RE///Decent folks = non Christians who act like Christians should act. I know many./// like the good samaritan
Marc wrote: "Their behavior regardless of its appearance or virtue has Adams rebellion and wickedness as its source."We all know that. The issue is still whether God is concerned with a nation as a whole vs individual inhabitants. There has never been a nation as a nation that has followed God. Only remnants of individuals in nations do that.
_________________Todd
TMK wrote"There has never been a nation as a nation that has followed God. Only remnants of individuals in nations do that. "Because the ability to walk in obedience to God is a gift.marcmc
by dohzman on 2015/8/28 1:14:03Why would God punish the godly with the wicked?
Marc wrote: "Because the ability to walk in obedience to God is a gift."Yes, perhaps in part. But it would seem very odd for God to command men to do something if it can only be done if He gives them grace to do it.
TMK: "Yes, perhaps in part. But it would seem very odd for God to command men to do something if it can only be done if He gives them grace to do it."No, it's not odd. Galatians 3:19-29 - http://bit.ly/1PEdLwkWe could never do what God required, apart from abiding in Him. How otherwise could we have obeyed the first and greatest commandment, which is to love God with all of our being?The choice which men have - throughout the Old Testament and the New Testament, and even today - is whether we choose to trust in ourselves or our idols, or trust God who is the source of righteous living.
by TMK on 2015/8/29 0:04:16Marc wrote: "Because the ability to walk in obedience to God is a gift."Yes, perhaps in part. But it would seem very odd for God to command men to do something if it can only be done if He gives them grace to do it.
Colossians 3: 3For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. 4 When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.Julius21 I could not agree more. The second a believer gets a revelation of the above verse the door to the overcoming life, exchanged life, devout life, transformed life, victorious life, abundant life or the other hundred names It has been called flings wide open.It is by revelation of the future hope of Gods deliverer that men and woman in the Old Testement obeyed God and overcame in the area they were assigned ((Hebrews 11). And it is our revelations of the Holy Spirit of the victory of Christs life, death and ressurection that the beleiver overcomes. But both are the Gift of God.Marc mc
Yuehan, Marc, Julius-I do not disagree with your statements. They are all true.But there seems to be more to the story.I am trying to think of an analogy but having some difficulty, but here is one that may be close.Let's say that I command my son to drive to the store to buy some milk. However, I have the only set of car keys in my pocket. My son cannot obey until I give him the keys. So is it "right" for me to command him to drive to the store if I do not also hand over the keys when I make the command? It would also be ok to command this of him if he had his own set of keys (i.e. the ability to obey). When Paul was preaching on Mars Hill, he said that God commands men everywhere to repent. To me the simple meaning of this verse is that since God commands this of men that they are able to comply.I don't think we can simply remove man's responsibility from the equation.
TMK - My answer to your analogy is that it is the son's responsibility to reach out for your set of keys - an act of "faith", so to speak.Too many people - in the position of the son - try to drive without asking for the set of keys.I also think it would be a worthwhile endeavour to do a word study on "repentance", "man's responsibility", "obedience"... concepts which can be nebulous or not precisely understood by many Christians.