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TRY AND ADDRESS THE POINTS
Don't just shut your mind down. Don't make lame excuses. This is the proof
which if you can't find fault with, then know that it is true (4 Step Proof
for God plus the Minimal Facts Approach proving Jesus is God). As Spock on
Star Trek said, if all known possibilities are impossible, then what you
thought was impossible must be the cause. The Bible is the proof of God.
Don't say the Bible is not allowed to prove itself (the existence of God in
Christ), for then no such thing as proof could even exist for anything,
since all proofs are designed to prove themselves. Eckhart Tolle (atheist),
Oprah Winfrey's guru of her cult, wrote, "there is no such thing as cause
and effect", but there are trillions of things with causes in nature and
nothing that exists we know of in nature that is without a cause, so it is
not wise to shut your mind down to the law of cause and effect.
I'll give you guys a heads up, because I am way ahead of you. Since almost
all skeptical scholars (non-Christian) agree in their vast studies that Paul
met with the Apostles a few years after Jesus died on the cross and the
disciples truly believed they saw Jesus resurrected; some touched Him, ate
with Him, walked with Him and talked with Him in His resurrected state, then
the only way to disprove it is to come up with a viable theory, but the
problem is no viable theory is big enough and able to fill its own holes in
its theorizing. Furthermore, there is no evidence for such theories such as
the swoon theory, hallucination theory and other popular theories. The
overwhelming evidence is Jesus died, was resurrected because He is God, and
group hallucinations don't exist in modern day psychology. I love that.
Awesome eh?
THERE CAN'T BE AN ETERNITY OF PAST OF CAUSE AND EFFECTS (1)
If there was this supposed eternity of the past of cause and effects (as
many atheists assume) then you would have been derived from that past
(approximating to it), but the evidence we have for the exponential
progression of conscience tells us you would not still be sinning by now.
Therefore, the only possibility known to man is there must be the uncreated
(uncaused), the Creator who intelligently designed. There are more
democracies today, women can vote just this past century, crime rate per
capita is down and murder rate per capita is down. Child sacrifices that
were once so prevalent among the nations (which God used Israel to stop such
evil nations especially in Canaan) is virtually non-existent today. I have a
list of over 100 items. Feel free contribute more evidences for the
exponential progression of conscience which will help you appreciate this
phenomenon further.
THE UNIVERSE CAN'T CAUSE ITSELF (2)
As well, nothing in nature happens all by itself, for there is always a
cause in nature, so the universe can't cause itself. Again, this shows there
must be the uncreated (uncaused) who is the Creator of the universe.
Radioactive decay, for example, decays because of the influences that cause
the decaying. Scientists universally recognize this, so those less
knowledgeable use this as a coy response, but that's silly as they try to
pick the most complicated of processes to deny the law of cause and effect.
There are trillions of examples of physical causes and effects. Nothing
clearly shown to be without a cause in nature. The cause for the
resurrection of Jesus is Himself, since He is the uncreated Creator, proven
below by the group eyewitness accounts using the Minimal Facts Approach in
which He was seen and touched physically.
DON'T MISREPRESENT GOD (3)
Please pay attention at this point: don't make the unintelligible mistake of
arguing against God of the Bible by misreading Him as is so often resorted
to out of sheer desperation. Take for example Jesus cursing the fig tree and
lessons from the fig tree in the day's of Noah
(Matt. 24.32-42). "Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is
yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh" (Matt.
24.32).
Matt. 24.32 The word “now” marks the beginning of the second part. Since the
Lord gives this part of His prophecy on the Mount of Olives—a place where
there are many fig trees —He quite naturally could use the fig tree as an
illustration. “When her branch is now become tender”—This speaks of the
return of life. “And putteth forth its leaves”—This means the manifestation
of life. The fig tree represents the Jews (Jer. 24.2,5,8). Earlier the Lord
had cursed the fig tree which possessed only leaves but had no fruit. In
reality the curse was upon the Jews who possessed the outward rituals but
had no reality. “Summer” is the season of growth as winter is the season of
withering and death. In the summer, life shows its greatest vigor, the air
is warm, and the days are bright. It is a golden season, and therefore it
stands for the kingdom. The Jews today are in the winter time. Winter points
to tribulation, particularly the Great Tribulation that is near. Spring
speaks of rapture (see S.S. 2.10-14); summer speaks of the kingdom (see Luke
21.30-31). In Luke 21.29-30 we have the words “and all the trees”—which
phrase represents the nations (see Daniel 4.10-17 and Judges 9.8-15). When
“all the trees ... now shoot forth” (Luke 21.29-30), this is a signifying
that nationalism will have been greatly developed among many peoples and
nations.
