3/11/15

From Jim McGuiggan... The Da Vinci Code and the Uniqueness of Christ by Eric Lyons, M.Min.

http://apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=10&article=1890

The Da Vinci Code and the Uniqueness of Christ

by Eric Lyons, M.Min.

Among the many unsubstantiated accusations that author Dan Brown made in his bestselling novelThe Da Vinci Code is one regarding the “unoriginality” of Christianity. Allegedly, “Nothing in Christianity is original” (Brown, 2003, p. 232). As “proof” of this statement, Brown’s fictional character, Sir Leigh Teabing, asserts:
“The pre-Christian God Mithras—called the Son of God and the Light of the World—was born on December 25, died, and was buried in a rock tomb, and then resurrected in three days. By the way, December 25 is also the birthday of Osiris, Adonis, and Dionysus. The newborn Krishna was presented with gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Even Christianity’s weekly holy day was stolen from the pagans” (p. 232, italics in orig.).
Supposedly, the Gospel was nothing new 2,000 years ago when Jesus was born into the world. Stories that resemble “the Good News of Jesus” circulated centuries earlier. Pagans had previously worshipped and idolized god-like heroes who in some ways resembled Christ.
How can Christianity be “original” if stories that predate the time of Christ speak of gods who were born on December 25, presented with gold, frankincense, and myrrh, called the Son of God and Light of the World, and buried and raised only a few days after their deaths? As with so many things in The Da Vinci Code, this accusation is erroneous and terribly misleading.
First of all, the Bible nowhere indicates that Jesus was born on December 25. There are no Old Testament prophecies about Him being born on this date, nor does any New Testament writer suggest it. On the contrary, Luke hints that Jesus was most likely born in a month other than December. In chapter two of his gospel account, Luke wrote that Jesus was born when shepherds were “living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night” (2:8). It is highly unlikely that shepherds would have been “living out in the fields” with their sheep during the winter months. “Jews sent out their flocks into the mountainous and desert regions during the summer months, and took them up in the latter part of October or the first of November, when the cold weather commenced” (Barnes, 1997). Late December simply was not a time when flocks were in the fields at night. Thus, as Adam Clarke concluded, “On this very ground the nativity in December should be given up” (1996).
The early church did not celebrate “Christmas” on December 25, since the inspired apostles and prophets never commanded its observance as a religious holy day. “Christmas” was not observed until the fourth century A.D. (see “Christmas,” 1997, 3:283), and even then it was most likely adopted “to coincide with the pagan Roman festival marking the ‘birthday of the unconquered sun’” (“Christmas,” 3:283). In short, a December 25 “holy day” originated as a pagan feast, and true Christianity is not connected to this date in any way. Thus, the fact that history records stories of mythical gods being born on December 25 in no way diminishes the deity, superiority, or virgin birth of Christ.
Second, similarities between Christ and the stories of mythical hero “savior-gods” from the past are to be expected. Centuries before the time of Christ prophets foretold of the coming Savior of mankind Who would be “from everlasting” (Micah 5:2), yet enter the world miraculously by being born of a virgin (Isaiah 7:14). He would be of royal blood (Isaiah 9:6-7), reign over a kingdom (Psalm 110:1-2) that will never be destroyed (Daniel 2:44), and wear names such as “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6). Finally, at His death He would be pierced (Zechariah 12:10), and yet His body would not see corruption (Psalm 16:10), i.e., He would be raised from the dead. Considering prophecies about the coming Messiah were being foretold since “the foundation of the world (i.e., since the fall of man—Genesis 3:15; cf. Luke 11:49-51) to both Jews and Gentiles (see Lyons, 2004), stories of various “savior-gods” who might sound similar to the true Messiah are to be expected. [NOTE: For further information, see Butt and Lyons, 2006, pp. 35-74.]
Third, although there are some parallels between the Gospel of Jesus and the “hero-god” stories that circulated centuries before Christ came to Earth, many of these professed similarities are untrue. For example, in hopes of casting doubt on the story of Jesus, Dan Brown asserted that, like Jesus, Krishna was presented with gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Yet, according to Amy Welborn, “There is not a single story in actual Hindu mythology of Krishna being presented with gold, frankincense, and myrrh at his birth” (2004, p. 87). Brown may well have obtained this information regarding Krishna from Kersey Graves’ 1875 book The World’s Sixteen Crucified Saviors. Not surprising, neither Brown nor Graves provided any documentation for their comparisons. Furthermore, as Carl Olson and Sandra Miesel observed: “The stories of Krishna’s childhood recorded in the Harivamsa Purana (c. A.D. 300) and the Bhagavata Purana (c. A.D. 800-900) don’t mention gifts at all. Even if they did, these latter works were written after the first century, making Graves’ claim absurd” (2004).
Finally, Christianity’s weekly “holy day” was not “stolen” from pagans. Since there are only seven days in a week, there was a one in seven chance that Christians would assemble on someone’s “holy day.” If Jesus had been raised on Saturday, and Christians assembled for worship on the seventh day rather than the first day, the Jews would have cried foul play. Were early Christians to meet on Monday, they may have been accused of worshiping the moon. In truth, Christians have been meeting on the first day of the week to worship God for 2,000 years because God set aside this day for us to worship Him, including eating the memorial feast (Acts 20:7; 1 Corinthians 11:17-26). Christians know nothing of Sun-worship, but much of Son-worship. As Tertullian wrote 1,800 years ago in his “Apology,” Christians “devote Sun-day to rejoicing” for a “far different reason than Sun-worship” (XVI). To say that Christians “stole” their “holy day” from the pagans is an outright lie.
Sadly, Satan has used The Da Vinci Code and other popular writings and movies to deceive millions of people about the uniqueness of Christ and the originality of Christianity. Thankfully, however, even Satan cannot stop the power of the Gospel (Romans 1:16) from pricking the hearts of those who are open to the Truth (Matthew 13:1-23; cf. Acts 2:36-37; 16:14). May God help us all to distinguish between Truth and error, and obey that which God’s Truth teaches.

