Fable? Fraud? Fact? Fraud? Produced by St. Mina's Holmdel NJ

Transcription

1 The Holy Bible Fable? Fraud? Fact? Fraud? Produced by St. Mina's Holmdel NJ

2 Has God indeed said?... Genesis 3:1

3 1. The Jesus Seminar In 1985 a group of about seventy biblical scholars came together forming the Jesus seminar.. They had one major objective 1) To Examine history in a critical, scientific way in order to determine what is true about Christ Jesus.

4 Some of their findings were: Christ did not claim to be the messiah or to be divine. i ask that people believe in him or worship him. believe that his death would be a sacrifice for sins.

5 The Central Message The major claims of Christianity are demonstrably untrue and, it has brought more harm than good to the world.

6 Lloyd M. Graham The Bible is not the word of God, but a steal from pagan sources

7 "We find collected in this book [The Bible] the superstitious beliefs of the ancient inhabitants of Palestine, with indistinct echoes of Indian and Persian fables, mistaken imitation of Egyptian theories and customs, historical chronicles as dry as they are unreliable [and] coarseness and bad taste. Max Nordau ( ) 1923)

8 Excerpts from The Da Vinci Code The Bible is a product of man, my dear. Not of God. The Bible did not fall magically from the clouds. Man created it as a historical record of tumultuous times, and it has evolved through countless translations, additions, and revisions. History has never had a definitive version of the book. (p. 231)

9 Bishop John Spong Retired Episcopal Bishop of Newark Author of: Sins of Scripture Resurrection, Myth or Fact?

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11 Bishop John S. Spong Retired Episcopal Bishop of Newark "A deceased man did not walk out of his grave physically alive three days after his execution by crucifixion.in a very short time only some unmarked bones remained. Even the bones were gone before too long." John S. Spong, "Resurrection: Myth or Reality? P. 241

12 The biblical story of the perfect and finished creation from which human beings fell into sin is pre-darwinian mythology and post-darwinian nonsense. The virgin birth, understood as literal biology, makes Christ's divinity, as traditionally understood, impossible. The miracle stories of the New Testament can no longer be interpreted in a post-newtonian world as supernatural events performed by an incarnate deity.

13 The view of the cross as the sacrifice for the sins of the world is a barbarian idea based on primitive concepts of God and must be dismissed. Resurrection is an action of God. Jesus was raised into the meaning of God. It therefore cannot be a physical resuscitation occurring inside human history. The Bible is not the primary source of divine i revelation, nor is it inspired. It is a human book containing i some profound wisdom and culture- bound limitations.

14 Muslims and the Holy Bible The book now circulated among Christians (the Old and New Testaments) are not those which the Koran refers to, or at least not in their present state, for they have become corrupted and are annulled. Pg. 43 Mizanul Haqq

15 What does the Bible tell us to do? Walk in wisdom that you may know how you ought to answer each one Col 4:5-6 Sanctify the Lord in your hearts and 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

16 What does the Bible tell us to do? that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, but, speaking the truth in love, Ephesians 4:

17 Seetoitthatnoone that one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the world, rather than according to Christ. Colossians 2:8

18 For we did not follow cunningly devised d fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His majesty. For He received from God the Father honor and glory when such a voice came to Him from the Excellent Glory: This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. And we heard this voice which came from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain. 2 Peter 1:

19 B I B L E = Bibliographic Evidence = Internal Harmony = Bible Prophecy =Lord s View of Scripture = External Evidence

20 B= Bibliographic Evidence..

21 The Dead Sea Scrolls

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23 The New Testament There are more than 5,000 different ancient Greek manuscripts containing all or portions of the New Testament that have survived to our time. These are written on different materials.

24 The New Testament There are over 1,000 copies and fragments of the New Testament in Syriac, Coptic, Armenian, Gothic, and Ethiopic and 8,000 copies of the Latin Vulgate, some dating as far back as St. Jerome s original in AD The entire New Testament can be reconstructed from quotations in the writings of fth the Church hf Fathers (AD95 400) except for verses.

25 Quantity of Ancient Historical Manuscripts Caesar s s Gallic Wars 10 Tacitus Annals 2 Thucydides History 8 Herodotus History 8 Homer s Iliad 643

26 Quantity of NT Manuscripts Greek manuscripts c. 5,686 Latin Vulgate 10, Coptic, Ethiopic, i and Armenian 8,000 TOTAL c. 24,000 Plus c. 32,000 citations from pre-nicene church Fathers

27 Bibliographic Time Test Time Gap between the Original and when any Copies Caesar s Gallic Wars (60 BC 1,000 yrs. 900 AD) Tacitus Annals 1,000 yrs. Plato s Trilogies (400 BC 900AD) 1,300 yrs. Herodotus History 1,350 yrs. Homer s Iliad (900 BC 400 BC) 500 yrs.

28 Bibliographic Test Time Gap Originals v. Copies New Testament authored authored between A.D Earliest Fragment A.D. 114 Earliest Book A.D. 200 Most of NT A.D. 250 Complete NT (Codex Sinaiticus) A.D. 325 POINT = TIME GAP OF ONLY 14 years!!!

