tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33818852.post8242772241206704367..comments2023-10-21T23:57:46.155-04:00Comments on Wheat Among Tares: God's Goodness, Part 1terrihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12399706958844399216noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33818852.post-63924947456289946822009-06-03T16:14:28.610-04:002009-06-03T16:14:28.610-04:00If God isn't good, then there is no point in t...<i>If God isn't good, then there is no point in trying to appease Him. He can do whatever He wants and there's nothing we can do about it. That's actually a simplistic picture of Calvinism, in which it is not God's goodness which serves as His ultimate definer, but God's Power and Glory.</i> -- Terri<br /><br />Not just Calvinism, but ISLAM.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33818852.post-38426937789355608072009-05-25T23:09:19.542-04:002009-05-25T23:09:19.542-04:00First, I disagree with your original assumption. ...First, I disagree with your original assumption. I think that most people on this earth would follow a deceitful being, just because he wielded great power. We have seen it in the past and we see it now among many peoples of the earth who follow their "god" because they want to be on its good side.<br /><br />We even see pseudo-Christian cults who follow a deceitful leader who presents an angry or capricious God without questioning why God would have them do this or that.<br /><br />As to the OT, I think you can look at God's covenant with Abram, which He made without requiring anything from Abram except his friendship.<br /><br />I believe that the view of an angry or capricious God comes when we choose to live like everyone else and ignore God's laws. When the consequences of our own actions fall on us, we don't compare ourselves to the standard which God has set out, we compare ourselves to our neighbor, whom we judge to be even more reprobate than we are, and complain that God is being whimsical in punishing us. Kind of like the guy doing 75 mph in a 55 mph zone and then complaining to the cop that he didn't get the guy who passed us going 80.<br /><br />BuzBuzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05094080172950037337noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33818852.post-63072369995937774422009-05-23T22:34:47.280-04:002009-05-23T22:34:47.280-04:00I agree that God seems capricious at times in the ...I agree that God seems capricious at times in the Old Testament.<br /><br />I would ask is God portrayed as capricious because he <B>is</B> capricious...or because, like the wicked servant in Jesus' parable, that's how people viewed him?<br /><br />The more I consider it, the more I wonder if that was really Jesus' main point to Israel. They had neglected true service to the Master because of their warped view of Him.<br /><br />As a Christian, I tend to see Jesus as the ultimate self-revelation of God to humanity. Jesus seems to spend much of his ministry, not only performing miracles, but addressing how people view God.<br /><br />Sometimes he gently reveals error, at other times he bluntly calls out the Pharisees and Sadducees and their legalism.<br /><br />"He is good and his love endures forever"....is He? Does it?<br /><br />I think "yes" to both. <br /><br />Do we always perceive that goodness and love...no.terrihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12399706958844399216noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33818852.post-45866767755815141062009-05-23T21:19:30.486-04:002009-05-23T21:19:30.486-04:00Most peoples thought their gods were capricious, a...Most peoples thought their gods were capricious, and there is certainly a flavor of that as the story unfolds in Genesis. Lot seems to understand nothing about goodness, only that this particular god is powerful and he wants to be on his side. Interestingly, the God of Genesis seems quite comfortable with that early on.<br /><br />But this is God gradually revealing his goodness, and the Jews gradually realizing it. Perhaps it's the only way the lesson can be learned, as we read Jesus being quite explicit that he does miracles because there are some who will learn no other way - and He doesn't seem happy about that.<br /><br />Most of this idea is lifted straight from Lewis and Chesterton, BTW.Assistant Village Idiothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01978011985085795099noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33818852.post-28788253811092290492009-05-23T07:22:40.055-04:002009-05-23T07:22:40.055-04:00I agree that God is good and that this is a fundam...I agree that God is good and that this is a fundamental characteristic. I am interested in what you believe man's primary purpose here on Earth is concerning God. I believe that our primary function is to glorify God. I personally would not characterize God's receiving of glory as navel-gazing, but I believe I know what you meant.Chrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03889681055577032812noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33818852.post-71700722050083489052009-05-22T17:20:59.832-04:002009-05-22T17:20:59.832-04:00You should read Jerome Segal's "Joseph's Bones" ab...You should read Jerome Segal's "Joseph's Bones" about whether the writers of the Pentateuch thought God was good or capricious. In his telling, the characters acted in a way to protect themselves from God. A different and interesting take on the subject.<br /><br />pAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com