Results 1 - 8 of 8
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Results from: Answers On or After: Thu 12/31/70 Author: forrest Ordered by Verse |
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Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
1 | What unmarried sexual acts are sinful? | Bible general Archive 1 | forrest | 2335 | ||
The question reveals a frequent misunderstanding of the role and use of laws, rule, and instructions. You are seeking a rule, so it is helpful to look at the role of rules. 1 Timothy 1:9 says that the law is not made for a righteous person but rather for the lawless and rebellious. While such instruction is still useful to guide and instruct (see 2 Timothy 3:16 and Matthew 5:17-19), it is intended to guide and instruct us into recognizing our sin, the need of a savior, and the offer of grace of Christ. Such instruction leads us to a personal encounter with a living God and a real relationship with that God in the person of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is tasked with guiding us in all truth and being our counselor and helper. See John 14.15ff, 15.26-16.15. When this relationship is established between created and creator, we are no longer under the law of stone but rather under the law of the Spirit and of grace. See Romans 6:14ff, Romans 7:4-6. Now this law of grace and law of the Spirit is much more demanding than the law of stone and its righteousnoess is greater than the righteousness of the law (pharisees). As God dwells within us He transforms us so that His desire becomes our desire, His longing our longing, His heart our heart. We learn of Him and hear Him through His word and hungry and expectant reading and "chewing" or meditation on His word (scripture) and through prayer (speaking and listening), worship (admiration of who He is and expressing our love for Him), and fellowship (He works through His people to reveal Himself). All this being said your question still has very practical aspects. As in ," My boyfriend/girlfriend and I are getting serious and are considering marriage but have not yet decided. There is tremendous pressure to move into areas of physical intimacy which I am not sure are pleasing to God. What guidance is there in scripture as to how far is too far?" But once the question is phrased this way you see that the real issue is not what you can do, but rather what is pleasing to God. If you are asking this question, the answers are much more apparent. Scripture clearly shows that God intended and created our sexuality as a means of establishing and maintaining a committed life long realtionship between a man and woman as a type/example of His desire to have eternal realtionship with us. God even uses the image of the returning Christ as a bridegroom and the church as His bride. Why would you involve yourself in any physical activity which creates a physiological yearning which can not righteously be satisfied (i.e. sexual intercourse outside of marriage). Even other sexual acts involve such intimacy and personal contact as to be violative of the other person (and God's intention) absent a committed life-long relationship (marriage). If I had to carve an answer in stone (God desires to do so in your heart) any intimate sexual contact is violative of God's intention of sexual (and thus spiritual--see 1 Corinthians 6.15-20)realtions. This would include, but not be limited to oral sex, manual sex, masturbation, and "feeling" or petting of the body parts of another. If the relationship is ready for these things, why is not ready for commitment. Do not buy the lie that you need to test before you buy. It is God who makes a proper spouse and it is a lifelong process. |
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2 | Is God responsible for evil? | Bible general Archive 1 | forrest | 2432 | ||
God made all things. And all things were good. See Gen 1 and John 1:1-3. He made a real capacity to choose ,and that capacity to choose bad was good. He did not create the fall, but rather the capacity for the fall (Oh, there is not much real substantive dispute hear with five pointers only differences in the understanding of man). And in creating the capacity to fall, He created the possibility to both stand and to be picked up. And that is very good. You see, God is. And apart from God is not. He created the capability to chose not to be with God and in not being with God, not to be or not to have life. I am not a person who believes we cease to be once we are judged, but rather we cease to have life and to have hope and to have of GOd. Thus in the final judgment, those who chose "not God" cease to be relevant and to have any impact or meaning. While we are in evil, we see evil, we know evil, we feel the impact of evil. Once evil is removed from us in God's ultimate judgment, it will cease to be a factor or have any meaning to those who have life. Actually, evil will still have one very important aspect of relevance. We will know the grace of God in a way we never could because He came and rescued us from evil and our separation from Him. John 9 asks, "Did this man sin or his parents sin?" "Neither but so the works of God may be displayed in Him." God is responible for all. He is sovereign and in His greatness He has made a way that our choice to turn away can be redeemed so that we may know Him in a deeper way than is otherwise possible. |
