An All-Loving God?

Question

If God is supposed to be this all loving being? Why is God's love (according to Christianity) conditional? God only loves you if haven't commited certain unforgivable sins?

I ask all parents this, could you ever stop loving your child?

I would hope your answer is 'no', because your love for them is unconditional. I would hope that God's love for HIS children would be the same OR BETTER than the love of a 'mere' human.

I don't believe that God should be feared, or that God's love for me is conditional. I believe my God/dess loves me no matter what and will ALWAYS be there for me to guide me and protect me when things go awry. I don't believe that the Christian idea of God being vengeful and angry and jealous is correct. God is peaceful and all-loving.

This makes me think of the Greek pantheon when gods were given human qualities. Christians frown upon that because God is not human, in any way --- yet aren't anger, jealousy, and vengefulness all human qualities?

Think.

Thank you lasermouse -- that was more or less my point. :-)

BTW, I'm not Christian, I'm Pagan -- so please no attempts to save my soul.

This is my point -- my own mother wouldn't care if I wouldn't admit I did something wrong -- she would still love me -- not keep her love hidden from me because of my obstinance, or kick me out of her house because I would admit I did something wrong.

I think God is better than what Christians believe S/He is.

excuse me, I meant 'wouldn't' kick me out of the house if I didn't accept I was wrong and promise to do every little thing she asked mem to...

The only way I am defining God/dess is through my personal experience. I don't follow the bible. I am saying I don't believe that the version of God that is in the bible is correct. Let us not forget that the bible was written by human hands and tempered with human minds. (Constantine/Council of Nicea) I believe that God/dess is a much better entity than what is described in the Christian bible.

Anger is the opposite of Love. Therefore I don't believe that God gets angry. I believe he/she can be sad about how we are treating the planet and each other. What I am referring to is that I don't think God would send me to Hell.

A friend of mine once said:

"God must be nicer than a mean person."

Although I certainly don't agree with all the answers i have recieved, I just want to express how grateful I am for the immense amount of answers I have recieved!

Thank you all for your time, effort, and knowledge. :-)

Answer 1

God's love is NOT conditional, that is what the fundamentalist, narrow minded Christians want people to believe.

I'm a Christian myself and I believe that God is a forgiving and understanding God of compassion.

Answer 2

You actually make some good points, and you give voice to a very common misconception about God in the Christian sense.

Before there were Christians, in other words, before the coming of Jesus the Christ, the God of the Hebrews spelled out a set of laws and commandments, specifically the 10 Commandments given to Moses. THe 'Mosaic Covenant' was the LAW. Breaking the LAW was punishable, and at the least required repenitence, often in the form of offerings burnt on the altar. The LAW applied directly to the Hebrews, God's chosen people. The Old Testament is all about the LAW, and also about prophesy, concerning the coming of the Christ, who would somehow culminate all of it.
Then Christ came, in the form of Jesus - if one does not believe this, then one is not exactly CHRIST-ian. Christ fulfilled the law for all who accept Him, by bearing out all of the punishment and becoming the last sacrifice (this is why Jesus is sometimes referred to as The Lamb of God). Jesus taught the Apostles to reach out even beyond the Hebrews to the Gentiles. The emnity that had existed between God and the rest of Mankind was removed. (Ephesians 2:10-16)

Sin is still something that separates us from God. A good definition of sin, is simply disobedience to God. Think of God as a father. Your dad had rules in his house. If you broke the rules, there was usually some form of consequence. We aren't perfect, and can really never be by anything that we ourselves would do. So sometimes, no matter how hard we try, we end up breaking the rules, the LAW. But the LAW is finished for those who believe in Jesus and accept His gift of salvation. Jesus intervenes on our behalf, and God forgives, instead of being wrathful.

The Old Testament is all about the wrath that God poured out upon His chosen people when they broke the law, and the enemies of His chosen people, before Christ came to intercede.

After Christ came, it was a whole new covenant created; Christ is the way back into our Father's good grace.

Answer 3

You need to study and learn more about Unconditional Love: God: Sin, Repentance, and Salvation!!! You seam to be looking at a very badly broken jigsaw of what God & His love etc are all about!!

You will soon see that dying, and getting through Heavens gates: has ‘NOTHING’ at all to do with: being a good, kind, generous, loving, caring, person: You can’t work your way to heaven, with good deeds: Believing in God: or the Bible: even the devil does that, & you can guarantee you wont be seeing him there: Joining a religious group: going to church every day, & twice on Sunday: won’t buy you this ticket!!

I know this will upset a lot of people: as they think the above things and more, makes them deserve a place in heaven: and they have all their hopes & beliefs pined on it!! Sadly wrong… A place in heaven, is secured or lost: only by an individuals making of a ‘Personal Choice’: of his/her own ‘Freewill’: given to him/her by God out of love!!

God’s love is Totally ‘UNCONDITIONAL’!!! No matter what you say: do: think: feel: how many times you reject or curse him: God still loves you!! However: Getting into Heaven is Conditional: on making the right personal choice!!

And it is ‘FARE’: as it is a personal choice open to ANY & every human on earth: young, old, black, white, yellow, rich, poor, beggar, thief, murderer, terrorist: EVERY ONE!!

There are rules & regulations governing all aspects of our lives, put on us by ‘Man’ made governments: our Parents: our Schools: Boss’s etc: and we are expected to obey them: or suffer the consequences, & pay the price!! Why should it be any different if we break the rules and regulations put down by God?

