Of the Christians who have answered thus far, not one values the life of his/her own child above "free will"?

Question

One said "Would you rather have a child listen to you because they loved you or because they feared you?"

If it meant the difference between my child living and my child dying, would I care which?

Or should I be so fixated on my child loving me I'm willing to let him die if he doesn't? Because that is certainly the Christian model as described by more people than I care to remember (and with over 500 questions, that is a -lot- of people).

I loved my son enough that I'd have gladly suffered his hatred if it meant he continued to live. My love was never conditional upon him loving me back.

But the love of the christian god is -extremely- conditional, as he'll toss us into a lake of fire and brinstone if we fail to love him.

Is that what I see reflected in the answers I received from Christians to my previous question?

Answer 1

"I loved my son enough that I'd have gladly suffered his hatred if it meant he continued to live. My love was never conditional upon him loving me back."

Sing it, brother man!

Loving your child means doing what it right for them, even if they don't like it and tell you they hate you. My youngest used to say that to me when he was four - I hate you- when I made him eat his dinner, or pick up his toys, or keep out of the street. my response was always - "That's OK, because I will always love you." And later he would apologize of his own free will.

I'm not saying he has been the easiest child to raise - but bottom line, he knows that what we do and say to him are in his best interests always, regardless of how much he may hate the interference in his life at the time.

I love my children enough that even if they hated me, I'd still lay down MY life to save theirs.

THAT is being a parent - parenting all the time, not just being their buddy. You want buddies? Go join a club, go to a bar.

I've seen too many unparented children in my career as an educator, and let me tell you folks, you are doing them not a single favor. They have all kinds of trouble once they hit high school and adulthood beyond that - and that's when people suddenly want to start parenting their kids. Well folks, too late at that point.

Be a parent to your children , and even when their reaction breaks your heart, you still be a parent. You don't have to be a hardbutt, but you do have to guide them and at times control their lives so they can be good and decent adults.

Both of mine are decent adults - can you say the same?

Answer 2

I hope this doesn't sound harsh, but if your son had lived to grow up, would you have kept him attached to you at all times by some kind of life line? Would you have swaddled him in bubblewrap and never allowed him to venture more than half an inch from your side, all in the name of keeping him safe?

Or would you have given him the freedom to learn how to make good choices and wise decisions? If so, how would you have done that? Would you have set rules for him until he was old enough to make good choices? And what if he made a mistake along the way. . .would you have immediately locked him up again and refused to ever let him make another decision?

I'm not being facetious when I ask these questions, my friend. I really would like to know what you would have done and how you would have handled the issue of letting a child grow up and make his own decisions, right or wrong, good or bad.

As I see it, it's not about whether he would have loved or hated you. It's about whether you would have let him grow to his full potential, mistakes and all, or whether you would have chosen a "safety" for him that never allowed him to become the best person he could have been.

Edit:

I hope you know that I care about you and the pain you're in. By asking what I did, maybe you can find answers to the questions in your own heart.

And if they aren't the same answers that I would have come up with, that doesn't matter to me, just as long as a little drop of healing comes your way.

Answer 3

Friend I am sorry for the loss of your son. I have 3 sons myself. I lost my only brother when I was 17,he was 16 and passed away in his sleep for no reason. But I have to tell you that you are mistaken about God. God throws nobody in a burning lake of fire,that is a babylonian teaching. God reconciles all things unto Himself. God has parental character,he is Father of all. I know most christians today love to have the people burning and it is stupidity. The word hell translates grave,or Gehenna. The grave means the grave,which the Bible declares is a place of silence,not torment. gehenna was a garbage dump outside of Jeruselum where the worshipers of Molach burned there children in the fire. Man thought up a burning hell,not God. Your son will one day here the voice of Jesus and be raised to life eternal,for Christ has the victory over the grave. Until then all rest in what Christ,as well as others call sleep.

Answer 4

If you were a judge on the bench and your child was brought before you, caught red-handed at the scene of a crime, what would you do? That's the position God is in. He must be just. A crime was committed, and we're all guilty of it. He sent His own Son to pay the price of our sin so that He could forgive us, but that's the only way justice could be served. You might, very well, serve your son's sentence for him. God did the same thing. The only condition to it is that you believe it. If you don't, how can you benefit from the fact the sentence has been paid? God take no joy i sending people to Hell. If He did, He wouldn't have sent His Son to die for us.

Answer 5

First you have to understand God is not temporary and your life here is.
There are more important things than this temporary sinful existance.
The analogy is confusing perhaps because you are attempting to make some comparison to a god you clearly havent met.
Christ died for all of us...In what way can you interpret this a killing those who do not love him?
All men die without God it is a fact of life.
It is the reson God cam ot the world in the form of a man Jesus Chrsit to overcome temptation as a man and remain perfect and to pay the penalty of death for us.
A righteous God did die in your place. he did not kill you but died in your place so you could live...eternaly with him.

Answer 6

My G is not tossing me anywhere. If I get tossed into a lake of fire I earned it.

I think of the parable of the father who opens his arms to his son returning from a bad way of living. I think it's called the Prodicle Son....don't know that for sure tho.

I missed your previous question, so I've not much else to say.
I hope you can find an answer that brings you some peace.

Answer 7

Our God wants us to love him because he knows in doing this very thing he can give us eternal life and our death will be no more. He wants to put an end to death through his son. I think we tend to get confused about God. He does not need us to worship him but he knows if we don't we will pay the consequences of our sin uselessly

Answer 8

to assert "christian marriage" is ignoring the actuality that the rustic is made up of folk of various religions and atheist perspectives. to assert in basic terms the "Christian marriage" is genuine ability anybody who marries in an Islam marriage, Hindu marriage or as civil non - religious ceremony, is hence incorrect. To base a regulation of marriage on Christian view of marriage altogether forget with regard to the multitudes of folk and their ideals that stay in many countries. it incredibly is why faith and politics shouldn't combination.

Answer 9

And of the entire spectrum of emotions offered in this world you value only half of them. You give no regard to sadness, anger, or pain, without which we wouldn't have happiness, laughter or fulfillment. Yes, I would value free will above the life of my children, but that doesn't mean I want them to make stupid mistakes.

A little understanding can go a long way. You can see why free will is essential for us all to be happy.

Answer 10

God doesn't toss you into anything. You jump in yourself when you reject Him. He does not reject you, it's the other way around, YOU reject HIM.

I think God has shown a lot of love by giving His own Son to die on the cross for even people like you who reject Him.

It's a free gift, and it isn't difficult to accept it. You just have to realize that you are a sinner, and that because of that, you deserve death. But God wanted a way to save us from that, so he sent His only begotton Son to be beaten, spat upon, tortured, and hung on a cross. God has to watch that...His own Son...and all for you and for me. All you have to do is accept it.

If you don't, YOU CHOOSE hell. Not Him.