Bible Archives - Page 3 of 119 - DOES GOD EXIST? TODAY

August 16, 2024August 14, 2024

Inconsistency of Well-Educated Skeptics

It has become fashionable in the media to bash the Bible, but the inconsistency of well-educated skeptics who denigrate the Bible as a fictitious writing does not stand up. This essay is not about bashing skeptics but about encouraging them to reconsider their views on the credibility of the Bible.

Most skeptics do not question the credibility of Plato’s writings, but how many ancient copies do we have of Plato’s work? The answer is seven. No educated scholar would question the works of Pliny even though, once again, only seven copies exist. Herodotus and Suetonius are required reading in most universities, but we have only eight manuscripts for each. Even Socrates and Aristotle exist in less than 50 ancient copies. It is easy to understand why this is the case because these manuscripts were hand-written and produced hundreds of years after the author lived. We agree that these copies are valid and that their message is clear.

In comparison, roughly 5600 early New Testament copies and fragments are in museums worldwide. Well-known ancient scholars also quoted from the New Testament. Justin Martyr quotes 268 times from the gospels and 43 times from the letters of Paul. Origen quotes 9231 times from the gospels, 349 times from Acts, and over 8,000 times from the letters. If you add up all the Bible quotes known to scholars, there are 19,369 quotes from the gospels, 1,352 from the book of Acts, 14,905 from the letters, and 664 from the book of Revelation. This adds up to 36,289 quotes by ancient writers.

We see the amazing inconsistency of well-educated skeptics accepting writings with only seven or eight ancient copies while rejecting biblical manuscripts of similar ages with over 35,000 quotes. Because of the huge number of manuscripts and quotes available, we can check on the integrity of biblic a l translations. Attempting to justify rejecting Christ because you don’t want to live as He says is one thing, but being dishonest and inconsistent with evidence is something else.

We warmly invite you to take our free correspondence course “Beyond Reasonable Doubt.” Simply send us your USPS address, and we will send you lesson # 1. This is an opportunity for you to delve deeper into the evidence supporting the Bible’s credibility and reconsider any doubts you may have. – John N. Clayton
jncdge@aol.com
Does God Exist?
1555 Echo Valley Drive
Niles MI 49120

August 12, 2024August 11, 2024

Tornadoes Are Not the Wrath of God

Some people try to tell us that tornadoes are God’s retaliation against humans for not obeying Him. Atheists and skeptics often say that disasters disprove the existence of a loving and all-powerful God. Now, we are seeing some preachers and religious periodicals saying that God is spiteful and taking it out on humans. This is not only a denial of scientific fact, but it contradicts the nature of God as revealed in the Bible. Catastrophes such as tornadoes are not the wrath of God.

The science behind tornadoes is well understood. They are a natural response to Earth’s changes and human abuse of what God has given us. A tornado happens when hot air becomes trapped under a layer of cold air. Hot air rises, and the Coriolis Effect of the Earth’s spin causes the rising column of air to spin as well.

How can hot air get under cold air? There are several causes, but the main one is the Sun heating Earth’s surface. Dark surfaces can get very hot. Several years ago in Oklahoma, I saw a weatherperson fry an egg on the hood of her car on a scorching day. Hundreds of square miles of blacktoped parking lots and plowed-up land guarantee rising air masses. Older native Americans who lived in Tornado Alley told me that they had never seen a tornado as a child, and their native language had no word for it, although they did have a word for dust devils.

The Bible clarifies that Jesus does not bring destruction, and tornadoes are not the wrath of God. Peter tells us God “..is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish but everyone to come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9 ). Repentance is simply thinking differently. It does not always mean we must confess some great sin–although that could be the case. “Repent and be baptized” in Acts 2:38 means thinking differently, and Peter spoke those words to a large crowd. Romans 8:28 says, “In all things, God works for the good of those who love Him.” James 1:13 tells us that God tempts no one with evil.

If God zapped us every time we made a mistake, the planet would have no humans in a matter of minutes. Tornadoes are not the wrath of God. They are mainly a product of human abuse and carelessness. Building flimsy structures in areas prone to tornadoes is asking for trouble. Not managing the use of what God has given us has caused catastrophic damage and loss of life. Let us work on using the things God gave us more intelligently as we understand that God is a God of love (1 John 4:16) and forgiveness (John 3:16).

