By Mike Edwards
Does God really torture unbelievers after death? Most humans wouldn’t create such a place for their worst enemies. Biblical scholars don’t agree such a place exist in the Bible. Does God really condemn gays when they can no more choose who they have feelings for than straights can? Biblical scholars don’t agree the Bible condemns gays. If God exist all believe God must be perfect love – even atheists. How do we determine what true love is?
We don’t just know God because the Bible says so.
We can’t know God definitively through the Bible because literature requires interpretation. People who respect the Bible as authoritative disagree what God thinks about homosexuality, gender roles, and the afterlife to name only a few critical issues. We must stop declaring something immoral in God’s eyes because the Bible says so. It may be said Jesus was God so listen to Jesus, but we can’t even agree what Jesus thinks. People disagree if Jesus’ non-violent beliefs allow or rules out individuals or nations protecting themselves against physical evil.
God’s love is surely like a perfect human’s love.
Most non-Bible or Bible-oriented folks agree that God must be or is the perfect Lover (Mt. 5:43-48, I Jn. 4). The Bible frequently uses the analogy of God as a perfect Lover or Parent, thus assuming we have some knowledge of what such love is. It makes little sense that the Bible uses such an analogy unless perfect human and God love are one in the same.
Most if not all have an inborn sense to love others as themselves.
A universal desire to treat others like we want to be treated hints a personal external force communicating what is good. Terrorist proclaim morality according to a Book but something is amiss – they would object to being beheaded, raped, or denied their freedom of beliefs. We still can’t know what God is like for certain but the truth is there is practically universal agreement on most moral matters – murder, stealing, etc. Our intuitions about love most likely fits God’s view of love.
We can’t know exactly what God and perfect human love is like but that may be a good thing.
When it is said we can know God for certain according to the Bible, we end up imposing our interpretation on others. Forced love is an oxymoron. Being unable to declare the certainty or morality of our opinions according to the Bible forces us to listen and express ideas openly which can lead to new understandings. It is better to claim “we know so” than “because the Bible told me so” because personal intuitions are assumed rightly questionable than Holy Books.
What do you imagine a perfect God may be like?
You may be right! I don’t know anyone who says to themselves “don’t treat others like you want to be treated.” I am absolutely convinced that God’s love is the love we deep down desire to show others consistently. God’s love is perfect parental love that we have always desired from our parents. We may not agree always what a perfect parent would do, but a loving parent surely isn’t egotistical, a fear-monger, a homophobe, a sexist, or bias against one’s religion chosen because of where born!
See HERE what I recently wrote what I think perfect human parenting love is like
Done with Religion 