Buddhists
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_Anonymous
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Buddhists
Where can I get information for witnessing to a Buddhist?
Last edited by Guest on Wed Dec 31, 1969 7:00 pm, edited 0 times in total.
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_Anonymous
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What type of Buddhist?
A Western, meditational - philosophy type buddhist....or an eastern buddha worshipper?
Last edited by Guest on Wed Dec 31, 1969 7:00 pm, edited 0 times in total.
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_Anonymous
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either way....
a good place to start is a little book called "The Lotus and the Cross"
It is a speculated conversation between Jesus and Buddha, and I believe it successfully brings to light major differences between Buddhism and Christianity and inconsitency within the Buddhist way of thought.
I believe it is by Ravi Zacherias.....don't quote me on that.
It is a speculated conversation between Jesus and Buddha, and I believe it successfully brings to light major differences between Buddhism and Christianity and inconsitency within the Buddhist way of thought.
I believe it is by Ravi Zacherias.....don't quote me on that.
Last edited by Guest on Wed Dec 31, 1969 7:00 pm, edited 0 times in total.
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_Anonymous
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Buddhists
HI,
I have read your posts and why not use the BIBLE as your point of reference? PRAY first and then give them the salvation message.
one man plants one man waters GOD giveth the increase!
I cannot imagine reading a worldly book for conversion
I have read your posts and why not use the BIBLE as your point of reference? PRAY first and then give them the salvation message.
one man plants one man waters GOD giveth the increase!
I cannot imagine reading a worldly book for conversion
Last edited by Guest on Wed Dec 31, 1969 7:00 pm, edited 0 times in total.
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_love the logos
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Don't you think its rather critical to refer to a book by Ravi Z. Who started Many great ministries who also wrote
These books help give light to scripture, because they are rooted in scripture. Are bible concordances worldly? Are all Christian apologetics books worldly? Elaborate please.
Carm.ORG has a lot of good information and would be the easiest place to start online and if you want some things for Buddhists There is a big called "fast facts on false teachings" which goes over a basic overlaying.
One thing you have to keep in mind that as a
When the Author of hebrews wrote to the hebrews he used there form of understanding to reach them. Even Paul spoke to Philosophers
Acts 17
17So he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and the God-fearing Greeks, as well as in the marketplace day by day with those who happened to be there. 18A group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers began to dispute with him. Some of them asked, "What is this babbler trying to say?" Others remarked, "He seems to be advocating foreign gods." They said this because Paul was preaching the good news about Jesus and the resurrection. 19Then they took him and brought him to a meeting of the Areopagus, where they said to him, "May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting?
And also
1 cor 9
19Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. 20To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. 21To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God's law but am under Christ's law), so as to win those not having the law. 22To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some. 23I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.
I hope this will help you in your pursuit good luck and.. May I also suggest "new evidence which demands a verdict" which covers most all apologetic issues. God bless.
. and has been compared to the likes of C.S Lewis asCan Man live without God
?worldly
These books help give light to scripture, because they are rooted in scripture. Are bible concordances worldly? Are all Christian apologetics books worldly? Elaborate please.
Carm.ORG has a lot of good information and would be the easiest place to start online and if you want some things for Buddhists There is a big called "fast facts on false teachings" which goes over a basic overlaying.
One thing you have to keep in mind that as a
that all of our thoughts are rooted in rationalistic empirical worldview. It is essential as a Christian that you understand the way and origin that your thoughts are composed in and you must realize that you do not think in the same way so it is important to understand and read about previously there culture.westerner
When the Author of hebrews wrote to the hebrews he used there form of understanding to reach them. Even Paul spoke to Philosophers
Acts 17
17So he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and the God-fearing Greeks, as well as in the marketplace day by day with those who happened to be there. 18A group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers began to dispute with him. Some of them asked, "What is this babbler trying to say?" Others remarked, "He seems to be advocating foreign gods." They said this because Paul was preaching the good news about Jesus and the resurrection. 19Then they took him and brought him to a meeting of the Areopagus, where they said to him, "May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting?
