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Chop Off Your Hand?! Was Jesus Serious? - Paul Ellis - Religion (2) - Nairaland

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Re: Chop Off Your Hand?! Was Jesus Serious? - Paul Ellis by GeneralOjukwu: 10:45am On Jun 04, 2017
MODs are just haywire deleting posts on this page...

7th comment or so became FTC grin
Re: Chop Off Your Hand?! Was Jesus Serious? - Paul Ellis by vesselchino(f): 10:46am On Jun 04, 2017
that guy selling fixed matches na ur papa be referee back to topic that was a proverb dude

1 Like

Re: Chop Off Your Hand?! Was Jesus Serious? - Paul Ellis by avadella(f): 10:48am On Jun 04, 2017
Hmmm
Re: Chop Off Your Hand?! Was Jesus Serious? - Paul Ellis by africandollar: 10:50am On Jun 04, 2017
Thanks so much for this post! To think I just read this passage of the Bible this morning and was asking God to reveal the true meaning to me and voila your post becomes the answer to my prayers!

3 Likes

Re: Chop Off Your Hand?! Was Jesus Serious? - Paul Ellis by realestniggah: 10:50am On Jun 04, 2017
vesselchino:
that guy selling fixed matches
na ur papa be referee
back to topic that was a proverb dude

that one determine fraudster ..the guy won't stop until he scam a good number of people
Re: Chop Off Your Hand?! Was Jesus Serious? - Paul Ellis by bigsmoke2(m): 10:50am On Jun 04, 2017
I your joy stick cause you to sin grin

1 Like

Re: Chop Off Your Hand?! Was Jesus Serious? - Paul Ellis by Strawman: 11:03am On Jun 04, 2017
GeneralOjukwu:
MODs are just haywire deleting posts on this page...

7th comment or so became FTC grin

Lol the thing shock me as I see am. Mods are not playing with anybody today grin

1 Like

Re: Chop Off Your Hand?! Was Jesus Serious? - Paul Ellis by pressplay411(m): 11:05am On Jun 04, 2017
I wonder which body part(s) an adulterer would have to cut off

So, no he didn't mean that literally.
Jesus' teachings were garnished with condiments of allegories for thought provocation.

1 Like

Re: Chop Off Your Hand?! Was Jesus Serious? - Paul Ellis by Flashmove: 11:06am On Jun 04, 2017
Jesus spoke in Parables. It means that if you smoke weed and get small madness , thats you should stop, because smoking weed will cause you to be full mad.

You should avoid anything that will put you into trouble.
Re: Chop Off Your Hand?! Was Jesus Serious? - Paul Ellis by doyinbaby(f): 11:08am On Jun 04, 2017
The one that confuse me nah if they slap one cheek turn the Other.....easier said than done....the best I can do if person slap me one cheek nah walk away......to turn second cheek difficult
Re: Chop Off Your Hand?! Was Jesus Serious? - Paul Ellis by ogologoamu: 11:12am On Jun 04, 2017
africandollar:
Thanks so much for this post! To think I just read this passage of the Bible this morning and was asking God to reveal the true meaning to me and voila your post becomes the answer to my prayers!


Pls don't let the op or anyone deceive you. Jesus was speaking in parables here and the op knows this only that he want to poison the minds of the people. "If your hand will make you to sin, cut it off it is better to enter Heaven with one hand than to have all parts of your body in HELL...". There are people that cherish their sinful lifestyles, business, friends etc and these SINFUL things they cherish will lead them to hell. Jesus is telling such people to do away with such things no matter how important it is to them.


Can I ask you a question?, Of all the people that went to Heaven in the Bible, is there any one that cut off his or her body parts to be in Heaven? No!.

What did they do to be in Heaven?, They cut off from certain things that would have hindered them from making Heaven.

When God told Abraham to sacrifice Isaac, what happened?.

I cannot be deceived.

2 Likes

Re: Chop Off Your Hand?! Was Jesus Serious? - Paul Ellis by hopefulLandlord: 11:30am On Jun 04, 2017
GeneralOjukwu:
MODs are just haywire deleting posts on this page...

