Limits of evil on the earth

[Metis_LDS]

I only believe in a time limit for evil on the earth when Christ returns to the earth the wicked will be gone off the earth.

Before that there does not seem to be any limit to the evil that is possible.

I am interested in what everyone thinks. Please have your say.

[The Nehor]

God has not burned me to a crisp so if there is a limit it is pretty high.

[Metis_LDS]

You will have to believe that I do not think that far ahead.  But after starting this post it struck me that the no limits on evil in this life is a major source of lost of faith in God.  Also a major source of anger in people against God.

[The Nehor]

1 minute ago, Metis_LDS said:

You will have to believe that I do not think that far ahead.  But after starting this post it struck me that the no limits on evil in this life is a major source of lost of faith in God.  Also a major source of anger in people against God.

At the risk of being incredibly sarcastic:

Ya think?

[Metis_LDS]

1 minute ago, The Nehor said:

At the risk of being incredibly sarcastic:

Ya think?

Why to you make fun of my thought processes.

[Metis_LDS]

https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/sarcasm

[Vanguard]

1 hour ago, Metis_LDS said:

I only believe in a time limit for evil on the earth when Christ returns to the earth the wicked will be gone off the earth.

Before that there does not seem to be any limit to the evil that is possible.

I am interested in what everyone thinks. Please have your say.

Well if there were limits, what might be an example of evil that would fall outside of them?

[bluebell]

8 minutes ago, Vanguard said:

Well if there were limits, what might be an example of evil that would fall outside of them?

This is what I'm wondering too.  What would/does a "limit on evil" look like?

[Duncan]

I have a quotation in mind about God limiting war from the First Presidency in WW2 but I ordered from a new pizza place so it'll have to wait🍕

[smac97]

https://bookofmormonstudynotes.blog/2015/11/29/my-spirit-will-not-always-strive-with-man-ether-215/

Quote

5 And the brother of Jared repented of the evil which he had done, and did call upon the name of the Lord for his brethren who were with him. And the Lord said unto him: I will forgive thee and thy brethren of their sins; but thou shalt not sin any more, for ye shall remember that my Spirit will not always strive with man; wherefore, if ye will sin until ye are fully ripe ye shall be cut off from the presence of the Lord. And these are my thoughts upon the land which I shall give you for your inheritance; for it shall be a land choice above all other lands.

(Ether 2:15)

 

The Lord’s response to the brother of Jared’s prayer of repentance is generous, but it comes with a strict warning. I forgive you, He says, but you need to stop sinning. Then, He adds these words: “My Spirit will not always strive with man.”

 

What does it mean for the Spirit to stop striving with us? Nephi said that “when the Spirit ceaseth to strive with man then cometh speedy destruction” (2 Nephi 26:11). And the Lord tells the brother of Jared in this passage that, if we sin until we’re “fully ripe,” we will be “cut off from the presence of the Lord.” I can’t imagine our Heavenly Father giving up on us or giving His children less than they are willing and able to receive. But I do believe that we limit our own progression by refusing to hearken to the gentle nudgings we receive from the still, small voice, encouraging us to repent. I believe that our hearts can become hardened over time through repeated decisions to reject or ignore the voice of the Lord, until we become “past feeling,” and can no longer hear His words (1 Nephi 17:45). Perhaps that is what it means to “sin until [we] are fully ripe.” It’s not that the Lord stops knocking, but that we cut ourselves off from His presence by refusing to open to door (Revelation 3:20)!

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/scriptures/triple-index/ripe?lang=eng

Quote

• Jews were ripe in iniquity, 1 Ne. 17:35.
• if voice of people should choose iniquity, they are ripe for destruction, Alma 10:19 (Hel. 5:2).
• land to be cursed unto workers of darkness unless they repent before fully ripe, Alma 37:31 (45:16).
• Nephites are ripening for everlasting destruction, Hel. 6:40 (8:26; 11:37).
• when Nephites cast righteous out, they will be ripe for destruction, Hel. 13:14.
• fulness of God’s wrath will come upon inhabitants of promised land when they are ripened in iniquity, Ether 2:9 (9:20).
• if ye sin until ye are fully ripe, ye shall be cut off from presence of the Lord, Ether 2:15.
• world is ripening in iniquity, D&C 18:6.
• day soon at hand when earth is ripe, D&C 29:9.
• elders to preach among people who are well-nigh ripened for destruction, D&C 61:31.
• wheat and tares to grow together until harvest is ripe, D&C 86:7.

Thanks,

-Smac

[The Nehor]

1 hour ago, smac97 said:

https://bookofmormonstudynotes.blog/2015/11/29/my-spirit-will-not-always-strive-with-man-ether-215/

While true those limits generally just apply to “promised lands”.

[CV75]

5 hours ago, Metis_LDS said:

I only believe in a time limit for evil on the earth when Christ returns to the earth the wicked will be gone off the earth.