And also
1 cor 9
19Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. 20To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. 21To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God's law but am under Christ's law), so as to win those not having the law. 22To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some. 23I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.
I hope this will help you in your pursuit good luck and.. May I also suggest "new evidence which demands a verdict" which covers most all apologetic issues. God bless.
Last edited by Guest on Wed Dec 31, 1969 7:00 pm, edited 0 times in total.
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2 john 1:12
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_Anonymous
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buddhists
PLEASE forgive me if I spoke out of turn I was acting foolish without knowing the facts.
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_love the logos
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I'm a sinner too. its all good. forgiven. not because i'm worthy to forgive but i'm compelled to forgive others as an overflow of Gods grace on me.
Last edited by Guest on Wed Dec 31, 1969 7:00 pm, edited 0 times in total.
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2 john 1:12
As someone who's had some exposure to Buddhism, I would like to thank "love the logos" who quoted 1 Cor. 9:19-23. AMEN!
I also have some thoughts to offer anyone who'd like to witness to a Buddhist. First of all, ACKNOWLEDGE WHAT THEY ALREADY HAVE RIGHT.
Look at Revelation 2-3. I know that I'm not exactly comparing apples with apples as these messages all relate to believers in Christ. However, notice that each of the messages to the seven churches almost always begin with commending something that these groups already have right. Paul himself began his message, in Acts 17, by building off of what the people he was speaking to already believed.
Here's an example of something that Buddhism has right. Those of you who've had some exposure to it might know of a concept called the "Wheel of Life." What it basically represents is the bouncing back and forth between extremes that people go through until they achieve a proper balance in their lives. Whereas Buddhism usually pictures this as happening over the course of millenia, through reincarnation, what IS true about this is the process that people often go through in their individual lives.
Jesus Himself said that the way of life was a narrow road that few find. Properly interpreted, the way of life comes through BALANCE. Otherwise, we'll keep falling into the same harmful, destructive cycles over and over again.
Here are the six major segments on the Buddhist Wheel of Life:
1. The "gods": this segment represents the abundant enjoyment of all of the pleasures of life. Jesus said that He came so that we might have life more abundantly (John 10:10). There's nothing wrong with enjoying everything that life has to offer...but that's not all that life is about. Both the bible and Buddhism teach this.
2. The "jealous gods": this segment represents those who covet after what they don't have but others do. Coveting is wrong on two counts: it would have us believe that we AREN'T worthy of having our needs and desires fulfilled without resorting to coveting, and also that the other person/people don't deserve what they've been given. Not only was coveting forbidden by the Ten Commandments, Jesus also gave a notable parable about it in Matthew 19:16-22. Jesus first quoted all of the commandments relating how man should act toward man except for the commandment(s) regarding coveting, because He knew that the man He was talking to had a problem with it!
3. The "animal world": this represents people going about and satisfying their carnal, "animal" desires without regard to the consequences. To give a modern example, a person who is trying to keep to a diet might look at a chocolate cake and, in a moment of weakness, give in to their craving to eat it.
4. "Hell": not literally hell-fire, but rather extremely traumatic suffering. Examples of this are when the Israelites were in slavery in Egypt, when the Jews suffered and died in the concentration camps in Germany, etc. Buddhism asks the question, how does one move beyond extremely traumatic suffering, and be healed? Both Buddhism and the bible give good answers to this question. (I'm not dismissing the cleansing act of baptism, but ask yourself the question, how did God deal with the issue of the Israelites' suffering in Egypt? How were they supposed to overcome the emotional trauma that that caused? Baptism in Christ Jesus wasn't around back then.)
5. The "hungry ghosts": this represents acute, unsatisfiable desire. For example, when the Israelites left Egypt, nothing that God could bless them with, even in the midst of their wandering in the wilderness, was enough to satisfy their desire. At every point, no matter what God did for them, they simply refused to put their trust in Him and keep it there. We may not be coming out of slavery in Egypt, but many of us today live lives of acute, unsatisfiable desire. Simply "believing in Jesus" isn't the whole answer, either. Jesus IS the answer, but many Christians never learn how to apply that answer to their circumstances, just like the Israelites who had left Egypt didn't.
