Reddit mentions of Evidence for Christianity

Josh McDowell is great

You are so smart to do so my friend! You're probably a philosopher at heart, too inquisitive to "just believe." That's great, I wish more Christians were like that.

The fact is there's plenty plenty of evidence for the truth (both historical and philosophical) of Christianity though it just takes time to read through it all. It's something you kind of have to get a bug up your butt about, or in my case you get strong-armed into it mentally, in which case you become obsessed with it which is what happened to me.

For some lay-level reading I'd check out (in no particular order)

Cold Case Christianity

Reasonable Faith or really anything by William Lane Craig

Evidence for Christianity

There are a TON more...

Also, read the old Church fathers, really fun stuff.

Please feel free to PM me anytime, I will gladly talk to you about whatever you want.

I understand where you are coming from, and the point of this post was not to convince you that God exists, but to explain how a Christian that believes in the bible can honestly believe that all other religions are false and why that would make sense to them.

For the first point, God did imbue his followers with something that they can easily prove insurmountable to those forces, and that is the Holy Spirit. All other spirits bow to the name of Jesus and the followers of Jesus have power over them because of this. I have seen this first hand, but I cannot ask a stranger who has not witnessed this to believe that.

It is not consistent in other religions because they are lead astray by many different demons that all have their own will. They are doing a good job of keeping most of the world in the dark, but there are hundreds of millions of Christians in the world and God knows that not everyone will believe in Him.

I quoted the bible simply to show that Christianity can explain all other religions. If you do not believe in any religion then that doesn't really matter to you, lol.

Now there are many reasons why I think you should believe in Jesus but what you accept or not is up to you. Have you ever studied anatomy or genetics? I think it takes more faith to believe that random molecules just came together for no reason to form life on this earth, and from what we know scientifically just here. If you study physics and quantum physics you will realize how little how greatest minds really even understand the basic laws of our universe. Science has no answer that can explain why we exist, why the universe exist, or many other things, but Christianity does. If you study genetics and anatomy you can see the brilliant design and engineering the God of the universe has. If you believe in Christianity you know why the universe and all its laws were created, and know that you exist for a purpose. If there is no God you are a pointless collection of molecules floating through space on a rock making no impact on the universe. Your life is brief and pointless and exist for no purpose. Understanding Christianity helps you understand so many things and gives you hope and a purpose, because you actually have one! We are made up of neutrons, electrons, and protons, and those are made up of quarks. The God of the universe created all energy and matter in the universe, all of it. With enough power you can rearrange those atoms into whatever configuration you want. It is scientifically possible that with enough controlled energy you could form a person from the molecules of dust by rearranging the atoms. We are just made of atoms, which are energy. With a God of unimaginable energy anything is possible, including not being restricted by the force of time. The Christian God is not restricted by time and can exist at all points at the same time. This is a very hard concept for humans to comprehend which is why concepts like the trinity, and God knowing your actions before you make them, and how He reacts because of that, it so hard to understand. Understanding the concept and mechanics of time helps you understand how God operates. There is so much proof and testimony out there about why the Christian God is real if you wanted to find proof you could. I could go on and on about so many of these topics but there is not time for all of this!

If you want some basic proof that you can trust in Christianity read The evidence for Christianity https://www.amazon.com/Evidence-Christianity-Josh-McDowell/dp/1418506281.

There are many people who can all testify that God is real and have seen it, but that is what other people. There is a book that just came out called The Case for Miracles. https://www.amazon.com/Case-Miracles-Journalist-Investigates-Supernatural/dp/0310259185. There is evidence there but if you don't want to believe it you can always find a reason not to.

I shared my testimony on this post so you can see why I believe. I believe because it is rational, scientific, and I have see multiple proofs for myself. If you cannot find it I can share it again.

