Follow-up question: I asked why wouldn't God convert me by force.... (Please read on)?

Question

So, I asked why I wasn't converted by force, if God is almighty and he knows better. And they answered that I wouldn't want to be loved by putting a gun to people's head, would I? Now, my follow-up question is:

Why would God punish those who choose not to love him (or acknowledge his existence, in the first place). If only I had done that with all the girls and women who chose to reject me, the world might as well be empty now!

I'm asking about God, of course. Not about my love life. I know I wouldn't want to be loved by force.

I wouldn't say I am "THE ignostic guy who's leaning towards atheism". I would rather say I am "AN ignostic guy who's leaning towards atheism".

BTW, when I speak of punishment, I mean sending unbelievers to hell.

Answer 1

I'm going to agree with Three Rivers, but take it one step further.

If you spent your entire life rejecting and avoiding God here on earth, would it be fair to force you to live in eternity with HIM in heaven?

Hell is simply the absense of God's presence.

Hell is not a punishment, it is the consequence of choosing to be forever separated from God's Love.

Answer 2

As an atheist:

Why the assumption that God punishes those who do not love Him?

You've made this exquisite place, where warm blue seas lap at white sands, where the sun warms but never burns, and the breeze cools but never chills. Where every day is a new experience in the most sublime peace and contentment for all you invite to join you there, and where the human heart never weighs heavy in the chests of those around you.

Another fella has devoted his entire life to hurling abuse and insults at you. He has ridiculed you, and berated all who have shown you respect. He mocked you when your son was killed. He doesn't know the meaning of gratitude, or common decency. He is rude, offensive and belligerent.

And then lo and behold, when the time comes for him to need some better place to go he comes knocking on your door, shouting the odds about his human rights and how you owe him a place in your paradise.

You tell him to get lost.

And as the idiot walks away to some place less pleasant you can hear him muttering about how you have just punished him. See, even when all should be obvious to him he STILL can't see that he isn't being punished.

He's just getting what he has been asking for all his life.

Brother, if you do believe in God, show some respect. And if you don't, why ask about Him?

It makes no sense to question the nature of a bird we don't believe in, does it?

Answer 3

God's grace is freely available to those who accept it.

If you perceive a "threat" of punishment for NOT accepting His grace, it's as though you are feeling the gun to your head. Maybe that perception is just wrong.

You are left with the question of what are the "natural" consequences of rejecting God's grace in your life. You know, they could be pretty ugly, in this life as well as the next (you pick).

The issue is: do you care? If you do, it probably means you are in readiness to allow God's love into your life. It will be there for you. If you don't care, you will probably want to go to a religious leader and ask for clarification about some of these issues. The struggles you are going through are a good thing (although well-disguised!). Best of luck in your questioning.

You've posted an "added detail" about God's "sending unbelievers to hell." My point is: do you care about going to hell? Don't worry about how you're getting there. If you feel concerned about this fate, then you are close to finding God. You needn't project your aversion to this outcome on God as "His retribution." In a sense, you don't really need God to get to hell--you can get there on your own. You need God when that doesn't sound quite right; if it's not "you." You can seek God, and when you do--you'll find him. That's the good news.

And may God bless you!

Answer 4

Because god is secretly a jackass! Or a weakling! Or blind! Or something like that. What about all those people who DO love god: how do they know they weren't unknowingly forced to love god? Hell, god's omnipotent and omniscient, so all of our choices are decided ahead of time, so technically, you're being forced to be Ignostic! How DARE god force you to not believe in him!

"Forced" is just another one of those buzzwords. God can't do anything different than what he is already doing/going to do because he's omniscient; it would form a paradox if he went against his own divine plan, because he knew what he was going to do ahead of time, and that knowledge would be wrong if he did anything different. So it isn't "Why isn't god interfering" it's "why is god's divine plan so !@#$ing nuts?!?"

Edit: You're the ignostic guy (who's leaning towards athiesm) right?

Answer 5

Presumably you have heard the good news of Jesus, the gospel. You don't have to believe it, I didn't for a good many years, then God really did reveal Himself to me one day, and I chose to follow Him. If you can understand that God knew, before He even created the world, whether or not you would accept Him one day, and even if He knew you would not, He has never stopped trying to show Himself to you, then you would have your answer. He's always trying to get you to open the door to Him. Just because He knew a lot of people would reject Him, do you think it would have been better if He had thought ' oh well, better not create the world then'? Or should He create the world anyway and give us free will? He is not hidden, He is not cruel, He has revealed Himself in part through creation, He has come to earth as Jesus, and He speaks through the testimony of millions of Christians today (admittedly many Christians do a poor job of reflecting the love of Jesus but thats no excuse for rejecting Jesus.) All that really matters is not, 'what about evolution?' or 'how did Adam and Eve have grandchildren?' or even ' is the Bible full of contradictions?' All that really matters is your personal relationship with Jesus, is He who He said He was, and what will you do with that?

Answer 6

God does not want to punish anyone.
However he is just, and since we are sinful he must punish sin.

When God created the world it was 'very good', with no death or suffering. Adam and Eve disobeyed God (sinned), and the punishment (as they'd been warned) was death.

Far from wanting to punish us, God loves us so much that he sent his only son Jesus to pay the penalty for our sin.
If you have children then you can perhaps begin to understand what sacrificing your own child means.

Answer 7

You've got it backwards , God is not punishing those that don't love him. The wages of sin is death and all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. As a pure Judge the sentence Of death must be carried out. separation from God throught eternity.

In his mercy , he has provided a way for some to escape.
Not all, some. Only the chosen will seek God. Not everyone should be converted. We witness because we do not know who the chosen are.

Answer 8

Because, according to the Bible.. God has one of the seven deadly sins, jealousy.

What stops Christians from believing in fairies and unicorns? I guess it needs to be written in some book with proven errors for you to believe in it?

Friend, heaven and hell are nothing more than states of your mind. I agree with you. Why wouldn't God force you if he is a loving God? I think God is fully fulfilled in himself, he doesn't need our worship. Our lowly being is what needs the reassurance of the God Concept, not vice versa.
It's all pointless to speculate about God. Lets work for a greater goal.... peace. All this time we have been trying to convert others to another man made religion's fantasy about what and/or who God is. If only that time was spent looking at ourselves and finding the eternal peace we find in helping others and living in peace with each other. -=sigh=-

Be good.

Answer 9

He gives us all freedom of choice, but then 'grades' us on the choice(s) we make. Think of life as a sort of 'spiritual exam',
with the correct answer always being Jesus Christ and the
Bible.

When we take a test or quiz in school, we have the freedom to choose any answer we wish to, but will either pass or fail, according to our choices, when the answers are tallied.

Answer 10

GOD IS A LOVING AND FAIR GOD HE GAVE US FREE WILL AND IT IS UP TO US TO LOVE AND OBEY HIM OR NOT GOD S PLAN IS THAT WE FOLLOW HIS WORD SO THAT ON JUDGMENT DAY WE CAN HAVE THE HOPE OF BEING SAVED AND EARN ETERNAL LIFE AND NOT GO TO HELL BECAUSE IF YOU DON'T BELIEVE AND DON'T FOLLOW THEN THAT IS MOST LIKELY WHERE YOU WILL GO WHY TAKE A CHANCE IF YOU ARE REJECTED THEN MAYBE YOU NEED TO LOOK INSIDE YOURSELF TO FIND OUT WHY YOU CANT FORCE ANYONE TO LOVE YOU AND GOD DOES NOT FORCE US EITHER