Why did God pick the Middle East?

I was just wondering if people of the christian faith, know of any specific reason, why God chose, to send his only son, Jesus, to Israel?

I imagine the obvious answer, is that the Jews were God's chosen people. But I wish to dig deeper, and ask why was the Jews God's chosen people?

Frankly I don't think there is a reason. I am an atheist, and my theory is, that people generally pick themselves as their Gods' chosen people - and naturally that is why he would also send Jesus to them, to please their collective ego.
But I am very interested in bible history and christian apologetics, so if anyone has a more satisfying answer, I would love to hear it. Cause I have never heard one.

But surely, even if one does believe in the christian God, this must make one wonder. Why not somewhere else in Asia or South America? - or some third country across the Mediterranean sea?

Anyway - just a thought..

Surely it is a simple an answer as "because that is where the religious populations lived" ?

Seems a bit pointless to send Jesus to the Eskimos, right?

reply to post by Mads1987


first known to us civilizations have developed in that area. Since there are, dare I say justifiable, claims that religious doctrine has been borrowed from previous civilizations...(Sumer, Egypt), makes sense.

reply to post by Mads1987


I imagine that God's plans and judgement are far too deep for man to understand by himself.

Why do you not seek the wisdom that comes from God rather than from man?

If I had to answer your question I would say the reason is that it was God's plan and Jesus would not have been known by the world if done in any other way.

A lot of Jews did satisfy their ego by the fact that they were God's chosen people, but for those who did they did not recognize God when He came to them.

reply to post by backcase

Why do you not seek the wisdom that comes from God rather than from man?

indeed

why not ask God why he did it...and let us know what he says. Allegedly...he listens.

reply to post by backcase


I don't seek the wisdom of your God, because I have never encountered a logical reason to believe in his existence. So it seems like a somewhat futile quest from my point of view.

I always found the explanation - that God's ways are too deep for us to grasp - very unsatisfactory. I guess that since your working with the premise that your God is omnipotent, you need that kind of explaining when someone loses a loved one or some other injustice happens. Cause with an omnipotent God nothing is left up to chance, so there must be a reason.

But sorry, doesn't quite cut it for me. I think it's a bad attempt to make an impossible God fit into a world where it doesn't belong.

Originally posted by MarioOnTheFly
reply to post by backcase

 

Why do you not seek the wisdom that comes from God rather than from man?

indeed

why not ask God why he did it...and let us know what he says. Allegedly...he listens.

Haha - just for that, I think I'll give it a try.
I'll let you know if I get an answer.

reply to post by MarioOnTheFly


Well it is not a question that I truly want to know.

I'm sure there is an answer for it, there are probably many of them, but the thing is: I did not ask the question, and I also do not need the answer.

reply to post by backcase


I hope your approach leads you to enlightenment.

reply to post by Mads1987


"I always found the explanation - that God's ways are too deep for us to grasp - very unsatisfactory. I guess that since your working with the premise that your God is omnipotent, you need that kind of explaining when someone loses a loved one or some other injustice happens. Cause with an omnipotent God nothing is left up to chance, so there must be a reason."

To be honest, I am not entirely sure what omnipotent means when it comes to God.

How do we even know how time works? I doubt that we do considering how many paradoxes there are in the linear system of time. And considering that people have so much trouble with being stuck in the past or future gives me the idea that we do not understand time correctly.

What is logical can be based on flawed information. The logic may still be logical but the information which makes the logical is corrupted.

That is why logic is less important to me than faith. Faith leaves me in a state where I understand things by knowing that I do not understand them. People want to define God so bad that in searching for His definition, they lose Him. God is infinite, and I cannot comprehend infinity, but with the help of God I am made aware of it, and that increasing awareness is faith.

Originally posted by backcase
reply to post by MarioOnTheFly

 

Well it is not a question that I truly want to know.

I'm sure there is an answer for it, there are probably many of them, but the thing is: I did not ask the question, and I also do not need the answer.

how about you choose one that you really really want to know and have no other way of finding out, and ask God about it.

I'm really eager to know the answer. On the plus side...you would make an instant believer of me...

reply to post by MarioOnTheFly


I do not understand what you mean, or if your post is even serious.

Bet he regrets it now though, he didn't think it through that day as his morning coffee was late arriving maybe trouble trouble trouble

reply to post by backcase


Omnipotent means that he has unlimited power. So he knows everything, can do everything and so on.

I'll happily agree with you that there are still plenty of things to be learned about our physical world. But I don't see how that has anything to do with this.
Please correct me if I am wrong. But I sounds like you assume, for your reasoning to work, that others base their logic on flawed information when they reach conclusions that opposes your religion, and yet have no reservations when it comes to believing in Christianity? Are you willing to admit that you could just as well be basing your faith on flawed information?

When faced with misinformation, I am convinced that the scientific method, is that best way, of accessing anything. That doesn't mean that mistakes don't happen, but it is the most logical approach, regardless of how time works.

reply to post by Mads1987


Ack Mads i'm going to star and flag you cos no one else has and i feel your just trying to make an effort

Bless your wee cotton socks

reply to post by Mads1987


"I'll happily agree with you that there are still plenty of things to be learned about our physical world. But I don't see how that has anything to do with this. "

I suppose what you said about logic caused me to say this. I did not mean to go off topic, but to show an example of how a logical answer is not always the best answer.

"Please correct me if I am wrong. But I sounds like you assume, for your reasoning to work, that others base their logic on flawed information when they reach conclusions that opposes your religion, and yet have no reservations when it comes to believing in Christianity?"

Gladly I will correct this.

My reasoning works by way of the Spirit. I am more concerned with the Spirit of the Law than the letter.
When I hear the speech of someone who opposes my religion, and is speaking about my religion, I consider that there are many understandings towards Christianity. I then try to bring them from the material or worldly understanding to the spiritual understanding.

When it comes to "believing Christianity" I find it is more important to live It to understand it. Peace is where my faith comes from. I seek where my soul comes from, and my soul has been called by Christ.

Originally posted by backcase
reply to post by MarioOnTheFly

 

I do not understand what you mean, or if your post is even serious.

Dead serious.

Ask God something you want to know...I'm eager to see if he responds. He must of course, because he listens and grants prayers if I'm not mistaken.

Please make a transcript of the conversation

reply to post by MarioOnTheFly


Well, one thing I asked before is "who is Jesus?"

You inspired me to make a thread. I will do so and send you the link so that I am not off topic. Thank you.

reply to post by MarioOnTheFly


www.abovetopsecret.com...

There ya go mario,

not quite a transcript but it is the Truth.

reply to post by backcase


Meh, I guess I'll have to respectfully disagree with you.
I do enjoy the basic tenants of Christianity - mainly the new testament stuff Jesus preached. So I am glad that you try to follow it, and that it brings you peace.

But I don't see why you couldn't just keep the values, but shed the religion and superstition. I don't want to say that you follow it blindly, cause I doubt that anyone really does that, or at least very few. But I do take issue with things that encourage that sort of behavior, which I feel religions do.