WHERE DID EVIL COME FROM?

Evil had to come from somewhere, right? But from where? Scripture states that God “is a faithful God who does no wrong; how just and upright he is!” (Deuteronomy 32:4). And yet it states that God “created everything there is. Nothing exists that he didn’t make” (John 1:3 NLT). So if the Creator of all things is good with no evil, how is it that evil is in the world? We know that evil exists and that God made everything, so how can we say that God didn’t create evil? And if he didn’t create it, where did it come from?

God is perfectly good and holy and created only perfect creatures. Yet he gave his human creation the power of free choice or free will. The first humans had a choice to trust in him, to believe that he was good and that he had their best interest at heart when he gave them a command to obey.

Unfortunately they used this good power to choose against him, and that brought evil into this world.

EVIL’S POSSIBILITY

So the possibility of evil did arise from God, but not directly. Evil came from an abuse of a good power called free will. God may be responsible for the possibility of evil existing in the world, yet it was the choice of humans that made evil a reality in the world. We can say that God produces the fact of free choice, but it is the individual man or woman who performs the act of free choice.

Of course God could have created a world without free will. Humans could have been “programmed” to do good and worship him perfectly. Yet in a world without choices the true meaning of “I love you” would be lost.

The fulfilling purpose and reality of loving another is void and meaningless without the power to freely choose. God wanted us to experience the reality of a love relationship together with him. The great risk was the possibility of evil. And the great responsibility to act on that possibility rested with humans, not God.

EVIL’S ACTUALITY

So God made evil possible, yet humans made it actual. But what was it that caused the first humans to choose evil?* In the case of Eve, the first woman, she made a choice to eat a fruit that God had commanded her and her husband, Adam, not to eat. The first couple had the power of free will.

They could have chosen to obey God and not eat of the forbidden fruit. But when the serpent—the tempter—told Eve, in effect, that God didn’t know what he was talking about, she listened. The serpent said she would become like God, knowing everything, both good and evil. The Scripture says, “The woman was convinced. She saw that the tree was beautiful and its fruit looked delicious, and she wanted the wisdom it would give her. So [by the act of her free will] she took some of the fruit and ate it” (Genesis 3:6).

Eve had been given a good thing by God. She was given the power to choose between her determining what she considered right and wrong versus allowing him to be the sole arbiter of what was right and wrong. God was, and is, the Sovereign who decides right from wrong. Yet Eve wanted that prerogative—she wanted to be self-sovereign, with the ability to choose for herself what she thought was in her best interest.

So to summarize: Where did evil come from, and what caused the first human to choose it? Eve coveted God’s wisdom—his sovereign determination of what was in the best interest of humans. He gave the first couple the power of free will, and they chose to follow their own desires rather than his. Evil was born out of a choice to believe that God was denying his human creation what was good. As a result, the first humans committed an evil act of self-sovereignty in disobedience to their Creator’s command.

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CAN GOD DO WRONG, SUCH AS GET JEALOUS?

The Bible says God is a jealous God. But getting jealous is wrong.

So how can that be if God doesn’t do anything wrong? If God is anything, he is perfectly good. “He is the Rock; his deeds are perfect,” the Scripture states. “Everything he does is just and fair. He is a faithful God who does no wrong; how just and upright he is!” (Deuteronomy 32:4). Additionally, the writer of the book of Hebrews tells us God bound himself with an oath when he made a promise to Abraham, and these two things are based on his sinless character that is unchanging. “God has given both his promise and his oath. These two things are unchangeable because it is impossible for God to lie” (Hebrews 6:18). For God to do wrong would go against his very nature and character, which he cannot do.

HOW CAN GOD’S JEALOUSY BE OKAY?

But if God can do no wrong, then why does the Bible say he gets jealous? Certainly being jealous is wrong—at least we as humans are not to get jealous. Right?

In 1 Corinthians Paul says, “You are still controlled by your sinful nature.

You are jealous of one another and quarrel with each other” (1 Corinthians 3:3). It is clearly wrong to be selfishly possessive and contentious toward those who have something you want, and the apostle was pointing this out.

Yet in the very next letter he wrote to the Corinthians he said, “I am jealous for you with the jealousy of God himself” (2 Corinthians 11:2). Here Paul is concerned that their “pure and undivided devotion to Christ will be corrupted” (verse 2) and so he was jealous like God is jealous. Obviously, Paul isn’t condemning the jealousy of God. So what kind of jealousy does God display?

In Exodus it says, “You must worship no other gods, for the LORD, whose very name is Jealous, is a God who is jealous about his relationship with you” (Exodus 34:14). Joshua also told the children of Israel that their God was “a holy and jealous God” (Joshua 24:19). These two words “jealous God” in the Hebrew are el qana, which denotes passion and zeal. Although the word jealous in English is mostly used in an evil sense, in the Hebrew it expresses passion and caring, most often in connection with the marriage relationship. God considered the children of Israel as his marriage partner, and he wanted them to love him as a wife would devote herself exclusively to her husband. That is why he said they were to worship no other but him.

He wants to be loved with a pure and passionate love reserved only for him.

A HUMAN EXAMPLE

As relational beings we can relate to wanting to be loved exclusively.

How would you feel if someone said that he or she truly loves you and then cheated on you? It’s not wrong to feel bad about someone cheating on you, is it? Isn’t it natural to want to be number one in someone’s life?

Because God is perfectly good and holy, his jealousy is not in any way selfish. He knows that when we love him exclusively—with all our heart, soul, and strength—it allows us to experience the joy and meaning we are looking for in life. That is the reason he calls us to worship him and him only. It is by no means wrong for God to jealously want our exclusive love and devotion. In fact, his jealous love is a model for us to follow.

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IS GOD MALE OR FEMALE?

