tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10415667.post6627159908418169164..comments2023-07-18T05:41:20.210-07:00Comments on Alien In The Caribbean: What Is The Divine Purpose Of Hell?Jessica Josephhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00918518641443769144noreply@blogger.comBlogger20125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10415667.post-89425501828627053022014-11-06T06:21:35.549-08:002014-11-06T06:21:35.549-08:00Over at ChristianPost.com one author posted an art...Over at ChristianPost.com one author posted an article asking the question, "Why is Hell Eternal?" It's more philosophical than anything. You can read it here:<br /><br />http://blogs.christianpost.com/the-pursuit-of-god/why-is-hell-eternal-23589/<br /><br />My response: <br /><br /><i><b>Still doesn't make much sense. It's not really like Hell is a place of punishment in any logical sense. You get punished with a fine or a prison term to correct bad behavior in hopes that you won't engage in that bad behavior in the future. But in Hell there is no correction, no "paying your debt." The torture never stops. And not only THAT, but you go to Hell NOT because of anything you necessarily DID, but because of what you BELIEVED. And even then there's no reprieve.<br /><br />But as the author says, "God is not limited, nor is He human." The nature of Hell makes this absolutely clear. No human being could ever be so cruel.</b></i>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10415667.post-23204417819941406812012-07-24T09:14:57.659-07:002012-07-24T09:14:57.659-07:00My dear Greg T, you do make me smile.
There is a ...My dear Greg T, you do make me smile.<br /><br />There is a very big difference between taking responsibility for one's writings- WHICH I DO. <br /><br />If I did not, I would not have had a blog going for seven years now.<br /><br />However, I am NOT taking responsibility for other people's inferences, assumptions and feelings, especially when they obviously cannot understand where I am coming from. <br /><br />Let me very clear and specific with you. <br /><br />You said and I quote, "Your blog either accused God of being unjust, unloving, or unwilling to prevent obvious acts of evil. Or we Christians just don't have a clue."<br /><br />Both of these are inferences YOU HAVE DRAWN from reading the blog and by the way, not comprehending it in the least by the looks of it. <br /><br />Countless other Christians and theists have read the same essay and come away with a completely different feeling because they clearly understood: <br /><br />I am writing about "God" in the conceptual not GOD in the actual. <br /><br />(If you do not understand what that means let me know)<br /><br />I certainly would never accuse the ACTUAL God of being cruel, unjust etc. However I CAN critique a PARTICULAR religious concept of God. <br /><br />Just as I can critique a particular religious belief/doctrine and relate FROM MY OWN PERSONAL EXPERIENCE. <br /><br />I left a lot of open-ended questions if you were to read with more comphrension. I never accused Christians of not having a clue. I only QUESTIONED "How can one believe in such a barbaric thing?"<br /><br />And once again, let me reiterate, countless Christians have read the same blog and felt uplifted by it because they feel the same way about this particular doctrine. <br /><br />Countless more do not believe in eternal torment as part of the Christian faith. <br /><br />There is a lot of diversity within the faith and I do not lump all together and neither should you. You do not speak for all Christians anymore than I do.Jessica Josephhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00918518641443769144noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10415667.post-58434740904690020692012-07-23T11:14:35.719-07:002012-07-23T11:14:35.719-07:00Jessica - You seem to have trouble taking responsi...Jessica - You seem to have trouble taking responsibility for the words you write. "You say things like..."I didn't say that, but others have." "I'm not accusing, bla, bla, bla." That is like saying, "I didn't set the bomb off, I only lit the fuse. You only loose credibility when you unwilling to stand behind the words you write.GregThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17743640801566991272noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10415667.post-59816332416976361072012-07-21T17:41:22.638-07:002012-07-21T17:41:22.638-07:00Well God bless you too Greg T.
