John 1:18 – Can we see God or not?

Problem: Throughout the Bible, we see conflicting messages on the visibility of God. On the one hand, God appeared to Abraham (Gen. 17:1; 18:1) and Moses (Ex. 6:2-3). In fact, Moses recorded that the elders “saw the God of Israel” (Ex. 24:10). However, in this passage, Paul says that God is “invisible” (1 Tim. 1:17), and at the end of this letter, Paul writes that God “dwells in unapproachable light, whom no man has seen or can see” (1 Tim. 6:16). God told Moses that “no man can see me and live” (Ex. 33:20), and John wrote, “No one has seen God at any time” (Jn. 1:18; c.f. 5:37; 6:46). Critics argue that the Bible seems to be offering a clear contradiction on the visibility of God.

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Posted by petra1000 in Bible Difficulty, Bible Study, Bible Teaching

The Trinity In The Book Of Revelations

I am taking an online class at DTS (Dallas Theological Seminary) on the book Of Revelation and I want to share this with everyone. In chapter 1 of revelation verse 4-5, I can see the trinity laid out in these verse.
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Posted by petra1000 in Bible Difficulty, Bible Study, Bible Teaching

John 1:13 – Does this passage support Calvinism?

Problem: John writes, “[Believers] were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God” (Jn. 1:13 NASB). The NIV translates this as “nor of human decision.” Some Calvinists argue that this passage supports the idea that the human will has no role in coming to Christ. After all, this passage is set in contrast to being born “of God.” Is this the case?
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Posted by petra1000 in Bible Difficulty, Bible Study, Bible Teaching

John 1:1–5, 29–36 – Why Do Mark and John’s Gospels Not Mention Jesus Was from Bethlehem?

Problem: In a 2021 critical article on whether Jesus was actually born in Bethlehem, one of the most telling statements by the author is this:

The Gospels’ different views might be hard to reconcile. But as a scholar of the New Testament, what I argue is that the Gospels offer an important insight into the Greco-Roman views of ethnic identity, including genealogies.

Today, genealogies may bring more awareness of one’s family medical history or help uncover lost family members. In the Greco-Roman era, birth stories and genealogical claims were used to establish rights to rule and link individuals with purported ancestral grandeur.

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Posted by petra1000 in Bible Difficulty, Bible Study, Bible Teaching

John 1:1 – Was Jesus God or simply a god?

Problem: The translators of the Jehovah’s Witness Bible (the New World Translation, or NWT) render this verse as follows: “The Word was a god.” These translators argue that there is no article before theos (God). Therefore, they argue, this verse does not support the fact that Jesus is divine. Instead, this passage is describing that Jesus is godlike, but not God. Is this the case?

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Posted by petra1000 in Bible Difficulty, Bible Study, Bible Teaching