• Welcome to Religious Forums, a friendly forum to discuss all religions in a friendly surrounding.

    Your voice is missing! You will need to register to get access to the following site features:
    • Reply to discussions and create your own threads.
    • Our modern chat room. No add-ons or extensions required, just login and start chatting!
    • Access to private conversations with other members.

    We hope to see you as a part of our community soon!

What is God's highest priority?

URAVIP2ME

Veteran Member
Yes I agree, that is one reason. The other reason is because of the many afterlife worlds.
In Scripture I find Not ' afterlife ' (meaning more alive after death then before death) but I find: Resurrection - Acts 24:15
Resurrected from death's deep sleep. Jesus equated 'death with sleep' at John 11:11-14
Jesus knew 'sleep' from the old Hebrew Scriptures - Psalms 6:5; 13:3; 115:17; Isaiah 38:18; Ecclesiastes 9:5
Resurrection is for some to heavenly life, but the majority of mankind to have a happy-and-healthy physical resurrection being restored to live life on Earth with the opportunity to live forever on Earth - 1st Corinthians 15:24-26; Isaiah 25:8
 

URAVIP2ME

Veteran Member
No, that is not logical. For one thing, the PHYSICAL Jesus is not on earth anymore,..........................................
Why the hell would it matter if Jesus rose from the grave physically? It makes no difference whatsoever to anyone's salvation! NONE.
.............................................................................
John 19:30 When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.
Christians have their priorities all messed up, thinking the bodily resurrection of Jesus matters. It doesn't matter one iota. ................
First, why the hell would it matter if dead Jesus rose out of hell - Acts 2:27 (KJV)
Yes, a physical or spirit resurrection ? does matter.
Please see 1st Corinthians 15:50 because ' flesh' (physical) can Not inherit the kingdom.
After God resurrected dead Jesus out biblical hell aka the grave for the sleeping dead ( Psalm 115:17; Isaiah 38:18 )
Then resurrected Jesus was Not recognized by people until Jesus revealed himself to his followers - Luke 24:13-46
See also John 20:14-17 because Jesus' friend Mary did Not recognize resurrected Jesus thinking he was a gardener.
 

Ajax

Active Member
The knowledge found at Genesis 2:17 is Not directed to a baby brain.
Babies don't marry - Genesis 2:24
Babies don't think of names for the animals as Adam did - Genesis 2:19
Plus, all Adam had to do was to step on a bug to know what death is.
You change what I said in purpose in an effort to find excuses, unless you didn't read it. I wrote "Two adults with a brain of a baby, without knowledge of good and evil".
A person without knowledge of good or evil, can not commit a sin, no matter how hard one can try to prove it otherwise. Period.
God forces No one to worship Him showing we are created with free-will choices.
Wrong again...There is no free will if the penalty of sinning is death and eternal punishment.
Free will is defined as the notional capacity or ability to choose between different possible courses of action, unimpeded.
The Roman soldiers did Not know they were executing God's Son that is why Jesus asked his God to forgive those soldiers.
Roman soldiers had the intelligence to find out -if they wanted- that Jesus was Son of God, but the supposed Adam and Eve couldn't know that they shouldn't believe the serpent, who actually told them the truth. God confirmed serpent's words later.
Also God knew very well in advance, that he created the couple with this particular brain (not knowing good and evil) and would fail at the first hurdle...Honestly, Snow White is a far better and reasonable reading.
God chooses Not know individual choices, but He does know and He lets us know that when the powers in charge are saying, " Peace and Security...." as found at 1st Thess. 5:2-3 that saying is the coming ' final signal ', so to speak, before the outbreak of the coming great tribulation of Rev. 7:14
Do not understand what you mean..Is it that God will create further havoc on Earth?
Just like father Adam, most people don't want any Sovereign over them, and man's l-o-n-g history has shown the result of electing those that they think fit us best with the result of Man having dominated Man to Man's hurt, Man's injury - Ecclesiastes 8:9
God actually has killed far more people in the OT, let alone that he exterminated the whole planet from people and all animals, because.......he changed his mind!!!
P.S. by your saying the word 'world' is 6-7,000 years do you mean people or the planet Earth
There is Nothing in God's named Genesis 1:10 planet Earth being only thousands of years old.
If you add up the dates in the OT, you will end up that world was created on around 5000 BC.
:laughing::laughing: You know, until the 50's, when the age of earth was calculated and proved, every single Abrahamic theist believed that the world is around 7000 old. The Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem still says in it's website that the world was created in 5508 BC.
So you had to adapt, didn't you? It is as if you are cursed to always look for excuses in order to follow the scientific discoveries.
For that matter there is nothing to say that each of the creative days were of the same or of differing lengths of time.
Just as in English the word 'day' has shades of meaning. ALL of the creative days are summed up by the word 'day' at Gen. 2:4. We speak of 'grandfather's day' and we know that is Not a 24-hour day.
The days in Genesis 1 were undoubtedly normal days. It clearly says that each day has an evening and a day and then it was the next day (Jewish days started in the evening). Do you know of any million years which have one evening and one day only? Also if each day was million of years how did the plants survived when the sun was created million of years later?
Additionally the Bible points out clearly that the days were ordinary dates...Exodus 20:11 "for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day; therefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day and hallowed it".
You will always have to find illogical excuses to support a fairy tale.
 
