Archive for the ‘Truth’ tag
Who is Jesus and What Makes Him Different
Note: This article is loosly based on Josh McDowell’s book “More Than a Carpenter.” I highly recommend this short book if you want powerful evidence supporting what Jesus claims in the New Testament.
He claimed to be God
Did Buddha, Muhammad, or Confucius claim to be God? No.
Again the high priest asked him, “Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed One?” “I am,” said Jesus. “And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.” Mark 14:61-62
When asked if Jesus ever existed, most will say yes but qualify the answer with something like, “I believe he was just a great moral teacher.” But why were the Jews (not the Romans, by-the-way) so determined to kill him? The Jews, assisted by the Romans, did eventually kill Him by crucifixion. So, why would the Jews want to kill a good moral teacher? It’s because of his claims of deity! Consider these additional verses:
Has the Bible been accurately reproduced over time?
New Testament Analysis
“Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.” Matt. 24:35
The short answer is a resounding YES. The first time I studied this topic, I was shocked at the numbers involved. Let’s take a look.
We are trying to determine how accurately a modern copy of the New Testament represents the original manuscripts, not whether it is divinely inspired or true. That is a topic for another day.
Textual Criticism is a method used to evaluate any ancient text. Two key metrics in the analysis are 1) how many hand written copies exist and 2) how close in time to the original manuscript were they written. From Wikipedia:
How Do We Discover Truth?
As we have discussed, truth is that which corresponds our metaphysical reality. Truth is discovered, not created and we agree that truth is knowable by starting with self-evident First Principles. So, how do we go about discovering truth?
We discover truth by using Reason and Logic. Reason is a type of thought and logic is used to define formal methods of reasoning used to reach conclusions. If two people agree upon a logical method of reasoning, then they should be able to reach conclusions that they both agree with. Logical methods were devised to provide a framework to support conclusions that, at least if one accepts the method as valid, cannot be refuted. One common type of logic used by scientists is called Deductive Reasoning. Read the rest of this entry »
Is Truth Knowable?
“If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” John 8: 31-32
There are branches of philosophy, epistemology and ontology, dedicated to the study of this question. Where does one start when asking this question? The First Principles of Knowledge is where science and philosophy start. They are similar to axioms in mathematics and both are considered to be self-evident and need no further proof of their truthfulness. The great philosopher Aristotle contributed what is considered to be “The First Principle” when he stated, “For the same characteristic simultaneously to belong and not belong to the same object in the same way is impossible.” Think about that for a minute! The first principle of Non-contradiction is based on this statement. Read the rest of this entry »
What is Truth and is it Absolute or Relative?
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.” John 14:6
Truth is that which corresponds to reality for everyone, everywhere, at all times. We use various scientific methods including use of our five natural senses, to test whether a statement is true or “corresponds to our metaphysical reality”. It is easier to determine truth if we can observe an event or object in real time rather than have to rely upon eyewitness accounts or other evidence from the past. Nevertheless, scientific methods do exist that enable analysis of historical evidence such as bones or manuscripts to test whether a statement is true or false. For example, textual criticism can be used to determine how accurately a copy of a manuscript represents the original. Read the rest of this entry »