Why don't Christians follow the Old Testament dietary laws against eating pork? Did Paul make more changes to the Old Testament laws?
No, it is because Peter was shown a vision from God that showed that all foods were made clean, and he also learned that they should no longer avoid associating with non-Jews:
“What God has cleansed, you must not call unclean.”
--Acts 10:14
Monday, December 28, 2015
Salvation: Jesus Taught Salvation by Grace +
Usually, when we talk about salvation by grace, we will quote verses from the epistles. However, Muslims have been told that Paul changed the original Christianity that Jesus taught into licentiousness to appeal to pagan audiences.
Let me expand on this point here. They claim that Paul was able to entirely undo what Jesus came to do, then replace that with something different, all in the same generation that Jesus and his disciples lived in. This is the same Jesus who is the only virgin-born prophet who performed many miracles.
Nevertheless it is good to be able to show that Paul and Jesus are not at odds. Here are verses that show that Jesus himself taught that salvation is by grace, through faith.
Fundamentally, the message of the four gospels is that Jesus died on the cross and rose from the dead. Jesus did not flee the cross but allowed himself to be captured. This must have great significance. As Paul points out:
For if righteousness is through the law, then Christ died for nothing!
--Gal 2:21
Communion was instituted by Jesus:
This is my blood of the new covenant, which is poured out for many for the remission of sins.
--Matt 26:28
Jesus said:
the Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.
--Matt 20:28
He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who disbelieves will be condemned.
--Mark 16:16
To the people who were religious people who were trying to keep the law:
I tell you that unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, there is no way you will enter into the Kingdom of Heaven.
--Matt 5:20
whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.
--Matt 5:28 (KJV)
About the tax collector compared to a pharisee:
But the tax collector, standing far away, wouldn’t even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other.
--Luke 10:13,14
To a crowd that had gathered around Him:
“This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.”
--John 6:29
To the paralytic:
Jesus, seeing their faith, said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven you.”
--Mark 2:12
To the thief on the cross:
He said to Jesus, “Lord, remember me when you come into your Kingdom.”
Jesus said to him, “Assuredly I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”
--Luke 23:40-42-43
To the sinner woman:
He said to her, "Your sins are forgiven." (...)
He said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you. Go in peace.”
--Luke 7:48, 50
To whosoever:
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
--John 3:16 (KJV)
Jesus left us with a new commandment, not with Moses' law:
A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, just like I have loved you; that you also love one another.
--John 13:4
This is not "another" commandment, but a "new" commandment that replaces the old.
Let me expand on this point here. They claim that Paul was able to entirely undo what Jesus came to do, then replace that with something different, all in the same generation that Jesus and his disciples lived in. This is the same Jesus who is the only virgin-born prophet who performed many miracles.
Nevertheless it is good to be able to show that Paul and Jesus are not at odds. Here are verses that show that Jesus himself taught that salvation is by grace, through faith.
Fundamentally, the message of the four gospels is that Jesus died on the cross and rose from the dead. Jesus did not flee the cross but allowed himself to be captured. This must have great significance. As Paul points out:
For if righteousness is through the law, then Christ died for nothing!
--Gal 2:21
Communion was instituted by Jesus:
This is my blood of the new covenant, which is poured out for many for the remission of sins.
--Matt 26:28
Jesus said:
the Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.
--Matt 20:28
He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who disbelieves will be condemned.
--Mark 16:16
To the people who were religious people who were trying to keep the law:
I tell you that unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, there is no way you will enter into the Kingdom of Heaven.
--Matt 5:20
whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.
--Matt 5:28 (KJV)
About the tax collector compared to a pharisee:
But the tax collector, standing far away, wouldn’t even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other.
--Luke 10:13,14
To a crowd that had gathered around Him:
“This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.”
--John 6:29
To the paralytic:
Jesus, seeing their faith, said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven you.”
--Mark 2:12
To the thief on the cross:
He said to Jesus, “Lord, remember me when you come into your Kingdom.”
Jesus said to him, “Assuredly I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”
--Luke 23:40-42-43
To the sinner woman:
He said to her, "Your sins are forgiven." (...)
He said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you. Go in peace.”
--Luke 7:48, 50
To whosoever:
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
--John 3:16 (KJV)
Jesus left us with a new commandment, not with Moses' law:
A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, just like I have loved you; that you also love one another.
--John 13:4
This is not "another" commandment, but a "new" commandment that replaces the old.
Saturday, December 26, 2015
Trinity: A Few verses of Explanation of the Trinity +
What Is The Trinity?
