CONSCIOUSNESS AND NOTHINGNESS
How much does a dead body know? Absolutely nothing. A body can only know if it is alive and conscious. The knowing part of the body either departs the body after death or it vanishes. In either case, all must agree that a dead body knows absolutely nothing. A dead body has no awareness whatsoever of time and space. Time does not pass and space does not exist. A dead body even knows nothing about nothing. It absolutely knows nothing at all.
What about a whole universe composed of lifeless matter and energy? Consciousness does not inhere in lifeless matter and energy. Would not such a universe be in the same condition as a dead human body? In such a universe, time could not pass and space could not exist. Even nothingness could not exist in such a universe. This universe could only be equal to absolute nothingness.
One might object that one can imagine such a universe with space and passing through time. Yes, but then such a universe would not be a consciousless one. The consciousness of this imagined universe would reside in the mind of the one imagining it. The mind of the person imagining it gives time and space to it. One can only get an accurate view of a universe composed only of lifeless matter and energy if one refrains from imagining it; if one abstains from lending one's mind to it. In such a case, the only accurate view of such a universe would be one of absolute nothingness.
The physicists who study quantum mechanics have discovered that elementary particles, such as electrons, exist simultaneously as both a wave function and a particle until measured by a conscious person. By the way it is measured, consciousness can cause an electron to become either a wave or a particle.
Does not this same condition exist for time and space? Time is measured in seconds or hours or years by consciousness alone. Time that is not measured is no time at all. A unit of space, no matter how large or small, must be measured by consciousness to be space.
One might object that a person can look through a telescope and see that the universe is billions of years old, and therefore, the universe must have passed through time and space prior to the emergence of consciousness to observe it. Yes, but then one must assume that our universe was consciousless before the time that consciousness observed it. If a dead body holds no consciousness, and therefore, knows absolutely nothing; and lifeless matter also holds no consciousness, and therefore, knows absolutely nothing, then how could our consciousless universe have passed through billions of years? Furthermore, if quantum mechanics has demonstrated that our universe needs consciousness to determine the difference between matter and energy, then how could our universe ever have been a consciousless one? It seems more reasonable to assume that our universe possessed a consciousness prior to human observation. This assumption would better account for the existence of space and the passage of time before human observation. This consciousness could only be the mind of God.
Saturday, December 10, 2011
Friday, December 9, 2011
ON LOVE AND THE LAW part 3
Here read (KJV) Proverbs 10:12 I Peter 4:8 I Corinthians 13:8 Romans 13:8-10 Romans 7:13
The law is rigid, hard and inflexible. As such, the law cannot be made to apply to every situation in life. The purpose of the law is to show the guilty just how guilty they are. In other words, where the conscience may be vague, the law is direct and clear. Those who violate the law God condemns to death because He is determined to cleanse His universe of all of the filthiness of sin.
On the other hand, love is completely fluid and flexible and can be made to apply to every situation in life. For this reason, situations exist in life where love trumps a strict application of the law. Romans 13:8-10 teaches that love has already fulfilled the law. One of the meanings of fulfill is "to complete." If one could love God and one's neighbor with a perfect love, then one would have no need for rigid laws. One would automatically do whatever the law requires and even more. The problem is that all humans are sinners, and therefore, cannot love perfectly. The law teaches humans that they are sinners. God's love frees humans from sin, and therefore, from any need for law.
Even human law recognizes that when a person motivated by love violates the law, then that person is usually given a lighter sentence than one motivated by greed or hate or some other negative motivation.
That which humans cannot do because of original sin, God who is Love, can do perfectly. God created all things. This means God created even negative elements such as "hatred" and "jealousy," but these elements are positive as God uses them. As used by humans, "hatred" is almost always cruel and sinful. But when God uses "hatred" He is wholly motivated by love, and therefore, He uses it in an absolutely perfect manner. Hebrews 1:9 teaches that God loves righteousness and hates iniquity. God hates iniquity because it destroys people, but He loves the righteousness of His Son because He saves people from their sins. Song of Solomon 8:6 teaches that, for humans, "jealousy is as cruel as the grave." But Exodus 20:5 relates that "I the Lord thy God am a jealous God," and Exodus 34:14 reveals that one of God's names is "Jealous." God's use of jealousy demonstrates His fierce determination to protect His people from all of the destructive effects of sin and evil.
Lies were not created by God. They were not created, but they were invented, by Satan. However, lies always comprise false combinations of true elements that were created by God. For instance, in Genesis 3:4 when the serpent told Eve: "Ye shall not surely die," he lied. Yet, every element of his lie is a true and useful element that was created by God. "Ye" means Eve was a real person created by God. "Shall" is a true element which means: "an act of the will." "Not" is a real idea of nothing which means in this case: "The real considered as a negative." "Surely" is a true element which means: "for certain." "Die" is a real element which means: "to separate the disobedient from God's presence." The effect of this invented false combination was that Eve was convinced that she could escape the death that results from disobedience. The result of her and Adam's disobedience proved useless and ineffective. On the very day they disobeyed, they died spiritually and God cast them out of His garden.
