#28. Aborted Plans of God
I have often wondered if God has ever "changed His mind" about some of His divine plans for the human race. For example, did He consider creating the first human being as a woman, (rather than a man), but aborted that particular plan? Or how did He determine the best time for Jesus to come to the earth -- I mean, did He consider various dates before settling on December 25, 0001?God has revealed to me (through His Holy Spirit) some of His unused heavenly plans -- or maybe it was by way of my demented brain. Anyhow, the following are intended to be thought-provoking, not sacrilegious. What are your thoughts? Do you ever come up with these kind of questions?
Aborted Plans of God:
#1. Knowing from the get-go that Adam and Eve would screw it up, why didn't God get humanity off to a super beginning on day #6 by creating a body out of the dust of the earth, and then selecting His only Son to incarnate it? Instead of Jesus, God chose Adam! Hmmmm . . .
#2. Since a male body lacks the ability to give birth -- even in the midst of the perfect Garden -- why didn't God create a female body out of the dust of the earth which could then be impregnated by the Holy Spirit and give birth to God's only Son, getting humanity off to an excellent start? Hmmmm . . .
#3. In God's perfect Garden Home which was prepared for Adam and Eve to live eternally, why didn't God plant that tree of death outside the Garden. (By the way, why is there an evil, talking snake in the garden, anyway?) Hmmmm . . .
#4. After the "fall of man", why didn't God immediately send Jesus to the Garden of Eden to sacrifice His life on a cross and save Adam, Eve, Cain, Abel, and Seth from their sins -- as well as all the rest of the souls that would be born into the world thereafter? Hmmmm . . .
#5. During the days of Noah, rather than destroy all the evil human beings by flooding the entire earth, why didn't God send Jesus to the earth at that time to sacrifice His perfect life on a cross and save Noah and the rest of the souls living in the world from their sins? Hmmmm . . .
#6. Why was God's holiness and His wrath so monumental that He required His only Son to be sacrificed as a ransom for us, but did not love us enough to simply forgive us -- as His only Son taught us to do? (Ouch!!!)
#7. After resurrecting His glorified body, why didn't Jesus remain on the earth for a year, or two, or thirty-two, or one hundred thirty-two years, or until all of humanity gets the message and believes in the only Son of God as their savior?
Now it's your turn.
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posted by Virgil at 6:29 PM
19 Comments:
ahh but women WAS first you see...
God and Eve
Lord, I have a problem."
"What's the problem, Eve?"
I know that you created me and provided this beautiful garden and all of
these wonderful animals, as well as that hilarious comedic snake, but I'm just not happy."
And why is that Eve?"
Lord, I am lonely, and I'm sick to death of apples"
"Well, Eve, in that case, I have a solution. I shall create a man for you."
Man? What is that, Lord?"
"A flawed creature, with many bad habits and traits. He'll lie, cheat and be vain; all in all, he'll give you a hard time. But he'll be bigger, faster and will like to hunt and kill things. I'll create him in such a way that he will satisfy your physical needs. He will be witless and will
revel in childish things like fighting and kicking a ball about. He won't be as smart as you, so he will also need your advice to think properly."
Sounds great," says Eve, with ironically raised eyebrows, "but what's the catch, Lord?"
Well...You can have him on one condition."
And what's that, Lord?"
As I said, he'll be proud, arrogant and self-admiring...So you'll have to let him believe that I made him first. And it will have to be our little secret...
you know, woman to woman. so he/she practiced on woman first :>)
"He filled me with love, made me a woman on clouds above" Yeah!
Well, if we're going to think about it like that, you might realize that, since he's omnipotent, he gets everything right the first time.
CREATION
A man said to his wife one day, "I don't know how you can be so stupid and so beautiful all at the same time."
The wife responded, "Allow me to explain. God made me beautiful so you would be attracted to me; God made me stupid so I would be attracted to you!"
This is not going to be a religous answer you know. I think God did ok in my eyes
Hi Virgil,
In the beginning, God created earth and rested. Then God created man and rested. Then God created woman. Since then, neither God nor man has rested. I rest my case.
