You could be mistaken..... "The New King James Version translates "God is no respecter of persons" as "God shows no partiality."
My question: The bible is filled with contradictions which leads to unnecessary fighting about the meaning. What is the reason your father took this approach when explaining his wishes?
Why? I would simply blink out of existence right? I actually would prefer the Christian lifestyle even if there weren't a God. I am curious what you think I'm missing out on because I'm a Christian though.
Lol...God has always been...and will always be.... but God is not a "Christian lifestyle" or any lifestyle for that matter... you are certainly entitled to live "Christian style"....whatever that may be... but it has nothing to do with God....
Yes, the Jesus-thing taught people to be good slaves because the Jesus-thing was neither intelligent enough nor enlightened enough to preach against slavery and condemn it. You might want to read: Romans 13:1 Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except by the appointment of the Jesus-thing, and the authorities that exist have been instituted by the Jesus-thing. 13:2 So the person who resists such authority resists the ordinance of the Jesus-thing, and those who resist will incur judgment. The Jesus-thing appointed Hitler who slaughtered Millions and resulted in Millions of others dying just so the Jesus-thing could feel a warming tingly sensation running down his leg, because, you know, the Jesus-thing has a "plan." And all the US soldiers and sailors and airmen who died, did die in vain resisting Hitler --who was appointed by the Jesus-thing -- because they will all incur judgment. If you resisted Obama, then you will incur judgment, just like those who resisted Trump. I'm guessing people are frightened by that. One more thing, you are Gomer (assuming the one drop rule applies and you are of Celtic origin). You get to die horribly at the hand of the Jesus-thing. I'm sure you'll be looking forward to that.
And, the answer is because Jesus wasn't really dead. It was all a big hoax. The Essene Sect of which Jesus was a member wanted to wrest power from the Pharisees and Sadducees. They concocted a plot to have a guy fake his death and pretend to come back to life thinking everyone would suddenly flock to them, because, you know, they got all the answers. But the plot failed. That's why Jesus only appears before his most trusted friends and confidants and never appears before anyone who might possibly cause him an harm. If Jesus goes to Pilate and says, I really am the way, then Pilate just nods his head and one of the palace guards runs Jesus through with a sword and then he really is dead. Same with the Pharisees. If Jesus goes before them, then one of their guards runs Jesus through with a spear and he really is dead. Read Luke. Luke says that Jesus put on a disguise -- traditional headdress with a veil -- and starts sneaking and slinking around town spying on people to hear what they have to say. He realizes the "revolution" was a dismal failure, but he does eavesdrop on two men talking and since he knew the two men, Luke says Jesus removed his veil so the two men would know who he is. Why do you think Saul/Paul went to Damascus? Saul/Paul was a Jew, but he was also a bounty hunter who hunted people down. Saul/Paul gets word that Jesus is alive and well and headed to India and on the road to Damascus, so Saul/Paul makes a beeline there. What do you know about Saul/Paul? I just told you everything you need to know. He's a bounty hunter. That kind of person craves attention and glory, and has a deep-rooted desire to control and manipulate people. Which is exactly what Saul/Paul does. He takes the Jesus-story and runs with it, except what happens? Well, Saul/Paul differently twists everything into his very own perverted view, because, well, he craves attention and glory and has a deep-rooted desire to control and manipulate others.
Ah so. Pascal's wager which can be applied to any religion or belief. If you don't believe in Krishna and are wrong, it is going to suck to be you. If you don't believe in Buddhism it is going to suck to be you. If you don't believe in Scientology it is going to suck to be you. If you don't believe in Mithra, it is going to suck to be you.
Read the texts. They had stick with a sponge on it and dipped into a bucket of "bitter water" to give to Jesus up on the cross. Opium is an alkaloid and alkaloids are bitter. Sumerian texts written 5,000 yeas before Jesus detail the use of opium and opiate-based derivatives for medicinal purposes. Poppies grow naturally in the region. Opium and opiate-derivatives slow respiratory rate and slow heart rate. There was no coroner to pronounce Jesus dead and the Roman guards are neither coroners, nor pathologists nor doctors, so as far as they're concerned, if someone looks dead, they probably are. And, Roman guards were not above bribery. In fact, the texts say, Nicodemus, I think it was, that bribes the guards to take Jesus away to a burial place instead of being thrown into a large pit. Once you get Jesus to a safe place, you give him atropine. Atropine had been used for 5,000 years. It's made by boiling the roots of the Night Shade plant which grows naturally in the region. The Army uses atropine as a nerve agent antidote, because it dilates the blood vessels, which is what you'd want to do to counter the effects of opium. The other clue is that Jesus was allegedly pierced with a spear and blood and water flowed. That proves he was alive, because dead people don't bleed. You bleed because your heart is pumping and your blood is under pressure. I worked the road 2 years before becoming a detective sergeant and came across a number of dead bodies. You can tell when wounds are made post-mortem. I find a dead body with stab wounds in the chest, but no blood, and that tells me they were killed some other way first, and then stabbed after they died. "I suffered and died for you sins, and came back to life, but I don't want you to know that," is totally illogical. Jesus doesn't go anywhere and avoids everyone like they're lepers with the plague. There's only one reason he would do that, and that's because he's not really dead. If Jesus went into town, every Jew and Pagan would instantly convert. But, he doesn't do that. Instead, he he hides like a fugitive.