The True Gospel Is Built Upon Bible Truth
Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). The true gospel is built upon Bible truth, “just as truth is in Jesus.” (Ephesians 4:21 NASB). It is not built upon“a different gospel” (Galatians 1:6), or“a different Jesus” (2 Corinthians 11:4 NLT).
In prayer to his Father, Jesus said, “Your word is truth” (John 17:17). Later, “Jesus” said to the Roman governor Pontius Pilate, “I was born and came into the world to testify to the truth” (John 18:36 NLT). Many today have the same cynical, skeptical attitude that Pilate had back then. “‘What is truth?’ Pilate asked” (John 18:37). Skepticism notwithstanding, the true gospel is founded upon Bible truth.
Christians therefore are strongly exhorted to be “accurately handling the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15 NASB). Where is this truth? “All scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching” (2 Timothy 3:16 NASB). The truth of the gospel is “the faith that was once for handed down to the holy ones” (Jude 3 NAB), in the scriptures, the Bible’s 66 inspired books, and does not need to be supplemented, or changed. Extremely serious warnings are given “if anyone who adds anything to” or “if anyone takes anything from” the scriptures (Revelation 22:18,19 GNB). God’s gospel of truth is not to be tampered with.
Gospel
“Consequently it is not from sacred Scripture alone that the Church draws her certainty about everything which has been revealed. Therefore both sacred Tradition and sacred Scripture are to be accepted and venerated with the same devotion and reverence.”—Second Vatican Council
The Catholic Church enshrines their tradition as being equal to the inspired scriptures of the Bible. There are some other groups which have somewhat similar views that put their doctrines, traditions, dogmas, etc., as at least equal to the Bible and its truth. Bible teachings, expositions, and explanations are fine and good, as long as they are not presented as equal to the scriptures themselves.
The true gospel is not built upon “human traditions” which “nullify the word of God” (Mark 7:8,13 NIV), “man-made ideas” that “cancel the word of God” (Mark 7:7,13 NLT), nor upon “false doctrines” (1 Timothy 6:3 NIV).
“Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, descended from David, this is my gospel” (2 Timothy 2:8 NIV). The gospel of the Bible is based upon Jesus’ sacrificial death, not “speculations” (2 Corinthians 10:5 NASB). “God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood . . . he did it to demonstrate his righteousness . . . so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus” (Romans 3:25 NIV).
Truth
Notice how the New Testament emphasizes “the truth”:
“Every lie is alien to the truth”—1 John 2:21 NAB
“Established in the truth”—2 Peter 1:12 NAB
“Receiving knowledge of the truth”—Hebrews 10:26 NAB
“The word of truth without deviation”—2 Timothy 2:15 NAB; (also see Ephesians 1:13 NAB; Colossians 1:5 NAB
“Do not boast and be false to the truth”—James 3:14 NAB
“In line with the truth of the gospel”—Galatians 2:14 NIV; (also see verse 5).
“Pay no attention to Jewish myths or to the merely human commands of those who reject the truth”—Titus 1:14 NIV
The True Gospel Keeps To The Scriptures
We are told to “preach the word” (2 Timothy 4:2), not “speculations” (1 Timothy 1:3 NIV). The true gospel does not “go beyond what is written in Scripture” (1 Corinthians 4:6 GWT).
The true gospel does not speculate beyond what the Bible says about Jesus’ return and the end of the world. “False doctrines” which go beyond the scriptures, such as the Trinity, Hellfire, Immortality of the soul, involvement in worldly politics, etc, are not part of the true gospel. The true gospel is built exclusively upon Bible truth.
11 thoughts on “The True Gospel Is Built Upon Bible Truth”
BA1: What Is Truth?
GW1: Truth is an accurate description and/or model of reality.
BA1: Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6).
GW1: It is a category error for any person, including Jesus, to say they are truth. Jesus was a real human person, not an accurate description of reality.
BA1: The true gospel is built upon Bible truth, “just as truth is in Jesus.” (Ephesians 4:21 NASB). It is not built upon”a different gospel” (Galatians 1:6), or”a different Jesus” (2 Corinthians 11:4 NLT).
GW1: There are truths in the Bible and the Gospels, which are parts of the Bible, but there are more falsehoods there than truths. For example, anytime these authors say or imply that God exists, they are presenting a falsehood.
BA1: In prayer to his Father, Jesus said, “Your word is truth” (John 17:17).
GW1: God does not exist and so has not presented any words which could be true or false.
BA1: Later, “Jesus” said to the Roman governor Pontius Pilate, “I was born and came into the world to testify to the truth” (John 18:36 NLT).