29 I = Internal Harmony HB written over a period of 1600 years 2. HB written by over 40 different people 3. HB written from many different places 4. HB written in 3 different languages 5. HB covers many controversial subjects 6. HB written in many literary styles POINT= despite all of these proven facts, it is a single unified book which has a consistent theme and message throughout

30 I = Internal Harmony... Experiment: 10 people with same, educational, socio- economic, professional background from the same geographical area that share the same language Write about a single topic. Would they agree? Absolutely NOT!!!

31 Conclusion? The Fact that it is a unified book with continuity in theme and opinion points to the fact that it can only be God who inspired its composition and construction. ti

32 B= Bible Prophecy.. Prophecy is history written in advance. Only an omniscient, omnipotent God could know the future so accurately and have it written down. There are approximately 332 Prophecies concerning Our Lord Jesus Christ, and all were fulfilled

33 Fulfillment of OT Prophecies.. Born of a woman (Gen. 3:15, Gal.4: 4) Born of a virgin (Isaiah 7:14, Matt. 1: 21ff) Of the seed of Abraham (Gen. 12: 1-3; 22:18; Matt: 1: 1; Gal. 3:16)

34 Fulfillment of OT Prophecies.. Anointed by the Holy Spirit (Isaiah 11:2; Matt. 3:16-17) 17) Heralded by the messenger of the Lord (Isaiah 40:3; Mal. 3:1; Matthew 3:1-2) Would perform miracles (Isaiah 35: 5-6; Matt. 9:35)

35 Fulfillment of OT Prophecies.. Of the tribe of Judah (Gen. 49:10; Luke 3:23, 33; Heb. 7: 14) Of the house of David ( 2 Samuel 7:12ff; Matt. 1: 1) Born in Bethlehem h (Micah 5:2; Matthew 2:1; Luke 2:4-7)

36 Fulfillment of OT Prophecies.. Would cleanse the Temple (Malachi 3:1; Matt. 21:12) Rejected by the Jews (Psalm 118:22; 1 Peter 2:7) Die a humiliating death (Psalm 22; Isaiah 53) involving:

37 Fulfillment of OT Prophecies.. rejection (Isaiah 53:3; John 1:10-11) 11) silence before accusers (Isaiah 53:7; Matthew 27: being mocked (Psalm 22:7-8; Matthew 27:31)

38 Fulfillment of OT Prophecies.. piercing his hands and feet (Psalm 22:16; Luke 23:33) being crucified with thieves (Isaiah 53:12; Luke 23:38) praying for his persecutors (Isaiah 53:12; Luke 23:43) buried in a rich man s tomb (Isaiah 53:9; Matthew 27:57-60) casting lots for his garments (Psalm 22:18; John 19:23-24) 24)

39 Fulfillment of OT Prophecies.. Would rise from the dead (Psalm 16:10; Mark 16:6; Acts 2:31) Would sit down at the right hand of God (Psalm 110:1; Hebrews 1:3)

40 Fulfillment of OT Prophecies.. Dr. Peter Stoner calculated the probability of 1 person fulfilling just 8 prophecies. Christ fulfilled approximately 332. Result = 1 out of (1 x )

41 L = Lord s View of the Scriptures Did not Moses give you the law, yet none of you keeps the law? John 7:19 You have heard that it was said to those of old, `You shall not commit adultery. Matthew 5:27 Do not think that t I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. Matthew 5:17 Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away. Mark 13:31

42 E= External Evidence...

43 Archaeology and Extra Biblical Writings...

44 Archaeology... The Ebla Tablets were found in Syria in 1974 and are composed of over 16,000 clay tablets dating to B.C., the oldest written material known. They confirm names like Ur, Sodom, Gomorrah, Baal, Adam, Eve, and Noah.

45 Archaeology... A coin was recently excavated in Jerusalem that contained the inscription, The House of David. 26,000 Assyrian tablets affirm every Old Testament reference to an Assyrian King including Sennacharib and his failure to capture Jerusalem, including that thousands of his men died d and the rest that were scattered.

46 Archaeology... Records found in ancient Babylon affirm the treatment of the Hebrew royal family, Belshazzar, and Cyrus decree allowing the Jews to rebuild the Temple (Ezra 1:1-4). Unique places in Jerusalem from John s Gospel have been located such as the Pool of Bethesda, Pool of Siloam, and Jacob's Well.

47 Tacitus the Roman Historian Josephus the Jewish Philosopher The Life of Christ is found in 20 different non-christian/ non-biblical sources facts concerning the lf life, death, Resurrection, and teachings of the Lord

48 Conclusion? There is much in the Bible that has been specifically confirmed by archaeology, and there is nothing that has been found that refutes any statement in the Bible. An outline can be written about the life of Christ without t touching the New Testament

49 Scientific Accuracy

50 Scientific Accuracy 15 th Century- scientists discovered that the world was not flat but round. 2, years before that discovery, the HB revealed that the earth was round It is He who sits above the circle of the earth Isaiah 40:22

51 Scientific Accuracy Before the invention of the telescope and the modern discovery that the number of stars are countless The Prophet Jeremiah in 600 BC revealed that the number of stars are innumerable. The host of heaven can not be numbered Jeremiah 33:22

52 What does the Holy Bible say about itself? All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly hl equipped for every good work. 2 Timothy 3:16