Pure Goodness

Originally posted by sonship
When God knew that Adam had disobeyed the clear command He did not instantly destroy Adam in vengeful wrath. Rather he came asking Adam to consider what had happened to him and where he now was.

Seriously now, as others have pointed out, for you to genuinely claim that this demonstrates goodness on behalf of God, you really need to show that destroying Adam in vengeful wrath is the expected thing for God to do. Instead, you seem to be dismissing all comments on your claim - suggesting you don't actually believe you are telling the truth.
If you were in Gods position, would you have destroyed Adam in vengeful wrath? If so, I think this would demonstrate more about your character than that of Gods.
Compared to you, God acted good. But that's not saying much.

Originally posted by sonship
I like this example of the Psalmist overflowing with gratitude for God's mercy.
What can he do but review and repeat ?

"His mercy endures forever".

Originally posted by divegeester
"His mercy endures forever".

Thumbs Up.

Originally posted by Great King Rat
But afterwards you did throw him out of your house and cursed his children and his children's children, right?

It's about doing the Good Thing, after all.

Neither did I slay him. I said unto him "Thou art grounded for 40 days"
And he said "But dad that is so unfair"

And I replieth to him "Quiet before I change my mind and slay thee"

Originally posted by sonship
After Adam sinned causing the earth to fall under a curse, God does not instantaneously slay the couple.

Your god is a big ol' softie isn't he?

Originally posted by divegeester
"His mercy endures forever".

]"His mercy endures forever".

Amen. Upon those whom He has mercy.

Do you know who the most sorrowful character in the whole Bible may be?
In my opinion it is not Judas or Pharoah or Pontius Pilate. I think the character that invokes more pity is King Saul.

Even the Witch of Endor had to cheer him up. The reason that King Saul became so very pitiful is because God says He removed His mercy from him.

First Chronicles 17:13 has God speaking of David in comparison to King Saul -

King James Bible
I will be his father, and he shall be my son: and I will not take my mercy away from him, as I took it from him that was before thee:

Jubilee Bible 2000
I will be his father, and he shall be my son; and I will not take my mercy away from him, as I took it from him that was before thee;

King James 2000 Bible
I will be his father, and he shall be my son: and I will not take my mercy away from him, as I took it from him that was before you:

Do you see that with King Saul God REMOVED His mercy ?
God's mercy stopped and Saul became most pitiful.

At least there was a recorded interruption in God's mercy.
I do not know of Saul's eternal destiny.

Originally posted by twhitehead
Seriously now, as others have pointed out, for you to genuinely claim that this demonstrates goodness on behalf of God, you really need to show that destroying Adam in vengeful wrath is the expected thing for God to do. Instead, you seem to be dismissing all comments on your claim - suggesting you don't actually believe you are telling the truth.
If you ...[text shortened]... your character than that of Gods.
Compared to you, God acted good. But that's not saying much.

I don't know why you think I would not be being serious.

Everything related to Adam's relationship with God speaks of God's goodness. Adam had freedom.

Nothing was commanded of Adam except to not eat that which would cause him to die.

We see no command about not stealing or not committing adultery.
We see no command about not murdering or lying.
Not yet do we see anything like this.

We don't even see a command how to worship God.
We see no instructions on how to pray or praise or do anything we usually would associate with worship towards God.

Instead we see God warning man what NOT to take into himself.
He gives Adam utter freedom in his state of innocency. Only ONE line in the sand is drawn. Only one command is negative. Adam is to NOT eat of a tree that is detrimental to his own life.

And if you do not see the pure goodness of God in this, I do.
The beginning of a relationship sets the tone for that relationship.
God wants Adam to fulfill all his potential.
God wants Adam to be free and satisfied and to live forever.

And if you do not see the goodness of God here then that's a problem with you not God.

When Adam falls to the enticement to join Satan's opposition party against the Creator, God acts quite good towards Him yet not without just consequences for his disobedience.

Warnings without just remonstration is not goodness.
Warnings without just consequences is not goodness.

Just consquences with a way of redemption is pure goodness.
And in discipline God also promised a destroyer of their deceiver tyrant whom they now served. Speaking to the Satanified serpent God says -

"And I will put enmity between you and the woman and between your seed and her seed. He will bruise you on the head, But you will bruise him on the heel." (Gen. 3:15)

Jesus Christ is the seed of the woman, born of a virgin woman Mary.

The promise of the coming Savior of the world, the Son of God. He will crush Satan but in the process have to give His life on the cross.

Many of us see the pure goodness of God in that a plan of salvation was already in God's time transcendent heart. But the warning was that Adam would die and he must die.

This implies the mercy of a resurrection perhaps.
But everything involving God's dealing with Adam after the fall is just discipline tempered and mixed with pure goodness.

Originally posted by wolfgang59
Your god is a big ol' softie isn't he?

God does the right thing at the right time in the right way always.
I am glad there are 66 books in the Bible to give us a wide panoramic view of this profound eternal God from different angles.

Myopic dudes like you who don't read it come up with junior high like cracks like you did.

Your loss, not mine.

Some people here seem to have overdosed on Dr. Benjamin Spock's ultimate permissiveness child rearing.

