pajarito

That is a disturbing avatar.

Cannot. God can only do those things which are consistent with his nature. Sin is not part of his nature. So God has no free will? PS: So God who can not sin, created mankind who can sin, and then punished mankind for sinning with eternal pain and suffering. Nice God! I think I know where you're going with this and it is illogical from the start. Here.

Cannot. God can only do those things which are consistent with his nature. Sin is not part of his nature.

My comment about robots had to do with your ability to accept or reject. You can chose to follow or not.

It is not in His nature: 1 Peter 2:22, Hebrews 4:15

Well thank you very much. Jesus = God God cannot sin. You are not God. You have free will and are imperfect. You are not created with the capability to be perfect. You are reliant on God whether you believe or not.

You wouldn't believe!!! (no pun intended)

Cool.

Doesn't really matter does it? "Sin is transgression of the Law." It doesn't matter if it is in action or thought. I don't know if that's a redefinition but rather a further clarification.

I'm missing your point. Jesus and God live up to the moral law. Did they have free will or were they robots? Uhhh..... free will? Not that it even applies, though. Nothing controls God.

I'm missing your point.

1 John 3:4

So it's ok to just make up a definition that works for you?

No. But not because of anything I've done. The penalty for my lawlessness has been paid in full. When I'm judged, God will now only see the righteousness that is in Christ Jesus. I can be set free due to lack of evidence. Oh, you will go to hell for rejection of Jesus but that is not the root cause of why. The root cause of your rejection is selfish rebellion (the laws you've broken). Ultimately, you send yourself to hell. You have a choice. Blaspheming the Holy Spirit (rejection of Jesus) is the only unforgivable sin. You have this lifetime to get it right. You don't know how long that will be. If you die in your sins, it will be like jumping without your parachute on. That's the point. God says differently. It is your fault. He didn't create a robot. He created something that he could have a personal relationship with in order to bring him and demonstrate his glory. You are in rebellion against the very thing that gives you your life's breath.

My wife is an OB/GYN Physician and her faith definitely influences her medical practice. She's the smartest person I know.

I’m really only concerned with what the Bible says and not a particular church. Why do you think you must receive (he doesn’t need your acceptance) Jesus as your savior? What is he saving you from? How did he accomplish this? No. He goes to hell because he’s broken the Law which requires justice. The Hindu may be very honorable by your standard and mine, however, he has broken the moral Law just like I have (and you have). Jesus, the only one who could and did live without sin (God in the flesh) and, therefore, the only one worthy, paid the penalty for your countless crimes. It is a free gift but you must appropriate it. You cannot buy it by doing anything of yourself. You cannot bribe God. By the way, God sees your lustful thoughts as adultery of the heart and hatred as murder. I don’t know about you but I’ve been guilty of both of those almost my entire life. Neither Hinduism nor any other “religion” can provide deliverance from sin. It is hard for me to imagine that a mass murderer could or would have ever sincerely repented and begged forgiveness and given his/her heart to Jesus. However, only God knows your heart. He knows every thought that has gone through your head. How will you stand when judged? Even with a lifetime of positive accomplishment, one has still not kept the required perfectly righteous standard of goodness. Deeds of goodness on your part are like filthy rags to God because he sees you much deeper than that. Oprah Winfrey’s establishment of a school for girls in Africa is a wonderful thing. However, it will not wipe her record clean of her transgressions.

I never said that Christianity was the only religion and I already knew what Pantheism was. I was just curious as to where he came up with that. I wanted him to explain his reasoning.

He's not everything. Where is the basis for this thought? That's what I was asking before.

I realize that. However, the part I mentioned sounded definitive. I was just curious as to where he came up with that. Not arguing for or against. Not yet...

Where did you hear this?

Did you listen to it in its entirety? I don’t know how anyone could possibly come away with the idea that they could “do” anything to save themselves. It certainly does not advocate “work righteousness.” Just the opposite. It is meant to take you through God’s moral law in order to bring reason to the idea that you are a sinner and in need of a Savior. The purpose of the Law should be to drive one to the cross. There are many who claim the title of Christian and Christian organizations/denominations which believe that you must “do” things on your own in order to “earn” your way to heaven. This is unbiblical and wrong. You got it. I don’t and it’s not.

No.

You don't go to hell because you've not heard the Gospel or of Jesus. You go to hell because you've lied, stolen, blasphemed, committed adultery, murdered, etc. All are guilty. The Law of the Lord is written on the hearts of all men their conscience bearing witness. If you care so much about those who haven't heard the good news, you should go tell them. You, however, have heard and will be held accountable. The more knowledge, the more accountability.

Everybody still good and pissed off at me in here Steve?

Wow. I hope I’m not as much of a dim as you say. That’s harsh. I understand you must be frustrated with the discussion. However, rather than resort to insults, why don’t you just find something else that you enjoy more. We can all discuss things here without attacking each other. That doesn’t accomplish much. My quote from my previous post applies here: …and probably are not born again/saved. Granted, you’ve listed a long line of hypocrites and they represent a black eye on Christianity but why judge the religion based on the actions of its bad apples? That doesn’t make sense. A fairly clear sign that a person is not saved is if he/she continues in a “pattern of sin.” They may claim the Christian title but they are probably not born again. Just because you preach from the Bible doesn’t save you. Just because you go to church every Sunday and give to the needy doesn’t save you. Those are some of the attributes of true conversion but they are not what ultimately define it. As in Ted Haggard’s example, one does not continue to meet with prostitutes and purchase drugs if they have a changed heart. I don’t care how many times he’s preached from the pulpit. Many people sitting in church on Sunday are probably going to bust the gates of hell wide open when the time comes. Hypocrites fill every organization. The religious have no better record of righteousness than anyone else. All fall short of the glory of God.