I know that today, it can be hard to even find a copy of the Bible; in many areas of the USA, even cable companies cut networks which happen to include Bible sales; in many areas, government itself will point a thick invidious finger at any child or adult who so much as checks out a religious book from a library, or says "God bless you!", or says "Merry Christmas!".

 

This leaves a number of special interests an opportunity to offer their own personal descriptions of what a faith is or isn't, not so much by making up or citing Scriptures, although that does happen on rare occasion, but through their own blanket expressions of how they want you to share their perceptions of the sum of all Scriptures...again, without citation to any in most cases, and in some, upon exhortation that the Bible in their opinion must be read from start to finish as the aggregating total of things a Christian (or even Muslims or anyone else incorporating some degree of acceptance of Christ into their own religion) must believe and do...don't even try to find a Bible, the good folks at 'Morel Orel", for example, can tell you all you need to know, and their claymation characters are NOT portraying exactly the kind of thing most Christians don't believe.

 

The most common complaint of modernist clergy and humanists is that the Bible has so many contradictions, this opinion based on false premise Christ picks up the whole Old Testament and runs with it. The most commonly plied ruse after that objection is that the third book of the Pentateuch, Leviticus, is the end-all, be-all code of justice Christ endorses and whereby ratifies salvation shall come to all mankind.

 

Now indeed, Leviticus, concluded about six centuries before the time of Christ, is the arch-prophet of God's wrath. That book sets down a laundry list of nominal to heinous acts which are called sins, says each of them warrants death, provides for such actual deaths including stonings, and for lesser sins, birds and animals sacrificed in particular ways are said to be acts which buy God off and He forgets all about it. This is one of those Old Testament Traditions Christ referred to as Mosaic (Moses) Law.

 

Yes, Christ did set people free of the law...not Roman or civil laws, but those laws of the Mosaic code which had been misconstrued through the likes of Leviticus; yes, just about anything done with the special intent the doing of it mocks God can be a sin, but through conversion back to God and good acts manifested in support thereof, any person anywhere on earth so acting is on the path of eternal life. Christ did NOT say ALL the Old Testament laws would fade away, for example The Ten Commandments Jesus Himself championed, just the bits about any human punishing another for their sins against God (or setting a "pay/go" to earn forgiveness)...the platitude about "let he who is without sin cast the first stone" ringing any bells?

 

I'm not here to say that those who still find relevance in Leviticus aren't peacefully trying to do good works, I'm saying that Leviticus is good for Christians to study to know the KINDS of human-based PUNISHMENT God frowns upon, and good for anyone at all to study within context of the whole Bible to see that whereas even Jesus could see the same things...when done to mock God...would be the same sins, the sins in Leviticus lead to SPIRITUAL death with God re the next life but some pre-Christian prophets or other human error(s) occurred in usurping God's exclusive realm over punishment after one's death. 

 

Jesus said He came to forgive the sins of people (and prior souls) who did not earnestly know of Leviticus-type errors, and as well anyone who ever after seeks true reconciliation with God. Clearly, no matter your belief or non-belief, no actual day one Scripture nor Bible to recent times has ever portrayed Christ as a meanie.

 

So come again, modernist clergy and humanists who insist they shall deliver the world, via His eradication or via re-education, from the yoke of Jesus Christ?