7th comment or so became FTC grin
Strawman:


Lol the thing shock me as I see am. Mods are not playing with anybody today grin

the reason is that the author of the thread bumps up his threads on a daily basis with posts like

"Happy Sunday"

"evening"

"afternoon"

"Morning"

"Jesus My Lord"

the mods then have to hide the inane posts when pushing to FP

you can click his monicker and check his threads to confirm

1 Like

Re: Chop Off Your Hand?! Was Jesus Serious? - Paul Ellis by chuks34(m): 11:33am On Jun 04, 2017
Seriously I no read the post, but I just want comment. Maybe latter I go read am. Make I chop first tongue
Re: Chop Off Your Hand?! Was Jesus Serious? - Paul Ellis by lalo128: 11:35am On Jun 04, 2017
MuttleyLaff:
Hyperboles are extreme exaggerated statements used to make a point and/or claims not meant to be taken literally

If I should say: I am hungry, I can right now, eat a house
Was I serious? Yes, I am deadly serious as regards the gravity of the sitiation,
same as Jesus when He said ''Chop Off Your Hand'' (i.e. if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away...)

So hyperbole is a natural exaggeration for the purpose of emphasis
Its used everytime in literature and we all use it everyday in oral communication.
MuttleyLaff:
Hyperboles are extreme exaggerated statements used to make a point and/or claims not meant to be taken literally

If I should say: I am hungry, I can right now, eat a house
Was I serious? Yes, I am deadly serious as regards the gravity of the sitiation,
same as Jesus when He said ''Chop Off Your Hand'' (i.e. if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away...)

So hyperbole is a natural exaggeration for the purpose of emphasis
Its used everytime in literature and we all use it everyday in oral communication.
MuttleyLaff:
Hyperboles are extreme exaggerated statements used to make a point and/or claims not meant to be taken literally

If I should say: I am hungry, I can right now, eat a house
Was I serious? Yes, I am deadly serious as regards the gravity of the sitiation,
same as Jesus when He said ''Chop Off Your Hand'' (i.e. if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away...)

So hyperbole is a natural exaggeration for the purpose of emphasis
Its used everytime in literature and we all use it everyday in oral communication.
consoling slf we know ur type.don't worry thre is tym repent.
Re: Chop Off Your Hand?! Was Jesus Serious? - Paul Ellis by GeneralOjukwu: 11:35am On Jun 04, 2017
hopefulLandlord:



the reason is that the author of the thread bumps up his threads on a daily basis with posts like

"Happy Sunday"

"evening"

"afternoon"

"Morning"

"Jesus My Lord"

the mods then have to hide the inane posts when pushing to FP

you can click his monicker and check his threads to confirm

Hahaha. Mr Landlord. Good observation!

Truly dumb of the OP
Re: Chop Off Your Hand?! Was Jesus Serious? - Paul Ellis by Nobody: 11:40am On Jun 04, 2017
Nairaland Mod,why all the hidden post I tire for una!!!
Re: Chop Off Your Hand?! Was Jesus Serious? - Paul Ellis by deltateam: 11:40am On Jun 04, 2017
Yourfaith:
Are you tired of losing or tired of giving up, why other keep hitting it big, all our yesterday client have been celebrating giving us calls of victory, done be left out. View our today's won ticket for your delight.

I place an everlasting CURSE on you for your life of fraud .
Re: Chop Off Your Hand?! Was Jesus Serious? - Paul Ellis by damosky12(m): 11:42am On Jun 04, 2017
jiggaz:
If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.” (Mt 5:29-30)

I doubt there’s a Christian alive who hasn’t been troubled by this verse at some point in their lives. It’s one of those things you read that causes you to do a double-take. What?! Did Jesus really say that? Was He serious? I’d better ask the pastor.

I’ll guess the odds are ten to one you came away thinking that Jesus wasn’t being serious. Afterall, Jesus is the kindest person there is. He healed people. Surely He doesn’t want us to go around maiming ourselves. Then you looked around your church and saw that no one had actually chopped off their hands and so you took comfort in the fact that everyone thought the same way as you did. There’s safety in numbers.

