Faith, Evidence, and Credible Testimony by Eric Lyons, M.Min.

http://apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=10&article=4146

Faith, Evidence, and Credible Testimony

by	Eric Lyons, M.Min.

It might surprise some to learn that Thomas was not the only “doubting disciple” immediately following Jesus’ resurrection. Do you recall what happened when Mary Magdalene, the first person to whom Jesus appeared, went to alert the mourning apostles of Jesus’ empty tomb and resurrection? When the apostles “heard that He was alive and had been seen by her, they did not believe” (Mark 16:11, emp. added). According to Luke, the words of Mary Magdalene and the women who accompanied her seemed to the apostles “like idle tales” (24:11) or “nonsense” (24:11, NASB). Later, when the two disciples on the road to Emmaus reported to the apostles how Jesus had appeared to them as well, the apostles “did not believe them either” (Mark 16:13). When Jesus finally appeared to the apostles (not including Thomas) on the evening of His resurrection (John 20:19), He questioned their “doubts” (Luke 24:38) and “rebuked their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they did not believe those who had seen Him after He had risen” (Mark 16:14). Then, when Jesus appeared to the apostles eight days later, this time with Thomas present, Jesus instructed him to “not be unbelieving, but believing” (John 20:27).

Those closest to Jesus during His ministry initially doubted His resurrection from the dead and were justifiably rebuked for their unbelief. Although many of us likely would have been guilty of the same doubts, still, the apostles should have believed the witness of Mary Magdalene as soon as she testified to the empty tomb and risen Savior. Believers today, however, must be careful not to misinterpret Jesus’ rebukes of unbelief as promoting the popular notion that Christianity is an emotion-based, feel-good religion where evidence is unavailable or unnecessary.

EVIDENCE

Since the Bible repeatedly testifies that the faith of Christians is grounded in truth, reason, knowledge, and evidence (Romans 1:20; Psalm 19:1-4; John 5:31-47; Acts 1:3; 26:25), some wonder why Jesus rebuked the apostles for doubting His resurrection prior to seeing Him alive (Mark 16:14; cf. Luke 24:38). Had Jesus expected His apostles to have faith in His resurrection without proof? And why did Jesus tell Thomas, “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed” (John 20:29, emp. added)? Was Jesus commending an unverifiable, fickle faith?

The fact is, neither Thomas nor any apostle was rebuked for wanting evidence of Jesus’ resurrection. They were rightly rebuked, however, (1) for doubting the credible evidence they had already received, and (2) for demanding more evidence than was necessary for them to have solid faith in the risen Savior.

Prophecies

The same Man Whom Peter confessed was “the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16); the same Man Whom the apostles had seen raise Lazarus from the dead (John 11:43-44); the same Man Whom they saw transfigured (Matthew 17:5-9); the same Man Who had worked many amazing miracles in their presence (John 20:30); the same Man Who foretold precisely Peter’s triple denial (Matthew 26:34,75); the same Man Who accurately prophesied His own betrayal, scourging, and crucifixion (Matthew 20:18-19): this same Man repeatedly prophesied of His resurrection, even foretelling the very day on which it would occur (John 2:19; Matthew 12:40; 16:21; 17:22-23; 20:18-19; 26:32). So well known were Jesus’ prophecies of His resurrection from the dead on the third day that even His enemies were aware of them. In fact, the “chief priests and Pharisees gathered together to Pilate, saying, ‘Sir, we remember, that while He was still alive, how that deceiver said, “After three days I will rise.” Therefore command that the tomb be made secure until the third day, lest his disciples come by night and steal Him away’” (Matthew 27:62-64).

So why did Jesus rebuke His apostles for their unbelief following His resurrection? Was He implying that they should have behaved like simpletons and believed everything they ever heard from anyone? (“The simple believes every word, but the prudent considers well his steps”—Proverbs 14:15.) Not at all. Jesus had every right to rebuke His apostles’ unbelief, first and foremost, because they refused to believe His Word (cf. Romans 10:17). They had seen Him raise the dead. They had witnessed His perfect life. They had heard His consistent words of Truth, including His repeated and accurate prophecies of various matters, including His betrayal, arrest, scourging, and crucifixion. They had every logical reason to believe what Jesus had prophesied about His resurrection. Everything they had ever seen and heard from Jesus was pure, right, and true. However, rather than expect a risen Redeemer on Sunday morning, such an idea “appeared to them as nonsense” (Luke 24:11, NASB, emp. added). Rather than traveling to Galilee and searching for the living Lord as soon as the Sun appeared on the third day (Matthew 26:32), they remained in Jerusalem behind closed doors “for fear of the Jews” (John 20:19).

