(October 6, 2014 at 4:24 pm)ShaMan Wrote: I needn't debate it. I flat-out reject it (as written and currently practiced).
God from the beginning of time predestines all. Who will be elect, who will be reprobate. Romans 8 and 9. God arbitrarily loves Jacob and hates Esau etc. Or rhetorically, God hates some and loves others for no good reason.
Jesus speaks in parables so some will not understand him and be saved, Mark 4, Mathew 8 etc. If God the great potter arbitrarily creates some good, some bad, he is not merciful, just, compassionate, or in any way good. If one actually reads the Bible, its a cockamamie dog's breakfast of a mess. The idea of a good, loving, fair God who values free will is not found in the Bible. The Bible paints a very different picture than the love-burger God of Christian apologists.
Cheerful Charlie
If I saw a man beating a tied up dog, I couldn't prove it was wrong, but I'd know it was wrong.
- Attributed to Mark Twain
If I saw a man beating a tied up dog, I couldn't prove it was wrong, but I'd know it was wrong.
- Attributed to Mark Twain
