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Is the Bible Reliable or Is It More Like a Fairytale?

samuel kee —  May 12, 2013 — Leave a comment

 

This is "Papyrus 52," containing the gospel of John

This is “Papyrus 52,” containing the gospel of John

Over the last four posts, we’ve been discussing the question, “Can I take the Bible seriously?”  In order to come to a conclusion, we’ve been discussing five questions, the final one having to do with how to evaluate an ancient book.  In the last post, we discussed the authenticity of the Bible.  In this post, we’ll examine the reliability of the Bible.  Specifically, we’ll answer the question, “is the Bible just a fairytale?”  After all, the claims of the New Testament seem too good to be true, extravagant, etc.  Can the claims of the New Testament be trusted?  By using the Historical Research Method, we’ll seek to discover if the New Testament is a reliable ancient manuscript. 

There are three “checks” we’ll use to discern the reliability of the New Testament: internal consistency, external consistency, and other supportive evidences.

Check 1: Internal consistency

There are three things to look for to check the internal consistency of an ancient manuscript.  First, check to see if the author of a particular book in the Bible is consistent with himself.  Make sure that he does not contradict himself within the same book or in another book that he has written, i.e., make sure John does not contradict what he writes in John with what he writes in Revelation.

Second, check to see if the various eyewitnesses are consistent with each other, making sure that one biblical book does not contradict another.  In claiming that two books contradict each other, one is asserting that there is no possible/logical way for the two books to make sense together.  The writings of the apostle Paul are consistent with the writings of the apostle Peter, in other words.

Third, determine the amount and quality of claims an event has.  As far as the NT goes, the more witnesses there are to an event, the more credible it is.  For instance, the gospels provide four accounts to the life and events of Jesus’ life.  Such evidence bolsters the case for Christ.  In addition to these four accounts, books such as Acts, Paul’s letters, and Hebrews through Revelation also testify of Jesus.  Furthermore, this testimony is internally consistent.

In sum, the writings of the New Testament do not show any signs of fabrication or legendary development.  They are consistent and contain a coherent message.

Check 2: External consistency

In order to test for external consistency, we’ll look at five components.

First, there are ancient historians who testify to Jesus’ life and the events of the New Testament.  When we crack open the history books, do we find historians that refer to biblical characters?  Yes!  Josephus, who was not a Christian, references to the deaths of John the Baptist and James, the relative of Jesus.  Even more, Josephus writes about Jesus:

“At this time there was a wise man who was called Jesus.  His conduct was good, and [he] was known to be virtuous.  And many people from among the Jews and other nations became his disciples.  Pilate condemned him to be crucified and to die.  But those who had become his disciples did not abandon his discipleship.  They reported that he had appeared to them three days after his crucifixion, and that he was alive; accordingly he was perhaps the Messiah, concerning whom the prophets have recounted wonders” (from “Testimonium” by Agapius, as found in Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels, Scott, p. 394).

Second, there are church authorities who testify to the life of Jesus.  These early church founders provide external evidence of Jesus’ life when they write about biblical events in their works.  For example, certain church fathers make reference to the fact that they actually knew a disciple of Jesus (Polycarp knew John).

Third, archaeology confirms the biblical record, over and over again.  For instance, modern archaeology has excavated the house of Peter, the synagogue build by the centurion in Luke 7, and a first century church in Capernaum.  Further, in 1992, the burial grounds of Caiaphas, the Jewish high priest mentioned in John, and his family were found buried in Jerusalem.

Fourth, the strategy for using eyewitnesses is consistent with other ancient writings.  Richard Bauckham’s book Jesus and the Eyewitnesses describes how history was written in ancient times.  Unlike today, history in New Testament times was written from eyewitness accounts.  Today, we’re comfortable relying on second, third, and fourth hand accounts.  But ancient people did not write history this way.  They did their research by utilizing first (and maybe second) hand witnesses.  You had to have seen the event in order to be a reliable witness.  Then, when the historian was recording the event, he would mention the name of a witness as a way of supporting his claim.  The names mentioned in Scripture, such as Rufus, Simon, and Tabitha, were the names of real first hand witnesses, who could be called up on at any time to verify the claims.  That’s why their names were mentioned by the New Testament writers.  Their names were like modern day “footnotes.”  If anyone reading one of the New Testament books questioned the claims, then one of the “footnotes” could be personally consulted.  That was the purpose of mentioning the names of the eyewitnesses.  In addition, when it comes to the New Testament, females witnesses were used when supporting the claims of the resurrection.  Since female testimony held no authority in a court of law, it is highly unlikely that the gospel writers “made up” their stories.  Were they wanting to convince their readers that the resurrection were true, then they would have “made up” male witnesses, whose testimony was considered credible in ancient times.  The only reason that female witnesses were used, therefore, is because that’s exactly the way it happened: Jesus rose from the dead and some females were the first witnesses of it.  That is not the mark of a legend or a myth, but of real history.

Fifth, the New Testament books do not contain the marks of typical ancient fiction (legends or myths), and this is a sure indication that they are not works of fiction.  Many scholars have noted the vast difference between the New Testament accounts and the accounts of ancient fiction.  Ancient fiction did not use detail, as the New Testament does.  In the New Testament, we’re told many details within the writing.  For instance, we learn in John 21 that 153 fish were caught.  We learn specific hours of the day when event happened.  We learn locations and professions, etc.  Works of legend or myth do not provide this kind of detail—nowhere in ancient fiction do you find the kind of detail that is given in the New Testament.  This can only mean that the New Testament is not a work of fiction or legend, but of truth.  Again, the New Testament does not have the marks of a legend or myth, which develops centuries after the lives of the people concerned, in order to fool the ignorant reader.  The New Testament is not written to fool anyone, but through its use of eyewitnesses and historical, geographical, and social detail, seeks to bolster the reader’s confidence in the reliability of the claims and the events behind them.  The New Testament is completely vulnerable and honest, often including details that make its heroes (Jesus and the disciples) look like weaklings or fools, rather than compromise the truth.  This can only be because the New Testament writers were not interested in creating a legend, but communicating the truth.  An honest reading of the New Testament will convince you of this.  It has nothing to hide.

