clarifying biblical issues

There is no old or new laws. a common christian misconception is that there are. Matt 5:17-19 and throughout the entire ministry of jesus and the apostles they all taught the law of Moses.

You're wrong; they didn't. They taught SOME of the laws of Moses (9 of the 10 commandments). But there are other laws from the OT outside of the laws of Moses that clearly did NOT apply to Christians in the NT. And they also taught NEW ideas in the NT that were not contained in the OT laws.

If Judas is not saved why did jesus say "The twelve of you will sit upon and judge the 12 tribes of israel"? why did revelations also mention "the 12 of the lamb"?

First of all, that's NOT what it says. It says:

Matthew 19:28-30
28 Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. 29 And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life. 30 But many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first.

This passage is obviously not referring to Judas because Judas did not follow Christ. He followed Christ for a while, but then the devil had entered him and he betrayed Jesus. So he would not be one of the 12. He would be an example of one of the first who became last.

and also why did paul say jesus came to the twelve apostles when supposedly judas had died? The gospels are a mess of contradictions.

No, they aren't -- you just don't know how to read them properly. Judas was replaced by Matthias, and it was Matthias who becomes the 12th.

Acts 1:23-26
23 So they nominated two men: Joseph called Barsabbas (also known as Justus) and Matthias. 24 Then they prayed, “Lord, you know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two you have chosen 25 to take over this apostolic ministry, which Judas left to go where he belongs.” 26 Then they cast lots, and the lot fell to Matthias; so he was added to the eleven apostles.

Only one of the gospels says judas hanged himself I believe it is matthew. Luke says judas bought a field,, fell and died

Which does not contradict the fact that he hanged himself as recorded in Matthew.

Some people have wrongly assumed that Matthew and Luke (the author of Acts) are contradictory in their account of Judas’ death. Since the Bible is inerrant Judas cannot have died by hanging and died by falling and bursting open. Rather they are two different viewpoints of the same event. For example, if I saw a car hit a pedestrian, I might simply say that the pedestrian died because they were hit by the car. The coroner who came on the scene later but did not actually see the accident might give a graphic description of the injuries to the pedestrian. Both the coroner and I are describing the same event just different aspects of it. Matthew tells us that Judas died by hanging (death is inferred from the passage). Luke, being a doctor, gives us a graphic description of what occurred following the hanging. The reason for ordering the events as such is twofold. First, if someone has fallen and their internal organs spilled out they would die and so could not subsequently die from hanging. Secondly, even when people suffer bad falls they do not usually burst open and have their internal organs spill out. The skin is very tough and even when cut in the abdominal area their internals do not usually spill out. Thus, it is unlikely that Judas could die in this manner merely from falling.

Gruesome as it is, Judas’ dead body hung in the hot sun of Jerusalem, and the bacteria inside his body would have been actively breaking down tissues and cells. A byproduct of bacterial metabolism is often gas. The pressure created by the gas forces fluid out of the cells and tissues and into the body cavities. The body becomes bloated as a result. In addition, tissue decomposition occurs compromising the integrity of the skin. Judas’ body was similar to an overinflated balloon, and as he hit the ground (due to the branch he hung on or the rope itself breaking) the skin easily broke and he burst open with his internal organs spilling out. There is no contradiction surrounding Judas’ death; rather, merely two descriptions given by two different authors of the same event.

Or, as the following website puts it:

There is no contradiction here at all because both are true. A contradiction occurs when one statement excludes the possibility of another. The Second Law of Logic, the Law of Non Contradition, (LNC) says that something cannot be both true and false at the same time and in the same sense. It is not a contradiction to describe something differently: Judas was hanged, and Judas fell down. Both are possible since neither negates the possibility of the other. A contradiction occurs when one statement makes another statement impossible but both are said to be true. So, what happened here is that Judas went and hanged himself and then his body later fell down and split open. In other words, the rope or branch of the tree probably broke due to the weight, and his body fell down, and his bowels spilled out.

Also, notice that Matt. 27:3-8 tells us specifically how Judas died--by hanging. Acts 1:16-19 merely tells us that he fell headlong and his bowels gushed out. Acts does not tell us that this is the means of his death where Matthew does.

https://carm.org/bible-difficulties/matthew-mark/how-did-judas-die-hanging-or-falling-down

paul says all 12 saw jesus together, John says that judas was present at the resurrectiona nd that thomas was missing

You are aware that Jesus appeared to the disciples multiple times aren't you? You're acting like he had only appeared before the disciples ONCE after his resurrection. 

