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Always be ready to give
a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in
you. - 1 Peter 3:15 NKJV
First Word
Why do we have a desire to know “How it all began”? – What’s within us
that causes us to ponder “Life”;
especially our own life? – Are we to believe that this is all there is? –
Everything living operates on “Instinct”
except man who was given a mind to reason, think and plan.
Isn’t it rational to accept that we might REASON
that there is
“Something Greater”
out there other than ourselves?
Does God expect us to blindly accept without REASON
there is something greater?
Can we be
held accountable if we are not to REASON?
If God exist, then there will be Evidence and Signs.
“Come let us
reason together”. Isaiah 1:18
Christianity is either
EVERYTHING or NOTHING; it’s the highest certainty or the greatest delusion. –
All we can do is weigh the evidence and choose the most probable explanation.
Josh McDowell
Right and Wrong
- We know NOT to do
wrong, but we do wrong anyway; then defend our actions with excuses.
People universally and naturally understand courtesy and decent behavior.
- Why is that?
- The
Law of
Human Nature thinks UNFAIR
behavior is just plain wrong. Why is that?
- Where does this Standard of Right and Wrong and
decent behavior come from? - There must be some sort of an agreement of what
right and wrong is that is beyond ordinary facts
- The Bible says the
laws are written on our hearts; accusing us or excusing
us. Ponder
that !
Rom 7:15 – I don’t understand why I do things
15 I do not understand what I do. For what
I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. NIV
Rom 2:15 – Laws are written in our hearts – accusing or excusing
15 in that they show the work of the law written
in their hearts, their conscience bearing witness therewith, and their
thoughts one with another accusing or else excusing (them) ASV
Is it all meaningless?
- King Solomon, who I
believe wrote Ecclesiastes, did it all and into excess, he had
power, money, servants, food and wives.
He built chariots, ships, buildings, gardens and orchards and at
the very end said “without God it was all meaningless”.
- The man who had the greatest
wisdom in the world said the whole duty of man was to “fear God and
keep His commandments”.
- If we reverence God
and seek His face, He will open our heart and GIVE us a desire to take careful notice of
Him and to respond.
- NOTE: This DESIRE is a form of convicting
FAITH which is EVIDENCE that
God wants us to know that we can know Him.
Eccl 12:6-8 – Remember God
before you die
6 Remember him-before the silver cord is
severed, or the golden bowl is broken; before the pitcher is shattered at the
spring, or the wheel broken at the well,
7 and the dust returns to the ground it came from,
and the spirit returns to God who gave it.
8 "Meaningless! Meaningless!" says the
Teacher. "Everything is meaningless!" NIV
Eccl 12:13 -14 – Duty is to fear God and keep His commandments
13 All has been heard; here is the conclusion
of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole
[duty] of man
14 For God will bring every deed into judgment,
including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil. NIV
Acts 16:14 – God opened her heart to respond
14 One of those listening was a woman named Lydia Thyatira
Is this all there is?
- If man evolved from a
lower type of life, what’s the next big step in evolution and why has
there been no “evoluting” in the past 6,000 years? Are
we Cosmic Orphans?
- Our bodies may be
good for about eighty to a hundred years and then we return to room
temperature. What happens after
that? Does my Spirit or my Soul
(my mind) remain with my dead body or does it move on to some place else? NYOBS 06.14 Death
- Could the
decisions I make during my lifetime have some kind of Eternal Consequence?
- The Question that
begs to be answered – IS THIS
- Did Nothing and Nothing bump
into each other and then BANG there was Something?
- Everything that
happens is caused by
something GREATER than itself.
- Something must have
been the first Unmovable Cause, that itself had no cause. - Is
there an UNMOVED MOVER
that made me and everything else? – Did this “Creator” of everything just
- Why do I have a
desire to know about this UNMOVED
MOVER? – Is this desire coming from my spirit or am I being
drawn by His Spirit. - Which
blade in a pair of scissors is the most important? SELAH ponder that - .NYOBS 20.19 Holy Spirit -
NYOBS 11.02 Calvinism
- God has set eternity
in our hearts and we hunger for its meaning. – WHY IS THAT?
- All we can do is Weigh the Evidence and
choose the MOST LIKELY EXPLANATION.
Ps 90:10 – Eighty year’s
maybe - NYOBS 16 Healing Scriptures
10 The length of our days is seventy years - or
eighty, if we have the strength. NIV
Deut 5:16 – Treat your mama good and get more than 80
16 Honor thy father and
thy mother, as the LORD thy God hath commanded thee; that thy days may
be prolonged. KJV
Acts 16:14 – The Holy Spirit opens the heart.
14 One of those listening was a woman named Lydia Thyatira
John 6:44 – Irresistible Grace
44 "No one can come to me unless the
Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last
day NIV
Ps 119:11 – God’s Word is hidden in our hearts.
11 I have hidden your
word in my heart that I might not sin against you
God explains the concept of the “UNMOVED MOVER” to Moses;
“And God said unto Moses, I
AM THAT I AM:
and he said, this shall
thou say unto the children of Israel
I AM
has sent me unto you”
- Ex 3:14 NKJV
Unmoved Mover
- If there is only one
“UNMOVED MOVER”, then I am led
to only three monotheistic religions those that follow only
- The oldest writings indicate that God
made a Covenant PROMISE to Abraham that He would make him a great
nation.
- Islam - Abraham and Hagar a
bondswoman had a son named Ishmael which gave us Islam Judaism – Abraham’s first
child with his wife Sarah was named Isaac which gave us Judaism
I must REASON that ONLY
- The oldest writings confirm that the Covenant
of God was given to Abraham and to Sarah his wife not to Abraham and his
bondswoman Hagar; so I must choose Judaism
over Islam.
- Christianity arose out of Judaism
with its roots in the person of Jesus of Nazareth whose claim was that He
was the Son of God; the great I AM;
the Unmoved Mover. I must REASON that IF this is so, THERE
MUST BE EVIDENCE. – There must be “trusted writings” of antiquity that offer proof that would
move me from Judaism to Christianity.
- C.S.
Lewis
writes; “Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of
infinite importance. The only thing it cannot be is moderately important.”
Gen 16:15-16 - Ishmael is
born to Hagar and Abraham
15 So Hagar bore Abram a son, and Abram gave the
name Ishmael to the son she had borne.
16 Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore
him Ishmael NIV
Gen 16:12 – Ishmael will be a wild donkey and live in hostility
12 He will be a wild donkey of a man; his
hand will be against everyone and everyone's hand against him, and he will live
in hostility toward all his brothers." NIV
Gen 21:2-3 – Isaac is born
to Sarah and Abraham
2 Sarah became pregnant and bore a son to
Abraham in his old age, at the very time God had promised him.
3 Abraham gave the name Isaac to the son
Sarah bore him. NIV
Gen 17:19 – The Covenant was with Isaac not Ishmael.
19 Then God said, "Yes, but your wife
Sarah will bear you a son, and you will call him Isaac. I will
establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his
descendants after him. NIV
Good and Evil
Religion
can be quite simple if you have no facts to bother you. C.S. Lewis
- Atheist – A meaning “No” and Theos meaning “God”;
believes There is no god therefore miracles are not possible, there is no
supernatural and we all live in a closed system.
- Agnostic – A meaning “No” and gnosis meaning “Knowledge”; they
are NOT SURE if there is a God, they have no knowledge one way or the
other.
- Relativism
–
There are no absolute truths, only truths that are relevant to each
individual. Therefore if Truth is relative, then no one is ever wrong. –
- Pantheism believes God created the Universe and He IS the universe and everything
is part of God. Pantheism believes that God is beyond “Good and
Evil” – The wiser you are the less you call something good or evil. – The
side that is called evil is dependent on which side you are on. - Cancer
kills people; Doctors kill cancer – Both are killers. - God created them
both.
- Dualism
is
the belief that there are two EQUAL
and independent powerful forces in the world; one that is GOOD and one
that is EVIL and the world is the stage on which their battle is fought endlessly.
