How can God relate to us if He cannot know what it is like to sin?

[Bex4Jesus]

I keep saying that I relate better to Jesus than God because Jesus was an actual person who walked around on Earth. It just makes him more relatable to me.

Anyways, if God does not sin, that would mean God has never had a sinful thought, like lust or envy or greed. So if God has never experienced these thoughts, how can God judge us for having them? How would he determine whether it is sin without knowing what the thoughts are actually like?

Bex

[Indueseason]

God can judge these things because He knows how sin and temptation work. He knows that sin is disobedience, chosing to follow our own desires instead of His. How would God being less Holy and Righteous make Him more able to judge?

James 1;

13When tempted, no one should say, "God is tempting me." For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; 14but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. 15Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.

He has explained what temptation and sin is, how it works and shown us a way to escape.

1Cor 10:

13No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.

blessings

[Bex4Jesus]

God "knowing how sin and temptation" work sounds like an academic, intellectual type of knowledge. Its knowing 'of' something without really knowing 'what' it is because you have never experienced it. That's what I am talking about.

If God has never had a bad thought, how can he truly understand what a bad thought is, past an intellectual understanding of it?

Bex

God can judge these things because He knows how sin and temptation work. He knows that sin is disobedience, chosing to follow our own desires instead of His. How would God being less Holy and Righteous make Him more able to judge?

James 1;

13When tempted, no one should say, "God is tempting me." For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; 14but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. 15Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.

He has explained what temptation and sin is, how it works and shown us a way to escape.

1Cor 10:

13No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.

blessings

[Indueseason]

God "knowing how sin and temptation" work sounds like an academic, intellectual type of knowledge. Its knowing 'of' something without really knowing 'what' it is because you have never experienced it. That's what I am talking about.

If God has never had a bad thought, how can he truly understand what a bad thought is, past an intellectual understanding of it?

Bex

He knows what is good and what is bad way better than we do. He created the rules lol. How can the creator of all, not understand something? He does not need to go through the same trial and error process we do to learn something. I guess He just compares it to Himself. God is good, everything else is bad lol, praise God for Jesus!!

blessings

[JesusReignsForever]

He knows thru our sweet Jesus...remeber Jesus was God manifested in the flesh! So he most certainly can relate.

John 1 various verses

1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

14And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

John 10:30
I and my Father are one.

[HisLeast]

God "knowing how sin and temptation" work sounds like an academic, intellectual type of knowledge. Its knowing 'of' something without really knowing 'what' it is because you have never experienced it. That's what I am talking about.

If God has never had a bad thought, how can he truly understand what a bad thought is, past an intellectual understanding of it?

Possibly because God is the awesome, fearsome and all powerful creator of creation. The same intellect that crafted the universe, and everything in it also took painstaking care and consideration to our design. If He therefore rightly declares "the following are not conducive to my design and are therefore sin" who am I to say "you don't know me!"

It would be as if my meager Javascript declared to me "you've never been an integer, how then do you expect me to add an integer value to a previous integer value at the conclusion of every loop. What I really want to do is something else, despite your plan and despite your instructions". If my Javascript did that, I'd declare it aberrant, counter to my wishes, and utterly useless and toss it in the trash.

[Bex4Jesus]

But how does he compare something He has never experienced to Himself?

God could intellectually "know" that we may think about things we shouldn't, but God couldn't actually understand the thought, or the temptation, without having had a similar experience himself, right?

This is what is screwing me up.

He knows what is good and what is bad way better than we do. He created the rules lol. How can the creator of all, not understand something? He does not need to go through the same trial and error process we do to learn something. I guess He just compares it to Himself. God is good, everything else is bad lol, praise God for Jesus!!

blessings

[Bex4Jesus]

Okay but there's always a 'but'...

How would God choose what is 'sin' never having actually experienced sin? How can God say what is a bad thought if God himself has never had a bad thought? Its all kinda circular.

Bex

Possibly because God is the awesome, fearsome and all powerful creator of creation. The same intellect that crafted the universe, and everything in it also took painstaking care and consideration to our design. If He therefore rightly declares "the following are not conducive to my design and are therefore sin" who am I to say "you don't know me!"

It would be as if my meager Javascript declared to me "you've never been an integer, how then do you expect me to add an integer value to a previous integer value at the conclusion of every loop. What I really want to do is something else, despite your plan and despite your instructions". If my Javascript did that, I'd declare it aberrant, counter to my wishes, and utterly useless and toss it in the trash.

[HisLeast]

Okay but there's always a 'but'...

Is there?

How would God choose what is 'sin' never having actually experienced sin? How can God say what is a bad thought if God himself has never had a bad thought? Its all kinda circular.

Easy: That which conflicts with the designs of His will = sin.

Why would He need to experience those things counter to His will in order to determine if they are counter to His will or not? If He did, wouldn't that make him a hypocrite of the highest order?

[SethElijah]

***NOTE: This is only in response to the OP, need no lectures on the addiction brought up here, it is but an analogy****

I would relate this to a personal experience I have daily. I am a smoker, my husband is not and has never smoked in his life (how we stay married is beyond me but we love each other). Anyway, he tells me to quit smoking because I will die. He does not understand the urge I have to smoke, he has never had an addiction, he only understands the mechanics of said addiction. Smoke goes into my lungs, tar builds up and clogs said lungs, eventually there will be physical repurcussions. I understand the repurcussions but I rationalize my behavior, I have experienced smoking and he could not possibly understand. How can he tell me to quit so non-chalantly if he has never had to go through this? How can he judge me in such a way?

It is much the same with God and sin. He has never experienced it and could not understand in an intimate way as we do, but he knows the outcome of sin and what it leads to. We can rationalize all we want, but the fact is the fact. If I continue to smoke I will die. If we sin unrepentantly we will not enter the kingdom of Heaven.

[Bex4Jesus]

That was maybe the best answer I've ever gotten to a question on here. Thank you SO much!!

Love,

Bex

***NOTE: This is only in response to the OP, need no lectures on the addiction brought up here, it is but an analogy****

I would relate this to a personal experience I have daily. I am a smoker, my husband is not and has never smoked in his life (how we stay married is beyond me but we love each other). Anyway, he tells me to quit smoking because I will die. He does not understand the urge I have to smoke, he has never had an addiction, he only understands the mechanics of said addiction. Smoke goes into my lungs, tar builds up and clogs said lungs, eventually there will be physical repurcussions. I understand the repurcussions but I rationalize my behavior, I have experienced smoking and he could not possibly understand. How can he tell me to quit so non-chalantly if he has never had to go through this? How can he judge me in such a way?

It is much the same with God and sin. He has never experienced it and could not understand in an intimate way as we do, but he knows the outcome of sin and what it leads to. We can rationalize all we want, but the fact is the fact. If I continue to smoke I will die. If we sin unrepentantly we will not enter the kingdom of Heaven.

[RabbiKnife]

Hebrews is very clear about this issue:


"For we do not have a high priest (Jesus) who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin."

Hebruew 4:15