New to Apologetics & Evangelism, already feel completely incompetent my first try...

[bihzor]

So, I got an e-mail from the first person that I've tried to share the Gospel with, and I have no clue how to respond. Here it is:

Things that I do NOT like about Biblical Christianity include (but are by no means limited to):
homophobic
sexist
cruel to rape victims
sanctions slavery
many contradictions in the bible
we are supposed to be obedient to god
i think its a fear based religion. without the threat of hell i don't think it would be as effective
the concept of original sin-" you are flawed and sinful, an aberration in the eyes of god; worthless and bound to an eternity of suffering by default just for being born. Why? Because 6000 or so years ago, a woman was tricked by a talking snake into eating a magical fruit. This indiscretion is now your inheritance, and as far as god is concerned, you are equally responsible."
you are discouraged from questioning god, and the bible, and the religion in general.
god punished adam and eve in the garden of eden, and didn't punish satan
god allows satan to be evil in the world
if god is loving, why does he cast people who don't believe in him to hell? i think this is a fundamental problem.
it is a sin to look at another person with lust, but this is a basic biological function that supposedly god gave us- isnt that a bit hard?
god is supposed to love everyone equally, but in the old testament he has favourites: the biblical Hebrews and their descendents, the Jews.
god sets double standards: we aren't to kill anyone, but he can kill millions. He says “In your anger, do not sin” and then spends entire chapters ranting about his wrathful vengeance on those who don’t acknowledge him. He says “Love your enemies” and then smites his own enemies at the drop of a hat (with the exception of Satan who inexplicably continues to get a free pass). When humans do any of the aforementioned (unless sanctioned by god), then it is sin. When god does those things or tells others to do so, he is moving in “mysterious ways” and we just have to accept it.
Furthermore, Christians are told to automatically forgive those who wrong them (even if the person guilty of the wrongdoing hasn’t even sought forgiveness), but god only forgives those who beg and plead first.
i like this quote by epicurus:
“Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able?
Then he is not omnipotent.
Is he able, but not willing?
Then he is malevolent.
Is he both able and willing?
Then whence cometh evil?
Is he neither able nor willing?
Then why call him God?”

Any help formulating a response will be greatly appreciated!

[Odelia]

I wouldn't say God is homophobic when He is the one who created life and decided a union should be man and woman. It is what is natural.
Sexist- I don't know a true christian woman who feels beneath her husband because he is her headship. When it comes to forgiveness and salvation, God is no respector of people, but on this human planet, he made woman to be submissive to man and in the end, it is what really does work.
I don't know of any unexplainable contradictions in The Bible.
Obedience to God? Well, yes, if we are to serve Him, we will be obedient to him. Afterall, whoever you serve you are obedient to, even if it is satan, right?
I am not sure why you say God only forgives those who beg and plead. God forgives those who accept Christ and have a repentent heart, and ask with sincerity; not begging and pleading.
It isn't hard to not lust after someone when you are filled with The Holy Spirit, feed on God's word, pray, and walk after Christ.
I've only touched on a few, but I hope you continue to seek God in your heart and your life. God does give us a better understanding of Himself when we read The Bible and follow Christ's principals and commandments.

[PJW]

Nice job, Odelia.
bihzor,
Why don't you have someone to ask these questions to in your close circle?
Who teaches you? God provides apostles, teachers, prophets, etc. to the members of His body, the church. (1 Cor 12:27-28)

[Adstars]

So, I got an e-mail from the first person that I've tried to share the Gospel with, and I have no clue how to respond. Here it is:

Hello bihzor. From the letter i don't think this person is really open to the message of God. Seems they have sought out as many reasons as they can find to reject God and when people do that it is only an act of God that can turn them. I will give some input to the questions that have been asked of you. You can try to convey they to the person in question but don't get your hopes up high for them. Anyway here we go.

Things that I do NOT like about Biblical Christianity include (but are by no means limited to):
homophobic

Christians believe that the physical sexual act of homosexuality is an abomination to God and therefore sin. While we believe and state this we also believe that all sin revealed by God is sin and therefore all sins in effect fall into the same category. All Christians are sinners, One can state something is a sin without hating the person who commits the sin. This is where many non- Christians are suffering from a false impression of What Christianity is all about. Christianity seeks to have people forgiven by God and have eternal existence with God. That comes when people accept their sin is sin and accept the gift of Gods forgiveness through the Atonement provided by the Messiah Jesus.

