A favored man has many questions. Educated as he is, he was puzzled by what he sees, and hear, comparing reality to some irreconcilable religious teachings around him. For almost a lifetime of search and consideration in trying to admit what almost every preacher in religion are saying, he ended up saying that he has to tailor his beliefs in order to survive the many questions popping up from his inquisitive mind as a human. Here are excerpts of his thoughts that I believe must be made public for the benefit of millions of souls who are in search for what is true.
This man rightly believes that “FAITH has to play a very important part in all our lives,” which is why he is seeking answers for his thoughts -
Who wrote the Bible, God the Father?
I have always wondered WHY Jesus never wrote anything. It was PAUL (later, St. Paul) who wrote about Jesus.
Fact is that the Church itself - is the product of MAN and by the changes that the Church has gone through, one can see that any interpretation made by man is imperfect.
Pope Francis (I do not know if your side of Religion even believes in the Pope or for that matter-THE VATICAN) has had to make dramatic and drastic changes in the 'ways of the Lord' that one realizes how imperfect "man" is and how ignorant we are in matters of interpretation.
I, for one, have had to tailor my own beliefs to be able to survive the thousand questions that I have been asking myself over so many years.
First, who wrote the Bible? Was it God the Father?
Writing is an art, a science. I'm grateful first to God and secondly to history that the art of writing was learned by humanity. Humanity I say, because up to now, supposed ancestors of evolutionists like apes are still unable to write or record their history. Apparently, the ancestors of Charles Darwin and Richard Dawkins have no purpose of existence and saw no need of recording their history. Writing or recording history has for its purpose of educating succeeding generations, but we see none such for people as ancestors of “evolved animals.”
Whenever I argue, I use God’s words for they are what are true. It is His nature that God does not lie. Here is what He had inspired to be written in Psalms -
PSALMS 102:18
This shall be written for the generation to come: and the people which shall be created shall praise the LORD.
The accumulated knowledge and technology that humanity has developed in our times were not at that level 5,000 years ago. Excluding those that were written and recorded at the instance of man, all sacred writings that the Almighty God had caused to be written are profitable for instruction for all generations to come.
II TIMOTHY 3:15-17
15 And that from a child thou hast known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:
17 That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.
So there is a man of God expected to be perfect after having been instructed in righteousness. The source is inspired Scripture and the way is through having faith in Christ Jesus.
At this juncture we have to especially guard our thinking on writings and records made only by men. Often times they are not truthful, not sincere, and under-written or cut short - especially when the writer is influenced by an inequitable power. What do I mean?
There are instances when truth is hidden because of pride - personal and national. Take for example the history of the Egyptian empire. Egyptologists - countless of them - have not discovered up to now records in Egypt that reveal the history of the empire recorded in the book of Exodus. We may conclude that it was intentionally not recorded by historians in Egypt who were apparently under the power of the Pharaoh. It maybe because of personal and national pride that the pharaohs prohibited the writing of such events humiliating the Pharaoh and his kingdom before the power of the God of their slaves - the Israelites.
Even the name of Moses, given by the Pharaoh's daughter that is undoubtedly Egyptian was not found in the history of the Egyptian empire. Historians of today try to correct the lapse when they trace the identity of the Exodus Pharaoh who may have succeeded in repressing records. In “17 Reasons why Thutmoses III is the Exodus Pharaoh,” Moses name was explained as follows.
"Moses" derives his name from Thutmoses I and the "Thutmoses" dynasty of kings. Thutmoses I was the father of Hatshepsut who named Moses. This is obviously where Moses got his name, not from the 19th dynasty era of Rameses II. Because archeologists generally dismiss the exodus as a Bible myth, they actually chose any variant of the correct, "Thutmoses" that breaks any connection with "Moses". These variant spellings include: Tuthmosis, Thuthmose, Thutmose.
Remember that the name "Thutmoses" was written in hieroglyphics (pictures), but the name Moses is written in Hebrew and Greek. (http://www.bible.ca/archeology/bible-archeology-exodus-date-1440bc.htm)
The text explained that Moses' name was spelled in English and that he got his name from the Hatshepsut, the daughter of Thutmoses I. The18th dynasty pharaohs are therefore "Thutmoses.” The Thutmoses are a dynasty of kings of Egypt!
