Atheist Activists

I find it very interesting that atheist activists (atheists that are actively trying to convince people that God does not exist) seem to only be against Christianity. They don't seem to have a problem with Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, etc. In fact, I have never seen or heard an atheist activist talk about the non existence of Allah, the Hindu Gods/Goddesses, Buddha, etc. They say that their reason for doing what they do is to rid the world of a dangerous false belief in a God that does not exist. If they want to rid the world of "dangerous false beliefs", then shouldn't they be focusing on Islam, the driving force behind the terrorist attacks that kill innocent people? Instead, they focus on disproving Christianity, the driving force behind missionaries in third world countries helping the AIDS and poverty striken.

Many of these atheist activists have read the Bible and use it as evidence supporting their belief. I am not sure if they have read the Qur'an, the Vedas, the Tripitaka, etc., but I can say that I have never heard them quote from any of those books during their explanation of why God does not exist. Is it just me or are they not so much atheists as they are anti-Christians? Being a Christian myself and having read the Bible, I find this interesting, but not surprising.

John 8:44 says, "You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it."

2 Timothy 2:25-26 says "...God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth, and that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will."

After reading these verses, it makes perfect sense why these atheist activists only seem to be against Christianity. They have been taken captive by Satan to do his will, which is to prevent people from repenting and putting their trust in Jesus Christ. It is no wonder that Satan isn't bothered by Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, etc. because those "religions" were created by him in order to deceive people and prevent them from coming to a knowledge of the real truth, which is found in Jesus Christ.

I used to get bothered and worked up when watching or listening to an atheist activist do their thing, but now I realize that I need to have compassion for them. Just like the Mormons and Jehovah's Witnesses who come knocking on our doors, the atheist activists are not out there trying to deceive people, they are the ones who are deceived by Satan into thinking that they are doing good. We must look for opportunites to share the Gospel with them "with gentleness and respect" as Peter says (1 Peter 3:15) and leave the rest up to God. Certainly pray for them to be loosed from the bondage of Satan so that they may know the truth and be set free. Lastly, I will leave you with this reminder from Paul, which he writes in Ephesians 6:12, "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places."

Let's live out our Christian lives to the fullest, walking in the fruits of the spirit and not in the flesh. To God be the glory!

1 Peter 1:3

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead..."

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ..." I love that Peter says this right off the bat. If you look up the definition of the word "blessed" you will find that it means happy; praiseworthy; bringing pleasure or divine favor. Let's focus on praiseworthy. Again, keep in mind that this letter is being written to a group of people who are suffering severe persecution for their faith in Jesus. In times of suffering, it can be difficult to praise God, but these are times when we should praise Him the most. We must remember that we belong to Jesus now and He sits on the throne. He has a plan for us and even though we don't always understand the reason for some of the things we go through, we can trust that He knows exactly what He is doing. Also, keep in mind that we want others (non-believers) to come to Jesus and one of the best ways to demonstrate His goodness is to praise Him not only when He blesses us, but when we are suffering as well.

Peter then goes on to say "...who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again..." He is reminding the audience that because God is rich in mercy, they have been born again spiritually and are no longer separated from their creator. They are now a part of God's family and will one day inherit His glorious kingdom in Heaven. Peter says that God's mercy is abundant, which means it is of great quantity; affluence; plentiful amount. We can always count on His mercy and in so doing, we should always be merciful to others. This is not always easy, but when you think about the nature of our salvation, how we received mercy when we should have received wrath, we can make the decision to let out the Jesus in us.

"...to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead..." Now Peter makes a very encouraging statement. He reassures the suffering Christians of God's promise of eternal life. This hope can bring us joy even in the most difficult times. Although we will suffer, we have confidence in God's ultimate plan, that He works all things for our good and that we will one day live with Him forever in Heaven. Paul says in Philippians 1:21 "For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain". We should all live in this mindset. We live for Jesus, that means all the suffering, all the hurt, and all the pain is for His glory and we are blessed to be able to bring glory to the one who sits on the throne.

I hope you have enjoyed my study so far of 1 Peter. I plan on continuing to go through this amazing book verse by verse and posting what the Holy Spirit reveals to me as I read it.

God Bless!