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What did they have in common? For one, we know what they looked like from sculptures, coins etc.
How about describing what Jesus looked like?
You're kidding right? Maybe you should spend some time reading secular history books instead of reading apologist sites.
Question: Why didn't Philo of Alexandria* (c20 BC-50AD) write anything about Jesus? He was one of the most prolific writers in that time and area other than Josephus. We have about 40 extant manuscripts by him (about 850,000 words.) He was contemporary. He was a Jew. He wrote a lot about the socio-political goings on in Palestine at the time including Pontius Pilate ("According to Philo, Pilate was "inflexible, he was stubborn, of cruel disposition. He executed troublemakers without a trial." He refers to Pilate's "venality, his violence, thefts, assaults, abusive behavior, endless executions, endless savage ferocity""). His nephew was Alexander Tiberius who was made procurator of Judea in c46.
But not one word of Jesus or any of his followers or of the new religion which was supposed to have spread very quickly? Curious.
*Alexandria - you know ....the city Alexander the Great founded in 331BC? In his own lifetime?
To add to that we have Justus of Tiberias, a Jew who came from Galilee. He wrote a history of the Jews, starting with Moses and extending into his own time (second half of 1st century), but never mentioned Jesus.
Let's put the validity of the resurrection into perspective...Name ANY OTHER complete and total lie you could put out today that would convince 75% of the U.S. population to believe in it...many to such a degree that they would die before they denied it.
You can't...not before, not now, nor will you ever. That alone is enough circumstantial evidence to confirm it. Only Divine inspiration could give something the power to carry that kind of "weight", for that length of time. What other reason could there be? You can't find any other TRUTH to have it like that, let alone a lie. Only someone looking to deny it because of personal bias would discredit it with 200,000,000 sophisticated people in this country alone vouching for it. Not illiterate peasants, but 200 million educated, advanced people, in just the U.S, never mind the rest of the world!
I don't know if it makes Him "the Son of God", but it sure shows he had some serious "connections"...and is the most special personality of all time.
Let's put the validity of the resurrection into perspective...Name ANY OTHER complete and total lie you could put out today that would convince 75% of the U.S. population to believe in it...many to such a degree that they would die before they denied it.
You can't...not before, not now, nor will you ever. That alone is enough circumstantial evidence to confirm it. Only Divine inspiration could give something the power to carry that kind of "weight", for that length of time. What other reason could there be? You can't find any other TRUTH to have it like that, let alone a lie. Only someone looking to deny it because of personal bias would discredit it with 200,000,000 sophisticated people in this country alone vouching for it. Not illiterate peasants, but 200 million educated, advanced people, in just the U.S, never mind the rest of the world!
I don't know if it makes Him "the Son of God", but it sure shows he had some serious "connections"...and is the most special personality of all time.
Let's put the validity of the resurrection into perspective...Name ANY OTHER complete and total lie you could put out today that would convince 75% of the U.S. population to believe in it...many to such a degree that they would die before they denied it.
You can't...not before, not now, nor will you ever. That alone is enough circumstantial evidence to confirm it. Only Divine inspiration could give something the power to carry that kind of "weight", for that length of time. What other reason could there be? You can't find any other TRUTH to have it like that, let alone a lie. Only someone looking to deny it because of personal bias would discredit it with 200,000,000 sophisticated people in this country alone vouching for it. Not illiterate peasants, but 200 million educated, advanced people, in just the U.S, never mind the rest of the world!
I don't know if it makes Him "the Son of God", but it sure shows he had some serious "connections"...and is the most special personality of all time.
All the best.
You see folks! Am I not a prophet? Did I not speak the truth in another thread when I said that GldnRule would totally ignore all the posts that have shown his 'Appeal to Numbers/Authority' argument to be flawed and simply repost his 'Appeal to Numbers/Authority' argument?
GldnRule. You have been shown over and over again the flaw in your argument. Why do you keep repeating it? It wouldn't matter if every person on the planet believed in your Jesus, it still wouldn't mean that is was true.
If you think that 206 million US citizens believing in Jesus is proof that Jesus exists, why don't you think that the 1.5 billion Chinese who don't believe in your Jesus makes it true that he doesn't exist? I and others have repeatedly told you that if you are going to appeal to numbers for truth then you are going to have to accept that Jesus did/does not exist because those that believe in Jesus are a minority of the word population. There are 6 billion people in the world today and 33% of them believe that your Jesus lives. That means that just over 2 billion people believe in him leaving 4 billion that don't. Your appeal to numbers game dictates that you should be accepting that there are more people who don't believe than there are that do. Therefore, if numbers equal truth....Jesus does not exist.