EXODUS 2:10
And the child grew, and she brought him unto Pharaoh's daughter, and he became her son. And she called his name Moses: and she said, Because I drew him out of the water.
HEBREWS 11:24
By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter;
But I have to thank God and history that there was an ancient record which was accidentally found written not by an Egyptian historian but a common man that reveals a hint of the truth and the authenticity of the record in the book of Exodus. Here’s an excerpt -
IPUWER PAPYRUS
The "Dialogue of Ipuwer and the Lord of All" is an ancient Egyptian poem preserved in a single papyrus, Leiden Papyrus I 344, which is housed in the National Archeological Museum in Leiden, Netherlands.
The sole surviving manuscript dates to the later 13th century BCE. The dating of the original composition of the poem is disputed, but several scholars, have suggested a date between the late 12th dynasty and the Second Intermediate Period (ca. 1850 BCE - 1600 BCE).
The theme of this work has previously been taken either as a lament inspired by the supposed chaos of the Second Intermediate Period, or as historical fiction depicting the fall of the Old Kingdom several centuries earlier, or possibly a combination of these. (http://www.pearlmancta.com/ipuwerpapyrus.htm)
Here’s another source that collaborates this account.
The papyrus describes violent upheavals in Egypt, starvation, drought, escape of slaves (with the wealth of the Egyptians), and death throughout the land. The papyrus was written by an Egyptian named Ipuwer and appears to be an eyewitness account of the effects of the Exodus plagues from the perspective of an average Egyptian. Excerpts from the papyrus parallels with those in the Book of Exodus. (http://ohr.edu/838)
Recorded history made by man can sometimes be lacking history or simply making tectonic of the inconsequential. In the Assyrian history there was no mention of King Sargon while the Bible mentions him.
ISAIAH 20:1
In the year that Tartan came unto Ashdod, (when Sargon the king of Assyria sent him,) and fought against Ashdod, and took it;
For so long a time, historians attacked the authenticity of the Bible because of this King Sargon information that is not found in the history of the Assyrian empire. This was supposedly an evidence for their claim that what were written in the Bible areinvented. But a recent find was the 4000-year-old copper bust of Sargon the Great, the Akkadian king being housed at the Museum of Iraq.
Note: Museum-SecurityDotOrg now claims that one of the artifacts missing as an aftermath of the Iraq war is the 4000-year-old copper bust of Sargon the Great, the Akkadian king. The report said –
More than 170,000 priceless artefacts, including a 4000-year-old copper bust of Sargon the Great, the Akkadian king, examples of humankind's first writings and other treasures from the Uruk, Sumerian and Babylonian civilisations, are thought to be missing.
Liam McDougall, an Arts Correspondent, wrote the report titled, “UK database to track stolen art treasures. World's second largest criminal industry targeted.” http://www.museum-security.org/03/057.html).
Anyway, let’s consider this account on Bible history -
SARGON, KING OF ASSYRIA
Isaiah the prophet, in one of God’s prophecies regarding a judgment against the nations of Egypt and Ethiopia, mentions an Assyrian king by the name of Sargon.
This posed a problem to archaeologists back in the earliest days of their field of study, because an obelisk stone with the names of all the Assyrian kings that had ruled that empire was uncovered which made no mention of Sargon. On its discovery the university of Chicago made a bold statement that they had found a glaring contradiction in the Bible. They assumed the Scripture was in error since Sargon’s name wasn’t found engraved on this stone.
But a funny thing occurred; you could say it was God’s little joke on men of science. Eventually they found the royal palace of Sargon, and a majestic one it was at that. How come they knew it was Sargon’s palace? Well, because the bricks lining the palace walls were engraved with his name.
Not only was his name found, but his capture of the city of Ashdod as mentioned in Isaiah 20, was engraved on the palace walls as well. And not only that, but digs from the city of Ashdod itself later turned up fragments from a monument which recorded this victory.
One of the inscriptions read “Sargon, king of Assyria, who conquered Samaria and the entire region of Israel, he who made captives of Ashdod.” (ANET 284) (http://.www.biblehistory.net/newsletter/sargon/htm)
Before the Bible was written, men have learned the art and the science of writing, most ancient of which were the Phoenicians, Sumerians, and Egyptians. Moses, because he was reared in Egypt by the Pharaoh's daughter, was taught in all the wisdom in Egypt.
