God's grace to forgive and transform is not conditioned to recognizing Jesus' deity, blood atonement or physical resurrection

[Studyman]

Incorrect, I'm still waiting for the conclusion of the matter.

God’s Mercy is Freely Given but Conditional on Faith in Christ
Ephesians 2:8–9 (Lexham Bible): "For by grace you are saved through faith, and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God; it is not from works, so that no one can boast."

Salvation is offered by grace (unmerited favor), but it is received through faith in Christ. Faith is not a "work" but the means by which a sinner trusts in the saving work of Jesus.

You have a philosophy concerning "works" that you have adopted and are now promoting through the lens of the BBS. Others promote the religious philosophies of the religious sect of the Catholics, SDA, JW's, and many other religions who call Jesus Lord, Lord. Each religion believing their adopted religious philosophies superior to the others. But to justify the interpretation of Scriptures through the lens of your religion, you seem to need to omit the conclusion of Paul's teaching in Eph. 2. I would humbly present for your consideration how the message changes when the conclusion of Paul's teaching, along with his other teaching, is included for our examination.

Eph. 2: 8 For "by grace" are ye saved through faith; (Now faith is the substance of things "hoped for", the evidence of things "not seen") and that (Grace is) not of yourselves: (Grace) it is the gift of God:

9 Not of (Man's) works (But of God's), lest any man should boast.

10 For we (who in time past walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the "children of disobedience") are (NOW) his workmanship, (if so be we have Yielded ourselves to God) created in Christ Jesus (To walk even as HE walked) unto good works, which God (Not religious man) hath before ordained "that we should walk in them."

So God's "Grace/Mercy" exists for the express purpose of promoting God's "works", not mans, unto man. That we might, because of His Grace, turn to Him in submission. Believing that this same God will give us to His Son, God's High Priest, for cleansing and as it is written, "To teach us in the way that we should go", which includes "Living By Every Word which proceeds from the mouth of God" that Paul said was profitable "for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God "may be perfect" (As the Jesus "of the Bible" commands), throughly furnished unto all "good works" (which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them)
.
This understanding is confirmed by Paul in all of his letters, I will list just one.

Rom. 2: (OF GOD) 6 Who will render to "every man" according to "his" deeds: (Not the Deeds of Jesus)

7 "To them" who by patient continuance "in well doing" (Good Works) "seek for" glory and honour and immortality, eternal life: 8 But unto them that are contentious, and "do not obey the truth", but "obey" unrighteousness, indignation and wrath,

It is true, Biblically speaking, that there is no other Name by which a man may be saved, than the Messiah, the Lord's Christ Jesus. But it is also very clear that you can call Jesus Lord, Lord, or even Almighty God, and transform yourself into an apostle of Christ, and teach in His Name, and build massive religious businesses and shrines of worship all in His Name, but if you live contrary to God's Laws, adopting the religious doctrines and traditions of this world in their place, Jesus said HE doesn't know you.

So "Works", according to what is actually written, are essential for God's Salvation. Not man's Works, lest man should boast. But by the Just, Good and Holy "Works of God" that HE before ordained that His people should walk in them, even as Jesus, His son walked in them.

Pancho is pointing out that praising Jesus with our lips, calling Him God almighty, means almost nothing, if a man doesn't "Yield himself" a servant to obey God.

This is the sole purpose of the Christ's Existence, that you might "KNOW" the One True God, without which there is no Messiah, No Grace, NO resurrection, No Salvation, No Eternal Life, "AND" His Son, that God Sent that through HIS LIFE (Blood) we might repent and "Put On" the New Man, and become born again into a man, "which after God" is created "in righteousness and true holiness".

This is why, in my humble view, that Jesus commands His People to "Be Ye Perfect, even as your Father in Heaven is perfect", the result of which would create a man "Who walks, even as Jesus walked" if we are not detoured from "forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, and pressing toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God (Which was) in Christ Jesus.

 

[Johann]

You have a philosophy concerning "works" that you have adopted and are now promoting through the lens of the BBS. Others promote the religious philosophies of the religious sect of the Catholics, SDA, JW's, and many other religions who call Jesus Lord, Lord. Each religion believing their adopted religious philosophies superior to the others. But to justify the interpretation of Scriptures through the lens of your religion, you seem to need to omit the conclusion of Paul's teaching in Eph. 2. I would humbly present for your consideration how the message changes when the conclusion of Paul's teaching, along with his other teaching, is included for our examination.

I'll let you know if I need your assistance-right now you are an impediment.

