There are two kinds of slavery a) The relatively modern cruel and inhumane slavery of the past centuries and b) The voluntary slavery in the Bible which was allowed for economic purposes.
A lot of people confuse the two. The indentured slavery allowed in the Bible was not forced and cruel. It was not due to skin color. It was not on the basis that one group of people was superior than the other as far as being a human being is concerned. In the Bible, one man could voluntarily offer himself as a servant to pay up his debts or to provide for his family. He was recognized as a person created in the image of God.
The modern slavery we read about in the past centuries was something that was truly ungodly and evil. We, Christians, denounce it to the heavens.
1Ti 1:9 We also know that law is made not for the righteous but for lawbreakers and rebels, the ungodly and sinful, the unholy and irreligious; for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers,
1Ti 1:10 for adulterers and perverts, for SLAVE TRADERS and liars and perjurers—and for whatever else is contrary to the sound doctrine (NIV)
The slavery of the relatively recent past was a slavery that could do cruel, unjust and evil things against one's fellow human beings. And the Bible condemns it.
Wednesday, July 25, 2018
Monday, July 23, 2018
Is the Church an organism or an organization?
We hear so much from some saying: "The Church is not an organization but an organism!" as if system, structure, order and method are not inherent in the Church.
The truth of the matter is that the Church is an organized organism. A disorganized organism will die. The Church is a body. As a body it has organization inherent in it. Examine your body. It has order, system, structure and method. It is not in anarchy at all.
The truth of the matter is that the Church is an organized organism. A disorganized organism will die. The Church is a body. As a body it has organization inherent in it. Examine your body. It has order, system, structure and method. It is not in anarchy at all.
Thursday, July 19, 2018
Eyewitness testimony is not always reliable. What's your view on that in connection to the resurrection?
Yes, it is true that eyewitness testimony is not always reliable. This has been demonstrated time and time again. We should never be naive and gullible in believing that what everybody says or claims is automatically true.
We have to consider their character, their credibility, their competency, their confirmability etcetera.
There are people who often question the competency of the resurrection eyewitnesses based on the fact that there are many cases of people who witnessed a robbery for example who could not be relied upon as to their testimonies of what really happened. It happened so fast that they are not competent as witnesses to what happened.
But the eyewitnesses we have for the resurrection were not witnesses that witnessed an event that occurred in flash as in a drive-by shooting or witnessed an event that happened in minutes. No, what they witnessed happened for more than a month with many infallible proofs. They had ample and sufficient time to evaluate, assess, examine, confirm or even disprove the resurrected Christ before them. Some of them did not even believe even though the evidence was right in front of them; eating, speaking, walking with them.
Mt 28:16 Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had appointed for them.17 When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some doubted.
What overcame their doubtful disposition? The stubborn fact.
* One of them, a doubter, Thomas by name, even handled Him. He was practically told to "examine Me yourself Thomas!"
Joh 20:27 Then He said to Thomas, "Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing."
* In fact, all of them were invited to examine Him!
Lu 24:39 "Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself. HANDLE ME and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have."
* They had a wide window of opportunity to examine Him!
Ac 1:3 to whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during FORTY DAYS and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God.
To compare the quality of witnesses in a drive-by shooting or a robbery that happened within minutes to the quality of the witnesses we have for the resurrection is to compare apples and oranges.
We have to consider their character, their credibility, their competency, their confirmability etcetera.
There are people who often question the competency of the resurrection eyewitnesses based on the fact that there are many cases of people who witnessed a robbery for example who could not be relied upon as to their testimonies of what really happened. It happened so fast that they are not competent as witnesses to what happened.
But the eyewitnesses we have for the resurrection were not witnesses that witnessed an event that occurred in flash as in a drive-by shooting or witnessed an event that happened in minutes. No, what they witnessed happened for more than a month with many infallible proofs. They had ample and sufficient time to evaluate, assess, examine, confirm or even disprove the resurrected Christ before them. Some of them did not even believe even though the evidence was right in front of them; eating, speaking, walking with them.
Mt 28:16 Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had appointed for them.17 When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some doubted.
What overcame their doubtful disposition? The stubborn fact.
* One of them, a doubter, Thomas by name, even handled Him. He was practically told to "examine Me yourself Thomas!"
Joh 20:27 Then He said to Thomas, "Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing."
* In fact, all of them were invited to examine Him!
Lu 24:39 "Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself. HANDLE ME and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have."
* They had a wide window of opportunity to examine Him!
Ac 1:3 to whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during FORTY DAYS and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God.
To compare the quality of witnesses in a drive-by shooting or a robbery that happened within minutes to the quality of the witnesses we have for the resurrection is to compare apples and oranges.
Thursday, July 12, 2018
What Was The Sin Of David In Ordering A Census In 1st Chronicles 21?