However, God knows how to use even lies in a wholly loving and creative way. God knows perfectly how to use Satan's own weapon against him. God demonstrated His ability to do this in I Kings 22 when He used a "lying spirit" in His efforts to protect His guileless servant Jehoshaphat from the evil machinations of Ahab. Titus 1:2 and Hebrews 6:18 do teach that God cannot lie, but both of these verses are about God's promises to His people. God cannot lie to His people, but God can use lies in a wholly loving way to protect His people.
The Bible records that in the Great Flood and in Sodom and Gomorrah, God destroyed huge numbers of people. After God brought the children of Israel out of Egypt, He sometimes commanded the Israeli army to destroy whole cities with every man, woman and child. Atheists charge God with cruelty for doing this. Actually, God was merciful to humanity as a whole when He took these actions. The humans that God destroyed or had destroyed were themselves very cruel and wicked. They sacrificed their children to their gods, and did many other very cruel practices. These people were very much like the Nazis; wholly given over to evil.
God destroyed this wickedness for the same reason that one would pull the weeds out of one's garden. If a gardener does not weed his garden, the weeds will take over and his vegetables will be choked out. If God had not, from time to time, destroyed huge numbers of wicked people, then their progeny would have become so numerous that the light of God's future gospel would have been so dimmed that few humans would ever be saved. God was merciful in that He made a way for His future gospel to shine brighter in the world so that the maximum number of people would hear His gospel and get saved. God destroyed even the children of the wicked because they were their progeny, and would have carried on the wickedness of their parents. Even in modern times, whole nations have become devoted to evil as did Nazi Germany prior to WWII. Everyone knows the terrible price the free world had to pay to protect itself from the horrible darkness that they would have brought to the world had they won. God is merciful. He will do whatever is necessary to protect His people from the horrible darkness.
Here read John 3:16
This glorious gospel that saves mankind from sin and evil is nothing less than the death, burial and resurrection of God's Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus took the sin and evil of every human that ever lived on Himself when He died on the cross. Jesus sacrificed Himself for them; taking their just punishment on Himself. His shed blood will wash away the sin of all who will believe in Him. God demonstrated His great love for the world in the crucifixion and resurrection of His Son. All who repent of their sins, and put their trust in Him, will be saved forever from the horrible darkness.
The law is rigid, hard and inflexible. As such, the law cannot be made to apply to every situation in life. The purpose of the law is to show the guilty just how guilty they are. In other words, where the conscience may be vague, the law is direct and clear. Those who violate the law God condemns to death because He is determined to cleanse His universe of all of the filthiness of sin.
On the other hand, love is completely fluid and flexible and can be made to apply to every situation in life. For this reason, situations exist in life where love trumps a strict application of the law. Romans 13:8-10 teaches that love has already fulfilled the law. One of the meanings of fulfill is "to complete." If one could love God and one's neighbor with a perfect love, then one would have no need for rigid laws. One would automatically do whatever the law requires and even more. The problem is that all humans are sinners, and therefore, cannot love perfectly. The law teaches humans that they are sinners. God's love frees humans from sin, and therefore, from any need for law.
Even human law recognizes that when a person motivated by love violates the law, then that person is usually given a lighter sentence than one motivated by greed or hate or some other negative motivation.
That which humans cannot do because of original sin, God who is Love, can do perfectly. God created all things. This means God created even negative elements such as "hatred" and "jealousy," but these elements are positive as God uses them. As used by humans, "hatred" is almost always cruel and sinful. But when God uses "hatred" He is wholly motivated by love, and therefore, He uses it in an absolutely perfect manner. Hebrews 1:9 teaches that God loves righteousness and hates iniquity. God hates iniquity because it destroys people, but He loves the righteousness of His Son because He saves people from their sins. Song of Solomon 8:6 teaches that, for humans, "jealousy is as cruel as the grave." But Exodus 20:5 relates that "I the Lord thy God am a jealous God," and Exodus 34:14 reveals that one of God's names is "Jealous." God's use of jealousy demonstrates His fierce determination to protect His people from all of the destructive effects of sin and evil.
Lies were not created by God. They were not created, but they were invented, by Satan. However, lies always comprise false combinations of true elements that were created by God. For instance, in Genesis 3:4 when the serpent told Eve: "Ye shall not surely die," he lied. Yet, every element of his lie is a true and useful element that was created by God. "Ye" means Eve was a real person created by God. "Shall" is a true element which means: "an act of the will." "Not" is a real idea of nothing which means in this case: "The real considered as a negative." "Surely" is a true element which means: "for certain." "Die" is a real element which means: "to separate the disobedient from God's presence." The effect of this invented false combination was that Eve was convinced that she could escape the death that results from disobedience. The result of her and Adam's disobedience proved useless and ineffective. On the very day they disobeyed, they died spiritually and God cast them out of His garden.
However, God knows how to use even lies in a wholly loving and creative way. God knows perfectly how to use Satan's own weapon against him. God demonstrated His ability to do this in I Kings 22 when He used a "lying spirit" in His efforts to protect His guileless servant Jehoshaphat from the evil machinations of Ahab. Titus 1:2 and Hebrews 6:18 do teach that God cannot lie, but both of these verses are about God's promises to His people. God cannot lie to His people, but God can use lies in a wholly loving way to protect His people.