Check 3: Other supportive evidence

In our final check, we’ll look at other supportive evidences: the uniqueness of Scripture, the affect that Scripture has on people’s lives, and the predictive power of Scripture.  Each of these evidences further builds the reliability of the Bible (along with the other checks, of course).

First, the uniqueness of Scripture is another evidence of its reliability.  Even though there are many biblical authors over thousands of years, the testimony of the Bible remains uniform: how to get sinners into a relationship with a Holy God.

Second, the affect that Scripture has on people’s lives is quite astounding.  The disciples and many Christians after them have been transformed by the Bible.  Christians have had an unwavering witness of God’s word, even to death.

Third, the predictive power of the Bible is another evidence.  Just consider the Messianic prophecies, alone.  There are about 300 Old Testament predictions that were literally fulfilled in the life of Jesus Christ.  These OT writings point to Jesus, the great Treasure of the Bible. 

  • Born of a woman (Gen 3:15; Gal 4:4)
  • Born of a virgin (Isa 7:14; Matt 1:18-25)
  • Descendant of Abraham (Gen 12:1-3; Matt 1:1)
  • From the tribe of Judah (Gen 49:10; Lk 2:23, 33)
  • Of the house of David (2 Sam 7:12; Matt 1:1)
  • Born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2; Matt 2:1)
  • Time of his appearance and death (Dan 9:24-27; Lk 19:44)
  • Betrayal price (Zech 11:12-13; Matt 26:15)
  • Isa 52:13-53:12 (written 700 years before Jesus’ birth) speaks of the suffering servant, who would be sinless, a substitute, scourged, pierced through, placed in a rich man’s grave, lifted up after death, and exalted.

Other passages in the Bible predict these things about the Messiah:

  • Abandoned by his disciples
  • Silent before his accusers
  • Beaten and spat upon
  • Mocked
  • Hands and feet pierced
  • Crucified with transgressors
  • Lots cast for his garments
  • Cry from the cross
  • No bones broken
  • Pierced in his side
  • Ascension into heaven
  • Seated at the right hand of God

Other remarkable OT prophecies include details about the overthrow of Nineveh, Babylon, Ammon and Moab, Philistia, Edom, Memphis and Thebes, and Palestine.  It is safe to say that no other book ever written has this kind of prophetic power.

Is It For Me?

This brings us to our final question of the Historical Research Method—a personal one.  You might not think that it’s appropriate to introduce a personal question within a scientific framework.  But for our purposes, I believe it is.  The nature of the Bible demands this question.  Any piece of literature seeks to communicate and the Bible is no different.  However, the Bible is different in that it claims to communicate the very words of God.  As I’ve written before, the Bible is the word of God in the words of humans.  God wants to say something to us: he loves us and has forgiven us.

Jesus believed the biblical texts to be the truth (John 17:17, “Your word is truth.”).  Paul claims that all scripture is God-breathed (2 Timothy 3:16-17).  As we have discovered through the Historical Research Method, the case for the truthfulness of the Bible has become strong.  The Bible is a book to be trusted.  We are to build our lives on it, rather than on the foundations that will crumble like sand (Matthew 7:24-27).  If this Bible is true and accurate, then we must consider what it has to say.  We would be foolish to ignore it.

The Bible claims that all humans have sinned and cannot be in a relationship with a perfect God by their own efforts.  The Bible claims that Jesus lived a perfect life, died unfairly for us sinners, and rose from the grave triumphantly.  He bore the punishment for our wrongs.  The Bible claims that if we believe in him, abandoning our lives to the cause of Christ and to his eternal glory, then we will be raised with Christ at the last day.  The Bible also warns those who do not give their lives to him of the judgment that is theirs.  Both blessing and warning come from the same book, and this book is true.

Is this book for you?  Perhaps your heart already knows the answer.  Start with the resurrection of Jesus and discover the compelling claims of Scripture.  Scripture makes plain what our consciences remind us of every day: there is no hope within this world (alone) and we need a Savior.  The Bible contains the solution that we have been longing to find.

© Samuel Kee, 2013

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Was the Bible Forged or is it Authentic?

samuel kee —  May 9, 2013 — Leave a comment
This is "Papyrus 52," containing the gospel of John

This is “Papyrus 52,” containing the gospel of John

If you’re just tuning in, we’ve been answering the question, “Can I take the Bible seriously” over the last three posts.  To determine this, we’ve been answering a series of questions:  1) Do you honestly believe that there is no truth?  2) Who is to say that you have the truth and others don’t?  3) What is the purpose of the Bible? and 4) Are you sure you’re interpreting it correctly?  We are now ready to answer our final question (which will take three posts to do!):

Are you sure you know how to evaluate the reliability of ancient books?

Even though pop culture has claimed a lot of things about the Bible’s origins, such that it was composed hundreds or thousands of years after the life of Jesus, was determined by power-hungry church councils, and that its contents are just myths or legends, there is a way to discover the truth.  It’s a method used by historians anytime they are trying to discern the authenticity and reliability of an ancient document.  It’s called the Historical Research Method.

By using the Historical Research Method, we have a way of determining if pop culture is right, or not.  This is an informed, intelligent approach to help you answer the question if you should take the Bible seriously.  Again, this is the way that most ancient document are evaluated, how we come to trust some and not others.  It’s a scientific approach to history.