GW1: Jesus adopted a life purpose of telling truth, just as we have, and that is a good thing. But Jesus often told falsehoods, including the idea that God exists.
BA1: Many today have the same cynical, skeptical attitude that Pilate had back then. “‘What is truth?’ Pilate asked” (John 18:37).
GW1: Contrary to Pilate, we now know what truth is. It is an accurate description and/or model of reality.
BA1: Skepticism notwithstanding, the true gospel is founded upon Bible truth.
GW1: Skepticism is a very good thing. All of the Gospels contain falsehoods, and one is that God exists.
BA1: Christians therefore are strongly exhorted to be “accurately handling the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15 NASB).
GW1: Everyone should be exhorted to do this. Tell Donald Trump.
BA1: Where is this truth?
GW1: Truths and falsehoods exist in our minds. They are descriptions of reality which are accurate and inaccurate, respectively. For example, “Jesus came back to life” is an inaccurate description. “Jesus died and stayed dead” is an accurate description.
BA1: “All scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching” (2 Timothy 3:16 NASB).
GW1: False. God does not exist. We now know this. It has been proven.
BA1: The truth of the gospel is “the faith that was once for handed down to the holy ones” (Jude 3 NAB), in the scriptures, the Bible’s 66 inspired books, and does not need to be supplemented, or changed.
GW1: More than half the Bible is false.
BA1: Extremely serious warnings are given “if anyone who adds anything to” or “if anyone takes anything from” the scriptures (Revelation 22:18,19 GNB). God’s gospel of truth is not to be tampered with.
GW1: But unfortunately for us all, God does not exist. This has been proven.
BA1: “Consequently it is not from sacred Scripture alone that the Church draws her certainty about everything which has been revealed. Therefore both sacred Tradition and sacred Scripture are to be accepted and venerated with the same devotion and reverence.”—Second Vatican Council
GW1: Nobody should trust this Council, especially Protestants like you and atheists like me. Nothing is sacred since God does not exist. Some things are valuable, precious, or important, but not sacred.
BA1: The Catholic Church enshrines their tradition as being equal to the inspired scriptures of the Bible. There are some other groups which have somewhat similar views that put their doctrines, traditions, dogmas, etc., as at least equal to the Bible and its truth. Bible teachings, expositions, and explanations are fine and good, as long as they are not presented as equal to the scriptures themselves.
GW1: They all contain speculations, hypotheses, beliefs, falsehoods, truths – a mixed bag.
BA1: The true gospel is not built upon “human traditions” which “nullify the word of God” (Mark 7:8,13 NIV), “man-made ideas” that “cancel the word of God” (Mark 7:7,13 NLT), nor upon “false doctrines” (1 Timothy 6:3 NIV).
GW1: There is no word of God. God does not exist. This has been proven. If God did exist, there would be no disagreements about his word since he would regularly speak TO ALL LIVING PERSONS SIMULTANEOUSLY! Duh. Five-point bonus question: According to the Bible stories, when was the only time that God spoke to all living persons at the same time?
BA1: “Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, descended from David, this is my gospel” (2 Timothy 2:8 NIV).
GW1: Jesus of Nazareth was a real human person, whereas Jesus Christ is just a mythical or legendary figure. Jesus died and did not come back to life. In fact, there are no verified documented cases of anybody dying and coming back to life.
BA1: The gospel of the Bible is based upon Jesus’ sacrificial death, not “speculations” (2 Corinthians 10:5 NASB). “God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood . . . he did it to demonstrate his righteousness . . . so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus” (Romans 3:25 NIV).
GW1: Complete nonsense! If God did exist, he would never set up a system of atonement. Instead, he would set up a system of perfect justice. Sins and penalties cannot be substituted. Individual accountability is the only way.
BA1: Notice how the New Testament emphasizes “the truth”:
GW1: And notice how it abuses the truth.
BA1: “Every lie is alien to the truth”—1 John 2:21 NAB
GW1: Well of course it is. Duh.
BA1: “Established in the truth”—2 Peter 1:12 NAB
GW1: Not the Bible.
BA1: “Receiving knowledge of the truth”—Hebrews 10:26 NAB
GW1: This is not a sentence.
BA1: “The word of truth without deviation”—2 Timothy 2:15 NAB; (also see Ephesians 1:13 NAB; Colossians 1:5 NAB
GW1: Not a sentence.
BA1: “Do not boast and be false to the truth”—James 3:14 NAB
GW1: Good advice.
