Today we celebrate Palm Sunday. The Bible tells us how the crowds cheered as Jesus road into Jerusalem riding on a donkey (See Matthew 21). Six days later, the crowds were calling for Him to be crucified.
Look at what they missed from the Old Testament Scriptures that would have helped to inform them who He is:
Zec 9:9 Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
Mat 21:5 "Say to the Daughter of Zion, 'See, your king comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.' "
This is just one prophecy that was exactly fulfilled by Jesus Christ. In fact, Jesus fulfilled hundreds of prophecies!
For a crowd to cheer Jesus one day, and jeer at him and scream "crucify him!" just six days later shows how utterly faithless people can be.
How they can turn from the truth so easily when they are not anchored in God's Word and Truth?
My friend and sister in Christ, Susan Smith, shared this statement in the previous post comment thread:
That is the crux of the matter. Even when we aren't faithful, Jesus ALWAYS IS!! That is why we can trust Him with our very lives - now and for all eternity. How great is our God! He is the TRUE hope for our lives.
Susan also shared this timeless truth:
Jesus loved us all THAT MUCH - that He would die for our salvation. We know we can trust His promises, for three days later, he rose from the dead.
What a joy that first Easter morning must have been!! May we NEVER forget to praise Jesus Christ each and every day for the new life He gives us when we repent of our sins and are born again in Him!
Look at what they missed from the Old Testament Scriptures that would have helped to inform them who He is:
Zec 9:9 Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
Mat 21:5 "Say to the Daughter of Zion, 'See, your king comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.' "
This is just one prophecy that was exactly fulfilled by Jesus Christ. In fact, Jesus fulfilled hundreds of prophecies!
For a crowd to cheer Jesus one day, and jeer at him and scream "crucify him!" just six days later shows how utterly faithless people can be.
How they can turn from the truth so easily when they are not anchored in God's Word and Truth?
My friend and sister in Christ, Susan Smith, shared this statement in the previous post comment thread:
Jesus is the faithful one. He is faithful even when I am not (2 Timothy 2:13).
That is the crux of the matter. Even when we aren't faithful, Jesus ALWAYS IS!! That is why we can trust Him with our very lives - now and for all eternity. How great is our God! He is the TRUE hope for our lives.
Susan also shared this timeless truth:
I no longer live, but Christ lives in me and the life I live today in the body is by faith of the Son of God who loved me and gave his life for me (Galatians 2:20).
Jesus loved us all THAT MUCH - that He would die for our salvation. We know we can trust His promises, for three days later, he rose from the dead.
What a joy that first Easter morning must have been!! May we NEVER forget to praise Jesus Christ each and every day for the new life He gives us when we repent of our sins and are born again in Him!
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13 comments:
Surely even you understand that the Old Testament was written hundreds of years before the New Testament, and the NT writers were aware of those earlier documents. This is not prophecy (unless self-fulfilling prophecy counts), it is intentional plagiarism. You can't even be sure what the Bible actually says because none--NONE, not one--of the original documents is still extant. All of the documents we have are copies of copies, and it has been proven beyond any doubt (by scholars who are devout and not at all liberal) that those copies contain thousands of discrepancies. Or do they try to keep that a secret at Biola?
Wonderful blog.. I would like to thank you so much for listing our website AmericanGrandJury.org in your blog roll. It is an honor.
Please keep the faith. We praise the the Lord and ask him to help us strong in health and agressive against the evils of such people like Barack Obama.
If you would like to get involved, the American Grand Jury is going to convene a totally ONLINE hearing against Obama. Serving on the Jury is totally voluntary and free. Come check us out. You will be pleased at what you see.
God Bless the folks that partronize the "Talk Wisdom" blog. Thanks again!
Bob Campbell
http://AmericanGrandJury.org
Thank you for sharing the beautiful message of Palm Sunday. Ignore the fools in the comments.
Ken,
Prophecy has the nation of Israel coming into existence again and no nation has ever come back after four generations and it is more likely that the Seneca Indians will get back New York to self-fulfilled prophecy than Israel will come back to self-fulfilled prophecy.
On another blogging site they are basically saying that Christianity is a con and a cover up because they are teaching the real truth in college and not telling it to people in church. Their basic argument is that Christianity is so stupid that only Christians can’t see it and you have to be careful with that argument because my college professor asked us to ask and interview our parents, neighbors, grandparents, uncles, etc., about what they know because even the dumbest person is smart.