John 21:14
This was now the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from the dead

The first meeting was with the eleven minus Thomas, and the second meeting was when Thomas was present. At some occasions all of them were there, on at least one occasion Thomas was not. By the time Paul wrote his epistles, Matthias had joined “the eleven” and was himself a witness of the resurrected Christ, so it is perfectly accurate to refer to this group as “the twelve.”

papyrus says that judas was run over by a chariot

Irrelevant. Papyrus was not an apostle or a bible author. He was one of the church fathers who wrote his own theory based on his understanding of scripture. His writings are neither directly inspired nor canonical.

Fulfilling the law means OBEYING it.

No, that's NOT what it means. Fulfilling the law means to accomplish it's purpose. That's why Matthew 5:18 says "until its purpose is achieved", or "until everything is accomplished" (depending on your translation). There are many examples in scripture where it records a specific fulfillment of scripture, past tense.

James 2:23
And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called God’s friend.

Luke 4:20-21
20 Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him. 21 He began by saying to them, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”

Fulfill does not mean destroy or invalidate I do not know why people mix the two up.

I agree that it does not mean to destroy or invalidate. But it doesn't merely mean to obey! A fulfillment of scripture or a fulfillment of the law is to accomplish the purpose. And certain men were chosen to fulfill laws, while others were not.

Also jesus did not fulfill all the prophecies because he said when all is fulfilled the end would come

Wrong! Again, that is NOT what he said. You are twisting (mixing up) the words of scripture, or you have been taught incorrectly.

John 19:30
28 Later, knowing that everything had now been finished, and so that Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I am thirsty.” 29 A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus’ lips. 30 When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

Jesus's death is fulfillment of the law. That is why Christians are no longer bound to the old laws, and to bound oneself to the old law is to deny Jesus. The bible makes it clear that salvation is by faith alone, NOT by works of the law (so that no man may boast). It is a FREE gift of salvation! [Ephesians 2:8-9]. And old law was to sacrifice a lamb to atone for sin. However, Jesus's sacrifice serves as the atonement of sin for all mankind. That is why he is called the Lamb of God. The purpose for the commandment about the sacrificial lamb has been fulfilled in Jesus's death, therefore we are no longer bound to that law. Jews who accept Jesus as savior are no longer bound to the law of circumcision because that law only applies to the Old Covenant.

Romans 3:28-30
28 For we maintain that a person is justified by faith apart from the works of the law. 29 Or is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles too? Yes, of Gentiles too, 30 since there is only one God, who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through that same faith. 31 Do we, then, nullify the law by this faith? Not at all! Rather, we uphold the law.

Romans 8:1-4
Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, 2 because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

Galatians 3:3-4
3 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a pole.” 14 He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.

Galatians 3:19-20
19 Why, then, was the law given at all? It was added because of transgressions until the Seed to whom the promise referred had come. The law was given through angels and entrusted to a mediator. 20 A mediator, however, implies more than one party; but God is one.

1 Timothy 2:5
For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus,

Galatians 4:4-5
4 But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship.

Galatians 5:1-4
It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. 2 Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all. 3 Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law. 4 You who are trying to be justified by the law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace.

Galatians 5:14
For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”

Mark 2:27-28
27 Then he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. 28 So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.”

Mark 7:19
For it doesn't go into their heart but into their stomach, and then out of the body." (In saying this, Jesus declared all foods clean.)


Please familiarize yourself with scripture, particularly the New Testament BEFORE declaring "contradictions" in scripture, or declaring there there is no difference between the old laws and the new laws. Because YOU appear to be the one with a lot of misconceptions about Christianity. For more information on why the Old Covenant laws do not apply today read Hebrews 8:6-13. Suffice it to say, the old laws were fulfilled and the old covenant was broken and replaced by the new (baptism in Jesus Christ). Christians do not sacrifice lambs to atone for sin. Christians do not become circumcised. We do not cease all work on the Sabbath, and we are not limited in the type of foods we eat.



Atheists accuse me of being a brainwashed Christian; fundies accuse me of being an atheist!

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Did you get that you dumb atheist?

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