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3 | what is the best inter. of the bible | Bible general Archive 1 | forrest | 2433 | ||
The best interpretation is the one you pray over. But more concretely, Get a New American Standard 1995 as primary and use a New King James and New International Version to give good texture. Avoid extensive footnotes in your primary reading Bible as these distract from the text itself and often give too "easy" an answer to spiritual pondering. |
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4 | Did God create evil? | Bible general Archive 1 | forrest | 5357 | ||
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All Things came into being through Him and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. John 1:1-1 God saw all that He had made, and behold it was very good. Genesis 1:31a For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and in the earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities-all things have been created through Him and for Him. Colossians 1.16 The above passages leave no room for misunderstanding. All things were created by God. Nothing that is came into being except by his creative force and power. The apparent problem is how can a God who is holy and all "good" create what is evil. First is a definitional problem. What is good, and how can we as the created judge our creator? God is good. See Matt 19:16 (only One is good). Fortunately for us, He is also mericiful and desires for our well being. Matt 7:11. These two verses illustrate a very important understanding of what is good. One, God is good; two, he desires what is good or best for us, and we need to trust Him. The difficulty comes in understanding how this good God could create obvious evil. Good created only what is good. See Gen 1:31 above. However, there is evil. What is evil? If God is good and only good and all good things come from God, than what is not God is not good or evil. All things came from God, how than can there be something not of God. that is evil? GOd created man (and apparently angels) as moral beings, spiritual beings with volition or the ability to chose. Now the only choice we may ever really have is whether to submit to God or to rebel against God. To chose against God is rebellion and God allows this but the consequence is death. See Gen 2:17. Apparently Satan was a good being with some volitional capacity who led a rebellion against God and thus was cast from his heavenly and created position. See Isaiah 14, Ezekiel 28, and Revelation 12 as well as the similar pride and encouragment of rebellion in Gen 3. But when Satan was cast from his proper position and relation to God, he had no power. Thus, he had to resort to deceiving man into breaking proper relation with God and falling as well. See Gen 3. But God was not surprised or without an prexisiting and eternal plan to work the best. He frustrated all of creation into the frustration of man's sin (see the curse of creation in Gen 3:17 and Romans 8:20). But all this is for the purpose of His greater good. All of this leads to the conclusion that GOd does not desire sin and death and corruption and evil, but He does desire freedom and choice and our coming to Him out of love instead of automation or neccesity. Evil is the result of man's failure. Starving babies is not God's desire but loving people is His desire. To have the latter you must create the capacity and potential for the wrong choice and its real consequences reslting in the former. But God will not be mocked and we must realize He is working out an eternal plan while we see in the very limited temporal. This requires faith. The good news is that if God is still creating. See 2 Cor 5:17 and Rev 21. Since God is good and still creating the latter shall be greater than the former and it shall be glorious indeed. We will not be returned to Eden but placed into a new heaven and new earth governed by the eternal God who came and bled and died and was resurrected so that we might live and have life in great abundance. This is His plan (or LOGOS-Word). From that perspective we shall understand (if we have any need to understand)how God used the capacity for choice and thus evil, this choice and moral will itself being good, to create the perfect creation and love. A shorter answer is that what is evil is merely what was created good now separated from God, teh source of all goodness. |
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5 | Did God create evil? | Bible general Archive 1 | forrest | 5359 | ||
