For b4cz28 (or any other Bible junkie)

Discussion in 'Off-Topic Discussions' started by me again, Jun 29, 2017.

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  1. me again

    me again Well-Known Member

    Based on Acts 21:17-26 (listed above), here are four intriguing questions for b4cz28 (or any other Bible scholar):

    #1. As a Jewish believer in Christ, Did Paul take a Nazirite vow in Acts 18:18b?

    #2. Did Paul live under the law?

    #3. In Acts 21:17-26, did Paul participate in Nazirite procedures for an animal sacrifice, based upon Numbers 6:13-21?

    #4. Did 1 Cor. 9:20-21 give Paul the authority to offer an animal sacrifice in the Temple?
     
  2. b4cz28

    b4cz28 Active Member

    The mistake we always want to make as Christians is to not looking through the lens of history. Historical cultural context is very important to understand. I’ve heard people in church call the Bible racist and people can’t understand the slavery in it. We just can’t hold it to the standards we have today. That’s all said because there was no Bible when Paul was on his never-ending walk, man that guy did some traveling didn’t he? He was spreading the gospel alright, but things were not so set in stone as they are today. Even Jesus followed the law at some point in his life an taught a lot from the Torah! Paul was the Jew of Jews, an extremely learned Jewish scholar and Pharisees. He would have kept many customs merely out of human nature but he did not live under the law.

    1 Corinthians 9:20-21New International Version (NIV)
    20 To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. 21 To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those not having the law


    #1. As a Jewish believer in Christ, Did Paul take a Nazirite vow in Acts 18:18b?
    I think not

    #2. Did Paul live under the law?
    No he did not (1 Cor. 19:20) (All of Romans)
    How are we righteousness, through faith? Not through laws but faith! Paul lays this out in an argument that is beautiful in Romans 3-4.

    #3. In Acts 21:17-26, did Paul participate in Nazirite procedures for an animal sacrifice, based upon Numbers 6:13-21?
    It seemed so to me. This makes some people very angry at Paul.

    #4. Did 1 Cor. 9:20-21 give Paul the authority to offer an animal sacrifice in the Temple?
    Yes.
     
  3. me again

    me again Well-Known Member

    Fair enough.

    This writer believes it was a Nazarite vow because it's the only vow that requires the cutting of one's hair. It is outlined in Numbers 6:2,18 (click and then scroll all the way down to read it all). However, since the word "Nazarite" is not used in Acts 18:18b, this write will let it go.

    More to come on the other questions.
     
  4. me again

    me again Well-Known Member

    You quoted 1 Cor. 19:20-21. Let's print it here:

    "To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews; to those under the law I became as one under the law—though not being myself under the law [editor's note: Paul is referring to the Mosaic law]—that I might win those under the law. To those outside the law I became as one outside the law—not being without law toward God but under the law of Christ—that I might win those outside the law."

    (Clickable links: 1 Cor. 9:20-21 and Gal. 6:2)

    There is no escaping the law, but which law? To use Protestant vernacular:

    All born again Christians are under the law of Christ.

    Jesus did not come to destroy the Mosaic law, but to fulfill it. Jesus fulfilled the sacrificial Mosaic law with the perfect sacrifice of himself, thus formally instituting the law of Christ, which is celebrated with what Catholics call the sacrifice of the Mass (and Protestants call it Holy Communion).
    - Mosaic Law: Participants eat the animal sacrifice.
    - Law of Christ: Participants eat the Body of Christ. (Luke 22:19 and then Luke 24:29-31)

    More to come on the other questions.
     
  5. me again

    me again Well-Known Member

    The answer to question 3 and 4 are the same, so only one reply will be provided.

    1. Jesus did not come to destroy the Mosaic law, but to fulfill it (Matt. 5:17).

    2. Under the Mosaic law, bulls and goats could not atone for sin (Heb. 10:4). Animal sacrifices were just a foreshadowing of the perfect sacrifice of Jesus.

    3a. In the Mosaic law, participants ate part of the animal sacrifice (Lev. 6:26).
    3b. In the Law of Christ, participants eat the Body of Christ (Luke 22:19).

    4. It is perfectly acceptable for Christian Jews (in Paul's day) to keep the customs and traditions of Moses, while Gentile Christians were only required to abstain from:
    a) unchastity
    b) eating things sacrificed to idols
    c) eating strangled things (Acts 15:22-29)

    It was fine for Paul to take a Nazarite vow (in Acts 18:18 and in Acts 21:23-26). See below for greater clarification on how Paul would consummate the Nazarite vow with an "appropriate sacrifice" under the Law of Christ.

    5. The only question is in Acts 21:26, when Paul announced when the purification would be completed was:

    What would Paul present in the Temple for a sacrifice?

    Answer:
    Paul would present the Body of Christ as the sacrificial Lamb (in Catholicism, it is called the sacrifice of the Mass). Paul would not have offered an animal sacrifice in lieu of the Body of Christ.

    However #1: Paul was arrested before the Nazarite purification could be completed, thus circumventing the need to present a sacrifice to the Levitical priest.

    However #2: Prior to the Second Coming of Christ, after the Temple is rebuilt in Jerusalem, this issue will be revisited.
     
  6. b4cz28

    b4cz28 Active Member


    I believe he did the act but did not "take" the vow.
     

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