Let's talk about God

[Bullypulpit]

The problem inherent with interpreting the wishes of an omnipotent, omnipresent, omnisicent being who only makes his wishes known throught "signs and portents" is that anyone can claim a direct pipeline to their favorite deity. In which case, my favorite deity has told me that I am now president-for-life of this great land of ours. My first act is to declare every day a holiday and and give everyone all of the hot-fudge sundaes they can eat...at tax-payer expense, of course.

 

[Bonnie]

No God gives us free will...........He only interferes if we ask for his help.........And yes he knows everything past, present, future, and he never gives up on us doing the right thing.

 

[JOKER96BRAVO]

It all sounds like an excuse to me. It always seems that the answer to every
question concerning God is always, because God made it that way or "faith".
You know the American Indians had a God or a fictional explanation for
everything they didn't understand also.

 

[Bonnie]

It all sounds like an excuse to me. It always seems that the answer to every
question concerning God is always, because God made it that way or "faith".
You know the American Indians had a God or a fictional explanation for
everything they didn't understand also.

Well that's why they call it faith, and free will. Everyone chooses to either believe or not believe.

 

[JOKER96BRAVO]

I think you are missing the point. God doesn't care whether you type "GOAT" or whether you have pancakes for breakfast or whether you cross the road without looking both ways. God has delegated power over our own lives to us. He could very easily force you to become a Christian; but again, that's not what He is in this for. God wants us to come to Him of our own will.

Thus giving me the ability to plan my own life, which makes his plan for me
redundant. Which makes the idea of him planning everyone's life and allowing
them to still have free will impossible.

 

[eric]

It all sounds like an excuse to me. It always seems that the answer to every question concerning God is always, because God made it that way or "faith".You know the American Indians had a God or a fictional explanation for
everything they didn't understand also.

When I gave you a possible scientific explanation of how it is possible, you rejected it. I don't understand the answer you are looking for, or is it that you have preconceived notion and just wish it to be confirmed by others ?

 

[eric]

The problem inherent with interpreting the wishes of an omnipotent, omnipresent, omnisicent being who only makes his wishes known throught "signs and portents" is that anyone can claim a direct pipeline to their favorite deity. In which case, my favorite deity has told me that I am now president-for-life of this great land of ours. My first act is to declare every day a holiday and and give everyone all of the hot-fudge sundaes they can eat...at tax-payer expense, of course.

Think you can keep your childish humor out of serious conversations. The only joke here is you, but I will say, you do make us laugh at your expense.

 

[JOKER96BRAVO]

When I gave you a possible scientific explanation of how it is possible, you rejected it. I don't understand the answer you are looking for, or is it that you have preconceived notion and just wish it to be confirmed by others ?

Do not wish to be rude, just enjoy an intelligent conversation from time
to time. I guess what I'm trying to get at is I simply can't believe in God
through past events recorded in the very book that is supposed to lead
me to salvation. I can fathom that there is a creator, I just can't credit (for
my own "faith") that his name is God and all the Bible says is true.

Bonnie said "No God gives us free will...........He only interferes if we ask for his
help.........And yes he knows everything past, present, future, and he never gives
up on us doing the right thing." If this were true then there should be no stories
in the good book of severe punishment for not living by God's word. I can believe
that there was an arc, Hell I think they even found peices of it. What I can't
beleive is that 40 days and 40 nights of rain and Noah was the only joe smart
enough to build a boat, and this because God told him to. Why has God not
flooded our Earth??? Why must a man be punished to roam the Earth seriously
disfigured for murdering his brother out of jealousy, yet we have prisons full
of murderers??? Let's not let slavery go, why wasn't the white man seriously
plagued for enslaving the black man??? No fire and brimstone, no frogs, no
creeping death, no locusts, my water taste nothing of blood.

There simply just isn't enough proof to convince me. I'm certainly not trying to
convert anyone here or say they are wrong. Maybe I'm just trying to get
some GOOD answers. When I look at a world full of lust, murder, rape, greed,
envy, and politics (that was a funny please don't take me serious) I can't help
asking "Where is God?". Why kick Adam and Eve outta the garden for
dissobeying the word of the man and let me get away with it on a daily basis?
Don't tell me our punishment is Judgment Day, that just wouldn't bring
justice to all the filth in this world that has already passed on. I will tell you this
as I have never released this info in the past, I have killed someone....for my
country, will I be forced to roam the Earth as a troll???

I just can't find faith in the book written by man.

