Our image of God

talib-al-kalim

talib-al-kalim

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All of us have an idea of God. Even a convinced atheist has an idea of what he or she is denying to exist.
I think everyone shares the idea that God exceeds our imagination. But still, we have our thoughts and imagination; be it philosophical, emotional, in prayer.

Who would like to share?
 
I call myself an agnostic. What this means is that often I feel that there is something else, something there. Just as often I feel that there is nothing. I must stress that I feel, there is no intellectualizing involved.

Sometimes the feeling is stronger, god seems more like an event than a being or rather an eternal line of events. My god is never anthropomorphic. On one occasion I managed to dwell in the feeling for a while. It was very pleasant and left me content. I tried to recapture the moment and the phrase going home came into my mind, it was quite powerful. It felt like a powerful memory that I could not quite capture.

That was some years ago and has never happened since but recalling it still leaves me feeling rather strange yet comforted.

Probably this all seems very odd but I really cannot describe it any better.
 
talib-al-kalim said:
All of us have an idea of God. Even a convinced atheist has an idea of what he or she is denying to exist.
I think everyone shares the idea that God exceeds our imagination. But still, we have our thoughts and imagination; be it philosophical, emotional, in prayer.

Who would like to share?
Click to expand...
As all that we know of God is told to us and demonstrates by the Messengers, our ideas of God are but a reflection of them.

Even the Messengers do not know the Essence of God.

So personally I pray through the Messengers, as they are One and All, the focal point for access to all that is of God. I see that gives prayer meaning, as to know sacrifice, is to know the Messengers, to know Love, is to know the Messengers.

Regards Tony
 
To me God is too big for words. The Holy Spirit is my companion and my helper. He speaks to me in my gut and reveals truth and conviction. He tells me when I need to be about my Father's business and guides me to people and situations. He speaks to me using scripture and I have felt His absence and it's very painful and lonely. It is so very true to not grieve Him because He will absent Himself and it's a horrible feeling. I try very hard for this to not happen.

Jesus my Savior is my best friend.. He is my brother my king and my God. He understands me and He advocates for me. He walks with me and talks to me and I yearn for Him like a bride yearning for her husband. I'm very much in love with Him and just the knowledge of being face to face with Him is almost unbearable to anticipate. I know He has experienced everything I have and more so He knows me inside and out and He gives me strength.

The Father used to be so untouchable and seemed so far away to understand. As I grow older and Ive spiritually matured Ive become almost child like in my devotion to Him. I am very much a daddy's girl and I seek Him out just to spiritually crawl in His lap for attention. To understand what a Dad's role is in the flesh cannot even compare to His role as my Abba Father. He chastises and I weep in despair that I have had to cause Him to do it. He loves me so much and in my prayers to Him I am reverent and seek His favor. The bible says He keeps my tears in a bottle. Imagine that . How can one even remain sad knowing your tears are that precious to Him. He who dwells in the secret place of the The Most High shall abide in the shadow of the Almighty. Ahh to meditate on that. When I pray I'm dwelling in that secret place I'm abiding in His presence.. that to me is like a newborn infant being cradled in their father's arms safe and secure and truly loved.He sends His Angels to watch out for me to guard me and minister to me. He answers my prayers so quickly sometimes. I know now that in drawing close to Him He draws that much closer to me.

This is my relationship with all three persons of my God. Woefully inadequate. I could wish that everyone could experience what I have experienced to understand.
 
You asked us non believers a two fold question....what is our image of G!d and what .is it we don't believe...

I don't believe in a "He", an old bearded white man in the sky that convinced Jews and Christians to build temples and steeples to act as lightning rods, rising to the sky to be closer to the heavens.

I do believe in some sort of TOE, theory of everything, some all encompassing principle which ties our physics and brain science....discovering we are all connected, all life, all matter, all thought. I believe scientists and theologians are searching for the same thing and may even find it from their differing paths...that all have part of the puzzle defining the elephant in the room. And that all of us are both right and wrong, that all of us have some truths, and some error in our beliefs which are holding us from discovery.
 
wil said:
You asked us non believers a two fold question....what is our image of G!d and what .is it we don't believe...

I don't believe in a "He", an old bearded white man in the sky that convinced Jews and Christians to build temples and steeples to act as lightning rods, rising to the sky to be closer to the heavens.

I do believe in some sort of TOE, theory of everything, some all encompassing principle which ties our physics and brain science....discovering we are all connected, all life, all matter, all thought. I believe scientists and theologians are searching for the same thing and may even find it from their differing paths...that all have part of the puzzle defining the elephant in the room. And that all of us are both right and wrong, that all of us have some truths, and some error in our beliefs which are holding us from discovery.
Click to expand...
That movie Powder did you ever see it? I kind of think like that.. where we are all energy and energy doesn't die. I think of souls like that.. souls don't die. Look at photosynthesis or how life comes from death.. the leaves fall and creates nutrient rich soil that brings life.
 
I have found that of all religions, which includes Churchianity, Jehovah to be the one true God, and only the Bible from Him.
 
@talib-al-kalim

I grew up in Judaism, had a Jewish education but was only religious for a short periods of time.
I was taught that God is unknowable, beyond everything, so I never really formed an image.

At the age of 26(1974) I heard the claim of someone that they had 'Knowledge of God' and could show it to anyone. No cost and no beliefs necessary. (I had just come out of a war and this was ideal).

To cut a long story short, I took up the claim and received said knowledge.
I was shown how to meditate and immediately began to have strong experiences and experienced love like I have never before. (Agape?).
I believed these experiences were God and along with many others deified the teacher.
I believed him to be the incarnation of God(for this time) and actually believed that the whole world know 'Him' by 1980.
So I stayed with this belief for 23 years until I could clearly see that this person was a sham.

I came onto the internet in 1995 when I was going tell the whole world the Truth. (Hmm sounds familiar :>))

I began to see that my experience was not unique and could relate to people who had also found 'The Lord'...in fact there were many with such certitude(although different Lords :>)).

I also met meditators who had the same experiences who were secular/atheist and I realised that what I experienced within was what I experienced within.
Just some ancient meditation techniques that had been hijacked to appear as a religion.

So with the loss of 'God in a bod' meant no God. I had no other concepts of God.

I still feel a deep love for all existence and love meditation.
 
theMadJW said:
And Jesus, the firstborn son, whom Jehovah created all things!
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My view of that is you are correct, but who was Jesus and Peter answered that question that Jesus was 'Christ'. Christ means Jesus was an 'Annointed One' the Messiah.

Meaning Jesus was Born of the Holy Spirit, given of our One God.

Thus it is the Holy Spirit that is the first and last. This knowledge allows us to consider that the One God may have given that station of Christ to other prophets, with different Names, they too being 'Annointed Ones'.

I have had these conversations with a good JW friend, we still agree to disagree. 😃👌

Regards Tony
 
You know what holy spirit means then, don't you?
Set aside + Breath (Power)

2019FBte-small.jpg
 
theMadJW said:
You know what holy spirit means then, don't you?
Set aside + Breath (Power)

View attachment 3461
Click to expand...
Yes indeed. G_d does as God so chooses.

We have no recourse but to submit. Rejection is our own destruction.

(Edit I will offer that Comforter is Baha'u'llah)

That will show my relationship with the Holy Spirit is with the 'Glory of God', which is the Glory of all the Messengers, which is inclusive of Jesus, but not exclusive of all the other of God's Messengers.

Regards Tony
 
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