6. The "human world": this represents those who are living in relative balance. They don't have to deal with acute, unsatisfiable desire, covetousness, carnal gratification, or an over-abundance of physical blessings which draws them into one of the previous three categories.
Basically, Buddhism teaches that those who don't fall into the "desire" trap and manage to keep their lives either in the "human world" or moving towards it at all times, have achieved "Enlightenment." This is actually almost exactly what the bible teaches, but, IMHO, Buddhism says it even better even though it leaves out Jesus.
A good book to read on this subject is "Mindfulness and Money: The Buddhist Path of Abundance" available on Amazon.com.
To sum up, if you want to witness to a Buddhist, a good way of doing so would be to show them where Buddhism is similar to Christianity, as I've shown above, and then show how it's different - tell them about Christ - and why they should want to change what they believe. What benefit does it give them beyond what they already believe, and why would they want it?
Remember that the Buddhist concept of the hereafter is quite a bit different than ours. Why should they want eternal life as a separate individual versus rejoining the great universal soul? Hopefully, because they can see the value in being of eternal service to others. That's what a "buddha" is supposed to be, by the way. Someone who has achieved enlightenment but hasn't yet died and rejoined the "universal soul" because, for the remainder of their lives, they wish to serve others and help them to achieve enlightenment. The whole premise of the Kingdom of God is one of eternal service under the rulership and leadership of Jesus Christ.
Damon
I also have some thoughts to offer anyone who'd like to witness to a Buddhist. First of all, ACKNOWLEDGE WHAT THEY ALREADY HAVE RIGHT.
Look at Revelation 2-3. I know that I'm not exactly comparing apples with apples as these messages all relate to believers in Christ. However, notice that each of the messages to the seven churches almost always begin with commending something that these groups already have right. Paul himself began his message, in Acts 17, by building off of what the people he was speaking to already believed.
Here's an example of something that Buddhism has right. Those of you who've had some exposure to it might know of a concept called the "Wheel of Life." What it basically represents is the bouncing back and forth between extremes that people go through until they achieve a proper balance in their lives. Whereas Buddhism usually pictures this as happening over the course of millenia, through reincarnation, what IS true about this is the process that people often go through in their individual lives.
Jesus Himself said that the way of life was a narrow road that few find. Properly interpreted, the way of life comes through BALANCE. Otherwise, we'll keep falling into the same harmful, destructive cycles over and over again.
Here are the six major segments on the Buddhist Wheel of Life:
1. The "gods": this segment represents the abundant enjoyment of all of the pleasures of life. Jesus said that He came so that we might have life more abundantly (John 10:10). There's nothing wrong with enjoying everything that life has to offer...but that's not all that life is about. Both the bible and Buddhism teach this.
2. The "jealous gods": this segment represents those who covet after what they don't have but others do. Coveting is wrong on two counts: it would have us believe that we AREN'T worthy of having our needs and desires fulfilled without resorting to coveting, and also that the other person/people don't deserve what they've been given. Not only was coveting forbidden by the Ten Commandments, Jesus also gave a notable parable about it in Matthew 19:16-22. Jesus first quoted all of the commandments relating how man should act toward man except for the commandment(s) regarding coveting, because He knew that the man He was talking to had a problem with it!
3. The "animal world": this represents people going about and satisfying their carnal, "animal" desires without regard to the consequences. To give a modern example, a person who is trying to keep to a diet might look at a chocolate cake and, in a moment of weakness, give in to their craving to eat it.
4. "Hell": not literally hell-fire, but rather extremely traumatic suffering. Examples of this are when the Israelites were in slavery in Egypt, when the Jews suffered and died in the concentration camps in Germany, etc. Buddhism asks the question, how does one move beyond extremely traumatic suffering, and be healed? Both Buddhism and the bible give good answers to this question. (I'm not dismissing the cleansing act of baptism, but ask yourself the question, how did God deal with the issue of the Israelites' suffering in Egypt? How were they supposed to overcome the emotional trauma that that caused? Baptism in Christ Jesus wasn't around back then.)