If Christianity is so stupid then it wouldn’t have made a difference in the lives of billions of people and no one would have followed it. I left a vacuum cleaner in my garage for five years and it rusted out. Try preserving anything and you will see how hard it is to preserve something. I studied the poet Robert Frost and two different Encyclopedias give different ages for the man and commentaries lie about what some of the poems really mean. That doesn’t mean the poet never existed and yet you won’t dispute that Plato or Aristotle never lived or that they were lies and yet there is more manuscript evidence for the New Testament. What you don’t want to believe is the reason people believed was only because Jesus came, He performed miracles and people saw Him crucified, die and rise again. As far as the manuscript evidence goes, there isn’t much difference between the Dead Sea scrolls and those manuscripts from thousands of years before so its accuracy is sufficient for me.
The reason why there are 270 languages with a flood story is because grandpa told the story. The reason you can find shells on top of Mount Everest is because there was a flood.
I can read the Bible and the words speak like the Westminster Confession of Faith says it speaks to people. We find it credible that it speaks and I think the reason God might not speak to you is the reason why Jesus or John wouldn’t speak.
You don't believe so therefore there isn't a reason to seek or ask questions so there is no reason to engage God and therefore it is a self-fulfilled prophecy in your life. God is such a silly thing that you look at all the problems and ignore what has happened like the nation of Israel being fulfilled prophecy.
Not everyone that came to Jesus or John was seeking the truth:
Matthew 3:7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?
Matthew 3:8 Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance:
In other words, John said to first bring evidence or fruit of repentance before coming to him.
Luke 23:8 And when Herod saw Jesus, he was exceeding glad: for he was desirous to see him of a long [season], because he had heard many things of him; and he hoped to have seen some miracle done by him.
Luke 23:9 Then he questioned with him in many words; but he answered him nothing.
Thanks Seeing Right, Faultline U.S.A., and Sosthenes!
Good rebuttal against Ken's gibberish, Sosthenes.
Those who are not seeking the truth are very easy to spot. So often they give their motives away -
1. To argue instead of dialogue.
2. To ridicule instead of politely question.
3. To disparage instead of converse.
4. To mock instead of listen.
5. To spout the same old ridiculous objections rather than learn the truth.
Great Bible verses, too.
There was a very good reason why Jesus didn't answer such people:
Luke 23:9 Then he questioned with him in many words; but he answered him nothing.
To Bob Campbell,
You are most welcome! Thank YOU for all of your hard work in the American Grand Jury endeavor! I found the link to your website either at Defend Our Freedoms or The Right Side of Life blog.
I continue to pray each day that the authorities to whom the Grand Jury results are presented decides to take action on even just one of them!!!
We have to keep up that good fight. America's future depends on removing this usurper from office!! The sooner the better!!
God bless,
Christine
You really are hilarious, Christine. I actually guffawed out loud when I read your comment above. I pretty much agree with your list of 5 characteristics of people who are not seeking the truth. Do you read your own blog? You have captured your own closed mind exactly! Ridicule, disparage, and mock? Make a list of the names you called Obama in the above post. Like so many Christians you walk through life with your eyes covered and your ears plugged, frantically repeating Bible verses so you can't be exposed to anything that might call your faith into question. It's SO easy to call my comments gibberish and then just ignore them.
For additional information on just how reliable the copies of the documents were and are of Old Testament scriptures, "The New Evidence That Demands a Verdict" by Josh McDowell provides marvelous detail on the process of copying and the reason why they are in such fantastic agreement. It's also significant that copies of the scriptures are far more numerous (several orders of magnitude) than copies of any other ancient document. Yet despite this fantastic agreement and the large amount of documentation, other sources are given far more credence. Talk about prejudice in academia...
One of the main problems to be overcome is that much of academia gave up on the Bible back in the sixties. At the time, Biblical archaeology was still in relative infancy from a technical standpoint. Since the Jews returned to Israel, a huge work volume of historical data has been found, cataloged, analyzed, and while much of it confirms Biblical writings none of it contradicts. Many of the Bible's harshest critics are probably unaware that the refutations that were used when they were in college have since been disproven.
Ken McKnight said...
You really are hilarious, Christine. I actually guffawed out loud when I read your comment above. I pretty much agree with your list of 5 characteristics of people who are not seeking the truth.
Christine: So since you agree with them, it is true that you are not seeking the truth about God, Jesus and the Bible?
Ken: Do you read your own blog?
Yes. Do you read the Bible?
Ken: You have captured your own closed mind exactly!
