Does the Bible say that it is better to have been born after Christ?
score:2
I will take a stab at this question, and say "Yes" the Bible does teach that it is better, but I caution not reading "better" as meaning "more pleasant," as your question included the statement that you would not have "enjoyed" Judaism much. Instead, it is better for some very specific reasons.
When I read your question, my mind instantly went to Hebrews, because the book of Hebrews is saturated with the idea of "better." As a Son, Jesus is in a better position than the angels. Our gospel is better than the sacrificial system. We have a better Sabbath, a better High Priest, and a better sacrifice. It sounds odd to say, but Hebrews six and eight convey the idea that our position in Christ is founded on better promises. I don't fully grasp how the promises of God get "better" but Hebrews tells us that they do. We also know from Hebrews that we have a better hope and a guarantee of a better covenant (7:19-22). Other ideas in Hebrews include a better country, better resurrection, a better mediator, better blood.
So, yes, in seeing the comparison between before and after Christ, Hebrews seems to be the most comprehensive answer to your question, and the answer it gives is a resounding "Yes!" I believe Hebrews is addressing a situation in which Jewish Christians were continuing to participate in temple worship, with all of its rites and ceremonies. They insisted on practicing circumcision, making the sacrificial offerings, and were essentially trying to Judaize their Christian faith. Why pour low octane fuel into your old Yugo when you have a Ferrari sitting here the runs on jet fuel? That's better!
Upvote:0
Matthew 13:17 NKJV
for assuredly, I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.
For the end result of Jesus will end all arguments (anger), depression, anxiety (mental disorders), death, and wipe away every tear.
Ephesians 4:31 NKJV - Ending Anger
Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice.
John 3:18 NKJV - Ending Depression
He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
Matthew 6:25-34 NKJV - Ending Anxiety
“Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27 Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?
28 “So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; 29 and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?
31 “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
Revelation 21:4 NKJV - Ending Death and Crying
And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.”
Upvote:0
Was it better to have been born after Christ? Perhaps a good starting point would be to determine what was different after Christ’s incarnating. Jesus confirms that the Holy Spirits relationship with man would change after He was established at the right-hand of God the Father:
John 15:26 But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me:
John 16:7 Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.
The Spirit of the Father that raised Jesus from the dead now dwells in us:
Romans 8:1-11 There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death…But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.
Salvation of one’s soul was available before the cross; however the salvation of one’s life was not. This may seem contradictory but let me explain. Consider Jesus and Nicodemus:
John 3:5-10 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit…Nicodemus answered and said unto him, How can these things be? Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things?
Notice that this conversation takes place prior to the finished work on the cross and notice that Jesus is chastising Nicodemus for not knowing that one must be born of the Spirit. Man's soul has always been saved by the grace of God through the window of faith. However, after the cross the Holy Spirit gives birth to the presence of Christ in our heart. In that we may serve Jesus as Lord. Before the fulfillment of the gospel man was not able to serve Jesus as Lord because man was not aware of whom the Lord was. We have the benefit of serving Jesus as Lord not just by the knowledge of the Gospel, but by the presence of the Holy Spirit that testifies of Christ. Here is a verse that depicts our current condition:
Colossians 3:13 Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is. If any man's work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire. Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
We Christians are uniquely equipped with the Holy Spirit whom bears out the will of God the Father, which is Jesus Christ. We are those that are truly related to the Son of God. Jesus made this statement about those that are His relatives:
Matthew 12:50 …whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother.
The doing of the will of the Father requires the presence of the Holy Spirit and only that life made manifest by the Holy Spirit will stand the test of fire.
Upvote:0
Your question seems a bit 'fuzzy' to me, because you ask for a biblical basis for it being 'better', and yet you talk about 'enjoying it', so I'm not sure what kind of 'better' you're getting at.
Anyway, I'm going to take your question at face value, though - given your rep - I can't help thinking that you already know this.
To be honest, offhand I can't think of any explicit references, nor even implicit ones. But it seems to me that the OT hope for any 'afterlife' was at best a hazy kind of 'maybe'. In that sense, the only thing that an OT Jew had to 'look forward to' was death.
So assuming that your hypothetical 'after Christ' self was a Jew (or gentile) who believed that Christ was the Messiah, and that his resurrection 'proved' that there was life beyond death for us too, I expect that your appreciation of the here-and-now would be improved by not having the existential angst about the 'what next?'.
More post
- 📝 According to Catholicism, how can a Christian be freed from the concupiscence of the flesh and thereby possess a sinless body?
- 📝 Do Catholics object to autopsy?
- 📝 What is the history behind Angelus prayer?