– Obviously we can REASON that
- Christianity believes the world
was created good and then it went wrong. – Did God create Evil as well as
Good? – God created man with
- When God gave man
free will, He MADE IT POSSIBLE
for Evil to exist. SELAH, ponder that.
- An
Angel
is more powerful than a man and his Free Will can do the MOST GOOD
as well as the WORST EVIL. – That’s what we have with Lucifer; the earth
had been given to him by God. He
was created with “Free Will” and REASONED he could do what he wanted; and
did.
- Lucifer
REASONED “Five” I WILLS: "I
will ascend to heaven; I will
raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost
heights of the sacred mountain. I will ascend above the tops of
the clouds; I will make myself
like the Most High”. NYOBS 07.18
Eschatology.
Isa 14:13-14 – Satan reasoned Evil with the five “I Wills”
13 You said in your heart,
"I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my
throne above the stars of God; I
will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of the
sacred mountain.
14 I will ascend
above the tops of the clouds; I
will make myself like the Most High." NIV
Ez 28:14-15 – You were GOOD till YOU decided to do EVIL
14 You were anointed as
a guardian cherub, for so I ordained you.
15 You were blameless
in your ways from the day you were created till wickedness was found in
you. NIV
World View
- As a child, for five
minutes I would study my Sunday
School lesson in the back seat of our car as we drove to Church. I wanted to “Check off” that I had Attended, was On Time,
Brought my Bible, Studied my Lesson and Brought my
Offering. I checked them all off.
- That’s what’s going
on today; as Christians we are just “checking off” our religion. Our standard of living is so good in the
- Every Word study I
begin, I write with my world view. I have some “presuppositions” if
not prejudices. I am wrapped
in my own traditions with what I have always heard and if I
am not totally open to the reading of God’s Word, “I usually find what I WANT to find”. In other words, don’t confuse me with any
facts; my mind is already made up.
- DENOMINATIONS- There are many
denominations today, some of which are convinced that they alone are “THE KEEPERS OF THE SACRED TRUTH”. NYOBS 01.10 Denominations
a)
Catholic Church points to the Virgin Mary
as the mediator between God and man, reducing Jesus to infant status. They pray to images of Saints and have prayers
for the dead. The priest can forgive sins by virtue of power given him
by Jesus Christ. The Pope is not only
the representative of Jesus Christ, but IS Jesus Christ himself,
hidden in a veil of flesh. NYOBS 14:20 Another
Gospel
b)
Christian Science – Founded by Mary Baker
Eddy – Claims man and the universe is spiritual, not physical
– They practice healing with belief
in the “Awaking of Moral Thought”.
c)
Jehovah Witness – Point to a panel of men
known as the “Watchtower Society” who write and re-write their changing
doctrine “as new light” is made available to them. They have their
own bible. THEY ALONE have a
place in heaven for a special group of 144,000
Jehovah’s Witnesses; they will have immortal
life and spirit bodies. All
other JW members will just get everlasting life with resurrected
bodies that still need to eat and drink.
d)
Mormon Church – Founded by their prophet
Joseph Smith and his book of Mormon that “corrects” the errors in
the Bible. – Practice baptism for the dead. -
Salvation is achieved by obedience to the Mormon laws and ordinances through
works. – They will become gods. The
Mormons claim that THEY ALONE are
the 144,000 who inherit eternal life
and the remainder of their denomination will just live in Paradise . (The Bible: 144,000 will be Jews)
e)
Seventh Day Adventist- Founded by their prophet
Ellen G. White – Her writings are considered “a continuing
and authoritative source of truth”. - Belief that THEY ALONE are the
end time remnant as announced by “the three angels” of
Revelation 14:6-12. – SDA is distinguished by their strict observance of the
Saturday Sabbath. – NYOBS 15.13 The Sabbath
f)
Unification Church Korea
- WORLD
VIEW
- All the spokes in a wheel lead to the same Hub – All Paths lead to the
same god. We should be tolerant of
other individual’s beliefs, lifestyles and perception of truth. – There
are no absolute truths, just what is relevant to you. - Truth is
subjective - You do not have to share in others truth, but you should
tolerate them – It doesn’t matter what you believe as long as you are
sincere. NYOBS 04.17 Free
Masonry –
We should take the best parts from all religions and homogenize
them all into our worship. NYOBS 07.38 New Age
Movement
- LET’S
REASON
– If all paths lead to god, then one can REASON that some paths are truer than others; then one can
further REASON that there just
might be a path that has the HIGHEST
PROBABILITY of being the truest path. – It’s that Truest Path that I pursue.
Most people would claim to possess only an
infinitely small fraction of all the knowledge in the universe; the odds are
extremely high of God existing outside of one’s knowledge.
Josh McDowell
The TORAH Judaism 4000 years old
- The Torah refers to
the Pentateuch; the
first five books of the Law of Moses or the Mosaic code. It’s not just laws, but “a way of
life” derived from the total dedication to the covenant relationship
between God and
- Wikipedia: Torah. The Torah is comprised
of the following five books; Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus,
Numbers and Deuteronomy. The first eleven chapters of Genesis provide accounts of
the creation (or ordering) of the world and the history of God's
earliest relationship with humanity.
- The remaining
thirty-nine chapters of Genesis provide an account of God's covenant
with the Biblical patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (also
called Israel) and Jacob's
children; the "Children of Israel”, especially Joseph. It tells
of how God commanded Abraham to leave his family and home in the city
of Ur, eventually to settle in the land of Canaan, and how the
Children of Israel later moved to Egypt.
- The remaining four
books of the Torah tell the story of Moses, who lived hundreds of
years after the patriarchs. He led the Children of Israel from slavery
in Ancient Egypt to the renewal of their covenant with God
at
- Side
Note: To help those that did not understand
much Hebrew they had paraphrased
- The
Septuagint
(meaning seventy) is the Hebrew Pentateuch that was translated into
Greek by six Elders from each of the twelve tribes of
The Bible Christianity 2000 years old
- The Bible is an anvil
that has worn out many hammers that have sought to chip away at it.
- Jesus said Heaven and
Earth will pass away, but His Word; the Bible will never pass away.
- The PROTESTANT
Bible
is a collection of 39 books in the Old Testament and 27 books in the New Testament for a total of 66
books. Most books that have been written
have never been translated into another language and those that have, were
translated into just two or three languages.
- The Bible has been
translated into more than 2,200 languages reaching 90% of the world’s
population with billions having been sold. WHY IS THAT?
- The
Old Testament includes the 5 books of the Torah as well as the books
of the “Former Prophets”
Joshua, Judges, Samuel and Kings, which contain narratives that begin
immediately after the death of Moses with the divine appointment of Joshua
as his successor, who then leads the people of Israel into the Promised
Land,
- It also includes the
“Latter Prophets” which are divided into two groups, the "Major Prophets”, Isaiah,
Jeremiah and Ezekiel and the twelve Minor
Prophets. - (minor meaning their writings was shorter.)
- There are three poetry books, Psalms, Proverbs
and Job and a few more historical and informational books.
- We now know that the
“science of writing” was in existence 2,000 years before Moses from
the time of Noah. That’s how Moses
could write about how God created the earth.
- There are more than 25,000
manuscripts of supporting EVIDENCE just for the New
Testament alone.
- No archaeological discovery has ever
controverted a single understood Biblical statement or proved the Bible in
error – Each archeological find enforces the Bible - WHY IS THAT?
- The
DEAD
- 500 books have been
reconstructed containing commentary on the Pentateuch and the Prophets;
the Torah is the Old Testament of our Bible; this is just more EVIDENCE that the Bible is a Trustworthy Witness.
- SO WHAT’S THE POINT – Well, for one thing the Bible didn’t just fall out of
the sky with all 66 books intact; it wasn’t found on golden plates buried
in somebody’s pasture. No
- The
writers
had to meet at least one of the following qualifications;
- Was the writer a
prophet of God?
