Correct. Until one can get past that, there is nothing to discuss. It is like going to a donut shop and wanting the baker to cut your hair. With cream cheese frosting.
Am I allowed to seek my own fetching, designer God? You suggest I seek God but I have no vision of seeking the Christian God or one of more other Gods. Are the Gods going to improve my life?
Does the Angel of the Lord qualify?
Picture someone wanting to know you. Should they seek you or their own fetching, designer you?
Seek the God of all.
No. God is not here to serve you or to be anyone's Genii. You are either interested in working with/for Him, or you are not. While not exact, it's better to think in terms of being a job applicant.
I am the husband of my wife so there is nothing wrong with an Angel of the Lord.
My own personal take on scripture as a non religious person.
Yes
The Son and the Father are one (Jn 10:30), and the Holy Spirit is included in that union (Jn 13:20).
Yes, man became a living creature when God breathed the breath of life into his nostrils. That's where life is - in God; it is not in the flesh.
I was hesitant to address the above because ultimately, the arguments about intent and interpretation revolve around hearsay accounts by writers largely unknown with no way to corroborate any of the events.
"Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever receives the one I send receives me."
That’s fine. I will step back from arguing about such accounts.
I suppose the first point I should make is that I define these discussions of gods as not discussing atheism v. theism but discussing philosophy. Believers claim countless scientific and logical "proofs" for the existence of their particular God(s) and oddly, the same scientific and logical "proofs" are applied to all versions of the Gods. I question why that is the case. This is not a philosophical/theological question. It is purely a logical one.
You gave an example of making things too complicated (going around the elbow to get to the thumb).
Hollie, you have stepped onto the front porch and now believe you have extensive knowledge of the mansion, all its rooms, all that each room holds. Go beyond what you imagine are the reasons of others. There are many people who remain on the front porch.
I wouldn't say I'm complicating things. I reserve a right to ask questions and to examine the responses. In terms of knowing Gods, there are lots of people who will claim to know the Gods' will / intent and claim to be true arbiters of such knowledge.
That's like asking those who have eaten a dish you have heard about to come up with the recipe. Seek God, not His followers.
Seek God, not information about God.
I will establish my relationship with the Gods as one of benign neglect, hold harmless or at least one in which we allow each other freedom of choice and assuming responsibility for outcome. Yes, the notion of eternal life is seductive and appeals to human emotion but decisions based on emotion are often fraught with error. My ''personality'' or ''spirit'' living forever in some form of existence seems improbable and while being an attractive 'hook' is suspect as it comes with a number of conditions imposed by the Gods which actually appear to be the kind of coercion that humans would use to offer a bargain with little room for negotiation .