To ask the question, “Is God male or female?” is somewhat like asking if God is right- or left-handed. Or is his first language English or Spanish? Truth is, he is not confined by our human or material world. He created us in his image, but he is unlike us in many, many ways.

Jesus said, “God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth” (John 4:24). It is true that God took on human form in the person of Jesus, who of course was male, yet God does not exist as a material or physical being. So in that sense he is neither male nor female as we know the human sexes.

At the same time, God has chosen to create and use imagery of himself that is both masculine and feminine. Of course he refers to himself as Father and Jesus as the Son of God, which are both masculine imagery. Yet Jesus spoke of himself in feminine imagery when he said, “How often I have wanted to gather your children together as a hen protects her chicks beneath her wings, but you wouldn’t let me” (Matthew 23:37).

Some people have suggested that the natural male to female attraction is rooted in the nature of God. The magnetism of man toward woman and woman toward man originates in the unity and completeness of a God who bears the characteristics of both male and female. This idea suggests that God inherently has the “plus and minus” characteristics of male and female, and when these characteristics are placed separately in each sex, they attract like opposite magnetic poles. That at least is one theory of why males and females are attracted to one another.

However, throughout Scripture God has chosen to primarily characterize himself in masculine terms even though he is neither wholly male nor wholly female. And whether we are born male or female, he refers to those he redeems as his children (Romans 8:14), his bride (Ephesians 5:25-27), his holy temple (Ephesians 2:21-22), joint heirs (Romans 8:17), and a royal priesthood, a holy nation, and his very own possession (1 Peter 2:9).

So while God is neither male nor female, he can relate to us as men and women equally, for he loves us equally and has made provision for all of us to be in relationship with him.

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WHAT DOES IT MEAN THAT GOD IS A TRINITY?

The idea that God is three in one has confused many people. Just what does it mean that God is a Trinity?

The Bible teaches there is but one God. This is called monotheism. “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one” (Deuteronomy 6:4 NIV). Jesus quoted this scripture in Mark 12:29, confirming that there is just one God. So how is it that people call God a Trinity—how, some people ask, can there be three Gods, yet one?

God being a Trinity does not mean there are three Gods. God exists as three persons, yet he is one being. Each person of the Trinity—the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit—has a separate identity while yet possessing the full nature of God.

Jesus is the divine Son of God. This does not mean that Jesus was created by God. In fact, Scripture tells us plainly that he has always co-existed with God (see John 1:1-3). Jesus himself declared he had eternally co-existed with his Father. And on the basis of that declaration the Jewish leaders plotted to kill him, saying, “He called God his Father, thereby making himself equal with God” (John 5:18). Paul the apostle declared Jesus to be deity. “Christ himself was an Israelite as far as his human nature is concerned. And he is God, the one who rules over everything and is worthy of eternal praise!” (Romans 9:5). The writer of Hebrews says, “The Son radiates God’s own glory and expresses the very character of God” (Hebrews 1:3).

Therefore, God the Father co-exists with God the Son:

Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before God made anything at all and is supreme over all creation. Christ is the one through whom God created everything in heaven and earth…He existed before everything else began, and he holds all creation together (Colossians 1:15-17 NLT).

Paul refers to both the Father and Jesus as God. “It is by the command of God our Savior that I have been entrusted with this work for him… May God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior give you grace and peace” (Titus 1:3-4). God the Father is deity. God the Son is deity.

God the Holy Spirit is also deity. The apostle Peter recognized this when he pointed out the wrongdoing of a man in the Jerusalem church (Acts 5:3- 4). The Spirit has eternally co-existed with the Father and the Son and was present at creation (see Genesis 1:2). Jesus said of him, “I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate…He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth…When the Father sends the Advocate as my representative—that is, the Holy Spirit—he will teach you everything I have told you” (John 14:16,26). Paul said, “When you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago” (Ephesians 1:13). Jesus called the co-existing Spirit holy because he is the Spirit of the Holy God. He is the third person of the triune Godhead.

In conclusion, the doctrine of the Trinity was formulated in faithfulness to the teachings of the Bible about the nature of God, in an effort to express his truth.

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WHO IS THE HOLY SPIRIT?

When we think of God, we may imagine the powerful Creator sitting on his throne in heaven. We may think of him in human form as Jesus, the Savior of the World. But do we view him as the Holy Spirit? Just who is God in the person of the Holy Spirit?

Some people believe the Holy Spirit is simply the influence of good— like the “good force” of the universe. But the Holy Spirit is actually a person—the third person of the Trinity (God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit). Jesus referred to the Spirit as a person when he said, “I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth” (John 14:16-17).

The Holy Spirit is one of the three persons of God. He has a mind and feelings. He makes choices. Scripture says, “He who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit” (Romans 8:27 NIV). Scripture also tells us that the Spirit can feel. We are not to “bring sorrow to God’s Holy Spirit by the way you live” (Ephesians 4:30). He makes choices as to who will receive what spiritual gifts. “It is the one and only Spirit who distributes these gifts” (1 Corinthians 12:11). Also, the apostle Peter told a man named Ananias, “You lied to the Holy Spirit” (Acts 5:3). Ananias wasn’t lying to an influence; he was lying to a person. Peter added, “You weren’t lying to us but to God” (Acts 5:4).

When God sent the Holy Spirit, he became the interactive agent of God to us. When he was “poured out” on God’s people on the Day of Pentecost (see Acts 2) we might say the word “God” was not only a noun—it also became a verb. Rather than just learning who God is or following the teaching of Jesus impersonally, we experience God actually brought into our lives by the Spirit. He is the active, moving God who impels us to action. God the Holy Spirit is about living, loving, responding, enjoying, embracing, comforting, supporting, accepting, encouraging, respecting, disciplining, growing, empowering, and a myriad of other such verbs.

The Holy Spirit is the dynamic, active, and ever-present person of God.