Jesus wanted His disciples to understand about His death and resurrection. He told them: “Let these words sink down into your ears, for the Son of Man is about to be betrayed into the hands of men” (Luke 9:43, emp. added). He desired for them to have a sincere, strong, evidence-based faith. Sadly, fear, preconceived ideas about the Messiah and His kingdom, and spiritual blindness (Luke 9:44; cf. 2 Corinthians 4:4) initially interfered with the apostles’ belief in His resurrection.

Credible Testimony

When Jesus told Thomas, “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed” (John 20:29), was He condoning a careless faith? Was He advancing the idea of an emotion-driven, feel-good religion? Should we expect Christians living 2,000 years this side of the resurrection of Christ to have a reasonable faith in the risen Savior? If, unlike Thomas and the rest of the apostles, Jesus has never appeared to us, how can we expect to have a fact-based faith?

The same God Who rightly expects His human creation to examine the evidence and come to a knowledge of Him without ever literally seeing Him, is the same God Who expects man to follow the facts that lead to a resurrected Redeemer without ever personally witnessing His resurrection. No one believes in God because they can put Him under a microscope and see Him. No one can prove He exists by touching Him. We cannot use the five senses to see and prove the actual essence of God (cf. John 4:24; Luke 24:39). What we have at our fingertips, however, is a mountain of credible evidence that testifies on God’s behalf. The very existence of finite matter testifies to a supernatural, infinite, eternal Creator. The endless examples of design in the Universe bear witness to a grand Designer. The laws of science (e.g., the Law of Biogenesis) testify to God’s existence. [NOTE: For additional information on the existence of God, see http://www.apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=12.]

A reasonable faith in Jesus’ resurrection is, likewise, based upon a mountain of credible testimony. Just as credible testimony (and not first-hand knowledge) has lead billions of people to believe, justifiably so, that Alexander the Great, Napoleon, and George Washington were real people, millions of Christians have come to the logical conclusion that Jesus rose from the dead. Nineteen-hundred-year-old eyewitness accounts of Jesus’ resurrection exist in the most historically documented and accurate ancient book in the world—the New Testament. The event was foreshadowed and prophesied in the Old Testament (Psalm 16:10; Jonah 1:17-2:10; Matthew 12:40). Though very serious preventative steps were taken to keep the lifeless body of Jesus buried (Matthew 27:62-66), the tomb was found empty on the exact day He promised to arise. The body of Christ was never found (and, no doubt, first-century skeptics, especially the impenitent Jews who put Him to death, would have loved nothing more than to present Jesus’ dead body to early Christians).

The once fearful and skeptical disciples quickly transformed into a courageous, confident group of Christians who suffered and eventually died for their continual belief and teachings regarding the resurrected Lord. Hundreds of early Christians were able to testify to having seen Jesus firsthand after His resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:5-8). Tens of thousands of once-skeptical Jews, not the least of which was Saul of Tarsus, examined the evidence, left Judaism, and confessed Jesus Christ as the Son of God (Acts 2:41,47; 4:4; 5:14; 6:7; 21:20). What’s more, these same Jews changed their day of worship from Saturday to Sunday (Acts 20:7; 1 Corinthians 16:1-2). As with evidence for the existence of God or the inspiration of the Bible, the cumulative case for the resurrection of Christ from credible testimony lies at the heart of a fortified faith.

CONCLUSION

Jesus rightly rebuked His apostles following His resurrection. They should have believed Mary Magdalene because she was a credible witness who said nothing more than what the Son of God had previously said many times would happen: He would arise on the third day following His death. What’s more, the blessing that Jesus mentioned to the apostle Thomas (“Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed”—John 20:29) was not an endorsement of a blind, emotion-based, feel-good religion, but Heaven-sent support for the truthful, credible evidence that leads the open-minded, truth-seeker to confess Him as “Lord and God.”