Last edited:

PearlSeeker

Well-Known Member
I was replying to someone who said that God's priority was MAN.
Glad to see you agreeing that all billions upon billions of planets (whether they are life bearers or not) are his priority too.
All is priority but what is the goal/purpose (if any)?

I wonder though if God created life in other planets, has he given them a different Genesis to study/follow?:laughing:
Yes - if they have enough imagination to create their own myths.
 

bobhikes

Nondetermined
Premium Member
I would like to pose a question for theists, namely: what is God's top priority? I cannot prove that no god exists, but there are many types of gods that I can prove do not exist.


I know that an omnipotent god whose top priority is preventing rape and murder cannot exist.
I know that an omnipotent god whose top priority is preventing childhood cancer cannot exist.
I know that an omnipotent god whose top priority is preventing starvation cannot exist.
I know that an omnipotent god whose top priority is preventing the extinction of 99% of the species he created cannot exist.
I know that an omnipotent god whose top priority is having a personal relationship with all of his human creations cannot exist.
I know that an omnipotent god whose top priority is having all humans believe in him cannot exist.


I could give many other examples, but I think the point has been made. If God exists, and he is omnipotent, his top priority cannot be any of the above things. So what is God's top priority? Since it seems like one of the items I listed above would be the top priority of the god of classical theism, it almost seems that if God does exist, then his top priority is to make it look like he doesn't exist.
God's self.
 

Trailblazer

Veteran Member
Seems as if healthy people do Not want to pick the day they want to die.
No, they don't wan to die, but realistic people face the fact that they are going to die someday, and rational people do not expect to be resurrected from the dead and live on earth forever. That is a fantasy.
Do we really tire of favorite food, clothing or shelter __________
Is it just the material world or rather materialism __________
Yes, we do tire of these things if we are not attached to them.

If Christians followed what Jesus said they would not be attached to this world. They would know better.
Do you understand what the following verses mean?

John 12:24-26 Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal. If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my Father honour.

It is materialism if we are attached to the things of this world.
The coming world as described in the 35th chapter of Isaiah is a beautiful paradisaical world.
A world devoid of violence and wickedness for people of goodwill.
Isaiah 35 is not about a coming beautiful paradisaical world. It is about what we will see after the return of Christ.

Isaiah prophesied that the Plain of Sharon and the holy mountain, Carmel, would both be centers for the light and presence of the ‘Glory of the Lord’ in the last days. All these prophecies were fulfilled after Christ returned with a new name which was Baha'u'llah.

Isaiah 35 King James Version (KJV)

35 The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose. 2 It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing: the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon, they shall see the glory of the Lord, and the excellency of our God.

Above Haifa, Israel, stands Mt. Carmel, proclaiming the Glory of the Lord has come.

 
It is the same way with the resurrection of the dead. Our earthly bodies are planted in the ground when we die, but they will be raised to live forever. 43 Our bodies are buried in brokenness, but they will be raised in glory. They are buried in weakness, but they will be raised in strength. 44 They are buried as natural human bodies, but they will be raised as spiritual bodies. For just as there are natural bodies, there are also spiritual bodies.
My Friend do you understand the english language?
BURIED (dead) and then RAISED, (Resurrected). This very clearly points to something having died, then buried, being raised up, not something else, but the same, yet now eternal!! Where it will no longer, decay, die or be subject to the earthly things it is now subject to.

