elders, deacons.) We should remain at arms length from them and allow the voices of the church to deal with them.

We gather together, (this Christian board being an excellent example) to enjoy each others company and learn from one another. To some of use , this is a part of our social life.

I believe I would hold you, Madrid, up as an example of the person in the second choice given.

As you can see by the many responses to your pole, we would would rather be around....

One who doesn't believe in God, but who is honest, reliable, kind, respectful, generous and caring