More pointedly, if our loving God is omniscient, omnipotent and omnipresent - which He is - why then did His own Son have to be tortured and executed? Countless people throughout the ages have asked, "If God is love, why would he require his own son to endure such torture and death?" Indeed, many have judged God, concluding: "I could never worship a god like that."
From the ultimate expression of love - "Greater love hath no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friend" - to the simple act of being patient with others, love implies forbearance, longsuffering and kindness in the midst of problems.
The only way God could "Create" loving children was for us to have a choice: a choice to love Him, or to be our own god - literally, a choice to make something more important than our own lives, well-being and comfort - a choice to love, in other words - and to be able to demonstrate that love, which involves suffering.
Shortly before His Passion and death, Jesus gave his disciples what He called "a new commandment" - namely, "That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another." Of course, since He had previously brought forth the Old Testament commandments to love God "With all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might" and to "Love thy neighbor as thyself", how was this Last Supper commandment then "New"?
If God wanted to demonstrate His love for mankind, how else could He do it? Go ahead, tell me! What could He do to demonstrate the depth of His love? Make mountains of pomegranates for everyone? Give everyone a great job and a big house and three luxury cars? Give us everything our proud little hearts desire?
No, if God wanted to demonstrate His love for us, and at the same time provide us with the perfect, ultimate example of real love for our fellow man, what could be a more perfect expression of love than the willing suffering and death of His Son - Who while dying asked God to forgive His tormentors? The sheer beauty, logic and power of it is transcendent.
Jesus didn't say, "Just talk about me and you'll be saved." Rather, He said: "Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." And "If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love." And " he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.
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