But I do agree, that we will not be raised with the same exact (earthly, subject to death, BODY.) But it will certainly be PHYSICAL!
The Corrupt body is buried, the Incorruptible Body raised!! And yes, the Natural earthly Body buried and Spiritual Heavenly Body raised.

But you focus only on the word Spiritual and discount the very word BODY, which in scripture, can have two meanings
One is Physical body, the other is where we the Church (pural) are called the Body of Christ, but everyone who understands the purpose for calling us the Body of Christ, know this is a metaphor that emphasizes that we are all one in Purpose with Christ Jesus and that he being Lord of All, is the Head, who rules over his Body (Church, people)

Greek word for Body in I Corinthians 15:35
4983
sṓma – the physical body. 4983 (sṓma) is also used figuratively of the mystical Body of Christ (= the Church, the one people of God).

AND IN the Dictionary Body means:
the physical structure of a person or an animal, including the bones, flesh, and organs.
"it's important to keep your body in good condition"

You claim that because the scriptures say Spiritual that cannot mean physical. This again is totally only your opinion and not the teaching and understanding of the Church.

Jesus is our Forerunner, the First Born of all creation, And as he rose with a Physical body so SHALL WE.

Colossians 1:15-21
And He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities — all things have been created by Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; so that He Himself might come to have first place in everything. For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven.”


Again though, you misunderstand what happens when we are Born again. Before the New Birth In Christ Jesus, We (in our physical bodies) are spiritually dead, separated from God, in enmity towards God. There is essentially no struggle against sin because we are only in our nature we are born with

When we are Born again we are now brought back into fellowship with God, Born from above (At the moment). But we still also wrestle with our old nature.
Paul says this in Galatians 5:17
For the sinful nature has its desire which is opposed to the Spirit, and the [desire of the] Spirit opposes the sinful nature; for these [two, the sinful nature and the Spirit] are in direct opposition to each other [continually in conflict], so that you [as believers] do not [always] do whatever [good things] you want to do
And pretty much all of Romans 7 deals with the same dillema we have living in this flesh. But you are confusing what Paul is referring to, and it is not with the human body ( Which is not sinful in and of itself, it is simply the physical vessel taht we presently live in. But it is our sinful nature that we are born with, that we wrestle with and fight against, NOT the physical body. But never the less until we physically die in the natural physical body, we will always struggle with the Flesh (The old man (sinful nature, Flesh) that Paul says needs to die daily that we might Live unto God.

And we will eventually die in this physical body we were first born with. The physcial body will die, but most importantly the sinful nature that we were born with, that has been rendered powerless thru Faith in Jesus Christ will forever be removed and We will Fully inherit the same exact Spiritual , Immortal, incorruptible, Heavenly PHYSICAL body that Jesus Christ rose with after being crucified. JESUS CHRIST IS THE FIRST BORN, THE LAST ADAM (NEW RACE) of the Eternal Kingdom that HE alone will rule, here on earth and in the Heavens.

I get that one can reject the Bible and deny it is true, But you cannot claim these verses mean anything other that what it clearly says.
Colossians1:15-18
For by Him (JESUS) all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities — all things have been created by Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.
 
Last edited:
John 14:19 Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see me: because I live, ye shall live also.

John 16:10 Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more.
This is usually what causes the endless misinterpretations and misunderstandings of Scripture. And also, why someone can find just about any belief they want by picking and choosing scriptures, then so easily discounting others. By not taking all of scripture as the WORD of GOD, and throwing some that don't fit with their supposed beliefs, then claiming others are Absolute Truth! They will either find themselves with rejecting ALL of Scripture eventually, or creating their OWN Religion!

How?? After telling me that I am to understand that Jesus clearly said to his Disciples that the world and THEY (Disciples)WOULD SEE HIM NO MORE, he then just a couple verses down says
John 16:16
“A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me, because I go to the Father.”
And we know for certain ( according to SCRIPTURE). Jesus appeared to all the disciples, Paul, and according to Paul over 500 people.

You again will throw out that this wasn't physical, but only Spiritual, (I assume meaning he was like a Hologram?) That when Thomas touched him, and then when he broke bread with the two disciples, and ate fish with all the disciples, he simply did these then, and could do this because of what, how? Because he is God? I know you reject that also, that he is God, so I am at a loss for words to understand how your beliefs have gotten so far away from the simple truths that the Bible gives us...
 
