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This page is a response to some of the questions posted by James Buckner at http://home.att.net/~j-buckner/tough.html
James, I found your web site very interesting. I respect your demand for answers and agree that you should have them. I myself am very much like you. I need evidence. I need answers to my questions. I have found that the answers are there, but you need to look for them. They don’t always come to you as they may be in this case, but I will try to help you in resolving these Bible difficulties as much as I can.
If you are a seeker of truth, which I hope you are, then please read my answers with an objective mind. Use reason, logic, and common sense as I have. I have looked and looked, on many web pages like your own, and I have talked to many Agnostics and Atheists, but have found not one argument against the Bible or Christianity that has held any water when examined objectively. When I found one that sounded credible or logical, I sincerely investigated it to find if it was true. Every single one fell apart.
Here are some of the "Tough Questions for
the Christian Church"
"Why does the
evangelical church say there are no contradictions in the Bible when they
are plainly there for anyone to see?"
Give me one. If I do not know the
answer, I will find out for you if you are interested. I will try
to answer the following:
"Why does the Old Testament teach that there is no hell, while the New Testament teaches that there is? The idea of "progressive revelation" does not explain the conflicts in the biblical texts."
Does the Old Testament teach that there
is no hell? It does not teach explicitly that there is (that I know
of), but it does not teach against it.
"Why does most of the Old Testament teach that there is no afterlife (see Ecclesiastes 9:5-6, for example), while later Old Testament writings and the New Testament do?"
In reference to Ecc. 9:5-6, this passage is clearly speaking of this life. This is made clear by reading the end of verse 6 "…never again will they have a part in anything that happens under the sun." This is not referring to the afterlife. While "they have no further reward" may at a glance sound like it is speaking of the non-existence of Heaven or Hell, the next verse clarifies the meaning.
Furthermore, we know that Solomon (who
wrote Ecclesiastes) believed in an afterlife for he said, "In the way of
righteousness there is life; along that path is immortality" (Proverbs
12:28). If there is immortality, there is an afterlife.
"Why does the church say that God is not the author of confusion (1 Corinthians 14:33), when many biblical passages flatly contradict this?"
First of all, let me explain what this passage does not say. It does not say that God cannot confuse people. If God is all powerful, I would hope he could throw some into confusion. What this passage is saying is that God does not want His church to practice this behavior during worship.
I, and any scholar of
ancient literature (which I am not by any stretch of the imagination),
believe that the context of the passage determines it’s meaning.
I hope you would agree. In 1 Corinthians 14, Paul is addressing the
Christian church in Corinth. He is speaking about the gift of prophesy
in the church, and how it should be exercised. The Greek word used
for "disorder" or "confusion" in this passage is "Akatastasia," which means
unruliness, disorder, chaos, a going against the rules of order, etc.
This is what Paul warns against. Essentially, he is saying, "God
would not cause you to prophesy in a disorderly and confusing manner."
Additionally, the Old Testament proof
texts you provided all speak of afflicting a group of persons with utter
confusion. This includes the enemies of the Israelites as well as
the Israelites themselves. At each instance, it is a punishment from
God Himself.
To summarize, Paul is
by no means saying that God cannot confuse people. He is saying that
when Christians gather together in church, there should be orderly worship,
because if there is confusion, what good is that? That is not true
worship.
"Was God known by the name Yahweh prior to Moses (Exodus 6:3), or was he not (Genesis 4:26, 5:29, 9:24, 22:14,27:20, 27:27, 28:20-21)?"
There are a few ideas on this. I
believe that Moses (the writer of the first five books of the Bible) placed
the name into the text retrospectively. "This would be like a biographer
of the famous boxer referring to the childhood of Muhammad Ali, even though
his name was really Cassius Clay at the time. In favor of this is
the fact that the common suffix ‘-ah’ (which stands for ‘Jehovah’) attached
to names (such as, Mic-ah, Jon-ah, Jeremi-ah) is not generally found in
names before Moses’ time" (Norman Geisler, When Critics Ask).
I will probably respond to other questions at a later time, for at the present moment I have no time.
Following is a list of sites that may be of interest:
Christian
Research Institute
A great aplogetic and
counter-cult organization with a large amount of resources on many topics.
Institute
for Creation Research
Explore the truth of
creation on this site that was founded and is run by many reputable scientists.
Prince
of Peace Ministries
Frequently asked questions
such as, "Is the Bible really the Word of God? Was Jesus God? Can
Christianity be proven?" The answers to these age-old queries lie but a
click away.
Christian
Answers Network
The name says it all.
Questions? Comments? Email me!