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From: ken@qantel.UUCP (Ken Nichols@ex6193)
Newsgroups: net.religion
Subject: Re: "God Cannot..."
Message-ID: <261@qantel.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 26-Oct-84 11:57:59 EST
Article-I.D.: qantel.261
Posted: Fri Oct 26 11:57:59 1984
Date-Received: Sun, 28-Oct-84 05:51:31 EST
References: <239@qantel.UUCP> <1094@ihuxm.UUCP>, <243@qantel.UUCP> <1098@ihuxm.UUCP> <211@pyuxd.UUCP>
Organization: MDS Qantel, Hayward, CA
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Rich writes,

> Mike Cherepov discovered something very interesting there when he pointed out
> how many people are claiming "God cannot see beyond man's [sic] sin",  "God
> cannot allow sinners to share in a happy afterlife",  "God cannot provide
> everything that everyone would like".
> 
> Obviously, saying "God cannot" places limits (imposed by the speaker) on the
> power of god (who is supposed to be omnipotent---without limits to its power).
> These limits sound like what the speakers would desire these limits to be.
> God cannot allow sinners a happy afterlife, because that would make my whole
> viewpoint on reward/punishment invalid.  God cannot provide everything that
> everyone would like, because that would eradicate my notion of a puritan work
> ethic, which claims that god rewards only those who work.  God can't see
> beyond a person's sin because doing so would invalidate my concept of the
> unworthiness of humanity and treat sinners equally with pious people like
> me, and I don't accept that.

> Rich Rosen  pyuxd!rlr

When we say that God cannot do something, we are refering to the perfectness of
His nature.  God has the power to do anything.  However, God has other
atributes also, and these we cannot ignore.  

"God cannot see beyond man's sin."  This statement is true not because God is
not omnipotent, but because He is also perfectly holy.  His holiness will not
allow Him to commune with the sin in a man's life.  When this sin is taken care
of by Christ, then God does not see the sin anymore, and can commune directly
with the man.

"God cannot allow sinners to share in a happy afterlife."  In order to have a 
happy afterlife, one would have to be in communion with God.  But as I said
above, God cannot commune with the undealt with sin in a man.  Not only that,
but man is getting his just reward if he ends up in hell because he has not let
Christ take care of the sin problem that he has.

"God cannot provide everything that everyone would like."  This is not really
true.  God chooses in His perfect wisdom to not give everyone exactly what they
want.  God will not cater to man's sinfull selfishness.  He has given everyone
a free will, and an act such as this would remove man's free will.

You see Rich, God is all powerfull, but that does not supercede His other 
attributes.  All of God's qualities work together in a perfect balance that no
man can ever fully understand.  These qualities fitting all together is another
proof that God is deserving of worship and praise.
-- 


"...holding forth the                              Ken Nichols
 word of life..." Phil. 2:16                       ...!ucbvax!dual!qantel!ken
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