[quote
author=cyrexx]The concept of eternal life or eternal punishment was
brought forth to generate followership for religions. A closer look at
the idea will show that it, as well as entire religion itself, is purely
man-made control mechanism. [/quote]

I fear 4 ur ignorance, anyways u still got chance 2 repent n change ur perception. If our life is in dis world alone, den of all men we r d most miserable, bt thank God hope makes not ashamed 4 d love of God is shared in our hearts by d Holy Ghost.

cyrexx: You may not realise but the concept of eternal life or eternal punishment based on one's religious belief is simply delusional and psychopathic evil. We have been indoctrinated from childhood to believe this nonsense so much that we don't see anything wrong with it.

Pls tell them... Man seek knowledge & be ye not fooled by thy fellow men.

ezme: I have heard many believers say they live for the world that is to come and do not care about what happens in this world. While reflecting privately on my ideologies and perception of the world around me, I got thinking of the promise of "eternal life".

The movie "Shrek forever after" created a mental picture of what eternity would look like after he signed his deal with Rumpelstiltskin. All that kept coming to my mind was stagnation,no aging,same drill everyday (singing & praising God),and nothing outside this routine to look forward to. Then I also got thinking of the concept of a meaningful life. What do we live for? What gives our life a meaning? As a Child in primary school,looking forward to growing up was enough reason to live, it made everyday worthwhile and gave you something to look forward to (a future). As an adult looking forward to starting a family and achieving your dreams makes it worthwhile and a sense of purpose. As an old man, I believe seeing your children achieve their dreams and have kids.

Now back to the promise of eternal life. Is it that attractive? Or is it the fear of eternal damnation that scares you? I would love to have diverse open-minded perspectives on this. Share your thoughts..

You've gotten it all wrong brother. U can never imagine the beauty or how perfect Heaven is no matter how hard u try because your brain is material(cos it belongs to this world) but Heaven is spiritual. And u can never imagine the ugliness of Hell.



But God alone is Holy!

God created us for a purpose in this world. There is eternal life.

It has nothing to do with fear of condemnation.

I believe NOT in the fantasy of the imaginary second life, but I BELIEVE AND MAKE THE BEST USE of the only real and existent life that humans possess.

I want reality, not fantasy.

carnal people do not understand the things of the spirit.

When you fall in love with someone, the prospect of spending forever with them is appealing. Hence the popular love quotes such as "love you forever and alway" and the likes. As a Christian I love God and the idea of spending eternity with Him and the family of believers whom I love appeals to me. He reveals himself to me in new refreshing ways everyday right now and I expect nothing less in eternity.

I don't believe that living for eternity entails giving up all pleasure here on earth. It only entails discipline and commitment which only makes you feel stronger and helps you impact your world more. The pursuit of happiness is a futile pursuit. I don't know whoever pursued happiness and found it. Pursue purpose instead and in fulfilling it you find satisfaction and fulfillment and joy which is better than happiness.

An this is the record that God hath given to us eternal-life, and this life is in his son. 12. He that hath the son, hath life, and he that hath not the son of God , hath not life. 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.(1jn5:11-13 . kjv) eternal life is not a promise. If u r a christian, u have eternal life(zoe) alcready.

Ezme u are correct from man's point of view• But just as bible in Gen 1:28 God's original purpose was for Adam and his unborn children live on Earth for ever provided they obey that commandment from God of not eating frm a particular tree. So if Adam and his wife had obeyed that simple comand I can tell u today we will know that great grand parents. However hope is not lost and that was y christ came and sacrifice himself on behalf of all. Apostle paul said in Romans 5:12 dat tru one man sin entered into d world and death tru sin. And also romans 6:23' but d gift God gives is everlasting life by christ Jesus our Lord. So from man`s stand point live may likely be boring but from Gods arrangement Trust Him will surely occupy us and keep us busy when the get to the promised paradise.

