can He make a rock so big that he can't lift it, is this...God can do anything and the problem isn't with the answer the problem is with the question?
2006-09-25 00:26:19 · 11 answers · asked by RM 2 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
I agree. This is a non question. Since God is all powerful and there is nothing God cannot do, the question asks if God CAN do something He CANNOT do.
It is a very idiotic question.
To WilliamZo above me. Omnipotent is mentioned in the Bilbe. In Revelation 19:6
2006-09-25 00:32:12 · answer #1 · answered by helpme1 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Yup. The problem lies within a question. It is fundamentally skewed. It is akin to the question, "To whom is the bachelor married?" The bachelor is not married, yet the question demands a name. The question does not invalidate the existance of the bachelor, or of marriage, but compares two extremes in an illogical manner.
Also note, that a rock ceases to be a rock at some point in size. Once it gets to be a certain size, it is no longer a rock, but rather, a stone. Even a stone is also of limited size.
A final note, is that the question misrepresents God's omnipotence, as it attempts to contradictively compare one aspect of God with another, and hence, is a straw-man arguement. There are many things God cannot do, such as : create a person with a free will that is unable to choose evil (if they have free will, they have a choice to sin or not sin... if they don't have free will, there is no choice... they cannot have no choice but yet retain free will); sin (as sin enbraces everything that God does not); or instantly create a 70 year old man (that is, a man who has walked the earth for 70 years... not a brand-new man with the appearance of a 70-year-old).
Since man shows use of logic, then logic is a creation of God's. Hence, God works within the confines of logic as well. Since the question is derived from illogic, it cannot be used to describe God, as God is not self-contradictory.
2006-09-25 07:47:41 · answer #2 · answered by seraphim_pwns_u 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The problem is the premise of the question because God cannot do everything. God cannot die because He is eternal. He cannot make a mistake because He is perfect. He cannot be tempted by evil because He is light and there is no darkness in Him. He cannot learn because He already knows everything.
He also cannot do things that are impossible by definition. He cannot create a "god" that is more powerful than Himself because He is God Almighty. He cannot make parallel lines cross because then they wouldn't be parallel lines. He cannot create a "square" circle and He cannot create an impossible object. A weight that is so big that God couldn't lift it cannot exist because He has power over all of creation.
2006-09-25 08:01:10 · answer #3 · answered by Martin S 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Is the God of the Bible omnipotent?The word "omnipotent" is never used in the Bible, but has been inferred primarily by one of God's Hebrew titles, "Shadday," which is most often translated "almighty."1 However, the Bible never claims that God can do all things. In fact, the Bible makes a point that there are things that God cannot do. The Bible says that God cannot commit sin.2 God cannot lie.3 Therefore, biblical omnipotence does not mean that God can do all things. God cannot do anything that is contrary to His holy character. However, God can do anything that He determines to do. This is a true meaning of omnipotence - the ability to do anything that one sets out to do.
Specific arguments against omnipotenceSome of the arguments against omnipotence are plain silly and stupid. Can God create a spherical triangle? Saying that omnipotence requires the ability to do logically impossible things is stupid. God cannot turn truth into a lie. If humans define a triangle as a two dimensional object formed by the intersection of three lines, it makes no sense to ask if God could make one that was spherical. When one says that God is all-powerful, one means that God is able to accomplish all that He desires to do. Even an all-powerful being cannot do what is impossible by definition. God can do many things that are humanly impossible. However, there are some things that even an all-powerful being cannot do.
Can God create a rock He cannot lift? Since an all-powerful being will always be able to accomplish whatever He sets out to do, it is impossible for an all-powerful being to fail. The above atheistic argument is arguing that since God is all-powerful He can do anything - even fail. This is like saying that since God is all-powerful He can be not all-powerful. Obviously, this is absurd. An all-powerful being cannot fail. Therefore, God can create a rock of tremendous size, but, since He is all-powerful, He will always be able to lift it. The ability to fail is not a part of omnipotence.
Could God think of a time when He was not omnipotent? If He can't think of it, He isn't omnipotent, but if He does think of it then there was a time when He wasn't omnipotent? This question is quite similar to the rock question above. The answer, of course, is that God can never think of a time when He wasn't omnipotent. God has always been omnipotent. His inability to contradict His divine character does not mean that He isn't omnipotent.
ConclusionThe atheist distorts the biblical definition of omnipotence in order to "prove" that God cannot exist. Contrary to their claims, omnipotence does not include the ability to do things that are, by definition, impossible. Neither does omnipotence include the ability to fail. By defining omnipotence as requiring one to have the ability to fail, atheists have defined omnipotence as being impossible. Of course, an omnipotent God would never fail.
These kinds of arguments are clearly illogical and even silly, although they are commonly used by inexperienced atheists. Most intelligent atheists have dropped these kinds of arguments long ago.
2006-09-25 07:31:39 · answer #4 · answered by williamzo 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
This is the whole freaking problem. There are so many contradictions! How can god make something so heavy that he cannot carry it. He should be able to carry it because he should be able to do anything. And this will make him unable to carry something, and thus it means that he can't do anything and everything!!! Ha ha. This is basically why I am an atheist. There are so many contradictions in all types of religions. This is just an example of such.
2006-09-25 07:48:01 · answer #5 · answered by Hardrock 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes, that the problem with many of the questions in here, people tend to ask the wrong questions.
People should ask questions like, What will happen to me if I die?
What could my life be like if I did give my life to Jesus and ask him to be my Lord and Savior?
Why do I feel this emptyness in my heart and how can I feel complete?
Why is it that drugs, sex and alcohol don't make me feel any better in the long run?
2006-09-25 07:36:20 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
God has no need to make a rock anymore. He declared his work very good and finished when he rested on the seventh day.
2006-09-25 07:33:20 · answer #7 · answered by swami242 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
No god can not do any thing, He can do what he can.
1. God can not do harm to the good people.
2. God can not change the mind of terrorists.
3. He can not do the Good to bad people
2006-09-25 07:36:21 · answer #8 · answered by nagarjunababu 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Just because some words are put into a sentence together, doesn't make them into a sensible sentence. It is not a matter of ability, but of sense. Non-sense is still non-sense to God.
2006-09-25 07:32:00 · answer #9 · answered by Just a Servant 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
God can do whatever He wants.
Do not test the Lord.
2006-09-25 07:31:54 · answer #10 · answered by The Question Man 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