We thank the Lord that human character may be changed. It is not something
unchangeable. Like Peter, a vacillating person can be transformed into a
stable person. Under the burning light of the Lord, your tongue can be so
purified that though you were by nature talkative you now become a man of
few words. Under the reproach of the Lord, the laziness of the slothful dies
out. When the Lord cursed the fig tree, it withered from the root. For where
the Lord’s reproach and curse is, there is withering and death. If you have
not met the Lord deeply, you may be able to live on in a happy-go-lucky
manner. But once you have truly met Him, your flippant nature is shriveled
up. By the touch of the Lord’s light, whether it comes by listening to the
preaching of God’s word or through the open reproach of a brother, you are
undone. At the reproach of the Lord, you come to your end.
THE SUPERNATURAL HAS AN UNCREATED AND UNCAUSED DESIGNER (4)
Whereas (1) dealt with the natural by the exponential progression of
conscience, likewise, we would not be sinning to the extent mankind
still does if there had been an eternity of the past of cause and
effects in a super-natural realm (say gods creating gods). Therefore,
applying Occam's razor, the simplest interpretation is the One True God
entered into creation in Jesus (2nd Person of the Trinity) to pay the
ransom since all sins have to be paid for, sin leads to death and the
"second death" (Rev. 2.11; 20.6,14; 21.8) which is hell. You can't cease
to exist, because a loving God would not do that after He gave you
God-consciousness (proven awareness of Him). Would it really be that
difficult for God to do considering He created everything in nature? If
man can create computer games with their own player characters in the
game, why can't God? The major difference being, this is no game. This
is real life and spiritual reality! If man can create computers which
produce virtual realities and can shut down with all the essential
information stored and then reboot, why can't God reboot us through
resurrection? The major difference being we are made in God's image with
free-will in our souls (mind,
will and emotion) and have a spirit of God-consciousness (functions
of intuition, communion and conscience). In fact this is not
difficult at all, since God is infinitely greater than us. Wow!
CHRISTIANITY BEST DESCRIBES REALITY
The only view ever presented in human history for the one who meets these
qualities of the uncreated Creator AND who proved Himself by His
resurrection was Jesus Christ. All other religions, including the religion
of self and your own god of your own making (idolatry), have obvious faults
with them. Judaism prophesied it would reject it's own Messiah which is
Jesus who fulfilled all the necessary prophecies for the Messiah, even the "Son
of God": "I will declare the decree: the
LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee" (Ps.
2.7). Islam can't come along six centuries later with one guy in a cave all
by himself, who rejected the perfect sacrifice for our sins, claiming Jesus
didn't die on the cross, without any evidence to support his claim. And
Hinduism/Buddhism are false because their theory is if you sin too much you
could come back as a frog, but then if you are good frog, you can come back
as a human. This cycles theory doesn't effectively deal with sin and it
violates the exponential progression of conscience. Judaism, Islam and
Hinduism/Buddhism all have one thing in common. They are salvation by works
(of self) not by faith. "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that
not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should
boast" (Eph. 2.8-9). A sinner can't save himself, for he is the cause of his
own problem and predicament. Including atheism and agnosticism, we have
covered over 90% of all religious views. Since God would make Himself easily
accessible, there is no need to consider mystery religions, seemingly
endless number of cults and other religions that are unavailable to most of
human society. What is most astounding, is only in Christianity do you see
the death, burial and resurrection of the "Saviour of all men" (1 Tim.