Christine: Here we go again. The usual "closed mind" argument when someone disagrees with Christian faith and the truth of the Bible. What about your closed mind?? (See Gary's latest comment)
Ken: Ridicule, disparage, and mock? Make a list of the names you called Obama in the above post.
Christine: OK. I will take your advice.
Here's what I wrote:
past radical associations; i.e. the "Chicago Way" ruthless political thuggery, financial terrorism brought about by Obama puppet-master and supporter George Soros, the ACORN voter fraud, schmoozing with terrorists - both domestic (Ayers, Dohrn) and foreign (mostly Islamic but to many to list) and with criminals (Rezko, Blago), far-left ideology, sitting in the pews of a racist anti-white church while the "reverend" spewed hatred towards Americans, and last but not least, the neo-Marxist Fascism that Obama wants as the "future" for America - might just pale in comparison to the horrible things he is actually now doing to our country with just two months into his Usurpency.
Now you tell me. Which one of those labels are not true about him?
Ken: Like so many Christians you walk through life with your eyes covered and your ears plugged,
Christine: Oh no - that is where you are ENTIRELY wrong about me. My eyes and ears are wide open to what is going on - probably more so than most people.
Ken: frantically repeating Bible verses so you can't be exposed to anything that might call your faith into question.
Christine: So, what is so wrong with repeating Bible verses?
As far as being "exposed to anything that might call my faith into question goes," the answer is that it happens every day! However, it is OTHERS who are calling my faith (as well as the faith of Christianity as a whole)into question - not me. My faith is built upon the Rock of salvation - Jesus Christ. As was discussed in a previous comment thread (with Susan Smith) - "He (Jesus) is faithful even when I'm (we) are not."
Ken: It's SO easy to call my comments gibberish and then just ignore them.
Christine: I felt that your question(s) were duly answered by others in this thread. Were they not? Gary's latest one refutes your premise entirely. (Thanks Gary - awesome comment!)
Ken - Do you need more? Get the book Gary suggested.
But you are right about one thing. I should not have labeled your comments as "gibberish" IF you are genuinely seeking the truth about God, Jesus Christ and the Bible.
Are you?
From what I have read from you in the past here at this blog, it never appears to me that you are seeking truth. You are here just to do all of those other things that I had previously listed.
However, if you are genuinely seeking the truth about God, Jesus Christ and the Bible then I will have a totally different attitude towards you in the future.
Your choice.
First of all, Christine, let me give you some credit. There are many Christian websites that would not allow comments such as mine to be posted at all, so I do respect your courage in that regard. I think I also detected a slight glimmer of open-mindedness in your last comment. I think there's hope for you yet. I hope you can appreciate that I try to keep my remarks civil and avoid obscene language.
Sosthenes: The restoration of the state of Israel is a textbook example of a self-fulfilling prophecy. If it hadn't happened. . .now that would be a miracle. The holy book of millions of people said it would happen as a sign of the end times which they so eagerly looked forward to. Hitler's maniacal attack on the Jews and the world's subsequent guilt and shame made fulfillment inevitable.
Gary Baker: With all due respect, you are just wrong. None of the archaeological finds prove any supernatural elements of the Bible. Is the Bible historically accurate in some details? Of course. Why shouldn't it be? Is it demonstrably wrong on some points? Yes. Case in point: It says the mustard seed is the smallest of all the seeds. It isn't. There is ZERO evidence that Moses and his people spent 40 years in the desert, and many people have looked diligently for it. You say "probably" Bible critics are unaware of new findings since the 1960"s. This is wishful thinking on your part and simply not true. I am aware of Josh McDowell, as well as Lee Strobel, Ray Comfort, Hal Lindsey, and many of the other popular apologists. Their arguments have all been shredded by more knowledgable people than I. They always make the same mistake: They start with what they know is the truth and then work backwards to make the evidence fit.
I can confidently say that I am always looking for the truth--the truth about everything, not just God and Jesus and the Bible. If you can say the same, I challenge you to explore the following, all of which were written by people who were born-again, spirit-filled evangelical Christians who lost their faith when they honestly explored their beliefs: 1. Godless, by Dan Barker; 2. Misquoting Jesus, by Bart Ehrman; 3. Why I Rejected Christianity, by John Loftus; and 4. Letting Go of God, by Julia Sweeney. Numbers 2 and 3 were written by conservative, dyed-in-the-wool Bible scholars who were shocked by their own doubts. Do you have the courage of your convictions?