The Historical Research Method asks two major questions of any document, but I will add a third.  First, Is it forged?  (In other words, is it authentic?)  Second, Is it a fairytale?  (In other words, is it reliable?)  The third question I will add is this, Is it for me?

Before we begin, we need to remember that the Bible is a historical book.  So the normal means of historical research can show whether or not it was a forged hoax.  While we will focus on the New Testament, for the brevity of this article, the Old Testament cold also be tested in the same ways.  In fact, the Old Testament would pass the tests a bit better in some areas than the New Testament.

Is It Forged?

We need to determine if the Bible was forged, or not.  Was it written at a later date, by imposters who claimed to be people who they were not?  To discover the truth, the Historical Research Method leads us through a series of four tests.  First, determine when it was written.  Second, determine what it really says.  Third, determine how certain we can be about what it says.  Fourth, determine who wrote it.  If a document “passes” these tests, then we can conclude that the Bible was not forged; therefore, it is authentic.  It is what it claims to be, the words of God in the words of humans.   Let me briefly walk you through the four tests.

Test 1: When was it written?

To determine when an ancient document was written, we have to look at three features of the document which will help us discover the time period.  Imagine if a person who lives two thousand years from now discovers the remains of your home.  How will they know what time period your home was from?  Suppose they found an iPhone 5 buried in the rubble.  After doing some research, they’ll be able to determine the general time period of your home, based on the time period of the iPhone 5.  This is roughly the idea of how historians discover when a document was written.

First, they look at the orthography.  This is the process of examining handwriting or scripts, what we might call “fonts.”  Certain styles and types of handwriting come out of certain time periods.  When looking at the handwriting of ancient Bible manuscripts, scientists are able to determine what time period they came from.  In fact, orthography has determined that the Bible’s New Testament manuscripts are very old, dating back within a couple decades of Jesus Christ.

Second, they look at the materials on which the early copies were written.  The New Testament documents were written on papyrus, while later copies were written on parchment or animal skins.  The kind of material an ancient document was written on helps to determine how old it is.  The oldest New Testament documents were not written in books, in other words, for books were not invented yet.

Third, they look at the earliest copies that have been discovered.  To date, the earliest copies of New Testament writings are fragments that scientists date as early as 68 AD (it’s a fragment of Mark 5:52-53).  Another very old fragment has been dated at 120 AD (of John 18:31-33).

Because of orthography, document materials, and document dating, the Historical Research Method shows us that the New Testament was not written hundreds of years after the life of Christ, but just a decade or so, during the lifetime of the disciples of Jesus.  This means that it could have been written by the disciples of Jesus, just as the documents themselves claim.  They were not later fabrications.

Test 2: What does it really say?

The second test is to determine what the New Testament really says, in its earliest versions.  I’ve heard so many people over the years say something like, “You can’t trust the Bible, because people have changed it so many times.  And you can never know what it originally said.”  Therefore, goes the conclusion, our modern Bibles are not authentic to the first writings of the disciples.  The Historical Research Method will help us to determine if these claims have any legitimacy.  We will look at language, the “witnesses,” the number of early copies, and then some other comparisons.

First, in order to discover what the earliest versions of the New Testament say, you have to understand the language.  The New Testament was written in Koine Greek.  Suppose that someone discovers a document that was not written in Koine Greek, then it would be safe to say that it is not an early version of the New Testament.  You have to know Koine Greek to determine what the earliest copies of the New Testament say.

Second, you have to look at all of the “witnesses.”  By witnesses, I mean all of the manuscripts that contain New Testament writings.  By gathering all of these together, we get a clearer picture of what the New Testament said in its original form.  This is like doing research at the library or online.  The more sources you can find that match up, the better your chances of discovering the truth.  In the case of the New Testament, since the original manuscripts (the ones written by the disciples) did not survive, we have to rely on these copies (or witnesses).  As you know, there were no printing presses back then!  Here are examples of the early witnesses, which fall into four types of manuscripts:

Papyri and Codices

These are Greek manuscripts of the NT books.  They exist as partial or complete copies.  One of the earliest known papyri is dated 120 A.D.  It is a fragment of the Gospel of John, a manuscript existing within a generation (about 40 years) of when John wrote the original.  Papyri were written on papyrus.  Codices are even larger portions of Greek scripture.

In sum, there is an incredible amount of these Greek manuscripts still in existence, totaling over 5,000 in all.  Such a large amount is ideal for trying to find out what the originals said.  To do this, the many copies are compared with each other.  In a complex process called “textual criticism,” the most logical copies win the vote.  With so many copies, we have greater confidence in determining what the original autographs said.

Early Versions

These are not written in Greek, but are early translations of the Greek into other languages throughout church history, such as Latin.  These early versions also serve as witnesses to what the original writings were, thereby increasing the authenticity of Scripture.

Quotes of Scripture

Just as happens today, the New Testament was quoted in the writing of others.  This is yet another way of discovering what the New Testament really said.  For instance, if Polycarp (an ancient friend of the apostle John) quotes a Bible verse from the Gospel of John, then we can compare his quotation to the Early Versions, Papyri, and Codices.  We have copies of these early quotations in books, letters, sermons, and notes.

Lectionaries

These are copies of the New Testament in early church hymnals, again confirming what the original manuscripts said.

Third, let’s look at the number of copies.  Having examined the language of Koine Greek and sorted through all of the witnesses (papyri and codices, early versions, quotes of Scripture, and lectionaries), let’s add up everything we’ve got and then compare the results with other ancient documents.  When these four types of manuscripts are combined (papyri and codices, early versions, quotes of Scripture, and lectionaries), an astonishing 24,000 manuscripts of New Testament material is accumulated!  With such high numbers, the case for discerning the original, authentic writings becomes more likely.  Such as in a court of law, when many witnesses testify the same way to a specific event, doubt fades away.  In this way, the many New Testament witnesses compel the critical thinker to admit that the claims of the New Testament are authentic.  They are not products of tradition or legend, but have arrived to us directly from the pens of the original writers, those who have witnessed personally the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ (i.e., Matthew, John, Paul, James and Peter).

