Johnny Skeptic

Message to rhutchin: Why do you believe that the Bible is inerrant? Why would God want the Bible to be inerrant?

Do you have any idea why it is frequently possible to predict where God will reveal himself to people who become Christians? For instance, a far higher percentage of children who live in the U.S. become Christians than children who live in Syria. You said that some parents are not nice. However, in 3500 B.C., how were parents who lived far away from Palestine supposed to know anything about the God of the Bible? Why wasn't God interested in telling anyone about his specific existence who lived far away from Palestine? If the God of the Bible does not exist, that explains why geography and other secular factors determined how the Gospel message was spread. Why do a much higher percentage of women in the U.S. become Christians than men? Why does God discriminate against men? Why do a much smaller percentage of elderly skeptics become Christians? Why does God discriminate against elderly skeptics?

It is suspicious that the Gospel message was spread exactly the way that it would have been spread if the God of the Bible did not exist, meaning that no one would be able to hear the Gospel message unless another person told them about it, and that the Gospel message would be spread entirely by the secular means of communication, transportation, printing, and translation of a given time period.

If the Bible said that God will send everyone to hell, you would oppose it. Why?, because your emotional self-interest has caused you to accept promises that you believe will ultimately benefit you, and reject promises that you believe will ultimately not benefit you. This proves that you are not as concerned with what the evidence IS as you are with what the evidence PROMISES. That does not make any sense. Obviously, it is not possible to become a fundamentalist Christian without completely disregarding logic, reason, and morality.

Johnny Skeptic

Since this thread is about inerrancy, if you can provide evidence that God inspired and preserved the Bible, we can look at it. You are an inerrantist. Inerrantists assert that the Bible is inerrant. It is up to them to reasonably prove that God inspired and preserved the Bible. Inerrancy is an absurd claim. It cannot be reasonably proven. Why would God want to provide Christians with an inerrant Bible? What is the Bible, the Protestant version, the Roman Catholic version, or some other version? Is the Gospel of Thomas part of the Bible or not?

Amaleq13

The tangential discussion about Adam and Eve has been split into its own thread here. I apologize for the lame title and for derailing Johnny's thread.

angelo

Huh? :notworthy: :banghead:

George S

When you have faith that the Bable (Bible, Torah, Koran -- collectively) contains only nuggets of truth, it raises a question in my mind.

How do you know which parts, if any, are trustworthy?

makerowner

I'm pretty sure Poe's law is in effect here. From biblethumping's profile:

Location:
Bible Belt
Interests:
thumping the bible
Basic Beliefs:
faith in thumping

rhutchin

The claim of inerrancy arises from the view that God is the author of that which we find in the Bible. It is based on such verses as--

2 Timothy 3
16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness,
17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.

2 Peter 1
21 ...prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.

That is the evidence that God inspired the writings that have been collected and preserved in the Bible.

That which the church recognizes as the inspired writings are that which can be considered as the Bible. Both Catholics and Protestants agree on a common list of inspired writings so these can, at the least, be considered to comprise the inspired writings from God.

rhutchin

Maybe you should become a Mormon. That would work presuming that they are telling you the truth.

Johnny Skeptic

But everyone already knows that. Why do you frequently state what everyone already knows? What you need to do is to provide credible evidence WHY the Bible is inerrant other than "the Bible is inerrant because it says that it is inerrant." That is not a credible argument. You need to specifically state the evidence that led you to believe that the Bible is inerrant. Starting with Genesis 1:1, what is the first Scriptural reference that reasonably proves that the Bible is inerrant without considering any subsequent Scriptures? Or if you wish, you can list a group of Scriptures that you believe reasonably prove that the Bible is inerrant. You will not be able to get away just by claiming that the Bible is inerrant because it says that it is inerrant. No rational person would accept that argument.

Why would God want to provide people with an inerrant Bible?

What good are inerrant texts to people who do not have access to them?

God's failure to keep his promise to give Egypt to Nebuchadnezzar is proof enough that God is a liar.

Please be sure to visit a new thread at http://www.iidb.org/vbb/showthread.php?t=233915 at the GRD Forum regarding an absurd thread that you started some time ago about how much God should interfere with a person's choice to go to heaven or hell. It is interesting to note that you made your openly post and did not make any most posts because you did not want to embarrass yourself. I plan to start a number of new threads regarding some of your many blunders.

makerowner

I'm sure you can see why internal claims of divine inspiration are unsatisfactory. Otherwise, why don't you believe in the Qur'aan, the Bhagavad Gita, etc.?

There was no canonized Bible at the time this was written, and in fact the Gospels had not even been written yet.

I don't think any NT authors other than John in Revelation claimed to be a prophet (though I may be remembering wrong).

So no evidence at all you mean.

So your church accepts 1&2 Maccabees, Tobit, Ben Sira, etc. as "inspired writings from God"? I highly doubt that.