Mars Hill Examiner Now Biblical Worldview Review

My blog title has now changed from Mars Hill Examiner to Biblical Worldview Review.  

biblicalworldviewreview.blogspot.com 

Books You Should Read About The Origin, Reliability, And Authority Of The Bible

 Scripture Alone by James White

Scribes And Scripture by John Meade & Peter Gurry 

Canon Revisited by Michael Kruger

The Heresy Of Orthodoxy by Andreas Kostenberger & Michael Kruger 

The Origin Of The Bible edited by Philip Comfort

Will You Have A Mansion In Heaven?

(John 14:2)"In my Father's house are many mansions; if it were no so, I would have told you.  I go to prepare a place for you." (KJV) 

(John 14:2)"In my Father's house are many rooms.  If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?" (ESV) 

The King James Version has "many mansions" while the ESV has "many rooms." Most modern translations have either rooms or dwelling places.  Does saying in a house are many mansions even make sense in modern English?  

In 1611 when the King James Version was originally done, the word mansions could actually mean something like rooms.  So rooms or dwelling places is actually the best translation.  It is worth noting that the Geneva Bible which preceded the King James Version, had dwelling places.  

My Father's house refers to heaven and there will be plenty of room for God's people there. When Jesus says that he goes to prepare a place for you, he probably does not mean it in a literal sense.  The Lord likely means that through his death and resurrection, he prepares a place for us in heaven.    

Who Is Jesus?

 Matthew 16:13-20 deals with the very question of who Jesus is.  The Lord asks his disciples who people say he is and they reply that people consider him to be a prophet (16:13-14).  Jesus then poses the question to his disciples.  

"He said to them, But who do you say that I am?  Simon Peter replied, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."  (Matthew 16:15-16) (ESV) 

In response to Peter's confession that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, the Lord tells Peter he is blessed and that this has been revealed to him by God the Father (16:17).  

Jesus confirms the confession made by Peter as correct because he is the Christ, the Son of the living God.  Christ means Messiah or Anointed One.  Jesus is the only, unique Son of God.  He is co-equal and co-eternal with God the Father.  

Jesus is more than a good teacher, moral example, or inspirational figure.  He is the Christ, the Son of the living God.  This confession is the rock on which the church is built (16:18).   

Does The Gospel Of John Predict The Coming Of The Prophet Muhammad?

 Some Muslims believe that in John 14 the reference to Helper, Advocate, or Counselor is a reference to Muhammad.  Of course Christians hold that the Helper is the Holy Spirit.  Muslims believe the text in John has been changed and that it should have "exalted one" instead of Helper.  So they believe the exalted one refers to Muhammad.  There is no evidence that the text in John 14 has been changed, but this is what many Muslims believe.  

(John 14:16-17)"And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him.  You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you." (ESV) 

Jesus did not ask the Father to send Muhammad to be with the disciples forever.  In fact the Helper is even referred to as the Spirit of truth.  The world did see and know Muhammad unlike the Holy Spirit.  The disciples in the first century did not know Muhammad and he did not dwell with them because he was not born yet.  One also wonders how Muhammad could be inside the disciples.  

(John 14:26)"But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you." (ESV) 

This verse directly refers to the Helper as the Holy Spirit.  The Father did not send Muhammad in the name of Jesus to teach the disciples all things or to bring to their remembrance all he said to them.  

Muslims who say the Helper in John 14 refers to Muhammad are practicing terrible and absurd interpretation, reading into the text things that are not there.  Jesus did not predict the coming of a prophet who would supersede him.  There is no greater prophet than Jesus.  Of course Jesus is more than a prophet, he is the Christ, the Son of God. 

John 3:16 (A Bible Translation Comparison)

 (NKJV)"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." 

(ESV)"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." 

(LSB)"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life." 

(CSB)"For God loved the world in this way: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life." 

The NKJV follows the KJV in this verse except for updated language.  The ESV and LSB stay close to the form and wording of the KJV.  The CSB departs somewhat from the traditional KJV rendering.  

In the first clause of the verse the NKJV, ESV, and LSB all have the traditional rendering, "For God so loved the world."  The CSB moves away from the traditional translation with, "For God loved the world in this way."  

Another difference in the translations centers around the Greek word "monogenes." The NKJV and the LSB render the phrase, "only begotten Son." The ESV has "only Son," while the CSB has "one and only Son."  

NKJV (New King James Version)

ESV (English Standard Version)

LSB (Legacy Standard Bible)

CSB (Christian Standard Bible)

The Books That Shaped Me

 Of course the Bible is far above all other books because it is the Word of God.  For several years I used the NIV (1984 Edition) and then later switched to the ESV, which is now the main translation that I use.  Here are some of the most significant and influential books on my thought.  

Institutes Of The Christian Religion by John Calvin

Here I Stand by Roland Bainton

The Bondage Of The Will by Martin Luther

The Gospel According To Jesus by John MacArthur

No Place For Truth by David Wells

What Is Reformed Theology? by R.C. Sproul

Christian Apologetics by Cornelius Van Til

The God Who Is There by Francis Schaeffer

The King James Only Controversy by James White

Desiring God by John Piper

Putting Amazing Back Into Grace by Michael Horton

Always Ready by Greg Bahnsen

Apologetics by John Frame

Jesus Under Fire edited by Michael Wilkins & J.P. Moreland