Well that's totally non-responsive. I was really just curious which, if any, parts of the Bible you get to pick and choose to follow, and how/why. Does the preacher/pastor tell you or do you have to figure it out yourself? I looooove pork and shellfish, but am not so keen on stoning people, I'm looking for guidance here.
Even worse...I'm not a bankruptcy lawyer That's Refman. I am an attorney, though. Thanks for the kind words!!!
You and I think differently on this. No problem in that at all. I'm curious to know how you resolve the issues presented by Jesus, himself, breaking the LAW on the regular...and kinda owning it in the face of the religious leaders of the day. I promise that's not a setup or me fighting. I'm long past arguing about religion. Happy to tell you how I feel or what I believe about something...but not interested in pretending I KNOW I'm right or that I have all the answers. I thing "religion" sometimes empties God of mystery and wonder in an effort to attempt to explain everything....I'm not interested in doing that. And I think the OP has been really respectful in this thread (which is no surprise, because I find him to be that way, generally)...but I always find it funny when people come in a thread with a title like this to grind an axe against those who might dare to respond to it. I don't really see the value in that.
I prayed to God to give me a bike. After thinking about it, I realized that is not the way God works. So, I stole a bike and prayed for forgiveness.
Christianity is about what is in your heart, not in your words. The fact that you use it as a shield that you're "forgiven already" for whatever stupid things you want to say or do suggests that you preach Jesus, but you don't actually attempt to embody anything he preached - in other words, you live the Christian life in your words, but not in your actions or your heart.
I won't touch the other stuff here. But, The Law is the entire law of the Old Testament, including Leviticus, etc. A common theological approach, however, categorizes the Law into moral law, judicial law, and ceremonial law. Moral law would be eternal and would include things like the 10 Commandments. Judicial law is more relevant to the society's time and place, such as the rules you might find about punishment for murder in Judges. And ceremonial law would be the things that Jews were commanded to do to be set apart from others -- dietary restrictions, circumcision, etc. So, the "parts of the Old Testament people don't like" that get ignored are not capriciously ignored, they are set aside as no longer appropriate because Jesus has come and expanded his Kingdom to include Jews and Gentiles. Peter's vision in which God says to not call unclean those things He has made clean would be the textual evidence. Cleanliness is a different idea for something like moral law, so the implication is there that there's some distinction between the moral and the ceremonial. For the modern day Christian in this framework, I think you can hold the moral law as eternal, the judicial law as perhaps a precedent that can be accepted or rejected as appropriate to the context, and ceremonial law should perhaps be understood but not under any compulsion be abided by. Of course, there's some ceremonial stuff in the New Testament too (like women should cover their hair), but there's also distinctions made by theologians there between commands and godly advice. Theologians have worked all the angles to make sure they always have an out.
personally I can't WAIT to get to hell where I can do yoga all day, hang with zappa and NEVER wear a sweater.
I don't think he was saying that Christ sinned, but that Christ broke the Sabbath as was laid out and you believe is law from the old testament. The religious leaders of the day called him out on it because he healed on the sabbath. That was most definitely against the word of the law from the old testament. I believe he was asking how you justify it to yourself that he did not follow the word of law which claim should still be followed, and yet he spoke out against it.
I am not really sure why I am responding to this but if you bother to actually read the New Testament it is all laid out for you. Now mind you have to be able to read and actually comprehend what you are reading but it but it clearly spells it out for you if you actually really care to know. I will give you a hint, you have to read and at least comprehend every word. I am not saying you have to believe it, that is your choice, but the answer to your question is there if you read it. Another hint, you may have to actually have to read the Old Testament to know what the New Testament was referring to. Who would have ever guessed you need to read the book to understand what it says. Until you do ACTUALLY READ IT, since you are so cynical, why not refrain from posting in threads you know nothing about.
What's wrong with being a cynic? Diogenes of Sinope is my role-model and was the inspiration to all the Stoics.
I am not a big fan of the heat frankly. Nor of being too high, the air gets a bit too thin up there - I also have vertigo and acrophobia. I count my lucky stars I am not Christian and don't have to look forward to either fate.
If only you could exempt yourself. Sorry to inform you it doesn't work that way. Just because you choose to not believe now doesn't exempt you from judgement that is coming. I pray you see the light before it is too late but somehow doubt you will. That being said you can believe or not, it is your choice, but choosing not to read the entire scriptures in the Bible or the Qu'ran then making uneducated post like you actually know what you are talking when what you post shows you are ignorant about both religions is probably not the brightest idea. It makes you look REALLY bad. I love true debate but it waste a lot of time when debating clueless people like you on these subjects.
I understand that is what you believe and have been raised to believe despite there being absolutely no basis for it. But that same book teaches you that hubris is something that takes you to hell. So by your own belief you will be sitting right next to me and we will get to argue about it for eternity. But don't worry about me. I can assure you, my fate has nothing to do with Jesus. He was a cool dude, don't get me wrong. A great man, who really loved people and truly sacrificed himself for humanity. To me, it's a shame how you honor his memory by acting like you do.