- Was the writer
confirmed by acts of God?
- Did the writer
contradict truths about God? - If in doubt, throw it out.
- Does the writer write
with the power of God? - Motivating, inspiring and energizing.
- Was the writer
accepted by the people of God?
- The Bible contains
historical information passed down and accumulated for over 4,000 years under
“the inspiration of God” with over 40 writers on three continents; Asia, Africa and Europe - written in
three different languages; Hebrew,
Aramaic and Greek - many of the writers never even met each other, but
each carried the same theme of an expected Messiah from the
beginning of their writings to the end, laying out the foundation, preparation,
expectation and finally the manifestation of the Messiah. And
it
- The
Bible is NOT Myth nor Fable – The places are all historical and
the people that were documented all lived during that time.
- Jesus
of
- If I were writing the
Bible, I would certainly not “uncover and lay bare” the sins of the
people, let along my own sins or the sins of the patriarchs or King
David’s adultery or faults of the Apostles or the Disorder in the Church;
but it does. - The Bible has The Good, The Bad and The
Ugly. – WHY IS THAT?
- President
Theodore Roosevelt said “A thorough knowledge of the Bible is worth more
than a college education”.
- Mark
Twain
said that what bothered him the most about the Bible was not the parts he
didn’t understand, but the parts he did understand.
- Theology is the
SCIENCE of GOD - The uniqueness of the Bible with its ability to stand up
to its critics does not prove it was inspired by God, but it should
challenge any REASONING person
to CONSIDER IT’S CLAIMS and qualifications.
2 Peter 1:16 – Not devised fables – We were eyewitnesses
16 For we did not follow cunningly devised
fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus
Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty.
1 John 1:1-3 – Saw with
our eyes; handled with our hands
1 That which was from the beginning, that which we
have heard, that which we have seen with our eyes, that which we beheld,
and our hands handled, concerning the Word of life
2 and the life was manifested, and we have seen,
and bear witness, and declare unto you the life, the eternal (life), which was
with the Father, and was manifested unto us);
3 that which we have seen and heard declare we
unto you also, that ye also may have fellowship with us: yea, and our
fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ:
1 Cor 15:6-8 – Appeared
after His resurrection to 500 at once
6 then he appeared to above five hundred
brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain until now, but some are
fallen asleep;
7 then he appeared to James; then to all
the apostles;
8 and last of all, as to the (child) untimely
born, he appeared to me also.
Acts 2:22 – The Men of Israel
22 Ye men of Israel
NIV
Heb 4:13 – Everything is uncovered and laid bare
13 Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's
sight Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to
whom we must give account. NIV
“You can judge what kind
of stone
was thrown into a pond by
the ripples that it makes.
If we judge Christ by the
ripples he has made in the world,
He is without peer.” Michael A. Gorman
Inerrant
- Inerrant is a big word
meaning the Bible is without error. This statement of course applies to the “original
manuscripts” that all the other
- The Bible itself
claims that “All Scripture is God Breathed.” – The Bible is the breath of
God. – That further means that all scriptures carry the same
weight of importance.
- The
Bible is “Partial” and does not contain everything there is to know; there
are some things that are for God only to know; however the Bible is a
COMPLETE REVELATION of what man needs to know in order to know God
and to inherit eternal life.
- It is
impossible for God to lie – God’s words are flawless, they are truth
and eternal
- God
wrote with His own finger the Ten Commandments and told Moses what was
to be in “The book of the Law”;
the Torah. - He spoke or commanded Moses 235+ times.
- Moses spent 40
years in
- Over the centuries God
has worked through a mysterious process of producing divinely and authoritative,
errorless writings through men with various styles and in different
settings. – Men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy
Spirit.
- Not the smallest
punctuation will pass away from the Bible scriptures until the end of
time.
- In these last days God
has spoken to us directly through His Son Jesus the Christ.
- What is the most LOGICAL PROBABILITY that God can
speak through men without error?
Isa 55:8 – God’s thoughts
and ways are higher than ours.
8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. KJV
2 Tim 3:16 - All Scripture is God-breathed
16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is
useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness,
Ex 32:16 – God Himself
wrote on the tablets
16 The tablets were the work of God; the
writing was the writing of God, engraved on the tablets. NIV
Deut 9:10 – Written by the
finger of God
10 The LORD gave me two stone tablets inscribed
by the finger of God. On them were all the commandments the LORD proclaimed
to you on the mountain out of the fire, on the day of the assembly. NIV
Lev 1:1 – God called to Moses
and spoke to him
1 The LORD called to Moses and spoke to him
from the Tent of Meeting.
Num 1:1 - God spoke directly to Moses
1 The LORD spoke to Moses in the Tent of
Meeting in the Desert of Sinai Egypt
Deut 31:24-26 – Moses
wrote down what God told him
24 After Moses finished writing in a book the
words of this law from beginning to end, he gave this command to the
Levites
26 "Take this Book of the Law and
place it beside the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God. There it will
remain as a witness
Judg 8:14 – Yes, they
could READ and WRITE
14 He caught a young man of Succoth and questioned
him, and the young man wrote down for him the names of the seventy-seven
officials of Succoth, the elders of the town. NIV
Heb 1:1 – God spoke
through the prophets in various ways
1 In the past God spoke to our forefathers
through the prophets at many times and in various ways,
2 Peter 1:21 - Men spoke from God through the Holy Spirit
21 For prophecy never had its origin in the will
of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy
Spirit. NIV
Heb 1:2 – In these last
days he has spoken through His Son
2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by
his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the
universe.
NIV
Eph 2:20 – Church foundation is the Prophets and Apostles.
20 (the
church is) built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets,
with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. NIV
Heb 6:18 – It is impossible for God to lie
18 God did this so that, by two unchangeable
things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to
take hold of the hope offered to us may be greatly encouraged. NIV
Titus 1:2 – God does not
lie
2 A faith and knowledge resting on the hope of
eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the
beginning of time, NIV
John 17:17 – God’s word it
TRUTH
17 Sanctify them by the truth; your word is
truth. NIV
Ps 119:160 – His righteous
Laws are eternal
160 All your words are true; all your righteous laws
are eternal. NIV
Prov 30:5 – Every word of
God is flawless
5 "Every word of God is flawless; NIV
Matt 5:18 – Not a jot or a
tittle will pass away of the Word
18 I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth
disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen,
will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is
accomplished. NIV
Left Behind
- There are books that
were left out of the “Canonized” (Divinely Inspired) Bible. These
are books that contain historical and geographical inaccuracies, or
they foster false doctrines, practices or principals not found
elsewhere in scripture
- The Apocrypha; First Esdras, Second Esdras, Tobit, Judity, Addition to
Ester, Wisdom of Solomon, Baruch, Story of Susanna, Song of three
Children, Story of Bel and the Dragon, Prayer of Manasseh, First Maccabees
and Second Maccabees.
- The
Forgotten books of Eden. 20 more books including the book of Adam and Eve and a book for each
of the twelve tribes of
- Lost
Books of the Bible: 26 books including books about the antics of Jesus’
childhood
- LISTEN TO THIS: 1st
Infancy 16:2-3 - “And as often
as Joseph had anything in his work, to make longer or shorter, or wider,
or narrower, the Lord Jesus would stretch His hand towards it, And
presently it became as Joseph would have it”. – 1st Infancy 15:6 -He had also made (of clay) the figures of birds and sparrows,
which when he commanded to fly, did fly, and when he commanded to stand
still, did stand still.
- Scripture indicates
that Jesus never performed miracles to help himself or His Disciples when
a resource was readily available. Scripture is clear that His FIRST
miracle was turning water into wine.
The water was available and the wine was to help His mother.
- Josephus
Jewish
Historian 30-100 AD - never quoted the Apocrypha. – Neither did Jesus.
- During
the time of Jesus, many writings surfaced about Him, His disciples and
events of the day. Some of these
writing surfaced with the names of some of His Disciples attached to them to
give them credibility, but they were not written by them.
