Log in
Register
Search
Search titles only
By:
Search titles only
By:
Forums
New posts
Forum list
Search forums
Leaderboards
Games
Our Blog
Blogs
New entries
New comments
Blog list
Search blogs
Credits
Transactions
Shop
Blessings: ✟0.00
Tickets
Open new ticket
Watched
Donate
Log in
Register
Search
Search titles only
By:
Search titles only
By:
More options
Toggle width
Share this page
Share this page
Share
Reddit
Pinterest
Tumblr
WhatsApp
Email
Share
Link
Menu
Install the app
Install
Forums
Outreach
Outreach
Exploring Christianity
A few questions
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="GrayAngel" data-source="post: 61138820" data-attributes="member: 162431"><p>As I said, the Bible doesn't teach that <em>anyone</em> has free will, whether human or angel. God is the only one with free will. Many Christians do believe in free will, but there is not scriptural justification for it.</p><p></p><p>As for Satan, there is something we agree on. The angels do worship God. This is what all of God's creation was made to do. Satan himself is believed to have had the honor to preserve the throne of God. But he became corrupted and tried to take the throne for himself.</p><p></p><p>It is possible that the creation of man may have contributed to it, but I don't believe that Bible has anything to say on the specifics. All we know is that he led 1/3 of Heaven's angels in rebellion, then he tempted Adam and Eve and caused them to rebel.</p><p></p><p>What is the difference between and angel and a "jinn?" Also, why would God choose to answer Satan's prayer and allow him to deceive humanity? Did God have something to gain from it? If we were made to replace Satan as God's favorite creature, wouldn't it be counterproductive to allow Satan to corrupt us and cause us to disobey and hate God? Also, if God could change His mind like that, get bored with one creation and make something more entertaining to take its place, what's to stop that from happening to us? Will God get bored of us and make something better?</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>If Adam was forgiven, then why do we live in this broken world instead of the perfection of the Garden of Eden? In the Bible, God cursed the earth following Adam's sin, making the world the way it is today. Future generations, as a result, would also be born with a natural tendency to sin.</p><p></p><p>We are not punished for Adam's sin, but because we are sinful ourselves, we inevitably fall into the same trap of sin as Adam. No human being has ever lived without sin, with only one exception. Even David, the "man after God's own heart" slept with another man's wife, got her pregnant, tried to hide it from her husband by tempting him to sleep with her (which he refused on matter of principle), and then ordered the the man to be sent to the front lines of a battle to have him killed.</p><p></p><p>If David couldn't live a perfect life, what chance do we have? And if we can't do it, doesn't that tell you something has changed since the fall of Adam?</p><p></p><p>Concerning the mercy of God, I see two problems with that. First, if all we have to do is ask to receive forgiveness, how come I we still have to die? Death is a result of the fall, a consequence of sin. So why is it I can't say a prayer and live forever?</p><p></p><p>According to Christianity, we must die physically because of Adam. When we die, our corrupted flesh will stay behind and we'll be given perfect bodies in the resurrection. What about Islam? Do we need to die in order to leave our corrupted flesh behind? If so, how did our flesh become corrupted in the first place?</p><p></p><p>Second, if blood sacrifice isn't necessary, then why did the original followers of God (the Hebrews) do it ritualistically? You're probably familiar with this, but the Jews would use two goats. One would be slain, and its blood sprinkled on the people and on the temple. The second goat is where we get the term "scapegoat." It would be led far away from city and pushed off a cliff. What was the purpose of these sacrifices?</p><p></p><p>In my view, God is not any less merciful than us. Far from it. God is capable of forgiving far more than we are capable of forgiving. But are justice system also pales in comparison to God's. At the end of the world, God will judge all of us by what we've done.</p><p></p><p>A perfect justice system would be like God's. Every act of evil will be punished based on the degree of its severity. For a murderer, perhaps they'll be experience the act of murder through the eyes of their victim's. When we let a murderer our of jail, we have not made them pay their debt in full. They've just served a small sentence that man decided he should serve. Modern jails are generally made for rehabilitation, not true justice.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="GrayAngel, post: 61138820, member: 162431"] As I said, the Bible doesn't teach that [I]anyone[/I] has free will, whether human or angel. God is the only one with free will. Many Christians do believe in free will, but there is not scriptural justification for it. As for Satan, there is something we agree on. The angels do worship God. This is what all of God's creation was made to do. Satan himself is believed to have had the honor to preserve the throne of God. But he became corrupted and tried to take the throne for himself. It is possible that the creation of man may have contributed to it, but I don't believe that Bible has anything to say on the specifics. All we know is that he led 1/3 of Heaven's angels in rebellion, then he tempted Adam and Eve and caused them to rebel. What is the difference between and angel and a "jinn?" Also, why would God choose to answer Satan's prayer and allow him to deceive humanity? Did God have something to gain from it? If we were made to replace Satan as God's favorite creature, wouldn't it be counterproductive to allow Satan to corrupt us and cause us to disobey and hate God? Also, if God could change His mind like that, get bored with one creation and make something more entertaining to take its place, what's to stop that from happening to us? Will God get bored of us and make something better? If Adam was forgiven, then why do we live in this broken world instead of the perfection of the Garden of Eden? In the Bible, God cursed the earth following Adam's sin, making the world the way it is today. Future generations, as a result, would also be born with a natural tendency to sin. We are not punished for Adam's sin, but because we are sinful ourselves, we inevitably fall into the same trap of sin as Adam. No human being has ever lived without sin, with only one exception. Even David, the "man after God's own heart" slept with another man's wife, got her pregnant, tried to hide it from her husband by tempting him to sleep with her (which he refused on matter of principle), and then ordered the the man to be sent to the front lines of a battle to have him killed. If David couldn't live a perfect life, what chance do we have? And if we can't do it, doesn't that tell you something has changed since the fall of Adam? Concerning the mercy of God, I see two problems with that. First, if all we have to do is ask to receive forgiveness, how come I we still have to die? Death is a result of the fall, a consequence of sin. So why is it I can't say a prayer and live forever? According to Christianity, we must die physically because of Adam. When we die, our corrupted flesh will stay behind and we'll be given perfect bodies in the resurrection. What about Islam? Do we need to die in order to leave our corrupted flesh behind? If so, how did our flesh become corrupted in the first place? Second, if blood sacrifice isn't necessary, then why did the original followers of God (the Hebrews) do it ritualistically? You're probably familiar with this, but the Jews would use two goats. One would be slain, and its blood sprinkled on the people and on the temple. The second goat is where we get the term "scapegoat." It would be led far away from city and pushed off a cliff. What was the purpose of these sacrifices? In my view, God is not any less merciful than us. Far from it. God is capable of forgiving far more than we are capable of forgiving. But are justice system also pales in comparison to God's. At the end of the world, God will judge all of us by what we've done. A perfect justice system would be like God's. Every act of evil will be punished based on the degree of its severity. For a murderer, perhaps they'll be experience the act of murder through the eyes of their victim's. When we let a murderer our of jail, we have not made them pay their debt in full. They've just served a small sentence that man decided he should serve. Modern jails are generally made for rehabilitation, not true justice. [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Forums
Outreach
Outreach
Exploring Christianity
A few questions
Top
Bottom