John 11:15, 41-42 – Does Luke 16:29 – 31 Contradict John 11?

Problem: In the passage of the rich man and Lazarus, Jesus paints a vivid word picture using Abraham as his speaker. Abraham tells the rich man who is in Hades (Luke 16:29–31)1 that his brothers would not accept a forewarning about the torments in Hades and repent and believe, even if someone returned from the dead and told them. But in John 11:15 and 41–42, Jesus specifically tells the disciples and the people gathered together at the tomb of his friend Lazarus (not the same person as in the Luke 16 passage) that upon seeing Lazarus’ resurrection, they will believe that Jesus was sent from God. Once we dig deeper into the two texts, we will see that this apparent contradiction is not one at all. The two passages are speaking about different types of people.
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Posted by petra1000 in Bible Difficulty, Bible Study, Bible Teaching

John 10:34-36 – Did Jesus believe in many “gods”?

Problem: Jesus said, “If he called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture cannot be broken), 36 do you say of Him, whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, ‘You are blaspheming,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of God’?” (Jn. 10:35-36) Was Jesus arguing that there were many gods? Mormon theologians claim that this gives warrant for polytheism. Is this the case?
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Posted by petra1000 in Bible Difficulty, Bible Study, Bible Teaching

John 10:33-36 – Why are mere men called “gods”?

Problem: 33 The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God.
34 Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods?
35 If he called them gods, unto whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken;
36 Say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest; because I said, I am the Son of God? (John 10:33-36 KJV) Continue reading →

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

John 10:30 – In What Way was God Greater than Jesus?

Problem: According to the apostle John, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God…. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:1,14, emp. added). Unquestionably, this Word (God), Whom John claims became flesh, was Jesus Christ (1:17). This same apostle recorded other statements in his account of the Gospel that convey the same basic truth. He wrote how, on one occasion, Jesus told a group of hostile Jews, “I and My Father are one” (10:30). Later, he recorded how Jesus responded to Philip’s request to see God by saying, “He who has seen Me has seen the Father” (14:9). He even told about how Jesus accepted worship from a blind man whom He had healed (9:38; cf. Matthew 8:2). And, since only God is to be worshipped (Matthew 4:10), the implication is that Jesus believed He was God (cf. John 1:29,41,49; 20:28; Mark 14:62).
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Posted by petra1000 in Bible Difficulty, Bible Study, Bible Teaching

John 8:58 – Before Abraham was, “I AM”

Problem: John 8:56-59—“Your father Abraham exulted in that he should see my day, and he saw and
rejoiced. The Jews therefore said to him, Thou hast not yet fifty years, and hast thou seen
Abraham? Jesus said to them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am. They took
up therefore stones that they might cast them at him; but Jesus hid himself and went out of the
temple.”
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Posted by petra1000 in Bible Difficulty, Bible Study, Bible Teaching

John 8:14 – How Could Both Statements Be True?

Problem: They sound exactly the opposite. On the surface, they appear to be completely contradictory statements. “We won the game.” “We lost the game.” How could both of these declarations be true? If a person is indeed talking about the same game, how could a team have both won the game and lost the game at the same time?
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Posted by petra1000 in Bible Difficulty, Bible Study, Bible Teaching

John 8:5 – Why were adulterers stoned to death in the Law of Moses?

Problem: One of the most powerful punches of the New Atheism is their rhetorical jab at the so-called “God of the Old Testament.” Repeatedly, the New Atheists attack the moral atrocities of the Old Testament, as evidence that God cannot be worthy of directing and leading our lives –let alone our universe. For instance, in his book The God Delusion, Richard Dawkins writes,
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Posted by petra1000 in Bible Difficulty, Bible Study, Bible Teaching