Why does Evil Exist? God is the only True Life

Originally posted by mojo4sale
Speakeroftruth, From a disbeliever, i hope you dont mind my input.

You seem to deny free will but i practise it every day, dont you.

I don't really think so... To me, in order for "free will" to really exist, decisions made due to circumstance would have to be eliminated. We don't do what we want to do, that is free will, we do what we have to do...That is not "free will," in my honest opinion.

What I am saying is really simple.... How can "free will" be a fact when:

(1) Our decisions are generally based on necessity rather than desire?


(2) Everything, according to fundies, is according to the will of God? Although I am not a fundamentalist,I tend to believe this as well.

Based on just these two principles, the whole concept of "free will" makes absolutely no sense at all. :shk: Not at all.

[edit on 1-2-2007 by SpeakerofTruth]

[edit on 1-2-2007 by SpeakerofTruth]

Originally posted by kinglizard
GreatTech, Do you mind if I ask what religious teachings you follow?

Thank you for showing an interest in my life.

I will briefly summarize my religious beliefs:

Favorite Being: God.

Favorite Human/Divine Spiritual Leader: Jesus Christ.

Favorite Religion: Roman Catholicism, although I am open to learning from all religions, especially other Christian religions.

Favorite Book: Holy Bible.

Favorite Verses: 1 John 4:8 and Matthew 5:3.

Favorite Prayer: the Rosary.

Favorite Concept: LOVE.

Favorite Day: any day when I grow in Spirituality.

What are some of your religious beliefs?

God Bless!!!

[edit on 1-2-2007 by GreatTech]

Originally posted by GreatTech
I will briefly summarize my religious beliefs:

So you don't follow a traditional belief like Christianity?

Do you believe Jesus died for our sins?

Originally posted by kinglizard

Originally posted by GreatTech
I will briefly summarize my religious beliefs:

So you don't follow a traditional belief like Christianity?

Roman Catholicism is Christian. I am Roman Catholic, the very first Christian religion. There are currently over 1 billion baptized Catholics, more than that of any other Christian denomination in the world.

Originally posted by kinglizard
Do you believe Jesus died for our sins?

Jesus did not just die for our sins, but also He did and does Resurrect ALL the dead for Eternal Life.

Thanks for answering GT.

Can you tell me why Jesus died for our sins? Who did he die for...was it the righteous?

Originally posted by kinglizard
Can you tell me why Jesus died for our sins? Who did he die for...was it the righteous?

kinglizard, my friend, thank you for the great, important, and probing questions. In simple terms, I believe that Jesus Christ, who came from Heaven, died for our sins so that humanity would not be permanently banned from Heaven. Sinners like myself found no avenue of Salvation due to Original sin and were apart from God. Jesus, in his "human" lifestyle and teachings brought a renewed connection between humanity and Divinity. Without Jesus Christ the Divine suffering the ultimate sacrifice of death, we would never have been reconciled with God.

To paraphrase from the Bible, the righteous (healthy) do not need a Divine Physician (physician), but the sinners (sick) do. Jesus Christ is the Ultimate and Divine Physician. Personally, He has cured many demons from my head.

Praise Jesus for giving sinners redemption!!!

You are awesome kinglizard!!!

What a beautiful answer GT...


Choice = ability to sin

Jesus died for our sins (choices) so you can see we indeed have free will.

If we didn't have free will there wouldn't be a need for Jesus to die for our sins (choices).

Blessings....

Kinglizard,I'm using simple logic in my questioning of "free will." Logically, it makes absolutely no sense at all.

Originally posted by kinglizard
What a beautiful answer GT...


Choice = ability to sin

Jesus died for our sins (choices) so you can see we indeed have free will.

If we didn't have free will there wouldn't be a need for Jesus to die for our sins (choices).

Blessings....

I wondered where you were going with your questions and you came to exactly the right place, perfectly. Very nicely and respectfully done KingLizard.
I wish i could applaud you.

The bible if absolutely full of examples of free will.

If we didn't have free will we wouldn't have the ability to sin because it would all be God's will. If it was all Gods will he wouldn't need to send his son to die for our sins. So if you believe in Jesus and his sacrifice you need to believe in free will.

SpeakerofTruth why do you have such an angry avatar? I hope it doesn't represent your real life feelings at the moment.

Originally posted by mojo4sale
I wondered where you were going with your questions and you came to exactly the right place, perfectly. Very nicely and respectfully done KingLizard.
I wish i could applaud you.

Thank you so much mojo4sale....what you just said is worth more to me than an applaud.

Thanks and blessings friend....