5. The "hungry ghosts": this represents acute, unsatisfiable desire. For example, when the Israelites left Egypt, nothing that God could bless them with, even in the midst of their wandering in the wilderness, was enough to satisfy their desire. At every point, no matter what God did for them, they simply refused to put their trust in Him and keep it there. We may not be coming out of slavery in Egypt, but many of us today live lives of acute, unsatisfiable desire. Simply "believing in Jesus" isn't the whole answer, either. Jesus IS the answer, but many Christians never learn how to apply that answer to their circumstances, just like the Israelites who had left Egypt didn't.
6. The "human world": this represents those who are living in relative balance. They don't have to deal with acute, unsatisfiable desire, covetousness, carnal gratification, or an over-abundance of physical blessings which draws them into one of the previous three categories.
Basically, Buddhism teaches that those who don't fall into the "desire" trap and manage to keep their lives either in the "human world" or moving towards it at all times, have achieved "Enlightenment." This is actually almost exactly what the bible teaches, but, IMHO, Buddhism says it even better even though it leaves out Jesus.
A good book to read on this subject is "Mindfulness and Money: The Buddhist Path of Abundance" available on Amazon.com.
To sum up, if you want to witness to a Buddhist, a good way of doing so would be to show them where Buddhism is similar to Christianity, as I've shown above, and then show how it's different - tell them about Christ - and why they should want to change what they believe. What benefit does it give them beyond what they already believe, and why would they want it?
Remember that the Buddhist concept of the hereafter is quite a bit different than ours. Why should they want eternal life as a separate individual versus rejoining the great universal soul? Hopefully, because they can see the value in being of eternal service to others. That's what a "buddha" is supposed to be, by the way. Someone who has achieved enlightenment but hasn't yet died and rejoined the "universal soul" because, for the remainder of their lives, they wish to serve others and help them to achieve enlightenment. The whole premise of the Kingdom of God is one of eternal service under the rulership and leadership of Jesus Christ.
Damon
Last edited by Guest on Wed Dec 31, 1969 7:00 pm, edited 0 times in total.
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Damon, somehow I have been given to understand that the holiest state, according to Bhuddism, is to be entirely free from desire, indeed from emotions of any kind. Is this a mistaken idea about Bhuddism?
Last edited by Guest on Wed Dec 31, 1969 7:00 pm, edited 0 times in total.
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Paidion
Avatar --- Age 45
"Not one soul will ever be redeemed from hell but by being saved from his sins, from the evil in him." --- George MacDonald
Avatar --- Age 45
"Not one soul will ever be redeemed from hell but by being saved from his sins, from the evil in him." --- George MacDonald
IMHO (and I may be wrong), the Buddhist concept of freedom from desire is referring to freedom from the kind of destructive desires that have serious, negative impacts on people's lives. I have heard some in Buddhism explain it as freedom from all desire of any kind, but I don't know that there's a consensus within Buddhism on this. You might try asking a Buddhist about it.
They do explain an effective way of dealing with destructive desires, though. They say, learn to appreciate something without coveting it. For instance, if one happens to be on a diet, learn to appreciate the fact that someone baked a pretty good-looking piece of chocolate cake! ...but one doesn't need to eat it to appreciate it.
James 1:12-15 is a biblical, albeit highly abbreviated, treatment of the topic of destructive desire. IMO, the Buddhists actually explain how to deal with destructive desire better than the bible does. Even so, I'm not about to go from being a Christian to becoming a Buddhist anytime soon.
Damon
They do explain an effective way of dealing with destructive desires, though. They say, learn to appreciate something without coveting it. For instance, if one happens to be on a diet, learn to appreciate the fact that someone baked a pretty good-looking piece of chocolate cake! ...but one doesn't need to eat it to appreciate it.
James 1:12-15 is a biblical, albeit highly abbreviated, treatment of the topic of destructive desire. IMO, the Buddhists actually explain how to deal with destructive desire better than the bible does. Even so, I'm not about to go from being a Christian to becoming a Buddhist anytime soon.
Damon
Last edited by Guest on Wed Dec 31, 1969 7:00 pm, edited 0 times in total.
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