Results 1 - 4 of 4
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Results from: Answered Bible Questions, Answers, Unanswered Bible Questions, Notes Ordered by Verse | ||||||
Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
1 | Is God responsible for evil? | Bible general Archive 1 | Hank | 4168 | ||
Lionstrong, I have read your postings and I do not remotely believe, or suggest, that you are anything less than sincere, or that your motives are base, or anything else of the kind. I, therefore, do not impugn your motives; I patently disagree with your conclusions about God being responsible for evil in the world. I truly believe your method of arriving at this conclusion is the major culprit. I will address that promptly, but first I will tell you that I did indeed look at how JVH defined "responsible" and at how my Merriam-Webster Collegiate dictionary defined it, and there is absolutely no difference between the way JVH used the word and the way the dictionary defines it. "Responsibile" is not really too difficult a concept for most of us to grasp. I think it fair to say that the average fourth-grade student has a working knowledge of what the word means.The Bible verses which you claim support your hypotheses are John 1:3 and 1 Cor. 8:6. The former merely states that "all things came into being through Him" -- Him being the antecedent of the Word in verse 1. The Word (logos) was, of course, Christ. The latter is a Christian affirmation of the Shema in Deut. 6:4; both are strong foundational statements that Judaism and Christianity are, both of them, monotheistic. From those two verses you were able to postulate that (1) God is the primary cause of evil (2) God is not liable to be called on to answer for evil (3) God is to blame for evil (4) Evil is all God's fault. Have you ever studied logic? Let's use a couple of examples.EXAMPLE 1 -- A car maker makes a car. A careless driver runs the car into a bridge abutment, destroys the car and kills himself. Therefore, the car maker is responsible for the driver's death, because if the car had never been made (or created, so to speak) the driver never would have had the accident. EXAMPLE 2 -- A carpenter builds a house. An airplane crashes into the house, destroying it and inflicting serious injury to the occupants of the house. Therefore, the carpenter is responsible for the injuries, because had he never built the house, the airplane could not have crashed into it, and obviously there would have been no occupants in a house that did not exist.What it is wrong with these examples? They have assigned the effect to the wrong causation. In the first example, the creator of the car had nothing to do with the car wreck. The driver did, by not obeying the rules. In the secod example, the carpenter (creator of the house) had nothing to do with its distruction and the injuries that ensued. The airplane (possibly the pilot) was the responsible agent in the destruction of the house.Let's put one of your hypothoses in a formula of logic. God created the world. There is evil in the world as the result of man's disobedience to God's laws. Therefore, God is responsible for evil. You see, the "logic" to your argument is not logical.Lionstrong, I do not blast you. I don't even know your name, and I bear no personal ill will against you in any manner. I echo your call to pray for each other, and I do pray. What I "blast" if that is a word you feel befits my former posting, is any statement, suggestion, or innuendo that says, in effect, that our pure and holy God is responsible for evil in this world. He is the God who sent His precious Son to die so that we, having our evils and sins cast on Him, might live eternally. Blessing and peace to you in Jesus' name. --Hank | ||||||
2 | God is in control of every single atom? | Bible general Archive 1 | Pastor Glenn | 61718 | ||
Hank and the rest of this forum, I looked up this old thread dealing with God's sovereignty because someone recently said that "God is in control of every single atom." Then they used that reasoning to say that it follows that God chose His Elect before the foundation of the world, so free will is an illusion. They then further implied that He purposely made some to dishonor. If God purposely made some to dishonor then why would he say this: Ezek 33: 7"So you, son of man: I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; therefore you shall hear a word from My mouth and warn them for Me. 8When I say to the wicked, "O wicked man, you shall surely die!' and you do not speak to warn the wicked from his way, THAT WICKED MAN SHALL DIE IN HIS INIQUITY; BUT HIS BLOOD I WILL REQUIRE AT YOUR HAND. 9Nevertheless if you warn the wicked to turn from his way, and he does not turn from his way, he shall die in his iniquity; but you have delivered your soul. 10"Therefore you, O son of man, say to the house of Israel: "Thus you say, "If our transgressions and our sins lie upon us, and we pine away in them, how can we then live?"' 11Say to them: "As I live,' says the Lord GOD, "I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn, turn from your evil ways! For why should you die, O house of Israel?' If God is in control of every atom then why would He say ”… THAT WICKED MAN SHALL DIE IN HIS INIQUITY; BUT HIS BLOOD I WILL REQUIRE AT YOUR HAND…”? This reasoning would then lead right back to this thread: "Is God responsible for evil?". I have had past experience in a different forum, of atheists, where this exact same thread of "Is God responsible for evil?" was debated. In that forum some of the participants would sign up as a different person and start threads from the opposing view point. After a while, they would pull off their sheep’s clothing and revert back to their original view point to frustrate the Christians. I don't know who may be wolfs in disguise. I am not accusing others who have posted here. You can't really know if I am not one either. But we should be "wise as serpents and harmless as doves." We are warned to "beware of false prophets in sheep’s clothing". "Be not weary in well doing. In due season we will reap if we faint not." God bless, Pastor Glenn |
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3 | God is in control of every single atom? | Bible general Archive 1 | Cyclist | 61722 | ||
Hi Pastor Glenn! Cyclist here. I'm not Hank but I was thinking on this subject his morning. In my studies on this subject, I saw these verses of scripture that, to me, challenge that notion that God has predestined people to perish (Capitalization by me). 2 Cor 4:3 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, 2 Cor 4:4 in whose case THE god OF THIS WORLD has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. Bless you Pastor! Cyclist I will bless the Lord at all times! His praise shall continually be in my mouth! |
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4 | God is in control of every single atom? | Bible general Archive 1 | Pastor Glenn | 61759 | ||
Very interesting scriptures Cyclist, It is a shame that some people will totally ignore scriptures or try to change the interpretation so that it would not have been worth saying. This is why when we interpret the bible, we need to humble ourselves, pray, and ask God to remove our own pride. Then we can judge ourselves and our motives before He can give us a more spiritual understanding. Jesus said, "It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life. " John 6:63 God bless, Pastor Glenn |
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