Quote Originally Posted by steelish View Post
No doubt. However, the bible was not written by God himself but by people.
I agree, but again, our point of view is in marked contradiction to many who believe that the bible is the actual Word of God, and woe unto those who would disagree!

All I know is that only God can pass judgement, and based upon the 10 commandments and the knowledge that they are rules that are designed to keep us good and pure (as good and pure as a human can be), then I find it difficult to believe that God cannot see true goodness in the heart of one who stands before him in judgement.
But didn't we get the ten commandments from the bible? If so, then by your own words, they were written by men, and not by God.

The truth is that people can and do behave properly even without a belief in God or gods. It has been shown that morality is a survival mechanism for people, allowing large groups to live together more or less smoothly. There's no reason to believe that people are only good because of God. In fact, there is evidence to suggest that those areas of the US, at least, which are most religious also have higher crime rates than areas which are less religious.
I also abhor those who knowingly do bad things and think that by "confessing their sins" they are completely cleansed and can go to heaven. I'm sorry, but I truly believe God can see right through that tactic.
If there were an omniscient God then yes, I would expect he could see through that. But Yahweh, of the Bible, doesn't seem to care how his worshippers come to him, only that they do.