REFERENCES

Barnes, Albert (1997), Barnes’ Notes (Electronic Database: Biblesoft).
Brown, Dan (2003), The Da Vinci Code (New York: Doubleday).
Butt, Kyle and Eric Lyons (2006), Behold! The Lamb of God (Montgomery, AL: Apologetics Press).
“Christmas” (1997), The New Encyclopaedia Britannica (Chicago: Encyclopaedia Brittannica).
Clarke, Adam (1996), Adam Clarke’s Commentary (Electronic Database: Biblesoft).
Lyons, Eric (2004), “Resurrected ‘Savior-Gods’ and the Prophets of Old,” [On-line], URL:http://www.apologeticspress.org/articles/2858.
Olson, Carl E. and Sandra Miesel (2004), “A Da Vinci De-Coder,” [On-line], URL: http://www.carl-olson.com/articles/tca_tdvc_apr04.html.
Tertullian (1973 reprint), “Apology,” The Ante-Nicene Fathers (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans).
Welborn, Amy (2004), De-coding Da Vinci: The Facts Behind the Fiction of The Da Vinci Code (United States: Our Sunday Visitor).

From Mark Copeland... "CHALLENGES CONFRONTING THE CHURCH" Denominationalism


                  "CHALLENGES CONFRONTING THE CHURCH"

                           Denominationalism

INTRODUCTION

1. A great challenge confronting the church is denominationalism...
   a. According to one account, there are more than 38,000 different
      denominations!
   b. Different religious organizations, bearing many different
      religious names
   c. Hindering the spread of the gospel ("Why, you Christians can’t
      even agree!")

2. Denominationalism confronted the church early on...
   a. Many think that it started with the Protestant reformation (ca.1517 AD)
   b. Properly understood, its origins can be traced to the second century AD

[What is denominationalism?  Why is it wrong?  Such questions this study will address...]