The Trinity is the belief that God is one being, three persons: The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It may not make sense according to what you see in your daily world, but it is quite consistent with what the Bible says.
While there are some alternative doctrines, the trinity is the view that is presented to Muslims by scholarly Christian apologists. I am not aware of any exceptions.
I somewhat reluctantly concluded that the traditional view is the best. The argument that persuaded me was this:
If Jesus were just human of some kind, then that would mean that the hard work of paying for our salvation was done by a person, and not God. Who then do you want to worship? With the Trinity, God gets the worship he deserves.
You can expect to be asked about the trinity when talking to Muslims, but you don't have to be an expert. Usually, if you can intelligently answer few questions the conversation turns to something else.
Muslims typically have the expectation that the Trinity is something that was invented later, like in the council of Nicea, or that it is part of a corruption of the Bible.
These verses show that Jesus pre-existed creation.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him. Without him was not anything made that has been made
...
The Word became flesh, and lived among us.
--John 1:1-3, 14
John introduces this as his thesis for the entire Gospel of John and it which concludes like this:
These are written, that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in his name.
--John 20:31
Now, Father, glorify me with your own self with the glory which I had with you before the world existed.
--John 17:5
Have this in your mind, which was also in Christ Jesus, who, existing in the form of God, didn’t consider equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, yes, the death of the cross. Therefore God also highly exalted him, and gave to him the name which is above every name; that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, those on earth, and those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
--Phil 2:5-11
Hebrews 1:1-14 (the entire chapter) is about who Jesus is.
From Jesus in Revelation, we have these:
I am the Alpha and the Omega, says the Lord God, who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.
--Revelation 1:8
I am the first and the last, and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore.
--Revelation 1:17
I am the Alpha and Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.
--Revelation 22:13
Note: When it is convenient, Muslims insist on accepting only the words of Jesus himself. However, the Quran is not held to this standard.
The Trinity is the belief that God is one being, three persons: The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It may not make sense according to what you see in your daily world, but it is quite consistent with what the Bible says.
While there are some alternative doctrines, the trinity is the view that is presented to Muslims by scholarly Christian apologists. I am not aware of any exceptions.
I somewhat reluctantly concluded that the traditional view is the best. The argument that persuaded me was this:
If Jesus were just human of some kind, then that would mean that the hard work of paying for our salvation was done by a person, and not God. Who then do you want to worship? With the Trinity, God gets the worship he deserves.
You can expect to be asked about the trinity when talking to Muslims, but you don't have to be an expert. Usually, if you can intelligently answer few questions the conversation turns to something else.
Muslims typically have the expectation that the Trinity is something that was invented later, like in the council of Nicea, or that it is part of a corruption of the Bible.
These verses show that Jesus pre-existed creation.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him. Without him was not anything made that has been made
...
The Word became flesh, and lived among us.
--John 1:1-3, 14
John introduces this as his thesis for the entire Gospel of John and it which concludes like this:
These are written, that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in his name.
--John 20:31
Now, Father, glorify me with your own self with the glory which I had with you before the world existed.
--John 17:5
Have this in your mind, which was also in Christ Jesus, who, existing in the form of God, didn’t consider equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, yes, the death of the cross. Therefore God also highly exalted him, and gave to him the name which is above every name; that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, those on earth, and those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
--Phil 2:5-11
Hebrews 1:1-14 (the entire chapter) is about who Jesus is.
From Jesus in Revelation, we have these:
I am the Alpha and the Omega, says the Lord God, who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.
--Revelation 1:8
I am the first and the last, and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore.
--Revelation 1:17
I am the Alpha and Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.
--Revelation 22:13
Note: When it is convenient, Muslims insist on accepting only the words of Jesus himself. However, the Quran is not held to this standard.
Thursday, December 24, 2015
Why Muslims Never lose +
Do not be surprised if the Muslims you are talking to act as if their side wins every debate and that they are so confident that the Quran is true that it is as if they had witnessed everything it says with their own eyes. That is quite typical. Expect it and don't let it bother you.
Do Muslims Ask Real Questions?
Sometimes you will find Muslims asking inappropriate questions, or behaving in a way that makes you question their sincerity. At this point it may be best to not continue discussing. You have to decide if what you are encountering a language barrier, or something cultural, or if your time and expertise is better spent elsewhere. You should not cast your pearls be fore the swine. Feel free to walk away.
Muslims almost always demand a much higher standard of proof from Christianity than they do from their Muslim sources.
