@bradstevens First, Happy Easter
I have been watching a lot of videos by Dan McClellan. I really love what he says. A large part of it is that The Bible is written by a lot of different authors over many years addressing different concerns. It most certainly isn't univocal. To make it so requires a lot of negotiation with the text to get it to say what one wants it to say. And that is often the case, one wants The Bible to say something specific then tries to bend the words. That tends to lead him afoul of conservatives because univocal and inerrant are more conservative teachings. He is Mormon, but he says a lot that is counter to Mormon teaching.
@arthur-dent We're called to love and help others but at the end of the day we need shelter from the elements and a bed in which to sleep. It's an interpretational error to glean that Jesus commands us to sleep in the streets. Besides, giving away all possessions includes one's own clothing. Did Jesus literally mean that we must walk naked in the streets and sleep in the nude on the streets of Indy in January?
Let's take it a step further. Are we literally called to rip our eyes out of our head to avoid sin?
Some discernment is required.
It's amazing, though, how often discernment is used to protect one's own desires. Just sayin'.@arthur-dent We're called to love and help others but at the end of the day we need shelter from the elements and a bed in which to sleep. It's an interpretational error to glean that Jesus commands us to sleep in the streets. Besides, giving away all possessions includes one's own clothing. Did Jesus literally mean that we must walk naked in the streets and sleep in the nude on the streets of Indy in January?
Let's take it a step further. Are we literally called to rip our eyes out of our head to avoid sin?
Some discernment is required.
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It's amazing, though, how often discernment is used to protect one's own desires. Just sayin'.
I think that we should approach doctrinal discussion (and everything else in life) with great humility and leave our egos, pride, and arrogance behind us. Pride and ego prevent us from becoming close to God and others. Those traits blind us. It's a battle that I fight constantly, to humble myself.
I will add that a lot of non-Christians enjoy quoting scriptures that they do NOT understand in order to smear and discredit them. I don't know if that is the case with the scripture about giving away everything that one owns. Either way, I felt an obligation to chime in so that readers are not misled.
I will add that a lot of non-Christians enjoy quoting scriptures that they do NOT understand in order to smear and discredit them. I don't know if that is the case with the scripture about giving away everything that one owns. Either way, I felt an obligation to chime in so that readers are not misled.
Fucking texturalists.
I for one am deeply disappointed by the new Jesus movie. I was hoping to see Maria in the flesh.@arthur-dent We're called to love and help others but at the end of the day we need shelter from the elements and a bed in which to sleep. It's an interpretational error to glean that Jesus commands us to sleep in the streets. Besides, giving away all possessions includes one's own clothing. Did Jesus literally mean that we must walk naked in the streets and sleep in the nude on the streets of Indy in January?
Let's take it a step further. Are we literally called to rip our eyes out of our head to avoid sin?
Some discernment is required.
I am a member of Jesus's church, which is his body of faithful followers. I don't belong to any church here in this world, although I was raised in the Catholic Church.
This is a major strategy of some "Christians" as well.It's amazing, though, how often discernment is used to protect one's own desires. Just sayin'.
I will add that a lot of non-Christians enjoy quoting scriptures that they do NOT understand in order to smear and discredit them.
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That sounds like the same church that IndianaFTW belongs to.I am a member of Jesus's church, which is his body of faithful followers. I don't belong to any church here in this world, although I was raised in the Catholic Church.
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Yep.so tells everyone to give away their possessions,Can you cite scripture to support that claim?
- Matthew 19:21-24 (and Mark 10:21, Luke 18:22): "If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me".
- This was a personalized challenge. Jesus discerned that the man's wealth was his functional idol—it prevented full surrender to God and love for neighbor (the man failed the greatest commandments in practice, despite his claim). Wealth in Jewish society was often seen as divine approval for law-keeping; Jesus upends that assumption.
- The command is not presented as a universal rule for every believer but exposes where this individual's heart was. Jesus loved him and invited him into discipleship ("follow me"), which always involves leaving everything behind to prioritize the Kingdom.
- It leads into teaching on rewards for those (like the disciples) who have left homes, family, and fields for Jesus' sake. The point: Riches can hinder entrance into the Kingdom because they foster self-sufficiency rather than dependence on God. Salvation is by God's grace, not human effort or merit.
@snarlcakes I think it's better to be poor than rich. Many consider worldly wealth a blessing but that's probably not the case for most.
My Jesus would've swept the leg...
A good friend will bail you out of jail, but your best friend will be sitting next to you in the cell saying "that was f***ing awesome"
Yep.so tells everyone to give away their possessions,Can you cite scripture to support that claim?
- Matthew 19:21-24 (and Mark 10:21, Luke 18:22): "If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me".
- Luke 12:33-34: Jesus advises, "Sell your possessions, and give to the needy. Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail".
- Luke 14:33: Jesus states, "So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple".
- Luke 6:30: Jesus commands, "Give to everyone who begs from you, and from one who takes away your goods do not demand them back".
Without looking at that group of scripture...
My recollection is that Jesus was addressing his disciples, NOT the general population.
People are welcome to their own interpretation, as their opinions are not relevant to the personal relationship between them and Jesus.
Not unlike cretins who claim that the Constitution demands separation between Church and State, when the documents say nothing of the kind.