Tough Questions Tough Choices Lesson 1 How to

Tough Questions Tough Choices Lesson 1 How to prove the Bible is God’s Word Martyrs – Peter & John 06/05/2011

Keeping my promise 2 Timothy 3: 16 This verse claims that the Bible is God’s word so it must be…right? …But can you really quote the Bible to prove the Bible is God’s word? Isn’t that circular reasoning? 8: 51: 37 AM 2

If not quoting the Bible, how? This question actually falls under what we call “Apologetics” In fact… 8: 51: 37 AM 3

I just finished “Apologetics II” From Sunset International Bible Institute 8: 51: 37 AM 4

SIBI 48 lessons, 100 s of hours, and 5 books later it is a very easy subject. So, you just need the person that asked you the question to give you two or three hundred hours of their time and you can explain it all to them. Good news is that, in my experience, most Americans are excited to give up massive amounts of their time to hear about the Bible. 8: 51: 40 AM 5

Seriously… There are many ways to answer this question. However, I think there is one really easy way to answer the question and easy to remember too! 8: 51: 40 AM 6

Start with these questions If I could predict hundreds of future events, most between 400 and 800 years in the future, would you believe that I was from God? What if I told you that the Bible did just that? 8: 51: 40 AM 7

Some Examples Isaiah 53 § Despised/Rejected § We did not respect Him § Wounded for our sins § He didn’t open his mouth § He died with the wicked § He was buried with the rich 8: 51: 40 AM Matthew 27 § 27: 21 -23 § 27: 39 -44 § 27: 46 § 27: 12 -14 § 27: 38 § 27: 57 -60 8

Problem Any skeptic would just say, “Well the Christians of the New Testament just went and changed the Old Testament to fit Christ’s life. ” Or the other popular, “The New Testament writers just made sure that Jesus’ life as recorded fit all of the prophecies. ” And honestly that was a pretty solid answer to any Christian… …until 1947. 8: 51: 40 AM 9

Dead Sea Scrolls 1) They are the oldest Hebrew manuscripts ever found! 2) They are actually a collection of works like a library 3) 200 OT manuscripts have been Carbon-14 dated 4) Some are as old as 250 BC – This is what is significant 5) Yes, that is 250 years BEFORE CHRIST so they didn’t just make the OT fit Christ 6) Probably the biggest archeological find regarding the Bible ever! 8: 51: 40 AM 10

Dead Sea Scrolls Here is one amazing example of what was gained: So, the Massoretic Text of Exodus 1: 5 says, “descendants of Jacob were seventy persons…” The Septuagint says, “descendants of Jacob were seventy-five persons…” Most scholars believed that the Massoretic Text was correct and the Septuagint was incorrect. However, the problem is that Luke quoted this verse in the NT (Acts 7: 14) and said seventy-five. 8: 51: 42 AM 11

Was Luke “inspired”? So, if seventy was correct could Luke be inspired? The answer is an obvious no. Even if scribes had made errors in their copying a divinely inspired writer would have been able to fix it right? Well, actually as a divinely inspired writer he did write the correct amount which is seventy-five. It turns out that the scholars were wrong because the OLDER Hebrew manuscripts from the DSS showed seventy-five unlike the Massoretic Texts! 8: 51: 43 AM 12

Dead Sea Scrolls Basically what the DSS showed is that the Bible as we had it prior to the discovery of the DSS was almost perfectly transcribed from the original documents. Since most of the OT manuscripts were from before Christ this proves that there was no slight-of-hand with the prophecies. Therefore the Bible predicted 100 s of events many years prior to the actual events themselves. So, it must be from God. 8: 51: 43 AM 13

“…what is that to you!” John 21: 18 -23 “Most assuredly, I say to you, when you were younger, you girded yourself and walked where you wished; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish. ” 19 This He spoke, signifying by what death he would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He said to him, “Follow Me. ” 20 Then Peter, turning around, saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following, who also had leaned on His breast at the supper, and said, “Lord, who is the one who betrays You? ” 21 Peter, seeing him, said to Jesus, “But Lord, what about this man? ” 22 Jesus said to him, “If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you? You follow Me. ” 23 Then this saying went out among the brethren that this disciple would not die. Yet Jesus did not say to him that he would not die, but, “If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you? ” 8: 51: 44 AM 14

