...Evaluate the claim that miracles in the Bible are not a reliable form of experience. Prior to discussing this, it’s important to understand what it means to read the Bible. There are two common interpretations of the Bible, a literal reading and a non-literal reading. Having said this, I will argue that miracles in the bible, on balance are not a reliable form of religious experience and will consider the case studies of Jesus’ resurrection, resurrection of Jairus’s daughter and the miracle healing of the unclean woman. Literalists would see the Bible, quite literally, as the name suggests. This means that all events within the Bible, all accounts of miracles, stories, the Flood, Moses and the Burning Bush, the resurrection of Jairus’s daughter and the healing of the unclean woman, everything, is completely true. However, it’s worth noting that this only makes sense to the believer, thus reinforcing faith rather than introducing it. In an era where logic and mathematical truth predominantly takes priority over unreliable accounts, many believe the events in the Bible to be completely true. Great thinkers such as Aquinas believe that miracle of Jesus’s resurrection is an infallible truth. If this is the case, many would ask “well, how can you prove he was resurrected and it wasn’t somebody who looked similar to Jesus and simply impersonated them or played a practical joke?”, well, to the believer, the miracles in the Bible is their understanding of how God interacts with our...
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...When it comes to Christianity, Jesus Christ plays a big role in the history of Christianity. One of the things that Jesus was known for was his miracles. Jesus performed thirty-seven miracles and these miracles are stated in the bible. However, most Biblical Scholars agree on the number of miracles as thirty-seven, but it should be noted that the Gospel of John (20:30) states that the miracles the bible recorded, was a portion of the miracles that Jesus actually performed (Hewitt, 2015). Jesus was a healer, teacher, and a hero who made a difference in many people lives. Jesus’ miracles can best be broken down into four groups: cures, exorcism, resurrection of the dead, and the control over nature (Hewitt, 2015). Jesus miracles was part...
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...------------------------------------------------- True Prophet vs. False Prophet A prophet is anyone who bears the message of God and conveys it to others. The messages of God can never contradict one another. The Spirit that inspired the writers of the Bible inspires every true prophet, and brings to clear view the thoughts of God revealed in the Bible instead of contradicting it. Those who contradict the Bible are under the inspiration of another spirit. We call them false prophets. God’s thoughts in the Bible are complete and clear, without any contradictions. Though the thoughts of God were written in human language by human beings, they show a clear purpose of God’s love. Sometimes they appear to contradict, but if read ‘precept upon precept’ and ‘line upon line’, ‘hare a little and there a little’ all apparent contradiction is dissolved, and a perfect harmony seen. God’s word is perfect. Those who teach principles contradicting the Bible are not better than the Bible; they are actually being inspired by Satan. God cannot contradict His word; see the story of the prophet in 1Kings 13:1-28. God communicates through the Bible. If He must send a prophet, the prophet cannot contradict the Bible. Again I say, if he contradicts the Bible, he is a false prophet. God has not sent Him. Christ has a message to the world, and He puts His Spirit in a person who communicates that message to the world. That is how it works. God communicates to the prophet in dreams and visions. That is the...
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...person interprets an event as an act of God and another does not? Hume Created a case against miracles saying not that they do not happen, but that it would be impossible to prove them – he is an empiricist (bases knowledge on experience). A miracle is ‘A transgression of a law of nature brought about by a particular violation of a Deity’. Nothing that can happen in nature should be called a miracle. Had 5 arguments against believing in miracles; one philosophical and four psychological. Not enough evidence of miracles to outweigh our general experience. Rationality requires that belief is proportionate to evidence. ‘A wise man proportions his belief to the evidence’. Insufficient witnesses – must be witnessed by a highly credible, good sense, well-educated person. How much education is ‘enough’? The testimonies usually came from ignorant and barbarous nations. People tend to exaggerate and are drawn towards the sensational and drama. The often have a desire to believe. There are conflicting claims that cancel each other out. Hick’s response would be that all religions lead to one God though. Hume will never be fully able to fully prove to believers that miracles do not occur, as the definition of a miracle implies divine activity and this is ultimately beyond our earthly considerations. But sceptics and believers can be said to both agree that the occurrence of miracles must be a very rare event. Critque of Hume Hick would say that we do not know the laws of nature...