“Living Fossils”—Evolution’s Innate Circular Reasoning by Dave Miller, Ph.D.

http://apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=9&article=2642

“Living Fossils”—Evolution’s Innate Circular Reasoning

by	Dave Miller, Ph.D.

Another earthshaking find within the evolutionary community only spotlights once again the inherent irrationality of the faltering, fallacious theory. During a Southeast Asian expedition, retired Florida State University science professor, David Redfield, captured the first photos of the Laotian rock rat, once believed to have gone extinct more than 11 million years ago. The fossilized remains, collected previously from sites in Pakistan, India, Thailand, China, and Japan, were thought to verify this last known relative of a long-extinct family of rodents known as Diatomyidae (“Retired Professor Captures...,” 2006). Surprise, surprise—another alleged “ancestor” eliminated from the tattered evolutionary tree.

Observe the two contrasting, conflicting, mutually exclusive approaches to the created realm:

1. Evolution: All animals we see today are advanced forms of primitive precursors, and descendants of a single ancestor. As more advanced forms have evolved by means of adaptation, natural selection, survival of the fittest, and genetic mutation, the earlier forms were naturally displaced and disappeared. Fossils, millions of years old, represent life forms that were the evolutionary predecessors of present life forms, but which went extinct long ago.

2. Creation: God created a spectrum of animals during the six-day week of Creation. While reproducing only after their own “kind” (an ambiguous Hebrew term that likely parallels the modern taxonomic classification “family”), these animals were created with the genetic potential for producing a variety of other species, giving rise to the diversity of animal life presently on the planet. Along the way, due mostly to environmental factors, many animals have become extinct. However, other species have escaped detection by humans for centuries, only to be rediscovered in some remote area.

Which of these two viewpoints fits the actual physical facts? Obviously, the latter. Evolutionists repeatedly find themselves in the embarrassing position of discovering that the alleged evolutionary ancestors of current life forms, that supposedly went extinct millions of years ago, are in fact still living. They are forced to cover their tracks by inventing a self-contradictory, nonsensical term to identify these anomalies—in this case, “living fossils.” But that’s like a round square. Philosophers and logicians refer to such duplicitous posturing as irrational and “logical contradiction.” Evolutionists call it “science.”

REFERENCE

“Retired Professor Captures a ‘Living Fossil’ on Video” (2006), Research in Review, June 13, [On-line], URL: http://www.rinr.fsu.edu/rockrat/more.html.

America’s “Sudden Catastrophe” by Dave Miller, Ph.D.

http://apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=7&article=2796

America’s “Sudden Catastrophe”

by	Dave Miller, Ph.D.

Scanning the social landscape of America, one is struck by a number of cultural factors that characterize the present condition of society. Consider the following four. First, Americans have shifted dramatically away from instruction in the Christian religion and respect for the authority of the Bible. The public school system and the scientific community are thoroughly ensconced in an anti-religion, evolutionist posture. Statistics show that fewer Americans attend church, read their Bibles, or retain commitment to the precepts of Jesus Christ. Even among those who maintain an affiliation with the “formal” aspects of religion, churches have become “seeker sensitive” in their thrust, providing centers of entertainment and strictly positive, “feel good,” anecdotal talks in place of Bible-based, soul-strengthening sermons. Sermons that stir the soul and convict the conscience are decried as “too negative” and “hell-fire and brimstone preaching.” Yes, Americans are rejecting religious instruction and authority.

Second, Americans have distorted the notion of justice. In many ways, the criminal justice system has become a laughing stock, earning the distrust and dismay of large segments of the population. Since the 1960s shift from the rights of the victim to the rights of the criminal, America’s laws and sense of justice have been gradually restructured and redefined. Prisons are full to overflowing, resulting in unjust early release programs. Having committed crimes “deserving of death” (Acts 25:11; Romans 1:32), inmates continue to live on death row for years and years. “Because the sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil” (Ecclesiastes 8:11). On one hand, criminals commit multiple heinous crimes, inflicting injury and death on law-abiding citizens, only to be released on technicalities to continue their vile rampage on the security and well-being of the innocent. On the other hand, Christian parents can apply proper discipline to their children and be brought before authorities for child abuse and imprisoned. Yes, Americans are violating the rules of eternal justice.

