Nobody is good, except one, God.

Originally posted by Agerg
The words mean that this particular author thought his imaginary friend "God" is just so supa-dupa, bullet proofa, sun shines out of it's arsa awesome that he forgot for a moment Jesus is meant to be "God" anyway (some trinity nonsense) and subtracted all the awesomeness other authors had attached to "Jesus" and pinned it all on his notion of "God".

pearls before swine comes to mind dear Agers.

Originally posted by Rank outsider
Well, I have read some interesting attempts to explain why this is not suggesting that Jesus is accepting he is less good than God.

Some have argued that the stress patterns should be read as:

[b]Why do you call me good?

Why do you call me good?

In either case, it is argued, the focus is on the man's personal reasoning for why he ...[text shortened]... ared to the perfection of God, no-one, not even Jesus, is 'good' by that absolute standard.[/b]

HI, Rank Outsider, it appears that Christ had an issue with being termed , 'Good
Teacher', thus is might not actually be the quality of goodness, but rather the title,
whatever he had issue enough to state that no one but God is good. Can it really mean
that nobody really is good or simply that goodness is a relative quality and that God is
good in the absolute and consummate sense as you have stated. I think this must be
the case, for we read elsewhere that 'goodness', is a fruit of Gods spirit which the
adherent must try to cultivate, Galatians 5:22,23.

Originally posted by FMF
It sounds to me like "good" here is being framed as an ideal and that one can always strive to be 'better'. If one reads beyond 17-18, Christ is depicted as suggesting how the rich young man can be 'better' than he is when He says to him “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

me thinks that goodness refers to moral excellence, virtue, deviod of badness, call it
what you will. The young mans folly was that he loved material things more than he
did the Christ and as we know, life does not originate out of the things we posses,
despite what advertisers would have us believe.

Originally posted by avalanchethecat
Pork scratchings are good...


(eh? Robbie, eh? 😉)

meat is murder! :'(

Originally posted by robbie carrobie
me thinks that goodness refers to moral excellence, virtue, deviod of badness, call it what you will.

As avalanchthecat and I pointed out on another thread recently this kind of "goodness" is at the core of pretty much all religions.

Originally posted by FMF
As avalanchthecat and I pointed out on another thread recently this kind of "goodness" is at the core of pretty much all religions.

with the glaring exception that despite my ardent appeals to your 'good' nature you
failed to define, illustrate or apply what you were talking about. Is it really at the core
of all religions? What evidence have you?

Originally posted by robbie carrobie
with the glaring exception that despite my ardent appeals to your 'good' nature you
failed to define, illustrate or apply what you were talking about. Is it really at the core
of all religions? What evidence have you?

If you don't think it is so, it is fine by me, robbie.

Originally posted by FMF
If you don't think it is so, it is fine by me, robbie.

Is simply asking for a little evidence too much FMF, i have not said that i do not agree
with you, i am merely asking you to provide some substantiating evidence.

Originally posted by robbie carrobie
Is simply asking for a little evidence too much FMF, i have not said that i do not agree
with you, i am merely asking you to provide some substantiating evidence.

There is no need to 'debate' it. It's just an observation by me (and by avalanchethecat too), there really is no need for you to feel you have to contest it. If you agree, then you agree. If you don't, it really does not matter. I realize that you believe that Jesus' own teaching contradicts my claim that 'being "good"' lies at the core of Christianity, but I am not troubled by your assertion on this matter.

Originally posted by robbie carrobie
(Mark 10:17-18) . . .And as he was going out on his way, a certain man ran up and fell
upon his knees before him and put the question to him: “Good Teacher, what must I do
to inherit everlasting life?”  Jesus said to him: “Why do you call me good? Nobody is
good, except one, God.

How are we to understand Christs statement, 'Nobody is good, except one, God'.

Jesus did not say he was "not good", he asked "why do you call me good...". Jesus was questioning the man's motives and insight into Jesus deity.

Originally posted by divegeester
Jesus did not say he was "not good", he asked "why do you call me good...". Jesus was questioning the man's motives and insight into Jesus deity.

Jesus said nobody is good except God, if Jesus meant that he himself was God, then
would have accepted the fact, but he takes issue with being termed , Good teacher as
anyone can discern from the passage, it has nothing to do with his alleged deity or
anything else not explicitly stated in the passage. The man comes to him asking what
he needs to DO for everlasting life. There is nothing in the passage to even remotely
assume that it was an inquiry into Christ's deity.

Originally posted by FMF
There is no need to 'debate' it. It's just an observation by me (and by avalanchethecat too), there really is no need for you to feel you have to contest it. If you agree, then you agree. If you don't, it really does not matter. I realize that you believe that Jesus' own teaching contradicts my claim that 'being "good"' lies at the core of Christianity, but I am not troubled by your assertion on this matter.

without any evidence there is nothing to go on., without a simple definition, no one is
quite sure what you are talking about, without a reference, your thoughts are mere
abstractions, without an application, they remain in principle and nothing more.

Originally posted by jaywill
If you say that Christ is good, then you must be willing to say that He is God. For no one is good except one - God.

I agree with this reading, as being logical for the believer to accept. The line does not contradict the man's calling him good, it says being good is exclusive to God, which leaves the believer no option, if he believes Jesus is good, but to believe Jesus is God.

This is irrespective of whether the line was ever spoken, just as we can interpret Hamlet's soliloquy without debating that.

Originally posted by robbie carrobie
without any evidence there is nothing to go on., without a simple definition, no one is
quite sure what you are talking about, without a reference, your thoughts are mere
abstractions, without an application, they remain in principle and nothing more.

It might be apposite to mention at this point that the JW's interpretation is at odds with mainstream christianity.

http://www.forananswer.org/Mark/Mk10_18.htm

Originally posted by robbie carrobie
without any evidence there is nothing to go on., without a simple definition, no one is quite sure what you are talking about...

If you have trouble understanding what I am talking about, it's OK by me.