Before that there does not seem to be any limit to the evil that is possible.

I am interested in what everyone thinks. Please have your say.

YOLO!

[CV75]

3 hours ago, bluebell said:

This is what I'm wondering too.  What would/does a "limit on evil" look like?

 

[Duncan]

well, it was Elder John A. Widtsoe who said  "though the Lord will not deprive men of the right of free agency, even in the last extremity, He may, in His great mercy, ameliorate the terrors of warfare and turn the tide of battle in behalf of the righteous" Evidences and Reconciliations, Ch. 11. Now, according to him, he "may" do that and he didn't say a collective righteousness so one may assume a righteous individual on either side of a war

[The Nehor]

5 hours ago, Metis_LDS said:

Why to you make fun of my thought processes.

Force of habit. I do the same thing to myself if that is any consolation.

”Oh, super insightful Nehor! It was only the most obvious conclusion possible and how long did it take you to reach it?”

My inner voice is a bit of a *******.

Edit: By that I mean illegitimate child but in the pejorative sense.

Edited September 25, 2022 by The Nehor

[bluebell]

2 hours ago, CV75 said:

YOLO!

You only die once. You live every day. 

[The Nehor]

3 hours ago, CV75 said:

YOLO!

I can never decide whether that mean you only live once so be careful with it or you only live once so do whatever you want to do and see what happens.

[Stargazer]

On 9/24/2022 at 8:09 PM, Metis_LDS said:

I only believe in a time limit for evil on the earth when Christ returns to the earth the wicked will be gone off the earth.

Before that there does not seem to be any limit to the evil that is possible.

I am interested in what everyone thinks. Please have your say.

Examining history for all the mass murderers (Genghis Khan, Hitler, Stalin, Mao, etc) I think it is as clear as can be that if there is a limit, it hasn't yet been reached.

[california boy]

At some point, shouldn't there be an executive review in heaven to revaluate the Plan of Salvation and come up with a few better options??  I mean what percentage of the human population have had a successful experience on earth?  It seems like a lot of work for such little reward.  

[bluebell]

4 minutes ago, california boy said:

At some point, shouldn't there be an executive review in heaven to revaluate the Plan of Salvation and come up with a few better options??  I mean what percentage of the human population have had a successful experience on earth?  It seems like a lot of work for such little reward.  

Have you experienced the reward?

[Stargazer]

23 minutes ago, california boy said:

At some point, shouldn't there be an executive review in heaven to revaluate the Plan of Salvation and come up with a few better options??  I mean what percentage of the human population have had a successful experience on earth?  It seems like a lot of work for such little reward.  

Well, now, contrary to your expectations, you're not here on an extended vacation. I think you may be a bit confused about why you're here.

[california boy]

19 hours ago, bluebell said:

Have you experienced the reward?

 

19 hours ago, Stargazer said:

Well, now, contrary to your expectations, you're not here on an extended vacation. I think you may be a bit confused about why you're here.

I was thinking more about all the work God put into making a universe, populating a really beautiful earth with plants, animals, resources, humans etc.  Then the whole war in heaven thing where 30% are lost right off the bat before the whole thing even starts.  The results seem to be a very small Utah based religion that a small fraction of 1% of the worlds population participates in.  If you buy into the whole essential role the Church is suppose to play in his plan, to me, it just doesn't seem to be working all that great.  It seems like an epoch failure given the resources that went into this plan.  

 

But in answer to both of your comments, yeah I sometimes do feel like I am on a perpetual vacation given my former life of being in endless meetings and constant demands that left little time to really enjoy this life.  We only get one life.  There is no dress rehearsal.  As I look over my life, the second half is way more rewarding and fulfilling than the first.  

[The Nehor]

20 hours ago, Stargazer said:

Well, now, contrary to your expectations, you're not here on an extended vacation. I think you may be a bit confused about why you're here.

If the manager didn’t want me to complain all the time He wouldn’t have instituted prayer.

[bluebell]

5 hours ago, california boy said:

But in answer to both of your comments, yeah I sometimes do feel like I am on a perpetual vacation given my former life of being in endless meetings and constant demands that left little time to really enjoy this life.  We only get one life.  There is no dress rehearsal.  As I look over my life, the second half is way more rewarding and fulfilling than the first.  

It's kind of interesting that you've brought this up because I was just thinking about this yesterday.  I really can't imagine living a life where what I want to do is the standard I use for whether or not I should do it.  And that probably sounds like it's coming from a snarky place but I don't mean it like that.  I just honestly cannot imagine a life where the end all/be all is doing what I want when I want. 

It probably would feel like a vacation, for sure.  

[mfbukowski]

On 9/24/2022 at 1:56 PM, bluebell said:

This is what I'm wondering too.  What would/does a "limit on evil" look like?

Satan's face in a circle with a bar across it, kind of like a "No Parking" sign?