Many skeptics claim the God of the Bible actually endorses slavery. They make this claim on the basis of specific terminology used in the Old and New Testament. Many words in the Bible had one meaning for those who lived in New Testament times and another for those of us living today. When we think of the institution of slavery, for example, most of us think about the bondage and oppression experienced by African Americans in the 18th and 19th centuries here in America. But the New Testament Servitude (NTS) of the Ancient Near East had little in common with the New World Slavery (NWS) of our American ancestors. So before we, as Christians, become defensive with atheists who claim God somehow approved slavery in the Old and New Testament, we need to examine the difference between these two forms of servitude. Many historic Christian leaders failed to understand these differences as they errantly used the Bible to defend their slave ownership; others learned the historic place of indentured servitude and came to understand how such a system could be reconciled with the words of Jesus. This latter group eventually answered the call of Scripture and abolished New World Slavery altogether. If you find this interesting there is more.
Posted on: Wed, 06 Aug 2014 22:14:30 +0000