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To many people the Bible is very confusing, especially when dealing with issues in the Old Testament and the law. Specifically, people are surprised to see that the Old Testament seems to be permissive, to some degree, concerning slavery and polygamy. Join us as we wrestle with these issues.

 

 Theology Unplugged - Problem Passages (Part 2) [29:45m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (2420)

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In my last blog, I discussed the fact that the Mosaic Law should not be understood as a lofty moral ideal for all cultures and all times. Rather, as Jesus points out in Matthew 19:8, many things were permitted (whether divorce, slavery, polygamy, war, patriarchal social structures), but these were far removed from the creational ideals presented in Genesis 1:26-27 and 2:24. No, the Mosaic Law wasn’t the ideal, but it certainly was a noteworthy improvement upon the miserable moral and religious conditions in the ancient Near East (ANE). In this blog, I want to note some of them. As we’ll see, Israel would have been a great moral and social refuge in contrast to the surrounding nations.

From the late fourth millennium BC until the first centuries AD, collections of cuneiform law were in existence in the ANE. Cuneiform was a script of wedges impressed upon tablets of clay or wax or inscribed in stone or metal. Various collections of cuneiform law exist. These include the laws of Ur-Nammu (c. 2100 BC, during the Third Dynasty of Ur); the laws of Lipit-Ishtar (c. 1925 BC), who ruled the Sumerian city of Isin; the (Akkadian) laws of Eshnunna (c. 1800 BC), a city 100 miles north of Babylon; the laws of Hammurabi (1750 BC); and the Hittite laws (1650-1200 BC) of Asia Minor. Continue Reading »

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I guess Richard Dawkins didn’t read my book. . . .

Well, not that it would have mattered: Dawkins seems determined never to give religion the benefit of the doubt. In his God Delusion, he considers Yahweh an “evil monster” whose command to Abraham to sacrifice Isaac is “disgraceful” and tantamount to “child abuse and bullying.” Have Jews and Christians missed something all these millennia? Dawkins’s own hostility toward religion greatly diminishes his charitability quotient.

Not only can we detect hostility in Dawkins, but hypocrisy as well. In his book River out of Eden, he denies that evil exists at all:

If the universe were just electrons and selfish genes, meaningless tragedies . . . are exactly what we should expect, along with equally meaningless good fortune. Such a universe would be neither evil nor good in intention . . . . The universe we observe has precisely the properties we should expect if there is, at bottom, no design, no purpose, no evil and no good, nothing but blind pitiless indifference. So we have “no evil and no good” there and Yahweh as an “evil monster” here.

So which is it? If, presumably, Dawkins hasn’t drastically changed his metaphysical outlook, what exactly is his case against an allegedly evil deity? Continue Reading »

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Question/Answers Segment: Savation in the Old Testament

[audio:http://www.reclaimingthemind.org/content/files/TUP/TUProgram68_Listener_Questions_5.mp3] 

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Question/Answers Segment: Romans 7, Are we slaves to sin or free?  Thanks Steve Moore!

[audio:http://www.reclaimingthemind.org/content/files/TUP/TUProgram67_Listener_Questions_4.mp3]

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Question/Answers Segment: Law/Gospel: How do we square the teachings of Christ on the Sermon on the Mount with the Old Testament Law and the Paul’s teaching of Grace? Thanks Ron Quiggins!

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There seems to be no lack of opinion about the opening of the new 27 million dollar Answers in Genesis Creation Museum in Petersburg, KY last month. The museum seeks to present an alternative understanding of how the world came into existence. Following a strict biblical literalism, the museum teaches that God created the universe in six literal days and that the earth is young, being under 10,000 years old. Obviously, the museum does not support evolution; it seeks to present a scientific alternative to evolution, using the Bible as the authoritative guide. Naturally, many in the scientific community are not happy about its opening. Continue Reading »

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Being in the ministry presupposes many things that the believer needs to be aware of. People will see you as a representative of the Christian faith. This being the case, it is essential that the believer be able to, among other things, clearly explain what it means to be a Christian, and give a clear explanation of the truths of Christianity. Continue Reading »

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How hard it is to avoid the�innate desire that we all have to confirm our prejudices through our theological inquiry. Our studies,�more times than not, resemble an exercise of�a passionate pursuit of making the evidence fit our presupposed conclusions. We have our belief, then we seek to confirm that belief. Why? Continue Reading »

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What are the differences and similarities between Old Testament and New Testament believers? Did God dwell in Old Testament believers as he does in New Testament believers? Were Old Testament believers “born again” (that is, did they experience regeneration)? What do the words “indwelling” and “regeneration” mean? How is the Holy Spirit’s ministry similar or different during Old Testament and New Testament times? Continue Reading »

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Someone asked me a good question in the forums. Which Bible translation is the best? This issue creates more polemics than you would believe. People become impassioned for or against certain Bible translations. I think we need to take a very balanced approach to this, understanding the “whats” and the “whys” of Bible translations. Continue Reading »

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