The Bible records that in the Great Flood and in Sodom and Gomorrah, God destroyed huge numbers of people. After God brought the children of Israel out of Egypt, He sometimes commanded the Israeli army to destroy whole cities with every man, woman and child. Atheists charge God with cruelty for doing this. Actually, God was merciful to humanity as a whole when He took these actions. The humans that God destroyed or had destroyed were themselves very cruel and wicked. They sacrificed their children to their gods, and did many other very cruel practices. These people were very much like the Nazis; wholly given over to evil.
God destroyed this wickedness for the same reason that one would pull the weeds out of one's garden. If a gardener does not weed his garden, the weeds will take over and his vegetables will be choked out. If God had not, from time to time, destroyed huge numbers of wicked people, then their progeny would have become so numerous that the light of God's future gospel would have been so dimmed that few humans would ever be saved. God was merciful in that He made a way for His future gospel to shine brighter in the world so that the maximum number of people would hear His gospel and get saved. God destroyed even the children of the wicked because they were their progeny, and would have carried on the wickedness of their parents. Even in modern times, whole nations have become devoted to evil as did Nazi Germany prior to WWII. Everyone knows the terrible price the free world had to pay to protect itself from the horrible darkness that they would have brought to the world had they won. God is merciful. He will do whatever is necessary to protect His people from the horrible darkness.
Here read John 3:16
This glorious gospel that saves mankind from sin and evil is nothing less than the death, burial and resurrection of God's Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus took the sin and evil of every human that ever lived on Himself when He died on the cross. Jesus sacrificed Himself for them; taking their just punishment on Himself. His shed blood will wash away the sin of all who will believe in Him. God demonstrated His great love for the world in the crucifixion and resurrection of His Son. All who repent of their sins, and put their trust in Him, will be saved forever from the horrible darkness.
Thursday, December 8, 2011
ON LOVE AND THE LAW part 2
Here read I Kings 22: 1-38 II Chronicles 18:1-34
Another good example of how this rule applies in God's Word(KJV) occurs in the story of the alliance of Jehoshaphat and Ahab. Jehoshaphat was a godly king of Judah, but he was unbelievably naive and idealistic. Ahab was the wicked king of Israel. Apparently, Jehoshaphat believed that because the people of Israel and the people of Judah shared the same lineage and language, that he could make an alliance with the king of Israel and both countries could be friends. Jehoshaphat was such a simple person that he did not realize that whenever goodness tries to ally with evil, the evil will always attempt to use the good for its own selfish purposes.
Ahab quickly found a way to use his new-found friend when he persuaded Jehoshaphat to join his army to Ahab's army in a fight with Syria. The hapless Jehoshaphat eagerly complied, but being a godly man he wanted Ahab to ask a prophet of the Lord about the wisdom of this venture.
Instead, Ahab gathered four hundred false prophets who would be sure to tell him that which he wanted to hear. He also thought that this false display would deceive Jehoshaphat into doing that which Ahab wanted. However, Jehoshaphat's loyalty to God overcame his naivete, and he insisted that Ahab call a prophet of the Lord to enquire of him. Ahab answered that there was one such prophet, Micaiah the son of Imlah, but tried to dissuade Jehoshaphat from calling him on the grounds that Micaiah was prejudiced against Ahab, always giving him an evil report. Jehoshaphat, knowing that a true prophet of God always gives a true report, simply told Ahab that he should not say such a thing.
Ahab, seeing that he could not get around Jehoshaphat's insistence, had an officer call Micaiah to prophesy. Secretly, Ahab told the officer to try to subvert Micaiah to agree with the false reports of the false prophets who were putting on a show for Ahab to convince Jehoshaphat that Ahab's campaign against the Syrians would be successful.
True to his status as a genuine prophet of God, Micaiah told the officer that he would report only that which the Lord told him to say. Micaiah was very courageous to take this stance because he knew that Ahab had the power to cast him into prison. As it turned out, Ahab did exactly that.
When Ahab asked Micaiah about his prophecy as to whether or not Israel and Judah should go to war, Micaiah answered that the king should go to war and prosper. Apparently though, Micaiah had said this in such a sarcastic voice, that Ahab immediately demanded that Micaiah report the truth of God's word. Ahab was smart enough to know that he could not accept this answer because he knew that everyone, especially king Jehoshaphat, had heard the unmistakable sarcasm in Micaiah's voice and that his answer would create doubt in Jehoshaphat's mind. In order to overcome this doubt, Ahab had no choice but to demand that Micaiah provide a true answer. Micaiah promptly complied, telling Ahab that Israel would lose the battle and his army would be scattered over the hills.
Ahab then immediately fell back to his old tactic of complaining that Micaiah simply held prejudices against him. This quick switch had its desired effect. Jehoshaphat's putative doubt about Ahab quickly changed to his having a doubt about Micaiah. Thus Ahab's clever trickery persuaded the gullible Jehoshaphat to ally with him despite Micaiah's following explanation of the vision that God had given him.
Micaiah then related his vision about how God had employed a "lying spirit" to deceive Ahab into going into a battle that would destroy him. However, Micaiah's message was meant for Jehoshaphat, not Ahab. Despite all of Ahab's show and machinations, God was trying to get the message to Jehoshaphat that Ahab was not his friend, and that he should not go to war with him. God knew that the naive Jehoshaphat needed special protection. Indeed, through his whole life Jehoshaphat received God's special protection.
