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NASB | James 2:10 For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of all. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | James 2:10 For whoever keeps the whole Law but stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of [breaking] all of it. |
Bible Question:
Hello to all, I am new to bible study. I am reading the bible from the beginning and now I have a question as I am going through Deuteronomy, chapters 10-14. Can anybody help? Here is the scenario: Just imagine for a minute, that you are an Israelite living during the time of Deuteronomy. You really love God and his messenger, Moses. Not long after the Ten Commandments (Deut 10) were given, Moses continued to issue God's statutes and laws along with severe warnings against disobedience. You are concerned as anyone would be for fear of making a mistake. However, God promises many blessings (Deut 11), all you need to do is earnestly obey His commandments, judgments and statutes. God warns you (Deut 12:32), "Whatever I command you, be careful to observe it; you shall not add to it nor take away from it." God is not messing around. He even commands you to kill your brother or any other family member if they try to entice you away from Him (Deut 13:10). God issues a list of clean and unclean foods (Deut 14:2-21), for you are a holy people chosen to be a special treasure above all other people on the face of this earth. God gives specific instructions regarding the payment of tithe and in certain instances when the tithe cannot be carried to the place where God had chosen, you are instructed to sell the tithe and use the money to buy whatever your soul lusteth after (Deut 14:22-26). You may buy oxen, sheep, wine, or strong drink and enjoy it all before the Lord, you and your family. This is what the Lord hath commanded. Now just imagine that you never died and you are still living in the year 2008, some 3,500 years later. Just imagine that you just met up with a Seventh-day Adventist minister who tells you the Ten Commandments are still in force and the list of clean/unclean foods is still valid, however, God's command to kill your brother, His command to use your tithe money to buy meat, wine and strong drink so that you can enjoy them with your family, well that's just out of the question. God was wrong to mislead you. He really didn't realize how bad it would be to kill family members nor did He realize how much trouble fermented drinks were going to be in these modern times. And most of all, the church needs your tithe money. Here's the question, If you are to disregard what God says about killing your brother and what God says about using tithe money to buy whatever your soul lusteth after, how are you going to obey Deut 12:32, which God explicitly commands to change nothing? Thoroughly stumped, Pete |
Bible Answer: Hi Pete First, Thank you for your question, and welcome to this Forum. Secondly, Congratulations on your decision to read the whole Bible from the beginning. This is a big undertaking and will take much discipline and self control. Beware the enemy who will do all he can to place stumbling blocks into your path. One thing to keep in mind, is the Bible, as the Books are arranged are not in chronological order. When you mention a Seventh Day Adventist minister, I would counter with, 'There are many ministers of all denominations that will tell you to honor one verse higher than another. -Many ministers have pet verses and favorite Books and passages that they like to preach about. I myself go to a pastor that does more teaching, and very little preaching. Everything this pastor says is grounded firmly in the Word of God. When I ask him a question, he will say something like, "Okay, let's sit down and pray, and then we will see what God's Word has to say about this matter" So, do you begin to see my point yet? Through the verse above, and reliance upon God's Word alone, you might see the answer to your question for yourself. We all have our favorite memory verses, nothing wrong with that. There are those who disregard some laws and not others, and there is much discussion about all of that, but God's Word is unchanging and can be discerned, but I will not go into that other than to say that I am a dispensationalist. This says that I believe that God dispensed His authority at different times in different measures as the cultures of the earth progressed. One of my favorite verses is from Psalms, found in chapter 119, verse 105 that says, "Your word is a lamp to my feet And a light to my path." Now, a 'lamp to my feet' is to me a light placed in the window of a cabin in the wilderness to give the direction to find the way home at night, the way to point your feet. And, a 'light to my path' is to me, a light on a path in the forest at night, from the moon, or whatever, that illuminates the ground directly ahead and will show up obstacles, such as a root or a rut that would cause my feet to stumble, thereby avoiding injury or delay on my journey. Another verse that I see as valuable to me, is 2Ti 3:16-17, "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. Thanks for your scenario, Pete. I hope what I posted here sheds some light on the subject that concerns you. You are bound to have many more questions and this forum will, I am hoping, become a valuable tool for you to use as you see fit. -Hope to hear from you again soon. Grace and peace for your journey, keliy |