Let's put the validity of the resurrection into perspective...Name ANY OTHER complete and total lie you could put out today that would convince 75% of the U.S. population to believe in it...many to such a degree that they would die before they denied it.
You can't...not before, not now, nor will you ever. That alone is enough circumstantial evidence to confirm it. Only Divine inspiration could give something the power to carry that kind of "weight", for that length of time. What other reason could there be? You can't find any other TRUTH to have it like that, let alone a lie. Only someone looking to deny it because of personal bias would discredit it with 200,000,000 sophisticated people in this country alone vouching for it. Not illiterate peasants, but 200 million educated, advanced people, in just the U.S, never mind the rest of the world!
I don't know if it makes Him "the Son of God", but it sure shows he had some serious "connections"...and is the most special personality of all time.
All the best.
What other reason could there be?
How about apathy? Most people don't stop to think about whether Jesus was a real person or not. Most have never studied first century religions/history. Most probably had no reason to even bother to question it. Most Christians were brought up on Sunday school stories from the Bible, the Jesus is Love message of the 60's, Hollywood movies etc and a weekly dose from their local minister each Sunday. Or if not brought up as Christians, were still exposed to all the Christian hype in Western culture.
Or how about the fact that the Holy Roman Empire destroyed anything and everyone who didn't agree with their dogma? That's a pretty good reason for not questioning whatever the Church told you. The other early Christian sects like Marcionism, Docetism, Arianism etc (sects who believed that Jesus was a purely spiritual entity, not a flesh and blood man) were destroyed.
Then we have a period of a furious flurry of writing, including "pious fraud" when all sorts of letters, epistles and gospels were written...most of which were destroyed by the 4th century if they didn't toe the party line (thank goodness for the manuscripts of Nag Hammadi) and those that did, were made "canon".
Then this was followed by the iron-fisted rule of the Holy Church of Rome, the Dark Ages, the Inquisition etc. By this time nobody would have thought to question whether there was actually a real person or not behind the teachings of the church...
You see folks! Am I not a prophet? Did I not speak the truth in another thread when I said that GldnRule would totally ignore all the posts that have shown his 'Appeal to Numbers/Authority' argument to be flawed and simply repost his 'Appeal to Numbers/Authority' argument?
GldnRule. You have been shown over and over again the flaw in your argument. Why do you keep repeating it? It wouldn't matter if every person on the planet believed in your Jesus, it still wouldn't mean that is was true.
If you think that 206 million US citizens believing in Jesus is proof that Jesus exists, why don't you think that the 1.5 billion Chinese who don't believe in your Jesus makes it true that he doesn't exist? I and others have repeatedly told you that if you are going to appeal to numbers for truth then you are going to have to accept that Jesus did/does not exist because those that believe in Jesus are a minority of the word population. There are 6 billion people in the world today and 33% of them believe that your Jesus lives. That means that just over 2 billion people believe in him leaving 4 billion that don't. Your appeal to numbers game dictates that you should be accepting that there are more people who don't believe than there are that do. Therefore, if numbers equal truth....Jesus does not exist.
You haven't shown me squat. When your argument gets some "juice" I'll give it some credence. It doesn't. I'm not talking about the "causal consideration" you are talking about. You couldn't find a handful of people on the planet that would back your contention with any conviction. There are millions AT THIS VERY HOUR that, two thousand years after he died, given the choice, "Deny Jesus or die", would choose death! It's this evidence of Divine inspiration that speaks louder than anything you could EVER say. And THAT'S the authority...DIVINE AUTHORITY... upon which the case stands. Your case has no power, no "mojo", nothing...and you know it. Take a look around you today if you don't know what I'm talking about. You'll see.
How about apathy? Most people don't stop to think about whether Jesus was a real person or not. Most have never studied first century religions/history. Most probably had no reason to even bother to question it. Most Christians were brought up on Sunday school stories from the Bible, the Jesus is Love message of the 60's, Hollywood movies etc and a weekly dose from their local minister each Sunday. Or if not brought up as Christians, were still exposed to all the Christian hype in Western culture.
Or how about the fact that the Holy Roman Empire destroyed anything and everyone who didn't agree with their dogma? That's a pretty good reason for not questioning whatever the Church told you. The other early Christian sects like Marcionism, Docetism, Arianism etc (sects who believed that Jesus was a purely spiritual entity, not a flesh and blood man) were destroyed.
