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Originally Posted by SpeakersCorner
Igzy,
I agree with everything in your post except the part quoted above. I'm not sure that suffering is "evil." It is, as you said, a product of something else like a symptom is of a disease. The disease I'll accept as evil but the sympton ... isn't it actually sometimes a good thing? Pain, for instance, signals we need to take care of something.
Tony Dungee, Indy Colts coach (until recently), has a son who doesn't sense pain like the rest of us. He has said that because of his experience with his son he now realizes the necessity of pain.
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SC & Igzy,
Your points are well taken. SC, I think Igzy summed up whatyou just wrote in his closing statement:
All the Lord's servants are called to suffer. But suffering should be in the line of service, not the service itself
There are 2 types of Christians..religious and spiritual/spirit filled.
People who think that by 'suffering' they are doing the Lord's work, are sadly mistaken. I occassionally hear about religious people walking in certain cities during the Lenten season carrying a wooden cross. Wow...how pious huh?
I wonder how many of those people end up at bars after witnessing such pious and religious parades.
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One of my lurking concerns is how eternity is going to be very enjoyable if all suffering is taken away. What provides the contrast? It is truly a conundrum as far as I'm concerned. I never get all misty-eyed when people start waxing rapturously about "heaven" and how it will be so perfect and joyful with no sorrow or pain. Something about that tale doesn't ring true with me.
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SC !!! There is NOT going to be any suffering in eternity. Suffering will end at the end of the 1000 yr milleniel kingdom when Satan & the nations he brought down during the 1000 yrs will be cast into the lake of fire. At that point, the curtain will be drawn & we will not see the tormented souls who refused God. We often think God is sending people to the lake of fire if they don't get saved..but in truth, they are sending themselves there because they are refusing the love of God. We read in the last chapters of Revelation, during the 2nd half of the Great Trib, people crying out to the rocks to fall on them. They'd rather have ROCKS fall on them than to repent for not receiving the Love of God. The bible says they'll be there for eternity after they go before the Great White Throne at the end of the 1000 yr reign.
I do believe there are going to be tears in heaven but for how long, I don't know. Again we read in Revelation that God WIPES AWAY ALL TEARS. Those tears He is wiping away are not the tears we are experiencing here on earth because In
Revelation 7:9,
a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, are standing
before the Throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands;
This great multitude are the people who came out of the Great trib for
vs 14 tells us
..
These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Further down in
vss 16 & 17 we find the Lamb in the midst of the Throne feeding them and leading them to the fountain of living waters with God wiping away all tears from their eyes.
Revelation 7:16-
They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat.
vs 17--
For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.
And we are all going to live Happily EVER AFTER ! How 'bout that!
(Sorry
OBW...Just this one time I HAD to jump & clap. Couldn't resist..can't contain myself! )