rllai@miavx1.acs.muohio.edu (Roberto L Lai) (12/19/90)
Hello. I was reading Isaiah last night, and came across the passages that are said to be prophesies of the Messiah, the "suffering servent" and the "shoot of Jesse" passages. I can see the connection there with Jesus being the one, but can someone steer me toward the OT passages that speaks of the Messiah being God's "one and only son"? One of the points of Christianity is the assertion that Jesus was born to a virgin, and is God's ONLY son. I thought Jesus preached that God's children are those who do His will. Are you still considered a Christian if you consider your spiritual life God-centered rather than Christ-centered? Also, Isaiah spoke a lot about the Sabbat(If you observe my sabbath and keep it holy, ect)...what do you make of it? Poppycock? That's the impression I get from many Christians' attitude regarding the Sabbath. Isn't that a sign between God and man FOREVER?? [Definitions of Christianity are always dangerous, but I think most Christians would define Christianity as saying that salvation is mediated through Christ. Of course Christians would not want to set up an opposition between being God-centered and Christ-centered, since they believe that in being Christ-centered, you *are* being God-centered. I'd say a view in which our relationship with God does not intrinsically involve Christ is probably best thought of as not being Christian. --clh]
oracle@eleazar.dartmouth.edu (Brian T. Coughlin) (01/07/91)
Re: Roberto L Lai In article <Dec.19.04.48.23.1990.28533@athos.rutgers.edu> rllai@miavx1.acs.muohio.edu (Roberto L Lai) writes: >Hello. I was reading Isaiah last night, and came across the >passages that are said to be prophesies of the Messiah [...] but can >someone steer me toward the OT passages that speaks of the Messiah being >God's "one and only son"? [...] I thought Jesus preached that God's >children are those who do His will. Are you still considered a Christian >if you consider your spiritual life God-centered rather than Christ-centered? Hi, Roberto! The Bible makes a point of calling Jesus God's only *begotten* Son, as opposed to God's *created* children. With this distinction in mind, it would not be necessary to look for evidence of Jesus's sole role as child of God; both Old and New Testaments give the messiah a unique and exalted role, and the New Testament casts Jesus in that role of Son of God above all other children of God. By speaking of Jesus as a *begotten* Son, this affirms the doctrine of the Trinity, where Jesus shares equal divinity with the Father (and the Spirit). As to your question about being a Christian, my best guess would be that, if you do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as being the crux of the whole of God's plan for humanity, then you probably can't be considered a Christian. For example, Moslem faiths believe Jesus to be a great prophet (not THE great prophet, mind you) and a holy man, but do not hold any belief that Jesus is directly involved with the salvation of the world. Theyir spiritual lives are God-centered, but *not* Christ centered, and thus are not Christian. As a side note, believers in the doctrine of the Trinity would not encounter such a choice (God-centeredness over Jesus-centeredness), as Jesus *IS* God to them. >Also, Isaiah spoke a lot about the Sabbat (If you observe my sabbath and >keep it holy, ect)...what do you make of it? Poppycock? That's the >impression I get from many Christians' attitude regarding the Sabbath. >Isn't that a sign between God and man FOREVER?? :) I assume you meant "sabbath" in the first line; "sabbat" is a convocation of witches (i.e. those who follow and/or embrace the Wicca belief-system), known in the dark ages as a "black mass". I can't be sure of what your concern is regarding the Sabbath day; could you supply references to the Isaiah verses in question? It's rather big, and I'm not as familiar with Isaiah as I should be. :) I *can* tell you a few supposed purposes of the Sabbath: 1) a day of remembrance of the Lord's rest on the seventh day of Creation (a literal interpretation of Genesis is not needed for this remembrance to have meaning; regardless of the literal (realtime) time frame, the Sabbath, in this way, commemorates the completion of the manifestation of humanity through the will of God). 2) a day of dedication to God, chosen from the seven available weekdays of the Gregorian calendar. In this case, it's not so much the history of the day that's important, but the fact that humans feel a need to show appreciation and respect for God, and choose a specific day on which to perform this veneration and worship on a regular basis. 3) for Christianity, a remembrance of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, through which the power of death was forever shattered (and the Gates of Heaven thrown open). In testament of this single most important event in Christian history, Christians choose Sunday as the sabbath day of worship. I hope this helps, somehow! ---- Take care! Sincerely, Brian Coughlin oracle@eleazar.dartmouth.edu