Questions for Christians

[Mea quidem sententia]

Free will
1. If God is omniscient (knows all things; knows what will happen before they happen), then how do humans have free will? If I was going to have waffles at 8:00 am on Sunday of (insert day, month, and year), and if God knows I will do exactly this without any slight variation, then every action I do will be known before I do it.

2. If God created humans with the ability to choose right or wrong (making them free agents), and if God can only do right, but not wrong, then is God not a free agent, since he is bound by his holy nature?

2.a. If God created humans with the ability to choose right or wrong (making them free agents), and if in the end those who are redeemed will only be able to do right, but not wrong, then are they no longer free?

(If to both questions the answer is no, then why couldn’t God create humans with free agency and possess a holy, unchangeable nature—or at least a nature that is strongly inclined towards holiness—in the midst of experiencing pain and suffering, just as it was with Jesus?)

Morality
1. Does God love the holy because they are holy, or are they holy because they’re loved by God? If the former, then morality exists apart from God. If the latter, then God’s morals are arbitrary. (This means if in a world God said murder was good, then it would be because God said so.)

2. If God is morally perfect (free from fault; blameless), and if you believe God brought death to infants and children because of the actions of the parents, then how can God be morally perfect?

3. A man and a woman can perform acts, which are condemned by God if these acts are performed between two men or two women. Why does God take issue with these if the two of the same sex are consenting (both agree; no harm between the two)?

If it’s because it’s not considered natural, then neither is wearing clothes or using electronic devices (lights, microwaves, etc.). If it’s because neither can bear children, then God shouldn't be pleased with infertile/sterile people. If it’s because both are of the same sex, then God’s objection is arbitrary.

4. If a father had two sons and punished the one who wasn't doing anything wrong, while not punishing the son who did wrong, would this not appear wrong in your eyes? Liken this to humans, who are sons and daughters of God and Jesus taking the punishment for all of us (even though he did this because it was his father’s will). I think unconditional love would be the Father laying his life down for his children.

Ontology
1. If God is ontologically perfect, as in he is perfect in being, then why would God create a universe? (To be ontologically perfect would mean God doesn’t need or want to create a universe, nor would he have any reason to do so. For God to create a universe would mean he isn’t perfect.)

Science
1. According to Genesis 1, the Universe was created in six days, but modern science tells us that the Universe came about 13.8 billion years ago. Genesis 1 tells us water was present and the land came from it, but modern science tells us the Earth had no water when it was being formed and water came about after.

Genesis also says the Sun and Moon were created on the same day with the stars, but the Sun is older than the Moon, and stars existed before Earth came to be. How do you resolve these apparent inaccuracies from a book whose source is from an all-knowing god?

2. In light of modern science, the historicity of Adam and Eve has been undermined based on the theory of evolution. How could the death and resurrection of Jesus be in effect if sin never entered the world?

[Amarok Anernerk]

Mea quidem sententia

Free will
1. If God is omniscient (knows all things; knows what will happen before they happen), then how do humans have free will? If I was going to have waffles at 8:00 am on Sunday of (insert day, month, and year), and if God knows I will do exactly this without any slight variation, then every action I do will be known before I do it.

I'm not a Christian but I can answer this for you. It's actually not an argument against freewill so much as a question of which came first: The chicken or the egg?

Put simply: Is God only looking into the future and seeing what WE are choosing to do. Or are we doing what we do in the future because God sees us doing it?

Time it would seem, is relative!

[adosohcohc]

if your a** actually want a legit response you need write this as actual question and not attack.

[Lucky~9~Lives]

Drinking Lysol

if your a** actually want a legit response you need write this as actual question and not attack.

What about it is an attack?

[Kaworu 17]

Mea quidem sententia

1. If God is ontologically perfect, as in he is perfect in being, then why would God create a universe?

Love.

Mea quidem sententia

For God to create a universe would mean he isn’t perfect.