For a human to lie to another person in order to cause his destruction constitutes a definite sin. Yet, God not only allowed, but commanded the "lying spirit" to deceive Ahab. This fact makes God directly responsible for the lie. God lied to Ahab. Did God sin? Absolutely, He did not. Because of His love and mercy toward Jehoshaphat, God desired to destroy the evil Ahab in order to protect Jehoshaphat. At the same time, God tried to get a message to Jehoshaphat that he should separate himself from Ahab.
Jehoshaphat knew that the false prophets were not of God. He had heard the sarcasm in Micaiah's voice. He also had heard Micaiah's true account of the vision that God had given him. Incidentally, Micaiah had not lied about relating only that which God had told him when he gave his sarcastic answer. He merely repeated that which the "lying spirit" had told Ahab.
God did everything He could to alert the simple Jehoshaphat to Ahab's evil intentions. Yet, despite all of God's efforts on his behalf, the addle-brained Jehoshaphat went to war with Ahab anyway.
When they went to the battle, Ahab told Jehoshaphat to keep his royal robes on, while Ahab disguised himself as an ordinary soldier. Ahab's wicked intent should have been apparent to Jehoshaphat. Ahab knew that the Syrians would go all out to kill him, so he tricked Jehoshaphat into wearing his royal robes so that the Syrians would mistake Jehoshaphat for him. This is exactly what happened, but God's special protection for Jehoshaphat prevailed and spared him from harm. However, Ahab was killed by a stray arrow shot in the general direction of the Israeli army. Thus, God's justice prevailed in the end.
This story constitutes one of the best examples in scripture of how any action perfectly motivated by love and mercy trumps the law and cannot, in itself, be sinful. During WWII, America and its allies used many lies and deceptions against the evil Nazis and Fascists in order to save lives and shorten the war. These actions were not sinful. In fact, they were noble and good because they were completely motivated by a desire to save the freedom-loving people of the world.
Another good example of how this rule applies in God's Word(KJV) occurs in the story of the alliance of Jehoshaphat and Ahab. Jehoshaphat was a godly king of Judah, but he was unbelievably naive and idealistic. Ahab was the wicked king of Israel. Apparently, Jehoshaphat believed that because the people of Israel and the people of Judah shared the same lineage and language, that he could make an alliance with the king of Israel and both countries could be friends. Jehoshaphat was such a simple person that he did not realize that whenever goodness tries to ally with evil, the evil will always attempt to use the good for its own selfish purposes.
Ahab quickly found a way to use his new-found friend when he persuaded Jehoshaphat to join his army to Ahab's army in a fight with Syria. The hapless Jehoshaphat eagerly complied, but being a godly man he wanted Ahab to ask a prophet of the Lord about the wisdom of this venture.
Instead, Ahab gathered four hundred false prophets who would be sure to tell him that which he wanted to hear. He also thought that this false display would deceive Jehoshaphat into doing that which Ahab wanted. However, Jehoshaphat's loyalty to God overcame his naivete, and he insisted that Ahab call a prophet of the Lord to enquire of him. Ahab answered that there was one such prophet, Micaiah the son of Imlah, but tried to dissuade Jehoshaphat from calling him on the grounds that Micaiah was prejudiced against Ahab, always giving him an evil report. Jehoshaphat, knowing that a true prophet of God always gives a true report, simply told Ahab that he should not say such a thing.
Ahab, seeing that he could not get around Jehoshaphat's insistence, had an officer call Micaiah to prophesy. Secretly, Ahab told the officer to try to subvert Micaiah to agree with the false reports of the false prophets who were putting on a show for Ahab to convince Jehoshaphat that Ahab's campaign against the Syrians would be successful.
True to his status as a genuine prophet of God, Micaiah told the officer that he would report only that which the Lord told him to say. Micaiah was very courageous to take this stance because he knew that Ahab had the power to cast him into prison. As it turned out, Ahab did exactly that.
When Ahab asked Micaiah about his prophecy as to whether or not Israel and Judah should go to war, Micaiah answered that the king should go to war and prosper. Apparently though, Micaiah had said this in such a sarcastic voice, that Ahab immediately demanded that Micaiah report the truth of God's word. Ahab was smart enough to know that he could not accept this answer because he knew that everyone, especially king Jehoshaphat, had heard the unmistakable sarcasm in Micaiah's voice and that his answer would create doubt in Jehoshaphat's mind. In order to overcome this doubt, Ahab had no choice but to demand that Micaiah provide a true answer. Micaiah promptly complied, telling Ahab that Israel would lose the battle and his army would be scattered over the hills.
Ahab then immediately fell back to his old tactic of complaining that Micaiah simply held prejudices against him. This quick switch had its desired effect. Jehoshaphat's putative doubt about Ahab quickly changed to his having a doubt about Micaiah. Thus Ahab's clever trickery persuaded the gullible Jehoshaphat to ally with him despite Micaiah's following explanation of the vision that God had given him.