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All Things came into being through Him and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. John 1:1-1 God saw all that He had made, and behold it was very good. Genesis 1:31a For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and in the earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities-all things have been created through Him and for Him. Colossians 1.16 The above passages leave no room for misunderstanding. All things were created by God. Nothing that is came into being except by his creative force and power. The apparent problem is how can a God who is holy and all "good" create what is evil. First is a definitional problem. What is good, and how can we as the created judge our creator? God is good. See Matt 19:16 (only One is good). Fortunately for us, He is also mericiful and desires for our well being. Matt 7:11. These two verses illustrate a very important understanding of what is good. One, God is good; two, he desires what is good or best for us, and we need to trust Him. The difficulty comes in understanding how this good God could create obvious evil. Good created only what is good. See Gen 1:31 above. However, there is evil. What is evil? If God is good and only good and all good things come from God, than what is not God is not good but is evil. All things came from God, how than can there be something not of God. that is evil? GOd created man (and apparently angels) as moral beings, spiritual beings with volition or the ability to chose. Now the only choice we may ever really have is whether to submit to God or to rebel against God. To chose against God is rebellion and God allows this but the consequence is death. See Gen 2:17. Apparently Satan was a good being with some volitional capacity who led a rebellion against God and thus was cast from his heavenly and created position. See Isaiah 14, Ezekiel 28, and Revelation 12 as well as the similar pride and encouragment of rebellion in Gen 3. But when Satan was cast from his proper position and relation to God, he had no power. Thus, he had to resort to deceiving man into breaking proper relation with God and falling as well. See Gen 3. But God was not surprised or without an prexisiting and eternal plan to work the best. He frustrated all of creation into the frustration of man's sin (see the curse of creation in Gen 3:17 and Romans 8:20). But all this is for the purpose of His greater good. All of this leads to the conclusion that GOd does not desire sin and death and corruption and evil, but He does desire freedom and choice and our coming to Him out of love instead of automation or neccesity. Evil is the result of man's failure. Starving babies is not God's desire but loving people is His desire. To have the latter you must create the capacity and potential for the wrong choice and its real consequences reslting in the former. But God will not be mocked and we must realize He is working out an eternal plan while we see in the very limited temporal. This requires faith. The good news is that if God is still creating. See 2 Cor 5:17 and Rev 21. Since God is good and still creating the latter shall be greater than the former and it shall be glorious indeed. We will not be returned to Eden but placed into a new heaven and new earth governed by the eternal God who came and bled and died and was resurrected so that we might live and have life in great abundance. This is His plan (or LOGOS-Word). From that perspective we shall understand (if we have any need to understand)how God used the capacity for choice and thus evil, this choice and moral will itself being good, to create the perfect creation and love. A shorter answer is that what is evil is merely what was created good now separated from God, teh source of all goodness. |
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6 | Is God responsible for evil? | Bible general Archive 1 | forrest | 5361 | ||
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. John 1:1-1 God saw all that He had made, and behold it was very good. Genesis 1:31a For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and in the earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities-all things have been created through Him and for Him. Colossians 1.16 The above passages leave no room for misunderstanding. All things were created by God. Nothing that is came into being except by his creative force and power. The apparent problem is how can a God who is holy and all "good" create what is evil. First is a definitional problem. What is good, and how can we as the created judge our creator? God is good. See Matt 19:16 (only One is good). Fortunately for us, He is also mericiful and desires for our well being. Matt 7:11. These two verses illustrate a very important understanding of what is good. One, God is good; two, he desires what is good or best for us, and we need to trust Him. The difficulty comes in understanding how this good God could create obvious evil. Good created only what is good. See Gen 1:31 above. However, there is evil. What is evil? If God is good and only good and all good things come from God, than what is not God is not good but is evil. All things came from God, how than can there be something not of God. that is evil? GOd created man (and apparently angels) as moral beings, spiritual beings with volition or the ability to chose. Now the only choice we may ever really have is whether to submit to God or to rebel against God. To chose against God is rebellion and God allows this but the consequence is death. See Gen 2:17. Apparently Satan was a good being with some volitional capacity who led a rebellion against God and thus was cast from his heavenly