The integrity of ones understanding is dependent on the integrity of ones heart.
This is why coveting—a corruption of the heart—"blinds" a person; It interferes with their ability to understand.
In short: The most common lies are the ones we tell to ourselves.
The Bible teaches about this.
Chapter and verses please!
So God only pretended to be angry?
No.
He allowed Himself to feel anger even though He knew the outcome of the thing, just as you would feel anger toward a rebellious son even when you know the outcome of the thing.
So God can make Himself angry whenever He wants?
No.
He gets angry when we provoke Him through our rebelliousness; He gets angry when WE want—in a manner of speaking.
You are confusing me. He really gets angry but He only allows Himself to be angry when we are rebellious but He can't make himself angry....I'm dizzy!!!
The Bible never says that either spiritual or physical death is evil.
Not true. It does not use the word "evil", but it makes it very clear.
"And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell."(Matthew 10:28)
Paraphrase through deduction: Physical death, no big deal; spiritual death, very bad.
Who said anything about "bad"? Sure it's bad for the person going through it. Death is bad for the people who loved the person who died. Bad does not mean evil. God uses death, both physical and spiritual to punish those who disobey Him. God cannot do evil, so those things cannot be evil.
"And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their (physical) lives unto the death."[/color]
(Revelation 12:11)
(paren mine)
Thanks for the altar call but I'm already saved.
Then in emulation of our heavenly father it is good for a father to show anger towards his rebellious child when administering punishment. Thanks, now I don't feel guilty about those times when my anger was directed to my children. However, now I feel ashamed that I didn't show my anger every time I punished them.
You are drawing a perverse and far-reaching conclusion that I did not give to you.
I agree that you didn't think you were providing this conclusion. However, since you say that God was angry when he punished Sodom, Jericho, and the whole world except Noah, then you need to Biblically support why my conclusion is "perverse" and "far-reaching".
Of course! Because if you vent your anger at your young children every time they are rebellious (don't obey you) then the natural thing for them to do is to grow to love you.
Of course...of course. They will love you because they are so grateful that you didn't kill them in your anger.
You know that I didn't say this.
The concepts I gave are simple and easily understood. I can only assume that you are provoking me.
Perhaps I am. However the concepts are simple and easily understood if you decide to avoid thinking about God's attributes. You want an angry God at the expense of his omniscience and omnibenevolence. I follow a God who is just and dispenses justice without anger, but uses it not just for punishment but for good. I follow a God who allows only those things to come against me that will help me grow closer to Him. Not angry spanking but lessons from hardship that turn me into an adult and brother to His Son.
In short, any healthy child will grow up to love a parent who cared enough to correct them. The fact that a person experiences anger toward their child is a sign that they care. If a parent was indifferent, it is a sign that they don't care.
If course, there are exceptions, such as if a parent is completely selfish and gets angry only because they are inconvenienced by their child. Certainly, this parent is not fit to be a parent.
Yet the second example is the kind of God you seem to want to worship.