No doubt this is an uncomfortable pair of verses. Maybe you don’t think about them that much. But your interpretation of Jesus’ words is extremely important! So let’s cut to the chase with this question: was Jesus being figurative or literal when He made this statement? If you think He was using a figure of speech, how do you know that He wasn’t speaking metaphorically all of the time? Do you just assume that anytime Jesus said something that was tough to swallow that He was speaking figuratively? Or if you think Jesus was being literal, what are you going to do about it? Have you done what He said or have you ignored Him? Hmm. It seems your choice is presumption or disobedience. This is a tricky one. Let’s look more closely at the arguments for each conclusion.

Was Jesus speaking figuratively?

Jesus loved metaphors, especially when describing the kingdom of heaven. “It’s like a mustard seed” and “it’s like a treasure buried in field” and “it’s like a pearl of great price.” Jesus often used word pictures to convey revelation.
I guess the default view is that Jesus is making another metaphor when He tells us to gouge out our eyes and chop off our hands. “Jesus is using strong words to convey something about the seriousness of sin. He’s not really preaching self-mutilation but self-denial. What He means to say is we must be sensitive to sin and renounce it and run from it and do whatever it takes to avoid it.”

Does this sound familiar to you? It should, for this has been the standard interpretation for most of church history. But there are two fatal flaws with this conclusion. First, it assumes that Jesus was exaggerating and Jesus never exaggerated. Preachers sometimes exaggerate to make a point but Jesus always meant what He said and said what He meant. He is Truth personified. It is inconceivable that He would play with words for the crude purpose of ramming home a lesson. When Jesus spoke in parables He did so to conceal truths, not to stretch them (Mt 13:13). In any case, the passage above is not part of a parable. The context is the Sermon on the Mount and Jesus has just been speaking about anger and lust. His language is plain because the issues are serious. There is nothing metaphorical about His choice of words.

The second flaw with this interpretation is that it suggests we can do stuff to save ourselves from hell. Maybe we don’t have to self-amputate, but we can do things like confess, abstain, renounce and what have you. There’s nothing wrong with these things; the error comes in thinking we can save ourselves by doing them. No doubt it is better to enter eternal life handicapped than for your whole body to go to hell. But it does not follow that you can do things to earn eternal life.

Was Jesus speaking literally?

Most people think Jesus was speaking figuratively because they cannot conceive for a second that He meant what He said. But what if He did? Does it then follow that He actually wants us to chop off our hands? Of course not! We are
sanctified by the blood of the Lamb , not our severed limbs (Heb 10:29). Self-mutilation does nothing to deal with sin for sin is conceived in the heart not the hand (Mt 5:28). Besides, if you chop one hand off you’re left with another. You can still sin!

So what’s going on here? Why would Jesus tell us to do something He doesn’t really want us to do? He’s doing it so people will realize the absurdity of trying to impress God with their acts of self-righteousness. He’s preaching law on steroids not so that you will try to keep it but so that you will give up pretending you are.

It is hard for some Christians to grasp the idea that Jesus could preach both grace and law without confusing the two, but He did. Jesus is the perfect physician. He knows exactly what medicine you need. If you’re broken and hurting you’ll get grace, but if you’re self-righteous and religious you’ll get law. A self-righteous person is one who thinks he can impress God with his religious performance. The only language he understands is law. He says, “all these commands I have kept from my youth, what else do I lack?” And Jesus responds, “Okay, you asked for it, here it is – receive some more law.”

Why preach the law?

The law is not a standard to live up to, but a mirror that reveals our faults. The law was not given to help you overcome sin, but to help sin overcome you (Rms 7:8-9). In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus was preaching to people who thought they would be judged righteous if they kept the law. But instead of being silenced by their inability to do so, they had watered it down making it easier to keep. In Matthew 23 Jesus gives some specific examples of how the Pharisees had diluted the law, but in Matthew 5 He sets about raising the standard of the law to its proper level. In other words, He was polishing the mirror.