John 17:11 And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.
Here Jesus is clearly saying and speaking of him being crucified, and again this certainly means those of that generation would never see him on earth again. And that is infact what happened.
But from the previous posts, If your claims are true, it can only be understood, that Jesus contradicted himself or the scriptures are wrong.....OR Jesus meant something else, like what what you keep claiming, that somehow Jesus meant he would never physically come to earth again, and that all he claimed, that the Son of Man (Jesus) would be one day returning to rule and reign. That what the Apostles stated in their letters, and what John saw in Revelation, clearly stating that all Judgement of the WORLD, and the ushering in of the New Jerusalem and the 1,000 year reign and the Eternal Kingdom of God were going to take place by the hands of someone else, instead of Jesus Christ!
For all Christians clearly know who these truths speak of!

I can only say the Truth will be known Shortly for the time is near for his return.

I stand by my Faith in the One who saved me, and promised he would return to take me home in his Father's House! Then one day he shall return as King of Kings and Lord of Lords, and we shall return with him on that glorious day!

This claim that the Kingdom has already begun is regrettably a lie and that does not take but one minute of watching the news to know that!

FOR One need not look too far to know that sin and the god of this world still reigns in this WORLD. The world that Jesus Christ said they would never see him again!! But When our Lord Jesus comes, Sin will be forever wiped off this earth and so will all the inhabitants who have rejected the Salvation of our God. For he shall be their God and they will be his children!
Revelation 21:3-4
And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. 4And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. 5And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me,

How can anyone say we are now living in these times?
 
Last edited:

Trailblazer

Veteran Member
My Friend do you understand the english language?
BURIED (dead) and then RAISED, (Resurrected). This very clearly points to something having died, then buried, being raised up, not something else, but the same, yet now eternal!! Where it will no longer, decay, die or be subject to the earthly things it is now subject to.

But I do agree, that we will not be raised with the same exact (earthly subject to death, BODY. But it will certainly be PHYSICAL!
The Corrupt body is buried, the Incorruptible Body raised!! And yes, the Natural earthly Body buried and Spiritual Heavenly Body raised.
No, the body that is raised up will not be physical.

1 Corinthians 15
New Living Translation

35 But someone may ask, “How will the dead be raised? What kind of bodies will they have?”

44 They are buried as natural human bodies, but they will be raised as spiritual bodies. For just as there are natural bodies, there are also spiritual bodies.
You claim that because the scriptures say Spiritual that cannot mean physical. This again is totally only your opinion and not the teaching and understanding of the Church.
I do not claim that. That is what the scriptures say.

1 Corinthians 15
New Living Translation

40 There are also bodies in the heavens and bodies on the earth. The glory of the heavenly bodies is different from the glory of the earthly bodies. 41 The sun has one kind of glory, while the moon and stars each have another kind. And even the stars differ from each other in their glory.

42 It is the same way with the resurrection of the dead.
44 They are buried as natural human bodies, but they will be raised as spiritual bodies. For just as there are natural bodies, there are also spiritual bodies.

Jesus is our Forerunner, the First Born of all creation, And as he rose with a Physical body so SHALL WE.
Dream on. Jesus did not rise in a physical body an d nobody else will ever rise in a physical body. That is just a false teaching of Christianity, one of many.

1 Corinthians 15
New Living Translation

44 They are buried as natural human bodies, but they will be raised as spiritual bodies. For just as there are natural bodies, there are also spiritual bodies.
Again though, you misunderstand what happens when we are Born again. Before the New Birth In Christ Jesus, We (in our physical bodies) are spiritually dead, separated from God, in enmity towards God. There is essentially no struggle against sin because we are only in our nature we are born with.
I fully understand what it means to be Born again because I was Born again through Baha'u'llah.

“Incline your ears to the sweet melody of this Prisoner. Arise, and lift up your voices, that haply they that are fast asleep may be awakened. Say: O ye who are as dead! The Hand of Divine bounty proffereth unto you the Water of Life. Hasten and drink your fill. Whoso hath been re-born in this Day, shall never die; whoso remaineth dead, shall never live.” Gleanings From the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh, p. 213

“O My servants! Whoso hath tasted of this Fountain hath attained unto everlasting Life, and whoso hath refused to drink therefrom is even as the dead.” Gleanings, p.169

