What about the "discrepancies" in the Bible?

Last week: God's overwhelming revelation of Himself demands a choice: believe and follow, or deny and walk away

Introduction

If someone challenged you to defend the Bible as true, inerrant, and infallible how would you respond? Do you have an answer when someone tells you that the Bible is just a book written by men to try and explain life control people through religion? Do you have an answer for the person that says “The Bible contradicts itself!”? “After all, how can the Bible be true if it says in one place to stone people to death and in another to love your neighbor as yourself?”

The world we live in is not friendly to the Bible — they scoff at it, make fun of it, call it a mythical book written by weak men that needed to create a crutch for weak minded people to lean on. In academia and science, we find some really smart people (tongue in cheek) claiming the Bible is unreliable because it is full of “discrepancies”. They say Christians weasel their way out of the tough questions about the errors in the Bible.

The world we live in is not friendly to the Bible — they scoff at it, make fun of it, call it a mythical book written by weak men that needed to create a crutch for weak minded people to lean on. In academia and science, we find some really smart people (tongue in cheek) claiming the Bible is unreliable because it is full of “discrepancies”. They say Christians weasel their way out of the tough questions about the errors in the Bible.

Here’s what we know: The Bible was written over a span of 1500 years, by 40 authors, in multiple historical and cultural contexts and yet the message from front to back points to God’s heart to love and redeem unworthy sinners like you and me.

Hebrews 4:12 NIV

For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.

Perhaps people try so hard to deny the Bible because of the spiritual battle raging in them and all around them. If they are forced to acknowledge the Bible as true, they must then face their own lost condition, which is something people just don’t want to do.

Prayer

Big Idea: The miraculous nature of the Bible leads directly to the Redeemer Himself

How can the Bible be miraculous when it contains discrepancies?

What Discrepancies?

We shouldn’t expect skeptics to simply believe the Bible because we tell them it’s true. In fact, we shouldn’t believe the Bible merely on blind faith — God has provided us with the ability to think and reason for a purpose. It’s good for us to know why the Bible is dependable and inerrant and that the Bible’s supposed contradictions and inconsistencies can be cleared up simply by examining things like cultural context and language variations.

What are the types of discrepancies people bring up?

Historical

Space-time “discrepancies”

What about the question of what time Jesus was crucified?

In , Jesus was said to have been crucified in the third hour — while states that Jesus stood before Pilate during the sixth hour? How could Jesus stand before Pilate 3 hours after he was crucified?

Or what about the question of what time Jesus was crucified?

We will get back to that...

Philosophical

If we have biblical teachings that seemingly logically or philosophically contradict each other, skeptics will claim the Bible as inauthentic and irrelevant

Example: Atheists point out the inconsistency of Christians attempting to prove the existence of God by stating that everything in existence has a cause and yet, in the same breath claiming that God is the Uncaused Cause

* We will get back to that...

Ethical

Skeptics love to point out passages that, on the surface, contradict the very ethics that Bible teaches

Example: God told Abraham to offer his son Isaac as a sacrifice, while the Bible elsewhere clearly teaches against human sacrifice.

Examples such as these are used by skeptics to point out how the Old and New Testaments contradict each other

We will get back to that...

Application

2 Timothy 2:14–15 NIV

Keep reminding God’s people of these things. Warn them before God against quarreling about words; it is of no value, and only ruins those who listen. Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.

Don’t go looking for a debate or an argument about God, the Bible, religion, etc. But do be prepared to give an answer for why you believe what you believe

But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,

1 Peter 3:15 NIV

But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,

Transitional: So…on the one hand you could say there are discrepancies or contradictions in the Bible --- IF you don’t take the nature of the Bible into account

Answers to Discrepancies

When answering discrepancies like the examples I gave or any number of others that people bring up...

Learn about idioms (figures of speech, etc), copyists errors, methods of calculating time and dates, and cultural context

What about the time of Jesus’ crucifixion?

How could it be at the 3rd hour () when Jesus was in front of Pilate at the 6th hours (John 19)?

Gleason Archer (Encyclopedia of Bible Difficulties): There is no difficulty at all in the received textual reading, provided we understand that John was following the official numbering system of the Roman civil day. Writing in Ephesus, John would be inclined to use the Roman system instead of the Jewish system. What looks like a blatant contradiction has a valid historical explanation

What about the philosophical question of God being the Uncaused Cause?

There is no difficulty at all in the received textual reading, provided we understand that John was following the official numbering system of the Roman civil day. Writing in Ephesus, John would be inclined to use the Roman system instead of the Jewish system. What looks like a blatant contradiction has a valid historical explanation

Norman Geisler and Ronald Brook (Come let us reason), as summarized by Rachel Ramer: The correct Christian position is that everything contingent upon something else has a cause. God, in a category by Himself, is not contingent on something else; therefore, God does not need a cause. This philosophical “contradiction” has a valid explanation that is more logical than the atheist’s position that the universe did not have a cause.

What about the ethical problem of human sacrifice?

God NEVER intended for Isaac to be sacrificed by Abraham — the Lord was simply testing Abraham

In addition, God used this situation to foreshadow the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, His son

The different practices of the Old and New Testament simply reveal how God deals with humans based upon circumstances, culture, and historical context

After all, God is God — He is the Creator…He can give life and take it way as He sees fit.

Be aware: skeptics do not believe in nor understand biblical inspiration

2 Timothy 3:16–17 NIV

All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

Since skeptics usually look at the Bible in a wooden, literal way - problems occur

The Bible is an ancient book, not a modern textbook — It was written for everyday, common people — it is written in common everyday language

When someone attempts to say the Bible is scientifically incorrect — they are missing the historical context

You could say it is scientifically imprecise when viewed through our modern culture…that is common sense

Common language includes unique ways of expressing thoughts and ideas

The Bible, both OT and NT can be compared to the incarnation of Christ — He physically came to the earth as an infant, grew up into a man — God incarnate — He walked among the people

The Bible is a physical representation of God’s Word, His heart, and His plan --- it is God incarnate in a sense

Skeptics often ignore or misrepresent the nature of language

Rachel Ramer: Communication is expressed through multiple genres and shades of meaning. Jesus used hyperbole when He said we are to hate our parents. It is simplistic to think that this contradicts love passages or that Jesus is twisted in His thinking to insist that we hate our parents but love our enemies.

Skeptics often ignore historical, cultural, and language contexts. These things must be considered to understand any written material

Conclusion

Ravi Zacharias talks about the Bible:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pHRP0I2SrVs

Here’s what we know:

The miraculous nature of the Bible leads directly to the Redeemer Himself

Challenge

The Bible demands that we study…that we search for answers…that we search out God

How much do you read the Bible?

How much do you dig into and study the Bible?

What are you looking for when you read and study the Bible?

We will find God in those pages…but not just a cold and distant God — rather a God that loves us unconditionally, a God that designed us to be in relationship with Him.

Can you defend the Word when necessary?

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Are you able to give an answer for the hope you have in Christ Jesus?

Not arguing…that is useless and petty

But do you know why it is dependable as the infallible, inerrant Word of God

But do you know why it is dependable as the infallible, inerrant Word of God

Are you able to give an answer for the hope you have in Christ Jesus?

Never forget the true and powerful message of the Bible

It is the story of God’s love for all people, fulfilled in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, our Savior and King