I hope you unders...Well God bless you too Greg T. <br /><br />I hope you understand fully that I did not accuse the ACTUAL God of being unjust. <br /><br />I believe if there is a Higher Intelligence in the universe which extols the purest and most profound level of love and justice it would not have any need for a place such as Hell. <br /><br />I also did not accuse ALL Christians of not having a clue. <br /><br />I hope you realize that not all Christians believe in a place of eternal hellfire. So there is no need to feel attacked and the need jump to the defense of all Christians.<br /><br />However I did question the level of humanity, love, empathy and a sense of justice of the small group of fire & brimstone Christians who cling to the barbaric, needlessly retributive and entirely pointless need to beleive in eternal punishment and sully the image of a just and loving Creator. <br /><br />What happened in Colorado is indeed tragic and heart wrenching. I am not one who blames God or argues there cannot possibly be a God because of such things. <br /><br />It is in fact my current belief in our eternal existence and the eternal balance and forward momentum of the Universe and its Creator that allows me to cope with the existence of suffering in the world. In fact, I cope with it far better now than when I was a Christian who believed in eternal hellfire. <br /><br />I am able to forgive others from a far more genuine place. But I think most importantly, I am able to trust The Divine from a more genuine place, which has helped me grow from milk drinking infant as descibed by the same Paul in Corinthians to meat eating adult in my spirituality.<br /><br />A meat eating spiritual adult can forgive even the Colorado shooter. <br /><br />And if I can forgive him, then the Creator in whose image the bible says I and you were created, could do no less.<br /><br />I have written extensively on Forgiveness before here http://jessiegirl.blogspot.com/2009/08/forgiveness-101-how-could-loving-god.html and will likely touch on it again in the futue<br /> <br /><br />Bless.Jessica Josephhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00918518641443769144noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10415667.post-69741836471542549802012-07-20T10:39:13.999-07:002012-07-20T10:39:13.999-07:00Jessica thank you for posting my comments and than...Jessica thank you for posting my comments and thank you for your response. Your blog either accused God of being unjust, unloving, or unwilling to prevent obvious acts of evil. Or we Christians just don't have a clue. However, take for instance the young man you just killed 12 and wounded 50 in Colorado. His actions were no doubt evil. The friends and family members of these victims are going to struggle perhaps the rest of their lives with this senseless act. Questions and statements like, "How can God let this happen?," and "I hope this young man burns in hell!" will no doubt resonate in the hearts and minds. Now your blog takes on a more serious and real life conundrum. I bet some of the victims' families believe there is hell and that this man belongs in it. I pray that the God of all comfort will meet them in the midst of their devastation and sorrow. But I also pray for this young man's life and that of his family. Because of the grace on love God bestowed upon me compels me. God's desire is that no one go to hell (not even this young man). The sacrifice that Christ made on the cross was not just for you and me but for this young man as well. I cannot begin to approach God's permissive will and wisdom in this situation. But I can respond with the same love that He so freely gave to me. And the same love that He offers to the victims and to the perpetrator. Because God's love does not discriminate otherwise who could be saved. Nevertheless, there is God's justice and it will be applied in this case and in every other case. Because God is both Just and Righteous. We will see or discern God's justice in this case-perhaps, perhaps not. But God's justice will prevail, because God cannot deny himself. Is his justice on par with our reasoning - I sure hope not because in my experience, people are far more harsh and judgmental than God. So when you and others perceive to judge God with your exceptional reason skills, I simply shake my head and speak the words of Jesus' up on the cross, "Father forgive them for they know not what they do." There is a hell for people who reject God's love through his son Jesus Christ, and for those who perpetrate acts of evil or God wouldn't be just. But even greater than hell, is God's love and his desire that none would perish. If this young man should truly repent and accept Jesus Christ as his savior. Then I will rejoice with the angels in heaven over one more lost sinner saved by grace. Because it is yet another glorious example of God's grace and love to save a sinner such as I. But I will still mourn for those who mourn, and I will still weep with those who weep, because my God compels me to do so. God created us eternal beings and there is more to life than the life will now know. When tragic situations like this happens which result in suffering and the early death of individuals, we can not understand why, we can only be shocked and abhorred by it. But if you believe in an after life. The Christian attitude is this: "We do not loose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. (II Cor 4:16-18)" This we call faith in a loving and compassionate God. Which all the reason in the world (not even your exception reason)can even begin to understand or approach. God Bless.GregThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17743640801566991272noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10415667.post-878997809791818162012-07-19T20:24:50.434-07:002012-07-19T20:24:50.434-07:00@ Greg T- The essay was certainly not meant to be ...