 

[Bonnie]

Joker,

You raise a lot of great questions which are impossible for anyone except theologians to give you sensical answers to. I believe the fact that you killed someone for your country will be very much taken into account by the almighty, because his wisdom is perfect and he knows all of us inside and out and knows what the true intent of our actions are. The other thing that is offered to us is the scarament of penance which god tells us if we ask for forgiveness no matter what the sin as long as we are not too proud to ask.........That means EVERY SIN! I believe that strongly, and is the reason his son Jesus suffrered as much as he did, was for all sins past, present and future, it was for us to have the chance to get to heaven.

I don't understand everything in the bible, a lot of it is metaphorical in content like Noah's Ark and not to be taken literally.

I myself have walked a very fine line in my life, and have seen things that would probably make even an Athiest RUN to church as fast as their legs could carry them. I started out as a Catholic and wandered away from the church as a lot of us do, but things happened to my family, evil demonic things that are way too frightening to post. Let me just say this to doubters...........Yes there is a Devil, evil is not just a concept, it is whare all the horrible things you mentioned come from, and if not for God's protection to this day of me and my family, we would all be in serious trouble!!!!!!!!!!
Prayer is the one thing that turns this light on in your head so that all of the sudden things are very clear, and you start to make distinctions that you never noticed before.
If you are seriously looking for answers, I doubt anyone here will be able to satisfy you, and science won't because science demands tangible proof, but if there is someone like a preist or someone from the clergy that you trust, then talk to him honestly, and prayer is so powerful.......

 

[JOKER96BRAVO]

Joker,

You raise a lot of great questions which are impossible for anyone except theologians to give you sensical answers to. I believe the fact that you killed someone for your country will be very much taken into account by the almighty, because his wisdom is perfect and he knows all of us inside and out and knows what the true intent of our actions are. The other thing that is offered to us is the scarament of penance which god tells us if we ask for forgiveness no matter what the sin as long as we are not too proud to ask.........That means EVERY SIN! I believe that strongly, and is the reason his son Jesus suffrered as much as he did, was for all sins past, present and future, it was for us to have the chance to get to heaven.

I don't understand everything in the bible, a lot of it is metaphorical in content like Noah's Ark and not to be taken literally.

I myself have walked a very fine line in my life, and have seen things that would probably make even an Athiest RUN to church as fast as their legs could carry them. I started out as a Catholic and wandered away from the church as a lot of us do, but things happened to my family, evil demonic things that are way too frightening to post. Let me just say this to doubters...........Yes there is a Devil, evil is not just a concept, and if not for God's protection to this day of me and my family, we would all be in serious trouble!!!!!!!!!!
Prayer is the one thing that turns this light on in your head so that all of the sudden things are very clear, and you start to make distinctions that you never noticed before.
If you are seriously looking for answers, I doubt anyone here will be able to satisfy you, and science won't because science demands tangible proof, but if there is someone like a preist or someone from the clergy that you trust, then talk to him honestly, and prayer is so powerful.......

One thing I can give credit to is a good heart!!!
Thank you for your kind words Bonnie, I'm sure you will be rewarded one
way or another. I will give you a point for compassion.

 

[Bonnie]

One thing I can give credit to is a good heart!!!
Thank you for your kind words Bonnie, I'm sure you will be rewarded one
way or another. I will give you a point for compassion.

Thank You for the compliment, but the compassion comes from God not me, well mostly god and a little me I guess.

The only thing I can add is this: The way I see it we here on Earth are in a giant tug of war between God and Lucifer as evidenced by all the things going on in the world, the spoils of war being our souls. God will only help if asked because he gives us a free will so that he knows if we choose him it's for real, and Lucifer makes his temptations look really really enticing on the surface. It just comes down to what side you choose to be on? And then you do the best you can each day.

 

[JOKER96BRAVO]

I'll be honest, I seek more than I fear a man of God can give me.
But I have taken in all statements, and given them serious thought.
That's what my rant was about, went to lunch and got to thinking.
Don't you hate it when you think of 5 pages of stuff to write but
you can only seem to get 1 out?

 

[Joz]

A....Bonnie said .......He only interferes if we ask for his help.........

B. Why has God not flooded our Earth???

C. When I look at a world full of lust, murder, rape, greed,
envy, and politics (that was a funny please don't take me serious) I can't help
asking "Where is God?".

D. Why kick Adam and Eve outta the garden for
dissobeying the word of the man and let me get away with it on a daily basis?

E. Don't tell me our punishment is Judgment Day, that just wouldn't bring
justice to all the filth in this world that has already passed on.
.....I have killed someone....for my
country, will I be forced to roam the Earth as a troll???

