Does the Bible Contain Errors and Contradictions?

9:27 PM in bible answers, bible contradictions, bible errors, scripture

If we read the Bible at face value, without a preconceived bias for finding errors, we will find it to be a coherent, consistent, and relatively easy-to-understand book. Yes, there are difficult passages. Yes, there are verses that appear to contradict each other. We must remember that the Bible was written by approximately 40 different authors over a period of around 1500 years. Each writer wrote with a different style, from a different perspective, to a different audience, for a different purpose. We should expect some minor differences. However, a difference is not a contradiction. It is only an error if there is absolutely no conceivable way the verses or passages can be reconciled. Even if an answer is not available right now, that does not mean an answer does not exist. Many have found a supposed error in the Bible in relation to history or geography only to find out that the Bible is correct once further archaeological evidence is discovered.
We often receive questions along the lines of "Explain how these verses do not contradict!" or "Look, here is an error in the Bible!" Admittedly, some of the things people bring up are difficult to answer. However, it is our contention that there are viable and intellectually plausible answers to every supposed Bible contradiction and error. There are books and websites available that list "all the errors in the Bible." Most people simply get their ammunition from these places; they do not find supposed errors on their own. There are also books and websites available that refute every one of these supposed errors. The saddest thing is that most people who attack the Bible are not truly interested in an answer. Many "Bible attackers" are even aware of these answers, but they continue to use the same old shallow attacks again and again.
So, what are we to do when someone approaches us with an alleged Bible error? 1) Prayerfully study the Scriptures and see if there is a simple solution. 2) Do some research using some of the fine Bible commentaries, "Bible defense" books,and biblical research websites. 3) Ask our pastors/church leaders to see if they can find a solution. 4) If there is still no clear answer after steps 1), 2), and 3) are followed, we trust God that His Word is truth and that there is a solution that just simply has not been realized yet (2 Timothy 2:15, 3:16-17).

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Biblical Textual Criticism

6:45 PM in critical text, King James Only, KJV, majority text, onlyism, texts receptus

Ancient Greek Manuscript

Textual criticism is a method used to determine what the original manuscripts of the Bible said. The original manuscripts of the Bible are either lost, hidden, or no longer in existence. What we do have is tens of thousands of copies of the original manuscripts dating from the 1st to the 15th centuries A.D. (for the New Testament) and dating from the 4th century B.C. to the 15th century A.D. (for the Old Testament). In these manuscripts, there are many minor and a few somewhat major differences. Textual criticism is the study of these manuscripts in an attempt to determine what the original reading actually was.

Texts Receptus
There are three primary Greek New Testaments composed from different types of textual criticism. The first is the Textus Receptus. The Textus Receptus was a manuscript of the Bible that was compiled by a man named Erasmus in the 1500s A.D. He took the limited number of manuscripts he had access to and compiled them into what eventually became known as the Textus Receptus. The Textus Receptus is the textual basis behind the King James Version and New King James Version.

Majority Text
A second is known as the Majority Text. The Majority Text takes all of the manuscripts that are available today, compares the differences, and chooses the most likely correct reading based on which reading occurs the most. For example, if 748 manuscripts read "he said" and 1429 manuscripts read "they said" - the Majority Text will go with "they said" as the most likely original reading. There are no major Bible translations that are based on the Majority Text.

Critical Text
The third method is known as the critical or eclectic method. The eclectic method involves considering external and internal evidences for determining the most likely original text. External evidence makes us ask these questions: in how many manuscripts does the reading occur? what are the dates for these manuscripts? in what region of the world were these manuscripts found? Internal evidence prompts these questions: what could have caused these varying readings? Which reading can possibly explain the origin of the other readings? The New International Version, New American Standard, New Living Translation, and most other Bible translations use the Eclectic Text.

