Part 38 of Post Your Tough Questions Regarding Christianity

I've read Christian doctrine that interprets the Eden allegory as being mankind seeing himself as equal to God. Adam saw himself as qualified to partake of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil - that Adam could himself judge. God had directed that only God can judge.

That's pretty boiled down for brevity, but...

From that view, one can see that humans are not in alignment with God.

That could be seen as an origin of man's separation from god, thus inherently sinful just for that. It could also indicate how humans can't consistently make sound decisions of judgement, including judgement of our own actions. That also can't help but lead to sinful acts.

And, when we examine human behavior today, it's clear that humans are heavily into self gratification and of having an outsized view of ourselves - to an extent that it is problematic.

I don't know the Jewish version you point to. That sounds interesting.

Remember that I'm an atheist! However, I think we all need to understand this religion that so permeates America and the world, for that matter.

 

But not all people will believe in something that is so illogical. That's where your religion of the church of no god comes in.

Your religion believes in the fairy tale that everything in existence came about by some cosmic accident, nothing caused it...poof!...then there came everything out of nowhere for no apparent reason...it just happened on its own...it had no cause...nothing caused it. That is some fairy tale to believe in, one would have to take a gigantic astronomical leap of faith more than the faith of believing in a Creator, an Almighty God to believe that fairy tale you atheists believe in being so illogical as it is...wow!

Now let me explain the more logical belief that the Christian religion adheres to.

First off, it's a scientific fact that from nothing, nothing comes. So, if there were ever a time when there was absolutely nothing in existence, then nothing would have ever come into existence. But things do exist. Therefore, since there could never have been absolutely nothing, something had to have always been in existence. That ever-existing thing is what we call the Creator Almighty God. Almighty God is the uncaused Being that caused everything else to come into existence. Almighty God is the uncreated Creator who created the universe and everything in it. Almighty God has no beginning, has no ending, Almighty God is eternal. Almighty God is responsible for all creation.

There are things which come into existence. Everything which comes into existence is caused to exist by something else. There cannot be an infinite series of past causes. Therefore, there exists a first cause which did not come into existence. In other words, the first cause always existed...which we call Almighty God.

It is obvious that nothing can cause itself to come into existence. Anything that causes itself to come into existence has to exist before it exists. This is impossible. Perhaps something can come into existence from nothing without any cause whatsoever. Can a thing just pop into existence with absolutely no cause? This also does not seem reasonable.

"There cannot be an infinite series of past causes." Is the series of past causes infinite? Can the universe have an infinite past? The answer is that it cannot. First, there are philosophical reasons to think the past cannot be infinite. Second, there are scientific reasons which support this view.

If one asks "How can I know there is an Almighty God? you can answer them by saying there is the Christian Holy Bible, there is nature, there is man, and there is logic. These point to the Creator Almighty God. None are possible by happenstance. None could have been produced by accident.

We read in Scripture:

"They know the truth about God because he has made it obvious to them. For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God."---Romans 1:19-20 NLT

 

It appears you don't know the definition of a simple English word.

What did you think "sin" meant? Let me clarify for you what the word means.

1a: an offense against religious or moral law
b: an action that is or is felt to be highly reprehensible it's a sin to waste food
c: an often serious shortcoming : FAULT
2a: transgression of the law of God
b: a vitiated state of human nature in which the self is estranged from God

So when I said we are all sinners, it means we have all done something bad/wrong/evil which is a true statement for there is not a single one of us who has done everything righteous. So when I described "sinner" as disobeying God, it obviously means a person who "did something bad" Disobeying God is synonymous with "doing something bad"

We Read in Scripture:

10 As the Scriptures say, “No one is righteous—not even one. Romans 3:10 NLT

Doing something bad is not righteous. When Our Creator Almighty God gave us commandments, those commandments were to keep us from doing bad things. So when we disobey Him, it means we have done something bad or in other words sinned against Him for disobeying Him by doing that bad deed.

Like for example, He commanded us, "You shall not murder" and when we choose to disobey Him and do commit murder, we have sinned and done something bad/wrong/evil/wicked/heinous/atrocious.

Everybody knows that murdering another person is wrong, not a good thing to do regardless of one's motives/reasons...etc...etc.

Sorry but your statement is nonsensical.

