Correction: Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. (John 14:6)
How do your reconcile your thoughts on agape love with Revelation 19: 11-16:
I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and wages war. His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself. 13 He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood,and his name is the Word of God. 14 The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. 15 Coming out of his mouth is a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. “He will rule them with an iron scepter.” He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. 16 On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written:
king of kings and lord of lords.
Love is but only one of God's attributes. Ignoring/dismissing all other attributes is theological error and creates a false god.
Easy. The devils kingdom devours itself. Divided it can not stand.
Gods Wrath is a figure of speech called condesencio. When you walk away you limit his ability to help you and the devil takes his shots. Simple really of you dont clog it up.
Gods Wrath is a figure of speech called condesencio. When you walk away you limit his ability to help you and the devil takes his shots. Simple really of you dont clog it up.
Not easy. Not one jot of Scripture shall pass away.
The truth is not so easily/casually dismissed.
Your doctrine is one of man's own-making, not a doctrine of the Bible.
The Bible clearly states that God's wrath is quite real and not just a figure of speech:
For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. (Romans 1:18)
Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him. (John 3:36)
The Lord is a jealous and avenging God; the Lord is avenging and wrathful; the Lord takes vengeance on his adversaries and keeps wrath for his enemies. The Lord is slow to anger and great in power, and the Lord will by no means clear the guilty. His way is in whirlwind and storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet. He rebukes the sea and makes it dry; he dries up all the rivers; Bashan and Carmel wither; the bloom of Lebanon withers. The mountains quake before him; the hills melt; the earth heaves before him, the world and all who dwell in it. Who can stand before his indignation? Who can endure the heat of his anger? His wrath is poured out like fire, and the rocks are broken into pieces by him. (Nahum 1:2-6)
Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. ( Eph. 5-6)
It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God (Hebrews 10:31)
Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. 6 On account of these the wrath of God is coming.(Colossians 3:5-6)
Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. (Matt. 10:28)
God is Agape Love. Those that worship Him must worship in Love AND Truth.
Love is a terrible thing. It lays bare falsehoods. Anyone clinging to falsehoods are destroyed.
Agape Love leaves no room for Self.
We cannot even hope to fully walk in Agape Love.
We cannot even hope to Approach the God of Agape Love.
Yet despite this He is Agape Love and He made a way.
Through His Son He has redeemed all. Sin was nailed to the cross. The penalty for sin for the entire world has ALREADY been paid.
The disconnect is not that God is not Agape Love. It is that we refuse to accept Agape Love.
In refusing to accept the truth we are left with only the lie. The lie only sees what you have posted above.
PS: Of course Jesus is the way, the Truth and the Life.
Jesus is God. The Father and Jesus and the Spirit are one.
Just like a man and his wife become one when they are married.
God did not change because we or anybody else sinned. God is Love (Agape).
That Love is life to those who seek it.
That Love is death to those who reject it. Not because God is punishing us but because we have punished our selves by rejecting truth.
So yes, God is punishing us but not the way people think.
It is built into the very fabric of reality that God created. The punishment is a natural outcome.
Agapé Gr. means -- (1) affection, good will, love, benevolence, brotherly love. (2) love feasts.
The Greek root word for 'Agapé' is 'Agapaō', which means -- 1. of persons (a) to welcome, to entertain, to be fond of, to love dearly. (2) of things (a) to be well pleased, to be contented at or with a thing
So, confining 'Agapé' to just 'love' is not understanding its entire meaning.
Your emphasis on God's love, in light of all of his attributes, seems to be a painful twisting and the antithesis of the love that you paint a picture of.
Love is not one of His attributes. Love is who He is.
I think the misunderstanding might be in our definition of Love.
There are 5 greek words that are translated into English using the word love.
I do not have the greek words in front of me now but they are romantic love, brotherly love, love of things (I love that food, I love that car etc) erotic love.
They are basically things that make self feel good.
I do not think that is a coincidence. That was by design to order to sow confusion.
When people talk about love it brings up emotions or feelings. So when someone talks about Agape love they make the same connection.
