Post by ambassador on Dec 21, 2009 21:52:16 GMT -5
Why Does the Bible Have Contradictions?
[19 August 2009]
The question is asked a lot: “why does the Bible have contradictions?” The problem lies in man, not in God’s Word. Man is too rebellious to study God’s Word GOD’S WAY! Let me give you an example. Suppose you write one set of instructions to one friend, and write a separate set of instructions to another friend. One set of instructions is the complete opposite to the other, but of course, as long each friend follows their own set of instructions, there is no confusion. Now, mix it all up, and combine both sets of instructions—you get a massive to-do list… and a massive headache to boot! This is EXACTLY what man has done with God’s Word.
Mankind wants to use every excuse they can find to avoid being held accountable to God. They avoid church, they leave their Bibles on the bookshelves to collect dust, and they refuse to hear what any Christian has to say. The truth is that the Bible convicts and these people cannot escape conviction. In great hopes of silencing the Christians, lost mankind says “the Bible has contradictions!” Do not be intimidated by that same old trick; it is just as a last-minute effort to ditch the conversation.
Realize that our “dispensation,” or “economy”—the Dispensation of Grace—is distinct from God’s dealing with His covenant people Israel in the Dispensation of Law. People fail to realize this fact, so they glibly believe the idea that the Bible is full of “contradictions” and “errors.” Of course, God told Israel one thing under Law, and He tells us another thing under Grace: the same Lord God is dealing with two separate peoples in two distinct dispensations. See? No contradictions and no errors as long as you keep these two sets of instructions separate!
When Israel fell as a Nation after crucifying their Messiah and King Jesus of Nazareth, God needed a new instrument to reach those lost Gentiles: this is when God sent Paul to the non-Jewish world (Acts 9:15-16; Romans 11:11-13; Romans 15:16). While God has temporarily aside today, He is dispensing His directions to us through Paul’s epistles. No, we do not throw away the Old Testament; we simply view the entire Bible (the 66 books) from the PAULINE perspective. How does everything fit with US today as members of the Church, the Body of Christ? How do we receive God’s salvation today? How does God want us to live today? You have to go to Paul for those answers: that info cannot be found anywhere else BUT Paul!
Now, we move on to a related topic. Should we obey Jesus or Paul? The majority of pastors and Bible teachers seem to ignore Paul, and place more emphasis on Jesus’ earthly ministry. Now, there are many good Christians who have simply been misled. What Jesus said was important, and we will never take away from what Jesus said because Jesus is God. The problem with us “going by what Jesus said” is that Jesus spoke to Jews under the Law. He taught Jews according to the Mosaic Law, in light of the coming Kingdom promised to Israel. Jesus was sent by God the Father to Israel (Matthew 10:5-7; Romans 15:8)—Jesus was NOT sent to minister to us Gentiles in His earthly ministry.
We are Gentiles (non-Jews) living in the Dispensation of Grace. Just as God sent Moses to reveal the Law program to Israel, God sent Paul to reveal the Grace program to the whole world (Romans 11:13). Jesus promoted Temple worship, Sabbath day-keeping, water baptism, and tithing: all of which was given to Jews under the Law. We are not under the Law; we are not Israel.
God sent Paul to us, so if we are to accept God, we are to accept God’s apostle to us (Matthew 10:40; John 13:20; Acts 9:15-16; Romans 11:13; Romans 15:16). Paul is the only apostle who gives us the instructions to living the grace life because God gave Paul the Dispensation of Grace. To ignore those Pauline epistles like most people have and replace them man’s ideas (or replace them with Old Testament Law-keeping) is to ignore God’s message to you. What the Lord has to say to us in this Dispensation of Grace was revealed only to Paul: Jesus knew about it, but He never hinted at it in His earthly ministry because He kept it secret (Romans 16:25-26).
Paul writes that we are not under the Law (Romans 6:14-15), that the Holy Spirit “baptizes” today without water (1 Corinthians 12:13), that we are to give willingly and not grudgingly as with the Old Testament tithe (2 Corinthians 9:6-7), and that there is no Sabbath day for us to keep today (Colossians 2:16). The signs and wonders program of which Jesus promoted is also not in effect today because that was all Jewish too (1 Corinthians 1:22). We do not have kosher food laws to adhere to either (Colossians 2:16).
As long as we “rightly divide” the Scriptures, we can avoid the spiritual confusion that most of the world is experiencing. Everything outside of Paul’s epistles is legalistic, associated with the Nation Israel, the Mosaic Law, and Judaism. Thus, trying to practice the Mosaic Law will NOT be following the grace life God has instructed us to live in the Dispensation of Grace. Following the prophetic program God has for the Nation Israel will NOT cause you to lead the grace life. We study all the Scriptures, but the instructions we need to follow are the Pauline epistles because the Holy Spirit inspired Paul to write to us as people separate from Israel.