July 19, 2024July 16, 2024

Human Failures of People Who Claim Christianity

This ministry is not affiliated with any denomination of Christianity nor with the Catholic Church. Unchristian actions and teachings of people who claim to be Christians have often catalyzed the growth of atheism and “nones” in America. Our ministry is made up of those who refuse to be part of all human creeds and denominations and rely 100% on the teachings of Jesus Christ as revealed in the Bible. We focus on evidence for God’s existence and the Bible as the Word of God, not on the human failures of people who claim Christianity.

On July 5, 2024, the Vatican announced the excommunication of Italian archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano for refusing to recognize the authority of Pope Francis. Vigano was the Vatican’s ambassador to the United States from 2011 to 2016. He said that the Pope was a servant of Satan for overlooking corruption in the Catholic Church, such as pedophilia. Getting involved in organized religion’s controversies is not within our work’s mission. Still, the history of Catholicism and the cases of sexual abuse by Catholic clergy shows the human failures of people who claim Christianity but don’t follow the authority of God’s Word.

Atheists, skeptics, and people struggling with their faith need to understand that the human failures of people who claim Christianity have nothing to do with the truth of the Bible. The evidence for God’s existence is vast, and the evidence for the credibility of the Bible is strong. Our videos on doesgodexist.tv demonstrate that evidence. Our free courses on evidence and booklets giving answers to faith challenges are available to anyone disturbed by the hypocrisy and inconsistency of organized religion.

That doesn’t mean we have all the answers. We are just a group of Christians struggling with today’s challenges and trying to serve God. We believe the words of 2 Timothy 3:16: “All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness so that the person who belongs to God can be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” Please join us in reaching a corrupt and chaotic world with the message of hope.

Reference: The Week magazine for July 19, 2024, page 8, and BBC.com

July 16, 2024July 15, 2024

The Rod of Correction Is not Beating

A skeptic challenged us concerning God’s inspiration of the Bible by quoting Old Testament references to using a “rod” to discipline a child. In our day of child abuse, psychological dissertations claim that spanking is destructive and the “rod of correction” is barbaric. Skeptics claim that it shows the Bible is not from God but is a reflection of human ignorance.

Proverbs indeed refers to using a “rod of correction” to teach a child. (See Proverbs 13:24, 23:13, and 29:15.) Like any question of biblical teaching, we should study the passage in the original language and look at who wrote it, why they wrote it, to whom they wrote it, and how the people it was written to would have understood it. People who take the King James translation to justify beating a child are not doing that.

Four Hebrew words are translated as “rod” in the Bible. The Hebrew words that refer to a weapon or tool are “mattah,” “choter (Proverbs 14:3),” and “maqqel (Jeremiah 1:11 and 48:17).” The word used in Proverbs is “shebet” which can be translated “scepter.” The lexicon says that word refers to a system of discipline. The word used to describe a weapon is “mattah.” In Exodus 4 and 7, Moses used a “rod” (“mattah”) in his exchange with the Pharaoh.

The bottom line is that the ancient Hebrews would have understood that the rod of correction in Proverbs is like an orchestra leader’s baton. It produces discipline but is not a weapon. All of the passages in Proverbs deal with offering guidance or discipline to a child, not to beating a child.

The finishing touch to this discussion is what Jesus taught and what the Christian system presents as the role of parents. Ephesians 6:4 says, “Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.” The Christian system of a nuclear family is a far cry from a culture in which a woman’s worth was determined by how many children she produced, and a man was a dictator.

Taking the Bible literally does not mean lifting a passage out of context and applying it to modern situations. The biblical instructions are full of compassion, empathy, and love—and they work. In today’s world, many children are raised by hired workers such as daycares, academies, or nannies. Gangs and cults also raise many children. Some kids turn out well despite these situations, but not because of them.

June 24, 2024June 23, 2024

Solomon and Gezer

Those who wish to reject the Bible as historically inaccurate are challenged by the growing amount of supporting evidence from the sciences, including archaeology. Some of the archeological discoveries involve Solomon and Gezer.

