The Bible demands people who work on the Sabbath to be stoned to death. How could you uphold that law today?

Question

There are so many stupid laws stated in the Bible. How do you determine which stupid Biblical commands to observe and which ones to conveniently ignore?

Answer 1

i have a sackful of stones just in case. hehe

Answer 2

May I suggest doing as the bible instructs, but use VERY SMALL STONES. Worse you could do is give someone a sty in the eye.

I would never suggest that you selectively enforce convenient passages of the bible, and ignore the inconvenient ones. After all, Jesus specifically reminded us that the old testament is valid and required compliance. He did manage to clarify that humanitarian efforts were expempt from the "no work" clause, so don't stone them. Besides, even if Jesus "worked" on the sabbath, he was God, and not subject to God's rules for man.

Odd how Christians quote the old testament when convenient, then throw it out (in Jesus' name, no less) when it's not. Why, then, do so many christian sects still publish the books of Deuteronomy and others which give such instructions. And what about the fact that if the OT is metaphorical as of Jesus' times, then what is left to declare Jesus as the messiah. Sort of like cutting a tree limb off while standing on it.

Answer 3

Not only those who work on Sabbath, the people who dishonor their parents, the adulterers, must be stoned to death during the time of Moses. That was during the theocratic Kingdom. But since the Babylonian captivity the theocratic rules have ceased and when Jesus was on earth, it was under the Roman rule.
We are now living in the age of grace, nobody is put to death by stoning. You are too smart if you can not see that.
But although there is no stoning to death for the transgressors of the law or Ten Commandments, it does not mean that there is going to be no punishment at all for the transgressors. There is going to be judgment at the end of time by Jesus the Righteous Judge.

Answer 4

Firstly the laws contained in the Hebrew Scriptures were given to the ancient nation of Israel.
They are not meant to be observed today.
The Bible tells us that "Christ is the end of the law".And "the law was a tutor leading to Christ",among others.In other words Christianity replaced the written law of Moses.Christ told us the two greatest commandments on which the whole law hangs are - to love Jehovah God and to love our neighbor.
Of course to be able to comply with those two commands would mean that we would not ly,steal,murder,commit adultery etc.Because such does not show love,does it?
If you are confused why not consider having a free home Bible study with Jehovah's Witnesses.They have a accurate,thorough understanding of the Scriptures,and it may help you to draw closer to God.

Answer 5

In Colossians 2:16-17, the Apostle Paul declared, “Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ.” Similarly, Romans 14:5 says, “One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind.” These Scriptures make it clear, for the Christian, Sabbath-keeping is a matter of spiritual freedom, not a command from God. Sabbath-keeping is an issue on which God’s Word instructs us not to judge each other. Sabbath-keeping is a matter that each and every Christian needs to by fully convinced in his/her own mind.

Answer 6

It isn't a stupid law... tell me please.. where in the Bible does it say that the Sabbath must be kept on Sunday???

The idea od Sunday being the sabbath is a tradition and not a mandate..... I work 12 hour shift and every other Sunday I work.... HOWEVER< I change the Sabbath Day to the Thursday of that week.. By your logic, I'm damned...

My logic says I am keeping Gods commandment.. unless you can prove to me that it says somewhere that it has to be on Sunday, Your dead wrong... and if you think it is so "stupid" why are you even bothering to ask about it?

Answer 7

You have to look at the Spiritual Essence of God's Law, and not what the law says to the letter or at face value.

This is what Jesus was referring to in Matthew 2:24-28 where we read; And the Pharisees said unto him, Behold, why do they on the sabbath day that which is not lawful?

And he said unto them, Have ye never read what David did, when he had need, and was an hungred, he, and they that were with him?

How he went into the house of God in the days of Abiathar the high priest, and did eat the showbread, which is not lawful to eat but for the priests, and gave also to them which were with him?

And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath:

These were issued under the dispensation of Law and not Grace.

The Purpose of the Law was to show mankind just how sinfullyy, sinfull we are. For all that the Law could do was to lead mankind to Calvary, it couldn't take us no further.

The Spiritual Essence of God's Law was brought forth and revealed in Jesus Christ, who expressed, that a desire to do something was the same as doing it. The Law was impossible for man to keep! For the Spiritual Essence of the Law, that's what it says in truth, and not what it says in word or a face value, if you have broken it in one point you have broken the whole of the law.

The Hebrews / Jews lived by the letter of the Law. However, Jesus taught us the Spiritual Essence of the Law. According to the law, a person caught committing adultery was stoned as well. However, Jesus showed mercy. In reality the Laws are as you say "stupid" because we know they were impossible to keep!

Today we are under the dispensation of Grace and Not the Law.
Those who try to live by the law sets themselves up, as Sin Controlers. You cant do this, you cant eat that, you cant wear this, or you cant wear that. Which is a problem in a lot of churches today. Jesus took the commandments and brought them down to two (1) Love the Lord thy God, and thy neighbor as well. And said that on these two hung all the commandment.

Answer 8

Some of our laws today wouldn't make sense if practiced back then, and some of their laws were only intended to address their own cultural concerns. When modern adherents to any ancient religion apply ancient laws to modern circumstances, they're recognizing what they call "timeless truths."

Sabbath laws were made to protect a certain rhythm God created in life (like seasons and menstrual cycles). People who work non-stop, 24/7 get too tired and grumpy to be of much use to God. That's why Sabbath laws were made. I can't agree with your assessment that such a rhythm in nature is "stupid." It seems to show foresight to me.

The other part of your question, how one knows which laws are bound by culture and which are timeless, is a matter of ongoing discussion. I assure you that it's not a flippant decision so as to merit the description "conveniently ignore." Christians turn to Christ's teaching in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) as a good starting point of investigation into what is timeless, what is not, and why.

Answer 9

that is because People of the Christian faith pick and choice the laws from the bible that they wish to follow. The fact that so many do work on Sundays is a huge step from just 50 years ago. The same people who would be stoned for working could stone the Christan's for things like divorce, wearing cloths that were Cotton and polyester, wearing men's cloths {pants}, and so on. When it is pointed out to some they don't like the fact that the bible has laws that they are breaking. Just because they pick and choice. It is sad to see how by picking and choosing like this one judges others which then turns in to sin because they are not suppose to judge.
I am not saying all do this... just some.

Answer 10

People could uphold it by following the commandment, not an abreviated version of it as some suggest. Christ tells people to keep the commandments and the commandment is not just "honor the sabbath and keep it holy" but

Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:
But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates
Exodus 20:8-10
Jesus said to up hold the commandments, Paul said not to bother? I think when there is conflict, I would stick with the words of the son of god.

Answer 11

Ash: You have quoted from the Holy Bible exactly the wrong way to jump to conclusions when one does not understand what they are doing with the Bible. Yes; the stoning of people IS in the Bible for the nation of Israel [Jews] who were under the Old Covenant. Today, we are subjugated to the NEW Covenant and these statutes for stoning people are no longer in force. God made people and He knows they are slow on the uptake and gave them these laws so they would come to see themselves as HE sees them. Once people see themselves as God sees them, they find themselves in need of a relationship with Him [Jesus] to help them. God is in the SAVING business !!! The Good News is this. WE ALL [ALL humans] WIN IN THE END !!!