Hi Sincerly, You answered my question with:Since not all Jews believe the same thing, and since not all Christians believe the same thing, somebody is wrong. Some of them have the added baggage. From your perspective looking at Judaism--Is the Talmud baggage?
Hi CG D, This is to answer your specific questions as best I can Scripturally.
While I agree with your assessment of the "beliefs of not all Jews" or "not all Christians" that may have been your understanding, but I don't recall posting those words-----But, YES, The Scriptures are not rightly divided/interpreted by a vast majority of "professed believers". Jesus spoke of the broad road and narrow road to validate that "falseness" would be accepted over the Truth which leads to that heavenly goal true seekers aspired to reach. The OT had the same principle in Prov.14:12
"Is the Talmud baggage?" Jesus said that which was contrary to the Commandments of GOD wasn't acceptable. Mark 7:1-13; Matt.22:29; Mark 12:24, 27.
Looking at Catholicism--Is purgatory and Mary worship baggage? Does the Law make sense today? Was it meant "forever"? Were the Ten Commandments meant forever? Or, to the Christian, are they unneeded baggage from an old covenant? (specifically the Sabbath). Did the Jews have anything resembling the Christian idea of "personal salvation"? Did the Jews have the same idea about heaven and hell and the devil like Christianity does? If all we had was the Hebrew Scriptures, which would include the Talmud, what would their idea of God's plan be?
"Purgatory?"---from purge/cleanse after death. Neither The OT nor the NT has any scriptural basis for this teaching. Repentance has to be done by the individual prior to one's death. Ezek.18; 2Pet.1:10
"Mary worship"---Mary was a human Being--born of human s and while the selected Mother, by GOD, for HIS SON--Jesus, she is/was Blessed in that respect, but she was not to be worshiped.
God knew when HE explained to Adam and Eve that the "Seed---Jesus" would be born of/from a virgin. At Sinai, Ex.20:4-5, "
Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness [of any thing] that [is] in heaven above, or that [is] in the earth beneath, or that [is] in the water under the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God [am] a jealous God," GOD forbid the worship of the prophesied earthly mother of HIS SON.
According to a fundamental protestant view, Jews and Catholics have it wrong. They have baggage. Protestants striped away the garbage and came up with a Bible-only view of what God's plan is. So, if protestants are right, both Jews and Catholics are believing something false, or essentially a myth, yet it has power. So to you and me, what they believe is wrong, but they believe it and it works for them. So that's the problem and that ties in with your next comment:
All the other religions think their perspective is right. Many believe all the other religions are wrong. All of them can use the Bible to justify their pov. All of them can point to any other religious group and point out inconsistencies in beliefs and abuses in practice. So are you sure you are the one that is right? You always do come up with good answers, and I appreciate it, but I really, really don't want such a hard and limited view of God's plan to be true.
CG D, I have only pointed out the truths which the Scriptures have given to all readers. The same truths which GOD spoke and wrote atop Mt. Sinai are the Same truths/Principles which Jesus declared came from the Father who sent HIM.
The Protestants didn't set out to produce a different "GOD given truth", but to correct the errors which had entered into the true church which was a continuation of the same teachings given at Sinai---BY GOD. (Dan.7:25; 2Thess.2:3-4)
Heb.4:2, "
For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard [it].
Wasn't it a lack of FAITH in the Ability of GOD that the Israelites time after time after time sought the gods of other nations to sustain them. Wasn't that Ahaz's problem---in turning to Assyria?
GOD'S Plan is in love and long-suffering as is seen in all the books of the Bible. Man's inhumanity to man is the outcome from man's arrogant/willful/defiant bull-headedness portrayed over the ages.
ALL GOD has required is that one---Deut,10:12-13, "And now, Israel, what doth the LORD thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul, To keep the commandments of the LORD, and his statutes, which I command thee this day for thy good?"
Or as Micah 6:8 states, "He hath shewed thee, O man, what [is] good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?"
Scripturally, Is GOD'S Plan really to "hard and limited in view"?
So let's not even worry about all the Chinese, Japanese, Indians and other Asians, let's not worry about all the Islamic people, let's just look at the Jews and the Catholics since the coming of Jesus. Where are they? Most of the Jews rejected Jesus and stayed with their beliefs. The Catholics added to the NT and the leaders kept the Bible from the common people. So for 1500 years of Christianity were any of those people saved? They had no concept of being born-again like the protestants. They prayed to Mary, went to confession and did all the things the priests and the pope told them to do. So who was the counterfeit? Who was the wolf in sheep's clothing? The protestants came along and stripped all the excess baggage that was added to the Bible, but even protestantism isn't one monolithic thing. They keep changing and adding or subtracting things.
James(4:17) wrote this, "Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth [it] not, to him it is sin. "
God knows who are HIS and those who claim to be, but are only giving lip-service. Then there are those who do not acknowledge HIM at all.
Paul in Romans 2:14, says of those who are ignorant of GOD'S Instructions by oral or written knowledge, but in their own understanding are aware of the principles contained in those GOD given precepts their doing them is just as valid as having awareness of the Tablets of stone.
Didn't Jesus say that "him that loses his life for my sake shall save it". And that if one denies Jesus, Jesus would deny him?
The counterfeit was the ecclesiastical power that still sits in the temple of GOD showing that he is GOD.(vicar of)-----and did "think to change times and laws" of GOD.
That is the wolf in sheep clothes as well. Unfortunately, the protestants didn't strip all the erroneous baggage from the "Church" and they retained some of the erroneous teachings for themselves and some added their own erroneous "baggage".
So is the Bible myth? To me yes and for me, that does take its power away, the fundamentalist/literalist power. For other Christians, more liberal Christians, it doesn't take the power away. They find a "spiritual" meaning in the stories. Is Job a literal, historical story? Is Jonah? The Bible has stories of virgins and devils, of giants and floods which all sounds like myth to me. To you no, but to others yes, they see it as myth and yet, they still believe and get a spiritual truth from it. And, what's important, they can find "truth" in other people's beliefs. That is what I hope is the real truth. But, I'm just guessing.
The Scriptures declare their truth. Your choice to believe it a myth is your choice. "Liberal Christians" will have the opportunity to defend their view when the "time comes".
Yes, I find the Prophet Jonah as real and do not doubt the Creator GOD'S ability to transport Jonah close to Ninaveh.
And JOB corrected some early wrong thinking at that time concerning GOD and the Adversary first seen in Eden.
CG D, In Gen.1:9, GOD gathered the waters into one place and dry land appeared. What's so difficult to believe that GOD could not "flood " the land again? HE spoke and it was done.
Since GOD made Woman out of created Man, what is so difficult to believe that a woman could have one of her "seed"/Ova be impregnated by GOD(The Holy Spirit) to produce the promised "Messiah"?
"devil" is the hairy goat which was offered for a sin offering. Or a hairy man(Esau)
"Giants" these are seen in the time of David as well---the last five may have been killed in battle with the Israelites. But why find unbelief with "Giants" of the Scriptures and not with the "pygmies" of today?.
CG D, call it myth if it pleases you, but all the truths of GOD were carried into all the world with the scattering of the people from the Tower of Babel. Those truths were corrupted by the people to fit with their man made gods and the man endowed powers ascribed to their gods.
