21- Jul- 13 28- Jul- 13 04- Aug- 13 11- Aug- 13 18- Aug- 13 Sermon & Growth Group Series Can we trust the Bible? Is there life after death? Aren't all religions the same? Hasn't science disproved Christianity? Why does God allow suffering? This series is a great opportunity to open gospel conversations, by mentioning to your colleagues or neighbours that your church is doing a series on the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ). Ask What are your biggest doubts about Christianity? What would it take to convince you to become a Christian? What questions do you think churches need to answer? Questions can be submitted on the HEAC web site and there will be a Q&A after each talk in the series. PRAYER: Each week, allow time to pray for each of the worlds that God places us in: our families, our streets, our workplaces, our preschools, schools, TAFES and universities. Thank God for his mercy to us, and pray that he would have mercy on those around us. Pray for us to know how to give a reason for the hope that is in you (1 Peter 3:15).
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS Can we trust the Bible? The Bible is full of myths. What do people think of the Bible? Why don t people trust & obey it? Have you had a chance to answer people s objections? What did you say? What s helpful in this response? (2:52 mins by Vaughan Roberts) http://www.christianityexplored.org/tough- questions/canyoutrustthebible What are the bold claims that the Bible makes? Acts 20:32, Romans 15:4, 2 Timothy 3:14-17, 2 Peter 1:3 Which of these arguments are most compelling for you to trust in the Bible? Why? 1. Authorship Luke 1:1-4, 2 Peter 1:20-2 2. Internal consistencies eg no contradictions; fulfilled prophecies astonishing fulfillment of prophecy Events in Jesus Life Born in Bethlehem Sold for 30 pieces of Silver Silver used to buy a potter s field Silent when accused Condemned with c riminals Raging thirst when dying Crucified (hands & feet pierced) Lot cast for clothes Not a bone broken (unblemished sacrifice) Dying for our sins Pierced again after death Buried by a rich man Suffering not the end Old Testament Micah 5:2 Zech1:13 Zech 11:13 Isa 53:7 Isa 53:12 Psalm 22:15 Ps 22:16, Zech 12:10 Psalm 22:18 Ps 34:20, Ex 12:46 Isa 53:5 Isa 53:5 Isa 53:9 Isa 53:11 Fulfilled Prophecy Luke 2:4-7 Matt 26:15 Matt 27:6 Matt 27:12-14 Luke 23:32-33 John 19:28 John 19:18 John 19:24 John 19:31-36 Gal 1:4 Luke 23:46 Matt 27:57-60 Luke 24:1-8
3. Unlikely record records of warts of heroes eg Gen 20:1-13, 2 Sam 11:1-25, Acts 8:1, 2 Cor 11:29-33 4. Eye- witnesses 1 Corinthians 15:3-8 5. Radically changed lives & personal sustenance 1 Cor 6:9-11, 15:1-2, 9-10, 1 Tim 1:12-16, Matt 11:28, John 4:7-15, 6:25-34, Psalm 119, modern testimonies 6. Transmission accuracy The historical copying of the Bible was proven to be very accurate by the discovery of the Dead Sea scrolls in the 1960s that contained some very early documents. 7. Historical accuracy eg geographical, titles, references & details keep being affirmed by ancient history & archeology. Eg empty tomb (massive Jewish & Roman incentive to produce Jesus body even putting a guard at the tomb in order to stop this prediction coming true via grave robbery Matt 23:62-66, 28:11-15). 8. Non- Christian affirmation i. Cornelius Tacitus (Roman historian, born 52-54AD) stated that Jesus had been crucified by Pontius Pilate. ii. Flavius Josephus (Jewish Pharisee, born 37AD) wrote "Now there was about this time Jesus, a wise man, if it be lawful to call him a man, for he was a doer of wonderful works... Pilate... condemned him to the cross... he appeared to them alive again on the third day." 9. Manuscript record Date Early Copies found so far Homer's Iliad 800 BC 643 Works of Herodotus 480 BC 8 Plato's Tetralogies 427 BC 7 Caesar's Gallic wars 44 BC 10 New Testament 50 95 AD 25,366 10. Biblical worldview explanatory power to describe our world eg human nature is fundamentally sinful (cf Children are fundamentally good but then are corrupted as is commonly believed today). REFLECTION: How would you go about convincing a friend that the Bible is trustworthy? How would you explain that the Bible leads us into a personal relationship with God? Further reading: Is the New Testament History? By Paul Barnett (Aquila Press, Sydney 2003) A Ready Defense: The Best of Josh McDowell. By Josh McDowell & Bill Wilson (Thomas Nelson, Nashville 1993)
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS Is there life after death? 1 Dead people don t come back to life! How do people respond to the Christian claim of life after death? How is the afterlife portrayed in funerals and popular culture? What are the big promises about life in John? (John 3:15-16, 36, 5:24, 29, 39, 6:40, 47, 53-54, 63, 68, 8:12, 10:10-11, 17:2, 20:31). What will convince people? Is the empty tomb convincing? (Note: the Romans and the Jews had a huge vested interest to produce the body - Matt 27:62-28:15) Is having many eyewitnesses (hallucinations don t happen on mass) convincing? 1 Cor 15:1-7 If the disciples were radically changed and prepared to die, would they have done this for a lie? Even if a person was to come back, would this be enough to convince people? Luke 16:19-31 What convinced Thomas, and what does it mean to be blessed? John 20:26-29 What s helpful in this response? (3:42 mins by Paul Perkin) http://www.christianityexplored.org/tough- questions/resurrection PS For the conclusion of All dead people stay dead it is the same as All swans are white. But everything changes if you ever come across an anomaly, if you ever meet a black swan. An anomaly might be explained away but it s a massive call to recheck the evidence to see if the initial conclusion is now wrong. And if God is concerned he can create unique events. Further reading: Who Moved the Stone? By Frank Morrison (Zondervan, Grand Rapids, 1987) Defending the Gospel. By Kel Richards (Matthias Media, Sydney, 2006) ch 6 1 With the exclusion of current pop culture zombies of course!