Third, for over 150 years, Americans shared a common and virtually universal moral framework. As political sociologist Alexis de Tocqueville observed of America in the 1830s: “Christianity, therefore, reigns without obstacle, by universal consent; the consequence is, as I have before observed, that every principle of the moral world is fixed and determinate” (1835, 1:304-305, emp. added). Since World War II, Americans have steadily relaxed the moral sensibilities that once governed society, providing citizens with certainty and stability in their daily behavioral choices. The rigid parameters that once gave society cohesion, defining what is right or wrong, moral or immoral, have all but evaporated. From abortion and embryonic stem-cell research to same-sex relations, clear cut moral distinctions have become blurred in the minds of many people. Yes, Americans are trifling with the injunctions of morality.

Fourth, liberal politicians and activist judges are running amok throughout the country. Foolish, ungodly decisions have been perpetrated on the public—from the removal of Ten Commandment monuments from public places and the banning of prayers in city council and school board meetings, to the redefinition of marriage and accommodation of easy divorce. Even Supreme Court justices are looking to foreign courts to guide their judicial decisions and thwart the intentions of the Framers. Their reinterpretation of the Constitution that results in the expulsion of God from the public square constitutes an illicit tampering with the foundations of the nation. Yes, Americans are recklessly destroying the political constitution that holds us together.

In view of these most unfortunate circumstances, consider the words from a speech delivered on February 23, 1852 by second generation American, Daniel Webster, who offered the following chilling prophecy:

[I]f we and our posterity reject religious instruction and authority, violate the rules of eternal justice, trifle with the injunctions of morality, and recklessly destroy the political constitution which holds us together, no man can tell how sudden a catastrophe may overwhelm us that shall bury all our glory in profound obscurity(1903, 13:492-493, emp. added).

This uncanny, prophetic anticipation of America’s current condition is being fulfilled before our very eyes. All that remains to happen is the judgment that is inevitable—since God remains consistent with His actions throughout world history (Genesis 19:13; Psalm 9:17; cf. “calamity” in 2 Chronicles 7:22).

REFERENCES

Tocqueville, Alexis de (1835), Democracy in America (New York, NY: Alfred Knopf, 1994 reprint).

Webster, Daniel (1903), The Writings and Speeches of Daniel Webster (Boston, MA: Little, Brown, & Company).

When Did Baasha Reign? by Eric Lyons, M.Min.

http://apologeticspress.org/AllegedDiscrepancies.aspx?article=302&b=2%20Chronicles

When Did Baasha Reign?

by Eric Lyons, M.Min.

In the book of 1 Kings we read that Baasha became the third ruler of the Northern kingdom (Israel) “in the third year of Asa king of Judah…and reigned twenty-four years” (15:33). Then, when Baasha died, his son Elah became king over Israel “in the twenty-sixth year of Asa king of Judah” (16:8, emp. added). However, 2 Chronicles 16:1 reads: “In the thirty-sixth year of the reign of Asa, Baasha king of Israel came up against Judah and built Ramah, that he might let none go out or come in to Asa king of Judah” (emp. added). The obvious question that anyone has who reads these two passages is: How could Baasha be ruling over Israel in the thirty-sixth year of Asa’s reign, when 1 Kings 16 clearly indicates that Baasha had died when Asa (the third king of the southern kingdom) was only in the twenty-sixth year of his reign? Is it possible to reconcile 1 Kings 16:8 with 2 Chronicles 15:19-16:1? Or, is this a legitimate contradiction that should lead all of us to conclude that the Bible is a worthless manmade book of myths?

There are two possible solutions to this problem. To begin with, it may be that the numbers recorded in 2 Chronicles 15:19 and 16:1 simply are the result of a copyist’s error. Although skeptics may scoff at attempts to reconcile “contradictions” by claiming a copyist must have made an error sometime in the distant past, the fact is, copyists were not infallible; inspired men were the only infallible writers. Whenever duplicates of the Old Testament Scriptures were needed, copies had to be made by hand—a painstaking, time-consuming task requiring extreme concentration. History records that copyists (such as the Masoretes) had as their goal to produce accurate copies of Scripture and that they went to great lengths to ensure fidelity in their copies. They were, nevertheless, still human. And humans are prone to make mistakes, regardless of the care they take or the strictness of the rules under which they operate. The copyists’ task was made all the more difficult by the sheer complexity of the Hebrew language and by the various ways in which potential errors could be introduced.