We experience him in our everyday living. Further, he demonstrates himself in our capacity to love as God loves. “If we love each other,” John said, “God lives in us, and his love has been brought to full expression in us. And God has given us his Spirit as proof that we live in him and he in us” (1 John 4:12-13). The Holy Spirit is real. He evidenced himself powerfully on the Day of Pentecost two millennia ago. And his presence is additional proof that we belong to God, for the “Holy Spirit speaks to us deep in our hearts and tells us that we are God’s children” (Romans 8:16 NLT).

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WHAT IS GOD REALLY LIKE?

The Bible says that God is Spirit (John 4:24) and that no one has ever seen him and lived (Exodus 33:20). So then how can we, being human and not spirit, ever know what he is like?

While it is true that God is hidden from us in many ways, he has still to a great extent revealed himself to us. He has revealed himself in all of creation. When we see the world around us we get a glimpse of God’s creative nature, his infinity of tastes, and his incomprehensible immenseness.

God has also revealed himself to us in Scripture. Through the reliable written Word of God we get deep insights into

1. his infinite characteristics

2. his relational heart

3. his holy nature

And because he has revealed himself to us in the person of Jesus Christ we see God with skin on. We are able to see in a very powerful way just how he wants to relate to us and what he is like relationally. Each of these dimensions of God gives us a greater understanding of what he is really like.

GOD’S INFINITE CHARACTERISTICS

One of the first things we know of God is that he is infinite, which is far beyond our comprehension as finite humans. What does the Scripture tell us?

God is eternal, meaning he possesses an infinite life that is without beginning or end (see Isaiah 40:28). God created time and he involves himself within time, but he exists eternally, outside of time. There was never a moment when he didn’t exist, nor will he ever end. We really can’t grasp the concept of an eternal, self-existing being, but that is part of what God is like.

God is all-powerful. The Bible reveals a God who is almighty—what is called omnipotent. If he wants to do something—anything—he can do it.

King David said, “How great is our LORD! His power is absolute” (Psalm 147:5). The Almighty God as Sovereign of the universe has the power to know the future and cause it to happen:

I am God, and there is none like me. Only I can tell you the future before it even happens. Everything I plan will come to pass, for I do whatever I wish (Isaiah 46:9-10).

God is ever-present. His knowledge and power have no limits—which is why we say God is omnipresent. Again, as finite beings we cannot imagine a being that can be ever-present both within and beyond our universe of time and space (see Jeremiah 23:23-24). Yet that is part of what God is like.

God does not change. By his very nature he can be counted on—what is called immutable. This means he will not waver or lie. He will always do what he says he will do (see Psalm 102:26-27 and Numbers 23:19). That he is unchanging means he infinitely remains constant, firm, and secure—you can trust whatever he is because he will always be that.

God knows all. He has infinite knowledge. He knows everything past, present, and future—what is called omniscient (see Isaiah 46:9-10 and Psalm 139:1). Take everything there is to know within the known universe, for however long it has existed, and that wouldn’t even scratch the surface of God’s knowledge.

So far we have described God as an eternal, almighty being who is everywhere, knows all, and never changes. This gives us a sense of some of this awesome God’s infinite characteristics, but it doesn’t get at his personal side or the core of who he is. It is on this personal level that we can relate more to him.

GOD’S RELATIONAL HEART

This infinite God spoke the words, “Let there be…” and the world was created (Genesis 1:3). And he saw that it was good. But when he created, he didn’t do it alone, because all three persons of the Godhead were there.

“The Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the water” (Genesis 1:2). The Son, Jesus, was there too. “Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation, for through him God created everything” (Colossians 1:15-16).

This triune aspect of God demonstrates that he is relational. So before there were humans, before Planet Earth or the universe or time as we know it, he existed eternally as a relational being.

Moses recorded in Scripture that this eternal Creator is the “God who is passionate about his relationship with you” (Exodus 34:14 NLT). And to further define the nature of this relationship the Scripture says that “love comes from God…for God is love” (1 John 4:7-8). We then can say that God exists as a loving relational being.

Part of the very reason God created humans was to have a relationship with them. He didn’t do this because he needed a relationship; he already existed as relationship. He created us as relational beings because at his very heart he is a loving relational being who wants to relate to us. Creation was entirely because of his relational goodness and grace.

King David describes the loving heart of God:

The LORD is compassionate and merciful, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love (Psalm 103:8).

Your faithfulness extends to every generation…LORD, how great is your mercy (Psalm 119:90,156).

He gives justice to the oppressed and food to the hungry. The LORD frees the prisoners. The LORD opens the eyes of the blind.

The LORD lifts up those who are weighed down. The LORD loves the godly. The LORD protects the foreigners among us. He cares for the orphans and widows, but he frustrates the plans of the wicked (Psalm 146:7-9).

He heals the brokenhearted and bandages their wounds (Psalm 147:3).

Do you get the picture? God’s relational heart is other-focused. It is compassionate, merciful, unfailing, faithful, just, and caring. His pure heart protects the ones he loves and provides for their good. He makes the security, happiness, and welfare of another as important as his own. His love is giving and trusting, unselfish and sacrificial, secure and safe, loyal and forever.

And when humans didn’t believe their loving God had their best interest at heart and rebelled against him, what did he do? Instead of leaving them alone, separated from him in their sin, he reached out in love to draw them back to him.

God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead (Ephesians 2:4-5).

The cost, of course, was the torturous death of His Son on a cruel cross. The innocent and holy Son was willing to suffer and die so that he could restore a relationship with you and me. That is the relational heart of God.

GOD’S HOLY NATURE

It is impossible to grasp or express God’s infinite characteristics. We cannot fathom his relational heart of love. Yet he has created us as relational beings, and while we by no means comprehend him exhaustively, we are powerfully drawn to him and can relate to him truly. We were created to love him back and love others as we love ourselves. But where we as humans fail to love perfectly, God does not. For the infinite God of relationship is holy, perfect, and righteous. Scripture says, “He is the Rock; his deeds are perfect. Everything he does is just and fair. He is a faithful God who does no wrong; how just and upright he is!” (Deuteronomy 32:4).

