“Blessed be the
God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Apostles Saul (who is also
called Paul), 2 Corinthians 1:3, Ephesians 1:3, and Peter, 1 Peter 1:3 (NKJV)
- Blessed be the
God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Israel). He is the God and Father of the Lord
Jesus Christ (Messiah Yeshua).
In the precious
and beautiful name of Messiah Yeshua, greetings,
If this is your
first time visiting this blog, “Welcome!”
What you’re about
to read is the end result of a recent conversation. It never ceases
to amaze me, the different ways man uses to discredit the [Bible]. If
a person doesn’t trust the [Bible], trying to prove their point just doesn’t
make any sense to me. Don’t get me wrong here, there are people not trusting
the [Bible] having more knowledge of it than some claiming to trust it. That’s
not my point. The point is, if a person believes the [Bible] is not
trustworthy, why make an attempt to validate their claim? The
[Bible] is trustworthy.
The person not
trusting the [Bible] would be better off saying they’d rather not talk about
the [Bible] than having to explain one contradiction after another coming out
from them. Simply put the [Bible] isn’t validated by personal
opinions.
The [Bible] is
called, and for a very good reason, the inspired word of God. Simply
put, the words’ recorded in the [Bible], were recorded exactly as life played
out back then by imperfect people prone to make occasional mistakes. Just
as there are contradictions to be found in the [Bible], inaccurate statements
will be found in it, too.
Example:
- In John 21:17
(NKJV) it says: He said to him a third time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?” Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, “Do you love Me?” And
he said to Him, “Lord, You know all things; You know that I love
You.” Jesus said to him, “Feed My sheep.”
- In Mark 13:32
(NKJV), Yeshua speaking, it says, “But of that day and
hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the
Father.”
Peter in John
21:17 said, speaking of “the Son,” Yeshua, “You know all things”. “The
Son,” Yeshua, said He didn’t know the day or the hour certain events were going
to take place. Peter meant no harm with his words, they just weren’t accurate. Nevertheless,
they’re in the [Bible] as they happened.
- When it comes to the [Bible], the
main thing is to keep the main thing, Yeshua “Jesus,” the main thing.
Let’s cut right
to the chase here.
Saying there’s no
contradictions in the [Bible] would easily be proven false. Saying
they’ll be found within it, would be the proper thing to say.
- Does the fact of a contradiction
being in the [Bible], cause the [Bible] to become null and void?
Another example:
Is the [Bible] void because in John, chapter seven, it says that no one knows,
and, we do know where the “Christ” Messiah comes from? We’ll take a
closer look at that in just a moment.
Anyone looking to
discredit the [Bible] needs to understand two things concerning it. One,
there’s only one God. Yeshua’s God, the God of the Hebrew speaking Nation
(Israel), is “The only true God (John 17:3)”. Two, there’s only one
way to the only true God. The one God sent, Messiah Yeshua (John
14:6). A person can choose whether or not to believe those, but it
won’t change, the fact of them being true.
- “And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God,
and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.” Messiah
Yeshua, John 17:3 (NKJV)
- Jesus said to him (Thomas), “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father
except through Me.” Messiah Yeshua, John 14:6 (NKJV)
Let’s take a look
at chapter seven from the book of John. There’s obviously a
contradiction to be found within it, but it will not cause the [Bible] to
become null and void.
- “However, we know where this Man is
from; but when the Christ comes, no one knows where He is from.” John 7:27
(NKJV)
- Others said, “This is the Christ.”
But some said “Will the Christ come out from Galilee?” John 7:41 (NKJV)
John 7:27,
speaking of “this Man,” Yeshua, was someone that they knew where He was from. Yet
later in that verse it also says, no one knows, speaking of the coming “Christ”
Messiah, where He is from.
John 7:41 clearly
identifies Yeshua as being [from] Galilee, and they question “Christ” Messiah
can come from Galilee. The next verse gives us a hint that they just
might know where “Christ” Messiah would come from. This after
they’ve just said, in John 7:27, “no one knows” where He is from.
- “Has not the Scripture said that
the Christ comes from the seed of David and from the town of Bethlehem, where
David was?” John 7:42 (NKJV)
In John 7:42 the
coming “Christ” Messiah is identified as coming from the seed of David, and
from the town of Bethlehem. In the Hebrew [Scriptures], “the Old
Testament,” you’ll find many prophecies concerning the coming “Christ”
Messiah. The “Christ” Messiah being born in Bethlehem will be found
in Micah 5:1-6 (NKJV). Yeshua, the “Christ” Messiah, [was] born in
Bethlehem which fulfilled that prophecy concerning Him. At the time
of John chapter seven, the first century, the Hebrew [Scriptures] was all they
had to go by. The New Testament, as we know it today, had yet to be
written.
