Part 34 of Post Your Tough Questions Regarding Christianity

Part 34 is a continuation of Post Your Tough Questions pertaining to God/Jesus/Holy Bible and I will do my best to clarify and make sense of it to those who are unaware...I still have questions and comments I haven't responded to in Part 9 thru 33.

I don't want my intentions to come across as converting you or whatever lol... but rather clear up things etc... so ask away.
Also I don't want people to feel like I'm ignoring your question/questions/comment/comments, like I said I'm still answering questions on Part 9 and so yes, I'm behind. And so when your question comes up and if it is coherent enough in my view I will then answer it. Sometimes I do answer questions out of order but for the most part I answer them as I'm going through the threads. Ok thanks for your understanding & patience!...so again ask away.

 

If God is perfect why does he need humans?

Obviously he is lacking companionship or something else which means he has desires and desire is a flaw.

 

Where does it say in the Holy Bible that God needs humans? God doesn't need anything, He is self-sustaining. God is the Almighty Creator, He has no beginning, He has no end, He is the eternal God. We humans are the ones who need God, without God nothing exists.

God is not lacking anything, he has no flaws, He is perfectly Holy, He is sinless and will always be sinless.

 

Then why create humans?

Was he bored?

 

He created all sorts of things, (living and inanimate) not just humans, because He is the Almighty Creator!

God....bored? Humans get bored...not Almighty God! Let's not forget, God is not a human being. We have flaws not God.

 

Then why create humans if he needs nothing? Had God not created the human race there would be no suffering so why did he do it if he needs nothing from them?

 

My question is whether Christians can recognize that Jesus duplicated the experience of Elijah who came in 800 BC, and whether that means Jesus was the suffering messiah indwell by the holy ghost?


Christ did the same exact things as had Elijah, but 800 years later:

1) Both Elijah and Christ raised the dead:

1 Kings 17:22 And the LORD heard the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came into him again, and he revived.

John 12:1 Then Jesus six days before the passover came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, which had been dead, whom he raised from the dead.

2) Both Elijah, who never dies, and Christ were immortal:

2 Kings 2:1 And it came to pass, when the LORD would take up Elijah into heaven by a whirlwind, that Elijah went with Elisha from Gilgal

John 20:25 The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the LORD. But he said unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe.

3) Both Elijah and Christ ascended into Heaven before witnesses:

2 Kings 2:11 And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.
12 And Elisha saw it,

Luke 24:.51 And it came to pass, while he blessed them, he was parted from them, and carried up into heaven

4) Both Elijah and Christ troubled Israel:

1 Kings 18:17 And it came to pass, when Ahab saw Elijah that Ahab said unto him, Art thou he that troubleth Israel?

Matthew 2:3 When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born.

5) Both Elijah and Christ were threatened by the authorities with death:

1 Kings 19:14.. And he said, I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts: because the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only am left; and they seek my life, to take it away

John 11:53 Then from that day forth they took counsel together for to put him to death

6) Both Elijah and Christ.... were hunted by the Jewish authorities:

1 Kings 19:14 And he said, I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts: because the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away

Then said some of them of Jerusalem, Is not this he, whom they seek to kill?

7) Both Elijah and Christ.... hid in a cave/tomb:

1 Kings 19:9 And he came thither unto a cave, and lodged there; and, behold, the word of the LORD came to him, and he said unto him, What doest thou here, Elijah?

Luke 2:14 And it came to pass, that after three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions.

Both Elijah and Christ pondered in the wilderness 40 days and forty nights:....

1 Kings 19:8 And he arose, and did eat and drink, and went in the strength of that meat forty days and forty nights unto Horeb the mount of God

Matthew 4:2 And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungred.

9) Both Elijah and Christ. walked on across the water

2 Kings 2:8.. And Elijah took his mantle, and wrapped it together, and smote the waters, and they were divided hither and thither, so that they two went over on dry ground

Matthew 14:25 And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea\

10) Both Elijah and Christ let a person follow them across the water:

2 Kings 2:14.. And he took the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and smote the waters, and said, Where is the LORD God of Elijah? and when he also had smitten the waters, they parted hither and thither: and Elisha went over

Matthew 14:29 And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water to go to Jesus.

