Zone1 Pray for the Iranian people, many comparisons right now to the Book of Esther.

[ding]

So what. A euphemism is a well known literary device, a mild or indirect word or expression substituted for one considered to be too harsh or blunt when referring to something unpleasant or embarrassing.

So what? So you are making stuff up. You are perverting truth.

 

[ding]

Thats right. He said it clearly and directly. Elijah has already come....

Matthew 17:13

“Then the disciples UNDERSTOOD that He was speaking to them about John the Baptist.”

Jesus did not imply that John the Baptist was a literal reincarnation of the prophet Elijah. Instead, Jesus taught that John was the fulfillment of prophecy, coming "in the spirit and power of Elijah" to prepare the way for the Messiah. Jesus identified John as the "Elijah who is to come" mentioned in Malachi 3:1 & 4:5, but meant this functionally rather than physically. Luke 1:17 clarifies that John would act with the same spiritual power and prophetic ministry as Elijah. Elijah did not die but was taken to heaven, which contradicts the concept of reincarnation requiring a previous death. Later, Elijah appeared in his own identity alongside Moses on the Mount of Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1-8), proving he was not inhabiting John's body. John the Baptist himself stated he was not Elijah (John 1:21). Therefore, Christian theology interprets Jesus’ statement in Matthew 11:14 to mean a return of the prophetic role, not the person.

 

[hobelim]

So what? So you are making stuff up. You are perverting truth.

Really? being "taken up" into heaven is not a euphemism for Elijah being killed? So you believe he left this world without dying? Seriously? SERIOUSLY? Fascinating! professor, lol

Pssst! Let me inform you about an unpleasant truth Virginia. No one here ever got out alive.

 

[ding]

Really? being "taken up" into heaven is not a euphemism for Elijah being killed? So you believe he left this world without dying? Seriously? SERIOUSLY? Fascinating! professor, lol

Pssst! Let me inform you about an unpleasant truth Virginia. No one here ever got out alive.

Elijah did not die but was taken to heaven, which contradicts the concept of reincarnation requiring a previous death. Later, Elijah appeared in his own identity alongside Moses on the Mount of Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1-8), proving he was not inhabiting John's body. John the Baptist himself stated he was not Elijah (John 1:21). Therefore, Christian theology interprets Jesus’ statement in Matthew 11:14 to mean a return of the prophetic role, not the person.

 

[hobelim]

Jesus existed ~2000 years before I was born. I didn't let him do anything.

Right, but your belief that Jesus died as "a perfect human sacrifice" to pay the penalty for YOUR SINS defiles your soul. The fact that you would allow the suffering and death of someone you profess to love so much so you won't have to pay the penalty for your sins, even hypothetically, reveals that you are a despicable coward oblivious that your belief is sinful in and of itself and so you have your reward already. Jesus dying didn't pay the penalty for your sins, you are paying the price, death, a curse, every single day and night.

FOR YOUR OWN SINS.

 

[ding]

Right, but your belief that Jesus died as "a perfect human sacrifice" to pay the penalty for YOUR SINS defiles your soul and the fact that you would allow the suffering and death of someone you profess to love so much so you won't have to pay the penalty for your sins, even hypothetically, reveals that you are a despicable coward who is oblivious that your belief is sinful in and of itself and so you have your reward already. Jesus dying didn't pay the penalty for your sins, you are paying the price, death, a curse, every single day and night.

The central difference is that Jesus is understood to have chosen his death willingly out of love, whereas your logical fallacy straw man involves an innocent victim forced to pay. Jesus is not a "mere man" but as God incarnate, giving his sacrifice an "infinite worth" that covers all sins. it was a divine act of mercy, allowing God to satisfy justice while offering salvation. You can't compare divine justice to a human legal system especially since your premise is flawed because Jesus wasn't forced to pay.

 

[hobelim]

Jesus making the personal sacrifice to demonstrate the only right way to comply with the Law that leads to eternal life knowing, probably since childhood, that he would be killed for doing so does in no way save you from your own sins unless you eat his flesh, accept his teaching that he received from God, and follow his example, drink his blood, by doing it.

So you can take that I love Jesus because he paid for my sins BS and ram it up your snout.

 

[ding]

Jesus making the personal sacrifice to demonstrate the only right way to comply with the Law that leads to eternal life knowing, probably since childhood, that he would be killed for doing so does in no way save you from your own sins unless you eat his flesh, accept his teaching that he received from God, and follow his example, drink his blood, by doing it.

So you can take that I love Jesus because he paid for my sins BS and ram it up your snout.

Jesus taught the messiah wouldn't be a king who conquered nations. Jesus taught the messiah would be a suffering servant that conquered death. Jesus taught that true righteousness is about a transformed heart, love for God, and love for neighbors, rather than merely keeping external rules. He fulfilled the law by focusing on intent over action—teaching that inner attitudes like hatred or lust are as sinful as actions, while emphasizing mercy over rigid legalism. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus declared that inner thoughts (hatred, lust) are equivalent to acts (murder, adultery) in God's eyes. He pushed beyond mere conformity to a list of rules to demand true righteousness. Jesus defied religious leaders by healing on the Sabbath and allowing his disciples to pick grain on the Sabbath, declaring that the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. Jesus summarized all laws as loving God wholeheartedly and loving one's neighbor as oneself. He argued that following these two principles is the essence of true obedience. He frequently broke with the traditions of the Pharisees, such as ceremonial hand-washing, arguing that what truly defiles a person comes from the heart, not from unwashed hands. Jesus taught that followers should keep his commands out of love for him, rather than keeping rules to gain merit or out of a sense of legal obligation.

 

[hobelim]

Jesus summarized all laws as loving God wholeheartedly and loving one's neighbor as oneself.

Right, because IF you loved God with all your heart soul and mind and your neighbor as yourself you would never practice idolatry or lie your ass off in the name of Jesus or God (even though you never heard a peep from them for your entire time on earth) much less mislead anyone into practicing idolatry as a way to avoid the penalty for practicing idolatry.

Schnook.