Being morally obedient means you equate morality with being good, it's the same thing. Our Creator Almighty God has given us very clear moral absolutes and so morality is objective. Unlike atheist who believe morality is subjective. No wonder atheists hold the world view that "nothing is wrong unless I say it is wrong." This is very disturbing to me.

Case in point. The serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer who was responsible for a series of gruesome murders of 17 young men from 1988 until he was caught on July 22, 1991, in Milwaukee, who was an atheist was quoted saying, "If a person doesn’t think there is a God to be accountable to, then—then what’s the point of trying to modify your behavior to keep it within acceptable ranges?" So it's obvious that Jeffrey determined his own moral code and was subjective about it.

Then we have those atheists dictators who murdered millions upon millions of their own people during their reign of terror. Below is just a few of them but of course there are many others in history who committed the same atrocities...so disturbing!

Stalin murdered 20,000,000 of his people when he ruled the Soviet Union.
Mao murdered 45,000,000 in 4 years when he ruled China.
Pol Pot murdered nearly a quarter of Cambodia's seven million people.

I find what these murderers did highly disturbing! But of course we Christians know where they are now, they are receiving their just eternal punishments.

We Read in Scripture:

The Narrow Gate

Our Lord Savior Jesus Christ said, 13 "You can enter God’s Kingdom only through the narrow gate. The highway to hell is broad, and its gate is wide for the many who choose that way. 14 But the gateway to life is very narrow and the road is difficult, and only a few ever find it." Matthew 7:13-14 NLT

 

This is a purposeful fallacy concocted because YOU don't want to face the truth.

The view of science is that we don't know what caused the initiation of this universe. However, from a split second after that causation, there is very strong evidence of the progression that resulted.

The big difference with YOU is that you want to claim you know, even though YOU have ZERO evidence! That is pure, unadulterated self pride - exactly like Adam had in the garden.

You COULD, for example, simply claim that it is your personal belief that God did that first singularity. At least that wouldn't conflict with the subsequent development for which there IS evidence of several different types, and that these different forms of evidence confirm each other.

No, you are misrepresenting science. Vacuums have energy. The result is that particles come into existence and go out of existence in a pure vacuum. This is not just theory - it is measured fact.

Plus, the singularity and subsequent expansion of the universe did NOT come in the context of there being space. The vacuum of space IS PART OF our universe and does not exist outside of it. Our universe is composed of space-time. There is no evidence of what could be outside of that. Again, space was PART of the big bang and expanded from that singularity just like absolutely everything else that is part of our universe.

As for the rest, you are just using "God" as a place holder for what humans absolutely do NOT know. And, you are suggesting that the Bible is a physics manual - which it VERY DEFINITELY is NOT.

 

We don't write laws against sin. Sin is a religious concept.

If we did, there would be laws against the 10C, the "seven deadly sins", etc.

An act being sinful is NOT A LEGAL JUSTIFICTION for laws in America.

 

that is certain an interesting comment that fits with......


https://near-death.com/christian-andreason-nde/

 

Yes, I understand that. You are an authoritarian follower who equates obedience to power (ultimate power being God) with moral good.

And I find that extremely disturbing.

Except if God tells you to do it, then by your obedience equals morality thinking it is not wrong.

Not objective. Just external. You have farmed out your moral judgment making, so others who convince you they speak for God can get you to commit whatever atrocity they want.

It is this same sort of thinking that makes for a good nazi soldier, theist or atheist.

Being atheist doesn't mean you aren't an authoritarian follower. It just means you aren't one controlled through religion. Nationalism, and other ideologies can work the same way.

It is also true that not all Christians are authoritarian followers. Plenty of them are not with you on equating morality to obedience, and if God told them to kill their families or fly a plane into a skyscraper, they would leave the religion.

 

By your definition of Sin .. doing someting bad is disobeying Moral Law - dictated by God. I agree this is a desent definition of Sin.

The problem with this definition however - is determining what the Law of God is -

For example - Does God forbid drinking of alcohol - or does he not. Different Christian Sects have come up with different conclusions - giving Bible justifications "your body is a Temple" and so on . the other side giving the same .. the fundamentalists double down and claim to recieved direct messaging from God on the issue .. via "speaking in tongues"

What do you think God's law is on this issue ? Keep the wine in the most holy of sacraments - or substitute grape juice because God forbid's alcohol .. or is Alcohol generally forbidden - except for the sacred ritual ?