11) Both Elijah and Christ.... wrote only one thing, a letter, to people on Earth AFTER they had ascended:

2 Chronicles 21:12 And there came a writing to him from ..Elijah.. the prophet, saying, Thus saith the LORD God of David thy father, Because thou hast not walked in the ways of Jehoshaphat thy father, nor in the ways of Asa king of Judah,\

Revelation 1:1 The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John:

12) Both Elijah and Christ appointed a successor, Elisha, by Elijah, and Peter, by Christ:

2 Kings 2:9.. And it came to pass, when they were gone over, that Elijah said unto Elisha, Ask what I shall do for thee, before I be taken away from thee. And ..Elisha.. said, I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me
Matthew 16:18.. And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this .rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

13) Both Elijah and Christ gave a successor the power to raise the dead:

2 Kings 8:5.. And it came to pass, as he was telling the king how he had restored a dead body to life, that, behold, the woman, whose son he had restored to life, cried to the king for her house and for her land. And Gehazi said, My lord, O king, this is the woman, and this is her son, whom ..Elisha.. restored to life.

Acts 9:40 But Peter put them all forth, and kneeled down, and prayed.; and turning him to the body said, Tabitha, arise. And she opened her eyes: and when she saw Peter, she sat up.

14) Both Elijah and Christ gave a successor the power to heal:

2 Kings 5:10.. And Elisha sent a messenger unto him, saying, Go and wash in Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to thee, and thou shalt be clean

Acts 3:6 Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk

15) Both Elijah and Christ gave a successor a symbolic authority, the cloak to one, the keys to the other:

1 Kings 19:19.. So he departed thence, and found Elisha the son of Shaphat, who was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen before him, and he with the twelfth: and Elijah passed by him, and cast his mantle upon him.

Matthew 16:19 And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven

16) Both Elijah and Christ asked that the this "cup" be taken from them:

1Kings 19:4 .But he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree: and he requested for himself that he might die (because he was afraid of what was coming from Jezebel: [1Kings 19:3]), and said, "It is enough (they seek my life, to take it away: [1Kings 19:10]); now, O LORD, take away my life; for I am not better than my fathers."

Matthew 26:39 And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, (because he began to show grief and distress of mind and was deeply depressed: [Matt 26:37]), let this cup pass from me (It is enough: [1Kings 19:4]): nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.

17) Both Elijah and Christ had miraculous births:

Jewish Encyclopedia:
Three different theories regarding Elijah's origin are presented in the Haggadah: Mention must be made of a statement which, though found only in the later cabalistic literature (Yal?u? Reubeni, Bere(*)(*)(*)(*), 9a, ed. Amsterdam), seems nevertheless to be very old (see Epiphanius, l.c.), and according to which Elijah was an angel in human form, so that he had neither parents nor offspring.
See also Melchizedek.

Matthew1:23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.

1 Both Elijah and Christ destroyed pagan worshippers and priests. Elijah destroyed the priests of Baal; Christ, the Pantheon of Rome, 380AD:

IKi 18:40 And Elijah said unto them, Take the prophets of Baal; let not one of them escape. And they took them: and Elijah brought them down to the brook Kishon, and slew them there.

History: Universal Christianity in 380AD:
Revelation 20:4 I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony about Jesus and because of the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands.
They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years (32AD -1054AD)\

19) Both Elijah and Christ were promised faithfulness three times, Elisha in the former and Peter, in the latter.\

2 Kings 2:2.. I will not leave thee. So they went down to Bethel
2 Kings 2:4.. I will not leave thee. So they came to Jericho
2 Kings 2:6.. I will not leave thee. And they two went on

John 21:17.. He saith unto him the third time,... "Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, "Lovest thou me?"

20) Both Elijah and Christ. condemned a Jezebel:

2 Kings 9:36 Wherefore they came again, and told him. And he said, This is the word of the LORD, which he spake by his servant Elijah the Tishbite, saying, In the portion of Jezreel shall dogs eat the flesh of Jezebel:

Rev 2:20 ..Notwithstanding I have a few things against thee, because thou sufferest that woman Jezebel, which calleth herself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce my servants to commit fornication, and to eat things sacrificed unto idols. Behold, I will cast her into a bed, and them that commit adultery with her into great tribulation, except they repent of their deeds...

21) Both Elijah and Christ re-dedicated the Israelite people to God by raising up a new altar or temple:

1 Ki 18:30 And ..Elijah.. said unto all the people, Come near unto me. And all the people came near unto him. And he repaired the altar of the LORD that was broken down. And Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, unto whom the word of the LORD came, saying, Israel shall be thy name:

John 2:19 Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up.

