Not at all. The argument is with human interpretations of what God has done.
That is your interpretation. A sound theological interpretation of Scripture, reading all things through the lens of Jesus rather than in a Quran’ic manner, does not lead to this conclusion.
This shows the problem with rejecting the historical accuracy of Genesis. Once you’ve done that, why not the rest of the Bible?
You are arguing with God. He said He did this, and He did it for a purpose. You seem to have a problem with God executing judgment against sinful creatures, and using other sinful creatures to do it.
Gen 50:19-20 says, “And he answered them: Fear not: can we resist the will of God? You thought evil against me: but God turned it into good, that he might exalt me, as at present you see, and might save many people” (DRA). Sounds to me like God used the evil intention of Joseph’s brothers to bring about some good.
You seem to think that because God executes judgment against sinful creatures He is a wrathful God. Apparently, you are also confused that God could use other sinful creatures to execute His judgments. Read the Scriptures and see how many times He uses men (individuals and nations) for His purposes.
What about “And he answered them: Fear not: can we resist the will of God? You thought evil against me: but God turned it into good, that he might exalt me, as at present you see, and might save many people” (Gen 50:19-20 DRA) is difficult to understand?
Huh? Quran’ic manner? What are you talking about? And how does your church interpret Gen 50:19-20 (and many other verses that talk about God using men for His purposes)?
OK, so you have doubts about the Scriptures. I don’t. There’s the difference!
So you don’t believe God can execute judgment? You seem to have a skewed image of God.
I’m not sure what you think the “fundamentalist” image of God is (much less my belief in God), but I believe God is not only a loving Father, but also a fearsome Judge. I believe (and this, based on Scripture) that God loves His people, but executes judgment on those who reject Him, and that He has a purpose in all that happens, good or bad (from our perspective).
Executing judgenent, yes I do have a hard time understanding how God would have His sinful creatures execute judgement when He commands us not to judge others. Only He is the judge and executed judgement.
Bringing good out of evil, yes God can do that. Creating evil so that good might come from that, not so much.
I can see God using his creatures to inform others, deliver a message, warn the people, preach the Good News, etc., but I cannot imagine God having His creatures kill His other creatures which He loves and wills to be saved, not damned.
My point is that even the true prophets in the OT would have failed the test. The Jewish people simply saw them as dangerous, crazy people who needed to be imprisoned and shunned - yet they were the real deal. Just because something a “crazy person” says is hard to understand or sounds bizarre enough today, doesn’t automatically make it crazy apparently, as per the OT prophets.
You seem to think that the executioner is also the judge. When a King commanded someone to be put to death (and there are numerous examples in Scripture), did the King execute the condemned person, or did he have someone do it by his authority? In the same way, God judges men and grants to others the authority (in His name) to execute the righteous judgment.
Didn’t God know Joseph’s brothers were going to sell him into slavery? Didn’t He know that from before creation? God had a purpose in Joseph being sold into slavery, and His purpose was for good. The intent on his brothers was evil, but God’s purpose was served.
You don’t seem to understand that God is also a judge to those who reject Him, and is capable of executing judgment. He also chastises His people (just look at the history of Israel as recorded in Judges, 1 & 2 Samuel, and many other OT Scriptures).
Actually, God did give a way to test those who claimed to be prophets in the OT (Deu 13:1-3, Deu 18:20-22)
If someone claims to be a prophet today and says he’s to kill anyone, I can look at NT. The only weapon I find for the Christian Church is the Sword of the Spirit, which is strictly for spiritual warfare, so I can see right away that this is a false prophet. I can only find 2 prophets in the NT that actually kill people, and these are the 2 witnesses found in Revelation.
God was both judge and executioner during the Flood, the killing of the first-born Egyptian sons, in Sodom & Gomorroah, etc. It’s something He has always done on His own. It simply confuses me to no end why He would start to need mere men, all of a sudden, to start being His executioners.
Knowing something and allowing it to happen and then bringing about good is entirely different from making something happen so that good comes of it. My understanding is that the Church teaches the ends never justify the means. If the ends ever did justify the means, then abortion would be OK in cases where the mother’s life was at risk, for example.
And I’m OK with God doing whatever it is that God does. I just can’t understand Him needing or using men to do something like taking life.
Why only to the NT? The OT is just as true today as it was 2,000 years ago. God’s laws are eternal and God does not change. If we can disregard certain commands from the OT why then can we not disregard the 10 Commandments, for example? Why a preference for one over the other?
It’s been going on for thousands of years! What do you mean by “all of a sudden”?
The ends do not justify the means for us. On the other hand, God not only knows what’s going to happen, but has decreed it, and makes sure that the good He intends will be achieved.
Nothing wrong with not understanding (there’s a lot of things I don’t understand). It’s good that you see that God does this. Now I would recommend prayer and continued study of God’s use of men and nations to carry out His will.
I can still use the verses in Deuteronomy to test if a prophet is false, but, as a Christian, I am under the New Covenant, not the Old. Of course, I am still obligated to follow God’s Law (which He has engraved on my heart), and there is plenty of NT Scripture to confirm that adultery is wrong (as well as abortion, lying, and many other things).