THE GOLDEN RULE

[TahitiRun]

Nevermind.
If you won't hear God Himself:

4 Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God. James 4:4.

You most definitely will not hear me.

Oh sure, we can love the unsaved as long as we're not friends with them.
[shaking my head]. Unbelievable.

How do you understand the passages that speak of "loving the stranger"? For example,

Deu 10:19 Love ye therefore the stranger: for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.

The use of the term "stranger" in this particular text seems to be of one that would be adversarial or hostile towards Israel, similar to how a Hebrew might have felt while in Egypt during their years of slavery.

And further, in the NT Paul tells us that "supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks" be made for all men, for kings and those in authority. Paul's words to Timothy would have been applicable to Nero, the emperor of Rome who made sport of murdering those of the faith, and perhaps even Paul's own death:

1Ti 2:1 I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men;
1Ti 2:2 For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.
1Ti 2:3 For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour;

And the reason for this as being good and acceptable to God, as stated here:

1Ti 2:4 Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.
1Ti 2:5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;
1Ti 2:6 Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.

How do you understand this?

 

[jeremiah1five]

How do you understand the passages that speak of "loving the stranger"? For example,

Deu 10:19 Love ye therefore the stranger: for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.

The stranger is not identified. But an in-depth study may reveal POSSIBLY they were the descendants of Ishmael and Esau and other cousins, nephews, and the like. Although not a part of the Abrahamic Covenant they received other promises and blessings from God for Abraham's sake.

The use of the term "stranger" in this particular text seems to be of one that would be adversarial or hostile towards Israel, similar to how a Hebrew might have felt while in Egypt during their years of slavery.
And further, in the NT Paul tells us that "supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks" be made for all men, for kings and those in authority. Paul's words to Timothy would have been applicable to Nero, the emperor of Rome who made sport of murdering those of the faith, and perhaps even Paul's own death:

1Ti 2:1 I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men;
1Ti 2:2 For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.
1Ti 2:3 For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour;

And the reason for this as being good and acceptable to God, as stated here:

1Ti 2:4 Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.
1Ti 2:5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;
1Ti 2:6 Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.

How do you understand this?

The Scripture is written to and for God's covenant people Israel.
Jesus is a Jewish Messiah and came to teach and guide the lost sheep of the House of Israel. That care for His people continued after Jesus' ascension until the Time of the Gentiles went into full swing sometime after the destruction of their Temple (AD 70) and God continued to blind Jewish eyes on a larger scale so that He may bring in Gentiles.
There are just too many references to the Jewish faith and Abraham and the Law that a Gentile mind would have no knowledge of, and Paul's readers would need to have in-depth knowledge of these things to understand him.
Gentiles that were Christian were idol-worshipers, Greeks and Romans, and other nationalities mentioned when the apostles first spoke tongues. I count 17 nationalities or language-tongues.
Even the apostle to the Jews (James) writes his epistle to the twelve tribes scattered.
Jesus was prophesied to and for the Jews. He came to and for the Jews. And the people that were first saved were Jews. Jesus sent His apostles to the twelve tribes scattered throughout the then-known world that lived in Gentile lands to let them know God has kept His promise to send their Redeemer. They waited centuries for that day to happen. God would not ignore them in this most historical event in Hebrew history. Another thing, 27 writings in the New Testament. If there is all this Jewishness of Messiah, the Promise, the Law, Abraham, etc., God would not have just one epistle addressed (by James) to His Chosen people the Jews.

 

[Who Me]

Jesus commanded His apostles to go into the Gentile nations TO reach His Jewish brethren living there among Gentiles

You have not read what Matt 28 actually say:- 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

It does not say preach to the Jews but make disciples of All ations, that is of everybody.

 

[PeterJens]

You have not read what Matt 28 actually say:- 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

It does not say preach to the Jews but make disciples of All ations, that is of everybody.

I had contact with Jews for Jesus at one point.
The richness of the jewish culture and traditions is very appealing and if you have a lose relationship with Jesus and love and its centrality, you can be a christian in name but jewish at heart.

It means every one statement like stranger, can be put into a context of something other than the whole world, but this small group over there who were also strangers.

So the parable of the good samaritan mean only doing good things for samaritans is the lesson or is an enemy through love able to help out their neighbour despite animosity.

What is clear is once someone has faced all the obvious questions and found an answer they are happy with the bars of the prison are locked shut.

How could the sermon on the mount be just for Jews, because it show what love in the heart set free can do, and the wonder of someone established in the Kingdom of God. But to people who live in the dark and believe only darkness is our fate with the glow of Jesus, it is like a joke sent to point you to Jesus and the light. I spent years conversing with such folk, and most were like stone, because the darkness was so thick even faith in Jesus could not reach them.

One guy set out to destroy me, which is ironic, because he could not believe I had found love, so I was just a fake hypocrite. Another who rejected the Nicene creed could not accept I felt beauty in its repetition, because the words were emotionally dead to him, and obviously I was just brain washed saying otherwise.

When people sing "This is the air I breathe" what do they mean?
Where our hearts are is where our treasure is.

God bless you

 

[jeremiah1five]

You have not read what Matt 28 actually say:- 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Do they 'make disciples' first and then baptize (into Christ or is that water baptizing) them, or do they baptize them first (into Christ or is that water baptizing) and then 'make disciples?'
Discipleship takes time and if done the way Jesus did it then the disciples they make would have to live with their teacher. It's not as easy as it looks.
And the 'all nations,' does that mean Gentiles or Jews living in Gentile lands? After all, this command is linked to Acts 1:8 where these statements by Jesus were made at the same time while He was on the Mount of Olives before His ascension.
I think that since Jesus sent His apostles into Gentile lands to the twelve tribes living in these places the apostles were to herald to these twelve tribes scattered throughout the then-known world to herald to God's Chosen people that their Messiah had come, and that God has kept His Promises. For an event as important as the advent of Israel's Messiah I think God would care to let His people know who were not living in Israel and was aware that indeed their Messiah had come to get His message to them.

It does not say preach to the Jews but make disciples of All ations, that is of everybody.

As above, Messiah had come and it was to the twelve tribes living in Gentile lands that were the target audience since Jesus was a Jewish Messiah sent to and for the Jews, the lost sheep of the House of Israel that God needed to get His message to about the arrival (and departure) of Israel's Messiah. The problem was that the apostles did not do this immediately as they were still in Jerusalem approximately 6-8 years later and not even persecution would uproot them from their homeland (Acts 8:1.)
Being Jews I don't think they really wanted to go into Gentile lands and towards the Orient.

 

[Who Me]

And the 'all nations,' does that mean Gentiles or Jews living in Gentile lands?

The command was to go, and they slowly went.
Acts 10 shows us 5hat God wanted literally all people, tribes, natio s, tongues etc etc.