Doubt

Originally posted by @kellyjay
Like saying the Gospel of John, or according to John? There is no religion of John!

Did John or any of the Apostles use the expression 'my gospel' ?

Originally posted by @kellyjay
...the whole of the OT was setup the way it was to highlight Jesus’ coming.

So if I open a page of the OT at random and start reading from the 8th line down ...

Shall we do a test?

Originally posted by @kellyjay
There’s no religion of Paul.

He was an atheist?

Originally posted by @whodey
The difference that you see is the ushering in of a new covenant to deal with sin.

No longer must God destroy the sinner to destroy the sin. That is what the cross was for.

Jesus said that he did not come into the world to destroy the law, but to perfect it.

That is what he did.

If there was no difference, then no real change would have been ushered in.

Did God know that Adam and Eve would eat the fruit?

Chaney3:
Taken as a whole, the Bible is incoherent and nonsensical. Why don't you simply accept that fact?

Originally posted by @thinkofone
Chaney3:
Taken as a whole, the Bible is incoherent and nonsensical. Why don't you simply accept that fact?

Because if that's true, then the 'God' we're given in the Bible is also nonsense.

Apart from the Bible, we have no idea who the Creator is.

Originally posted by @chaney3
If that's true, then Jesus destroyed the human race at the time of Noah. That action is quite different than "coming to save the world, not condemn it".
Doesn't really make sense.

No one questions a surgeon that kills cancer cells to save the human body. No one complains when the veterinarian kills parasites to save the pet.

Originally posted by @tom-wolsey
No one questions a surgeon that kills cancer cells to save the human body. No one complains when the veterinarian kills parasites to save the pet.

You are equating human beings with parasites and cancer cells?

Supposedly, God created those humans, and according to the Bible, loves them.

Until He kills them.

Originally posted by @chaney3
Because if that's true, then the 'God' we're given in the Bible is also nonsense.

Apart from the Bible, we have no idea who the Creator is.

Why don't you simply keep the gospel preached by Jesus during His ministry and jettison everything that is not in lock-step agreement with it? Problem solved.

Originally posted by @rajk999
Did John or any of the Apostles use the expression 'my gospel' ?

That's what you got, he said "my gospel" and everything done by him,
everything said about him, and by him, is now meaningless to you?
You realize what gospel means right?
The word is all about an account describing the gospel, or the Good News it isn't Paul's
religion. Did you count how many times Paul used that word in other ways like the
examples below?

The gospel of the kingdom.
The gospel of Jesus Christ.
The gospel of God.
The gospel of the grace of God.
The gospel of the glory of Christ.

It is the good news, which is why you hear that word used to describe the four gospels,
because they tell about Jesus Christ. The gospel according to Matthew, Mark, Luke, and
John are all about Jesus' story.

If I had to take references on whose word I should take concerning Paul's teaching and
writing, I have to put Paul in much better stead you or anyone here. Luke wrote both the
gospel of Luke, and the book of Acts. Paul was in the book of Acts, and the works he did
in it dwarf ours for the glory of God. In that book Jesus set him apart for the work Christ
had for Paul, did Jesus do that to you too?

Peter mentioned Paul's writings, and Peter wasn't very kind to people who screw up
Paul's teachings either when Peter wrote, "...the ignorant and unstable twist to their own
destruction, as they do the other Scriptures."

Another thing you more than likely haven't taken into account is who Paul was reaching
with the good news. Unlike Peter when he spoke, Peter was preaching to a people who
had a great foundation in their lives they grew up with Moses' teaching and doctrine there
was a healthy foundation there. Paul was writing to people who had no foundation, who
may have believed in so many different gods, and had no foundation in the law. So Paul's
writings were directed to those who didn't have a good foundation or none at all. This
means that he had to cover ground the other's didn't have to.

2 Peter 3:14-16 English Standard Version (ESV)

14 Therefore, beloved, since you are waiting for these, be diligent to be found by him without spot or blemish, and at peace. 15 And count the patience of our Lord as salvation, just as our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you according to the wisdom given him, 16 as he does in all his letters when he speaks in them of these matters. There are some things in them that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other Scriptures.

Originally posted by @chaney3
There are times when I think that some or most of the Bible stories are just too far fetched to be really true.

God is angry, jealous, and vengeful in the OT, regarding the humans that HE created.

Having to sacrifice and kill a human (Jesus) to save mankind seems unreasonable at times, especially when this sacrifice will only benefit a small percentag ...[text shortened]... fferent than believing in the one(s) given us in the Bible.

Just sharing, in a time of doubt.

You do not have a classical Christian view if you were taught that Jesus is a human that is being sacrificed.

God is literally sacrificing Himself. He came to earth to struggle, to be tempted, to live a human life with all of the issues that we face, and the whole thing climaxes with him literally being tortured and killed on a cross, refusing the heavy drink that they normally gave to prisoners to make them delusional and not feel the pain.

All of this was for us as a sacrifice -- and it was He who was the sacrifice.

This should contextualize a lot.

... Moreover, OT stuff is very difficult if you do not have a set interpretation point for even handling the OT as it is, and if you do not have a lot of the contemporary knowledge, or a faith in God's cosmic justice, of course it will be very difficult for you.

One of the biggest barriers to Christianity is looking at the Bible with the assumption that there is not cosmic justice promised by it.

Originally posted by @chaney3
Because if that's true, then the 'God' we're given in the Bible is also nonsense.

Apart from the Bible, we have no idea who the Creator is.

If you believe this what is your struggle? God is good and allows us to go where we will,
He lets us leave Him if we want and never return. He allows us to fully grasp whatever it
is we put our hearts into, and will not force Himself on us, if He isn't invited He will not
enter.

I heard a good analogy the other day about our lives and God, if our lives were a canvas
we put on it whatever we want, if our hearts desire evil than evil it is, if wickedness than
wickedness it is, if is some splattering of some good and bad than that is what it is. God
will only paint your life’s picture if you give Him the canvas, all of it! God will not paint on
something that doesn’t belong to Him, so our lives must be given to God completely, that
which we understand, and that which we don’t, that which we love, and that which we
hate. We can hold nothing back, no secret corner just for ourselves, He is Lord of all or
not at all.

Originally posted by @divegeester
Doug is normal; don’t let it put you off.

Best typo!

Sorry I meant doubt is normal.

Originally posted by @thinkofone
Why don't you simply keep the gospel preached by Jesus during His ministry and jettison everything that is not in lock-step agreement with it? Problem solved.

During his ministry, while he was on earth, Jesus words included him claiming he was sent by God. Was he correct?

Originally posted by @chaney3
There are times when I think that some or most of the Bible stories are just too far fetched to be really true.

God is angry, jealous, and vengeful in the OT, regarding the humans that HE created.

Having to sacrifice and kill a human (Jesus) to save mankind seems unreasonable at times, especially when this sacrifice will only benefit a small percentag ...[text shortened]... fferent than believing in the one(s) given us in the Bible.

Just sharing, in a time of doubt.

Before enlightenment there is doubt . After enlightenment the same. doubt. You just gotta know yourself.