I. DEFINING DENOMINATION AND DENOMINATIONALISM

   A. WHAT IS A DENOMINATION...?
      1. "A large group of religious congregations united under a common
         faith and name and organized under a single administrative and
         legal hierarchy." - The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language
      3. By their common name and tie to a governing body above the
         local congregation, they are "denominated" from all
         congregations that do not submit to the same authority
      4. Some examples:
         a. The Roman Catholic Church is a denomination made up of those
            churches that submit to the pope in Rome
         b. The Eastern Orthodox Church is a denomination made up of
            those churches that submit to the patriarch of Constantinople
         c. The Anglican Church of England is a denomination made up of
            those churches that submit to the archbishop of Canterbury
         d. The Lutheran Church (Missouri Synod) is made up of those
            churches that submit to the synod in Missouri
  
    -- A denomination is a group of congregations that are joined
         together under some governing body, all wearing the same distinctive name

   B. WHAT IS DENOMINATIONALISM...?
      1. According to The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language:
         a. "The tendency to separate into religious denominations"
         b. "Advocacy of separation into religious denominations"
         c. "Strict adherence to a denomination; sectarianism"
      2. For the purpose in this series, I will be applying the term to
         any approval of the denominational division which exists today
         a. Many in denominations today are not all that devoted to
            their denominational principles or interests
         b. But by membership in a denomination they implicitly advocate
            separation into religious denominations

[Is denominationalism really a challenge confronting the church?  Some
consider it a blessing:  e.g., "Join the church of your choice!"  But
from a Biblical perspective, consider...]

II. WHY DENOMINATIONALISM IS WRONG

   A. IT IS UN-SCRIPTURAL...
      1. That is, it is without Scriptural support
         a. There is no basis in the Bible for local churches being
            divided up into various denominational bodies
         b. There is no denomination that can go to the Bible and say,
            "See that passage? There is our church (denomination)!"
      2. In the New Testament...
         a. Local congregations were independent, autonomous (self-governing)
         b. Church organization was limited to within the local congregation
         c. With elders (also known as pastors, bishops, overseers,
            presbyters) appointed to oversee only the congregation of
            which they were members - cf. Ac 20:17,28; 1Pe 5:1-2
      3. The only authority above the local church in the NT was Christ
         and His apostles
         a. Once the church began, apostles were not replaced after they
            died - e.g., Ac 12:1-2
         b. But through the Word of God, the authority of Christ and His apostles continues
 
     -- Individuals, synods, conferences, etc., that presume to usurp
         authority over local churches today do so without Scriptural authority

   B. IT IS ANTI-SCRIPTURAL...
      1. Not only is it without scriptural support, it is contrary to
         what the Bible teaches
      2. It is contrary to the prayer of Jesus for unity among His
         believers - Jn 17:20-23
      3. It is condemned by Paul in his epistle to the church at Corinth
         a. There are to be no divisions among believers - 1Co 1:10-13
         b. Sectarianism is a sign of carnality - 1Co 3:3-4
      4. It opposes the efforts of Christ on the cross! - Ep 2:14-16
         a. Jesus died to break down the wall of division
         b. Jesus died to reconcile man to God in ONE body
      -- Just as our sin works against the efforts of Christ on the
         cross (for He died to put away sin), so does denominational
         division!

   C. IT IS HARMFUL TO THE CAUSE OF CHRIST...
      1. Jesus knew that unity among His disciples would be "the final apologetic"
         a. Cf. "that the world may believe" - Jn 17:21
         b. In view of Jesus’ words, we should not be surprised when
            unbelievers are slow to accept the gospel coming from a
            divided church
      2. Many point to the divided condition of those professing to follow Christ...
         a. Atheists and agnostics use religious division as an excuse
            not to believe in God
         b. Muslims, Jews, etc. often use denominationalism reasons not
            to believe in Christ
      3. Denominationalism has also given support and encouragement to the cults
         a. Mormonism started in reaction to the denominationalism of
            Joseph Smith’s day
         b. Those who call themselves "Jehovah’s Witnesses" use
            religious division to encourage people to follow their own
            strictly-controlled organization
    
  -- How can any true disciple of Christ support such a harmful concept?