It is common to encounter Muslims who say they used to be Christian. This is a way of discrediting Christianity. Some who know more about Christianity may claim to have been elders, youth pastors or pastors, or former Christian scholars who have seen the light. I have heard where Muslims convert to Christianity, marry naïve Christian women, then revert back to Islam.
Do Muslims Ask Real Questions?
Sometimes you will find Muslims asking inappropriate questions, or behaving in a way that makes you question their sincerity. At this point it may be best to not continue discussing. You have to decide if what you are encountering a language barrier, or something cultural, or if your time and expertise is better spent elsewhere. You should not cast your pearls be fore the swine. Feel free to walk away.
Muslims almost always demand a much higher standard of proof from Christianity than they do from their Muslim sources.
It is common to encounter Muslims who say they used to be Christian. This is a way of discrediting Christianity. Some who know more about Christianity may claim to have been elders, youth pastors or pastors, or former Christian scholars who have seen the light. I have heard where Muslims convert to Christianity, marry naïve Christian women, then revert back to Islam.
Monday, December 21, 2015
Salvation: What about Those Who Never Heard of Jesus? +
It seems obvious to me that the universe has an intelligent creator. Nothing like this world happens by chance. So I don't see why all people shouldn't seek and call out to him. Abraham did not come from a land that knew God, but God told him:
Leave your country, and your relatives, and your father’s house, and go to the land that I will show you.
--Genesis 12:1
And so unfolded the story from Abraham, to David and to Jesus.
The Bible says:
Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you.
--James 4:8
Paul says:
“The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness”
--Romans 1:18
Paul says:
“The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness”
--Romans 1:18
Sunday, December 20, 2015
The Resurrection: The Quran's weakness is our strength +
What is the most compelling reason to believe in Jesus? The resurrection!
An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and there will be no sign given to it, except the sign of the prophet Jonah.
--Matt 16:4
All the Muslim scholarship (or propaganda) funded by all the Saudi oil money has yet to produce a good answer to the resurrection.
When a young Josh McDowell came to debate Ahmed Deedat (in Durban 1981), the result was so embarrassing for Deedat that the Islamic propagation center did not release a video of the event, although they organized it.
Ahmed Deedat vs Josh McDowell Debate: Was Jesus Christ Crucified? (Full)
https://youtu.be/cgUnalaJoTs
The debate between Mike Licona and Shabir Ally (in Virginia Beach, VA 2004) was so disappointing to Nabeel Qureshi, who was in the audience, that he left Islam and became a Christian apologist.
Did Jesus Rise from the Dead? Michael Licona vs. Shabir Ally
https://youtu.be/FTyqQlBGX_4
Both these are the best two Muslim debaters in their time, and this shows the resurrection is a difficult problem for Islam and a battle-tested justification for believing in Christianity.
This being the case, you would think that the Quran would help out with some insight on how a critical mass of people came to believe the resurrection and endure the inevitable persecution.
However, in response all we find is forty Arabic words, which basically say that Jesus was not crucified but it just appeared that he did. That is not helpful. In fact I would say that it looks like the Muslims are doing all the work, not the Quran. That pretty much describes an idol.
I suggest that you study these two debates carefully, and you will have nothing to fear from the best Muslim debaters in history.
Muslims learn many polemics against Christianity, but it is impossible to train the average Muslim to respond to the resurrection without risk of them leaving Islam.
Questions for Muslims:
What evidence does Islam provide for itself? The resurrection shows that that Christianity is reasonable to believe in. Islam must bring something demonstrability more compelling?
Big claims need big evidence.
In principle, Islam should have a very compelling case because the Quran is written as a rebuttal to Christianity and Judaism. The person who writes the rebuttal is in a very strong position. That is why the defense in a court trial has the final word, in order to give them some advantage. What useful insights do you get from the Quran on the origin of Christianity?
An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and there will be no sign given to it, except the sign of the prophet Jonah.
--Matt 16:4
All the Muslim scholarship (or propaganda) funded by all the Saudi oil money has yet to produce a good answer to the resurrection.
When a young Josh McDowell came to debate Ahmed Deedat (in Durban 1981), the result was so embarrassing for Deedat that the Islamic propagation center did not release a video of the event, although they organized it.
Ahmed Deedat vs Josh McDowell Debate: Was Jesus Christ Crucified? (Full)
https://youtu.be/cgUnalaJoTs
The debate between Mike Licona and Shabir Ally (in Virginia Beach, VA 2004) was so disappointing to Nabeel Qureshi, who was in the audience, that he left Islam and became a Christian apologist.