ACTS 7:22 (KJV)
And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was mighty in words and in deeds.
Moses knew the Egyptian way of writing and the Hebrew way also.Here’s a comparison of alphabets from Biblical Archeology Society Library (http://members.bib-arch.org/publication)
Notice that the Egyptian hieroglyphic is more pictorial than that of the Hebrew.
Moses at Mount Sinai witnessed how the spirit of God through fire wrote the Ten Commandments on two tablets of stone.
EXODUS 31:18
And he gave unto Moses, when he had made an end of communing with him upon mount Sinai, two tables of testimony, tables of stone, written with the finger of God.
DEUTERONOMY 4:13
And he declared unto you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, even ten commandments; and he wrote them upon two tables of stone.
Such commandments that were later called the Law of Moses became an integral part of what is now known as the Book of Exodus in the Bible. Historically speaking, it was God Himself who first wrote a part of the Bible and later instructed Moses to write the statutes and judgments that would be incorporated on the two tablets of stone recorded in the Books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.
DEUTERONOMY 31:24-26
24 And it came to pass, when Moses had made an end of writing the words of this law in a book, until they were finished,
25 That Moses commanded the Levites, which bore the ark of the covenant of the LORD, saying,
26 Take this book of the law, and put it in the side of the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, that it may be there for a witness against thee.
The word Bible in English came from the word "biblion" or "biblos" in Greek, which means book. What is wonderful in the Bible is that it is not just a record of the past but also a record of information that humanity must know - of things and events that are yet to happen in the future. This is for the proper guidance and warning of those who fear and believe. In the Bible these are called prophecies.
ISAIAH 46:9-10
9 Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me,
10 Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:
JOHN 13:19
Now I tell you before it come, that when it is come to pass, ye may believe that I am he.
The ability to foretell the future belongs only to the Creator who is able to see the future. The prophecies in the Bible are precisely exact. This one is noteworthy: Hundreds of years before it would happen, the war that destroyed the Holy City of Jerusalem was prophesied by Daniel and Jeremiah.
DANIEL 9:2
In the first year of his reign I Daniel understood by books the number of the years, whereof the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah the prophet, that he would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem.
JEREMIAH 4: 11-13, 19
11 At that time shall it be said to this people and to Jerusalem, A dry wind of the high places in the wilderness toward the daughter of my people, not to fan, nor to cleanse,
12 Even a full wind from those places shall come unto me: now also will I give sentence against them.
13 Behold, he shall come up as clouds, and his chariots shall be as a whirlwind: his horses are swifter than eagles. Woe unto us! for we are spoiled.
19 My bowels, my bowels! I am pained at my very heart; my heart maketh a noise in me; I cannot hold my peace , because thou hast heard , O my soul, the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war.
MATTHEW 24:15
When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)
It is recorded in the Roman history that General Titus destroyed Jerusalem in 70 A.D. And this was commemorated in the Arch of Titus in Rome.
The Arch of Titus (Italian: Arco di Tito; Latin: Arcus Titi) is a 1st-century AD. honorific arch, located on the Via Sacra, Rome, just to the south-east of the Roman Forum. It was constructed in c. AD. 82 by the Emperor Domitian shortly after the death of his older brother Titus to commemorate Titus's victories, including the Siege of Jerusalem (AD 70)
This is part of tangible evidences proving the exact fulfillment of the prophecies of Daniel, Jeremiah and the Lord Jesus Christ about the destruction of the holy city of Jerusalem and the temple called by Christ as the "Holy Place."
Almost 3,000 years ago the prophet Daniel wrote in prophecy what would actually happen in our present time: the advent of technology and advancement in science, the existence of airplanes, and space aircraft were foretold by the Bible.
DANIEL 12:4
But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.
ISAIAH 40:31
But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.
With this concept the Bible is truly as unparalleled as a book - unequalled! There is no other book on earth that precisely foretells what is going to happen hundreds and thousands of years before they happen.
MATTHEW 24:3-8
3 And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?
4 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.
5 For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.
6 And ye shall hear of wars and rumors of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.
7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.
8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.
We have seen that the God Almighty has written some of what are written in the Bible - especially his injunctions - but coupled with this declaration of his love for his people. His prophecies have been seen to be fulfilled, are being fulfilled, and yet to be fulfilled as told by the Prophets. Scribes continued on to write of events that became history.