I think maybe we have a failure to communicate. Again, my beliefs here are formed in response to some somewhat advanced study materials put out by renowned expert religious scholars and seminarians who have specifically dedicated their lives to studying these particular portions of the Bible, and the context in which each was recorded. There are lots of opinions, but I don't think it says anywhere in the Bible thou shalt believe everything written, in English, about Genesis, in a literal fashion. As a matter of fact, I would ask where you learned that God gave us the Bible, in the form it is recorded today? It is a creation of man to record Jewish history and law (OT), the gospels, and the writings of many of the Apostles. Subject to the frailties of man. Translation difficulties, etc. And by study and scholarship we can learn truth from those recordings. Why else would there be four Gospels, with some other gospel stories discredited? A scholar somewhere along the the line discredited the wrong writings and credited the right ones, even though it was multiple versions of the same event. I followed Apologetics for a while - powerful stuff to listen to someone who actually reads Greek and Aramaic and has interpreted and conferred with other religious scholars on the meanings and context of these verses we know by heart in English. The OT was so much about output legitimacy. Follow the law. Tradition. History. The NT, which I hope we agree supersedes the OT, was about input legitimacy. Strive to have the right heart. Do what is right, for the right purposes, not just what is written, followed sometimes out of ignorance or mean spirit. Obey the 10 Commandments in spirit, not just in letter. Believe. Love. Encourage others to do right, even when it it hard or not socially acceptable. I find pursuit of Biblical Truth through advanced scholarship and context of the Bible to be better for me. Your mileage may vary, as evidenced by your comments. But we are far, far from the OP now. Have a blessed day.
Edited by sand85 9/19/2017 11:50
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