The scientific method of proof requires phenomena that are testable by being reproducible in a controlled environment. That is, they are repeatable. Historical events, since they occur only once, do not lend themselves to the scientific method of proof. Neither do definitions of beauty, aesthetic values, etc.

In other words, the scientific method is limited and doesn’t apply to all of reality. Therefore, we cannot use the scientific method to test the claim that God came into history—that is, whether the historical Jesus was the incarnation of God. But, then, neither can we use the scientific method to prove that we went shopping yesterday or to determine who is guilty of crimes. [Read more…]

Eastern religions like Hinduism and Buddhism do not put the same emphasis on textual studies that we do in the West. Truth, for them, is not measured so much by a historically reliable record (or person) as it is in religious authority or experience. They feel that if it “works” to create a spiritual experience or if it has a long-standing tradition, then it is valid. The history of their sacred books as measured by early, numerous and accurate texts is not important to them. As a result, they are not concerned by having very few texts to work with if asked to document authorship, integrity or historical reliability.

On the other hand, Muslims claim that their Qur’an has more integrity and is more reliable than the New Testament. They point out that they have only one version of their holy book and everyone’s copy is identical to what God dictated to Muhammad in the seventh century A.D. [Read more…]

The New Testament, including Jesus Himself, clearly teaches the existence of a spiritual realm of demonic and angelic personal beings. The former are evil (sinning and rebelling from their created state as angels) and the latter are obedient servants of God.

Some people today dismiss such beings as a pre-scientific way of describing psychological dysfunctions such as hysteria or epilepsy. While it is true that at certain times in history some sects of Christianity have abused people with this doctrine of demons, it is primarily because of the actions and teachings of Jesus about nonphysical beings that we are capable of avoiding such abuse and having a more complete understanding of the universe. [Read more…]

Some people wonder, “If miracles are real, why don’t we see them today?” To many people, the world they live in seems to have no divine intervention, no interruptions to the natural order, and the dead stay dead. As far as they are concerned the many miracles of the Bible seem more like fairy tales than truth.

What is a miracle? One source defines a miracle as a “divine intervention into, or interruption of, the regular course of the world that produces a purposeful but unusual event that would not have occurred otherwise” (Norman Geisler and Ron Brooks, When Skeptics Ask, [Wheaton: Victor Books, 1990], p. 76). This does not mean that miracles are a violation of natural law. Rather, they have a cause which transcends nature. [Read more…]

There is a sense in which the question ought to be, “Why are there only four Gospels?” The life, ministry, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ have had the greatest impact on humanity of any event in history! How can these short accounts do justice to something so important? As John the apostle said at the close of his Gospel, “And there are also many other things which Jesus did, which if they were written in detail, I suppose that even the world itself would not contain the books that would be written” (John 21:25).

Therefore, even four accounts are not enough, but these do give us a four-dimensional portrait of Jesus. The Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John were written by eyewitness apostles or their associates. They were evangelists and desired to present whatever part of Jesus’ ministry and teaching which would appeal to the particular audience they were trying to reach. They are not repetitious chronological biographies of Jesus’ life. Each Gospel has a distinct purpose, an identifiable audience, and individual characteristics which are evident in their contents. Each contributes a significant, supplemental, true dimension to our understanding of Jesus. [Read more…]