studies in contrasts contents resolving alleged

STUDIES INCONTRASTSResolving AllegedContradictions In The Bible

AAn old rumor has it that “thegood book” is a library ofcontradictions. It is said

by some that the real genius ofthis bestseller is that, like othersuccessful “fortune tellers,” itcovers its predictions withenough broad, obscure, andcontradictory statements to beable to hide in the tangle.

But is that really the truthabout the Bible? Or is theresome way to resolve its allegedcontradictions? We offer thefollowing pages to you with the confidence that the more of the Bible you understand, the less you will wonder aboutits overall unity, consistency,and reliability.

Martin R. De Haan II

Managing Editor: David Sper Cover Photo: Michael ForrestScripture quotations are from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by ThomasNelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.© 1987,1999,2002 RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, Michigan Printed in USA

CONTENTSDouble-talk . . . . . . . . . . 2

What’s At Stake? . . . . . . 3

Where Are TheContradictions? . . . . . . . 4

Why Aren’t There More? . . . . . . . . . 5

How Should We Approach This? . . . . . . . 7

What Are Studies In Contrasts? . . . 8

Does The Bible Contradict Itself . . .

About God? . . . . . . . . . 10

About Salvation? . . . . . 16

About Christian Living? . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Do Contrasts ExplainEverything?. . . . . . . . . . 28

Does The Bible Contradict Us?. . . . . . . 32

© RBC Ministries. All rights reserved.

DOUBLE-TALK

DDoes the Biblecontradict itself?

“Yes,” responds thewell-groomed businessman.“The way it looks to me, theBible does contradict itself.I think it is riddled withinconsistencies.”

“Show me one,” says asecond-year college student,counting on a sophomoricbet that the critic hasn’tdone his homework.

“I can’t think of aspecific,” says the self-appointed authority, “but I know they’re there.”

“I can,” says another.“In some places the Biblesays God loves everybody.In other places it says there are some people Hehates. And sometimes thebiblical authors contradictthemselves before the inkhas had a chance to dry on their first statement. Forinstance, within the space

of two sentences the authorof Proverbs says that a wiseman will and will not try to answer a fool (26:4-5).What kind of sense doesthat make?”

“A lot of sense,” says a little old man with baggypants and a grey-white shirt marked by a mustardstain on the pen-laden leftpocket. “The Bible onlyseems to contradict itself tothose who don’t understandit.”

“Sir, with all due respect,”the other responds, “theBible makes sense onlybecause you want it to make sense.”

“And is it possible thatyou’d rather it didn’t makesense?” replies the old man.“Does your live-in girlfriendand your life-risking wagerthat this life is all you needto worry about make you agood judge of the Book thatjudges you?”

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WHAT’S ATSTAKE?

IIs the issue of double-talk important? It is ifyour employer promises

you he’s going to give you araise and then a few dayslater tells you that he wasonly thinking about it. It’s

important if a politician iscaught talking out of bothsides of his mouth, or if ateacher sends mixed signalsabout what you can expecton the final exam. It’sserious if you rent from a

landlord who keepschanging his story aboutwhether he’s going to raiseyour rent.

It’s even more serious if the Bible gives you mixed signals about whatGod thinks of you. It isabsolutely essential for youto know whether you cantrust this Book.

• Does God really know every thoughtthat is in our mind?(Ps. 139:1-6).

• Does He care aboutwhat happens to us?(Mt. 6:25-34).

• Is He willing to forgivethe worst of our sins?(1 Cor. 6:11).

All of these things are indoubt if the Bible is a bookof double-talk and self-contradiction.

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If the Biblecontradicts itself,

how can we believewhat it says about

us, about God, or about

anything else?


WHERE ARE THECONTRADICTIONS?

IIt’s important for ourtheory to fit the facts ofthe case before us. On

this question, the fact isthat the Bible does appearto contradict itself. (1) Itappears that way to theunbelieving critic. (2) Itappears that way to theChristian who works hard to harmonize thosepassages of history, ethics,or prophecy that seem to bein conflict with one another.(3) It appears to the casualreader that the Bible is less than consistent. He’sconfused by the fact thatthe Bible says:

1. We should/should notbe afraid of God.

2. God is in control/Satan is in control.

3. Christ was less than/equal with the Father.

4. We are/are not savedby faith alone.

5. Salvation is once-for-

all/continuous.6. We can/cannot come

to God as we are.7. Self-esteem is

dangerous/healthy.8. With faith we can/

cannot do everything.9. We should/should not

follow men.But does the fact

that the Bible seems tocontradict itself mean that it actually does? We can’tafford to jump to a wrongconclusion. The issues aretoo important. Too much isat stake to casually dismissa book of the Bible’s staturejust because it appears attimes to contradict itself.There is too much to besaid for this Book that hasinspired more faith, morehope, more love, morehonesty, more hard work,more social reform, andmore justice than any otherbook the world has everknown.

