Now may be a good time to talk about the WHY questions that everyone seems to have. First question -- why didn't God just make humans perfect like the angels? Answer - Who ever said they were perfect? Did not a third of them rebel? We don't know how many angels God created or how long ago He created them but we can safely assume they failed the test of sin and became unworthy to become sons and daughters of God and rule the universe for Him. By creating the human race and allowing them to become fallen and then redeemed by the Impossible King through free will they could learn how to love God. They could learn about His great grace and mercy and learn to abhor sin in all of its shame. Through God's grace and sacrifice they could become perfect in His eyes, justified by the shed blood of the Impossible King. They could receive the Holy Spirit of God to teach them and guide them along the path that leads to righteousness. By faith in the living God they could not see, by faith in the sacrifice of the Christ that their sins could be forgiven they could become worthy, not through any effort or work of their own, to become sons and daughters of God and thus rule the universe for Him.



Question 2 -- Why would a loving God allow some of His creation to suffer in Hell? In my studies led by the Holy Spirit I am not so ready to believe there is an eternal hell but we shall get to that in Part #3 - Eternity Future. I will present both sides of the teachings about hell. I would ask you to look into your heart and ask yourself -- would a righteous and just God require His creation to suffer endless torment? We do serve a perfect and just God. In order to be a perfect God, does He not also have to be righteous and holy God? Does He not have to also be a just God? By giving humans free will so they would be more than robots He had to allow them to make choices. Don't choices come with consequences? Does it make any sense to allow God hating and evil humans to disrupt the universe and bring about disharmony? I believe God did everything possible to give every human the same opportunity to become a part of His plan and the free will to choose. The responsibility rests on each individual's shoulders to decide his/her fate. We shall explore that fate later.



God placed the knowledge of Him in every heart; made Himself known through all of His creation and then allowed His creation the right to make a choice and told them the consequences of their choices. The angels who were created by God lived with Him in heaven, knew Him as the almighty God of creation yet chose to rebel and will suffer the consequences of their choice for we are told they will also be judged.



I won't pretend to know the mind of God or His plans for His creation outside of what He has already told us in His word, although I have my theories about eternity and I do believe those who refuse and reject Him in this life on earth will suffer the consequences of their willful choice. I am not a prophet and God has not chosen to reveal His plans to me but I hold on to a hope, probably foolishly, that brimstone and fire are purifying agents and through the grace, mercy and love of God, His plan for eternity may not be the same for everyone. But I would not base my choice today on that hope. This hope I cling to is because of the love I have for all those who have foolishly made the wrong choice in this life and because I have learned from God's word just how merciful a God He is, and what a great and perfect love He has for His creation. I do know that we serve a sovereign God and with God nothing is impossible. He will do what pleases and glorifies Him.



Just as the clay cannot tell the potter what to do with it, we have not the right or the power to tell God what He can do with us, His creation. If the clay will not fulfill the purpose the potter designed it for can he not do with it as pleases him? There is one basic difference in the way God made us and that is He gave us an eternal soul so that we could live forever; then the choice of where we would live forever, with Him or without His presence. How much greater love can there be than to allow what you have created to make it's own choice. There is an old saying I have heard many times "If you love something, let it go and if it comes back you will know it loves you."

Bob Goulding © October 2007



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