This doesn't seem to follow. Why would God creating anything be a stain on his perfection? If anything it reinforces that attribute.

[Mea quidem sententia]

Drinking Lysol

if your a** actually want a legit response you need write this as actual question and not attack.

If you're a Christian, you should work on strengthening your faith if you think this is an attack.

[SunThornLilly]

Free will:

1) Think of it like this, you may have had waffles, but you had the option of not eating at all or eating something completely different. Does God know you had waffles, yes, he saw that possibility and every other possibility but instead of saying, oh waffles aren't as healthy as carrot sticks so I'm going to make that person eat carrot sticks, he lets you choose your own path.

2) It's not that God can only do right it's that he does only do right.

Morality:

1) God loves everyone not just the "holy" in fact "even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus" Romans 3:23-24, even those we call the righteous are not holy or righteous, just living under grace.

2) God didn't bring death to them the actions of their parents did. That pesky free will thing again.

and I'm being called to the dinner table so I'll try to remember to answer the rest of these later.

[Mea quidem sententia]

Kaworu 17

Mea quidem sententia

1. If God is ontologically perfect, as in he is perfect in being, then why would God create a universe?

Love.

Mea quidem sententia

For God to create a universe would mean he isn’t perfect.

This doesn't seem to follow. Why would God creating anything be a stain on his perfection? If anything it reinforces that attribute.

Love is an act towards others. Why would God's love cause him to create?

As to your second question, a perfect being does not need, want, nor require anything. To be perfect is to be complete.

[Kaworu 17]

Mea quidem sententia

Love is an act towards others. Why would God's love cause him to create?

As to your second question, a perfect being does not need, want, nor require anything. To be perfect is to be complete.

So that very love that can be acted on his creation.

Well that's the thing. God doesn't need to create anything, nor does he require his creation to love him. You are right that a perfect being doesn't need anything, yet in spite of that we exist. It means that our existence is not for his benefit, as if he needed the world to exist because he's lonely or some other reason like that. It's for our own benefit. We exist because he wants us to exist, but we are the ones who come out "winning" by this fact. We gain everything, whereas he gains very little.

[Amarok Anernerk]

SunThornLilly

2) It's not that God can only do right it's that he does only do right.

May I play Christian advocate again and offer you a better argument?

That which is perfect cannot be imperfect. That which is omnipotent cannot fail at something. That which is absolutely good cannot do evil. If your god had any kind of limitation it would be TO weakness, and not A weakness.

[adosohcohc]

Mea quidem sententia

Drinking Lysol

if your a** actually want a legit response you need write this as actual question and not attack.

If you're a Christian, you should work on strengthening your faith if you think this is an attack.

don't need to be Christian to tell what an attack is

[The Legendary Guest]

Mea quidem sententia

If you're a Christian, you should work on strengthening your faith if you think this is an attack.

Drinking Lysol is a known POE, likely someone's sock. I suggest the ignore function. If you doubt, check the profile.

[keito-ninja]

Mea quidem sententia

Free will
1. If God is omniscient (knows all things; knows what will happen before they happen), then how do humans have free will? If I was going to have waffles at 8:00 am on Sunday of (insert day, month, and year), and if God knows I will do exactly this without any slight variation, then every action I do will be known before I do it.

Knowing what you will do is entirely different from dictating what you will do.

Mea quidem sententia

2. If God created humans with the ability to choose right or wrong (making them free agents), and if God can only do right, but not wrong, then is God not a free agent, since he is bound by his holy nature?

2.a. If God created humans with the ability to choose right or wrong (making them free agents), and if in the end those who are redeemed will only be able to do right, but not wrong, then are they no longer free?

God has the power to do wrong if he chose, but he chooses always to only do right because of his holy nature. The same principle applies to those who are redeemed.

Mea quidem sententia

(If to both questions the answer is no, then why couldn’t God create humans with free agency and possess a holy, unchangeable nature—or at least a nature that is strongly inclined towards holiness—in the midst of experiencing pain and suffering, just as it was with Jesus?)