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WHY AREN’TTHERE MORE?

AAlook at a few otherfacts could easilycause us to ask a

question different from theone proposed on the coverof this booklet. We couldask, “Why doesn’t the Bibleappear to contradict itselfmore often?”

Seven Obstacles To Unity. (1) The Biblewas written over a period of1,500 years, (2) in severaldifferent languages, (3) by 40 different authors(4) from many walks of life and (5) from severalgeographic locations in the Middle East. (6) Theseauthors claim to speak in behalf of a God whodescribes our situation fromHis own infinite, eternalperspective. (7) Yet theseauthors also approach those same issues from theperspective of people caughtup in the intense emotions,

ecstasies, and agonies ofhuman experience.

Seven Evidences Of Unity. In spite ofthese obstacles, the Bibleshows amazing unity when it comes to describing(1) the personality andcharacter of God, (2) thepersonality and character ofman, (3) the human needfor salvation, (4) the needfor a substitutionary bloodsacrifice to accomplish thatsalvation, and (5) theanticipation and coming ofa promised Messiah-Saviordescribed as “God with us.”Beyond that, the Bibleshows unity (6) in the wayit uses public miracles andfulfilled prophecies tosupport its spiritual claimsand authority. Its claims arenot left to the philosophy,idealism, or good intentionsof its authors. The messageof the Old Testament wasconfirmed by events asphysical as the Flood, themiraculous crossing of the

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Red Sea, and thesupernatural conquest of the Promised Land. The message of the NewTestament rests on themiracles, life, death, burial,resurrection, and ascensionof Christ.Even theteaching ofthe earlyapostles restson claims of “sign”miracles thatwere seen by manywitnesses.

Finally, theBible showsamazingunity (7) inthe way thatthe creationthemes ofGenesis arebroughttogether in thejudgment and re-creation themes of

Revelation. There Christ theCreator is described asChrist the final Judge andSavior.

In this light, let’s asksome other questions. Arethe apparent contradictions

of Scriptureclear orspecificenough, anddo they carryenoughweight todismiss thisevidence ofunity? Is iteven possiblethat thevaryingperspectivesand allegeddiscrepanciesactually lendcredibilityrather thansuspicion tothe authors?

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THE UNITY OF THE BIBLE“It is this aspect of the Bible thatconstitutes its grand distinctionfrom all collections of sacredwritings—the so-called ‘Bibles’ of heathen religions—in the world.These, as the slightest inspectionof them shows, have no unity.They are accumulations of[unrelated] materials, presenting, in their collection, no order,progress, or plan. The reason isthat they embody no historicalrevelation working out a purposein consecutive stages fromgerminal beginnings to perfectclose.

“The Bible, by contrast, is asingle book because it embodiessuch revelation and exhibits suchpurpose. The unity of the bookmade up of so many parts isattestation of the reality of the revelation it contains” (International Standard BibleEncyclopedia, pp.467-468).


HOW SHOULDWE APPROACHTHIS?

AAre we willing toapproach it the same

way we approachother matters? Are wewilling to give the Bible thekind of consideration wewould want for ourselves?

• Would we want to bequoted out of context?

• Would we want achance to speak forourselves?

• Would we want to begiven the benefit of the doubt after givingothers adequate reasonto trust us?

• Would we wantto be accused ofcontradicting ourselvesby someone who hadnot tried to understandwhat we were saying?

With these questions inmind, we’re going to suggestthat most of the apparentcontradictions of the Bible

can be resolved by (1)studying them in context,(2) letting the text speak foritself, and (3) discoveringthat the contrasting ideasare just that—contrasts, notcontradictions.

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“It is the duty of the Christianscholar to lookdifficulties and

objections squarelyin the face.

Nothing is to be gained byoverlooking,

evading, or shrinking from them.”

John Haley


WHAT ARESTUDIES INCONTRASTS?

AAstudy in contrastslooks at an allegeddiscrepancy in the

Bible and shows that theproblem may be nothingmore than two sides of thesame truth. The solution, inturn, is to see that each sidehas its appropriate, God-given time and place. Sucha solution is modeled in the words of Solomon inEcclesiastes 3:1-8 when he wrote:

To everything there is aseason, a time for everypurpose under heaven: A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck . . . ;a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down,and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to laugh;

a time to mourn, and a time to dance; a time to cast awaystones, and a time togather stones; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain . . . ;a time to gain, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to throwaway; a time to tear, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence,and a time to speak; a time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.This series of

unrelenting contrastsoverwhelmed Solomon. But it also brought him to a place of solution as herealized that opposites can be harmonized in theperfect design and plan ofGod. With this insight,Solomon declared, “[God]has made everythingbeautiful in its time” (3:11).

