How can you take the bible seriously?

Question

How can you take the bible seriously when it very clearly states in exodus 31:15 that anyone who works on the sabbath day should be put to death?

I don't care if you think it meant in olden times and not today. Putting people to death for working on the sabbath at any time in history is a bit extreme isn't it?

Besides, what it directs people to do is clear. It doesn't matter what context you look at it from, the meaning is obvious.

With stuff like this in the bible, why take any of it seriously?

Is it not obviously flawed?

Answer 1

Have you heard of the term turning a blind eye?

Love and blessings Don

Answer 2

Christians don't follow the Old Testament per se, because the old testament is the story of the creation of the earth, Satan's fall from heaven and rulership of the Earth, a big flood, enslavement of the Jews, their returning to God, and the rules he gave them. Some prophecy that has been fulfilled and is currently being fulfilled as well. The old testament law as part of the covenant with the semite Jews of Israel. The gentiles (non-Jews) were NOT privy to this covenant unless one converted fully and completely to Judaism and the Mosaic law. The new testament is the new covenant between man and God through Jesus. Much of the old law is abolished by the word of God and the sacrifice of Jesus. I take the entire bible very, very seriously. Stop speaking for all of us, especially when you don't even know anything ABOUT the bible. Stop generalizing and stop being so presumptive. There is no contradiction in the Bible. If one reads contradiction one has failed to understand something. It's usually a contextual thing and so-called contradicting verses are almost always cherry picked.

Answer 3

If people choose to take a text or a section from here and another from there and not bother to look at the whole topic etc, then anyone can come up with any reason to not take it seriously. It takes desire etc to want to look into a topic fully. Perhaps if you studied who said that someone would be put to death for not keeping the sabbath back then you may understand if it was from God..or from man deciding that was the punishment.
The sabbath is a part of the Ten commandments.. and of ourselves we cannot keep any of them perfectly..so of course we repent and continue doing our part. Sin is the transgression of the Law..and the Law is of course the Ten commandments where the sabbath is a part..besides it having been made at creation.
The wages of all sin is death..however Jesus died so that we might not have to..if we are willing to repent and continue striving for the perfection that God wants of us..and that striving and repenting will continue until Christ returns.
If we truly love God, we will want to strive for what God wants..our heart will be filled with that purpose..and God judges on what is in our heart..He will decide who will die from not keeping the sabbath aka disobeying God on purpose.
It is of course a lack of understanding by taking things not in context that causes people to not take the Bible seriously.

Answer 4

the Bible is not flawed! The sabbath was the holy day. in that time the punishment was death. i can take the bible seriously becuase it has the most evidence for it then any other book in history, never contridicts itself, parralell to every outside history document ever found, and perfectly copied for thousands of years! how can you take your argument seriusly with so much evidnce against you!

Answer 5

I think it doesn't matter what the facts are or if there is a reason. You have decided that the Bible should be discarded and will continue to harp on these types of things until you the agreement you are looking for from Christians.

The problem is, Christians spend time trying to understand the reason these things are in the Bible rather than rejecting the Bible because they are there. One learns greater lessons that way.

Answer 6

Each person that reads the Bible takes it in different ways, interprets it per se. The Bible is a book of values and a book of morals to live by. There is no better book to learn by. Yes, some of the rules, for a better word, are a bit harsh but, we have the intelligence to decipher them and interpret them in an intelligent way also.

In the book the "Time machine" by O. Wells the man, after being through time returned to get a book, wanting to stay at the rebuilding of society after seeing man kill himself off after going through time, the wars etc. Decided to return to get this book to help guide man in the new beginning of the future, the book was the Bible, to help guide man and give him a set of values and morals to live by.

Answer 7

Christ replies to this statement to clarify. The sabbath was made for man not man for the sabbath. The people in exodus were given such strict rules without clarification because the frequently transgressed from God and worshipped many Gods. The severity of the punishment is there to remind us of the importance of the Sabbath. I can answer what you feel the bible directs you to do but it directs me to love my neighbour as myself and to love God. How could I in good conscience love my neighbour but stone him for misobservance of the sabbath?
I take the bible seriously because there is God's truth in it. Sometimes you just have to look a little bit harder. Your concept of right and wrong is nothing when compared to your creators.

Answer 8

No, but when we misunderstand the purpose of the law, the change of the law, and the fulfillment of the law it is not the law which is in error. (Not that there haven't been flawed laws) But in relationship to a Holy God, with a purpose beyond our understanding it is our interpretation which is flawed.
I do take the Bible seriously because in the same way any Nation has laws which govern the people, to avoid absolute anarchy (hopefully) there was a purpose to take the law seriously. Which by the way is explained in the New testament.
God's desire was for His people (the Israelites) to take Him seriously.

Answer 9

It's very flawed, which is why I don't take that faith seriously. In fact, the only group of people who are really Christians in my opinion are the Amish and Mennonites. They live their lives according to what their bible says. They don't pick and choose from it what they want to, like most Christian groups.

Answer 10

The Bible is seen by Christians as the *inspired word of God*. Happy clapping, speakin' in tongues, statue of Mary crying olive oil worshippin', wafer munching, communal wine guzzling, unleavened bread breakin' freaks.

Lonely people seeking existentialist validation look for *inspiration* from the Bible because the *Holy* Book promises that you'll live FOREVER in a place called HEAVEN.

Religious people are EGO DRIVEN. They want to be IMMORTAL and USE God as a TOOL to achieve the DELUSIONAL aim of NEVER DYING.

Religious devotion is an ADDICTION. Praying to God GETS THEM HIGH.

Answer 11

You refer to some of the ;laws given by Moses. It was good for then and we have come a long way since. How can you not take the rest of the Bible so flippantly? The stories have lessons for us for today and the future You don't throw the dishes out with the dirty water, do you?