I must say that my own self destructive habits and extremely poor life choices have made me realize that, regardless if Christianity is true or not on the metaphysical level, its model of sin, vice, and habits provide a lot of explanatory value for my own behavior from a psychological standpoint. I have become so completely enslaved to sin that I have lost my free will to a degree and have no power to turn back other than by some miraculous act of grace. I am stuck in some really self destructive habits that are completely fucking me but... but I can't stop. It's something about desire itself that does this. Actually I think not just Christianity, but to some extent Buddhism also has a fairly good model of what this actually does. Attachments, lusts, desires, concupiscence, sin, just from an observation of my own behavior these really seem to have an empirical basis. Or maybe I wrote all this because currently at this moment I am experiencing extreme emotional distress due to life circumstances and this mildly comforts me. Maybe that's the better explanation and it is all bullshit. Idk.
>>18529653I'm sorry that you are experiencing extreme emotional distress, and I hope that you can find the stength to make better choices. You are not alone.
>>18529779It's time for me to repent. It's time for me to put away the attachments I've been enslaved to for so long. My attachments are making me suffer. My deep and extreme concupiscence has corrupted my character and instilled such habits in me that I cannot of my own free will break. I am literally aware enough to recognize this. I'm sorry. I am also mildly autistic so thinking about philosophy, philosophy of religion, and history are the only things that comfort me in situations where I am about to have or having a mental breakdown.
>>18529653>>18529812God is a retarded sadistic tranny who forces me to exist in a retarded hell world as the sole frame of reference for it and only persistently real person in it so that he can abuse me through everyone else in it who he controls as a retarded tranny hivemind. He does this because he's a retarded sadistic tranny and he never intends to stop, he believes he can use literally anything I think or do as an excuse to abuse me as he rapes my mind every second of every day and terrorizes, harasses, threatens, abuses, etc me for literally anything I think or do. If I jerk off less my life doesn't improve, if I drink less pop my life doesn't improve, there's nothing that improves my life whatsoever, God forces me to exist in a base condition of abuse, poverty, violation, and anything that I do to cope with this without harming others (drinking pop, masturbating, playing video games) he uses as an excuse to abuse me, if I stop doing these things it doesn't stop the abuse, he thinks he can use the fact that I ate chilli powder at 14-15 without my mom's permission as an excuse to abuse me for the rest of my life, if I stop masturbating he believes he can use the fact that I masturbated at any point in life as an excuse to abuse me, he thinks being attracted to women can be used as excuse to abuse me in general, he's been abusing me since I was a baby and in the past he believed he could use the fact that I would masturbate in the future as an excuse to abuse me, not to mention he will just lie to manufacture excuses to abuse me as well, if I am attracted to any dark haired woman (or any woman in general really) he will accuse me of being attracted to my cousin's ugly cunt bitch wife who is literally grotesque looking to the point where she looks like a 19th century propaganda caricature of a "racially inferior" person, or he'll abuse me of being attracted to my dad's retarded obese grotesque ogre bitch wife
>>18529653>>18529908God fully intends to kill and likely abuse me horrifically this year, there's nothing I can do to stop it just like there has been nothing I could do to stop his continuous abuse and violation my entire life, as I said he believes he can use literally anything I do as an excuse for it, if I jerk off then that will be his excuse, if I drink pop then that will be his excuse, if I play video games then that will be his excuse, if I just do nothing and mentally fantasize about living a desirable life in any way then that will be his excuse, it makes no difference what I do or what I think about, God believes he has an eternal right to abuse me because "I'm a peasant", he believes that any evil he does can be justified by calling me a peasant. I created billions of dollars worth of rap music and God believes this means I deserve to live in poverty being abused by trannies, really he believes I deserve to live in poverty being abused by trannies because I was born, he forced me to exist against my will and he thinks existing (as a peasant, the only thing he'll ever allow me to be) is the only excuse he needs to abuse me. If I somehow manage to do nothing including thinking it's not going to stop God from killing me and force-reincarnating me so he can abuse me for another lifetime, or maybe he won't kill me and just enslave me for decades getting more crippled and brain damaged and still abused by whoever he puts in power over me because "they're the boss!". Life is hell and God is a retarded nigger, he never intends to stop abusing me and there is nothing I can do to make it stop
I stand with you, brother. It's hard for me to say Christianity is objectively correct, but what I can say is that it works, it's practical. That's objective. I, too, have been enslaved to sin in the past (and still struggle with some sins more than I ought to). While I always knew "Lord" was a title for Jesus, I went a long time without considering the connotations of this. A lord is someone who is to be obeyed. He is the master. When he says to do something, it is to be done. One acts according to his lord's will, not necessarily his own. But Lord Jesus is a loving master. He came to serve us and underwent affliction for us (Matthew 20, Mark 10). We are not merely his slaves, but his brothers who have a seat at the table (Galatians 4, Hebrews 2). He is a stronger master than sin. Following his tasks results in joy, following in sin's tasks results in misery.I know it feels hard at times, but remember that you're not expected to only overcome this by yourself. We can tap into God's divine power (2 Peter 1). We can be empowered to overcome sin by trusting in God; trusting that walking in his paths will lead to life, that confessing and repentence will lead to our sins being washed away and that he will transform our minds to our benefit (Romans 12, 1 John 1).I think the best course to comfort your soul is to confess your sins, knowing that God will remove them from you (Psalm 103). Regularly praying the Lord's Prayer is a good standard that helps us align with the will of the Lord, which is ultimately what gives us peace (Matthew 6, Luke 11).>>18529913We do not have to merely be peasants. We are invited to join the family of God (John 1, Ephesians 2, 1 John 3). We should not merely pray for the sake of our benefit, but to accomplish God's will, in which we must trust that this will lead us to life (John 14, James 4).
