Transcript Document

Was Jesus’ death and resurrection a hoax?
Are there facts that support the resurrection?
What really happened to Jesus’ body?
Was Jesus seen after His death on the cross?
Wasn’t the Bible just written by men?
Can the stories of Jesus really be trusted?
Is archeology a friend of the Bible?
Presented by
Dr Thomas J Kindell
Founder & President of Reasons for Faith Ministries, Inc.
“Be ready to give an answer to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is within you” I
Peter 3:15
THE UNIQUENESS AND
DIVINE INSPIRATION OF
THE BIBLE
THE BIBLE IS UNIQUE IN MORE
WAYS THAN ANY OTHER BOOK IN
HISTORY
Webster’s Definition of Unique:
1.
One and only; single; sole.
2.
Different from all others;
having no like or equal.
1. UNIQUE IN ITS CIRCULATION
a. The first book printed – Latin Vulgate
b. Printed more times, read by more
millions than any “best seller”
I.
1928 - Natl. Bible Society of
Scotland – 88 million
II.
By 1932 - 1,330,213,000 Bibles in
print
III.
In the 2000’s – Scores of millions
annually – billions overall
2. UNIQUE IN ITS TRANSLATION
a. One of first translated – Jewish OT- LXX
b. By 1970, in whole or part – 1,280
languages
c. By 2022 world’s first universal text
3. UNIQUE IN ITS INFLUENCE ON
LITERATURE
a. Josh McDowell – conservatively
1,000 times greater influence
b. Literary Scholar Bernard Ramm:
“No other book in all
human history has in
turn inspired the
writing of so many
books as the Bible.”
Bernard Ramm
4. UNIQUE IN ITS SURVIVAL
THROUGH PERSECUTION
a. In AD 303 Diocletian issued edict to
destroy Christians & their Bible
b. 25 years after Diocletian’s edict
Constantine issued edict to Eusebius
c. Voltaire’s prediction
5. UNIQUE IN ITS SURVIVAL
THROUGH “SCHOLARLY”
CRITICISM
a. Documentary hypothesis
b. Walls of Jericho
c. Hittites – Harvard – 1200 years
d. Jesus tried at pavement – Roman
barracks after Titus
6. UNIQUE IN THE ACCURACY OF
ITS TRANSMISSION THRU TIME
a. New Testament written nearly 2000
yrs ago – can’t trust to be accurate
b. Historical tests determine accuracy
of transmission
I.
Bibliographical
II.
Internal Evidence - Eyewitnesses
III.
External Evidence – Secular
history and archeology
MANUSCRIPT AUTHORITY OF
ANCIENT TEXTS
AUTHOR
WHEN
WRITTEN
Caesar
Plato (Tetralogies)
Tacitus (Annals)
Pliny the Younger
Thucydides
Suetonius
Herodotus
Sophocles
Catullus
Euripides
Demosthenes
Aristotle
Aristophanes
Homer (Iliad)
New Testament
100-44 B.C.
427-347 B.C.
100 A.D.
61-113 A.D.
460-400 B.C.
75-160 A.D.
480-425 B.C.
796-406 B.C.
54 B.C.
480-406 B.C.
383-322 B.C.
384-382 B.C.
450-385 B.C.
900 B.C.
40-100 A.D.
EARLIEST
COPY
NO. OF
COPIES
900 A.D.
900 A.D.
1100 A.D.
50 A.D.
900 A.D.
950 A.D.
900 A.D.
1000 A.D.
1550 A.D.
1100 A.D.
1100 A.D.
1100 A.D.
900 A.D.
400 B.C.
125 A.D.
10
7
20
7
8
8
8
193
3
9
200*
49*
10
643
24,000+
UNEQUALLED TRANSMISSION PURITY
•Early church fathers - 250 years – 11 verses
•Hindu Vedas – 28% corrupt
•Works of Shakespeare – 10 % corrupt
•New Testament – 40 lines, less than ½ of 1%
•New Testament has more manuscript
authority than any 30 classic works combined
•Rejection of the New Testament logically
requires rejection of all ancient literature and
history
7. UNIQUE IN ITS CONTINUITY
a. Written over a 1500 year span –
covering over sixty generations
b. Written by forty plus authors from
every walk of life
c. Written in different places
I.