Originally posted by kinglizard


SpeakerofTruth why do you have such an angry avatar? I hope it doesn't represent your real life feelings at the moment.

Well, Kinglizard, that's a good question... Ten years ago I would have said that it was a very accurate portrayal of myself... I wouldn't necessarily say that is the case anymore. God has helped me through many of my anger issues.

That eye is kind of scary isn't it?

God is not a being we can understand from a human POV. God is the all and the none. Every facet that is human God has in him/her. God does not judge us we live to become more like God, to do this we must live every human experience that can come into being. This is why we are here to learn. God does not judge us for what we have learned and does not get angry or depressed. God is beyond that although these facets are of God.

There is no evil. Just experience. The soul must learn it all before it can move on. Sin is the invention of man. not the intention of God. Once you can come to terms with this you can then forgive yourself.

As above, so below.



Typo king

[edit on 1-2-2007 by LoneGunMan]

Originally posted by GreatTech

Roman Catholicism is Christian. I am Roman Catholic, the very first Christian religion. There are currently over 1 billion baptized Catholics, more than that of any other Christian denomination in the world.

First of all , Catholicism was not the first christian religion - the Ebionites and Marcionites and even the Gnostics were before the un christian catholics. Secondly there might be 1 billion catholics but they are not all 'Catholic' to the extent that their beliefs are the same ( i.e Eastern orthodox, western orthodox, anglican, some lutherians, the list goes on).


G

For the people who are agreeing with GreatTech -and GreatTech himself: I would like you to adress my previous reply. In my attempts to understand the possibility of a God-driven fate I have come across those stumbling blocks.

So please, adress it and clear it up if I have it wrong.

There is a balance in all things

A zin and a zang, Good and Bad, Evil and Rightousness. There can't be one with out the other.

Good will win in the end though

Originally posted by shihulud
the Ebionites and Marcionites and even the Gnostics were before the un christian catholics. Secondly there might be 1 billion catholics but they are not all 'Catholic' to the extent that their beliefs are the same ( i.e Eastern orthodox, western orthodox, anglican, some lutherians, the list goes on).


G

You are quite correct in this assertion.. Of course, all of this is down played because Gnostics were "heretics," didn't you know? :shk: Anyway, you are quite correct..

[edit on 2-2-2007 by SpeakerofTruth]

Is that your own eye, speaker?

Because if it is I like it best of all your avatars.
you don't scare me but i don't scare you either so that's cool


I think of 'sin' as 'not listening to God.'

And so sin is the long way and listening is the short route.

But there are footsteps only forged on one path.

Those we all follow and learn our lessons just as the first one who demonstrated our path for us. I speak allegorically - life takes us all on our own paths but the mistakes and lessons and self-corrections are probably roughly similar and unchanging over all the centuries...if we all start at point a and progress to point z and God is short for Good Orderly Direction, then i think my guess is possibly somewhat accurate.

But then....what questions arise?

Did Jesus have free will?
To not listen and to learn from mistakes the same as all of us...
Did he 'sin' or was he perfect?
In one lifetime was he perfect?
If so why did he go to the Jordan and why did the spirit take him into the wilderness for his temperance in the fire of affliction?

Perhaps we can't truly follow a path for growth toward God if we perceive Christ as starting off at a point in which none of us have ever been born.

Who made the leap?
Can we?
If so, then what did He die?

Or did he make the impossible leap and become a bridge from human to divine...from sinner to saint....that we can all follow just as regular old high school drop outs and marginal joe six packs...even rock stars and impeached politicians....

i say sinning and dying and good and evil isn't all that important but rather it is the journey that makes us complete and in unity with God in the end...

I think a lot more people could get to the godly part of themselves if the human part of Christ was freely discussed (and therefore learned from).

Being free of sin is not the same as being perfect. According to the principle of baptism for remittance of sins (walking apart from God's counsel) then once baptized in sincerity all of us are free of sin. I've been free of sin for 30 years....and a sinner each day of my life but that has nothing to do with my conversation with my only friend...and he never even uses the word sin...but love is almost every other word!

When i ask if he is perfect he laughs and says no annie you are...



and that is how he taught me what is real and what matters...certainly not perfection or sin....just friendship and love and being true to eachother the best we can as he is to us.

what a friend we in jesus and what a friend we can be to another as a true disciple!

Originally posted by queenannie38
Is that your own eye, speaker?

Because if it is I like it best of all your avatars.
you don't scare me but i don't scare you either so that's cool

Nah, that's not mine!! I am not quite that fierce looking!! Close but not quite...