I used to think that Christians were ignorant to believe the “stories” in the Bible. I was taught those stories as a child, but grew up to “know” they weren’t true. Or did I? My investigation into the claims of theists about the existence of God and Christians about the existence of God’s Son led me into a study of archaeology in 1971. I was especially interested in … [Read more...]
A Look at the Evidence for the Death, Burial and Resurrection of Jesus
Introduction When it comes to the formation of the early Jesus movement, 1 Corinthians 15: 3-7 is a crucial element to the proclamation of the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. In relation to early testimony, historian David Hacket Fisher says, “An historian must not merely provide good relevant evidence but the best relevant evidence. And the best relevant evidence, … [Read more...]
Convince Me There’s A God – Archaeology 9
As I mentioned in the last post, the Bible story about Abraham became a “possibility” for me as an atheist based on the archaeological evidence available during my 1971 investigation into theism and Christianity. It seemed from what I was researching that Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Jacob’s sons “could” have lived during the time frame the Old Testament claimed in the locations … [Read more...]
Convince Me There’s A God – Archaeology 8
As I investigated the claims of the Bible concerning Abram leaving Ur of the Chaldees, traveling to ancient Haran, then on to Canaan, I came across many archaeological discoveries that supported the dating of the story in Genesis about his life and journey. I had been told for a long time that the stories in the Bible were fairy tales without any possible connection to real … [Read more...]
Christmas Notes, Part 3: Joseph’s Narrative
It is often truly remarked that our classic Christmas story—the one we celebrate in pageants every December and teach to our children—blends elements from two quite distinct narratives, one found in the first two chapters of Matthew and the other in the first two chapters of Luke. In both accounts, Jesus is born in Bethlehem to Joseph and Mary during the reign of Herod the … [Read more...]
Convince Me There’s A God – Archaeology 7
The Hebrew Bible records the history of the world in some detail, but the history of Israel in great detail. Rather than a book of myth and legend, the Hebrew Bible was written as an historical narrative of a people and their God. That means their existence, both people and God, can be investigated according to historical detail. When I was looking into the claims of … [Read more...]
Does the Old Testament Teach Two Comings of the Messiah?
Introduction Jewish people and even some skeptics like to assert that Christians are the ones who have come up with two act play about the coming of the Messiah. In other words, since Jesus failed at the messianic task, Christians then had no choice but to make up a second coming of Jesus. I already have a post called “Was Jesus a Failed Prophet?” here. While there is much … [Read more...]
Convince Me There’s A God – Archaeology 6
Many atheists have asked me why I converted from strong atheism to Christianity rather than to some other belief system. The simple answer is that Christians had the answers to my questions. I had studied various Eastern religions years earlier and didn’t find truth in any of them. Atheism was the only belief system that made sense, until I met Christians who were … [Read more...]
Convince Me There’s A God – Archaeology 5
As an atheist I believed in what I could see, not in what I could not see. The “natural” was something I could see – the “supernatural” was not. So, the archaeological finds that supported various aspects of the historicity of the Old Testament impressed me. Even though most of the ancient discoveries were located in museums around the world, being able to see photos of the … [Read more...]
Convince Me There’s A God – Archaeology 4
As any good atheist would have done more than 40 years ago, I ridiculed the history of Israel as recorded in the Old Testament of the Bible. How could anyone believe what the Jews wrote about their national history when they were just trying to promote their own brand of ”religion?” Why should I believe them? The problem with that line of thinking, I discovered, was what to … [Read more...]