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In the following pageswe will illustrate how thecontrasting ideas ofScripture can be seen intheir proper “time andplace.” We’ll also use thediagram below to show how

complementing truths worktogether to form balancedcompleteness.

This sense of balance is important because thequestion of whether theBible contradicts itself goes beyond the issue of the Bible’s credibility.Once that is established, we can gain a more matureunderstanding of the Bible’smessage by seeing thebigger and broader

perspective on many issues. Most important, this growing sense ofcompleteness can also help us to know and trust the Lord, who is both predictable and

unpredictable, loving and hating, one in three,self-revealing and self-concealing, gentle andangry, God and man.

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TRUTH #1 TRUTH #2


DOES THE BIBLECONTRADICTITSELF ABOUTGOD?

LLet’s take a look at threeapparent contradictions

about God that havebeen the source of so muchdisagreement andconfusion.

WE SHOULD FEAR GOD1. When people in the Bible

came face to face withGod, they reacted withfear. They either hid theirfaces, cried out in terror,or lost their strength andfell to the ground (Ex.

3:2-6; 1 Ki. 19:13; Isa.6:5; Ezek. 1:26–2:2; Rev. 1:17).

2. God is said to approve ofsuch trembling—not onlyin response to Himselfbut also in response toHis Word (Isa. 66:1-2).

3. “Fear and trembling” is said by Paul to be an essentialcharacteristic of theChristian life (Phil. 2:12).

4. Such an attitude seemsto be appropriate in light of the fact that God reserves the right to take away thehealth or even the life ofa sinning Christian (Acts5:1-11; 1 Cor. 11:27-30;Heb. 12:3-11).

10

WE SHOULDFEAR GOD

WE SHOULDNOT FEAR GOD


5. The Bible says that aChristian who does nottake the Lord seriouslyenough will suffer loss inthe life to come (1 Cor.3:11-17; 2 Cor. 5:9-11; 1 Jn. 2:28).

WE SHOULD NOT FEAR GOD1. God told people who

were afraid of Him not to fear (Ex. 20:18-21; 1 Sam. 12:20; Rev. 1:17).

2. Paul told Timothy thatGod has not given us the spirit of fear (2 Tim.1:7), and John wrote that the perfect love from God casts out fear (1 Jn. 4:18).

3. The author of Hebrewsencouraged Christians to come boldly to God for His help, even though it’s undeserved(Heb. 10:19-22).

4. The Bible gives usencouragement to run to God, not away fromHim (Jas. 4:8).

How can both be true?Is this double-talk? Test the following explanation: (a) When all passages areconsidered, it is apparentthat both are true. (b) Weshould always be afraid ofresisting or rebelling againstGod. (c) However, weshould never be afraid ofcoming to Him on Histerms and by His invitation.(d) The right kind of fearwill drive us to the Lord,not away from Him. (e) Should God choose toreveal His power and gloryto us, we can expect to findourselves trembling on ourfaces before Him. (f) Paul’swords to Timothy refer tothe fact that we are not to fear men. (g) John isspeaking of “perfect”(complete or mature) love,which characterizes thosewho are drawing near to theLord rather than runningfrom Him.

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GOD IS INCONTROL1. God showed an

important king that He,the Lord, was in control ofeveryone and everything(Dan. 4:28-37).

2. God appoints the rulersof the world and usesthem to carry out Hispurposes (Rom. 13:1-7).

3. Sometimes even Satanacknowledges that God is in charge (Job 1).

SATAN IS INCONTROL1. Satan offered to give

Christ “all the kingdomsof the world” if He wouldworship him (Mt. 4:8-9),indicating that Satan

thought he was in control of thosekingdoms (Lk. 4:5-7).

2. Paul called Satan “the godof this age” (2 Cor. 4:4).

3. John said that “the whole world lies underthe sway of the wickedone” (1 Jn. 5:19).

4. The kind of evil thatafflicts the world is saidto originate from Satan,not the Lord (2 Cor. 12:7).Are these two sides

contradictory? Can you see a way of joining them in contrasting balance? Theanswer is that (a) both aretrue. (b) Satan and hisforces possess enormousinfluence over the worldand even over the

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GOD ISIN CONTROL

SATAN ISIN CONTROL


circumstances of the peopleof God. (c) Satan never hasGod’s approval, yet he doesnothing without God’spermission. If Satanbreathes, he takes a breathonly as God allows. IfSatan carries out his evilstrategy, it is only becausethe Lord has a good reasonfor allowing him to do so.

