Your "God" Does Not Love You

[StuartJ]

Much is made of the biblical Yahweh being the "God of Love".

Much is made of the love of Yahweh's virgin-born son Jesus.

In the Jesus propaganda, two Gospels don't mention Jesus loving ANYONE, and in another, he loves only one man, and in another, he loves only his cadre.

To make matters worse, NOWHERE in the first four biblical books do the writers bother to mention that Yahweh (or the Elohim) loves anyone.

Lots of genocidal flooding and fire and brimstone and plagues and slaughtering of the firstborn and other deliciously misanthropic wrathfulness ...

... but not a single use of the word "love".

So, where has all the love gone ...?

(Be careful which version of your the Bible you check. I'm not the first to recognise the lack of love, and the word "mercy" somehow now means "love" to some in the faith community.)

[Jagella]

... but not a single use of the word "love".

So, where has all the love gone ...?

The Bible god is much like an angry and spoiled child who breaks his toys and trashes his dolls when they displease him. He might be able to love on occasion, but what really drives him is his hyper-inflated ego as he demands love and worship. If he gets no love and worship, then he become furious and lashes out at those he sees as rejecting him.

Logically, no all-wise and all-loving and all-powerful being would act like such an insecure, cruel and petty tyrant--but people sure do! So as we examine the Bible god fairly and honestly, we can clearly see the indelible stamp of the mentality of those people who created him. They wanted a god who would mete out heavy punishment to those they hated. The result was the Bible god!

[kcplusdc@yahoo.com]

So, if your op is requiring the word love to appear in the text to indicate Jesus loved, that seems like a rather narrow focus to me. Saying I love you in my opinion doesn't prove that someone loves me. Basically its lip service.
Acts of love like counseling, healing and caring for the sick, seem more concrete acts than I love you.
Additionally, it is my understanding that there are different types of love mentioned in the bible
In the original language. Agape being one that I can remember. Not sure how translations deal with that.
Personally I think of the bible as a attempt at writing down the spiritual experience of the people it reflects. I would argue that it does contain truth but is not factual in all its narrative.
Even so I think Jesus displayed love in many ways as a work of fiction.

[StuartJ]

[Replying to post 3 by kcplusdcyahoo.com]

If Yahweh was inspiring his prophets to write about him as a god of love ...

If Jesus was inspiring his faithful to write about him as a son of god of love ...

You would think they would have inspired them to actually mention it as "scripture".

Then the faithful wouldn't have to read it in because they WANT it to be there.

Then atheists wouldn't see the genocidal violence, misanthropy and wrath as the primary message of the writers ....

And don't forget that the genocidal Jesus meek and mild is due to burst through the clouds at any moment with armies of angels to exterminate non-Christians ...

And Christians who have been paying into the wrong collection plates.

[StuartJ]

[Replying to post 2 by Jagella]

Interesting to note that the image of Yahweh you posted looks suspiciously like a flatteringly muscular image of the pope who commissioned its painting ....

[ttruscott]

Much is made of the biblical Yahweh being the "God of Love".

Much is made of the love of Yahweh's virgin-born son Jesus.

Jesus was the Captain of YHWH's army! He, as one of the Trinity, is no slouch at the expression of GOD's wrath in the judgement of HIS enemies.

That He chose to show the softer side of GOD does not mitigate against His harder side.

[Jagella]

Acts of love like counseling, healing and caring for the sick, seem more concrete acts than I love you.

Jesus said that his miracles were not to show love to people but to show off the power of his Father in the sky. He says in John 9:1-3:

As he walked along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind? Jesus answered, Neither this man nor his parents sinned; he was born blind so that Gods works might be revealed in him.

So this miracle has nothing to do with love. His cruel Father in the sky forced this poor man to live blind since his birth! The blind man was only shown mercy to demonstrate how big and powerful the Bible god is.

[Jagella]

[Replying to post 2 by Jagella]

Interesting to note that the image of Yahweh you posted looks suspiciously like a flatteringly muscular image of the pope who commissioned its painting ....

That pope would be Julius II.

[StuartJ]

[Replying to post 8 by Jagella]

The very image of "God" ...!

[tam]

Peace to you,

Mercy is from love (mercy is one of the things that love shows), so if you read about mercy, then you are reading also about love.


That being said, love (from Christ and from God) is of course written about:

There is the account of the rich young man at Mark 10 (I am not sure if that is what you were referring to by the 'one man' or not, but this man could not be called part of His 'cadre' since the young man did not accept the invitation to follow Christ):

As [Jesus] started on His way, a man ran up and knelt before Him.

Good Teacher, he asked, what must I do to inherit eternal life?

Why do you call Me good?" [Jesus] replied, No one is good except God alone. You know the commandments: Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not bear false witness, do not defraud, and honor your father and mother.

Teacher, he replied, I have kept all these from my youth.

[Jesus] looked at him, loved him, and said to him, There is one thing you lack: Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow Me.


And there are these:

Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them." John 14:21

"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. John 13:34



Now [Jesus] loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus. John 11:5


Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one's life for one's friends. John 15:13


"I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep." John 10:11



As has been mentioned, love is shown in what one DOES. Christ SHOWED His love. He did even more lay down His life as well: healing, teaching, feeding, forgiving, etc.



As for God loving us, Christ spoke of His Father's love on numerous occasions; some shown in the verses above, also in one of the most popular verses,

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son..."

I in them and you in me--so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. John 17:23

For the Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me and have believed that I came from God. John 16:27




Of course the prophets also speak numerously of the love of God for His people.



Peace again to you,
your servant and a slave of Christ,
tammy