Thread by @zeal_a

@tysalihu asked a question a few days ago & I spoke to a few people privately on my perspective on a guide to the answer

Well, if you’re interested, here’s the answer I gave.

But there’s a background that needs to be explained first so that context is understood!

THREAD

1. First: LANGUAGE

I went to boarding house and after a few terms, my mind was reconditioned. I woke up, slept, ate, did homework, played and used the toilet according to a strict schedule. My freedom was taken and replaced with instructions or commands.

2. Even on holiday, I still followed those commands cos my bondage became habit.

Or a soldier under authority being asked to reason: he absolutely can’t. He can only take & execute commands without considering consequences. Responsibility of his actions lie with his commander.

3. Now, imagine a people who have lived under these conditions- not boarding house of 6yrs, not being in the military for 30yrs - but a people living like this for 20 generations: 400yrs as slaves and the language of slavery is commandments.

Their minds were irreversibly broken

4. When it was time to commune & reason with the supreme being, they absolutely couldn’t & instead, insisted on having a commander interphase on their behalf & translate the discussions to what they were familiar with: commands.

They needed a translator from freedom to bondage

5. The supreme being didn’t want that but since by the laws of universe you can only communicate to people in the language and manner they understand, the supreme being had to oblige.

Hence the commandments.

6. SECOND: LANGUAGE (no not a mistake from the first)

I ignorantly drove against traffic once and LASTMA stopped me and showed me the “one way” sign that I missed. Once I realized my error, I pleaded and explained my ignorance and he let me go. It was an honest mistake.

7. The next day, I was in a hurry and on the same road, I tried fast one hoping there’ll be no lastma there but the same chap caught me and this time, I couldn’t claim “honest mistake” because it was deliberate.

It was again, a mistake, just not an innocent one.

8. Then on the third day, because a storm blew down the “one way” sign, despite knowing it was one way, I drove there and when arrested, I argued it wasn’t one way and insisted on being shown. On getting to the sign, it wasn’t there.

9. Here, i was distorting the truth I knew. Again, a mistake but a distortion and arguably, perversion of the law.

These 3 “mistakes” in Hebrew bible terms have 3 different words describing them, having different meanings and weights but all translated to “sin” in English.

10. In the first scenario, my offense was innocent and the gravity, low and so “forgiveness” of that “sin” won’t come from God but from the lastma official. Imagine me telling him that I’ve made peace with God and he should go away 🤣

11. THIRD: REASON

Unlike commonly propagated, God is not unreasonable - there’s always a sensible reason for everything that occurs. We don’t know all of them & can’t figure it all out, but from those we now now know, we should be sensible enough to trust him...but we aren’t.

12. When He asked people to wash hands before eating or to poop outside their immediate habitat, to them it was a senseless ritual but it kept them healthy. They had no ability to understand bacteria nor viruses & they had no means to treat infections which would’ve been fatal

13. God just told them the rituals to follow for good health

Today, even if I don’t wash my hands, I’ll definitely wash my fork & knife. Strictly speaking, I’m breaking “commandments” pooping right in my bedroom, but I understand that as long as I flush and take it out, I’m safe

14. By Nature’s laws, a woman, on average, will have her period monthly. Imagine a god that makes a law that makes having a period a sin. Women will ridiculously be forced to hide their very nature in something they have no control over.

15. They will live in bondage of sin and will ridiculously have to seek forgiveness monthly

Knowledge of the inevitability of their nature and of the reasons of God brings freedom. Having a period is natural and the “mistake” comes from not handling the hygiene risks properly.

16. Infection is the consequence, not punishment

Just like typhoid is the consequence of pooping and eating without washing your hands. Consequence, not punishment.

A lot of people live in bondage of guilt, suffer and die unnecessarily because of their ignorance.

17. Next time you’re asked to keep “commandments”, knowledge that sets you free is the fact you’re not a SLAVE & therefore don’t need commandments but advise

Knowledge of the fact that you can search the reason for instruction & tweak to suit your circumstance, brings freedom.

18. Freedom! Freedom from what?

Christ came to set you free. Freedom from guilt. The guilt or mistakes you are bound to make!

If there is no command, you can not err. Advise is freely given and freely taken. If you choose unwisely, you will suffer consequence.

19. But you self absorbed pastor won’t allow you live in freedom because his power comes from your belief that you’re in bondage and you need him to give you your monthly “forgiveness” from your “period”!

20. As long as you learn to live deliberately, sensibly and control your emotions and live in love, joy, peace, patience and hope for the best at all times, your state of mind is such that nothing you do can be an offense.

21. In summary, yes there’s a generic template but since everyone’s circumstance is different, there’s need to adapt the advise given to different groups & individuals. We’re given SENSE to “come & REASON together”

Don’t be an Eskimo forced to wear expensive linen, you will die

22. In multiple places we are admonished to Seek wisdom, Knowledge and understanding because without these, we will perish; not as punishment but as the natural consequence of living without knowledge.

Knowledge brings freedom.