Fourth, let’s take our research a step further and compare our findings to other ancient documents, to see how they fare.  Looking only at the Greek manuscripts of the New Testament, which total over 5,000, we can compare its likely authenticity with other books from antiquity.  I hope you can see that no other ancient book possesses anywhere near the same abundance of early manuscripts (or witnesses) as does the NT.  Consider the following evidence:

ancient manuscript comparison

Therefore, if one says that these other ancient authors and manuscripts are accurate, then we should also admit the authenticity of the New Testament.  If we believe without question the authenticity of Homer, then we also should believe the truth of the Bible.  If we believe the events of Julius Caesar’s life and death on the bases of only 10 witnesses, we have far more reasons and witnesses to support our belief in the life and death of Jesus.  We also have more reason to put our trust in His resurrection.

Test 3: How certain can we be?

With regard to the less than 1% discrepancies of NT writings, the scholars Wescott and Hort gave a statement about these minor differences.  They said that if one takes all of the variant readings of the New Testament and puts them all in one place, then they would only take up ½ of 1 page of a 550 page Greek New Testament; and of this half a page of variants, none of them would affect doctrine or practice.

Test 4: Who wrote it?

Early church tradition and outside witnesses help to verify that the traditional authors can be trusted.  I am not going to take the time to elaborate on this.

Conclusion

In conclusion, having examined the evidence through the four tests of authenticity, the Historical Research Method has helped us to answer our first question, “Is it forged?”  I know that this post has been very tedious (and if you’ve made it this far, please let me know!).  But my aim has been to address the scoffers, those who flippantly say things like, “The Bible has been altered so many times over the years, rewritten by people with agendas, and changed to meet certain needs.”  Every time I hear statements like this, I just want to scream, “You have no idea of what you are talking about!”  I am just a layman, not an expert, and even I can see that there is an abundant amount of scientific, historical research behind the Bible.  Men and women, experts in textual criticism, language, and archaeology, have poured their lives into figuring out what the Bible originally said.  And, based on my own research and observation, it has not changed over the years.  We can be confident that the Bibles we hold in our hands today, state what the original writers penned.  They are authentic, not forged.

That was the first of three questions behind the Historical Research Method.  The next question is “Is it a fairytale?”  Yes, the Bible is found to be authentic, but is it reliable?  Can it be trusted?  I will write about this in another post.

© Samuel Kee, 2013

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Some Thoughts on Why We Can Take the Bible Seriously (Part 3)

samuel kee —  May 8, 2013 — Leave a comment

bible with headphonesAre you sure you’re interpreting it correctly?

The next question (4th out of 5) is fairly straightforward.  It has to do with interpretation.  Most of the time (I mean this literally), when the people I talk to express lack of confidence, disgust, or disbelief in the Bible, it’s because they have misunderstood it.  The Bible is an ancient book, involving an unfamiliar context, culture, genre, and worldview.  The combination of these factors makes it very easy to misinterpret.  It’s hard to put ourselves in the shoes of the first readers, making it easy to misunderstand.

With that said, however, even though it’s an ancient book, written over the time span of thousands of years by a plethora of different authors, its message is remarkably clear and consistent.  Even better, instead of causing more confusion, the different books of the Bible actually help to clarify and explain each other.  As a whole, the canon of Scripture helps us understand the more confusing parts.  The intelligent reader has to keep this in mind when reading the Bible.

For instance, Genesis 1-2 were not meant to give a scientific explanation of the origins of the universe.  They were written by Moses as he was leading the nation of Israel out of slavery and into the Promised Land, where they would be confronted with other gods, legends, and so forth.  Genesis was written to re-introduce the disillusioned people of Israel, who had been slaves in Egypt for 400 years, to the true God.  Unlike the other gods to whom they would soon learn about, the true God was in complete control.  He did not squabble for control with other gods or humans.  He did not act out of necessity and no one forced his hand.  He created the universe one yom (the Hebrew word for “day”) at a time, both steady and in control.

The main purpose of Genesis 1-2 is to introduce us to the true Creator of all life, so that we can begin to learn about his character and about the goodness of the world he made.  We run into trouble when we read Genesis 1-2 as only a scientific explanation, thereby putting unnecessary obstacles in the way of trusting the Bible.  The same would be true if I read the phone book as a book of poetry—I would be sorely disappointed and would not think too highly of it.

We might easily read certain parts of the Old Testament and conclude that God is more like Zeus and less like Mr. Rodgers.  Again, we need to keep in mind the whole of Scripture, from Genesis to Revelation.  (There’s a little of both Zeus and Mr. Rodgers in God—and a whole lot more!)  And, we need to keep in mind the end of the story.

Have you ever seen The Sixth Sense?  After you watch the end of this movie, you can never watch the rest of it the same way.  You watch the whole thing in light of the end.  The same is true with the Bible, which was meant to be read “in light of the end.”  In other words, we have always to keep in mind the resurrection of Jesus Christ and his return to establish his Kingdom.  If we fail to keep these in mind, then we’ll struggle.  The death, resurrection, and return of Jesus shed light on the whole thing.  That’s how God wants us to read it.  God wants us to read every command in the Old Testament in light of Jesus Christ, who has fulfilled every word of the law.  Whether promise, prophecy, or poetry, it’s all meant to be read in light of Jesus Christ.