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...BIBL323 | Signs and Miracles | The Eight Signs and Miracles performed by Jesus Christ | | Sherell Andrews | 2/17/2013 | The eight signs and miracles Jesus performed and how each reveals his deity. | In the gospel of John there are eight signs and miracles that Jesus Christ performed; these signs and wonders are written so that you may believe Jesus is the Messiah and the Son of God. The first miracle stated in John was Jesus turning water into wine. He and his disciples arrived at a wedding celebration that was in progress. Mary, the mother of Jesus, came to him and told Him they ran out of wine; she knew he would find a way of getting more wine.[1] Jesus responded by saying his hour had not come yet. His mother had enough faith in Jesus and instructed the servants at the wedding to do what he ask them to do, He ask them to fill the water pots with water.[2] He miraculously changed the water into wine. This miracle is said to bring out new beginnings in the ministry of Christ. Many Scholars parallel Jesus turning water in to wine to his death and resurrection. You could explain it as a full circle in Christ ministry. John shows “Changing the water of Judaism into the wine of Christianity, the water of sins and being unsaved into the wine of eternal life in Christ and to be saved” [3] This miracle points to the deity of Christ in and the fullness of eternal life in Christ power over creation. The next miracles in the gospel of John are the healing of the...
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...1) Explain what is meant in the bible by the phrase ‘God is good’. (25marks) Firstly, we must understand what is meant by ‘good’ well good is that which is morally right. With God it is said in the bible “oh give thanks to the lord, for he is good; for His loving-kindness is everlasting (Psalms), another way is the 10 commandments which shows God setting the standard of what is morally right and wrong. Another way of showing of how ‘God is good’ is by creation in genesis 1 and 2 which shows God either creating the world or how he is crafting everything, also in the bible of how God has preformed miracles and in todays society. In the bible there are many passages, which say ‘God is good’ for example in James ‘every good thing bestowed and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation, or shifting shadow’ this is clearly saying that God is the source of goodness. Another example is the goodness of God is a character trait, which applies to every other attribute. God’s wrath is good. God’s holiness is good. God’s righteousness is good. God is good in His entirety. There is nothing about God that is not good (Romans), this is basically saying that the goodness of God is a life-transforming truth and that we should use the words of God in are attitudes and actions. The Ten Commandments are the clear example of God setting the standards of what is morally right and wrong. We follow these laws that God has set because...
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...Commandments. Both religions even have their own religious texts: The Bible and The Koran. Christian missionaries declare that The Bible consists of true narratives based on actual revelations, and establish that the Prophet Muhammad is an imposter. However, it is extremely possible that The Bible is nothing more than a book of plagiarized stories taken from various ancient texts. The Koran seems to correct mistakes in the Bible and make true of its falseness, gives the true version of what really happened in the stories of Joseph, Noah, and Jesus. In The Bible, the story of Joseph is a tale about a seventeen year old young man who was the oldest of his fathers’ sons. He was also his father’s favorite son. Joseph often had dreams which showed him as being a savior for his people. For this reason, he was sold into slavery by his own envious brothers. Joseph went on to make a better life for himself in Egypt, but it was not long before he was thrown into prison after being Culver 2 falsely accused. While in prison, Joseph became a dream interpreter, and eventually earned himself a position as the Pharaoh’s advisor. The story of Joseph in The Bible is almost the same in The Koran up until this point. In The Bible, after becoming a dream interpreter, Joseph became the leader of the Egyptian people. However, in Islam and Christianity Conflict or Conciliation: A Comparative And Textual Analysis of the Koran and the Bible, Muhammad Asadi argues that in The...
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...5/7/2015 What Is Blasphemy of the Holy Spirit?|Can a Christian Commit It?|Believer Cannot Commit the Unforgivable Sin SEARCH CARM Christian Apologetics & Research Ministry GO What is Blasphemy of the Holy Spirit? Can A Christian Commit it? by Matt Slick (../../mattslick) Jesus mentions a sin that is unforgivable in Matt. 12:3132 (http://biblia.com/bible/nasb95/Matt.%2012.3132) and calls it blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. What exactly is this unforgivable sin? For that, we need to look at the context. Matt. 12:2232 (http://biblia.com/bible/nasb95/Matt.%2012.2232) says, "Then there was brought to Him a demonpossessed man who was blind and dumb, and He healed him, so that the dumb man spoke and saw. 23And all the multitudes were amazed, and began to say, "This man cannot be the Son of David, can he?" 24But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, "This man casts out demons only by Beelzebub the ruler of the demons." 25And knowing their thoughts He said to them, "Any kingdom divided against itself is laid waste; and any city or house divided against itself shall not stand. 26"And if Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself; how then shall his kingdom stand? 27"And if I by Beelzebub cast out demons, by whom do your sons cast them out? Consequently they shall be your judges. 28"But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. 29"Or how can anyone enter the strong man's house and carry off his property...
