Sep 29, 2011

88 Should we overlook differences in the Gospels

Believer says: It doesn’t matter if there are occasional discrepancies between the Gospel accounts ... what really matters most is the spiritual gist of the Gospel message.   

But skeptic says: Well then, preachers should stop planting whole sermons on a few chosen words that relate to what Jesus and the disciples did. After all, by admission in the believer’s above remarks, the Gospels aren’t so much careful journalism as they are just a gist of things. And by the same token, I say it does little or no good for a preacher to tear a verse apart word by Greek word in order to explain what it “really means.” Since the verse in question is merely a spiritual gist of things, it’d only be a waste of time to go beyond the general picture. 

Recap: An apologist may claim that the New Testament Gospels convey only the spiritual gist of Jesus' deeds and sayings. But when the apologist reverses his position and closely examines the Greek words, opening his exegesis with his line “What the Greek really means is ...” it seems to me that he claims whatever serves his purpose at the moment.

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