The written word invites questions. We are supposed to study and think about what we are reading. I am not questioning God - I am questioning humanity's behavior. I am also trying to find the loving God I know in the pages of the OT. Fearing God means having reverence for him. Some people seem to believe we are supposed to live in fear of the One we are in the closest relationship - this is wrong! That is a description of an abusive relationship - if I was afraid of my spouse I would leave.
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That was not the question. As a people, human kind has gotten better? Our wars are more humane? That is my question. Humankind has not gotten better, he is just as fallen a creature as ever, if not worse. Of course, it is hard to get beyond the pale.
We have not even seen the destruction which awaits in God's judgment upon this world and the ruler of this world. It will cause us to have tears, and these tears God will wipe away, with His own hand, and there will never be any tears again.
The wars in the future are worse than anything yet seen, The prophet said that the entire land of Israel would be covered with the corpses of those who had invaded it for 7 years, that they would have no place to bury them. And at the end of the thousand years, the fire of God will destroy Gog and Magog with such utter destruction as to stagger the imagination.
God has not changed, and neither has mankind.
We have not even seen the destruction which awaits in God's judgment upon this world and the ruler of this world. It will cause us to have tears, and these tears God will wipe away, with His own hand, and there will never be any tears again.
The wars in the future are worse than anything yet seen, The prophet said that the entire land of Israel would be covered with the corpses of those who had invaded it for 7 years, that they would have no place to bury them. And at the end of the thousand years, the fire of God will destroy Gog and Magog with such utter destruction as to stagger the imagination.
God has not changed, and neither has mankind.
O
But that begs the question, does God change his requirements or is He unchanging?
In the greater scheme of things, probably humankind has not gotten better but if God commands you to attack and destroy a nation (like what He told Israel to do), it would be foolhardy to ignore that command. So the question is, did God command them out of love or out of spite and hatred? If it is out of spite and hatred, God would have contradicted His teachings in the New Testament. But I'm sure it is difficult for anyone to say that God told Israel to destroy people out of love.
In the greater scheme of things, probably humankind has not gotten better but if God commands you to attack and destroy a nation (like what He told Israel to do), it would be foolhardy to ignore that command. So the question is, did God command them out of love or out of spite and hatred? If it is out of spite and hatred, God would have contradicted His teachings in the New Testament. But I'm sure it is difficult for anyone to say that God told Israel to destroy people out of love.
Claiming that humanity has not gotten better as a whole is to claim that God's work in our hearts has made no impact on the world. I agree that the same evil is still in the world and continues to manifest in wars, famines, etc, however, the Spirit's presence in the world has had tremendous impact - their is greater good in the world than ever before.
Most of the events in the Book of Revelation have already occurred - we are simply waiting for Christ's return.
If so, God's sanctification has failed.
Most of the events in the Book of Revelation have already occurred - we are simply waiting for Christ's return.
If so, God's sanctification has failed.
K
I'm not sure it does. Whether or not he changes his requirements, my point is that I doubt that he does so on the basis of what we're used to. My thought is that, if we find God adjusting his requirements to allow us to do what we'd do anyway, we've very likely replaced God with one of our own making. It's too convenient to have heavenly permission for habit. This to me has psychological, not theological, implications.
C
Exodus 22:20-33 Says this "I will not drive them out before you in a single year, that the land may not become desolate, and the beasts of the field become too numerous for you. I will drive them out before you little by little, until you become fruitful and take possession of the land." and then "You will dreve them out before you. You shall make no covenant with them or with their gods. They shall not live in your land lest they make you sin against Me; for if you serve their gods, it will surely be a snare to you."
C
Exodus 17:8-15 "Then Amelek came and fought against Israel at Rephidim....So Joshua overwhelmed Amelek and his people with the sword. Then the Lord said to Moses, "Write this in a book as a memorial, and recite it to Joshua that I will utterly blot out the memory of Amelek from under the heaven.....The Lord has sworn; the Lord will have war against Amelek from generation to generation."
The Tanakh is probably the single most misinterpreted and misunderstood piece of literature in the history of mankind.
The fact is you have to look at Scripture as a whole. The habit to divide the two is what causes all these problems. But if you look at the Tanakh and the new testament together as the WORD OF G-D rather than the "old" one and the "new" one, you get the full picture of the nature of G-d.
The fact is you have to look at Scripture as a whole. The habit to divide the two is what causes all these problems. But if you look at the Tanakh and the new testament together as the WORD OF G-D rather than the "old" one and the "new" one, you get the full picture of the nature of G-d.
You know, I understand your concern about the veracity of the Bible. I would never throw out the OT or suggest that others do so. I accept everything in the OT as inspired - I just think we need to look at what God is trying to tell us - are Israel's national interests the message we need to take from Exodus, or our tendencies to mold God's will into our own national interests? Our habit of using God as an authority for our own atrocities. I think we need to learn from the mistakes in the Bible, not that God is jealous, or vengeful.
If the way I am choosing to focus on the OT is not helpful for you, please disregard it, but it is important for me that you understand how much I value the OT and the NT.
If the way I am choosing to focus on the OT is not helpful for you, please disregard it, but it is important for me that you understand how much I value the OT and the NT.
L
In almost every instance where the Isrealites went to war, God went before them, He declared Himself to be a jealous God. We define God in terms that we are comfortable with and anything that does not fit into our definition we say is not of God. God will always be so much more than even our most expansive view of God.
God is a God of love but he also is a God of wrath. We should embrace His love and fear His wrath.
God is a God of love but he also is a God of wrath. We should embrace His love and fear His wrath.