Micaiah then related his vision about how God had employed a "lying spirit" to deceive Ahab into going into a battle that would destroy him. However, Micaiah's message was meant for Jehoshaphat, not Ahab. Despite all of Ahab's show and machinations, God was trying to get the message to Jehoshaphat that Ahab was not his friend, and that he should not go to war with him. God knew that the naive Jehoshaphat needed special protection. Indeed, through his whole life Jehoshaphat received God's special protection.
For a human to lie to another person in order to cause his destruction constitutes a definite sin. Yet, God not only allowed, but commanded the "lying spirit" to deceive Ahab. This fact makes God directly responsible for the lie. God lied to Ahab. Did God sin? Absolutely, He did not. Because of His love and mercy toward Jehoshaphat, God desired to destroy the evil Ahab in order to protect Jehoshaphat. At the same time, God tried to get a message to Jehoshaphat that he should separate himself from Ahab.
Jehoshaphat knew that the false prophets were not of God. He had heard the sarcasm in Micaiah's voice. He also had heard Micaiah's true account of the vision that God had given him. Incidentally, Micaiah had not lied about relating only that which God had told him when he gave his sarcastic answer. He merely repeated that which the "lying spirit" had told Ahab.
God did everything He could to alert the simple Jehoshaphat to Ahab's evil intentions. Yet, despite all of God's efforts on his behalf, the addle-brained Jehoshaphat went to war with Ahab anyway.
When they went to the battle, Ahab told Jehoshaphat to keep his royal robes on, while Ahab disguised himself as an ordinary soldier. Ahab's wicked intent should have been apparent to Jehoshaphat. Ahab knew that the Syrians would go all out to kill him, so he tricked Jehoshaphat into wearing his royal robes so that the Syrians would mistake Jehoshaphat for him. This is exactly what happened, but God's special protection for Jehoshaphat prevailed and spared him from harm. However, Ahab was killed by a stray arrow shot in the general direction of the Israeli army. Thus, God's justice prevailed in the end.
This story constitutes one of the best examples in scripture of how any action perfectly motivated by love and mercy trumps the law and cannot, in itself, be sinful. During WWII, America and its allies used many lies and deceptions against the evil Nazis and Fascists in order to save lives and shorten the war. These actions were not sinful. In fact, they were noble and good because they were completely motivated by a desire to save the freedom-loving people of the world.
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
ON LOVE AND THE LAW part 1
Here read II Corinthians 5:21 Matthew 12:1-14 Mark 2:23-28 Mark 3:1-5 Luke 6:1-11 Leviticus 24:5-9
I Kings 22:6-23 II Chronicles 18:1-22 Hosea 6:6 Micah 6:6-8 Numbers 28:9-10
Beyond a shadow of a doubt, the Lord Jesus Christ never sinned or broke the law of God. He could not sin because He was God in human form and had no original sin in Him that would compel Him to sin. He is Life itself, and so when Satan tempted Him, He simply overcame Satan by quoting the Word of God. Thus He proved that Life cannot be destroyed.
One day the Pharisees rebuked Jesus for allowing His disciples to glean on the Sabbath day. They were trying to accuse Jesus of violating the law so that they could gain some power over Him. Jesus ignored their misreading of the law. The law of gleaning taught nothing about not gleaning on the Sabbath, and the law of the Sabbath rest allowed eating on the Sabbath.
Instead, Jesus chose to rebuke them in another way. He reminded them of the story of how David, and they that were with him, had eaten the shewbread which, by law, only the priests were allowed to eat. Then, He reminded them how, in the law, God had ordered the priests to make a special burnt-offering sacrifice on the Sabbath day. The subtle contrast between these two stories conveyed a message to the Pharisees that Jesus knew they would miss. The priests could hardly be blamed for violating the Sabbath by following God's command to sacrifice on the Sabbath, and David could not be blamed for showing mercy to himself and his followers when they were hungry, even though he technically violated the law by eating the priests' shewbread.
Jesus then emphasized His message, which again He knew they would miss, by flatly telling them that He was greater than the temple. Jesus used the temple as a symbol for the law because the temple held the law. Jesus' subtle message to the Pharisees was that He was God, and that God alone decides when His law has been violated and when it has not.
Jesus further emphasized His message by quoting the prophets Hosea and Micah who had taught, by the inspiration of God, that mercy was better than sacrifice. Jesus' message should have been plain to the Pharisees. It is good to obey God by sacrificing animals, but it is better to practice mercy which these sacrifices symbolize even if one technically violates the law by doing so.
Jesus then further spiked the ire of the Pharisees by brazenly telling them: "For the Son of man is Lord even of the Sabbath day." This message was unmistakable. Since God is Lord of the Sabbath, and therefore Lord over the whole law, then He retains the right to decide when love and mercy trumps a technical violation of the law. Thus, God held David blameless for eating the priests' shewbread because he was wholly motivated by love and mercy when he did so.
Immediately following Jesus' attempt to teach the clueless Pharisees, He entered a synagogue where He healed a man with a withered hand. This healing was a direct example of that lesson He had just been teaching.
