Refuting Christians with their Own Bible

[SteveII]

Because Jesus' message contained things like "love your neighbor as yourself", the beatitudes (Matthew 5), meekness, turning the other cheek, 'fruits of the spirit', etc. The path that Jesus wants us to walk has no room for things like slavery. That is why I feel confident in "backing into" God's position on slavery in the OT.

Love your neighbor as yourself was in the OT as well, yet no one interpreted it as implying that slavery is wrong back then.

But you see how you have to go by your own subjective interpretation of what it means to love your neighbor as yourself in order to come to your personal conclusion that slavery is wrong. Some people may think that loving your neighbor as yourself does not apply to slaves in the same way that others thought this did not apply to non-Israelites. Many Americans in the days prior to, and during the Civil War, certainly did not interpret that command to mean stop owning slaves. So if subjective interpretations (of the scriptures, mind you) is what you have to go by, you're not in any better position than us.

In the OT is was literally your neighbor. Jesus expanded "your neighbor" to mean everyone in the parable of the Good Samaritan. I can't see how that parable leaves the concept of everyone being your neighbor as subjective. The Jews hated the Samaritans. If Americans did not interpret that concept correctly it certainly was not because it was unclear. Jesus expanded several things in the same way. Do not murder was expanded to do not hate. Do not commit adultery was expanded to do not lust, etc. He explained it was a heart thing, not a "do not" thing.