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Subject: to continue

Author:
tenuousgrip

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Date Posted: 05/27/02 11:45pm
In reply to: Wade A. Tisthammer 's message, "A response from a theist." on 05/24/02 5:21pm

Thankyou for your reply.

>>For what specific purpose did god create us?
>
>One possible answer is that he wanted creatures with
>free will that would freely accept/reject Him and His
>commandments.
>
>>To go to heaven, what must one do/not do?
>
>There has been some talk on faith vs. deeds to justify
>oneself in the eyes of God and thus go to heaven. Some
>people believe that since you�ve got faith, you don�t
>have to worry about good deeds. But that�s probably
>not the way it really works (if Christianity is a
>correct religion). If you define faith as accepting
>certain truths, such as believing that God exists,
>then such faith is useless (see James 2:14-26). Even
>demons (if they exist) believe that God exists!
>Legitimate faith in God requires love, faithfulness,
>and reverence for the Almighty. Thus, any genuine
>faith will produce good deeds. Faith and actions work
>together, and faith is made complete by what we do
>(James 2:22).

Your two answers here strike on the core of my problem. If god created us to have free will, it seems to me that by having it we are doing what god wants regardless of what choices we actually make. To then go on and state which choice to make (accept god/jesus, follow the commandments or go to hell) appears to add coercion to free will. I cannot see coercion as being a good way to provide results hence it is something in this mix of free will/commandments that preoccupies me. Have you any further thoughts on this?

Re. your final answer, I have read the other arguments you have mentioned and now realise that my final question was inappropriate. I should have thought of those arguments also.

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Replies:

Subject	Author	Date
To continue further.	Wade A. Tisthammer	05/30/02 11:16am
The Real Reason -- Me, 02/15/05 6:45pm Making sense. -- Charlie, 02/20/05 5:29pm Re: Making sense -- QUITTNER, 02/22/05 1:07pm