BIBLE CONTRADICTIONS: THE NATURE OF CHRIST

At last, I have reached the end of the "50,000 Bible Contradictions" listed on the Islamic site GhanaNet. Although I believe they are still about 49,800 contradictions short of that number, I won't call that a contradiction, just poetic hyperbole. They label the group below as "Speculative Doctrines."

Christ is equal with God. (John 10:30 Philippians 2:5)

Christ is not equal with God. (John 14:28; Matthew 24:36)

There is probably a lot that a theologian could say on this subject, including the interesting concept that the Son is eternally submissive to the Father. But let's just deal briefly with each of these four passages instead. A good place to start is the famous passage in Philippians 2 since I have found it useful to quote more than once in conversations with Jehovah Witnesses who like to ignore it or mistranslate it. Note that Christ clearly exists in heaven in equality with God, but then he voluntarily empties himself. One can infer at least one important thing from these verses: While on earth Jesus was limited by his humble form in a way that he was not limited in heaven before the Incarnation and was not be limited once he ascended to the Father after his death on earth. That complete picture explains the other passages given above.

John 10:30 says, “The Father and I are one.” However, the concept of oneness can mean many different things ranging from being of the same mind all the way up to total equality in every way. So it is not necessarily the same as the equality Jesus had with the Father in heaven.

In the whole passage John 14:25-31 Jesus is telling his Apostles that he will soon be leaving to go to the Father “for the Father is greater than I.” He explains what that means a few verses later when he says “I do as the Father has commanded me.” In other words, in Jesus' earthly role as God's servant, he will obediently go to his death.

And finally, in Matthew 24:36, Jesus gives another example of his temporary limitations while on earth: he doesn't know the time of his Second Coming in judgment.

Jesus was all-powerful. (Matthew 28:18; John 3:36)

Jesus was not all-powerful. (Mark 6:5)

Was Jesus all-powerful? The Bible doesn't really say so. The critic quotes Matthew 28:18 in the King James Version, but modern versions read “all authority” and this verse specifically refers to the status of the risen and glorified Christ, not his status or ability while on earth, as in Mark 6:5 where “deeds of power” refers specifically to healing miracles. John 24:36 is even further afield of the subject at hand since it only says that God the Father has the power to give or withhold eternal life depending on whether one accepts or rejects Jesus.

Christ's mission was peace. (Luke 2:13-14)

Christ's mission was not peace. (Matthew 10:34)

I have probably dealt with this one elsewhere, but here it goes again: Simply speaking, Christ's mission was to bring spiritual peace (i.e., remove the enmity) between God and us (Luke 2:13-14). However, in the process of accomplishing that, it may have the earthly effect of dividing us from those close to us who chose not to believe. That is not Christ's mission, but it could be the unintended consequence. (Matthew 10:34-35).

Christ received not testimony from man. (John 5:33-34)

Christ did receive testimony from man. (John 15:27)

John 5:33-34 did not say that he didn't receive any testimony from man. He actually introduced John the Baptist as one of his witnesses in these verses. Jesus was merely remarking that he personally had no need of mere human testimony to prove himself, especially to such a hostile crowd. And to demonstrate that fact, Jesus then introduced much greater witnesses in the following verses.

John 15:27 presents us with a quite different situation. Here Jesus is commissioning his Apostles to be eye-witnesses to the world so that those who are ready to receive the Word will hear it and be saved. And very pointedly, in the previous verse (omitted by the critic) Jesus explains that it will actually be the Holy Spirit who testifies for them. So in both cases, it is the other two persons of the Godhead who are the ultimate witnesses to the Son.

Christ's witness of himself is true. (John 8:14,18)

Christ's witness of himself if not true. (John 5:31)

Guthrie on John 5:31: “The statement in 8:14 does not contradict this, for there Jesus is not considering, as here, the impossible hypothesis of a witness by the Son which conflicted with the witness of the Father.” Similarly, although Raymond Brown sees a “formal” contradiction between these verses, he recognizes that in both cases Jesus' testimony can be confirmed by the Father, and thus the contradiction disappears. In other words, even Jesus' sole testimony meets the requirement of the law to produce two witnesses, whether the audience recognizes it or not, since the Father and Son are one.

Borchert stresses the different settings of John 5 and 8. “In the second case the issue concerns his place of origin, and in the first case the issue concerns his role as the agent of the Father. In the first case Jesus employed the legal formula of the need for two witnesses [Deuteronomy 19:15] to introduce his four witnesses, whereas in the second case he defended a Pharisaic charge of false witness to a proclamation concerning his origin. The format of both contexts are clearly conflictual, but the settings move the arguments in different ways.”

And, of course, we must hasten to stress that Jesus in John 5:31 is not saying that he would be lying if he testified about himself. But it would not be a valid testimony accepted by the legal standards of the time unless verified by other witnesses. One could perhaps read that verse as “If I am the only one who testifies about myself, my testimony is not legally acceptable.”

Christ laid down his life for his friends. (John 10:11; 15:13)

Christ laid down his life for his enemies. (Romans 5:10)

The most obvious lack of logic in this criticism is to feel that somehow Christ could not have died for both groups. In John 15:13, Christ is specifically talking to his closest followers and his statement makes perfect sense in that context. By contrast, John 10:11 broadens the scope of his comments by implying that Christ will die for the sheep, i.e., all of his followers. And finally, in John 10:16 he expands the reason for his death even further by talking about those who are not presently in the fold but will later listen to his voice. That is the very message that Romans 5:6-11 proclaims. Paul is talking specifically to those who are now Christians, but he reminds them that at one time they were enemies until they heard the good news of the Gospel and responded.