 

We see Christianity about the same way, but I disagree on this point because of what scriptures say of us judging.

Gen3;22 Behold, the man has become like one of Us, knowing good and evil;

1 Thessalonians 5:21 Test all things; hold fast what is good.

If we know good and evil, why would we need a genocidal god or his homophobic and misogynous religions to help us judge?

They have already shown that they are evil.

Regards
DL

 

Does your god sin when he kills with genocide when he could just as easily cure?

Regards
DL

 

I think there is a difference between "knowing good and evil" and being qualified to take over God's role as judge.

 

I am still waiting for any evidence what so ever that G/god committed genocide, why do you keep dodging that question? BS maybe?

 

Even a child, let to itself, does better than the religious.

because Yahweh sets a really low bar .

Strange that Christians and Muslims have such a hard time raising their low moral bar.

They are not of Gnostic Christian quality.

We raised ours above that low centuries ago.

We condemned the genocidal Yahweh/Western Jesus to hell.

All moral people will.

Have you?

Regards
DL

 

No.

Most are not showing such ignorance of scriptures and dogma.

Here is a bit.

Do try to get your moral thinking raised.

PBS: God on Trial, the Verdict - Bing video

Regards
DL

 

I don't like this argument, as NOBODY actually believes humans don't make major mistakes both as individuals and groups, even when their very own sense (or even documentation) of morality and ethics would identify their acts as majorly deprecated.

The Bible can say that moral positions are documented and understood. But, that doesn't mean that Christians are qualified as judges of who is going to heaven and who is not.

I think the Eden allegory makes this clear. In Christianity, God alone is the ultimate judge.

But, that doesn't mean that we can't agree on many of the gigantic numbers of serious mistakes made by humans even when the perpetrators manage to justify their actions in some perverted manner. All sides in the wars between those who believe in the God of the Bible believed they were doing their god's will!

At least we've progressed to the point of recognizing that "God's will" is not a justification for the laws of man - at least in the USA.

 

I don't see that as relevant or true.

 

That's a poor question in that all we can go on is the stated motivations of those who committed the acts.

Even with the Noah story, where it is stated that God was fully willing to kill every life form on Earth, we can't determine whether the story is history or allegory.

There certainly is Biblical documentation of God's support for genocide. The slaughter of every Midianite is an example.

 

so then as a confirmed atheist that claims Gods will are laws created by man, is not a justification for the laws of man - at least in the USA

 

ah, do not judge lest you claim to be a gnostic christian, then you qualify to judge G/god

 

I make NO CLAIMS about "God's will".

Your post is a little obscure, so maybe you were going for more than that, and just got off to a bad start.

 

"This person" as you put it, let me tell you wasn't just some ordinary off the street joe smo dude...no siree bob!

He was Our Creator Almighty God's Son....a Divine Person who came to us to save us from our sins! Only He being sinless could have sacrificed His life in order to save mankind from its sins and then after being buried be raised from the dead on the 3rd day...wow!...what a feat!...a feat that only a Divine person could accomplish!... and such Divine love for His people!

When He took on the form of a human, His nature did not change, but His position did. He in His original nature of God in spirit form, humbled Himself by laying aside His glory and privileges.

We Read in Scripture:

6 Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. 7 Instead, he gave up his divine privileges he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, 8 he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross. Philippians 2:6-8 NLT

Our Lord Savior Jesus Christ said, "For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give His life as a ransom for many." Mark 10:45 NLT

So now let me explain the significance of Our Lord Savior Jesus Christ's resurrection because obviously you being a lost unbeliever have no clue as to the significance of this resurrection that has eternal implications.

First off, Christianity is built upon foundations and one of those foundations was the resurrection of Our Lord Savior Jesus Christ.

We Read in Scripture:

3 I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said. 4 He was buried, and he was raised from the dead on the third day, just as the Scriptures said. 1 Corinthians 15:3-4 NLT

Another foundation of Christianity is the virgin birth of Our Lord Savior Jesus Christ.

We Read in Scripture:

14 All right then, the Lord himself will give you the sign. Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel (which means ‘God is with us’). Isaiah 7:14 NLT

The Birth of Jesus the Messiah

18 This is how Jesus the Messiah was born. His mother, Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph. But before the marriage took place, while she was still a virgin, she became pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit. Matthew 1:18 NLT

The deity of Our Lord Savior Jesus Christ is another foundation of Christianity.

