Ethical standards are essential for any form of human society. Without any social construct of morals, there would be no sense of right and wrong. Acceptable conduct would be subjective, varying from person to person. Consequently, most major religions have their own “holy book” by which the followers live. For Christians, The Bible is their moral compass. Unique from every other species, humans have been gifted with the ability of making decisions using conscious thought based upon personal morals, demonstrated in the Garden of Eden. In a pure and flawless environment, humans failed to mirror the perfection around them by disobeying God, thus creating an eternal need for humans to be guided away from the destruction their own nature would …show more content…
The physical writing was completed by chosen men of God who came from backgrounds such as doctors, fishermen, shepherds, kings, and prophets. The Lord gave His word to these men through what Bible scholars call plenary verbal inspiration, which means exactly how it was dictated. “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction of righteousness” (King James Version 2 Tim. 3:16). The Bible contains everything the Lord wants men to know in His exact words, and intentionally includes things that human nature minimizes or ignores. Quoting J.I. Packer, “If the words were not wholly God’s, then their teaching would not be wholly God’s” (Bere 12). Some doubt that the Bible is God’s literal word, but the authors sometimes wrote about things they did not understand with incredible accuracy, such as the medical information found in the Mosaic Law and the many prophecies that have already been …show more content…
Numerous emperors of Rome hated Christianity and are notoriously remembered for killing Christians by the thousands and ordering all Bibles to be destroyed. Emperor Diocletian felt he had succeeded in wiping out Christianity and in celebration had a column raised with the Latin inscription Extincto nomene Christianorum which translates to “the name of Christian is extinguished.” In less than ten years, the inscription was replaced with a cross by emperor Constantine (Bere 23). Likewise, a French atheist named Voltaire stated that “One hundred years from my day there will not be a Bible seeker in the earth except one that is looked upon by an antiquarian curiosity seeker.” Twenty years after his death, Voltaire’s house was purchased by the Geneva Bible Society and used to print Bibles. The word of God has stood the test of time; “The grass withereth, the flower fadeth, but the word of our God shall stand for ever” (Isa.
William C. Plachers’ article, “Is the Bible True?” explores deeper into the subject of the Bible and if it content it contains is credible information. Through Plachers’ statement, “We need to understand the genre to understand a text. Reading a text literally is not always reading it faithfully,” we are able to reach the idea that the Bible is in fact true, but it all depends on how the individual interprets the text.
Did The Green Knight poem make allusions to Biblical tales? . Allusions is a vague description of a person, place or thing without being too specific. Allegory is a hidden meaning within a story that one has to discover on his or her own. Green Knight makes allusions towards the bibical tales of The Garden of Eden. The allegoring retelling of The Garden of Eden is apparent in the Green Knight in one big way, temptaion. The symbolic references from both stories are similiar in many aspects.
The Hebrew Bible, better known as the Old Testament, is a collection of tomes that form part of the Biblical canon. Many scholars around the world do not think that a single author wrote the books contained in the Hebrew Bible, but rather that it represents centuries of stories frequently compiled after the events they describe . The stories were created with visions for the future, in order to allow audiences insight into communities and beliefs that were common thought during their era. The stories responded to the issues and problems of their time, but also addressed contemporary climates. While the stories themselves may not be true, they convey truth without needing literal readings. For example, the creation stories in Genesis, portray God as creating the universe, and while this is considered as not ‘literally true’; the stories communicate theological truths about mankind’s relationship with God through the eyes of Hebrew writers .
Even though humans wrote the text, translating it and passing it down from generations to generations, God’s truth is unchanging. Debates of the inerrancy of the bible cannot usurp God as the King of grace. Instead of focusing on the inerrancy of the Bible, individuals who wish to seek a life of faith should focus on the inspiration God is showing them in his word. These revelations should move them into applicable, daily life changing implications from what they have learned. God shows revelations of himself through the Bible, and his character is revealed time and time again throughout scripture. Any faulty facts or discrepancies in grammar or data, should not take away from the value that scripture holds. When we read scripture we bring new meaning of interpretations of the truths God shows us, since new eras and environmental factors will be influential on how we process information. The bible is not just a fact book, telling humans stories of the past, but instead the bible is inspired instructions for how we can deal with spiritual and ethical encounters we
A disturbing thought about man’s ethical barometer is that most of the theories, categories and principles emanate from the point of man’s reason. There is a cause to shudder at the thought of man as the absolute authority of what is right and wrong; what is ethical and what is not. Born into a sinful nature, man will ultimately make decisions that will lead to a moral philosophy that is shaky at best. Even philosophers with the best of intentions fall short to God’s model for the order, organization, and meting out of ethical actions. Because of man’s finite vision of what should be done to improve the present situation, mankind will always be found lacking in making the best ethical decisions; not being able to see the long term outcome and the impact those decisions and actions would have on others in the world.
