Google knows all about us
Google Timeline keeps a record of your location history. My Google Timeline says that in 2023 I:
– visited 4 countries, 103 cities and 296 places
– travelled 20,845 km (50% around the world)
– walked 708 km in 170 hours
– drove 14,027 km in 450 hours
– transited 482 km in 9 hours (mainly in France)
– Shopped 173 hours at 48 places (mainly in France)
– visited 12 food and drink places for 18 hours (mainly in France) (more…)
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Prophecies about Jesus: He would be the Messiah
People often have job titles at work. Like a manager, a supervisor, or a team leader. And king Charles III, President Biden, and Pharaoh Tutankhamun are known as the King, the President and the Pharaoh.
Did you know that Jesus had a job title? And it wasn’t the sign that was put on His cross – “The king of the Jews”. He was known as the Christ, the Messiah or the Anointed One. How did this come about? (more…)
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Prophecies about Jesus: He would speak in parables
When He was on earth Jesus often spoke to the crowd in parables. 40 are listed in the NIV Study Bible (Appendix). A parable is a short story with two levels of meaning that may be hard to understand. It takes something we know to explain something we don’t know, and we wouldn’t have any other way of understanding it. (more…)
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Prophecies about Jesus: The time of His coming was predicted
There’s lots in the world to be worried about, but we can be less anxious if we knew about future events.
The Old Testament has predictions of future events and people. For example, Abraham was told about 200 years beforehand that the Israelites would be 400 years in Egypt (Gen. 15:13). Isaiah named king Cyrus about 200 years before he reigned over Persia (Isa. 44:28 – 45:1). And Daniel was told about the death of Christ over 400 years beforehand. (more…)
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Prophecies about Jesus: He will be the “Son of God”
In ancient times sons got their identity from their fathers. They did the same work and were trained by their fathers. For example, Jesus was known as “the carpenter’s son” (Mt. 13:55NLT). And many characters in the Bible are named as “the son of” their father (Appendix). (more…)
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Prophecies about Jesus: He is preceded by a messenger
Warming up prepares the body for exercise. And the opening act at a concert is used to warm-up the audience before the main event. It looks like Sabrina Carpenter will be the warm-up for Taylor Swift in Australia.
The prophets Isaiah and Malachi both said that a messenger will come as a warm-up before the promised Jewish Messiah. (more…)
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Patterns of Jesus Christ hidden in the Old Testament
Does history repeat itself? World War 2 was about 30 years after World War 1. The COVID-19 pandemic was about 100 years after the Spanish flu. And workers lost jobs in the industrial revolution, and the invention of cars, computers and probably will do so with the invention of AI (Artificial Intelligence).
There are many prophecies about Jesus in the Old Testament. They can be clear and direct or hidden and indirect. Today we are looking at the latter – patterns of people, objects and events in the Bible that relate to Jesus Christ. (more…)
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Prophecies about Jesus: He is eternal
When I was in high school there were two views of the origin of the universe – The steady state theory (that the universe was eternal and was continually creating new matter) and the big bang theory (that the universe had a beginning). Since then, the steady state theory has been discarded. But it was attractive to scientists because it removed the need for a creator God because the universe was eternal. Now there is a need for a creator to kick off the universe. And the Bible says that it is the creator who is eternal. (more…)
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Who is the one true God?
Paul in Athens
My wife and I visited our son and his family in France last year. Although many French people are nominally Roman Catholic, it is largely an ungodly nation. There are old Roman Catholic churches in most towns, but attendance is low. We went to the Museum of Arts and Crafts (Musee des Arts et Metiers) in Paris. This is a science and technology museum showing the history of tools and machines developed by scientists and engineers dating from the 1500s to the present. Part of this museum is housed in an old church built in the mid-11th century (church of Saint Martin des Champs). The main church building houses old cars and flying machines and a long pendulum hangs from the dome (demonstrating the rotation of the earth). When atheism replaces Christianity, some church buildings become museums. (more…)
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Prophecies about Jesus: His family line
When a job is advertised there is usually a job description and a list of essential requirements (like qualifications, skills, and experience). What were the essential requirements for the Jewish Messiah? One of them is one’s family tree.