We Read in Scripture:

15 All who declare that Jesus is the Son of God have God living in them, and they live in God. 1 John 4:15 NLT

5 And who can win this battle against the world? Only those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God. 1 John 5:5 NLT

Our Lord Savior Jesus Christ said, 30 The Father and I are one.” John 10:30 NLT

Our Lord Savior Jesus Christ's atonement for sin is another foundation of Christianity.

We Read in Scripture:

10 For since our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be saved through the life of his Son. 11 So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God. Romans 5:10-11 NLT

21 For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ. 2 Corinthians 5:21 NLT

So all these foundations of the Christian faith, the virgin birth of Our Lord, His deity, His atonement for sin and His crucifixion and resurrection are all non-negotiable truths, without which Christianity could not exist.

There is absolutely no other religious figure in the history of mankind that has ever prophesied His own death and resurrection...then accomplished it...not Mohammed, not Buddha, not Confucius ..not any others you could name...none of them...only Our Lord Savior Jesus Christ has accomplished it.

So Our Lord Savior Jesus Christ's resurrection from the dead was the crowning achievement that forever separates Him from any other religious leader who has ever been or will ever live.

Our Lord Savior Jesus Christ's rise from the dead matters because it fulfilled Bible Prophecy.

We Read in Scripture:

Jesus Predicts His Death

31 Then Jesus began to tell them that the Son of Man must suffer many terrible things and be rejected by the elders, the leading priests, and the teachers of religious law. He would be killed, but three days later he would rise from the dead. Mark 8:31 NLT

This Bible Prophecy is also found in the Old Testament in the Book of Psalms and in the Book of Isaiah.

We Read in Scripture:

10 For you will not leave my soul among the dead or allow your holy one to rot in the grave. 11 You will show me the way of life, granting me the joy of your presence and the pleasures of living with you forever. Psalm 16:10-11 NLT

12 I will give him the honors of a victorious soldier, because he exposed himself to death. He was counted among the rebels. He bore the sins of many and interceded for rebels. Isaiah 53:12 NLT

A very heinous form of capital punishment that Roman rule brought was crucifixion. Many people during those Roman times were crucified for their crimes and for insulting Caesar. So the facts of Our Lord Savior Jesus Christ's crucifixion and burial are not necessarily outstanding, as many suffered the same fate. However, the bodies of those other people are still in their graves.

Whereas Our Lord Savior Jesus Christ's tomb is empty.

We Read in Scripture:

24 Some of our men ran out to see, and sure enough, his body was gone, just as the women had said.” Luke 24:24 NLT

If Our Lord Savior Jesus Christ never rose from the dead, then there would be no compelling reason to believe that He is who He said He is. But the fact is that He did rise again, confirming His claim to be God.

We Read in Scripture:

The Guard at the Tomb

62 The next day, on the Sabbath, the leading priests and Pharisees went to see Pilate. 63 They told him, “Sir, we remember what that deceiver once said while he was still alive: ‘After three days I will rise from the dead.’ 64 So we request that you seal the tomb until the third day. This will prevent his disciples from coming and stealing his body and then telling everyone he was raised from the dead! If that happens, we’ll be worse off than we were at first.” 65 Pilate replied, “Take guards and secure it the best you can.” 66 So they sealed the tomb and posted guards to protect it. Matthew 27:62-66 NLT

The Resurrection

28 Early on Sunday morning, as the new day was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went out to visit the tomb.
2 Suddenly there was a great earthquake! For an angel of the Lord came down from heaven, rolled aside the stone, and sat on it. 3 His face shone like lightning, and his clothing was as white as snow. 4 The guards shook with fear when they saw him, and they fell into a dead faint.
5 Then the angel spoke to the women. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead, just as he said would happen. Come, see where his body was lying. 7 And now, go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead, and he is going ahead of you to Galilee. You will see him there. Remember what I have told you.”
8 The women ran quickly from the tomb. They were very frightened but also filled with great joy, and they rushed to give the disciples the angel’s message. 9 And as they went, Jesus met them and greeted them. And they ran to him, grasped his feet, and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Don’t be afraid! Go tell my brothers to leave for Galilee, and they will see me there.” Matthew 28:1-10 NLT

The fact that Our Lord Savior Jesus Christ rose from the dead also matters because our justification depends on it.