In their commentary on 2 Chronicles, Keil and Delitzsch proposed that the number 36 in 2 Chronicles 16:1 and the number 35 in 15:19 are a scribal error for 16 and 15, respectively. The ancient Hebrew letters yod and lamed, representing the numbers 30 and 10, could have been confused and interchanged quite easily (though inadvertently) by a copyist. Merely a smudge from excessive wear on a scroll-column or a punctured or slightly torn manuscript could have resulted in making the yod look like a lamed. Furthermore, it also is possible that this error occurred first in 2 Chronicles 15:19. Then to make it consistent in 16:1, a copyist may have concluded that 16 must be an error for 36 and changed it accordingly (Archer, 1982, p. 226). Hence the numbers 35 and 36 could have arisen out of the original 15 and 16. With such an adjustment, the statements in 1 Kings and 2 Chronicles are harmonized easily.

A second possibility as to why the numbers in 1 Kings 16:8 and 2 Chronicles 15:19-16:1 seem contradictory is because the numbers may refer to the thirty-fifth and thirty-sixth years after the division of the United Kingdom (which would have been Asa’s fifteenth and sixteenth years), rather than the thirty-fifth and thirty-sixth years of Asa’s reign (Thiele, 1951, p. 59). The Hebrew word for “reign” (malkuwth) also can mean “kingdom.” In fact, 51 out of the 91 times this word appears in the King James Version of the Old Testament it is translated “kingdom” (cf. 2 Chronicles 1:1; 11:17; 20:30; Nehemiah 9:35; etc.). In their commentary on 2 Chronicles, Jamieson, Faussett, and Brown favored this explanation saying, “The best Biblical critics are agreed in considering this date to be calculated from the separation of the kingdoms, and coincident with the 16th year of Asa’s reign” (1997). [The number 16 is obtained by subtracting the reigns of Rehoboam (17 years) and Abijah (3 years) from the 36 years mentioned in 2 Chronicles 16:1.] But, as Gleason Archer recognized,

It is without parallel to refer to the kingdom of a nation as a whole and identify it thus with one particular king who comes later on in the ruling dynasty. And the fact that in its account of the later history of Judah no such usage can be instanced in Chronicles raises a formidable difficulty to this solution (p. 225).

First Kings 16:8 reveals that Baasha could not have ruled over Israel in the thirty-sixth year of Asa’s reign in Judah. Either the numbers 35 and 36 in 2 Chronicles 15:19-16:1 are a copyist’s error, or they represent the total number of years since the United Kingdom divided. Whichever is the case, both provide possible solutions to the alleged problem that exists between the two passages. In no way should the differences that exist between 1 Kings 16:8 and 2 Chronicles 15:19-16:1 cause one to reject the Bible as God’s inspired Word.

REFERENCES

Archer, Gleason L. (1982), An Encyclopedia of Bible Difficulties (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan).

Jamieson, Robert, et al. (1997), Jamieson, Faussett, Brown Bible Commentary (Electronic Database: Biblesoft)

Keil, C.F. and F. Delitzsch (1996), Keil and Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament (Electronic Database: Biblesoft), new updated edition.

Thiele, Edwin R. (1951), The Mysterious Numbers of the Hebrew Kings (Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press).

“Let us walk in the light of the LORD” Isaiah 2:5 by Roy Davison

http://www.oldpaths.com/Archive/Davison/Roy/Allen/1940/lampuk.html

“Let us walk in the light of the LORD”
Isaiah 2:5

What if you had to find your way alone in a dark forest at night without any light? What would you think of someone who had a light, but failed to use it? In the spiritual realm that is what most people do.

We need the light of God’s word.
“Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light for my pathway” (Psalm 119:105 ISV).
Deep darkness covered the earth until God said, “Let there be light” (Genesis 1:3). The Creator of physical light is also the source of spiritual light. “Oh, send out Your light and Your truth! Let them lead me” (Psalm 43:3).
We need the light of God’s word to guide our steps along a safe path in a dark and dangerous world. Without this light we cannot find the good way.
Jesus, the Word of God (John 1:14), is “the true light, who gives light to everyone” (John 1:9 NET). He said: “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life” (John 8:12).