and created position. See Isaiah 14, Ezekiel 28, and Revelation 12 as well as the similar pride and encouragment of rebellion in Gen 3. But when Satan was cast from his proper position and relation to God, he had no power. Thus, he had to resort to deceiving man into breaking proper relation with God and falling as well. See Gen 3. But God was not surprised or without an prexisiting and eternal plan to work the best. He frustrated all of creation into the frustration of man's sin (see the curse of creation in Gen 3:17 and Romans 8:20). But all this is for the purpose of His greater good. All of this leads to the conclusion that God does not desire sin and death and corruption and evil, but He does desire freedom and choice and our coming to Him out of love instead of automation or neccesity. Evil is the result of man's failure. Starving babies is not God's desire but loving people is His desire. To have the latter you must create the capacity and potential for the wrong choice and its real consequences reslting in the former. But God will not be mocked and we must realize He is working out an eternal plan while we see in the very limited temporal. This requires faith. The good news is that if God is still creating. See 2 Cor 5:17 and Rev 21. Since God is good and still creating the latter shall be greater than the former and it shall be glorious indeed. We will not be returned to Eden but placed into a new heaven and new earth governed by the eternal God who came and bled and died and was resurrected so that we might live and have life in great abundance. This is His plan (or LOGOS-Word). From that perspective we shall understand (if we have any need to understand)how God used the capacity for choice and thus evil, this choice and moral will itself being good, to create the perfect creation and love. A shorter answer is that what is evil is merely what was created good now separated from God, the source of all goodness. |
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7 | Is God responsible for evil? | Bible general Archive 1 | forrest | 5362 | ||
Again, I am a terrible typist. I corrected an erroneous "Good" to the proper "God" although as I explain there may not be so much of a difference after all! In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. John 1:1-1 God saw all that He had made, and behold it was very good. Genesis 1:31a For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and in the earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities-all things have been created through Him and for Him. Colossians 1.16 The above passages leave no room for misunderstanding. All things were created by God. Nothing that is came into being except by his creative force and power. The apparent problem is how can a God who is holy and all "good" create what is evil. First is a definitional problem. What is good, and how can we as the created judge our creator? God is good. See Matt 19:16 (only One is good). Fortunately for us, He is also mericiful and desires for our well being. Matt 7:11. These two verses illustrate a very important understanding of what is good. One, God is good; two, he desires what is good or best for us, and we need to trust Him. The difficulty comes in understanding how this good God could create obvious evil. God created only what is good. See Gen 1:31 above. However, there is evil. What is evil? If God is good and only good and all good things come from God, than what is not God is not good but is evil. All things came from God, how than can there be something not of God. that is evil? God created man (and apparently angels) as moral beings, spiritual beings with volition or the ability to chose. Now the only choice we may ever really have is whether to submit to God or to rebel against God. To chose against God is rebellion and God allows this but the consequence is death. See Gen 2:17. Apparently Satan was a good being with some volitional capacity who led a rebellion against God and thus was cast from his heavenly and created position. See Isaiah 14, Ezekiel 28, and Revelation 12 as well as the similar pride and encouragment of rebellion in Gen 3. But when Satan was cast from his proper position and relation to God, he had no power. Thus, he had to resort to deceiving man into breaking proper relation with God and falling as well. See Gen 3. But God was not surprised or without an prexisiting and eternal plan to work the best. He frustrated all of creation into the frustration of man's sin (see the curse of creation in Gen 3:17 and Romans 8:20). But all this is for the purpose of His greater good. All of this leads to the conclusion that God does not desire sin and death and corruption and evil, but He does desire freedom and choice and our coming to Him out of love instead of automation or neccesity. Evil is the result of man's failure. Starving babies is not God's desire but loving people is His desire. To have the latter you must create the capacity and potential for the wrong choice and its real consequences reslting in the former. But God will not be mocked and we must realize He is working out an eternal plan while we see in the very limited temporal. This requires faith. The good news is that if God is still creating. See 2 Cor 5:17 and Rev 21. Since God is good and still creating the latter shall be greater than the former and it shall be glorious indeed. We will not be returned to Eden but placed into a new heaven and new earth governed by the eternal God who came and bled and died and was resurrected so that we might live and have life in great abundance. This is His plan (or LOGOS-Word). From that perspective we shall understand (if we have any need to understand)how God used the capacity for choice and thus evil, this choice and moral will itself being good, to create the perfect creation and love. A shorter answer is that what is evil is merely what was created good now separated from God, the source of all goodness. |
