Logic dictates that to attain "eternal life" the body must 1st die- is Christianity not based on death?

It's NOT any different from any other death cult. You, sir, have hit on a good point.

IMHO, this life right now is the only thing we can be sure of. I'm going to make it as good as it can be, and not gamble that there might be something else after I die.

Sometimes Christianity reminds me of George Orwell's 1984: "freedom is slavery", "war is peace" - only Christianity says "Death is life."

At first I probably would have screwed around a lot more and done a lot of the things from which I have refrained. But seeing now how my life was when I was doing the things I've been counseled not to, and how I am happier and have more peace in my life living the way I do now. Having lived many different ways, this way brings me the most fulfillment, whether there is a heaven or not. And as far as hell goes, it doesn't exist in the way many Christians portray it.

In a way you have a point, and it could be true in some cases, but why do you suppose that Christianity is not based on reality?

Desperate for eternal life and hoping to have it ,you say, I can tell you that I am 100 percent sure that I was given eternal life through my belief in The Lords finished work on the cross and there is no desperation on my part, in fact I am enjoying myself like never before.

Here is a bible verse that states that a believer should be assured that they eternal life.

1Jo 5:13

These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.

A good, tough question.

The bible has always taught that everyone will live eternally. The question is whether we will spend it with God (eternal life) or apart from God (eternal death). We basically spent it where we want to spend it. If we accept Christ in this life then we live with him in the next. If we reject Christ in this life then we live apart from him in the next.

Yes, I do live in a hope in an after life with Christ. I get that hope from the Bible. Jesus' own ressurection was very important because it provided proof of his power as a divine being and it proved he had the ability to fulfill his promises made in Scripture (Old Testament books + his own teachings which would become the New Testament). The fact that he fulfilled so many prophesies given so many years earlier also provides very strong proof of God's hand in the control (soveriegnty) over the whole situation.

Like so many of you "enlightened intellectuals" who view anyone who believes in the Bible as incapable of independent thought; you completely misinterpret the Bible's message.

We all have a soul, (doesn't the soul pretty much nullify the evolution fallacy?), the soul lives on after the body perishes; the destination of the soul is dictated by our relationship with Jesus Christ; the savior of all mankind and the only gateway into Heaven and the eternal presence of the Father.

Whether you live your life for Christ, or live your life as yet one more "hey Christians if you're beliefs are true then how come..." "intellectually superior atheist" (because any intelligent human being could never believe in something as primitive as a Supreme Being right?).

So yes, when we all die we will all face judgment; that doesn't mean in the slightest that Christianity is a death cult and that we're all actively seeking death; (get your facts straight), it means that we're acknowledging that the Father of all creation set forth guidelines and criteria for mankind to follow in order to ensure a place in heaven; so that when our time does come; our place is prepared.

The fact that such beliefs are scorned by people like you doesn't really impact us much; it just gives us an opportunity to gain Answer Points by responding to such poorly asked questions such as yours....

It's what gives all religions throughout history an edge that you cannot argue with. Talk yourself blue in the face and never ever get any where with the true believers. When you think about it, it's the perfect hiding hole for any thing you want to throw in. Heaven, Hell, and everything in between. Death where is your sting? If there is something there it ought to be interesting, if not i could sure use the rest!..:)

we ALL will face death. unavoidable

EVERYONE at some point wonders what will happen to them when they die

MOST people want to hope there IS something after death

faith in God is HOPE there is something after death and that it will be a better place than all the sorrorw's of life here.

I personally have never met anyone obsessed with death, and wanting to "'pass over to the other side" . Christianity is not about death, it's about LIFE here and now, and what you do with it to make the world a better place.

It's life, it's death, it's the whole darned thing!

It's not a 'death culture' like the ancient Egyptians had, when their whole life was about dying and preparing for that - being embalmed and goodness knows what.

There's no smell of the grave about Christianity! There's no 'rottenness and dead mens' bones'. The central fact of the faith is life coming out of death - a Risen Saviour! And, if Jesus hadn't risen from the dead (having died for our sins on the cross), then everything that had happened previously (including the cross) would have meant nothing.

So, you've got it wrong, my friend, for it's the resurrection that validates everything. The emphasis is on NEW LIFE and not death.

But, even in this life, we are not all standing around waiting for death and wishing to hasten it (like Jim Jones, as you say). That's a perversion, and most ungrateful to the God who gave us life to live, enjoy and serve him in the meantime! Jesus, who said that we must take up our cross and follow him, also said:

'I have come that they might have life, in all its fulness'

That means life now, and, when the time comes to die, or He comes for us, life then, in eternity, also.

Have you never read the bit in Revelations where it says 'and death and hades were cast into the lake of fire' (Rev.20:14)? That's because death is the enemy of man, and one day God will destroy it.

I have heard of some who couldn't wait for death, to be with the Lord. All very well, but it kind of makes me shudder, because I believe that life is a gift - a wonderful gift - and it is to enjoyed and used to glorify God, just as He gave it and meant it to be not, as it were 'thrown back in His face'. I love my life and I appreciate God's gift. For me, it's all joy, whether in this life, or the hereafter.

Does that sound like a 'death culture' to you?

Your whole concept that a person body must die first to have eternal life is not scriptual, We are to die out to sin, Because there will be a living element that will be alive when the resurrection come forth, we which are alive will not hinder those that are dead in the Lord.

Right now, we have this earthly body, it is actually a prerequisite to what is waiting after our body dies, where we are judged of how we have lived throughout our existence in earth. Our soul awaits judgement day and when that time comes we will experience the Eternal life with Him or suffer the fire.