Okay, what's this about. Fill me in pls
- Locked due to inactivity on May 23, '21 3:54am
Thread Topic: Okay, what's this about. Fill me in pls
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Honestly, I am really enjoying this conversation. You're asking a lot of good questions, some of which have made me really think and read my Bible more purposefully, and I really appreciate your genuine curiosity and willingness to hear a different side to things. :)
Now for your question of why God hasn't made an "updated" version of the Bible, I think the simplest answer would be that he doesn't need to. The Old Testament is not outdated, it just takes place at a very early point in time...the very beginning actually. :)
In fact, probably one of the most important parts of the old testament is that it gives a very clear explanation of how God made the world, something that no other religion or theory gives a confident explanation for. The old testament is an incredible record of many real amazing events that took place over the course of many centuries, all of which have relevant lessons and reveal more about God. We can see that God keeps his promises, provides for his people, punishes the wicked, but also gives mercy and protection to those who follow him. You have all the classic stories like David and Goliath, Noah and the ark, Daniel in the lion’s den, Queen Esther, Moses and the ten commandments, as well as many prophecies for the coming of Christ (both first and second time).
The lessons from these stories can be applied to situations in our lives today and like Dragonsfire said, we can see in the New Testament how Jesus fulfilled all the prophecies spoken of in the old testament about the coming Savior.
Also the Psalms in particular mean a lot to me as they are so relatable, in that the psalmist is going through all kinds of troubling things, but he takes those things to God, and is reminded of God’s goodness and faithfulness to him, and the same is true for us today. (since we know that God’s character doesn’t change). No matter what troubles we are going through, we can bring God all our questions and worries and fears, and he listens to us, and cares for us, and we can put our trust in him.
(but I’m getting a little off track, so back to why there’s no need for an updated version of the Bible)
The Bible really does span all of time. It starts at the creation of earth, tells of the imminent destruction of earth, and in between the truths hold true no matter what the time period. The Bible tells us that all people are sinners, we all do wrong things, and deserve the punishment of death, but that God loves us, and Jesus died on the cross in our place, so anyone who believes on him will be saved.
As far as rules, I think Dragonsfire said it very well in that the Bible is not a list of rules to follow in order to get to heaven or to be deemed perfect, instead it tells about Jesus, and the good news of the Bible is that we don’t have to be perfect. We don’t have to follow every law perfectly because we can’t. Jesus fulfilled the law, paid the price for us, and now all we have to do is accept that he did all the work for us, we just have to believe it.
The other instructions in the Bible, specifically the New Testament, teaches that we are supposed to be kind, forgiving, patient, and loving, all things that can be applied to anything, not just a specific society. -
Okay, now for your question about men and women being equal in God’s eyes, and why it seems Eve/women have a worse punishment than Adam/men seem to have.
To be honest, I totally understand that this doesn’t seem fair, especially the punishment part since they both sinned. And to be completely honest, I don’t really have an answer for you. I can’t really answer for God why he does certain things, and I don’t want to mislead you into thinking something I say is from God when it isn’t. It’s certainly something you can pray about for God to give you understanding in this matter, at least to the point that you will have peace about it, but it really comes down to what you believe about God and whether you trust his character and his promises in the Bible or not. <3
However I can share with you my understanding of this particular question, and the understanding that my parents have shared with me.
I feel like there are two parts to this question, the one being difference in punishment, and the other being the call for women to submit.
On the difference of punishment, there is a debate about whether Eve was the one who sinned “worse” since she first listened to the serpent and took the fruit, then offered it to Adam, however others say Adam was “worse” as he knowingly ate the fruit and went along with it...however, they were clearly both disobeying, both punished, and interestingly in Romans it says that sin is passed down through Adam and redemption through the seed of Eve, so...was one sin really worse than the other...I don’t really think so. The Bible treats all sin as bad, like you said, which leads to the question why was Eve cursed with severe pain and discomfort in relation to childbirth, but Adam just had to work the thorny fields?