Another serious point of misinterpretation has to do with the nature of God, himself.  One of my friends once said to me, “If I even step foot in a church, God would strike me dead.”  Another said, “God would never listen to my prayers, after all the bad I’ve done.”  In fact, I’d say that most people believe that this is what the Bible communicates.  But, they’re wrong.

John Calvin said that people will never come to God until they realize that God is beneficent toward them.  God is good toward you, did you know that?  God is a loving Father (not a sinful father), who is longing for you to return to him.  God is good and merciful, willing to put his own Son through hell in order to make room for you in Heaven.  God is deadly serious about you receiving his love.  God is not against sinners, but for sinners.  If you pray to him and seek him, then he will receive you with open and caring arms.

Read the Bible with that in mind.  A great place to start would be Luke 23:39-43.  This small story displays the tenor of the whole of the Bible.  Accurate interpretation starts here.

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Some Thoughts on Why We Can Take the Bible Seriously (Part 2)

samuel kee —  May 7, 2013 — Leave a comment

bible with headphones3. What is the purpose of the Bible?

It’s crucial that we ask and answer the third question, “What is the purpose of the Bible?”  By understanding the purpose of something, we are better able to use it and enjoy it.  If I don’t understand the purpose of an iPhone, then it’s more of a hindrance than a benefit.  It just takes up space in my pocket, costs me a lot of money every month, and consumes my time and resources when I charge its batteries, take care of it, etc.  But if I understand what an iPhone is, how it functions, how it works, how to use it, its benefits, and so forth, then I may find that the pros outweigh the cons.  It’s no longer a burden, but a blessing.

How does the Bible function?  Have you ever thought about that?  Up to now, maybe you felt that it only took up space on your shelf, was a burden to carry around, had little to do with your life, was archaic, took too long to read, wasn’t practical, was condemning, etc.  But remember, once you understand the purpose of something, it opens up to you and you’re able to enjoy it—and it could become more of a blessing than a burden.

Scripture functions in three ways.  Over and over again, it constantly does the same three things.  First, it shows us the human problem.  We learn why the world is the way it is.  We understand what our deepest need is, where we fall short, and what is at stake.  Second, we learn about God’s solution to the human problem.  We read about God’s mighty acts on behalf of humans; we read again and again about how God rescues his people.  The greater our need, the greater his loving and powerful acts are on our behalf.  Third, we learn about how humans are to respond, once they see the mighty, saving acts of God.

The Bible, therefore, is a book of hope.  The overall purpose of the Bible is to show us how sinful humans can be in a personal relationship with a holy God, through the means that he has provided.  The warp and woof of the Bible is the same: our problem, God’s solution, our response.  This pattern repeats over and over, climaxing at the cross and resurrection of Jesus Christ.  Jesus is God’s ultimate solution, given for our deepest problem of sin, to which we are called to respond in faith.

The purpose of the Bible is not to give us scientific explanations.  It’s not to comfort us.  It’s not to confirm our thoughts and feelings.  It’s not meant to be easy.  Though it may contain each of these things.  The purpose of the Bible is to reveal to us God’s mighty acts on our behalf in the person of Jesus Christ.

The entry point of this is the resurrection of Jesus.  If you’re struggling to believe the Bible or are not sure of its claims, this is where you and I need to begin.  Perhaps you don’t like the Bible’s position on certain ethical matters, such as abortion, sexuality, generosity, etc.  Please don’t get hung up on these, for they are not the main thing of the Bible, the purpose.  In a sense, they don’t matter—at least not at first.

The thing that most matters is the resurrection of Jesus.  The resurrection is the hinges on which the door of the Bible swings.  Without it, nothing else matters.  The first followers of Jesus knew this; that is why they first proclaimed his resurrection, starting with this pivotal event.  After all, if the resurrection didn’t happen, then the rest of the Bible’s claims don’t matter.  If the resurrection didn’t happen, then the whole thing is a hoax and you don’t have to place yourself under the authority of the Bible’s moral commands.  Why should you?  Suppose a mad man decided to call himself king one day?  He issues a bunch of commands for your city.  People must not use electricity on even-numbered days; they must give 40 percent of their income to the king; all children must be regularly spanked, and on it goes.  Nobody in their right mind would ever consider obeying these commands if the king is a false king, if he has no power, etc.  They only way they would obey is if he actually is who he said he is: the authority over their lives.

So why get all bent out of shape about the Bible’s standards if you don’t accept Jesus as King?  In other words, stop worrying about what the Bible says about lesser things, until you come to grips with what it says about the major thing: Jesus Christ.  Was Jesus really the Son of God?  Did he really rise from the dead?  If he did rise from the dead, then all of his claims are vindicated.  And if he is who he said he is, and his claims are backed up by the resurrection, then we can begin to wrestle with his teachings.

Here’s what I’m trying to say.  First, the Bible is a book of hope, pointing us to Jesus Christ.  Second, the event that supports our claim (that Jesus is the Son of God) is the resurrection of Jesus from the dead.  Third, come to grips with the resurrection before the Bible’s other claims.  The resurrection is the gateway to the Bible, the on ramp, where we merge into the rest of its teachings.

Don’t get caught up on matters that are not crucial to being a Christian, in other words.  This takes us back to the purpose of the Bible and the importance of understanding how to use it.  To be a Christian, does not mean you need to be a certain political party, have a certain sexual orientation, hold to certain moral standards, don’t have tattoos, don’t smoke, don’t swear, don’t believe in evolution, etc., etc.  These are not the core of our faith.  Please don’t let them keep you from Jesus.  To be a Christian means that we embrace the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, believing that Jesus died for our sins out of love, and rose for our justification.  That’s it.  To be a Christian is to receive free grace from God, allowing him to provide the solution to our greatest problem, and then responding to him in faith and submission.  Our problem, God’s solution, our response.

