black_rose
Puritan Board Freshman
Even more so, what do you do when they refuse to listen to what you have to say, and when they refuse to look in the Scripture to see who's right?
My dad is a Roman Catholic, and I've gotten into several "Theological debates" with him. One that sticks out in my mind right now is that he believes God does not will anything "bad" to happen. Even in the case of the death of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, he believes God knew it would happen, but that he did not plan it.
I just watched Piper's sermon "Why Was This Man Born Blind?" last night, and it was incredibly enlightening to me. Birth defects and disabilities are things we consider "bad." God created that disability. Exodus 4:11 says, "The Lord said to him, 'Who made man's mouth? Or who makes him mute or deaf? Is it not I, the Lord?." But, as John wrote in John 9:3, " [...] but it was so that the works of God might be displayed in him." So things we consider to be "bad" are really not bad. I suppose when we see things to be bad, it's because we're looking at it rather self-centeredly.
Buuttttt, I think I'm getting a tad off-track.
My point is that my dad seems to think that Jesus death was a tragic incident that God made good in the end. He also does not believe that God came up with the plan of salvation before the world was even created, which is stated in the Bible. (I'm not entirely sure where, otherwise I'd quote.)
Most people ask questions like "Why would a supposedly good God do bad things?" I believe this is a self-centered way to look at things. I believe we really should be asking people "If God's hand is not in everything, then is he really God?"
Sorry if this whole post is a bit confusing. ^.^' (I might just be a little ADD. ~lol~)
Your help is greatly appreciated.
My dad is a Roman Catholic, and I've gotten into several "Theological debates" with him. One that sticks out in my mind right now is that he believes God does not will anything "bad" to happen. Even in the case of the death of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, he believes God knew it would happen, but that he did not plan it.
I just watched Piper's sermon "Why Was This Man Born Blind?" last night, and it was incredibly enlightening to me. Birth defects and disabilities are things we consider "bad." God created that disability. Exodus 4:11 says, "The Lord said to him, 'Who made man's mouth? Or who makes him mute or deaf? Is it not I, the Lord?." But, as John wrote in John 9:3, " [...] but it was so that the works of God might be displayed in him." So things we consider to be "bad" are really not bad. I suppose when we see things to be bad, it's because we're looking at it rather self-centeredly.
Buuttttt, I think I'm getting a tad off-track.
My point is that my dad seems to think that Jesus death was a tragic incident that God made good in the end. He also does not believe that God came up with the plan of salvation before the world was even created, which is stated in the Bible. (I'm not entirely sure where, otherwise I'd quote.)
Most people ask questions like "Why would a supposedly good God do bad things?" I believe this is a self-centered way to look at things. I believe we really should be asking people "If God's hand is not in everything, then is he really God?"
Sorry if this whole post is a bit confusing. ^.^' (I might just be a little ADD. ~lol~)
Your help is greatly appreciated.