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8 | How do you know there is a God? | Ps 46:10 | forrest | 19499 | ||
You have asked a perfect question. Ask the question of God Himself. We find God not because we know how, or learn some method or secret. We find God because He desires to be found. This is the wonder and mystery and magnificence of the coming of God in the humbled form of a man, Jesus. He came to set free people who are trapped in the frustration of being apart from God and living in a depressed and lower state than He (God) created each person for and desires and longs for each person to know and live in. The answer is not knowing that there is a god, but in knowing God Himself. And the word "knowing" is not a word of mere mental affirmation but of personal, embracing knowledge of a father, a friend, and a lover of our soul and selves. God is an awesome and unapproachable God who is beyond comprehension and even description. In His presence all men fall and turn their eyes from His awesome presence. This is the relationship between God and man who has turned from Him and left Him (that is all of us both in our generational heritage and personal experience). But God in His desire to bring man back into right relationship with Him, humbled Himself and came in the flesh and lived a perfect life in the presence of imperfect people. He healed the sick, gave sight to the blind, joy to the joyless, hope to the hopeless, laughter to the downcast, opportunity to worship to the outcast, and then He submitted Himself to the effect of sin and died a death that was undeserved for Him but due to all of mankind. But in His perfect plan He showed that life in God exceeds the power of death over our bodies. He rose and lived and was seen and communed with those who knew Him. He ascended back to His right place above this fallen and hurting world, but He still seeks and actually calls out to you, and He has given His Holy Spirit who still reached out to each person and knocks on the door of each heart and says, "Can I live with you and stay with you and give you my life which is never ending?" How do you know there is a god? Ask God to show you, pray that God will protect you from the voices of deceit and lies. Pray that The Holy God who created you and who came in the flesh in the person of Jesus Christ and who still ministers in the Holy Spirit, to reveal Himself and make Himself known in your heart. Admit that you need Him, you do not just want to know about Him. God, Himself will put on your heart a realization of how much you do need Him, of something that is essential that is missing, of life that needs more. And He will answer that need with His very presence and communion. There are demands that He will make. He is God, and He is very patient, but He will not, He can not, be less than God either in all of creation or in any heart. Thus, as He reveals Himself, we submit to His righteous authority and His direction in our lives. Thank God it is ever and always for our good and results in joys and life that are beyond any comparison. As a practical answer, get a good modern Bible translation such as the New Living Translation and pray that God would speak to you and illuminate your mind as you hear His Word. Read the gospels of Mark and John. Before and after you read pray, "God, I do not know how to find You or how to know You. In fact I am not able to find You or know You, but God, in the name of Jesus Christ who I believe came for me so that I may know You, please reveal Yourself to me and show me how to enter into real and right relationship with You. God, you are God and I am not. I want to know You. I need You. I welcome You" As you read, or if you are already a Bible student, a more precise Bible such as the New American Standard and study material will be helpful, but always the key to knowing is seeking and hearing from God Himself. Also, find a group of people among whom you see the presence of God, who seek Him, and who submit themselves to His Word and spend time with them (a sound church). And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. And I will be found by you. Jeremiah 29:13f For the eyes of the Lord move to and fro throughout the earth that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His. 2 Chronicles 16:9 For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost. Matthew 18:11 May God bless your seeking with His presence, forrest |
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