Do you believe in Karma

[dtknowles]

Do you believe that ones actions bring upon oneself inevitable results, good or bad, either in this life or in a the next. Do you believe that good deeds in this life will be rewarded with a better life? Do you believe that bad deeds in this life will be punished in this life or in an after life?

Do you believe it is possible to be a bad person and live a happy life?

Do you believe it is possible to be a good person and always have to suffer?

Tim

[Hickory]

In one word; No!

[Winger Ed.]

Do you believe that ones actions bring upon oneself inevitable results, good or bad, either in this life or in a the next.

Maybe not the inevitable or in the next life part.
That remains to be seen.

But in my past, and the here & now-
Yeah, I do. I've seen Karma happen too many times not to believe it.

[MrWolf]

Very firm believer in Karma and when it comes time to be judged your entire life will be examined.

[Wayne Smith]

I'm not sure what the translation for the word 'karma' would be. If it means judgment, yes, I believe in judgment, and in a perfectly just Judge.

[Zingger]

Boy- that's a tough one. I too have seen examples (and experienced) good fortune not too long after doing a good dead. The good book talks about "reap what you sow". I adhere to the school of thought that you do what you can to make another person's life a little better and thus far it has come back to me. Everyone's mileage is going to vary on this.

[dragon813gt]

I don’t believe that if I do good deeds I will be rewarded. But I do believe in what goes around comes around. Treat people bad and it will come back on you at some point. I’ve heard the saying in show business about being nice to people on your way up because you’re going to see them on your way down.

[GhostHawk]

I believe that you reap what you sow. If you are doing things that are hurting people, it will come back and bite you in the butt.

If you are helping those in trouble through no fault of their own help will be there for you when you need it.

As an example, I have a neighbor 2 doors down, she has a black lab and a fenced in back yard. So for the last several years I would take my small dog to play, and while the dogs did their thing the two of us would sit and talk.

Her husband had died, left behind some bills, pretty much cleaned her out. She is my age trying to subsist on SS of around 500$ a month.

She's been working for an organization similar to Hospice. Where she goes into peoples homes who are incapable of doing much. Cooks, cleans, does the laundry, shops for them, etc.

Well in the last 2 years for Chistmas she has gotten an Insta-pot and a good Vacumn sealer machine and rolls of bags from us.

The last 2 weeks my wife has been laid up with terrible back and leg pains, had surgery on her back. I was trying to do 3 jobs all at once. My normal chores, my wifes normal chores, and escorting my wife around so she does not hurt herself or fall.

Within an hour of me surrendering to the Lord, saying I can't do it all. She shows up, does the laundry, dishes, sweeps, vacuums. Works hard for 2.5 hours and then argued with me about her getting paid.


No good deed may good unpunished. But Good deeds done for their own sake fly off, have children, and come home to roost when they are needed.

Karma works, and it does not go away. Duck it in this life and it will come back at you 10fold in the next.

Be good to those around you, love them, care for them. It will be worth it in the long run.

As to the OP, I think it is very possible to be a bad person and "think" your happy. But I believe a turning will come and that person will find out just how miserable they truly are. But karma is not instant, takes time.

As for good person suffering, that depends on WHY they are suffering. Are they haunted by themselves?
Is there good on the surface but bad underneath, or deeds done that are bad that no one knows about?

We can not judge, we do not see, know all. Only the Lord God Almighty can look and see all. And we will each have our time before him when we will have to explain our actions. And bear the consequences of them.

[smithnframe]

Yes.......of course!

[Hickory]

Maybe I am too cynical.
When I hear politicians and media people tell outrageous lies and they get away with it time after time and nothing ever happens to them, it's hard to believe in any sort of natural justice anywhere.

[dragon813gt]

Maybe I am too cynical.
When I hear politicians and media people tell outrageous lies and they get away with it time after time and nothing ever happens to them, it's hard to believe in any sort of natural justice anywhere.

Nothing seems to happen to them. You don’t know everything about their personal life. They may lose a lot of loved ones. They may have financial issues that we never hear about. Because we don’t know everything about their life they may be suffering.