First and fore most There is God and Jesus is the son of God of whom whoever God calls and chose to reveal himself to through him would be saved.
Today more than 90% of what is preached today by most conflicting confused denominational fighting churches about the word of God is false. God is just being merciful to us.
The preaching of rapture ,going to heaven is a false and man made teaching.
When you truly want to know the truth you have remove every doctrine,all the the faith we have in men of God instead God himself and his word.
You must allow the Holy Spirit to teach you and let the bible interpret itself.
Having searched the scriptures and putting aside every tradition and doctrines .With the help of God through revelations.
God can't never allow any man in heaven. Jesus said that no man have been there except the son of man who came from heaven that is talkin about him. Also remember Satan sinned from point of perfection ,God have had enough of rebellion he won't take chances until in the process of time.
Jesus knew he was born to be king on earth infact that's the Gospel.The soon coming kingdom of God.
Today Christian's are too lazy with only assumption of believing and be saved. They neglect Obedience and righteousness to God thinking that they now perfect.
This the reason why many lukewarm Christians will be killed during the tribulation. While the obedient ones will be protected and not being Raptured as for the popular believe.
Friends there is no Rapture rather when Jesus returns those alive will become like him those who were killed both ancient days and those who were Luke warmed will resurrect first .
We will all meet The Lord in the air and make a U Turn back to earth.
He will stand on mount Olive after he must have destroyed the armies of the antichrist and two hundred million armies including the antichrist .
I live in Asia for many years now studying following events and prayerfully comparing issues around. I found out that China is preparing ,India,Russia and other Middle East countries will form alliance to destroy Jerusalem. Bare in mind that the present day ISraelites will be wiped off but only a third of them will remain.But in all these God will save them.
When Jesus starts his ruler ship headquartered in Jerusalem ,Christains would become rulers and teachers to many people.
There would be a great and mass reconstruction and relocation of people from dangerous areas with the supervision of the saints but with the Guidance of Jesus.
The ultimate purpose of we Christians is to reign on earth with Christ not in heaven. Heaven is the fathers throne and the earth is Christ .
But he will submit himself to God and all will after the millennium and the one hundred period of amnesty to every unbelievers even satan. They will resurrect and be given chance to believe in Christ .Some will and some will still reject Christ .
And the judgement of great white throne will begin aft 100 years of amnesty to those who haven't heard about Christ or the excuses of life issues when they were alive.
Satan will be destroyed forever and those unbelievers in the lake of fire.
So be not deceived we are not going to heaven rather here because word of God says that he has made the earth to be inhabited forever, the meek shall inherit the earth,I am returning with my reward , he went to prepare his cabinet for rulership in heaven and when he returns he will judge Christian's and reward us.
For example when you were a child your father goes to work in the morning and everyone would be waiting for his return later. Most of the time when he returns he comes back with some candy and toys. We all run out to meet him outside and next we walk back together into the house to get the share of the candy and toys he came back with.
The same applies to Christ we meet him and we stay here with him.
A true christain who wants to be protected in this terrible times and the soon coming tribulation must obey God and live a holy life.
Stop wasting time with the rapture theory you will be disappointed.
He said watch and pray for you to escape Ll these that will befall us like a thief in the night.
Study your bible,put off every tradition,bias or what your pastor have taught you and sincerely tell Holy Spirit to teach you.
We should pause and ask questions, look around us today you will know that Christianity is what it used to be.
A lot false prophets have creeped in and preaching another gospel.
This is a long write up but the truth GOd bear me witness that I was once ignorant about issue of heaven and hell until I seek him and read the bible with open mind.
I have a lot to say but time won't permit .As you read this may GOd give you understanding amen.

Nice on OP, also hv taught about ds and except God would erase dt part of us I.e boredom when doing something repetitive, then I guess eternal really wud suck ! But am sure hell wouldn't be better.

basically my opinion is:

When we die,

1. we either return to the state we were before we were born (oblivion), OR

2. we go into a trance like state consisting majorly of the contents of our mind...

according to acheological facts and history of the world,
there were many gods worshipped by many religions all over the world
and each god had a role to favour or punish.
so there were many gods to pray to if you wanted blessings eg god of harvest, god of fertility, god of war, god of wine and many more
there were gods to pray to if you wanted to be forgiven or if you wanted revenge or stuff like that.
the knight templars came and merged all the gods of favour into one and they merged all the gods of evil into one.
discovery tv

