Remember, these "vile, evil, depraved people committing the worst acts imaginable to each other" are the ones that, if you are to believe in the Christian myth, your own God created despite knowing fully that they were "vile, evil [and] depraved" and would commit "the worst acts imaginable." You can't provide a single, coherent answer as to why he would do this. You stammer out some nonsense about he has a plan and he wants everyone to be all lovey-dovey and in communion with him.
So having created "vile, evil [and] depraved" people according to plan he goes on to set a standard of perfection that by his own admission noone can meet, and punishes thoses who fail to achieve that impossible perfection. You can't provide a single coherent answer as to why he would do this either. Instead you stammer out some nonsense about how he loves so much that he's willing to pay the price for our shortfall on our behalf.
But who is demanding and collecting that price? The answer is your God. He decrees that "the wages of sin is death" (Romans 6:23) and pays that price, by sacrificing himself (via his "son") to himself, to appease a penalty that he himself demands. You can't provide a single coherent answer as to why this insane loop is required and why he won't just forgive people outright without the need for all this other stuff. Instead of you stammer out some nonsense that God is sovereign and can't be judged by us.
BULLSHIT.
The God of the Bible is irrational, irritable and insecure. He is deeply flawed and very human, behaving like a thug and a bully. That God deserves neither fealty nor worship.
Sorry, didn't have time to line-by-line my response (maybe I can amend it later).
I think one thing to consider is that God does have some limitations. God can’t be anything other than himself….he can’t not be divine in nature. God can’t not exist. God can’t create another being that is equal to or greater than himself. God is incapable of not knowing all things past, present and future. God also can’t create beings who are given free will and that will only choose him.
God’s Foreknowledge is exactly what it is…knowledge of all things to come….it can’t not be that. I’m curious how it could be? The reprobate had every opportunity to turn to God and they refused…..they made their choices….the choices weren’t made for them. Knowing every single thing that will happen is not the same thing as programming “choices” into folks that they are forced to make.
“So God loves me so much that he created me knowing I would choose to go to hell? What a guy!!”
In this discussion, God is marked as the only one “to blame”. Well, if God neither preprograms our choices nor forces us to abide by his will then we have to consider our lineage. Our parents, grandparents, great grandparents and so forth all made the decision to have sex and some did so for the specific purpose of making little avxo’s and little MOS’. Now, God certainly has both the right and ability to intervene in his creation, but he allows for the contingency of free will and yet remains sovereign. Our lives are completely wrapped in the choices made by our parents. God, in his providence, made it possible for his creation to “go forth and multiply”. Now given his foreknowledge of the future choices of these new folks should God have eliminated those that he knew wouldn’t choose him? Shouldn’t all people have the opportunity to choose God?
Further, the problem with your personal objections is that you fully realize and comprehend the implications of your choices. In this moment, you are in direct defiance of God and you continue to refuse him. The reprobate world realized the same. God knew you would defy him, but he didn’t preprogram that decision into you nor does he want you to make that choice. Is it better that you not be created in the first place or created without options or choice?
So knowing all you do about God’s will you prefer a Godless existence.
Keep in mind, that within your current, Godless existence that the expressions of goodness and beauty and love and compassion we experience in this life are directly attributed to the very nature of God. The very visage of humanity is an expression of his divine countenance. You already exist in his grace yet you defiantly lash out against him. God created us to come into fellowship with him, but provided for our free will (with the understanding of the limitation therein) so that we may make the purest choice possible to accept or reject him. Those that reject him will exit this life and enter into an eternity in which all the divine attributes of God will be removed. What remains in that existence will encompass hell and those that populate its ranks are those that chose “no God for me”.
There is no requirement on God’s part to satisfy our sin debt. Yes, it’s his creation and his law, but law without the enforcement of penalty is no law at all….it’s meaningless. The degree of holiness, righteousness and justice of God’s nature is beyond our ability to comprehend. It’s so inconceivably absolute that it cannot be aligned with unrighteousness in any form whatsoever. God’s justice and righteousness is so great that our sins (our offenses against God) require that divine justice be accomplished. If you were to approach me and slap me in the face the penalty for doing so may be that I slap back…not much. If you slap a police officer you’re going to spend some time in jail. If you slap the President you’re may spend your life in jail. Now, if you slap an infinite God in the face the penalty will align with the his nature and remain infinite.
This sin-filled existence will come to an end and from that end will be ushered in something new, something spotless, something without the mar of sin. And it will populated by those of his former creation that chose to align themselves in righteousness with God. God also designed his creation so that life is in the blood. He chose that the vehicle to pay for sin is found in blood. The Israelites of the OT atoned for sin via the sacrifice of the prime specimens of their flocks and herds. That was a temporary measure. Why did God choose blood as his vehicle and not something else I couldn’t say. In the end, because of his foreknowledge of our future free choices he entered into his creation as the incarnate Son in Jesus Christ. The spotless lamb who’s perfect, divine blood was sufficient to satisfy the requirements of his divine law. “God should just forgive everyone because it’s his own law that you admit we can’t live up to and yet are subject to.” Correct, we can’t, but God didn’t leave us without the ability to be permanently reconciled with his divine righteousness. That’s why he sent his Son Jesus Christ to pay that sin debt on our behalf.
I can’t explain every facet of God’s nature and that’s ok. It’s neither required of me nor is it necessary for any of us to fully grasp before we can make a pure choice about God. You simply place that burden upon the argument. You want the onus shifted squarely on God’s shoulders and you accept no responsibility for your sins against God. You understand the law, break it, but aren’t complicit. In your eyes God should just given everyone a free pass and you refuse to accept that Jesus Christ is that pass because you dislike the concept of faith. You don’t understand it so you don’t like it. I admit it’s not an easy topic to discuss or summarize and I don’t have all the answers, but I trust in the what he’s revealed to me via the Holy Spirit and that what he outlined in scripture he’s fulfilled in me. I’ve experienced nothing but fulfilled promise, goodness, grace and love. I simply try and share that with others in hopes that they may come to choose Christ for their lives.