“No man can obtain everlasting life, unless he embraceth the truth of this inestimable, this wondrous, and sublime Revelation.” Gleanings, p. 183
When we are Born again we are now brought back into fellowship with God, Born from above (At the moment). But we still also wrestle with our old nature.
I know ALL that because it was all revealed by Baha'u'llah and Abdu'l-Baha. I don't need the Bible for anything but a bookend.
And we will eventually die in this physical body we were first born with. The physcial body will die, but most importantly the sinful nature that we were born with, that has been rendered powerless thru Faith in Jesus Christ will forever be removed and We will Fully inherit the same exact Spiritual , Immortal, incorruptible, Heavenly PHYSICAL body that Jesus Christ rose with after being crucified.
There is no such thing as a Spiritual , Immortal, incorruptible, Heavenly PHYSICAL body, except in the false Christian doctrines.
JESUS CHRIST IS THE FIRST BORN, THE LAST ADAM (NEW RACE) of the Eternal Kingdom that HE alone will rule, here on earth and in the Heavens.
Jesus Christ is never coming to rule. The Dispensation of Jesus Christ is over. It ended when Baha'u'llah received a NEW Revelation from God.

"In conclusion of this theme, I feel, it should be stated that the Revelation identified with Bahá’u’lláh abrogates unconditionally all the Dispensations gone before it, upholds uncompromisingly the eternal verities they enshrine, recognizes firmly and absolutely the Divine origin of their Authors, preserves inviolate the sanctity of their authentic Scriptures,” God Passes By, Page 100

“A Revelation, hailed as the promise and crowning glory of past ages and centuries, as the consummation of all the Dispensations within the Adamic Cycle, inaugurating an era of at least a thousand years’ duration, and a cycle destined to last no less than five thousand centuries, signalizing the end of the Prophetic Era and the beginning of the Era of Fulfillment, unsurpassed alike in the duration of its Author’s ministry and the fecundity and splendor of His mission—such a Revelation was, as already noted, born amidst the darkness of a subterranean dungeon in Tihrán—an abominable pit that had once served as a reservoir of water for one of the public baths of the city.” God Passes By, p. 100
I get that one can reject the Bible and deny it is true, But you cannot claim these verses mean anything other that what it clearly says.
Colossians1:15-18
For by Him (JESUS) all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities — all things have been created by Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.
I don't give a rip what Paul wrote abut Jesus in those verses because it is patently false.

“That the figure of the Nazarene, as delivered to us in Mark’s Gospel, is decisively different from the pre-existent risen Christ proclaimed by Paul, is something long recognized by thinkers like Kant, Fichte, Schelling, Herder and Goethe, to mention only a few. The distinction between ‘the religion of Christ’ and ‘the Christian religion’ goes back to Lessing. Critical theological research has now disputed the idea of an uninterrupted chain of historical succession: Luther’s belief that at all times a small handful of true Christians preserved the true apostolic faith. Walter Bauer (226) and Martin Werner (227) have brought evidence that there was conflict from the outset about the central questions of dogma. It has become clear that the beliefs of those who had seen and heard Jesus in the flesh --- the disciples and the original community--- were at odds to an extraordinary degree with the teaching of Paul, who claimed to have been not only called by a vision but instructed by the heavenly Christ. The conflict at Antioch between the apostles Peter and Paul, far more embittered as research has shown (228) than the Bible allows us to see, was the most fateful split in Christianity, which in the Acts of the Apostles was ‘theologically camouflaged’. (229)

Paul, who had never seen Jesus, showed great reserve towards the Palestinian traditions regarding Jesus’ life. (230) The historical Jesus and his earthly life are without significance for Paul. In all his epistles the name ‘Jesus’ occurs only 15 times, the title ‘Christ’ 378 times. In Jesus’s actual teaching he shows extraordinarily little interest. It is disputed whether in all his epistles he makes two, three or four references to sayings by Jesus. (231) It is not Jesus’ teaching, which he cannot himself have heard at all (short of hearing it in a vision), that is central to his own mission, but the person of the Redeemer and His death on the Cross.

Jesus, who never claimed religious worship for himself was not worshipped in the original community, is for Paul the pre-existent risen Christ….

This was the ‘Fall’ of Christianity: that Paul with his ‘Gospel’, which became the core of Christian dogma formation, conquered the world, (237) while the historic basis of Christianity was declared a heresy….