"Sosthenes: The restoration of the state of Israel is a textbook example of a self-fulfilling prophecy. If it hadn't happened. . .now that would be a miracle. The holy book of millions of people said it would happen as a sign of the end times which they so eagerly looked forward to. Hitler's maniacal attack on the Jews and the world's subsequent guilt and shame made fulfillment inevitable."
Ken,
Thank you for your comment. Where is the evidence to support your conclusion that the State of Israel is self-fulfilled prophecy? The burden of proof is on your statement because unless you give a reason it is just "begging the question" which is you just using your argument as the answer which is not something that I find credible or with any good facts. A whole nation just didn't say "I think we'll go into captivity twice" and change their minds and say "never again". What you said is just what people say when they don't have an answer.
Sosthenes
Ken wrote:
"First of all, Christine, let me give you some credit. There are many Christian websites that would not allow comments such as mine to be posted at all, so I do respect your courage in that regard."
Christine: Thank you.
Ken: "I think I also detected a slight glimmer of open-mindedness in your last comment.
Christine: If by "openmindedness" you mean that I am willing to discuss differences, you are correct. However...
Ken: "I think there's hope for you yet."
Christine: If by "there's hope" for me yet - you think that you will somehow blast away my faith in Christ, you are horribly mistaken.
Ken: "I hope you can appreciate that I try to keep my remarks civil and avoid obscene language."
Christine: Thank you for that.
I will await Sosthenes and Gary Baker to respond to the comments you had addressed to them. Just one quick point. The Bible does not say that "the mustard seed is the smallest of all the seeds."
Here are the Bible verses that have "mustard seed" in them:
Mat 13:31 Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field:
Mat 17:20 And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.
Mar 4:31 [It is] like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is sown in the earth, is less than all the seeds that be in the earth:
Luk 13:19 It is like a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and cast into his garden; and it grew, and waxed a great tree; and the fowls of the air lodged in the branches of it.
Luk 17:6 And the Lord said, If ye had faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye might say unto this sycamine tree, Be thou plucked up by the root, and be thou planted in the sea; and it should obey you.
You must be referring to Mark 4:31
Here is what the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge says:
mustard seed Mustard, [sinapi ( siĆ°napi )] is a well-known plant of the tetradynamia siliquosa class, distinguished by its yellow cruciform flowers, with expanding calyx, and its pods smooth, square, and close to the stem. Its seed was probably the smallest known to the Jews; and though its ordinary height does not exceed four feet, yet a species grows to the height of from three to five cubits, with a tapering, ligneous stalk, and spreading branches.
Take special note: "Its seed was probably the smallest known to the Jews" at that time.
Jesus often spoke in parables and shared analogies that the people of that era would understand. Plus, the rest of the facts about how the mustard seed grows with spreading branches gives a good illustration of the spreading of the gospel. That is most likely why Jesus chose to use that seed in his illustration.
Matthew Henry's commentary sheds much light upon this fact.
In this portion, he points out exactly what you are doing with your deliberate distortion disguised as trying to prove the Bible inaccurate in its teachings.
Henry:
I. The way of teaching that Christ used with the multitude (v. 2); He taught them many things, but it was by parables or similitudes, which would tempt them to hear; for people love to be spoken to in their own language, and careless hearers will catch at a plain comparison borrowed from common things, and will retain and repeat that, when they have lost, or perhaps never took, the truth which it was designed to explain and illustrate: but unless they would take pains to search into it, it would but amuse them; seeing they would see, and not perceive (v. 12); and so, while it gratified their curiosity, it was the punishment of their stupidity; they wilfully shut their eyes against the light, and therefore justly did Christ put it into the dark lantern of a parable, which had a bright side toward those who applied it to themselves, and were willing to be guided by it; but to those who were only willing for a season to play with it, it only gave a flash of light now and then, but sent them away in the dark. It is just with God to say of those that will not see, that they shall not see, and to hide from their eyes, who only look about them with a great deal of carelessness, and never look before them with any concern upon the things that belong to their peace.
What I previously stated above may have sounded harsh, but it is the truth. Those who seek to ignore, refute, destroy, dis-believe, distort and clamor against the Bible, God, and the gospel of Jesus Christ do so for one reason. They are all in rebellion. Period.