Millions walk in spiritual darkness.
It is sad that most people make no use of this “light of life.” They are like people driving their car at night without turning the headlights on.
And what about someone who goes into a forest at night, takes a light, but without batteries? These are people who have a Bible, but never read it. Of what value is a lamp without oil or a pocket light without batteries?
For a long walk, we need spare batteries!
Jesus told about ten virgins who took their lamps to meet the bridegroom (Matthew 25:1-13). Five were wise. They had extra oil. Five were foolish. They had oil in their lamps, but no reserves. As the bridegroom approached, their lamps started flickering out. These people have some light from God’s word but not enough.


The light of life must enlighten our heart.
The word of God must dwell in us richly (Colossians 3:16).
Before the word can reside in our heart it must enter our mind through our eyes and ears. We do not have a slot for a Bible memory card on the top of our head. To have God’s word in our heart we must listen to the word being preached, participate in Bible studies, and read the Scriptures. Human memory must be refreshed and strengthened by repetition.
We must know what the Bible says, but that is not sufficient. We must also understand the word of God. His word must enlighten the eyes of our understanding (Ephesians 1:17, 18).

We must walk in the light (1 John 1:6, 7).
This spiritual enlightenment must guide our lives: “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him” (Colossians 3:16, 17).
When we walk in the light we do everything “in the name of the Lord” which means “under His authority.” 
Some people misuse this passage. They think they can do whatever they want as long as they say they are doing it in the name of the Lord! But Jesus warned: “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven” (Matthew 7:21).
To be done in the name of the Lord, our words and deeds must be based on the word of God! That is why His word must dwell in us richly, so we can know what to do and what to say! Only then can we walk in the light and do all in the name of the Lord.
To walk in the light, we need a good supply of extra oil! God’s word must dwell in us richly and that word must guide our lives.

“We also have the prophetic word made more sure, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts” (2 Peter 1:19).

By heeding this word, we follow Christ “the Bright and Morning Star” (Revelation 22:16). He “went about doing good” (Acts 10:38). We follow His example “by patient continuance in doing good” (Romans 2:7).
When we walk in the light we follow God’s pattern for our lives. Paul charged Timothy: “Hold fast the pattern of sound words which you have heard from me” (2 Timothy 1:13). 
A pattern is a binding example. What happens if a pattern is not followed carefully? If someone cuts out a dress haphazardly, without closely following the pattern, it will not be a presentable dress.
In explaining salvation by grace to the saints at Rome, Paul said: “But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered” (Romans 6:17).
The word translated “form” has the basic meaning of “mould” and refers to the prescribed form or pattern of something.
Thus, God has subjected us to a prescribed form of doctrine that we must gladly obey.
To walk in the light we must follow God’s pattern for our lives. The light does not follow us, we must follow the light. We must walk in the light!

We must avoid darkness.
To walk in the light we must refrain from walking where there is no light! What if we leave the well-lit pathway and wander off in the dark?
To walk in the light we must enter the small gate and stay on the narrow path: “Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it” (Matthew 7:13, 14 NASB).
Avoiding darkness involves the daily choices of our lives. It is not stepping into the darkness of sinful ways, being careful what we allow our eyes to see, what TV shows we watch, what websites we visit, what books we read, what words we speak, what thoughts we nourish. Such choices determine whether we are walking in the light where God is or in the darkness where Satan is.
Avoiding darkness also requires the avoidance of religious practices that God has not prescribed.
Paul wanted the Corinthians to learn “not to go beyond what is written” (1 Corinthians 4:6 NET). “Any one who goes ahead and does not abide in the doctrine of Christ does not have God” (2 John 9 RSV). In Isaiah 8:20 we read: “To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.” Peter commanded: “If anyone speaks, let him speak as the oracles of God” (1 Peter 4:11). 
What we do and say, both religiously and in our daily lives, must be based on the word of God. Otherwise we are walking where the light is not shining.

