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From my time being here in City-Data, I've come to realize that not all Christians are created equally. There are those who are literalist, who believe that just about every word in the bible should be understood and interpreted literally and they have their own confusions and contradictions to work through, however, I am a little more puzzled about those who seem to spiritualize everything to make the more bizzare and atrocicious things in the bible more palatable.
There are Christians here who emphasize the love of their god and that can be a very good thing because they focus on a positive aspect, but how do they reconcile the things in the bible that reflect an angry, jealous, brooding, judgmental god who is also supposed to be an earlier version of the same god of love they worship? How do they explain away Old Testament commands to enslave, discriminate and kill other people? Weren't these commands literal or were they just words that were left out there for creative interpretations (spiritualizing) and mental/verbal gymnastics?
From my time being here in City-Data, I've come to realize that not all Christians are created equally. There are those who are literalist, who believe that just about every word in the bible should be understood and interpreted literally and they have their own confusions and contradictions to work through, however, I am a little more puzzled about those who seem to spiritualize everything to make the more bizzare and atrocicious things in the bible more palatable.
There are Christians here who emphasize the love of their god and that can be a very good thing because they focus on a positive aspect, but how do they reconcile the things in the bible that reflect an angry, jealous, brooding, judgmental god who is also supposed to be an earlier version of the same god of love they worship? How do they explain away Old Testament commands to enslave, discriminate and kill other people? Weren't these commands literal or were they just words that were left out there for creative interpretations (spiritualizing) and mental/verbal gymnastics?
Christians are supposed to fear God as much as they love him. He is all powerful, and thinking you should be allowed to get away with any sin without consequence isn't how it works.
God had His people enslaved, and ordered just as much enslaving, discriminating and the deaths of others just as much as he did his own.
The book of Judges is about leaders in present-day Israel who were given power by God and threw off slavery or drove out invaders, but after these leaders would pass on, the people grew content and stopped worshipping God. God would then have a nearby army invade, and the process would be repeated.
I Hope I answered your question, interpreting the Bible is a dangerous thing, just like interpreting the Constitution, many take bits and pieces out of context, or consider them to mean other things.
Well God is a God of love and I think what we have in the OT is misrepresentation. I think a lot of things were ATTRIBUTED to God, but I'd say the majority of it was more bad interpretations of what those little voices in some of those heads were telling them. Too much sun and sand.
I think there are many layers going on in the bible, the bible itself when viewed as a whole shows two sides:
The old testament - the old covenant - the idea of God's chosen people, Israel- the physical carnal side vs.
The new testament - the new covenant - salvation is available to all, Jews & Gentiles - the spiritual
There is a basic principle at work here: first the physical, then the spiritual. I might even say that everything we see in the physical is a parallel for something we are supposed to learn in the spiritual.
So when we look at specific events in the OT, while I believe that those events did actually happen, I believe there is also a larger spiritual message that we are to discern.
Part of it is cultural/translational issues as well. For example this whole idea of slavery, while it seems repulsive to us, back in the day it was actually more a type of "employment". That's just the way things worked back then.
Now what about all the examples of killing, destruction, in the OT? We have to realize that God is revealing things slowly here. For thousands of years people didn't have the NT. The NT comes along and all of a sudden we have this huge focus on love. Love God, love each other, love your enemies. That is really what God commanded, not the specific ten commandments. Each of those commandments is about love - that is the real deal. Love is the spiritual, the ten commandments taken physically are just dead letters of the law. But taken spiritually, you end up with the concept of love.
So what about the killing & destruction then? I firmly believe God is using us humans as living examples of the physical and the spiritual. Much of the OT is about the destruction of those who opposed God's people. That was the physical. But there is a spiritual meaning here. What is really being destroyed here? What needs to be destroyed? The physical carnal nature. The physical is temporary, but the spiritual is the real deal. We are born physical, carnal, but will be raised spritual, incorruptible. First the physical, then the spritual.
There are many layers of understanding here, and God is using the physical events of history to explain what is going to happen spiritually. Sorry I'm rambling here, I'm just writing this off the cuff. Perhaps I will be able to organize this better later, but this is just some thoughts I've had.
From my time being here in City-Data, I've come to realize that not all Christians are created equally. There are those who are literalist, who believe that just about every word in the bible should be understood and interpreted literally and they have their own confusions and contradictions to work through, however, I am a little more puzzled about those who seem to spiritualize everything to make the more bizzare and atrocicious things in the bible more palatable.
