Can one truly choose to accept Jesus?

(Lunar;52495)
It's been said many times that if one truly opens his heart to Jesus, Jesus will reveal himself to that person and save him. This struck me as a very silly idea.
of course it did(Lunar;52495)
Is it possible for an atheist to open his heart to Jesus and be saved?
There is a book you might find interesting. It is called "Tortured for Christ" by Richard Wurmbrand. You may find not only his journey interesting but also the testimony of thousands of atheists/communists who made the choice contrary to everything they knew and turned to God. Now if mind-bent, brain-washed, militants who know nothing at all but how to hate God and kill can turn to Christ by choice, why can't anyone?
Is the power within them to even will themselves to do so, when it runs contrary to everything they know?
not usually. They most likely start out the way you are...asking lots of questions, trying to find a logical loophole in order to avoid what their hearts already know is true. ...not acknowledging and knowing God is truly what runs contrary to everyone's hearts and everything we know.blessings

(Lunar;52519)
Er, I'd kind of prefer not to be lumped together with communists, if you don't mind.
Quite an assumption on your part don't you think Lunar? I don't believe you are truly so sensitive as to consider I am lumping or comparing you with a communist...pa-lease (giggle)
Well, I haven't read the book, so I can't speak for these people, but I can speak for myself. I'll simply reiterate what I said before: To try to "choose" to accept Jesus is, to me, like trying to choose to believe that I have three hands. I cannot do it.
Try the book, you might find it a very good read, if nothing else.Then don't do it. No one is forcing you. Not even God. Do what you gotta do...
You smile, but that's a pretty arrogant thing to say. I believe that when you post here, you are at least being honest, if not always correct. I would appreciate it if you credit me with the same honesty. There's nothing in my mind or heart telling me that Christianity is right. If we're to have any sort of discussion you need to accept that.
When did I ever suggest to you that "Christianity" IS right? Not one time.I will suggest to you that God is right, that the Messiah who we call Christ is right...But I promise you I will never tell you that today's Christianity is right. In fact I wouldn't tell you that ANY person or religion is right....be blessed

(Lunar;52567)
I'm not assuming anything; you just said precisely that.
I went back and read what I said and NO SIR there is no implication whatsoever that my intent was to lump you in with communists...first of all Lunar, I have not once intentionally insulted you. And second of all, I care about you, what you are doing here and what happens to you. That being said, I was attempting to paint a picture of the extreme to show you that if they who have been harmed by propaganda and lies nearly from birth by the brain washing they received from the communist parties, making them communists when they grew up find themselves turning to the Lord....well, just like I said "anyone can"..Please in the future, try not to believe that I am here to insult you...
If that's not what you meant, though, then I'll let bygones be bygones.
k
Let's not beat around the bush here. If it wasn't clear from my last post, what I was saying was that I do not "know in my heart" that anything about God, the divine, the supernatural, or any deity is true. I do not, as you put it, "know and acknowledge God" in my heart of hearts. I simply don't.
sir, according to the Word of God in scripture, the truth is written on everyman's heart. I cannot make an argument against scripture.....
So please don't try and speak as though I'm ignoring my good sense and that the truth about God is innate in everyone. Unless you take me for a liar, you have to accept that the truth about God is not innate in me.
Okay fair enough. So then I will speak on what I believe. I believe as the word says, the truth is written on every man's heart. It is also true that what a person does with the truth is up to them. Jeremiah 31:33But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 34 No longer shall they teach one another, or say to each other, “Know the LORD,” for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the LORD; for I will forgive their iniquity, and remember their sin no more.I cannot do anything more for you Lunar (as I have said before) than to pray and tell you about how I came to believe in my own life. I don't know, maybe that would help you, maybe it wouldn't. blessings

(Lunar;52584)
This passage says that the law will be written on the hearts of the house of Israel (i.e. the Jews), not everyone.
Well that would be right except that the house of Israel isnt just Jews its Jews(judah) and Christians (ten lost tribes) all true believers joined together at the Wedding see Eze 37 starting about verse 16 where the two sticks called Judah and Ephraim are rejoined.