[1hole]

Do you believe that ones actions bring upon oneself inevitable results, good or bad, either in this life or in a the next.
Tim

Yes, but not at all the way you mean. And I believe you know it, you're just trying to stir up another pot of poo.

God can and does reward good here as well as in heaven but not all the bad things that happen here are for punishment.

God will certainly dispense deserved punishment (justice) for bad, both here and later.

But, either way, there ain't no Hindu god called the Great Karma In The Sky doing it.

[Ickisrulz]

Biblically, the idea of actions and consequences is complex.

The final answer is that people will eventually answer for what they have done on earth when they die.

During a person's lifetime they generally experience consequences that are direct results of their actions. This is built into the system that God created; it's just they way it works. Two examples:

1. We get an education so we can get a good job. Then we work hard and have a financially successful life (see Proverbs).

2. A man is involved in violet crime and eventually killed during commission of a robbery (live by the sword, die by the sword).

There are other times when people have bad (or good) things happen to them that are beyond their control (e.g., Tower of Siloam accident).

Lastly, there are other times, albeit rare, where God steps in and takes action (Conversion of Saul or Ananias and Sapphira).

[dverna]

I do not worry about it much.

I have been "burned" doing what I thought was the right thing....no good dead goes unpunished.

God does not keep score....if we believe Jesus died for our sins and accepting Him is a "ticket" to heaven. Many believe all sins are equal so the concept of God keeping score on Judgement Day is meaningless. If murdering a child is equivalent to stealing a $1 out of your desk drawer...well it seems silly to me. So I do not believe all sins are equal.

Try to live as good a life as I can with the limitations I have. I am judgmental and do not suffer fools easily.

In the last year I have given much more to the needy. I have given less to the church but more to individuals I think are deserving. In part, because I have doubts about my church and its agenda. Not sure if that is due to my judgmental nature or if God is directing me.

[dtknowles]

Biblically, the idea of actions and consequences is complex.

The final answer is that people will eventually answer for what they have done on earth when they die.

During a person's lifetime they generally experience consequences that are direct results of their actions. This is built into the system that God created; it's just they way it works. Two examples:

1. We get an education so we can get a good job. Then we work hard and have a financially successful life (see Proverbs).

2. A man is involved in violet crime and eventually killed during commission of a robbery (live by the sword, die by the sword).

There are other times when people have bad (or good) things happen to them that are beyond their control (e.g., Tower of Siloam accident).

Lastly, there are other times, albeit rare, where God steps in and takes action (Conversion of Saul or Ananias and Sapphira).

I was wondering if what we often consider Luck, is Karma. Some people seem to be lucky and others unlucky. Do you think it is random or is God pulling strings.

Tim

[dtknowles]

I do not worry about it much.

I have been "burned" doing what I thought was the right thing....no good dead goes unpunished.

God does not keep score....if we believe Jesus died for our sins and accepting Him is a "ticket" to heaven. Many believe all sins are equal so the concept of God keeping score on Judgement Day is meaningless. If murdering a child is equivalent to stealing a $1 out of your desk drawer...well it seems silly to me. So I do not believe all sins are equal.

Try to live as good a life as I can with the limitations I have. I am judgmental and do not suffer fools easily.

In the last year I have given much more to the needy. I have given less to the church but more to individuals I think are deserving. In part, because I have doubts about my church and its agenda. Not sure if that is due to my judgmental nature or if God is directing me.

If God does not keep score then the whole idea of right and wrong seems meaningless. I understand some people believe God's judgement is just a judgement on your faith in Jesus.

I think it is obvious that not all sins are equal, it does not matter that some interpretation of some book could lead to different ideas.

I was more talking about in the here and now not salvation. Do you think God rewards good and punishes evil while we live.

Tim

[Ickisrulz]

I was wondering if what we often consider Luck, is Karma. Some people seem to be lucky and others unlucky. Do you think it is random or is God pulling strings.

Tim

While I do not discount prayer or God's actions in our lives, I don't believe that God is behind the scenes directing everything that happens. "Everything happens for a reason" is not an idea from the Bible.

[dtknowles]

While I do not discount prayer or God's actions in our lives, I don't believe that God is behind the scenes directing everything that happens. "Everything happens for a reason" is not an idea from the Bible.