Agape Love is not the "feelings" love.
Agape Love reaches past self.
What does the term “attribute” mean when applied to God?
Theologically:
Attribute: an inherent characteristic of God.
Each attribute is the whole of the Divine Essence – each is eternal, omnipresent, and immutable.
He waged war against Satan. Satan is God’s enemy because Satan wars against us — God’s beloved.
Only partially accurate.
Jesus Christ wages war against and destroys those who worshipped Satan. It is the armies of the world that will assemble against Christ upon his return:
(Rev. 19:19-21) Then I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to wage war against the rider on the horse and his army. 20 But the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who had performed the signs on its behalf. With these signs he had deluded those who had received the mark of the beast and worshiped its image. The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur. 21 The rest were killed with the sword coming out of the mouth of the rider on the horse, and all the birds gorged themselves on their flesh.
However, love is but one of his attributes, which include:
1. God Is Infinite – He is Self-Existing, Without Origin
"And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together." - Colossians 1:17
2. God Is Immutable – He Never Changes
“I the Lord do not change. So you, the descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed.” Malachi 3:6
3. God Is Self-Sufficient – He Has No Needs
“For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself.” – John 5:26
4. God is Omnipotent – He Is All Powerful
“By the word of the LORD the heavens were made, their starry host by the breath of his mouth.” – Psalm 33:6
5. God Is Omniscient – He Is All-Knowing
“Remember the former things, those of long ago; I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me. I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say: My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please” - Isaiah 46:9-10
6. God Is Omnipresent – He Is Always Everywhere
Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend to heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You are there. If I take the wings of the dawn, If I dwell in the remotest part of the sea, even there Your hand will lead me, And Your right hand will lay hold of me.” Psalm 139:7-10
“‘Am I a God at hand,’ declares the Lord, ‘and not a God afar off? Can a man hide himself in secret places so that I cannot see him?’ declares the Lord. ‘Do I not fill heaven and earth?’ declares the Lord” - Jeremiah 23:23-24
7. God Is Wise – He Is Full of Perfect, Unchanging Wisdom
“Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways!” – Romans 11:33
8. God Is Faithful – He Is Infinitely, Unchangingly True
"Know therefore that the LORD your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commands." - Deut 7:9
9. God Is Good – He Is Infinitely, Unchangingly Kind and Full of Good Will
“O, taste and see that the Lord is good” – Psalm 34:8
10. God Is Just – He Is Infinitely, Unchangeably Right and Perfect in All He Does
"The Rock! His work is perfect, For all His ways are just; A God of faithfulness and without injustice, Righteous and upright is He.” – Duet 32:4
11. God Is Merciful – He is Infinitely, Unchangeably Compassionate and Kind
“I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy." - Romans 9:15-16
12. God Is Gracious – God Is Infinitely Inclined to Spare the Guilty
"The LORD is gracious and merciful; Slow to anger and great in lovingkindness." – Psalm 145:8
"For it is by grace you have been saved,(B) through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast." (Ephesians 2:8-9)
13. God Is Holy – He is Infinitely, Unchangingly Perfect
“Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord Almighty” – Revelation 4:8
14. God Is Glorious – He is Infinitely Beautiful and Great
“His radiance is like the sunlight; He has rays flashing from His hand, And there is the hiding of His power.” - Habakkuk 3:4
All those are true. Saying God is love in no way takes away from these aspects of God’s being. That said, love isn’t something God possesses… it’s who He is.
Saying God is love in no way takes away from these aspects of God’s being.
He is love. True.
Also true:
Sovereignty of God, the holiness of God, the wrath of God, the providence of God, the personhood of God, etc.
In a postmodern world, the love of God (though distorted by cultural, non-biblical views) is an accepted attribute. Most people are accepting of this and will tolerate this.
The same world rails against, distorts and dismisses who God is...
...often by over-emphasizing love and dismissing who God is in totality. This is heresy and creates a non-biblical god.