Moses’ account of the creation in the book of Genesis is so familiar and so entrenched in our cultural heritage that many accept as actual historic fact the assertion that Woman was created from one of Adam’s ribs.
Science has railed against such simple beliefs for centuries. Last week, at a dig in the escarpments along the western shore of the Dead Sea, archeologists have uncovered ancient, original texts that pre–date Moses’ writings by 1,300 years. Translated, their account of life’s beginnings on earth are much more scientifically plausible.
"... and God created Woman, giving her three breasts to succor her young. And God spoke, saying to her, "I have created thee as I see fit, but mine is no longer the only opinion in the universe (sigh). Is there anything about thee that thou would prefer differently?"
And Woman spoke, saying, "Lord, I am not made to birth whole litters; I do not need but two breasts."
And God said, "Thou speak wisely, as I have created thee with wisdom."
There was a crack and a lingering odor of ozone, and it was done, and Woman stood holding her third breast in her hand.
"Now just what am I gonna do with this useless boob?" Woman exclaimed.
And so it was, God created Man."
LOL HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA
Top Ten Reasons God Created Eve
10. God worried that Adam would always be lost in the garden because
men hate to ask for directions.
9. God knew that Adam would one day need someone to hand him the TV remote. (Men don't want to see what's ON television, they
want to see WHAT ELSE is on!)
8. God knew that Adam would never buy a new fig leaf when his seat
wore out and would therefore need Eve to get one for him.
7. God knew that Adam would never make a doctor's appointment for
himself.
6. God knew that Adam would never remember which night was garbage
night.
5. God knew that if the world was to be populated, men would never
be able to handle childbearing.
4. As "Keeper of the Garden," Adam would never remember where he put his tools.
3. The scripture account of creation indicates Adam needed someone to
blame his troubles on when God caught him hiding in the garden.
2. As the Bible says, "It is not good for man to be alone!"
1. When God finished the creation of Adam, She stepped back, scratched her head and said, "I can do better than that."
This is a perpetual question for theologians and laity alike. When we look at the world and recognize that a holy and infinitely perfect God has created us, we can appreciate His majesty and wonder. But, it is impossible for us to ignore the fact that this world is far from perfect. There is sin in it. Why, then, if God is infinitely perfect and powerful, did He create a world and allow the fall to occur to contaminate it?
The Bible doesn't give us specific answer to this question, but I would like to offer this possible answer as food for thought.
God did not lack anything in Himself that prompted His creative act. He wasn't lonely or bored. To say such a thing about Him would be to imply He is not eternally self-sufficient and perfect. But, if God is perfect and doesn't need anything, why would He then create us -- and the universe for us to live in -- that has fallen into sin? What purpose would it serve?
I suspect the answer lies within God's nature and a few clues spread throughout God's word. To begin with, God is love (1 John 4:16) and the nature of love is to give. John 3:16 says "For God so loved the world He gave His only begotten Son..." I cannot help but believe that the most natural quality of love is to give, to be other centered, and, according to Jesus' own words, to give of one's self to the point of death. John 15:13 is where Jesus said, "Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends."
According to Jesus, there is no greater demonstration of love than self sacrifice to the point of death. Since God is love (1 John 4:16) and there is none greater than He, I conclude that God can and will be the one who demonstrates the greatest act of love. I cannot see God allowing a mere creation to demonstrate this in a better way than He. It would be a necessary outcome of His own nature and a necessary manifestation in any universe He created that the two greatest commandments spoken of by Jesus to love God and love your neighbor (xxx) would be supremely demonstrated by none other than God Himself. Jesus was God in flesh who loved the Father perfectly and He loved us completely by laying down His life for us. This is the greatest and most perfect act of love according to Jesus.
If this is true, then it might just be that God had to create the universe so that the fall would be included in His plan for the very purpose of demonstrating and manifesting His perfect character: Love! To demonstrate the very greatest part of His nature of love, He would have to die for someone else. This could not be done if there was no one to die for and no reason to die for them. There could be no reason to die if there were no need for an atonement. There would be no need for an atonement if there were no sin. If there was no fall, there would be no sin.