While most of God’sreasons for doing this arebeyond our understanding,He has told us as much aswe need to know to putSatan’s presence to work forus. How can we do that? Wecan use the existence of “thegod of this age” to show ourallegiance to the one andtrue God. We can let theapparent “rule” of evil giveus occasion to show ourtrust in the Lord. We can let the turmoil of Satan’srebellion give us reason toshow our hope in the Onewho will eventually bringSatan and his forces tosubmission and destruction.

We can let his evil rule giveus reason to love others inthe way God has loved us.

Here we have anotherapparent contradiction thathas generated endlesscontroversy:

JESUS CHRIST WAS EQUAL WITHTHE FATHER1. His claim to equality

with the Father was soclear that the religiousleaders wanted to stoneHim for blasphemy (Jn. 5:18; 10:30-39).

2. He referred to Himself as the “I Am,” an OldTestament name for the“self-existent, eternalGod.” This self-referenceonce again caused Hislisteners to want to putan end to Him right thenand there (Jn. 8:58-59).

3. John called Him God (Jn. 1:1).

4. He is called Creator of allthings (Jn. 1:3; Col. 1:16;Heb. 1:10).

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5. The Old Testamentforesaw a comingMessiah who would be called “EverlastingFather” (Isa. 9:6).

JESUS CHRIST WAS LESS THANTHE FATHER1. Jesus Himself

declared that His Father was greater than He (Jn. 14:28).

2. Paul described God as being the “head ofChrist” (1 Cor. 11:3).

3. Christ said that He coulddo nothing by Himself,thereby showing Hisdependence upon theFather (Jn. 5:30).

4. Christ said that He alonehad the right to judge

men because that rolewas given to Him by theFather (Jn. 5:22-23).

5. Christ said that He didn’tknow the day nor the

hour of His return butthat only the Fatherknew (Mt. 24:36).So how can we make

sense of these apparentlycontradictory positions?Again the solution lies in theawareness that (a) both aretrue. (b) As God, Christ wasequal to the Father in Hiseternal essence andcharacter. (c) However,when He left heaven on His mission of mercy, Hetemporarily laid aside Hisrights and honor in order tobecome the God-man. To

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JESUS CHRISTWAS EQUALWITH GOD

JESUS CHRISTWAS LESS

THAN GOD


become one of us, He left His glory behind andaccepted a role of totaldependence upon HisFather. So fully did Heidentify with us that Heactually depended on theHoly Spirit when He did Hismiracles (Mt. 12:28). (d)Although He has once againbeen restored to honor andglory, His role as the God-man is not over. While beingequal with God in essence,He still has accepted asubordinate role in order tocarry out the eternal plan (1 Cor. 15:20-28).

Such a contrast might be difficult to comprehend.In fact, no one is able tounderstand how Godbecame a man while stillremaining God. But it isessential that we acquaintourselves with both sides of such issues. If we don’thave a balanced view ofGod, we will be vulnerableto mistakes and deception.Innumerable errors are

made by those who see partof the truth and assumethey know all that the Biblesays on the subject.

Thinking It Over1. How do you show a

proper fear of the Lord?2. In what ways should you

not be afraid of God? 3. Why do we tend to be

afraid when we shouldn’tbe afraid, yet we do notfear God when weshould?

4. How should you view theexistence of trouble inyour life? Can you tellwhether it has come fromSatan or from the Lord?In what four ways canyou put that trouble towork for you?

5. What would you say to acult member who pointsyour attention to thoseparts of Scripture thatshow Christ to be lessthan God?

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DOES THE BIBLECONTRADICTITSELF ABOUTSALVATION?

LLet’s take a look at someways the Scripturesseem to say two

different things aboutsalvation.

SALVATION IS BY FAITH ALONE1. The New Testament

writers repeatedlymentioned that faith in Christ is the only condition forsalvation (Jn. 1:12-13;3:16; 5:24; 20:31; 1 Tim. 1:15-17).

2. The account of the thiefon the cross illustratessalvation by faith alone.There was no opportunityfor any other qualifyingfactor (Lk. 23:39-43).

3. The historical account of Acts records peoplebeing saved on thecondition of faith inChrist alone (Acts 8:26-40; 10:44-48; 16:30-31).

4. The apostle Pauldeveloped carefullyworded argumentsdesigned to emphasizefaith alone, apart from any meritoriouswork of human effort (Rom. 4:1-5; Gal. 3:1-14,26-29; Eph. 2:8-10).