In 1 Kings 9:15-19, we read about the Egyptian pharaoh attacking and capturing Gezer and setting it on fire. The pharaoh then gave Gezer as a wedding gift to his daughter, Solomon’s wife, and the Bible says that Solomon rebuilt Gezer. In the last ten years, an excavation project at Gezer revealed that it was a well-fortified city with a massive six-chambered gate, a casemate wall, and a large administrative building.

The summer 2024 issue of Biblical Archaeology Review (Volume 50 #2) has an interesting article titled “Solomon’s Powerplay.” The article confirms the story of Solomon and Gezer as we see it in the Bible. It includes numerous pictures and a discussion of Gezer’s history.

Biblical minimalists try to discard these findings, but we deal with evidence in the “Does God Exist?” program. The rate at which discoveries are being made in all scientific disciplines makes it increasingly difficult to be a skeptic of the Bible. Taking the Bible literally means looking at who wrote the section you are reading, why they wrote it, who they wrote it to, and how the people it was written to would have understood it. When you do that, it is easy to see that the Bible is not just a bunch of human myths and fairy tales but is, in fact, the Word of God.

Our newest video series, “Beyond Reasonable Doubt,” explores the archaeological support for the integrity of the Bible. You can view it free online at this LINK. We are in the process of adding four more sessions to that series, but new archaeological discoveries will already need to be added to this wealth of material.

June 17, 2024June 16, 2024

Why Would God Do That?

A Christian friend was looking for help to answer his sons’ questions. One son is in high school, and the other is in college, and they questioned why God would tell the Israelites to “attack the Amalekites and totally destroy everything that belongs to them. Do not spare them; put to death men and women, children and infants, cattle and sheep, camels and donkeys” (1 Samuel 15: 2-3). Why would God do that – requiring total destruction of the Amalekite society?

I shared my thoughts on this question, but first, I suggested he go to our website, doesgodexist.tv, using this LINK. Then scroll down to video #7 in the series titled “Anticipating Some Objections.” Between 11:50 and 15:40 in that video, you will find a very brief answer to the objection of why God would command the killing of all of the Amalekites, including women, children, and livestock.

It seems that in addition to other sins, such as attacking the Israelites in Exodus 17, the Amalekites were sexually corrupt, even including bestiality. That resulted in diseases, even affecting the animals, for which there was no cure at that primitive time. If the Amalekites and their animals were allowed to live in the land God had promised to His people, they would morally corrupt the Israelites and even spread diseases.

God was preparing a people through which He would bring salvation to all people. Why would God do that? Because of His love. Allowing the Israelites to be corrupted by their neighbors could destroy God’s plan to redeem all humanity through Jesus Christ. The gospel came into the world because God had prepared a people who believed in the one true God who created all things. Any other religious system would not work to prepare people to accept Christ’s message.

The Israelites failed to follow God’s instructions to the letter, and that failure returned to haunt them. (See 1 Samuel 30.) Paganism corrupted even Israel’s kings. However, God allowed His chosen people to suffer captivity and punishment. Why would God do that? Allowing His people to suffer eventually led to the Jewish people at the time of Jesus being completely cured of paganism. They had other faults, but they refused to worship any pagan gods. They had the prophecies of the Old Testament and the miracles and message of Jesus to cause many of them to believe and be baptized into Christ’s body, the Church. Although many rejected Christ, those who accepted the gospel became powerful witnesses to the pagans of their day to the point where they “turned the world upside down” (Acts 17:6). (Actually, they turned it right side up.)

The Church today would not exist if God had not taken harsh steps that may seem immoral to our modern Christian sensitivities. I believe that without the influence of Christianity in the past two millennia, people would have destroyed civilization and the planet before now. As people reject God today, we are on the verge of doing that. Today, God does not command us to save the world by destroying our enemies but by bringing them into God’s family through His Church. Why would God do that? Because He loves all people. When you consider the entire history from God’s perspective and realize His ultimate purpose, you realize it was because of His love that He commanded the destruction of the Amalekites.

