/lit/ - Literature

[Anonymous No.19173284]

I've read many threads about the problem of evil and saw that many people denied its existence. Now I'm reading the Bible, and in the Genesis is God himself who firstly speak about evil when he says to Adam to not eat by the tree of knowledge.

[Anonymous No.19173294]

>>19173284

https://www.jw.org/en/bible-teachings/online-lessons/basic-bible-teachings/unit-3/why-suffering-evil-origin/#2

[Anonymous No.19173298]

>>19173294
We believe in one God, the Father Almighty, the maker of heaven and earth, of things visible and invisible.

And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the begotten of God the Father, the Only-begotten, that is of the essence of the Father.

God of God, Light of Light, true God of true God, begotten and not made; of the very same nature of the Father, by Whom all things came into being, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible.

Who for us humanity and for our salvation came down from heaven, was incarnate, was made human, was born perfectly of the holy virgin Mary by the Holy Spirit.

By whom He took body, soul, and mind, and everything that is in man, truly and not in semblance.

He suffered, was crucified, was buried, rose again on the third day, ascended into heaven with the same body, [and] sat at the right hand of the Father.

He is to come with the same body and with the glory of the Father, to judge the living and the dead; of His kingdom there is no end.

We believe in the Holy Spirit, in the uncreated and the perfect; Who spoke through the Law, prophets, and Gospels; Who came down upon the Jordan, preached through the apostles, and lived in the saints.

We believe also in only One, Universal, Apostolic, and [Holy] Church; in one baptism in repentance, for the remission, and forgiveness of sins; and in the resurrection of the dead, in the everlasting judgement of souls and bodies, and the Kingdom of Heaven and in the everlasting life

[Anonymous No.19173299]

I just asked this in another thread, but yea it seems to me like evil exists because humanity literally chose to know good and evil

[Anonymous No.19173302]

But there were many christian anons I believe who denied the existence of evil, that's what I don't understand

[Anonymous No.19173313]

>>19173298
Some have concluded that simply ascribing deity or godship to Jesus is all that the Trinity teaching means. For others, belief in the Trinity simply means belief in Father, Son, and holy spirit.

However, a close examination of Christendom’s creeds exposes how woefully inadequate such ideas are in relation to the formal doctrine. Official definitions make it clear that the Trinity doctrine is not a simple idea. Instead, it is a complex set of separate ideas that have been brought together over a long period of time and interlocked into one another.

From the picture of the Trinity doctrine that appeared after the Council of Constantinople in 381 C.E., from the Tome of Damasus in 382 C.E., from the Athanasian Creed that came some time later, and from other documents, we can clearly determine what Christendom means by the Trinity doctrine. It includes the following definite ideas:

1. There are said to be three divine persons—the Father, the Son, and the holy spirit—in the Godhead.

2. Each of these separate persons is said to be eternal, none coming before or after the other in time.

3. Each is said to be almighty, with none greater or lesser than the other.

4. Each is said to be omniscient, knowing all things.

5. Each is said to be true God.

6. However, it is said that there are not three Gods but only one God.

[Anonymous No.19173317]

>>19173298
Clearly the Trinity doctrine is a complex set of ideas including at least the above vital elements and involving even more, as revealed when the details are examined. But if we consider only the above basic ideas, it is apparent that if any are removed, what remains is no longer Christendom’s Trinity. To have the complete picture, all these pieces must be present.

With this better understanding of the term “Trinity,” we can now ask: Was it a teaching of Jesus and his disciples? If so, it should have appeared fully formed in the first century of our Common Era. And since what they taught is found in the Bible, then the Trinity doctrine is either a Bible teaching or it is not. If it is, it should be clearly taught in the Bible.

It is not reasonable to think that Jesus and his disciples would teach people about God and yet not tell them who God is, especially when some believers would be asked to give up even their lives for God. Hence, Jesus and his disciples should have given the highest priority to teaching others about this vital doctrine.

[Anonymous No.19173322]

>>19173298
At Acts chapter 17, verse 11, people are called “noble-minded” because they were “carefully examining the Scriptures daily as to whether these things were so,” things taught by the apostle Paul. They were encouraged to use the Scriptures to confirm the teachings even of an apostle. You should do the same.

