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What good is the promise that the glorious presence of God Most High will protect those who have lived pure lives, when our own lives have been so full of sin?
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What good is it that Paradise is shown to us, that its imperishable fruit can heal us and provide all we need? We can never go there
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because we have lived unacceptable lives.
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What good is it that the faces of those who practice self-control will shine more brightly than the stars, when our own faces will be blacker than the night?
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Never in our whole lives, when we sinned, did we think about what we would have to suffer after death."
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The angel replied, "Here is the meaning of the conflict that every person on earth must endure:
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If he is defeated, he must suffer the things you have just told me about, but if he is victorious, he will receive the rewards that I have just mentioned.
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That is why Moses long ago urged the people to choose life so that they might live.
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But they did not believe him or the prophets who came after him, and they did not believe me when I spoke to them.
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So the sadness over their destruction is nothing compared to the great joy over the salvation of those who believe."
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I answered, "Sir, I know that God Most High is spoken of as merciful because he shows mercy to those who have not yet entered this world.