What I love about the God of Abraham, Isaac & Jacob

[JenT]

I've always had an affinity toward God. I think my parents thought i was kind of odd but went along with it. I didn't first meet Him in Sunday school where I was chastised because I didn't understand how to look anything up. I could just sense Him sometimes.

I always considered myself Christian even though I had no clue who He was. The Bible confused me because I couldn't get how behaving like Lot with his daughters (incest) equated to God whenever I tried to read the Bible from cover to cover.

So I dove into my teens and twenties with all the discernment of your average teenager...got into tons of trouble, laughed a lot but inside felt empty and wrong.

Then God exploded into my life after I filed for divorce. Somebody must have been praying for me because I was hounded by Christians dragging me to Bible Study, where I learned that living with my current romance of the month wasn't completely okay with God...

so I sadly put my lifestyle on the shelf and started lining up with what HE said instead of what I wanted...and lo and behold I discovered an indescribable relationship with the Creator of the universe that transends all understanding. A fullness within myself that I couldn't find anywhere else on the planet, a communion with Him, a sense of peace and joy even through crisis and confrontation and kaos. He rocked my world.

And He gave me back a sense of myself that I didn't even realize I lost before. It was like I had been sitting in gutter mud and didn't even know it until He came by and washed me clean, a restoring of my soul.

So many twists and turns my life has been through since then, and He has been my rock.

And now when I read people claiming there is no God, or demands of proof, evidence, "show me", accusations of God, etc., well, how does one explain something as phenomenal as a complete turn around of your life, a restoring, an absolute knowledge of Him who never leaves us? I could write of the miracles I've seen, I could write of the obvious evidence of the Bible and all the prophesies, the miracle of the Bible itself, but unless a person tastes and sees that it is good, unless the call of the Holy Spirit is responded to...

But that God loved me even as I was sinning, that He came for me, that He showed me a better way, that He does that for everyone that comes to the party...that's what I love about God.

 

[Kalam]

And now when I read people claiming there is no God, or demands of proof, evidence, "show me", accusations of God, etc., well, how does one explain something as phenomenal as a complete turn around of your life, a restoring, an absolute knowledge of Him who never leaves us? I could write of the miracles I've seen, I could write of the obvious evidence of the Bible and all the prophesies, the miracle of the Bible itself, but unless a person tastes and sees that it is good, unless the call of the Holy Spirit is responded to...

You have to understand that, though interesting, personal anecdotes can't be considered sufficient evidence for the existence of something as significant as a Biblical God. If you look hard enough, I think you'll find that you're solely responsible for turning your life around and that attributing that accomplishment to an unprovable supernatural being only diminishes the significance of what you did. I don't feel inclined to believe that God actively interferes in the affairs of our universe. Wouldn't the need to intervene to solve problems within his own creation imply a lack of foreknowledge on God's part?

 

[RodISHI]

Nice. Although I'm sure you have a few self proclaim atheist along shortly to start some bs... I personally cannot imagine life without God/Yah in my life. I have shared many miracles along the way with others. It really makes no difference to me what they may say as I know God rules the hearts of men/women. He can let one know He is their or He can hide Himself. I know that God will send His angels through time and space for those who believe and trust in Him to rescue them. He does walk through the sky and the earth is definitely His footstool. It's a shame that all do not realize that but hey that is life here in the Earth.

 

[Sunni Man]

The title of the thread should also include Isaac's brother Ishmael.

As he was 1/2 of the orginal blessing given to Abraham

 

[JenT]

The title of the thread should also include Isaac's brother Ishmael.

As he was 1/2 of the orginal blessing given to Abraham

Not according to God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob/the Bible & Torah:

2 Then He said, “Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love...

Genesis 22:2

 

[JenT]

You have to understand that...

Why? By what authority do you claim to know my life better than I do? And Who the author of it is?

I know what I have seen and touched, I know how I've been healed and Who healed me, I know Who saved my life on a deserted highway and I know Who's ways radically changed my life.

