Jesus Christ Archives - DOES GOD EXIST? TODAY

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.

May 31, 2024May 30, 2024

You Just have to Believe

Some preachers and church leaders try to tell you, “Don’t question your faith. You just have to believe.” We never find that kind of attitude in the teaching of Jesus or any of the apostles. It is easy to assume that the people we are talking to believe in God, that the Bible is the true Word of God, and that Jesus is a real person who lived, died, and rose from the dead.

It’s a common misconception that everyone in the church has unwavering faith. In reality, a significant portion of people, including those sitting in church pews, have their own doubts and questions. Over the past decade, our ministry has seen a surge in responses, particularly from teenagers and young adults who are grappling with their faith.

Jesus had to deal with the doubts of people who rejected what He said. The Bible describes multiple cases in which people showed Jesus a lack of faith. In Mark 9:17-27, we read of a father with a son who had an epileptic-like issue. Jesus told the distraught father, “All things are possible for one who has faith.” The father cried out with tears, “Lord, I have faith, help me where faith runs short.” Have you ever had a struggle in which you want to believe but are paralyzed by doubt?

How did Jesus handle people’s doubts? The answer is “evidence.” When Thomas doubted that Jesus had risen from the dead, Jesus did not condemn or even chastise him but gave him evidence ( John 20:24-29). Verses 30 and 31 tell us that Jesus did many other things which gave his disciples evidence, “These things are written, that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God and that believing you might have life through His name.”

The purpose of miracles was not to attract a crowd, raise money, or campaign for some particular office. In Matthew 8:24 -27, we see Jesus controlling wind and waves, and His followers’ response was, “What kind of a man is this that even the winds and the sea obey Him.” Miracles served a purpose, and when men tried to duplicate the things Jesus did, the results were catastrophic. (See Acts 19:13-16.)

In our day, evidence is still a key to faith. The creation speaks of God’s existence, and archaeological evidence for the validity of the Bible is strong. All around us, we can see the catastrophe when people reject the teachings of Christ and devise their own plan for living. We present evidence in the courses we offer, our printed publications, and our websites. We have far more reason to believe than did people in biblical times when mass media was unavailable and scientific knowledge was minimal. Romans 1:19-20 says it well, and verses 28-32 tell us the consequences of rejecting the evidence.”

May 29, 2024May 28, 2024

Animals Do Not Possess Human Values or Empathy

One result of evolutionary thinking is believing that humans are not unique but just animals at the top of the evolutionary ladder. As a result of that message, many people treat animals as if they are humans, at times even raising wild animals in their homes. The problem is that animals do not possess human values or empathy, and their instinctive behavior may cause unexpected problems.

In some cases, animals have reverted to instinctive drives, causing them to attack their owners. A man named Austin Riley in Boerne, Texas, found a newborn warthog whose mother had died. Riley took the tiny warthog, nursed it, and raised it for five years. He named the pet warthog Waylon after Waylon Jennings, a country singer known for his outlaw behavior. When Riley would lie down and listen to sports radio, Waylon would lie down beside him. Riley would take Waylon to Whataburger to get something to eat, and Waylon would sit in the front seat “happy as can be.” Waylon grew to weigh 250 pounds and was identified with Pumbaa in the popular Lion King movie, with the Swahili expression “hakuna matata,” meaning “no worries.” However, there was something to worry about in this case because animals do not possess human values or empathy.

Warthogs have lower tusks protruding from muscular jaws like blades. The tusks are curved, so the warthog can do incredible damage to any animal or person by twisting its head. Warthogs are designed to protect themselves from lions, their main enemies in their native Africa. On an October evening in 2022, Austin came to Waylon’s pen, and the warthog greeted him happily as he went to the feeding trough. Twenty minutes after feeding Waylon, Austin fed Daisy a potbellied pig he raised from a piglet and then walked to his ATV. Suddenly, Waylon attacked Austin, ripping his legs, wrist, abdomen, and neck. Doctors say that Austin lost half of his blood, and his treatment required ten surgeries. Medical studies of Waylon showed he did not have rabies.

The bottom line is that wild animals are not good pets. Animals do not possess human values or empathy. I have known friends who had snakes, alligators, turtles, deer, eagles, crows, chimps, goldfish, and even sharks for pets. In many cases, a time came when the animals acted aggressively toward their keepers. The point is that humans can behave like animals, but animals cannot behave like humans. Humans are created in God’s image, which is expressed in how we live and care for one another at all stages of life. The world would be a much better place if everyone followed the teachings of Jesus Christ in Matthew chapters 5 to 7.