J.

 

[Pancho Frijoles]

I'll let you know if I need your assistance-right now you are an impediment.

J.

I find your reply to @Studyman weird, as this is an Open Forum where anyone can contribute as long as the rules of the Forum are respected.
Nobody is here because her assistance is needed by other member of the Forum.

@Studyman is a blessing the Forum, just as you.
I highly value his posts, even when he and me can disagree. They are intelligent, relevant, well written and provocative. He is very respectful with everyone.

 

[Pancho Frijoles]

Conclusion: God’s Mercy is Found in Christ Alone

Please explain how God's mercy was extended to Roman soldiers like Cornelius who were located at that time in, say, Britannia, and could get Peter or any apostle to visit them.
That the Roman empire held soldiers across enormous distances is a historical fact.
That God told Peter that He had God-fearing people like Cornelius in every country is a biblical fact (Acts 10:34,35)

So, given these facts, how your theology explains the forgiveness that God extended to those other distant centurions?

Why didn't God raised hundreds of thousands of apostles instead of twelve, and sent them flying over the wings of angels to China and Yucatan, to make every people aware they should believe in Jesus' deity, blood atonement and physical resurrection, so that their sins could be forgiven?

I hope you don't reply that God didn't care for those peoples, because Paul told the pagans in Athens: "He has made from one blood every nation of men to live on the entire face of the earth, having appointed fixed times and the boundaries of their habitation, that they should seek the Lord so perhaps they might reach for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us. ‘For in Him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are His offspring.’"

 

[synergy]

"For the Son of Man shall come with His angels in the glory of His Father, and then He will repay every man according to his works."
Was this said by Jesus or by Muhammad?

“Look, I am coming soon! My reward is with Me to give to each one according to his work."
Is this written in the Book of Revelation or in the Quran?

To understand the soteriology of Judaism, Christianism, Zoroastrianism, Islam or the Baha'i Faith, we must first understand that all of these religions made salvation rely on God's grace, love, mercy.
And all of them recognize that we will be rewarded according to our works, because there is no faith without works.
Any separation between faith and works in artificial and absurd, as our friend @Studyman has already pointed out.

You missed the main point. Because Islam does not recognize Adam's sin as causing death for all, and that death is just a natural step to the afterlife, then there is no need for a cure for death. That takes out the need for the Cross and then a Muslim can do what you do. Just talk about verbal forgiveness.

Many Christians boast to profess the only religion in which salvation is based on God's grace.
That's an error. Time to wake up.

God's Grace is manifested most brilliantly in the Cross, with no salvation from death apart from the Cross. Because Mulims throw that fact out the window then of course it's a fact that Christianity is "the only religion in which salvation is based on God's grace." I am fully awake to that fact. Are you?

 

[Johann]

This is a good thing, not a bad thing.
I invite you to debate using reason, examples from real life, illustrations, rhetorical questions, because all of that was used by the authors of the Bible as well, including Jesus Christ.

Jesus did use Scriptures, but also challenging questions like Socrates...and also hypothetical scenarios and references to things they saw on a daily basis. He also brought ancient facts (eg Ninive, Sodoma) and applied them to new situations.

So, Johann, I invite you and our readers to consider my style as an opportunity for you to learn and extract what you think is useful in your future debates with people from other religions in better terms.

For the time being, what are your responses to the questions I framed to @civic?
Are my questions relevant or not? Are they based on facts or not?
Give them a try, at least. Here they are:

• Why don't we find in the Bible any prophet urging people to build hundreds of tabernacles across the territory, so that common people could have their dialy sins forgiven?
• Why don't we find kings or judges building those hundreds of tabernacles?
• Why were the Ninevites not requested to offer animal sacrifices?
• Why did the Jews exiled in Babylon have to return to Jerusalen to build a temple, instead of building several modest tabernacles in Babylon? (They were not always under persecution).
• Why Jews in the Diaspora, in places as distant as Rome or Ethiopia, had to travel thousands of kilometers to the Temple of Jerusalem, instead of building a tabernacle in their own town, to atone for their daily sins?
• Why did God cleansed Isaiah's sin with live coals instead of asking him to go to the Temple?
• But most fundamentally, Why God says in the Bible that He didn't require sacrifices, but mercy and a contrite heart?

These questions have already been answered and I wonder why you don't believe in Paul's epistles-see below.


