Problem: Ezekiel states, “If a prophet is deceived into giving a message, it is because I, the Lord, have deceived that prophet. I will lift my fist against such prophets and cut them off from the community of Israel” (Ezek. 14:9 NLT).
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Problem: John writes, “Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away…” (Jn. 15:2). Later he writes, “If anyone does not abide in Me, he is thrown away as a branch and dries up; and they gather them, and cast them into the fire and they are burned” If we do not bear fruit, does this mean that we are sent to hell?
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As a member of the Godhead, the Son of God shares all the attributes of deity.
For example, the Lord Jesus is all powerful (Revelation 1:8 with 22:12-13). It would be wrong to say that God the Father is more powerful than God the Son. God has all power and He is almighty, and Jesus Christ is God. Jesus Christ is all knowing (John 6:64; 16:30; Col. 2:3). It would be wrong to say that God the Father has more knowledge than God the Son. God is omniscient and Jesus Christ is God. Names can be applied to Jesus Christ which are only applied to God. For example, the name Jehovah (a name which refers solely to deity) is often applied to Jesus Christ. It would be wrong to say that the name Jehovah applies to God the Father, but that it is never used in reference to Jesus Christ.
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Problem: Critics of the Trinity point out that Jesus said, “The Father is greater than I” (Jn. 14:28). How can Jesus say this, if he was equally God?
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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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Problem: Militant, violent, religious extremists have caused legitimate concern for America’s security. In Palestine, on the very soil Jesus walked, people kill each other in warfare motivated by religion. Do the teachings of Christ authorize or encourage such behavior? In John 14:27, Jesus said: “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” Some have charged that Jesus’ promise of peace in that verse contradicts His message in Matthew 10:34: “Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword.” Did Jesus come to Earth to bring peace—or turmoil?
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Problems: Some passages say that Jesus came to bring peace,
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Problem: The Quran claims that Muhammad was predicted in the NT (Surah 7:157). Thus Muslim apologists argue that this passage is predicting Muhammad as the future prophet that would come after Jesus. “Ahmad” in Greek is periclytos, and some Muslim interpreters hold that this is the proper translation of the Greek word paraclete here. Is this the case?
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Problem: Jesus says, “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments” (Jn. 14:15). Jesus refers to his “commands” (Jn. 14:21; 15:10; 15:12, 14, 17) throughout this section of Scripture. Why does Christ speak of his love in such impersonal terms as “keeping commandments”?
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Problem: Pre-tribulationists argue that Jesus hinted at the doctrine of the rapture in his word to the disciples:
(Jn. 14:1-3) “Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. 2 In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. 3 If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also.”
Does this passage support a pre-tribulational rapture?
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Problem: Did the cock crow
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Problem: On the evening before His crucifixion, Jesus met with His disciples in Jerusalem to eat the Passover meal. According to John’s gospel account, “Satan entered” Judas during the meal (13:27). Luke, however, recorded that “Satan entered Judas” prior to the Passover meal (22:1-7). Is this a contradiction?
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Problem: Jesus told the disciples, “I do not speak of all of you. I know the ones I have chosen; but it is that the Scripture may be fulfilled, ‘He who eats My bread has lifted up his heel against Me’” (Jn. 13:18). Here Jesus quotes Psalm 41:9, which originally refers to David’s betrayal by Ahithophel. How does this passage predict Judas?
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Problem: Critics of the Bible state that God’s foreknowledge of future events implies fatalism. In this case, God predicted Judas’ betrayal of Christ. Doesn’t this imply that Judas had no choice? If he chose to not betray Jesus, this would make God’s prediction in Psalm 41:9 false. How do we harmonize God’s foreknowledge with human freedom?
Response:
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Problem: Jesus tells Peter, “If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me” (Jn. 13:8). Some commentators hold that this refers to Christ washing away our sins in justification. Is this the case?
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