The Pharisees asked Jesus if He wasn't violating the law when He healed this man on the Sabbath. The Pharisees considered this to be work on the Sabbath rest. The hypocritical Pharisees ignored compassion and mercy and demanded that the people observe a very strict adherence to the law as they interpreted it. They did this because they wanted to control the people themselves by making them forget that God is merciful. By putting impossible demands on the people, the Pharisees could dump guilt on them for the slightest infraction, knowing that whoever can be made to feel guilty can be controlled.
Jesus exposed their hypocrisy when He pointed out the fact that they had no problem rescuing animals on the Sabbath, but had no compassion for the rescue of people. Jesus then plainly told them the whole truth of the matter when He said: "Wherefore it is lawful to do well on the Sabbath days." No person ever violates the law of God in any act that is completely motivated by love and mercy even if such an act constitutes a technical violation of the law.
One caveat follows from this rule. One must be wholly motivated by love and compassion. If even the slightest amount of selfishness should enter into the motivation, then the act is ruined and that person has sinned. Remember the proverbial warning of the expert stunt performer: "Don't try this at home." Jesus is the expert. Humans are not.
Even human law recognizes this rule to a certain extent. For example, a person who commits a so-called "mercy killing" usually gets a light sentence because the judge realizes that even though that person may have been motivated by love and compassion when they killed a suffering loved one, that killer may also have been partly motivated by selfishness in wanting to rid himself of a burden. Soldiers in combat who kill their comrades who beg for death because they have been horribly maimed, usually are not punished at all. In any case, one must be extremely circumspect when contemplating an act of mercy that violates a law. Usually, one would be better off to leave these types of actions to God alone.
I Kings 22:6-23 II Chronicles 18:1-22 Hosea 6:6 Micah 6:6-8 Numbers 28:9-10
Beyond a shadow of a doubt, the Lord Jesus Christ never sinned or broke the law of God. He could not sin because He was God in human form and had no original sin in Him that would compel Him to sin. He is Life itself, and so when Satan tempted Him, He simply overcame Satan by quoting the Word of God. Thus He proved that Life cannot be destroyed.
One day the Pharisees rebuked Jesus for allowing His disciples to glean on the Sabbath day. They were trying to accuse Jesus of violating the law so that they could gain some power over Him. Jesus ignored their misreading of the law. The law of gleaning taught nothing about not gleaning on the Sabbath, and the law of the Sabbath rest allowed eating on the Sabbath.
Instead, Jesus chose to rebuke them in another way. He reminded them of the story of how David, and they that were with him, had eaten the shewbread which, by law, only the priests were allowed to eat. Then, He reminded them how, in the law, God had ordered the priests to make a special burnt-offering sacrifice on the Sabbath day. The subtle contrast between these two stories conveyed a message to the Pharisees that Jesus knew they would miss. The priests could hardly be blamed for violating the Sabbath by following God's command to sacrifice on the Sabbath, and David could not be blamed for showing mercy to himself and his followers when they were hungry, even though he technically violated the law by eating the priests' shewbread.
Jesus then emphasized His message, which again He knew they would miss, by flatly telling them that He was greater than the temple. Jesus used the temple as a symbol for the law because the temple held the law. Jesus' subtle message to the Pharisees was that He was God, and that God alone decides when His law has been violated and when it has not.
Jesus further emphasized His message by quoting the prophets Hosea and Micah who had taught, by the inspiration of God, that mercy was better than sacrifice. Jesus' message should have been plain to the Pharisees. It is good to obey God by sacrificing animals, but it is better to practice mercy which these sacrifices symbolize even if one technically violates the law by doing so.
Jesus then further spiked the ire of the Pharisees by brazenly telling them: "For the Son of man is Lord even of the Sabbath day." This message was unmistakable. Since God is Lord of the Sabbath, and therefore Lord over the whole law, then He retains the right to decide when love and mercy trumps a technical violation of the law. Thus, God held David blameless for eating the priests' shewbread because he was wholly motivated by love and mercy when he did so.
Immediately following Jesus' attempt to teach the clueless Pharisees, He entered a synagogue where He healed a man with a withered hand. This healing was a direct example of that lesson He had just been teaching.
The Pharisees asked Jesus if He wasn't violating the law when He healed this man on the Sabbath. The Pharisees considered this to be work on the Sabbath rest. The hypocritical Pharisees ignored compassion and mercy and demanded that the people observe a very strict adherence to the law as they interpreted it. They did this because they wanted to control the people themselves by making them forget that God is merciful. By putting impossible demands on the people, the Pharisees could dump guilt on them for the slightest infraction, knowing that whoever can be made to feel guilty can be controlled.
Jesus exposed their hypocrisy when He pointed out the fact that they had no problem rescuing animals on the Sabbath, but had no compassion for the rescue of people. Jesus then plainly told them the whole truth of the matter when He said: "Wherefore it is lawful to do well on the Sabbath days." No person ever violates the law of God in any act that is completely motivated by love and mercy even if such an act constitutes a technical violation of the law.
One caveat follows from this rule. One must be wholly motivated by love and compassion. If even the slightest amount of selfishness should enter into the motivation, then the act is ruined and that person has sinned. Remember the proverbial warning of the expert stunt performer: "Don't try this at home." Jesus is the expert. Humans are not.
