[UntoHim]

Ok Harold, ZPN and others here, it's time to move forward on this thread. I think everybody has a real good handle on where you both sit, and it's getting rather tedious watching both of you talk over and past each other.

Harold I would like to see you be more of a theologian here then a philosopher and humanist. This is going to be very hard for you since you apparently take much of the Bible to be "mythology". Furthermore, if you really believe that Christianity revolves around "this magic Bible concept" then maybe you are in the wrong area of the forum. I stuck this thread in the “apologetics” area so that maybe we could keep all the discussions within the general realm of Christian apologetics and theology.

After seeing what you have quoted here maybe we are talking about some sort of “irreconcilable difference”.

Originally Posted by awareness

So, I fell in love with the God of Jesus early on in life. And it wasn't until later that I met the God of the Old Testament. And I never liked Him. It's like there are two different Gods ; the one Jesus spoke of and exemplified, and the one in the Old Testament.

The Jesus that you fell in love with was sent to us from this very same “God of the Old Testament”. The Jesus you fell in love with proclaimed “This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.” (John 17:3) This Jesus also quoted frequently from the Old Testament, and never once did He tell anybody that any of it was mythology, rather “until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished”. So the God that Jesus spoke of and exemplified is the very same “God of the Old Testament”, and if you cannot accept this then it will make discussions a very, very rough road for both you and those whom you engage. It’s even rougher for those lurking and trying to follow along, and this is of my utmost concern.

Maybe I’ll set up a “debate” area, I think this would suit you much better. You can then lock horns with ZNP and others where the playing field would be much wider – to include humanistic and philosophical considerations along side of the standard Christian apologetic and theological realms.