does it overrifed vengence? is vengene a right? does it override warfare? or Self defencse?
2007-03-30 15:17:27 · 9 answers · asked by Priestcalling 3 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
http://scriptures.lds.org/en/matt/10/16#16
2007-03-30 15:50:49 · update #1
I'm an atheist, but I have to come to the defense here. Didn't Jesus say that the only two commandments that mattered were love god, and love your neighbor. Everything else is secondary.
In light of that, even the most skeptical critic of the Bible would have to admit that Jesus's comand to do no harm certainly DOES override the vengence and war.
As for self-defense, Jesus DID say "turn the other cheek". So yes, no self-defense either. If you TRULY want to follow Jesus, you must be a pacifist.
2007-03-30 15:21:00 · answer #1 · answered by Skippy 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I do not remember a single time when Jesus said "Harm no one".
The "Law of Vengeance" (or "An eye for an eye") was a principle stated in the Old Testament when God was giving laws concerning civil court cases. It stated that the punishment in a case was not to exceed the damage done. If a person caused the loss of a tooth, they were to be fined no more than the value of the tooth. If they caused the death of an ox, they were to be fined no more than the value of the ox. The punish was to match the damage done - an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. Or, as Gilbert and Sullivan said, "Let the punishment fit the crime." At no time does the Bible support or allow people to take "vengeance" for an action. But it does allow a court of law to apply a proper and legal punishment to a convicted criminal. They are very different things.
The laws the Jesus to individuals were to first love God, and then to love their neighbor as themselves. As no time is a court or government told to obey those laws. They are for individuals, not for institutions. (Like an institution can "love").
When you apply the proper principles to the proper people, it all makes sense and an appearance of a contradiction between those teachings is cleared up.
2007-03-30 22:31:50 · answer #2 · answered by dewcoons 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Vengence is mine sayeth the Lord....Jesus came to fulfil the law so his doctrine holds a the most cherished by God himself....the eye for an eye law was from Moses...as was the divorce decree...which is why Jesus also said what God has joined let no man put asunder....so no divorce either....self defence or any other killing is unacceptable...turn the other cheek etc...but it is very hard to do...Jesus even suggested that laying down your life for your friend was noble but doing it for your enemies was divine.....which is what he did....
2007-03-30 23:13:22 · answer #3 · answered by Therapist King 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Bless those who curse you
do good to those who mistreat you
love your enemies
It's not a matter of not harming someone. It's a matter of overcoming evil with good.
Having said that, Jesus lived in a time where the Jews needed self defence. The Romans occupied Israel and mistreated the Jews. Jesus never touched on that issue though. His kingdom is not of this world. Can you step out of that world with him and see things from his point of view?
2007-03-31 00:14:57 · answer #4 · answered by IKB 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Haha, read about when Jesus made a whip and beat the people in the marketplace of the temple. Jesus did not come to preach anti-violence.
Try and swallow this if you can:
Matthew 10:
32Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. 33But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven.
34"Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. 35 For I have come to turn
" 'a man against his father,
a daughter against her mother,
a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law -
36a man's enemies will be the members of his own household.'[e]
37"Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; 38and anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. 39Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.
Jesus has not come to bring peace (he brings a different peace within, not one person's relation to another), He says it Himself. We have a severly distorted view of who Jesus was and who God is. Jesus is not some person who keeps forgiving and lets people walk over Him. He preached love and the power of love. The reason He said not to harm people is because violence doesn't not help anything, violence does not change the hearts of men like love does. Do not mistake who Jesus was. Jesus was a revolutionary that was hated by all the religious people because what He taught was so against the Jew's religion that the Pharisees saught to kill Him.
Jesus came to show us the way, He is not some weakling that you can shove, its funny how people view Him. Christ came to make a change and by following Him you will be hated in this world because His way contradicts the way the whole world lives. That is why He said He will set a son against His father, daughter against her mother, because once people accept Jesus, they are treated like freaks or weird people. His way isn't normal but it's the best thing you could ever do with your life.
It's so completely awesome :) I used to have a false sense of who Christ was, that he was some hippy who loved people, but once you read the bible you start realizing things, you realize that Jesus was perfect and everything He did was perfect, and He showed us the way. He made a whip and beat people in the temple....... sounds bad? What's worse is those people took advantage of the fact that Jews had to sacrifice animals and ripped people off in the temple of God, which was supposed to be Holy. People were being thieves and masking it with God's face, wouldn't you get angry, and the anger Christ had was righteous because it angered Him so much that people would actually do this.
I'm glad that Jesus was such a passionate, real revolutionary. The beautiful thing is Jesus was God in human form (when He was on earth), struggling with the same things we struggle with, and showing us how we should live our lives. Then He suffered something none of us will ever suffer; the physical, emotional and spiritual pain of being the scapegoat that takes all our sins and mistakes, even to point that God turned His face away. Wow. Jesus was more than an anti-violence hippy. He was God's son sent to fix what we messed up. He was God's solution to our problem :) I love you all :) hope you understand.
2007-03-30 22:41:05 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I am not a Christian, but I have heard that Jesus, who incidentally was not a Christian either, also said "Turn the other cheek". If that does not meant that we should not seek vengeance, then maybe you can help to explain the meaning.
2007-03-30 23:16:03 · answer #6 · answered by Lawrence M 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
WHAT? You need to read a bit of Scripture, my friend:
Luke 22: 36b: "whoever has no sword is to sell his coat and buy one. 37 “For I tell you that this which is written must be fulfilled in Me, ‘AND HE WAS NUMBERED WITH TRANSGRESSORS’; for that which refers to Me has its fulfillment.” 38 They said, “Lord, look, here are two swords.” And He said to them, “It is enough.”
2007-03-30 22:24:02 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
go to this web site and read for yourself
http://patriot.net/~bmcgin/pearl-thecommandmentsofjesus.html
2007-03-30 22:49:34 · answer #8 · answered by purpleaura1 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
"venegence is my sayeth the Lord"
2007-03-30 22:24:43 · answer #9 · answered by Carol D 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