22) Both Elijah and Christ chose one man upon which to build his following:

2 Kings 2:15 And when the sons of the prophets which were to view at Jericho saw him, they said, The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha. And they came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the ground before him

Matthew 16:18 And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and ..upon.. this ..rock.. I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

23) Both Elijah and Christ were subject of a three day 'search' for their presence:

2 Kings 2:1 And when they urged him till he was ashamed, he said, Send.
They sent therefore fifty men; and they sought three days, but found him not.

Luke 2:46 And it came to pass, that after three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions.

 

God doesn't need humans.
He killed them all, except Noah and his three sons and their daughters.

If Modern man doesn't start seeing the Truth, and recognize exactly what Reality is going to unfold, the day will come when some next in line creature replaces us all.

- - - Updated - - -

The Reality is that "he" just unfolds moment by moment.

 

I do believe I made the OP run from his own thread.

 

Nah,...
He'll be back.

Did you ever notice that John specifically stated he was not The Elijah nor even a prophet at all?

John 1:21 And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elijah?
And he saith, I am not.
Art thou that prophet?
And he answered, No.

 

Not sure what your question is.

 

Are you kidding? If he were serious, which he/she is not. He/she would go back to 2 yrs ago. That's how far behind. So there is no serious in these threads. Just ego.

This series of threads has done much damage to people who claim christian. They have been made fools of by the answers in these threads.

 

Genesis 1:26

 

Because God is a creative and personal Being, it gives Him pleasure to create as well as it gives Him pleasure to have other beings He can have a genuine relationship with.

We read in Scripture:

“You are worthy, O Lord our God, to receive glory and honor and power. For you created all things, and they exist because you created what you pleased.”---Rev. 4:11 NLT

Sounds like you're blaming Almighty God for the suffering we endure, the suffering was due to the disobedience of our first parents. If they had not disobeyed God there wouldn't have been any suffering at all but when they disobeyed God sin entered the world.

 

Exactly! We need Him but He doesn't need us!

 

Sorry but Genesis 1:26 doesn't at all describe God needing us. You have misinterpreted the verse.

 

Now why would you think that?...lol If you haven't noticed this is chapter 34 of this long running never ending series of Post Your Tough Questions Regarding Christianity...lol

I admit I am not here 24/7...lol but when I find the time to be here there is never a question that goes unanswered providing of course if it is coherent enough for me to answer it. I mean if I answer a question that is incoherent then my answer will also be incoherent...lol

 

Then why create us? For a joke? Which, by the way, seems to have backfired on him.

Not that I believe in the Genesis myth anyway.

 

You would have thought he could have created a being thart he could have have a genuine relationship with, not a faulty being.

We are all responsible for our own sins. It's too easy for Christianity to blame everything on a mythical pair of beings. Original sin is the doctrine of an Early church father.

 

Okay...how about this one:

Considering there is absolutely no physical evidence to indicate ANY "God" exists, and that the one you are supporting in one of thousands believed in by billions of humans. What explanation will you provided for everyone here that you are correct in your belief?

 

No; this thread is a narcissistic, self agrandizing style of exchange. I've asked questions that were never addressed by Mitt Ryan...circa 2012. These topics have no intellectual value, whatsoever.

 

What does it say about God when he condones/sanctions forced, brutal slavery, fathers selling their daughters into slavery and painfully destroying/eternally torturing those he deems wicked?

I'm not buying the "satans inflicting the torture and pain" nonsense. If God is all knowing and the creator of everything, he owns the responsibility for all outcomes.

 

Most of the time on the Creationist stuff, he simply Cut & Pastes from answersingenesis.com

The rest of the time it's "God's ways are not our ways" or "You wouldn't be confused and have questions if only you were filled with the Holy Spirit like me."


Otherwise, it's a complete waste of time. To compare the Christian apologia of say a C.S. Lewis to PBS's "Firing Line" with William F. Buckley, Jr......

Mitt's "Tough Question" threads are like.....................PBS's Barney & Friends.

 

Ouch. That's cold, bruh.

 

Not true! I asked you some time ago in one of these threads of yours a question and you never did give me an answer.

So I'll ask it again...

Were these palm trees?