Comments on: Can prayer change God’s mind? http://BibleQ.info/answer/1872/ Bible Questions Answered Wed, 08 Feb 2012 03:08:00 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Mark Morgan http://BibleQ.info/answer/1872/comment-page-1/#comment-1301 Mark Morgan Sun, 08 May 2011 09:40:20 +0000 http://BibleQ.info/?p=1872#comment-1301 God does know the end from the beginning. God does not present us with that information. Using your definition above, he must be withholding information and letting us suffer. God has all knowledge and wisdom: trusting him means we must rely on him to know when it is best for us to be kept in ignorance of facts which he already knows. One example is the timing of the restoring of the kingdom to Israel, of which Jesus said to his apostles: “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority." (Acts 1:7) Let's leave these things in the hands of a loving and infinitely wise God, confident that what he says about Israel will be true for us too: "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for wholeness and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope." (Jeremiah 29:11) God does know the end from the beginning. God does not present us with that information. Using your definition above, he must be withholding information and letting us suffer. God has all knowledge and wisdom: trusting him means we must rely on him to know when it is best for us to be kept in ignorance of facts which he already knows. One example is the timing of the restoring of the kingdom to Israel, of which Jesus said to his apostles:
“It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority.” (Acts 1:7) Let’s leave these things in the hands of a loving and infinitely wise God, confident that what he says about Israel will be true for us too:
“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for wholeness and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” (Jeremiah 29:11)

]]> By: God is the director http://BibleQ.info/answer/1872/comment-page-1/#comment-1094 God is the director Sat, 26 Feb 2011 19:19:17 +0000 http://BibleQ.info/?p=1872#comment-1094 I quote this sentence: "The answer is probably found in the fact that, as humans, we do not know the future, so God sometimes presents things to us as though they will happen, when he knows that they will not. Our responses are then based on what is presented to us." So instead of going with the logical answer that God changes his mind from time to time as noticed plenty of times in the Bible you want to instead accuse God of presenting things to us that he knows are not true. You are indeed accusing God of not only withholding truthful information but also presenting information that steers our conclusion away from the truth. Regarding, there being "only a change in the information available to us" you are confirming that you believe God either withholds information from us for the sake of teaching us a lesson or just for the sheer enjoyment of stringing us along since he already knows what the true course of events will be. To that I say, if you had a friend and you knew he was going to ask you for money because he is suffering of financial hardship at the moment but yet you somehow knew that he bought a winning lottery ticket but won't realize it for another month. During that month you know that he will commit acts he won't be proud of but yet those acts will change him for life and make him a better person in your eyes. Would you? A. withhold the information from him and let him suffer B. Let him have the knowledge now so that he won't have to suffer for the next month. As any logical person would tell you, answer A doesn't make sense if you don't like to seeing people unnecessarily suffer. To make things worse there is an option C. where you actually present him with a gloomier outlook of his current situation when you know for yourself that things will get better soon. Our responses are indeed based on what is presented to us and lying as done with option C. can cause great agony. It’s just amazing to see otherwise rational people lose come up with these irrational excuses when it comes to their God performing such a blatantly immoral action. I quote this sentence: “The answer is probably found in the fact that, as humans, we do not know the future, so God sometimes presents things to us as though they will happen, when he knows that they will not. Our responses are then based on what is presented to us.”
So instead of going with the logical answer that God changes his mind from time to time as noticed plenty of times in the Bible you want to instead accuse God of presenting things to us that he knows are not true. You are indeed accusing God of not only withholding truthful information but also presenting information that steers our conclusion away from the truth. Regarding, there being “only a change in the information available to us” you are confirming that you believe God either withholds information from us for the sake of teaching us a lesson or just for the sheer enjoyment of stringing us along since he already knows what the true course of events will be. To that I say, if you had a friend and you knew he was going to ask you for money because he is suffering of financial hardship at the moment but yet you somehow knew that he bought a winning lottery ticket but won’t realize it for another month. During that month you know that he will commit acts he won’t be proud of but yet those acts will change him for life and make him a better person in your eyes.
Would you?
A. withhold the information from him and let him suffer
B. Let him have the knowledge now so that he won’t have to suffer for the next month.
As any logical person would tell you, answer A doesn’t make sense if you don’t like to seeing people unnecessarily suffer. To make things worse there is an option C. where you actually present him with a gloomier outlook of his current situation when you know for yourself that things will get better soon. Our responses are indeed based on what is presented to us and lying as done with option C. can cause great agony. It’s just amazing to see otherwise rational people lose come up with these irrational excuses when it comes to their God performing such a blatantly immoral action.

]]> By: Mark Morgan http://BibleQ.info/answer/1872/comment-page-1/#comment-923 Mark Morgan Sun, 09 Jan 2011 11:10:05 +0000 http://BibleQ.info/?p=1872#comment-923 God does not always give answers immediately. There are many examples where this is <i>almost</i> certain (eg. Abraham waiting for the birth of Isaac and Hannah asking for a son), but few are stated explicitly. Some examples where it is clearly spelled out are: Israelites praying to God for freedom from Egyptian slavery (Exodus 2:23-25, 3:7-8). This was answered, but there was a delay. Daniel had to wait 3 weeks for an answer to his prayer (read Daniel 10:2-3, 12-14 carefully) After Samuel died, Saul the king inquired of God but he would not answer immediately (1 Samuel 28:6-7) so Saul turned to a medium. God later answered by delivering Saul's death sentence through Samuel (1 Samuel 28:16-18) and the medium. Some general examples of prayers encouraged in the Bible which have not yet been fully answered: Pray for peace in Jerusalem (Psalm 122:6 and Isaiah 62:6-7) In the Lord's prayer: "your kingdom come" and "your will be done on earth as it is in heaven" (Matthew 6:10) The second last verse of the New Testament is another example "Amen. Come Lord Jesus." (Revelation 22:20). We all have to wait for this to be answered with his appearing. God does not always give answers immediately. There are many examples where this is almost certain (eg. Abraham waiting for the birth of Isaac and Hannah asking for a son), but few are stated explicitly. Some examples where it is clearly spelled out are:

Israelites praying to God for freedom from Egyptian slavery (Exodus 2:23-25, 3:7-8). This was answered, but there was a delay.
Daniel had to wait 3 weeks for an answer to his prayer (read Daniel 10:2-3, 12-14 carefully)
After Samuel died, Saul the king inquired of God but he would not answer immediately (1 Samuel 28:6-7) so Saul turned to a medium. God later answered by delivering Saul’s death sentence through Samuel (1 Samuel 28:16-18) and the medium.

Some general examples of prayers encouraged in the Bible which have not yet been fully answered:

Pray for peace in Jerusalem (Psalm 122:6 and Isaiah 62:6-7)
In the Lord’s prayer: “your kingdom come” and “your will be done on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10)

The second last verse of the New Testament is another example “Amen. Come Lord Jesus.” (Revelation 22:20). We all have to wait for this to be answered with his appearing.

]]> By: sunday http://BibleQ.info/answer/1872/comment-page-1/#comment-728 sunday Wed, 13 Oct 2010 16:07:59 +0000 http://BibleQ.info/?p=1872#comment-728 I want to know the people in the bible that prayed for change and their answers came late, with bible refrences I want to know the people in the bible that prayed for change and their answers came late, with bible refrences

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