@ Greg T- The essay was certainly not meant to be anti-Christian or drive Christians away from their faith. The questions are not anything many Christians have not asked before and many have that Christianity and belief in hell are not mutually exclusive.Jessica Josephhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00918518641443769144noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10415667.post-75839248488772961082012-07-19T17:56:17.714-07:002012-07-19T17:56:17.714-07:00Just a quick comment. I'm intrigued by the ide...Just a quick comment. I'm intrigued by the idea of Hades being somewhere that the dead have the good news about Jesus preached to them. Not quite Purgatory. MarylandBill mentioned in the Great Divorce, where the dead are constantly taken on bus trips to heaven to hear the good news - some who receive it gladly and some who refuse to hear and choose to return to their own grey world.<br />But when questioning the purpose of the existence of Hell - is it possible - that Hell and Heaven are exactly the same 'place'?<br /><br />Which one you found yourself in would be dependent on your connection/relationship/view of God? i.e. those who love God, who desire God, who have received the mercy of Jesus, would find themselves living in a world where God's will is done, where pain and hurt are no more. Those who hate God, who choose to run and hide, who reject Jesus's mercy, find the mere unarguable presence of God to be 'torment'? Can you not envisage God gradually softening even those hearts over millennia to bring them around?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10415667.post-19947261061108186132012-07-19T11:00:48.383-07:002012-07-19T11:00:48.383-07:00You reasons are reasonably compelling. I am pasto...You reasons are reasonably compelling. I am pastor and I can't begin to speak divine wisdom into you well written points and nor will I try. Because just about anyone can sit down and write one scenario after another that will appeal to our reason. And if your someone who is paying half attention you don't even have to manufacture situations that will set Christians on their heels, stumble for some inelegant response. I surrender! You win. Unfortunately, you may have lost a great deal more, than you can possible ever imagine. But that's probably "OK", because you made such strong arguments and impressed (probably) a great many people while doing it.GregThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17743640801566991272noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10415667.post-40730975083476443332012-04-18T06:49:39.048-07:002012-04-18T06:49:39.048-07:00Thank you for your comment MarylandBill.
The bas...Thank you for your comment MarylandBill. <br /><br />The basic problem with the traditional concept of hell is that such a place EXISTS for the purpose it does. <br /><br />Saying people keep themselves there is as much a "blame the victim" tactic as saying people send themselves there. <br /><br />Hell does not gel with a Loving Creator. <br />Hell does not gel with natural law.<br />Hell does not gel with Freewill. <br />Hell does not gel with any Universal Law pertaining to Balance, Manifestation etc.Jessica Josephhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00918518641443769144noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10415667.post-32424368892636441862012-04-10T13:27:33.050-07:002012-04-10T13:27:33.050-07:00I was referred to this post by a different blog po...I was referred to this post by a different blog post. I think the basic problem with the view of Hell presented here is that it assumes that everyone who is in Hell essentially is kept there by God. In reality, everyone is Hell is kept there by themselves.<br /><br />Lets look at your analogy of the three year old and the stove. Hell is not the three year old putting his hand against the stove and getting burned, hell is putting their hand against the stove and then holding it there, despite the pain because they refuse to acknowledge that their parent told them it was a bad idea (granted not likely for a three year old, but I have seen my two year old fight against a 5 minute time out for an hour!).<br /><br />In C.S. Lewis's The Great Divorce, he posited that the people in Hell are there by their own choice. They could accept God's love at any time but they choose not to. (Not strictly sound via Catholic Theology, but I suppose using God's perfect knowledge of our hearts, he would know who would choose to repent and therefore gets purgatory and who would never repent and therefore receives hell). <br /><br />The Catholic faith does believe that a path to God is possible for those who are not Christian, but ultimately it must go through Christ in this life or the next. If we refuse to accept Christ, refuse to acknowledge our own failings, then how can it be just to let us into heaven?MarylandBillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10415667.post-82721277760829225532008-06-24T08:45:00.000-07:002008-06-24T08:45:00.000-07:00Justin, I know how you feel and the good news is, ...Justin, I know how you feel and the good news is, as scary and vulnerable as you feel now, the more you search with an open heart and mind, the more personal power you will gain. <BR/><BR/>There are quadrillions of stars and planets in our galaxy alone and there are quadrillions of galaxies. The scope of it is mind-boggling. <BR/><BR/>Surely, the Creator of all of this has to be truly awesome and beyond anything and all the petty human emotions we have like jealousy, rage, vengence etc. Belittling God to a jealous diety who obsesses over every single human action is like seeing an elephant obsessing over what the bacteria living on the mites on its rump are up to. <BR/><BR/>The more I search, the more I learn, the more I realize I have so much more to learn. That's a wonderful thing as scary as it is.