Pauline heresy served as the basis for Christian orthodoxy, and the legitimate Church was outlawed as heretical’. (240) The ‘small handful of true Christians’ was Nazarene Christianity, which was already extinct in the fourth century……

The centerpiece then, of Christian creedal doctrine, that of Redemption, is something of which—in the judgment of the theologian E. Grimm (244) --- Jesus himself knew nothing; and it goes back to Paul. “

(Udo Schaefer, Light Shineth in Darkness, Studies in revelation after Christ )

How Paul changed the course of Christianity
 

Trailblazer

Veteran Member
This is usually what causes the endless misinterpretations and misunderstandings of Scripture. And also, why someone can find just about any belief they want by picking and choosing scriptures, then so easily discounting others. By not taking all of scripture as the WORD of GOD, and throwing some that don't fit with their supposed beliefs, then claiming others are Absolute Truth! They will either find themselves with rejecting ALL of Scripture eventually, or creating their OWN Religion!
That is what Christians do, they cherry-pick scriptures to suit their purposes and throw out those verses that don't fit with their beliefs...
The world seeth me no more means that Jesus is not going to return to this world.

John 14:19 Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see me: because I live, ye shall live also.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Christians also misinterpret scriptures to fit their beliefs. For example, they believe that The Comforter and the Spirit of truth was the Holy Spirit that was sent at Pentecost. When Jesus said "I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you" He was referring about His spirit, the Christ spirit, that would come in the person of Baha'u'llah, who was the Comforter and the Spirit of truth.

John 14

16 And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;

17 Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.

18 I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.

19 Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see me: because I live, ye shall live also.

20 At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.
How?? After telling me that I am to understand that Jesus clearly said to his Disciples that the world and THEY (Disciples)WOULD SEE HIM NO MORE, he then just a couple verses down says
John 16:16
“A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me, because I go to the Father.”
More verses about the Comforter and the Spirit of truth, Baha'u'llah, who came in the Last Days and do all the things the the verses below say.

John 16

7 Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.

8 And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:

9 Of sin, because they believe not on me;

10 Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more;

11 Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged.

12 I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now.

13 Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.

14 He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you.

15 All things that the Father hath are mine: therefore said I, that he shall take of mine, and shall shew it unto you.
You again will throw out that this wasn't physical, but only Spiritual, (I assume meaning he was like a Hologram?) That when Thomas touched him, and then when he broke bread with the two disciples, and ate fish with all the disciples, he simply did these then, and could do this because of what, how? Because he is God? I know you reject that also, that he is God, so I am at a loss for words to understand how your beliefs have gotten so far away from the simple truths that the Bible gives us...
No, I don't assume any of that since I believe the stories about the resurrection of Jesus from the grave are just fictional stories, not anything that ever happened in reality. I believe these stories were written to restore the faith of the disciples after Jesus died on the cross.

The official Baha'i interpretation of the resurrection is as follows:

Question.—What is the meaning of Christ’s resurrection after three days?

Answer.—The resurrections of the Divine Manifestations are not of the body. All Their states, Their conditions, Their acts, the things They have established, Their teachings, Their expressions, Their parables and Their instructions have a spiritual and divine signification, and have no connection with material things .........

Therefore, we say that the meaning of Christ’s resurrection is as follows: the disciples were troubled and agitated after the martyrdom of Christ. The Reality of Christ, which signifies His teachings, His bounties, His perfections and His spiritual power, was hidden and concealed for two or three days after His martyrdom, and was not resplendent and manifest. No, rather it was lost, for the believers were few in number and were troubled and agitated. The Cause of Christ was like a lifeless body; and when after three days the disciples became assured and steadfast, and began to serve the Cause of Christ, and resolved to spread the divine teachings, putting His counsels into practice, and arising to serve Him, the Reality of Christ became resplendent and His bounty appeared; His religion found life; His teachings and His admonitions became evident and visible. In other words, the Cause of Christ was like a lifeless body until the life and the bounty of the Holy Spirit surrounded it.

Such is the meaning of the resurrection of Christ, and this was a true resurrection. But as the clergy have neither understood the meaning of the Gospels nor comprehended the symbols, therefore, it has been said that religion is in contradiction to science, and science in opposition to religion, as, for example, this subject of the ascension of Christ with an elemental body to the visible heaven is contrary to the science of mathematics. But when the truth of this subject becomes clear, and the symbol is explained, science in no way contradicts it; but, on the contrary, science and the intelligence affirm it." Some Answered Questions, pp. 103-105

23: THE RESURRECTION OF CHRIST
 

Trailblazer

Veteran Member
Here Jesus is clearly saying and speaking of him being crucified, and again this certainly means those of that generation would never see him on earth again. And that is in fact what happened.
John 17:11 And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.