Might there be some things that the Bible does not speak too?

If God only intervened in our life but once it could make a huge difference.

Sure, not everything happens for a reason but maybe sometimes a good deed is rewarded?

Might sometimes what you thought was a good deed is punished because your motives were selfish?

Tim

[Ickisrulz]

Might there be some things that the Bible does not speak too?

If God only intervened in our life but once it could make a huge difference.

Sure, not everything happens for a reason but maybe sometimes a good deed is rewarded?

Might sometimes what you thought was a good deed is punished because your motives were selfish?

Tim


God can and has intervened in peoples' lives. The Bible attests to this. But it is an exception, not the rule.

[dverna]

If God does not keep score then the whole idea of right and wrong seems meaningless. I understand some people believe God's judgement is just a judgement on your faith in Jesus.

I think it is obvious that not all sins are equal, it does not matter that some interpretation of some book could lead to different ideas.

I was more talking about in the here and now not salvation. Do you think God rewards good and punishes evil while we live.

Tim

Tim, in your original post you wrote. "Do you believe that bad deeds in this life will be punished in this life or in an after life?"

For many of us, the "after life" is of much more consequence...sorry if I went down the wrong rabbit hole. For me the after life is heaven or hell.

[1hole]

God does not keep score....if we believe Jesus died for our sins and accepting Him is a "ticket" to heaven.

Well, yes He does, and he scores us with great accuracy too. If not, there would be no meaning to the Bible saying each of us will be judged for things done in the flesh. But, it's not a "weighing in a balance" thing about salvation at all; it will be rewarding for good in Heaven and setting a just punishment for bad deeds in hell; there is ONLY ONE SIN that sends anyone to hell and that's rejecting the Lord's freely offered ticket to eternal life with him in his heaven. (John 3:17-18)


Many believe all sins are equal so the concept of God keeping score on Judgement Day is meaningless. If murdering a child is equivalent to stealing a $1 out of your desk drawer...well it seems silly to me. So I do not believe all sins are equal.

And you are right. All sin is sin but not every sin is as bad as others or there would need be no cause for a judgement day at all.

The Great White Throne judgement is to determine the just punishment for what each lost person has done. Each will reap exactly what he has sown, not what another has sown. (2 Cor 5:10)

Those well meaning (but wrong) people who say all sins are equal and will be treated equally in hell have been listening to too many poorly educated in the scriptures "hellfire and brimstone" preachers that have massively misunderstood the great difference between just thinking of a sin and doing it. Wishing to sin hurts us and offends God but doing sin directly hurts others; God really dislikes that!

[dtknowles]

Tim, in your original post you wrote. "Do you believe that bad deeds in this life will be punished in this life or in an after life?"

For many of us, the "after life" is of much more consequence...sorry if I went down the wrong rabbit hole. For me the after life is heaven or hell.

no problem, I did mention both but was mostly interested in Karma while we live.

Tim

[dtknowles]

Tim, in your original post you wrote. "Do you believe that bad deeds in this life will be punished in this life or in an after life?"

For many of us, the "after life" is of much more consequence...sorry if I went down the wrong rabbit hole. For me the after life is heaven or hell.

Myself, I believe that God judges us for his purposes in the afterlife. The heaven/hell thing is fantasy and the afterlife is whatever God feels we are suited for. I was just wondering if people though that God rewards and punishes us in this life.

Tim

[Hickory]

What most people call karma is nothing more than the results of the actions of stupid people.

[dtknowles]

What most people call karma is nothing more than the results of the actions of stupid people.

Yes, but is some part of it God acting in the present?

Tim

[Rizzo]

Karma (aka The Law of Cause and Effect) is usually referenced in discussions about reincarnation.

Although the Bible does not use that word (Karma), the concept is referenced in many passages and used by Jesus Himself.

"...Live by the sword, die by the sword..." is one of them.

Yes, I believe good acts bring on good things to you in this life time.
Bad acts are also dealt with as well.
If they are not dealt with in this life, then they are carried over into our next reincarnation.
Our next life is tailored to give us the opportunity to resolve those issues so that we may spiritually progress to "heaven" to be with God.