Will living endlessly in a perfect environment become boring? That is a worthwhile question. Researchers have found that chronic boredom may cause a
person to become anxious, depressed, and
prone to taking risks. Those who see no
purpose in life or who tire of their daily routine
might succumb to boredom. Will the lives of
those in Paradise lack purpose? Will the daily routine be dull? First, consider that it is Jehovah God, the Author of the Bible, who makes the offer of
everlasting life. ( John 3:16; 2 Timothy 3:16 ) God’s primary quality is love. ( 1 John 4 : Jehovah loves us deeply and has given us all the
good things that we now enjoy.— James 1:17. Our Creator knows that in order to be happy, we need purposeful work. ( Psalm 139:14-16; Ecclesiastes 3:12 ) In Paradise, workers will not feel like insignificant cogs in
some massive machine. The work they do will
directly benefit them and those they love.
(Isaiah 65:22-24 ) If you had interesting, challenging, full-time work to do, would you
find life boring? Consider, too, that Jehovah God will not allow just anyone to live in Paradise. He offers
the gift of everlasting life only to those who
imitate his Son, Jesus. ( John 17:3) While on earth, Jesus delighted to do his Father’s will. He
taught his followers both by word and by
example that lasting happiness comes more
from giving than from receiving. ( Acts 20:35 ) In the restored Paradise, all will live by the two
greatest commandments—those that call for
love of God and love of neighbor. ( Matthew 22:36-40) Imagine being surrounded by unselfish people who love you and who love
their work! Do you think you would become
bored in such company? What else will life in Paradise involve? Each day, we will be able to learn something new
about our Creator. Researchers have already
made many remarkable discoveries about
Jehovah’s creative works. ( Romans 1:20) So far, though, we have hardly scratched the surface.
Thousands of years ago, the faithful man Job
reviewed what he knew about God’s creative
works, and his conclusion is still true. “These
are the fringes of [God’s] ways,” Job said, “and
what a whisper of a matter has been heard of him! But of his mighty thunder who can show an
understanding?”— Job 26:14. No matter how long we live, we will never discover all there is to know about Jehovah God
and his works. The Bible states that God has put
the desire to live forever in our hearts. But it
also says that we will “never find out the work
that the true God has made from the start to the
finish.” ( Ecclesiastes 3:10, 11 ) Do you think you will ever get bored with learning new things
about your Creator? Even now, those who are busy doing work that benefits others and brings glory to God
seldom find that they are bored. We can be sure
that if we remain busy doing similar work, we
will never become bored—even if we live
forever

NO APPEAL AT ALL!
"For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God" 1COR 1:18
Why is this?
"But the natural man does not receive the things of the [Holy] Spirit of God. For they are foolishness to him; nor can if know them, because they are spiritually discerned" 1 Cor 2:14

Dear OP,d essence of this life is 2 prepare 4 d nxt.This life is important as well as d nxt which is more important cos thats a life witout end,focusing on this life at d expence of d nxt is foolish,hw long can 1 live on earth?70,80,90,120 or maybe less.So permit me 2 say dis life is nothing compared 2 d nxt

How appealing is eternal life?Very appealing,bible says..eyes have not seen,ears have nt heard what GOD has prepard 4 dos who love Him,Jesus said in my Father's house r many mansions,if it were nt so,i would have told u,i go 2 prepare a place 4 u...show me d best mainson in this world n i'l tel u its nothin compared 2 d ones Christ is preparing.

Personally, I think immortality is more of a curse than a blessing. Wwhat makes life precious is that we know it'll end someday. What makes happiness enjoyable is because we get to endure pain from time to time, the contrast comes out. Believe me, happiness for say, 500 yrs consecutively, you are gonna get bored. It might sound appealing to us mortals, but believe me, somewhere along the line, it gets boring and you become tired of living. When one gets tired of living as a human being, suicide can be a way out... Ahem. The bible doesn't really specify if you have a choice to end it if you will. Now imagine living against your will for thousands, nay, millions and millions of years. I'm atheist tho'. $hit like that don't bother me. We live, we die. Stardust to Stardust

As a kid, there were so many thingz we couldn't rili understand about so many big people's emotions and circumstances. Now we understand beta in retrospect - like ok, that person pr'abli did so so & so bak then coz he was poor & embarrassed, or coz she was Hot(conji tins) & a paedophile.

I get a similar feeling about eternity. I get the feel I will understand it all better when I get there. So I wonder, why understand it and rue the decisions I made in preparation 4 it?

Remember also, we made a lot of stupid speculations about what growing up would be like. Some of us talked about university days, sex and money like we already understood the feeling just because we knew people who were already there and we thought we could feel it vicariously. And now that we're finally there or past it, we find some (if not all) of our speculations were dead stupid. I also get the feeling eternity may make our current speculations look not-so-wise.

I follow my heart. We all probably should coz most hearts already know right from wrong and bother to remind us, no matter how subtly, when we err.

Wil it b boring there?Hell no!Its lyk being rewarded 4 d gud u'v done on earth.Op,have u eva attended a speech n prize giving day?is it ever boring especialy wen u r 2 b awarded a prize?d euphoria u feel wen u are called b4 evry1,u'l neva 4get in a hurry.How much more if u r calld by God b4 evry1 present.does that sound boring 2 u?I tink it a strategy of d devil 2 make us content wit d things of dis world and forfeit that beta place,besides dis world wil b burnt off,so u beta prepare 4 d next cos it wil come u prepare 4 it or not.

Well, I don't know so much, but I do know that we are limited beings. We are limited in knowledge, and we have no real power over our life, just a few percentage. I also know that only a few of us barely made it out of school with good grades, and that many of us claim to have very good common sense, but we fail at GMAT tests, interviews, little mathematical equations, can barely right good knowledgebase articles in good grammatically structured english. And worst of all, many of us are poor, frustrated men. And not many of us are rich enough to make a good life.