This is something our modern culture understandably has a harder time grasping...especially since women often are the providers of their homes just like men are, so they seemingly have double punishment.
One possible answer to this would be that while women’s punishment affects them mostly physically, there seems to be a significant psychological pressure on men to work and provide for their families, that is tied very closely to their identity and self worth. Whether this is placed on them from the curse or themselves, it plays a serious psychological factor in their lives, and failure to fulfil that pressure can be especially devastating for men. I know this is definitely true for my dad, who has struggled with feelings of failing his responsibilities, even though circumstances were out of his control.
Being a girl myself, I can’t really understand the severity of this, or how it compares to my feminine struggles which are personally very painful and interfering, however it is something to consider/keep in mind.
Another thing to keep in mind is that a lot of the diseases and things that complicate periods and pregnancy are not necessarily part of Eve’s curse but just the result of a world broken by sin. Part of the problem with a lot of deliveries is that they use man made methods to induce labor which is extremely painful in comparison to the way God made women able to handle childbirth itself which is not without mercy, as in between contractions there is also (in natural birth at least) a complete relaxation and time of rest before starting up the next one. -
As far as women being called to submit, it is definitely important to consider context like Stardust mentioned, and this is a concept that has definitely been misused over the centuries as terrible men have unrightfully oppressed women by forcing them to submit. But by looking at the biblical context we see this was never how women were supposed to be treated. It’s almost always in the context of marriage, and while women are told to submit and allow the husband to be the head of the family, the husband is told to love the wife, to the point of laying down his life for her. Not only to the point of dying, but if the husband truly lives this way he will give up his own needs and desires to please her, always looking out for her best interest, and treat her with care and respect. And when the husband fulfils his role this way, it shouldn’t be so hard for the wife to submit because she knows her husband truly loves her and is looking out for her happiness. It’s intended to be a mutual balance of roles.
A very important point is that this is something between you and God, out of obedience and love toward him, not necessarily to the spouse. It is NOT the man’s job to force the woman to submit; that is an inward thing that she willfully and personally chooses to do out of obedience to God’s instruction to wives. This is where misunderstanding and misuse comes in when certain men take this verse as an excuse to force women to do whatever they want. That would be wrong and not at all what God intends. Men are supposed to love their wives as Christ loves us, it has nothing to do with how the wife treats them, and it is not the men’s responsibility to make sure the wife is constantly in submission. Women choosing to have an attitude of respect and submission to their husbands is between them and God, not them and the man. If both spouses are following this “recipe for a good marriage” if you will, then they will be pleasing to God, and have peace with each other, and can complement each other’s strengths the way God intends. The problem is people are sinful and this ideal scenario is often complicated, which is why it really requires the working of and submission to the Holy Spirit to live this way, however when both people are trying to live for God, then this won’t seem so unfair as it is a compound effort.
[Also the Bible never condones abuse, and people using the need for women to submit as an excuse to hurt them is terribly horribly wrong, and the Bible never says women are valued less than men (as we kind of already talked about). ] -
^Oh right also wanted to add to that picture of Biblical marriage like Dulcinea was talking about.
Biblical marriage is supposed to resemble Christ and the church. Just like how the church should submit willingly to Christ, and Christ should lay down his life for the church (which he did), so should the wife submit to her husband and the husband lay down his life for her. There are some verses in the Bible where the church is mentioned as Christ's bride. And the "church" is really just all followers of God. Choosing to follow God is setting aside what you want and choosing what God wants for you. But God always wants things for your own good and your own benefit. That doesn't mean that you're only going to receive good things in life, though. That might mean God will lead you to places where you will grow spiritually. But anyway, I can't see a problem with a wife wanting to submit to a husband who's job in life is to provide and care for her just as Christ cares for the church. -
Actually for the marriage thing we went through that in Bible study recently.
And we talked about the wife's way of submitting was respecting her husband and the husband's way of submitting was loving his wife.
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