The Bahá'í Faith does not outright reject Paul’s epistles but interprets them in ways that differ significantly from traditional Christian understandings. They often view Paul’s writings as metaphorical or symbolic, particularly regarding concepts like resurrection and atonement. For instance, Bahá'í teachings suggest that Paul emphasized a spiritual resurrection rather than a physical one. They believe that terms like "resurrection" in Paul’s writings reflect spiritual renewal rather than bodily restoration. This aligns with their broader theological stance, which often favors symbolic interpretations over literal ones
BAHAITEACHINGS.ORG
BAHÁ'Í LIBRARY ONLINE
.

The Bahá'í Faith does not center its theology on Pauline doctrines, as its foundation is in the teachings of Bahá’u’lláh.

However, they sometimes acknowledge Paul’s writings as reflective of spiritual truths while reinterpreting key concepts to align with their universalist and progressive revelation framework
BAHÁ'Í LIBRARY ONLINE
The Bahá'í Faith engages with Paul’s epistles selectively, often interpreting his teachings in ways that align with their own principles of spiritual unity, progressive revelation, and symbolic understanding of scripture.

Resurrection and Spirituality

Bahá'ís emphasize the spiritual over the physical, which is reflected in their interpretation of Paul’s discourse on resurrection in 1 Corinthians 15. They believe Paul was not advocating for a physical resurrection of Jesus but rather a spiritual one. Bahá'ís interpret the "spiritual body" as a renewal or transformation of the soul rather than a literal bodily resurrection. This interpretation underpins their view of the afterlife and aligns with their broader theological focus on spiritual realities over physical manifestations
BAHÁ'Í LIBRARY ONLINE
.

Atonement and Salvation
Bahá'ís do not accept the traditional Christian doctrine of atonement, where Jesus' death is seen as substitutionary for humanity's sins. Instead, they view salvation as a process of personal spiritual transformation and alignment with God’s will. While they may reference Paul’s teachings on grace and salvation, they interpret these as calls to moral and spiritual refinement rather than reliance on the death of Christ as a singular act of redemption
BAHÁ'Í LIBRARY ONLINE
.

Universalism and Progressive Revelation
Bahá'ís respect Paul’s writings as part of the Christian scripture but interpret them within their framework of progressive revelation, where all major religions are seen as part of an unfolding divine plan. For example, Paul’s emphasis on unity in Christ (Galatians 3:28) resonates with the Bahá'í principle of the oneness of humanity and religion, but they extend this idea to include Bahá’u’lláh as the latest manifestation of God
BAHAITEACHINGS.ORG
.

Views on Paul’s Role

While Bahá'ís do not dismiss Paul’s contributions, they do not hold his writings as central to their theology. Paul’s epistles are sometimes seen as reflective of early Christian struggles to explain Jesus’ message, but Bahá'ís prioritize the direct teachings of Jesus and view later interpretations, including Paul’s, through the lens of their own prophet, Bahá’u’lláh.

The one who needs to provide answers is you, @Pancho Frijoles, because your "faith" stands in direct contradiction to the Christian faith. Moreover, your "core beliefs" are fundamentally at odds with the teachings found in the Pauline epistles, which are central to the Christian message.

J.

 

[Johann]

I find your reply to @Studyman weird, as this is an Open Forum where anyone can contribute as long as the rules of the Forum are respected.
Nobody is here because her assistance is needed by other member of the Forum.

@Studyman is a blessing the Forum, just as you.
I highly value his posts, even when he and me can disagree. They are intelligent, relevant, well written and provocative. He is very respectful with everyone.

Any connection to you?

J.

 

[Pancho Frijoles]

Any connection to you?

J.

Yes, of course. The same connection I have with you.

 

[Johann]

Please explain how God's mercy was extended to Roman soldiers like Cornelius who were located at that time in, say, Britannia, and could get Peter or any apostle to visit them.
That the Roman empire held soldiers across enormous distances is a historical fact.
That God told Peter that He had God-fearing people like Cornelius in every country is a biblical fact (Acts 10:34,35)

So, given these facts, how your theology explains the forgiveness that God extended to those other distant centurions?

Why didn't God raised hundreds of thousands of apostles instead of twelve, and sent them flying over the wings of angels to China and Yucatan, to make every people aware they should believe in Jesus' deity, blood atonement and physical resurrection, so that their sins could be forgiven?

I hope you don't reply that God didn't care for those peoples, because Paul told the pagans in Athens: "He has made from one blood every nation of men to live on the entire face of the earth, having appointed fixed times and the boundaries of their habitation, that they should seek the Lord so perhaps they might reach for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us. ‘For in Him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are His offspring.’"