The morals of society concept is exemplified by the Judeo-Christian religions. These religions base their moral principles on their respective religious texts that they believe to contain God’s will.
Writings of historical scholars, Josephus, Aristotle, and Plato, to name a few, are taken as truth and fact, yet the writings of the Scripture are constantly disputed. Why? Perhaps because of the ethical imperatives imposed to which people do not want to adhere. Perhaps because of man’s ego and pride that disallows them to submit to a Higher Authority. Nonetheless, The Bible has been, and still remains, the most widely read and revered book of all
Summary From the very beginning of the book, Fee and Stuart seek to explain the importance of proper biblical interpretation. The authors provide hermeneutical approaches for the study of the different types of genres found in the Bible.... ... middle of paper ... ... They continue to explain that the prophecies do not need to be fulfilled in a specific way.
Spanning fifteen hundred years with over 30,700 manuscripts, extensive archaeological evidence and 2000 prophecies that have been fulfilled, the Bible is God 's word to us. (Yohn, 2013). In the Bible, the Father is essentially giving us a picture of the history of the world and is also leading us to a place where we must make a decision that involves whether we choose to accept his son or reject him and remain guilty. Additionally, the Word of God tells us what happened that caused this breach between us and God, the result of this and how God has rectified it through the blood of his son. In fact, from the beginning of the Bible (written 1400 B.C.) to the last book (A.D. 96), God is showing us why we need Jesus and how to find him. Just as a plant’s root system propagates and occupies the pot that encloses it, Jesus permeates the entire Bible. Therefore, the motif of the Bible is the story of the redemption of mankind and it all points to Jesus as the messiah and savior who secures this for all.
To understand the basis of the ethics that Christians live by the Biblical story must be interpreted. The Bible passes judgement on many things that Christians would come into contact with at some point in their lives. These things include cases such as; abortion, contraception, euthanasia and homosexuality. All of which are negatively referred to in the Bible. However authority today views these issues differently because they use secular ethics in conjunction with their decision making. Examples of authority include governments and work places. This is so that a good outcome may be maximized and had by most of a population, known as a Utilitarian approach. It is inevitable that a few will disagree but this number outweighs the good of the plenty. This secular schemed way of thinking can sometimes severely conflict with the ethical interpretation that is put forth in the Bible. Ultimately when Christians follow the Bible’s ethical basis they will gain the reward of their soul ascending to heaven in the afterlife. This is an incentive to follow Christian ...
Thus, an effort is made to highlight how Bible interpretation – through its publication – has developed in the history of Christianity.
Morality and the Bible & nbsp; Both the legal and salvation philosophies of the Old and New Testaments reflect those of the cultures around them, due to much copying and borrowing of laws and ideas. Furthermore, all societies around the world have similar moral and legal codes -- which is certainly not an accident. & nbsp; Interestingly enough, the moral codes of the world's religions bear a striking resemblance to each other, with only minor variations. Religions as different as Hinduism, Islam, and Buddhism all have proscriptions against killing, lying, cheating, stealing, etc. This is not an accident, for reasons we shall explore below. & nbsp; Christians may then object that there is something unique about the Bible that makes it a superior moral code.
the Bible were “God - breathed” making each a Word from God and not the words of the
Everyday we are tested as individuals to make the right choice. How we view ourselves as individuals and how others view us are directly correlated to our moral decision-making. But morals are somewhat misleading. What might be a wrong decision for one person might be a solution to another. So how do we define morals? Do we follow Gods’ moral rules because to do so would increase out likelihood of obtaining salvation in the afterlife? Or is it simpler than that. Is God going to deny our entrance into heaven because we have run a stop sign here and there? No. I believe our moral values are much simpler than that. I believe that our moral decision-making comes from our upbringing of what is right or wrong. Our parents and the people we surround ourselves with, are, I believe, direct causes of how we make decisions. Having more positive family influences as we grow up to adults will better help us come to make the right decisions in tough situations. In this paper, I will take you through a situation where my morals were tested. It takes place in the northern woods of Vermont in a little town called St. Albans where a young boy transforms into a young man by controlling his emotions and making the right decision.
Therefore, we should believe that each writer gives us an accurate summary in their own words. Lea and Black, The New Testament, Its Background and Message, 2003:122-125. Works Cited Bibliography Carson, D.A., and Douglas J. Moo. An Introduction to the New Testament. 2nd Edition.