I've seen dramatic evidence of His hand in my life time and time again, but my telling you about it isn't going to open your eyes. That's between you and the Holy Spirit.

But thanks for the feedback

 

[Sunni Man]

The title of the thread should also include Isaac's brother Ishmael.

As he was 1/2 of the orginal blessing given to Abraham

Not according to God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob/the Bible & Torah:

2 Then He said, “Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love...

Genesis 22:2

Read your Bible/Torah

Abrahams blessing was for ALL of his offspring.

When Gen 22:2 took place. Isaac was the only son who still lived at home.

Ishmael had already moved out with his mother.

 

[JenT]

The title of the thread should also include Isaac's brother Ishmael.

As he was 1/2 of the orginal blessing given to Abraham

Not according to God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob/the Bible & Torah:

2 Then He said, “Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love...

Genesis 22:2

Read your Bible/Torah

Abrahams blessing was for ALL of his offspring.

When Gen 22:2 took place. Isaac was the son who still lived at home.

Ishmael had already moved out with his mother.

I think we should look at what God said about it.

God said, "I am the God of Abraham, ISAAC and JACOB."

Jacob having no relation to Ishmael, yet in the geneology of Christ.

Jesus Christ, the Son of God

 

[Sunni Man]

Not according to God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob/the Bible & Torah:

2 Then He said, “Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love...

Genesis 22:2

Read your Bible/Torah

Abrahams blessing was for ALL of his offspring.

When Gen 22:2 took place. Isaac was the son who still lived at home.

Ishmael had already moved out with his mother.

I think we should look at what God said about it.

God said, "I am the God of Abraham, ISAAC and JACOB."

Jacob having no relation to Ishmael, yet in the geneology of Christ.

Ishmael was Jacobs uncle

Thus he was a blood relative of Jesus

 

[alan1]

I've always had an affinity toward God. I think my parents thought i was kind of odd but went along with it. I didn't first meet Him in Sunday school where I was chastised because I didn't understand how to look anything up. I could just sense Him sometimes.

I always considered myself Christian even though I had no clue who He was. The Bible confused me because I couldn't get how behaving like Lot with his daughters (incest) equated to God whenever I tried to read the Bible from cover to cover.

So I dove into my teens and twenties with all the discernment of your average teenager...got into tons of trouble, laughed a lot but inside felt empty and wrong.

Then God exploded into my life after I filed for divorce. Somebody must have been praying for me because I was hounded by Christians dragging me to Bible Study, where I learned that living with my current romance of the month wasn't completely okay with God...

so I sadly put my lifestyle on the shelf and started lining up with what HE said instead of what I wanted...and lo and behold I discovered an indescribable relationship with the Creator of the universe that transends all understanding. A fullness within myself that I couldn't find anywhere else on the planet, a communion with Him, a sense of peace and joy even through crisis and confrontation and kaos. He rocked my world.

And He gave me back a sense of myself that I didn't even realize I lost before. It was like I had been sitting in gutter mud and didn't even know it until He came by and washed me clean, a restoring of my soul.

So many twists and turns my life has been through since then, and He has been my rock.

And now when I read people claiming there is no God, or demands of proof, evidence, "show me", accusations of God, etc., well, how does one explain something as phenomenal as a complete turn around of your life, a restoring, an absolute knowledge of Him who never leaves us? I could write of the miracles I've seen, I could write of the obvious evidence of the Bible and all the prophesies, the miracle of the Bible itself, but unless a person tastes and sees that it is good, unless the call of the Holy Spirit is responded to...

But that God loved me even as I was sinning, that He came for me, that He showed me a better way, that He does that for everyone that comes to the party...that's what I love about God.

Doesn't Satan do the same?

 

[JenT]

I've always had an affinity toward God. I think my parents thought i was kind of odd but went along with it. I didn't first meet Him in Sunday school where I was chastised because I didn't understand how to look anything up. I could just sense Him sometimes.

