@Rufus copying and pasting these because I can't quote them with a click:
Consciousness does not = understanding. Look up the definitions of both. One can indeed be "conscious" (i.e. aware) of an external object, state or fact and at the same time not understand or totally understand of what it is we're sensing or feeling or thinking. Nice try in moving the goal posts, though. It's a typical equivocating strategy employed by Man in the Natural.
- Rom1:20 says understanding. It's your responsibility to read Scripture and define words. I actually did some work for you.
- We can use God Knowing & Understanding or something similar if it'll assist you and help you stop making excuses for not reading and defining words in Scripture. "God Consciousness" is definitely a somewhat common theological construct I thought you had a handle on.
And what in the world are you talking about with my "seeds theories"? As God is my witness, two seeds are talked about in Gen 3:15. I label your lack of answer as Total Inability (1st kissin' cousin to TD) to honestly and coherently address the passage without your bias against the Doctrines of Grace. But I'm not surprised, so don't feel like you've disappointed me. How often did the enemies of Christ fail to answer his questions? Don't you know that what you fail to do or do to me, you likewise fail or do to Him?
- As far as I'm concerned everything you say is your theory. I've come to this conclusion because I don't see you putting forth much of any accuracy FROM the Text. I have seen some novel theories combined with a lot of Calvinism which I also think is theoretical. You're work is unconvincing so far.
- I did take note of what you said about Rom1:16 and after things settled down this evening, I did start going through Rom1 once again. Always interesting.
Show me in Romans 1 where Paul talks about "God consciousness". Of course, you can't, so you just came up with your wacky-doodle theory, didn't you?
Conversely, Gen 3:15 does explicitly speak of two seeds. Yet, you characterize those seeds as being my theory? (When you attended seminary or whatever they must have offered a course in Lame Excuses 101, which you obviously aced!) And then you brag about what a great a expositor of scripture you are. Oy Vey!
But before I let you go, I'm going to rattle your cage with another great analogy.
Before Adam sinned the image of his Maker that was imprinted upon his soul must have also been "very good". But that changed after he fell and plunged the human race into ruin. The image remains, but it, too, is ruined. I believe all men know or sense intuitively that Something greater than they exist. Some call it a "higher power", "prime mover", "deity", "spirit", God, etc. The bible and Natural Revelation both tell us that mankind is as idolatrous as it is religious, which accounts for the numerous religions that exist in this world to this day. The sons of men just cannot help but turn God's image within them inside out and make God into their own image -- according to their own carnal, profane, wicked imaginations. Why do men do this? They do it because the image within them is so distorted, twisted and perverted that they
can't understand what they are "seeing" within themselves --what it is that they're sensing, feeling, etc. So out of their frustration and to satisfy their own guilty conscience (yes, I believe all men know they are sinners!), man has decided to replace the marred and defaced image with an idol of their own making that they can understand. This is why all man-made religions, save for the more metaphysical ones that tend to be highly abstract, have one thing in common: They're all works-based
. Sinners think they can do something to mitigate their guilt and please their gods simultaneously.
When sinners look into their own souls or hearts to try to make sense of the image within them
, all they can see is an unrecognizable, deformed image. We could liken this experience to a visit to the Fun House with all its many peculiar mirrors. Now, we know that when we look into those mirrors, it is us simply because non one else is around. But at the same time, we
don't look anything like ourselves, do we? Our image in the mirrors is totally deformed -- beyond recognition -- BUT...AN image is still there. Yet, it is very far removed from an exact representation of what we actually look like.
Having said all that...there is One Man who existed who bore God's image
perfectly. (The operative term is bolded!)
Heb 1:3a
3 The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being,
NIV
(See also 2Cor 4:4; Col 1:15.)
Translate: The image of the Father was PERFECTLY and ACCURATELY and FLAWLESSLY imprinted upon the Son's soul. In other words, it was
free from all distortion, corruption, deformities, flaws and imperfections. Now...I'm thinking this certainly helps to explain how Christ was also
free from all sin.
But as far as Natural Man goes, we know he cannot not sin. Since this is the case, then just how damaged is God's image upon the souls of the sons of men? Just what happened to Adam's soul when God removed his Spirit from him and he died -- when Adam become
free from the Spirit of Life that had been breathed into him on the sixth day? When the Light of Life left him, didn't Adam's soul and heart became darkness itself?