Reply
Tue 24 Jan, 2006 07:51 am
I've been wondering about the "act of playing God". Obviously, you can really screw things up if you try to play God, so it's a good idea not to do it. However, Valis by Phillip K. Dick, I came across a Bible quote that really perplexed me.
Quote:How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.
1 John 3:1-2.
Is this advocating that we will be like gods when he appears to us? How can we have no other gods before us, if we are to become gods ourselves?
I will venture a serious answer to what I hope is an honest question. The best way to answer is with a question.
Are not adopted children still children to the adoptive parents? A person becomes a child of God in this contect, by one's faith in Christ's sacrifice for sin. In other words, we are adopted into God's family, thus becoming a child of God.
It can also be looked at in another way. Since God created us, we are figuratively all children of God.
In either case, the term has nothing to do with being Gods ourselves or being God-like.
It's not really a question, but more a prompt to start discussion about what is really meant by the phrase and whether we will become like gods.
After all, the first half of the quote talks about us being gods. Why on Earth would the last part, which talks about becoming like gods, be referring to us as being children of God again?
The Wolfman wrote:
I've been wondering about the "act of playing God". Obviously, you can really screw things up if you try to play God, so it's a good idea not to do it
Can you expound apon this? What qualifies as 'playing god'?
Doktor S wrote:The Wolfman wrote:
I've been wondering about the "act of playing God". Obviously, you can really screw things up if you try to play God, so it's a good idea not to do it
Can you expound apon this? What qualifies as 'playing god'?
Well, germline genetic alteration for one to create an "ideal race". Eugenics is close to playing God, you know, especially the delusional eugenics of the Nazi Society.
I thought George Burns was pretty good playing God....
He was very convincing, Bear, i agree . . . it was the phlegmatic, low-keyed approach that made it work . . .
blueveinedthrobber wrote:I thought George Burns was pretty good playing God....
I have no idea about what you're talking about, but let me guess. George Burns is an actor of sorts?
Was, Wolf--George Burns, 1896-1996, worked professionally from 1904 almost to his death, just over 90 years. In 1926, he and his wife, Gracie Allen, began a radio and motion picture career in which he played the straight man to his wife's comedy, which was successful for more than 30 years. She died in 1964, and he was broken up by her death, and retired. But he came out of his retirement to do stand-up in 1970, and won an academy award in 1975 for his role in The Sunshine Boys. He played the role of god in two successful motion picutres, Oh God! and Oh God! II.
ahem... uhhh setanta... about your quote... I didn't say that did I? LOL Oh boy... I don't think it was me, but then I wouldn't put anything past myself! Just curious...
No Miss Eppie, it wasn't you, and i rather doubt that you'd produce anything so clueless . . .
Wolf_ODonnell wrote:Doktor S wrote:The Wolfman wrote:
I've been wondering about the "act of playing God". Obviously, you can really screw things up if you try to play God, so it's a good idea not to do it
Can you expound apon this? What qualifies as 'playing god'?
Well, germline genetic alteration for one to create an "ideal race". Eugenics is close to playing God, you know, especially the delusional eugenics of the Nazi Society.
Say's who?
Who get's to arbitrarily draw the line between technology we are 'supposed' to pursue and that which we are not?
It seems to you that means interfering with human genetics. Do you think interfering with other animals is also playing god?
Why is altering genetics wrong? It seems to me the only objection would be an abhorrence of 'messing with gods stuff' that really only applies if you believe in the great sky daddy.
Setanta wrote:No Miss Eppie, it wasn't you, and i rather doubt that you'd produce anything so clueless . . .
Thank you Setanta. Much appreciated. Just wanted to make sure...
Re: About Playing God
Wolf_ODonnell wrote:I've been wondering about the "act of playing God". Obviously, you can really screw things up if you try to play God, so it's a good idea not to do it. However, Valis by Phillip K. Dick, I came across a Bible quote that really perplexed me.
Quote:How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.
1 John 3:1-2.
Is this advocating that we will be like gods when he appears to us? How can we have no other gods before us, if we are to become gods ourselves?
If you read this in context, it is talking about not sinning. The world is spoken of as 'not knowing', that is not having intimacy and fellowship with Christ and similarly it is said that the world will reject Christians in the same way. Why? Because of their desire to live Christlike.
The world cuddles up to Christians that agree with them and tells them how wonderful and open minded they are. But if a Christian actually stands apart from the downhill flow of the world, then the same rejection and derision that greeted Christ is theirs as well.
It has nothing to do with Christians 'becoming gods.' That is a serious misreading of the meaning. There is, and always will be only One God.
Ah, but RL, even in context, it may still be taken to mean that we will become Gods. After all, does God sin?
If you do not sin, that doesn't mean you are a god.
God's angels do not sin, but they are not gods.
Re: About Playing God
Wolf_ODonnell wrote:I've been wondering about the "act of playing God". Obviously, you can really screw things up if you try to play God, so it's a good idea not to do it. However, Valis by Phillip K. Dick, I came across a Bible quote that really perplexed me.
Quote:How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.
1 John 3:1-2.
Is this advocating that we will be like gods when he appears to us? How can we have no other gods before us, if we are to become gods ourselves?
That quote is perplexing.
Especially "The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him."
Sounds like another way of hammering down the point of Original Sin and how imperfect we are all supposed to believe we are. Y'know, greasin' us up for accepting the need for a Savior.
That's my take.
Stumble It!
Tweet This
Bookmark on Delicious
Share on Facebook
Share on MySpace