I love Christianity because our God is actually real and still at work today. I believe because I have encountered him multiple times in supernatural experiences, and I am not alone in this. Many people encounter God, and it is something that I really want more people to see, so they can have something real to believe in, and not just the words of another person. Look at what the apostle Paul actually had to say about that:

1 Corinthians 2 New American Standard Bible (NASB)

Paul’s Reliance upon the Spirit
2 And when I came to you, brethren, I did not come with superiority of speech or of wisdom, proclaiming to you the [a]testimony of God. 2 For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified. 3 I was with you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling, 4 and my [b]message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, 5 so that your faith would not [c]rest on the wisdom of men, but on the power of God.

6 Yet we do speak wisdom among those who are mature; a wisdom, however, not of this age nor of the rulers of this age, who are passing away; 7 but we speak God’s wisdom in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God predestined before the ages to our glory; 8 the wisdom which none of the rulers of this age has understood; for if they had understood it they would not have crucified the Lord of glory; 9 but just as it is written,

“Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard,
And which have not entered the heart of man,
All that God has prepared for those who love Him.”

10 [d]For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God. 11 For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God. 12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God, 13 which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, [e]combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words.

14 But [f]a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually [g]appraised. 15 But he who is spiritual appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no one. 16 For who has known the mind of the Lord, that he will instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ.

Christianity spread because God showed His power by the Holy Spirit, not by mere words or philosophy alone. I am not with you but just online so words are all I have, but I hope it makes you want to seek more. Seek a Charismatic Christian Church and you are likely to see a miracle first hand. There are many Christians that do not believe in the power of God and are more comfortable just learning about Him, so you will not find miracles in many churches, especially not the Catholic or Orthodox church.

I will also share with you what I gain by being a Christian. I know I am loved by the God of the universe with a love greater than any person on this Earth could have for me. I know my God is with me always and will never forsake me. I know I have a purpose and I have no reason to fear. I do not fear death or the opinion of other people. I know I can trust in my God and He will never let me down. I can see how science fits together explain the hand of my God and his universe. I can love others without wanting gain because God loved me first. I do not judge others so that I am not judged myself. I know my human life on this Earth is just a very small sliver of my existence. If I lived to be 120 years old my whole life would not even be a the first page in the story of my life when I will be raised by God and given an immortal body and live in a paradise. This life is only a brief test, and all injustice will be righted. I have freedom in Christ and know that His sacrifice earned my place with God, and not anything that I did or will do. I know I do not have to continually work to appease God or earn my way to anything. I live my life for Christ because of my love for Him and want to follow His teachings so I can be more like him, not to earn anything or avoid any punishment. God has told me many things that will happen in my life, and some of it has already come true. Prophecy in peoples lives is real and one of the gifts of the spirit. I can have peace and happiness regardless of where I live, how much money I have, or how other people treat me. I seek to impress no one and live free. Everything I have is not for me only, but for anyone who truly seeks God and gives their life to him. I want others to share in my joy which is why I share my beliefs and experiences.
I hope this makes some sort of sense, lol!

I made some edits for spelling and grammer. It is hard to proof read the small little reply window.

>For those of you who have looked in to biblical historicity, on any level,

I guess this technically qualifies me?

>how do you reconcile potential errors and inconsistencies

Such as?

>as well as the concepts that stories of YHWH and Jesus could have been co-opted from other faiths

By asking for primary source evidence for these claims.

>Are there any books or websites you could recommend?

Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes by Kenneth Bailey

Evidence for Christianity by John McDowell

The King Jams Only Controversy by James White (this is actually a book about textual criticism and manuscript transmission).

Jesus and the Eye-Witnesses by Richard Baukham.

The Resurrection of Jesus: A New Historiographical Approach by Mike Licona.

This book series by NT Wright.

I have been atheist my whole life and am currently waist deep in reading Christian apologetics.

Lee Strobel has some fantastic books (Case for Faith is great, haven't read Case for Christ yet) and I'm currently reading Evidence for Christianity. He has two actual books on the topic and they're merged into this giant creature that reads more like lecture notes, but I like it so far. I'm very early on though.

Sorry for the delay. I had been looking for my copy of this book but can't seem to find it. Most of our answers are right there.