Prophecies about the family line of the Jewish Messiah can be traced through the Old Testament and its listed in detail at the beginning of the New Testament (Mt. 1:1-16). (more…)
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The Creator who entered His creation
Our children and grandchildren spent many hours playing with Lego. They used their imagination and creativity to build many things. In Genesis we are told that in the beginning of time God created the universe and all that is in it. This was greater than creating with Lego – He didn’t just assemble ready-made components, He made the atoms and molecules of all the components. And He made living creatures, which do a lot more then Lego technic or Lego robots. Living creatures make their own decisions and don’t just follow a computer code. And they can communicate with each other. (more…)
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The command to keep the Lord’s Supper
The best explanation of the Lord’s Supper is given in 1 Corinthians 11:17-34. It begins, “For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night He was betrayed, took bread, and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, ‘This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me’. In the same way, after supper He took the cup, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me’” (1 Cor. 11:23-25NIV). (more…)
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Biblical evidence of the Trinity
I have been asked, “How do you know that there is a Christian trinity ? Where is the proof in the Bible?”
This post comes from CrossExamined.org
The doctrine of the Trinity has come under increasing attack over recent years from a variety of groups. Some of these groups (such as Muslims and Jehovah’s witnesses) deny that this doctrine is even found in Scripture. They are often quick to point out that the word “trinity” is to be found nowhere in the Bible. This is correct. While the phraseology is not found in Scripture, however, the concept most certainly is. (more…)
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The Trinity is unique to Christianity
This post comes from Dr Tom Murphy who lives in Sydney, Australia.
What feature most differentiates Christianity from any other religion? What makes it special? Is it the crucifixion? The resurrection? The belief that Jesus was divine? Or something else?
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Crown of thorns
Who’s been watching the Olympic games in Tokyo where athletes are striving to win a gold medal? In the ancient games the winner received a laurel wreath to place on their head. The wreath was a symbol of victory. The Greek god Apollo wore such a wreath. And Julius Caesar wore a wreath to show his power. So, the laurel wreath was an ancient symbol of victory and success. (more…)
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More extra-biblical evidence of Jesus
Did you know that ancient history and archaeology has confirmed the existence of many people mentioned in the Bible? In an article in the Biblical Archaeology Review, Purdue University scholar Lawrence Mykytiuk examined Roman and Jewish historical documents to answer the question; Did Jesus of Nazareth, who was called Christ, exist as a real human being, “the man Christ Jesus” according to 1 Timothy 2:5NIV3?
This post has been sourced from the Biblical Archaeology Society. In 2017 I posted a summary of this article.
Tacitus, a Roman historian
Tacitus—or more formally, Caius/Gaius (or Publius) Cornelius Tacitus (55/56–c. 118 C.E.)—was a Roman senator, orator and ethnographer, and arguably the best of Roman historians. His name is based on the Latin word tacitus, “silent,” from which we get the English word tacit. Interestingly, his compact prose uses silence and implications in a masterful way. One argument for the authenticity of the quotation below is that it is written in true Tacitean Latin.4 But first a short introduction. (more…)
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Backyard camping
During the COVID-19 lockdown my grandchildren did some indoor camping. They’ve also tried backyard camping. Did you know that the Jews have a festival where they live outdoors as much as possible during a week?
Three times a year Israelite families travelled to the temple in Jerusalem for a religious festival (Ex. 23:14-17; 34:23-24; Dt. 16:16). The first of these was the Passover in spring, when they remembered how God delivered them from slavery in Egypt. The second was the Harvest Festival in summer (Ex. 23:16), when they thanked God for providing an abundant wheat harvest in Canaan. And the third was the Festival (or feast) of Shelters (or tabernacles) in autumn when they remembered God’s care and provision during the 40-year exodus journey. (more…)
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Record harvests
After a three-year drought, Australian farmers harvested a record amount of wheat (33.34 million tonnes) last year. The bumper crops came after a La Nina weather system brought heavy rains across the country. Last year China (142.81 million tonnes) and India (108.75 million tonnes) also had record wheat harvests. Did you know that Israel was promised record harvest in Canaan?