I always considered myself Christian even though I had no clue who He was. The Bible confused me because I couldn't get how behaving like Lot with his daughters (incest) equated to God whenever I tried to read the Bible from cover to cover.

So I dove into my teens and twenties with all the discernment of your average teenager...got into tons of trouble, laughed a lot but inside felt empty and wrong.

Then God exploded into my life after I filed for divorce. Somebody must have been praying for me because I was hounded by Christians dragging me to Bible Study, where I learned that living with my current romance of the month wasn't completely okay with God...

so I sadly put my lifestyle on the shelf and started lining up with what HE said instead of what I wanted...and lo and behold I discovered an indescribable relationship with the Creator of the universe that transends all understanding. A fullness within myself that I couldn't find anywhere else on the planet, a communion with Him, a sense of peace and joy even through crisis and confrontation and kaos. He rocked my world.

And He gave me back a sense of myself that I didn't even realize I lost before. It was like I had been sitting in gutter mud and didn't even know it until He came by and washed me clean, a restoring of my soul.

So many twists and turns my life has been through since then, and He has been my rock.

And now when I read people claiming there is no God, or demands of proof, evidence, "show me", accusations of God, etc., well, how does one explain something as phenomenal as a complete turn around of your life, a restoring, an absolute knowledge of Him who never leaves us? I could write of the miracles I've seen, I could write of the obvious evidence of the Bible and all the prophesies, the miracle of the Bible itself, but unless a person tastes and sees that it is good, unless the call of the Holy Spirit is responded to...

But that God loved me even as I was sinning, that He came for me, that He showed me a better way, that He does that for everyone that comes to the party...that's what I love about God.

Doesn't Satan do the same?

Love me? bwahahahahahahahaha ....that's a no

 

[alan1]

I've always had an affinity toward God. I think my parents thought i was kind of odd but went along with it. I didn't first meet Him in Sunday school where I was chastised because I didn't understand how to look anything up. I could just sense Him sometimes.

I always considered myself Christian even though I had no clue who He was. The Bible confused me because I couldn't get how behaving like Lot with his daughters (incest) equated to God whenever I tried to read the Bible from cover to cover.

So I dove into my teens and twenties with all the discernment of your average teenager...got into tons of trouble, laughed a lot but inside felt empty and wrong.

Then God exploded into my life after I filed for divorce. Somebody must have been praying for me because I was hounded by Christians dragging me to Bible Study, where I learned that living with my current romance of the month wasn't completely okay with God...

so I sadly put my lifestyle on the shelf and started lining up with what HE said instead of what I wanted...and lo and behold I discovered an indescribable relationship with the Creator of the universe that transends all understanding. A fullness within myself that I couldn't find anywhere else on the planet, a communion with Him, a sense of peace and joy even through crisis and confrontation and kaos. He rocked my world.

And He gave me back a sense of myself that I didn't even realize I lost before. It was like I had been sitting in gutter mud and didn't even know it until He came by and washed me clean, a restoring of my soul.

So many twists and turns my life has been through since then, and He has been my rock.

And now when I read people claiming there is no God, or demands of proof, evidence, "show me", accusations of God, etc., well, how does one explain something as phenomenal as a complete turn around of your life, a restoring, an absolute knowledge of Him who never leaves us? I could write of the miracles I've seen, I could write of the obvious evidence of the Bible and all the prophesies, the miracle of the Bible itself, but unless a person tastes and sees that it is good, unless the call of the Holy Spirit is responded to...

But that God loved me even as I was sinning, that He came for me, that He showed me a better way, that He does that for everyone that comes to the party...that's what I love about God.

Doesn't Satan do the same?

Love me? bwahahahahahahahaha ....that's a no

Doesn't he come to people that are sinning?
I'm pretty sure Satan loves sinners.

 

[JenT]

Read your Bible/Torah

Abrahams blessing was for ALL of his offspring.

When Gen 22:2 took place. Isaac was the son who still lived at home.

Ishmael had already moved out with his mother.

I think we should look at what God said about it.