Did Jesus Rise from the Dead? Michael Licona vs. Shabir Ally
https://youtu.be/FTyqQlBGX_4
Both these are the best two Muslim debaters in their time, and this shows the resurrection is a difficult problem for Islam and a battle-tested justification for believing in Christianity.
This being the case, you would think that the Quran would help out with some insight on how a critical mass of people came to believe the resurrection and endure the inevitable persecution.
However, in response all we find is forty Arabic words, which basically say that Jesus was not crucified but it just appeared that he did. That is not helpful. In fact I would say that it looks like the Muslims are doing all the work, not the Quran. That pretty much describes an idol.
I suggest that you study these two debates carefully, and you will have nothing to fear from the best Muslim debaters in history.
Muslims learn many polemics against Christianity, but it is impossible to train the average Muslim to respond to the resurrection without risk of them leaving Islam.
Questions for Muslims:
What evidence does Islam provide for itself? The resurrection shows that that Christianity is reasonable to believe in. Islam must bring something demonstrability more compelling?
Big claims need big evidence.
In principle, Islam should have a very compelling case because the Quran is written as a rebuttal to Christianity and Judaism. The person who writes the rebuttal is in a very strong position. That is why the defense in a court trial has the final word, in order to give them some advantage. What useful insights do you get from the Quran on the origin of Christianity?
Thursday, December 10, 2015
Jesus, the Son of Man +
One very important concept to understand is Jesus' use of the phrase "Son of Man". Some Muslims will suggest that Jesus' frequent use of this title (81 times, actually) means he did not claim divinity for himself.
How can Jesus take this modest title and claim to be God at the same time? Well, the Jews were familiar with this passage from Daniel chapter 7:
I saw in the night visions,
and behold, with the clouds of heaven
there came one like a son of man,
and he came to the Ancient of Days
and was presented before him.
And to him was given dominion
and glory and a kingdom,
that all peoples, nations, and languages
should serve him;
his dominion is an everlasting dominion,
which shall not pass away,
and his kingdom one
that shall not be destroyed.
--Daniel 7:13-14
This passage is not discussed often enough in church, so please read it carefully.
Note how Jesus answered the high priest in Mark 14:
Again the high priest asked him, “Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?”
And Jesus said, “I am, and you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.”
The high priest responds:
And the high priest tore his garments and said, “What further witnesses do we need?
You have heard his blasphemy. What is your decision?”
And they all condemned him as deserving death.
--Mark 14:61-2
Let me clarify Jesus' use this title for himself. In fact Jesus uses this phrase in the third person. If he had applied it to himself in first person, he could have been arrested for blasphemy by his enemies.
At the end of his ministry, when his fate was sealed, he was more clear:
Jesus said to him, “Judas, would you betray the Son of Man with a kiss?
--Luke 22:48
How many people did Judas ever betray with a kiss in his life? Just one.
Is Jesus God?
In the current prevailing teaching on apologetics to Muslims, it is often suggested that we should say that "Jesus is God". But Jesus referred to himself as "Son of Man" much more often, and this title confers more useful insight on who Jesus is with the context of Daniel 7.
How can Jesus take this modest title and claim to be God at the same time? Well, the Jews were familiar with this passage from Daniel chapter 7:
I saw in the night visions,
and behold, with the clouds of heaven
there came one like a son of man,
and he came to the Ancient of Days
and was presented before him.
And to him was given dominion
and glory and a kingdom,
that all peoples, nations, and languages
should serve him;
his dominion is an everlasting dominion,
which shall not pass away,
and his kingdom one
that shall not be destroyed.
--Daniel 7:13-14
This passage is not discussed often enough in church, so please read it carefully.
Note how Jesus answered the high priest in Mark 14:
Again the high priest asked him, “Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?”
And Jesus said, “I am, and you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.”
The high priest responds:
And the high priest tore his garments and said, “What further witnesses do we need?
You have heard his blasphemy. What is your decision?”
And they all condemned him as deserving death.
--Mark 14:61-2
Let me clarify Jesus' use this title for himself. In fact Jesus uses this phrase in the third person. If he had applied it to himself in first person, he could have been arrested for blasphemy by his enemies.
At the end of his ministry, when his fate was sealed, he was more clear:
Jesus said to him, “Judas, would you betray the Son of Man with a kiss?
--Luke 22:48
How many people did Judas ever betray with a kiss in his life? Just one.
Is Jesus God?
In the current prevailing teaching on apologetics to Muslims, it is often suggested that we should say that "Jesus is God". But Jesus referred to himself as "Son of Man" much more often, and this title confers more useful insight on who Jesus is with the context of Daniel 7.
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