Which method is most accurate?
That is where the debate begins. When the methods are first described to someone, the person typically picks the Majority Text as the method that should be used. It is essentially the "majority rules" and the "democratic" method. However, there is a regional issue to consider here. In the first few centuries of the church, the vast majority of Christians spoke and wrote in Greek. Starting in the 4th century A.D., Latin began to become the most common language, especially in the church. Starting with the Latin Vulgate, the New Testament began to be copied in Latin instead of Greek.
However, in the eastern Christian world, Greek continued to be the dominant language of the church for over 1000 more years. As a result, the vast majority of Greek manuscripts are from the eastern / Byzantine region. These Byzantine manuscripts are all very similar to each other. They likely all originated in the same few Greek manuscripts. While being very similar to each other, the Byzantine manuscripts have numerous differences with the manuscripts found in the western and central regions of the church. So, it essentially boils down to this: if you started with three manuscripts, one was copied 100 times, another was copied 200 times, and the third was copied 5000 times, which group is going to have the majority rule? The third group, of course. However, the third group is no more likely to have the original reading than the first or second group. It only has more copies. The critical / eclectic method of textual criticism gives equal "weight" to the manuscripts from different regions, despite the manuscripts from the East having the overwhelming majority.
How does the critical / eclectic method work in practice? If you compare John 5:1-9 in the King James Version (Textus Receptus) and the New International Version (Critical Text), you will notice that verse 4 is missing from the NIV. In the KJV, John 5:4 reads, "For an angel went down at a certain season into the pool, and troubled the water: whosoever then first after the troubling of the water stepped in was made whole of whatsoever disease he had." Why is this verse missing from the NIV (and the other Bible translations which use the Critical Text)? The eclectic method works as follows: (1) The text of John 5:4 does not occur in most of the oldest manuscripts. (2) The text of John 5:4 occurs in all of the Byzantine manuscripts, but not many of the non-eastern manuscripts. (3) It is more likely that a scribe would add an explanation than it is that a scribe would remove an explanation. John 5:4 makes it more clear why the crippled man wanted to get into the pool. Why would a scribe remove this verse? That does not make sense. It does make sense for that the tradition of why the crippled man wanted to get into the pool would be added. As a result of these concepts, the Critical / Eclectic Text does not include John 5:4.
No matter what method of textual criticism you believe is correct, this is an issue that should be discussed with grace, respect, and kindness. Christians can and do disagree on this issue. We can debate the methods, but we should not attack the motivations and character of those with whom we disagree on this issue. We all have the same goal"to determine the most likely original wording of the Bible. Some simply have different methods to achieve that goal.

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What does the Bible say about sex before marriage?

4:34 PM in bible answers, bible questions, fornication, God, Jesus Christ, purity, sex, sex before marriage, tough questions

There is no Hebrew or Greek word used in the Bible that precisely refers to sex before marriage. The Bible undeniably condemns adultery and sexual immorality, but is sex before marriage considered sexually immoral? According to 1 Corinthians 7:2,“yes” is the clear answer: “But since there is so much immorality, each man should have his own wife, and each woman her own husband.” In this verse, Paul states that marriage is the “cure” for sexual immorality. First Corinthians 7:2 is essentially saying that, because people cannot control themselves and so many are having immoral sex outside of marriage, people should get married. Then they can fulfill their passions in a moral way.
Since 1 Corinthians 7:2 clearly includes sex before marriage in the definition of sexual immorality, all of the Bible verses that condemn sexual immorality as being sinful also condemn sex before marriage as sinful. Sex before marriage is included in the biblical definition of sexual immorality. There are numerous Scriptures that declare sex before marriage to be a sin (Acts 15:20; 1 Corinthians 5:1; 6:13,18; 10:8; 2 Corinthians 12:21; Galatians 5:19; Ephesians 5:3; Colossians 3:5; 1 Thessalonians 4:3; Jude 1:7). The Bible promotes complete abstinence before marriage. Sex between a husband and his wife is the only form of sexual relations of which God approves (Hebrews 13:4).
Far too often we focus on the “recreation” aspect of sex without recognizing that there is another aspect—procreation. Sex within marriage is pleasurable, and God designed it that way. God wants men and women to enjoy sexual activity within the confines of marriage. Song of Solomon and several other Bible passages (such as Proverbs 5:19) clearly describe the pleasure of sex. However, the couple must understand that God’s intent for sex includes producing children. Thus, for a couple to engage in sex before marriage is doubly wrong—they are enjoying pleasures not intended for them, and they are taking a chance of creating a human life outside of the family structure God intended for every child.
While practicality does not determine right from wrong, if the Bible's message on sex before marriage were obeyed, there would be far fewer sexually transmitted diseases, far fewer abortions, far fewer unwed mothers and unwanted pregnancies, and far fewer children growing up without both parents in their lives. Abstinence is God’s only policy when it comes to sex before marriage. Abstinence saves lives, protects babies, gives sexual relations the proper value, and, most importantly, honors God.

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A "Taste" of Slavery

4:35 PM in child labor, child slavery, chocolate, forced labor, human trafficking, Injustice, ivory coast, Perspective, slavery

A Sweet Taste?

