Christian Theology and the Hebrew Scriptures

[Joe Blackbird]

Jesus is recorded in Matthew as having said;
"For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. (Mat 5;17-18)
Earth still, apparently, exists- so clearly Jesus believed in the authority of the law and that it should be followed (at least ‘until heaven and earth pass away‘).

He also reportedly declared himself to be a major subject of the Hebrew Bible;
Luk 24:44 Then he said to them, "These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled."

But there are elements of Christian theology that appear to be completely foreign to the Hebrew Scriptures. For example;

1-Where is it explicitly written in the Hebrew Scriptures that God must become human and die to eliminate the system of ritual animal sacrifice that it says he himself set up to atone for sins?

Lev 1:2-4 "Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, When any one of you brings an offering to the LORD, you shall bring your offering of livestock from the herd or from the flock. "If his offering is a burnt offering from the herd, he shall offer a male without blemish. He shall bring it to the entrance of the tent of meeting, that he may be accepted before the LORD. He shall lay his hand on the head of the burnt offering, and it shall be accepted for him to make atonement for him.”

2-Where is it explicitly written in the Hebrew Scriptures that Hell has been designed as a place where specifically non-Christians go to be tortured for eternity when they die?

3-Where is it explicitly written in the Hebrew Scriptures that the Messiah will actually be God himself?

These beliefs seem to form the bedrock of New Testament theology for many Christians, but if they do not have their origins in the Hebrew Scriptures, where did they come from and why were they given such authority in Christianity?

[jjg]

The Jewish people did expect a Messiah who would be a human endowed with Supernatural qualities. He would be like a great warrior who would overthrow the Romans by force.

Jesus' message was one of loving God and your and fellow man.

[Colter]

Glad to see you agree However, the concept of an incarnated son of God is pagan, not Jewish in origin and is considered idolatry by Jews.

Given time man tends to create God in mans own image then sets out to define how God is to interact with us. We become blinded by our own constructs.

"Woe upon you, false guides of a nation! Over yonder have you built a monument to the martyred prophets of old, while you plot to destroy him of whom they spoke. You garnish the tombs of the righteous and flatter yourselves that, had you lived in the days of your fathers, you would not have killed the prophets; and then in the face of such self-righteous thinking you make ready to slay him of whom the prophets spoke, the Son of Man. Inasmuch as you do these things, are you witness to yourselves that you are the wicked sons of them who slew the prophets. Go on, then, and fill up the cup of your condemnation to the full!

I know, I know, One of my Jewish friends told me one time, Colter, Jews don't convert, we just don't.

Colter

[jjg]

Or you believe Christ was the Son of God. This is a matter of faith.