Keep in mind that the Scriptures are “inspired of God” and are to be used for “setting things straight, for disciplining in righteousness, that the man of God may be fully competent, completely equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:16, 17) So the Bible is complete in doctrinal matters. If the Trinity doctrine is true, it should be there.

We invite you to search the Bible, especially the 27 books of the Christian Greek Scriptures, to see for yourself if Jesus and his disciples taught a Trinity. As you search, ask yourself:

1. Can I find any scripture that mentions “Trinity”?

2. Can I find any scripture that says that God is made up of three distinct persons, Father, Son, and holy spirit, but that the three are only one God?

3. Can I find any scripture that says that the Father, Son, and holy spirit are equal in all ways, such as in eternity, power, position, and wisdom?

Search as you may, you will not find one scripture that uses the word Trinity, nor will you find any that says that Father, Son, and holy spirit are equal in all ways, such as in eternity, power, position, and wisdom. Not even a single scripture says that the Son is equal to the Father in those ways—and if there were such a scripture, it would establish not a Trinity but at most a “duality.” Nowhere does the Bible equate the holy spirit with the Father.

[Anonymous No.19173326]

>>19173298
Trinitarians may say that the Bible “implies” a Trinity. But this claim is made long after the Bible was written. It is an attempt to read into the Bible what clergymen of later times arbitrarily decided should be doctrine.

Ask yourself: Why would the Bible only “imply” its most important teaching—who God is? The Bible is clear on other basic teachings; why not on this, the most important one? Would not the Creator of the universe author a book that was clear on his being a Trinity if that were the case?

The reason the Bible does not clearly teach the Trinity doctrine is simple: It is not a Bible teaching. Had God been a Trinity, he would surely have made it clear so that Jesus and his disciples could have taught it to others. And that vital information would have been included in God’s inspired Word. It would not have been left to imperfect men to struggle with centuries later.

When we examine texts offered by Trinitarians as evidence that the Bible “implies” a Trinity, what do we find? An honest appraisal reveals that the scriptures offered do not speak of Christendom’s Trinity. Instead, theologians try to force into the scriptures their preconceived ideas of a Trinity. But those ideas are not in the scripture texts. In fact, those Trinitarian ideas conflict with the clear testimony of the Bible as a whole.

[Anonymous No.19173328]

>>19173298
An example of such texts is found at Matthew 28:19, 20. There the Father, the Son, and the holy spirit are mentioned together. Some claim that this implies a Trinity. But read the verses yourself. Is there anything in those texts that says that the three are one God equal in eternity, power, position, and wisdom? No, there is not. It is the same with other texts that mention the three together.

As for those who see Trinitarian implications at Matthew 28:19, 20 in the use of “name” in the singular for the Father, Son, and holy spirit, please compare the use of “name,” singular, for Abraham and Isaac at Genesis 48:16.—King James Version; New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures.

Trinitarians also point to John 1:1 in some translations, where “the Word” is spoken of as being “with God” and as being “God.” But other Bible translations say that the Word was “a god” or was “divine,” meaning not necessarily God but a powerful one. Furthermore, that Bible verse says that “the Word” was “with” God. That would reasonably exclude him from being that same God. And no matter what is concluded about “the Word,” the fact is that only two persons are mentioned at John 1:1, not three. Over and over again, all texts used to try to support the Trinity doctrine utterly fail to do so when examined honestly.

see:

https://www.jw.org/en/library/magazines/g201308/trinity/

[Anonymous No.19173345]

>>19173313
>>19173317
>>19173326
>>19173328
>the heretic who invented my church knew better than the Church Fathers who were in a direct line from the Apostles

Why did Peter worship Jesus and call him Lord if he was created? Wouldn't that be idolatry?

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God
John 1:1

[Anonymous No.19173357]

>>19173345
>Why did Peter worship Jesus and call him Lord if he was created?

The relative positions of Jehovah God and his Son, Jesus Christ, are made very clear by the apostle Paul when he says:
>“There is actually to us one God the Father, out of whom all things are, and we for him; and there is one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things are, and we through him.” (1 Corinthians 8:6; 12:5, 6)

Writing to the Christian congregation in Ephesus, Paul identified the “one Lord,” Jesus Christ, as being quite distinct from the “one God and Father of all persons.”—Ephesians 4:5, 6.

>In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God
John 1:1

already answered, my friend: >>19173328