Take a look here and lean for yourself!! That is if you really want to know!?

http://christiananswers.net//directry.html

Answer 4

John 15:12-14

"This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you.
Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.
Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you."

God died for us, how is that conditional after the way we treat Him?? That's what Christianity is all about!!! Every Christian knows that God love is unconditional. He loves you whether you're straight, gay, hooked on drugs, hooked on phonics, alive, dead, or whatever. But there are things God won't tolerate.
God does get angry and God does get jealous.

Think about it, c'mon, if you're servin and giving your life to some other God, or worshiping PS2 or the television, yeah, I would hope that God would get a little jealous and angry. Why not? I'm putting more effort into some inanimate object, than the one who gave His life so that I might live forever; so that I don't have to suffer on earth, but have peace in the midst of turmoil. I would hope He got mad. And I'm glad He does.

He's peaceful and all-loving yes, but if He never got mad, the world would be the most perfect utopia ever. When people sin, they have to suffer the consequences of their choices, which is why the world is screwed up.
God Bless.

Answer 5

As I read through most of the answers you have gotten so far, I sadly shake my head and thank the Goddess for the gracious and loving being She is. I saw one that said "God's love is unconditional, but demands justice for sins" and "You are basing your belief on the concept that you get to create God"

I know my Goddess loves and accepts me as I am for the person I am, and when my body dies, I know that my soul will continue on, graced by Her guidance. And as far as the "concept that you get to create God", the Goddess was deity long before the christian god was "created". Man has shaped and molded Christianity from the beginning of it's existence, hence the numerous times the bible was re-written by the hand of MAN. The Old Religion hasn't been changed, only the way we worship has in that many pagans today don't have to fear being put to our death simply because we practice the Old Ways.

Answer 6

I don't have the complete answer, but I will give a shot at it.

If a person commits a sin habitually, then that imples that this person does not really like God, since he knows that what he is dong upsets God (or at least it implies that this person is indifferent to God's feelings).

Before one becomes too judgmental on God, ask yourself, why do most people have children? Just so that their children can turn into smart-mouthed teenagers and rebel? No one has children just because they thought that they needed a smart-mouth brat to give them a hard time because their life was too peaceful & quiet without children. If that was all there was to it, then you wouldn't have bothered to have children in the first place.

Most people have children because they believe that having children will bring them joy -- increasing the size of your family increases the number of your relationships.

If those relationships are good -- that is, marked by mutual gratitude & respect on both sides -- then it is fun to have this relationship. If the relationship is bad -- marked by one person being hostile, abusive, or indifferent -- then you are eventually forced to cast that person out of your life altogether so you don't have to deal with him anymore (sounds like hell, doesn't it?).

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If a person does like God, then don't you think that spending an eternity facing God's displeasure is torment?

Hell is isolation from God. If people do not like God, then God eventually takes back all that he gave them (pleasure, peace happiness) and leaves them alone for eternity, because that is what they wanted.

Answer 7

God is loving no matter what...and their is only a couple of sins that can turn you from him IF you don't ask him for forgivness. God always has opening arms a big heart that he wants to fill with love. Once I have children I will never stop loving them!!!I agree with you on the 4 paragraph. God is not vengeful angry or jealous such as love... love is patient, love is kind, so on so forth from the verse. God has sent Jesus down to earth and has expirinced all things that humans do. For god is 100% god and 100% human and he will help us on anything we need if we let him and trust him to be our heart and eyes of what is right.

Answer 8

First, it says we were created in His image meaning that we have His ways.....love, disappointment, joy, sorrow, pleasure, anger. Secondly, His love is not conditional according to Christian standards. He is all-loving, His love is unconditional. He just wants us to live a righteous, clean life. You get mad at your children when they do something bad or wrong, right? Because you want them to be safe and healthy, right? Because you want to see them succeed in life, right? That is my God, too. We all fall short of the glory of God but he gave us Christ to redeem our souls. In essence, we are all sinners....we have all done something wrong at one time or another. If He didn't love us all, He wouldn't have given His only begotten Son. Sorry that you have the wrong idea about the Christian God. If you read the Bible, maybe some of your other questions will be answered.

Answer 9

I am a christian and I believe that God does love unconditionally. Just because he gets upset about certain things doesn't mean that he stopped loving that person. He wants everyone to go to heaven so when he sees people doing evil things it makes him sad. Same thing with your child. You always love your child no matter what they do. You do get angry with them or sad about what they have done but you never stop loving them. If God made man in his image than he must have emotions too. I love God and that makes me want to be a good person for him. I know that I love God and that he loves me.

Answer 10

God is love.

Now, if you had 10 children, and one of them was raping and murdering the others, what would you do? Smile and say, isn't that sweet?

Who in your life has loved you the most? Think of whoever that person is, and then ask yourself, what was the greatest thing that person ever gave you.

Whatever it was, it cannot begin to compare to what God gave you, which is life itself. And God gave you freedom to choose. Even the most punished prisoner locked in a 4 foot by 4 foot box in China at least has that freedom, and no man can take it away from you.

Followers of Christ were commanded to love each other, love their neighbors and love their enemies. Non-Christians hate Christianity because it is impossible to use, exploit, harm or murder someone whom you are commanded to love.

Answer 11

God is love. He loved us so much that he sent His son to die for us, by becoming the sacrifice necessary to atone for sin. No where does it say in the Bible that he will not love us if we do this or don't do that. As a matter of fact, we can do nothing to make him love us any less, because he died for us when we were still sinners. The only thing we have to do is accept this free gift of his sacrifice and we will spend eternity with Him, because he cannot abide where sin is.