It is written in the Prophets: `They will all be taught by God.' “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me” ( Galatians 2:20 ). Text: John 17:6-16. It is a statement that contradicts itself. Do you agree or disagree that the above examples are paradoxes? He wasn’t half-Man, half-God. A. Paradoxes can be a useful tool in teaching because it requires you to think more carefully about what is being said. John 1:14 says the word was made flesh. The great contradiction. The Bible contains “God’s thoughts” which are strange and yet marvelous spiritual teachings. This is the Epimenides Paradox. Chapter Outline. On the one hand, like we read in Exodus, God punishes with death a person who accidentally causes the death of a fetus or unborn baby. Conversely, the fastest way to be exalted is to humble yourself. We have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law, because by the works of the law no one will be justified. One of the Cretans, a prophet of their own, said, “Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons. Christianity is founded on apparently contradictory but true beliefs. Thank God for the insight you have been given and for how you have given it back to each reader. In fact the wise of this world consider believers to be fools for Christ's sake. He learned the Gospel that Jesus died on a cross to pay the penalty his sins deserved if he repented and believed. This is the beautiful paradox of the Gospel: My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways. How unsearchable are His judgments and how unfathomable His ways. The Bible is the ultimate sourcebook for the greatest paradoxes in the sphere of human thinking. Another Paradox In the Bible? And although we may take them for granted today, these backward beliefs of Christians turned the world upside down nearly two-thousand years ago. The paradox of happiness. The Bible is a collection of very old scriptures from the Levant, from Egypt, from Turkey, from Mesopotamia and possibly from Afghanistan, Pakistan and India that originally in reality had little or nothing in common. The Paradox Of Job’s Suffering. Scripture References for paradox in Naves Topical Bible (Bible History Online) Paradox of Genesis 1 ... From Verse 2 of Genesis 1 on, the remainder of this first chapter of the Bible is not describing the original creation of the Earth. Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *. 1 Samuel 2:8 God raises the poor from the dust. Hence, the abortion paradox in the bible. According to religious historian Karen Armstrong, the paradoxes in the Bible were a feature not a bug. Each paradox has become a growing in faith experience for me. To speak in the name of the Bible is to claim a piece of that authority." Paradoxes are statements that seem contradictory, inconsistent, or absurd, but are nonetheless true…and the Bible is full of paradoxes… God Exalts the Humble and Humbles the Exalted. This is a paradox. –The Oxford Dictionary. Those who compiled the texts often put conflicting stories and viewpoints side by side. 1. Galatians 2:16 A person is not justified by the works of the law, but by faith in Christ. hate him self ? Ezekiel 21:26 Thus says the Lord God, “Remove the turban, and take off the crown; When they didn’t fear God they had everything to fear from God. David is a good example. James 4:10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up. The other beatitudes show that a Christian can be filled with a joy that he cannot fully express, yet lament over things that the carnal consider as insignificant. Their extensive knowledge of the word of God did not bring them to faith in The Living Word of God, but rather they're hatred of God was exposed. That is because it was understood that the truth lay in between the words. DEF: PARADOX -- TWO SIMILAR IDEAS THAT APPEAR OPPOSITE, OR TWO OPPOSITE IDEAS THAT APPEAR SIMILAR. Receive a FREE Copy of Seven Biblical Insights for Healthy, Joyful, Christ Centered Marriages. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts. Luke 5:26 –“And they were all amazed, and they glorified God, and were filled with fear, saying, We have seen strange things to day.” The“strange things” began that day with the illogical healing of a palsied man. Illogical? If Epimenides himself was a Cretan and all Cretans are liars, then Epimenides is also a liar. In the New Testament: This principle is expressed in the Old Testament as well: In the Christian life, the fastest way to be humbled is to exalt yourself. If Epiminedes is a liar, then the statement that “all Cretans are liars” must be a lie, which means all Cretans tell the truth, which means Epimenides tells the truth, which means the statement “all Cretans are liars” is both true and false. We find rest under a yoke. Hello Rick, Yes, Jesus was a man, but I don’t know what you mean about having “our nature.” As descendants of Adam, we have a sinful nature, but the Virgin Birth allowed Him to not have that nature. This is the most important paradox in the Bible as it determines where individuals spend eternity. While the previous paradoxes could be quoted, there isn’t one specific verse to capture this paradox. In the Bible spiritual paradoxes abound and confound the secular unsaved mind. Catholic Online has many special features to help you find the information you are looking for. A) IRONIES OF THE BIBLE 2C0R 6,8-10. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. He wrote once that “ all Cretans are liars,” a line that Paul quotes in Titus 1:12. Since well before pants and shirts replaced togas, philosophers have been the main source of wisdom about happiness and the good life. It doesn’t make sense: if you fear God you don’t have to be afraid of Him, but if you don’t fear God, you have a lot to fear from Him. One of the greatest ironies of scripture is the rejection of Christ by the stewards of God's word. Why do you think God use paradoxes, versus speaking more straightforwardly. Far from making us doubt the Bible, paradoxes can aid us in our worship of God. To really live, we must die. 2. Intro: The Bible is a unique and strange Book. Serving the Lord in the shepherd’s field, humbled by the majesty of God in creation: When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers,The moon and the stars, which You have ordained,What is man that You are mindful of him,And the son of man that You visit him? For example, Dr. Palmer’s paradox, noted above, regarding God’s sovereignty and man’s responsibility, is no paradox at all to John Gerstner, who writes, “We do not see why it is impossible for God to predestinate an act to come to pass by means of the deliberate choice [i.e., human responsibility] of specific individuals” (A Predestination Primer, 26). Epimenides was a Cretan who made one immortal statement: "All Cretans are liars." He was the God-Man. A typical description of the problem is given in the book Gödel, Escher, Bach, by Douglas Hofstadter: . 1. God, in His wisdom has built the mechanism of pain into all of us. Filed Under: Bible Commentary Tagged With: faith, There is a literal paradox in the bible….Titus 1 vs 12-13. … There are several interesting paradoxes found in the Bible. Can you elaborate on your question about Him “having a self”? Your email address will not be published. Other paradoxes. The thoughts of the Apostle go back to the sufferings of which he had spoken fully in 2 Corinthians 11 and elsewhere. Children, possessions swept off in a few quick strokes. But then he also wrote, “and grace my fears relieved.” He said “fears” plural meaning the grace that saved him is the same grace that relieved him of his fears of death and judgment. 6 Days. John Newton’s life gives the background we need to understand these lyrics. People who don’t fear God have everything to fear, because they’ll face a holy God who will judge their sins. Even without one specific verse, this paradox is a truth maintained throughout the entire Bible. Yet suddenly his fortunes turned and sped downhill. It isn’t about them being righteous; it is about God declaring them to be righteous. To some, such biblical paradoxes may seem somewhat ridiculous and yet such are the very words of God which were written for our admonition and learning. The definition of a paradox is: “A seemingly absurd or contradictory statement or proposition which when investigated may prove to be well founded or true”. He surrendered his life to Christ, but as he looked back on his conversion he didn’t want to take credit for the fear that led to his salvation. People who are most afraid of God have the least to fear from Him, and people who don’t fear God have the most to fear from Him. Justification is the process by which God declares unrighteous sinners to be righteous. While the previous paradoxes could be quoted, there isn’t one specific verse to capture this paradox. Grace makes me fear or grace relieves my fears?”. They mutilated people, resettled entire populations, and rejoiced over butchering their victims. I. I asked many religious people …… no answer, What I mean by the self is …a person’s essential being that distinguishes them from others, especially considered as the object of introspection or reflexive action. None of us like it, we try to avoid it, but sometimes it’s necessary. Think about David’s son, Adonijah: Then Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, “I will be king”; and he prepared for himself chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to run before him. Romans 5:1 Having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. To save one’s life, he or she must lose it. But it is describing a renewing of the face of the Earth, after it had become waste and empty as a result of the sin of the angels. Thanks! 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