Berserk
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[“Well. Let’s see Jesus on a bad day.”]..Actually, Darth, it’s your bad day. Due to your unique blend of arrogance and ignorance, I will make constructive use of you as my whipping boy.
[“Taken from the King James bible version.”] Of course, since you just googled this and would otherwise have no clue on how to put this together. The KJV is based on later and more corrupt Greek manuscripts and is just about the most inaccurate Bible translation.
[“Luke Chapter:19, verse 27-28.......Jesus says to kill his/your enemies!!”] No, you need to actually read what you mindlessly quote. The speaker is “the nobleman” in the Parable of the Pounds. Parables are symbolic stories based on a single point of comparison in which, unlike allegories, each detail is not separately symbolic. The central character in most of Jesus’ parables is often either morally or intellectually flawed and the parable cannot properly be grasped until this flaw is recognized. You can no more equate the nobleman’s statement with Jesus’ own views than you can equate God with the unjust vineyard owner (Matthew 20:1-15), the unjust manager (Luke 16:1-8). the unjust judge (Luke 18:1-7), the cranky neighbor roused from slumber (Luke 11:5-8), the dumb farmer whose seed generally falls in all the wrong places (Mark 4:3-8), or the irresponsible shepherd who leaves his entire flock in danger to pursue one lost sheep (Luke 15:3-8). Yet in all 7 parables, the flawed central characters are likened to God. Sometimes, the villainy of the central figure is quite subtle. For example, the novice interpreter would not realize that it is a transgression of Jewish law to sow mustard seed in your garden (Luke 13;18-19). Jesus’ pedagogy routinely features shock tactics and Semitic hyperbole to make people think. The suppressed premise is often, “You can learn a lot even from an idiot or scoundrel like this.
[“Luke Chapter 14, verse 26.....Matthew Chapter 10, verse 35-36....Matthew Chapter 19, verse 29.....Jesus says to hate /abandon your family!!”] In Aramaic idiom “hate” means “loves more than.” Thus, in Matthew’s parallel to Luke 14:26, he rightly translates “hate” as “loves more than (10:37-38).” In Matthew 10:35-36, Jesus is announcing the fulfilment of Micah 7:6. The expression “I have come not to bring peace, but a sword” is an Aramaic idiom to express the inevitable family-based persecution of new believers, not the desired result. This also explains your misunderstanding of Matthew 19:29. Jesus’ followers were often forced to choose between family loyalty or their nowfound faith. The same point applies to your mischaracterization of Matthew 12:51-53. I know this will come as a shock to you, Darth, but what Jesus actually taught was: e. g. “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall bew called children of God (Matthew 5:9).” “I have spoken these things to you, so that you may have peace (John 16:33).” And Jesus of course taught His disciples to honor their parents (e. g. Matthew 19:17-19),
[“Luke Chapter 12, verse 51-53....Matthew Chapter 10, verse 34.....Jesus says he came to cause strife and war. Oh Dear!!!!”]
O dear, indeed! You are clueless! You apparently don’t realize that Jesus taught: “Those who take to the sword will perish by the sword (Matthew 26:52).” “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bles those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you (Luke 6:27-28).” And again, you ignore the fact that Jesus is announcing the fulfilment of Micah 7:6, not reveling in the family discord His message sparks.
[“Matthew Chapter 12, verse 30....Luke Chapter 11, verse 23.....Jesus says he that he is not with me is against me!? Sounds like George Bush! What happened to free will?”] “Jesus taught the opposite of what you imply: “Whoever is not against us is for us (Mark 9:40).” In this context, He defends the right of a non-Christian Jew to perform exorcisms in His name without first studying Jesus’ teachings! The verse you cite has specific application to the battle egainst the forces of evil in our world. Jesus’ point is that if you are apathetic towards evil, you oppose what Jesus stands for as surely as if you actively reject Him. [“Matthew Chapter 5, verse 45....God/Jesus? favours neither good nor evil? Whoops. I thought the evil were going to hell?”] ________________________ I will quote this verse to allow the reader to detect Darth’s status as a lost ball in the tall weeds: “He [God] makes His sun rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous (Matthew 5:45).” Whoops, I hate to break this to you, Darth; but God actually favors love and goodness. But He loves evil people and is also showers them with earthly blessings. Matthew 5:43-48 is paralleled in Luke 6:27-28, 32-36, where the last verse makes Jesus’ meaning clear: “Be merciful [even to your enemies] as your Father is merciful.”
[“Matthew Chapter 6, verse 5-6....Jesus says to Dont pray in public places. Hey. What about the churches. They cost us a fortune to build!”] _________________________________
Clueless to the point is being comical! Jesus is warning against unpsiritual motivation in public prayer. He lanents public ostentation and the flaunting of one’s spirituality; He is not attacking corporate prayer (see e. g. Matthew 18:19-20). “And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to pray in the synagogues and street corners, SO THAT THEY MAY BE SEEN BY OTHERS. Truly I tell you, they already have their reward (Matthew 6:5).”
Your nasty comments about non-Gospel texts are equally misinformed, but this is a thread about Jesus; so I will stick to the topic.
Don
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