<BR/><BR/>People who want to have everything all figured out right now, including knowing exactly what God is and what he thinks about everything and everyone, will choose a fundamentalist path. It satisfies and spoon feeds on a very primal level. Perhaps that is what they need and I do not judge that, as long as they do not try to impose their beliefs on my life and livelihood. <BR/><BR/>You have a wonderful spiritual adventure ahead of you! I wish you all the best!Jessica Josephhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00918518641443769144noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10415667.post-32808033877738617882008-06-22T23:57:00.000-07:002008-06-22T23:57:00.000-07:00I have been reading the blog along with the commen...I have been reading the blog along with the comments and i agree with a great deal of it. I have been raised to be a Christian, and I have recently begun to question the fairness of hell along with the exclusiveness of any religion to know God or make ANY assumptions or dictations of what is to happen to a person once they die. In fact, my father and I had a 3 hour conversation which mostly included such topics. He kept saying, just in different ways that people go to hell if they reject Christ, but.. i have begun to form my own opinions and I do not believe that. In addition, I no longer align myself with any religion.. my father said that if I dont believe in somthing (some established religion) then I believe in nothing. I am on a quest for truth, and I dont believe that ANY book or any person can reveal that to me only perhaps inspire me in such ways that may stimulate my mind. I must search and find my own path and my own understanding.. as far as Im concerned everyone is entitled to their own beliefs.. I see no reason why I or anyone else should attempt to convert, save, or otherwise intentionally influence another in these regards. I am very vunerable, moreso than I can say I have ever allowed myself to be but at the same time, I see this as the beginning of somthing properous and beautiful.. thank you to all who commented on this blog and to the author of this blog..Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10415667.post-2686640159502472752007-07-04T08:03:00.000-07:002007-07-04T08:03:00.000-07:00Jessica, I find you a FREE THINKER, who is really ...Jessica, I find you a FREE THINKER, who is really in search after truth. I hope you can read my book AM I A HINDU? [www.amiahindu.com] and comment on that.<BR/><BR/>If you permit me, I wish to put the picture you have on your post in my blog with proper credit to you and quoting your statement<BR/><BR/> <B>As one Hindu man put it to my Christian evangelist father when he tried to preach to him,<BR/><BR/><I>"You make light of my holy scriptures and say its accounts of flying monkeys and eight armed Gods are silly and false. Yet, you want me to believe in YOUR holy scriptures with talking snakes and donkeys and spirit creatures with four heads of different beasts etc. So basically you are telling me, MY myth is superiour to YOUR myth."</I> </B><BR/><BR/>By the way, my blog is at <BR/><BR/>http://www.flickr.com/photos/8925064@N03/Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10415667.post-82693219512870378802007-07-04T08:01:00.000-07:002007-07-04T08:01:00.000-07:00Jessica, I find you a FREE THINKER, who is really ...Jessica, I find you a FREE THINKER, who is really in search after truth. I hope you can read my book AM I A HINDU? [www.amiahindu.com] and comment on that.<BR/><BR/>If you permit me, I wish to put the picture you have on your post in my blog with proper credit to you and quoting your statement<BR/><BR/> <B>As one Hindu man put it to my Christian evangelist father when he tried to preach to him,<BR/><BR/><I>"You make light of my holy scriptures and say its accounts of flying monkeys and eight armed Gods are silly and false. Yet, you want me to believe in YOUR holy scriptures with talking snakes and donkeys and spirit creatures with four heads of different beasts etc. So basically you are telling me, MY myth is superiour to YOUR myth."