i am sure many of you have heard of the theological paradox question about the rock, and i am also sure that many of you have stumbled in replying this question to nonchristians.
"can God make a rock so big that he cannot lift?"
most people would say, "this question is a paradox, therefore you cannot answer this question!". i would say NO. in examining questions as such, the rule of critical thinking is that you have to delve into the core of the problem. we know that we can easily replace the term "rock" into something such as "cake", and "lift" would then become "eat".
"can God make a cake so big that he cannot eat?" or you could say
"can God make a chair so strong that he cannot break?"
the premise of the question then can be easily seen as.. "can God create something physical that constrains him?" now the answer to that question is simple.. and the answer is YES! in fact, God did that twice! the first time was in the beginning of creation, when He created man. in creation of man, He also gave them something called "free will", where man are allowed to make their own decision. this means that God cannot alter their decisions in any way. God's will can still be done in this way, but it would not be as he wished, since suffering will come upon his children, meaning that God was constrained in what he wanted!
the second time that he made this "rock" was when he sent his only son Jesus Christ into the earth as a human. very simply, Jesus, who being in very nature God, came down as a human. he was then immediately constrained in the limits of time and space, not to mention ability. therefore, Jesus, who is God, was constrained in time, space, ability, and all sorts of God knows what, making this the second "rock". the most interesting thing is that this second "rock" was created to fix the first "rock"! hahaha.. oh God.
so if anyone ever asks you that question.. you can tell them about these two rocks. and since God has already made something that has constrained Himself, twice, then what will stop Him from making another? just because He hasn't made it, doesn't mean He can't. with that said.. this leads me to my main topic,
the simplicity of leadership. do you believe that? i believe that God made every single one of us leaders. one of the most precious gifts of all humankind is a little thing called free will. with it, we can choose to defy the most high God's commands, or we can obey Him. the options are endless. many of us do not see the vastness of this free will, because we often enclose ourselves in a bubble or a box, whichever shape fits your liking. our options become limited, only what we see in front of us. many tend to end up seeing only themselves and their own life, and what they can do with their own life. only if you get out of this box can you see how much more you can actually do. in addition, putting God in a box is a big mistake as well. God's power is endless, and you can do all things through Him, if He empowers you.
when i was searching for an opportunity to serve at SCBC during this work term, i had the opportunity to meet with my friend Chico. we talked for a bit, and suddenly my eyes were opened as to what i could do as a christian in my church. the youth ministry was currently quite lacking, due to the resignation of our previous youth Pastor Ted, and as well due to the lack of youth "leaders" in the church. we always hear the deacons and pastors say "these youth are the future of the church!" i'd say "NO!" we ARE the leaders! throughout high school, we've gone through so many events, and learned so many things from others. it's time that we take what we've learned and put it to use. being in university, we all have tasted a bit of independence. i say that we should also be independent in serving, and take some initiative. there are unlimited options that you can take. once you expand your horizons, you begin to see what needs are actually around in the church, and in its people. cater to them. as christians, we are designed to love, and there are so many at church that need the loving so much.
so you ask what you can do to serve? there are plenty of opportunities! who around you hasn't been to church lately? who around you doesn't have a fellowship, or a spiritual group of people to confide in? and who around you seem to be under the weather, struggling with something in their life? go be a christian, and reach out to them, embrace them back into the family of Christ.
my goodness all that writing was intense.. i better be hearing from some PEOPLE now.
7 comments:
Can God create a rock so big he cannot lift.
Ask what is the purpose of this question. What does the answer to this tell us about God? That He is not omnipotent? There is an underlying understanding that God is omnipotent, even in the question itself, so there is no rationalization nor meaning to the question and what should be an answer.
Consider also: God's giving of free will to men - does that mean a loss of omnipotence as well? Seeing as how God does not infringe upon our rights. I disagree on the technical point that you made of God - "He also gave them something called "free will", where man are allowed to make their own decision. this means that God cannot alter their decisions in any way". God helps shape our decision by speaking to us in the various ways and by placing opportunities or closing doors. He could also outright change our minds, but does not do so out of respect for us in the way He made us to begin with. God chose in the beginning to give us free will, so whatever "restrictions" this subsequently imposes does not mean God ever lacked omnipotence nor omniscience.
If I locked myself in a room with no key and way out, does that mean that I didn't have the power to stop myself from being trapped? I CHOSE to do it in the first place.
i don't agree with u. omnipotence is something that i don't think we understand. as omnipotent as omnipotence is, i think that there is still limitations of some sort. otherwise, the rock statement cannot be answered. i also do not see why the question itself says that he is omnipotent.
about free will.. if u look at engineering design. u can say "must not exceed $7500, must not be dangerous" blah blah blah.. even though u have the capability of doing that, u still can't do it, as it is a constraint. same thing here. same point as above.. if omnipotence was absolute omnipotence, then paradoxical statements like the ones above cannot be answered. even if he doesn't do it out of respect, it is still a constraint to him, just like how the above were constraints.
We say God is omnipotent. Can God create a rock so big that He cannot lift?
If no. Do we say God is not omnipotent?
If yes. Do we say GOd is not omnipotent?
"We say God is omnipotent" is the implicit basis-assumption of the question.
Given that He is omnipotent...
OK so He is omnipotent. There is therefore no logic in discerning whatever logic there may or may not be in the question.
also worded this way:
"If God is omnipotent, can He ..."
if at any point in reasoning it comes to seem that God is not omnipotent, then the question does not even apply. It cannot be evaluated.
i do not think something as complex as omnipotence can be easily explained by a logic as simple as "given the assumption that God is omnipotent, can He..."
i think this question does help us understand God's omnipotence. currently, i don't understand it.
Alright, I'll post my argument.
What I propose is that, existing in conjunction with God's omnipotence is His inability to make a mistake. Only stupid and weak beings make a mistake. God clearly does not fall in those categories. Also, he cannot do things that do not make sense. As such, he cannot make a round square, he cannot do evil, he cannot make good evil, etc.
Thus, I propose that God cannot make a rock so big that he cannot lift, since that would contradict his omnipotent nature. As it violates the rules of logic, thus it cannot occur.
I would also use this reasoning to reject your argument that God can create somethign that physically constrains him. Let me address your two scenarios.
For the first, I agree with the other guy, God chose to give man free will. There is nothing stopping him from ever stepping in and making us do whatever he want. It is not that God cannot alter man's will, it is because he loves us that he gives us the choice to make our own decisions. This is by no means a constraint, it is a choice, just as I choose not to punch every person I see in the face. (I love punching analogy).
Your second scenario is the one where Jesus Christ was constrained by human constraints, that is, space and time. I also will argue that this is not valid, as he was not only human, but fully human and fully God at the same time. There are cases where he clearly knows what will happen in the future, such as the betrayal by Judas. That argues against the time limitation. As for the space limitation, I shall reference certain times where crowds wished to stone Jesus, yet he walked away as no one could throw a stone.
Also, for your later on argument, you state that there is a limitation on God's omnipotence? That's a contradiction in itself, a characteristic of being all-powerful, that is limited? That defeats the meaning of the word omnipotence. God is omnipotent, He is all powerful, He can do whatever he want. The only thing he can't do, is be imperfect, ie make a mistake.
So yeah, in general I agree with the other guy. He makes sense, I like him =P
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