The blind cannot see the light.
Light has no value for someone who is blind. He cannot recognize light and he does not benefit from light.
This also applies to the spiritually blind. Jesus said of the hypocritical religious leaders of His time: “Let them alone. They are blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind leads the blind, both will fall into a ditch” (Matthew 15:14).
“The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!” (words of Jesus in Matthew 6:22, 23).
Rather than having the eyes of their understanding enlightened (Ephesians 1:18), the spiritually blind have “their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart” (Ephesians 4:17, 18).
Spiritual blindness can result from hatred. John warns: “But he who hates his brother is in darkness and walks in darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes” (1 John 2:11). Eyes that lack love are blind to the light of God’s word.
Spiritual blindness can result from rebelliousness. Ezekiel was told: “Son of man, you dwell in the midst of a rebellious house, which has eyes to see but does not see, and ears to hear but does not hear; for they are a rebellious house” (Ezekiel 12:2).
The eyes of the rebellious are blind to the light of God’s word. Rebellious people do not want to submit to the authority of God.
Rebellion is a fundamental cause of the apostasy of Christendom. Denominations are rebellious. They walk in darkness because they do not submit to God’s word. They do many things that are not prescribed in the New Testament - even things that are specifically forbidden, and they neglect to do what is prescribed. They just do what they want to do, or follow their own traditions.
People who do not want to practice the truth shun the light: “And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God” (John 3:19-21).
They who are spiritually blind because of hatred, rebelliousness, or rejection of the truth cannot see the light.

What have we learned?
We need the light of God’s word. His word is a lamp for our feet and a light for our path. Millions walk in spiritual darkness. The light of life must enlighten our heart. To walk in the light, we must know the Scriptures, understand the word, and do the will of God. We follow Jesus Christ, the light of the world. We do not walk where there is no light. The spiritually blind cannot see the light.

They who walk in the light have fellowship with God.
“This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:5-7).
“Let us walk in the light of the Lord!” (Isaiah 2:5). Amen.
Roy Davison

The Scripture quotations in this article are from
The New King James Version. ©1979,1980,1982,
Thomas Nelson Inc., Publishers unless indicated otherwise.
Permission for reference use has been granted.

Published in The Old Paths Archive
(http://www.oldpaths.com)

Being right by Gary Rose

My good friend, Bruce Arnold, sent me this picture (along with many others - thanks, Bruce!). My first thought about this picture was: How arrogant; who does this person think he is? Then, I thought of the Bible and how this picture WOULD BE APPROPRIATE to paste on the inside cover (as a reminder to me to listen when God speaks to me through HIS WORD).

As I considered these things, I thought of Jesus and how he COULD HAVE SAID THIS, BUT HAD THE COURTESY TO NOT TO. Yet, Jesus had a way of saying very hard things to people who opposed him that was straightforward, but not arrogant!

Case in point... 

John, Chapter 8 (WEB)

 ¹² Again, therefore, Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the light of life.” (emp. added, vs. 12b)

  ¹³ The Pharisees therefore said to him, “You testify about yourself. Your testimony is not valid.” 

  ¹⁴ Jesus answered them, “Even if I testify about myself, my testimony is true, for I know where I came from, and where I am going; but you don’t know where I came from, or where I am going.   ¹⁵  You judge according to the flesh. I judge no one.   ¹⁶  Even if I do judge, my judgment is true, for I am not alone, but I am with the Father who sent me.   ¹⁷  It’s also written in your law that the testimony of two people is valid. ¹⁸  I am one who testifies about myself, and the Father who sent me testifies about me.” 

  ¹⁹ They said therefore to him, “Where is your Father?” 

Jesus answered, “You know neither me nor my Father. If you knew me, you would know my Father also.”  ²⁰ Jesus spoke these words in the treasury, as he taught in the temple. Yet no one arrested him, because his hour had not yet come.  ²¹ Jesus said therefore again to them, “I am going away, and you will seek me, and you will die in your sins. Where I go, you can’t come.” 

  ²² The Jews therefore said, “Will he kill himself, because he says, ‘Where I am going, you can’t come’ ?” 

  ²³ He said to them, “You are from beneath. I am from above. You are of this world. I am not of this world.   ²⁴  I said therefore to you that you will die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am he, you will die in your sins.” 

  ²⁵ They said therefore to him, “Who are you?” 

Jesus said to them, “Just what I have been saying to you from the beginning.   ²⁶  I have many things to speak and to judge concerning you. However he who sent me is true; and the things which I heard from him, these I say to the world.” 

