In the specific verse you quoted, my understanding is Jesus is talking about being really careful in swearing oaths or something, right?
Text without context is error.
Matthew 5:37
1st context:
The Bible, which CLAIMS to be the eternal word of God.
2nd context:
The New Testament which resides in the context of the Old Testament.
3rd context:
Context of Old Testament; mankind born separated from God because of Adam/Eve's sin. Mankind condemned by Mosaic Law by its impossible requirements and punishment of death for sin. This Old Covenant promised eternal life to anyone who kept it perfectly - no one ever did - obviously.
4th context:
New Testament, which is the New Covenant REPLACING the Old. This new covenant is that God will accept faith as the ONLY other way of relating to Him. This way is called the gospel which means "good news", hence the good news is that the Old Covenant and its demands are null and void IF a person fulfills their part of the New Covenant. (way of faith)
5th context:
Matthew 5:37 was uttered in the context of the Sermon on the Mount, which is the Law Incarnate/Old Testament in the flesh/Jesus speaking. The INTENT of the Sermon on the Mount is to MAKE a person conclude that they cannot do it so they will see their need for the gospel = only other God ordained option to relate to Him/New Covenant.
In this context, Jesus said to mean what you say and say what you mean BECAUSE the written word is the vehicle by which God communicates His will. IF it is eviscerated of meaning THEN the only other avenue to relate to Him (the gospel) is stripped of meaning and the Devil wins.
Matthew 5:37
".... anything beyond this comes from the evil one."
How do you know when say, allegory or symbolism, are being used?
The text will specify as such.
Example:
Galatians 4:22-24
For it is written, that Abraham had two sons, the one by a bondmaid, the other by a freewoman.
23 But he who was of the bondwoman was born after the flesh; but he of the freewoman was by promise.
24 Which things are an ALLEGORY: for these are the two covenants; the one from the mount Sinai, which gendereth to bondage, which is Agar....
Symbolism:
Numbers 21:7-9
Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD, and against thee; pray unto the LORD, that he take away the serpents from us. And Moses prayed for the people.
8 And the LORD said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live.
9 And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived.
The fiery serpent on the pole is a SYMBOL of the cross.
Brass always symbolizes judgement (fell on Christ), hence the fiery serpent symbolizes the entity (Satan) who incited the people to sin, hence the N.T. claims Christ paid the price of our sins and IF we look at Him by faith we shall also be healed and live just like the 9th verse says.
The other issue with this response is how do you know that the Bible IS to be taken literally UNLESS one or more of those things is present if the Bible itself leaves the question open?
Where does the Bible leave the question open ?
You are inferring this because there is no verse which says: "Thou shalt interpret scripture literally"
This literalism thing is a ploy by persons to create a rule that says the Bible does not mean what it says.
Why wouldn't it mean what it says ?
If it didn't mean what it says then why didn't it say what others are saying it should of said ?
If the writer didn't mean what He said then why did He write what He said ?
Why didn't the author(s) say in the first place what they didn't mean to say ?
What is your basis to interpret the Bible to not mean what it says ?
The burden of proof is on you to prove that the Bible does not mean what it says and that we are to interpret it contrary to what it says.
Aren't you simply accepting somebody's idea of what the Bible says - said someone living possibly thousands of years after the Bible was compiled, and at least a century or more after Jesus? How do you know THEY'RE right?
The Bible teaches that God speaks through the written word as interpreted by persons chosen by God who hold one of the God ordained offices of Ephesians 4:11,12 -
11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:
Listen closely:
God gives us/you/I the choice as to who speaks for Him.
We are to base our choice on the following subjective criteria:
Are they following Jesus ?
Do you hear His voice through them when they teach the Bible ?
We must determine this by our own investigation/God-sense abilities.
We can ask God and pray but at some point we must make up our mind and choose a Pastor to follow.
WHEN we make the choice we then must follow them as they follow Christ, in so doing we follow Christ and the objective interpretation of the written word by the Pastor/Preacher.
In my case I have decided Dr. Scott is following Jesus as I hear the voice of Christ through his Bible teaching.
Modern anti-authority rebels reject this system of God because of idiot fundies who turn people off to God. But the cure of misuse is right-use not rejection of God ordained method of relating to Him.
Quetzal:
If Milton is so easy to refute, then why are all the "refutations" ad hominen/arguing the man attacks ?
This message has been edited by WILLOWTREE, 10-23-2004 06:44 PM
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