APOL500_AFBA_JNT
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Liberty University *
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Course
500
Subject
Philosophy
Date
Feb 20, 2024
Type
docx
Pages
3
Uploaded by ElderHyena2296
A
POLOGETICS
F
IELD
-B
ASED
A
CTIVITY
: J
ESUS
AND
THE
R
ELIABILITY
OF
THE
N
EW
T
ESTAMENT
T
EMPLATE
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: Instructions for this submission The purpose of the activity is to provide you with an opportunity to construct a short argument for the reliability of the New Testament account of Jesus while anticipating possible objections to that argument and then sharing that argument “in the field
.” In the sections provided below, you will insert your constructed argument and possible objections; you will enter the date, time, setting, and short description of the person with whom you share the argument; and a short reflection on the sharing experience.
1.
Construct a short argument for the reliability of the New Testament account of Jesus while anticipating possible objections.
a.
Type below the list, the type of argument for the reliability of the New Testament account of Jesus that you will be constructing (limit yourself to one of
argument): Was Jesus God? b.
Lay out your argument as you plan to use it in the conversation you will be having.
-
Jesus willingly walked into His death, false prophets, liars, and lunatics did not die for nothing in those days.
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Jesus was a poor man and did not seek fame or fortune, but He sought the lost sheep.
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Jesus’s teachings, as well as death and resurrection, demonstrate that He did not lie and provided an in-depth look into His character.
c.
Anticipate two to three possible objections to your argument and how you would
address those objections in a short conversation. -
Jesus only claimed to be the Son of Man, not God. True, but in the Jewish culture back then claiming to be the Son of Man put Him at an even level with God. Hence, Jesus claimed to be God in the flesh.
-
Jesus was human because He was born, He had physical need (food, water, etc.), and He was in pain when He died. Again, true, but Jesus did things only God can do (healing, forgive sins, etc.), as well as die and be resurrected on the third day.
1
2.
Sharing your argument for the reliability of the New Testament account of Jesus.
a.
Identify the time and place in which you had the conversation.
It was 10:00am, Sept. 15, 2022, at James Coffee. b.
Identify the setting (coffeeshop, online, text, etc. It must, however, be a conversation and not a monologue): We met at a new local coffee shop and had a conversation in person.
c.
Identify your conversation partner (no names please): unbeliever, believer; uncertain; knowledge level, attitude of partner (antagonistic, interested, doubtful, devil’s advocate). My conversation partner for this field-based activity is uncertain of their faith, but seems interested. They were raised in the church, but have not been in a long time.
3.
Reflection in which you describe how the conversation went, the reaction of your conversation partner both during and after the presentation of the argument, what you might have done differently, and how you feel after presentation about the strength of the argument.
a.
Describe details about how the conversation went.
I believe that my argument went over very well and my partner was able to ask some reasonable questions. First, I explained that I would like to start the conversation with my side of the argument as to why I believe Jesus is God. I started my argument talking about the ministry of Jesus and the miracles He performed, the claims He made about Himself and God, and how He willingly suffered for us. I attempted to keep my argument between 3-5 minutes so that my partner could also keep his rebuttals or questions juts as short.
His first question was how could we know that He was truly the Messiah and we were not duped. I explained again that if He was lying then the chances are He would have avoided death at all costs. Additionally, if He were not to have been raised from the dead then we could have significant doubts about His divinity. Fortunately, not only was He resurrected, but there was also over 500 eyewitnesses (1 Cor. 15:3-8, English Standard Version). Lastly, he seemed to have been buying-in and had additional questions outside of the scope of my argument, but one I would like to mention is his question of knowing when He will return. I informed him that Jesus had stated that even He did not know and that we should always be like a servant waiting for his master’s return (Matt. 24:36, English Standard Version). b.
Describe the reaction of your conversation partner both during and after the presentation of the argument.
My partner looked as if he had an epiphany with some of the information. He had never had an in-depth look into Jesus’s life, ministry, and his death and resurrection. It seemed as if he had so many more questions but was unsure of if he should ask them or if they were valid. They seem to have accepted that although people may doubt Jesus’s claims of being God, those people are just misinformed as he was. If he has clearly never knew these facts about Jesus then he is certain that many others have not as well. Additionally, they were surprised
at the amount of knowledge I had on the life of Jesus and what He has done in my
life since our last conversation.
c.
Describe what you might have done differently. Based on my last field experience, I had felt it was important to bring resources with me. I ended up bringing my iPad and my Bible for references. I believe that it was too much going back and forth between the Bible and technology to state and defend my argument. Next time I feel that not over doing it and bringing just the Bible as my reference would be best.
d.
Describe what you feel after the presentation about the strength of the argument.
I feel great about the argument as it provided my partner with some self-
reflection. I feel that after this short conversation that they will be interested to learn more about the life of Jesus. This to me feels extremely rewarding because I know that Jesus cared more for the one lost sheep than the 99 saved sheep. If this argument, which I felt provided a simple explanation of how and/or why Jesus claimed to be one with God, can convert one person at a time then that would make me happy. I also know that it would please Him as well.
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