God said, "I am the God of Abraham, ISAAC and JACOB."

Jacob having no relation to Ishmael, yet in the geneology of Christ.

Ishmael was Jacobs uncle

Thus he was a blood relative of Jesus

okay I worded that poorly, to be more clear, there is not one drop of Ishmael's blood in the bloodline of Jesus Christ

God's focus throughout the Bible has been Jesus Christ. He didn't want us to miss Him, prophesies, geneologies, details, even God pointing out He is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

God said Isaac is Abraham's ONLY son. And God is the "God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob" by God's own definition. Because God knew, always knew, where Ishmael and his nation would go, and God said it was because He heard her affliction:

10 Then the Angel of the LORD said to her, “I will multiply your descendants exceedingly, so that they shall not be counted for multitude.” 11 And the Angel of the LORD said to her:

“Behold, you are with child,
And you shall bear a son.
You shall call his name Ishmael,
Because the LORD has heard your affliction.
12 He shall be a wild man;
His hand shall be against every man,
And every man’s hand against him.
And he shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren.” (Gen 16)

God heard Hagar's affliction and He kept His promise to Hagar, He prospered Ishmael.

But the "scoffer" grew up and his seed has hated Israel/Jacob's seed ever since. And an offspring of the scoffer, Mohammed, listened to the enemy tell him to kill Israel, and that has been the chant. Witness the hatred of Ishmael's offspring to Israel ever since, written in blood all over our headlines.

The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob did NOT tell Ishmael's offspring to slaughter Jews and mistreat them.

 

[JenT]

Doesn't Satan do the same?

Love me? bwahahahahahahahaha ....that's a no

Doesn't he come to people that are sinning?
I'm pretty sure Satan loves sinners.

Satan loves that God's children sin, and he's more than happy to lead us there if that's what you mean. But he also revels in the consequences we suffer because of those sins, Satan hates and accuses us. It's why he's called our accuser.

But Christ steps in and says He has already paid for those sins. More reasons why I love the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob!

 

[Avatar4321]

You have to understand that, though interesting, personal anecdotes can't be considered sufficient evidence for the existence of something as significant as a Biblical God. If you look hard enough, I think you'll find that you're solely responsible for turning your life around and that attributing that accomplishment to an unprovable supernatural being only diminishes the significance of what you did. I don't feel inclined to believe that God actively interferes in the affairs of our universe. Wouldn't the need to intervene to solve problems within his own creation imply a lack of foreknowledge on God's part?

Of course not. I mean eye witness accounts can prove a man to be a murderer beyond a reasonable doubt and put him to death. But why on earth should they prove the existance of God? I mean just because you may have seen or heard God. Or felt his presense in your life or seen miracles or been involved in miracles doesnt mean that God exists. Why believe your experiences? We should just believe everyone who says they cant know rather than looking into it ourselves.

Alright, sarcasm aside, why ignore evidence of the divine and then claim there is none? it doenst make sense to me. It never has.

 

[mattskramer]

I've always had an affinity toward God. I think my parents thought i was kind of odd but went along with it. I didn't first meet Him in Sunday school where I was chastised because I didn't understand how to look anything up. I could just sense Him sometimes.

I always considered myself Christian even though I had no clue who He was. The Bible confused me because I couldn't get how behaving like Lot with his daughters (incest) equated to God whenever I tried to read the Bible from cover to cover.

So I dove into my teens and twenties with all the discernment of your average teenager...got into tons of trouble, laughed a lot but inside felt empty and wrong.

Then God exploded into my life after I filed for divorce. Somebody must have been praying for me because I was hounded by Christians dragging me to Bible Study, where I learned that living with my current romance of the month wasn't completely okay with God...

so I sadly put my lifestyle on the shelf and started lining up with what HE said instead of what I wanted...and lo and behold I discovered an indescribable relationship with the Creator of the universe that transends all understanding. A fullness within myself that I couldn't find anywhere else on the planet, a communion with Him, a sense of peace and joy even through crisis and confrontation and kaos. He rocked my world.