June 13, 2024June 10, 2024

Coordinated Vigilance

Research shows that rabbitfish in Australia’s Great Barrier Reef forage for food in pairs using “coordinated vigilance” to avoid predators. The rabbitfish take turns foraging for algae in reef crevices while the partner is on guard duty in “an upright vigilance position.” Researchers said, “Both behaviors are strongly coordinated, and partners regularly alternate their positions.” The researchers say this reciprocity is “thought to require a suite of complex cognitive abilities.” In other words, how could fish that “lack complex social and cognitive skills” have evolved this system?

Scientists have studied cooperative behavior in some mammals and a few birds. Teamwork in fish is almost nonexistent, but God has placed this unique genetic value in rabbitfish. This is especially interesting when you look at humans. In Genesis 2:18-24, God created a helper for Adam. The Hebrew word “ezer” used in these verses does not indicate that woman is inferior to man or of lesser importance. The idea is that a woman can do what a man cannot do for himself. Like the rabbitfish and other life forms, coordinated vigilance is built into the genetics of various living things to allow them to survive.

The New Testament passages Ephesians 6:4 and Colossians 3:21 indicate that fathers have a role to play in the family in relationship to children. The concept is that God intends for coordinated vigilance with husband and wife to be the foundation of the family. In human societies, when coordinated vigilance is not practiced, the whole structure of culture falls apart. This does not bode well for societies around the world today.

Our nation’s violence and struggles will only get worse as society distances itself from God and His instructions. We promote the Bible as the word of God because the evidence shows that when people follow biblical instructions, society works. When people fail to follow them, the culture disintegrates.

Reference: nih.gov

June 11, 2024June 10, 2024

Does God Answer Prayers?

If you have not read yesterday’s post, please do so. Atheist challenges to prayer are very vocal and common. Madalyn Murray O’Hair stated the atheist position well: “No God ever gave any man anything, nor ever answered any prayer at any time – nor ever will.” God’s response to this statement is well stated in James 4:1 -3, “What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? You want something but don’t get it. You kill and covet, but you cannot have what you want. You quarrel and fight. You do not have, because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.” Does God answer prayers?

Both atheists and believers have many misunderstandings about prayer:
#1) God cannot eliminate our purpose for existing by answering a prayer that takes away the human ability to choose between good and evil.

#2) Galatians 6:7 tells us, “A man reaps what he sows.” There will be consequences when we do what God has told us not to do. If you jump off a cliff, you can’t expect God to prevent you from hitting the bottom.

#3) As humans, we don’t always know what to ask for, and we don’t know the collateral damage of things we ask for. Garth Brooks has a wonderful song titled “Unanswered Prayer.” Listen to the words and be aware of their message.

#4) We tend to experience an answer to prayer by assuming the answer was a product of chance or human wisdom. Does a medical cure for something mean that God had no role in the healing? Most doctors will tell you that they don’t cure diseases. They help the body fight off the cause.

#5) God doesn’t do for us what we can do for ourselves.

What would be the result if God answered every human whim and desire? I was in a church service where a farmer prayed for rain. Later, another member prayed it wouldn’t rain on his daughter’s wedding. During the Civil War, people on both sides prayed for victory for their side.

Does God answer prayers? Most 12-step participants, most of us who have sought a purpose for existing, most of us who have prayed for personal peace and comfort, and most of us who have struggled with our approaching death can tell you that prayer helps in obvious ways. Our misunderstanding of why God wants us to pray prevents us from comprehending the value of prayer.

June 10, 2024June 9, 2024

Why Didn’t God Answer My Prayer?

It is interesting that the more vocal atheists of our day spend a lot of time talking about prayer. Many of them became atheists because when they were younger, God didn’t answer a prayer as they thought He should. The death of a family member, especially a mother or father, is the most common story we have heard as a reason for not believing in God. The common phrase is, “Why didn’t God answer my prayer? If He really exists, why did He let my child (or mother, father, spouse) die?’

The songbook we use at our worship time contains 45 songs about prayer. Eleven of them promise that God will take care of you and not deny anything you ask. Skeptics have said the song “God Will Take Care of You” by Civilla and Walter Martin “is an outright lie.” Atheists often quote the line, “Nothing you ask will be denied.”

