I see this as a HUGE problem in Christianity. (and whatever you call yourself)
- Belief without question = heaven (or the new earth) ???
Not even close. Where does “belief” come from? What is “faith”?
The Bible itself gives us a definition....
Heb 11:1...
“Faith is the assured expectation of what is hoped for, the evident demonstration of realities that are not seen.”
IOW, we have to know the God we serve and why he put us here. If he had the power to create the Universe, then what power does he lack? If the Bible is God’s word (2 Tim 3:16-17)....and I believe that it is, then, in his wisdom he made sure that it wasn’t the result of “Chinese whispers”......his powerful spirit can do whatever he directs to accomplish his will. His message to the human race cannot be altered.
Those who “know the only true God” (John 17:3) because they see him in every aspect of his creation, and can also see that he does nothing without a purpose, can be certain then, that through his word he informs us about why we are we here, undergoing all these trials. There will be no unanswered questions. If we have unanswered questions then we don’t have the truth...and we don’t really know God.
You see SS, the basics are the fundamental ingredients of faith and belief....the foundation on which we base our faith. If the foundation is faulty, then no matter what you build on it, it is doomed to fail.
If we have built our beliefs on what Christendom teaches about God, then we will have a million unanswered questions....the devil will see to that......
What did Paul say about the unbelievers?
2 Cor 4:3-4....
“If, in fact, the good news we declare is veiled, it is veiled among those who are perishing, 4 among whom the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, so that the illumination of the glorious good news about the Christ, who is the image of God, might not shine through.”
If what people read in the Scriptures is “veiled” or obscure, then there is a reason....the one who is served by “unbelievers” (which includes rejectors of truth who might identify as “Christians”) have had their ‘minds blinded’.....this is more that just a lack of sight.....the very centre of all thought processes has been disengaged....rendered useless. Nothing they try to work out on their own results in one logical truth shared by all. Christ has been carved up into so many pieces that his body is scattered all over the place. Of what use is that situation to anyone? (1 Cor 1:10) God’s spirit unites his people...it does not divide them by making the truth ambiguous.....”the god of this world” does that.
I again refer to Jesus’ words in John 6:44; 65.....we all know that ‘no one can come to the Father except through Jesus Christ’, who is the “image of God”.....an “image” is a reflection of something......so, Jesus is the exact representation of his Father in human form. He said that everything he taught was from his Father, not from himself. (John 7:14-16) And no one can come to the son without an invitation from his Father......think about that for a moment. Who is choosing who?
So what is the basis for what you believe? How do you choose your beliefs? Many just go to the great celestial supermarket and put their chosen beliefs in their basket, creating their very own religion. Of what use is that?
- Unbelief = hell (or nonexistence)
If God has a purpose for our mortal human existence, then it will be achieved. (Isa 55:11) He created humankind to live on a carefully prepared planet.....and there was not a single mention of death except as a penalty for disobedience. So for what purpose did God originally create us?
Out of all the creatures he put here to share life with us....only humans were endowed with his intellect and logic....and free will.
We also have his appreciation for beauty and order....but we were not designed to rule ourselves. The only command in the garden that would result in death, was disobedience....meaning that the Creator had the right as Sovereign Ruler, to set the limits of our free will.
There was only one way to die.....so for his free willed creation both in heaven and on earth, all were under obligation to obey the Creator as one who knows what is best for us.
The first defector was not human, and he planted seeds of doubt in the woman, hoping that she would persuade her husband to join her, thus separating the humans from their God so that he could gain their worship for himself. He was the one who wanted to “be like God”....
Jehovah, being the reader of hearts, (not just minds) knows his children like no other. So he not only knows what we think, but what motivates us to say and do what we do.
He has nothing to do with our birth personally, but looks with interest at what his human creation are doing in their present circumstances, so far removed from what he purposed for them....but free will had limits and disobedience had penalties. This is a time of testing, where the devil was given a free hand to test out the human race, like satan tested Job. Jehovah can do this because he can reverse everything the devil has done, and even erase the memory of it. (Isa 65:17; 20-25)
God tried to tell them that obedience was the best course, but they did not listen, so there was no choice but to show them what it would result in by first hand experience, thereby creating precedents for all eternity so that this could never happen again. Hard lessons for us, and for his heavenly family, but it would stop any future rebel from even starting down the wrong track again. All the issues of obedience to our Sovereign Lord are now legally established.....so that he can get on with what he purposed in the beginning, with eternity protected from any future disobedience.
There is no room for questions by those who DON'T want to be fixed.
And there you have the problem expressed in your own words....”no room for questions by those who DON'T want to be fixed.” IOW, there is no room for those who don’t get the answers they want to the questions they ask....and they have no desire to be “fixed” into a belief system in which they have no faith....
Who has the right to dictate the terms of our existence, more than our Creator?
Paul again hits the nail on the head....
Heb 11:6...
“...without faith it is impossible to please God well, for whoever approaches God must believe that he is and that he becomes the rewarder of those earnestly seeking him.”
What do you get out of Paul’s words? Is faith something we are born with? Is it something that just drops in out of the blue because we attended a church service? How do we attain faith?
I believe that faith like a wall that we build brick by brick, by taking in all of what the Bible teaches us, especially in the words of God’s son...? He shows us the Father and tells us how to please him. So how can we be more Christ-like? Just follow his lead and understand why Christianity today is so hopelessly divided.
Who is the sower of the “weeds” and what hope is there that we will find the “wheat” among those “weeds”?
Both are “growing together until the harvest”....so what will the harvest result in?
Read the account in Matt 13:24-30; 36-42....and tell me what you understand Jesus to be saying.
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