And He gave me back a sense of myself that I didn't even realize I lost before. It was like I had been sitting in gutter mud and didn't even know it until He came by and washed me clean, a restoring of my soul.

So many twists and turns my life has been through since then, and He has been my rock.

And now when I read people claiming there is no God, or demands of proof, evidence, "show me", accusations of God, etc., well, how does one explain something as phenomenal as a complete turn around of your life, a restoring, an absolute knowledge of Him who never leaves us? I could write of the miracles I've seen, I could write of the obvious evidence of the Bible and all the prophesies, the miracle of the Bible itself, but unless a person tastes and sees that it is good, unless the call of the Holy Spirit is responded to...

But that God loved me even as I was sinning, that He came for me, that He showed me a better way, that He does that for everyone that comes to the party...that's what I love about God.

I mean no offence but just to reply to your post and answer your question. One might conclude that you felt the need to have something in your life after your divorce. Perhaps your divorce left a gap in your life that nothing seemed to fill. Then you took a chance on filling it with a belief in God.

“How does one explain something as phenomenal as a complete turn around of your life…?”

Belief is a powerful tool. Some people believe that they can fly. Some of those people have jumped off buildings to their deaths. Some people have read the Bible and applied some of its advice to their lives. Many of those people have improved their lives as a result. That does not mean that the Jesus story and the story about salvation are true.

“…a restoring, an absolute knowledge of Him who never leaves us?”

I’m sorry but you do not have an absolute knowledge of Him. You may have a strong belief – a faith – but not absolute knowledge. Are you so all-knowing when it comes to Him, that you can tell who he will allow into heaven and whom he will not? I doubt it.

“I could write of the miracles I've seen, I could write of the obvious evidence of the Bible and all the prophesies, the miracle of the Bible itself”

Really? Can you explain each and every absurdity and apparent contradiction within the Bible? I doubt it.

“but unless a person tastes and sees that it is good, unless the call of the Holy Spirit is responded to...”

I hear the telephone ringing. I think that the “call of the Holy Spirit”, as you put it, is simply a combination of group think, strong wishful thinking, and imagination that there is more to the end of life than death and a ceasing of existence. Oh if only we were not alone in this world. Just think that there is someone who will care for you and love you inside and out – like a soul mate – but a supreme being throughout all eternity.

I mean you no offence. This is just one guys reply and assessment of your post. I might be wrong, but I think that what you have is a placebo effect – and sometimes placebos can be good for you. May whatever you believe in give you peace and serenity.

 

[Avatar4321]

Doesn't he come to people that are sinning?
I'm pretty sure Satan loves sinners.

No. Why would he have to go to the people who are sinning? He already has them.

No he goes to the people who are trying to repent. to keep them off track.

And no he doesnt love them. If he loved them he would be trying to help them not make them as miserable as he is.

 

[Sunni Man]

I think we should look at what God said about it.

God said, "I am the God of Abraham, ISAAC and JACOB."

Jacob having no relation to Ishmael, yet in the geneology of Christ.

Ishmael was Jacobs uncle

Thus he was a blood relative of Jesus

Witness the hatred of Ishmael's offspring to Israel ever since, written in blood all over our headlines.

The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob did NOT tell Ishmael's offspring to slaughter Jews and mistreat them.

God did not tell the offspring of Isaac (the Jews), to slaughter the descendents of Ishmael.

Witness the hatred of Isaac's offspring to Arabs ever since, written in blood all over our headlines.
__________________

 

[JenT]

I've always had an affinity toward God. I think my parents thought i was kind of odd but went along with it. I didn't first meet Him in Sunday school where I was chastised because I didn't understand how to look anything up. I could just sense Him sometimes.

I always considered myself Christian even though I had no clue who He was. The Bible confused me because I couldn't get how behaving like Lot with his daughters (incest) equated to God whenever I tried to read the Bible from cover to cover.

