Atheist, are under Gods wrath, no attempts should be made to convert them.

In this round, I will be providing my initial arguments. I will not be responding to any of my opponent’s arguments in this round.Should Christians attempt to convert atheists? Yes. Why would we not? An atheist is no more in a state of salvation than a Hindu or a Muslim. My opponent states that the Scriptures instruct Christians to not engage with and try to convert atheists. We will have to wait and see what the citations are. My opponent has also stated that following: “For centuries the Christians [sic] wastes countless, hours, days weeks, months and years in attempts to convert an atheist, when multiple unbelievers, might have been saved, by the same believer had they not wasted time with an atheist.” There is something to be said about this. Christians should not waste time where it is obvious that someone’s heart is hardened beyond penetration. The best one can do is try to plant a seed and hope that it will grow on its own. Yet this is true not only of atheists, but also of any non-Christian.My opponent raises another good point in saying the following:“Questions which insist upon evidence being provided should therefore be ignored completely as evidence has been readily provided by God, and God requires the atheist to First seek Him (God). Only after this will God Himself, provide the way towards salvation.”It is true that an atheist demanding evidence can be a sign that they are a lost cause. After all, Romans 1:19, 20 reads:“For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.” (ESV)In other words, the atheist demanding evidence already has it. That does not mean we should immediately abandon our interactions if an atheist demands evidence. Perhaps probing questions and insightful dialog can cause someone’s heart to open up. There are plenty of ministries dealing with intelligent design and creationism [1]. As one can imagine, these ministries target audience are typically naturalists/atheists. Ken Ham, while I disagree with much of his ministry, has dialoged with Bill Nye on and off in an effort to help him see God’s hand. To help open his mind and heart. Mr. Ham does not waste his time on it, as it is not a devotion. He just does this in his free time, as does Mr. Nye. There is nothing wrong with this dialog. In fact, it is fruitful not only for those involved but also those who observe.Matthew 29:18 obviously tells us to go and make disciples. That includes the atheist. It includes anyone who is not already a disciple. Yet we are not supposed to waste our time on people who are too hardened (Matthew 10:14). Are all atheists a waste of time and too hardened? Surely not. One great examples would be C.S. Lewis. There have been many atheists who have experienced what is written in Ezekiel 36:26: “And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh” (ESV).This may seem like a rather short argument (and it is). However, there are no two ways about it. Christians are not to exclude all atheists from their efforts to make new disciples. This is not a Scriptural understanding at all.Sources:[1] Reasons to Believe, Answers in Genesis, Discovery Institute, etc.