Originally posted by jaywillYou should ask yourself how well your analogy applies.
I have a friend who was a graduate from Yale and very smart. Fortune had it that one of his children was mentally retarded. You should ask him if he loved that child less than his other children.
Is God's power limited by fortune? That is, is dj2becker an accident that God couldn't control, or a part of God's design.
Suppose your friend had complete control over the health of his child. Do you suppose he would have chosen to have a retarded child instead of one as smart as himself? What would it say about your friend if he had chosen to have a child who would endure unnecessary struggle and hardship throughout life, while also being deprived of the capacity to intellectually appreciate life's joys and wonders? Might your friend be characterized as cruel in that case?
My original question is obviously only of interest under the supposition that God is omnibenevolent and omnipotent, so an analogy about a parent without such attributes loving imperfect children has little bearing. Its only relevant aspect is that it features a retarded person.
Additionally, I'm probably smarter than your friend. Yale students are more likely to be rich than intelligent. And I'm certainly smarter than anybody who brags about having a friend who went to Yale.
You should ask yourself how well your analogy applies.
Fortune may not be the best word. Still it is obvious to many of us, if not to you, that God has made many different levels of intelligence among people. And we see nothing in the Bible indicating that He favors only those who are on the high end of the scale.
Is God's power limited by fortune? That is, is dj2becker an accident that God couldn't control, or a part of God's design.
I think a better use of your talents would be to simply give thanks to God that you have some degree of mental soundness. It is good to give thanks and realize that the burdens of others you have been spared to carry.
You may have other burdens to bear. But as God is there for the others He is also there for you in your particular burden which you do have to bear, albeit they may not be a lower mental ability.
I think your innuendos about djbecker are just your annoyance at him for your inability to effectively debate some of his points. In other words you're resorting to ad hominems.
Is that suppose to be an impressive display of your own intelligence? Not all of us are impressed, if it is.
Suppose your friend had complete control over the health of his child. Do you suppose he would have chosen to have a retarded child instead of one as smart as himself?
I wouldn't have. The analogy is not perfect. Still it is adaquate. The simple point is that God does not play favorites towards only the very smart.
He loves you. And you're not that smart. In comparison there are plenty of people more intelligent than Dr Scribbles. Same holds for myself. It shouldn't be difficult to grasp the point that God loves all kinds of people.
What would it say about your friend if he had chosen to have a child who would endure unnecessary struggle and hardship throughout life,
I think that in the end we will all see that the grace of God was sufficient for all kinds of situations and circumstances. He is able to manifest His love and salvation upon men and women in all kinds of situations. Wouldn't a look a look at nature itself hint something of that to us?
God has created the slow turtle and the swift cheetah. God has created the huge elephant and the little gerbil. God has created the tough lion and the meek mouse.
Wouldn't even a glance at the natural world hint to us that He has the wisdom to care for all kinds of creatures? If not to you, to many of us not only the Bible indicates that His grace is sufficient, but even the world of nature reveals that God is all sufficient.
while also being deprived of the capacity to intellectually appreciate life's joys and wonders? Might your friend be characterized as cruel in that case?
I don't think that a person is deprived of life's joys necessarily because she or he is mentally retarded.
I think that the love of God in Christ is so warm that it joys the heart of people in all kinds of situations. History has revealed that to us. The record of the Bible reveals that He joyed the heart of people in all kinds of situations. My experience tells me the same.
And the joy of knowing God in Christ is deeper than that which the world can give anyway.
My original question is obviously only of interest under the supposition that God is omnibenevolent and omnipotent, so an analogy about a parent without such attributes loving imperfect children has little bearing. Its only relevant aspect is that it features a retarded person.
When I looked at your question again carefully all I saw was a silly and childish ad hominem disguised as intellectual curiosity.
In essence you thought you were being cute by saying "Oh I struggle with this question. Why is this guy so dumb?" And to make a whole discussion out of an ad hominem ...
It was not an impressive display of your own soundness of thought. Sorry to say.
Additionally, I'm probably smarter than your friend. Yale students are more likely to be rich than intelligent. And I'm certainly smarter than anybody who brags about having a friend who went to Yale.
Well, you're probably more conceited.
Simple point: God loves and can reach people of all levels of mental ability. If He couldn't it would not be much of a testimony of His wisdom and sufficiency.