4.10); there were no resurrection accounts prior to Jesus. Just as Adam
brought all men into himself by his first disobedience, Jesus died for the
sins of "the whole world" (1 John 2.2) which brings everyone's death into
Himself. All things are summed up in Christ. He is the first and the last,
the Alpha and the Omega, operating outside of time and space, but He can
enter time and space as well. The Church is the body of Christ, the most
precious thing on earth which the Bible describes as the pearl of great
price. Until Jesus returns, this is His leading conscience in the world.
THE RESURRECTION ACCOUNTS PROVE JESUS IS GOD
Without worrying about the inerrancy of the Bible (called the Minimal Facts
Approach), realize you can't disprove the multiple eyewitness accounts in
various group settings of the resurrected Jesus which almost all skeptical
scholars agree, the eyewitness accounts genuinely believed their claims (as
evident by their martyrdom and the Church was built on the resurrection of
Jesus), then if you can't find an alternative explanation, realize your
testimony is as follows...you are going to Hell for rejecting the perfect
ransom, greatest love, and only solution for your sins by what Jesus did for
you on the cross. C. S. Lewis wrote that there are only 3 possibilities:
Jesus is who He says He is (God), a liar or lunatic. We see Jesus being of
sound mind and body more than anyone, without sin, so he was not a lunatic
and liars don't willingly go to their deaths (that is, at the hands of
another) as all he would have needed to do was recant His claims of being
God. Even Paul said (along with James the brother of Jesus, Peter, John,
Stephen who was martyred, James one of the twelve original disciples who was
martyred, and the others apostles, including women apostles) if he is lying
about seeing Jesus resurrected (1 Cor. 15, Gal. 1 & 2), Christians are the
most despicable people, but if he is telling the truth, then Jesus does
atone for your sins and gives eternal life whosoever is willing to repent to
the cross and believe in Him. Furthermore, he states in 1 Cor. 15 most of
those who said they saw Jesus resurrected are still alive today and can
confirm these eyewitness accounts so you are free to go check with them.
Most critical scholars believes these 12 items:
1. Jesus died by crucifixion.
2. He was buried.
3. His death caused the disciples to despair and lose hope.
4. The tomb was empty (the most contested).
5. The disciples had experiences which they believed were literal
appearances of the risen Jesus (the most important proof).
6. The disciples were transformed from doubters to bold proclaimers.
7. The resurrection was the central message.
8. They preached the message of Jesus’ resurrection in Jerusalem.
9. The Church was born and grew.
10. Orthodox Jews who believed in Christ made Sunday their primary day of
worship.
11. James was converted to the faith when he saw the resurrected Jesus
(James was a family skeptic).
12. Paul was converted to the faith (Paul was an outsider skeptic).
Therefore, if you deny any of these 12 points (without evidence to support
your denial), realize you are just shutting your mind down to the evidence.
Jesus appeared 12 times to different group sizes ranging from just one
person to 500 people:
1) Mary Magdalene (Mark 16.9-11; John 20.11-18)
2) the other women at the tomb (Matthew 28.8-10)
3) Peter in Jerusalem (Luke 24.34; 1 Cor. 15.5)
4) The two travelers on the road (Mark 16.12,13)
5) Ten disciples behind closed doors (Mark 16.14; Luke 24.36-43; John
20.19-25)
6) All the disciples, with Thomas (excluding Judas Iscariot) (John 20.26-31;
1 Cor. 15.5)
7) Seven disciples while fishing (John 21.1-14)
8) Eleven disciples on the mountain (Matthew 28.16-20)
9) A crowd of 500 (1 Cor. 15.6)
10) Jesus' brother James (1 Cor. 15.7)
11) Those who watched Jesus ascend to heaven (Luke 24.44-49; Acts 1.3-8)
12) Least of all Paul as though he was not living in the proper time (1 Cor.
15.8-9; Gal. 1.13-16; Acts 9.1-8, 22.9, read all of chapters 22 and 26;
13.30-37; 1 Cor. 15.10-20; Gal. 2.1-10).