- You can easily REASON why some of these books
were “Left Behind”.
OLD & NEW TESTAMENT
LINKED - RABBIT TRAIL
The New Testament looks back and LINKS itself to the Old Testament.
Old Testament EVENT LINK New
Testament
Gen 1 Universe Created John 1:3, Col
Gen 1-2 Adam and Eve Created 1
Timothy 2:13-14
Gen 1-2 Adam and Eve Married 1
Timothy 2:13
Gen 3 Eve
Tempted 1 Timothy 2:14
Gen 3 Adam
in disobedience Rom 5:12 , 1 Cor 15:22
Gen 4 Sacrifices
of Cain & Able Hebrews 11:4
Gen 4 Cain
kills Abel 1 John 3:12
Gen 4 Seth
is born Luke 3:38
Gen 5 Enoch
translated Hebrews 11:5
Gen 6 Pre-flood
marriages Luke 17:27
Gen 7 Noah’s
Ark
Gen 8-9 Noah’s
family SAVED 2 Peter 2:5
Gen 10 Shem’s
family tree Luke 3:35-36
Gen 12-13 Abrahams
birth Luke 3:34
Gen 12-13 Abraham
called by God Hebrews 11:8
Gen 14 Melchizedek
given tithe by Abraham Hebrews 7:1-3
Gen 15 Abraham
declared righteous Romans 4:3
Gen 16 Ishmael
born of a slave woman Galatians 4:21 -24
Gen 17 Promise
given to Isaac Hebrews 11:18
Gen 18-19 Lot and Sodom Gomorrah
Gen 21 Isaac’s
Birth Acts 7:9-10
Gen 22 Isaac’s
offering Hebrews 11:17
Ex 3:6 The
burning bush of Moses Luke 20:32
Ex 14:22 Crossing
the Red
Sea 1
Corinthians 10:1-2
Ex 16:4 Manna
& water provision 1 Corinthians 10:3-5
Num 21:9 Lifting
up of the serpent John 3:14
Josh 6:22 -25 Battle Jericho
1 Kings 17:1 Elijah’s
miracles James 5:17
Jonah 2 Jonah
and the giant fish Matthew 12:40
Dan 3 The
three Hebrew boys Hebrews 11:34
Dan 6 Daniel
in the Lion’s den Hebrews 11:33 Josh McDowell
The NT often refers back
to the scriptures in the OT tying them both together as
Moses wrote about Jesus in the Book of the Law, the Torah; the
Pentateuch
2 Peter 1:20-21 – The Holy
Spirit inspired the scriptures
20 Above all, you must understand that no prophecy
of Scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation.
21 For prophecy never had its origin in the will
of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy
Spirit. NIV
John 5:46-47 – Jesus said
the Torah taught about Him
46 If you believed Moses, you would believe
me, for he wrote about me.
47 But since you do not believe what he wrote, how
are you going to believe what I say?" NIV
John 14:6 – I am THE WAY,
the truth and the life
6 "I am THE WAY and the truth and the
life. No one comes to the Father except through me”. NIV
Acts 24:14 – I worship the
God of “THE WAY”
14 I admit that I worship the God of our
fathers as a follower of THE WAY, which they call a sect. I
believe everything that agrees with the Law and that is written in the
Prophets, NIV
Jesus of Nazareth
- As a youth, I would
walk past Sue Epps’s house singing “The Indian Love Call”. I thought if I loved her hard enough, she
would love me back; but it didn’t work – Just because I believe strongly
in something does not make it happen or true. It’s not how much faith I have, but
rather WHO is the object
of my faith.
- Scriptures document
that Jesus went around healing people and performed signs and
wonders. Scriptures further reports
the Church leaders considered His actions blasphemy and had Him
crucified. Three days later He BODILY rose from the dead.
– For forty days after His resurrection, He was seen BODILY by over 500 people at one time as well as
appearing to his Disciples – The Disciples preached His BODILY resurrection at the
threat of death. They all DIED and never
recanted. – What GROUP OF MEN who knew something was a lie would die
for that lie? – No one has ever produced a body to refute their claims. - The
origin of Christianity hinges on the belief that GOD raised Jesus from the
DEAD. - He either rose from the dead or He didn’t - What is the most LOGICAL PROBABILITY?
- At first Jesus was
considered just a great moral teacher, maybe even a prophet,
but He went on to claim that He was the Son of God and could
forgive sin. - The man was either a lunatic or something worse; UNLESS He is who He says He
is.
- Although I have never
seen George Washington in person, nor was I alive when he was in office, I
believe he was the first President of the
- It’s only right that
I should REASON that Jesus is either the Son of God or He is not. The door
is open for only these Two
Options. – An Angel recognized that He was the Son of God as well
as Demons and His disciples witnessed His translation from earth into
Heaven. - The empty tomb is my “TRUSTWORTHY
WITNESS”; Death defeated. NYOBS
18.31 Way of the Cross
- Thousands of people
line up every year to see an EMPTY TOMB.
– WHY IS THAT?
- Logical
probability
is the sole ground on which any man can make a deductive decision.
- Was Jesus of
Luke 1:35 – The Angels said He was the Son of God
35 The angel answered, "The Holy
Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.
So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. NIV
Mark 3:11 – The Demon affirmed Jesus as the Son of God
11 Whenever the evil spirits saw him, they
fell down before him and cried out, "You are the Son of God. "NIV
Luke 22:70 – Jesus said He
was the Son of God
70 They all asked, "Are you then the Son
of God?" He replied, "You
are right in saying I am." NIV
John 19:7 – The Jews heard
Jesus say He was the Son of God
7 The Jews insisted, "We have a law,
and according to that law he must die, because he claimed to be the Son of
God." NIV
1 Cor 15:6-8 – Appeared to
500 – His half brother – and Paul
6 He appeared to more than five hundred of
the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have
fallen asleep.
7 Then he appeared to James, then to all
the apostles,
8 and last of all he appeared to me also,
as to one abnormally born.
Acts 1:9-11 – Disciples
watched as Jesus translated into Heaven
9 After he said this, he was taken up before
their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.
11 "Men of Galilee," they said,
"why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has
been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have
seen him go into heaven. NIV
EXPERIENCE
- Have you ever EXPERIENCED
being raised from the dead and brought back to life? – NO
- Do you KNOW of
anyone who has been raised from the dead; back to life? – NO
- Have you ever HEARD
of someone in your lifetime being raised from the dead to life?
– NO
- Then with your
LIMITED EXPERIENCE with resurrections you cannot truly judge reality or
LIMIT GOD with surety that it cannot happen. –
- A Muslim’s EXPERIENCE
says that God cannot beget a son – Therefore they MUST reject ANY
BOOK such as the Bible that teaches that Jesus is the “Son of God”.
- IS
EXPERIENCE “THE” YARDSTICK OF TRUTH?
There is a story
On a cold snowy and freezing night, a few stray
horses made their way to a small cabin, pawing at the front door. The old man left the warmth of his home and
went out and opened his barn doors and put on a light for the horses; but they
were afraid and ran from him and wouldn’t go near the barn.
He made a path on the ground with some hay and
corn marking THE WAY to the barn,
but they didn’t understand what he was doing and still wouldn’t go in.
The old man reasoned
that if he could just become a horse like them, they would trust him
and follow him out of the storm and into the barn and be saved.
 |
Jesus left his home to become like us, to
show us “THE WAY”
to be saved.
- SELAH
- Jesus claimed the He was the
- Jesus claimed He could forgive SIN
– Since they could not see a person’s Sin’s forgiven, He often coupled the
forgiveness with healing that they could
- Jesus is the only
person EVER that claimed that He
was GOD; no other religious leader has ever claimed this including
Mohammed, Confucius and Buddha. – Furthermore Jesus convinced all His
followers that this is true. WHY IS THAT ?