Scripture reveals a God who is perfectly holy (Isaiah 54:5 and Revelation 4:8), just (Revelation 16:5), and right (Psalm 119:137). This isn’t something he decides to do. In other words, he doesn’t simply decide to do holy, just, and right things; this is something he is. All that is right and holy, just and good is derived from his core nature. The Scripture says, “Whatever is good and perfect comes down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens” (James 1:17).

This is incredibly important! What people miss and fail to understand about God is that he is pure goodness. All that is perfect and right and beautiful and complete and meaningful and eternally full of contentment, joy, and happiness is because of him and comes from him. His very nature and essence are good. “The LORD is good and does what is right” (Psalm 25:8). He is “the one who is holy and true” (Revelation 3:7). “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty” (Isaiah 6:3 NIV). “The LORD is righteous in everything he does; he is filled with kindness” (Psalm 145:17). “The LORD is just! He is my rock! There is no evil in him” (Psalm 92:15).

The unchanging nature of a holy God (his immutability) makes it impossible for him to lie or go against his perfect goodness (Romans 3:3-4 and Hebrews 6:16-18). He then is our absolute standard for defining what is right and wrong, what is good and evil, and what is pure joy and happiness.

To live and be godlike is to ultimately experience the rightness, goodness, and joy that he has to offer. To live and be anything else is to ultimately experience evil, suffering, and the absence of all that is good.

If we are to begin to understand who God really is, we must acknowledge that he is the infinite one and be in awe of him, acknowledge his relational nature and embrace him, and acknowledge his pure goodness and worship him. King Solomon said in his wisdom, “The fear of the LORD is the foundation of wisdom. Knowledge of the Holy One results in good judgment” (Proverbs 9:10).

Possessing wisdom and understanding about God, the Bible, and life itself is wrapped up in a knowledge of his infinite characteristics, his relational heart of love, and his nature of pure goodness. With this as our center of moral gravity, we can begin to see life clearly and have a reference point for making right moral choices.

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IS IT WRONG TO HAVE DOUBTS ABOUT GOD?

God wants us to believe in him. He wants us to place our faith in him and believe he has our best interest at heart. So is it wrong to have some doubts creep in—doubts over what God has to say about what he has commanded in the Bible or how we are to live out the Christian life?

The faith of the great John the Baptist seemed to waver when he was imprisoned and things were looking grim. He sent his followers to ask Jesus, “Are you the Messiah we’ve been expecting, or should we keep looking for someone else?” (Matthew 11:3).

Remember this is the man who had said, “I testify that he [Jesus] is the Chosen One of God” (John 1:34). But after John was thrown into prison he must have wondered why Jesus wasn’t coming to rescue him. Like many of us do when faced with difficulties, John the Baptist experienced doubts.

When other disciples of Jesus were questioning who he actually was, he told them to “believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me. Or at least believe because of the work you have seen me do” (John 14:11). Jesus wasn’t put off because his followers had some doubts or wanted some proof. He appealed to evidence to establish that he was who he claimed to be. God wants our faith in him to be assured and become deepened by our convictions. And having some uncertainties at times isn’t necessarily wrong. Like John the Baptist, we sometimes lack sufficient evidence to support our faith. And so, seeking to know why we believe what we believe can strengthen our faith and is by no means wrong.

Many of our doubts can be put aside as our faith becomes more intelligent about the evidences—knowing why we believe. But the evidences are not limited to things like Christ’s resurrection, his deity, the reliability of Scripture, and so on. There are also evidences about God’s character and nature that will support our faith and remove our doubts.

A man came to Jesus hoping Jesus could heal his son. The man said, “Have mercy on us and help us, if you can.” “What do you mean, ‘If I can’?” Jesus asked. “Anything is possible if a person believes.” The father instantly cried out, “I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief!” (Mark 9:22-24).

This man had faith, but he wanted help from Jesus not to doubt that the Master would heal his son. This father had probably heard stories of the miracle-working teacher. He may have personally known the blind man who got his sight back because of Jesus. He may have had a neighbor who was among the thousands who were fed by the five loaves of bread and two fish that Jesus blessed. So the man no doubt believed Jesus had the power to heal his son, but the big question for him was, Will Jesus care enough to heal my son?

Sometimes our doubts revolve around our faith in God’s nature and compassion. Does he care enough about me to heal my child? Does he want to meet my material needs? Will he keep me safe? It is important to know the evidences of his caring heart to help remove our doubts.

Jesus was once taking a nap on a boat while crossing the Sea of Galilee with his disciples. A fierce storm came through and the disciples thought they were going to drown, so they woke Jesus up. He rebuked the foul weather and stopped the storm. “Then he asked them, ‘Where is your faith?’” (Luke 8:25). It appears the storm is what occupied his disciples’ minds and emotions. And that kept them from trusting their situation to Jesus. Of course he wanted them to believe he was the One who had the power to calm the storm and who cared enough to keep them safe. He wanted them to have faith in him.

Jesus also told his disciples not to worry about their need for food and clothing. He said God took care of the birds and the flowers and “he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith?” (Luke 12:28).

Again, Jesus wanted his followers to focus on the caring and providing nature of his heart. Yet the worries of life and all its insecurities could easily cause them to doubt. They can cause us to doubt too.

Placing our focus on the providing and protecting nature of God’s heart allows us to follow Peter’s admonition to “give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you” (1 Peter 5:7). The future is unknown and our lives are full of uncertainty and insecurity. And while it is in our nature to question how things are going to turn out, when we add the knowledge or evidence of the caring heart of God to our faith, our doubts can be removed.