Please explain why you and your faith don't read the Pauline epistles?


The Bahá'í Faith engages with Paul’s epistles selectively, often interpreting his teachings in ways that align with their own principles of spiritual unity, progressive revelation, and symbolic understanding of scripture.

Resurrection and Spirituality
Bahá'ís emphasize the spiritual over the physical, which is reflected in their interpretation of Paul’s discourse on resurrection in 1 Corinthians 15. They believe Paul was not advocating for a physical resurrection of Jesus but rather a spiritual one. Bahá'ís interpret the "spiritual body" as a renewal or transformation of the soul rather than a literal bodily resurrection. This interpretation underpins their view of the afterlife and aligns with their broader theological focus on spiritual realities over physical manifestations
BAHÁ'Í LIBRARY ONLINE
.

Atonement and Salvation
Bahá'ís do not accept the traditional Christian doctrine of atonement, where Jesus' death is seen as substitutionary for humanity's sins. Instead, they view salvation as a process of personal spiritual transformation and alignment with God’s will. While they may reference Paul’s teachings on grace and salvation, they interpret these as calls to moral and spiritual refinement rather than reliance on the death of Christ as a singular act of redemption
BAHÁ'Í LIBRARY ONLINE
.

Universalism and Progressive Revelation
Bahá'ís respect Paul’s writings as part of the Christian scripture but interpret them within their framework of progressive revelation, where all major religions are seen as part of an unfolding divine plan. For example, Paul’s emphasis on unity in Christ (Galatians 3:28) resonates with the Bahá'í principle of the oneness of humanity and religion, but they extend this idea to include Bahá’u’lláh as the latest manifestation of God
BAHAITEACHINGS.ORG
.

Views on Paul’s Role
While Bahá'ís do not dismiss Paul’s contributions, they do not hold his writings as central to their theology. Paul’s epistles are sometimes seen as reflective of early Christian struggles to explain Jesus’ message, but Bahá'ís prioritize the direct teachings of Jesus and view later interpretations, including Paul’s, through the lens of their own prophet, Bahá’u’lláh.


The Bahá'í Faith acknowledges Paul’s epistles as significant historical and theological documents but reinterprets them to align with their spiritual, symbolic worldview. They see Paul’s teachings as part of a broader divine narrative but subordinate to their belief in the continuing revelation of truth through figures like Bahá’u’lláh.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

You sit with the four Gospels-perhaps even only three-but you consistently refuse to engage with Paul's epistles. What's your response to that? Your approach seems to rely heavily on a radical reinterpretation of Scripture based on the teachings of your founder, and your boldness grows with every post.

Why do you continue to use the Scriptures, knowing you openly admit you’re not a Christian? Why should I answer your questions about the faith when you have rejected Christ's gospel, even though you are well-versed in the Scriptures but have chosen to embrace another gospel entirely?

J.

 

[Pancho Frijoles]

Moreover, your "core beliefs" are fundamentally at odds with the teachings found in the Pauline epistles, which are central to the Christian message.

There is a belief that I am fighting because it is at odds with reason and Scriptures.
The belief that people from other religions cannot be forgiven nor transformed by God unless they convert to Christianism (or, perhaps, to certain type of Christianism, as I am not sure if you believe that Catholics, Mormons or Jehovah Witnesses are saved).

Let me insist on this: That belief is absurd and perverse.
Absurd, because it violates any rational analysis of the Scriptures and of the reality before your eyes.
Perverse, because it considers just a future genocide based on religious beliefs.

I have been refuting that idea by means of...

• The 21 passages that address that I call "The Core Block", passages that you haven't commented.
• The undeniable reality of lives that have been transformed in people from all religions, reality that you have attributed to "psychological and cultural factors" and "outward morality"
• The symbolic nature of atonement in Paul's writings, which you insist considering a literal requirement, and the need to keep unity between converts from Jew and Greek origin, which you have not commented.

 

[Pancho Frijoles]

Please explain why you and your faith don't read the Pauline epistles?

We read them.
The proof is that I have been quoting extensively from them across the Forum threads.

Certainly, as we have thousands of pages of Baha'is scriptures to read, we have comparatively less time to read Paul epistles, or the Quran, or the Avesta. But that does not prevent Baha'is interested in those scriptures to read them and profit spiritually from them.

So, I have given you the explanation you requested, my brother.
Will you give me the explanations I have requested?
Doesn't need to be now. I know we are all busy. Take your time.

