16
votes
Accepted
Are there theological explanations for why God allowed ambiguity to exist in Scripture?
In Matthew 13, Jesus reveals that it is God's will that some people understand and others be confused:
11 He replied, “Because the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of
heaven has been given to ...
- 9,029
11
votes
Are there theological explanations for why God allowed ambiguity to exist in Scripture?
Why God allows ambiguities and what He does to help us
Most denominations hold that the Holy Spirit inspires not only the Biblical book authors but also
the Individual Bible reader, and/or
the ...
- 16.8k
10
votes
Can other "scripture" (such as the Quran) be used as ultimate authority in presuppositional apologetics?
One argument of the Christian presuppositional apologists is that only the Bible is self-authenticating. Other sacred texts, like the Quran, are not.
Consider the way Ten Bruggencate's tract on ...
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10
votes
Accepted
Where does the Bible say that nature will speak the word if men don't?
I believe you are thinking of Luke 19:40:
‘I tell you [Pharisees],’ he [Jesus] replied, ‘if they [His disciples] keep quiet, the stones will cry out.’
Other passages that refer to the witness of ...
10
votes
Accepted
What scripture speaks of filling a bag and "compressing" it?
I believe you are referring to Luke 6:38
Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same ...
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9
votes
Accepted
What version of the bible do Greek speaking Christians use?
The language has certainly changed. As such, translations into modern Greek are used.
Today's Greek Bible is often used, and translations by the Hellenic Bible Society have the Blessing and Approval ...
- 6,907
9
votes
Accepted
Is there a term for a theological principle that if a New Testament text is unclear about something, that point is not important for salvation?
It's a corollary of the Protestant doctrine of the clarity or perspicuity of scripture, that the essentials of faith are explained in the scriptures so clearly that anyone can understand them. As the ...
- 18k
8
votes
Accepted
When the early church was formalising the canon, what did they understand by the word 'Inspired'?
Further Clarification
The original person who asked the question asked for additional clarification on these two questions:
1) Are inspired works closed as canon is? 2) Are there potentially other ...
- 234
8
votes
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How do Sola Scriptura defenders have a list of "scripture" since the list isn't mentioned in scripture?
The doctrine of Sola Scriptura is about how to rank various sources of spiritual authority, but it does not concern how we arrived at the Biblical canon.
Instead, Protestants teach that God's ...
- 18k
7
votes
According to Scripture, where is Hell?
The answer is quite simple: Scripture does not specify where Hell is.
There is a lot of speculation, however, about "where" Hell is, and I suspect the most common beliefs are that:
Hell is not a ...
- 22k
7
votes
Accepted
How were the footnotes in LDS scriptures created?
Short Answer: Over the course of 7 years by a committee of Apostles, Oxford Scholars, professional editors, computer experts, and many other contributers form both inside and outside the Church.
What ...
- 8,765
7
votes
Why are the creeds still accepted as a belief system over scripture?
The creeds served various purposes. They corrected various heresies that had arisen at the time. The Nicene Creed was written to confront and expose the Arian heresy. This heresy denied the deity of ...
- 3,734
6
votes
Is there a scriptural basis for treating the non-Gospel books of the New Testament as scripture?
Is there a scriptural basis for treating the non-Gospel books of the New Testament as scripture?
Short answer: yes.
Jesus commissioned 12 of his disciples as 'apostles' and gave them authority to ...
- 12.4k
6
votes
Accepted
What's the name of the process by which the scriptures were written down?
Concursus is a Latin word which can be translated encounter or meeting. The late 19th–early 20th century Presbyterian theologian Benjamin Breckenridge Warfield used the word to describe his ...
- 18.3k
6
votes
Can more recent revelation from LDS prophets nullify or change official Mormon scripture?
Are you referring to anything specifically? If you can provide a specific instance, that might be more informative.
In short: the answers are: Nullify, no. Takes precedence, yes.
For example, ...
