Interesting statement...

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Willie-T

Willie-T

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#25
Feb 7, 2015
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#25
This whole thing reminds me of the old tale about the five blind men describing an elephant. We all seem to understand God from only what we have managed to glean from whatever we have been exposed to.
 
crossnote

crossnote

Senior Member
#26
Nov 24, 2012
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#26
Willie-T said:
"A conclusion is often the place where you simply got tired of thinking."
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So does this apply to all conclusions? By definition it seems to.
What this can end up is saying "there are no conclusions, absolutes can't be known". It has a bit of 'relativity' thinking inherent in the statement.
 
crossnote

crossnote

Senior Member
#27
Nov 24, 2012
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#27
Willie-T said:
This whole thing reminds me of the old tale about the five blind men describing an elephant. We all seem to understand God from only what we have managed to glean from whatever we have been exposed to.
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Yeah I learned that back when I was learning Hinduism.
Problem is God is not an elephant. Again you are heading into relativism.
 
Magenta

Magenta

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#28
Jul 3, 2015
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#28
Willie-T said:
I just quit thinking about them, period.
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Reminds me of Howard Roark, in Ayn Rand's The Fountainhead, when his arch enemy said, "Mr. Roark, we're alone here. Why don't you tell me what you think of me? In any words you wish. No one will hear us."

"But I don't think of you."
 
T

Tintin

Guest
#29
#29
You have to be careful though. Otherwise it very easily turns into postmodernism - always seeking the truth and never finding it. That's no way to live. It's certainly not the Christian way.
 
T

Tintin

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#30
#30
crossnote said:
Yeah I learned that back when I was learning Hinduism.
Problem is God is not an elephant. Again you are heading into relativism.
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Right, the elephant analogy is more about relativism. In reality, as Christians we might all emphasise different facets of God, but we still have to make sure we're all worshipping the same God, as revealed in His Word.
 
I

Is

Guest
#31
#31
Couldn't you look at it like a person had exhausted all their research on a subject?
 
Willie-T

Willie-T

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#32
Feb 7, 2015
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#32
Is said:
Couldn't you look at it like a person had exhausted all their research on a subject?
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I suppose you could. As long as they are willing to investigate new information as it becomes available. (which is often just about all the time)
 
Willie-T

Willie-T

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#33
Feb 7, 2015
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#33
Tintin said:
Right, the elephant analogy is more about relativism. In reality, as Christians we might all emphasise different facets of God, but we still have to make sure we're all worshipping the same God, as revealed in His Word.
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Well, weren't those five (some say, 6) blind men all investigating the very same elephant?

We all (supposedly) worship the same God, yet some see a God who actually hates humanity but accepts them for Jesus' sake, others see a lover of mankind... some see one who cannot be around sin, others see a God who runs to embrace sinners (prodigal son)... some see a God who desires to punish, others see a God who rescues and forgives... some see a God who demands, others see God coming to serve.

All, (again, supposedly) the same God, derived from the reading of Scripture from the same, identical book.

Everything we individually understand about anything, including God, eventually comes down to how we RELATE ("relativity") to it or Him. All Scripture contains the same typeset letters. But no Scripture is known to any person except through each of our own personal interpretations of the reading of those letters. You can try to sound "Holy" or "Righteous" and attempt to shoehorn that "No prophesy is of private interpretation" verse in here all you want, but we all know Scripture, to each of us, means what we believe that particular passage to mean... despite whatever psycho-labels we try to wedge into the conversation.
 
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Grace777x70

Grace777x70

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#34
Nov 22, 2015
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#34
Amen!...it seems to be all in the "lens" that we view things...


Willie-T said:
Well, weren't those five (some say, 6) blind men all investigating the very same elephant?

We all (supposedly) worship the same God, yet some see a God who actually hates humanity but accepts them for Jesus' sake, others see a lover of mankind... some see one who cannot be around sin, others see a God who runs to embrace sinners (prodigal son)... some see a God who desires to punish, others see a God who rescues and forgives... some see a God who demands, others see God coming to serve.

All, (again, supposedly) the same God, derived from the reading of Scripture from the same, identical book.

Everything we individually understand about anything, including God, eventually comes down to how we RELATE ("relativity") to it or Him. All Scripture contains the same typeset letters. But no Scripture is known to any person except through each of our own personal interpretations of the reading of those letters. You can try to sound "Holy" or "Righteous" and attempt to shoehorn that "No prophesy is of private interpretation" verse in here all you want, but we all know Scripture, to each of us, means what we believe that particular passage to mean... despite whatever psycho-labels we try to wedge into the conversation.
Click to expand...
 
I

Is

Guest
#35
#35
Willie-T said:
I suppose you could. As long as they are willing to investigate new information as it becomes available. (which is often just about all the time)
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OK, for the time being :eek:
 
I

Is

Guest
#36
#36
Willie-T said:
Well, weren't those five (some say, 6) blind men all investigating the very same elephant?

We all (supposedly) worship the same God, yet some see a God who actually hates humanity but accepts them for Jesus' sake, others see a lover of mankind... some see one who cannot be around sin, others see a God who runs to embrace sinners (prodigal son)... some see a God who desires to punish, others see a God who rescues and forgives... some see a God who demands, others see God coming to serve.

All, (again, supposedly) the same God, derived from the reading of Scripture from the same, identical book.

Everything we individually understand about anything, including God, eventually comes down to how we RELATE ("relativity") to it or Him. All Scripture contains the same typeset letters. But no Scripture is known to any person except through each of our own personal interpretations of the reading of those letters. You can try to sound "Holy" or "Righteous" and attempt to shoehorn that "No prophesy is of private interpretation" verse in here all you want, but we all know Scripture, to each of us, means what we believe that particular passage to mean... despite whatever psycho-labels we try to wedge into the conversation.
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Willie-T said:
yet some see a God who actually hates humanity but accepts them for Jesus' sake, others see a lover of mankind...
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Scripture does say: "For God so loved the world" John 3:16 and "Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son" 1John 4:10
 
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