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SALVATION IS BY

FAITH ALONE

SALVATION IS NOT BY

FAITH ALONE


SALVATION IS NOTBY FAITH ALONE1. James boldly declared

that we are not saved byfaith alone (Jas. 2:14-26).

2. Paul said to “work outyour own salvation with fear and trembling”(Phil. 2:12).

3. Jesus told of thoseprofessing believers whowould call Christ Lordand who would even goso far as to claim to domiracles in His name—yet not make it into the kingdom of God (Mt. 7:21).

4. The book of Acts seemsto say that repentanceand baptism are alsonecessary requirementsfor salvation (Acts 2:38).So what do we do with

this apparent conflict? Theanswer is that salvation is by faith alone. But truefaith will not remain alone.

Baptism, for instance,when rightly used, is an important outward

expression of faith. In the same way, repentance(literally a change of mind)also accompanies faith. But in both cases, it is thefaith—not the works, theritual, nor the physicalact—that qualifies a personfor the kingdom of God.

The same is true of“confession.” It is with themouth that a person showsothers his faith. But it is notby a person’s mouth that heis saved (Rom. 10:9-10).

For this reason, the thief on the cross could godirectly to paradise. He hadfaith in the right Person andgave evidence of that faithby what he said.

James forcefully keeps us in balance. He remindsus that real faith alwaysproduces works, which in turn declare that we are right with God. Hisemphasis is in agreementwith Paul, who told us to“work out” our salvation,not work for it.

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SALVATION ISONCE-FOR-ALL1. The New Testament

indicates that likephysical birth, salvationis an event, not just aprocess (Jn. 3:3-12; 1 Jn. 5:1).

2. Paul indicated that theevent of salvation givesus a new position andcondition before God(Rom. 5:1-2; 2 Cor. 5:17).

3. Paul made it clear that where there is abeginning in Christ, theend is as good as done(Rom. 8:29-30; Phil. 1:6).

4. We are viewed by God asalready “glorified” (Rom.8:30), as having “ourcitizenship . . . in

heaven” (Phil. 3:20), as“translated . . . into thekingdom of the Son”(Col. 1:13), and as“raised . . . together” andmade to “sit together inthe heavenly places inChrist Jesus” (Eph. 2:6).

5. Those who believe inChrist have the HolySpirit living within. Thisnot only enables us tolive like children of God,but it also gives evidencethat we are His people—destined for heaven (1 Cor. 6:19; Eph. 4:30).

SALVATION ISCONTINUOUS1. Both Paul and Peter said

that salvation is a future 18

SALVATION ISONCE-FOR-ALL

SALVATION ISCONTINUOUS


event (Rom. 13:11; 1 Pet. 1:5).

2. Paul talked about thosewho are “being saved,”suggesting not just an event but a process (1 Cor. 1:18; 2 Cor. 2:15).

3. Paul spoke of a salvationthat seemed to bedependent on the prayersof his readers (Phil. 1:19).The solution to this

contrast is found in the factthat salvation can be seenfrom several perspectives.God is able to save us from(a) the penalty of our sins,from (b) the power of sin,and eventually from (c) thepresence of sin. The first iswrapped up in the event ofthe new birth (1 Jn. 5:1).The second involves aprocess by which Godrepeatedly rescues Hispeople from the power andunnecessary complicationsof sin (Phil. 1:19; 2:12). Thethird represents the ultimaterescue that occurs onlywhen the child of God

leaves this world for hisheavenly home (1 Pet. 1:5).

WE CAN COME TO GOD JUST AS WE ARE1. A tax collector, a member

of an occupational groupnotorious for dishonesty,was accepted by Godwithout first having to go out and change hisways (Lk. 18:13-14).

2. The thief on the cross had no chance to cleanup his life. He simplyacknowledged his need offorgiveness (Lk. 23:42-43).

3. Paul was suddenlyconfronted and acceptedby God while in theprocess of persecutingthe followers of Christ(Acts 9). He didn’t have a chance to do anythingexcept bow the knee justas he was.

4. The beggar who sat at arich man’s gate with ragson his back, sores on his body, and dogs for

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companions wentdirectly to paradise when he died (Lk. 16).

WE CAN’T COMETO GOD JUST ASWE ARE1. When the religious

leaders of John’s daycame out to hear him, hecalled them a brood ofsnakes and told them tobring him evidence thatthey were ready to cometo God (Lk. 3:7-8).

2. Jesus told a rich youngruler that he should sellall that he had anddistribute his money tothe poor if he wanted tofollow Him (Lk. 18:22).