There is no hell that one goes to for eternity.

For those that believe that their belief in Jesus, as their Savior, gives them a free pass to heaven because Jesus died for their sins are mistaken, in my opinion. For them, Karma is not even up for discussion since it would be a moot point.

You reap what you sow and are accountable.
It seems somewhat contradictory to read Karma references in the Bible, and then tell yourself that it does not refer to you because Jesus died for your sins so you've got a pass on that Karma thing.

[1hole]

... Bad acts are also dealt with as well.
If they are not dealt with in this life, then they are carried over into our next reincarnation.....

Our next life is tailored to give us the opportunity to resolve those issues so that we may spiritually progress to "heaven" to be with God.

"Our next life is tailored" ... Really? And to what "God" do you refer? How do you know that? And, if you're right, how might people who have absolutely no memory of past "issues" could reasonably be expected to do better the next time?


There is no hell that one goes to for eternity.

??? Interesting observation and calmly stated as a fact. I wonder, are you the authority who declares all that to be true, i.e., all on your own, or do you have another reliable source to support your claim?

(I'm betting you and your sources are going to be badly disappointed in yourselves when all yawl finally learn the truth about that.)


You reap what you sow and are accountable.

So, to whom or what scorekeeper do you believe we are "accountable"? (Except maybe to the God you deny?)

[Winger Ed.]

What most people call karma is nothing more than the results of the actions of stupid people.

That's a bit of a head scratcher since God must really like stupid people.

Why else would he have made so darn many of them?:kidding:

[dtknowles]

Stupid people were put on Earth as and obstacle for us to deal with. How you deal with stupid people will reveal much about your character.

Tim

[Hickory]

I am simply amazed everytime one of these discussions comes up and learn so much that people think they know about the Holy Bible and the message it is meant to convey to us.
I'll give you a tip, the Bible is meant to be read as a whole book and to be understood as a whole book. Once you understand the jest of the whole Book, [which is the mind and thinking of God] the books in the Bible will have greater meaning as do individual verses.
Read the whole Bible and ask yourself, what does God want me to know, help me understand the thing I don't know. Don't just pick out the verses you want to believe and discard the rest like you would pick blueberries and put them in a basket and leave the rest behind.
You do yourself an injustice by basing everything you believe about the Bible and God by only believing one or two verses in the Bible.
The Devil has done his job when you start believing things that are not of God or in the Bible.

[Rizzo]

"Our next life is tailored" ... Really? And to what "God" do you refer? How do you know that? And, if you're right, how might people who have absolutely no memory of past "issues" could reasonably be expected to do better the next time?

??? Interesting observation and calmly stated as a fact. I wonder, are you the authority who declares all that to be true, i.e., all on your own, or do you have another reliable source to support your claim?

(I'm betting you and your sources are going to be badly disappointed in yourselves when all yawl finally learn the truth about that.)
First off, you seem to need to be reminded that there is only one God.
God the Creator.

I know from reading your posts that you have an understanding about karma and reincarnation yet you still asked those silly questions.
Why is that?

What I have stated relates to what karma and reincarnation is about.
I suggest that you do a web search on those topics for a better understanding.
While you are at it, get a cup of coffee and search for reincarnation in the Bible.
I think that you will be surprised at what you find.


So, to whom or what scorekeeper do you believe we are "accountable"? (Except maybe to the God you deny?)
<sigh>Now we come to this.
So, you say I deny God.
A denier of God is an atheist.

You know better yet you tell me and everyone else here that I am God denier.
Here's one for you 1hole:
"Thou shalt not bear false witness............."
Bad Karma for you 1hole.

[1hole]

Ah, well. I tried.

[mozeppa]

i worked in the services industry for 44 years.
i went into hundreds of homes each year.

and while i'm a flawed human work in progress i have noted that there are very wealthy people out there without so much as 2 neurons to rub together to call an original thought...yet they drove ferraris, lamborghinis and live in million dollar houses and have done so since they got out of college.....never seem to have problems.

then there are people like me... doomed to struggle every day...and witness them.


gee i sure hope there is karma.




but i doubt it.

