For the love of God

For The Love Of God

Let us take a scenario involving parent and child. The child is an only child, he never had older siblings to learn from or be mentored by. His father loves him, but at the same time, he wants his son to be disciplined and faithful to him. He loves his son very much, and when the Child reaches an age of manhood, the Father buys him an extravagant mansion across the street from his own home. The father constantly warned his son against doing drugs. Well one day, his son gets caught up with the wrong crowd and he does drugs. We have two scenarios:

Scenario A

The Father becomes enraged and tells his son that he is taking his mansion away, but as added punishment, he will take his car keys from him, and also, he will forbid his sons children and their children and their children to drive as punishment for the taking of drugs. He says to him, you've corrupted your body with drugs (a new drug in this case that stays in your system forever, in a manner such as that of Marijuana which stays in the system for 30 days after its consumption.) and the corruption will pass on to your children, so they deserve to also be punished. The children never took the drug, yet they are to be punished for it, as are their children, and their children's children.

Scenario B

The Father becomes enraged that his son took the drug, and he also takes the mansion away. The son, realizing his mistake, asks his father to forgive him. His father, loving his son as he does, forgives him, and offers him guidance, but he tells him, "I spoiled you with the mansion, which you were not ready for, and which you never really earned anyway, so you can't have that. I won't give it to your descendants either, at least not until they prove themselves and earn it, then they too can stay in the mansion. If they decide that I don't deserve the respect, even though I will care for them and you and provide you with all your needs, then they will live out in the streets in misery. I am not going to care for those that take me for granted after everything I've done for them. Those that deny me don't deserve my mercy and charity."

Which scenario sounds more fair and loving?

Qur'an 7:19. "O Adam! dwell thou and thy wife in the Garden, and enjoy (its good things) as ye wish: but approach not this tree, or ye run into harm and transgression." 20. Then began Satan to whisper suggestions to them, bringing openly before their minds all their shame that was hidden from them (before): he said: "Your Lord only forbade you this tree, lest ye should become angels or such beings as live for ever." 21. And he swore to them both, that he was their sincere adviser. 22. So by deceit he brought about their fall: when they tasted of the tree, their shame became manifest to them, and they began to sew together the leaves of the garden over their bodies. And their Lord called unto them: "Did I not forbid you that tree, and tell you that Satan was an avowed enemy unto you?" 23. They said: "Our Lord! We have wronged our own souls: If thou forgive us not and bestow not upon us Thy Mercy, we shall certainly be lost." 24. ((Allah)) said: "Get ye down. With enmity between yourselves. On earth will be your dwelling-place and your means of livelihood,- for a time."

Qur'an 20:121 In the result, they both ate of the tree, and so their nakedness appeared to them: they began to sew together, for their covering, leaves from the Garden: thus did Adam disobey his Lord, and allow himself to be seduced. 122. But his Lord chose him (for His Grace): He turned to him, and gave him Guidance.

Qur'an 2:37"Then Adam received some wordsª from his Lord and He accepted his repentance: He is the Ever Relenting, the Most Merciful.

ª: Words teaching Adam how to repent, see Qur'an 7:23

O son of Adam, so long as you call upon Me and ask of Me, I shall forgive you for what you have done, and I shall not mind. O son of Adam, were your sins to reach the clouds of the sky and were you then to ask forgiveness of Me, I would forgive you. O son of Adam, were you to come to Me with sins nearly as great as the earth and were you then to face Me, ascribing no partner to Me, I would bring you forgiveness nearly as great at it.

Hadith - Qudsi 34

A loving parent always forgives their child, they understand that everyone makes mistakes. They guide their children to help them become better and more disciplined. If the child continues to misbehave and cause mischief, then the parent may try punishments, and if that doesn't work, then the child could very likely end up jailed. That would be of no blame of the parents if they constantly guided them. The child must take the responsibility for his actions and refusal to adhere to his parents.

Christians assert that the God of the Bible is loving, and this is mostly based around one verse, John 3:16

"‘For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life."

Well, in Islam, God loves the world too. In fact, he so loves the world that he never blamed them for a sin they never committed anyway. Christians will argue, "He didn't blame us, it's just that Adam's sin was so great, that he needed a perfect sacrifice to wash away the sins." Well, here is a problem: This concept limits God. God has the ability to do anything he pleases with no prerequisites. God is not limited. This is why Jews and Muslims believe that true sincere repentance is all that is necessary to have sins forgiven. There are even more difficulties with this concept. If Jesus (pbuh) purpose was to be the sacrificial lamb, why did he pray to his Father and ask him to "remove this cup from me"? (Mark 14:36) If he is indeed one with the father (John 10:30) then he should have known all long that he was sent for that purpose. Also, if he was indeed one with the Father, then why did he cry out, "‘Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?’ that is, ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’" (Matt 27:46).

The doctrine of original sin never existed before Paul. The Old Testament most definitely does not teach it, and Jesus (pbuh) never taught it. The verses that support this concept can only be found in the epistles of Paul:

Rom. 5:12 "Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:"

Rom. 5:19 "¹⁹For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous. "

1Cor. 15:22 "²²For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. "

Many Christians tell the story of Paul of Tarsus as an inspiring one. There are some, Christians and non-Christians alike, that find troubles with Paul. If one were to face the facts, Paul is only accepted because his epistles are in the Bible. Why did Jesus (pbuh) never tell of him? Why was he never prophesied? He is a major part of Christianity to the extent that many give him credit of being its true founder. Jesus (pbuh) teachings were consistent with those of the Jews. Paul contradicted Jesus (pbuh) and Old Testament laws many times. He uttered things that could have been viewed as blasphemy, he had bad blood with the disciples. He ended a covenant between God and Abraham (pbuh) that was supposed to be everlasting. And here, again, we have another contradiction created through Paul's teachings. Consider the following Old Testament verses:

Deut 24:¹⁶The fathers shall not be put to death for the children, neither shall the children be put to death for the fathers: every man shall be put to death for his own sin.