(Lunar;52584)
This passage says that the law will be written on the hearts of the house of Israel (i.e. the Jews), not everyone.
Since you say you are not "Christian, I find it very interesting to hear you say something that most Christians would say in order to dispute that the Law is not what He means by the truth and that it does not apply to them but only to the house of Israel. Now the part that is not being spoken, by either yourself or many other people, is that those who come to the Lord are grafted into the house of Israel as a believer in the Way and in the Truth, lovers of the Word (As is said of Christ. He is the Way, the Truth and the Light John 14:6).Another point I would like to make is that God has made a NEW-covenant with ALL people, not just the bloodline of the house of Israel, but also the adopted, heart circumcised gentile nations-it is all inclusive.Hosea 2:23 I will plant her for myself in the land; I will show my love to the one I called ‘Not my loved one.’ I will say to those called ‘Not my people, ‘‘You are my people’; and they will say, ‘You are my God.’”Romans 2:14 Indeed, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature things required by the law, they are a law for themselves, even though they do not have the law, 15 since they show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts now accusing, now even defending them.Romans 2:28 A man is not a Jew if he is only one outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical. 29 No, a man is a Jew if he is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a man’s praise is not from men, but from God.be blessed Lunar...I will be back online after shabat.

(Lunar;52495)
It's been said many times that if one truly opens his heart to Jesus, Jesus will reveal himself to that person and save him. This struck me as a very silly idea. But I decided, while lying bored in bed one night, to try it.Needless to say, nothing happened. But of course, I realized, I hadn't *actually* opened my heart to Jesus. And the reason for that was that I simply *couldn't* open my heart to Jesus. I was incapable of it. The very idea was too preposterous; it stood in too stark a contrast to every other thing I deemed sensible. I didn't believe in God or Jesus, so how could I sincerely open my heart to him? "Choosing" to accept Jesus felt about as plausible as choosing to believe that I had three hands. The choice wasn't mine to make.Is it possible for an atheist to open his heart to Jesus and be saved? Is the power within them to even will themselves to do so, when it runs contrary to everything they know?
You hit the nail on the head. Actually, in and of oneself, one cannot believe. It's not intrinsically there. This is why atheists have trouble believing God, because they were trying to find evidence for him on their own terms. But then again, so that you do not think I am picking on atheists, the same can be said of any "religious" person. The bible makes it clear that God choses the person, and then this in turn allows them by their own free will accept him by faith. If that sounds confusing, think of electromagnetic induction where the primary induces current in the secondary, and the secondary current then reflects (i.e. reflected impedance) to the primary again.Or maybe it can be explained like romantic love. There is no empirical evidence for romantic love, as nobody can seem to nail down "love", but the effects are there.The same goes with God.However, if you dabble enough with this thing called Christianity, you may find yourself one day becoming a believer. If that does not appeal to you, then maybe you should consider a forum with another topic.

(tim_from_pa;52608)
You hit the nail on the head. Actually, in and of oneself, one cannot believe. It's not intrinsically there. This is why atheists have trouble believing God, because they were trying to find evidence for him on their own terms. But then again, so that you do not think I am picking on atheists, the same can be said of any "religious" person. The bible makes it clear that God choses the person, and then this in turn allows them by their own free will accept him by faith. If that sounds confusing, think of electromagnetic induction where the primary induces current in the secondary, and the secondary current then reflects (i.e. reflected impedance) to the primary again.Or maybe it can be explained like romantic love. There is no empirical evidence for romantic love, as nobody can seem to nail down "love", but the effects are there.The same goes with God.However, if you dabble enough with this thing called Christianity, you may find yourself one day becoming a believer. If that does not appeal to you, then maybe you should consider a forum with another topic.
tim_from_pa --Referring to your phrase "God choses the person and then this in turn allows them by their own free will accept him by faith..." -That is probably not a good way to put it because that would be implying that God doesn't choose certain people, and that is simply not true, especially according to Scripture. God wants everyone to believe in Him. He doesn't chose certain people so that the others have no way of believing in Him because He didn't choose them. If you are referring to Romans (vessels of wrath and honor), the truth is that although there are vessels of wrath and vessels of honor, if the vessels of wrath repent, they can become vessels of honor. God knows the heart, so He knows from the beginning what a person will do; therefore, if a person chooses not to repent, God knew it from the beginning and that person is a vessel of wrath (But like I said, if they repent, they can become a vessel of honor). Lunar --First of all, I just wanted to let you know that I was NOT trying to insult you with what I said to Tim; I was just clearing up a mistake he made. However, you may find what I said to him helpful, I don't know...The Bible says that God has placed it in the heart of man to know Him. Like Jackie was saying, every person knows the truth innately. God is no respector of persons. You say that the truth of God is not innately in you, but it's probably because you can't see it, and you don't know where to look. Lunar, if you would throw away all of your preconceived ideas about God, you will find the truth. By that I mean that you are looking for the truth about God, while at the same time holding on to all your biases against Him; therefore, any "truth" that is presented, you can't see or seem to grasp your brain around. It's really simple, but those who won't open their eyes can't see the truth for what it is, the TRUTH. I guess what I'm trying to say is that before you can open your heart to God, you have to open your eyes to His truth. But some will choose to keep their eyes closed; they could see if they would just open their eyes, but they WON'T see because they choose not to open their eyes. BUT Jesus said that He came to "open their eyes, and turn them from darkness to light." Anyone can choose to truly accept Jesus, but it takes true faith. God sees your heart, Lunar, and you can't just decide that because you're board you will try to accept Jesus. It is not a game; it must from sincerity, and if God sees that you're playing a game with Him, He won't fool around with you. I know you're trying, but my point is that you have to change your mind-set in order to fully appreciate and understand everything about God and His great love for YOU. :read:The choice IS yours, but maybe you just aren't ready to make that decision yet.