Do you enjoy the sweet taste of chocolate? It's safe to say that most of us do being that Americans alone spend over 18 billion dollars each year on it. Would that sweet taste suddenly turn bitter if you found out that behind the production of that tasty candy bar were child slaves? Hard to believe? It sure is. However, that doesn't change the fact that if you walk into a grocery store and buy a chocolate bar, the chances are good that it comes from the Ivory Coast. What is the Ivory Coast? A geographical host of cacao plantations on the coast of Africa that enslave children into forced labor. If you're still skeptical, I encourage you to watch the film "The Dark Side of Chocolate". This documentary captures the horrible injustice of human trafficking and how children are trafficked to work as slaves in the cacao plantations.

What about the big corporations? Why don't they do something? Well, until now they just didn't have to, at least in California that is. A bill passed this January (California Transparency in Supply Chains Act) that requires companies in California to disclose their efforts to eradicate slavery and human trafficking from their direct supply chains for goods offered for sale. The disclosure must be posted on the retailer or manufacturer’s website with a conspicuous and easily understood link from the homepage. Now if every other state would jump on board with this, it would be a good start to fighting this slavery. But what can you do about it?

Fair Trade Certified Products

Many have not heard of fair trade certified products. What is fair trade? It is a partnership based on dialogue, mutual understanding and respect for farmers and artisans. Fair Trade means that farmers and artisans get a fair, living wage for their crops and products. Through Fair Trade, farming and working families are able to eat better, send their kids to school, improve health and housing, and invest in their future. Fair Trade builds equitable and sustainable trading partnerships and creates opportunities to break the cycle of poverty. By supporting Fair Trade, you are directly helping developing countries climb out of poverty one family at a time, as well as protecting them from human trafficking.

I personally buy fair trade certified coffee. Not only does it taste extremely good, it is purchased for a good cause! They also give 75% of their profit toward other charitable needs. Vivente International has set the bar when it comes to fair trade coffee, and in my opinion cannot be outdone even by the bigwigs like Starbucks.

There are fair trade products everywhere, you just have to open your eyes. Fair trade chocolate, coffee, tea, even fair trade certified shirts. So what can we do to battle modern day slavery? Make wise buying decisions... buy fair trade. Visit the Fair Trade USA website for a list of certified companies you can purchase from.

To learn more about human trafficking and fair trade, visit www.SpeakAgainstInjustice.com

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Trusting, Listening, Obeying God - (Cambodia)

5:51 AM in Calvary Murrieta, Cambodia, Global Recordings Network, Khmer, Perspective, Phnom Penh, trusting God, Water of Life

"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go."
-Joshua 1:9

God is commanding Joshua to cross the Jordan river into an unknown land filled with enemies. Understandably, a man may fear what awaits him, the uncertainty of the future. But he goes... trusting, listening and obeying God.

My will or God's will?

"God, I want to go here. Lord, I want to go there. I want to do this, I want to do that". Do you see a pattern here? It's all about me. The problem is that I am presenting my will to God and asking Him to bless it. I've humbly come to the realization that instead, I am to surrender all of myself to Him. I am to bow at His feet and say, "God, here I am. Where do You want me to go? What do You want me to do?". Rather than presenting my will to God, I need to ask Him to present His will to me.

The Initial Call

God is an amazing, detail oriented God. For quite some time I have had it on my heart to go on a mission trip. The question I've always had is "where and why?". As I was browsing the website of the church I belong to (calvarymurrieta.com), I cam across the missions page. While browsing through the various upcoming mission trips, something grabbed my attention... Cambodia. Why you ask? Not sure to be honest. A few seconds later my attention was further grasped on the contact name for the mission trip to Cambodia... Ted Turnure. "What? Ted didn't say anything about going to Cambodia". Interested in what my friend was going to be doing in Cambodia (but not really desiring to go), I text messaged him and asked him to fill me in.

The Starbucks Starter

About a week later Ted and I sat down at the famous Starbucks and began to chat. There is something about sitting down and having a cup of coffee with a brother that blesses my soul. As Ted began to fill me in on Cambodia, my heart was touched, pricked, and the Holy Spirit began to move. Interestingly, Ted asked how I even knew about the Cambodia trip. Come to find out, it wasn't really even suppose to be on the church website (well, according to Ted anyway. God had a differing opinion). As the Spirit began to move he invited me to come along as he felt it would be a blessing to have me there in the work they planned on doing. Of course, we agreed to pray on it to see where the Lord leads before making any pathetic human decisions. So we prayed, parted and continued to pray.