  ²⁷ They didn’t understand that he spoke to them about the Father.  ²⁸ Jesus therefore said to them, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am he, and I do nothing of myself, but as my Father taught me, I say these things.   ²⁹  He who sent me is with me. The Father hasn’t left me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to him.” 

  ³⁰ As he spoke these things, many believed in him.  ³¹ Jesus therefore said to those Jews who had believed him,“If you remain in my word, then you are truly my disciples.   ³²  You will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” (emp. added vs. 32)

  ³³ They answered him, “We are Abraham’s offspring, and have never been in bondage to anyone. How do you say, ‘You will be made free’ ?” 

  ³⁴ Jesus answered them, “Most certainly I tell you, everyone who commits sin is the bondservant of sin.  (emp. added vs. 34b) ³⁵  A bondservant doesn’t live in the house forever. A son remains forever.   ³⁶  If therefore the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.  (emp. added, vs. 36) ³⁷  I know that you are Abraham’s offspring, yet you seek to kill me, because my word finds no place in you.   ³⁸  I say the things which I have seen with my Father; and you also do the things which you have seen with your father.” 

  ³⁹ They answered him, “Our father is Abraham.” 

Jesus said to them, “If you were Abraham’s children, you would do the works of Abraham.   ⁴⁰  But now you seek to kill me, a man who has told you the truth which I heard from God. Abraham didn’t do this.   ⁴¹  You do the works of your father.” 

They said to him, “We were not born of sexual immorality. We have one Father, God.” 

  ⁴² Therefore Jesus said to them, “If God were your father, you would love me, for I came out and have come from God. For I haven’t come of myself, but he sent me.   ⁴³  Why don’t you understand my speech? Because you can’t hear my word.   ⁴⁴  You are of your father, the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and doesn’t stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks on his own; for he is a liar, and the father of lies.  (emp. added vs. 44) ⁴⁵  But because I tell the truth, you don’t believe me.   ⁴⁶  Which of you convicts me of sin? If I tell the truth, why do you not believe me?   ⁴⁷  He who is of God hears the words of God. For this cause you don’t hear, because you are not of God.” 

  ⁴⁸ Then the Jews answered him, “Don’t we say well that you are a Samaritan, and have a demon?” 

  ⁴⁹ Jesus answered, “I don’t have a demon, but I honor my Father and you dishonor me.   ⁵⁰  But I don’t seek my own glory. There is one who seeks and judges.   ⁵¹  Most certainly, I tell you, if a person keeps my word, he will never see death.” 

  ⁵² Then the Jews said to him, “Now we know that you have a demon. Abraham died, as did the prophets; and you say, ‘If a man keeps my word, he will never taste of death.’  (emp. added vs. 52c)  ⁵³ Are you greater than our father, Abraham, who died? The prophets died. Who do you make yourself out to be?” 

  ⁵⁴ Jesus answered, “If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing. It is my Father who glorifies me, of whom you say that he is our God.   ⁵⁵  You have not known him, but I know him. If I said, ‘I don’t know him,’ I would be like you, a liar. But I know him and keep his word.   ⁵⁶  Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day. He saw it, and was glad.” 

  ⁵⁷ The Jews therefore said to him, “You are not yet fifty years old! Have you seen Abraham?” 

  ⁵⁸ Jesus said to them, “Most certainly, I tell you, before Abraham came into existence, I AM. ” (emp. added vs. 58b)

  ⁵⁹ Therefore they took up stones to throw at him, but Jesus was hidden, and went out of the temple, having gone through the middle of them, and so passed by. 

There is absolute truth and that truth comes from God. God created the entire universe (which includes all human beings) and his power, majesty, wisdom are beyond our comprehension. So, why do we argue with HIM? I think it is because we think more of ourselves than we should. 

Jesus did in fact say "hard things" to the Pharisees (see the emboldened portions above), but it is obvious to me that it was for their own good. That is, that they would turn from their own self-righteous ways to God's will for their lives. In a word- repent. And, even after a couple of THOUSAND YEARS, things have not changed, mankind still needs to turn back to God.

Accept these things or not- that is up to you. But, remember, you will regret arguing with God at the judgment!