Forty six theological questions I'd love to get a straight answer To:

   1)Genesis2:7KJV"And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul."    

If the human soul is by definition alive (indeed immortal) why was it necessary to describe it as living?

2) Genesis3:15 KJV "And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel." Who is this woman that (with Jehovah's blessing) wages war against the deceiver of men and angels?

3)If the seed of above mentioned woman is God why would it be wrong to call her the mother of God?

4) Where are the expressions God the son and God the spirit located in the scriptures?

5) Why is the God the Father never ever referred to as the father of God in scripture( After all the Son is always referred to as the Son of God/the Spirit as the spirit of God)?

6) john8:50"And I seek not mine own glory: there is one that seeketh and judgeth." If our lord taught his disciples that he is in fact Almighty God how could he truthfully claim to not be seeking his own glory?

7) John14:1KJV "Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me" If Jesus is indeed the almighty God how are we to make sense of the above cited scripture?

8) From our catholic friends comes the following: if Jesus is truly God and Mary is his mother then Mary is the mother of God;Makes complete sense to me what specific objection could any trinitarian or modalists/oneness advocate possibly have against this reasoning?

9)Acts17:30NASB "“Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent,"

Those who had their sins overlooked by reason of their involuntary ignorance are they in heaven?

10)If it is possible to get to heaven by being ignorant why then would a loving God command that the Gospel be preached?

11) How could the loss of Jesus flesh for parts of three days possibly be a fit substitute for eternal conscious torment?

12) In as much as the Father is a spirit and is holy and his son is a spirit and is holy and their angels are spirits and are holy how could it be sensible to identify the third person of a supposed holy trinity of such holy spirits as simply the holy spirit?

13) John14;19NASB "“After a little while the world will no longer see Me, but you will see Me; because I live, you will live also." Why do many of Christendom's theologians insist that Christ will return in the same flesh which he was supposed to have sacrificed for our sins to literally be seen by all the world?

14) John3:17 NASB"“For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him."

 John5:22NASB "Moreover, the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all judgement to the Son,"

 Will the Son of God Judge the world or not?

15)Do aborted infants go to heaven?

16)If all aborted infants go heaven would that not falsify Jesus'statement at John3:3

17) At John3:3 Jesus indicates that to attain a heavenly resurrection one must be "born from above" in as much as john1:12 links this new birth to acceptance of the gospel should we not then conclude that the door to heaven was closed to all who died prior to Christ's death and resurrection?

18) To all who insists that it is impossible for someone in a saved condition to lose their salvation:Were Satan,Adam and Eve in a saved or unsaved condition when created by God?

19)If all are destined for a place in heaven regardless of belief or conduct why must the gospel be preached first?

20) Hebrews11:39,40 "And all these, having gained approval through their faith, did not receive what was promised, 40because God had provided something better for us, so that apart from us they would not be made perfect." If we are all going to end up in heaven How is what God promised anointed Christians better than the reward the ancient worthies mentioned in Hebrews ch.11 received?

21) Revelation20:6NASB "Blessed and holy is the one who has a part in the first resurrection; over these the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with Him for a thousand years."

 Revelation5:9,10DBT "And they sing a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open its seals; because thou hast been slain, and hast redeemed to God, by thy blood, out of every tribe, and tongue, and people, and nation, 10and made them to our God kings and priests; and they shall reign over the earth." If the earth is to be devoid of human life,as many insists, during the millennium over whom are these ruling as kings and to whom are they ministering as priest?

22) Revelation21:4"and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.” Would this not be a false prophecy if in fact the vast majority of humankind is destined to suffer eternally by divine decree?

23) If only those who share in the first resurrection (see rev 20:6) go on to receive eternal life how could it be said that 'death' is the last enemy defeated by Christ? (see 1Corinthians15:26)

24)In as much as Christendom's theologians invoke Occam's razor as their reason for rejecting polytheism,in what way can a triune Godhead in which one member is fully human be considered a simpler explanation than the position of unitarian Christians that the God and Father of our lord is the only true God ?See John17:3

25) For argument sake let us go along with the notion that only a multipersonal deity could fulfil 1John4:8 can someone please provide a scriptural reason for limiting the number of persons constituting this godhead to three?

26) To those who deny the historicity of the man Jesus Christ.Why did the enemies of Christianity wait for eighteen centuries to raise what should have been their very first objection?

27) Galations1:1 HCSB "Paul,a an apostle — not from men or by man, but by Jesus Christ and God the Fatherb who raised Him from the dead"

Does the above cited scripture not suggest that Christ was raised to a superhuman life rather than having his human life restored?

28) If the human soul is indestructible and distinct from the body why do drugs,bodily fatigue and physical injuries affect consciousness?

29) Revelation14:1 KJV"And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father's name written in their foreheads" If the holy spirit is a person who is equally God as Jesus' Father why is his name not also on the foreheads of these servants of Jehovah?

30) Can anyone show from scripture the personal name of the holy spirit? 

31) John17:3NASB "“This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. " How can the God and Father of Jesus be the only true God if there are two others who are God in the same sense and to the same degree?