Moses in the wilderness
II.
Jeremiah in a dungeon
III.
Daniel on a hillside & in a palace
IV.
Paul inside prison walls
V.
Luke while traveling
VI.
John on the Isle of Patmos
VII.
Others in the rigors of a military
campaign
d. Written at different times – times of
war and times of peace
e. Written during different moods –
from the heights of joy to the depths
of sorrow and despair
f. Written on three continents – Asia,
Africa and Europe
g. Written in three languages – Hebrew,
Aramaic and Greek
h. Includes hundreds of controversial
subjects
8. UNIQUE IN ITS EVIDENCE
FULFILLED PROPHECY
“…I am God, and there is none like me,
declaring the end from the beginning and
from ancient times things not yet done…”
Isaiah 46:9-10
“If they do not listen to Moses and the
prophets they will not be persuaded…”
Luke 16:31
a. No other sacred book contains
detailed prophecies like the Bible
I.
Nostradamus – Vague – not 100%
A. Nostradamus “scholars” predicted:
• Princess Diana would die at
age 73
• U. S. Western States would
sink into the Pacific in the
1990’s
• East Africa would split into
three pieces in the 1990’s
• South America would split
into pieces in the 1990’s
• New York City and the State
of Florida flooded by the sea
II.
Jean Dixon – About 5% of the time
Catapulted to fame by 1956
prophesy of 1960 Presidential
election – false. Dixon’s
assassination prophecy was
highly publicized and constantly
harped on but what they don’t
publicize are the false
prophecies:
A. World War III would begin in 1954
B. Red China would be admitted into
the UN in 1958 – not until 1971
C. Union Leader Walter Reuther
would run for President in 1964
D. The Vietnam War would end in 1966
E. On Oct. 19, 1968 she predicted
Jacqueline Kennedy was NOT even
thinking of marriage
F. Jean Dixon: Predictions (Fisher &
Commins) 1980
- A comet will strike the Earth in 80’s
- Red China: germ warfare hits West
- African continental war in 1987
- First US woman President in 1980’s
b. In contrast Bible prophesy is
specific and 100% accurate
I.
Cyrus – Rebuilding of Temple –
Isaiah 44:28 - 45:1
II.
Tyre – Ezekial 26
Therefore, thus says the
Lord God, “Behold, I am
against you, O Tyre, and I
will bring up many nations
against you as the sea
brings up its waves…
Ezekial 26:3
…And they will destroy
the walls of Tyre and
break down her towers;
and I will scrape her
debris from her and make
her a bare rock.”
Ezekial 26:4
For thus says the Lord God,
“Behold, I will bring upon
Tyre from the north
Nebuchadnezzar king of
Babylon, king of kings, with
horses, chariots, calvary
and a great army…
Ezekial 26:7
…He will slay your
daughters on the mainland
with the sword; and he will
make siege walls against
you, cast up a mound
against you, and raise up a
large shield against you.”
Ezekial 26:8
“Also they will make a spoil
of your riches and a prey of
your merchandise, break
down your walls and destroy
your pleasant houses, and
throw your stones and your
timbers and your debris
into the water.”
Ezekial 26:12
“And I will make you a bare
rock; you will be a place for
the spreading of nets. You
will be built no more, for
I the Lord have spoken,”
declares the Lord God.
Ezekial 26:14
“I shall bring terrors on
you, and you will be no
more, though you will be
sought, you will never be
found again,” declares
the Lord God.
Ezekial 26:21
b. In contrast Bible prophesy is
specific and 100% accurate
I.
Cyrus – Rebuilding of Temple –
Isaiah 44:28 - 45:1
II.
