Posted by fachad on July 11, 2002, at 9:15:53
In reply to Theology question du jour, posted by homewood on July 11, 2002, at 6:08:25
I'll answer that one with the answer I believe a Christian theologian would provide.
If anyone does not think that this answer is a correct summary of Christian dogma, I will be happy to furnish Biblical references to support each assertion.
(Please see my standard disclaimer of agnosticism at the end of this post.)
Here goes:
First you must realize that your "perspective as a parent" is hopelessly flawed by your sinful nature. Your thoughts and reasoning’s are not like God's.
The real key to understanding this question is to realize that God is HOLY. His Holiness is beyond any human comprehension. He, by his deepest nature CANNOT tolerate sin.
Our best attempts to be "good" or "moral" are not in the least pleasing to him, because of the vast gulf between his Holiness and our sinfulness.
He is, by his Holy Nature, unable to tolerate even one sinful act, such as that committed by Adam and Eve.
He has expressed his love for us by providing a way out of this hopeless dilemma.
He MUST punish sin, or else his Holy nature would be compromised. So His solution was to manifest Himself as His only begotten Son, in the historical person of Jesus Christ, and then punishing him for all our sins.
That way, His requirements for justice and holiness are met, and he does not have to damn the entire human race to eternal punishment.
The only catch is that we have freewill. The same freewill that allowed Adam and Eve to choose to disobey God in the first place will let us choose not to accept God's free gift of salvation.
So the choice is up to you: accept God's gift of salvation by faith in Jesus or burn in Hell forever with no one to blame but yourself.
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fachad's standard Babble Faith Disclaimer:My familiarity with religious ideas should not be mistaken for religious belief. I am an agnostic.
I not a Christian, I do not believe the Bible is the Word of God, nor do I believe in ANY revealed religion (i.e., religion that was revealed by God to some person or through some purported holy book.)
I am especially disdainful of religions that take mythological material, which is beautiful and meaningful in that it tells us about our collective unconscious, and claims that it is historical rather than mythical in nature.
*************************************************> ok trivia fans...here's a thought that's been rambling around in my antidepressant-bathed, sleep deprived brain:
>
> many of us are familiar with the Old Testament teaching of how God banished Adam & Eve from the Garden because of their one transgression. my ponderance, from the perspective of a parent, is what kind of all-loving, all-forgiving Father condemns his children for eternity for one mistake?
poster:fachad
thread:424
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/faith/20020527/msgs/427.html