What about the words no more do you not understand? No more means no further and never again.
It does not mean that those of that generation would never see him on earth again.

no more
  1. nothing further.
    "there was no more to be said about it"
  2. no further.
    "you must have some soup, but no more wine"
  3. exist no longer.
    "the patch of ground was overgrown and the hut was no more"
  4. never again.
    "mention his name no more to me"
  5. neither.
    "I had no complaints and no more did Tom"
Definitions from Oxford Languages
For all Christians clearly know who these truths speak of!
For all Christians falsely believe that the same man Jesus is going to return in the physical clouds in the sky.

Who is the Son of man who will come in the clouds of heaven?

Son of man coming in the clouds means that the return of Christ will appear in the form of another human being. The term “clouds” as used in the Bible means those things that are contrary to the ways and desires of men. Just like the physical clouds prevent the eyes of men from beholding the sun, these things hindered men from recognizing the return of Christ.

In other words, the judgment of most people was clouded when Christ returned and it is still clouded for most people.

One thing that clouds the judgment of Christians is their desire for the same Jesus to return to earth.
I can only say the Truth will be known Shortly for the time is near for his return.
Good luck waiting till hell freezes over for Jesus to return.
I stand by my Faith in the One who saved me, and promised he would return to take me home in his Father's House! Then one day he shall return as King of Kings and Lord of Lords, and we shall return with him on that glorious day!
Go ahead and stand by your faith in Jesus Christ and that Jesus is going to return as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. I am not trying to take that away from you. God gave us all free will so we could make our own choices. You have made your choice and I have made mine. I believe that Baha'u'llah was the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords.

“Ye are but vassals, O kings of the earth! He Who is the King of Kings hath appeared, arrayed in His most wondrous glory, and is summoning you unto Himself, the Help in Peril, the Self-Subsisting. Take heed lest pride deter you from recognizing the Source of Revelation, lest the things of this world shut you out as by a veil from Him Who is the Creator of heaven. Arise, and serve Him Who is the Desire of all nations, Who hath created you through a word from Him, and ordained you to be, for all time, the emblems of His sovereignty.”
Gleanings From the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh, pp. 211-212
This claim that the Kingdom has already begun is regrettably a lie and that does not take but one minute of watching the news to know that!
This claim that the same man Jesus is going to return and build a Kingdom on earth is regrettably a lie.

What does the news have to do with it? Do you actually believe that the Kingdom of God on earth was something Jesus was going to build Himself when He returns?
FOR One need not look too far to know that sin and the god of this world still reigns in this WORLD. The world that Jesus Christ said they would never see him again!! But When our Lord Jesus comes, Sin will be forever wiped off this earth and so will all the inhabitants who have rejected the Salvation of our God. For he shall be their God and they will be his children!
Do you think that Jesus is going to come to earth and wave a magic wand and transform the human race so they will no longer sin?
That certainly did not work very well the first time Jesus was on earth did it? Why didn't it work if Christians were saved from sin?

Christians still sin as much as everyone else. For example, Fornication runs rampant among Christians. Please let me know when you find a Christian who waited till marriage to have sex. :rolleyes:
Revelation 21:3-4
And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. 4And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. 5And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me,

How can anyone say we are now living in these times?
for the former things are passed away and Behold, I make all things new does not happen on a weekend, except in some Christian fantasy.
In case you haven't noticed, it take a s long time for humans to change their ways.

The Kingdom of God on earth will be built by humans who are following the blueprint instructions Baha'u'llah laid out for us to follow. The Kingdom of God is a new world order. We are in the process of building that new world order, but it will not be built overnight. It will take a long time because the old world order has to be torn down before the new world order can be built up. The process of tearing down and building up are going on simultaneously right now. Just turn on your television news. It's all there.