So informing a sinner that they are a sinner is the first necessary step. This makes them ready to accept the forgiveness of God. Christianity is about Salvation through being forgiven.

sexist

Christianity believes that men and woman are different and trust in the guidance of God in the way we are to relate to each other. This is not a sexism of superiority or inferiority. It is a recognition of difference.

cruel to rape victims

This is not a part of Biblical Christianity at all. This impression seems to come about by people reading false interpretations of what scriptures actually say.

sanctions slavery

Again this is simply wrong. Christianity believes the teachings of Jesus and that means all people are our Brothers from the parable of the good Samaritan we are told that all men are our brothers and we are told by Jesus in His sermon on the mount to love even our enemies. Therefore forceful slavery and exploitation of another human being is diametrically opposed to these teachings.

many contradictions in the bible

Here you should get. your friend to give you one example they believe is a contradiction. Do not ask them for a list of contradictions. Because they will most likely cut and past hundreds of supposed contradictions from anti-Christian web sites, cutting and pasting these is a common tactic of anti-christs, they do this to swamp the Christian with so many scriptures to deal with that they hope a Christian will just fling their hands up in the air and not reply. This gives them a sense of victory over the Christian. So make sure you deal with one supposed contradiction at a time.

we are supposed to be obedient to god

Being obedient to a perfect God is a logical thing to be. God is perfect, therefore God knows best for us.

i think its a fear based religion. without the threat of hell i don't think it would be as effective

Here you can reply that you where attracted by the message of Gods love and forgiveness for man and what Jesus went through to secure your eternal life with God. State that fear of hell has never been effective in holding people to belief in Jesus. Tell her that if Hell was an effective tool to hold people in Christianity then there would not be any Ex- Christians around. But because there are a lot of former Christians around it is proof that fear is not an effective holding tool. Tell her that it is the loving embrace of God that is holding people to Him not the fear of Hell. Once a Christian accepts Jesus and knows they are forgiven and saved, Hell holds no fear for them any more. Tell them that if people left Christianity because of the fear of hell then they did not come to the full truth of Christianity. You may want to quote the following verse.

1 John 4
18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.

the concept of original sin-" you are flawed and sinful, an aberration in the eyes of god; worthless and bound to an eternity of suffering by default just for being born.

Once again this person is under a server misunderstanding. Through Jesus God has revealed that it is the rejection of forgiveness that causes one to have eternity excluded from God and not the fact that one sins. God has overcome the penalty for sin for all human beings that accept the Atonement of the Messiah Jesus. So it is not sin, but sin that is unforgiven that leads to eternal suffering. As we have revealed before forgiveness of God is simply a matter of accepting the Atonement of the Messiah Jesus for ones sins.

Why? Because 6000 or so years ago, a woman was tricked by a talking snake into eating a magical fruit. This indiscretion is now your inheritance, and as far as god is concerned, you are equally responsible."

The woman was warned before hand not to obtain the knowledge of Good and evil and was warned of the consequences. The woman and man chose to disbelieve the warning of the truthful God and embrace the lie of satan. From that time onwards all men have inherited the knowledge of Good and evil without having the ability to live a life without doing both good and evil. We where not designed for that knowledge in the state of being we where and are still in. But again God has made a way for humanity to be reconciled and restored to an eternal relationship with Him in a perfected Existence. We are now responsible for our reply to God in relation to His offer of forgiveness for all our sins.

you are discouraged from questioning god, and the bible, and the religion in general.

Wrong. We are encouraged to ask God for wisdom and understanding and that means asking Him questions. God does not discourage a seeker asking questions.

Isaiah 1
18 “Come now, and let us reason together,” Says the LORD, “Though your sins are like scarlet, They shall be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They shall be as wool.

god punished adam and eve in the garden of eden, and didn't punish satan

Adam and eve suffered the consequences of their actions but only for a life time. The eternal plan of God ensures that forgiveness is open to Adam and eve. But for satan there is no such opening. The Bible reveals that satan shall suffer eternal torment for His actions along with the angels who allied themselves with him. So yes Adam and eve suffered but it is not an eternal suffering and yes satans punishment has been delayed but His suffering will last for eternity. Our life times are as nothing compared to eternity. indeed it is incomparable.

god allows satan to be evil in the world

Yes. God must allow satan to totally discredit himself and his supporters in the eyes of the Heavenly host. People forget about Angels when it comes to eternity with God or eternity excluded from God. It seems God wants to save as many Angels by allowing satan to discredit himself before them. The bible states that only one third of the angels join with satan in His rebellion but two thirds are saved. Now if God did not allow satan to totally discredit Himself on the world states how many angels would have joined his rebellion? How many more angels would be facing eternity excluded from God?

if god is loving, why does he cast people who don't believe in him to hell? i think this is a fundamental problem.