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS Aren't all religions the same? All religions are basically the same, just different roads leading to the same place! What does society think about the many religions? How unique are the Bible s claims? (Eg John 14:6, Acts 4:12) What are the implications for: Christian confidence/arrogance? other religions? those who haven t heard about Christ? TRUTH CLAIMS What is the difference between confidence and arrogance? How arrogant is it to be confidence that 2+2=4? If there is a real world and a real God who is really there and really created this universe and us a certain fundamental way, what are the implications for what is right and wrong in this universe? If God tells (reveals to) us in the Bible what is the all- seeing shape of our world and what he is doing in it, then what is the right response to the Bible? IS JESUS TO BE BELIEVED? The real question about religions comes down to the reliability of the Bible (see study/talk 1) and its central revelation of Jesus? Is Jesus: Liar (great deceiver bad); OR Lunatic (deluded and deceived himself - mad); OR Lord? Did Jesus back up his super natural claims with supernatural demonstrations? If he really does claim to deal with human sin and reconcile us to God, is there a plausible explanation of him actually doing this?
WHAT ABOUT OTHER RELIGIONS? Often there is much good at various levels in worldviews that have stood the test of time to sustained societies. Eg Do not murder is fundament to most sustaining worldviews. However they are not all basically the same at fundamental levels: (1) Resurrection makes a fundamental difference. Christians claim resurrection is fundamental (1 Cor 15:12-17), whereas Islam categorically denies Jesus resurrection. Both can t be true! (2) In the end what does the bible say about how comparable religions are? Jeremiah 10 WHAT ABOUT THOSE WHO HAVE NEVER HEARD ABOUT CHRISTIANITY, ISN T THIS UNFAIR? What can we conclude from Romans 1:18-20 What s helpful in this response about other religions? (2:32 mins by Tim Keller) http://www.christianityexplored.org/tough- questions/allreligions Is it arrogant to claim Christianity is unique? (3:07 mins by Nate Morgan- Locke) http://www.christianityexplored.org/tough- questions/arrogant REFLECTION: How can we best formulate our own answer to the existence of other religions, in a way that in truthful and compassionate and humble? Further reading: Defending the Gospel. By Kel Richards (Matthias Media, Sydney, 2006) ch 7-8 A Ready Defense: The Best of Josh McDowell. By Josh McDowell & Bill Wilson (Thomas Nelson, Nashville 1993) If I were God, I d make myself Clearer. By John Dickson (Matthias Media, Sydney, 2002)
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS Hasn't science disproved Christianity? What does the media & the new atheists 0ften say about science and Christianity? (Eg Richard Dawkins). Why did science develop out of Christianity & why are there so many Christian scientists? (Gen 1, Psalm 8) If science is the discipline based on uniformity, repeatability and sensory observations, is there any surprise that the unique being of God, doing a one off unique thing to save the world once and for all, is beyond Science s terms of reference? Is it wrong (and even arrogant) to assume otherwise? If we assume there is a closed universe where there is no God, is it surprising that we end up concluding that there is a closed universe where there is no God? (Give example). Is it surprising that the Bible records the unique things that stand out as unbelievable in the normal course of events? (Eg miracles) The Bible is not a science textbook. The Bible reveals to us about the creator, why our world is the way it is, and how to live with him (in light of our sin). It uses the presuppositions of the authors to convey this truth. Ie Science is WHEN & HOW cf Christianity is WHY & WHO? Hence, in comparing science and Christianity, we are comparing different categories of knowledge. However, there are links. Far from science disproving Christianity, it highlights how good and orderly creation is, and if there is a creator it highlights how good and orderly he is (Gen 1:31). Science and Christianity are unnatural enemies, they are utterly compatible. How does this caution us about the Literal 6 day Creation Vs Theistic Evolution debate? (Ps 90:4, 2 Peter 3:8, & the issue of Days 1-3 prior to Day 4 sun being created). NB Don t spend too much time debating this rather move to Jesus & praising God for his creation. What s helpful in this response? (3:41 mins by Gavin McGrath) http://www.christianityexplored.org/tough- questions/scienceandchristianity Further reading: Defending the Gospel. By Kel Richards (Matthias Media, Sydney, 2006) Unnatural Enemies. By Kirsten Birkett (Matthias Media, Sydney, 1997)
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS Why does God allow suffering? How can a good God allow evil? Have you ever struggled personally to understand why God allows suffering? If you feel comfortable, share an example. Why is suffering prolonged or even allowed by God at all? How long O Lord? The problem of suffering is atheism s most potent weapon against the Christian faith (C.S. Lewis)? Do you agree? Where does suffering come from? The World, the Flesh & the Devil God Sovereign Job 2:10 Rom 1:24, 26, 28 eg Pharaoh, Job, Habakkuk, Jews Rom 11:25 For mission 2 Peter 3:1-10 eg Job s suffering Partial Judgement is a foretaste Purposeful Not necessarily directly for sin à How can we put this together in our Biblical understanding of Suffering? How can Paul claim, For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.? (Phil 1:21)? Do you agree with this: Our people die well John Wesley What s helpful in this response? (3:49 mins by Dawn Evans) http://www.christianityexplored.org/tough- questions/godandsuffering Further Reading: How Long O Lord. By Don Carson (Baker, Grand Rapids, 19991) If I were God I d End all the Pain. By John Dickson (Matthias Press, Sydney 2001) Defending the Gospel. By Kel Richards (Matthias Media, Sydney, 2006) ch 8