- 📝 Did St. Augustine think sexual pleasure = concupiscence?
- 📝 If you believe that Messiah Jesus is a human being what logic you have to guess that he could be a God or son of God?
- 📝 What is the term for God's chosen people who were inspired to write the Bible?
- 📝 How do Mormons interpret Daniel 2:44?
- 📝 What is the difference between being blessed and being happy?
- 📝 If the Pope were to commit suicide would he go to hell?
- 📝 Did the Resurrection Really Happen?
- 📝 Is there an explanation for pre-humans from a biblical point of view?
- 📝 How did the Holy Spirit come into existence?
- 📝 According to Chalcedonian Trinitarians, did Thomas - a devout Jew - believe God had died at John 20?
- 📝 What did Martin Luther really mean by saying "Reason is the Devil’s greatest who*e" and how do Protestants view this?
- 📝 What changes did Erasmus want to make in the Catholic Church?
- 📝 What is the basis for a mythical reading of Genesis 1-2?
- 📝 What would be the implications of a selfless act that saved others but resulted in damnation for the doer?
- 📝 What's the meaning of this quote by C. S. Lewis, regarding the heart and head?
- 📝 How does current Church of England polity compare with Richard Hooker's teaching?
- 📝 What are the main differences between the Catholic and Protestant definitions of Biblical inerrancy?
- 📝 What is the meaning of CCC-135?
- 📝 What's the criterion for the sequence of the Four Gospels?
- 📝 How do Latter-day Saints rebut GM Skeptic's objection against the epistemic value of personal spiritual experiences?
- 📝 Why are most churches nonprofit organizations?
- 📝 What is the relationship between YEC and rapture theology?
- 📝 Why does church tradition teach that one third of the angels fell with Lucifer when no verse supports that
- 📝 Why do Pentecostals believe in a closed canon?
- 📝 What is the first recorded observation of Good Friday?
- 📝 Are there any denominations opposed to organ transplant donation or receipt?
- 📝 What is the Biblical argument that h*m*sexual attraction is sinful by itself?
Source: stackoverflow.com
Search Posts
Related post
- 📝 Does the Bible say that it is better to have been born after Christ?
- 📝 What does the Bible say about ones wishes concerning their body after they have died?
- 📝 Immortal soul concept: why does Bible say Jesus was resurrected after 3 days, as he should never have been really dead?
- 📝 Which places in the Bible have been suggested in Christianity as a basis for the possibility that some of humans before Christ could be saved?
- 📝 Does the Bible ever say that the Ark of the Covenant flew or levitated?
- 📝 Does the Bible say anything about our human relations being kept after death?
- 📝 What does the Bible say about this question- Why do Jesus and God have two seats in heaven when they are the same God?
- 📝 What does Mormonism have to offer in regards to salvation through Jesus Christ that was not already taught in the New Testament?
- 📝 Why does the Bible say that people no longer need to ‘feel guilty’ under the gospel, as compared to the Old Testament?
- 📝 Where in the Bible does it say that God is creating a new earth?
- 📝 What does the Bible have to say about dinosaurs?
- 📝 What does it mean for Christ to have been slain before the creation of the world?
- 📝 Where in the Bible does it say that sacrifice can only be done on the temple?
- 📝 Does the Bible say for sure that Daniel was a eunuch?
- 📝 Where does the Bible say that nature will speak the word if men don't?
- 📝 To the Calvinist, does Phillipians 1:29 mean that all the Philippians will go to heaven because all of them have already been elected?
- 📝 Why does the bible say that David kept all the commands of the Lord when he so clearly didn't?
- 📝 Where in the Bible does it say we have a sin nature?
- 📝 What is the biblical basis for the belief that the Lord Jesus Christ DOES have blood in his incorruptible body?
- 📝 When Christ refers to the end times, does the Catholic Church say that he was was referring to the destruction of the Temple, or the apocalypse?
- 📝 Does the Church say that humans have two parts, ie mind and heart?
- 📝 Does Christianity have any other books besides the Bible that the disciples use for following?
- 📝 how does the bible WORD FOR WORD say that h*m*sexuality is wrong?
- 📝 Does Bible say anywhere that if a woman was raped, she needs to marry the one who raped her?
- 📝 Does the New Testament say that Christians should read the Bible every day?
- 📝 Does Acts 3:17-26 teach that if the people of Israel repented Christ would have returned and established the Kingdom?
- 📝 How can we trust the Bible after it has been translated to another language?
- 📝 What does the bible say about h*m*sexuality?
- 📝 What does the bible say about interracial marriages?
- 📝 What does the Bible say about Capital Punishment?