</I> </B><BR/><BR/>By the way, my blog is at <BR/><BR/>http://www.flickr.com/photos/8925064@N03/Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10415667.post-53372435533014483472007-07-02T06:53:00.000-07:002007-07-02T06:53:00.000-07:00Hello am i a hindu, thank you for your post. I agr...Hello am i a hindu, thank you for your post. <BR/><BR/>I agree with you 100% that no person, country, religion has a monopoly on God or truth. <BR/><BR/>I know I don't have to tell you the damage that those who think they do have caused on this earth, everything from genocide to oppression of others who are different to them. <BR/><BR/>I am putting up a post dealing with this for July. Hope you enjoy it.Jessica Josephhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00918518641443769144noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10415667.post-86989643261473461572007-06-29T11:22:00.000-07:002007-06-29T11:22:00.000-07:00Very well written post Jessica. Thanks. People li...Very well written post Jessica. Thanks. People like you are indeed the salt of this earth. I slaute you. <BR/><BR/>No religion, no country, no culture has monopoly on God or truth. <BR/><BR/>God and truth are universal. Religions themselves are just ways to the truth and they are not the final goal. <BR/><BR/>Many many years ago, once when I was visting Time Square, NY, a priest asked me, <BR/><BR/><B> "Are you a Christian?" </B><BR/><BR/>...I said: <B> NO.</B> <BR/><BR/>He said: <B> " Then You will go to hell.." </B> <BR/><BR/>To that I answered, <B> "Dear Sir, why should I go to a Christian hell, when we Hindus have SEVEN HELLS of our own to choose from." </B> <BR/><BR/>He looked at me and sighed. <BR/><BR/>Hindus believe anyone who searches after truth will eventually attain salvation whether that person is Hindu or not. <BR/><BR/>You don't have to be a Hindu to attain salvation or self-realization.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10415667.post-16364029983449021132007-06-28T08:36:00.000-07:002007-06-28T08:36:00.000-07:00Hello Dan, I am only just now seeing your post as ...Hello Dan, I am only just now seeing your post as I rarely have the time to back check old posts and the comments. I ususally forget about old posts and this one had no new comments on it for some time. <BR/><BR/>Thank you for your contribution. I can tell you are very fervent about what you believe to be true. <BR/>My own personal experiences have also led to my discovery of some very solid and well proven truths that thoroughly contradict any claim of the bible or any holy book written by man (regardless of how inspired) to be the direct, infallible word of God. I am sure you have rejected other holy books, (the koran, bhagvand gita etc.) as infallible word of God and interestingly enough, the same arguements you may use against these books hold true with the bible as well. <BR/><BR/>As one Hindu man put it to my Christian evangelist father when he tried to preach to him, <BR/><BR/>"You make light of my holy scriptures and say its accounts of flying monkeys and eight armed Gods are silly and false. Yet, you want me to believe in YOUR holy scriptures with talking snakes and donkeys and spirit creatures with four heads of different beasts etc. So basically you are telling me, MY myth is superiour to YOUR myth." <BR/><BR/>Personally, I believe such absolutist views are dangerous as now it entitles man to claim direct access to God's throughts and opinions on everything and everyone, something man has used to laud over others and abuse tremendously. <BR/><BR/>Such a flawed result could not come from a direct perfect source. <BR/><BR/>I believe God is bigger than any book man may write about God and their spiritual experiences with God. All holy books are to be used as a guide. You take from them what you will. But to use them to prove God or try to know God entirely or make judgements on others (claiming that they are God's judgements) is infantile. Even the bible writer Peter thought so about early Christians who were trying to understand every thing Paul said in order to follow it word for word. In 2 Peter 3:16 he said, "As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction."<BR/><BR/>After spending most of my childhood and young adult life in an evangelical religion where I was made to study the bible three days a week, read from it every day and trained to answer every single objection any non-believer in it may raise, I have come to realise that the bible does not prove God exists. <BR/><BR/>The only person who can show you God, is God. <BR/><BR/>Personally, I believe in God and that belief did not come from Christianity or the bible. I had to go outside of both to find that God was universal and far more expansive than my limited little knowledge or perspective. It was scary, I admit to free fall like that outside of any religion or rule book. But the rewards in my life and self-development have been infinitely greater and my personal relationship with God has been renewed and grows stronger. Every day I thank God for that. <BR/><BR/>Not everyone was meant to walk the same path to God, Dan. It personal pride to assume or claim EXCLUSIVITY to God because of one's religious belief or book. I certainly don't claim any such thing. That is why I have no compunction of any kind for you to change your beliefs. I can tell you with a genuine smile, that if you feel spiritually fulfilled and your religious belief makes for peace within and with your neighbour regardless of who they may be, well, more power to you!Jessica Josephhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00918518641443769144noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10415667.post-29011069774389209482007-04-26T14:33:00.000-07:002007-04-26T14:33:00.000-07:00You're quite an intelligent person, and I understa...You're quite an intelligent person, and I understand your questions about Hell. I used to have those same questions, and stayed away from Christ for most of my life. It did not seem "fair" that some would go to Hell, even though they were what I would call "good" people who had led pretty good lives.