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Vera_Ljuba
Guest
Yes, there are two God-concepts presented. One is the God of the Bible and the other one is the God of philosophers. Do you see the difference between them?
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davidv
Guest
There are many God concepts. All of these concepts are man made. There is only one true God, no matter how many concepts are invented to describe Him.
Some of these concepts were devised to create a god made in the concept inventors image. A false god, in other words.
po18guy
Well-known member
I see the premise as faulty. You can ask one political party for its description of itself, and you can ask the opposition for their description. While not 100% analogous, it is close. With God, we have no such conundrum, for He has revealed His Truth. The fact that some do not agree does not affect the truth one whit.
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e_c
Guest
Are you sure there are only 2?
Then doctrine is never revealed, and faith is simply an expression of an experience.
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Wesrock
Guest
No, because there are not two.
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pianistclare
Guest
There is only one God. Full stop.
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Tomdstone
Guest
The God of Philosophers is immutable and does not change. However, although there are some passages in the Bible which indicate that God does not change, there are others which seem to say the contrary.
For example: Exodus 32:14: “Then the LORD changed His mind and did not bring on His people the disaster He had threatened.”
Jonah 3:10 : “When God saw what they had done and how they had put a stop to their evil ways, He changed His mind and did not carry out the destruction he had threatened.”
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Glassjester
Guest
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petra22
Guest
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Lucretius
Guest
Well, God of Revealion is more than merely the Scriptures, the Gospel is more than merely the gospels, but still, I understand what you mean.
Think of it more like God as known through the perspective of faith, and God as known through the perspective of reason; God as viewed through different ways of knowing. I see redness and roundness with my eyes, and feel smoothness and weight with my hand, yet it would be foolish to say that an apple is ultimately two different things just because we know different aspects of it through different senses.
And just like most perspectives, there is overlap: just as I can sense the roundness of apples through both sight and touch, we can know, say, that God exists, or that He is impassive, through both reason and faith.
Christi pax.
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Tomdstone
Guest
Christianity teaches us that God loves us all. The Bible says that “The LORD regretted that he had made human beings on the earth, and his heart was deeply troubled.” Gen 6:6.
Christianity also says that God is all knowing. However, would that not imply that God would know ahead of time that He would regret creating humans?
Christianity also says that God is all knowing. However, would that not imply that God would know ahead of time that He would regret creating humans?
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e_c
Guest
Revelation is basically opposed to invention. If God teaches us things about Himself we can’t access by reason alone, then what He teaches is not simply something we “make up” to understand Him. Tower of Babel vs. Pentecost… Man going up to God, or God coming down to man.
Yes.
Vera, what is your point? That they are not able to be reconciled? That is not exactly a theme left untreated in the early, medieval, modern, and contemporary Church. “What has Jerusalem to do with Athens,” quipped Tertullian, and we were off to the races. But Paul was debating with pagan Athenians well before that.
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CHRISTINE77
Guest
Yes I see the difference. That doesn’t mean there are two Gods though. It means different humans at different times viewed God differently. God is the same: all powerful, all good, all knowing. It is us humans who get everything mixed up! And even though I think the Bible is inspired by God I do not think everything in it should be taken literally. Do you?
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Tomdstone
Guest
Some people do not see a satisfactory resolution of the question of how God can be immutable and not subject to change, when there are passages in Scripture that indicate otherwise. For another example, the wisdom and the knowledge of God are unlimited, but since his knowledge is unlimited, why would He regret having made man? And why would He change His mind?
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davidv
Guest
Maybe the words are being taken wooden literally rather than as the original author intended.
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Wesrock
Guest
Because he actually does neither. These are anthropomorphisms used in scripture. Neither does God have wings, pinions, arms, or hands.
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Tomdstone
Guest
So those verses in Scripture that disagree with what the philosophers say about God are to be taken figuratively? This is what many Protestants say about how Roman Catholics take the words of Jesus in Consecrating the Bread and Wine. Many Protestants will say that these words are to be taken figuratively.
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