Reference: boingboing.net and Texas Monthly

May 6, 2024May 6, 2024

Is Consciousness an Illusion?

Is consciousness an illusion, or is it real? Philosopher Rene Descartes insisted that consciousness was the only undeniable fact of our existence. He is known for the phrase, “I think, therefore, I am” (cogito, ergo sum). Daniel Dennett was an analytic philosopher who, until his death on April 19, 2024, spent his career suggesting that consciousness is an illusion. He also insisted that God is an illusion, and, in agreement with Richard Dawkins, design in nature is an illusion.

Daniel Dennett was also closely associated with Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris, and Christopher Hitchens as the “Four Horsemen of the New Atheism.” They all wrote best-selling books challenging the existence of God. Dennett was a vocal atheist, a Committee for Skeptical Inquiry member, and served on the advisory board of the Secular Coalition for America. He was also awarded the Freedom From Religion Foundation’s board of distinguished achievers.

Dennett believed that evolution by natural selection and adaptation accounts for every aspect of life, including morality. In his book Breaking the Spell: Religion as a Natural Phenomenon, he attempted to give a naturalistic explanation for religious belief. Is consciousness an illusion? According to Dennett, the answer is “yes.” If you have trouble accepting that concept, Dennett’s 1991 book Consciousness Explained attempted to explain it. His 2017 book From Bacteria to Bach and Back: The Evolution of Minds expands on Dennett’s concept of “competence without comprehension.”

According to Dennett, the Darwinian theory accounts for all aspects of our existence. No intelligent designer is needed because evolution explains everything. The “Four Horsemen of the New Atheism” alludes to the four horsemen of the apocalypse described in Revelation chapter 6. Those horsemen represent conquest, warfare, famine, and death, bringing judgment on the people of Earth. The four horsemen of atheism are now down to two since the death of Hitchens and now Dennett, but I am sure others will take their place.

What we need today are champions for God who will take the message of God’s love and redemption and peace and hope in Jesus Christ. If consciousness is an illusion, everything is meaningless, but if consciousness is reality, everything changes. Our lives have meaning, purpose, and value because God created and loves us.

May 3, 2024May 2, 2024

Characterizing God as a Vindictive Tyrant

Characterizing God as a vindictive tyrant who wants to send everyone to hell is the exact opposite of what the Bible teaches. God wants everyone to be saved. It would be helpful if writers who condemn Christianity would read and understand the New Testament rather than taking Old Testament passages out of context.

In Matthew 18:12-14, Jesus tells the parable of a shepherd with 100 sheep and one wanders off. The shepherd leaves the 99 and goes after the one that is lost. Christ ends that story by saying, “In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these should be lost.”

In 2 Peter 3:9, Peter writes, “The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish but everyone to come to a change of mind (repentance).”

Many have read John 3:16 without reading verse 17: “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son so that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world but to save the world.”

Skeptics and some religionists who ask why God doesn’t just save everyone automatically are misunderstanding the purpose of our existence. God created us for a reason, and He gave us a purpose. There is a war going on between good and evil. Despite atheist attempts to deny that evil exists, their claim rings hollow with those who live in the real world.

The impact of evil is clear, and Job 1 & 2, Ephesians 6:12 and 3:10 make the purpose of our existence clear. Only sentient beings can make spiritual choices and be part of the struggle between good and evil. God is not a destroyer, a tyrant, or a bully. Forcing people to embrace His will would only indicate His power. The Bible says, “God is love,” and for that reason, He is allowing time to pass before the creation is dissolved. God wants everyone to be saved and to live in a spiritual existence beyond the grave, but He will not force us to accept His will.

Please reject those who are characterizing God as a vindictive tyrant who takes delight in torturing innocent beings. First Corinthians 1:18 says, “The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to those of us who are being saved, it is the power of God.” In 2 Corinthians 4:4, Paul tells us that “the god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers,” so the “light of the gospel of the glory of Christ” cannot shine on them. That explains why they are characterizing God as a vindictive tyrant. Don’t be blinded by the vindictive writing of atheists and skeptics who are agents of destruction of us individually and the United States as a nation.

May 1, 2024April 30, 2024

The War Against Christianity

The war against Christianity has grown in the United States. Here are some examples:

*Fowler United Methodist Church in Annapolis, Maryland, suffered $100,000 in damages. Vandals tore down a wooden cross, shredded Bibles, and slashed upholstery.

*Florida passed a bill to allow public and charter schools to have a chaplain to address student mental health. Opponents called it a vehicle for “Christian nationalism,” and the Satanic Temple indicated it plans to send its chaplains.