Three times a year Israelite families travelled to the temple in Jerusalem for a religious festival (Ex. 23:14-17; 34:23-24; Dt. 16:16). The first of these was the Passover, when they remembered how God delivered them from slavery in Egypt. The second was the Harvest Festival (Ex. 23:16), which was near the end of the wheat harvest in Canaan. It was also called the “Festival of weeks” (Ex. 34:22; Dt. 16:10), because it was seven weeks (or 50 days) after the Festival of Firstfruits (which was when they dedicated the barley harvest to the Lord on the Sunday after the Passover). Later it became known as Pentecost, which is the Greek word for 50th. It was also called “the day of firstfruits” (Num. 28:26) because farmers offered the firstfruits (the beginning) of their wheat harvest to God (Ex. 34:22). And they gave other offerings to God as well. At this festival they dedicated the wheat harvest to the Lord and gave back to God some of what He had provided for them. The offering of firstfruits was an acknowledgment that the harvest was from the Lord and belonged to Him. (more…)
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Dramatic rescues
In September 2010, 33 miners were rescued after being trapped in a copper mine in Copiapó, Chile for 68 days. In October 1987, an 18-month-old baby girl was rescued after being trapped at the bottom of a well for 58 hours. In 1956, 1,663 crew members and passengers were rescued from the Andrea Doria ocean liner when it capsized and sank after colliding with another ship. In January 1945, 510 prisoners of war were released in a daring raid on the Japanese Cabanatuan prison camp in the Philippines. And in November 1907, Jesús García drove a train away from Nacozari in Mexico because it had caught fire and contained dynamite. He died when the train exploded but he saved the Mexican village. But there are greater rescues than these.
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Why did Jesus call Himself the “Son of Man”?
Jesus often referred to Himself in the third person. And the title He used most often was the “Son of Man”. But what does this title mean and why did He use it?
Sometimes authors use pen names (or a pseudonym, or nom de plume) instead of their real name. For example, Samuel Clemens wrote The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn under the name of Mark Twain. Eric Blair wrote Animal Farm and Nineteen Eighty-Four under the name George Orwell. Charles Dodgson wrote Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass under the name Lewis Carroll. And Agatha Christie wrote Murder on the Orient Express and Then There Were None under the name Mary Westmacott. Many women authors have used a nom de plume to get their work published due to bias against women writers. For example, Emily Brontë wrote Wuthering Heights under the name Ellis Bell. And Mary Evans wrote Middlemarch under the name George Eliot. Was the “Son of Man” Jesus’ pen name? (more…)
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Remembering Jesus
At our family Christmas party, my Christmas present was a book titled, “Remembering Bob” (Pieters-Hawke, 2019). It’s a collection of stories and memories about Bob Hawke, who was the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) President in 1969-1980 and the Australian Prime Minister in 1883-1991.
They say he was an outstanding leader and a great storyteller. His achievements included:
– preserving the Antarctic for peace and science
– contributing to the end of Apartheid in South Africa
– significantly raising the high school completion rate,
– strengthening healthcare, education, work life, and housing, and
– elevating environmental issues in political decision-making
But he regretted failing to deliver a treaty with Indigenous Australians. (more…)
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Conversation on God
Here is a conversation on God that is an extract from the comments after a blogpost. Check the post for the complete discussion that took place over a period of two months.
George 1 October
The new objection relates to the “proof of God” and the “divinity of Jesus”. These are big topics. I didn’t claim to prove the existence of God from the Bible. Instead, I would say that God is the most logical explanation of the existence and complex nature of the universe, the existence and complex nature of life, and the existence of the human conscience (innate sense of right and wrong). So, I agree that the Bible “is of itself not proof of God” – there’s lots of other evidence. However, the best evidence of the nature of Jesus is the historical record in the Bible. To investigate the “divinity of Jesus” one should study the most reliable ancient text about Him. Of course, one’s conclusion will depend on whether they have an open mind or not.
George 9 October
You say, “I would once again say that citing the Bible as proof of god amounts to nothing more than hearsay”. I didn’t claim to prove the existence of God from the Bible. Instead, I would say that the existence of God is the most logical explanation of the existence and complex nature of the universe, the existence and complex nature of life, and the existence of the human conscience (innate sense of right and wrong). So, there’s lots of other evidence available.