- He was not executed
for what His accusers said, but for BLASPHEMY when He said UNDER
OATH that He was the “Son of God”, the Messiah and furthermore He said He
will sit at the right hand of Yahweh. – He made Himself EQUAL with God.
- Blasphemy by law was
punishable by DEATH; stoning by the whole community.
- It was his IDENTITY
not his ACTIONS that was on trial. - Knowing that the penalty would be
death, He never retracted or changed what He said. - WHY IS THAT?
1 John 5:11-12 – He who
has the Son has ETERNAL LIFE
11 And this is the testimony: God has given us ETERNAL
LIFE , and this life is in
his Son. He who has the Son has life;
12 he who does not have the Son of God does not
have life. NIV
Mark 2:9-11 – Jesus had
the authority to forgive SINS
9 Which is easier: to say to the paralytic, `Your
sins are forgiven,' or to say, `Get up, take your mat and walk'?
10 But that you may know that the Son of Man
has authority on earth to forgive sins . . . ." He said to the
paralytic,
11 "I tell you, get up, take your mat and go
home. "NIV
Mark 14:61-62 – Under oath
Christ said He was the Son of God
61 But Jesus remained silent and gave no answer.
Again the high priest asked him, "Are you the Christ, the Son of the
Blessed One?"
62 "I AM," said Jesus. "And
you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and
coming on the clouds of heaven."
John 10:30-33 – I and the
Father are ONE .
30 I and the Father are one."
31 Again the Jews picked up stones to stone him,
32 but Jesus said to them, "I have shown you
many great miracles from the Father. For which of these do you stone me?"
33 "We are not stoning you for any of
these," replied the Jews, "but for blasphemy, because you, a
mere man, CLAIM TO BE GOD." NIV
John 5:17-18- Jesus made
Himself equal with God
17 Jesus said to them, "My Father is
always at his work to this very day, and I, too, am working."
18 For this reason the Jews tried all the harder
to kill him; not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling
God his own Father, making himself EQUAL with God. NIV
Lev 24:16 – Death to
anyone who blasphemes the name of God
16 Anyone who blasphemes the name of the LORD must
be put to death. The entire assembly must stone him. Whether an alien or
native-born, when he blasphemes the Name, he must be put to death.
John 19:7- HE MUST DIE
7 The Jews insisted, "We have a law,
and according to that law he must die, because he claimed to be the
Son of God." NIV
Virgin Birth
- In the very first
book of the Bible we see PROPHECY from
God Himself that there would be conflict between the seed
of the Serpent and the seed of the woman; the Messiah. NOTE: Women do not have seed, only the man. – This
reference is to the supernatural.
- Because of a visit
from an Angel in a dream, Mary’s espoused husband Joseph had full
knowledge of what was to take place and had no sexual relations with Mary
until after the birth of Jesus. - NOTE:
In OT times when you became engaged you were considered married although
the covenant had not been finalized which usually took about a year.
- The prophets foretold
that through a MIRACLE, a
Virgin would SUPERNATURALLY
give birth to a son and He would be called Immanuel which means “GOD WITH US” – Think about that – God
living among us. - WHY IS THAT?
Gen 3:15- God will put
enmity between Satan and Jesus
15 I will put enmity between you and the woman,
and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you
shall bruise His heel."
Isa 7:14 – God will give a
sign – God with Us
14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a
sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son,
and will call him Immanuel. NIV
Matt 1:18 -23 – How the Birth came about
18 This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came
about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before
they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit.
19 Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man
and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce
her quietly.
20 But after he had considered this, an angel
of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph son of David,
do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in
her is from the Holy Spirit.
21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give
him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their
sins."
22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord
had said through the prophet:
23 "The virgin will be with child and will
give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel"-which means,
"God with us." NIV
Sinless
- SINLESS – Without an earthly
father, the Holy Spirit breathed life into Mary. - Jesus was born without
sin - He was tempted in every way that is common to man, but
remained sinless so he could take our sin that we might become righteous
in Him. - If He was not sinless He could not be the redeemer of mankind.
- Temptation
is NEUTRAL
either by being tempted or by not being tempted –the resistance to temptation is Virtue and the yielding to temptation is
the Sin.
- The
Islamic KORAN refers explicitly to Jesus’ Virgin conception – “The
Lord breathed on her His Spirit” – “Jesus would be without fault” -
Sinless – Jesus is regarded as the
Son of the Virgin Mary who was begotten by the creative Word of God.”
- WHY IS THAT?
1 Peter 2:22 – He committed no sin
22 "He committed no sin, and no deceit
was found in his mouth." NIV
2 Cor 5:21 – God made Jesus to be sin for us
21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us,
so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. NIV
1 John 3:5 – He came to
take away our sins
5 But you know that he appeared so that he might
take away our sins. And in him is no sin. NIV
Heb 4:15 – Jesus was
tempted as we are, but remained sinless
15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable
to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in
every way, just as we are - yet was without sin. NIV
Supernatural
- Anti-Supernaturalism is the belief that
God does not intervene in the natural order of the universe. – The belief
that we are in a closed system or continuum where every event has its
cause within the system. – A miracle would be a violation of the Laws of
Nature.
- If the supernatural could
be removed from the Bible, it would become just another moral teaching book.
– Jesus would not have been raised from the dead and the Christian Faith
would be dead and man would have NO HOPE.
- Islam;
the Koran
references that Jesus did MIRACLES; that he healed the blind, cured lepers
and raised the dead. – Jesus is referred to as “the greatest above all in
this world and in the world to come” - WHY IS THAT? - What is the MOST LOGICAL REASON?
- Jesus went about
doing “good” because He was full of compassion, love and mercy
for men. – His miracles were to benefit man and glorify God. – He brought
the GOOD NEWS of the Gospel and the supernatural miracles validated Him as
the “Son of God”.
- The Miracles were all
done in public not in secret; open to scrutiny from all skeptics. –
Jesus had cured many sick with diseases and cast out evil spirits. - He healed those with Leprosy and others
with withered limbs, the lame, the blind, the deaf and speechless,
multiplied food, stilled storms and walked on water.
- John the Baptist sent
word to Jesus and asked Him, if He was the Messiah or was there still another
one to come. Jesus sent word back to John that the blind see, the deaf
hear, the lame walk, leprosy cured and the dead are raised to life. (What more proof do you want John?)
- The Chief Priests and
the Pharisees called a meeting of the Sanhedrin to get rid of Jesus
because the people were coming to believe in Him – They decided to kill
Him because He had healed on the Sabbath.
– WHY IS THAT?
Luke 7:20-22 – The
SUPERNATURAL
20 When the men came to Jesus, they said,
"John the Baptist sent us to you to ask, `Are you the one who was
to come, or should we expect someone else?'"
21 At that very time Jesus cured many who
had diseases, sicknesses and evil spirits, and gave
sight to many who were blind.
22 So he replied to the messengers, "Go back
and report to John what you have seen and heard: The blind receive sight,
the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear,
the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor. NIV
Matt 8:2-3 – Supernatural
– Leprosy Healed
2 A man with leprosy came and knelt before
him and said, "Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean."
3 Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man.
"I am willing," he said. "Be clean!" Immediately
he was cured of his leprosy. NIV
Matt 12:9-13 –
Supernatural – A Withered Hand Restored
9 Going on from that place, he went into their
synagogue,
10 and a man with a shriveled hand was
there.
13 Then he said to the man, "Stretch out your
hand." So he stretched it out and it was completely restored, just
as sound as the other NIV
Mark 7:32-35 –
Supernatural – The Deaf Hear and Speak
32 There some people brought to him a man who
was deaf and could hardly talk, and they begged him to place his
hand on the man.
34 He looked up to heaven and with a deep sigh
said to him, "Ephphatha!" (which means, "Be opened!").
35 At this, the man's ears were opened, his
tongue was loosened and he began to speak plainly. NIV
John 9:24-25 –
Supernatural – The Blind See
24 A second time they summoned the man who had
been blind. "Give glory to God," they said. "We know this man (Jesus) is a sinner."
