Bible Criticism
Part 2
3. Daniel did not write the book of Daniel.
Again the critics say that the book of Daniel was written by some unknown author who must have lived many years after the time of Daniel. The reason for this is obvious. Daniel gives some amazing prophecies about the four great world kingdoms which would rise up. The first of these great kingdoms was Babylon and the second was Media-Persia, and Daniel lived to see these first two kingdoms. But how did Daniel know about Greece and Rome (the third and fourth kingdoms)? The critics say, "He didn’t know anything about Greece and Rome, and thus someone else must have written the book." The Bible believer says, "God, who knows the end from the beginning, revealed to Daniel information about these coming kingdoms." Those who do not believe that God can predict the future are those who have a problem with the authorship and dates of Daniel and Isaiah. For those who believe in a God who knows the future, there is no problem at all. By the way, according to our AUTHORITY, who wrote the book of Daniel (Matthew 24:15)? ________________________
4. Paul did not write the Pastoral Epistles.
The books of 1 and 2 Timothy and Titus are often called the Pastoral epistles (letters written to Timothy and Titus who were pastors). Many critics say that Paul did not write these books. What does the Bible say (see 1 Timothy 1:1; 2 Timothy 1:1; Titus 1:1)? __________________________ Should we believe the Bible or should we believe the critics?
5. Peter did not write 2 Peter.
If Peter did not write 2 Peter, then the Bible is not true (see 2 Peter 1:1). According to our Authority, the Lord Jesus Christ, is the Bible true (John 17:17)? ________
6. The miracles of the Bible did not really happen.
Unbelievers have problems with the miracles recorded in the Bible. To those who believe in an Almighty God, this is no problem, because, "Is anything too for the ____________ (Genesis 18:14)
Some of the miracles which seem to very problematic to unbelievers are these:
- The creation of man (Adam and Eve). Unbelievers say that man evolved from ape-like creatures millions of years ago.
- The great flood in the days of Noah
- The terrible judgment upon the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah
- Jonah being swallowed by the great fish
What has the Lord Jesus Christ (our Authority) said about these important events? Did He speak of them as events which actually happened, or did He speak of them as imaginary stories which never really took place in history? Consider the following verses:
- Matthew 19:4-5
- Matthew 24:37-39; Luke 17:27
- Matthew 11:23-24; Luke 17:28,29,32
- Matthew 12:40-41
What do you think? Are these things FABLES or FACTS?
Some people try to explain away the miracles by coming up with naturalistic explanations. One example was the feeding of the five thousand. One Pastor preached that when the people in the large crowd saw the boy share his lunch with Jesus (five loaves and two fish), then they were inspired by this unselfish act and they all started pulling out their lunches which they had hidden under their garments and everyone started sharing food with each other. They ended up with twelve baskets of food left over. The only problem with this version of the story is that the Bible does not say this happened at all (Matthew 14:15-21). Those who believe in an omnipotent God have no problem believing in miracles. Indeed, those who believe Genesis 1:1 have no problems believing all the other Bibles mentioned in the Bible.
Once a young farmer's son, who loved God's Word, went to the city to study at a seminary. Unfortunately it was a seminary staffed by professors who did not believe the Bible and who denied the miracles of the Bible. One day an Old Testament professor was teaching about the children of Israel and the Red Sea. He explained that the Red Sea was really the "Sea of Reeds" and that it was merely a swamp where the water was not very deep at all. The children of Israel could simply wade across the swamp. Suddenly from the back of the room, the farmer's son shouted with joy, "PRAISE THE LORD!" The professor was not used to such outbreaks in his class and he asked the student why he felt it necessary to express himself in such an emotional way. The farm boy stood before the class and said, "PRAISE THE LORD! My God is so great that He could drown the entire Egyptian army in only a few inches of water!"
7. There are no such things as angels or demons or a real devil. Superstitious people once believed such things, but in this age of science, intelligent people no longer believe such foolishness.
What has our AUTHORITY said? See Matthew 4:10; 10:8; 16:27; 24:31; 26:53; 13:39; etc. Will unbelieving Bible critics someday believe in the devil and angels (see Matthew 25:41)?
Don’t put your faith in the CRITICS, put your faith in the CHRIST! He will never deceive you or lead you astray! Let us remember the words of the great hymn THE BIBLE STANDS!
"The Bible stands like a mountain tow'ring
far above the works of men;
Its truth by none ever was refuted
and destroy it they never can!" --Haldor Lillenas
Continued in Part 3: http://groups.msn.com/MLTReceptionGroup/yourwebpage3.msnw
