Exclusions: Don't tell me the story of how Satan rebelled, rejected God, etc. Thats not my question.
My question is why God allows a semi-god to create all the world's evil. Christians always seem to overlook this glaring continuity error in their story.
Are they equally powerful? What other excuse could there be for allowing Satan to operate?
2007-08-20 09:47:50 · 26 answers · asked by Memetics 2 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Christianity, if pushed to its conclusions, resolves itself into Manichaeism - which it has officially branded a "heresy."
Either Satan is God's "agent" as it were, a being empowered by Him to wreak havoc, or God and Satan are coequal. Otherwise, it's impossible to explain why the omniscient, omnipotent, omnipresent, beneficent God would allow Satan to exist.
The idea that Satan "rebelled" against God is ridiculous - how can you rebel against an all-powerful, all-knowing Being, unless your rebellion is part of His plan? Same goes for man and his "rebellion." Any way you slice it, if you're going to try to take Christian theology seriously, the blame for the existence of "evil" must ultimately fall on God.
2007-08-20 09:55:02 · answer #1 · answered by jonjon418 6 · 2⤊ 3⤋
If there was not "another offer on the table", what choice would people have? God created us with a free will, so those who choose, choose out of their own decision, not because they have no other choice.
Satan has not any equality with God, at all. God threw him out, along with a third of the angels who also rebelled. So, this shows God has supreme authority. If they had equal power, evil would have a chance at the upper hand and destruction would be all that's left. Also, as one who wears the name of Jesus, demons nor Satan have rule over me, which shows Satan's "power" is limited.
There is one interesting interview Lee Strobel conducted in Case for Faith, discussing the necessity of evil. If you truly seek an answer, you may want to look into it.
2007-08-20 10:01:27 · answer #2 · answered by TroothBTold 5 · 2⤊ 1⤋
If there became no devil then we'd be like angels, continually obeying God and following his command. even nevertheless we are different from angels. we are in fact superioer to them provided that we safeguard ourselves from the distractions presented via devil. we've been programmed via God to nicely known the undemanding actual and incorrect. If we seem for the excellent with sincerity, God shows us the way. yet we could desire to have confidence in Him being the suitable authority. devil on the different hand has no skill over us different than the skill to point, or whisper in our heart. If we fall for his recommendations, we do so with our very own unfastened will.
2016-10-08 22:09:57 · answer #3 · answered by fuhrman 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If GOD Eliminated satan, EverBody who is not Connected to GOD "Spiritually" (the Saved) would be Eliminated too. The Lost People would be Eliminated too.
GOD is using satan (since it happened anyway and HE cannot get rid of satan at this time) to Seperate the People who want to be with HIM (GOD) from the ones who do not.
2007-08-20 10:30:27 · answer #4 · answered by maguyver727 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Satan is the result of man's mishandling of the Father's world. Should God decide to eliminate Satan for good, man would no longer be able to be free to choose which path to follow. Devil will exist so long as man chooses not to be good
2007-08-20 10:03:05 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
God gave man free will to choose. In this world you can choose to do good or evil follow one or the other. If you could only choose good, then that would imply you have no choice at all and no reward or punishment, no happiness or sadness, no consequence for actions. If God eliminated Satan, there would be no choice, no opposition, no enticement to do good or evil.
2007-08-20 09:56:52 · answer #6 · answered by Someone who cares 7 · 2⤊ 2⤋
Satan serves as a pawn in God's plan... giving us opposition so we can grow.
2 Ne. 2: 11, 15 - http://scriptures.lds.org/en/2_ne/2/11,15#11
11 For it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things. If not so, my first-born in the wilderness, righteousness could not be brought to pass, neither wickedness, neither holiness nor misery, neither good nor bad. Wherefore, all things must needs be a compound in one; wherefore, if it should be one body it must needs remain as dead, having no life neither death, nor corruption nor incorruption, happiness nor misery, neither sense nor insensibility.
Once all of God's children (ie humans) have reached their highest level of spiritual progression possible, Satan will be eliminated forever. See Revelations 20 - http://scriptures.lds.org/en/rev/20/2,7,10,14#2
2007-08-20 09:57:35 · answer #7 · answered by MumOf5 6 · 0⤊ 2⤋
In this world there always has to be balance, you see this in every little thing in life. No extreme is good. You can't apreciate the good things in life if you never suffered. The same way, if there is a god then there has to be a devil as well. How can god test you, if there is no evil to follow?
2007-08-20 09:52:20 · answer #8 · answered by larissa 6 · 1⤊ 2⤋
I'm not Christian, but if Christianity is right and Satan exists, them he is the yang to god's yin. Darkness is not bad as long as it has a clear purpose.
2007-08-20 09:59:27 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
Satan is an angel, he is in know way a semi-god.
He created him because it is part of his perfect will. There is some good God saw would come from it. We cannot see precisely what this is from our perspective however.
2007-08-20 09:55:51 · answer #10 · answered by superninfreak777 2 · 0⤊ 2⤋