The Confirmation

Ever pray consistently about something and feel like God maybe doesn't hear you, or that He is ignoring you? Yeah, that's kind of how I felt. Of course, being a young American with an anxiety disorder, I want everything now! Well, God doesn't work like that. After about a week I received a voice mail from Ted explaining that they were giving a public tour at the GRN (globalrecordings.net/en/) headquarters in Temecula, Ca and something about a Cambodian missionary. I agreed to his invite and a few hours later I found myself in this building with a large group of people I didn't know. They gave us a tour of GRN, which was just an amazing eye opener. I love that ministry. They take the great commission quite seriously. If you're not familiar with them, I encourage you to visit their website I provided above and check them out.

After the tour, we were led into a large room and were seated. At that time the Spirit had so moved in me because of what this ministry was about. It really blessed me. As we settled in our seats, a couple came up to speak. They were Cambodian missionaries. They had spent years in Cambodia. The husband was an American, and the wife had grown up there as a result of her family migrating there from China. Her testimony was intense and emotional. She had been living in Cambodia when all the turmoil, genocide, killing, etc. had taken place by way of the Khmer Rouge (1975 - 1979). Some of her family members died, she was running and hiding for her life. Bless God she eventually reached a refugee camp where God called her to salvation. She then was moved to San Fransisco, where she met her husband. Years later they ended up back in Cambodia as missionaries. Needless to say this brought an awareness to me regarding the current state of the Cambodian people. I guess God wanted to get my heart nice and soft for it.

While we were there, Ted had tapped me on the shoulder... pointing to a man across the room. "See that guy right there?" he asked. It just so happened to be one of the Directors of "Water of Life", the ministry in Phnom Penh, Cambodia who will be hosting our stay there. What are the chances? God is so cool. Afterward Ted introduced us, and we began to talk about Cambodia. He greatly encouraged me to go, and explained that I would be welcome there.

For any unbelievers who may be reading, this is the point in which you hear us crazy Christians say things like "the Lord is calling me to Cambodia", or "God has put this on my heart". At this point God was sending me a clear message, a message which would soon turn into doubt.

The Doubt

It seemed to me that God wanted me to go to Cambodia, so I drafted a support letter and sent it out. In the first 36 hours I raised $600! The following week I received another $100. Wow, is God good or what? Then... nothing. Weeks went by and I hadn't received another dollar. I began to doubt. Maybe God had other planes? Maybe He was using this to do something else. What should I do??? "Wait on the Lord; Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the Lord!" - Psalm 27:14. Kind of hard to do when you live in a culture of fast food, OnDemand, DVR's, instant messaging, email, etc., etc., etc. But I waited, and continued to pray. A month went by, and I was still at $700. I needed $1100 to buy my ticket... I was $400 short. I had accepted the fact that I was not going to Cambodia, and trusted that the Lord had guided me to do all of this for a different reason that I didn't know yet. My wife and I made an agreement with God... "If you want me to go, you'll provide the funds. If not, then I am totally content with that".

Folks began to ask why I didn't just go? Borrow the money in good faith! Get the ticket while you can! International flights can sell out quickly. "No" I said. "That is man trying to make it happen. I want God to make it happen. If He's not in it, than neither am I". Praying... waiting... praying... waiting. Oh well.

I told Pastor Larry and Ted on a Thursday night that I wouldn't be joining the Cambodia team. It seemed final, I wasn't going.

God's Timing and Ways

That following Sunday, lo and behold, a brother I hadn't seen in over two years walked up to me after service and out of nowhere wrote me a check for $400 (jaw hits floor). How did he know that I needed that? How did he know the amount I needed? ANSWER: God.
Now if I were God, I would have just given me the money in the beginning. Why did He wait? Better yet, why did He make me wait? Funny how we all have our "if I were God...". Guess what, I'm not God. I am a lowly, filthy hearted sinner who knows no better for myself than a dumb sheep walking off a cliff. "For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways," says the Lord." - Isaiah 55:8.

One thing I can say is this... it is so liberating and freeing to just wait on the Lord. Surrendering myself to Him through this time and allowing Him to guide and work has not only blessed me, it has allowed me to hear from God in a real, absolute and clarifying way. If He would have just flopped the money on the table I wouldn't have been able to see His hand in all of this like I have.

Now there is not one shred of doubt in my soul that Jesus wants me to go to Cambodia. Although it is scary to leave my wife and kids for 17 days, to fly for 19 hours to the other side of the world, to be in an environment with people who are poor, sick, disease ridden, have no clean drinking water, etc... but like Joshua, I will put my trust in the LORD GOD. I will be courageous, I will not be afraid, I will not be dismayed, for the Lord my God is with me wherever I go.

In His will,
-Chad

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