Re: The centurion and his servant
Submitted by Ben on July 31 1999 at 07:29:25
In reply to The centurion and his servant Submitted by Heather on July 30 1999 at 20:35:26
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Heather - Thanks for digging deeper into this passage. Once again, there is alot which can be learned from even a small chapter in the bible. We are pretty unified in agreeing that the centurior may or may not have been in a pedarestic relationship with the boy. Therefore, no conclusion can be drawn either way so as to indicate that God accepts or rejects such relationships. You have now added the important point that even if it was such a relationship, Jesus still would have helped, just as he helped prostitutes, theifs and the Samaritan woman who had 5 husbands. One of the things that I take from this understanding is that God's grace, which Jesus embodies is not reserved for the noble, the church lady and the upstanding citizen. Indeed, Jesus came to die for all of us and for all of our sins, be they pedophillic activities or just simply lying. God's grace represents his love for all people and the grace is given to us without us earning it (through being faithful). On the issue of salvation however, there is clear indication in the bible that salvation comes from accepting Jesus, turning one's life to God and repenting of sin. Whereas Jesus did not go into alot of detail about sin (as you pointed out), Paul did. This has often bothered me because I take every word that Jesus uttered seriously. Paul on the other hand, had a tendency to exhaggerate for his audience. In looking at the way that Jesus taught, one might find it consistent that Jesus didn't go into alot of detail about people's sins. He simply told them to stop sinning. After all, Jesus often taught in parables and he rarely began a relationship by attacking someone's lifestyle. Instead, he always took care of their needs first and then asked them to examine their life, and ultimately to follow him. Perhaps it was Paul's charge to make sure that the message was not elusive to those who didn't take it upon themselves to decipher the parables. Paul dove into the specifics of following Jesus and made sure that those who took Jesus' subtlty too lightly, also had more specific words to follow. Now whether the rest of us have a right to reinterpret Jesus when it contradicts what Paul said is another matter :) You are not alone. Ben |