There are Christians here who emphasize the love of their god and that can be a very good thing because they focus on a positive aspect, but how do they reconcile the things in the bible that reflect an angry, jealous, brooding, judgmental god who is also supposed to be an earlier version of the same god of love they worship? How do they explain away Old Testament commands to enslave, discriminate and kill other people? Weren't these commands literal or were they just words that were left out there for creative interpretations (spiritualizing) and mental/verbal gymnastics?
It is real simple, the bible depicts our nature as having a battle within each of us between two natures, our carnal and righteous sides, the things that people see as negative is God dealing with the Carnal side.
Even an Atheist battles the infuences that cause them to face choosing between right or wrong.
The common argument is that while God is Love, he is also a number of other things, however, this is normally contrasted with the literal intepretations that rationalize that God indeed did all this to human beings rather than the writers spiritualizing the inner self through earthly events to help us understand our nature.
Well God is a God of love and I think what we have in the OT is misrepresentation. I think a lot of things were ATTRIBUTED to God, but I'd say the majority of it was more bad interpretations of what those little voices in some of those heads were telling them. Too much sun and sand.
So, you don't think the Bible (OT) is true. Is this part of UR theology? That the OT is all wrong about God?
From my time being here in City-Data, I've come to realize that not all Christians are created equally. There are those who are literalist, who believe that just about every word in the bible should be understood and interpreted literally and they have their own confusions and contradictions to work through, however, I am a little more puzzled about those who seem to spiritualize everything to make the more bizzare and atrocicious things in the bible more palatable.
There are Christians here who emphasize the love of their god and that can be a very good thing because they focus on a positive aspect, but how do they reconcile the things in the bible that reflect an angry, jealous, brooding, judgmental god who is also supposed to be an earlier version of the same god of love they worship? How do they explain away Old Testament commands to enslave, discriminate and kill other people? Weren't these commands literal or were they just words that were left out there for creative interpretations (spiritualizing) and mental/verbal gymnastics?
They either claim the "blind faith" card or the "Gods ways are higher" card...because have no other logical or rational explanation for the atrocities and inconsistencies one finds in their scripture.
They either claim the "blind faith" card or the "Gods ways are higher" card...because have no other logical or rational explanation for the atrocities and inconsistencies one finds in their scripture.
Are you sure about that? No offense but you are making a lot of assumptions!
From my time being here in City-Data, I've come to realize that not all Christians are created equally. There are those who are literalist, who believe that just about every word in the bible should be understood and interpreted literally and they have their own confusions and contradictions to work through, however, I am a little more puzzled about those who seem to spiritualize everything to make the more bizzare and atrocicious things in the bible more palatable.
There are Christians here who emphasize the love of their god and that can be a very good thing because they focus on a positive aspect, but how do they reconcile the things in the bible that reflect an angry, jealous, brooding, judgmental god who is also supposed to be an earlier version of the same god of love they worship? How do they explain away Old Testament commands to enslave, discriminate and kill other people? Weren't these commands literal or were they just words that were left out there for creative interpretations (spiritualizing) and mental/verbal gymnastics?
That is part of God that I love, that he can become angry, that he can kill and destroy as much as love. God is like electricity, which is very good when used properly, but when not used properly can kill you. That is why we respect(fear) God. A good respect will keep you alive.
I think this destruction and anger that God possess reveals his awesomeness and power. No man can come to God, touch God, look upon God or else they will die. But when we come through Jesus Christ we can boldly come to the throne of God without fear.
It is through Jesus Christ we are saved. It is though Jesus Christ that we can come bodly to God.
So, in the OT man could not come to God in the way we can now. That is why God appears different in the OT and the NT. However, God as seen in the OT was still full of mercy and justice and love.
Are you sure about that? No offense but you are making a lot of assumptions!
Since when did faith become a "card?"
I'm not really assuming anything...for when I was a Christian, these are the explanations I was given by countless pastors, preacher and teachers to explain the atrocities committed by an alleged loving god....who was NEVER portrayed as loving in the OT. I've since become educated and now can recognize the actual truth.
If you don't mind....please give us all your explanation/take for all of the gross atrocities committed in the bible by god.
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