Would a Christian please explain the importance of the Old Testament to Christianity? Are there any parts of it that are essential Christian doctrine, or perhaps its function is instead to put into context the belief system of the community to which Jesus was born into? Sorry if its a silly/ignorant question. Some Christians are so-called "young Earth creationists" who (I assume) consider the Old Testament (or at least parts of it) historical truth. But others seem to say its completely invalidated by the New Testament. So I'm just looking for some clarity on that.
The Old Testament set up that there is a such a thing as sin. It sets absolute moral values which I know liberals abhor. It sets that the only way to atone for sins is by the shedding of blood. If a person committed sins, and EVERYONE commits sins, they had to atone for that by sacrifice. In the New Testament, God sent his only begotten son to be the ultimate sacrifice. Jesus was the "Lamb of God". His death atoned for all sins for those who will believe in him. There you have it in a nutshell!!
cml is the person you ask if you want a mentally r****ded zealot's view on things. MadMax is intelligent as well as truthful on the issues, better that he chimes in.
lol!!!!! So you have never read the Bible have you and you want to make a comment like this. You make yourself sound very silly. Please argue with me on what I said which is what the Bible teaches and very relevant to this thread. You tried to drag the Texas abortion ruling thread down with irrelevant BS also. You have no clue what you are talking about here.
Thanks. So, is the Old Testament considered a reliable source for discerning what is and isn't sin in Christianity? Or for that, should one only refer to Jesus's teachings as revealed in the New Testament?
Shame on you. You call yourself a christian and lie outright like that? I'm not going to derail durvasa's (another intelligent poster) thread, but any that wish to see the truth can simply click on that thread and see for themselves.
Not a Christian anymore really, but spent 12 years in one of their schools: The OT is a history book full of fables, sure some of the more hardline types will actually try and make rules (laws) from it, but they just pick and choose the ones they like or can actually follow. The New Testament is actual "Christianity", i.e. the following of Christ. He was a pretty cool dude.
Yes it is, the Ten Commandments outline what is and isn't a sin. Jesus actually expanded on this in the New Testament for example the 10 Commandments says you shall not commit adultery but Jesus said in the sermon on the mount (paraphrasing) that whoever looks at a woman in lust has committed adultery already. Yes, I know it is impossible to look at a beautiful woman without feeling lust (even for a Christian) which is the entire point. Man has a sin nature from birth. It impossible to get into Heaven due to this sin nature. In the Old Testament, people committed sacrifices to atone for sin. The shedding of innocent blood atoned for their sins. Jesus was the ultimate sacrifice. When he died, he died sinless thus becoming the ultimate shedding of innocent blood. Whoever believes in him is forgiven of their sins before they ever commit them.
What sort of crazy god demands the spilling of innocent blood to atone for the perceived screw-ups of some other person? Doesn't that seem at all messed up to you? Look at a hot girl, kill a puppy to make the angry god happy again? What sort of ****ed up system is that?
The father of genetics is a Catholic priest. A Catholic priest developed the big bang theory. Evangelical protestants own and operate the Creation Museum. Certainly Christians are not exactly homogeneous.
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It is what he Bible teaches. Sorry to break that to you. I know it is almost impossible for a liberal to understand that. You can believe it or not, that is your choice. The OP asked for the differences in the Old and New Testament so I spelled it out for him. Everyone has to make their own choice and it sounds like you already have. Good for you.
How about a response from The Man himself? Mat 5:17 ¶ Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. The law is the Old Testament( which is where we receive our laws and commandments)- which is a prophecy of the events to come in the New Testament . Mat 5:18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. Again the Law is the Old- So he is saying here that nothing from the new prophecies( his return, the downfall of the wicked) shall be achieved or will take place till all of the old prophecies are fulfilled (mainly his crucifixion) cause at this time the disciples still had no idea about his coming sacrifice. And just for a little more justification this is the in counter with his temptations from the devil where he is quoting the Law to defeat him. showing The Old Testament is what He lives by and his go to for protection. https://www.blueletterbible.org/kjv/mat/4/1/s_933001 Hope this helps out.
Why do you think liberal is a pejorative term? And you didn't answer the question. It doesn't strike you as a ****ed up system? Regardless of whether it's in your book or not. What sort of person worships that sort of deity?
Well, that's alright. I'd rather try to learn what actual Christians believe on this matter, even if there's differing opinions, than make assumptions from what non-Christians say.
The shoe fits!!!! You can choose to believe in God or not that is your choice. If you choose to believe in him you have to accept what he teaches and what I posted is what he teaches. God cannot accept sin no matter what without atonement. The shedding of innocent blood by sacrifice was a dress rehearsal for the most innocent blood ever to be shed when Jesus was crucified. Jesus was the Lamb of God to die foe ALL mans sins if they believe in him. That is the key, you have to believe in him by faith. It is God's grace that saves believers by having faith in the one he sent.
You keep talking about "liberals" in almost every single post. There isn't a single mention of "liberals" in the Old or New Testament. Not one. Indeed Jesus was (especially for the time period) arguably a very liberal man. You have a perverted view of Christianity (not that you are alone) that really differs from what we actually know about the man. I also love that you cling so tightly to a group of books that were selected by Catholic leaders many years ago, largely based on politics, yet give no credence to other books that were arbitrarily discarded to the garbage heap of history. Never mind the numerous translations over the last two thousand years and virtually no direct writing from anyone that actually knew Jesus Christ.