3. The Pharisee who wentto the temple to offer a

prayer of thanks walkedaway unaccepted and rejected by God

(Lk. 18:11,14).What’s the story? This

sounds like double-talk,doesn’t it? Yet there is nocontradiction—only twosides of a single truth. Thefact is that we can come toGod just as we are, as longas we come in true humilityand with a sense ofgenuine need. We don’thave to break our badhabits, clean up our act, or improve our reputationbefore we can be acceptedby God. On the contrary,all we have to do is give upany hope of deserving Hisfavor and throw ourselves

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WE CAN COMETO GOD JUST

AS WE ARE

WE CAN’T COMETO GOD JUST

AS WE ARE


on His mercy.On the other hand, God

will never accept us just aswe are if we come to Himwith an attitude of pride andself-sufficiency. He will neveraccept us until we humblycall on Him for help.

That’s not acontradiction. It’s one of themost wonderfully consistenttruths imaginable. It’sabsolutely consistent withGod’s promise to acceptanyone who comes to Himin true humility and need.

Thinking It Over1. What evidence is there

in your life that you aredepending on a salvationthat is by faith in Christalone?

2. Give several Scripturereferences to show thatsalvation is the result oftrusting what Christ hasdone for us rather thanwhat we have done forHim.

3. What do you think a

friend or fellow workerwould say if you askedhim whether he thoughtyour faith was real?

4. What would you say tosomeone who claims thatthe Bible contradictsitself by describingsalvation as both anevent and a process?

5. What evidence is therethat you are makingprogress in the “process”of your salvation?

6. How are you showingyour hope in the aspectof complete salvationthat is yet future?

7. What does it mean to come to God “just as we are”?

8. What would you say tosomeone who assumesthat he can come toChrist without makingany changes in his life?

9. Make a list of any otheraspects of salvation thatseem on the surface to becontradictory and workat resolving them.

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DOES THE BIBLECONTRADICTITSELF ABOUTCHRISTIANLIVING?

WWhen it comes tothe subject of

Christian living,there are a number ofbiblical contrasts that onthe surface appear to becontradictory. Let’s considerthree examples.

SELF-ESTEEM IS DANGEROUS1. According to the New

Testament, Christiansshould be humble and willing to think of

others more highly than themselves(Phil. 2:3).

2. A religious leader whothought well of himselfwas rejected by God (Lk. 18:9-14).

3. A Christian should be meek in character(Mt. 5:5).

4. Christians areencouraged to seethemselves as beinghelplessly incapable ofdoing any good on theirown (Jn. 5:30; Rom. 7).

5. James, Peter, and Paul all warned about thedanger of thinking too highly of oneself(Rom. 12:3; Jas. 4:6; 1 Pet. 5:5).

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SELF-ESTEEM ISDANGEROUS

SELF-ESTEEM ISHEALTHY


SELF-ESTEEM IS HEALTHY1. The apostle Paul

said that he could doanything God wantedhim to do (Phil. 4:13).

2. New TestamentChristians are repeatedlyreminded to take couragein light of their exaltedposition and future inChrist (Eph. 1:1-14).

3. The apostle Paul seemedto have such a healthyview of himself that heencouraged others toimitate him, even as he followed Christ (1 Cor. 11:1).Is there a contradiction

here? Not when you seehow beautifully andconsistently all of thesestatements fit together when studied in theirindividual contexts. The whole truth is that self-esteem is dangerouswhen associated with self-confidence, self-sufficiency,and self-righteousness. It is

healthy when based on a thankful, confidentrecognition of what Godthinks of us, what God hasdone for us, and what Godcan enable us to be and do(2 Cor. 3:5).

Self-esteem is wrongwhen it results in thinkingmore of ourselves than weought to think (Rom. 12:3;3 Jn. 9). It is right when we estimate our worth andsignificance on the basis of what God thinks of us (1 Pet. 1:18-19).

Self-esteem is wrongwhen we estimate our worthby measuring ourselves byourselves, or by comparingourselves among ourselves(Lk. 18:9-14; 2 Cor. 10:12).It is right when we estimateour worth on the basis ofwhat God has done for us(Rom. 12:3-8; 2 Cor. 10:13).

Self-esteem is wrong when it leads us to conclude that we aredeserving of God’s kindness(Lk. 18:11-12; Jas. 4:6). It is

23


right when we realize that by God’s undeservedkindness we are membersof the royal family, priests,kings, and no less thanchildren of the mighty God (Rom. 8:12-39).

Self-esteem is wrongwhen we do not give others more honor andconsideration thanourselves (Phil. 2:3), when we think we can livesuccessfully in our ownstrength (Jn. 5:30), when weact as though we have notreceived our abilities andresources as gifts from God(1 Cor. 4:6-7), or when wethink of ourselves as beingabove hardship andsuffering (Phil. 1:29).