<BR/><BR/>However... we either believe the Bible as truth, or we reject it outright. If we reject the Bible as truth, then it really doesn't matter what it says about Hell, since it's not true anyway.<BR/><BR/>For my part, I have come to my salvation in Christ and I believe that the Bible is true. :) But we must seek God, and then read and understand His Word in order to see the realities therin. I read many a book designed to tear down the truth of the Bible before I eventually came to Christ. I was an avowed athiest--it even said so on my military dog tags. I used to really enjoy tripping up Christians in theological debates. I made good sport of it! :D<BR/><BR/>But that was then...<BR/><BR/>Will the Hindu person you reference, even though she lives a "good life," go into Hell? That is of course for God to decide, but His word does say that Christ is the only way to communion with God in the hereafter. If Christ is effectually presented to her, and she refuses to accept the love that He freely wants her to have, then she cannot enter His presence in Heaven when she dies. She will first reside in Hades, a place awaiting final judgement. I believe that some will accept the gospel while awaiting in Hades. (I should mention that most Christians do not believe this). I have scripture supports which I believe show that some in Hades will finally recognize Christ as Lord and avoid ultimate damnation in the lake of fire at the end of times (another discussion)...<BR/><BR/>As humans, we tend to judge for ourselves what is good and what is bad, but we tend only to agree on the extremes. <BR/>God says that man's righteous acts are like "filty rags." That isn't to say that we cannot please God when we do right, but it is to say that the right things we do here on earth will not buy us a place in Heaven. We cannot be good enough here to get there.<BR/><BR/>You mention Hitler. If Hitler at some point before he died confessed his sins to Christ and asked Christ to save his soul--and was genuinely sincere about it--then he's in Heaven with Christ right now. My guess is that Hitler did not do that, but if he did, then he is with Christ. God was ultimately in charge of every life lost due to Hitler's actions. None died before their time; none died that God did not know would die. <BR/><BR/>Conversely, if a Buddahist lived what by human standards was a "good life" and died still worshipping an idol, then he is in Hades, a place of awaiting final judgement, and will probably go to Hell when ultimately judged by God. I say "probably" since if the Buddahist never had the Gospel of Christ presented to him, I believe God will arrange for that Buddahist to hear the gospel before the final judgement, which is the Great White Throne judgement spoken of in the book of Revelation. <BR/><BR/>As humans, we place such a high regard on this flesh. God doesn't see the flesh as anything other than what it is; a temporary vessel for our soul, while we use our freewill to determine our ultimate fates.<BR/><BR/>You mention that we are as children, even to 100 years old. But God makes allowance for an age of accountability. See in Deuteronomy 1:39 where He says that the little ones who were too young to know good from bad will be allowed into the promised land. God only sends those to Hell who have willfully rejected Him. Romans chapter 1 verses 18-21 refers to those who knew God, but rejected Him.<BR/><BR/>So we reach an age where we really do know right from wrong (even though we're often poor judges of ultimate right and wrong), and it's well before 100 years old. Once God knows that we are mentally capable of recognizing Him, and understanding His Word, then we are rightly accountable, and hellbound if we reject Christ. Is this unfair? Well, what if a mass murderer and child molester were to say that he's so much a babe that he shouldn't be held accoutable (by man) for his actions? The courts would laugh at such a defense. In the same way, a person beyond the age of accountability (which is probably different from one person to the next) cannot say to God that he didn't know any better than to follow false gods. (However, if this person has truly never heard the Gospel of Christ, then I do not believe that God holds him accoutable. There is scripture that seems to indicate this, but that's another discussion). :)<BR/><BR/>God does not want to share His glory for eternity with the likes of the demon angels who left Heaven with Satan. Just like you and me, God wants true love. He can only garner true love if we come to him of our own accord--and this is at the crux of why He gave us all freewill. You would not want a partner in life who was forced, by design to love you. That would be false love. It is the same with God; He wants true love, and true love can only come from autonomous beings.