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Posted on 09/22/2016 10:45:55 AM PDT by fishtank
Pastor Andy Stanley says the Bible is too hard to defend
Evangelical pastor preaches that the Bible isn’t the foundation for the Christian faith
by Lita Cosner and Scott Gillis
Published: 22 September 2016 (GMT+10)
Andy Stanley has a church network of over 30,000 people in the Atlanta area, and his church was rated the fastest-growing in America in 2014 and 2015.1 Recently, he has been criticized by many evangelicals for saying that we need to take the focus off the Bible and put it on the Resurrection, because he claims that gives us a firmer foundation for our faith. As Stanley put it: “We believe Jesus rose from the dead not because the Bible says so. It is way better than that! Christianity does not hang by the thread of ‘The Bible told me so’.”2 And: “The original version [of Christianity], the pre-Bible version, was defensible, it was endurable, it was persecutable, it was fearless, it was compassionate, and it was compelling,” but he claims “it is next to impossible to defend the entire Bible”.2
(Excerpt) Read more at creation.com ...
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Another grievous wolf.
One reason Stanley argues we need this change in perspective is that Scripture is too hard to defend:
“What your students have discovered, and if you read broadly you’ve discovered, it is next to impossible to defend the entire Bible. But if your Christianity hangs by the thread of proving that everything in the Bible is true, you may be able to hang onto it, but your kids and your grandkids and the next generation will not. Because this puts the Bible at the center of the debate. This puts the spotlight right on the Bible. Everything rises and falls on whether not part, but all the Bible is true. And that’s unfortunate, and as we’re going to discover today, it is absolutely unnecessary.”2
Among the things he specifically states are indefensible and not supported by evidence:
Israel’s Exodus from Egypt
The walls in Jericho fell down
The earth is 6,000 years old
The chronological information in 1, 2 Kings, 1, 2 Chronicles, and 1, 2, Samuel
The global flood in Noah’s day
Pretty much all those items were ENDORSED by Jesus Himself.
He has itching ears.
If you interpret the bible literally it is literally impossible to interpret the bible.
I saw that on another site and think it is spot on. Heck, Paul “appears” to contradict himself in the same chapter sometimes if you ignore context.
The bible is a lot like Yogi Berra when he said, regarding a restaurant, “nobody goes there any more because it’s too crowded.” The words make no sense, except we all know exactly what he means. :-)
Easy to defend if you have the intellectual honesty and imagination to try to look at the context of human existance when the various parts of scripture were written. People who try to judge history through 2016 lenses are dishonest mental midgets.
A great thinker. /s
Perhaps he should ride in the bible bus with J Vernon McGee.
Has Stanley ever been queried on his opinion of the Koran, I wonder?
The Bible is easy to defend, as long as the people are open-minded. If he thinks it is difficult to defend, he should enlist with the Unitarians...
” it is next to impossible to defend the entire Bible.”
Why? Does he have evidence that it isn’t true? Are those things to great for even God to do?
And we don’t know the age if the Earth. That’s just some person’s guess.
IT’S IN THE BOOK. THAT’S THE WAY IT WILL BE.
The bible never claims to be the center of Christianity. Rather, it says it is very useful for teaching, etc. The early church had no new testament, but a lot of people were saved.
Prayer and a relationship with Him through the spirit is most important. The bible is a nice teaching tool. One can be a Christian without ever seeing a bible. One can not be a Christian without a relationship with Him.
False teacher.
I am fearful enough of my own judgment, I wouldn’t want to witness his.
I’d heard he’d had a lapse of judgement a few years ago and was probably involved in some sort of overwhelming sin. I’m guessing the enemy has taken over his life during this season. Spiritual warfare is real and he desperately needs our prayers.
Truth does not need any defense, not from Andy Stanley or from me.
Well at least he clearly identified himself as a false teacher. The Bible stands on its own as our sole authority for all matters of faith and practice regardless of whether Andy can defend it or not. Voltaire didn’t pretend he believed.
Well at least he clearly identified himself as a false teacher. The Bible stands on its own as our sole authority for all matters of faith and practice regardless of whether Andy can defend it or not. Voltaire didn’t pretend he believed.
Yeah, that’ll build the Kingdom....NOT. What a fool.
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