I just can't find faith in the book written by man.

A. He doesn't do that all the time, either.

B. Because God said He wouldn't do that anymore. Genesis 8:21, "....neither will I again smite anymore every living thing, as I have done".

C. Did no one read my earlier post? HOW can you expect God to do anything? Man CHOSE to sin, Genesis 3: Therfore we must live with our decision. This treachery is not caused by God but by Lucifer, Satan, the Devil. The world was set on it's course, & it will continue to do so until the right time. Revelation 3:11, Behold I come quickly......

D. Also Genesis 3. It was God's words not man's.

E. Why can't you imagine a Judgement Day? It's coming. Revelation 20: 12, And I saw the dead, small and great stand before God:and the books were opened.......
If you do not understand the difference......I suggest you do some studying.Revelation 1:3, Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written:for the time is at hand.

 

[JOKER96BRAVO]

A. He doesn't do that all the time, either.

B. Because God said He wouldn't do that anymore. Genesis 8:21, "....neither will I again smite anymore every living thing, as I have done".

C. Did no one read my earlier post? HOW can you expect God to do anything? Man CHOSE to sin, Genesis 3: Therfore we must live with our decision. This treachery is not caused by God but by Lucifer, Satan, the Devil. The world was set on it's course, & it will continue to do so until the right time. Revelation 3:11, Behold I come quickly......

D. Also Genesis 3. It was God's words not man's.

E. Why can't you imagine a Judgement Day? It's coming. Revelation 20: 12, And I saw the dead, small and great stand before God:and the books were opened.......
If you do not understand the difference......I suggest you do some studying.Revelation 1:3, Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written:for the time is at hand.

Never said man's word I said THE MAN, meaning God.
Why study a book written by man, mans' word as you sort of pointed out
is obviously of no comparison. It's only by mans' word that we believe he exists.

 

[dmp]

Never said man's word I said THE MAN, meaning God.
Why study a book written by man, mans' word as you sort of pointed out
is obviously of no comparison. It's only by mans' word that we believe he exists.

Why do you devote so much of your engery this way? You don't want people to 'prove God' to you - you want to dis-prove God. If you spent half as much thought on 'why' God loves you, and his reality, you'd be convinced.

 

[JOKER96BRAVO]

I don't want to disprove to anyone, not my bag.
I am trying to learn the truth which isn't available.
To me the Bible isn't proof of what I seek, although a well told story.
There are many holes in the story, to many things that don't make
sense. I have no doubt that my maker loves me....I just want to know
who that is.

 

[Joz]

I don't want to disprove to anyone, not my bag.
I am trying to learn the truth which isn't available.
To me the Bible isn't proof of what I seek, although a well told story.
There are many holes in the story, to many things that don't make
sense. I have no doubt that my maker loves me....I just want to know
who that is.

Then why the discussion? All the Bible shows is man's nature and the unending patience & love of God. Read 2 Peter 3. In verse 16,...."speaking in them [espistle] of these things; in which some are hard to understand".....does not eradicate the fact that the basic truth is understandable.

 

[JOKER96BRAVO]

Why talk about politics???
The truth is somewhere but where???
As I said earlier, I just like having an intelligent conversation.
Why do you keep telling me to refrence the Bible if I don't
believe it's true? I'm not trying to be so negative torwards anyone,
but I get the feeling that my thoughts are no longer welcomed.
Sorry if I impossed on this topic, thought I could be comfortable here.

 

[eric]

Do not wish to be rude, just enjoy an intelligent conversation from time
to time. I guess what I'm trying to get at is I simply can't believe in God
through past events recorded in the very book that is supposed to lead
me to salvation. I can fathom that there is a creator, I just can't credit (for
my own "faith") that his name is God and all the Bible says is true.

Joker, in no way are you being rude. Your questions are totally valid. I struggled many years too. I think my studies of science have tremendously increased my faith. As far as the Bible I don't take it word for word or litterally either. I look at it this way; to me the nature of God's reality, in fact reality itself, is beyond the scope of Human comprehension. So things must be put in terms we can understand, much like we do with children. In the end though, since complete comprehension is impossible, we must have a roadmap to follow, hence the Bible and other religious texts.

 

[Joz]

Why talk about politics???
The truth is somewhere but where???.

Maybe on your knees.
You're right, you don't need the Bible. The Commandments were written in the hearts of man long before the tablets of stone. And it is your free will not to accept it. But if you TRULY are looking for truth, and ask for it, you WILL be shown.

And please continue, if you have questions. That's what life is all about.