The other side of this issue is what we should legitimately pray for. My wife recently lost a hearing aid. She prayed for several days about the loss, and just when she had given up, the hearing aid appeared on the seat of our car. Does God micromanage our lives to help us find lost objects?

For any Bible promise, we must ask what was said, who said it, why, and how the people hearing it would have understood it. In passages like Matthew 7:7-11, Jesus says, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek and you shall find; knock and the door will be opened to you …” He goes on to say, “Your Father in heaven will give good gifts to those who ask for them.” These passages and many others tell Christians that God will answer prayers. The reality is that physical answers do not always come to us, at least not as we expect.

When my son was born, we had great joy, but we soon realized that he had some medical problems. We prayed for his vision problems, and the doctors told us that he would be able to see well enough to function – but he became blind. We prayed that he would have the intelligence to overcome blindness, but it turned out he was mentally challenged. We prayed his body would be strong, but we learned he had cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, and was schizophrenic. I went through a “why me” stage and a period of anger at God for allowing my son to have all these problems. I asked, “Why didn’t God answer my prayers?” My atheist parents attempted to get the state to remove the child from our home. That alienated me from them for many years.

One aspect of prayer that many never understand is that God knows the future. He answers prayers in ways that have eternal implications that allow us to have an unintended purpose in life. My experience opened doors that I didn’t even know existed. My son’s problems have molded and shaped me into a radically different person. I have a mission and a purpose in life that I would never have had without the way my prayers were answered. Perhaps the question should be, “Why didn’t God answer my prayer in the way I expected? We will continue with more thoughts on prayer tomorrow.

Note: The story of my son is available in a book titled “Timothy, My Son and My Teacher,” available directly from our ministry or powervine.store.

June 7, 2024June 6, 2024

God Used Two Methods

In the Spring 2024 issue of God and Nature, Dr. John Carpenter has an excellent article on God’s two methods for bringing things into existence. Dr. Carpenter, a Hebrew and Greek scholar, brings a great understanding of two Hebrew terms in Genesis. Genesis uses the terms “bara” and “asah” to show that God used two methods to bring everything into existence.

The first method that Genesis refers to, “bara,” is creating the physical world and time into existence from nothing. Proverbs 8:22-23 describes this as wisdom and says, “The Lord brought me forth as the first of His works before His deeds of old. I was formed long ages ago at the very beginning when the world came to be.” The Hebrew word “bara” is never used to refer to something humans can do. We find it in Genesis 1:1. It is not used again until Genesis 1:27 to describe humans as being in the image of God, referring to our spiritual makeup. Genesis 2:3 describes the two methods God used: “And God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it because that in it He had rested from all His work which God created (bara) and made (asah).”

That brings us to the second method God used to bring things into existence. “Asah” refers to things that both God and humans can do. That is to take what has already been created and change it to something new. Everything from Genesis 1:2 to Genesis 1:26 involves God making, not creating. The only other Hebrew word that refers to this process is “yatsar” used in Genesis 2:7. That term describes what a potter would do and is used here to refer to God forming the man’s human body, not his spiritual makeup in God’s image).

God used two methods to “create” and “make.” Humans have duplicated what God has done in making things, including work in genetics and genome projects. What sets humans apart from everything else is not our physical makeup. The difference between human DNA and other primates’ DNA is not huge, but human spiritual makeup is a huge difference.

Unfortunately, many denominations refuse to take the Bible literally and twist it to fit their creeds. Science and the Bible agree 100% in what they say, but bad science and bad theology do exist. No one has all the answers, but the evidence is there for all to see and study. Listen to God and not to human theologies, which were an issue in Paul’s day and are an even greater issue today.

In our booklet “God’s Revelation in His Rocks and His Word,” we echo the same point that the Genesis account, with its use of “bara” and “asah,” demonstrates that God used two methods to bring everything into existence. This understanding, when coupled with a literal interpretation of the Bible, reveals a remarkable harmony between science and the Bible, providing reassurance of their compatibility.

Reference: John B. Carpenter in God and Nature, a publication of the American Scientific Affiliation, spring 2024