Does God Make Exceptions?

[ArchangelGabriel]

ive seen many relgious statements say that certain sins arent sins under certain circumstances, which im not agreeing/disagreeing with, for instance abortion, some say that it is ok in the cases of rape,incest, or harm to the mother well if God truly does allow such exceptions then why didnt he allow an exception when that person caught the Ark of the Convenent and thus touching it and thus God struck him down instantly? (scripture needed please, for that story forgot where it was)

 

[Sabertooth]

Where, Where Did [They] Go Right?

The story is in Second Samuel, chapter 6, but I don't have a good answer for you. He DID make an exception. In 1Samuel 6:11, He let Philistines[!?] place the the Ark on a cart of their own making.

 

[ArchangelGabriel]

so why the exceptiont there? but not for the guy who was merly saving it from falling to the ground, i wonder. hmm i need a scriptual rule book to the Ark i guess, were philistines not suppose to have it

 

[elijah115]

15For he says to Moses,
"I will have mercy on whom I have mercy,
and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion."[a]



Footnotes:

1. Romans 9:15 Exodus 33:19

It's for God to decide on who he will have mercy or no mercy. It is for us to be righteous but at the same time merciful. Because in Hosea, God says I desire Mercy not Sacrifice. Then in Matthew Jesus says 14For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.and in Matthew 7 (1-2) 1"Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you... How many times should you forgive your neighbour in your heart?

Matthew 18:21-35

The Parable of the Unmerciful Servant

21Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, "Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?"


22Jesus answered, "I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.[a]

23"Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. 24As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand talents[b] was brought to him. 25Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.

26"The servant fell on his knees before him. 'Be patient with me,' he begged, 'and I will pay back everything.' 27The servant's master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.

28"But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii.[c] He grabbed him and began to choke him. 'Pay back what you owe me!' he demanded.

29"His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, 'Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.'

30"But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. 31When the other servants saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed and went and told their master everything that had happened.

32"Then the master called the servant in. 'You wicked servant,' he said, 'I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. 33Shouldn't you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?' 34In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed. 35"This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart."


You should not presume God's mercy in anything you do, but you may expect God to make exceptions if you're sorry and merciful to your neighbours

 

[Chopinzee]

There are exceptions to every single rule that exists. Even "Thou shalt not murder" has exceptions - things like just war and self-defense are exceptions to that rule.

 

[Sabertooth]

There are exceptions to every single rule that exists. Even "Thou shalt not murder" has exceptions - things like just war and self-defense are exceptions to that rule.

While I would agree, using other examples, like lying, but personal and national DEFENSE do not constitute murder.

A better example of almost murder would be when God told the children of Israel to take the promised land. They were the aggressors and clearly NOT acting defensively, but, just as clearly, they were obeying God.

I don't see that scenario ever being justified in the new testament era.

 

[Cleany]

ive seen many relgious statements say that certain sins arent sins under certain circumstances, which im not agreeing/disagreeing with, for instance abortion, some say that it is ok in the cases of rape,incest, or harm to the mother well if God truly does allow such exceptions then why didnt he allow an exception when that person caught the Ark of the Convenent and thus touching it and thus God struck him down instantly? (scripture needed please, for that story forgot where it was)

the question assumes that god works by rules, which he doesnt, therefore he doesnt need to make any exceptions becaus he isnt bound by anything.

rules and exceptions are for people, not god.

 

[moses916]

why do you try to define something that is a mystery of God? there is no answer to the above op question, just let it go...

 

[Eagle_Wings]

As for why the Philistines could transport the ark without being struck down, I'd have to go back and reread the account to see if anything is said as to why. But concerning the Isrealites...they knew better! The ark had a rings that a pole was to be passed through and then the poles carried on the shoulders of the men. God had dictated how the ark was to be transported so that no one would have to touch it and the Isrealites knew this...yet they chose to shortcut the procedures which resulted in a dire consequence.

Regarding war...in the Bible God used war as a consequence. When He sent the Isrealites into a land to conquer it and destroy every living thing within it was a judgement against the pagans living in that land. God even used it as judgement against the Isrealites at one time or another for their rebelliousness. Perfect example is when He allowed them to be taken into Babylonian captivity.

As far as modern wars go...:shrugs: Like someone else stated it's an act of defense more then murdering someone just cuz. I see it the same as if I was being attacked and ended up killing the person in self defense. If you want to get super technical I guess that would be qualified as murder and in this case, yeah, I guess God would make an exception. Although I'm more inclined to say that No God doesn't make exceptions. On the other hand, who are to question why God does what He does?

I'm gonna leave the abortion issue alone cuz I have a feeling my stand is pretty radical on that one and it doesn't really seem to be the primary issue here at the moment.

 

[imissedu]

why do you try to define something that is a mystery of God? there is no answer to the above op question, just let it go...

There is an answer for your question but I don't think anyone would be able to tell you what it is and be confident in their answer. I just try and live my life as best I can. I obey God's "obvious" (for lack of a better word) commanments and then at the end of the day, I ask him to not only forgive me for the sins which I'm aware I committed (such as snapping at someone before I could catch myself) but also for anything else I've done that may grieve the Holy Spirit. < ------- I also ask for those things to be revealed to me so I don't repeat them.

In such cases where you do not know the answer and there's nothing cut and dry, that's when you get on your knees and ask for understanding, a revelation of sorts. He'll give it to you if your ears are open. Listen closely to him because sometimes, it's just a whisper. And pray to separate your own thoughts from the things he places on your heart so you can know the difference between your own logic and God's wisdom.

 

[nsmith12916]

I think there have to be exceptions in some case. Note how God wanted Moses (or was it Abraham) to conquer peoples, for the land. The wars back then were promoted by God, or so it seems. If there weren't exceptions like those, then the Bible is thoroughly contradicting itself.

But yea, I'm not that knowledgable in the Bible yet...so I'm not that great in these discussions.

 

[PaleHorse]

I think God is fair. He makes allotment for extreme cases. As noted above, murder is a sin but defending one's self (even if killing of the attacker occurs) is not a sin - nonetheless I think one would be wise to beg forgiveness anyway.
As for example of the Ark of the Covenant, the Philistines were not given the insturctions on how to transport it. God winks at our times of ignorance, thus they didn't suffer for transporting it the way they did. Upon getting the Ark back, the Israelites, who were given the exacting instructions chose to ignore them and thus paid the price. Again, God winks at our times of ignorance but if we know the truth and decide not to follow it that is a great sin.
Acts 17:30 - And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent:

Its a simple principle that may, at times, appear as being exceptions.