Correction: Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. (John 14:6)
How do your reconcile your thoughts on agape love with Revelation 19: 11-16:
I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and wages war. His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself. 13 He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood,and his name is the Word of God. 14 The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. 15 Coming out of his mouth is a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. “He will rule them with an iron scepter.” He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. 16 On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written:
king of kings and lord of lords.
Love is but only one of God's attributes. Ignoring/dismissing all other attributes is theological error and creates a false god.
Easy. The devils kingdom devours itself. Divided it can not stand.
Gods Wrath is a figure of speech called condesencio. When you walk away you limit his ability to help you and the devil takes his shots. Simple really of you dont clog it up.
Not easy. Not one jot of Scripture shall pass away.
The truth is not so easily/casually dismissed.
Your doctrine is one of man's own-making, not a doctrine of the Bible.
The Bible clearly states that God's wrath is quite real and not just a figure of speech:
For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. (Romans 1:18)
Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him. (John 3:36)
The Lord is a jealous and avenging God; the Lord is avenging and wrathful; the Lord takes vengeance on his adversaries and keeps wrath for his enemies. The Lord is slow to anger and great in power, and the Lord will by no means clear the guilty. His way is in whirlwind and storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet. He rebukes the sea and makes it dry; he dries up all the rivers; Bashan and Carmel wither; the bloom of Lebanon withers. The mountains quake before him; the hills melt; the earth heaves before him, the world and all who dwell in it. Who can stand before his indignation? Who can endure the heat of his anger? His wrath is poured out like fire, and the rocks are broken into pieces by him. (Nahum 1:2-6)
Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. ( Eph. 5-6)
It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God (Hebrews 10:31)
Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. 6 On account of these the wrath of God is coming.(Colossians 3:5-6)
Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. (Matt. 10:28)
God is Agape Love. Those that worship Him must worship in Love AND Truth.
Love is a terrible thing. It lays bare falsehoods. Anyone clinging to falsehoods are destroyed.
Agape Love leaves no room for Self. We cannot even hope to fully walk in Agape Love. We cannot even hope to Approach the God of Agape Love.
Yet despite this He is Agape Love and He made a way.
Through His Son He has redeemed all. Sin was nailed to the cross. The penalty for sin for the entire world has ALREADY been paid.
The disconnect is not that God is not Agape Love. It is that we refuse to accept Agape Love.
In refusing to accept the truth we are left with only the lie. The lie only sees what you have posted above.
PS: Of course Jesus is the way, the Truth and the Life. Jesus is God. The Father and Jesus and the Spirit are one. Just like a man and his wife become one when they are married.
God did not change because we or anybody else sinned. God is Love (Agape). That Love is life to those who seek it. That Love is death to those who reject it. Not because God is punishing us but because we have punished our selves by rejecting truth.
So yes, God is punishing us but not the way people think. It is built into the very fabric of reality that God created. The punishment is a natural outcome.
Agapé Gr. means -- (1) affection, good will, love, benevolence, brotherly love. (2) love feasts.
The Greek root word for 'Agapé' is 'Agapaō', which means -- 1. of persons (a) to welcome, to entertain, to be fond of, to love dearly. (2) of things (a) to be well pleased, to be contented at or with a thing
So, confining 'Agapé' to just 'love' is not understanding its entire meaning.
With God, love is not a get of jail card.
Your emphasis on God's love, in light of all of his attributes, seems to be a painful twisting and the antithesis of the love that you paint a picture of.
Love is not one of His attributes. Love is who He is.
I think the misunderstanding might be in our definition of Love.
There are 5 greek words that are translated into English using the word love.
I do not have the greek words in front of me now but they are romantic love, brotherly love, love of things (I love that food, I love that car etc) erotic love. They are basically things that make self feel good.
I do not think that is a coincidence. That was by design to order to sow confusion.
When people talk about love it brings up emotions or feelings. So when someone talks about Agape love they make the same connection. Agape Love is not the "feelings" love. Agape Love reaches past self.
What does the term “attribute” mean when applied to God?