“Beseech ye the one true God to grant that all men may be graciously assisted to fulfil that which is acceptable in Our sight. Soon will the present-day order be rolled up, and a new one spread out in its stead. Verily, thy Lord speaketh the truth, and is the Knower of things unseen.” Gleanings From the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh, p. 7
 
Do you think that Jesus is going to come to earth and wave a magic wand and transform the human race so they will no longer sin?
That certainly did not work very well the first time Jesus was on earth did it? Why didn't it work if Christians were saved from sin?
I'm not sure you have yet spoken of anything correctly about what you perceive scripture or true Christianity to be! Yet I and others are supposed to somehow believe you and your Baha u llah are the enlightened ones. If what you were saying was even remotely true, you would be building on the truths of God, not contradicting them.
This again proves scriptures in I Corinthians 2:
The natural man does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God. For they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. 15 The spiritual man judges all things, but he himself is not subject to anyone’s judgment.

Your distorted version of Jesus Christ proves you don't really know him, nor believe in him. You don't get to pick the truths that sound good to you and throw away other scriptures that don't fit your religion!
We who believe in Jesus CHrist and are born again, take all of his Word as Truth, accept him as Lord and Savior, not for a time but forever. Your messiah (Christ) is infact spoken of in Scripture and again it is so clear that I cannot possibly see where you can't see this other than the fact that this too is prophesied in scripture.

Matthew 24:5
For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.

Matthew 24:24
For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders that would deceive even the elect, if that were possible.

No, I don't assume any of that since I believe the stories about the resurrection of Jesus from the grave are just fictional stories, not anything that ever happened in reality. I believe these stories were written to restore the faith of the disciples after Jesus died on the cross.
Here you finally have revealed the truth of your beliefs! You reject the Word of God, you reject the only hope for your salvation, to deny the resurrection of Jesus Christ is to reject the only means of salvation for mankind!
You are like the man has no True belief in anything, so to make sure you somehow are not wrong with this belief or that belief, you try to blend them all together into one big religious soup bowl and call it Baha!

I will give it again because you don't seem to get it

I Corinthians 15:13-19
13. If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised.
14 And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith.
15 More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that he raised Christ from the dead. But he did not raise him if in fact the dead are not raised.
16 For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either.
17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins.
18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost.
19 If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.

This claim that the same man Jesus is going to return and build a Kingdom on earth is regrettably a lie.
What does the news have to do with it? Do you actually believe that the Kingdom of God on earth was something Jesus was going to build Himself when He returns?
You are fulfilling prophecy!
2 Peter 3:3-4
Most importantly, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. 4“Where is the promise of His coming?”
Christians still sin as much as everyone else. For example, Fornication runs rampant among Christians. Please let me know when you find a Christian who waited till marriage to have sex. :rolleyes:
You judge (and I understand that) Christianity by hearing polls or by those who simply call themselves to be....Christians. But Jesus said why do you call me Lord, and do not do what I command! His point is that one really isn't a Disciple of Christ if they are not following and obeying him. This too is prophesied. You see most people want a Savior but only few desire Jesus to be LORD of their lives.

As for Those who wait til they are married, my daughter is one, and there are others.

As for me I was one who didn't wait, but I was also not serving Christ Jesus at the time, this is no excuse, just a fact
 
or the former things are passed away and Behold, I make all things new does not happen on a weekend, except in some Christian fantasy.
In case you haven't noticed, it take a s long time for humans to change their ways.
Yes that is exactly what will happen, here we are again, you do not understand the true Power of God and what he is planning to do. As for change!! that will happen in the Twinkling of an eye change as spoken in I Corinthians which you have given, and misquoted concerning your false beliefs! But this is the very thing that will happen, WE WHO BELIEVE will in the twinkling of an eye, BE CHANGED (FULLY CHANGED).
I Corinthians 15:51-52
Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.

Right now those who accept the free gift of salvation thru Jesus Christ, and confess him as LORD, will be the only ones that when the Last trumpet sounds, tand he Coming of our Lord in the Clouds, will be transformed...........in the Twinkling of an eye!!

I Thessalonians 4:16-17
16 For the Lord Himself will come down from heaven with a shout of command, with the voice of the archangel and with the [blast of the] trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.
17 After that, we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will always be with the Lord.…

And at that time concerning the earth, according to Peter, this is said:

II Peter 3:10-13
10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare.[a]

11 Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives 12 as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming.[b] That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. 13 But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells.
 

Truthseeker

Non-debating member when I can help myself
True words were never spoken, but I'm not sure you are speaking to a guy.
The profile says nothing about the gender of this person. I'm using what I'm thinking might be a general term. Anyway, if this is a woman, no harm done. You mean "truer" words were never spoken.;)
 
Top