Luke has no problem between Paul's appearance and those made to the
disciples in Luke 24, Acts 1.1-11. Luke records both types of appearances of
Jesus to the disciples and to Paul. "Last of all he was seen of me also" (1
Cor. 15.8). "Have I not seen Jesus Christ our Lord?" (1 Cor. 9.1). Others
saw the light and heard the voice during Paul seeing Jesus bodily, however
because Paul's experience was post-ascension, it may be slightly different.
Evolution of a resurrection theory actually devolved from the accounts of
the 40 days with the disciples to when Paul saw Jesus (Gal. 1.15-16). "To
reveal His Son in me" (Gal. 1.16,18) took three years following the Damascus
road experience. Don't mistake this portion as being the bodily appearance.
"And the men which journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice, but
seeing no man" (Acts 9.7). This presumes that Paul saw the man. Now if so
many people saw Jesus resurrected, is it really so hard to believe the saved
will be resurrected at the consummation of the age of the dispensation of
grace-the end of the mystery age of the church? And the unsaved will be
resurrected for perdition.
FREE-WILL
The only possible conclusion: you were created by the Trinity of God the
Father, God the Son and God the Spirit; and the only way to the Father is
through the Son. If salvation by your Creator is not something you want,
then you are going to Hell, because you can't cease to exist, nor would a
loving God allow you to be with His own. God created Hell for you, because
He foresees you would always reject Him by your own free-will (assuming you
never come to the cross as a helpless sinner to receive the Lord Jesus as
your Savior). How you respond to Christ and Christians in this life will
determine how and where you live your life in the next. For Jesus said how
you treat one these, you are treating Him also. Those who are saved were
chosen by God before the foundations of the world. God foreknew our
free-choice to love Him. And He could foresee your choice to despise Him.
Faith is a gift from God has a cause and that cause is you to be able to
obtain it. Whatever you place most importance in that is what you worship
most by faith. You are caused by God to have the choice by your own
free-will, so you have nobody to blame but yourself.
"We have also obtained access
by faith into this grace" (Rom. 5.2), "for by grace are ye saved through
faith" (Eph. 2.8). Anyone can access or activate this gift of faith because
it is freely given by grace whosoever is willing to receive it: "whosoever
will, let him take the water of life freely" (Rev. 22.17). Jesus is
represented by the water here. Some people have faith (such as atheists) in
things they can't prove, and the proof is against them like the 4 Step Proof
for God well testifies. But Christians have faith in that which is proven,
so we go with the evidence and don't fight it, but give into the truth.
Praise the Lord! Jesus delays His return so the fullness of the gentiles can
come. God is a realistic God, not a God of parlor tricks, so if you want to
remain belligerent, God gives you the free-choice to reject the best
historians have to offer objectively for historical proof. The lawyer who
has won the most court cases in a row in the Guinness Book of Records says
the case for the death, burial, resurrection and deity of Jesus is the best
case he has ever seen and meets all the stringent requirements to build a
case on. Ask yourself, in a murder trial, does the person have to come back
to life to prove they are dead? If the evidence is there to prove it, of
course not. The same is true of His resurrection, because of the multiple
attestation in various group settings which modern day psychology says group
hallucinations are impossible. Therefore, the only viable possible
explanation is Jesus was raised from the dead, because He is God. Praise the
Lord!
IT'S NOT TOO LATE TO GIVE YOUR LIFE TO CHRIST
It's too late after you leave your body of flesh and blood. You get this one
life to decide. Don't think you will have a change of mind later. Trust me,
you won't. The reason you are here is because you are drawn by your
intuitive conscience deep down inside for it knows what is at stake. Heed
that inner voice of reason in your conscience and stop fighting it, because
ultimately it comes down to your decision what you want, and your conscience
is God's lowest standard for you today to know He exists. If you can't even
meet that, then you know you deserve Hell. You have a spirit of
God-consciousness, so you are without excuse. Satan is too self-centered,
self-righteous and he is a compulsive liar even though he knows God created.