Commentator 9 October
Hi George I am curious if there is lots of other evidence that is not in the bible could you please point me in the right direction to find it?
George’s reply 19 October
You asked, “if there is lots of other evidence (of the existence of God) that is not in the bible could you please point me in the right direction to find it?”. The other evidence of the existence of God that I mentioned was: the existence and complex nature of the universe, the existence and complex nature of life, and the existence of the human conscience (innate sense of right and wrong). Look up any articles on the source or origin of these and see if they answer the question or not and see how many miracles they require. (more…)
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Search for the real Jesus
“Believers revere Him as the Son of God. Skeptics dismiss Him as a legend. Artists cast Him in images that reflect their own time and place. Today, archaeologists digging in the Holy Land are helping to sift fact from fiction”. That’s the introduction to an article in National Geographic magazine (December 2017) by Kristin Romey on what archaeology reveals about the life of Jesus. Romey hoped to discover how Christians texts and traditions compare to the discoveries of archaeologists.
Could Jesus have never existed?
Is it possible that the story of Jesus is pure invention and He never really existed? Although this is the view of some outspoken skeptics, it’s not that of scholars such as archaeologists. Professor Eric Meyers of Duke University says, “I don’t know any mainstream scholar who doubts the historicity of Jesus. The details have been debated for centuries, but no one who is serious doubts that he’s a historical figure”. And professor Bryon McCane of Atlantic University says, “I can think of no other example who fits into their time and place so well but people say doesn’t exist”. Even scholars who disbelieve Christ’s miraculous deeds believe that Jesus did certain things in Galilee and he did certain things in Jerusalem that resulted in his execution. (more…)
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Jesus is like royalty
When Megan Markle married Prince Harry, she was given the royal title (Her Royal Highness) the Duchess of Sussex. Did you know that Jesus Christ is given royal titles in the Bible like “Lord”, “King”, “Lord of lords” and “King of kings”?
In the New Testament, the Greek noun kurios (Strongs #2962) is translated “Lord” when it is used for deity. It is a title of God the Father (Mt. 1:20; 9:38; 11:25; Acts 17:24; Rev. 4:11) and of Jesus Christ (Lk. 2:11; Jn. 20:28; Acts 10:36; 1 Cor. 2:8; Phil. 2:11; Jas. 2:1; Rev. 19:16). And in some instances, it is uncertain as to whether God Father or God the Son is meant (Acts 9:31; 13:10-12; 20:19). Likewise, in the Bible, the title “Lord of lords” is given to God the Father (Dt. 10:17; Ps. 136:3; 1 Ti. 6:15) and to Jesus Christ (Rev. 17:14; 19:16). It refers to someone who has absolute dominion over all their realm. A supreme ruler.
A lord is a master, or ruler who has authority, control, or power over others. They are an important person like, a boss, a chief or an owner. After the resurrection, when the apostles said “Jesus is Lord”, they meant “Jesus is God”. Thomas said, “My Lord and my God!” (Jn. 20:28). Peter said Jesus was “both Lord and Messiah” and “Lord of all” (Acts 2:36; 10:36).
The Roman soldiers mocked Jesus as the “king of the Jews” (Mt. 27:27-31). They didn’t realize that as the Creator, Sustainer and Savior, He was the King of the earth and the King of the universe. But are we any better? What’s our opinion of Jesus?
Today believers have the privilege of voluntarily acknowledging that Jesus is Lord. They praise and worship God individually and corporately for what He has done for us through Jesus Christ. In particular, through Christ’s sacrificial death we can have our sins forgiven by God. There is no other way to heaven and peace with God.
But in the future, everyone else will be compelled to “acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord” (Phil. 2:9-11NIV). It’s much better to avoid this by accepting the good news now and believing that Jesus died for your sins and recognizing Him as Lord of your life.
The statement “Jesus is Lord” means that Jesus is God. Like God the Father, He owns everything. If Jesus is Lord, then He owns us; and He has the right to tell us what to do. Are we obedient to the commands given in the Bible to His church?
Reference
Erickson M J (2013) “Christian Theology”, 3rd Ed. Baker Academic, p. 631
Written, July 2018
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