   D. OTHERS WHO VIEWED DENOMINATIONALISM AS WRONG...
      1. Martin Luther, a leader of the Reformation Movement:

         "I ask that men make no reference to my name, and call
         themselves not Lutherans, but Christians.  What is Luther?  My
         doctrine, I am sure, is not mine, nor have I been crucified
         for any one. St. Paul, in 1 Cor. 3, would not allow Christians
         to call themselves Pauline or Petrine, but Christian.  How then
         should I, poor, foul carcass that I am, come to have men give
         to the children of Christ a name derived from my worthless
         name?  No, no, my dear friends; let us abolish all party names,
         and call ourselves Christians after Him Whose doctrine we have."
         - Hugh Thomason Kerr, A Compend of Luther’s Theology
         (Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1943, p. 135)

      2. John Wesley, another reformation leader, among whose followers
         are Methodists, Wesleyans, etc.:

         "Would to God that all party names, and unscriptural phrases
         and forms which have divided the Christian world, were forgot
         and that the very name [Methodist] might never be mentioned
         more, but be buried in eternal oblivion." - John Wesley,
         Universal Knowledge, A Dictionary and Encyclopedia of Arts,
         Science, History, Biography, Law, Literature, Religions,
         Nations, Races, Customs, and Institutions, Vol. 9, Edward A.
         Pace, Editor (New York: Universal Knowledge Foundation, 1927,p. 540)

      3. Charles Spurgeon, one of the greatest Baptist preachers who ever lived:

         "I look forward with pleasure to the day when there will not be
         a Baptist living!  I hope that the Baptist name will soon
         perish, but let Christ’s name last forever." - Spurgeon
         Memorial Library, Vol. I., p. 168

      -- Note well:  these individuals were bemoaning the use of
         denominational titles, not organizational ties per se

CONCLUSION

1. But it is organizational ties above the local church that leads to denominationalism...
   a. Once local churches are "organized under a single administrative
      and legal hierarchy", denominational names soon follow!
   b. And so it is that denominationalism with its religious division
      continues to grow!

2. If local churches are to successfully confront the challenge of
   denominationalism, they must...
   a. Remain independent, autonomous (self-governing) congregations
   b. Refuse organizational associations with other churches
   c. Refrain from using denominational names for their churches

3. Churches that succeed in avoiding denominationalism are more likely to be...
   a. Nothing more than local churches of Christ
   b. Christians who simply seek to follow Jesus as His disciples
   c. The answer to the prayer of our Lord for unity among believers
      - cf. Jn 17:20-21

But there is another challenge, one that is closely related to
denominationalism, which we shall consider in our next study:
Sectarianism!


Executable Outlines, Copyright © Mark A. Copeland, 2011

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From Gary... And the world is passing away

Today's post is different, for it is quite personal. Jim was my best friend in high school and although I have not seen him in over 30 years, still, I think of him from time to time. Slowly, but surely, the things pertaining to my youth are fading away, as this post illustrates.  Occasionally, I ask myself, why do you even do this blog, Gary? And then I remember; God is with me each and every day, in all that I experience. His word comes to me as I live this life; in the little and great things that happen. Today is no different (other than being a bit personal) and as I reflect upon the life of this man, I am reminded of the Scriptures once again...

Genesis, Chapter 3 (WEB)
  1 Now the serpent was more subtle than any animal of the field which Yahweh God had made. He said to the woman, “Has God really said, ‘You shall not eat of any tree of the garden?’” 

  2  The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees of the garden,  3 but not the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden. God has said, ‘You shall not eat of it, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’” 

  4  The serpent said to the woman, “You won’t surely die,  5 for God knows that in the day you eat it, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” 

Human beings die- Satan lied (and still does).  My good friend of high school days is gone and there is absolutely nothing I can do about it. Sooner or later, we all must face the reality of mortality and then give account for what we have done in this life. I pray that Jim became a Christian and is in heaven.  I will miss him. If any part of this post causes you to think about your own eternal destiny, then my efforts will not have been in vain. May God bless you, today and always...

Your Friend,

Gary