BA1: “In line with the truth of the gospel”—Galatians 2:14 NIV; (also see verse 5).
GW1: The main theme of the Gospels is false.
BA1: “Pay no attention to Jewish myths or to the merely human commands of those who reject the truth”—Titus 1:14 NIV
GW1: The Jews and the Christians disagree? Surprise, surprise! If God did exist, there would be no disagreements about him. He would make sure of that.
BA1: We are told to “preach the word” (2 Timothy 4:2), not “speculations” (1 Timothy 1:3 NIV). The true gospel does not “go beyond what is written in Scripture” (1 Corinthians 4:6 GWT).
GW1: The main theme of the Gospels is false.
BA1: The true gospel does not speculate beyond what the Bible says about Jesus’ return and the end of the world.
GW1: Jesus spoke a falsehood. He said he would “return” before those who heard him would die. False. Didn’t happen.
BA1: “False doctrines” which go beyond the scriptures, such as the Trinity, Hellfire, Immortality of the soul, involvement in worldly politics, etc, are not part of the true gospel. The true gospel is built exclusively upon Bible truth.
GW1: But the Bible is built on falsehood too – the falsehood that God exists. We now know he doesn’t exist. This has been proven. Belief in God is just like belief in a flat Earth, once popular, now dying.
GW1: There is no word of God. God does not exist. This has been proven. If God did exist, there would be no disagreements about his word since he would regularly speak TO ALL LIVING PERSONS SIMULTANEOUSLY! Duh. Five-point bonus question: According to the Bible stories, when was the only time that God spoke to all living persons at the same time?
B—He does so every minute of every day, but you’ve been too “blinded” (2 Corinthians 4:3,4) to see it.
“The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands”—Psalm 19:1 NIV
“Since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities–his eternal power and divine nature–have been clearly seen, being understood by the things made, so that people are without excuse”—Romans 1:20 NIV
GW1: There is no word of God. God does not exist. This has been proven. If God did exist, there would be no disagreements about his word since he would regularly speak TO ALL LIVING PERSONS SIMULTANEOUSLY! Duh. Five-point bonus question: According to the Bible stories, when was the only time that God spoke to all living persons at the same time?
BA2: He does so every minute of every day, but you’ve been too “blinded” (2 Corinthians 4:3,4) to see it.
GW2: No bonus points for you. You didn’t answer the question, which is surprising because you are always quoting and noting the Bible.
BA2: “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands”—Psalm 19:1 NIV
GW2: This author was mistaken. God does not exist. This has been proven. I presented to you at least two proofs, and you found no error in either of them.
BA2: “Since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities–his eternal power and divine nature–have been clearly seen, being understood by the things made, so that people are without excuse”—Romans 1:20 NIV
GW2: Creation? Please prove that the cosmos was created. Good luck with that one. God does not exist. We now know this. If he/she did exist, we would not see some things in the world that we do see, e.g. the Holocaust, and we would see other things which we don’t see, e.g. God himself/herself.
GW2: It doesn’t help your case to just quote the authors of books of the Bible. They are not here to defend themselves and you seem unwilling to defend what they claim. You just quote them; you don’t defend them or even answer questions for them.
GW2: Creation? Please prove that the cosmos was created. Good luck with that one.
BA–“The light from Firefly Sparkle is from not long after the creation of the Universe and so has taken more than 13 billion years to reach us. It is so small and so far away that not even JWST would have been able to see it, were it not for an extremely lucky cosmic coincidence.”—BBC December 11, 2024
GW2: Creation? Please prove that the cosmos was created. Good luck with that one.
BA3: “The light from Firefly Sparkle is from not long after the creation of the Universe and so has taken more than 13 billion years to reach us…”—BBC December 11, 2024
GW3: This is just a claim that the cosmos was created, not a proof. It is not even a true claim. It reflects a misunderstanding of the Big Bang. As we have discussed previously, just before the Big Bang there existed a very small, dense, hot packet of energy, which is often called “the primordial particle.” This particle was the entire cosmos at that time, just in a different form from what it is in now. So you see, there is no evidence here for a beginning of the existence or a creation of the cosmos. Read with a skeptical attitude, not a gullible one.
GW3: Besides “creation” implies the beginning of the existence of something coming from nothing. You and I have both previously agreed that something cannot come from nothing. You contradict yourself on this point.
GW2: Creation? Please prove that the cosmos was created. Good luck with that one.