We Read in Scripture:

25 who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification. Romans 4:25 ESV

A dead Savior cannot save, but we have a living Savior who justifies us and makes intercession for us.

We Read in Scripture:

25 Therefore he is able, once and forever, to save those who come to God through him. He lives forever to intercede with God on their behalf. Hebrews 7:25 NLT

The fact that Our Lord Savior Jesus Christ rose from the dead is fundamental to our Christian faith.

We Read in Scripture:

14 And if Christ has not been raised, then all our preaching is useless, and your faith is useless. 1 Corinthians 15:14

17 And if Christ has not been raised, then your faith is useless and you are still guilty of your sins. 18 In that case, all who have died believing in Christ are lost! 1 Corinthians 15:17-18 NLT

Our Lord Savior Jesus Christ rose from the dead, and the Apostle Paul presents that event as the only thing that gives us hope in this life. Our Lord Savior Jesus Christ was the first to permanently rise from the dead, which cleared the way for a future resurrection for all who believe.

We Read in Scripture:

20 But in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead. He is the first of a great harvest of all who have died. 1 Corinthians 15:20 NLT

22 Just as everyone dies because we all belong to Adam, everyone who belongs to Christ will be given new life. 23 But there is an order to this resurrection: Christ was raised as the first of the harvest; then all who belong to Christ will be raised when he comes back. 1 Corinthians 15:22-23 NLT

Our Lord Savior Jesus Christ's claim that He has the power to grant eternal life is to be trusted because He Himself conquered death.

We Read in Scripture:

11 The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you. Romans 8:11 NLT

Our Lord Savior Jesus Christ said,

16 “For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. 17 God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him.

18 “There is no judgment against anyone who believes in him. But anyone who does not believe in him has already been judged for not believing in God’s one and only Son. John 3:16-18 NLT

28 I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one can snatch them away from me, John 10:28 NLT

Obviously your statement clearly indicates your ignorance, your lack of understanding the huge impactful significance of what Our Lord Savior Jesus Christ has done for all of mankind. Like I said earlier the resurrection has eternal implications. By now I'm sure you know what I mean if you took the time in reading my very in-depth detailed explanation of the significance of Our Lord Savior Jesus Christ's resurrection.

So no! it's not as you put it, "so it’s more like having a bad weekend for your sins."

 

Jesus gave Christians who follow him duties to perform, laid out in Matthew 25:31 to end.

The penalty for Christians who fail to attend to those duties is, according to Jesus, everlasting hell.

How about we work together on that objective, and not focus so much on yelling about personal religious views?

 

Let me bring up that passage you're referring to in Scripture regarding The Final Judgment.

We Read in Scripture:

The Final Judgment

Our Lord Savior Jesus Christ said,

31 “But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit upon his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will be gathered in his presence, and he will separate the people as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will place the sheep at his right hand and the goats at his left.

34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. 36 I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.’

37 “Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing? 39 When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?’

40 “And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’

41 “Then the King will turn to those on the left and say, ‘Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons. 42 For I was hungry, and you didn’t feed me. I was thirsty, and you didn’t give me a drink. 43 I was a stranger, and you didn’t invite me into your home. I was naked, and you didn’t give me clothing. I was sick and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’

44 “Then they will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and not help you?’

45 “And he will answer, ‘I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me.’

46 “And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go into eternal life.” Matthew 25:31-46 NLT

Sorry Will but you have misinterpreted the passage in Scripture regarding The Final Judgment. Before I explain this passage in Scripture let me start by first saying, no Will, Christians do not go to everlasting hell, it's the unbelievers, the atheists and all others who are non-Christians who will go to everlasting hell.

Our Creator Almighty God revealed this Biblical truth to us in His Best Selling Book of All-Time the Christian Holy Bible.

Ok now, let me give you a thorough in-depth explanation of this passage in Scripture that gives the correct/proper interpretation.

This passage the final judgment is a Parable of the Sheep and Goats. Our Lord Savior Jesus Christ used parables to teach us spiritual truths by means of earthly situations. A parable is a short, simple story of comparison.

The parable begins by Our Lord saying it concerns His return in glory to set up His Kingdom and so the setting of this event is at the beginning of the millennium, after the tribulation.

