Sargento, I have tried to address all of your teachings and even broken down your posts, line by line, yet you still insist that I am not answering your questions.. You have the same criticism of other people you are talking with on this board - are you mistaking 'addressing and answering questions' with ' agreement of your ideas'?
S: Amazing... you discredit the all bible... why do bother to show you anything??
A: Actually, the very fact that I believe in absolute truth should tell you that I believe the message of the Bible. Conversely, you deny absolute truth, by denying the existence of a stable, undivided God. According to your understanding of God, He could become as evil as He wants to be and we would have to accept it as good. The result of such thinking is an unknowable God.
Also, I thought we were both here to have a discussion, not for me to sit at your feet and receive your teachings. Remember, you approached me first. If you are not here to have a discussion between equals than why are you here? If you are here to impart your teachings to us, without being open for feedback, how can you not see this as arrogant? I think it is humorous that you think I am being arrogant, when you are the person who is trying to teach new doctrine.
S: Nothing count's...
A: This comment tells me that you are terrified of anything less than a god who is ruthless; a god who has no problem manifesting his omnipotence without his mercy or goodness. Unfortunately, this is an example of Stockholm Syndrome - it is the survive reaction that kidnapped victims have towards their captures, which misinterpretes their captivity and abuse as protection. The faith and love God actually wants from us is not based on terror - He sent us the Holy Spirit to love us so that we could love Him and others - NOT to terrorize us with Hellfire and abusive, unstable treatment. Instead, our ability to love is rooted in the love of a knowable, stable God
S: (1)Your conclusion of all is that HE does not creates evil, (2)the rejection of Saul by the prophet is human perspective (3) (no wonder this generation kills the prophets), (4) GOD is limited in his choices, (5) HE is GOD for what HE does, etc... and many like these.
A:
1. God created the perfect pie and we made it imperfect by taking a big bite of it, right out of the middle. The cake still exists, but it is no longer perfect. This perspective takes nothing away from God's omnipotence.
2. Indeed. God used people to communicate His message to humanity. Did you think He reached His hand down and penned the Bible, like the 10 commandments?
3. People reject prophets because they were sent to remind God's leaders that like the 'Emperor With No Clothes', they sometimes demanded people under their power to re-interpret their tyranny as righteousness. Christians today should still listen to criticisms of our tyranny from people from inside and outside the faith; we need to remember Christ's example.
4. You mean, limited to only creating unbroken, or perfect creations? Yeah, I can live with that.
5. God is. There is no one more perfect, merciful, just, powerful, all knowing, or all present. He is love and the source of all love. His behavior does not make Him who He is; His behavior is dictated by His Good Character.
S: Of course what I ask you it its unimaginable... or if I show it to you it's probably in a human perspective... because if I show you that GOD does something you do not accept in HIM you'll harden your heart and pretend not to see.... so you can call yourself a believer without really believing in HIM.
A: I am not dismissing the Bible because it is written from man's perspective - God choose to communicate this way. The difference between our approach is that I read the OT through the lens of the NT - writer's in the OT did not have this vantage point. Jesus came to speak to us through the language of love, which, if you really look, is contained in the OT, but is overshadowed by the message of His omnipotence because the authors (who were in captivity in Babylon at the time) valued this aspect of God the most.
S: Aspen, you do not believe in GOD but you do not know it yet.
A: I see you have now given yourself the authority to decide that I am not a Christian based on my inability or unwillingness to share your opinions and perspective. Hopefully, you can see the futile arrogance of your position and repent.
S: I guess it's a waste of time showing you bible.
A: Here's the good news - you are not my authority; it is not your job to convict my heart or anyone else's. Conviction comes from the Holy Spirit, so perhaps you should get down from your pedestal and just have a conversation instead of doing the fundy-three-step, 'one-two-three! one-two-three! Inform-demand agreement-dismiss!'