<BR/><BR/>We often let our intelligence get in the way of understanding God, and His word, the Bible. We try too hard to reason through all of this. But research Sir Isaac Newton, one of the most brilliant scientists (some say THE most brilliant) who ever lived. Newton was a Bible believing Christian, and he understood Bible prophecy so well that he predicted (based on scripture) that Israel would re-assemble as a nation one day, and even suggested that it may be a day in the future when Jews returned to the renewed Israel on flying machines. Athiest Voltaire mocked Newton for this, saying something to the effect that this is what religion does to an otherwise brilliant mind. But Newton was right--Israel is again a nation, and Jews are returning there on airplanes. The only thing about Newton that bothers me is he invented that confounded Calculus! :D<BR/> <BR/>There is a lot of prophecy in the Bible which has come true, and the Bible is the only religious book which can claim accurate prophecy. None other can.<BR/><BR/>God's Word teaches that none of us are truly righteous, and that all have sinned and fallen short of His Glory. So we cannot--unless we would elevate ourselves to a level of divine understanding equal to His--decide who is "good enough" to avoid eternal seperation from God, which is of course Hell. We can see good only based on the bad in the world, and bad only measured by what we call good. Christ regenerates us, and causes us to become new beings in Him; we actually become a part of Him when we accept His gift of salvation by believing.<BR/><BR/>By the way, as I'm sure you well know, there are multitudes of false Christians out there, preaching and acting out heresies against humanity. God said that such would be the case, especially in the end times, which I believe we're in right now. <BR/><BR/>To the human mind, it is cruel for a man to commit murder. God says the same--He says it is wrong, and should be punished. But God also says that rejecting Christ is wrong, and likewise deserves punishment. We have to realize that He is God, and we're just me and you. We cannot know the depths of His reason, but we can know peace and security in His son, Jesus. :)<BR/><BR/>I believe that the God of the Bible is the one true God, primarily because His prophecies have come to be. Did you know that dinosaurs were spoken of in the book of Job? This oldest book in the Bible, some say 5000 years old, profiles what are obviously dinosaurs in chapters 40 and 41. No man had dug up dinosaur bones when this book was written. ;)<BR/><BR/>In closing, let me say that if ten years ago someone had presented the same arguments to me that I now present to you I would have unraveled them, turned them upside down and force-fed them back to the unwitting Christian and made him look a fool to all watching. But that was then... :)<BR/>We cannot know truth until we genuinely seek it, and no amount of rhetoric can lead us there until we are good and ready to know it. It is a calling of the Holy Spirit that brings us to an understanding of who Christ is, and what we must do to glorify Him and live. Short of that, we'll meander in the mud of man's faulty logic--but hopefully not forever. ;)<BR/><BR/>DanDan Newberryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10372449153289614733noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10415667.post-87713730470348011472007-02-05T12:37:00.000-08:002007-02-05T12:37:00.000-08:00Vernon, you hit the nail on the head! You can use ...Vernon, you hit the nail on the head! You can use the bible to condone many things that in our society are considered to be crimes against humanity. <br /><br />This is why when people quote blindly from the bible we must immediately refute the hypocrisy of it. If someone choses to use the bible as the ABSOLUTE moral authority in one aspect of their life and insist that society does the same, then they must uphold ALL the biblical standards. Their inabilty or lack of desire to do this shows them to be just as relativist as those they accuse of being too secular or humanist.Jessica Josephhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00918518641443769144noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10415667.post-24513132071014153762007-02-03T16:22:00.000-08:002007-02-03T16:22:00.000-08:00Jessica I am thrilled to have discovered your blog...Jessica I am thrilled to have discovered your blog though I know nothing about you. I will now attempt to read all of your back entries so I can get some grasp of where you are coming from. As regards your previous ( Shurwayne) entry I follow your reasoning but I believe there has to be some limit on public pronouncements when they cause fear or loathing of a segment of society. <br />I could just as easily use the bible to preach that one race or another is inferior. Would that be acceptable to say in public? As I say, though. I understand your point completely.Vernonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13766955581062997291noreply@blogger.com