Originally posted by avalanchethecatThis thread is well needed - Bible Reading.
Well, he's so righteousness and holy that the only four of the ten most binding rules he makes refer to his jealous insistence that his followers worship only him. Apparently he's a bit insecure.
It is rather warped to me that your derive your own problem and project them to God in the Bible.
A husband expressing his uniqueness to a drunken and unfaithful wise is only telling her that he can do a much better job of loving her, than the studs roaming the bar rooms.
For God to express that He is a jealous God to His covenanted people is not His insecurity. It is His realism about the situation. They are fools to run off after the idols and demonic spirits of the nations.
Your comment confirms one theory I have about Atheism. That is that the Atheist knows that he is morally improper. And it causes him to imagine that a ultimate Person (like himself) could not exist. He can only think of God in terms of his own evil sinfulness.
He projects his failures to God and refuses to believe that a big version of his own sinful self could exist or if did was not to be revered.
Of course Christ is God incarnate and finally testifies to the fullest what God is like - "The law was given through Moses. Grace and reality came through Jesus Christ."
The utter self sacrifice of the Son of God speaks not of God's insecurity but His dedication to truth to the uttermost at the cost of everything to Himself.
For the serious Bible reader it is good to have two Bibles.
One Bible is read for study, underlining things, highlighting things, to make notes on various things.
The other Bible is read for spiritual nourishment. That is to allow the Holy Spirit to illuminate the passages as a light into one's personal life. This reading is for spiritual food.
As a bird has two wings so these two balanced approaches are good for the one serious about getting into the Bible.
Or if you don't use two Bibles it is good to realize the difference in reading that one Bible - reading for intellectual research and reading for nourishment of the spiritual hunger.