25 He replied, "Whether he is a sinner or
not, I don't know.
One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!"
NIV
Matt 9:5-8 – Supernatural
– The Lame Walk
5 Which is easier: to say, `Your sins are
forgiven,' or to say, `Get up and walk'?
6 But so that you may know that the Son of Man has
authority on earth to forgive sins. . . ." Then he said to the paralytic,
"Get up, take your mat and go home."
7 And the man got up and went home.
8 When the crowd saw this, they were filled with
awe; and they praised God, who had given such authority to men.
NIV
John 11:43 -48 – Supernatural – Raised from the Dead
43 When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud
voice, "Lazarus, come out!"
44 The dead man came out, his hands and
feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face. Jesus said to
them, "Take off the grave clothes and let him go."
45 Therefore many of the Jews who had come to
visit Mary, and had seen what Jesus did put their faith in him.
46 But some of them went to the Pharisees and told
them what Jesus had done.
47 Then the chief priests and the Pharisees called
a meeting of the Sanhedrin. "What are we accomplishing?" they asked.
"Here is this man performing many miraculous signs.
48 If we let him go on like this, everyone will
believe in him, and then the Romans will come and take away both our place
and our nation." NIV
Matt 14:25-27 –
Supernatural – Walked on water
25 During the fourth watch of the night Jesus went
out to them, walking on the lake.
26 When the disciples saw him walking on the
lake, they were terrified.
27 But Jesus immediately said to them: "Take
courage! It is I. Don't be afraid."
NIV
Mark 6:41 -44 – Supernatural – Multiplied fish & bread for 5000
41 Taking the five loaves and the two fish
and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave
them to his disciples to set before the people. He also divided the two fish
among them all. They all ate and were satisfied,
43 and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls
of broken pieces of bread and fish.
44 The number of the men who had eaten was five
thousand.
NIV
Luke 8:23-24 –
Supernatural - Stilling the Wind and Waters
23 As they sailed, he fell asleep. A squall came
down on the lake, so that the boat was being swamped, and they were in great
danger.
24 The disciples went and woke him, saying,
"Master, Master, we're going to drown!" He got up and rebuked the
wind and the raging waters; the storm subsided, and all was calm. NIV
Prophecy
- Jesus went into the
Synagogue and READ THE SCRIPTURE
of Isaiah the Prophet - He told
them that TODAY this
prophecy has been fulfilled. - He closed the book and sat down.
- Prophecy - He would be called
a Nazarene – He would teach in parables - He would NOT be recognized as
the Messiah – He would suffer – Not a bone in His body would be broken.
Luke 4:16-21 – Jesus
FULFILLED the prophecy of Isaiah
16 He went to Nazareth
17 The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed
to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written:
18 "The
Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good
news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed,
19 to
proclaim the year of the Lord's favor."
20 Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it
back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the
synagogue were fastened on him, 21 and he began by saying to them, "Today
this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing."
NIV
Matt 2:23 – Prophecy – He
will be called a Nazarene
23 and he went and lived in a town called Nazareth
Acts 13:27 – Prophecy – They would not recognize who He was.
27 The people of Jerusalem
NIV
Matt 13:35 – Prophecy – He would teach in parables
35 So was fulfilled what was spoken through
the prophet: "I will open my mouth in parables, I will utter things
hidden since the creation of the world."
NIV
Acts 3:18 – Prophecy – Christ would suffer
18 But this is how God fulfilled what he
had foretold through all the prophets, saying that his Christ would suffer.
NIV
John 19:36 -37 – Prophecy - Not ONE bone would
be broken
36 These things happened so that the scripture
would be fulfilled: "Not one of his bones will be broken,"
37 and, as another scripture says, "They will
look on the one they have pierced."
NIV
It
is NOT POSSIBLE to explain the rise
of the Christian Church or the writing of the Gospels
and
the stream of tradition that lies behind them without accepting the fact
that
the Founder of Christianity ACTUALLY
EXISTED Marshall, IBHJ, 24
PROPHECY – RABBIT TRAIL
OT PROPHECY JESUS NT
- Zechariah
- Isaiah 53:7 Be silent before
accusers Matthew 27:12
- Isaiah 53:5 Be scourged and
wounded Matthew
27:26
- Isaiah 50:6 Be smitten and
spat upon Matthew
26:67
- Psalms
- Isaiah 53:12 Put to death with
criminals Matthews
27:38
- Psalms
- Psalms 69:21 Would suffer thirst John
- Psalms 69:21 Gave gall and
vinegar to drink Matthew
27:34
- Psalms 22:1 Utter forsaken cry
to God Matthew
27:46
- Psalms 34:20 No bones would be
broken John 19:33
- Zechariah
- Isaiah 53:9 Buried in a rich
man’s tomb Matthew
27:57-60
- Psalms
- Psalms 68:18 Ascend into heaven Acts 1:9
- Psalms 110:1 Sit at the right
hand of God Hebrews
1:3
NYOBS 18.18 Way of the Cross
No
unconditional Bible prophecy has gone unfilled.
Hundreds
of predictions, some given hundreds of years in advance have been fulfilled.
The probability of fulfilling all these
prophecies would be 1 in 100,000,000,000,000,000.
The Koran as well as the book of Mormon does not contain
predictive prophecy.
Fulfilled
prophecy is a LOGICAL PROBABILITY of Devine Authority.
Trustworthy Witnesses
- The testimony of undisputed
historic writing, 4,000 years old passed down within the Torah.
- The testimony of prophecy
fulfilled – Not just some… But
- The testimony of His Virgin
Birth – Mary, a virgin, conceived Jesus through the Holy Spirit.
- The testimony of the Empty
Tomb; Confucius, Buddha and Mohammed tombs are
- The testimony of the Disciples
who gave their life for the Gospel and never recanted.
- The testimony of
generations considering the facts and passing their Faith down to
us
- The testimony of
doctrine; we can do nothing to earn our salvation; it is a gift from
God.
- The testimony of my
spirit; this world is not my home; I feel there is something greater.
More Witnesses of the Unmoved Mover
- God has provided a
number of ways for man to find Him.
- The
Date; The Great Divide: Did you notice the dividing line of our
dates? BC “Before Christ” and AD After His Death or Anno Domini translated
as “In the year of the Lord” is
designations used in the Gregorian calendars. This is the traditionally
reckoned Dividing Line year
at the conception or birth of Jesus of Nazareth. - WHY IS THAT?
- Bible
Code
– Do you like prophecy – Get the Book “The Bible Code” by Michael Drosnin
and see with the help of a computer program, the predictions that have
already come true that are “imbedded” in the scriptures. - WHY IS THAT?
- Math
–
Do you like math; God has imbedded in the scriptures from Genesis to
Revelation “numbers” that carry a message.
Get the book “Theomatics” by Jerry Lucas & Del
Washburn. This book with the aid of
a computer program deals with the breaking down every sentence in the
Bible to the numerical value since they used letters for their
numbers. – When you add up the
numbers in a sentence there appears a base number which the total can be
divided by. – Example 276 come
up as; Tree of life – Water of Life – Live again – New Creation – New Born
– To be saved – Incorruptible - Example 153; Plan of Salvation –
Fishers of Men - Fishes (the saved) – The Net ( plan of salvation) – I am
the Way – Way, Truth, Life – The Narrow Gate – Door of the Sheep. - WHY IS THAT?
- The
Zodiac
is found in almost every culture utilizing the same names. - What I am
about to say is not a Christian invention or twist; but was from the
beginning the message of the Gospel in the stars – NYOBS 19.17 Zodiac
- These stars have been recorded from one end of
the earth to the other by all ages and nations. – None of their forms
from their first inventions have varied in being passed down to us, nor at any point has their names
been changed, added to or removed.
- We get our understanding of what the stars
represent or symbolize by their NAMES – We did not name
them – They were already named – They present the Gospel
message. - Science is at a total loss, with no information
on the invention of the Zodiac. - WHY IS
THAT?