Therefore, perhaps it is possible that God created the universe with "free will" creatures in it who would fall into sin. Without this fall, ultimately no death would be necessary to atone for them and without that death, the greatest act of love could not be demonstrated. Also, this would mean that the truest and most perfect quality of love would not be fulfilled. Would this then mean that God would not be perfectly fulfilled without having given of Himself? I don't know. But I can't help wondering that for God to truly express His perfectly loving nature, He Himself had to be one who laid His life down for others. For this to happen, He allowed sin to exist in this world.
Furthermore, I suspect that it was Jesus Himself in the garden who walked with Adam and Eve. I base this upon Jesus' own words in John 6:46 where He states that no one has ever seen the Father. Yet, we know that God appeared in the Old Testament (Gen. 17:1; 18:1; Exodus 6:2-3; 24:9-11; Num. 12:6-8; Acts 7:2; etc.). If it was God who was seen and it wasn't the Father, then it must have been Jesus. Why do I bring this up? Because after Adam and Eve sinned, God Himself (Jesus?) shed the blood of an animal in order to cover them with animal skins. This shedding of blood was instituted by God as a prophetic typology of the true and final sacrifice that God (Jesus) would carry out so many thousands of years later when He laid His life down as the perfect demonstration of His loving character. The redemption of mankind was always in the mind of God and was planned and carried out by God as a manifestation of the eternal love He has for His people. This love was made complete in the death of Christ. Also, I suspect that this is what is hinted at in Heb. 13:20 with the reference to the "blood of the eternal covenant" that some theologians think is reference to God's eternal plan of salvation made within the Trinity before the universe was made. This covenant was the inter-Trinitarian arrangement to redeem mankind through the sacrifice of Christ.
Therefore, I conclude that God may very well have made a universe in which sin existed so that He Himself could show the greatest and most perfect act of love by laying down His life for His friends.
God knew beforehand what earth would turn out to be like, centuries into thr future. He knew what each one of us would do with our life. Kinda scary isn't it? This means He knew that Adam & Eve would bring sin into the world. He knew Satan would be in the Garden too! Is it fair for all mankind to suffer the heat of hell because He knew ahead of time Adam & Eve would sin? Why would He continue with the human race?
You just don't get it...or you are trying to play devils advocate...pardon the pun! God created us in his own image...not to die, but to live forever. He created an unimaginable garden for man and woman to dwell. Both were deceived and sinned...God told them not to eat from the tree of knowledge...they disobeyed. They chose their own path, rather than the one God had created for them. Because of that, they were separated from God. God cannot exist with sin...prior to Jesus sacrificing himself for all of us...He completely atoned for all of us, another blood sacrifice had to be made for sin. God killed to clothe the fallen ones...Adam and Eve...this was the first death. The wages of sin is death...Christ paid the price for all of us...those who reject Jesus are separated from God for eternity...because they are unforgiven. Just my take...
"Man is the creation of God. But unlike everything else God had created, Man was not spoken into existence. No, the creation of Man was far more personal, far more intimate. Man was formed and molded by the very hand of God, fashioned out of dust into the very image and likeness of God. They (Adam and Eve) were given wealth, power, and authority to live well and rule over all the inhabitants of the earth. They were created to rule not to be ruled. They were God's precious offspring and He loved them very much."
Man's (Male and Female) authority was given by God and He had a personal relationship with them. He walked with them in the cool of the day. And they stood before Him and each other, completely naked but not at all ashamed. Their relationship with Him and each other was peaceful., harmonious, and intimate.
As I see it God had provided for them everything they could ever need or want. But God is not a tyrant. Of all the gifts He had given them the most powerful (and potentially the dangerous) was the gift of CHOICE.
"This is a short mathematical proof that if God has a plan, then free will necessarily is an illusion. 2 + n = 4, if n = 2 then free will is an illusion.
Got your attention didn't it? It's really just a little joke used to make a point.