1Ch 21:2 So David said to Joab and to the leaders of the people, "Go, number Israel from Beersheba to Dan, and bring the number of them to me that I may know it."
1Ch 21:7 And God was displeased with this thing; therefore He struck Israel.
8 So David said to God, "I have sinned greatly, because I have done this thing; but now, I pray, take away the iniquity of Your servant, for I have done very foolishly."
It was about the old sin of the devil --- pride. David got proud with his military might. Also, he found his safety and security in numbers. Apparently, Israel was punished too because they and their leader became proud of their might and number. Notice that before chapter 21, before this proud census, we read in chapters 18,19 and 20 the sterling military victorious of Israel. Apparently, it got into their heads!
David himself wrote (in the Septuagint this Psalm is attributed to David):
Ps 33:16 No king is saved by the multitude of an army; A mighty man is not delivered by great strength. 17 A horse is a vain hope for safety; Neither shall it deliver any by its great strength.
In addition, David, in his pride, might have also bypassed the prescribed ransom in Exodus 30:12:
Ex 30:12 "When you take the census of the children of Israel for their number, then every man shall give a ransom for himself to the LORD, when you number them, that there may be no plague among them when you number them.
1Ch 21:7 And God was displeased with this thing; therefore He struck Israel.
8 So David said to God, "I have sinned greatly, because I have done this thing; but now, I pray, take away the iniquity of Your servant, for I have done very foolishly."
It was about the old sin of the devil --- pride. David got proud with his military might. Also, he found his safety and security in numbers. Apparently, Israel was punished too because they and their leader became proud of their might and number. Notice that before chapter 21, before this proud census, we read in chapters 18,19 and 20 the sterling military victorious of Israel. Apparently, it got into their heads!
David himself wrote (in the Septuagint this Psalm is attributed to David):
Ps 33:16 No king is saved by the multitude of an army; A mighty man is not delivered by great strength. 17 A horse is a vain hope for safety; Neither shall it deliver any by its great strength.
In addition, David, in his pride, might have also bypassed the prescribed ransom in Exodus 30:12:
Ex 30:12 "When you take the census of the children of Israel for their number, then every man shall give a ransom for himself to the LORD, when you number them, that there may be no plague among them when you number them.
Why Did God Allow A Man Who Accidentally Killed Someone To Be Avenged Fatally?
De 19:3 "You shall prepare roads for yourself, and divide into three parts the territory of your land which the LORD your God is giving you to inherit, that any manslayer may flee there.
4 "And this is the case of the manslayer who flees there, that he may live: Whoever kills his neighbor unintentionally, not having hated him in time past-
5 "as when a man goes to the woods with his neighbor to cut timber, and his hand swings a stroke with the ax to cut down the tree, and the head slips from the handle and strikes his neighbor so that he dies-he shall flee to one of these cities and live;
6 "lest the avenger of blood, while his anger is hot, pursue the manslayer and overtake him, because the way is long, and kill him, though he was not deserving of death, since he had not hated the victim in time past.
7 "Therefore I command you, saying, 'You shall separate three cities for yourself.'
God's lesson here is that accidents can be avoided if we are extra careful with the lives of others, if we would but go the extra mile in making them safe. Make sure that the axe head is secure. Get people to be safely distant from you. Focus on your driving. Learn how to drive defensively etcetera.
A lot of times, unbeknownst to us, we have this deadly unconcern for the safety of others. If we learn to study ourselves, we will notice this in us in the little things in our day to day activities.
As the killer flees from the avenger of blood, he would be extra careful with his own life. He would make sure that every move he makes would be safe from him. And God says to him at that point: "Object lesson! That's what you should have done with the life of your brother."
4 "And this is the case of the manslayer who flees there, that he may live: Whoever kills his neighbor unintentionally, not having hated him in time past-
5 "as when a man goes to the woods with his neighbor to cut timber, and his hand swings a stroke with the ax to cut down the tree, and the head slips from the handle and strikes his neighbor so that he dies-he shall flee to one of these cities and live;
6 "lest the avenger of blood, while his anger is hot, pursue the manslayer and overtake him, because the way is long, and kill him, though he was not deserving of death, since he had not hated the victim in time past.
7 "Therefore I command you, saying, 'You shall separate three cities for yourself.'
God's lesson here is that accidents can be avoided if we are extra careful with the lives of others, if we would but go the extra mile in making them safe. Make sure that the axe head is secure. Get people to be safely distant from you. Focus on your driving. Learn how to drive defensively etcetera.
A lot of times, unbeknownst to us, we have this deadly unconcern for the safety of others. If we learn to study ourselves, we will notice this in us in the little things in our day to day activities.
As the killer flees from the avenger of blood, he would be extra careful with his own life. He would make sure that every move he makes would be safe from him. And God says to him at that point: "Object lesson! That's what you should have done with the life of your brother."
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)