To see if you should take the Bible seriously, start with the resurrection of Jesus.  Read the Bible’s accounts of the life and death of Jesus: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.  Wrestle with the facts for yourself.  Don’t get caught up in the peripheral issues before you consider the central issue.

Take the resurrection seriously first, to see if you should take the rest of the Bible seriously afterward.

Once you read the Bible’s accounts of the resurrection, let me recommend three other books, which will also help you think through it.  First, I recommend Surprised by Hope by N.T. Wright.  Second, I recommend chapter 8 of Reason to Believe by William Lane Craig.  Third, I recommend (very humbly!) my book, Hope Stands.

Thank you for reading and in future posts I will answer the last two questions in our series about the Bible (“Are you sure you’re interpreting it correctly?” and “Are you sure you know how to evaluate the reliability of ancient books?”).

© Samuel Kee, 2013

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Some Thoughts on Why We Can Take the Bible Seriously (Part 1)

samuel kee —  May 6, 2013 — Leave a comment

bible with headphonesI’ve heard a lot lately about whether we can take the Bible seriously or not.  Can the Bible be trusted?  Is it reliable?  Should I believe its claims?  This is especially relevant when thinking about current issues like homosexuality, religious pluralism, or evolution.  I think that we can take the Bible seriously.  To support this, I want to lead you through five questions.  1) Do you honestly believe that there is no truth?  2) Who is to say that you have the truth and others don’t?  3) What is the purpose of the Bible?  4) Are you sure you’re interpreting it correctly?  5) Are you sure you know how to evaluate the reliability of ancient books?  My goal is not to convince you with overwhelming evidence, or to force you to believe like I believe; rather I merely want to stimulate your thinking, in order to help you come to your own conclusions.

1. Do you honestly believe that there is no truth?

Our culture today wants us to believe that there is no absolute truth.  With good reason, too.  We don’t want to offend anyone, say they’re wrong, and so forth.  We think it’s arrogant and mean.  We’ve seen what damage can be done by those who force their beliefs onto others.  Think Hitler.  Think Crusades.  Think hate crimes.

But does it help to throw out the truth in an effort to maintain peace?  Because another sort of unrest creeps in when truth is removed.  It’s the restlessness that comes from not having a foundation.  Without the guiding hand of truth, then anything and everything is permissible, especially hate.  Deep down, we all want there to be truth.  We want to know whom we can trust, how we ought to live, and what we should give our lives to.  We want there to be purpose and justice; and, most of all, nobody wants to be an accident.  Without truth, then we’re all just random, and that’s unlivable.

And it doesn’t work.  When someone says, “There is no truth,” then they are asserting a truth.  After all, if there is no truth, then their statement is not true.  And if their statement is not true, then there is truth.  And if there is truth, then their statement is wrong.  It’s nonsensical.  Any time we make a claim, we are putting our trust in truth.  We are making a judgment, based on the evidence; we are asserting truth that we are upholding and willing to stand behind.  “This is ice cream.”  “Murder is wrong.”  Reality is that we’re surrounded by truth, we are constantly looking for it, depending on it, cherishing it, and believing it.  We were made to do so.  That’s why we all hate liars.  It’s built into the fabric of our being to reject those who do not tell the truth.

The real problem may not be that we don’t believe in truth; the real problem might be that we don’t want someone else’s truth to correct us, to shape us, to have authority over us.  In other words, it might be better to fault ourselves, rather than to fault the truth.

2. Who is to say that you have the truth and others don’t?

We must all be very careful when it comes to going against what the Bible says.  We ought to pause and realize what we are doing.  It’s no game.  We ought to approach disobedience to the Bible with appropriate caution and reserve.  I am not saying that you’re not free to disagree with what the Bible says, for instance, about topics like homosexuality, but I am saying that we can’t do it flippantly.  We must carefully consider what we are doing when we reject the Bible’s claims.

Think about the Garden of Eden, in which Satan lied to Adam and Eve and said the fruit would be good for them to eat (Genesis 3).  Adam and Eve were told something different by God himself, who said that eating the fruit would be deadly.  This was their moment of decision: would they listen to God or to Satan?  Whose word would they trust?  Was the fruit good or bad?  In the end, they went against what God said and sided with Satan.  That was a grave mistake—literally.

After thousands of years of history, we haven’t progressed much from our first parents.  Today, we are still faced with the same question: whose word will we trust?  Will we trust the voice of God in the Bible or the voice of those who go against it?  Whatever we choose, we must realize what we are doing, the gravity of our choice, and what is at stake.  We must do it with fear and trembling.

Just take a moment to realize what kind of a book the Bible is.  It’s utterly astounding, whether you believe its claims or not.  The world has not known such a formative, wise, revolutionary, and transformational book.  Its pages are thick with morality.  It is sets the standard for moral and right living, raising the bar to the heavens.  For instance, it tells us to love, not good people, but our enemies.  It commands fathers not to be harsh with their children.  It tells us not to lust, let alone have sex outside of marriage.  It tells us not to envy, to be greedy, to take advantage of people, to oppress.  It commands us to care for the unfortunate, to bring healing and hope to those around us, to live at peace with everyone, so far as it is possible.  It condemns hypocrisy, especially religious hypocrisy.  The world has never known a more moral or wise book than the Bible.  Just realizing this, we would be foolish not to pause to consider what it has to say.  We would be wise to seriously consider it.

And we would be arrogant to assume that we know better than the Bible.  As I said, there is nothing like it.  Are we more moral than it?  Are we wiser than it?  Do we have a greater sense of the truth, of what’s right and wrong, than it?  Can we evaluate life better than it can?  I’m not saying that you can’t, for you could be a remarkable person; but I am just saying that we had better seriously consider what we are doing when go against it.