God casts people who reject His forgiveness. Who reject the love of His truth and take joy in unrighteousness.

it is a sin to look at another person with lust, but this is a basic biological function that supposedly god gave us- isnt that a bit hard?

Yes we are hopeless sinners. While the OT revealed the fallen state of man, Jesus make no room for escaping that fact. Of course we should look upon people are being emotional beings to be looked upon as people not sex objects. So yes we are all sinners but you are free to agree with God that sin is wrong or you can seek to justify your sin by stating you where born this way or that's a bit hard. Once again Christianity teaches that God through the Messiah Jesus has provided a Way to eternal reconciliation with God through forgiveness of sin. Therefore the fact that we are sinners and are hopeless sinners is not a crucial issue. We are not saved by successfully avoiding sin. We are saved by believing Jesus and trusting in His atonement for our sins.

god is supposed to love everyone equally, but in the old testament he has favorites: the biblical Hebrews and their descendents, the Jews.

God revealed that they, The physical descendants of Abraham where a chosen people. Now the Question must then now be Chosen for What??? The way the questioner as asked this question reveals that they believe that God chose the Hebrews because they where considered by him to be some kind of morally/spiritually Superior race of people. This is a misconception right from the start. God chose them to be the people He would reveal his Message to the world through. God can be seen to make an Example of the Hebrew people. And while the Hebrews received blessings from this they also went through a lot of pain and suffering because of their often rebellious nature against God. So while they where chosen, it can also be said that they where made an example by God throughout His history working with them.

god sets double standards: we aren't to kill anyone, but he can kill millions.

God is a perfect Judge so He can never make a mistake when ending the life of anyone. Humans on the other hand are prone to make mistakes. Are there not examples of innocent people being falsely convicted and executed in human judicial systems? So Gods call for us not to kill others is a law designed for us. Same as when parents insist that their children only use pedestrian crossings. But the parents who have better situational awareness can cross the road anywhere when they know no cars are coming.

He says “In your anger, do not sin” and then spends entire chapters ranting about his wrathful vengeance on those who don’t acknowledge him. He says “Love your enemies” and then smites his own enemies at the drop of a hat (with the exception of Satan who inexplicably continues to get a free pass).

Again God have total situational awareness and therefore cannot make a mistake when carrying out wrath. God in this time of Grace wants as many as possible to accept His offer of forgiveness. Therefore He does not want us to kill anyone. Where there is life there is always hope that a transgressor will seek God and accept Jesus. And as stated above satan's "free pass" is not forever.

When humans do any of the aforementioned (unless sanctioned by god), then it is sin. When god does those things or tells others to do so, he is moving in “mysterious ways” and we just have to accept it.

Truth is it is not mysterious at all. Once one has been given understanding.

Furthermore, Christians are told to automatically forgive those who wrong them (even if the person guilty of the wrongdoing hasn’t even sought forgiveness), but god only forgives those who beg and plead first.

Well upon my reading of the bible we are not told to forgive people who have not asked for forgiveness. But we are told to give over all judgement to God. And we don;t have to beg and plead for forgiveness. We simply need to acknowledge our wrongs as wrongs and accept the atonement of the Messiah Jesus.

i like this quote by epicurus:
“Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able?

God plans to end evil but as this time is long-suffering towards it for the sake of the ones doing evil and His eternal plan.

Then he is not omnipotent.

Yes God is omnipotent. But He has a plan and allowing evil for a time is a necessary part of that plan.

Is he able, but not willing?

He is able but not willing at this time.

Then he is malevolent.

No. You do not understand why God is allowing evil to exist. Therefore you can only come to this conclusion because of a lack of deeper knowledge of the greater situation.

Is he both able and willing?
Then whence cometh evil?

Evil comes from a free willed decision to adopt it.