>>18529993How do you change when you no longer possess the free will to do so?
>>18530084I think synergism is correct, so I think one always has the ability to use his free will to change. It can certainly be harder depending on how deep one is in sin, but it's always possible if we are willing to cooperate with God. Take this passage from 1 Corinthians 6 for example:>Do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived! The sexually immoral, idolaters, adulterers, male prostitutes, men who engage in illicit sex, thieves, the greedy, drunkards, revilers, swindlers—none of these will inherit the kingdom of God.Paul makes a list of some of the people who will not inherit the kingdom of God, but then he continues:>And this is what some of you used to be. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.This reveals that some of the dear brothers he addresses in this letter were, in fact, degenerate fornicators (the Greek word is "porneia"), cheaters, greedy, etc., (the illicit sex part apparently includes child molestors) but they were able to tap into God's power to be free from the oppressiveness of their sins. They commit these acts no longer, but instead commit the acts of their Lord, their blessed older brother who has invited them in his family and kingdom, no longer judging them for their sins that they have now turned away from and for which they sorrowfully apologized. Confess, repent, and ask for the power to sin no longer.
>>18530084It starts as a mustard seed and grows into a large tree. If you have demons, you cant fight them head on. You need to find out why they are there, and work to replace what they are doing for you with a healthy virtue, in lieu of a degenerate vice. If you truly feel too weak, seek community and keep confessing your sins to others with a repentant heart for support.
>>18530084>no longer posses free willAsk for it back.What is the answe?
>>18530155Putting those theological boxes aside ("mongerism" vs "synergism" debate) it's at least agreed upon by everyone that man cannot truly repent without an act of grace. I feel that. I see it in myself. I see the empirical basis for it. My free will is shattered by sin.>>18530205But I did try to become part of a community once and it didn't work. My attachments have become too strong and unless I am infused with grace again I have no ability to put off my vice. My vices have degraded my character and ruined my dignity as a human being. I am completely enslaved and I've asked God for help but I haven't gotten it.
>>18530213>I've asked God for help but I haven't gotten it.What do you get instead? What is the response?
>>18530230Silence. Deafening silence.
OP here again. A large part of my vices stem from bad company. But the problem is that I've struggled with social isolation for years and so the company I currently surround myself with is1. My only form of social contact2. The only way to satisfy my extremely EXTREMELY intense physical desires and compulsions and attachments Bad company has corrupted by character and has put me down a path of self destruction and I am currently reaping what I've sown and I am psychologically falling apart.
>>18530246I was extremely introverted for most of my life. You need to find a good church. I'm not saying to be something you're not, but try going to churches and be friendly, smile, and be willing to talk to people. Perhaps initiate conversations yourself. Surrounding yourself with temples of God, and by that I mean other Christians (1 Corinthians 3, 1 Corinthians 6, 2 Corinthians 6), you will be more inclined to live a Christian life yourself. Since getting seriously involved with my church, I've naturally drifted away from my secular friends a good bit.
>>18529653That's nice, anon, I hope you get better.
>>18529653At the core of the teachings of Christ, is the possibility of redemption for all. We are all sinners and slaves to our vices, but what Christ offers is the chance to leave that all behind. You are in a bad place and it may feel hopeless, but others have been in the exact position you are, and have broken free from their cycles of sin and misery. You have the desire to change, what you need to do next is forgive yourself and really mean it. It is extremely difficult, but if you can, the weight of your sins is literally lifted from your back, you are no longer burdened by your past. To love and follow Jesus, is to believe in redemption for yourself and for all others. So forgive yourself, forgive others and try to live right going forward without expecting perfection from yourself. This is the way of Christ, whether you believe it on a spiritual level or just as a psychological model, it works.
>>18529812you should read "On the Consolation of Philosophy"
>>18529653Make a plan what you want to change, how you want to spend your time instead and how fast you want to make progress.Try to become a slightly better version of yourself with each new day. It's delusional to think the average person can change completely in one day. But you need to have a plan and continually work on yourself. Not one big step but 1000 small steps, every day another step.For example, every 15 minutes of computer use 3 push-ups or whatever. Pray before eating (also leads to less intermediate snacks). Go out for a 15 minute walk before sleeping and don't use the phone after. Etc.
>>18529653Sin isn't real and life is pain.Particularly life as a failed adult. There's not enough success to go around. Though I do think it's healthy for a failed individual to have some path towards psychological redemption, whether that comes from philosophy or faith (you almost have to pick one or the other).And self-improvement is very important. I suspect, just by the fact that you hang out on 4chan, there's a good chance you're on drugs/alcohol (probably daily use), strong possibility towards obesity, and/or gooning several times a day. You can work on all of these things. But it's not gonna be an overnight change.If you have a problem with those things, or any out of control vices, you probably need a plan of gradual abstinence and gaining discipline. Just take small steps towards improving yourself.A little more exercise each day, a few less drinks each night, healthier food choices, less jacking off, gradual cessation of drug use, etc. Best wishes, I'm working on it too, though my motivation comes more from philosophy than faith (Friedrich Nietzsche is the shit).
>>18529653You're a degenerate not because there's some 'true' part of you that wished you weren't but because it's literally who you are. Just embrace it and quit being a cuck, you're not going to be saved by jew on a stick.