 

[synergy]

Please explain how God's mercy was extended to Roman soldiers like Cornelius who were located at that time in, say, Britannia, and could get Peter or any apostle to visit them.
That the Roman empire held soldiers across enormous distances is a historical fact.
That God told Peter that He had God-fearing people like Cornelius in every country is a biblical fact (Acts 10:34,35)

So, given these facts, how your theology explains the forgiveness that God extended to those other distant centurions?

Why didn't God raised hundreds of thousands of apostles instead of twelve, and sent them flying over the wings of angels to China and Yucatan, to make every people aware they should believe in Jesus' deity, blood atonement and physical resurrection, so that their sins could be forgiven?

I hope you don't reply that God didn't care for those peoples, because Paul told the pagans in Athens: "He has made from one blood every nation of men to live on the entire face of the earth, having appointed fixed times and the boundaries of their habitation, that they should seek the Lord so perhaps they might reach for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us. ‘For in Him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are His offspring.’"

Here is the difference between Islam and Christianity when it comes to the Cross:

Islam does not recognize Adam's sin as causing death for all and believes that death is just a natural step to the afterlife. Therefore there is no need for a cure for death and the sin that caused it. That takes out the need for the Cross and then a Muslim can do what you do. Just talk endlessly about verbal forgiveness.

 

[Johann]

There is a belief that I am fighting because it is at odds with reason and Scriptures.
The belief that people from other religions cannot be forgiven nor transformed by God unless they convert to Christianism (or, perhaps, to certain type of Christianism, as I am not sure if you believe that Catholics, Mormons or Jehovah Witnesses are saved).

Tell me, HOW are people transformed and forgiven, according to the Scriptures?

J.

 

[Pancho Frijoles]

Why do you continue to use the Scriptures, knowing you openly admit you’re not a Christian?

Because I believe they are inspired.

Why should I answer your questions about the faith when you have rejected Christ's gospel, even though you are well-versed in the Scriptures but have chosen to embrace another gospel entirely?

I can't answer that question, because I don't consider myself to have rejected Christ's gospel.
If you are convinced that I have, I guess you must consider whether you get more profit from continuing or from leaving the conversation

 

[Pancho Frijoles]

Tell me, HOW are people transformed and forgiven, according to the Scriptures?

J.

This is how

STEP 1. A person comes with a humble, contrite heart asking God forgiveness and to be changed.
STEP 2. God forgives and changes the person.

The support from Scriptures is extense, and it is summarized in the 20 passages mentioned here: https://berean-apologetics.communit...ent-or-physical-resurrection.2218/post-130745

There are several more, but I called these "The Core Block", just to remember them easily.

 

[Pancho Frijoles]

Here is the difference between Islam and Christianity when it comes to the Cross:

Islam does not recognize Adam's sin as causing death for all and believes that death is just a natural step to the afterlife.

Do you mean biological death?
Of course death is natural phenomenon, and not the result of Adam's sin !
Do ameba and fungus die because of sin?
What was the sin of the trillions of animals and plants that died before the first human appeared?

Our bodies, as those of any other living thing, are programmed by God to die and be recycled.
Your body, once dead, will nurture many other living organisms. So, be grateful to God for your body. Take care of it. Enjoy it. Use it as an instrument of God and a temple of the Holy Spirit. Then, give it back to God with gratitude, so that He can use it for other plants, animals and people.

Therefore there is no need for a cure for death and the sin that caused it. That takes out the need for the Cross and then a Muslim can do what you do. Just talk endlessly about verbal forgiveness.

"Verbal forgiveness"? What is that?
Forgiveness is much more than pronouncing a word or sentence. It is a deep, healing experience.

Healing is not about getting the prescription from the doctor, or purchasing the medicine in the drugstore. It is about actually taking the medicine, even if bitter or painful. It is about experiencing the effects of the medicine and being restored. Forgiveness is a miracle, perhaps the biggest reflection of God's love.

There are several small lectures on the Internet that you can watch, if interested, to know about forgiveness in Islam.

 

[Johann]

Because I believe they are inspired.

I can't answer that question, because I don't consider myself to have rejected Christ's gospel.
If you are convinced that I have, I guess you must consider whether you get more profit from continuing or from leaving the conversation

You can't answer the question because you know you have embraced another gospel.

Can you explain why scores of bahaji members are leaving that faith? Due to emotional stress and more?

Many former members of the Baha'i Faith have left due to various concerns about the teachings, organizational structure, and personal experiences within the religion. Here are some of the reasons cited by ex-members:

Contradictions in Teachings: Some former Baha'is point to contradictions within the faith's core texts and teachings. For instance, while the religion promotes gender equality, its highest governing body, the Universal House of Justice, excludes women from membership.

