Reading through some of these passages, I am reminded of objections that come from many non-believers. I have heard many non-Christians claim that the Bible and Christianity portrays a vengeful, blood-thirsty God.
Certainly, these people must have read up on at least some of their Old Testament. Its when reading passages like Leviticus 20 and 24 that I can understand their objections. These chapters mandate death for sinful acts such as adultery, wizardry and blaspheme. In Leviticus 10, God causes Aaron’s sons to die in a fire because they offered “unauthorized fire before the Lord” (10:1). Furthermore, a quick search of my concordance in Leviticus shows about 20 different references to stoning and the phrase “put to death” in this book alone.
I know all the Sunday School answers regarding this issue, but my question is how can we address this issue in a way that makes sense to modern minds?
Tags: Reflection