So while it may not be wrong to have some doubts about God, he wants to remove them so we can trust him for whatever comes our way.

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 DOESN’T BELIEVING IN GOD REQUIRE FAITH?

Although there are a number of arguments for God’s existence— and we will cover those in this book—when it comes down to it, isn’t believing in God really a matter of faith? In fact, don’t all religious questions belong in the realm of faith?

Faith is vitally important, yet many people misunderstand it, thinking it means you throw away your mind and just believe blindly. That is not what biblical faith is about.

ASSURANCE AND CONVICTION

The Bible says, “Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1 NASB). A good question to ask is, “Where do the assurance and conviction of our faith come from?” They come from knowledge or evidence of the things hoped for or not seen. It is your knowledge of something that allows you to trust in it. And seeing the evidence gives your faith confidence. So biblical faith isn’t a blind faith that operates without any reason to believe—rather, it looks at the evidence. In fact that is one of the reasons the apostles of Jesus recorded many of the miraculous signs performed by Jesus: “These [signs] are written down so that you may continue to believe that Jesus is the Messiah” (John 20:31).

Here is an example: You exercise faith every time you fly in an airplane. You may not even see the pilot, but you place your faith in him or her to safely fly the plane. You probably have not seen the expert engineers, machinists, and craftsmen who built the aircraft, but you believe the plane you are flying on is airworthy. So where do you get the assurance you are traveling safely? You have no doubt placed your faith in the knowledge of the airline’s record of performance and the Airlines rules that regulate and monitor the airline industry. There is overwhelming evidence that airline travel is safe. And that knowledge of the evidence gives assurance and conviction to your belief.

The point is, your faith is based upon knowledge about the airline company and its strict rules of operation. You have gained assurance based on an intelligent or knowledgeable faith or on personal experience. Your faith isn’t a blind faith that requires no information or evidence at all.

Believing something without clear evidence is like taking a leap into the dark; acting on faith that is rooted in clear evidence is like stepping into the light.

In the Old Testament, God sent Moses to Pharaoh, the leader of Egypt. God worked miraculous acts to convince Pharaoh to release the children of Israel. Finally he relented. But the evidence of God’s might had a profound impact on Israel. “When the people of Israel saw the mighty power that the LORD had unleashed against the Egyptians they were filled with awe before him. They put their faith in the LORD and his servant Moses” (Exodus 14:31).

But evidence of God isn’t always that pronounced. Most of the time he is hidden from us in the material world and we must continue to believe anyway. Yet that doesn’t mean we can’t be assured or have deep conviction about him based on evidence. In this book, we will provide evidence for God and answer questions about what he is like, and that will help give us a firm faith.

FAITH AND EVIDENCE WORK TOGETHER

No matter how exhaustive or convincing the evidence is, we still must exercise faith. You can find sufficient evidence to establish that what you believe is credible and objectively true. When it comes to God, he wants a relationship with us more than anything, and the key to a relationship is trust. So the more we know about his character, his heart, and his motivations and desires, the deeper our convictions will grow and the stronger our faith will be in his person.

Faith and evidence work hand in hand that way. For example, when trying times come into your life, your faith in God can be tested. Tragedies like a devastating storm that destroys your home, the loss of a job, or a terrible disease that takes a loved one from you can test your faith to the limit. It’s easy at those times to ask, “Why?” And sometimes there is no satisfying answer. We can be tempted to ask, “Doesn’t God see what’s happening? Doesn’t he care? Why doesn’t he do something about it?” The Scripture tell us, “These trials are only to test your faith, to show that it is strong and pure. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—and your faith is far more precious to God than mere gold” (1 Peter 1:7 NLT).

Why is your faith so “precious” and so important to God? Because a “strong and pure” faith in him is a faith full of knowledge of who he is.

More than anything God wants us to know him for the true God that he is. He wants us to rely on him during trying times. He wants us to know he is there for us no matter what. Jesus prayed to his Father God and said, “This is the way to have eternal life—to know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, the one you sent to earth” (John 17:3). To know God is to trust our lives to him. The more that we come to know him the more we can place our complete trust in him.

The Bible says, “It is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him” (Hebrews 11:6). If your faith in God is weak, this book is intended to strengthen it. If your faith in God is strong, this book will make it even stronger. The more you look at the evidence of God’s existence—who he really is, what he is really like—and clarify for yourself the many misunderstandings about him, the more your faith in him will deepen and grow.

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WHY DOES GOD SEEM HIDDEN FROM US?

It’s a different when it comes to producing “the goods” on God. We just can’t pray a prayer or snap our fingers and presto!—God appears and dispels any question about his existence. To be truthful, even that might not persuade some people to believe in him. But the fact is, God in a real sense remains hidden to us as a material being. The Scripture says, “God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth” (John 4:24).

And as a spirit, God is invisible to us (see 1 Timothy 1:17). You see, he is on another plane of existence than we humans. We are not meant to see him in all his awesome power and might. He told Moses, “You may not look directly at my face, for no one may see me and live” (Exodus 33:20).

Actually God is hidden from us because he is a perfectly holy God (Isaiah 54:5 and Revelation 4:8) and we as humans are imperfect and unholy (Romans 5:12). We are contaminated with evil, and Scripture says God’s “eyes are too pure to look on evil; you cannot tolerate wrong doing” (Habakkuk 1:13 NIV).*

The spirit form of God is too much for us sinful mortals to stand, and he must remain hidden from us. Yet God wants a relationship with his creation, and he has enabled us to know him through the sacrificial death of Christ, which atones for our sin. Christ’s atoning for sin means that Jesus paid the “wages of sin” for us, which was death, and that he “ransomed” us out of the “prison” of death. (See Romans 6:23 and 1 Peter 1:18-19.) He also reveals himself to us through creation (Romans 1:18-21), our moral consciences (Romans 2:14-15), his Word (2 Timothy 3:16-17), the church (Ephesians 1:23), history (1 Samuel 17:46-47), and through the indwelling of his Holy Spirit in our lives (Romans 8:9-11). God may be hidden from us in a material, physical sense, but he is very much evident in the life of a child of God, who has been redeemed through Christ.

