Gary Sigler on the Old Testament...

Okay...back to the All Scripture or Every Scripture series I've been haphazardly writing for the past week or so.  Last night, I visited the Heart to Heart message board on Gary Sigler's website.  I go there once in a while...and every once in an even longer while, I post there.  So many places to read and post...so little time :)  But anyway, one of the threads at the very top of the page was called WHAT ABOUT THE BIBLE? 

It was a thread, started by Gary...and I am going to copy and paste it below.  It really...really....goes along with this whole series. 

What about the bible?

Many throughout the years have thought the bible was the word of God. The bible has been used to justify genocide, to keep women in subjection to men, and all sorts of heinous crimes.

The bible in the Old Testament portrays God as a tyrant who destroys everything and everyone who does not do as he says. Can this Old Testament portrayal of God really be the Father of Jesus? I say NO! The men of the Old Testament were listening to their ego talking to them and not God.

I will give you Two examples. In Num 15:32-36 the bible says: 32 “And while the children of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man that gathered sticks upon the sabbath day. 33 And they that found him gathering sticks brought him unto Moses and Aaron, and unto all the congregation. 34 And they put him in ward, because it was not declared what should be done to him. 35 And the Lord said unto Moses, The man shall be surely put to death: all the congregation shall stone him with stones without the camp. 36 And all the congregation brought him without the camp, and stoned him with stones, and he died; as the Lord commanded Moses.”

1 Sam 15:2-3 “Thus saith the Lord of hosts, I remember that which Amalek did to Israel, how he laid wait for him in the way, when he came up from Egypt.

3 Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass.”

In Numbers 18 the Lord said to kill a man who was gathering wood on the Sabbath day probably to keep his family warm.

In first Sam 15 you can see the lord was getting revenge and so he ordered all of them killed. Does this really sound like the God of unconditional love who orders us to forgive and to love our enemies?

God in Genesis imaged Himself in man and man was the image of God, ever since man has been trying to make God in His image. It is the ego that is a tyrant and revengeful.

This is the main reason they wanted to put Jesus to death. He opposed the Old Testament concept of God. His teaching absolutely repudiated the tribunal concept of God in the old testament.

Jesus said of the Old Testament scriptures John 5:38-40 And ye have not his word abiding in you: for whom he hath sent, him ye believe not. 39 Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. 40 And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.

His word abiding in us that He has spoken to us is the truth. We can know the scriptures but if He has not spoken in our hearts our knowing is in vain. What He speaks to us will always be according to his divine nature of love and forgiveness. I love the bible but the bible connected to the carnal understanding of man will always kill and divide.

I have a message on this subject you can find on my website at http://sigler.org/CDOM38_Old_Testament_Scriptures.mp3

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Gary Sigler
http://sigler.org
Just sharing the "Good News"