WITH FAITH WECAN DO ANYTHING1. Jesus said that faith

as small as a mustard seed can move mountains (Mt. 17:20).

2. The Lord said that if we ask anything in His name, it will be given to us (Jn. 15:7,16).

3. The apostle John saidthat it was possible to get from God what weask (1 Jn. 3:21-22).

4. The apostle Paul wasconvinced that by God’s grace he was able to handle anycircumstance that camehis way (Phil. 4:10-13).

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WITH FAITHWE CAN DOANYTHING

WITH FAITHWE CAN’T DOEVERYTHING


WITH FAITH WE CAN’T DOEVERYTHING 1. Although Jesus had

perfect faith and askedfor deliverance from thesufferings of the cross(Mt. 26:39), He had toendure the agony thatcaused Him to cry, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”(Mt. 27:46).

2. Paul asked God toremove his thorn in theflesh, but he experiencedthe sufficiency of God’sgrace instead of thedeliverance he asked for (2 Cor. 12:1-10).

3. Paul suggested thatTimothy drink some wine as medicine for his physical problems—something he would not have prescribed if a simple request forsound health would have brought healing (1 Tim. 5:23).

4. Stephen was stoned to

death, James was killedwith a sword, and all ofthe apostles enduredpersecution andimprisonment. Theyundoubtedly would haveavoided these things ifthey could have beendelivered from themthrough prayer (see Heb. 11:36-40).

5. Although the apostlePaul expected that Godwould answer the prayersof His people and deliverhim from prison, heexpressed his confidencethat even if he died itwould be for God’s glory (Phil. 1:19-26).What is the answer

then to this apparentinconsistency? It is thatthrough faith we can doanything we want to do orreceive anything we want toreceive—as long as it is inharmony with God’s will.

This answer will notsatisfy those who have nodesire to do the will of God.

25


It won’t make sense tosomeone who has littleconfidence in the goodness,wisdom, power, and love ofGod. But for those who finddelight in knowing theWord of God and doingwhat the Lord wants themto do, this is a wonderfullyconsistent truth. They

would no more expect Godto give them everythingthey ask for than theywould expect a humanfather to give his 3-year-oldeverything he asks for.People who seek God’s willare confident that He willnot withhold from them any good thing (Mt. 7:11).

The underlyingassumption and spirit of

all the great prayer promisesis that we are praying underthe guidance of the HolySpirit and in an attitude ofsubmission to the will ofGod. Real faith trusts Godfor the impossible, but itdoesn’t desire anything thatGod doesn’t want for us.

WE SHOULDFOLLOW MEN1. The apostle Paul asked

his readers to follow (lit. imitate, mimic) him (1 Cor. 11:1).

2. We have an obligationbefore God to follow,respect, and obey ourleaders (Heb. 13:7,17).

3. Peter taught us to followthe example of those

26

WE SHOULDFOLLOW MEN

WE SHOULDNOT FOLLOW

MEN


mature Christian leaderswhom God has placedover us (1 Pet. 5:1-3).

4. We are to follow theexample of godly peoplewho have gone before us(Heb. 11; Jas. 5:11-18).

WE SHOULD NOTFOLLOW MEN1. Putting our confidence

in men is futile (Ps.108:12; 146:3-5).

2. Following a group ofpeople can be just asdangerous as followingan individual leader (Ex. 23:2).

3. Christ alone deserves our worship, love, and confidence (1 Cor. 3:4-11).This might seem to

be contradictory advice. But it isn’t. We need to seethat following God meansaccepting the authority ofthose He places over us.Even at that, however, theleader is never the ultimateauthority. For instance,

wives are told to “submit to your own husbands, asto the Lord” (Eph. 5:22).Servants are told to obeytheir masters “with fear and trembling, in sincerityof heart, as to Christ; notwith eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but as servants of Christ, doing the will ofGod from the heart, withgood will doing service, as to the Lord, and not tomen” (Eph. 6:5-7). In other words, those whofollow a leader properly are not really doing it tofollow a man. They areserving and followingChrist. In this way we can see that both sides are true.

Thinking It Over1. Do you have as much

self-esteem as youshould have? Do youthink others recognizethat you have aconfidence that comes from the Lord?

27


2. What do you think youcould ask the Lord forand be confident that He would be pleased toanswer? How can youtell the differencebetween faith andpresumption?

3. How would you assessyour relationship tohuman leaders in light of what we have seen?What is the right motivefor following a humanleader? What is thewrong motive?