- 849
6
votes
Accepted
How do Theistic Evolutionists who are Christians reconcile these Scriptures with the adoption of evolutionary theory?
The Scriptural teaching that sin was the cause of death for humans is wholly compatible with evolution, because the reason why humans were not going to die, get sick, be attacked by predators, etc. if ...
- 1,514
6
votes
What is the biblical basis for the idea that the Bible cannot be understood without aid from God?
Jesus said in Matthew 11:25, "I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children." By these words we ...
- 7,470
6
votes
Accepted
Did Jesus reject the apocrypha?
In the New Testament, Jesus never prescribes or approves of any particular canon
Jesus doesn't anywhere speak of the canon,1 except to refer to common ways of dividing them: "the Law and the Prophets"...
- 7,327
6
votes
Accepted
Who first came up with the "four attributes of Scripture"?
It looks like the "4 attributes" was first used by the theologian Wayne Grudem while the SCAN acronym itself was first used by Justin Taylor. The rest of this answer will provide evidence.
...
- 16.8k
6
votes
Are there theological explanations for why God allowed ambiguity to exist in Scripture?
One part might be that God wants to reveal hearts. A determined critic can always find a creative way to misunderstand. In politics for instance, it's surprising how creative people can be at ...
- 247
5
votes
If the Bible contains all of the word of God and there can be no more, then why do we need the Nicene Creed?
The old creeds are useful summaries of Christian doctrine. They are useful because the way God decided to shape the Bible was not like a systematic theology textbook, even though we might sometimes ...
- 18k
5
votes
In the Gospels, is there any recorded instance of the Pharisees quoting Scripture?
Sometimes the Scriptures identify Pharisees specifically, but other times they merely reference chief priests, who may have been Pharisees. There are a few passages of note:
The Chief Priests and ...
- 63.1k
5
votes
What is the evidence that the New Testament authors believed, or did not believe, that they were writing an inspired record?
The question is:
Did the NT writers themselves know that they were writing an inspired record?
Though there is at least one major exception, which is mentioned below, for the most part the New ...
- 7,734
5
votes
How did the Catholic Church function logistically/liturgically prior to the invention of the printing press?
From Herbert Thurston's Catholic Encyclopedia article "Missal" (§ "Origin of the Missal"):
The printed Missal of the present day, reproducing in substance the manuscript forms of the latter part of ...
- 32.7k
5
votes
Are there theological explanations for why God allowed ambiguity to exist in Scripture?
The Best Answer was chosen before I read this question (within 24 hours of it being posted) and, having read all the answers, I wish to point out that the scriptures of the Bible tell us exactly why ...
- 16.2k
4
votes
If the Bible contains all of the word of God and there can be no more, then why do we need the Nicene Creed?
I define Scripture as those books of the Bible upon which the greatest part of the whole company of Christian believers agree to be divinely inspired word of God.
The Nicene Creed is not an "extra-...
- 5,607
4
votes
Accepted
In the Gospels, is there any recorded instance of the Pharisees quoting Scripture?
Thanks to everyone for the comments and to @Narnian and @Flimzy for their answers. @Narnian, I don't consider the Moses reference a quote, so I was left with the "hard way" suggested by @FMS, which ...
- 231
4
votes
Accepted
Scriptural arguments against Prosperity Theology
Scriptural arguments against Prosperity Theology
Some of the verses used to support it are taken out of context or are meant to apply the to nation of Israel.
To consider verses that come to bear on ...
- 4,577
4
votes
What does it mean that "many parts which are plain have been taken away"?
+1 for the great question! To begin as Members of the LDS Church "We believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly; we also believe the Book of Mormon to be the word of ...
- 1,533
4
votes
Who or what established the divine inspiration for the authors of the bible?
For most Christian denominations, the answer is simple. Scripture is supernaturally inspired. The people who wrote the Bible wrote exactly what God intended them to write.
See the CARM article on 2 ...
- 43.7k
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