“…what is that to you!” John 21: 18 -23 “Most assuredly, I say to you, when you were younger, you girded yourself and walked where you wished; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish. ” 19 This He spoke, signifying by what death he would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He said to him, “Follow Me. ” 20 Then Peter, turning around, saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following, who also had leaned on His breast at the supper, and said, “Lord, who is the one who betrays You? ” 21 Peter, seeing him, said to Jesus, “But Lord, what about this man? ” 22 Jesus said to him, “If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you? You follow Me. ” 23 Then this saying went out among the brethren that this disciple would not die. Yet Jesus did not say to him that he would not die, but, “If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you? ” 8: 51: 44 AM 15

“…what is that to you!” John 21: 18 -23 “Most assuredly, I say to you, when you were younger, you girded yourself and walked where you wished; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish. ” 19 This He spoke, signifying by what death he would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He said to him, “Follow Me. ” 20 Then Peter, turning around, saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following, who also had leaned on His breast at the supper, and said, “Lord, who is the one who betrays You? ” 21 Peter, seeing him, said to Jesus, “But Lord, what about this man? ” 22 Jesus said to him, “If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you? You follow Me. ” 23 Then this saying went out among the brethren that this disciple would not die. Yet Jesus did not say to him that he would not die, but, “If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you? ” 8: 51: 44 AM 16

“…what is that to you!” John 21: 18 -23 “Most assuredly, I say to you, when you were younger, you girded yourself and walked where you wished; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish. ” 19 This He spoke, signifying by what death he would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He said to him, “Follow Me. ” 20 Then Peter, turning around, saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following, who also had leaned on His breast at the supper, and said, “Lord, who is the one who betrays You? ” 21 Peter, seeing him, said to Jesus, “But Lord, what about this man? ” 22 Jesus said to him, “If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you? You follow Me. ” 23 Then this saying went out among the brethren that this disciple would not die. Yet Jesus did not say to him that he would not die, but, “If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you? ” 8: 51: 44 AM 17

Peter – “follow me” Rome in 68 AD Nero sought a reason to put Peter to death The Roman Christians pleaded with Peter to flee Peter reluctantly fled Coming to the gate of the city he met Christ “Lord, where are you going? ” “I am going to be crucified again…follow me…” 8: 51: 44 AM 18

Foxe says of Peter… “…he was crucified, his head being down and his feet upward, himself so requiring, because he was (he said) unworthy to be crucified after the same form and manner as the Lord was. ” When Peter came face to face with the prophecy about his death he choose to “follow”. 8: 51: 44 AM 19

John – “the disciple whom Jesus loved” Island of Patmos in 96 AD Nerva, Emperor Domitian’s successor, recalls John from Patmos John returns to Ephesus John encourages the churches with his words John dies of natural causes in 99 or 100 AD 8: 51: 44 AM 20

Foxe says of John… “…he was the only apostle who escaped a violent death. ” John, the disciple whom Jesus love, did not have to face a martyr’s death. He still choose to “follow”. 8: 51: 44 AM 21

This is free Did you know that John never names himself in the Gospel of John? He calls himself “the other disciple” in John 18: 15, 16, 20: 4, 8. He calls himself “the disciple whom Jesus loved” in John 13: 23, 19: 26, 20: 2, 21: 7, 20. He claims in 21: 24 that “this disciple” wrote the book. 8: 51: 44 AM 22

John encouraged the churches… There is a church tradition, which says, that when John was evidently an old man in Ephesus, he had to be carried to the church in the arms of his disciples. At these meetings, he was accustomed to say no more than, “Little children, love one another!” After a time, the disciples wearied at always hearing the same words, asked, “Master, why do you always say this? ” “It is the Lord's command, ” was his reply. “And if this alone be done, it is enough!” 8: 51: 44 AM 23