No Coincidences

Tag: eye for an eye

  • The Higher Law and the End of Blood Sacrifice

    The Higher Law and the End of Blood Sacrifice

    Christ fulfilled the law. This was why blood sacrifices were done with after His last and great sacrifice. But what does this mean, practically?

    The Israelites practiced God’s law which was a law of reparations. You take out the eye of an enemy maliciously, you take out his eye. Someone kills your brother, you kill him. The problem with this is obvious. Blood begets blood and when does it end?

    This is why the Israelites practiced the law of sacrifice. They took an animal, that had nothing to do with bloodshed, or theft, or lying, and instead of continuing the constant cycle of reparations, they sacrificed the blood of the animal. This is obviously what Christ represented when He died on the cross. He paid the price for all our sins, because we are incapable of paying such a price.

    This is why Christ preached a higher law. No longer was it an eye for an eye but it was turn the other cheek. No longer was it sue for damages but give your second coat. Christ’s point was that after He died for our sins, animal sacrifices would be done away with, there was no more putting your sins off on a goat. Christ was teaching the end of strife. Someone wrongs you, forgive them and move on. This put an end to the vicious cycle of payback and recompense.

    Who was the greatest example ever of this? Jesus Christ never asked us to do something He didn’t do first, when He was up on the cross, and forgave those who had scourged, beaten, and crucified Him.

    But of course, justice still had to be paid for a wrong done. That’s where Christ came in, paying the ultimate and last sacrifice with His blood. So, we flawed human beings, who sometimes commit wrong without even meaning to, can be forgiven. This is the miracle of what Christ did for us, the miracle of His atonement, the miracle of His forgiveness, and the miracle of the higher law.

  • November 2023 Israel-Palestine Conflict

    November 2023 Israel-Palestine Conflict

    I wrote about the Israel-Palestine conflict earlier this year.

    Here we are 10 months later. I encourage anyone to go read my original post. I just did. It helped me refresh in my mind the complexity of this issue. This issue clearly isn’t going away in our lifetimes. I think it’s only a matter of time before this issue could impact our actual lives so it’s good to be aware of what’s going on.

    Before I write this, be aware that I am aggressively avoidant of the news. It’s so conflicting and I don’t trust it. If I’m going to look into this topic, I’m going to do a lot of research and reading. Beth just said she didn’t know how to interpret the news because she’ll hear one thing and then the complete opposite from moment to moment. So, some of what I write here might be considered politically incorrect. I don’t care.

    I recently accidentally listened to a soundbite from the Republican presidential debate. Someone was asked what Israel should do to the terrorists, Hamas. The response was so… aggressive. I had a bunch of other adjectives there at first, for what the response was. I removed them because I don’t want to offend anyone. That said, I will voice my opinion here. I hope anyone reading who would use aggressive terms about what Israel should do will consider the complexity of the situation before proclaiming that Hamas must be destroyed by any means necessary.

    I just went to search for exactly what was said by that Republican candidate and found an article in the Washington Post with the title:

    “Candidates use violent rhetoric on Israel-Gaza war without mentioning humanitarian aid“

    I think it’s immensely important to remember that the pursuit of vengeance is causing more atrocities to be performed.

    Terrorism is bad. Obvious statement? Of course. So is retaliation, withholding food, water, and medical supplies to innocent people, bombing hospitals, war crimes.

    Division.

    Pro-Israel or pro-Palestine. These are labels.

    This entire world is focused on creating more divisions among us. Satan reigns in the hearts of men.

    The world is not black and white. The Book of Mormon is a story of two groups of people that couldn’t coexist. They had a centuries-long feud based upon an argument over the right to rule. It is written from the perspective of the Nephites so it can often incorrectly be characterized as a story of good guys versus bad guys. The story of the Nephites and the Lamanites is not a story of good guys and bad guys. It is a story of two groups of people with differing views, ideologies, politics, and cultures that each felt they were in the right.

    The world is not black and white. It is seldom as simple as good guys and bad guys. That’s what we’re seeing in the Middle East right now. A study of the Book of Mormon can show us exactly where this kind of feud leads. It can only lead to complete destruction on both sides.

    Some quotes from my last post on this conflict –

    “What’s worse is what is being done to Israeli people, we are becoming animals.” 

    Two Blue Lines

    “It’s clear that there will not be peace if we continue to demolish innocent peoples’ houses…”

    Two Blue Lines

    “All former Shin Bet (Israel’s internal security service, think the FBI) leaders were unanimous; Israel must talk with the terrorists.  They must talk with anyone that might talk to them.  Peace cannot come through military or tactics or fighting or intelligence.”

    Israel-Palestine Conflict

    “When conflict becomes decades of conflict, an eye for an eye becomes 100,000 eyes for 100,000 eyes.”

    Israel-Palestine Conflict

    The two great commandments of God are to love and to love (Matthew 22:36-40).

    This conflict doesn’t end until forgiveness and love supersede vengeance and bloodshed.

    Now, look at the cover picture, at the top of this post. Look at it closely. Stare at it. Put yourself there. Be the man in that picture for a fraction of a second. I did. That’s why I’m writing this post. My heart breaks for those caught in a war. My heart breaks for those who want nothing to do with this conflict, caught in between angry, vengeful, hateful factions. My heart breaks for men and women holding their dead children in their arms.

    I am not Pro-Israel or Pro-Palestine. I am Pro-peace. I believe we all should be.