Sean93, on 25 December 2012 - 09:09 PM, said:
Not every single person killed on Gods' command were Nephlim, there are plenty of people who were human. I think everyone needs to accept that God/Yahweh has done some things that are bad and unfair and that were only written into the bible because the zeitgeist of the time allowed it. Take a look at the laws of Leviticus and tell me that the zeitgeist/laws of today wold agree with these, that they would be implemented into the fabric of society an treated as just and moral.
I agree, we do tend to look back into the past with our present sensitivities and "morals" and judge the past by the present. Some of those rules are not applicable at all in western society according to how we tend to view the world. The inverse is also true, if past societies could see our world, and got past all the wonderful things, they would call us libertines and indulgently stupid. Sending criminals to jail, giving them counseling and three square meals a day... wow.
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Yahweh may be real, and I acknowledge the fact that if he is real, that I am hammered if his laws are anything to go by...as are most if not all of us.
Ha but you see, Gods attiude toward us has also changed, because he treats people according to their worldview. We are much more knowledgeable of the universe, we can see more clearly much that was hidden to those of ages past. Our sensitivities and perceptions have altered and thus his approach to us has too.
Why is God today considered to be a God of "Love"? Because he himself led us on the that path of enlightenment. What was unthinkable back then is accepted today as the natural order of things, that all men are imbued with unalienable rights... That all men are equal, not only before each other but also before God himself.
So, what is important to God, after all is said and done, the rules? or something much more important?
Mark 12:28-34
28And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?” 29Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ 31The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” 32And the scribe said to him, “You are right, Teacher. You have truly said that he is one, and there is no other besides him. 33And to love him with all the heart and with all the understanding and with all the strength, and to love one’s neighbor as oneself, is much more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.” 34And when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” And after that no one dared to ask him any more questions.
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I often wonder: If the bible had been written today if Jesus' ministry had begun today, would books like Leviticus and the stories of death and other horrible acts still be in it? I doubt it because otherwise, the educated and sensible people would instantly say "Go **** yourself with that madness".
Yes they would, because there is one thing that is unchangeable, it is human nature and what applied then still happens today, from a lie, to stabbing others in the back, to poisoning, to murder, to greed and the love of power as well as overcoming impossible odds, of great leaps of faith, of loving ones enemies and changing their attitude toward you by your example, of martyrdom, when they kill you anyway.
The essence of those stories are about human nature and how God can change that nature.... the whole bible is about that if you read carefully.
People of Jesus time also called him crazy because they didn't understand that he came to change their natures, not the rules that surrounded them.
Edited by Jor-el, 25 December 2012 - 09:44 PM.