2Chron 25: ⁴But he slew not their children, but did as it is written in the law in the book of Moses, where the LORD commanded, saying, The fathers shall not die for the children, neither shall the children die for the fathers, but every man shall die for his own sin.

2Kings 14:⁶But the children of the murderers he slew not: according unto that which is written in the book of the law of Moses, wherein the LORD commanded, saying, The fathers shall not be put to death for the children, nor the children be put to death for the fathers; but every man shall be put to death for his own sin.

Ezek. 18:20 "The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bearthe iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him."

Ezek.33:²⁰Yet ye say, The way of the Lord is not equal. O ye house of Israel, I will judge you every one after his ways.

Ezek. 18:⁴Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die.

Jer. 31:29-30 "In those days they shall say no more, The fathers have eaten a sour grape, and the children's teeth are set on edge. But every one shall die for his own iniquity: every man that eateth the sour grape, his teeth shall be set on edge."

So, as can be seen by the last series of verses, Gods prophets always taught that man is only responsible for their own sins. Paul, who was not a prophet of God, but a supposed disciple of Jesus (pbuh) even though he never met Jesus (pbuh), knew very little about him as can be noticed in his letters, and persecuted the followers of Jesus (pbuh) is the one responsible for such a doctrine.

The doctrine is illogical and unjust. It would be like a person being sentenced to Prison for a murder his father committed. He can argue that he's innocent, that he never even knew the woman, but the Judge replies, you're still your fathers son. We didn't know Adam, Eve, or even what the fruit they ate was (no, the Bible never says it was an apple!). Why should we pay for their mistake? This is a belief exclusive to Christianity based solely on Paul's teachings.

Here is the definition of sin according to dictionary.com:

sin¹

A transgression of a religious or moral law, especially when deliberate.
Theology.
1. Deliberate disobedience to the known will of God.
2. A condition of estrangement from God resulting from such disobedience.
Something regarded as being shameful, deplorable, or utterly wrong.

intr.v. sinned, sin·ning, sins

To violate a religious or moral law.
To commit an offense or violation.

So how do you inherit something that is not tangible? Does it make sense to inherit someone else's disobedience to God? How can a just God punish people for something they can't control? Something that happened thousands of years before they were even born.

Other verses to consider:

Micah 7:¹⁸Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in mercy.

Psalms 78:³⁸But he, being full of compassion, forgave their iniquity, and destroyed them not: yea, many a time turned he his anger away, and did not stir up all his wrath. ³⁹For he remembered that they were but flesh; a wind that passeth away, and cometh not again.

Isaiah 43: ²⁵I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins.

Jeremiah 36: ³It may be that the house of Judah will hear all the evil which I purpose to do unto them; that they may return every man from his evil way; that I may forgive their iniquity and their sin.

Isaiah 55: ⁷Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

Psalm 32:⁵I acknowledge my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the LORD; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. Selah.

2 Chronicles 7:¹⁴If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

Ezekiel 18: ²¹But if the wicked will turn from all his sins that he hath committed, and keep all my statutes, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall not die. ²²All his transgressions that he hath committed, they shall not be mentioned unto him: in his righteousness that he hath done he shall live. ²³Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die? saith the Lord GOD: and not that he should return from his ways, and live? ²⁴But when the righteous turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, and doeth according to all the abominations that the wicked man doeth, shall he live? All his righteousness that he hath done shall not be mentioned: in his trespass that he hath trespassed, and in his sin that he hath sinned, in them shall he die. ²⁵Yet ye say, The way of the LORD is not equal. Hear now, O house of Israel; Is not my way equal? are not your ways unequal? ²⁶When a righteous man turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, and dieth in them; for his iniquity that he hath done shall he die. ²⁷Again, when the wicked man turneth away from his wickedness that he hath committed, and doeth that which is lawful and right, he shall save his soul alive. ²⁸Because he considereth, and turneth away from all his transgressions that he hath committed, he shall surely live, he shall not die. ²⁹Yet saith the house of Israel, The way of the LORD is not equal. O house of Israel, are not my ways equal? are not your ways unequal? ³⁰Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, saith the Lord GOD. Repent, and turn yourselves from all your transgressions; so iniquity shall not be your ruin.

Proverbs 21:³To do justice and judgment is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice.

Hosea 6: ⁶For I desired mercy, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.

Micah 6: ⁶Wherewith shall I come before the LORD, and bow myself before the high God? shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves of a year old? ⁷Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, or with ten thousands of rivers of oil? shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? ⁸He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?

Isaiah 1:¹¹To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto me? saith the LORD: I am full of the burnt offerings of rams, and the fat of fed beasts; and I delight not in the blood of bullocks, or of lambs, or of he goats. ¹²When ye come to appear before me, who hath required this at your hand, to tread my courts? ¹³Bring no more vain oblations; incense is an abomination unto me; the new moons and sabbaths, the calling of assemblies, I cannot away with; it is iniquity, even the solemn meeting. ¹⁴Your new moons and your appointed feasts my soul hateth: they are a trouble unto me; I am weary to bear them. ¹⁵And when ye spread forth your hands, I will hide mine eyes from you: yea, when ye make many prayers, I will not hear: your hands are full of blood. ¹⁶Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil; ¹⁷Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow. ¹⁸Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.