by WTWizard 39 Replies latest watchtower bible
If God is willing to let his own son be brutally murdered, why should we expect any better? If I honestly believe that I deserve better that Jesus, then I must think pretty highly of myself.
Yep, that says it all. How unreasonable and presumptuous for children to expect their loving parent to NOT allow them to be brutally murdered! I agree with you. I no longer expect any better from God, so I don't bother asking him for anything.
Cog
Prayer is not necessarily a waste of time. I think it has great introspective and focusing powers. The difference is I do think that trying to put all your trust in god to do the right thing is definitely counter productive. A double blind study showed that patients being prayed for fared no better than those who were not and if the patients knew they were being prayed for they actually did worse. It seems to me that trading things into god's hands takes the pressure off you to try your best to work things out for yourself.
Don't JWs learn/teach that Jehovah has let mankind govern themselves for these last 6000 years or so in order to show that we can't govern ourselves? So that if it ever comes up again, He can say "Nope - we already tried that!" ? And that this is the reason why He is allowing all the evil that happens in the world?
If so, why bother praying for the sick, starving, poor etc. at all? God's plan is to allow it to happen to show that we can't govern ourselves - should he then change that for a couple of people just because we ask him nicely? Hundreds of millions of people through the ages have lived horrible lives and died from starvation, sickness etc. because He had to follow through with this 'plan'. And if he did listen to a few prayers from a few people and saved them from bad things, would that be fair and just to those throughout the centuries who weren't helped?
It's interesting to note that not one amputee through the history of mankind had a strong enough faith, apparently.
r.a.m.'s comments are right on, couldn't agree more.
To add to them, FAITH is the key. Strong FAITH, which is only developed by having a real realtionship with God and Christ that grows stronger through experience.
All good things come from God. If we pray in FAITH for someting that is His will, it will come to pass.
Asking God to provide something that is not His will is like a spoiled brat asking for something that is not in their best interest.
Just as a good parent knows what is best for their children, so God knows what is best for us.
There will be times of testing and times of blessing.
Develop your faith, love, and the other fruits of the spirit by bringing your life under His direction, humbly praying for his Holy Spirit to fill you each day, and study his word after doing so.
Matthew 17: 20- He replied, "Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you."
1 Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. 2 This is what the ancients were commended for.
3 By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God's command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible. 4 By faith Abel offered God a better sacrifice than Cain did. By faith he was commended as a righteous man, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith he still speaks, even though he is dead.
5 By faith Enoch was taken from this life, so that he did not experience death; he could not be found, because God had taken him away. For before he was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God. 6 And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
7 By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family. By his faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.
8 By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. 9 By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. 10 For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.
11 By faith Abraham, even though he was past age—and Sarah herself was barren—was enabled to become a father because he [ a ] considered him faithful who had made the promise. 12 And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore.
13 All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth. 14 People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. 15 If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. 16 Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.
17 By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, 18 even though God had said to him, "It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned." 19 Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death.
20 By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau in regard to their future.
21 By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of Joseph's sons, and worshiped as he leaned on the top of his staff.
22 By faith Joseph, when his end was near, spoke about the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt and gave instructions about his bones.
23 By faith Moses' parents hid him for three months after he was born, because they saw he was no ordinary child, and they were not afraid of the king's edict.
24 By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh's daughter. 25 He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time. 26 He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward. 27 By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the king's anger; he persevered because he saw him who is invisible. 28 By faith he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of blood, so that the destroyer of the firstborn would not touch the firstborn of Israel.
29 By faith the people passed through the Red Sea as on dry land; but when the Egyptians tried to do so, they were drowned.
30 By faith the walls of Jericho fell, after the people had marched around them for seven days.
31 By faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed with those who were disobedient.
32 And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel and the prophets, 33 who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, 34 quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies. 35 Women received back their dead, raised to life again. Others were tortured and refused to be released, so that they might gain a better resurrection. 36 Some faced jeers and flogging, while still others were chained and put in prison. 37 They were stoned; they were sawed in two; they were put to death by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated— 38 the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in caves and holes in the ground.
39 These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised. 40 God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.
Faith is buying a lottery ticket "knowing" you can win
It seems to me that the world is a crappy place and getting worse. How many people have prayed for a better world over the last zillion years. Remember Asaph, he said that he was sick of seeing the wicked get away with it and live a life of ease. He said that Jehovah had put them on shaky ground and they would get their comeuppance. Yeah right. Asaphs wicked "ones" carried on living it up being wicked an' all and they died. Asaph died - poor and miserable most likley. The wicked still live a life of ease and have fatness and bulging of the eyes and generally having a good time of it. Us honest persons work our butts off and hope that the members of the wicked fraternity won't break into our houses and nick our hard earned stuff. What I want to know is when these wicked will be getting their comeuppance and how will we know. Prayers don't seem to work.
oh, p.s.when i was 13/14, i used to pray to satan for a playboy to see if it would work. those prayers never worked. i'd pray for it to appear under my bed, then wait 15 minutes and sweep my hand under the bed. no luck.
I used to do the same thing!
LOL!
I realized I was actually GOD when I found myself praying and knew I was talking to myself.
www.whywontgodhealamputees.com has some very instructive videos on this subject and more...
their example- pray to a milk jug and you will find the answers to your Prayers are exactly the same as those to any god
Yes, No and WAIT.
either something happens right away and SEEMS to be because of your prayer
something does not happen and you assume God has said no
or nothing happens and you assume God is not ready, yet...but will grant it later.
I wonder at how the faithful ones here seem to look at the badness in the world, and think that maybe 50% of those who are praying incessantly to GOD RIGHT NOW, are doing so because they are SUFFERING and.they are dying, But no one cares.
No One. Not Us, Not God.
But, for the western world, where people go about their daily lives praying for the mundane things of life...praying for their loved ones in the hospital to get better...(a well intentioned thing to do)...praying for a parking space, praying before a football/nascar/soccer/baseball game...
BUT why does god pick and choose who to help and who not to?
Sure he 'allowed' that Jesus, die, he didn't change his mind last second...(or for you trinitarians, god sacrificed himself) but that was Jesus' PURPOSE was it not?
so stating that God just LET him die, as if he was dying of cancer, is a fallacy, and you know it.
It's a cheap cop out to try and justify your god's lack of love towards humanity's plight today.
God is dead. Praying to a dead entity does as much good as praying to a block of wood.
The only person it helps is the person who believes that the block of wood is actually listening.
(Sorry for being so harsh...I just think that blind faith is what keeps us in the dark ages.)
i always thought it was funny that people that pray, forget the scripture that tells you not to ask for anything, because the father knows what you need. they also forget the one about public prayer. but, what are you going to do?