BA3: “The light from Firefly Sparkle is from not long after the creation of the Universe and so has taken more than 13 billion years to reach us…”—BBC December 11, 2024
GW3: This is just a claim that the cosmos was created, not a proof. It is not even a true claim. It reflects a misunderstanding of the Big Bang. As we have discussed previously, just before the Big Bang there existed a very small, dense, hot packet of energy, which is often called “the primordial particle.” This particle was the entire cosmos at that time, just in a different form from what it is in now. So you see, there is no evidence here for a beginning of the existence or a creation of the cosmos. Read with a skeptical attitude, not a gullible one.
GW3: Besides “creation” implies the beginning of the existence of something coming from nothing. You and I have both previously agreed that something cannot come from nothing. You contradict yourself on this point.
BA—No, science and the Bible both agree that there was nothing, and then the universe appeared out of nothing.
GW2: Creation? Please prove that the cosmos was created. Good luck with that one.
BA3: “The light from Firefly Sparkle is from not long after the creation of the Universe and so has taken more than 13 billion years to reach us…”—BBC December 11, 2024
GW3: This is just a claim that the cosmos was created, not a proof. It is not even a true claim. It reflects a misunderstanding of the Big Bang. As we have discussed previously, just before the Big Bang there existed a very small, dense, hot packet of energy, which is often called “the primordial particle.” This particle was the entire cosmos at that time, just in a different form from what it is in now. So you see, there is no evidence here for a beginning of the existence or a creation of the cosmos. Read with a skeptical attitude, not a gullible one.
GW3: Besides “creation” implies the beginning of the existence of something coming from nothing. You and I have both previously agreed that something cannot come from nothing. You contradict yourself on this point.
BA4: No, science and the Bible both agree that there was nothing, and then the universe appeared out of nothing.
GW4: False. The consensus of scientists is that there was a primordial particle which was the universe and it underwent rapid expansion. I don’t even think your claim about the Bible is correct. Present your evidence.
GW4: But you had already agreed with me that something cannot come from nothing. That would be impossible.
A Universe from Nothing: Why There Is Something Rather than Nothing
Softcover edition
Author Lawrence M. Krauss
Language English
Subject Physics
Cosmology
Publisher Free Press
Publication date January 10, 2012
Publication place United States
Media type Print (Hardcover and Softcover), e-book
Pages 224 pp
ISBN 978-1-4516-2445-8
Dewey Decimal 523.1/8
LC Class QB981 .K773 2012
Preceded by Quantum Man
Followed by The Greatest Story Ever Told—So Far
A Universe from Nothing: Why There Is Something Rather than Nothing is a non-fiction book by the physicist Lawrence M. Krauss, initially published on January 10, 2012, by Free Press. It discusses modern cosmogony and its implications for the debate about the existence of God. The main theme of the book is the claim that “we have discovered that all signs suggest a universe that could and plausibly did arise from a deeper nothing—involving the absence of space itself and—which may one day return to nothing via processes that may not only be comprehensible but also processes that do not require any external control or direction.”[1][2]
BA4: No, science and the Bible both agree that there was nothing, and then the universe appeared out of nothing.
GW4: False. The consensus of scientists is that there was a primordial particle which was the universe and it underwent rapid expansion. I don’t even think your claim about the Bible is correct. Present your evidence.
BA—From Wikipedia, “A Universe From Nothing”:
The book ends with an afterword by Richard Dawkins in which he compares the book to On the Origin of Species — a comparison that Krauss himself called “pretentious”.[3] Christopher Hitchens had agreed to write a foreword for the book prior to his death but was too ill to complete it.[4] To write the book, Krauss expanded material from a lecture on the cosmological implications of a flat expanding universe he gave to the Richard Dawkins Foundation at the 2009 Atheist Alliance International conference.[4][5] The book appeared on The New York Times bestseller list on January 29, 2012.[6]
Reception
Praise
Caleb Scharf, writing in Nature, said that “it would be easy for this remarkable story to revel in self-congratulation, but Krauss steers it soberly and with grace”.[7]
Ray Jayawardhana, Canada Research Chair in observational astrophysics at the University of Toronto, wrote for The Globe and Mail that Krauss “delivers a spirited, fast-paced romp through modern cosmology and its strong underpinnings in astronomical observations and particle physics theory” and that he “makes a persuasive case that the ultimate question of cosmic origin – how something, namely the universe, could arise from nothing – belongs in the realm of science rather than theology or philosophy”.[8]
In New Scientist, Michael Brooks wrote, “Krauss will be preaching only to the converted. That said, we should be happy to be preached to so intelligently. The same can’t be said about the Dawkins afterword, which is both superfluous and silly.”[9]
GW4: But you had already agreed with me that something cannot come from nothing. That would be impossible.
