"If god is all-powerful, can he create a rock so heavy even he cannot lift it?"
If god cannot create a rock so heavy even he cannot lift it, he is not all-powerful. If he can create a rock so heavy even he cannot lift it, he is not all-powerful.
2007-03-04 16:43:37 · 24 answers · asked by rebekkah hot as the sun 7 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Sadly, most of them will not get it....Like Esther
2007-03-04 16:46:50 · answer #1 · answered by ? 6 · 4⤊ 1⤋
The question you ask is a self-referential question, although very neatly hidden. You are positing two mutually exclusive items, exactly like the question "what would happen if an immovable object encountered an irresistable force". The answer is that the existence of one of those things precludes the existence of the other. Such a situation is logically impossible.
And yes, this has a point. God does not violate His own character. God created logic. God created the rules by which the universe operates. Consequently, God does not violate the rules of logic because to do so would be to violate His character as demonstrated by His Creation.
Ultimately, then, the answer to your question is that He cannot create such a rock. If you choose to view that as a limit on His omnipotence, you are certainly free to do so. This does strike me as a massively unimportant question, though.
2007-03-05 00:58:38 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
These sorts of questions are fairly meaningless. "Heavy" is a creation of God, "rock" is a creation of God, "big" is a creation of God, the "expase" these things exist in is a creation of God. All of these attributes do not show up on a scale when compared to God, they belong to Creation, sort of like belonging to a painting; God is the Creator, sort of like being the artist.
In others words, it is like asking "Can I put a picture of something so large on the TV screen that someone cannot lift the TV?" And then thinking that you are so smug because you are thinking that the TV is obviously getting heavier when you put a picture of a heavier object on the TV screen.
If it makes you happy, God has limits. In fact they are pointed out in the Bible over and over. God's limits are within His Nature. For instance, God cannot be evil, God cannot be unjust, God cannot be imperfect, God cannot be prideful, God cannot go insane, etc. A lot of people believe along the lines of "well, He could be if He really wanted to be" but no, He can not go beyond the bounds of His Nature, those things are not who and what He is.
When we say things like "all-powerful" we do not mean He can do anything, we mean that He is the source of power. A better question for you to have asked would be things like "If God is so powerful, can He make "blue", "square"? or "If God is so powerful, can He make "right" "wrong"? But you did not ask a question like that, did you? why not? Because it points out clearly that you are presenting an error in both the understanding of "power" and of "God."
2007-03-05 01:25:53 · answer #3 · answered by Shawn D 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
God is Omnipotent (All Powerful) and Omniscienent (All Knowing). Gods attributes cannot contradict each other. So, if the question even HAS an answer it would be: Yes He could but He KNOWS better. But I doubt that the question actually makes sense. Nonsense is still Nonsense when speaking about God. Non-sequiters do not aquire meaning just by adding the suffex of "God can" in front of them.....theBerean
2007-03-05 00:54:46 · answer #4 · answered by theBerean 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋
God being all-powerful and sovereign can create a rock so big our finite minds will think he cannot lift it. Then he will lift it. "Behold, I Am the LORD GOD of all flesh: is there anything too hard for me? Jeremiah 32:27
2007-03-05 00:50:56 · answer #5 · answered by West Coast Nomad 4 · 0⤊ 2⤋
It's like the temptation of the Christ in the desert! God doesn't have to prove that he is all-powerful, anyway he never said he was and it all depends on what is your interpretation of the word 'powerful'. Power is not only strength. It's also the will and ability to resist provocations such as this one.
2007-03-05 03:08:46 · answer #6 · answered by pegs 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Have you heard of Him doing this or is this just a question that you have created because of some other ridiculous question that someone else asked?
2007-03-05 00:51:43 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Thats logic. God doesn't have to follow logic. The concept of God I have is not something that we as humans are able to understand. You are being too limiting if you ask this question. God does not have any limits. I'm not a christian but I believe that we have only a small percent of the knowledge of the world. If God exists do you think he would be so simple? He is not bound by anything. That is the God I believe in. I'm not sidestepping the question I just believe it has no answer
2007-03-05 00:49:32 · answer #8 · answered by E.T.01 5 · 1⤊ 4⤋
You are full of it. Created things are never bigger than Creator. He is able to do everything in His nature.God is God no matter what you think of it. What about if you thought how much He loves you instead, and maybe the purpose He has for you.
2007-03-05 00:48:42 · answer #9 · answered by SeeTheLight 7 · 2⤊ 2⤋
Forget about the rock.
The fact that God can't prevent this stupid question from reappearing here every few minutes proves that he isn't omnipotent.
2007-03-05 01:04:35 · answer #10 · answered by scifiguy 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The omnipotence paradox goes right over their head, they just dismiss it as being a silly question meant to annoy them.
2007-03-05 08:29:05 · answer #11 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