[dtknowles]

I am simply amazed everytime one of these discussions comes up and learn so much that people think they know about the Holy Bible and the message it is meant to convey to us.
I'll give you a tip, the Bible is meant to be read as a whole book and to be understood as a whole book. Once you understand the jest of the whole Book, [which is the mind and thinking of God] the books in the Bible will have greater meaning as do individual verses.
Read the whole Bible and ask yourself, what does God want me to know, help me understand the thing I don't know. Don't just pick out the verses you want to believe and discard the rest like you would pick blueberries and put them in a basket and leave the rest behind.
You do yourself an injustice by basing everything you believe about the Bible and God by only believing one or two verses in the Bible.
The Devil has done his job when you start believing things that are not of God or in the Bible.

Everyone should also remember that the Bible is not the only wisdom God provided. God sent us many messages from many sources.

Tim

[dtknowles]

i worked in the services industry for 44 years.
i went into hundreds of homes each year.

and while i'm a flawed human work in progress i have noted that there are very wealthy people out there without so much as 2 neurons to rub together to call an original thought...yet they drove ferraris, lamborghinis and live in million dollar houses and have done so since they got out of college.....never seem to have problems.

then there are people like me... doomed to struggle every day...and witness them.


gee i sure hope there is karma.




but i doubt it.

I think anyone who feels good about driving a Ferrari, Lamborghini is compensating for something missing in their life. Not sure that they are happy.

Alternately while they might not have "so much as 2 neurons to rub together to call an original thought," were they kind or generous. Karma, to me, is more about good and evil not smart or dumb.

Tim

[Hickory]

Everyone should also remember that the Bible is not the only wisdom God provided. God sent us many messages from many sources.

Tim

I am curious, what sources that have any credibility and are recognized with the Christian community?

[dtknowles]

I am curious, what sources that have any credibility and are recognized with the Christian community?

Recognition by the Christian community has no relevance regarding credibility.

The works of Confucius for starters and then we could add

The Republic – Plato.
Nicomachean Ethics – Aristotle.
A History of Western Philosophy – Bertrand Russell.
Beyond Good and Evil – Friedrich Nietzsche.
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance – Robert M. Pirsig.
Descartes: Meditations on First Philosophy – René Descartes.
The World as Will and Representation – Arthur Schopenhauer.

If you have not read at least some of these books, well known for their genius, then how can you feel you have a good grasp on Deep Theology. While I have not read them all, I have a pretty good start.

Tim

[2A-Jay]

I believe my Karma just ran over your Dogma

[Hickory]

Recognition by the Christian community has no relevance regarding credibility.

The works of Confucius for starters and then we could add

The Republic – Plato.
Nicomachean Ethics – Aristotle.
A History of Western Philosophy – Bertrand Russell.
Beyond Good and Evil – Friedrich Nietzsche.
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance – Robert M. Pirsig.
Descartes: Meditations on First Philosophy – René Descartes.
The World as Will and Representation – Arthur Schopenhauer.

If you have not read at least some of these books, well known for their genius, then how can you feel you have a good grasp on Deep Theology. While I have not read them all, I have a pretty good start.

Tim

In your list of deep theological reads you forgot Dr. Seuss.

[1hole]

In your list of deep theological reads you forgot Dr. Seuss.

Excellent observation. And, in context, it's quite relevant to the discussion at this point.

[dtknowles]

In your list of deep theological reads you forgot Dr. Seuss.

I doubt your pastor or priest got thru seminary without reading some of those books and I don't mean Dr. Seuss.

Tim

[fixit]

I find the concept of karma to be ignorant of the deepest nature of man. If God is, indeed,holy,and cannot abide the presence of sin, then nobody would be in heaven! No one is good. We all have a deep seated evil in our hearts, from the earliest days of our conscious thoughts. That is why it was necessary to have the intercedent, Jesus. We are incapable of paying our own debt. With our first sin, our own blood becomes insufficient for the payment of our sin.