- The
Great Pyramid – Josephus (37 A.D. to 100 A.D) the Jewish Historian was a high priest in Israel as well as the
governor of the province of Galilee. - The Romans gave him all the
writings of the Prophets and Scribes that were found in the
- Josephus
thought
that the Great Pyramid was The
Bible in Stone disguised as a tomb. - The earth passed away
during the flood, but God’s word in stone remained in the Great Pyramid.
- Josephus writes “Seth and his
immediate descendents were the inventors of a peculiar sort of wisdom
which is concerned with the heavenly bodies and their order. And that their wisdom might not be lost
before it was sufficiently known, upon Adam’s prediction that the world
was to be destroyed, they made two pillars, the one of brick, and the
other of stone. They inscribed
their discoveries on them both, that in case the Pillar of brick should be
destroyed by the flood, the Pillar of stone might remain and
exhibit these discoveries to mankind.
This Pillar remains in the
- NOTE: Josephus was born
about the time Jesus was crucified.
He said Jesus was “The Christ” and rose from the dead. – Josephus; a
Pharisee was NOT a follower of “The
Way”.
- Handel’s
Messiah
is the story of the life of Jesus Christ and is said to have been inspired
by God. It has been performed for
271 years and
is the
story of The Son of God set to music beginning with the prediction of His
Birth to the resurrection of the dead at judgment. - WHY IS THAT?
Buffet Religion
- Religion
offers
different ways of communing with god and there are parts of the plan we
are attracted to, so we pick and
choose what we like and leave the rest on the Buffet.
- We point our SIN
finger at someone who smokes and drinks, rationalizing our being FAT from
gluttony doesn’t count as at the most it’s only a GRAY sin.
- Man is not just a
fallen imperfect creature; he is
a rebel. - NYOBS 16.13 Maybe Saved
- It is possible to
have a RELIGION without God; religion that has no
- The reason the
Christian Church exists today is to draw men to Christ and make them like
Him; to put men’s heart, their mind and temperaments “UNDER
Rom 5:8 – While we were
still in Sin, He died for us.
8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in
this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. NIV
Eph 2:8-9 – It’s not
works; it is the Gift from God
8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and
that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
9 Not of works, lest any man should boast. KJV
Matt 7:22-23 – I never
knew you
22 Many will say to me on that day, `Lord, Lord, did
we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform
many miracles?'
23 Then I will tell them plainly, `I never knew
you. Away from me, you evildoers!' NIV
50 Shades of Gray
- The Gnostics believed
sin did not exist or sin really didn’t matter; so the first
step toward God is admitting that you are a sinner – Scripture teaches
that the penalty for sin is not time spent in hard labor breaking up rocks;
but DEATH, in darkness, out of the presence of God FOREVER.
- Get
this; we have
- There are not 50
shades of Gray, there is no GRAY area. – There is no “Point System” of
good works. - It’s PASS or FAIL.
- Whether you have
served God for only one day or 100 years, everyone will receive the
same reward of eternal life with God. – IT’S NOT
- Christ offered
Himself as a sacrifice ONCE and for
1 John 1:8-10 – We are ALL sinners –
Don’t deceive yourself
8 If we claim to be without sin, we deceive
ourselves and the truth is not in us.
9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful
and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
10 If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out
to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives. NIV
Rom 6:23 – The penalty for Sin is DEATH
23 For the wages of sin is death, but the
gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. NIV
Heb 7:27 – Jesus paid the price ONCE and for ALL - DONE
27 Unlike the other high priests, he does not need
to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the
sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered
himself. NIV
Luke 23:42-43 – It’s NOT TOO LATE
42 Then he (the
thief) said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your
kingdom."
43 Jesus answered him, "I tell you the truth,
today you will be with me in paradise." NIV
Rom 8:1-2 – There in NO
CONDEMNATION for the Believer
1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation
for those who are in Christ Jesus,
2 because through Christ Jesus the law of
the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. NIV
Matt 20:1-15 – We ALL receive the
SAME REWARD.
1 "For the kingdom of heaven is like a
landowner who went out early in the morning to hire men to work in his
vineyard.
2 He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and
sent them into his vineyard. "About the third hour he went out and saw
others standing in the marketplace doing nothing.
4 He told them, `You also go and work in my
vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.' So they went. "He
went out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour and did the same thing.
6 About the eleventh hour he went out and found
still others standing around. He asked them, `Why have you been standing here
all day long doing nothing?'
7 "`Because no one has hired us,' they
answered. "He said to them, `You also go and work in my vineyard.'
8 "When evening came, the owner of the
vineyard said to his foreman, `Call the workers and pay them their wages,
beginning with the last ones hired and going on to the first.'
9 "The workers who were hired about the
eleventh hour came and each received a denarius.
10 So when those came who were hired first, they
expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius.
11 When they received it, they began to grumble
against the landowner.
12`These men who were hired last worked only one
hour,' they said, `and you have made them equal to us who have borne the
burden of the work and the heat of the day.'
13 "But he answered one of them, `Friend, I
am not being unfair to you. Didn't you agree to work for a denarius?
14 Take your pay and go. I want to give the man
who was hired last the same as I gave you.
15 Don't I have the right to do what I want
with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?' NIV
2 Cor 5:21 – The Believer has the righteousness of God
21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us,
so that in him WE might become the righteousness of God. NIV
Heb 10:10 – We have been made Holy
10 And by that will, we HAVE been made holy
through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. NIV
MUSLIM – RABBIT TRAIL
- About a year ago in my
Bible Study group, Majid
my Muslim friend gave his testimony about how he came to embrace the
Christian Faith and he made this STUNNING statement that took me back; “YOU
- I leaned forward in
my chair, the room became silent. Majid
shared that he had been a devout Muslim all of his life, studied the
Koran and prayed five times a day, and held to the Five Pillars of Islam, but
still had a yearning in his heart for God. – WHY WAS THAT?
- The Five
Pillars of Islam are five basic acts
considered mandatory by believers and are the foundation
of Muslim life. They are summarized in the famous Hadith. They make up Muslim
life, prayer, concern for the needy, self purification and the pilgrimage.
They are:
- Shahadah: declaring there is
no god except God, and Muhammad is God's Messenger
- Salat: ritual prayer five
times a day
- Sawm: fasting and
self-control during the blessed month of Ramadan
- Zakat: giving 2.5% of
one’s savings to the poor and needy
- Hajj: pilgrimage to
- MUSLIMS worship the God of Ishmael, the son of Abraham
and Hagar; a slave woman.
- CHRISTIANS worship the God of Isaac the son of Abraham and
Sarah his wife – Both claim the Covenant Promise of God - Majid thought; “BOTH CAN’T BE
- Majid bought a Bible and
studied in SECRET to see what Christianity was all about.
- What Majid found was
far different than that of the Koran and he went back and forth trying to
grasp the simplicity of Christianity and its teaching to love
your enemies.
- At some point Majid came
to believe that the Bible held the MOST
TRUTH and knowing the cost, he gave his heart to Jesus
Christ. For the Muslim to convert
to Christianity was considered blasphemy and he was worse than an INFINDEL
and the penalty was DEATH.
- Majid made a PUBLIC
PROFESSION of his faith and took a Christian wife. - His family disowned him and he received
death threats. What he had to give
up becoming a Christian made me sit back in my chair STUNNED; I gave up nothing; obviously
this is a BIG DEAL.
- Think about the
family you were born into – If your family believes in a god, you would
believe in the same god that they did. - I don’t have a testimony of
redemption. I was born into a
Christian family and knew I wanted Christ at the age of Nine and a
half although I didn’t fully understand the Virgin Birth of Jesus; His
death and resurrection or even how His dying on the cross could take away
my sins; BUT I believed it did.
- I would be 35 before I put it all together. I was born DEAD IN MY SINS and
God put the Holy Spirit in me and opened my heart TO DESIRE HIM.
