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Hey Jordan, thanks so much for stopping by and commenting. I'm sorry you are wrestling through this and I truly appreciate your honesty and taking the time to share your heart. Repentance is available to anyone who desires it. Whoever desires Christ can have Him freely and joyfully (Matt. 11:28-30, Rev. 22:17). This is the great news of the Gospel that is held out for anyone within earshot of its message. One of the surest signs of God's hiddenness, though, is when an individual does not desire Him or acknowledge his need for Him whatsoever. This is when an individual lacks the "fear of God." Esau could no longer repent because he entirely lost this. But if you do recognize your dire need for Him and truly desire to follow Him, (Luke 9:23), I think you can have great hope that God has not given you over finally to your sin. Those lacking a fear of God typically don't care much about the types of questions that you are asking. I pray this encourages you and offers you hope, Jordan. He is so good and has more grace to offer us than we have sin to offer Him. I will be praying for you, friend.

@@marcussmith3286 thanks for replying! And idk man my heart feels so hard

Yes he did, and he was still there as of a year ago! He is awesome :)

Hey Nick, Thanks so much for taking the time to watch the video and comment on it, I really appreciate it! You’re right, the message was primarily aimed at addressing whether or not the Bible endorses/condones the kind of slavery we are prone to think of in our 21st-century Western context. I’m sorry you have not found more satisfying answers as to why God ordained slavery as an institution in the OT. Though the Bible may not give an explicit “thus sayeth the Lord'' explanation as to why He did so, (and we would be wise not to over-speculate into the hidden counsel of the Lord, Deut. 29:29), I do think there are a couple things we could say about it. 1) Though God did not invent slavery or command its practice, God did lay down guidelines and regulations for slavery after the fall of man into sin (regulations such as protection, fair treatment, and even liberation for slaves). This perhaps shows that slavery, though not God’s original design for the flourishing of mankind and society, was allowed and ordained by God in order to modulate fallen human interpersonal relationships and the economic structures of their time. The indentured servitude in and of itself in the OT was therefore not intrinsically sinful. Now, I am not calling slavery an inherently good institution, but God perhaps ordained it as a necessary institution if fallen societies were to function in a self-sustaining manner before welfare systems and sophisticated government structures were effectively in place. Though we will still submit to Christ’s lordship in the world to come (Rev. 14:4), slavery of all sorts will be permanently abolished in the new heavens and new earth and we will once again be restored to the pre-fall Edenic state in regards to our relationships with God and our neighbor. 2) The Apostles Paul, James, Peter, and Jude had no difficulty whatsoever calling themselves doulos of Jesus Christ throughout their letters when describing their relationship to Him (cf. Rom. 1:1, Titus 1:1, Gal. 1:10, Jas. 1:1, 2 Pet. 1:1, Jude 1:1). This word is the exact word rendered “slave” in several places throughout the NT (cf. Rom. 6:16-20, 1 Cor. 12:13, Gal. 3:28, Gal 4:1, 7, Col. 3:11, et al.) I could be wrong on this (and I am not seeking to undermine the authority of Scripture and the words God inspired for the apostles), but I’m not sure these apostles would necessarily feel comfortable boasting that they were “slaves” of Jesus Christ in our modern-day contextual sense of the word because of the baggage now associated with it (hence the softer renderings of the word doulos as “servant/bondservant” by many modern-day translators). But apparently, in the first century, the apostles did not view the slavery of their day (or days gone by, ie the OT) as the depraved and wholly unjust institution that it would degenerate into in latter centuries, nor did they view their Lord as a slave-driving taskmaster that often characterized colonial slave owners. Though slavery was by no means a perfect institution in Paul’s time nor in the OT, I think our present-day categories of thinking about slavery differ slightly from the categories of Paul, the apostles, and those in the OT. In the minds of these, slavery could be likened more so (in general) to an employee-employer relationship than an abusive owner-involuntary servant relationship (which I briefly touched on at 13:35 in the video). 3) Under the Old Covenant slavery was in certain cases penal (rather than based on class or race, etc.). For example, if someone stole, then they were required to pay restitution. If they could not, then they would be reduced to slavery to pay it off. If someone could not pay back a debt, slavery was often an option for someone seeking to clear their name until the debt was paid. Likewise, if a nation went to war against Israel, and if they lost, then they would, on account of seeking to kill and enslave Israelites, be reduced to servitude. So, oftentimes the institution of slavery under the Old Covenant carried with it complex legal dimensions as well. 4) In the final analysis, God has purposes for everything He ordains to come about (Eph. 1:11), even the institution of slavery. God can hit a bullseye with a crooked arrow. And though slavery is less than ideal and was not part of the pre-fall Edenic state nor will it be a part of the new heavens and new earth, God allowed and ordained the institution of slavery in both the OT and NT and it ultimately serves God’s good redemptive purposes. Again, thanks for taking the time to watch the video and comment, Nick! I really appreciate it.

@@marcussmith3286 Thank you for the thoughtful reply Pastor. It's much appreciated. But it really isn't anything I haven't heard before. I just don't find the "God works in mysterious ways" answer very satisfying. At least when it comes to slavery. But to your specific points I still have questions. 1. In your first point, I understand God laid down rules to regulate slavery. But He laid down rules about a lot of things. Things like murder, rape, stealing etc. But He also told us that we should not do those things. Even commanded us not to, because they were a sin, immoral and against His will. But He never once did that with slavery. And my question is why? He gave us over 600 commandments that cover mundane things like what not to eat or wear, but not one word about slavery? Only that we could do that if we wanted. I just don't understand it. And I kind of agree that the indentured servitude in the OT was not "intrinsically evil" as you say, but slavery was. But indentured servants were not slaves. They were not owned as property for their entire lives along with their children. And the indentured servitude in the OT was only for Hebrews. It was the non Hebrews who were slaves. And as to slavery being a "necessary institution" because it was "before welfare systems and sophisticated government structures were effectively in place.", well that was true in the American antebellum South as well. We didn't have either of those things either but we managed to end slavery in America anyway. But even if it was true, which it isn't, God could still have laid down all the rules and regulations for all the same reasons but ALSO told us it was a sin, immoral and against His will. But He didn't. At least not that got written down. 2. I'm not sure what the Apostles opinions on slavery were has to do with what God said about slavery either. Paul said the most, and even he didn't say he thought slavery was a sin or immoral. Just that slaves should gain their freedom if they could. But even Paul sent a runaway slave back to his owner. And "In the minds of these, slavery could be likened more so (in general) to an employee-employer relationship than an abusive owner-involuntary servant relationship", I don't think this is true at all. Maybe for indentured servants, debt servants or bondsmen, but not actual chattel slaves. Having a job is not the same as being a slave. 3. And I agree that for theft, servitude was not a bad thing to pay back that debt. But these people were not slaves. They only had to work until that debt was paid back. They didn't become actual slaves for their entire lives. Owned as property. So not the same thing. POW's were though as you said. God Himself even ordered the enslavement of war prisoners as you know. I just don't see how that is somehow a good thing, but it seems you do? We found a better way. We didn't enslave the Germans after WWII after all. I think slavery was always wrong, even if it wasn't based on race or class. Slavery doesn't somehow become moral if it's not race based. Right? I hope that helps you understand where I'm coming from on this issue.