Then we have a period of a furious flurry of writing, including "pious fraud" when all sorts of letters, epistles and gospels were written...most of which were destroyed by the 4th century if they didn't toe the party line (thank goodness for the manuscripts of Nag Hammadi) and those that did, were made "canon".
Then this was followed by the iron-fisted rule of the Holy Church of Rome, the Dark Ages, the Inquisition etc. By this time nobody would have thought to question whether there was actually a real person or not behind the teachings of the church...
As I've mentioned in another thread it is this historical accuracy that, to me, speak volumes to the divine inspiration and protection of the Bible. You see, you are right that it was the very same Holy Roman Empire, that "persecuted" the saints, that also canonized the scriptures into what we have had for the past 1600 years. The interesting thing is that, if self-serving corruption, was behind the canonization of the scriptures, than why would they canonize the very texts that the protestant reformers would use to usurp her authority? They couldn't because God was sure to protect His truth.
You haven't shown me squat. When your argument gets some "juice" I'll give it some credence. It doesn't. I'm not talking about the "causal consideration" you are talking about. You couldn't find a handful of people on the planet that would back your contention with any conviction. There are millions AT THIS VERY HOUR that, two thousand years after he died, given the choice, "Deny Jesus or die", would choose death! It's this evidence of Divine inspiration that speaks louder than anything you could EVER say. And THAT'S the authority...DIVINE AUTHORITY... upon which the case stands. Your case has no power, no "mojo", nothing...and you know it. Take a look around you today if you don't know what I'm talking about. You'll see.
All the best.
You have been shown unequivocally that appeal to numbers is a flawed argument. The number of people that believe something is not proof that what those people believe is true. It is only proof that what they believe is popular. You did not answer the question either (no surprise) as to why you don't appeal to the numbers that do not accept your Jesus. Why do you appeal to numbers when it supports your belief but reject appeal to numbers when it doesn't support your belief? Please answer.
You see folks! Am I not a prophet? Did I not speak the truth in another thread when I said that GldnRule would totally ignore all the posts that have shown his 'Appeal to Numbers/Authority' argument to be flawed and simply repost his 'Appeal to Numbers/Authority' argument?
GldnRule. You have been shown over and over again the flaw in your argument. Why do you keep repeating it? It wouldn't matter if every person on the planet believed in your Jesus, it still wouldn't mean that is was true.
If you think that 206 million US citizens believing in Jesus is proof that Jesus exists, why don't you think that the 1.5 billion Chinese who don't believe in your Jesus makes it true that he doesn't exist? I and others have repeatedly told you that if you are going to appeal to numbers for truth then you are going to have to accept that Jesus did/does not exist because those that believe in Jesus are a minority of the word population. There are 6 billion people in the world today and 33% of them believe that your Jesus lives. That means that just over 2 billion people believe in him leaving 4 billion that don't. Your appeal to numbers game dictates that you should be accepting that there are more people who don't believe than there are that do. Therefore, if numbers equal truth....Jesus does not exist.
Look Dude, I don't live in China. I live in the U.S.A (great place--so good I'd die for it). In case you didn't know...Numbers/Authority is what has the "juice" around here...majority rules...position rules...that's how this country was founded...as well as on The Jesus Platform. I'm living HERE...and it's 2010. Get a clue...Your platform is a loser. You're like a political candidate that has used the same platform for 2000 years of elections...and loses EVERY election...and the BEST they EVER did was get trounced in a landslide defeat...with the incumbent Jesus Christ taking 75% of the votes. I mean COM'OOOON! And you're still lobbying the SAME platform! He lost an election once...to a guy named Barabas...it cost him his life...but they still couldn't beat him...he even defeated the grave!!
And look, We don't have to prove ANYTHING...He's the Undefeeeeeated, Reeeeeigning, and Deeeefending...Chaaaaampion...Of the Woooooorld!!!! Jesus holds the position...you gotta come with your stuff to defeat him. So far, you've shown me nuthin'...you get knocked out EVERY time.
So you're reduced to coming onto forum threads with titles like, "The Case for the Resurrection: Interesting Christian Apologetics Read"...during HOLY WEEK...and busting stones on the people discussing something that means something very important to them. Why? Does it really bother you THAT much?! You're free to believe and think ,what you believe and think...but coming on a thread of this title...ON EASTER SUNDAY!!!...and pulling chains!!!!? I don't know about guys like you, man. Try that Golden Rule thing sometime...it makes the world a nicer place.
I'll add you to my prayers today...I'll ask Jesus to help you find something to give you inner peace.
HE IS RISEN!!!
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He rose, that's for SURE