- Obviously being unaware of Yeshua’s
birthplace, Bethlehem, the potential for a contradiction to make concerning it,
is possible. In this case they knew Yeshua was [from] Galilee; the
speaker came to a final conclusion based on that. There’s thirty
years between Yeshua’s birth and Him being labelled as being one “from”
Galilee.
Saying no one
knows where “Christ” would come from in John 7:27 contradicts John 7:42 saying
where He was to come from. The contradiction is the result of not
knowing Yeshua [was] born in Bethlehem. If Yeshua would have said, at that precise
moment, I was born in Bethlehem, John chapter seven would have a different tone
to it, but He didn’t. The [Bible] doesn’t give us any reason to believe He did
at a later date, either.
In John, chapter
seven, some were obviously unhappy with Yeshua, for having healed a man on the
Sabbath. Others, on the other hand, couldn’t see anyone else but the
“Christ” Messiah doing such things.
- “If a man receives circumcision on the Sabbath, so that the law of
Moses should not be broken, are you angry with Me because I made a man
completely well on the Sabbath?” Messiah
Yeshua, John 7:23 (NKJV)
- And many of the people believed in
Him, and said, “When the Christ comes, will He do more signs than these which
this Man has done?” John 7:31 (NKJV)
There are all
kinds of “stuff” being said about the [Bible]. The fact some
believed, in John chapter seven, Yeshua was the “Christ” Messiah, and others
didn’t, and being in the same conversation, shows that people of the time were
split believing two different possibilities. The “stage” was set for
all kinds of things to be said about Yeshua. Any deviation, concerning the
[Biblical] Yeshua, will lead to there being more contradictions. It’s
no different for us today. Whether they’re found in the [Bible], or
in our everyday conversations, contradictions, or different opinions, will be
the end result of not gathering all the facts. Putting the cart
before the horse so to speak.
- Recognizing contradictions is the
beginning of getting to a truth. When it comes to a contradiction
there’s a 50% chance of one side being correct. There’s also the possibility
of both sides being wrong. Believing in one side, without investigating
it, this concerning the [Biblical] Yeshua, could lead to a person believing in
a falsehood.
It would be wise,
before placing blame on the [Bible], to consider the motives of all parties
involved. The message given to us in [Bible] will not, and cannot,
become null and void. The one that God sent, the “Christ” Messiah,
Yeshua, it was His death, burial, and resurrection, which sealed the deal.
God bless.
Peace to you all
who are [in] Messiah Yeshua. “You are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s.” 1
Corinthians 3:23 (NKJV)
In His Care…Jim
Jimmasterson.blogspot.com
P. S.
This portion is
the result of a conversation I had while seated in an airplane. We having just
completed, yesterday, a wonderful one week stay in Turks and Caicos Islands, and met this
wonderful couple on the return trip. He, Marcus, and this while I was seated in
the plane, was caught peeking over my right shoulder. I was reading a printed copy of this post and
low and behold I looked up to see him reading along with me. After a brief conversation, I offered him the
opportunity to read it for himself. About fifteen
minutes later, he and his wife were discussing the piece together. I turned around and joined the conversation. It was great! We were all heading to the same
place, Boston. We met once again, after
the plane had landed. I offered him the
opportunity to download (E-book) a free copy of Yeshua’s God is God, my second book. He was willing. I handed Marcus one of my cards. After Marcus’ wife warned me of getting ready
to enter the ladies room, my wife having just entered it, and all of us being
joined together once again, we walked together to baggage claim. Once again
enjoying a great conversation with Marcus’ family. He had his wife, son, and daughter, traveling
with him. I leave you with this my
friend:
- If Yeshua is “God
and Man” in Mark 13:32 (NKJV), He just contradicted Himself. God knows all things. Since God can't change, someone or something else is making it possible for Him to do so. In this case it would be a man-made doctrine, given to us after the fact, called the Anthanasian Creed; in the year 325-AD.
I pray Marcus gets to read this, I want him to know I was thankful to God for that divine
appointment; let alone those of you I met in Turks and Caicos. I did give my copy of Yeshua’s God is God to a person I met there. God bless you all!
Jim