Tyre – Ezekial 26
A. Predictions:
• Nebuchadnezzar will destroy
the mainland city of Tyre (26:8)
• Many nations against Tyre
(26:30
• Make her a bare rock; flat like
the top of a rock (26:4)
• Fishermen will spread nets over
the site (26:5)
• Throw the debris into the water
(26:12)
• Never be rebuilt (26:14)
• Never to be found again (26:21)
III.
This prophecy has been literally
fulfilled in every detail
9. ULTIMATE UNIQUE PROOF OF
OLD TESTAMENT
a. God came down as a man and told
us face to face
I.
Forgave sins
II.
Received worship
III.
Received proclamations of others
IV.
Directly claimed John 8:58
Jesus said to them,
“Truly, truly, I say
to you, before
Abraham was,
I AM.”
John 8:58
V.
Claimed oneness with God - Trinity
VI.
Works sake - Creator
VII.
Fulfilled prophecy
VIII. He rose from the dead!
10. GOD WROTE A PROPHETIC
ADDRESS IN HISTORY TO
IDENTIFY HIS SON
a. How specific is your address?
b. God’s prophetic address contains
332 prophecies
I.
Lineage or Genealogy – Seed of the
woman, Shem, Abraham, Isaac,
Jacob, Judah, Jesse and David
II.
Exact location of Birth – Micah 5:2
But you, Bethlehem Ephratah,
though you are little among
the thousands of Judah, yet
out of you shall come forth to
Me the One to be Ruler in
Israel, whose goings forth are
from of old, from everlasting.
Micah 5:2 NKJ
III.
Messiah would present Himself at a
precise period in history – Daniel 9
A. Of all commandments made by
Kings in history only one would
start this chronology
B. 69 Septets of 360 day years after
Artaxerxes command. 483 years
after 444 BC is 33 AD – Triumphal
Entry.
C. H W Hoehner, Chronological
Aspects of the Life of Christ
• Nisan 444 BC to Nisan 10, 33 AD
• Triumphal Entry - March 30, 33 AD
• 40 major claims to be Messiah
IV.
Messiah would die
A. Cut off – Isaiah 53, Daniel 9 – not
old age, disease, accident
B. Sacrificial death – Daniel 9, Isaiah
53 – vicarious – in our place
C. Maltreated but spoke not a word to
save Himself from death
D. Death associated with the wicked
and the rich
E. Killed although innocent – no
violence – no deceit in mouth
F. Made intercession for the
transgressors
G. Casting of lots for His garment –
Psalm 22
H. Messiah would be betrayed – Zech.
• By a friend
• For 30 pieces of silver
• Money would be thrown down
• In the temple
• Used to buy a potter’s field
V.
Messiah would be both human and
Divine
A. Micah 5:2 – Origin from eternity
B. Isaiah 7:14 – A sign, a virgin
conceives
C. Isaiah 9:6 – Unto us a child is born…
D. Psalm 16:10 – Holy One, no
corruption
CONCLUSION
FULFILLED PROPHECY
PROVES THE DIVINE
INSPIRATION OF THE
BIBLE AND CONFIRMS
THE CLAIMS OF
CHRIST
OBJECTIONS TO CHRIST’S
FULFILLMENTS OF PROPHECY
1. Prophecies written after the time of Christ
A. Old Testament completed C - 450 BC
B. Septuagint translation began 250 BC
2. Christ deliberately attempted fulfillments
3. Fulfillment was just a coincidence
A. Christian Victory Publishing Co. - $1,000
• Any man living or dead – 20
Messianic prophecies fulfilled
• Any man in history – 20 specific
prophecies 200 years in advance
B. Peter Stoner, Science Speaks
• 8 prophecies – 1 in 1017
• 48 prophecies – 1 in 10157
• 10131 compared to 10157
Definitely NOT by chance!
What will you do with this unique Book
and Man?
Will you accept the evidence or reject it?
Don’t miss the destiny and purpose for
which you were created!