by Ireneus 33 Replies latest watchtower bible
I kind of miss the point of the opening post. Are you saying it is like with Watchtower, we are told to be "deserving ones" in order to get "undeserved kindness" ?
My head is spinning here also.
"If you don't know where you are going, you might wind up someplace else."
- Yogi Berra
The Christian story of God the Father putting his son to death, or employing people to do it (for that is the plain language of the story) cannot be told by a parent to a child; and to tell him that it was done to make mankind happier and better is making the story still worse- as if mankind could be improved by the example of murder; and to tell him that all this is a mystery is only making an excuse for the incredibility of it
-- Thomas paine
I think it is the greatest miracle that world doesn't understand even a fraction of what Thomas Paine did!
@venus,
It's the fear of death and insecurity of life that makes people believe Bizarre religious concepts
EverApostate,
That's very true. It means everyone can know what is truth and what is falsehood. My Professor had an excellent experience in Singapore. He hired a taxi from the Air Port to his hotel, and he paid $11 according to the meter. But the Taxi Driver returned $ 1 saying, on my way I could have taken another route which would have saved you $ 1. Why should you pay for my carelessness?. Professor said, that is ok, you take back this $ 1 as I am not aware of the distance. Taxi Driver said: "If I take this $ 1, I may be right, yet I would be ethically wrong."
Interestingly, this taxi driver has no religious training whatsoever, he was acting on his own, which means everyone knows what is right and wrong and even the subtle shades between them.
dear venus...
The only judge in the garden was God and satan didn't accuse a "fellow israelite".
By the time Jesus walked the earth, the pharisees had taken over the role of judges for israel. The entire time they were investigating Jesus they were looking for a reason to accuse Him. They found Him to be completely torah obedient. That's why they falsely accused Him of sedition so that He would be a roman problem. Rome found Him innocent of sedition.
According to Israelite law, each of the pharisees would be guilty of making a false accusation and would have to be punished. Jesus said they were of their father, the devil. The first accuser and father of the lie. Israelite law isn't going to motivate corrupt people to step up and take their punishment.
xo
Ireneus,
The Israelites were indifferent to God and it was obvious in their life and conduct. They believed that they could not disappoint God because they were His chosen people. They trusted in their religious trappings and in their temple.
God wanted their love and emotion. He wanted their heart. They did not receive God’s instructions about the sacrifices until AFTER Moses returned from Mount Sinai in Exodus 24:1-12. God’s message to them was simply that He not did ask for sacrifices first. He asked for their love and commitment first.
Conclusion:
The same is true today. God wants your love and commitment more than anything else. It is easy for us to love our religious activities and our comfortable life more than Him. The Israelites worshipped God and other things too!
God wants your love and commitment more than anything else - Perry
He loves you so much he will burn you day and night in Hell if you fail to return his affection.
He is like an abusive husband - Love me or else!
Cofty,
Hell is an interesting subject. "Outer Darkness" is also spoken of as a destination. Who goes to which? Don't know. However, God knows and is just. Would it be unjust for some people to go to a hot hell? Well they have to go somewhere to await trial at the Great White Throne. God is good, so to reject him is to choose the absence of all that can be possibly be considered as "good". God respects choices.
From a standpoint of being just ...lots of people have burned others and so a like punishment wouldn't be out of the question. Hitler burned millions in the ovens, arsonists have killed huge numbers of people, burning them alive. So, there are crimes that would qualify in a eye for an eye sort of way.
One thing that you can be sure of is that most, whatever their crime, would consider most any form of punishment as inappropriate. But it is not the guilty's opinion (who excuse themselves) that matters. However "reasonable" their position, their exists a perfect judge.
Furthermore, today in "civilized" society we burn little kids all the time. The victims are the most vulnerable and innocent among us....made in the image of God, babies.
"A needle is inserted through the mother’s abdomen and amniotic fluid is withdrawn and replaced with a solution of concentrated salt. The baby breathes in, swallowing the salt, and is poisoned. The chemical solution also causes painful burning and deterioration of the baby’s skin. 30 to 35 hours later a badly burned and shrived baby is born."
This hospital was caught burning murdered baby bodies to help heat their facility. Just hideous.
Again, it is not yours or mine opinion that matters on such things. We are the guilty party so our opinion is biased. Further, you might think that burning babies is someone's right. Others might think that hell is too good for perpetrators of such heinous acts. All irrelevant. God's sense of justice is the only one that matters.
God emplors us to first seek peace with him through Jesus' work on the cross and to also seek kindness, goodness and especially grace and mercy. This is the heart and essence of God.
God encourages us to not seek justice in the way you are doing in attempting to judge God, because we are 100% likely to end up getting what we ask for - Justice.
And, whatever that justice is we are almost certainly going to be opposed to it. The Gates of Hell are all locked from the inside Cofty. It is chosen just as life is chosen.
Your a sick bastard
