Miracle and Resurrection Paper
docx
keyboard_arrow_up
School
Liberty University *
*We aren’t endorsed by this school
Course
425
Subject
Religion
Date
Dec 6, 2023
Type
docx
Pages
7
Uploaded by caleschueler
Liberty University
Miracle and Resurrection Paper
Submitted to Proffesor Marks
APOL220_B10_202340
By
Cale Schueler
October 7th, 2023
What is a Miracle?
If someone is more open to Christianity than before but struggles with believing in
miracles that is completely normal as Christians we can understand where they are coming from.
I also believe even as Christians we can still relate because we are still humans and
unintentionally put our own sort of limitations on God being able to do things in our lives.
Miracles are a part of Christian beliefs and if we are going to convinve someone we must first set
the groundwork. For instance, what actually constitutes a miracle from the Christian perspective?
If we look at a biblical definition we see it is, “
the biblical concept is limited to those not
explainable solely by natural processes but which require the direct causal agency of a
supernatural being, usually God. These occur throughout all major eras of history but do appear
with greater frequency at key periods of God's self-revelation”.
1
Oftentimes in today’s culture we
misuse the word miracle so it is important to go over the definition with an unbeliever before
furthering the discussion.
“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
Now the earth was formless and
empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the
waters.
And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. God saw that the light was good,
and he separated the light from the darkness”.
2
As Christians this is the first and possibly the
greatest miracle apart from the resurrection of Jesus Christ. We believe that the beginning of life
itself and our own lives are both miracles. In this miracle we find purpose and how we ought to
live our lives that has been given to us by God our creator. Apologetics at the Cross explains the
mindset of Christian towards life, “Yet at the heart of the Christian story is the claim that through
1
“What Does Miracle Mean? Bible Definition and References.” n.d. Biblestudytools.com.
https://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionary/miracle/.
2
“Genesis 1:1-3 NIV - - Bible Gateway.” n.d. Www.biblegateway.com.
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis+1%3A1-3&version=NIV
.
the death and resurrection of his Son Jesus Christ, God has rescued us from sin and futility,
giving our work eternal significance and fulfilling our longing for purpose. Moreover, in the
person of Jesus Christ, we are given a model of how we are to live a life of purpose and meaning
aimed at the true and eternal goal”.
3
Our friend most likely believes in the big bang theory as that
is the most popular assumption today and it is not considered a miracle. For the sake of this
argument leave that alone and ask if he/she believes if there is any meaning or purpose for their
life. I believe most younger people believe there is but are unsure or listen to what society says
whether that be listen to your heart, strive to always be happy, or obtain material possessions, etc.
I would present them with an “A” to “B” doctrine question, if they believe that there has to be
some purpose for their life, why not believe in a God who created you intentionally and gives
you meaning to your life? This question could also be asked but in a simpler way first but with
the same principle. If my friend was to be on a walk in the woods and happen to find a
functioning clock on the ground what would he/she naturally assume? That this watch was made
by a creator with a purpose to tell time and it has been left here by someone, you would not think
this watch must’ve appeared magically in the forest with no creator or owner.
Another great place to go to help convince my friend would be the New Testament, not
necessarily because of the miracle performed but because of the historical documentation along
with eyewitness accounts almost always being recorded. Also you have the authors of the
gospels were firsthand accounts to Jesus. “
The fact that the New Testament writers claimed such
objective, complete, and firsthand evidence concerning Jesus Christ is of the utmost importance.
Their evidence is not hearsay or imaginary—it is direct and reliable”.
4
My friend, like many
3
2022. Vitalsource.com. 2022.
https://libertyonline.vitalsource.com/reader/books/9780310524724/epubcfi/6/50
.
4
“The Historical Accuracy of the New Testament by Don Stewart.” n.d. Blue Letter Bible.
https://www.blueletterbible.org/Comm/stewart_don/the-case-for-christianity/05-the-historical-
Your preview ends here
Eager to read complete document? Join bartleby learn and gain access to the full version
- Access to all documents
- Unlimited textbook solutions
- 24/7 expert homework help
other people, could also believe that the gospels contradict each other because they are not
exactly the same. A simple apologetic approach is to set up a common scenario as an example.
For the sake of simplicity, if I go into a grocery store with my friend and we both go into the
store and observe what goes on, write down what we see and compare what we have. Now it is
very likely that we will both have a lot of the same observations and then we each have some
that differ. But this does not mean that we have now contradicted each other because both of our
recordings don’t perfectly line up. This is not a contradiction, they actually compliment each
other while also remaining parallel with the main message, the life and resurrection of Jesus
Christ.
There were many other accounts outside of the Bible to help convince the historical
aspects of Jesus as a real life figure. But the miracles are also all well documented, “
What sets
the New Testament miracles off from accounts in many other kinds of literature is their
consistent link to the arrival or inauguration of God’s reign in the person of Jesus and the
movement he began (
Matt. 12:28
;
Luke 11:20
)”.
5
Christianity is the religion with the closest
parallels with all recorded miracles compared to any other religion or mythology.
The last closing argument for a friend struggling to believe in miracles but is still open to
Christianity would be this. Invite them to church, intruduce them to people who have testimonies
of receiving or witnessing healing to others. The greatest aplogetic defense we have as Christians
is our story, our testimony with Christ. It is one thing to read about two thousand years ago or
even two years ago. Being a witness to the power of the Holy Spirirt is unlike any case of
evidence for miracles.
accuracy-of-the-new-testament.cfm
.
5
Blomberg, Craig. n.d. “The Reliability of the New Testament.” The Gospel Coalition.
https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/essay/reliability-new-testament/.
Works Cited
2022. Vitalsource.com. 2022.
https://libertyonline.vitalsource.com/reader/books/9780310524724/epubcfi/6/50
.
Blomberg, Craig. n.d. “The Reliability of the New Testament.” The Gospel Coalition.
https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/essay/reliability-new-testament/.
“Genesis 1:1-3 NIV - - Bible Gateway.” n.d. Www.biblegateway.com.
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis+1%3A1-3&version=NIV
.
“The Historical Accuracy of the New Testament by Don Stewart.” n.d. Blue Letter Bible.
https://www.blueletterbible.org/Comm/stewart_don/the-case-for-christianity/05-the-
historical-accuracy-of-the-new-testament.cfm
.
“What Does Miracle Mean? Bible Definition and References.” n.d. Biblestudytools.com.
https://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionary/miracle/.
Your preview ends here
Eager to read complete document? Join bartleby learn and gain access to the full version
- Access to all documents
- Unlimited textbook solutions
- 24/7 expert homework help