Even human law recognizes this rule to a certain extent. For example, a person who commits a so-called "mercy killing" usually gets a light sentence because the judge realizes that even though that person may have been motivated by love and compassion when they killed a suffering loved one, that killer may also have been partly motivated by selfishness in wanting to rid himself of a burden. Soldiers in combat who kill their comrades who beg for death because they have been horribly maimed, usually are not punished at all. In any case, one must be extremely circumspect when contemplating an act of mercy that violates a law. Usually, one would be better off to leave these types of actions to God alone.
Monday, December 5, 2011
ON THE NATURE OF REALITY chapter 17
HEAVEN AND HELL
However, verses 15-16 reveal that believers retain the potentiality to understand and to judge all matters. Verse 16 clearly teaches that believers possess the "mind of Christ." This means that having been "born again," believers have been spiritually reconnected to the infinite mind of God, and thus possess an infinite amount of wisdom from which to draw.
I Corinthians 2:9-13 teaches that God reveals His eternal truths to believers beginning in this life and continuing into eternity. This means that believers will eventually possess more simple true ideas and their true combinations than unbelievers can ever have. Believers can draw greater wisdom from their spiritual reconnection to Infinite Duality.
Such facts can not mean that believers have nothing to do. Believers need to spend time praying, studying God’s Word, and listening to the Holy Spirit. Believers should battle the corrupting effects of sin and confusion every day. God’s will is that believers should work hard to become more like Christ. God acquires greater glory when believers use their freedom to discover greater truths. As Jesus taught in Luke 9:23, believers should take up their cross daily and follow him.
As I Corinthians 15:42-57, Philippians 3:20-21, I Thessalonians 4:13-18, and I John 3:2 teach, some day, in the resurrection and translation of the church, all believers will be transformed into spiritual-bodies like that of the resurrected Christ. This does not mean that believes will become gods, or that they will ever be as good as Jesus. Rather, it simply means that in their eternal home, believers will be forever disconnected form all sin and confusion. Their spiritual-bodies and minds will be perfectly clear of all corrupting influences so that they will be free to spend forever in learning more simple true ideas and in creating more true combinations. Believers will spend eternity worshiping God and learning more and more about Him. Believers will never know everything at once as God does, but they will be like bookworms in an infinite library continually consuming the infinite wisdom of God. Believers will spend forever learning new and beautiful truths that they can not now even begin to imagine. Only believers will be allowed to spend eternity learning more about science, art, mathematics, wisdom, and goodness. This privilege is reserved for those who humble themselves to God.
Skeptics and atheists have long argued that Christians exaggerate the importance of man by putting him at the center of the universe. They argue that since there is no God, then mankind is merely one form of finite intelligence among many finite intelligences scattered throughout the universe. They assert that because many of these intelligences may be superior to man’s, then man is probably a relatively unimportant creature in the universe.
However, it has never been true that Christians put man at the center of the universe. Christians put God at the center of the universe. God is the only being who is truly important. As Revelation 4:11 and 5:9 teach, God alone deserves all glory, praise, and honor. Man is merely a fallen creature on whom God has bestowed His love and grace.
Actually, the skeptics and atheists are the ones who put man, or some other finite intelligence, at the center of the universe. They put their faith in finite intelligence alone. Whether that intelligence belongs to man or some other creature is immaterial to them. To their way of thinking, finite intelligence is the greatest good. Finite intelligence will ultimately save mankind, if he can be saved, from all adversity including the collapse of the universe.
Their opinion reveals the height of arrogance and pride. The destructive effects of absolute nothingness have proven far too powerful for any finite intelligence to handle. Yet man, unwilling to admit that he needs help, shakes his puny fist in the face of the absolute nothingness that will one day crush him. Absolute nothingness simply overwhelms finite intelligence.
Mankind needs true humility. I Peter 5:5-6 teaches that men must humble themselves to God in order to receive grace and exaltation. As Jesus taught in His parable in Luke 18:9-14, such humility must be an admission of complete and utter helplessness in one’s combat with sin. The repentant sinner must empty himself of all pride and any thought of self-help, and come to depend completely upon Christ for his salvation. The repentant sinner must open his absolute nothingness to the creative powers of God already accomplished through the sacrifice and resurrection of His Son.
In John 14:6, Jesus taught that He is the only way to God. He is the truth, and He is the life. This fact means that religion teaches that, to one degree or another, man can do something to help himself overcome his sin. God’s Word teaches that there is absolutely nothing that a man can do to overcome his absolute nothingness. A repentant sinner must humble himself enough to admit this fact to God. Then, he will be able to completely trust Christ for his salvation. Anything short of this is as unacceptable to God as was Cain’s offering. Thus Christianity may adopt some forms of religion, but true Christianity is not a religion, but rather, true Christianity comes into the hearts of believers through faith in the finished work of Christ. Hebrews 7:25 teaches that Christ alone saves to the uttermost.
Some believers, who are also members of some religion, may yet be saved because God will forgive their sin of trusting their religion, which amounts to a lack of faith in Christ. Probably, all those who truly love Christ will be saved regardless of their Christian religious affiliation. However, believers must love the Christ of the Bible. They must love Jesus who is God and not some phony Jesus who was invented by their religion and who is less than God. True believers do fit into many categories, but they are all destined for heaven and they all possess an eternal fellowship with Christ. Those who do not believe that Jesus is God are not true believers.
