I asked AI how it would respond to the Chinese Man’s questions which he asked in Part One.
Here is how AI answered…
Missionary: Thank you for reading the Old Testament and for your thoughtful questions. Let’s clarify these important points together.
Chinese Man: You said that I had sinned against God according to the law found in this book. But, what I see in this book is that the law was a covenantal law between a God named Yahweh and a people named Israel. I am not in that covenant. How can I be guilty of breaking a law I was never under? That is like saying I am guilty of breaking laws in a country I’ve never visited.
Missionary: You’re right that the Mosaic Law was given specifically to the people of Israel. However, sin isn’t limited to breaking that specific law. According to the New Testament, all people have a moral awareness of right and wrong, which Paul describes as the law written on their hearts (Romans 2:14-15). This means that everyone has an inherent sense of God’s moral standards, and all fall short of these standards in various ways, regardless of whether they are under the Mosaic Law.
Chinese Man: Assuming I actually am under this law, you said that I could not keep it even if I tried. But, in the story of this book, Yahweh fully expected the people to be obedient, and when they were disobedient He disciplined and punished them. If they repented and turned back to Him, He forgave them. If they were obedient, He blessed them. You said I needed to trust in the perfect righteousness of another, but I don’t come to that conclusion from reading this book. If I were an Israelite, I would try my best to follow the law, and if I failed I would confess my failing, turn back to Yahweh, and trust He would forgive me. Where does it say that I need to trust in the righteousness of another?
Missionary: The Old Testament indeed shows that God called Israel to be obedient to His Law and provided a means for forgiveness through repentance and sacrifices. However, the New Testament reveals that these practices were a foreshadowing of a greater sacrifice. Jesus Christ is presented as the perfect and final sacrifice for sin, fulfilling the requirements of the Law on behalf of humanity (Hebrews 10:1-10). His righteousness can be imputed to us through faith, meaning that through Jesus, we can be seen as righteous before God (Romans 3:21-22). This is a core message of the New Testament: that by trusting in Jesus, we receive the righteousness we could never achieve on our own (Philippians 3:9).
Are these good answers?
Pursuit of Percipience 