Greetings
Brethren,
We do not serve
a God that discriminates and sanctions or has sanctioned the racial abuse of
other people. God sees right and wrong, the righteous and the unrighteous the believer
and the non-believer. One becomes a believer by choice so does one have the
right to not believe in God and the Bible.
However the
Bible that we believe in teaches that the unrighteous unbeliever will go to
Hell and the righteous believer will live eternally in Peace and Paradise.
Now a word to
the critics that claim that what kind of God will send someone to a place of
everlasting burning by a Hell fire? FOR THE RECORD GOD DOES NOT SEND YOU TO
HEAVEN OR HELL. YOU MAKE THAT DECISION HE ONLY OPENS THE DOOR.
For example the
choice is yours. Again we note that there are only two prominent realities in
the world today. Right/Wrong, Heaven/Hell, Righteous/Unrighteous,
Believers/Unbelievers.
So please stop
saying that God sends the wicked to Hell. The wicked buy their own ticket. God
only secures your passage.
Peace and Love,
Carl Patton
writing for the FreedomJournal October 27, 2002 in the year of our Lord and
Savior Jesus Christ.
SLAVERY & THE BIBLE: MYTH OR REALITY
PART 12: IS THERE A CHRISTIAN MESSAGE TO THE CHRISTIAN
SLAVES?
In the name of Jehovah God, Master of the universe,
Ruler of the earth.
We thank God for
another day among the living and the dead. Peace be unto our Savior Jesus
Christ who brought the message of the Gospel and Christianity to all of
humankind. Thanks be to be God our Father and to the Savior Jesus Christ for
the divine power of the Holy Spirit.
Is there a
Christian message to the Christian slave? If so what is this message? Is this
message the rationale to enslave people during these days and times? Are there
any real comparisons of the servant/slave system during the time of the Old
Testament, and the time of Christ? For the record many still come to justify
the existence of slavery by noting Bible scripture. In contemporary times they
do come in slave ships. Nevertheless, they now come to denounce God and the
Bible for they erroneously believe that God has sanctioned slavery among
humankind. Also they believe that God has sanctioned racial discrimination and
all of the abuses harbored in a wicked hatred for people based on race.
Again we note
that the contemporary discrimination witnessed by those of African descent came
not because of race but due to economic greed. We also note that for Black
people in Africa and throughout the world to believe that the plight of Blacks
for equality, justice and freedom has originated in race they are supporting
the inferiority concept. There was a wicked precedent set with the legal
acceptance of Black inferiority as Thurgood Marshall and his legal team gained
a victory before the Supreme Court. The move to integrate the schools in
America based on the belief that Black people felt inferior because they could
not attend all White schools laid a faulty and foolish philosophy of
integrationism at all costs.
Meanwhile, back
to our primary question of scripture in the Bible taken out of context. Again
we note that for one to understand the messages rendered in scripture that
pertain to servant/slave one has to be a believer and have a basic working
knowledge of Bible scripture. For the record it is very difficult to critique
and analyze something you have placed on your mind to hate and despise. However
the Bible is in a different category than any other book or way of thinking.
Here we have the divine presence of God, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. Yet
the power of God is missing among the unbelievers.
We continue to
bring up for review certain scripture that many believe justifies slavery. We
seek to take nothing away from the passages presented or add anything to them.
However our greatest challenge is to be able to present the reality of these
scriptures to the believers and the non- believers realizing that the
non-believers will never grasp the total impact of the message without God.
Ephesians 6:5.
"Servants, be obedient to them that are your masters according to the
flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as unto
Christ;"
At this place verses
5-9 concern servant/slaves and masters. Again we note that in the King James
Version of the Bible the word slave is seldom used. The word servant comes from
several Greek original words. The way servant is used in this verse refers to
usual description of a servant slave. During the time of Jesus Christ and the
time of the Apostles the Roman Empire contained millions of slaves. The people
that were slaves had nothing to do with race or intelligence. They were the
victims of war or other social and economic conditions of which they had no
control. However this system stemmed from the political system and not solely
an economic enterprise.
The record shows
that the servant/slaves were prevalent, and we see several references to them
in the New Testament. For your reflection and mediation God in the Old
Testament by way of Moses and the Old Law gave instructions toward the
treatment of slaves among the Hebrew people. Still, God did not interfere with
the existence of slavery. In the New Testament we see Jesus doing the same
thing however these instructions are seen when either slave or master becomes a
Christian disciple.
This verse
commands the servants to obey their masters. The phrase "according to the
flesh reveals that they were their masters in temporal things only. The phrase
"with fear and trembling" is often misunderstood. This not mean fear
of punishment for the master. More specifically this phrase means the anxiety
of one who distrusts his ability completely to meet all requirements. But he religiously
does his utmost to fulfill his duty.
Singleness means
with sincerity from the heart. "As
unto Christ," a faithful servant will strive to do his duty because it is
right. Thus, servant/slaves should do likewise in serving their master.
Cont. Part 13:
The Sacrifice of Christ & The Servant/Slaves
carl@freedomjournalpress.comcastbiz.net