RE: How the Hall of Faith Encourages Us to Test God
Just an observation I had years ago, since you are laying the foundation of your presentations still.
Back when I studied religion searching for answers (one could say I was desperate at that time), I noticed a few interesting ideas regarding the book of Job.
- He is referred to as a perfect, upright man at the start of the story.
- Satan (who little is actually written about) appears to be in service to God, in the way a DA is to the court system.
My observations/questions that raised for myself was that God (as described here) was willing to wager what Jobs reactions would be under extremely horrific conditions to prove a point to Satan. My question on this was whether God held Satans understanding/agreement with more respect than he did the perfect, upright man?
I was taught the idea that God could not look upon sin, which was the need for the shedding (via torture) of Jesus blood to cover us in atonement. This idea becomes questionable if one believes that Satan is a sinful being who was cast away from God and heaven, as He seems to come and go from Gods presence with a familiarity/respect one does not see afforded to others for the most part.
Hope you don't mind me mentioning this. It's a side observation I gained decades ago in my search, and saw the opportunity to comment on it since you mention Job. The whole story of the book is fascinating, as it is unlike the other books in many ways. Some say it was taken from earlier Sumerian writings (like the Noah story), but those arguments/discussions are above my level of knowing.
Looking forward to the next installment.
Some interesting thoughts here. I'm not sure what to make of the question about God respecting his agree with Satan more than he respected Job. I'll have to think on that. My first reaction is to say that since God is perfect He will always honor His agreements. So there's the integrity aspect of that agreement, which doesn't have as much to do about respecting lower beings as it does with respecting His own word.
Secondly, I'd that God has so much confidence in Job's faith that He was willing to allow Satan to tempt him. Of course, that confidence would also have something to do with His own sovereignty. There is something deep there that does require more contemplation.
I'm more concerned with this:
You have to remember that Satan is a fallen angel, so he's incorporeal. He can certainly go places that man can't. But he is not eternal and cannot be in multiple places at once. He is not God, nor is he God's equal. More importantly, while Satan may be guilty of the first sin (pride), that took place long before man himself had the ability to sin, redemption is not available to Satan or any of the demons. Christ's atoning sacrifice was for man, not for angels. And certainly not for Satan.
The whole chapter of Hebrews 2 is about salvation and how it is obtained. There are three things to note about this chapter with regard to Satan and atonement:
Satan being the tempter, cannot be redeemed. Atonement is not open to him. Therefore, God's plan should not be questioned on the basis of Satan being sinful since Christ did not die for his sins.
Thanks again for the challenge.
I'm not certain on this issue, as the bible indicates fallen angels mating with human females creating the Giants that needed destroyed.
That's one interpretation. If you're talking about the Nephilim, that's a difficult passage. There are other possibilities, though I admit it seems to indicate that fallen angels were mating with human females, and that's possible. It's probably the most likely interpretation of the text.
I can't imagine that fallen angels and human females would give birth to anything unless the fallen angels took on human form somehow. It actually says they took the "daughters of men" as wives, so that implies an actual relationship beyond mere sex, but in those days marriage was likely consummated with the sexual act without any type of formal ceremony or necessary paperwork. Though I'm no scholar on the culture of the time.
It seems to me that this would only be possible if the fallen angels took on human form and replicated the human reproductive system. I suppose that's possible, though it baffles my mind. We find in other passages of scripture that angels have taken on human form, so I don't know why that would be a problem. If it did happen that way, it would certainly explain why God was angry enough to destroy the earth, and most of the human race with it.
All of that is an aside, however. Within the context of Satan and Job, it's likely that Satan took on some form to interact with Job, as he did with Jesus. But this would be by God's permission. Satan would still be incorporeal, but with limited ability to appear in human form. In terms of moving "in and out" of God's presence, I'm not so certain he did so much as God has allowed him certain liberties with regard to access to the human race, even His own remnant.