February 2017 - Bible Authenticity

Beliefs Unique To Jehovah’s Witnesses Are Unscriptural

February 28, 2017 BibleAuthenticity Comments 0 Comment

“Approved association with Jehovah’s Witnesses requires accepting the entire range of the true teachings of the Bible, including those Scriptural beliefs that are unique to Jehovah’s Witnesses. What do such beliefs include? …

“That there is a ‘faithful and discreet slave’ upon earth today ‘entrusted with all of Jesus’ earthly interests,’ which slave is associated with the Governing Body of Jehovah’s Witnesses. (Matthew 24:45-47) That 1914 marked the end of the Gentile Times and the establishment of the Kingdom of God in the heavens, as well as the time for Christ’s foretold presence. (Luke 21:7-24; Revelation 11:15–12:10) That only 144,000 Christians will receive the heavenly reward. That Armageddon, referring to the battle of the great day of God the Almighty, is near. (Revelation 16:14, 16; 19:11-21) That it will be followed by Christ’s Millennial Reign, which will restore an earth-wide paradise. That the first to enjoy it will be the present “great crowd” of Jesus’ “other sheep.”—John 10:16; Revelation 7:9-17; 21:3, 4.”
(Quoted from: The Watchtower, 4/1/1986, page 31, Questions From Readers) read more

Divergent Details of Jesus’ Trial and Execution – Contradictions?

February 24, 2017 BibleAuthenticity Comments 0 Comment

Titles of the Gospels — Are the divergent details in Matthew, Mark, Luke and John regarding Jesus’ trial and execution contradictions, or evidence of authenticity?

All of the gospels tell the same basic story of Jesus’ trial, execution and resurrection, but with divergent details. Are these divergent details contradictions? No. These divergent details give strong evidence the gospel writers are telling the truth, rather than copying from a single fictional account, or writing new fiction, in which the details are harmonized, or smoothed out

Below are some of the divergent, but true, details about the crucifixion of Jesus:

Barrabas

Was described as:

· Matthew 27:16 – notorious, “well-known” (NIV) read more

The Sudden, Unexpected End of the World

February 24, 2017 BibleAuthenticity Comments 0 Comment

Is it possible to know that the “end of the world” is near?

“Watch out that you are not deceived. For many will come in my name, claiming . . . ‘The time is near.’ Do not follow them”—Luke 21:8 — NIV

“Don’t believe them”—Luke 21:8 NLT

“Refuse to join them”—Luke 21:8 NJB

Jesus spoke about his “return” (Luke 19:12 NIV) in the Bible. Jesus knew that the exact time of “when he returns” (Matthew 24:46; Luke 12:43 NIV) would be an issue for Christians through the ages. For the last 2,000 years many predictions have been made about when Jesus would return. But they have all proven false. For example: read more

Signs, Sign, & Non-Signs, of The End

February 23, 2017 BibleAuthenticity Comments 0 Comment

What are the signs of the end of the world? Is there just one composite sign? Are there non-signs?

WARNINGS NOT TO BE MISLEAD

“Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many.” (Matthew 24:4-5)
“Watch out that you are not deceived. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he,’ and, ‘The time is near.’ Do not follow them.” (Luke 21:8)

IS THERE A SIGN OF JESUS’ COMING, OR PAROUSIA?

“At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or, ‘There he is!’ do not believe it.For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.See, I have told you ahead of time. So if anyone tells you, ‘There he is, out in the wilderness,’ do not go out; or, ‘Here he is, in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it. For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.” (Matthew 24:23-27) read more

The Last Days – What Will Be the Sign of Jesus’ Return?

February 23, 2017 BibleAuthenticity Comments 0 Comment

What was Jesus’ response to the question at Matthew 24:3:: “When will all this happen? What sign will signal your return and the end of the world?” (NLT). What will be the sign of Jesus’ return? Does the context say anything about “the last days”?

First, “Jesus answered: ‘Watch out that no one deceives you.'” (Matthew 24:4)

Mark recorded: “Watch out that no one deceives you. Many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he,’ and will deceive many. ” (Mark 13:5,6) read more

Can Anyone Predict the End of the World?

February 22, 2017 BibleAuthenticity Comments 0 Comment

Will world events enable anyone to predict when the end of the world, according to the scriptures in God’s Word, the Bible?

How do we know this for sure? Let’s take a look at what the scriptures say.

Matthew 24:4,5—“Jesus answered: ‘Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming, “I am the Messiah,” and will deceive many'” (NIV)

Mark 13:5,6—“Jesus said to them: ‘Watch out that no one deceives you. Many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he,’ and will deceive many'” (NIV) read more

False Prophets and Prophecies – How to Identify Them

February 22, 2017 BibleAuthenticity Comments 0 Comment

False Doctrines — “Do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. ” (1 John 4:1) Biblical ‘testing’ will help us to identify false prophets and prophecies.

The Bible tells us to discern the origin of prophecies. “Do not quench the Spirit. Do not treat prophecies with contempt but test them all; hold on to what is good, reject every kind of evil” (1 Thessalonians 5:19-21 NIV). According to the scriptures, we should ‘test all prophets and prophecies.’ The Bible gives us all the information we need to identify false prophets and prophecies.

1. Real prophecy strengthens the church.

“Let love be your highest goal! But you should also desire the special abilities the Spirit gives—especially the ability to prophesy. For if you have the ability to speak in tongues, you will be talking only to God, since people won’t be able to understand you. You will be speaking by the power of the Spirit, but it will all be mysterious. But one who prophesies strengthens others, encourages them, and comforts them. A person who speaks in tongues is strengthened personally, but one who speaks a word of prophecy strengthens the entire church.” (1 Corinthians 14:1-4 NLT). read more

Abortion – What Is God’s View?

February 21, 2017 BibleAuthenticity Comments 0 Comment

The “world” has its viewpoint of things, including abortion, which is often not in harmony with God’s viewpoint (John 15:19,20; James 4:4; 1 John 5:19). Why is that?

“In the last days the times will be full of danger. Men will become utterly self-centred . . . They will be utterly lacking in . . . normal human affections. They will be remorseless . . . uncontrolled . . . reckless . . . loving what gives them pleasure instead of loving God” (2 Timothy 3:1-5 PHILLIPS) – Lack of natural affection was foretold, and is very evident in the world in general, which generally views abortion innocently and simply as a matter of “women’s health care”. We often hear phrases like, “a woman has the right to chose what she does with her own body”. Is that all there is to it? Is it really that simple, just a private matter? Or, does God even care? How does God view deliberate abortion? read more

When Did “The Last Days” Start?

February 20, 2017 BibleAuthenticity Comments 0 Comment

Is the Bible reliable? — When did the last days start?

DNA Lets Sharks Take a Bite Out of Cancer–Evolution or Creation?

February 15, 2017 BibleAuthenticity Comments 0 Comment

Researchers are finding clues to cancer in shark genes.

Are humans really higher on the “evolutionary chain” than sharks? USA Today published an article on January 30, 2017 entitled: “Could sharks be the key to solving human cancer?”

A new study of shark DNA shows that unique evolutionary changes in immunity genes may explain how sharks’ open wounds heal so fast and why the ocean’s top predator rarely gets cancer.

But, scientist warn, simply eating shark meat or other parts won’t help humans battle cancer. In fact, eating sharks could be detrimental to human health because of high levels of mercury found in these “apex predators.” read more