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Results from: Answered Bible Questions, Answers, Unanswered Bible Questions, Notes Ordered by Verse | ||||||
Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
1 | Distiction in "will" not "rationality" | Gen 3:1 | RWC | 154129 | ||
Hey Doc! Man, how do keep all that history in your head?! That's awesome! I must admit, I am guilty of coveting a mind like that. You didn't put me to sleep anyway. I found that to be a very helpful post. I was sure that many other people in history have considered this question, but I had no clue as to who, or as to how they answered it. Thanks! From your concluding paragraph: "Aren't their many ways in which God and man are similar? ... Why not affirm all of those in the question of the Imago Dei. Those things, clearly, also make us quite distinctive from beasts." Yes, there are many ways in which we are a reflection of the image of God (intellect, emotion, relational capacity, etc.). I guess the question I am trying to raise (and propose an answer for) is whether or not any of those "ways" (qualities, characteristics) are entirely unique or distinctive to humans. The question is important (or so it seems to me) because of what God said in Ge. 1.26 _after_ having created all of the other animals: "Let Us make man in Our image...." That says that there was something _different_ that was going to happen, doesn't it? Or would you suggest that it is just differences of "degree" rather than some differnce of "kind?" Thanks again for your most informative repsonse. have a good day. Bob |
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2 | Distiction in "will" not "rationality" | Gen 3:1 | DocTrinsograce | 154156 | ||
Dear Bob, Thank you for your encouragement. Citing Genesis 1:26, you wrote, "That says that there was something _different_ that was going to happen, doesn't it? Or would you suggest that it is just differences of 'degree' rather than some difference of 'kind?'" You are correct in deeming the creation of man as distinct, unique, and unprecedented in respect to the rest of creation. You are also correct in demonstrating this fact from this particular passage in Scripture. I also agree that the question is important, blessing those who carefully deliberate it from the Word of God. Finally, I do not think that the answer lies entirely in kind or degree. God has created an exquisitely complex universe. Indeed, we are discovering that the complexity is mind-boggling at macroscopically, microscopically, and everything in between. Of course, this is only the natural universe. We know very little of the supernatural world, certainly very few of its details. Beyond these things, we know nothing. However, we do know that making galaxies and butterflies is peanuts compared to the redemption of fallen man! The inescapable conclusion is that God Himself it thoroughly complex. Indeed, we would barely know anything of Him had He not graciously revealed Himself through His Word. God has to approach us on a level we can understand. John Calvin described Scripture as an example of divine accommodation to weak and puny humans. He asserted that God uses baby-talk to us. :-) Humans have a penchant for simple answers. Some of the statements of Scripture are deceptively simple. However, the details or mechanics behind those statements are either entirely mysterious or, more likely, utterly inscrutable (Deuteronomy 29:29). Christ explains this sort of thing in John chapter 3 as He describes the second birth to Nicodemus. Humans spent quite a little time trying to fit the platonic solids into the orbits of the planets. Although they thought the explanation was straightforward and elegant, the truth ended up being a lot more complex. Now all that said, there are some "simple" distinctions between man and beast: no beast sins, no beast can repent, no beast can pray, no beast can be redeemed, no beast lives forever, no beast is the temple of the Holy Spirit. I guess what I'm saying is that unless the Scripture gives a clear, definitive answer, the answer is probably either beyond our ability to understand or God has chosen not to reveal it to us. Perhaps one day believers will ferret out the answers, but that seems unlikely to me. I love Jonathan Edwards, but he tended to push pretty hard for answers. John Calvin would often say something along the lines of "...beyond this the Scripture is silent, therefore I can say no more." I'm sorry I can't shed much more light on this question... and thanks for not going to sleep! :-) In Him, Doc |
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3 | Distiction in "will" not "rationality" | Gen 3:1 | Hank | 154163 | ||
"Some of the statements of Scripture are deceptively simple." ...... Doc, I'll say 'Amen' to that and give an example. There is a statement -- "He made the stars also" -- tagged on to Genesis 1:16 almost as if it were an after thought, as if to say, And by the way, I almost forgot, God also made the stars. What a simple little addendum to Genesis 1:16, and yet scientists today are saying that there are billions and billions of stars and, yes, even billions of galaxies much bigger than our Milky Way. And yet Scripture dismisses this mind-boggling item of God's creation with a statement so simple, and, tucked as it is on the end of a verse, we're apt to miss it unless we're looking for it. I stand in absolute awe of the vastness of God's universe, yet He sees fit to comment on it merely by saying in Holy Scripture, "He created the stars also." All this poor mortal can say is, "My God, how great Thou art!" --Hank | ||||||
4 | Distiction in "will" not "rationality" | Gen 3:1 | seedling | 154170 | ||
The universe is very, very large. I am amazed that God created this whole universe, Gen 1, and HE still takes time to care for me and others. Isn't that amazing! I am so grateful for this!!!! Psalms 8: 3-4 Seedling |
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