God is offering to save the man, but he refuses the offer and goes over the edge. God, in the analogy, is not to blame for the man's fate... BUT, the analogy leaves out a few pertinent facts: 1. God made the waterfall and the river. 2. God made the boat and put the man in it. And 3. God won't allow any other means of rescue (i.e. the man is not allowed to get out of the canoe and swim to shore, nor can he call for a helicopter, etc.) The entire situation is so arranged by God so that the man has no choise but to accept God's "help" or go over the edge! If a man set fire to your home and then went into the house with a gun in his hand and said, "Either come with me, or you'll burn in this house; and if you try to leave without me, I'll shoot!", would you feel gratitude towards that man?!?!?! OF COURSE NOT! Your reply....?
2006-12-19 06:14:12 · 12 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
you are a great magician, you obscure the truth with distraction to create illusion.... so lets make it simple
God gives you a choice ... or life if you prefer to call God that... because after all they are the same (think a minute)
what is your choice real/imagined, 0/1, yes/no get it....
what does gratitude have to do with it.... remember the tree that was eaten from was the tree of the KNOWLEDGE of good and evil... the ability to decide and learn (gain knowledge) from those decisions.... so, have you? then be greatful!
2006-12-19 06:35:12 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I struggle with answers on religion because if I believe in God then I believe in the Devil. If God is "perfect" then how come we have the Devil and how could he created "bad" humans?
Anyhow, this is not the perfect analogy because God is everything - the river, waterfall, the boat, the paddle, and the rudder included.
I can agree with your interpretation of point 1 however points 2 point and 3 are misinterpreted.
God allows other means of rescue but the sinner used his free will which put him in that particular situation. He gave us all something called free will and the sinner decided to get into that boat in that particular river. If the sinner's focus was more on the beauty of the Lord and not so much on the beauty of earthly distractions/temptations he would not have found himself in that situation.
"The entire situation is so arranged by God so that the man has no choise but to accept God's "help" or go over the edge!"
This is also not true because the sinner's exercised his free will and found himself in that situation. Even then he could still have prayed to the Lord, asked for forgivness, and used whatever the Lord sent his way rather than curse his luck and said he had no choice. When you pray and meditate you achieve a higher level of consciousness/clarity and as such would have seen that by using the rudder and paddle he could still steer the boat towards the shore before going over the waterfall.
Now the last part was a bit confusing: "If a man set fire to your home and then went into the house with a gun in his hand and said, "Either come with me, or you'll burn in this house; and if you try to leave without me, I'll shoot!", would you feel gratitude towards that man?"
No one enjoys seeing other people destroying what they have but sometimes things do happen which causes a change in our direction. If the house is burnt down then when you are rebuilding you can now change things which were not possible before. Maybe the location of the rooms would be better this way than it was previously or maybe the house will be more functional with a design change. This may only be possible because you are starting all over - a new foundation, new structures etc.
With respect to the gratitude thing, should we feel gratitude towards Him? We can feel bitter if we remain narrow-minded but isn't He giving you another chance by giving you life?
Sorry it got so long winded - just putting thoughts to a question posed. ;)
2006-12-19 07:01:36 · answer #2 · answered by IB M 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Biblically, the analogy or parable is not sound. God made the river (the garden) for man to enjoy, not to die in. In the beginning, the river (garden of evil) didn't contain a deadly waterfall - Man's sin caused the river to become dangerous by distorting its purpose.
Again, God made the boat and placed it in perfection for man to enjoy. Man chose to place himself in a position to be in danger.
Finally, if there is only one way out of a burning room, why would you have a problem with taking it. Your options are limited because there is only one way out! If the river is too dangerous to swim, you can try that way but you are going to drown. Depending on the boat you are in, where are you going to get the phone from? What if the helicopter won't get to you fast enough? God doesn't hold a gun to anyone, if you want to live, take the way He has provided. If you don't, then die. That is your choice.
2006-12-19 07:00:40 · answer #3 · answered by mark777 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Many would disagree that God put the man in the boat. Taking that into account, your argument kind of falls flat. Situations might be orchestrated to some extent, but actions go along with free will. The man chose to get into a boat without researching the river enough to know that there was a waterfall. He put himself in peril. That's sin. Doing things our way.
2006-12-19 06:26:33 · answer #4 · answered by luvwinz 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The analogy is flawed inasmuch as God is also at the bottom of the falls with a net to catch the man in any event.
In every facet of life, the one who fails, gets up and gets back on the right path is stronger than the one who never veered in the first place. This is one of the major problems facing our society today. We have an entire generation of kids who never learned how to fail. Without knowing failure, the bar of success is greatly lowered.
2006-12-19 06:23:58 · answer #5 · answered by mzJakes 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
yea? is there a problem with that analogy? no! God gave you a choice, live or die. That's it! He made it so simple. people feel so "Entitled" God made you. I heard of the analogy of a boy who made a toy boat, and took great detail into it, however one day it was stolen from him. He was so sad but a few years later he saw the exact boat in a pawn shop, so he went in and bought it. It was His originally, but he loved it so much, He paid for it twice. God is the same way, we sin, we suck, yet He sent His son to Die for our sins so you don't have to fall off the edge!! YET YOU DO!! He loves you so much man
2006-12-19 06:21:14 · answer #6 · answered by brittanykoren86 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
First of all, the analogy wasn't made by God, it was by a human being, probably some minister trying to put an abstract concept into understandable terms (he failed - its a lousy analogy.)
Whats more, your over-analisis of such a silly matter is entirely pointless.
2006-12-19 06:27:25 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
If God created guy in his very own photograph, then guy exhibits us what God is like, suitable? What you're asserting is, if God is benevolent and guy is malevolent, then guy isn't made in God's photograph. it is logical. yet what I say is, God created guy with the skill for ill, and definitely there might properly be no longer something in creation which does no longer encompass polar opposites. I nonetheless have self assurance that guy is made in clone of god ... and lady too, and that tells you plenty approximately what God is like. diverse from how maximum Christians think of him, I fancy.
2016-12-15 04:18:38 · answer #8 · answered by vogt 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Interesting....
I Love It..!!!
Beautiful thing about parables..... they can be taken several ways and only those who truly have 'freewill' will see the other side of the duality. Those who are trapped by their beliefs see only what they WANT to see.
2006-12-19 06:17:20 · answer #9 · answered by wolf560 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I don't think your scenario accurately depicts God.
2006-12-19 06:21:30 · answer #10 · answered by MyPreshus 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