Biblical Miracles

Certain people have had difficulty with the concept of biblical miracles because they seem to violate or pass around the laws of nature. It is as if the laws of nature are an absolute which cannot be changed.

Of course the teaching of scripture is that in the beginning there was nothing. You see the idea of the laws of nature being distinct from creation is completely un-biblical. God created and continues to uphold all of the universe.

The laws of nature are a product of God's creative power. He chose how the world works. And he can as Creator choose at any moment to suspend or pass around those laws at his pleasure.

Often man gets bent up about biblical principles and objects against them because he does not like them. Miracles are impossible because of this or that many say. Miracles prove that Christianity is an incoherent system some say.

The reality is that from start to finish Christianity is a coherent system of belief. You cannot reject Christianity because miracles disprove Christianity, because the existence of the Christian God would entail the possibility of miracles.

It is often the case that most objections against Christianity and why the religion is "not possible" all fail once we understand the nature of the Christian God, the nature of man, and the relation of God and man. Of course understanding these things does not prove Christianity to the skeptic, but most objections to Christianity simply miss understanding the Christian message on issues.

Often people find a quick objection which "defeats" Christianity and move on because they do not like what it says about humanity. Humanity tends to be painted in Christianity in a far too dark light for most people's liking. Many people feel that man is naturally good and we really don't like the morbidity of the religion.

Of course if we take a realistic view of the state of the world and all that goes on in it we will see that Christianity paints an accurate picture of mankind. Man as a race is not nearly as good as he wishes he was.

Sometimes there are excuses that this or that is the fault of man's issues. There can be truth that certain societal or economic factors intensify the issues of mankind. Ultimately, however, there is nothing apart from God that really changes the heart of mankind to make it good.

Perspicuity of Scripture

The bible is a very plain book in many ways (theologians speak of this as the Perspicuity of Scripture). It states that God exists and he has a will and a plan and a specific will for the world.

It has a very basic description of man and his nature. Somehow the church often makes the book very difficult.

Is the OT God and the NT Jesus different? Is hell real? Does God really want sexual purity?

You see all the answers are very plain. Why do we ask questions and cannot read the answer so plainly given.

You see it is this God who our sin is against and nature wishes to rebel against. The book is so hard because we are the people under the curse of sin God says we are and in need of the free grace he offers through faith in his son.

We ask so many questions because we are sinners and do not like he answers given. We object to the bible because we do not like it not because it is unclear.

Nature of Mankind

"The thing that we regard as surprising is that any member of the human race, any of those excellent creatures known as men, who are supposed to be doing the best they can and be guilty, at the most, of merely trifling and thoroughly forgivable faults, should ever fall under divine displeasure.  But the thing the Bible regards as surprising is that any of those fallen creatures known as men, all of whom without exception deserve God’s wrath and curse, should be received into eternal life.  We regard it as surprising that any are lost: the Bible regards it as surprising that any are saved.  Naturally it is the surprising or unexpected thing that upon which the chief stress is laid.  It is for that reason, or at least partly for that reason, that the Biblical doctrine of predestination is concerned chiefly with the predestination of the saved to their salvation rather than with the predestination of the unsaved to their eternal loss." – Gresham Machen