All unbelievers, whether they are atheistic or religious, are bound for hell. Because of their disconnection from the eternal Spirit, they are destined to sink toward absolute nothingness forever. Their dualities can never be broken because they were created by God. Absolute nothingness can never completely destroy anything created by God.
This is truly a horrible fate, to sink forever toward destruction without ever being completely destroyed. Yet, one must remember that they descend into hell because they chose to put their faith in finite intelligence. For the most part, religious beliefs are in what man can do, which also amounts to belief in finite intelligence. In pride, unbelievers choose to believe in themselves rather than to humble themselves enough to ask God to save them. Even if God were to accept them into heaven, their condition would be far more horrible for them than hell itself. In heaven they would be compelled to admit that there is an Infinite Power far greater than themselves. Since they do not love God, they would be forced to live in constant humiliations. In time, they would beg to be sent back to hell. No doubt, all those in hell believe that someday their finite intelligences will devise a plan to get them out of there. They will always have a kind of hope.
Thus, for those who have faith in finite intelligence, heaven would prove a far worse punishment than would hell. Yet, there exists a finite punishment that is far worse than even the eternal punishment of hell. This punishment is the same kind that the Apostle Peter suffered shortly after denying Jesus. This is the punishment of believers’ remorse.
Imagine the depth of agony that Peter must have felt as recorded in Luke 22:61-62. Yet, he faced his remorse and allowed it to carry him to repentance, and as always, the forgiveness of Jesus. Jesus wanted Peter to know that he was forgiven in John 21 when Jesus asked Peter three times if he loved Him. Vestiges of shame would not allow Peter to reply with the strongest word for love; that is, the word "agape."
In contrast, Judas Iscariot also felt remorse for his betrayal of Jesus. Yet, pride kept him from allowing himself to be guided to the humility of repentance. Instead, he chose the lesser punishment of killing himself and going to hell. He would have to suffer many terrors in hell, but at least, he would not have to suffer the humiliation of having to repent. Because those in hell become demonic, in time, he would come to be glad that he betrayed Jesus.
Believers who commit suicide and those who die while living in deliberate disobedience suffer a tremendously profound remorse and subsequent repentance before the judgment seat of Christ that proves to be a worse punishment than all of the fires of hell could ever inflict. Yet, they can not lose their salvation and go to hell because God wills it so. They are predetermined to be conformed to the image of Christ because God wills it. In conflict with God, believers always lose. God wills that they suffer punishment worse than that of hell until such time as they repent.
The doctrine of purgatory is not taught in scripture. Purgatory would be a form of temporary hell in which the prideful could expiate their own sins. Only Christ can expiate sin, which accounts for the need for humility within believers.
As II Timothy 2:13 indicates, for Christ to deny His believers; He considers to be the same as denying Himself. Because He is literally their death, their life, and their righteousness, Jesus considers believers to have the same level of acceptance with the Father as He does, even if they quit believing. He can and will correct them, but He will never deny them. Note what Jesus said to Saul in Acts 9:4: "Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me"?
II Corinthians 5:10 and I Corinthians 3:12-17 teach that there will be a judgment of believers. I Corinthians 3:15 indicates that this judgment is for the saved. In this judgment, sinful believers receive a far greater punishment than they would ever have received in any temporary hell.
Verse 15 teaches that a believer’s evil works will be burned. Verse 17 indicates that God will destroy him. Yet, verse 15 states that he will be saved. This is not a contradiction. Apparently, that part of the believer’s personality that still clings to sin will be destroyed along with his evil works. This requires a depth of remorse and agony unknown to those in hell. Those in hell are punished forever, but at least they are allowed to remain what they are. Having a part of oneself destroyed would require a greater agony in finite time than could the fires of hell in infinite time.
Jesus evidently referred to believers’ punishment in Matthew 5:25-26, and in His parable recorded in Luke 12:41-48. This parable refers to a judgment of servants, and scripture never refers to unbelievers as servants of God. Jesus taught in His parable that faithful servants will be rewarded and unfaithful ones punished. What divides those who are punished from those who are rewarded? This judgment belongs to Christ alone. Eventually, Christ will bring all punished believers out of their agony upon repentance, forgive them, and restore them to fellowship with God and their fellow saints. This happens because God’s perfection of believers is unchangeable and inevitable. This is what God has done, and is doing, and He can not fail.
Chapters 21 and 22 of Revelation describe heaven as being unimaginably beautiful. This constitutes an apt environment for believers; they being directly connected to the infinite creativity and wisdom of God. The greatest joy of heaven is that believers will see Jesus and will forever praise and worship Him. Believers are also those of the human race who will enjoy progress forever. Believers will spend eternity in education and creativity, and all for the glory of God.
Hell is the appropriate place for unbelievers. Their suffering will prevent them from thinking about how to concoct any more evil. Eventually, as Revelation 20: 14-15 and Revelation 21: 8 indicates, hell and death and all unbelievers will be cast into the lake of fire where they will be thoroughly purged of all possibility of devising any more evil at all. God fully intends to eliminate all sin and evil from His universe. However, if any unbeliever will simply put their faith in Christ's power to save them, then He cannot refuse them as He has promised in John 6: 37.
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