Is he neither able nor willing?
Then why call him God?”

He is both able and willing. But just not at this time in history. satan must be allowed to expose himself fully. God has given satan enough rope to hang himself and he is in the process of doing just that.

Any help formulating a response will be greatly appreciated!

I hope some of these points will be helpful to you bihzor. Remember irrespective of the results with this person one who is against Christianity, being challenged in faith should motivate us to really get into the Word of God and get into prayer asking God for the wisdom to understand the Word of God. Without Gods revelation we cannot hope to understand His Word. But God can lift us up in understanding way above our own limited abilities.

James 1
5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. 6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind.

[Frances]

Hi bihzor - of course you are incompetant, we all are unless the Lord guides us.

First things first - ask the Lord how you should reply, and wait for His answer, after all, He knows why the questions were asked, and points made.

suggestion - Have you given your correspondent your testimony? A very short version, but telling of your life before Christ, conversion, and life since. Then offer verses of Scripture to cover a few points. Too much Scripture at one time is likely to be as difficult for him as his list of objections are for you.

[Vhayes]

So, I got an e-mail from the first person that I've tried to share the Gospel with, and I have no clue how to respond. Here it is:

Things that I do NOT like about Biblical Christianity include (but are by no means limited to):
homophobic
sexist
cruel to rape victims
sanctions slavery
many contradictions in the bible
we are supposed to be obedient to god
i think its a fear based religion. without the threat of hell i don't think it would be as effective
the concept of original sin-" you are flawed and sinful, an aberration in the eyes of god; worthless and bound to an eternity of suffering by default just for being born. Why? Because 6000 or so years ago, a woman was tricked by a talking snake into eating a magical fruit. This indiscretion is now your inheritance, and as far as god is concerned, you are equally responsible."
you are discouraged from questioning god, and the bible, and the religion in general.
god punished adam and eve in the garden of eden, and didn't punish satan
god allows satan to be evil in the world
if god is loving, why does he cast people who don't believe in him to hell? i think this is a fundamental problem.
it is a sin to look at another person with lust, but this is a basic biological function that supposedly god gave us- isnt that a bit hard?
god is supposed to love everyone equally, but in the old testament he has favourites: the biblical Hebrews and their descendents, the Jews.
god sets double standards: we aren't to kill anyone, but he can kill millions. He says “In your anger, do not sin” and then spends entire chapters ranting about his wrathful vengeance on those who don’t acknowledge him. He says “Love your enemies” and then smites his own enemies at the drop of a hat (with the exception of Satan who inexplicably continues to get a free pass). When humans do any of the aforementioned (unless sanctioned by god), then it is sin. When god does those things or tells others to do so, he is moving in “mysterious ways” and we just have to accept it.
Furthermore, Christians are told to automatically forgive those who wrong them (even if the person guilty of the wrongdoing hasn’t even sought forgiveness), but god only forgives those who beg and plead first.
i like this quote by epicurus:
“Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able?
Then he is not omnipotent.
Is he able, but not willing?
Then he is malevolent.
Is he both able and willing?
Then whence cometh evil?
Is he neither able nor willing?
Then why call him God?”

Any help formulating a response will be greatly appreciated!

Hi bizhor -

If you do not know the answers to these challenges, I would suggest you tell your friend exactly that - that you do not know. I would then ask that the two of you study together to find the answers.

V

[exiledchristian]

So, I got an e-mail from the first person that I've tried to share the Gospel with, and I have no clue how to respond. Here it is:

Things that I do NOT like about Biblical Christianity include (but are by no means limited to):
homophobic

many contradictions in the bible

God would obviously be homophobic...

Leviticus 18:22:Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination.

Leviticus 20:13:If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.

Deuteronomy 23:17:There shall be no whore of the daughters of Israel, nor a sodomite of the sons of Israel.

1 Kings 14:24:And there were also sodomites in the land: and they did according to all the abominations of the nations which the Lord cast out before the children of Israel.

1 Kings 15:12:And he took away the sodomites out of the land, and removed all the idols that his fathers had made.

1 Kings 22:46:And the remnant of the sodomites, which remained in the days of his father Asa, he took out of the land.

2 Kings 23:7:And he brake down the houses of the sodomites, that were by the house of the Lord, where the women wove hangings for the grove.

Romans 1:26-27:
²⁶ For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature:

²⁷ And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet.