Of course God revealed himself to us in the person of Jesus Christ when he was here on earth. There are many evidences or proofs we will offer in this book to support an intelligent faith that Jesus in fact was God in the flesh. Jesus and the apostles clearly stated that he was the revelation of God to us. (See John 1:1-14; 14:8-11; Colossians 2:9; and Hebrews 1.) So while God may be hidden to us in the material world, he has still revealed himself to us in a substantial way.

And on one level the hidden aspect of God is not a negative thing. His hiddenness can have a very positive result. He told the children of Israel, “If you look for me in earnest, you will find me when you seek me. I will be found by you” (Jeremiah 29:13-14 NLT). Jesus said, “Seek and you will find” (Luke 11:9 NIV). As with hidden treasure, God wants us to seek and search and discover all the riches that his relationship with us offers. There is mystery to that which is hidden from us. And that mystery can deepen our desire to know the hidden riches of God.

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CAN ALL OUR QUESTIONS ABOUT GOD AND BIBLE ANSWERED?

Thoughtful answers to the most frequently asked questions about God and the Bible are sometimes difficult to find.

The subject of God and his divine Word is so immense and deep that we have to confess there are far more questions than there are answers. In fact, the more we study and learn about God and the Bible, the more we realize how little we actually do know. Yet this doesn’t mean we are left without good reasons for what we believe.

There are many questions on the subjects of God and the Bible that have satisfying answers. But to some people they may not be satisfying—in fact, they may seem foolish to those who do not believe. Even the apostle Paul said the message of the cross is foolishness to those who don’t believe (1 Corinthians 1:18)! Many of the questions we are answering are spiritual questions that require spiritual answers. If you accept only “secular” answers, you may be disappointed.

So on many occasions we will be asking you to see the answer from God’s perspective, because that is when we receive true insight and wisdom. When we see life and its dilemmas from a godlike viewpoint we gain insight and direction. Our hope is that you will find such answers in this book. At the same time we are dealing with some very difficult questions—questions that have been contemplated for centuries. And some of these answers, while satisfying to a point, remain incomplete. Sometimes we must accept that there are issues and situations God knows but that remain partially or wholly a mystery to us humans. This does not mean Christianity is a matter of blind faith. But it is important to recognize our own human limitations.

So no—not all of your questions about God and the Bible can be answered in any other book or writings. But we will do our best to address every question honestly and provide answers that are as clear and practical as possible. However, the key in getting real answers to the tough questions of life is in the approach. In his wisdom, King Solomon understood this approach, and he shared it with us in the second chapter of Proverbs. Real answers come from gaining understanding and wisdom from God.

My child, listen to me and treasure my instructions. Tune your ears to wisdom, and concentrate on understanding. Cry out for insight and understanding. Search for them as you would for lost money or hidden treasure. Then you will understand what it means to fear the LORD, and you will gain knowledge of God.

For the LORD grants wisdom! From his mouth come knowledge and understanding. He grants a treasure of good sense to the godly. He is their shield, protecting those who walk with integrity. He guards the paths of justice and protects those who are faithful to him.

Then you will understand what is right, just, and fair, and you will know how to find the right course of action every time (Proverbs 2:1-9 NLT).

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Scripture is inspired by God

Is the Bible really God’s Word?

Many Christian (people) frequently want to know about the Bible. But even more important than knowing is understanding what the Bible says about itself. So, more than any one person's opinion, it’s vital that we examine what the Scriptures say about it’s own inspiration.

UNDERSTANDING INSPIRATION

A key verse about inspiration is found in 2 Timothy 3:16: “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness.” The phrase: “All Scripture is inspired by God” highlights three important principles.

The Bible, Not the Authors

First, the Scriptures themselves are inspired, not the authors of the Bible. Although the authors of the Scriptures were said to be moved by God’s Spirit (2 Peter 1:21), Paul writes to Timothy that it is the Bible itself that is inspired, which means literally, God-breathed. This single word indicates that the Bible comes from God, that God exhaled the Scriptures into being. When you read the word inspired, you may think it means breathing  into something. Rather, this verse is saying that God breathed out the Scriptures. The very words we read in the biblical text are “breathed out” by God. They don’t become inspired when we read them and find something of value for our lives. The text of Scripture stands as God’s Word even if we don't read it (but of course we should).

The Whole Bible

Second, the entire Bible is inspired. The Scriptures are God’s Word in their entirety. Some people say that when Paul wrote 2 Timothy 3:16, he was only referring to the Old Testament and not the New Testament. But in his previous letter to Timothy, Paul said, “For the Scripture says, “You shall not muzzle the ox while he is threshing; and “The laborer is worthy of his wages” (1 Tim. 5:18). Paul is quoting two verses of Scripture here, one from Deuteronomy 25:4 in the Old Testament and the other from Luke 10:7 in the New Testament.

Notice that he calls them both “Scripture.” It’s likely that the Gospel of Luke was only written about five years earlier than Paul's quotation of it as Scripture. At about the same time, Peter, the acknowledged leader of the apostles, wrote in 2 Peter 3:16 that Paul wrote about salvation “in all his letters, in which there are some matters that are hard to understand.