Everyone on earth at that time will be brought before Him, and He will separate them according to what is written in verses 32-33 as shown above.

The sheep are those who were saved during the tribulation and the goats are the unsaved who survived the tribulation. The sheep on His right hand are blessed by God the Father and given an inheritance. The reason is given in verses 35-36 as shown above.

The goats on His left hand are cursed with eternal punishment. The reason is given in verses 42-43 as shown above.

In the Parable of the Sheep and the Goats, we are looking at man redeemed and saved, and man condemned and lost.

This Parable seems to suggest that salvation is the result of good works but it is really not the case as I will explain in a bit. The "sheep" acting very generously/charitably by the giving of food, drink, and clothing to the poor/needy. The "goats' on the other hand showed none of this generosity/charity. This seems to result in salvation for the sheep and damnation for the goats.

However, Scripture does not contradict itself, and the Bible clearly and repeatedly teaches that salvation is by faith through the grace of God and not by our good works.

We Read in Scripture:

8 God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. 9 Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. 10 For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. Ephesians 2:8-10 NLT

6 In the same way, “Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith.” 7 The real children of Abraham, then, are those who put their faith in God. 8 What’s more, the Scriptures looked forward to this time when God would make the Gentiles right in his sight because of their faith. God proclaimed this good news to Abraham long ago when he said, “All nations will be blessed through you.” 9 So all who put their faith in Christ share the same blessing Abraham received because of his faith. Galatians 3:6-9 NLT

Besides the verses above from Ephesians and Galatians, there are other verses in Scripture that teaches salvation is by faith through the grace of God and not by our good works. They can be found in Romans 3:22-24, Romans 7:24-25, Romans 8:12, Romans 4:4-8, John 1:12, and Acts 15:11.

Our Lord makes it clear in the parable that the salvation of the “sheep” is not based on their works....their inheritance was theirs “since the creation of the world” (As shown in verse 34 above), long before they could ever do any good works!

The good works mentioned in the parable are not the cause of salvation but the effect of salvation. As born again Christians we become like Our Lord Savior Jesus Christ.

We Read in Scripture:

29 For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. Romans 8:29 NLT

18 So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image. 2 Corinthians 3:18 NLT

29 For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. Romans 8:29 NLT

18 So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image. 2 Corinthians 3:18 NLT

6 And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him. 7 Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness. Colossians 2:6-7 NLT

22 But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things! Galatians 5:22-23 NLT

10 For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. Ephesians 2:10 NLT

Good works in a Christian’s life are the direct overflow of these traits, and are only acceptable to God because of the relationship that exists between servant and Master, the saved and their Savior, the sheep and their Shepherd.

The message of the Parable of the Sheep and Goats is that God’s people will love others. Good works will result from our relationship to the Shepherd. Followers of the Lord will treat others with kindness, serving them as if they were serving the Lord Himself. The unregenerate live in the opposite manner. While “goats” can indeed perform acts of kindness and charity, their hearts are not right with God, and their actions are not for the right purpose – to honor and worship Our Creator Almighty God.

So that's the message that one should come away with after reading the passage of the Final Judgment which is the Parable of the Sheep and Goats and not what you wrongly interpreted it to be Will. Basically the sheep are Christians/believers and the goats are non-Christians/unbelievers.

 

No, you don't get off by posting your greatest hits from the Bible.

Matthew 25:31 to end quotes Jesus directly.

And, I added no interpretation.

 

Sorry you don't like it Will but it is what it is. Quoting what's written in Scripture verifies the Biblical truths that I expressed in my previous post. You being an atheist have nothing to back yourself up but just denials...sorry Will that doesn't work here.

Of course you added your interpretation Will, are you going to be in denial of that too?

And by me using Scripture I nullified/invalidated your interpretation because the Scriptures I used clearly proved your interpretation incorrect. Below is your interpretation of Matthew 25.

Once again I repeat, basically the sheep are Christians/believers and the goats are non-Christians/unbelievers. So the verse in Matthew 25:46 is telling us that the goats (unbelievers) will go away into eternal punishment but the righteous (believers/Christians) will go into eternal life...meaning they will go to Paradise in Our Creator Almighty God's Kingdom of Heaven and live there happily ever after with the Lord for all eternity.

We Read in Scripture:

Our Lord Savior Jesus Christ said,

46 “And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go into eternal life.” Matthew 25:46 NLT