PAUL IS OUR APOSTLE! End of story!
[19 August 2009]
The question is asked a lot: “why does the Bible have contradictions?” The problem lies in man, not in God’s Word. Man is too rebellious to study God’s Word GOD’S WAY! Let me give you an example. Suppose you write one set of instructions to one friend, and write a separate set of instructions to another friend. One set of instructions is the complete opposite to the other, but of course, as long each friend follows their own set of instructions, there is no confusion. Now, mix it all up, and combine both sets of instructions—you get a massive to-do list… and a massive headache to boot! This is EXACTLY what man has done with God’s Word.
Mankind wants to use every excuse they can find to avoid being held accountable to God. They avoid church, they leave their Bibles on the bookshelves to collect dust, and they refuse to hear what any Christian has to say. The truth is that the Bible convicts and these people cannot escape conviction. In great hopes of silencing the Christians, lost mankind says “the Bible has contradictions!” Do not be intimidated by that same old trick; it is just as a last-minute effort to ditch the conversation.
Realize that our “dispensation,” or “economy”—the Dispensation of Grace—is distinct from God’s dealing with His covenant people Israel in the Dispensation of Law. People fail to realize this fact, so they glibly believe the idea that the Bible is full of “contradictions” and “errors.” Of course, God told Israel one thing under Law, and He tells us another thing under Grace: the same Lord God is dealing with two separate peoples in two distinct dispensations. See? No contradictions and no errors as long as you keep these two sets of instructions separate!
When Israel fell as a Nation after crucifying their Messiah and King Jesus of Nazareth, God needed a new instrument to reach those lost Gentiles: this is when God sent Paul to the non-Jewish world (Acts 9:15-16; Romans 11:11-13; Romans 15:16). While God has temporarily aside today, He is dispensing His directions to us through Paul’s epistles. No, we do not throw away the Old Testament; we simply view the entire Bible (the 66 books) from the PAULINE perspective. How does everything fit with US today as members of the Church, the Body of Christ? How do we receive God’s salvation today? How does God want us to live today? You have to go to Paul for those answers: that info cannot be found anywhere else BUT Paul!
Now, we move on to a related topic. Should we obey Jesus or Paul? The majority of pastors and Bible teachers seem to ignore Paul, and place more emphasis on Jesus’ earthly ministry. Now, there are many good Christians who have simply been misled. What Jesus said was important, and we will never take away from what Jesus said because Jesus is God. The problem with us “going by what Jesus said” is that Jesus spoke to Jews under the Law. He taught Jews according to the Mosaic Law, in light of the coming Kingdom promised to Israel. Jesus was sent by God the Father to Israel (Matthew 10:5-7; Romans 15:8)—Jesus was NOT sent to minister to us Gentiles in His earthly ministry.
We are Gentiles (non-Jews) living in the Dispensation of Grace. Just as God sent Moses to reveal the Law program to Israel, God sent Paul to reveal the Grace program to the whole world (Romans 11:13). Jesus promoted Temple worship, Sabbath day-keeping, water baptism, and tithing: all of which was given to Jews under the Law. We are not under the Law; we are not Israel.
God sent Paul to us, so if we are to accept God, we are to accept God’s apostle to us (Matthew 10:40; John 13:20; Acts 9:15-16; Romans 11:13; Romans 15:16). Paul is the only apostle who gives us the instructions to living the grace life because God gave Paul the Dispensation of Grace. To ignore those Pauline epistles like most people have and replace them man’s ideas (or replace them with Old Testament Law-keeping) is to ignore God’s message to you. What the Lord has to say to us in this Dispensation of Grace was revealed only to Paul: Jesus knew about it, but He never hinted at it in His earthly ministry because He kept it secret (Romans 16:25-26).
Paul writes that we are not under the Law (Romans 6:14-15), that the Holy Spirit “baptizes” today without water (1 Corinthians 12:13), that we are to give willingly and not grudgingly as with the Old Testament tithe (2 Corinthians 9:6-7), and that there is no Sabbath day for us to keep today (Colossians 2:16). The signs and wonders program of which Jesus promoted is also not in effect today because that was all Jewish too (1 Corinthians 1:22). We do not have kosher food laws to adhere to either (Colossians 2:16).
As long as we “rightly divide” the Scriptures, we can avoid the spiritual confusion that most of the world is experiencing. Everything outside of Paul’s epistles is legalistic, associated with the Nation Israel, the Mosaic Law, and Judaism. Thus, trying to practice the Mosaic Law will NOT be following the grace life God has instructed us to live in the Dispensation of Grace. Following the prophetic program God has for the Nation Israel will NOT cause you to lead the grace life. We study all the Scriptures, but the instructions we need to follow are the Pauline epistles because the Holy Spirit inspired Paul to write to us as people separate from Israel.
PAUL IS OUR APOSTLE! End of story!