Additionally, the faith emphasizes the independent search for truth but simultaneously declares the writings of its central figures as infallible, limiting intellectual freedom for many adherents.

Legalism and Spiritual Disconnect: Many have expressed frustration with the heavy emphasis on administrative and legalistic aspects of the religion, which they feel overshadows spiritual teachings. Some report that the rigid focus on rules and community structure leaves little room for personal spiritual connection or growth.

Hypocrisy and Control: Accusations of hypocrisy and cult-like control mechanisms are common. Examples include shaming dissenters, tracking members, information control, and discouraging open dialogue about issues within the faith. These tactics alienate members who value transparency and autonomy.

Emotional and Psychological Strain: The religion's strict expectations and administrative demands have led some members to experience feelings of inadequacy, guilt, isolation, and even depression. This emotional toll often drives individuals to reconsider their participation in the faith.

Disillusionment with Leadership: Concerns about how leadership enforces uniformity and suppresses dissent are frequent. For example, legal actions against splinter groups and efforts to monopolize Baha'i terminology have been seen by some as authoritarian and contrary to the faith's ideals of unity.

Cultural and Historical Issues: Some critics note that the Baha'i Faith originated in a context influenced by 19th-century Shiite Islam, which has led to accusations that certain practices or beliefs reflect outdated or problematic cultural norms.

Personal stories of those who have left often highlight a combination of these factors, revealing a gap between the faith's ideals and the lived experiences of its adherents. For more insights and testimonies, you can explore resources like the Baha’i Insider and other platforms for ex-Baha’is that discuss these issues in depth

STELLADAPTOR - SOMETHING NEW

THE BAHAI INSIDER

DALE HUSBAND'S INTELLECTUAL RANTS


--and I have more.

J.

 

[Johann]

This is how

STEP 1. A person comes with a humble, contrite heart asking God forgiveness and to be changed.
STEP 2. God forgives and changes the person.

The support from Scriptures is extense, and it is summarized in the 20 passages mentioned here: https://berean-apologetics.communit...ent-or-physical-resurrection.2218/post-130745

There are several more, but I called these "The Core Block", just to remember them easily.

Nope-your "Core Block" does NOT address the essential question of how a person is saved, my friend.

You want to give it another go?

J.

 

[synergy]

Do you mean biological death?
Of course death is natural phenomenon, and not the result of Adam's sin !
Do ameba and fungus die because of sin?
What was the sin of the trillions of animals and plants that died before the first human appeared?

Our bodies, as those of any other living thing, are programmed by God to die and be recycled.
Your body, once dead, will nurture many other living organisms. So, be grateful to God for your body. Take care of it. Enjoy it. Use it as an instrument of God and a temple of the Holy Spirit. Then, give it back to God with gratitude, so that He can use it for other plants, animals and people.

"Verbal forgiveness"? What is that?
Forgiveness is much more than pronouncing a word or sentence. It is a deep, healing experience.

Healing is not about getting the prescription from the doctor, or purchasing the medicine in the drugstore. It is about actually taking the medicine, even if bitter or painful. It is about experiencing the effects of the medicine and being restored. Forgiveness is a miracle, perhaps the biggest reflection of God's love.

There are several small lectures on the Internet that you can watch, if interested, to know about forgiveness in Islam.

This is all confirming to me that our world, as you see it now, with decay and death being the norm, is the best that Allah could claim to create. Sure, Allah promises a Heaven for believers but if this world is the best that Allah can do then we're all in for a very rude awakening.

The True God had built a perfect Paradise for man before sin infected it and death appeared. The only way back is the Cross. There is no other way. That is the salvific forgiveness for man that can only come from the true God.

 

[Pancho Frijoles]

You can't answer the question because you know you have embraced another gospel.

No, I can't answer the question because I know I have NOT rejected Jesus' gospel
Since you are framing your question on the premise I have, then I can't answer it.

Can you explain why scores of bahaji members are leaving that faith? Due to emotional stress and more?

No, I have not studied the phenomenon. So I don't know its magnitude or its causes.
Can you explain why millions of people have left Christianism to embrace atheism?
Perhaps we could find coincidences in both phenomena. That would be a good discussion of another thread.

Atheism was close to zero in most Europe for centuries. Now, in the Czech Republic, it is 37%.
Regular attendance to church in Nordic countries, once a stronghold of Christianism, has fallen to 3%.