Hey
@RichL
I revisited this particular topic out of idle curiosity and read your post. This got me thinking because what you wrote isn't entirely untrue but then it isn't so very black and white as you choose to put it. You also missed all the amazing things God has done as written in the Bible....anyway I digress...but here we go line for line.
Hi
@Mark Beehre , Please, if you will, enlighten me of all the good things that God of the bible has done!
I don't believe God ever did. He gave the 10 commandments to the Israelites, of which one is "Thou Shall Not Kill".
Yet God did nothing to put a stop to all the killing,(stoning etc) that was being committed in his name?
I know that if some asshole was killing and committing atrocities in my name, that, or those people would soon be getting a free trip to the hospital and I, have no God like powers, God help them if I did!, I think you get were I'm going on that subject!
In fact when Jesus was here on earth he rescued a woman who was going to be stoned by coming to her defense and saying "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone".
Jesus is not God, (I know that some Christians believe that they are one and the same, but not all religions do so) in fact the only good things that were actively done in the bible was by Jesus, before the new testament, God did nothing to help humanity except supposedly talk to a chosen few!
Jesus never threatened hell, but he did warn those people who did not follow him would end up following the wrong path that leads to death. The path of Christ leads to resurrection and new life. To put this in simpler terms, me warning you not to take a certain route on your way home due to an accident is about saving you time on your journey. I am not making a threat to you, just giving you advice.
Hell is threatened in numerous books of the bible, especially the old testament, which is full of rape, murder and destruction, all in the name of God, if, as you say, Jesus never threatened hell, why then, have the writers of the bible thought fit to add this in?, Just another point of evidence that indicates a man written book that has no divine intervention from an all loving God at all!
The world was a very wicked place. God only found one family who was actually committed to him. This was his last children that recognized him and listened to him. He didn't want to lose that, so he took away all that he created and made a fresh start. Hard to stomach aye! Worth pointing out that God did give people an opportunity to repent and change....he always gives his warnings.
It is truly unfathomable that God saw fit to let his son(himself?) be executed for all mans sin, not only that, but destroy the planet of nearly all life because he saw that the world was, (as you say) wicked.
When one looks at the world today there are dozens of atrocities committed in Gods name just in the middle east alone let alone the rest of the world and when one thinks of all the atrocities since the so called flood, (the crusades, the Spanish inquisition and the the holocaust just to name a few) one would be hard put to not think that the world was anymore wicked then than it has been during those times!
Yup, because Pharaoh wouldn't let his children go. He gave 10 warnings before each through Moses and each outcome got progressively worse, but they were ignored. If someone had your children held captive and you had the power for the dramatic I wonder how you might do it differently.
If I had the power that God supposedly has, do I need to explain what I would and could do?
He was supposedly able to speak the world and life into existence, It would have been a more lovable and God like act to just speak them free, without any need at all for violence!
The people in Sodom and Gamorrah were the wicked of the wicked. They would rape strangers, rape children, rape family members, sacrifice children to the stake and commit all sorts of heinous crimes. They were like a cult but brutal. Does that convict them to death? I don't know, but I certainly wouldn't want them living in my neighborhood like that.
All that you have listed, rape children, rape family members, and commit all sorts of heinous crimes is happening in the middle east and elsewhere now, not only that, some of these atrocities are sanctioned by law in these country's.
I don't see cities burning like that in the middle east now.
Lots wife looked when commanded not too because she was losing something that was important to her. That style of living was her life, what she wanted, that's why Lot lived there. God was giving her a chance to start fresh and do things differently, but she was unwilling to change. If you read on further you find out that Lots two daughters got him drunk and took turns at having sex with him, so that they would have children for themselves. It's not natural, but was the culture of the city from where they lived.
All of this is no different than what has and is happening all over the world now, seems a bit ungodly like to start burning whole cities and flood the world and then have the sudden realization that "hey this ain't working maybe I better stop" Maybe God makes cock ups as well aye?
I don't disparage you for not believing the Bible. But if you want to quote it, I would encourage you take the time to understand the context of the stories and the history of that time.
I have taken most of my life to understand what is written and the context of it's contents and realize that it contradicts itself numerous times, the old testament is filled with bloodshed and war, where as the new testament has a complete change of tact, looks incredibly like a whoops moment by the authors or author who decided that threatening people with fire and brimstone may not be the best way to indoctrinate people!
Oh, and I fully understand the history of that time which is very much reflected in the draconian laws that still abound in the likes of the Saudi Arabia and the like!