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NASB | Leviticus 16:34 "Now you shall have this as a permanent statute, to make atonement for the sons of Israel for all their sins once every year." And just as the LORD had commanded Moses, so he did. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Leviticus 16:34 "This shall be a permanent statute for you, so that atonement may be made for the children of Israel for all their sins once a year." So he did just as the LORD had commanded Moses. |
Subject: Is Universalism Scriptural |
Bible Note: Hello CDBJ, Thank you for your response. I spent the majority of my 33 years saying basically what you have just said. However, many of the inconsistencies in that reasoning gnawed at me. For example, you mention the life raft to a drowning man analogy. After refusing "all" possible attempts, the ship must sail on. God doesn't exhaust "all" possible attempts. He blinded Saul/Paul and spoke in an audible voice to him. If He did that to others, would they not follow Him? He is in absolute control of Satan and will even bind him for a thousand years. If He did that right now, how many more would follow Him? How about a child born to a Muslim family. They spend their entire life being taught something contrary to Scripture and get maybe one chance to hear an American tell them of Christ and this is exhausting "all" possible attempts? These are the type of inconsistencies that kept confusing me. Or for another example from your email, you said God "can't possibly" help anyone that doesn't rely "totally" on Jesus Christ for their eternal life...or it would make Him a liar. The first problem is saying "God can't". That is pretty much a contradiction of God. God is all powerful, there is nothing He can't do! Secondly, God makes the rules. He isn't so shortsighted that He made a rule that now He is required to uphold or else become a liar. I mean, He isn't saying "oh man, I really don't want them to burn forever, but now I have to let them because those are the rules I put in place." He isn't that easily fooled. Again, this just doesn't hold up rationally. And finally, if God is truly a God of love (and I think we all agree there), then at the bear minimum why could He not just extinguish those who reject Him? Why does He decide to torture them forever? How can those two ideas be said to coexist logically. These are some of the questions I struggled with. What do you think about the questions I asked myself (and now ask you)? Thank you for your time, Nick |