Love your enemies

[Blastcat]

I'm looking for Bible verses that support "love thy enemies" and "Kill whoever God doesn't like today."

In the Bible, I think it was in Matthew 5:44 where it says that we should love our enemies, and in the OLD testament, there are very many passages where people kill people on the command of God.

I think there are about a dozen of those direct commandments...

So, the questions for debate is:


"Are Christians being instructed to not hate their enemies, but to hate to the point of killing whoever God considers to be an enemy?"

P.S.

I owe the idea of Christians having to hate God's enemies from Divine Insight in Post 107: Question for Atheists/Naturalist

[catnip]

I'm looking for Bible verses that support "love thy enemies" and "Kill whoever God doesn't like today."

In the Bible, I think it was in Matthew 5:44 where it says that we should love our enemies, and in the OLD testament, there are very many passages where people kill people on the command of God.

I think there are about a dozen of those direct commandments...

So, the questions for debate is:


"Are Christians being instructed to not hate their enemies, but to hate to the point of killing whoever God considers to be an enemy?"

P.S.

I owe the idea of Christians having to hate God's enemies from Divine Insight in Post 107: Question for Atheists/Naturalist

The OT is merely background of human relationship with God and testimony for the coming of the Messiah. The NT is authoritative for those who follow Christ.

I know that some conflate the two and pick and choose between them, but that obviously misses the point.

[Blastcat]

[Replying to post 2 by catnip]

So, the questions for debate is:

"Are Christians being instructed to not hate their enemies, but to hate to the point of killing whoever God considers to be an enemy?"

The OT is merely background of human relationship with God and testimony for the coming of the Messiah. The NT is authoritative for those who follow Christ.

I know that some conflate the two and pick and choose between them, but that obviously misses the point.

What's the point exactly?
Would you be interested in the question of the debate?

[Divine Insight]

The OT is merely background of human relationship with God and testimony for the coming of the Messiah. The NT is authoritative for those who follow Christ.

I know that some conflate the two and pick and choose between them, but that obviously misses the point.

Those who follow Christ should be killing "God's enemies" as per God's Laws in the OT".

Jesus didn't renounce the OT. To the contrary he stood by every jot and tittle of it. So if you plan on "following" Jesus you better Keep God's Commandments. In fact, didn't Jesus himself say that you are supposed to keep God's Commandments? I'm pretty sure he did. And God did command men to kill those who preach of other Gods. So if you're going to follow Jesus instructions you better get out there and start killing those heathens as God commanded thou shalt do!

[Divine Insight]

By the way, I'm not so sure that we need to "hate" God's enemies. I don't recall God commanding that we are to hate his enemies. Only that we are to kill them.

Remember, if God commands it, it is GOOD. So there may not be any need to hate anyone, just kill them as God has commanded. Save your emotions for better things.

Apparently killing heathens and blasphemers is a GOOD thing. Otherwise why would an all-good God have ever commanded men to kill heathens and blasphemers?

[Blastcat]

By the way, I'm not so sure that we need to "hate" God's enemies. I don't recall God commanding that we are to hate his enemies. Only that we are to kill them.

True we can love them to bits, as long as they DIE.

[bjs]

The OT is merely background of human relationship with God and testimony for the coming of the Messiah. The NT is authoritative for those who follow Christ.

I know that some conflate the two and pick and choose between them, but that obviously misses the point.

Those who follow Christ should be killing "God's enemies" as per God's Laws in the OT".

What specific OT law(s) are you referring to?

[ttruscott]

We are called to love OUR enemies and not kill them because within every earthly judgement of another is the kernel of self righteousness that they are dying and not us because their sins are worse in HIS sight than ours...

Luke 18:11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed this prayer: 'I thank you, God, that I am not a sinner like everyone else. For I don't cheat, I don't sin, and I don't commit adultery. I'm certainly not like that tax collector!
...
13 But the tax collector stood at a distance, unwilling even to lift up his eyes to heaven. Instead, he beat his breast and said, God, have mercy on me, a sinner! 14 I tell you, this man, rather than the Pharisee, went home justified. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.

[Blastcat]

[Replying to post 8 by ttruscott]

We are called to love OUR enemies and not kill them because within every earthly judgement of another is the kernel of self righteousness that they are dying and not us because their sins are worse in HIS sight than ours...

Yup, you only have to kill people when you're told to by God. You aren't supposed to have opinions of your own.

Got it.

[onewithhim]

The OT is merely background of human relationship with God and testimony for the coming of the Messiah. The NT is authoritative for those who follow Christ.

I know that some conflate the two and pick and choose between them, but that obviously misses the point.

Those who follow Christ should be killing "God's enemies" as per God's Laws in the OT".

What specific OT law(s) are you referring to?

Yes, I wonder what those specific laws were. I don't find any.

God told his people to clear out the pagans from the Promised Land and the Bible reports a lot of bloodshed, but there is not a command to hate them. And it is true that there were wars in the O.T. but you have to realize that God [Jehovah] was speaking DIRECTLY to the leaders of Israel---Moses, Joshua, etc.---and today no commanders of warfare communicate directly with Jehovah. Who is to say who God's enemies really are?