What about context?
Nuggin writes:
Seems to me that the judeo/christian religion is awfully full of rules.
So lets focus on Jesus. He was said to be the fullfillment of the Law, yet He was not sent to abolish any law.
Jar writes:
The story in Genesis of Adam & Eve and the Garden of Eden is not one of a Fall, but of establishing the fact that there are good and bad choices and that we have a responsibility to TRY to make good choices.
I would say that there may well have been a Fall...we don't really know because we would have already fallen. We DO have a responsibility to make good choices, and I think that Jesus Christ is central to this. Having said that, lets assume, for a moment, that we are discussing choices with a group of secular people uninterested in the religion surrounding the Bible.
Jar writes:
GOD says "You know right from wrong!" It's then left up to the individuals to act on that knowledge.
Jars assertion is backed by Paul.Romans 1:11-18, I believe.
RiverRat writes:
Love God with all your heart mind and soul, and,
Love others as you love yourself.
Then the Holy Spirit lets you know when you are doing wrong, you don't need a Christian to tell when you are doing wrong or right.
Look at context. Jesus was talking to Jews who were already chosen, if not saved. They were asking which commandments were the most important. What were they seeking? A loophole? A conclusion? A revised version? Or...perhaps..they were seeking the Answer from Jesus.
Iano writes:
The law is there to condemn you. It's sole purpose is to make you feel condemned. Should you ever reach that point, then the law will have done exactly what it's supposed to do.
Yet Jesus told us that He was never here to condemn anyone. People felt condemnation only for when they did something that they knew not to do. Paul mentions no condemnation for folk who walk in the spirit.
How do we tell a room of secular peeps to walk in the spirit?
Perhaps we attempt to live it rather than preach it.
Parasomnium writes:
No wonder those Bible-thumpers are confused.
Warning: Anyone who attempts to force the Bible into their head without taking into account the context of the world around them will be subject to brain fog, stubborn behavior, and irrational proclamations!
Iano writes:
It seems 'try' is a conclusion drawn out by your own rationality - not by the bibles rationale.
OK...so when Jesus tells me to love God with everything I've got and I find that I do not, is it because I don't understand the Bible? Im trying, Im trying!