tim_from_pa --Referring to your phrase "God choses the person and then this in turn allows them by their own free will accept him by faith..." -That is probably not a good way to put it because that would be implying that God doesn't choose certain people, and that is simply not true, especially according to Scripture. God wants everyone to believe in Him. He doesn't chose certain people so that the others have no way of believing in Him because He didn't choose them. If you are referring to Romans (vessels of wrath and honor), the truth is that although there are vessels of wrath and vessels of honor, if the vessels of wrath repent, they can become vessels of honor. God knows the heart, so He knows from the beginning what a person will do; therefore, if a person chooses not to repent, God knew it from the beginning and that person is a vessel of wrath (But like I said, if they repent, they can become a vessel of honor).
I agree. This is one of those predestination and free choice paradoxes technically hard to put into words. They both coexist which is why I see both sides of that debate because both are right. The only way I can explain it is God exists unbounded by space and time. Even some scientific truths have apparent contradictions.

All of these things - faith, accepting Jesus, opening one's heart or eyes, aligning one's mind - seem like epistemological black boxes. "Once you do that, you're all set!" - but that's the very problem. How can one do that? I don't think it's possible for some.
It's not in yourself to believe. A biblical answer:So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.That's how faith comes according to the bible. Not by praying for it, not by striving by self-effort to the point of sweat or any other way. That's why I said earlier about dabbling with Christianity you may end up believing. That's because you will hear more and more of the Word and faith will come to you---- you do not go to it or choose it by the power of the flesh.

(Lunar;52779)
So if I just read the bible enough I should gain faith?
Yes, I wouldn't be surprised. Part of believing the Word is putting it to practice as it also teaches. Remember that part as well.

(Lunar;52779)
So if I just read the bible enough I should gain faith?
Yes, I believe so. But Jesus also said let those with ears HEAR... and obviously it would be assumed that those with ears would be able to hear (unless they are physically deaf). And so, hearing physically is not necessarily the same thing as LISTENING, which I believe is the true nature of all things when it comes to hearing the Word of God.If you have closed your mind and heart, and rejected Christ, there comes a point where you can commit the unpardonable sin. As much as God has desired (shown by His many attempts) to give you the message of salvation, His Spirit will not always strive with you. In other words, you could hear His Word all day... but you will never hear His Word really, again, ever. At this point you will be reprobate concerning faith in Christ. Of course most any Christian would say we hope this is not the case for you...Maybe you will and maybe you will not reach this point. Maybe you have already. I don't know, I just know it can happen, and the more you reject Him, the closer you get to it. God knows when this is of course since He is the one who saves, and He is the one who strives with you.

as long as there is breath there is hope!

(Jackie D;52811)
as long as there is breath there is hope!
Well spoken!

(treeoflife;52797)
rejected Christ, there comes a point where you can commit the unpardonable sin.
I disagree with this. IMO: The "unpardonable sin" is ascribing the workings of the Holy Spirit unto being the workings of an "evil spirit" [cf Mark 3].(treeoflife)
As much as God has desired (shown by His many attempts) to give you the message of salvation, His Spirit will not always strive with you.
That however, is not ascribing the working of the Holy Spirit as being an "evil spirit". It is simply ignoring it. There is a vast difference IMO. There are many many Christians of whom have or are still ignoring the prompting of the Ruakh ha-Qodesh.My apologies for intruding, however that is one that always bothers me.