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... Jesus Christ has many great stories behind him. These stories are called miracles, depending on who you ask. Yet, one thing cannot be denied, and that is that Jesus Christ did exist and his influence is still felt by the Catholic faith. Jesus Christ was born in approximately 6 AD in Bethlehem, from his parents Mary and Joseph. Yet, according to the faith, his actual father is God. Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit, as Mary was a virgin. Joseph, his legal father, was a carpenter who made furniture with his hands. Jesus would also become a carpenter later on in his life. Some of these points are argued between religions, yet I am not going to touch on it in this paper. His childhood is shrouded in mystery, as there are little to no records of his life during his childhood and early teenage years. Many argued that he did not initially except his role or fate as God’s only son and lived a life like any other would at the time. You can even look in the Bible for such a hypothesis, as the stories of his life suddenly jump from age 16 to age 30. Where are the missing texts that chronicle his life during these missing fourteen years? This is what many claim that he rejected his “destiny” or found it all too big to cope with. Later, the bible has records of his many amazing feats right up until the day he died at the age of 30. He founded Christianity, helped record the New Testament in the bible, and journeyed across the land performing deeds of good will toward the poor...
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...defined miracles as a “violation of the laws of nature” and consequently rejected their occurrence as both improbable and impractical. This view has been supported by modern scientists and philosophers such as Atkins, Dawkins and Wiles to a certain extent. However Aquinas, Tillich and Holland and Swinburne to a certain extent reject Hume’s reasons, instead arguing that miracles have a divine cause and that Hume’s arguments are weak. This essay will argue that Hume’s reasons for rejecting miracles are not valid and in doing so consider his two main arguments; lack of probability and Hume’s practical argument. Hume’s first reason for rejecting miracles was a lack of probability. He argued that evidence from people’s experience of observing the world showed the laws of nature to be fixed and unvarying. However to suggest a miracle occurred was to say that the laws of nature had been violated, hence his definition of miracles being a “violation of the laws of nature.” Miracles were reported has having occurred by eyewitnesses, as is stated in the Bible in the case of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead. However for Hume it was far more likely that the eyewitnesses were mistaken in what they witnessed, than for Jesus to have actually raised Lazarus from the dead and in doing so violated fixed laws of nature. A violation of the laws of nature was therefore an improbable occurrence. Wiles’ agrees with Hume’s point that it is more likely the eyewitness was wrong than a miracle occurred...
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...SIGNS AND MIRACLES PAPER Liberty University, November 27th , 2011 Introduction “Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of His disciples that are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may believe Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and by believing you may have life in His name.” John 20:30-31 (HCSB) In the Gospel of John there are eight recorded sign miracles that Jesus Christ performed. This paper will briefly describe each miracle and how it reveals the deity of Jesus Christ. Turning of Water into Wine The first miracle Jesus performed was changing water into wine. He and His disciples arrived at a wedding celebration that was already in progress. Mary, the mother of Jesus, came to Him and told Him they had run out of wine, presumably because she knew that He was capable of doing something about the dilemma.[1] Jesus responded by telling her that His hour had not yet come. While scholars disagree on what Jesus meant by this statement, it is obvious that Mary, as a woman of faith, understood enough that she instructed the servants at the wedding to do whatever Jesus asked them to do.[2] Jesus did in fact direct the servants to fill six pots with water, which He then miraculously changed into a fine quality wine. “The changing of water into wine is surely meant to bring out the power of Jesus to bring about new beginnings.”[3] We might parallel the higher quality of wine that Jesus made from the water with the higher quality of life...