In response that Jesus was a human sacrifice, some of our commenters kept saying that "God has a plan" and that Jesus sacrifice doesn't meet the criteria for a Human sacrifice even though Jesus was a Human whose sacrifice of his life saved us from Gods Wrath by his blood (Rom. 5:9). Regardless of how that equivocation plays itself out, the fact that God has a plan and things seem to be going according to plan, nullifies the concept of Free Will.
Think about 2 + n = 4. We don't know what the 'n' variable is but the relationships inherent in that problem were already worked out ahead of time whether (as some ancients believed) it is mystical or it is just naturally ocurring like the shape of water that fills a hole. Even though we don't know what the 'n' variable is, it can only be one thing.
So when Christians say that God has a Plan, that means that things can only work out one way, and the variables only have the appearance of being unknown. As long as God has a plan, free will only has the appearance of being unknown to us. To an omniscient God, it must be obvious. This is why, free will is an illusion as long as God has a plan."
Adam and Eve had no knowledge of right and wrong. They didn't choose to be bad, they were convinced that it would not be wrong to gain knowledge of good and evil. If they didn't have knowledge of good and evil - right and wrong being a part of that - then they cannot be blamed. That they supposedly were is completely immoral. God could say it was wrong, but what is wrong to someone who has no knowledge of good and bad, good and evil, right and wrong? It's all the same thing.
That creation myth contradicts itself completely.
Satan isn't a part of it, he wasn't in the garden in the Old Testament nor does the OT say Satan influenced it. If you were to blame anyone it would be God for not giving them an education on good and evil in the first place, condemning them and the rest of mankind for his lack of educating Adam and Eve properly is totally immoral.
God gave us the gift of free will. By nature we are sinful so we do sinful things. But even though God might know, he still gave us free will to decide ourselves whether we want to love and be with him.
You would want someone to love you because they wanted to love you, not because they were forced to love. That would be the case if God didn't continue with the Human race.
He created the Human race so we could willing praise him. If that weren't that important, then God would have just stuck with his angels.
And ALL of mankind is not going to suffer the heat of hell.
God did not know what Adam and Eve would do. He prepared for the eventuality that free moral agents would choose to disobey. He does not know what each one of us will do. You attribute the impossible to God. "Omniscient" does not mean "know everything", it means he "knows everything...that is knowable". Decisions we have not made yet are not knowable. Free will is just that, free will. Have a nice day!
This is for Yesmar:
God created Satan for a purpose.. To test and to bring judgment upon those who disobey.
Man chose to sin and God sent Jesus as our only salvation.. What more do you want? God didn't make us out to be robots
When Adam and Eve were created they walked in perfect fellowship with God. They would never commit sin because it was not in their nature to commit sin. They were naked, but were so innocent and pure of mind that they had no awareness of nakedness. A small child illustrates this, having no real consciousness of nakedness unless they are taught it.
But when they ate of the tree, all that changed, and they began to think in terms of good and evil. Because of this, they looked at each other and knew they were naked, and this awareness made nakedness evil. So they made clothes for themselves to hide their nakedness, which was "good." But this good work was tied to the evil, and thus was itself evil. If they had never disobeyed God, knowledge of evil would not have entered their minds, and their nakedness would have remained innocent and pure. Before the fall, they walked in Truth and Life, in the Divine, but after they sinned they lost all of that, and began to walk in the merely good and evil.
The reason God put a choice before them, is that He wants us to choose to love and obey Him. If we never had the choice, we would be mere robots programmed to love Him, which would make that love meaningless. Love is only love if it is offered freely.
Thanks to all of you for sharing your thoughts.
Lee R:
Suppose God's equation is 0 x N = 0 What is n?
If we choose 6, it is true!
If we choose 7, it is true!
If we choose 158, it is true!
If we choose 1 google, it is still true. God's plan would be that everyone gets into heaven. WOW! What a plan!!!
Got your attention, didn't I?
Yes you got my attention! Well said, I guess you proved your pointe! Have a great day Virgil.
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