Why did Jesus do this? Why did our gracious king spend so much time preaching the law? Because some people will never appreciate the good news until they’ve heard the bad news, which is this:

“Unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.” (Mt 5:20)

The law is holy, righteous and good, but try to live by it and it will condemn and kill you (2 Cor 3:6,9). The purpose of the law is to bring man to the end of himself and reveal his need for a Savior (Gal 3:24). If you are self-righteous, you will never appreciate Jesus until the law has done its job and plowed the pride out of your smug little heart. I’m a decent person, you say. I’ve never killed or committed adultery. Not good enough, says Jesus. God knows your heart. If you’ve entertained murderous or lustful thoughts you’ve as good as done it. You’re in danger of hell-fire. This is a serious business, says Jesus. If you persist in this pathetic course of self-reliance, you had better be prepared to go the whole way even if that means sacrificing an eye and a hand. (Paul says something similar in Galatians 5:12 .)

And knowing there would be some religious wackos out there who might miss the point and actually go to such extremes, Jesus hits them with this:

“Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Mt 5:48)

God expects perfection and nothing less. If you’re not perfect, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, you’re in serious trouble. Now here’s the good news:

“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.” (Mt 5:17)

Jesus fulfilled all of the requirements of the law on your behalf. You are not perfect, but thank God you have a perfect high priest!

“Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them. Such a high priest meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens.” (Heb 7:25-26)

Why did Jesus make such a big deal about the law in Matthew 5? He did it to prepare our hearts for the good news of God’s grace . Jesus is saying you can either trust your own law-keeping performance or you can trust His. But what you can’t do is dilute the law to some standard lower than perfection and think that impresses God.

Jesus wasn’t foolin’

Jesus was born under the law and fulfilled the law to redeem those under the law so that we might receive the full rights of sons (Gal 4:4-5). Because of what Jesus has done we are no longer under the law but the grace of God (Rms 6:5)
. The good news is that His righteousness far surpasses the righteousness of the Pharisees and He offers it to you as a free gift (Rm 1:17).

To the answer the question at the top of this post – was Jesus serious? – yes, He was deadly serious! He was so serious that He suffered and died to redeem you from the curse of the law that He himself preached. So the next time someone tells you that Jesus was playing with words, that He didn’t really mean what He said, don’t let them get away with it. Don’t let them water down His words to suit their own religious performance. Jesus was not exaggerating to make a point. Neither was He using fear to motivate us to pursue dead works of religion. He was telling us that God expects nothing short of perfection and that He – Jesus – is the only hope we have.


https://escapetoreality.org/2011/04/07/chop-off-your-hand/



You got the message right my friend. But, that's not the language of these folks... It's better to make the message shorter next time.
Re: Chop Off Your Hand?! Was Jesus Serious? - Paul Ellis by darkhorizon: 11:45am On Jun 04, 2017
MuttleyLaff:
Hyperboles are extreme exaggerated statements used to make a point and/or claims not meant to be taken literally

If I should say: I am hungry, I can right now, eat a house
Was I serious? Yes, I am deadly serious as regards the gravity of the sitiation,
same as Jesus when He said ''Chop Off Your Hand'' (i.e. if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away...)

So hyperbole is a natural exaggeration for the purpose of emphasis
Its used everytime in literature and we all use it everyday in oral communication.

Hypocrite!!! If it was quoted from the Quran now,you will be shouting all sorts of names.

Mtchew... yeye dey smell

3 Likes

Re: Chop Off Your Hand?! Was Jesus Serious? - Paul Ellis by emekaRaj(m): 11:49am On Jun 04, 2017
This is a confirmation of the Islamic sheria law, of wich the Christians mock all the time.