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...UNIVERSITY The Eight Signs and Miracles in Gospel of John ON-LINE LEARNING CAMPUS Rick Buck Submitted by Karen Teresa Galbreath February 8, 2012 Table of Contents Chapter 1 Introduction 3 Chapter 2 The First Sign Miracle: Turning Water to Wine 4 Chapter 3 The Second Sign Miracle: Healing the Nobleman’s Son 6 Chapter 4 The Third Sign Miracle: Healing of the Lame man 8 Chapter 5 The Fourth Sign Miracle: Feeding the 5,000 with Bread and Fish 10 Chapter 6 The Fifth Sign Miracle: Jesus Walking on Water 12 Chapter 7 The Sixth Sign Miracle: Healing of a Blind Man 14 Chapter 8 The Seventh Sign Miracle: Resurrection of Lazarus from death to life 16 Chapter 9 The Eighth Sign Miracle: Miraculous Catch of Fish 18 Conclusion 19 Bibliography 20 Chapter 1 Introduction This paper will emphasize the importance of the eight signs and miracles Jesus performed and how these signs were given to confirm the deity of Jesus. John wrote in Chapter 20:31 “31 But these are written that you may believe[a] that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” These events offered proof of Jesus divinity according to Dr. Elmer Towns author of The Gospel of John, Believe and Live. In the Gospel of John, John reveals the relationship between the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This is shown at the wedding feast at Cana, the woman at the well, and the raising of Lazarus. “Jesus performed miracles in this gospel for a variety...
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...from far with in. I have been establishing not only my own thoughts of how Jesus came to be and understanding the bible as well as how other classmates view their knowledge and opinions which may differ from my own. I have always felt strongly about my feelings of God but have never come to discuss them. Christian Worldview really puts your knowledge and beliefs to a level of assessment and the ability to see into your morals and beliefs. First, we have miracles, the meaning of miracles were spoken throughout Mark 5, and John 11, verses that discover the power that Jesus is the Son of God who retains power over satan and his demons. He is a miracle worker when it comes to others, may they be strong or weak he guides them and leads them to do the right thing. The demand of limitations is also strong to believe that whatever happens may happen, let God lead the way through prayer. For the purpose of perspective, personal ambition and prophecy, Luke 22-24 describes the key understanding and meaning of Jesus, through death and resurrection. He is the savor and the power, to live forever and ever. Through him we can, with guidance and strength in our beliefs we can live on forever as well. Matthew 24 states another prophecy, destruction of Jerusalem or of the nation and the coming of God and his judgment on the destruction. However, I believe that the Bible, God and prayer all have true meaning in my day to day life. I have conquered many challenges throughout my life...
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...a major issue in the current society. This is due to the major rise of different types of faith and the rise of many churches with contradicting messages about Jesus. In my paper, I am going to discuss on the divinity of Jesus in three major approaches. This approach include the theological definition, the biblical foundation and the practical application. I will also be referring to different points from the Bible to support my arguments. The Deity of Jesus Christ The fact that Jesus was born, his birth was termed as a miracle. His enunciation was brought by the angel, and He was said to be conceived through the power of the Holy Spirit. He was also to be born of a virgin. According to the Holy Scripture in matt 1:20-23, "Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel." This is a true representation of that the child to be born was to be holy and lead a divine life. The Bible still explains that Jesus existed even before he was born. This is evident in the bible that God exists in three trinities, the father, the son, and the Holy Spirit. In the son trinity is where he was born, and took the human body, to live with the human beings. There are several practices that show Jesus had the power as God. These situations include the ability to forgive sins and also the ability to give people powers to become...
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...August 17, 2013 Christian Worldview Mrs. Farley Jesus Reflection Essay What I learned from the Jesus film was about his teaching. I have to say he preached a lot of good words and I wished I can see various people practice his words in society and cultural. There are some people who follow and read the Bible to start their life on a righteous path and there are some that I see our falling into sins and wrong choices in life. In the book of Matthew I think Jesus was teaching the people how to carefully listen to one another and follow the rules and they will forever parish in God’s Kingdom. The teaching goes along with cultural because families and churches can keep the traditions going and they too can teach their children and new converts what lessons Jesus has taught to follow the rules of life. In the film Jesus preach about forgiveness, and taught the people about the rules that God have provided them with. I read Matthew 5-7 and there is a rule that said “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves” (Matthew 7:15, ESV). In today society there are a few people who believe in false prophet hood for an example there are devil worshiper and they believe in Satan as their true God. The book of Matthew has a lot of words of wisdom and I see why my friends have such good morals, because they follow the rules. My friend’s churches have Food Drive and help out with the homeless a lot, the same situation with my Mosque...
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