BA—True. There was nothing in the material, physical world.
The universe came from God, who “is a spirit” (John 4:23 GWT).
BA5: A Universe from Nothing: Why There Is Something Rather than Nothing. Author Lawrence M. Krauss. Preceded by Quantum Man
GW5: I own that book. I have read most of it. Have you?
BA5: The main theme of the book is the claim that “we have discovered that all signs suggest a universe that could and plausibly did arise from a deeper nothing—involving the absence of space itself and—which may one day return to nothing via processes that may not only be comprehensible but also processes that do not require any external control or direction.”
GW5: But if you read the book and also follow Krause closely, as I have, you will learn that he does not really mean Absolute Nothing when he speaks of nothing.
BA4: No, science and the Bible both agree that there was nothing, and then the universe appeared out of nothing.
GW4: False. The consensus of scientists is that there was a primordial particle which was the universe and it underwent rapid expansion. I don’t even think your claim about the Bible is correct. Present your evidence.
BA5: From Wikipedia, “A Universe From Nothing”: The book ends with an afterword by Richard Dawkins in which he compares the book to On the Origin of Species — a comparison that Krauss himself called “pretentious”.[3] Christopher Hitchens had agreed to write a foreword for the book prior to his death but was too ill to complete it.[4] To write the book, Krauss expanded material from a lecture on the cosmological implications of a flat expanding universe he gave to the Richard Dawkins Foundation at the 2009 Atheist Alliance International conference.[4][5] The book appeared on The New York Times bestseller list on January 29, 2012.[6]
GW5: This is irrelevant because it does not explain what Krause means by “nothing.” The title of his book is a little weird and misleading in order to grab attention. An editor, not Krause, probably titled the book. By “nothing” Krause essentially means a field of virtual quantum particles which is not nothing in the philosophical sense. It is not Absolute Nothing.
BA5: Ray Jayawardhana… how something, namely the universe, could arise from nothing – belongs in the realm of science rather than theology or philosophy”.
GW5: But as I said, Krause does not mean Absolute Nothing. Krause may be a pretty good scientist, but he is not a good philosopher.
GW4: But you had already agreed with me that something cannot come from nothing. That would be impossible.
BA5: True. There was nothing in the material, physical world.
GW5: No, when we talked about this before, you and I both said something cannot come from nothing, and we were referring to Absolute Nothing.
BA5: The universe came from God, who “is a spirit” (John 4:23 GWT).
GW5: So, the universe did not come from nothing, as I have been saying and which you had been saying before. Your claim now is that the energy-matter which constitutes our universe came from a transformation from spiritual substance. So, where did that spiritual substance come from? Did it come from nothing? Or did God “pinch off” a little part of his own spiritual substance and transform it into energy-matter? You probably won’t answer those questions.
GW5: But it doesn’t matter because God does not exist. We now know this. It has been proven. I have presented you at least two arguments which prove it, and you found no errors in either one. Until you find an error, the conclusion stands true – God does not exist! Sorry. It’s ok. You can cope with life successfully even though God does not exist.
The most current science and astronomy tells us that prior to the “primordial particle” appearing there was nothing. Zippo. We do not know all the precise details of exactly how God did this. — Genesis 1:1; Hebrews 11:3.
“The primordial particle” lasted only the most minute fraction of a second.
The main point is that science and the Bible both agree that there was nothing, and then the universe appeared out of nothing.
BA6: The most current science and astronomy tells us that prior to the “primordial particle” appearing there was nothing. Zippo.
GW6: Absolutely false! We don’t know what was prior to the primordial particle. That is the scientific consensus.
BA6: We do not know all the precise details of exactly how God did this. — Genesis 1:1; Hebrews 11:3.
GW6: You provided neither quotes nor the Bible versions for this conclusion. God didn’t do anything! He couldn’t since he does not exist. Duh. We now know this. It has been proven. You are believing the ideas in a book written about two thousands years ago. Humans knew little about science, physics, astronomy, and cosmology back then. You are living in the past.
BA6: “The primordial particle” lasted only the most minute fraction of a second.
GW6: Neither you nor anyone else knows how long the particle “lasted.” You are engaged in “begging the question” again! You are making stuff up to comply with your foregone conclusion. Please don’t spread disinformation like this.
BA6: The main point is that science and the Bible both agree that there was nothing, and then the universe appeared out of nothing.
GW6: Absolutely false! Science makes no such claim. I don’t think you can even make a case that the Bible authors claimed that the universe came from nothing. Please present your evidence for that.