I don't understand what you are asking here.

Mea quidem sententia

Morality
1. Does God love the holy because they are holy, or are they holy because they’re loved by God? If the former, then morality exists apart from God. If the latter, then God’s morals are arbitrary. (This means if in a world God said murder was good, then it would be because God said so.)

The former. Though God loves everybody, holy or not.

Mea quidem sententia

2. If God is morally perfect (free from fault; blameless), and if you believe God brought death to infants and children because of the actions of the parents, then how can God be morally perfect?

In some situations, the actions of the parents might cause the death of their children, but such is the result of natural consequences, not God's condemnation.

Mea quidem sententia

3. A man and a woman can perform acts, which are condemned by God if these acts are performed between two men or two women. Why does God take issue with these if the two of the same sex are consenting (both agree; no harm between the two)?

If it’s because it’s not considered natural, then neither is wearing clothes or using electronic devices (lights, microwaves, etc.). If it’s because neither can bear children, then God shouldn't be pleased with infertile/sterile people. If it’s because both are of the same sex, then God’s objection is arbitrary.

The key is marriage, not consent.

Mea quidem sententia

4. If a father had two sons and punished the one who wasn't doing anything wrong, while not punishing the son who did wrong, would this not appear wrong in your eyes? Liken this to humans, who are sons and daughters of God and Jesus taking the punishment for all of us (even though he did this because it was his father’s will). I think unconditional love would be the Father laying his life down for his children.

Jesus volunteered to take the punishment for all of us because he loves us. In order for the plan to work, he had to come to earth and die for us--something which the Father was not in a position to do.

Mea quidem sententia

Ontology
1. If God is ontologically perfect, as in he is perfect in being, then why would God create a universe? (To be ontologically perfect would mean God doesn’t need or want to create a universe, nor would he have any reason to do so. For God to create a universe would mean he isn’t perfect.)

To give his children a place to grow and learn.

Mea quidem sententia

Science
1. According to Genesis 1, the Universe was created in six days, but modern science tells us that the Universe came about 13.8 billion years ago. Genesis 1 tells us water was present and the land came from it, but modern science tells us the Earth had no water when it was being formed and water came about after.

Genesis also says the Sun and Moon were created on the same day with the stars, but the Sun is older than the Moon, and stars existed before Earth came to be. How do you resolve these apparent inaccuracies from a book whose source is from an all-knowing god?

2. In light of modern science, the historicity of Adam and Eve has been undermined based on the theory of evolution. How could the death and resurrection of Jesus be in effect if sin never entered the world?

"Day" does not necessarily mean one rotation of the earth, in this context.
I believe that the story of Adam and Eve is more or less literal, accounting for how sin entered the world.
There are many apparent inaccuracies between religion and science--I expect everyone comes to terms with them in different ways.

[The Legendary Guest]

keito-ninja

Mea quidem sententia

Free will
1. If God is omniscient (knows all things; knows what will happen before they happen), then how do humans have free will? If I was going to have waffles at 8:00 am on Sunday of (insert day, month, and year), and if God knows I will do exactly this without any slight variation, then every action I do will be known before I do it.

Knowing what you will do is entirely different from dictating what you will do.

That doesn't really change the scope of the question, though.

Quote:

Mea quidem sententia

2. If God created humans with the ability to choose right or wrong (making them free agents), and if God can only do right, but not wrong, then is God not a free agent, since he is bound by his holy nature?

2.a. If God created humans with the ability to choose right or wrong (making them free agents), and if in the end those who are redeemed will only be able to do right, but not wrong, then are they no longer free?

God has the power to do wrong if he chose, but he chooses always to only do right because of his holy nature. The same principle applies to those who are redeemed.

Demonstrate what indicates "a holy nature".