32) Matthew 11:11NASB"Truly I say to you, among those born of women there has not arisen anyone greater than John the Baptist! Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he" Does the above cited scripture not indicate that John the baptizer and all the faithful who died prior to him will not be in heaven?

33) How could the loss of Christ body for parts of three days be equated with eternal conscious torment? Isaiah53:5 NASB"But He was pierced through for our transgressions,

            He was crushed for our iniquities;

            The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him,

            And by His scourging we are healed."

34) 1Corinthians8:6 NASB"yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom are all things and we exist for Him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we exist through Him." Christendom's theologians claim that the Father is not a distinct God merely a distinct person,does not the above cited text not contradict that assertion?

35) Matthew10:28 NASB"“Do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. " According to the above quoted scripture Jehovah God will do to his enemies What those enemies can merely do to his followers' bodies.Can Christendom's theologians please tell us who among Jehovah's enemies can inflict eternal torment on our bodies?

36) For those trinitarian apologists who insists that every God mentioned in the bible must either be a member of the trinity or a false god where would you place the prophet Moses member of the Christendom's Godhead or false god see exodus7:1

37) Luke23:43NASB"And He said to him, “Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise.”" Now in as much as Christendom's translators insist that Christ meant that he would go to paradise immediately upon dying as a substitute for sinners,how can it be logically denied that the penalty for sin must be a translation to paradise upon death,in which case why would sinners need a ramsom?

38) Revelation20:1-3NASB"Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand. 2And he laid hold of the dragon, the serpent of old, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years; 3and he threw him into the abyss, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he would not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were completed; after these things he must be released for a short time." For post millenialists when was Satan rendered incapable of deceiving the nations.

39)When do post millenialists believe that Satan would again be allowed to deceive the nations.

40) Luke11:18NASB "“If Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? For you say that I cast out demons by Beelzebul. "

Revelation 12:3NASB"Then another sign appeared in heaven: and behold, a great red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads were seven diadems."

Revelation12:9NASB"And the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him."

If Jesus' being called God or even Jehovah is sufficient to establish as true that he is a member of a polypersonal God how can anyone deny that the above quoted scriptures must mean that Satan is part of polypersonal Devil/Devilhead?

41) Several men other than Jesus of nazareth are mentioned in scripture as having the name Jesus/Joshua as a personal name See Exodus17:9,1Samuel 6:14,colossians4:11. If the name 'Jesus' is the personal name of the most high God how can any creature be permitted use it as a personal name?

42) For those who claim that Jesus Christ is the only true God:Hebrews2:3,4 "how will we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?e It was first spoken by the Lord and was confirmed to us by those who heard Him.f 4At the same time, God also testified by signs and wonders, various miracles, and distributions of gifts from the Holy Spirit according to His will.g" How can God's testimony be considered additional to Jesus's

43) Can anyone direct me to that passage of scripture that says that the virtuous dead go to heaven?

44) Why is it that though trinitarians and modalists denounce each other's doctrine as unscriptural they nevertheless use the very same prooftext in there apologetics?

45) In as much as the Jehovah is repeatedly call the God the Father (Theon Patros) in scripture Why is Jesus NEVER referred to as God the Son ?

46) Revelation20:6 NASB "Then I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was given to them. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony of Jesus and because of the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received the mark on their forehead and on their hand; and they came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. " 

 If the human soul is truly immortal why the need to restore it to life?

It takes an engineer to know an engineer?

 Burgess: Claims of “Poor Design” in Skeletal Joints Are Based on Critics’ Lack of Training in Engineering 

Brian Miller 

As an engineering professor at Bristol University and Cambridge, Stuart Burgess has researched biomechanics for nearly thirty years. He is one of the leading engineers in the UK. Earlier this year, he presented a talk at the Westminster Conference on Science and Faith titled, “Why Human Skeletal Joints Are Masterpieces of Human Engineering: And a Rebuttal to the ‘Bad Design’ Arguments.” He demonstrated that human skeletal joints are marvels of engineering and optimally designed. In particular, he refuted claims by biologist Nathan Lents, in his book Human Errors: A Panorama of Our Glitches, from Pointless Bones to Broken Genes, that the wrist and ankle contain useless bones.  

The Abuse of Science 

Burgess’s lecture confronts one of the most common abuses of science aimed at suppressing the evidence for design in biology. Atheists such as Lents have grossly misrepresented the scientific evidence related to biological systems to claim that life often displays clumsy and incompetent engineering. Most of the examples of allegedly poor design listed by Lents, or in other books such as The Language of God, were known to be false when the books were written or have since been discredited. Such disinformation resulting from sloppy scholarship has derailed the faith of religious adherents and robbed atheists and agnostics of the opportunity to pursue belief in a Creator.

In relation to wrists and ankles, Lents makes the follower assertions in his book:          

“The small area that is just the wrist itself has eight fully formed and distinct bones tucked in there like a pile of rocks — which is about how useful they are to anyone.” (p. 28)

“We have examples of superbly designed joints in our bodies; the shoulder and hip joints come to mind. Not the wrist, though. No sane engineer would design a joint with so many individual moving parts. It clutters up the space and restricts the range of motion.” (p. 28)

“The human ankle suffers from the same clutter of bones that we find in the wrist. The ankle contains seven bones, most of them pointless.” (p. 29)

Yet none of these claims has any basis. 