Remind you of anyone? Jesus said He makes a liar out of you if you still
insist in not accepting Him as the 2nd Person of the Trinity. When you come
before God at Great White Throne to be judged after you are resurrected at
the end of the millennial kingdom (Rev. 20.2-7), of course, He will judge
you, you will listen and succumb to His decision and verdict, just like we
have to lock up prisoners in jail for life. "Thy will be done on earth, as
it is in heaven" (Matt. 6.10). You may not like the verdict, but you will
know it is the right thing for God to do. Though you can sense God's
righteousness, holiness and sense of justice, you want no part in His
uncreated life. You belong in Hell and in Hell is where you shall stay for
all eternity, eternally separated from the love of God and God Himself. Your
choice was a choice in this life for eternity whether you want to be
born-again a new creation of God, to have a new life (eternal life)-the
ability to know God and promise of eternal blessings.
THE LAST WARNING
This is a warning to anyone who is not yet saved: everyone living in their
old man, their old nature, the old creation, the selfish sin nature and
animal life! "For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost" (Matt.
18.11). That includes everyone, though not all receive Him. "What must I do
to be saved? And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you shall
be saved" (Acts 16.30-31). "He that believeth on him is not condemned: but
he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in
the name of the only begotten Son of God" (John 3.18). God lets you choose,
so if all else being equal you remain as you are, then you are condemned
already. If all God needed to do was give you one more piece of proof of
Himself and Jesus being God, He would have done it. This shows if you don't
accept the already well documented evidence of the historical and
resurrected Jesus who is recorded better than anyone in antiquity, and you
still can't disprove God's claims, what else do you have except to wait for
Hell? If you can't disprove these findings by this evidence, then why shut
your down to the decision you know you ought to make to receive Christ into
your life? Delusion is believing something contrary to the evidence. Is the
reason you have not believed in Him yet because you are too selfish,
self-centered, self-exalted, self-righteous and prefer to remain that way
against God's will? What love is this?
THE WORLD MARTYRS CHRISTIANS AND IS HOSTILE TO THE JEWS (OUR LITTLE BROTHER)
Realize
the Roman Church and Calvin
killed many Christians. The martyrdom of the Biblical Church has been
ongoing throughout the centuries, particularly intense during the
2nd century Smyrna church period
and by the Roman Church. Atheists such as Hitler, Stalin and Pol Pot killed
not just Christians, but many people who did not believe in what they
believed in. Atheists and non-Christians killed over 200 million people in
the 20th century alone having nothing to do with religion, but to gain
territorial power and resources. And they almost annihilated the nation of
Israel, the first nation God revealed Himself to, but the
prophecy is fulfilled.
Israel has returned, even though it took 2500 years. Now that is a miracle!
Where has that happened before for a people who were dispersed for over two
millennia without a nation? And there are more prophecies yet to be
fulfilled before the Son of Man returns to reign in Person on earth for a
very long time. This reigning with an "iron rod" (mentioned 3 times in
Revelation) by the Son of Man on earth from the Temple in Jerusalem could be
millions if not billions of years. Or, it could be exactly 1000 literal
years (Rev. 20.2-7). My view is it will be billions of years because the
Bible says the earth will at the end of that time be without the sea (21.1).
Afterwards, the new city and new earth commence where there is no more need
of the Temple, because God and the Lamb will replace the temple at the
center of the New City, but the unsaved have no part in this (Rev. 21.1-8).
Jesus did not kill anyone. All He did was turn over the tables of the money
changers in the Temple with His holy and righteous rebuke. Hitler tried to
disprove God because if he could annihilate Israel, he would show the
promise the Bible has for Israel to be the center of all nations as false,
but he failed. Islam today seeks the same mission wanting to wipe her off
the face of the earth, but God doesn't allow it. Isn't it amazing, Islam
tries to wipe Israel out every 10 years or so in a major offensive, but they
fail even though Israel's land and people are just a tiny fraction of Islam.
The main prophecy is God is going to have
Israel build His temple in Jerusalem on the Temple
Mount and tear down the Dome on the Rock.
Nothing can stop this from happening. It is from the Temple that Jesus will
reign and ends the Great Tribulation at the end of this age.
How true the prophecy is that Israel will be the test
of the nations. During the Great Tribulation the nations of the earth
will come against Israel and overrun her, but for only 42 months, after
which time Jesus resets their right to the land of Israel permanently.
Troy Brooks