Choosing a faith

Curious as to what the biblical "archaeology" people are spouting.

How is this relevant and how does this prove the Bible is factual? The Empire State building and NYC are factual. So there really was a King Kong?

Tangle, when Satan took his demons and ascended into
heaven, he was prepared to fight against God in order to
get his way.Satan is no match for God. However, in order for him to
be willing to fight God he must have been incredibly
powerful.God could have ended Satan with a wave of His hand,
but He allowed Michael and the other angels to defeat
him.The solar system and most likely the entire universe was
damaged. Satan and his demons were forced back to
earth.In the first chapter of Genesis we see that the earth is
covered with water and stygian darkness.God begins to renew the face of the earth, readying it for
the creation of man.He did not renew the other planets and moons in our solar
system. They still carry the scars of that titanic war.
However, God did adjust the rotation of the Earth and
moon to each other as well as their rotation with the sun.When the earth was originally created the angels leaped
for joy. Job 38:7.Psalms 104:30 "Thou sends forth thy spirit, they are
created: and thou renewest the face of the earth."Isaiah 45:18 states that the earth was not created in
vain (tohuw-to lie waste, desolation, worthless thing).Genesis 1:2 states that the earth was w/o form (tohuw)
and void (bohuw-an undistinguishable ruin).Was is from hayah-to exist, or become, come to pass.What verse 2 states is that the earth had become waste;
it had become an undistinguishable ruin.

Have you noticed that candle2’s sources are either old, or hoaxes or both?

He's a medieval throwback.

Every one. I especially love it when he posts a hoax as a source. Fundies will believe anything.

Tangle, in verse 3 God said "Let there be light."He did not
create the sun on this day. It had been created sometime
in the past.The angelic war in the heavens had filled the earth's
atmosphere with debris.On this day someone standing on the face of the earth
would have seen light trickle through. However, the light
would have been translucent because of the heavy water
vapor, much like on Venus today.On day four God removed the cloud-cover from the
atmosphere, which allowed visual observation of the sun,
moon, stars, and other heavenly bodies.Visual observation of the heavenly bodies could then
be used to keep track of time.The NKJ version begins verse 16 with "then." Then God
made suggests continuity of action.The AS, RS, and KJ translations start with "and.""Made (asah) denotes completed action, which implies
that all could have been created that day, or anytime
previously.Also, verses 16-18 are parenthetical statements that
they had been made sometime in the past.The creation account was a renewing (repairing) of the
earth. God readied it for man.I do not know how old the universe is, and neither does
anyone else.

There is no heavy water vapor on Venus.

This is where you stop reading the Bible for yourself and go off on your church's teachings.
Light on Day 1 but the Sun on Day 4?I get that you believe that your church has sound teachings, but just like dwise1 is sweating me in regards to Calvary Chapel, I am going to sweat you in regards to the United Church of God.First, let's examine what the church says about itself. About the United Church of God
Your church is very thorough in its education of members beyond the Bible itself. I don't see any false teachings yet, but I am wary since years ago I listened to Herbert W. Armstrong.Apparently, your church was a reorganized new start, though Ambassador College descends from Armstrong as does the magazine (formerly known as The Plain Truth ) and now known as Beyond Today.
To be fair, it looks as if your church UCG split from Armstrong's Worldwide Church Of God in 1995.I'm not challenging your core teachings yet, though it appears that you have been taught an agenda. Dwise1 reminds me that Calvary Chapel had a strong agenda and that there is organized religion behind the scenes.

Critical Thinkers, by contrast, believe *NOTHING* without verifiable evidence. If God exists, I wonder why He set it up that way.And I wonder why you, who never was a believer, can throw stones at belief simply due to the fact that it does not ascribe to your rules of evidence?

They are not my rules of evidence.

First, I want to go deeper into how you actually read the Bible and rejected all of it.I can see a guy who goes to marriage counseling, gets handed authoritarianism by Christian sources, rejects the whole kit and kaboodle of Christian thinking, and becomes reinforcingly more of a critical thinker.I cant understand, however, why it is so hard to believe in Jesus Christ as Gods character.Is it the whole logical argument from older religions about anthropomorphizing God?Is it witnessing the bad behavior of self-professed believers?
For you, I know that the pattern of lies and denials among creationists was notable, butWhy this carries over into believers who have no problems with evolution mystifies me.I think I know the answer, though it is but a guess. A lot of you disapprove of conservatives.

Once upon a time, in a faraway land, there lived a beautiful princess named Cinderella. She possessed an enchanting grace that captivated the hearts of all who laid eyes upon her. […] And everyone lived happily ever after.

Tangle, the angels failed to do what God had assigned
to them. God is a Creator, and the angels were to assist,
but they rebelled.God would now rely on humans!God knew that the angels would fail. He also knew that
Adam and the entire human race would rebel against Him.Revelations 13:8 tells us that Christ knew that He would
give His life for us before the world was ever created.Angels were created before the earth was created. God
knew they would rebel, and He knew that humans would
rebel.Adam was to grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord.
And God had told Him that He would lead Adam and Eve
throughout their lives.He would teach them the way to true happiness. He only
knows the way to peace and happiness.Satan deceived Adam and Eve into disobeying God. He
led them to believe that they themselves could decide
what was good or bad.Adam was to replace Satan on earth's throne. God allows
one to stay in power until a replacement is ready. Satan
could not allow Adam to succeed.Adam and Eve made a choice to find true happiness on
their own, without interference from God.Sin had entered their lives and it brought with it the
death penalty.Sin is the transgressions of God's laws.
Sin is not in God's righteous character. He abhors it.Jesus, as our Creator, came to earth as a mortal man.He lived a sinless life and He took upon Himself our sins.
His life is far greater than all of our lives combined.Many falsely assume that God's righteous Commandments
are contrary to us. They also assume that He took them
out of the way, that He nailed them to the cross.This is utterly ridiculous. What was against us was the
death penalty. He took our place.It is not against us to not lie or steal; it is not against us
to honor our parents, etc...Adam and Eve did not trust God. They wanted to trust in
themselves instead of God.God is now allowing humanity 6000 years to try every
conceivable form of government. He is giving us this
time to prove beyond a shadow of doubt that He only
know the way to peace and happiness.

Candle2, once upon a time, in a faraway kingdom, there lived a humble woodcutter and his daughter, Rose. One day, while wandering through the enchanted forest, Rose stumbled upon a hidden cottage, inhabited by a family of talking animals. Little did she know, this chance encounter would set her on a magical journey filled with love, courage, and the power to change her destiny forever.As Rose embarked on her quest, she encountered a mischievous pixie who offered her a golden key, promising that it would unlock the secrets to her heart's desires. With unwavering determination, Rose ventured through treacherous lands and faced daunting challenges, guided by her pure heart and the belief that true magic resides within.[...]In the end, Rose's selflessness and bravery triumphed over darkness, and she not only discovered her own inner strength but also brought harmony and happiness to the kingdom. And so, her name became legendary, forever remembered as the hero who restored the light and brought the enchanting tale to life.