The Optimality of Skeletal Joints 

Dr. Burgess demonstrated how Lents’s assertion that the wrist and foot joints are poorly designed results from Lents’s lack of training in engineering. He did not recognize that living systems must meet multiple competing constraints. Burgess analyzed the joints’ different motions and functions. He then demonstrated how the wrists and ankles are exquisitely designed to optimally achieve a diversity of functions in a wide variety of environments.

As one example, Lents failed to understand the engineering principles behind the four bones adjacent to the toe bones. He claimed that a better design would have been to replace these bones with a single composite bone. The key error is that the multiple bones provide far greater load bearing strength. 

In a previous lecture, Burgess also addressed false claims about allegedly poor design in the human knee joint, while in the technical literature he detailed the optimality of the knee (here, here). Many have argued that the ease with which the knee’s anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tears reflects poor design resulting from humans’ evolutionary past. This conclusion fails to recognize a key design principle: engineers often deliberately construct the least critical components in a complex system to fail first. 

The bumper of a car, for example, is designed to crumple long before the passenger compartment since the former is far more expendable. Similarly, a person can still walk with a torn ACL, but serious trauma to other knee tissues and bones could permanently cripple the individual. The initial failure of the ACL could prevent much more severe damage. In addition, the rate at which ACLs tear is lower than the rate at which bones such as the femur fracture (here, here). Claims about the ACL’s flimsy design are clearly misguided.  

The Central Lesson 

Burgess could have spoken for many more hours about false claims of poor design in such structures as the wiring of the retina, the human appendix, and wisdom teeth. He could have provided countless examples of biology demonstrating the pinnacle of engineering brilliance. 

Yet the two examples he presented were sufficient to drive home a clear lesson. Evolutionary assumptions consistently lead biologists to falsely claim that features in life reflect incompetent engineering, and those assumptions bias them to undervalue biological systems’ ingenuity and optimality. One hopes that the consistent track record of falsely identifying poor design will result in researchers’ applying greater caution in the future before questioning the wisdom of a feature in life that they do not initially fully understand. 

   

Have you accepted the multiverse as your Lord and savior?

 Is the Multiverse Science or Religion? 

Evolution News @DiscoveryCSC 

Some science controversies arise in disputes over findings. The current flap over the James Webb Space Telescope data, for one. Others sound like clashes over philosophy — claims about the multiverse (countless universes out there) are a good example.

Theoretical physicist Sabine Hossenfelder takes on the multiverse in in her new book, Existential Physics: A Scientist’s Guide to Life’s Biggest Questions (2022). She also addresses the topic concisely — and wittily — in a short video and a blog post at Back(Re)Action. She looks at three popular multiverse models: Many Worlds, Eternal Inflation, and String Theory Landscape. 

“Maybe We Will Never Know”

Here’s her take on Eternal Inflation:

We don’t know how our universe began and maybe we will never know. We just talked about this the other week. But according to a presently popular idea called “inflation,” our universe was created from a quantum fluctuation of a field called the “inflaton”. This field supposedly fills an infinitely large space and our universe was created from only a tiny patch of that, the patch where the fluctuation happened.

But the field keeps on fluctuating, so there are infinitely many other universes fluctuating into existence. This universe-creation goes on forever, which is why it’s called eternal inflation. Eternal inflation, by the way lasts forever into the future, but still requires a beginning in the past, so it doesn’t do away with the Big Bang issue.

In Eternal Inflation, the other universes may contain the same matter as ours, but in slightly different arrangements, so there may be copies of you in them. In some versions you became a professional ballet dancer. In some you won a Nobel Prize. In yet another one another you are a professional ballet dancer who won a Nobel Prize and dated Elon Musk. And they’re all as real as this one.

Where did this inflaton field go that allegedly created our universe? Well, physicists say it has fallen apart into the particles that we observe now, so it’s gone and that’s why we can’t measure it. Yeah, that is a little sketchy. 

SABINE HOSSENFELDER, “THE MULTIVERSE: SCIENCE, RELIGION, OR PSEUDOSCIENCE?” AT BACKRE(ACTION) (SEPTEMBER 10, 2022) 

Don’t miss her take on Many Worlds and the String Theory Landscape, especially if you wish to experience “elephants in the room which you coincidentally can’t see” — oh, and getting married to Elon Musk (but maybe only in that universe). On a serious note, she later addresses specific claims from physicists who defend the idea.

The concept of a multiverse arises from an alternative interpretation of the movement of elementary particles in quantum mechanics — alternative, that is, to the more widely accepted Copenhagen interpretation. In the Copenhagen interpretation, if the particle goes left rather than right, the universe just updates. In the alternative Many Worlds interpretation, a new universe is created in which the particle goes right. There are other versions but that’s the best known.

Read the rest at Mind Matters News, published by Discovery Institute’s Bradley Center for Natural and Artificial Intelligence.