1. The person who
wrote the page had never read the Bible in Its entirety, or in any substantial
quantity for them to have any contextual or foundational understanding
whatsoever.
2. The person who
wrote it is not saved, nor a Christian, and has no desire for such.3. The scriptures this person used to make a point of "contradiction" in the Bible are taken out of context and isolated to make a false assumption.
The first issue that must be addressed is that the Bible
does not contradict itself, no matter how it may seem to us. The fact that a scripture is not understood
by a reader does not make it a contradiction.
"God is not human, that he
should lie, not a human being, that he should change his mind." (Num
23:19)
"..if we are
faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself." (2 Tim
2:13)"..in the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the beginning of time," (Titus 1:2)
When dealing with any seeming contradiction in the Bible,
we must examine:
1. What is the
context of the passage?-Who is speaking and to whom are they speaking to?
-What is the actual/specific subject matter which is being discussed?
-Is it being used to support a doctrine previously discussed or is it a doctrinal
statement that stands alone?
2. What is the meaning of the words being used?
-For example: "I missed my family." Did someone throw a ball and missed
hitting their family? Or is the person far away from them and misses their
presence?
3. Is the statement meant to be taken literally or metaphorically?
4. Is the person reading the scripture committed to unbelief?
As believers and followers of Christ, God expects us to
have faith in His revealed word, The Bible.
This is a given; it is basic, elementary and non-negotiable Will we have questions? Absolutely.
But to doubt His word is to undermine our own profession of faith. When Christians doubt the word of God, they
bring doubt upon their own profession of faith.
After all, a person who comes to Christ is doing so based on their faith
in His Gospel message. And how did that
Gospel message come to us? The Bible. We were not alive when Christ preached the
Gospel message to His Apostles. We were
not with the Apostles when they preached the Gospel to the early church. Our salvation is ultimately by our faith in
Jesus Christ, but it is based on the fact that we have heard the Gospel message
of salvation accurately, that the Gospel of salvation which we have heard was
accurately recorded and faithfully passed down to us.
A believer must first and foremost submit to God's
authority through His Word. Then a
believer must submit to God in faith that the Bible is true, trustworthy and
reliable and that God, Who created all existence in six days, is also fully
capable of ensuring that the texts that attest to His authority and power maintain
their integrity throughout the millennia for each believing generation. Basically, if God can create all of
existence, seen and unseen, in a matter of six days, then He is also capable of
orchestrating the circumstances throughout history to protect and reasonably maintain
His revealed word to us.
When we seek answers from God, He is faithful to reveal
them to us. However, we must seek Him
with the right heart and right motives.
We must enter God's presence in humility. "God
opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble." (James 4:6; 1 Peter
5:5) and "He mocks those who mock,
but gives grace to the humble." (Prov 3:34)
If we examine scripture with doubt, seeking
contradiction, we will always find it.
One of the fascinating things about the Bible is that
it can be twisted to fit many personal agendas, but only His Spirit can give
the right understanding of It. Scripture
even attests to this when we are told, "the word of God is living and active and
sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul
and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions
of the heart" (Heb 4:12). If the intention of our heart is doubt and
contradiction, we will find doubt and contradiction. If the intention of our heart is truth, we
will find truth.
God will give us answers if we seek them with the right
heart and motives, but it must also be in His timing. If the soil of our heart is not prepared to
receive His truth, then it is pointless for Him to reveal it. See the parable of the sower at Matthew
13:19-23.
If He does not reveal the answers we seek, then it is His
prerogative to do so and we must submit to His authority. In essence, God will always reveal the
answers we need to know, but not always the answers we want to know. Many people go their entire lives without
having questions that they deem important, answered. Some receive their answers, but it is only
after they invest much personal time and effort in seeking God with a right
heart-- prayer and fasting and submission.
Yet sometimes, even when their answer is revealed, it is an
understanding they are given in their spirit and not something that can be
particularly articulated as an explanation to someone else. God is faithful to speak to each of us in a
way that we can understand.
Even so, perhaps one of the reasons so many seemingly
important questions remain unanswered is because God uses our effort to seek
out such answers as a way to draw us nearer to Him. Using our desire to know, to engage us in
intimate fellowship with Him. For some of
us, if we had all the answers, then we would have no reason or desire to seek
Him.
Normally, I refuse to argue Biblical points with someone
who has never actually read the Bible. However,
because of the nature of my relationship with the person who sent me the link
to the page being discussed, I have made an exception and taken the time and
effort to answer the questions the page presents and explain and refute false
assumptions. I have also made an
exception because the person who sent me the link has, in fact, read the Bible,
yet the page being discussed managed to cause them discontent. Therefore I have made the decision to post the
questions and answers on my blog with the intention to help and/or guide anyone
else that may be seeking answers also.
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