[dtknowles]

I find the concept of karma to be ignorant of the deepest nature of man. If God is, indeed,holy,and cannot abide the presence of sin, then nobody would be in heaven! No one is good. We all have a deep seated evil in our hearts, from the earliest days of our conscious thoughts. That is why it was necessary to have the intercedent, Jesus. We are incapable of paying our own debt. With our first sin, our own blood becomes insufficient for the payment of our sin.

No one is good, you believe that? Not even Mother Teresa? God has long abided the presence of sin. The biblical record is that God was only moved by the most abhorrent depravity. Do not presume that everyone is as sinful as you.

Tim

[abunaitoo]

Do I believe in Karma?????
Somewhat.
I believe good things happen when you are good.
In turn, bad things happen when your bad.
Bad and good is in the eyes of the beholder.
We all constantly see people getting away doing bad things.
That could be good karma to them?????.
And good people being taken advantage of, or wronged in other ways.
Is that bad karma????
So do I believe in Karma????
Somewhat.

[Blackwater]

[QUOTE=dtknowles;4880271]Do you believe that ones actions bring upon oneself inevitable results, good or bad, either in this life or in a the next. Do you believe that good deeds in this life will be rewarded with a better life? Do you believe that bad deeds in this life will be punished in this life or in an after life?

I believe that most, if not all, of the imagined "punishments" inflicted on us by God are not punishments, and they do not come from God, but are the simple and inevitable results of sin in our lives. God is often very long suffering before allowing the fit ends to occur when we have sin in our lives, but eventually, He always allows us to get the results we so ardently seek. I don't believe God punishes us. I believe He allows the natural forces that He created bring us to a point where we HAVE to recognize our sins, that we might turn from them. God is love, not punishment.

Do you believe it is possible to be a bad person and live a happy life?

This is one of those "trick questions." The answer depends on your definition and perception of the word "happy." If you mean a truly, deeply satisfying life, complete with some regrets and an appreciation of how much the Lord has guided us, even when we had no suspicion He was doing so, then no, people who choose to be what we call "bad," do so from a self-inflicted focus on themselves, and they're generally just eaten up with fear as well. It may not show, overtly, but it's there, whether we recognize it or not. And how can a person be "happy" when he's so irrevocably focused on their own miniscule selves, and so full of fear? The answer is, they can't. But people will argue these things 'till time passes away, I guess. But to no good end.

Do you believe it is possible to be a good person and always have to suffer?

Yes, if by "always" you mean like Job did. If you mean "always" in terms of the complete duration of their lives, then I would say "Very very seldom." Some folks are born with genetic defects, that makes them "Pay" in our general view, all their lives. But I've known some like this who were devout Christians, and some of the best examples of it I've seen.

There's something unique about suffering. It just aggrevates many, but some find in it, a reprieve from having to "prove" themselves, and thus, they tend to focus more on the internal matters than the external. And thus, they can become some of our finest examples of Christianity, and of love for their fellow man, and of forgiveness of those who wrong them. What a life some of them live, in Christ's view!!!

[fixit]

mother teresa had a firmly grounded understanding of sin in the heart of mankind. if you do the research, i think you'll be suprised at her humility and recognition of her own sin nature, which, by the way, is one of the foundational concepts of catholicism. further, i made no assumption, or accusation, of anybody's sinfulness being more or less than mine, only pointing out that EVERYBODY sins, with the only person who never sinned being Jesus Christ, Him being God incarnate. so, in bluntest terms, yes, i do not recognise that anyone is good at their deepest level. furthermore, the bible, which you denigrate by including with other books of philosophy and religion, calls out the depravity of mankind. what i will say concerning this interchange is this....we, that is humanity, errs greatly by using our standard to call whether one is good or not. the standard we should be using is God's standard! against that standard, no one can stand without the intercession of Jesus Christ.

[Scrounge]

Nothing seems to happen to them. You don’t know everything about their personal life. They may lose a lot of loved ones. They may have financial issues that we never hear about. Because we don’t know everything about their life they may be suffering.

And sometimes they wind up in the headlines themselves. Kharma in action Exibit 1: https://thefederalist.com/2020/04/21/nyt-author-who-faulted-fox-news-for-mans-tragic-passing-also-downplayed-coronavirus/