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Sermons - Benchley church of Christ

What About All Those Bible Contradictions?

David Watson

March 26, 2017

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I Peter 1:22-25
Sometimes contradictions are the result of a copyist error.
- II Samuel 8:3; I Chronicles 18:3 – Hadadezer vs. Hadarezer
- II Kings 8:26; II Chronicles 22:2 – Ahaziah’s age. See II Kings 8:17. The correct age must be 22.
- I Samuel 17; II Samuel 21:19; I Chronicles 20:5 – Who killed Goliath? I Chronicles 20:5 is probably the correct reading, rather than II Samuel 21:19.
- Those errors do not destroy our faith!
  - The Dead Sea Scrolls – date back to the time of Christ or before!
  - Thousands of manuscripts
    - Over 5,000 Greek New Testament manuscripts.
  - Critics inflate the number of errors in manuscripts by counting the same error in each manuscript. In reality, the plurality of manuscripts helps us detect and root out these errors!
- Many alleged contradictions are not actual contradictions.
  - What about the order of Creation?
    - Genesis 1:24-27 vs. Genesis 2:7-22
    - Genesis 1 is chronological. Genesis 2 just adds more detail.
  - How many times did the rooster crow?
    - Mark 14:30, 68, 72 vs Matthew, Luke, and John
    - Not a contradiction – Mark just added more detail.
  - How did Judas die?
    - Matthew 27:5 vs Acts 1:18-19
    - Acts 1 just adds more detail after Judas’ death.
  - Does God tempt people or not?
    - Genesis 22:1 vs James 1:13
    - In Genesis 22, God was testing Abraham, not tempting him to sin. In James 1, it says God does not tempt people to sin.
  - Points to remember
    - Only the original books of the Bible were inspired, but the thousands of uninspired copies that we have to compare today give us a reliable Biblical text.
    - None of the alleged contradictions involve any critical change in doctrine.
    - Vague attacks are easy. Ask for specifics.
    - Study honestly: are 2 passages talking about the same thing at the same time and in the same sense?

For further study, see also:

Biblical contradictions

Dead Sea Scrolls

inspiration

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Classes - Benchley church of Christ

Exodus, Part 3

David Watson

March 26, 2017

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The first opposition (Exodus 5-6)
- “Who is the Lord?” (Exodus 5:2)
  - God repeatedly tells him. Exodus 7:17. See also Exodus 7:5; 8:10, 22; 9:14, 29; 11:7; 14:4, 18.
  - God will trample Pharaoh’s pride. See Exodus 9:16, quoted in Romans 9:17. Also compare II Chronicles 32:13-19.
  - Proverbs 30:9
- God deals with a fledgling faith (Exodus 5:20-6:13)
  - Pharaoh forced the people to gather their own straw for the bricks. The people had seen the signs (Exodus 4:30-31), but this added burden was enough to cause the people to turn on Moses and Aaron (Exodus 5:20-25).
  - God’s response:
    - Patience: He does not punish Moses or the people at this point.
    - He provides His word as assurance. He explains (again) what the future holds.
  - “By my name, LORD” (Exodus 6:3)
    - God had appeared to the patriarchs as “God Almighty” (Hebrew: El Shaddai), but now emphasizes a new name: “LORD” (Hebrew: Yahweh).
    - In Exodus, God repeatedly says, “I am the LORD” and refers to Israel as His people. Exodus marks a turning point in Israel’s relationship with God as He takes special care of them.
    - It’s remarkable that in comparison to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, and Moses, God has provided “something better for us” (Hebrews 4:10).
    - I John 3:2

For further study, see also:

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II Corinthians, Part 7

Jesse Jenkins

March 22, 2017

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II Corinthians 6:1-18
II Corinthians 6:2 – The Holy Spirit here applies this prophecy from Isaiah to the gospel. Now is the time for salvation, not some future time as some groups such as Premillenialists may argue.
II Corinthians 6:3 – If Paul had not lived what he preached, it would have reflected poorly on what he preached. The same is true for us.
II Corinthians 6:11-13 – The Corinthians were restrained by their own desires. Paul asks them to open their hearts to him and his teaching as he had opened his heart to them. Many in the religious world today are in the same position of being restrained by their own desires.
II Corinthians 6:14-15 – See I Corinthians 5. This is not saying you can’t have dealings with unbelievers. That would make it impossible to live in the world. This is specifically talking about being tied to unbelievers in spiritual matters.
II Corinthians 6:16 – Christians are the temple of God.
II Corinthians 6:17 – Some try to apply this to marriage to advise against marrying an unbeliever, but marriage is not in the context.

For further study, see also:

2 Corinthians

gospel

Premillenialism

relationship with unbelievers

salvation

temple of God

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Sermons - Benchley church of Christ

Moses

Jesse Jenkins

March 19, 2017

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What if a man wrote a letter to the church wanting to fill a job as a preacher and listed these weaknesses?
Isaiah 55:8-9
God chose such a man – Moses
- He did not consider himself a leader. Exodus 3:11; 4:1
- He was not an eloquent speaker. Exodus 4:10
- He did not have all the answers. Numbers 15:32-36
- He sometimes lost his temper. Exodus 3:22
- He sometimes got so provoked with the people that he disobeyed God. Numbers 21; Psalm 106
Moses, an example of a great leader
- He was so great that God told him. Deuteronomy 18:18
  - Acts 3:22-23
  - Luke 16:29
  - John 6:26-40
  - Acts 15:21
- His faith (Hebrews 11:24-26)
- He knew where to get the answers (Numbers 15:35)
- His love for his brethren (Exodus 32:30-32)
- His tireless work (Exodus 18:13-18)
- His humility (Exodus 32:9-13)
- His faithfulness in proclaiming God’s Word to them (Exodus 20; Deuteronomy 28-29)
- His patience (Exodus 6:9; 16:2; 17:2)
- His faithful submission (Deuteronomy 32:48-52)
Conclusion

For further study, see also:

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Sermons - Benchley church of Christ

Being Different to Glorify God

David Watson

March 19, 2017

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Ephesians 5:1-10
What we’re not talking about
- Just plain being different
- Being different to be difficult
- Being different out of pride (Matthew 6:1)
What we are talking about
- Being different to glofiry God (Matthew 5:16)
Live with purity
- I Peter 2:9-12
- I Peter 1:15
- I Peter 4:1-15
- Live excellently among men and people will notie!
Trust in God’s Word
- Acts 27:20-36
- We can stick up for God’s Word in the storm of life!
- Genesis 8:22
Change from bad to good
- Galatians 1:13-14, 21-24
Use common courtesy
- Titus 1:16; 2:6-8, 14; 3:8, 14
- Philippians 2:19-21

For further study, see also:

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