Hmm, It looks like Pastor Greg is going to have to get his extended list of Biblical Balls out to hammar the message accross that this sort of stuff is not to be believed by any rational person.
The Bible tells us that.....
Deuteronomy 21:18-21
"If a man have a stubborn and rebellious son. . . bring him out unto the elders of his city. . .And all the men of his city shall stone him with stones, that he die: so shalt thou put evil away from among you. . ."
Psalm 137:9
"Happy shall he be, that taketh and dasheth thy little ones against the stones." - Premarital sex is bad Stoning children to death is good.
Malachi 2:3
"Behold, I will corrupt your seed and spread dung upon your faces." - don't knock it until you've tried it
Deuteronomy 28:53
"And thou shalt eat of the fruit of thine own body, that of thy sons and of thy daughers, which the LORD thy God hath given thee" - No premarital sex for you guys but you can eat your children if you like.
Clouds are gods footprints in Heaven - "The Lord is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked: the Lord hath his way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet" (Nahum 1:3).
The disabled have been "smited" by him - "And the Lord said unto [Moses], Who hath made man's mouth? or who maketh the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing, or the blind? have not I the Lord ?" (Exodus 4:11). "And, behold, thou shalt be dumb, and not able to speak, until the day that these things shall be performed because thou believest not my words, which shall be fulfilled in their season" (Luke 1:20).
God causes thunder and Lightning - "Hear attentively the noise of his voice, and the sound that goeth out of his mouth. He directeth it under the whole heaven, and his lightning unto the ends of the earth" (Job 37:2-3).
Hemorrhoids are one of god's ways of punishing sinners (he must have smited the VBB then ) -"The Lord will smite thee with the botch of Egypt, and with the emerods, and with the scab, and with the itch, whereof thou canst not be healed" (Deuteronomy 28:27). "But the hand of the Lord was heavy upon them of Ashdod, and he destroyed them, and smote them with emerods, even Ashdod and the coasts thereof" (1 Samuel 5:6).
Back onto the topic of sex. The Bible tells us that: A man should castrate himself - "For thus saith the Lord unto the eunuchs that keep my sabbaths, and choose the things that please me, and take hold of my covenant; Even unto them will I give in mine house and within my walls a place and a name better than of sons and of daughters: I will give them an everlasting name, that shall not be cut off" (Isaiah 56:3-5). "For there are some eunuchs, which were so born from their mother's womb: and there are some eunuchs, which were made eunuchs of men: and there be eunuchs, which have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake. He that is able to receive it, let him receive it" (Matthew 19:12).
A Woman must have her hands cut off for accidentally toutching her husband's genitals in an efforet to prevent him being attacked - "When men strive together one with another, and the wife of the one draweth near for to deliver her husband out of the hand of him that smiteth him and putteth forth her hand, and taketh him by the secrets: then thou shalt cut off her hand, thine eye shall not pity her" (Deuteronomy 25:11-12).
Hmm, It looks like god doesn't like womem very much - "When thou goest forth to war against thine enemies, and the Lord thy God hath delivered them into thine hands, and thou hast taken them captive, and seeth among the captives a beautiful woman, and hast a desire unto her, that thou wouldest have her to thy wife; then thou shalt bring her home to thine house; and she shall shave her head, and pare her nails; and she shall put the raiment of her captivity from off her, and remain in thine house . . . And it shall be, if thou have no delight in her, then thou shalt let her go whither she will; but thou shalt not sell her at all for money, thou shalt not make merchandise of her, because thou hast humbled her" (Deuteronomy 21:10-14). "But of the cities of these people, which the Lord thy God doth give thee for an inheritance, thou shalt save alive nothing that breatheth: but shalt utterly destroy them" (Deuteronomy 20:16-17). "Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husband" (Colossians 3:18-19; see 1 Peter 3:1; Ephesians 5:22). "And if a man sell his daughter to be a maidservant, she shall not go out as the menservants do. If she please not her master, who hath betrothed her to himself, then shall he let her be redeemed" (Exodus 21:7-8). "And whosoever lieth carnally with a woman, that is a bondmaid, betrothed to a husband, and not at all redeemed, nor freedom given her; she shall be scourged: they shall not be put to death, because she was not free. And he shall bring his trespass offering unto the Lord, unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, even a ram for a trespass offering" (Leviticus 19:20-21).
According to the bible we're all inbread - "And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the Lord. And she again bare his brother Abel" (Genesis 4:1-2). "And Cain knew his wife; and she conceived, and bare Enoch" (Genesis 4:17). "And Amran took him Jochebed his father's sister to wife: and she bare him Aaron and Moses" (Exodus 6:20).
The above is exactly why I have no respect at all for the Laws of the Bible. Yes Jesus's emphasis on compassion was a good thing but the book is historically unreliable, is filled with contradictions and goes against proven fact. If people are prepared to put their faith in that book before their own rational judgement then they have a serious problem.
On to Premarital Sex: Provided percautions are taken (both Parties have an equal say in the matter and protection is used etc.) then I have no problem with it at all. What's more, I have aproblem with anyone that does. As far as adultery goes, that is different for the reason that it is actually affecting someone else and potentially causing harm. Why the big emphasis on marriage? Supposing the people are atheists (and since marriage is partially a religious service and partly due to tradition) I place no value at all on the value of it, rather the quality of the relationship. If we're talking about casual sex here as opposed to sex outside marriage I, again have no problem with it. The dictators here who think they have the right to inflict their moral codes on the rest of society have got some serious issues, ones which I intend to address.