Quote:

Mea quidem sententia

Morality
1. Does God love the holy because they are holy, or are they holy because they’re loved by God? If the former, then morality exists apart from God. If the latter, then God’s morals are arbitrary. (This means if in a world God said murder was good, then it would be because God said so.)

The former. Though God loves everybody, holy or not.

Demonstrate how eternal torture for a being whose every move was known to the god ahead of time fits in with the notion of "loving everybody".

Quote:

Mea quidem sententia

2. If God is morally perfect (free from fault; blameless), and if you believe God brought death to infants and children because of the actions of the parents, then how can God be morally perfect?

In some situations, the actions of the parents might cause the death of their children, but such is the result of natural consequences, not God's condemnation.

So the omniscient god creates some children just to die due to the actions of their parents, is that it?

Quote:

Mea quidem sententia

3. A man and a woman can perform acts, which are condemned by God if these acts are performed between two men or two women. Why does God take issue with these if the two of the same sex are consenting (both agree; no harm between the two)?

If it’s because it’s not considered natural, then neither is wearing clothes or using electronic devices (lights, microwaves, etc.). If it’s because neither can bear children, then God shouldn't be pleased with infertile/sterile people. If it’s because both are of the same sex, then God’s objection is arbitrary.

The key is marriage, not consent.

So if the partners are married, that excuses the homosexuality, according to your way of thinking? Where does it say that in the text? Please understand that I am aware you rely on non-canonical texts as well.

Quote:

Mea quidem sententia

4. If a father had two sons and punished the one who wasn't doing anything wrong, while not punishing the son who did wrong, would this not appear wrong in your eyes? Liken this to humans, who are sons and daughters of God and Jesus taking the punishment for all of us (even though he did this because it was his father’s will). I think unconditional love would be the Father laying his life down for his children.

Jesus volunteered to take the punishment for all of us because he loves us. In order for the plan to work, he had to come to earth and die for us--something which the Father was not in a position to do.

That's not answering the question, though. How is it moral to punish one child for the mistakes of the others?

Quote:

Mea quidem sententia

Ontology
1. If God is ontologically perfect, as in he is perfect in being, then why would God create a universe? (To be ontologically perfect would mean God doesn’t need or want to create a universe, nor would he have any reason to do so. For God to create a universe would mean he isn’t perfect.)

To give his children a place to grow and learn.

Why does the god need children if the god is ontologically perfect?

Quote:

Mea quidem sententia

Science
1. According to Genesis 1, the Universe was created in six days, but modern science tells us that the Universe came about 13.8 billion years ago. Genesis 1 tells us water was present and the land came from it, but modern science tells us the Earth had no water when it was being formed and water came about after.

Genesis also says the Sun and Moon were created on the same day with the stars, but the Sun is older than the Moon, and stars existed before Earth came to be. How do you resolve these apparent inaccuracies from a book whose source is from an all-knowing god?


2. In light of modern science, the historicity of Adam and Eve has been undermined based on the theory of evolution. How could the death and resurrection of Jesus be in effect if sin never entered the world?

"Day" does not necessarily mean one rotation of the earth, in this context.
I believe that the story of Adam and Eve is more or less literal, accounting for how sin entered the world.
There are many apparent inaccuracies between religion and science--I expect everyone comes to terms with them in different ways.

How was there any such concept as "day" before the Earth revolved around the sun? Evolution disproves the notion of a literal Genesis account with respect to life on Earth.

[keito-ninja]

The Legendary Guest

To clarify: Are you actually interested in hearing my opinions, or do you just want to disagree with me? I purposefully kept my answers to the original questions short and to the point, because to explain my beliefs in detail would take up a lot of energy and page space, and I didn't think he was looking for multiple essays. If you are genuinely curious to hear a more in-depth explanation of any of my answers, let me know which ones, and what specifically you would like to know. If I'm misinterpreting your tone, and you were genuinely curious about each of the questions you asked, let me know and I'll go through and answer them to the best of my ability.