09-04-2004, 03:05 AM
Excellent question, Muslimah.
Sorry I've taken ages to reply to this forum, I've just been too busy.
Let me clarify: I do not mean that while Jesus was on earth, no-one was running the universe. Certainly God must keep every aspect of creation functioning in perfect order, or the universe would fall over.
This is my thinking: if God is all-powerful, then surely he is not constrained by time.
Let me ask you this: how can God listen to the prayers of thousands of people in different places in the world, all at the same time? How can God sustain our vast universe at the same time? How is it that God can tell the future to prophets in who are the present?
God can enter into our frame of time whenever He wants to, and He can be in different places at the same time. Isn't it possible, therefore, that God could both appear in human form as Jesus, at the *same* time as upholding the universe?
And the other question: why would God, even if He could do such a thing, actually choose to do sacrifice Jesus? Is there no easier way? Well think for a moment what it would mean for God to simply forgive everyone.... He would have to forgive some very evil people, like Hitler... people who were cruel and inhumane, and obviously deserve to be punished. If God forgave people like that, then what would that say about His sense of justice? So you say, ok, not the really bad people like Hitler, but how about God forgives everyone else? Well is there *anyone* on earth who was perfect - without sin? If there were, then God could forgive such people, without being unjust. But if God forgives people who *have* sinned (such as me), then is he not being unjust?
So really it comes down to God's justice... he had to find a way to be perfectly just, while at the same time forgiving sinful humans. It is my belief that through Jesus, God was able to do this... to forgive everyone who believes in Jesus, yet retain his complete justice. It is a complicated topic, so just ask if you want me to clarify it.
Blessings
Adrian