*The war against Christianity involves Madison, Wisconsin’s Freedom From Religion Foundation. It has taken out ads in various periodicals calling for the rejection of “Christian nationalism.”

*The “Public Religion Research Institute” reports that 26% of Americans identify themselves as religiously unaffiliated, and 67% of those say they have stopped believing the teaching of their old faith.

*The government continues to issue new rules that violate Christian teachings and precipitate problems for Christian families. One example is the rules prohibiting Christian colleges from having dorms limited to only one sex. Other laws require schools to allow both sexes to use any restroom, resulting in cases where female students complain because males are entering their facilities to “gawk” at them.

Jesus made it clear that His gospel was not political. In Matthew 22:15-22, Jesus tells his opponents to “give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s.” In Romans 13:1-7, Paul lays down the relationship between Christians and government. He makes positive comments about the role of government and categorizes government as God’s servant. He tells Christians to pay their taxes and show respect and honor to public leaders.

When the government demands immorality or opposes Christian behavior, it seems like a war against Christianity. However, Christians are not called to strike back militarily. The day may come when churches will not have tax exemption, and the government will take over church property. Even then, God’s people will survive and thrive as they did under the pagan Roman government in the first century. There can’t be a war when one side refuses to fight.

We can find comfort in the fact that Jesus said, “You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come…. You will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. At that time, many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate one another, and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but he who stands to the end will be saved” (Matthew 24:6-13).

References: USA Today for 4/9/24; The Week for April 12, 2024, page 17; and “Washington Impact Report” from the Family Research Council for April 2024, page 1.

April 16, 2024April 15, 2024

Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena AARO Report

One of the most repeated false media reports is the claim that aliens in spacecraft regularly visit Earth and want to affect human history. In our day of conspiracy theories, there are stories that the United States government has been hiding alien contact. Dr. Sean Kirkpatrick was the director of the U.S. Department of Defense’s All-Domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO). Congress charged that agency in 2022 with bringing scientific evidence and clarity to the UFO and UAP (Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena) mystery.

Dr. Kirkpatrick explained what the AARO found in the April 2024 issue of Scientific American. Here is a brief summary of his report:

#1) There is no record of any president, Department of Defense official, intelligence community leader, or congressional committee knowing about any such conspiracy.
#2) The claims started when “UFOlogist” Robert Bigelow, founder of Bigelow Aerospace, persuaded some senators to call on the Department of Homeland Security to set up an agency to investigate claims.
#3) The people advancing the idea of a government coverup conspiracy are part of a small group, and many of them worked for Bigelow Aerospace.
#4) Dr. Kirkpatrick said of the claims, “Some are misrepresentations; some derive from pure, unsupported beliefs. In many ways, the narrative is a textbook example of circular reporting…”

You can read the report released by Kirkpatrick’s group of qualified scientists, “Report on the Historical Record of U.S. Government Involvement with Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAP),” online HERE.

All attempts to tie alien claims to the Bible or alien explanations of history are not supported by evidence or real scientific investigation. We see claims that biblical figures, including Jesus, were aliens and that miracles described in the Bible were the actions of aliens. There is no evidence to support those claims.

The evidence is massive that Jesus lived as the Bible says and that His spiritual promises are real. Our salvation comes from the work of Jesus, and we must study and apply His teachings to our lives. You can see some of that evidence in our videos, including the Beyond Reasonable Doubt series and our correspondence course by the same name. Send us your name and address for the correspondence course, and we will mail you lesson #1 at no cost. You can watch the video series for free on our website, doesgodexist.tv.

Reference: “Observations from a Government UFO Hunter” in Scientific American magazine for April 2024 (pages 67-68)

March 30, 2024March 27, 2024

The Resurrection of Jesus Christ

As Christians remember the resurrection of Jesus Christ, how do we know the story is true? Some unbelievers argue that the resurrection is a myth that arose many years later. The evidence against that idea is numerous and strong. The apostles carried the message of Christ’s resurrection to the ends of the Roman Empire for the rest of their lives, even though they had nothing to gain except a life of persecution ending in execution. They would not have done that unless they had seen the resurrected Christ.

Skeptics have often argued that the gospels were written years later to “prove” the resurrection of Jesus Christ was a myth that developed during those years. However, before any of the four gospels were written, Paul wrote to the church in Corinth in A.D. 57. he included an oral tradition that summarizes the gospel message.

