Consider the following. God created everything. God created Man, so that he might have free will. This is what makes Man unique. His other creations would have no free will, therefore.
Angels are presumably the creation of God. Why would one or more rebel, unless he wished them to?
2007-12-05 07:27:45 · 21 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Randall: Sorry, I make a point of never going to a Geocities site, on the principle that I have free will, but my PC doesn't.
2007-12-05 08:11:57 · update #1
It was a good plot hook for the story.
Fiction doesn't have to make sense.
2007-12-05 07:31:51 · answer #1 · answered by ananvilhurtz 3 · 2⤊ 2⤋
Great Q! Lots of interesting and good answers so far, too. I'll just add to the lot. I agree with Mum, Pilgrim, Mrs S, and even the metaphysician. Premaholic put it very succinctly.
I don't mean to be long-winded here. But after rereading my answer it is a bit long in the tooth. I've edited it down as much as I feel comfortable [sorry, Wolfie, but at least I haven't cut and pasted....... :) ]
I take the Bible 2 ways literal and figurative and therefore I can follow the story line and become inspired and/or go deeper and make it personal.
There appears to be an ongoing 'battle' in the mind - not just mine - many people, including the most serene, talk about this and write books and hold classes on how to maintain single minded focus and stay at peace no matter what is going on around or to them.
Heaven - a state of consciousness where only right thinking and choices occur and no one is distressed or upset about anything, where perfect health is manifested constantly, and complete understanding exists for all.
S'atan, devil - The Liar, the deceiver who goes about roaring like a lion seeking to devour. All error thinking comes from here. To believe anything less, to believe in fear, to believe that there is a negative more powerful than the One Presence and One Power that is Creator (whatever word you use to describe it, nature, God, etc)
A poor analogy at best, and if you are not a parent you might not agree at all, but try this out in your thinking realm - Parents make children, do children always do what they are told, don't they at about 4 or so begin rebelling (and some continue all their lives) EVEN WHEN THEY KNOW IT'S GOING AGAINST WHAT THEIR PARENTS HAVE PUT IN THEM??? Some parents can tell you about their 'best and brightest' of the bunch that went wayyyyyy off track and never did get back on.
Here's another thought. God decided to give us a foolproof system of staying on track even if we stray far off and that is S'atan - The Tempter - Sort of like those toy train engines that you wind up and they zoom all over the floor but when the 'cow pusher' on the front hits a wall the train backs up and goes in the other direction until it hits another immoveable object and is propelled back in the other direction. May seem a bit chaotic, but in the larger bigger huger picture this is a way to figure out what path I need to stay on in my thinking. I didn't say this was a good analogy either. No analogy is a good one when talking about things that are immortal, eternal, and of God Which (not who, God is not a who, God is not even an It) is larger than any thought out there. Therein lies the mystery so many of us choose to laugh off as fiction or fear based comfort stories.
Just my thots. I don't ask you to change yours or come over to my way of thinking. Just grateful for the open forum where we can share and read or just read and consider other's views.
Great great question Wolf... thanks again. :)
2007-12-06 10:21:06 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
"God created man" - this assumes that God is separate from man, but is not. We are a 'creation' in progress. "Free will" is an illusion - you do not have free will, but you do have a choice within the limits of your understanding.
The Bible contains many stories that are allegories carrying a deeper meaning, a Meta-Physical import that requires considerable effort to understand.
'Angels' metaphysically represent the projection into consciousness of an ideal directly from the fountainhead of God.
An 'angel rebelling' is when we use the ideal for personal and selfish reasons.
Lucifer, the Lightbearer who 'rebels' and becomes 'satan' the 'devil' is the ideal of Man as God becoming captive to the selfish ego.
'satan' falling from heaven like lightening - is the instantaneous realisation that one must overcome one's own ego that is the result of communion with the Holy Spirit.
'Heaven' is the consciousness of the Neophyte - where the struggle to overcome the selfish ego takes place.
It is the ego that tries to make sense of these stories and because the ego deceives you, it is not possible to understand.
However, when you accept that these texts are metaphysical teachings, the Truth that sets you free becomes clear.
2007-12-05 15:49:43 · answer #3 · answered by the_metaphysician2001 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
There is an error in your above assumptions. Humans are the only creation with free will. Angels do not have free will. Therefore, this idea that there was some kind of war in Heaven is ludricrous! A being without free will cannot rebel.
2007-12-05 15:32:38 · answer #4 · answered by mzJakes 7 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Time and space is a human phenomenon. The Highest has all resolved throughout time, which of course has no beginning and end. The point is evolution - that to see the good you have to be able to see the bad - like light and dark, joy and tears etc. etc. That good triumphs over evil no matter how bad it feels when you're in it - the hotter the battle the sweeter the victory!
2007-12-05 16:09:42 · answer #5 · answered by mamabee.2007 1 · 1⤊ 0⤋
God already knew thats what I believe why would he place a tree of that sort in the garden lol makes you sort of think. God knows the begining and the end so he knew that Satan being his left hand would rebel because lucifer means the bright and morning star. He wanted the angels to worship him and God could see his jealousy. Angels are next to God in "godlyness" so I dont think it took him by suprise there was a revolt
2007-12-05 15:32:21 · answer #6 · answered by littlemissmay 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Angels are made soley for the worship of God/Allah and therefore can only obey because thats why they were created.
satan is a jinn - demon like spirit and therefore is able to choose like mankind.
He was in the company of the angels due to his peity but showed his true nature when he refused to obey God and bow down to Adam (upon him peace). Therefore he was thrown out of heaven and he swore to lead mankind astray from it ever since.
He says that he was created from fire and Adam from clay and that fire is better from clay. Thus showing his arrogance!
Mankind has limited freewill within a scope that God/Allah has allowed.
2007-12-05 16:05:08 · answer #7 · answered by Knowing Gnostic 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Free Will. Let me ask you a question.
Why would God create automotons who can't rebel?
For God to create beings of free will, the choice to rebel must be equal in desireability to the choice to follow righteousness. Else it is not free will at all.
Lucifer (aka Satan, the adversary, allah, Appollyon, etc.) was created and given a commission. Ezek 28:14-15 says
"Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire.
15 Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee" KJV
Thus the war in heaven.
2007-12-05 15:30:27 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 2⤋
The bible will never be fully understood. It was a creation of God. We are only human and are able take from it what we can comprehend. We may never know the secrets it holds.
2007-12-05 15:33:53 · answer #9 · answered by Mrs. S 2 · 1⤊ 1⤋
God created angels moral beings like humans.
2007-12-05 15:32:41 · answer #10 · answered by Averell A 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Angels are simply un-mortal humans. We were angels before we were born, and we will be again, after we die.
Angels are the children of God. Humans are the children of God. We all have free will. We have divine potential. Our souls can enlarge or they can shrink, according to our divinely given free will.... ie, our choices.
We enlarge by overcoming opposition, through faith, love and listening to the "still small voice" of divine inspiration.
2007-12-05 15:36:44 · answer #11 · answered by MumOf5 6 · 2⤊ 1⤋