DO CONTRASTSEXPLAINEVERYTHING?

SStudies in contrasts, asimportant as theyare, are just one way

of looking at the issues ofapparent contradictions inthe Bible. In his classicbook Alleged DiscrepanciesOf The Bible, John W. Haleypoints out that the allegeddiscrepancies of the Bibleare the result of manyfactors. The following list is adapted from his book:

1. Differences OfTime. Conditions true atone time may not be true at another. For example, in the Old Testament, God promised His peoplephysical prosperity if theywould remain faithful toHim (Dt. 28–30). But in the New Testament, theemphasis of blessing shiftsfrom earth to heaven. Godnow promises the churchthat He will reward their

28

Those who follow a leader properly

are not really doing it to follow

a man. They are serving andfollowing Christ.


obedience in eternity (Rom. 8:18-25).

2. Differences OfAuthorship. Statementsmade by men speaking inbehalf of God often conflictwith statements made bymen speaking only in theirown behalf. For example, in the book of Ecclesiastes,Solomon said things out ofthe bitterness of his ownheart that conflict witheternal truths spoken byothers who said their words were from God.

3. Differences OfPerspective. “Truth ismany-sided, flinging backfrom each of its countlessfacets a ray of differenthue” (Haley). If that soundsrather heady, consider thedifferent descriptions of anelephant given by four blindmen of different heightswho had approached theanimal from differentdirections.

4. Differences OfArrangement. Certain

biblical passages mayappear to conflict with one another if one author arranges his content chronologicallywhile another author uses a topical arrangement.

5. Differences OfComputation. Numberswill sometimes differ whenthe kind of calendar orstandard of measure usedare different.

6. Differences OfLanguage. Easternlanguage and thought maybe misinterpreted and seen

29

“Truth is many-sided, flinging

back from each of its countlessfacets a ray ofdifferent hue.”

John W. Haley


as contradictory by aWestern mind notacquainted with orientalcustom, setting, and style.Eastern language tends tobe poetic and rich withemotions and metaphorsthat must be properlyunderstood or they willappear to be in conflict. Forexample, in one passageDavid described God as arock, but in another placehe described God as Onewho had wings andfeathers.

7. Differences OfNames. Eastern customallowed for giving the sameperson different names. For instance, one of theapostles was referred to as:Simon, Simeon, Peter,Cephas, Simon Peter,Simon Bar-Jona, and Simonson of Jonas. Frequently,the names of persons andplaces were changed afteran important event.

8. Differences OfWord Meanings. The

same word might meanentirely different thingsdepending on the context or usage. Try to imagine the initial confusion of aninternational traveler who

is unfamiliar with the wayAmericans use the terms

30

“The question ofdiscrepancies is a question of

interpretation, andit could hardly beexpected that anytwo persons would

always agree intheir method of reconcilingstatements

that seem to be[contradictory].”

Alvah Hovey


hot, cool, sharp, orawesome.

9. Differences OfManuscripts. A certainpercentage of discrepanciesare due to errors that havecrept into the copyingprocess. We can bethankful that these doubtful passages do notinvolve more than a smallpercentage of the total text,and none of them threatensany essential doctrine ortruth.

10. Differences OfAuthor And Reader.Many alleged discrepanciesare due to the imaginationof the critic who is moreinterested in findingproblems than in findingsolutions.

If this seems to raise an excessive number ofproblems, keep in mind that science, law, history,and medicine are full ofsituations where conflictinginformation exists. Yetseldom does anyone toss

up his hands and assumethat there are no answersjust because answers havenot yet been found.

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Many allegeddiscrepancies are due to theimagination of

the critic who ismore interested infinding problemsthan in finding

solutions.


DOES THE BIBLECONTRADICT US?

TThis might be the mostimportant question ofall. Is it possible that

the real issue is that weknow down deep that theBible contradicts us? Is itpossible that we’re criticalof the best book in theworld because we don’twant to be captured by itswisdom? Is it possible thatan otherwise objectiveperson might have lostsome objectivity along theway?

The fact is that when theBible contradicts us, callsus wrong, and points us toChrist, it is only to bring us the good news that Heloves us, died for us, androse from the dead to showthat our rescue is possible.

That being the case, let’snot contradict ourselves

and our own chances for forgiveness, life, andhappiness. Let’s notcontradict God by acting as though we can escapehell without His help.

Let’s instead agree with Him and believe on theLord Jesus Christ and besaved (Acts 16:31). Onlythen will we resolve the one contradiction that is as real as it seems to be.

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“Men do not reject the Bible

because itcontradicts itself, but because itcontradicts

them.”E. Paul Hovey


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