- It was GOD that PUT THE
DESIRE in Majid’s heart; and he accepted knowing the cost could be his very
own life. – What an INCREDABLE DESIRE for God – It cost Majid everything.
- The
Koran
teaches to KILL the infidel and all unbelievers of Allah - NYOBS
- The
Bible
teaches to love God and love your enemies. NYOBS
22.02 Armageddon Ishmael &
Isaac
Hadith 9:57 – Whoever changes his
Islamic religion should be killed.
Sura 9:5 – When the sacred months
have passed, slay the idolaters wherever ye find them, seize them; lie
in wait for them.
Matt 22:37-40 – Only TWO
Commandments
37 "`Love the Lord your God with all
your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the FIRST and greatest
commandment
39 And the SECOND is like it: `Love your
neighbor as yourself.'
40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two
commandments."
Luke 6:27 – Love your enemies
27 "But I tell you who hear me: Love your
enemies, do good to those who hate you, NIV
MOST LOGICAL PROBABILITY
- Why not embrace and
follow Baha’i, Buddhism, Confucianism, Hinduism, Islam, Jainism,
Maitreya, Shinto, Sikhism, Yin and Yang, Zoroastrianism or even “Heaven’s
Gate” for that matter?
- All religions contain
at least some hint of TRUTH. Some
truths are nearer right than others.
- All other religions in one form or another teach that IF a man with his OWN strength, works
hard enough or gets reincarnated enough times; God will accept
him.
- CHRISTIANITY
ALONE
claims that the founder is the
- CHRISTIANITY
ALONE
claims that the founder died and was RAISED FROM THE DEAD.
- CHRISTIANITY
ALONE
teaches that fallen man CAN DO NOTHING to earn God’s grace;
- CHRISTIANITY
ALONE
teaches we are SAVED by FAITH in Jesus; it’s a gift from God
- We are not forgiven
of our SINS progressively or in stages; Christ died for
- You will not seek out
a doctor until you understand that you are desperately sick.
- The MOST PROGRESSIVE
- What you believe does
not change TRUTH. - We will
- Christianity is a
FAITH not a SCIENCE. - It’s a way
of life, not a Religion
- It’s not your FAITH
that counts; it’s WHO your faith is in.
- Faith is TRUSTING that
God will do what He says He will do.
- Jesus lived, died and
was resurrected; conquered death and now sits at the right hand of God the
Father. – God has literally involved Himself in Human History.
- Jesus is “THE WAY”, the TRUTH and the
life and no one comes to the Father except through Him. Jesus Christ IS the Son of God.
- Jesus the Christ satisfies
the question of the MYSTERY of our being – Rejection of Him leaves the
world in a RIDDLE.
- The bedrock of Christianity is the Virgin
Birth of Christ, His Bodily Resurrection and His Bodily
ascension into Heaven and the expectation of His Return. – No
other faith has this.
- You can doubt the resurrection of
Jesus, but you cannot deny it unless you can prove it.
- God does not expect
us to believe without REASON
- What is the MOST REASONABLE, RATIONAL and LOGICAL
PROBABILITY? - If you disbelieve in the face of strong evidence,
then you are just closed minded.
- Chose you this day
who you will serve - As for me and my family; we will follow Christianity;
We will serve the Son of
God; the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
YAHWEH – JEHOVAH - The
living God
John 14:6 – Jesus is the
way, the TRUTH and the life.
6 "I am the way and the truth
and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. NIV
Eph 2:8-9 – Not by Works –
It is a GIFT from God
8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through
faith-and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God
9 not by works, so that no one can boast. NIV
Heb 10:17 -18 – I will remember their sins no more
17 "Their sins and lawless acts I
will remember no more."
18 And where these have been forgiven, there is no
longer any sacrifice for sin. NIV
Dan 12:2 – We will ALL live again
- SOMEWHERE
2 Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth
will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting
contempt. NIV
Josh 24:15 –
Choose today who you will serve. – I chose the Lord
15 But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to
you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve,
whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the
Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we
will serve the LORD." NIV
- A Man called Jesus -
Here is a man who was born in an obscure village,
the child of a peasant woman.
He grew up in another village. He worked in a carpenter shop until He was
thirty,
and then for three years, He was an itinerant
preacher.
He never owned a home. He never wrote a book. He never held an office. He never had a family. He never went to college. He never put his foot inside a big city.
He never traveled two hundred miles from the place
where He was born.
He never did even one of the things that usually
accompany greatness.
He had no credentials but Himself.
While still a young man, the tide of popular
opinion turned against Him. His friends
ran away.
One of them denied Him. He was turned over to His enemies.
He went through the mockery of a trial. He was nailed upon a cross between two
thieves.
While He was dying His executioners gambled
for the only piece of property He had on earth –
His coat.
When He was dead, He was taken down and laid in a
borrowed grave through the pity of a friend.
Nineteen long centuries have come and gone, and
today He is the centerpiece of the human race
and the leader of the column of progress. I am far within the mark when I say that all
the armies that ever marched, all the navies that ever were built, all the
parliament that ever sat
and all the kings that ever reigned, put together,
have not affected the life of man upon this earth as powerfully as has this one
solitary life. - Anonymous – Unknown
John 10:10 – Jesus came to give abundant life
10 I am come that they might have life, and
that they might have it more abundantly. KJV
John 7:37 – Let any man
come that is thirsty for God
37 If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and
drink. KJV
Eph 2:8 – By grace –
through faith – a gift of God
8 By grace you have been saved through
faith, and that not of your selves; it is the gift of God, not of
works, lest anyone should boast.
John 15:18 -19 – You do not belong to this world.
18 "If the world hates you, keep in mind that
it hated me first.
19 If you belonged to the world, it would love you
as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have
chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you NIV
“Now I do not know what
lies in the heart of man in general,
but I do know what lies in
the heart of one man in particular; myself, and the one thing I know for sure
about my self, is that if left to my own devices, I am an exceedingly wicked
man and without hope, if not for some divine intervention.”
Michael A. Gorman
CHRISTIANITY
IS A FREE LIMITED
TIME OFFER
You will not know at what time I
will come. Rev 3:3 NIV
I will come like a
(unexpected) thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements
will be destroyed by fire,
and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare. 2 Peter
3:10 NIV
The Spirit and the bride
say, "COME!" And
let him who hears say, "COME!"
Whoever is thirsty,
let him COME; and whoever wishes, let him take the
“COME, all you who are thirsty, COME to the waters; and you who have NO money,
COME, buy and eat! COME, buy wine and milk
without money and without
cost. Isa 55:1 NIV
"I am the bread of
life. He who COMES to me
will never go hungry,
and he who believes in me
will never be thirsty John 6:35 NIV
I am
convinced that the Holy Spirit has planted a seed in your spirit,
and I along with others have been privileged to water it,
and I along with others have been privileged to water it,
and it is God
that will reap the harvest.
COME HOME
IT’S SUPPER
TIME
I would like to thank my two sons David and Mike for supplying
me with
the references and concepts of Apologetics – The Defense of
the Gospel.
APOLOGETICS IS “THE HINGE” THAT THE GOSPEL SWINGS” ON
THE CASE FOR CHRISTIANITY
In the multitude of counselors,
there is wisdom.
Prov 11:14
I am grateful for those that went before me providing concepts, ideas, historical information, and scripture verses. Because of them I can stand on their shoulders and see further than I otherwise ever could have.
Annotated Reference Bible – Dake
God without Religion – Andrew Farley
Handel’s Messiah – The Music
King James Version Bible - KJV
Mere
Christianity
– C.S. Lewis
Naked Gospel; The – Andrew Farley
Neighboring Faiths – Winfred Corduan
New Evidence
that demands a verdict; The – Josh McDowell
New International Version Bible - NIV
Why I am a
Christian
– Michael A. Gorman
Wikipedia
Zondervan Pictorial Encyclopedia of the Bible; The - Tenney
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