Theologically: Attribute: an inherent characteristic of God. Each attribute is the whole of the Divine Essence – each is eternal, omnipresent, and immutable.
He waged war against Satan. Satan is God’s enemy because Satan wars against us — God’s beloved.
Only partially accurate.
Jesus Christ wages war against and destroys those who worshipped Satan. It is the armies of the world that will assemble against Christ upon his return:
(Rev. 19:19-21) Then I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to wage war against the rider on the horse and his army. 20 But the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who had performed the signs on its behalf. With these signs he had deluded those who had received the mark of the beast and worshiped its image. The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur. 21 The rest were killed with the sword coming out of the mouth of the rider on the horse, and all the birds gorged themselves on their flesh.
I stand corrected. I’ll look into that
Jesus is love.
True.
However, love is but one of his attributes, which include:
1. God Is Infinite – He is Self-Existing, Without Origin
"And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together." - Colossians 1:17
2. God Is Immutable – He Never Changes
“I the Lord do not change. So you, the descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed.” Malachi 3:6
3. God Is Self-Sufficient – He Has No Needs
“For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself.” – John 5:26
4. God is Omnipotent – He Is All Powerful
“By the word of the LORD the heavens were made, their starry host by the breath of his mouth.” – Psalm 33:6
5. God Is Omniscient – He Is All-Knowing
“Remember the former things, those of long ago; I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me. I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say: My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please” - Isaiah 46:9-10
6. God Is Omnipresent – He Is Always Everywhere
Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend to heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You are there. If I take the wings of the dawn, If I dwell in the remotest part of the sea, even there Your hand will lead me, And Your right hand will lay hold of me.” Psalm 139:7-10
“‘Am I a God at hand,’ declares the Lord, ‘and not a God afar off? Can a man hide himself in secret places so that I cannot see him?’ declares the Lord. ‘Do I not fill heaven and earth?’ declares the Lord” - Jeremiah 23:23-24
7. God Is Wise – He Is Full of Perfect, Unchanging Wisdom
“Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways!” – Romans 11:33
8. God Is Faithful – He Is Infinitely, Unchangingly True
"Know therefore that the LORD your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commands." - Deut 7:9
9. God Is Good – He Is Infinitely, Unchangingly Kind and Full of Good Will
“O, taste and see that the Lord is good” – Psalm 34:8
10. God Is Just – He Is Infinitely, Unchangeably Right and Perfect in All He Does
"The Rock! His work is perfect, For all His ways are just; A God of faithfulness and without injustice, Righteous and upright is He.” – Duet 32:4
11. God Is Merciful – He is Infinitely, Unchangeably Compassionate and Kind
“I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy." - Romans 9:15-16
12. God Is Gracious – God Is Infinitely Inclined to Spare the Guilty
"The LORD is gracious and merciful; Slow to anger and great in lovingkindness." – Psalm 145:8
"For it is by grace you have been saved,(B) through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast." (Ephesians 2:8-9)
13. God Is Holy – He is Infinitely, Unchangingly Perfect
“Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord Almighty” – Revelation 4:8
14. God Is Glorious – He is Infinitely Beautiful and Great
“His radiance is like the sunlight; He has rays flashing from His hand, And there is the hiding of His power.” - Habakkuk 3:4
Very good. God is all of this and more. I only say this because you were probably getting tired listing all the things God is. ;)
😀
I never get tired of listing all of the things that Scripture tells us that God is and that God has done.
He is worthy to be praised!
All those are true. Saying God is love in no way takes away from these aspects of God’s being. That said, love isn’t something God possesses… it’s who He is.
He is love. True.
Also true:
Sovereignty of God, the holiness of God, the wrath of God, the providence of God, the personhood of God, etc.
In a postmodern world, the love of God (though distorted by cultural, non-biblical views) is an accepted attribute. Most people are accepting of this and will tolerate this.
The same world rails against, distorts and dismisses who God is...
...often by over-emphasizing love and dismissing who God is in totality. This is heresy and creates a non-biblical god.