I point out Just discipline mixed with educational mercy and goodness for the one under discipline, and they still find fault with God.

I see God's goodness on those who obviously moved to be on the wrong side of Him. I see His goodness also on those who did not as well.

Before some of you add another comment about God not being good consider your own lives. You daily arrange arguments against God's existence. You have no idea what work your words are doing after you. You do not know what persons you may have influenced to turn their backs on God.

Yet God still allows you many days of happiness. Year after year, though there are some trouble which are common to all people, God allows you many happy hours to pursue your pleasure.

No one has been struck down by a lightening bolt from heaven.

You may boast "Well that is just because this God does not exist."

The other more likely possibility is that as the Bible shows. He is longsuffering, very patient, giving you time and time and more time to consider your ways.

Solomon wrote - "Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil." (Ecclesiastes 8:11)

God's longsuffering towards many of us while our actions and words further damage ourselves and others show that He is not a fickle despot but a longsuffering heavenly Father.

Originally posted by sonship
Some people here seem to have overdosed on Dr. Benjamin Spock's ultimate permissiveness child rearing.

Your ideology is one of a "creator" who creates a world in which there are diverse beliefs and He then insists that the people He created must believe He exists but it must be by way of just one of those religions ~ the one you just so happen to subscribe to ~ or else they will all be tortured horribly for eternity. What does this have to do with Dr. Benjamin Spock?

Originally posted by FMF
Your ideology is one of a "creator" who creates a world in which there are diverse beliefs and He then insists that the people He created must believe He exists but it must be by way of just one of those religions ~ the one you just so happen to subscribe to ~ or else they will all be tortured horribly for eternity. What does this have to do with Dr. Benjamin Spock?

Well, that there is A Creator period, I think is something like common sense. A Creator is obvious to all who do no decide their are repulsed by the concept of a creating God.

The second part of your objection is about the character of this Creator.

In the 66 books of the Bible I see quite a wide range of God's bigness in what He permits from human beings. However He is definite at the end.

He allows a great range or leeway, yet it is not infinitely wide. I have come to terms with this. That is that one one hand the story shown in the Bible is that God is very very large. Yet He does have a terminal end on some matters.

The closing scene of judgment in the Bible says that whosever's name was not written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.

I do not claim that I or probably any other human being knows ALL the ways in which someone's name may be entered into the book of life. But there must be a limit of some kind beyond which someone's name will not be recorded in the book of life.

So there are to me some unknowns.

Though there are some unknowns He still tells me to go to all the world and preach the Gospel of Christ. That He does insist upon for me.

I guess I have come to terms with the fact that God will have the final word. If the lake of fire was the only subject matter in the whole Bible then I might have much more of a problem. But in the entire scope of the vastness of God's being, a terminally negative reaction to the unreconciled is understandable.

Since I cannot change this, I elect to spend at least an equal amount of time (or better - more time) to consider His love and redemption.


The mouth MOST qualified to judge God was the mouth of Jesus. And Jesus said of His Father that He was the "Righteous Father".

I have come to terms with the fact that the Righteous Father, the Righteous God of love, of mercy, of eternal redemption, eternal life, eternal salvation and glorification is ALSO One who will punish forever those who well not be removed from Satan's rebellion.

Since this is clear to me perhaps the only other question is - "Could there POSSIBLY be any hope for those condemned to eternal punishment ? "

I don't know. If on some page of the unraveled unsealed Scroll way out there in the future God has something that He has not revealed to us yet, so be it. I would not advize anyone to be so curious as to wait under His judgment.

Sometimes I imagine that God can suspend time in some way or create a infinite interruption. But this is the stuff of my speculations. Probably, there is just a point in which it is impossible for the rebel to NOT understand that He IS God.

Originally posted by sonship
Well, that there is A [b]Creator period, I think is something like common sense. A Creator is obvious to all who do no decide their are repulsed by the concept of a creating God.

The second part of your objection is about the character of this Creator.

In the 66 books of the Bible I see quite a wide range of God's bigness in what He permit ...[text shortened]... there is just a point in which it is impossible for the rebel to NOT understand that He IS God.[/b]

What does any of this have to do with Dr. Benjamin Spock?

Originally posted by sonship
I have come to terms with the fact that the Righteous Father, the Righteous God of love, of mercy, of eternal redemption, eternal life, eternal salvation and glorification is ALSO One who will punish forever those who well not be removed from Satan's rebellion.

Do you personally condemn those people with different beliefs [from those you just so happen to have] as being part of "Satan's rebellion"?

Originally posted by FMF
What does any of this have to do with Dr. Benjamin Spock?

I get repeatedly the attitude that God is wrong to punish.
I get repeatedly the insinuation that He should permit anything as behavior.

Originally posted by sonship
Since this is clear to me perhaps the only other question is - "Could there POSSIBLY be any hope for those condemned to eternal punishment ? "

I escaped from the ideology that you propagate [or some version of it] about a decade ago, perhaps a bit less. What "Satan"-inspired, rebellious "evil" acts do you imagine I have committed during that time, apart from having different beliefs from you?