In the first century, there were no computers, printed books, or pamphlets, and even simple writing materials were scarce and precious. People memorized important things by summarizing them efficiently and passing them on as oral traditions. The early Christians used that method. Here is the first part of an oral tradition that Paul wrote down in that first letter to the church in Corinth:

“For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures…”

The oral tradition then goes on to list some resurrection appearances of Christ. Then Paul adds himself to the list of those who saw the resurrected Christ. (You can read it for yourself in 1 Corinthians 15:3-8.) Of course, the “Scriptures” that Paul refers to are the Old Testament prophecies of Christ since the New Testament was not yet written.

When did Paul receive this tradition? He probably received it no later than A.D. 36 when he first visited Jerusalem. (See Galatians 1:15-18.) He possibly received it earlier than that in Damascus when, as Saul the persecutor, he encountered Ananias and received his sight. Ananias preached the gospel to him, and “Saul spent several days with the disciples in Damascus.” Whether in Jerusalem or Damascus, Paul received the oral tradition of Christ’s resurrection no more than five years after the event. That tradition was not a myth that developed years after eyewitnesses died.

We can trust the truth of the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. Although we have that oral tradition written down, we would do well to memorize it, as the early Christians did.

March 29, 2024March 27, 2024

Easter Egg Symbolism

Various Easter celebrations and fun activities revolve around eggs. Ancient people must have been amazed to see a new living creature emerge from a seemingly dead object. In ancient Persia, people gave eggs to each other at the spring equinox, and they set that date as the beginning of a new year. Easter egg symbolism arose much later as Christians used eggs to represent the rock tomb and the hatching chick as a symbol of Christ emerging from the tomb.

Lent was instituted to remember the fasting of Jesus, and people who were fasting would not eat meat from cows, sheep, pigs, or fowl. It was also common practice to avoid eating eggs, but chickens still laid eggs, so people decorated them. The original egg decorations were just plain vegetable dyes, but crimson eggs emerged in honor of the blood of Christ.

Eastern European people used intricate designs on eggs called pysanky, which they sold in Ukrainian shops. In Germany, people pierced and hollowed eggs and hung them on shrubs and trees like Christmas trees. In some countries, people used eggs in games. In addition to egg hunts, egg rolling activities were also conducted on the White House lawn. Some egg rollings were started at Sunday School picnics and parades before the Civil War.

The shell of a hen’s egg weighs only about one-fifth of an ounce, and it’s made from calcium carbonate just over one-hundredth of an inch thick. Despite the thin shell, chicken eggs can withstand 130 pounds of force. If it is set perfectly still with its pointed end up, an egg is almost impossible to break with one hand. Only an uneven force, like hitting it on something, can crack an eggshell.

Easter egg symbolism can remind us of Christ’s resurrection, but the egg’s design is one more example of the wisdom God has built into everything we see in the creation.

References: The Easter Book by Francis Weiser, The Old Farmer’s Almanac, and Wikipedia

March 28, 2024March 28, 2024

The Date of Easter

Many Christians have little knowledge of why they celebrate Easter when they do. The word “Easter” is found only once in the Bible, in the King James Version, and it should be translated as “Passover” (Acts 12:4). There is no biblical command to celebrate the DATE of Jesus’ resurrection, but the early Christians celebrated the DAY every first day of the week. So, why does the date of Easter change?

The date of Easter is just after the vernal equinox, the time when day and night have equal length. The first full moon after the equinox is called the “paschal full moon.” The name “paschal” is derived from “pascha,” which is a transliteration of the Aramaic word meaning “Passover,” the historical event described in Exodus 12. The paschal full moon always happens between March 21 and April 25; this year, it was on March 25. Easter is the first Sunday following the paschal moon, so it falls on March 31 this year. The date changes because of the shape of the Moon’s orbit, so astronomy establishes the date.

Lent, Holy Week, Good Friday, and Easter Sunday are religious traditions not commanded or taught in the Bible. There is nothing wrong with traditions as long as they don’t conflict with the scriptures and we recognize them as traditions, not commands. Paul said it well in Romans 14:5-8: “One person esteems one day above another; another esteems every day alike.” He goes on to say, “For none of us lives to himself, and no one dies to himself. For if we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. Therefore, whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s. For to this end, Christ died and rose and lived again, that He might be Lord of both the dead and the living.”

Christianity has to do with our hearts and what we do with our lives, not legalism or ritualism. Instead of questioning the date of Easter, enjoy your Easter egg hunt. Maybe you can use the significance of the egg to teach your kids or grandkids where the Easter egg tradition came from and what it can teach us about God’s wisdom and design. We will have more on that tomorrow.