Sorry for this Sprint. I myself believe in God to a certain extent, but couldn't resist posting this.  ;D

http://img251.imageshack.us/img251/2649/godvsatanhz0.png

Satan doesn't kill, he only misguides people to commit sins so that they can enter hell-fire.
God created all life, and also takes away people souls when their appointed time arrives (i.e. death).

So God won?

freediver wrote on May 1^st, 2007 at 10:06am:

So God won?

God always wins  ;D ;D ;D

Hi Donald,
Good poster !!
I never looked at the Bible in that way before .

hhmmm, if God "always wins" there be be nothing bad ever happen ?

I don't think He always wins.
In the end, yes. But many things turn out just plain "bad" along the way.

Some battles look pretty grim. WW1, WW11 etc.
That would not have been a good spiritual thing to occur.

Sprintcyclist wrote on May 1^st, 2007 at 7:32pm:

hhmmm, if God "always wins" there be be nothing bad ever happen ? I don't think He always wins. In the end, yes. But many things turn out just plain "bad" along the way. Some battles look pretty grim. WW1, WW11 etc. That would not have been a good spiritual thing to occur.

weird, that u consider the actions of people (e.g. the two world wars) to be acts committed by man.

also weird, that u consider God to be the creator of the entire universe and has huge power, yet he doesn't win all the time. does that mean Satan wins some times as well? and if so, do u consider Satan to be an alternative power or an alternative God?

weird, since i always thought Satan was created by God, and Satan isn't powerful like God. So Satan shouldn't win.

sorry, error in last post, the first line should read:

"weird, that u consider the actions of people (e.g. the two world wars) to be acts committed by God"

yes, that is prety much my thinking.

hhmm, just reread your post .  "In "bad" actions, Gods influence is absent.  He is not there.


When a child is kidnapped, never to be seen alive again. God did not do well there.  
The recent massacre in usa college, goodness did not prevail.


From my memory , the devil was an angel who challenged Gods .... position.
God tossed him out of heaven. My memory is not the best.

The deceiver deceives people into doing his bidding. It is still up to the person.

Sprintcyclist wrote on May 2^nd, 2007 at 1:32pm:

yes, that is prety much my thinking.

can u clarify what u mean? i.e. does Satan sometimes win and does he represent an alternative power to God?



Quote:

hhmm, just reread your post .  "In "bad" actions, Gods influence is absent.  He is not there. When a child is kidnapped, never to be seen alive again. God did not do well there.

In the case of the child, i think that was God's plan, i.e. it was determined that the child will live for a certain number of years and die at that point.

as to why the child was kidnapped and murdered, i would say that this is a test for the child's family to see how they will cope with the situation, i.e. will they seek refuge with God or will they reject and despise him for taking their child.

This type of test would distinguish people who are true believers in God (i.e. who have true faith), from those that only claim to have faith (but really don't).

interesting thoughts JJJ.

yes, my thought is satan does win some battles.

I disagree with your ideas on God basically wanting "bad" things to happen.
But, there you go.  Freedom of speech, different ideas etc etc.

There is also the question of free will.  
It is not God who causes "bad" things, people choose to do it.

tough queries you raise JJJ. Thanks

Sprintcyclist wrote on May 2^nd, 2007 at 4:09pm:

yes, my thought is satan does win some battles.

so by winning battles against God, doesn't that make Satan an alternative to God?


Quote:

There is also the question of free will.   It is not God who causes "bad" things, people choose to do it.

Yeah, i agree people have choice, but i always thought God already know what decision people will make before.

Satan always was a supposed choice. It is up to us to choose between good and evil. This is the usual response to the question 'why does God let bad things happen?' If he didn't, it would be proof that God exists and would take away our choice.

JJJ - A guy at work gave me a good thought on your query.

He said us humans live chronologically. We are stuck on the time line.
God is not limited by laws of physics. He is now, in the past and in the future at all times.

God knows what will happen, but He does not decide what will happen. We do.

Just read a very interesting part in The Bible that shows this.


"But when they said, "Give us a king to lead us," this displeased Samuel; so he prayed to the LORD.  And the LORD told him: "Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king. As they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are doing to you. Now listen to them; but warn them solemnly and let them know what the king who will reign over them will do."
1 Samuel 8:6-9

The people wanted to vote in their own king, not the leader God would have.

"When Samuel heard all that the people said, he repeated it before the LORD. The LORD answered, "Listen to them and give them a king."
1 Samuel 8:21,22

God accepts the peoples wishes.

"Until the day Samuel died, he did not go to see Saul again, though Samuel mourned for him. And the LORD was grieved that he had made Saul king over Israel."
1 Samuel 15:35

In the end, God grieves over the results.


There are often surprising sides to Gods character that arise when I read His book.
Very "feeling" human traits.  
I guess, since we were made in their image ... some of us is reflected in their characters ??


Interesting, thanks JJJ