/biz/ - Business & Finance

>>8647223
I don't often chime in on these things, but friend, I was you a few years ago, following this same line of thinking almost verbatim. Do not fall for the Enemy's lies, which are cunning and meant to ensnare you.

Genesis 3: 4-5
>“You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

But from the very beginning the Serpent lied, of course. Adam and Eve grew no closer to God's divinity for their actions, and their new found "knowledge" brought them only suffering and death (just as God had promised it would in Genesis 2: 17).

The Enemy is only capable of deception, and seeks only to destroy you and everything you care about.

It took me a lot of reflection, study, prayer, and experience to understand that God does not smite anyone, He allows us to experience the consequences of our sinful choices. To be "God-fearing" is to respect God for what He is, but it is not with terror, but with reverence for His power. God does not hate us, He loves us, and is the font of all that is good in our souls. God does not wish to control our lives, He gave us free will for a reason, that we might forge our own destinies.

I pray this helps you, my friend.