1 Corinthians 6:9:Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind,






The Bible does not have contradictions!(only Men)

[BrianW]

God is not homophobic. He doesn't hate homosexuals and He certainly does not fear them. Words matter man.

To the OP.

Sometimes the best ways to answers questions that you don't know the answers to is with an honest "I don' know." I've done that before and it's usually along the lines of "I don't know the answer to that question, but I can tell you why I believe in God and what I do know."

Other than that every one of those questions asked just by themselves could be, and many have been, threads on this forum. If you look at the top of the page on the right there is an advanced search bar. You can type in a key word, search and read past threads on the topics or if one or a couple of the questions are more pressing for you start a thread to ask about them specifically.

And in the end please remember this when witnessing. Our job isn't to convince people. It's to spread the gospel and tell them the good news. If they have questions answer what you can by all means. If they have questions that you can't answer and they really care they will seek out the answers themselves.

[exiledchristian]

God is not homophobic. He doesn't hate homosexuals and He certainly does not fear them. Words matter man.

Go back and read the previous post...

Homophobia

n.1. Fear of or contempt for lesbians and gay men.
2. Behavior based on such a feeling.

- Taken from the Free dictionary

If God did not have ''Contempt'' against homosexuals,there would be no laws against them!
But as they were an abomination, punishable by death.....and ''shall not inherit the kingdom of God''
Homophobia is not Just fear towards homosexuals - but opposition or dislike.

[Robert Callow]

Go back and read the previous post...

Homophobia

n.1. Fear of or contempt for lesbians and gay men.
2. Behavior based on such a feeling.

- Taken from the Free dictionary

If God did not have ''Contempt'' against homosexuals,there would be no laws against them!
But as they were an abomination, punishable by death.....and ''shall not inherit the kingdom of God''
Homophobia is not Just fear towards homosexuals - but opposition or dislike.

As Christian influence decreases and the influence of homosexuality increases, so we are also able to see that a growing number of children, especially when passing through adolescence, are now being taught more easily without guilt or shame to derive pleasure and ecstasy in homosexual relationships. In such relationships male starts to become less masculine and female starts to becomes less feminine. This corruption then works to erode and destroy the glorious and beautiful creation of male and female.

This is the reason why homosexuals ''shall not inherit the kingdom of God''.

[BrianW]

God came down to earth and preached repentance and love. He hung on the cross and died for the sins of homosexuals just the same as He did for all who would believe on Him. He was crucified for us. Homosexuals too.
To me that shows a lot of love.
Liars, thieves, fornicators, adulterers, homosexuals etc....all have fallen short and are need of the savior. Every Christian walking the face of the earth was a lost sheep in need of our Savior before they were born again.

Unrepentant sinners will be judged one day this is true but God doesn't have a special place reserved in hell just for unrepentant gays. They will go to the same place that the liars, fornicators, drunkards, thieves and all of the rest that reject God go.

No sinner will inherit the kingdom of God. You know, just like the previously posted scripture says. Does that make God a hater of persons? No. Does that mean that He fears? No.

He is the creator. He makes the rules. He stands ready to bless and impute righteousness on any that will come to Him. Those who refuse can rant and rave and try to convince themselves that there is no God or that He isn't "Fair" all they want to. The very one who defines what is fair or not will be the one who has the final say on the day of judgement and what He says will be the only voice that matters.

God is not homophobic. Only petty men in their vain imaginings of importance can be homophobic.

God is love. We accept that love or we reject it. Our choice.

[exiledchristian]

God came down to earth and preached repentance and love. He hung on the cross and died for the sins of homosexuals just the same as He did for all who would believe on Him. He was crucified for us. Homosexuals too.
To me that shows a lot of love.
Liars, thieves, fornicators, adulterers, homosexuals etc....all have fallen short and are need of the savior. Every Christian walking the face of the earth was a lost sheep in need of our Savior before they were born again.

Unrepentant sinners will be judged one day this is true but God doesn't have a special place reserved in hell just for unrepentant gays. They will go to the same place that the liars, fornicators, drunkards, thieves and all of the rest that reject God go.

No sinner will inherit the kingdom of God. You know, just like the previously posted scripture says. Does that make God a hater of persons? No. Does that mean that He fears? No.