The untaught and unstable twist them to their own destruction, as they also do with the rest of the Scriptures” (HCSB). This shows Peter considered Paul’s letters to be Scripture. Here’s the point: By the time Paul wrote 2 Timothy 3:16 and said, “All Scripture is inspired,” he meant that the whole Bible was inspired, including both Testaments. Divine Human Authorship Third, God’s Holy Spirit moved human beings to produce the Bible. The Bible verse describing how God used human authors to write the books of the Bible is 2 Peter 1:21: “For no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.” The Holy Spirit empowered people to write Scripture by “moving” or “bearing along” human authors to speak, and by inference, to write their words down. The word translated moved (phero in the Greek) is used in Acts 27:15 about a ship being driven by the wind. In the same way the wind bears a sailboat along, so the Holy Spirit -moved the human authors to write the Bible. This explains the varying writing styles and perspectives of biblical authors. Just as the same wind can bear differing ships with different kinds of sails along in different ways, so the Holy Spirit can move writers with unique personalities and different styles to write down God’s words.

UNDERSTANDING INERRANCY

Since the whole Bible is inspired, it is completely true or inerrant. In the Torah (also known as the Pentateuch, or the first five books of the Bible), Moses wrote, “God is not a man who lies, or a son of man who changes His mind. Does He speak and not act, or promise and not fulfill?” (Num 23:19 HCSB). Paul made a similar statement in Romans 3:4: “God must be true, even if everyone is a liar” (HCSB). Furthermore, the Lord Jesus, God incarnate, said of Himself, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). Jesus calls Himself the truth, and He is the divine author of Scripture. Since God is true and He breathed out the Scriptures, the Lord Jesus said in His High Priestly prayer for His followers, “Your Word is truth” (John 17:17). This line of reasoning is where we get the teach-ing that the Scriptures are inerrant. The point is that the Bible is as true as God Himself and completely trustworthy.

Original Autographs

To help you better understand the concept of inerrancy, here are some specific points to remember. First, the iner-rancy of Scripture is limited to the original autographs. This means that the original scroll of Isaiah or the actual letter Paul wrote to the Romans are inerrant. It doesn’t mean that every copy we have today will be a perfect replica of the original. The good news is that textual criticism, the study of comparing the surviving ancient manuscripts with one another, is highly accurate. That's why we can be confident that what we have today reflects more than 99 percent of the original documents. And for those parts that remain in question, none of them affect biblical doctrine or prescribed behavior.

That’s why we can hold our Bible with the unwavering certainty that it is inerrant. We know it is based on texts copied years after the original manuscripts and then translated into English, and we can still claim it is completely true.

What the Bible Affirms

Second, inerrancy only refers to what the Bible affirms. Some statements in the Scriptures are accurately recorded but not actually what the Bible teaches. For example, when the serpent tempted Eve, he misquoted God, claiming that God prohibited eating from any tree (Gen. 3:1). The Bible records what the serpent truly said but his words remain untrue.

Ordinary Language

Third, inerrancy assumes that the Bible uses ordinary, normal language. The Bible mentions the four corners of the earth (Isa. 11:12) and the sunrise (Ps. 113:3). This doesn't mean that the Bible teaches the earth is a square or that God's Word denies a heliocentric view of the universe. The Scriptures are not using scientific precision any more than a meteorologist on local news is when he tells what the times are for sunrise and sundown.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Small kids, they enjoyed playing a game called Jenga. They build a tower, adding wooden piece upon piece, until it fell down. Someone a little mischievous one, sometimes would deliberately pull out the bottom piece in order to make the whole tower collapse. This example reminds us of the inspiration of Scripture. It is foundational to every other teaching. If we pull that one teaching out, then all the others will fall apart. It’s why our affirmation of the inspiration and truth of God’s Word is so vital. If we take it away, it puts our entire faith in jeopardy.

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BIBLE VERSIONS

WITH SO MANY VERSIONS OF THE BIBLE AVAILABLE, HOW DO | KNOW WHICH ONE TO CHOOSE? WHICH IS THE RIGHT OR BEST ONE?

Many asked this question; ‘Which version of the Bible is the best?’

UNDERSTANDING THE METHODS OF TRANSLATION

Formal Equivalence

In order to choose a version of the Bible, it helps to under-stand that there are three basic approaches to translating the Bible. The first is called formal equivalence. This translation is done “word for word” or is literal in its approach. A good example of formal equivalence is the New American Standard Bible (which I think is a great, literal translation). However, since the Bible was written in ancient Hebrew, Aramaic, and Koine Greek, this approach sometimes produces a clunky (awkward), less readable translation that doesn’t always fully capture the meaning of ancient idioms or translate ancient syntax into modern sentences. Galatians 2:4 is an example of this: “But it was because of the false brethren secretly brought in, who had sneaked in to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, in order to bring us into bondage.” We almost need a roadmap to follow the thought of the apostle Paul here in the NASB.

Dynamic Equivalence

The second approach to Bible translation is called dynamic equivalence. This method translates “thought for thought” and some popular examples of this would be the New Living Translation and the New International Version; both are very helpful translations. This method tries to bring the idioms and figures of speech into modern language, with an emphasis on making the text of Scripture clear and readable. The weakness is that sometimes these kinds of translations can take liberties with thoughts. This method of translating the text can become so interpretive that it may not always completely reflect the biblical author's true intention or become so interpretive that it leaves out other options for possible interpretation. An ex-ample of this is in Romans 1:5, a verse that uses the phrase “the obedience of faith.” But the NIV translates it “the obedience that comes from faith”—a valid interpretation but not the only possibility. Alternatively, the phrase can mean “the obedience that is faith,’ meaning obedience to God’s command requires trust in Him. The problem is that many readers of Scripture would prefer the literal translation so they can determine the meaning for themselves.

Optimal Equivalence

There is a third method of translation that tries to strike a middle road between formal and dynamic equivalence. Some have called this method optimal equivalence. Some examples of this method include the original Holman Christian Standard Bible, the Messianic Bible version called the Tree of Life Bible, and the English Standard Version. These translations tend to be more readable than a formal equivalence version, using English style and adapting idioms. Nevertheless, this method still allows some room for readers to interpret the meaning of the text since they’re reading a more literal translation of a passage than the dynamic equivalent version. Here’s how Galatians 2:4, the verse that was so wooden in the NASB, reads in the CSB: “This matter arose because some false brothers had infiltrated our ranks to spy on the freedom we have in Christ Jesus in order to enslave us.” It’s a much smoother read and therefore, easier to understand.

