Why does he punish man (the sinner)? He created all things and he gave more power to Satan (the cause of all sin).
It's like he's punishing the patient who has cancer rather than attacking the cancer itself. In fact he gave more power to the cancer.
His punishments to man also seem so severe, eternal damnations and torture. All for something Adam and Eve did tens of thousands of years ago. It seems Satan should have been banished from the Garden of Eden..
2006-12-23 02:26:52 · 17 answers · asked by Honest Opinion 5 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
In ancient Jewish tradition Satan is simply an angel doing the work that God assigned to Satan to do.
The word Satan means challenger. With the idea of Satan challenging us, or tempting if you will. This description sees Satan as the angel who is the embodiment of man's challenges. This idea of Satan works closely with God as an integral part of Gods plan for us. His job is to make choosing good over evil enough of a challenge so that it becomes clear to us that there can be only one meaningful or logical choice.
Contrast this to Christianity, which sees Satan as God's opponent. In Jewish thought, the idea that there exists anything capable of setting itself up as God's opponent would be considered polytheistic or setting up the devil to be an equally powerful polarity to god or a demigod.
Oddly, proof for The Christian satan/devil mythology is supposedly found in the ancient Jewish texts that were borrowed to create the bible. One can’t help but wonder how Christians came up with such a fantastically different interpretation of Gods assistant Satan in their theology.
Other hints about Satan’s role in human relations can be seen if you look at the name Lucifer. It’s meaning in the original tongue translates as Light bearer or light bringer. Essentially the bringer of enlightenment. The temptations of the Satan idea bring all of us eventually into Gods light. Hardly the Evil entity of Christian mythology.
Love and blessings
don
2006-12-23 02:42:17 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
Many people will disagree and quote from the bible saying that you are mistaken but the truth is that no religion that is based on the idea of an all powerful and all knowing and yet loving god can make any violence or punishment justifiable. God cannot stack the deck and still be playing poker by the rules of the game. Similarly "free will" is not truely free if it is constrained by threats or rewards. The only rational conclusion is that the religion is false, and misrepresents god, or that the god is false and the religion is based on a delusion.
2006-12-23 03:58:23 · answer #2 · answered by Michael Darnell 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
In short: If God loves man but hates Satan?
Why does God punish? Satan lures people into punishing themselves - represents only temptation. God is love and love includes guidance/discipline.
"It seems Satan should have been banished from the Garden of Eden" Might want to read up on the choices of Lucifer/Satan a bit.
God gave us 2 examples:
Jesus(God in the flesh)
Choices of Lucifer/Satan
John 14:6
2006-12-23 03:21:30 · answer #3 · answered by GoodQuestion 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
You can't take the bible extemely literal. In Noahs time the flood ocurred, not all around the world but in his region at the time. When the bible says that God destroys cities due to their sin, it is not so. God doesn't punish people, he lets the sin they committ be their only tormentor. You've heard the term, "you reap what you sow", in this case sin and it's consequences are the only things that punish "sinners" who do not turn away from their sin. The bible was used as a scare tactic by the religous sects in order to install fear as in a way for the followers to stay devoted. That fear tactic is still used today as many people use hell as a way to push others to do good, even themselves.
2016-05-23 01:42:27 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
A few things to think about:
1. Adam's sin was breaking a relationship of faith and trust with a gracious God who had placed him in paradise and was preparing him to rule the world in goodness. When Adam selfishly believed the lie about being a god to himself, the relationship with the holy Creator was broken. That was a very serious sin, and one that separated him and humanity from God.
2. The punishment is eternal because God's holiness is infinite. It is an infinitely heinous offense - that is why it took the God-Man, Jesus, to atone for the sin.
3. The Bible never says God hates the sin and loves the sinner. God hates sin and judges all men according to His righteous judgment. Men are either righteous by being united to Jesus in faith, or are left in their sin. God is just.
2006-12-23 03:38:17 · answer #5 · answered by bbonecutter 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
You can find your "Power " to resist satan by accepting The Lord as your personal Savior , and using His Guildance to understand the way things are . You have mentioned cancer as a reference to something God is in control of ? God has probably sent a doctor of medicine to cure cancer , or sent a leader that can find peace in the world ; however , they were more than likely "aborted ".. God can send the answers , but man in his infinite free will wisdom thinks he knows better than God and refuses the fact that man is helpless without God , no matter how much "worldly wisdom " man thinks he has !! Continue to disobey God`s Word , and you`ll always get what you`ve always got , confusion and hardship !! Remember ; things were as they should have been in the Garden of Eden until "man & woman " made the decision to disobey God ?? God is not the author of confusion & hardship , man is !!
2006-12-23 03:02:35 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
Sin is not Satan. God does not love the sinner. Psalm 5:4 For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness; No evil dwells with You. 5 The boastful shall not stand before Your eyes; You hate all who do iniquity. 6 You destroy those who speak falsehood; The LORD abhors the man of bloodshed and deceit.
2006-12-23 02:31:21 · answer #7 · answered by oldguy63 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Satan fell from heaven. Satan wanted to be like God, so God threw him out of heaven. Satan , in the garden, and today tries to keep people from God, so he will tempt people to do things that are sinful. It was Adam and Eve, and us who have the choice to follow God or Satan. Jesus came to earth for the specific purpose of giving us forgiveness from the sin that we commit. You ask why Adam and Eve were banished for what Satan did- and why Satan himself was not banished. When Satan fell from heaven, he was given, by God the role of prince of this earth- Satan seeks who he can devour. That first garden was a foreshadow of what is to come- Jesus came to seek and save the lost, and when Christ died on the cross, victory has already been won. When Jesus returns to earth to rule as KING OF KINGS- Satan will be thrown into the lake of fire. We chose to sin- we did not have to listen to Satan, but we did- we could have followed God-
2006-12-23 03:10:44 · answer #8 · answered by AdoreHim 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
God does love us if he didn't he wouldn't sent his son to die for our sins you could ask the same about that.Why did God send his only son to die on the cross to save us? We will never be worthy enough to go to heaven because we continue to sin daily and continue to let him down on a daily basis.He wanted us to makes choices he wants us to choice him over satan.He didn't give cancer power, not all cancer patients die he uses those things to get our attention.Those that are saved and gets cancer he uses us and the cancer so that we can be a witness for him and if they die from the cancer it's because their job is done here on earth and he's ready to take that person home to recieve their rewards for trusting, believing, loving and most of all accepting him as their savior.Those that are lost he uses that illness to try to get them to accept him and when they continue to deny him he decides they have had enough chances and know they never will accept him so he ends their life not to punish us but so he can us their death to try to win someone elses soul.He isn't punishing us for their sins he is punishing us for our sins don't you sin?After all we all continue to sin if he didn't punish us for our sins while we're here on earth what kind of peopl would we be and what kind of world would we live in no one would care what they do or how they treat others.Most importantly satan doesn't have more power then God or us we have the power to refuse satan and chose not to the choice is ours to make.My husband is a 4 time around cancer patient.We both are saved and God used those battles to draw us closer to him and to win the souls of some of our loved one he also used it as a way for us to be a witness for him
2006-12-23 02:49:18 · answer #9 · answered by Gina S 2 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Satan was banished from Heaven long ago and eventuallly he will be trown into Hell to burn forever. God does love man which is why He sent Jesus to die for our sins. Because of that we can be forgiven and not be condemned to eternal death. We are punished because we choose to sin.
2006-12-23 02:34:11 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