Over the years, one of the common complaints by skeptics of the Gospels is that the Gospel writers supposedly took great liberty to make up or embellish certain parts of their work to make their point. In other words, many parts of the Gospel authors " invented" or "fabricated" certain aspects of the life of Jesus. Therefore, how can we trust these documents? In response, the … [Read more...]
Arius' Contra Scriptura Christology
Arianism is a doctrine that was taught by Arius of Alexandrian (ca. 280-336), which viewed preexisted Son of God as a first created creature before and above all other creatures. He is not out of the essence but the will of God the Father. Arianism perceived pre-existed Son of God as the perfect image of the Father and the executor of God the Father’s thoughts. Thus preexisted … [Read more...]
From Jesus to Us: A Look at P.O.W.E.R.
The New Testament does not reveal Jesus as any ordinary prophet or religious teacher. Rather, it reveals Him as God incarnate (John 1:1; 8:58-59;10:29-31;14:8-9;20-28; Phil. 2:5-7; Col. 2:9; Titus 2:13; Heb. 1:8; 2 Pet. 1:1). Anyone who reads through the Gospels will see that Jesus made some very challenging statements that force us as humans to face our own autonomy before our … [Read more...]
Voice of the Martyrs and the Resurrection
What is the value in studying the martyrdom of the first-generation eyewitnesses of the resurrection? For one thing, the persecution and martyrdom of these early disciples serves to confirm that, at minimum, they sincerely believed their message to be true. But since their claim was that they had been first hand eye-witnesses, their willingness to face persecution and in most … [Read more...]
Forgiving Yourself: A Virtue or a Vice?
Some psychotherapists would have us learn to forgive ourselves. However, shouldn’t we instead seek forgiveness from the offended party? If you just robbed the local convenience store and beat up the clerk, self-forgiveness represents a refusal to acknowledge culpability, a denial of the obvious. Instead, you first have to be reconciled to the victim, as Jesus taught: • “If you … [Read more...]
Why Does the Historical Jesus Matter?
Brian, You spend a lot of time talking about the “Historical Jesus.” Why is it so important that we believe that Jesus was a real person? Isn’t it enough to believe in the teachings of Jesus, regardless of whether he actually existed? -Rick … [Read more...]
The New Testament Witness to Christ’s Divinity
Dan Barkman Even a cursory reading of the New Testament Gospels will be enough to convince most people that the Jesus portrayed there is one who claimed to be divine-both in His statements and His behavior. In this article I will explore how the rest of the New Testament authors portrayed Jesus and how this bears on the overall case for Jesus’ divinity. We will pay particular … [Read more...]
Were Jesus’ Disciples Gullible?
One of the common attacks on the reliability of the Bible, and the New Testament in particular, is the idea that “people back then were a lot more gullible about things like miracles and people rising from the dead.” A commenter on a BBC internet thread put it like this, “Were the disciples just gullible? Aren't the followers of all religious leaders?” Or as Rudolph Bultmann … [Read more...]
God Controls Everything–Good and Bad
If everything God does is GOOD, and if God controls EVERYTHING, then it would be BAD had one less child been gassed in Auschwitz. -Greg Boyd’s Twitter Status It was quite a while ago but when I read Dr. Boyd’s status I was very intrigued. I believe open theists deserve a seat at the table of discussion and despite my view that I think they’re wrong, their arguments are … [Read more...]
Joshua the Highpriest as a Foreshadow of Christ
Previously on this blog, I have highlighted the types and foreshadows of Christ which are found in the Old Testament Scriptures with respect to the Abraham affair and the Passover celebration. In this post, I want to consider yet another remarkable Old Testament foreshadowing of Christ, this time from the book of Zechariah. Let’s take a look at the sixth chapter in this … [Read more...]