50 Simple Questions for Every Christian

 

The book, 50 Simple Questions for Every Christian, was written by Guy P Harrison.¹ It is directed at Christians. He is a skeptic who wrote this specific book asking Christians questions about what they believe. His main idea is to sow doubt, so that they will reject the Bible as truth.

 

He is doing us a favour, because his questions force us to formulate clearly what we believe, especially in the light of the advances of science. We need to carefully consider his questions and, with the help of the Holy Spirit, answer them. Eventually, we can benefit from a book like his.

 

People who rant, rave and curse God is no longer strange (it is very noticeable on YouTube). One wonders if they expend that much energy to curse and rail against Zeus, Horus, Dionysius and other mythological gods? It says in Psalm 2:4, ‘The one enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them….’  God is not in the least intimidated if people throw Bibles over their shoulders in derision. All He does is to take note of it.

 

Guy Harrison is different from those atheists. He must be congratulated on his civil tone. Yet despite that, his questions are incisive. It is sad that many Christians have not been adequately prepared to answer the questions. One reason is that the internet has suddenly ‘shrunk’ the world and information moves around at lightning speeds. Skeptics and atheists team together and get their ammunition fine tuned. They try to make Bible believers doubt and then hopefully tumble hard and fast, rejecting their faith. That it is a successful strategy is evident from the many reports that especially young people are leaving the church.

 

The assault on Christians is interesting and significant. As a group of people, scattered over the world, Christians have never been a threat to world peace. Despite that, tremendous amounts of energy and money is invested to get them to renounce their faith. Why the eagerness to ‘convert’ Christians to become atheists or skeptics? One reason is that it was predicted in the Bible by Jesus. When He told the parable of the persistent widow and the value of persistent prayer, Jesus asked, ‘…when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?’ ²  Faith in the God of the Bible is disappearing at an alarming rate (to the great delight of people like Richard Dawkins and others).

 

It is as if Christians have been declared vermin, detrimental to society, and they must be eradicated. Nevertheless, God wants His followers to be able to answer the atheists in a civil manner.  So we  will discuss Guy’s questions, with Scripture as our Guide. Scripture is known as the Book of Truth.³

 

To question the Bible, Guy will either have to lie about it (which we don’t think he will do), or he will have to distort some doctrines. We will investigate it thoroughly, and we trust you will benefit from a discussion of his questions.

 

References

1. Prometheus Books, 2013
2. Luke 18:8b
3. Daniel 10:21

 

Has the resurrection hoax finally been exposed?

If there is one thing that the enemies of the Bible agree on, it is that the resurrection of Jesus is a hoax  (compare Shermer, Harrison, Dawkins, et cetera). According to them, there is no evidence that the crucified Jesus ever rose from the dead.

 

However, this dismissal does what atheists do not intend it to do. It provides strong evidence that the resurrection is true. According to them, Jesus doesn’t exist, because He is a myth like Zeus, Horus and all the other mythical gods. Yet they make no effort to prove that Zeus or Dionysius are myths. If Jesus is a myth like them, why is He treated differently? Why are reams of books, pamphlets, documentaries and other mediums produced everyday to prove that Jesus doesn’t exist?

 

Let us assume that Jesus was crucified, but not resurrected. What would have happened?  Would His disciples have gone around telling the world that Jesus was crucified and he is dead, but people must believe that He died in their place to forgive their sins? Not at all. The Gospel of good news is that Jesus was resurrected and He ascended to go and prepare a place for us in God’s Kingdom. If Jesus died and remained dead like any other person, then the hope He gave people died with Him. The disciples would have declared that Jesus was a hoax, who did not accomplish what God promised.

 

If Jesus was just a hoax, nobody would have spread the message. What message would there have been to spread? The Gospel hinges on the resurrection.¹ That is why the Gospel spread over all continents and why the Church came into existence. The Church of Jesus is evidence that the resurrection is true.

 

Conclusion: The battle to prove that the Bible is a myth, is to prove that the resurrection of Jesus never happened. If Jesus did not rise from the dead, His followers have no hope that they will live with Him eternally. Without the hope of eternal life, the Gospel has no good message to spread. Atheists do us a favour with their war against the Word. They prove they fight against a real, resurrected Jesus. So we can safely accept that the Bible and the resurrection of Jesus is true.

 

References

1. Acts 17:30-31, ’God… commands all people everywhere to repent. For He has set a day when He will judge the world with justice by the man He has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising Him from the dead.’