CHOOSING THE BEST TRANSLATION

So, which version should you read? All of these methods of translation are valuable, and we should definitely read them all. For deep study, it is suggested to use a formal equivalence translation like the New American Standard Bible. Many read this all the time, but it may be more helpful when doing an in-depth study because it gives the most literal rendering of the text. For times when we want to read quickly, covering a huge portion of Scripture, we will turn to a dynamic equivalence version like the New Living Translation or the New International Version. But for our regular daily reading of Scripture, we often love the middle choice. The combined approach (optimal equivalence) to be most helpful most of the time. That’s why most choose the original Holman Christian Standard Bible for regular reading of Scripture. (Note that when the original Holman Christian Standard Bible version was revised into the Christian Standard Bible, it only changed 10 percent of the text, but it changed some of my minor preferences, like using the word “languages” (HCSB) for “tongues” (CSB) or “Messiah” (HCSB) for “Christ” (CSB). The new version is good but many still prefer the original.)

CAUTIONS FOR CHOOSING A BIBLE TRANSLATION

The King James Version

Here are three cautions for choosing the best Bible translation. First, be careful not to consider the King James Version as the only legitimate Bible translation. The KJV was a great English translation into the common English spoken in seventeenth-century England. It also used the best biblical manuscripts available at the time. We should all be grateful for this beautiful and accurate translation. But, in the last 400 years, the English language has changed dramatically, making it hard to understand the archaic usages found in the KJV. For example, the KJV uses a word like “conversation” when it actually means “conduct” or the word “suffer” when it really means “permit.”

A more serious problem with the KJV is that we know so much more today about the original manuscripts of Scripture than was known in 1611. Many of the manuscripts available today were not even known when King James sat on the throne of England. In fact, the New Testament of the KJV is based on the Greek text of the New Testament produced by Desiderius Erasmus (1469-1536). He used several Greek manuscripts, none of which contained the entire New Testament or were earlier than the twelfth century. Moreover, they were all from one family of manuscripts from the same geographical area. Since then, many more Greek manuscripts have been found going back to a much earlier date, including some papyri dating from as early as the second century, from a variety of geographical locations. Although none of the textual differences found in the KJV affect any doctrinal or ethical teaching of Scripture, it is best to use a Greek text of the New Testament that makes use of the earliest and best Greek text types.

The KJV Old Testament is based on the Masoretic Text (a Hebrew text preserved by Rabbinic Judaism which is based on the earliest extant complete Hebrew manuscripts of the Old Testament) which was certainly the best available. However, in 1896 many Hebrew texts were found in the Cairo Genizah (a burial or storage place for Scripture in an ancient synagogue).

Also, in 1947, the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, biblical texts and fragments found at a place called Qumran in the Judean wilderness, provided a deeper understanding of the original Hebrew text. These Hebrew fragments and texts date from 150 BC to AD 70 and contain at least parts of every Old Testament book but Esther. One scroll of the complete book of Isaiah is from the first century BC and is virtually identical to the Masoretic text that is dated one thousand years later. Although modern Bible translations still rely on the Masoretic Text, the more recent discoveries of these ancient scrolls and fragments in Egypt and Israel refine our understanding of the original Hebrew Bible. Unfortunately, when the KJV was produced, the translators did not have access to these early manuscripts.

While the KJV is a beautiful and good translation, we must not assume it is the best or only true version. Modern translations are more accurate because they are based on the earliest and best manuscripts of the Bible.

Translations with a Theological Agenda

A second warning is that we should be careful not to use a translation with a theological agenda. An example would be the New World Translation, which tries to justify the theological errors of the Jehovah's Witnesses. While these specialized versions may translate some parts of Scripture accurately, in many passages their translation is flat out wrong. The New World Translation seeks to justify Jehovah’s Witness false doctrine and so the translation corrupts the truth found in Scripture. One example from the Old Testament is Exodus 3:14: “God said to Moses, ‘I AM WHO I AM’; and He said, ‘Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.” But the New World Translation takes the phrase as “I Will Become What I Choose to Become.” And added, “This is what you are to say to the Israelites, ‘I Will Become has sent me to you.” This incorrect translation leads to a wrong understanding of Jesus’ words in John 8:58: “Before Abraham was born, I am.”

Another example is from the New Testament. In John 1:1, we read, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” Since Jesus is the Living Word made flesh (cf. John 1:14), the first verse in John’s gospel is declaring that Jesus is God. To avoid affirming the full deity of the Lord Jesus, the New World Translation instead trans-lates the passage as, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was a god.” Since Jehovah's Witnesses do not believe that the Lord Jesus is fully God, they mistranslate these and many other verses that teach the Trinity or the deity of the Lord Jesus.

Idiosyncratic Translations

Finally, we should be wary of idiosyncratic translations— versions that reflect the views of just one person rather than a translation team. Examples of these would be Eugene Peterson’s The Message, or J. B. Phillips’ The New Testament in Modern English or David Stern’s Complete Jewish Bible. These may be helpful in our devotional readings, but we should be mindful that they really only reflect one person's perspective.

They don't have the safeguard of multiple translators checking each other’s work. In a sense, they’re just one person's interpretation of the text of Scripture and not really a thorough translation.

So although they may be helpful for personal reading or study, we should view these idiosyncratic translations as personal interpretations of Scripture.

FINAL THOUGHTS

The most important issue in choosing the best translation for you is to find one that you can understand and that you will actually read. Always choose “The one that you'll actually read, study, and apply.”

 

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