2 Likes

Re: Chop Off Your Hand?! Was Jesus Serious? - Paul Ellis by MuttleyLaff: 11:52am On Jun 04, 2017
lalo128:
consoling slf we know ur type.
Don't worry thre is tym repent.
Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain,
''Move from here to there''

- Matthew 17:20

lalo128, PMSL I truly had a good chuckle at your comments,
Now please tell, is Matthew 17:20 a hyperbole or it too is meant to be taken literally?

darkhorizon:
Hypocrite!!!
If it was quoted from the Quran now,you will be shouting all sorts of names

Mtchew... yeye dey smell
Whatever the image you have of me.
You obviously didnt get the picture right
and so renders your comments deeply unkind and unnecessary

2 Likes

Re: Chop Off Your Hand?! Was Jesus Serious? - Paul Ellis by Nobody: 12:03pm On Jun 04, 2017
mhiztaNexy:
Jesus talked in parables.

Only Jesus knows how to talk in parables. You would have gone haywire if it was the Quran

3 Likes

Re: Chop Off Your Hand?! Was Jesus Serious? - Paul Ellis by Nobody: 12:06pm On Jun 04, 2017
Flashmove:
Jesus spoke in Parables. It means that if you smoke weed and get small madness , thats you should stop, because smoking weed will cause you to be full mad.

You should avoid anything that will put you into trouble.


Jesus must be a parable man. But if this was in the Quran, all sorts of names would have been flying . Hypocrites

3 Likes

Re: Chop Off Your Hand?! Was Jesus Serious? - Paul Ellis by pressplay411(m): 12:06pm On Jun 04, 2017
jiggaz:
If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.” (Mt 5:29-30)

I
To the answer the question at the top of this post – was Jesus serious? – yes, He was deadly serious! He was so serious that He suffered and died to redeem you from the curse of the law that He himself preached. So the next time someone tells you that Jesus was playing with words, that He didn’t really mean what He said, don’t let them get away with it. Don’t let them water down His words to suit their own religious performance. Jesus was not exaggerating to make a point. Neither was He using fear to motivate us to pursue dead works of religion. He was telling us that God expects nothing short of perfection and that He – Jesus – is the only hope we have.


https://escapetoreality.org/2011/04/07/chop-off-your-hand/

While I don't agree with the totality of the message. I find your explanation not only engaging but also very impressive.

I tell you if this passage is to be taken literally, he'd have not one worthy disciple. Let's agree Jesus is infallible.

1 Like

Re: Chop Off Your Hand?! Was Jesus Serious? - Paul Ellis by jiggaz(m): 12:10pm On Jun 04, 2017
hopefulLandlord:



the reason is that the author of the thread bumps up his threads on a daily basis with posts like

"Happy Sunday"

"evening"

"afternoon"

"Morning"

"Jesus My Lord"

the mods then have to hide the inane posts when pushing to FP

you can click his monicker and check his threads to confirm
grin Hahahahahaaaaa hopefulLandlord you dey craze!!!! grin You are very observant ooo.... Dis ur write up just described me heheheheheeee.. How are u doing my brother? Hope u good?
Re: Chop Off Your Hand?! Was Jesus Serious? - Paul Ellis by jiggaz(m): 12:13pm On Jun 04, 2017
africandollar:
Thanks so much for this post! To think I just read this passage of the Bible this morning and was asking God to reveal the true meaning to me and voila your post becomes the answer to my prayers!
You welcome bro!! Its the Holy Spirit leading you... All glory to God...
Re: Chop Off Your Hand?! Was Jesus Serious? - Paul Ellis by Flashmove: 12:15pm On Jun 04, 2017
ollah1:


Jesus must be a parable man. But if this was in the Quran, all sorts of names would have been flying . Hypocrites

Jesus spoke in parables and he did not tell you to cut someones hand. If he had said that you should cut someones hand thats when you should say that Jesus is a hypocrites.

In your heart, you really knows what the Bible verse is talking about......

2 Likes

Re: Chop Off Your Hand?! Was Jesus Serious? - Paul Ellis by Nobody: 12:16pm On Jun 04, 2017
Flashmove:


Jesus spoke in parables and he did not tell you to cut someones hand. If he had said that you should cut someones hand thats when you should say that Jesus is a hypocrites.

In your heart, you really knows what the Bible verse is talking about......



Yh sure i do and it says you should cut the hand

2 Likes

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