The Virgin Birth of Jesus
Only
Matthew and Luke mention the virgin birth. Had something as miraculous as that
truly occurred, we would expect Mark and John to at least mention it in their
efforts to convince the world that Jesus was the son of God. The apostle Paul
never mentions the virgin birth, even though it would have strengthened his
message. Instead, where Paul does refer to Jesus' birth, he says that Jesus
"was born of the seed of David" (Romans 1:3) and was "born of a
woman," not a virgin (Galatians 4:4).
The angel’s message
In
the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 1: 18-25, an angel appears to Joseph in a dream
and tells him that Mary's child will save his people from their sins. In Luke,
the angel tells Mary her son will be great, he will be called the Son of the
Most High and shall rule on David's throne forever. Shortly thereafter Mary
tells Elizabeth that all generations will consider her (Mary) blessed because
of the child that will be born to her... But if all this were true, Mary and
Joseph should have had the highest regard for their son. Instead, we read in
Mark 3:20-21 that Jesus' family tried to take custody of him because they
thought he had lost his mind. And later, in Mark 6: 4-6 Jesus complained that
he received no honour among his own family and his own household.
The Baptism of Jesus
John
the Baptist baptized for repentance (Matthew 3:11). Since Jesus was said to be
without sin, he had nothing to repent of. The fact that he was baptized by John
has always been an embarrassment to the Church. The gospels give no reason for
Jesus' baptism, apart from the meaningless explanation given in Matthew 3:14-15
"to fulfill all righteousness." Other passages, which indicate that
Jesus did not consider himself sinless, are also problematic (Mark 10:18, Luke
18:19), “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone.”
Is Jesus the Messiah?
The
Bible says that the Messiah will:
A.
Build
the Third Temple (Ezekiel 37:26-28).
B.
Gather
all Jews back to the Land of Israel (Isaiah 43:5-6).
C.
Usher
in an era of world peace, and end all hatred, oppression, suffering and
disease. As it says: "Nation shall not lift up sword against nation,
neither shall man learn war anymore." (Isaiah 2:4)
D.
Spread
universal knowledge of the God of Israel, which will unite humanity as one. As
it says: "God will be King over all the world -- on that day, God will be
One and His Name will be One" (Zechariah 14:9).
The historical fact is that Jesus fulfilled none of these messianic prophecies. Christians counter that Jesus will fulfill these in the Second Coming, but Jewish sources show that the Messiah will fulfill the prophecies outright, and no concept of a second coming exists.
Did the dead resurrect?
According
to Matthew 27:51-53, at the moment Jesus died there was an earthquake that
opened tombs and many people were raised from the dead. For some reason they
stayed in their tombs until after Jesus was resurrected, when they went into
Jerusalem and were seen by many.If many dead came back to life and were seen by
many people, it must have created quite a stir. Yet Matthew seems to be the
only person aware of this happening - historians of that time certainly know
nothing of it - and neither do the other gospel writers.
The Second Coming
There
are several passages in the gospels where Jesus says he will return in his
disciples' lifetime (Mark 13:30, Matthew 10:23, 16:28, 24:34, Luke 21:32,
etc.); “And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then
shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man
coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory....Verily I say unto
you, this generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled”.
(Matthew 24:30-32, 34)
The same expectation held during the period the apostle Paul wrote his letters. In 1 Corinthians 7:29-31 Paul says that the time is so short that believers should drastically change the way that they live: “But this I say, brethren, the time is short: it remaineth, that both they that have wives be as though they had none; and they that weep, as though they wept not; and they that rejoice, as though they rejoiced not; and they that buy, as though they possessed not; and they that use this world, as not abusing it: for the fashion of this world passeth away.” But Paul had a problem - some believers had died, so what would happen to them when Jesus returned? Paul's answer in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 shows that Paul expected that at least some of those he was writing to would be alive when Jesus returned - "we who are alive, and remain..." The same passage also indicates that Paul believed that those believers who had died remained "asleep in Jesus" until he returned. However, as the delay in Jesus' return grew longer, the location of Jesus' kingdom shifted from earth to heaven and we later find Paul indicating that when believers die they will immediately "depart and be with Christ" (Philippians 1:23). It is quite obvious that Jesus never intended to start any type of church structure since he believed he would return very shortly to rule his kingdom in person. It is also quite obvious that Jesus was wrong about when he was coming back. And that Paul was equally wrong on the matter.
So is the Bible true?
The same expectation held during the period the apostle Paul wrote his letters. In 1 Corinthians 7:29-31 Paul says that the time is so short that believers should drastically change the way that they live: “But this I say, brethren, the time is short: it remaineth, that both they that have wives be as though they had none; and they that weep, as though they wept not; and they that rejoice, as though they rejoiced not; and they that buy, as though they possessed not; and they that use this world, as not abusing it: for the fashion of this world passeth away.” But Paul had a problem - some believers had died, so what would happen to them when Jesus returned? Paul's answer in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 shows that Paul expected that at least some of those he was writing to would be alive when Jesus returned - "we who are alive, and remain..." The same passage also indicates that Paul believed that those believers who had died remained "asleep in Jesus" until he returned. However, as the delay in Jesus' return grew longer, the location of Jesus' kingdom shifted from earth to heaven and we later find Paul indicating that when believers die they will immediately "depart and be with Christ" (Philippians 1:23). It is quite obvious that Jesus never intended to start any type of church structure since he believed he would return very shortly to rule his kingdom in person. It is also quite obvious that Jesus was wrong about when he was coming back. And that Paul was equally wrong on the matter.
So is the Bible true?
Can you still believe after knowing all of this?
