God keeps pulling me back into Romans, so here I go!
"For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities - his eternal power and divine nature - have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse." (v. 20)
This verse always blows me away. MEN ARE WITHOUT EXCUSE. We always say, "Well, a loving God wouldn't let anyone go to hell who hasn't heard of Him." That is not an excuse. God's character is in all His creation. I know that every time we drive through the Rocky Mountains, I am awed by the power that it took to create them. How can anyone but God have made those? The beauty of a sunset, a rainbow arching through the sky, a lightning storm... how beautiful and powerful are those? Have you ever seen the sky after a summer shower at sunset? With silver and red and purple, and the clouds with a halo around them? Wow! If people don't recognize God in these things (and more), they have no excuse. That doesn't mean they will know all their theology and their Bible, but if they acknowledge that there is a God who is in charge of this world, then God will remember them in Heaven. Yes, God is loving, but He is also worthy of our praise and worship. He gives us every chance to get to know Him, but in the end, it is our own choice whether or not we will choose to accept His gift of eternal life through His Son, Jesus.
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Hi there. I'm a passerby that has a special loathing for this particular passage in the Bible.
The problem with affirming your God's existence (let alone glory and spiritual salvation) is that it is simply not the only conclusion someone can draw from seeing all the beautiful things you have discussed here. This has been demonstrated throughout history, not only through other religions but also from simple logic. Why would God have to be the one who created the universe? Why not a benevolent flying spaghetti monster, Bob the Wonder Squirrel, or the Invisible Pink Unicorn? These are obviously absurd examples, but to an objective observer with a basic naturalistic knowledge, does not the idea of an invisible magic man creating the universe also seem absurd?
Further, how could someone extrapolate that Jesus Christ in particular offers them salvation simply from observing the creation? That's insane. Did not Jesus say that faith in HIM- not merely a belief in God the Father- was necessary to reach heaven? Yet, this God of yours has provided millions of people with absolutely no way of knowing this and condemned said people to hell before they were even born. Surely, you cannot tell me you agree with this?
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