When I read the verses about the mustard seed, I concentrated on what Matthew Henry expounds upon in this section of his commentary:
"IV. The work of grace is small in its beginnings, but comes to be great and considerable at last (v. 30–32); "Whereunto shall I liken the kingdom of God, as now to be set up by the Messiah? How shall I make you to understand the designed method of it?’’ Christ speaks as one considering and consulting with himself, how to illustrate it with an apt similitude; With what comparison shall we compare it? Shall we fetch it from the motions of the sun, or the revolutions of the moon? No, the comparison is borrowed from this earth, it is like a grain of mustard-seed; he had compared it before to seed sown, here to that seed, intending thereby to show,
1. That the beginnings of the gospel kingdom would be very small, like that which is one of the least of all seeds. When a Christian church was sown in the earth for God, it was all contained in one room, and the number of the names was but one hundred and twenty (Acts 1:15), as the children of Israel, when they went down into Egypt, were but seventy souls. The work of grace in the soul, is, at first, but the day of small things; a cloud no bigger than a man’s hand. Never were there such great things undertaken by such an inconsiderable handful, as that of the discipling of the nations by the ministry of the apostles; nor a work that was to end in such great glory, as the work of grace raised from such weak and unlikely beginnings. Who hath begotten me these?
2. That the perfection of it will be very great; When it grows up, it becomes greater than all herbs. The gospel kingdom in the world, shall increase and spread to the remotest nations of the earth, and shall continue to the latest ages of time. The church hath shot out great branches, strong ones, spreading far, and fruitful. The work of grace in the soul has mighty products, now while it is in its growth; but what will it be, when it is perfected in heaven? The difference between a grain of mustard seed and a great tree, is nothing to that between a young convert on earth and a glorified saint in heaven. See Jn. 12:24."
Ken: "I can confidently say that I am always looking for the truth--the truth about everything, not just God and Jesus and the Bible.
Truth STARTS with God, Jesus, and God's Word, the Bible. When one starts from the inerrant Word of God, the proven life, preaching, death on the cross and resurrection to life of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, with converted lives having the indwelling of the Holy Spirit upon regeneration through repentance of sin and faith in Jesus Christ as Savior - then that is all of the absolute truth that one needs.
Jesus speaking:
Jhn 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
What those who (unfortunately) do when they adamantly reject this truth think:
2Pe 2:2 And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of.
Ken,
"With all due respect, you are just wrong. None of the archaeological finds prove any supernatural elements of the Bible."
Returning your respect, I am not incorrect. The point that I argued was not whether or not the scriptures proved any "supernatural" events. My comment was addressed at your charge that Bible was inaccurate due to the copying process, which it is not (refer to reference cited above). I'm sure you must realize that lack of physical evidence of events that happened several thousand years ago proves nothing. I was referring to some claims which scholars used in the past which have been definitely disproven. For example, scholars used to claim that there never was a King David because they found no mention of him in records of other countries. Until they did. They also claimed that several Biblical cities must not exist because they had never been found. Until they were. Trying to prove something by lack of evidence is rather ridiculous in the extreme.
To say that the arguments of various apologists have been "shredded" really says nothing at all. What you have is a group of scholars which you believe saying what you wish to hear. And I point out that each of the arguments that you make about Josh McDowell and others can be applied to the scholars you name (scientific bias, ignoring data that conflicts with their opinion, etc.)
Now, I fully admit that my faith is just that: faith. While I have received enough evidence from God to convince me beyond doubt, none of it would be considered objective, and therefore it is quite useless in convincing anyone who is predisposed to disbelieve. So be it. My profession, however, is engineering. My livelihood is evaluating data for meaning. I have investigated claims by many and have never found a "smoking gun" which objectively disproves any article of faith. This is an argument that will never be won or lost definitively until the end of things. While you debate the silliness of belief, however, you might consider a few things which are not debatable.
Studies show that people of strong faith are (on average) happier, healthier, and more generous. Countries embracing Christine faith, despite all of their imperfections, have come much further in the areas of equality, rights, and care for the individual than countries founded on other principles. Countries embracing atheism generally become dictatorships with little regard for the individual. While Christians have been given to the same weaknesses common to all men (greed, violence, etc.) they have also formed by far the lion's share of the world's charities and volunteer organizations. Your life would, in all likelihood, be much worse absent people who embrace Christianity, because one of the major virtues emphasized is service. Other religions and philosophies have attempted to organize people to promote virtue. When it comes to achieving results, none has even come close. Deny God and Christ if you will. That's your privilege. But to deny there is something different in the believers is willful blindness. To deny that something real must be causing that difference is pure foolishness.
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