John Calvin gave a list of reasons why we should seriously consider the credibility of the Bible and therefore its authority over our lives.[1]  When I consider these reasons with an open mind, I find them to be very compelling.  First, consider the wisdom of the Bible as compared to human wisdom.  Second, consider the antiquity of the Bible—the fact that it has been around for so long lends itself to credibility.  Third, consider the miracles recorded by the Bible.  If these are true, then they add massive support to the Bible’s authority.  Fourth, consider the prophecies found in the Bible.  Human history has seen hundreds of them fulfilled.  Fifth, consider the way the Bible has been preserved against being destroyed.  Many have tried to get rid of it, but have not been able.  Sixth, consider its simplicity, yet profoundness.  Seventh, consider the testimony (witness) of the church to it throughout the ages.  Could you be wiser than millions of people throughout thousands of years?  Eighth, consider the sacrifice of the martyrs, those who have died for their belief in the Bible.

We might not like what the Bible has to say, much like a child doesn’t like it when his dad says he can’t get ice cream, but that doesn’t mean that it is wrong (or that the father is not wise).  The Bible has been around much longer than either you or I; it would be arrogant of me simply to discard what it has to say, not to consider it, weigh it, examine it, and let it speak into my life.

That’s all for now.  I will write about the other three questions in future posts.  Thank you for reading.

© Samuel Kee, 2013

[1] Institutes of the Christian Religion, 1.7.4.

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Ever Feel Like a Piñata?

samuel kee —  November 12, 2012 — Leave a comment

Imagine an empty piñata, perhaps there’s nothing more pathetic than that.  It’s just something to crush and destroy with a bat.  Nothing good comes out of it.  Now imagine a clay pot.  It’s fragile, like the piñata.  It also can be crushed like the piñata.

Honest people will admit that life sometimes treats you like a piñata, taking swings at you left and right.  You’re just hanging there by a string, waiting for the bat to come round again.

Or, we’re like clay pots.  That’s the metaphor that the Bible uses in 2 Corinthians 4:7.  You’ve got to love the Bible, by the way, for its brutal honesty.  There’s no pie-in-the-sky here.  The Bible understands me.  “We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed” (2 Corinthians 4:8-9).

Reading the rhythm of these verses, you can sense the piñata swinging back and forth to the motions of the stick.  Blow after blow.  But there’s something astonishing about this piñata: though it is afflicted, it is not crushed; though life doesn’t make sense, it is not driven to despair; though it is persecuted, God has not abandoned; though it is knocked down like a boxer, it is not knocked out.  Why?

Because of what’s inside of the piñata.  It’s not an empty piñata.  We are told that there’s something inside of the fragile, abused clay pot.  “We have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us” (4:7).  The jar contains a treasure.  Every time the jar is cracked, more treasure is released.  A bit later, we’re told that “our outer self is wasting away” (16).  You can just picture the outside of the jar wasting away with every swing.

We’re more like a piñata with treasure inside of it.  When life takes a swing at us, treasure spills out.  That’s the true secret of Christian suffering, which does not deny the bat; instead, it employs it.  Christianity does not deny suffering, but undermines it.  The harder we suffer, the more that treasure spills out of us.  Just picture someone bashing a piñata, over and over, only to find more and more candy flooding out of it.

Trials release the treasure.

If we don’t have the treasure inside of us, then life will crush us.  And that’s it.  But if we have the treasure inside of us, then trials will release the treasure.  The Treasure is Jesus Christ.

© Samuel Kee, 2012

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Psalm 23 Re-Mix

samuel kee —  October 23, 2012 — 2 Comments

We can pray this:

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

He makes me lie down in green pastures.

He leads me beside still waters.

He restores my soul.

He leads me in paths of righteousness

for his name’s sake.

Even though I walk through the valley

of the shadow of death,

I will fear no evil,

for you are with me;

your rod and your staff,

they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me

in the presence of my enemies;

you anoint my head with oil;

my cup overflows.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me

all the days of my life,

and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord

forever.

Because he went through this:

The Lord was my shepherd; but now I’m bankrupt.

He makes me lie down on a red cross.

He leads me into raging waters.

He vanquished my soul.

He leads me in paths of iniquity

for his name’s sake.

Even though I walk through death itself,

and am horrified of evil,

for you have abandoned me;

your rod and staff,

they crush me.

You prepare a tomb for me

in the presence of my friends;

you anoint my body with myrrh and aloes;

the cup of your wrath overflowed.

Surely sin and judgment followed me

all the days of my life,

so that they might dwell in the house of the Lord

forever.

© Samuel Kee, 2012

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My Ex

samuel kee —  September 12, 2011 — Leave a comment

We must play the role.

I’ve got an Ex.  A big Ex, actually.  You probably do, too.  Big Ex haunts us everyday, barely giving us room to breathe.  Our Big Ex puts relentless pressure on us; and unless we “put out,” then we’re nobody.  We must play the role, perform, and do what’s Expected.

Yes, I said the nasty word, I identified our Big Ex—EXPECTATIONS!  You’ve got them and I’ve got them.  No matter where we turn, people are expecting things from us.  Teachers expect homework and good test grades; bosses expect higher sales and innovation; coaches expect better conditioning and skill; etc.

We’ve got so many expectations on us, that some of us are ready to crack.  Here are some signs that you’re suffering from your Big Ex: throwing, yelling, overeating, or hopelessness.  We fear letting down our Big Ex, because we don’t want to lose out on what normally follows: the Big A.

Affirmation!

Usually, affirmation follows expectation.  When you fulfill the seemingly impossible demands of the Big Ex, then you’ll get a pat on the back: “Aren’t you a good girl!” or “Aren’t you a fine boy!”  We get the Big A in the form of more money, more responsibility, more authority, more territory, etc.

