Old Testament God?

[Selah]

See? "Look hard enough and you will always find a light" -Rachel Scott. Or, in this case, an answer to a question!

No doubt the Bible can be a confusing book sometimes...it's good to understand the culture and the language meanings of that time, though, as I said. I hope you are getting this a bit better, Hassan, as I am trying to, hehe.

Edited July 16, 2008 by Selah

[Nihil Obstat]

[quote name='Selah' post='1600830' date='Jul 15 2008, 10:30 PM']See? "Look hard enough and you will always find a light" -Rachel Scott. Or, in this case, an answer to a question!

No doubt the Bible can be a confusing book sometimes...it's good to understand the culture and the language meanings of that time, though, as I said. I hope you are getting this a bit better, Hassan, as I am trying to, hehe.[/quote]
The best part is that we know the light is there, and tend to realize that we had our eyes firmly closed the whole time. ;D

[Hassan]

[quote name='mortify' post='1600375' date='Jul 15 2008, 11:05 AM']Hmm, let me just point out that we have evolved morally because of God's providence. If we were born in that earlier stage of mankind we would have no qualms doing what was commanded; today we do because we've matured morally. Just as some things are acceptable for children but not adults, some things were acceptable for our ancient forebearers that are no longer acceptable.

God works according to what we can handle and lifts us up.[/quote]
That is plausible. However, there is a marked difference between God slowly phasing out slavery and ordering his followed to slaughter defenseless children

[cmotherofpirl]

[quote name='Hassan' post='1602159' date='Jul 17 2008, 05:38 PM']That is plausible. However, there is a marked difference between God slowly phasing out slavery and ordering his followed to slaughter defenseless children[/quote]
Yes there is, but if you are working with coal, you can't cut it like a diamond and expect it to shine. God has to work with where we are as humans.

[puellapaschalis]

Oh my. The linguistics here just made me very, very happy

[EstoVir_TheWay_4]

[quote name='cmotherofpirl' post='1602296' date='Jul 17 2008, 06:50 PM']Yes there is, but if you are working with coal, you can't cut it like a diamond and expect it to shine. God has to work with where we are as humans.[/quote]

oooo I like that analogy!

[fides quarens intellectum]

Hassan,

i think other PMers have done an excellent job so far. i do want to add one observation, regarding some of the deuteronomic laws you brought up: as Jesus said, "from the beginning, it was not so."

Let me explain. In the desert, Israel was tested. They failed. Miserably. Several times. God's covenant with His people is expressed in the Ten Commandments, but Moses gave an additional covenant to teh people before he died, which is known as the Deuteronomic covenant, or Mosaic covenant. This is outlined in Deuteronomy 6-26, and includes all teh laws Moses added to the Ten Commandments. God allowed the slavery, genocide, and divorce, because the the hardness of heart of the Isrealites. But that was not His original plan!!

Check out Ezekiel 20:25, which talks about what happened: "Therefore I gave them statutes that were not good, and ordinances through which they could not live." God gave them laws that were not good because of the hardness of their hearts! If you read Deut 30, it sounds like God was giving them these laws through Moses to help bring about a change of heart, or literally, to circumcise their hearts, to prepare them for a new covenant, making the Deuteronomic covenant only a provisional one.

Jesus came and collapsed the Deuteronomic covenant (He died to free Israel from it). Look at what he said to the Pharisees in Mt 19:1-8 when questioned about why Moses allowed divorce - "from the beginning, it was not so." After the Death, Resurrection and Ascension of Jesus, He sent His Holy Spirit to us at Pentecost. Finally, free from teh Deuteronomic covenant, and thanks to the grace of the Holy Spirit, it is possible for us to follow God's commandments.

God Bless.
-fides