He is the creator. He makes the rules. He stands ready to bless and impute righteousness on any that will come to Him. Those who refuse can rant and rave and try to convince themselves that there is no God or that He isn't "Fair" all they want to. The very one who defines what is fair or not will be the one who has the final say on the day of judgement and what He says will be the only voice that matters.

God is not homophobic. Only petty men in their vain imaginings of impotence can be homophobic.

God is love. We accept that love or we reject it. Our choice.

Read 1 Corinthians 6:9 - what does it state about homosexuals? ''Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? ''

You stated ''He makes the rules'' they are against homosexuality!

How can men only be homophobic for feeling the same way God does about homosexuals? - Homophobia is not just fear,but contempt or dislike or discrimination!

[BrianW]

Because you can't just pick part of a meaning of a word and use it to describe or impart that upon another--in this case God--and say that the other parts do not apply. Homophobia is a mix of Homosexual and phobia which means fear. Hence Homophobia. The word was created to describe the psychological aversion to homosexuality and was first used to describe heterosexual men who were afraid that others may think they were gay.

Look. We are in agreement about how God feels about homosexuality. If you would read the last post of mine that you quoted you would see that. We are in just in disagreement about using the word homophobic in relation to God.

[TrustGzus]

Go back and read the previous post...

Homophobia

n.1. Fear of or contempt for lesbians and gay men.
2. Behavior based on such a feeling.

- Taken from the Free dictionary

If God did not have ''Contempt'' against homosexuals,there would be no laws against them!
But as they were an abomination, punishable by death.....and ''shall not inherit the kingdom of God''
Homophobia is not Just fear towards homosexuals - but opposition or dislike.

I don't think it's accurate to say God has contempt for homosexuals. He has contempt for homosexual acts. God has contempt for all sin. So if we all identify our identity with our sin, then God has a phobia or contempt for every single one of us.

[TrustGzus]

So, I got an e-mail from the first person that I've tried to share the Gospel with, and I have no clue how to respond. Here it is:

Things that I do NOT like about Biblical Christianity include (but are by no means limited to):
homophobic
sexist
cruel to rape victims
sanctions slavery
many contradictions in the bible
we are supposed to be obedient to god
i think its a fear based religion. without the threat of hell i don't think it would be as effective
the concept of original sin-" you are flawed and sinful, an aberration in the eyes of god; worthless and bound to an eternity of suffering by default just for being born. Why? Because 6000 or so years ago, a woman was tricked by a talking snake into eating a magical fruit. This indiscretion is now your inheritance, and as far as god is concerned, you are equally responsible."
you are discouraged from questioning god, and the bible, and the religion in general.
god punished adam and eve in the garden of eden, and didn't punish satan
god allows satan to be evil in the world
if god is loving, why does he cast people who don't believe in him to hell? i think this is a fundamental problem.
it is a sin to look at another person with lust, but this is a basic biological function that supposedly god gave us- isnt that a bit hard?
god is supposed to love everyone equally, but in the old testament he has favourites: the biblical Hebrews and their descendents, the Jews.
god sets double standards: we aren't to kill anyone, but he can kill millions. He says “In your anger, do not sin” and then spends entire chapters ranting about his wrathful vengeance on those who don’t acknowledge him. He says “Love your enemies” and then smites his own enemies at the drop of a hat (with the exception of Satan who inexplicably continues to get a free pass). When humans do any of the aforementioned (unless sanctioned by god), then it is sin. When god does those things or tells others to do so, he is moving in “mysterious ways” and we just have to accept it.
Furthermore, Christians are told to automatically forgive those who wrong them (even if the person guilty of the wrongdoing hasn’t even sought forgiveness), but god only forgives those who beg and plead first.
i like this quote by epicurus:
“Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able?
Then he is not omnipotent.
Is he able, but not willing?
Then he is malevolent.
Is he both able and willing?
Then whence cometh evil?
Is he neither able nor willing?
Then why call him God?”

Any help formulating a response will be greatly appreciated!

I think the first thing you should do is not let yourself be put in the defense. Let your friend. For example, your friend says Biblical Christianity is homophobic. Ask what is meant by that. Ask for examples. Ask if your friend is using a broad brush.

Contradictions? Great. Your friend should give some instead of just being aloud to make that statement.

Your friend should be doing more work here.

Change your tactic. Turn the tables. Make your friend work harder. Don't make it too easy on your friend.