Here we are, at the end of the Old Testament. You know what I'm finding strange, and I've told Jamie this before...when I tell people that I am reading the Bible and blogging, I am floored at how many "Christians" tell me that they haven't read it.
Really!?
I say to myself.
I just don't get how you can give yourself fully to something without knowing all you can about it. For that matter, anyone who has an opinion of any kind about Christianity. How can one say anything for or against it, if one is not educated on the subject?
To each his own, however...
On to Malachi (which, also shared with Jamie, conjures up images of freaky children in corn fields)...
Basically God is just saying "I haven't changed. What I thought bad in Moses day, I find bad now. What I expected then, I expect now..."
And I love the idea of being someones "jewel, or peculiar treasure", but especially a peculiar treasure!
3 comments:
I think 2:8 is pointed at many Christian religions nowadays..."you have caused many to stumble by your instruction [in the law]... So many of these religions interject stuff that has no grounding in the Bible or at most, a very shaky one. This is, I believe a direct consequence of what Crystal said that many Christians have never read the Bible and no so very little. They, like most atheists, take a verse here or there totally or mostly out of context with the rest of the Bible, and again, like most atheists, use that to judge people whom they should not be judging.
I hope all of you have seen that the nonsense that many atheists say about the God of the O.T. being angry or mean or wrathful (unjustly), etc. is not true. We have seen that God is a rigidly (uncompromisingly) righteous God who expects people who make a covenant with Him to stick to it or face the consequences that they knew before hand would be handed out. He is clearly a God of mercy until last (last, last, last) resort. It is the liberal atheists of today who have no integrity and so think that a contract (business), commitment(marriage vows), covenant(with God), or oath(military commitment and government officials) means nothing; and is ok to break whenever, and that there should be no consequences for doing so. These are the people who want to back out of a business contract after they've signed on the dotted line; these are the people who think marriage is of convenience; these are the people who think a priest can pray for them, even after they're dead, and they'll be ok, or they can party like a rock star thru out the week and go to church on Sun. and be ok; these are the people who swear to uphold the Constitution and trample all over it, and those who swear to do their duty as a soldier, but once realise the reality of war decide the college money ain't worth it, and use a "moral" objection to the war itself as an excuse for cowardice, as though soldiers get to select or approve of the reasons our government sends them to war.
His promises have already been extended to non-Jews, and we'll see in the N.T. confirmation of that.
Divorce and domestic violence. 2:16 For the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I hate divorce and marital separation and him who covers his garment [his wife] with violence. ...
Followed by 2:17 that says, "...you say, Everyone who does evil is good in the sight of the Lord and He delights in them. ..." I think this again points at many Christian religions that allow or condone things that are clearly against the teachings in the Bible. i.e. homosexuality, transgender/crossdressing, abortion, divorce, etc. They take the opposite approach as many of the "hardliners" and say that God is a loving God who accepts all people, regardless. This of course, is absolutely incorrect and even foolish. If these "Christians" read the Bible they'd know how foolish it really is.
I like in 3:10 how it says that if they obey, God's blessing will be so numerous "...that there will not be room enough to receive it." 3:13-15 applies to all the arrogant atheists of today, as well. Therefore so will 4:1 apply to them, also.
know, not no, first paragraph.
Tomorrow is Luke 1-2:38
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