I was reading Revelation 1 yesterday, and I noted that God flipped our formula around.  God put the Big A before the Big Ex.  God gave affirmation first and then expectation.

God opened up his home to the disciple named John and had John sit down on his couch.  Well, at least that’s how I imagine it.  As John was lying there, he expected God to start reading the list of all the things that God wanted him to do.  If John were able to perform God’s expectations, then God might give him a pat on the…seat.

But God welcomes John in and has him sit back and relax.  God begins by giving John the Big A.  God says things like, “John, I love you.  You’re pretty special to me, so much so that I was willing to die in your place.  John, I freed you from your sin by my blood.  Oh, and there’s more.  I also made you into a kingdom.  That’s right, you’re officially Kingdom John.  And get this, I also made you into a priest, so that you could come visit with me anytime you want.”[1]

You can imagine John’s total shock at hearing God give him the Big A, before he spoke about the Big Ex.  Can you imagine what that must have been like?  If I were to go into God’s presence, I would expect the Divine Bug Zapper to greet me, not the Divine Care Bear.

But God wants to give us the Big A, way before he gives us the Big Ex.

God continues by letting John know what he wants him to do, “Write what you see in a book and send it to the seven churches…” (1:11)—that was John’s Big Ex, to be God’s writer.  It was going to be a tough job, especially since John would be persecuted for his faith in Jesus.  But, by knowing God’s overwhelming affirmation first, John could persevere through anything.

Before you crack under the pressure of your own Big Ex, please rest in God’s affirmation.  He loves you and nothing can stand in the way of his love for you, not even your sin.  He dealt with your sin once and for all so that he would not lose you.

© Samuel Kee, 2011

[1] Taken from Revelation 1:5-6.

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Who Will Notice Me?

samuel kee —  August 25, 2011 — 3 Comments

We long for someone to come along and say to our souls, “You are mine.”

The newborn baby was thrown out, into a field, where it lay in its own blood, encircled by its own uncut umbilical cord.  The baby wore nothing but bruises, mud, and blood.  Its parents did not want it, nor did they take the time to wash it, wrap it, or pity it.  It’s hard for me to say this, but the parents even abhorred their own child, the day that it was born.

It was a girl.

She had no eye to pity her, as she lay in the tall grass of the field, waiting to die.

Then a man came along and saw her wallowing in her own blood.  Getting down on both knees beside her and gently placing her into his hands, he said, “Oh child, live!” (Ezekiel 16:6).  The gentle man did everything in his power to care for this little girl.  He cleansed her, clothed her, and loved her.  As the story goes in the Old Testament book of Ezekiel, “I made my vow to you and entered into a covenant with you, declares the Lord God, and you became mine” (Ezekiel 16:8).

We are the little girl, abandoned and left to die, wallowing in our own blood and caked with mud.  We are in a lonely and ironic field, whose flowers are beautiful, but whose elements are brutal.  We long for someone to come along and say to our souls, “You are mine.”  That alone would be enough to rescue us, restore us, and redeem us.

The man did not need the baby he found in the field, he wanted her; and there’s a huge difference between “need” and “want.”

The part that stands out to me today has to do with his actions toward her.  The passage in Ezekiel details very carefully how the man washed her, anointed her, and clothed her.  “Then I bathed you with water and washed off your blood from you and anointed you with oil.  I clothed you also with embroidered cloth and shod you with fine leather.  I wrapped you in fine linen and covered you with silk.” (Ezek 16:9-10).  He goes on to describe the costly jewelry he placed upon her.

This is the heart of relationship: washing off someone’s dirt in order to reveal the beautiful person beneath.  Prejudice does the opposite, it flings more mud and causes more blood, covering the beauty and condemning the priceless soul.  Thus, true community can be modeled after this portrait of the man and his little girl.  Community is the place where we cleanse away the dirt from others in order to see who they really are.  We refuse to live with stereotypes, fears, and apathy toward one another.  We don’t settle for letting others wallow in the filth in which they were cast, but are nurses, every one of us, who care for and covenant with each other.

We claim each other, too, just as we have been claimed by God: You are mine!  I’ll take you, dirt and all.  Then, after claiming each other, the community refuses to leave a person as he or she was found.  We cleanse each other, clothe each other, adorn each other.  We make each other beautiful, despite the tragedies of our past.

There are more out there, too, you know.  Many more people thrown out into the field, waiting for someone to come along and notice.

© Samuel Kee, 2011

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Cherries

samuel kee —  June 16, 2011 — Leave a comment

God is giving us the ability to love others.

The cherries were the biggest that I’ve ever seen on our trees.  It didn’t make sense to me, however, since we were in the middle of a drought inNortheastern Ohio.  I learned that the cherry trees basically “freaked out” because of the lack of water, so to make sure that they didn’t die off, they produced the biggest cherries they could.  It’s remarkable to see that great famine can lead to great fruit.

Yes, there can be benefits from suffering.

“Sympathy is love perfected by experience” (H. L. Goudge).  That’s what the Apostle Paul has in mind in 2 Corinthians 1:4, when he writes that God “comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.”

Sympathy is love perfected by experience.  It’s harder to love someone when you don’t know what they’re going through.  Love is perfected when you can feel what another feels.  When we experience afflictions, God is giving us the ability to love others deeply, unlike we were able to do before.  God gives us a precious gift in our suffering: comfort.  In turn, we love others best when we pass along this same precious gift from God.

There may be many purposes in your suffering, but don’t neglect to see this one.  Your affliction can be used to heal another down the road.  You are burying seeds in the soil of suffering now, but you will soon reap the harvest and be able to give the fruit to another.

© Samuel Kee, 2011

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