Why am i saying all this? It doesn't hurt to prepare for something unknown. Thank God I prepared for the unknown of my future, and today it has paid off in good dividends. I am happy my preparations in education, international certifications, continual study and being abreast of needed competencies in the economy.

This is eternity we are talking about, I would rather believe in it and prepare, than regret. It doesn't cost me anything. AND THERE IS NOT ENOUGH PLEASURES IN THIS WORLD WORTH SACRIFICING THAT FOR IF INDEED ETERNITY EXISTS, NOT SEX, NOT MONEY, NOT FAME, NOT YOU. Rather be safe than sorry. Learn destiny changing risk management techniques my people.

How can 1 prepare 4 d nxt life?Confes ur sins 2 God,Accept Jesus in2 ur life and sincerely make Him ur Lord and saviour.turn away 4m all sins.Follow Christ's instructions evryday,read ur bible n pray evryday 4 God 2 hold ur hands and help 2 make it.Preach 2 odas like i'm doing now and even beta.God bless u as u do so in JESUS name.

akagaba: Seeking 4 irrelevant attention. Go and sit down my dear if thats ur daft perception abt eternal life. Who cares wat u thnk or say abt eternal life, al wat i can tel u is dat on d last day, we wil know. M0ron.

Bigot! !

Firstly, eternal life is not what we wait for in life after death, when we grow and walk in love here on earth, we are already witnessing and expressing eternal life. Eternal life (zoe) is the life of God which is different to (Bios) natural life, ve u ever felt blessed for reaching out to another human in love? Do u remember how that feels? That's just a dimension, there n then nothing earthly could ve mattered, not money not anything, nothing compares.

To ask how appealing is an understatement, it is what we were made for. We were made for LOVE and God is nothing other than LOVE. If you think all this doesn't matter? Wait till the moment you are about to die, I pray u don't cus all u ve to take with u then is memories of love given or shared.

If you ve accepted Jesus as savior n lord the more better, because you ve a perfect example in whose grace u can grow in God and grow in LOVE.

Eternal life is not appealing, it is home, we ve to go home!

cyrexx: I believe NOT in the fantasy of the imaginary second life, but I BELIEVE AND MAKE THE BEST USE of the only real and existent life that humans possess.

I want reality, not fantasy.

The reality of life in second-life is like that of a dream in your sleep... Sleep is a temporary death while death is a permanent sleep; a transition to second-life where only your deeds in this life will be use to determine the type of dream (good or bad) you will have there permanently/forever..

@OP, wonderful write-up. Its thoughts like this that led me to knowing the real truth of life. But u cant blame people who cant reason along ur line, they have been brainwashed to believe in fantasy from childbirth...how do u expect them to reason independently? I think only Zombies can exist forever ever in the so called afterlife.

ezme:

My argument actually is that the tribulations and uncertainties in of life is what makes it worthwhile.Like 50cent said " Sunny days wouldn't be special, if it wasn't for rain. Joy wouldn't feel so good, if it wasn't for pain." Absent the sorrow and pain, would it still be a great feeling? Would the "law of diminishing utility" not come into play after a while?

You are still looking at it from the physical. A life without pain, sorrow, fears, worries, imperfections etc is worthy of being desired to live for eternity. Time does not play in eternity like we see in the world where we have morning, noon and night. Rev 22:5. Eternal life is a different thing from what we are seeing here. Eternal torment is not a false teaching so dont be deceived.

[size=18pt]There is no better choice.
And sincerely I believe in eternal life, because I know it is real.
God is the God of eternal life.[/size]

call it eternity or call it the life cycle: the water drops as rain (precipitation), evaporates to the atmoshere, runs into the sea and comes back as rain; not one molecule is drestroyed; the sun rises from the east, sets down west only to come the next day from the east; the man dies, moves on, yet lives again. it is a mystery.

hey, but here is the summary: there is nothing new under the sun. that which is has been. that is the secret of eternity - everything in creation goes through its cycle as it develops, ages, disintegrates, and regenerates. world without end! amen.

cyrexx: Everybody is free to follow their fantasy, I won't stop them; but as for me, I desire no eternal life cos it diminishes the value of the only life we've got. Religion makes us look forward to an imaginary second life while surrendering our real life to religious control.

Is this what the urge for "sex for all" (promiscouse sex) can cause to some one .

Your suggestion on this forum all along has been to suggest what you know Yahweh hate.

Can your loving what Yahweh hate have led you to this?

(1 John 5:3).
"For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous." (1 John 5:3).


.

Sorry for you though.

akagaba: Seeking 4 irrelevant attention. Go and sit down my dear if thats ur daft perception abt eternal life. Who cares wat u thnk or say abt eternal life, al wat i can tel u is dat on d last day, we wil know. M0ron.

ur fada!!!