So I dove into my teens and twenties with all the discernment of your average teenager...got into tons of trouble, laughed a lot but inside felt empty and wrong.

Then God exploded into my life after I filed for divorce. Somebody must have been praying for me because I was hounded by Christians dragging me to Bible Study, where I learned that living with my current romance of the month wasn't completely okay with God...

so I sadly put my lifestyle on the shelf and started lining up with what HE said instead of what I wanted...and lo and behold I discovered an indescribable relationship with the Creator of the universe that transends all understanding. A fullness within myself that I couldn't find anywhere else on the planet, a communion with Him, a sense of peace and joy even through crisis and confrontation and kaos. He rocked my world.

And He gave me back a sense of myself that I didn't even realize I lost before. It was like I had been sitting in gutter mud and didn't even know it until He came by and washed me clean, a restoring of my soul.

So many twists and turns my life has been through since then, and He has been my rock.

And now when I read people claiming there is no God, or demands of proof, evidence, "show me", accusations of God, etc., well, how does one explain something as phenomenal as a complete turn around of your life, a restoring, an absolute knowledge of Him who never leaves us? I could write of the miracles I've seen, I could write of the obvious evidence of the Bible and all the prophesies, the miracle of the Bible itself, but unless a person tastes and sees that it is good, unless the call of the Holy Spirit is responded to...

But that God loved me even as I was sinning, that He came for me, that He showed me a better way, that He does that for everyone that comes to the party...that's what I love about God.

I mean no offence but just to reply to your post and answer your question. One might conclude that you felt the need to have something in your life after your divorce. Perhaps your divorce left a gap in your life that nothing seemed to fill. Then you took a chance on filling it with a belief in God.

“How does one explain something as phenomenal as a complete turn around of your life…?”

Belief is a powerful tool. Some people believe that they can fly. Some of those people have jumped off buildings to their deaths. Some people have read the Bible and applied some of its advice to their lives. Many of those people have improved their lives as a result. That does not mean that the Jesus story and the story about salvation are true.

“…a restoring, an absolute knowledge of Him who never leaves us?”

I’m sorry but you do not have an absolute knowledge of Him. You may have a strong belief – a faith – but not absolute knowledge. Are you so all-knowing when it comes to Him, that you can tell who he will allow into heaven and whom he will not? I doubt it.

“I could write of the miracles I've seen, I could write of the obvious evidence of the Bible and all the prophesies, the miracle of the Bible itself”

Really? Can you explain each and every absurdity and apparent contradiction within the Bible? I doubt it.

“but unless a person tastes and sees that it is good, unless the call of the Holy Spirit is responded to...”

I hear the telephone ringing. I think that the “call of the Holy Spirit”, as you put it, is simply a combination of group think, strong wishful thinking, and imagination that there is more to the end of life than death and a ceasing of existence. Oh if only we were not alone in this world. Just think that there is someone who will care for you and love you inside and out – like a soul mate – but a supreme being throughout all eternity.

I mean you no offence. This is just one guys reply and assessment of your post. I might be wrong, but I think that what you have is a placebo effect – and sometimes placebos can be good for you. May whatever you believe in give you peace and serenity.

Hey Matt! Good to see you again!

When I said "absolute knowledge" I didn't mean my knowledge of Him is complete, there is a lot I don't know about Him, but I absolutely know that He IS, of that there is no question. And there has been far too much absolute evidence that I and my kids have seen, to even begin to try to deny Him. So the placebo argument falls flat. But I take no offense at all, just glad to see you again!

 

[alan1]

Love me? bwahahahahahahahaha ....that's a no

Doesn't he come to people that are sinning?
I'm pretty sure Satan loves sinners.

Satan loves that God's children sin, and he's more than happy to lead us there if that's what you mean. But he also revels in the consequences we suffer because of those sins, Satan hates and accuses us. It's why he's called our accuser.

But Christ steps in and says He has already paid for those sins. More reasons why I love the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob!

Cool, I can sin all I want and the debt is already pre-paid by God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob
and Mohamed.