There are some former Christians who have lost their faith, because they
got caught up in a “Shell Game!” There are those who divert Christians from the
truth of Salvation provided through Christ’s Grace, by focusing them on the
inconsistencies that are within the New Testament. They make the case that if
there are inconsistencies, the information in the Bible is false and if that’s
the case, Jesus’ being the Son of God is also false.
I will use the New King James Version (NKJV) of the Bible and internet
resources, if necessary, to further analyze any inconsistencies that might
exist to determine if they are significant enough to disprove that God said
that Jesus Is His Beloved Son and whether that also disproves that Jesus Is the
Son of God.
Since the Bible quite frequently uses the words him and he within the
same sentence, I will put in brackets the person talking and the person being
talked to, when it’s not clear. Additionally, I will put analysis, opinions,
and conclusions within brackets to make it easier to identify. You will be able
to find these at a future date on https://BiblicalProof.blogspot.com and https://BiblicalInconsistencies.blogspot.com, two blogs I felt led to create for viewers to read the research
analysis and make their own decisions.
I put all the pertinent passages together in the beginning, so you know
the texts we are examining.
Jesus’ Baptism
Matthew 3:13-17 says: Then Jesus came from Galilee to John [the Baptist]
at the Jordan to be baptized by him. And John tried to prevent Him [Jesus],
saying, “I need to be baptized by You, and are you coming to me?” But Jesus
answered and said to him, “Permit it to be so now,
for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he [John the Baptist] allowed Him [Jesus]. When He [Jesus] had
been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the
heavens were opened to Him, and he [John the Baptist] saw the Spirit of God
descending like a dove and alighting upon Him [Jesus]. And suddenly a voice
came from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in
whom I am well pleased.”
Mark 1:9-11 says: It came to pass in those days that Jesus came from
Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And immediately,
coming up from the water, He saw the heavens parting and the Spirit descending
upon Him [Jesus] like a dove. Then a voice came from heaven, “You are My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”
Luke 3:21-22 says: When all the people were baptized, it came to pass
that Jesus also was baptized; and while He prayed, the heaven was opened. And
the Holy Spirit descended in bodily form like a dove upon Him [Jesus], and a
voice came from heaven which said, “You are My beloved Son; in
You I am well pleased.”
John 1:26-34 says: John answered them, saying, “I baptize with
water, but there stands One among you whom you do not know. “It is He who,
coming after me, is preferred before me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to
loose.” “These things were done in Bethabara beyond the Jordan [River],
where John [the Baptist] was baptizing. The next day John saw Jesus coming
toward him, and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the
world! “This is He of whom I said, ‘After me comes a Man who is preferred
before me, for He was before me.’ “I did not know Him; but that He should be
revealed to Israel, therefore I came baptizing with water.” And John bore
witness, saying, “I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and
He remained upon Him [Jesus] “I did not know Him, but He [God] who sent
me to baptize with water said to me, ‘Upon whom you see the Spirit descending
and remaining on Him, this is He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ “And
I [John the Baptist] have seen and testified that this is the Son of God.”
2 Peter 1:16-18 says: For we did not follow cunningly devised fables
when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but
were eyewitnesses of His majesty. For He [Jesus] received from God the Father
honor and glory when such a voice came to Him from the Excellent Glory: “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” And we heard this voice which came from heaven when we were with Him on
the holy mountain.
[I’m not sure this was at Jesus’ baptism or at His Transfiguration,
because God the Father said similar things at both. I will review it again,
later.]
[The first inconsistency I see is where it is recorded that Jesus was
baptized. I will put the portions below that provide pertinent information for
further analysis.]
Matthew 3:13 says: Then Jesus came from Galilee to John [the Baptist] at
the Jordan [River] to be baptized by him [John the Baptist].
Mark 1:9 says: It came to pass in those days that Jesus came from
Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized by John in the Jordan [River].
Luke 3:21 says: When all the people were baptized, it came to pass that
Jesus also was baptized; and while He [Jesus] prayed, the heaven was opened.
John 1:28 says: “These things were done in Bethabara beyond the
Jordan [River], where John [the Baptist] was baptizing.
[Both the Gospels of Matthew 3:13 and Mark 1:9 say that Jesus was
baptized in the Jordan River. Luke 3:21 says that Jesus was baptized, but
doesn’t say where this happened. John 1:28 mentions that Jesus was baptized in
Bethabara beyond the Jordan. I looked at about 20 different internet sites to
try to find out where Bethabara is/was in relation to the Jordan River. Silly
me! I didn’t notice that my NKJV Bible has a footnote for that. It says:
“NU-Text and M-Text read Bethany.” So, when I looked up special Abbreviations
in the front of my Bible, I found that NU-Text is the modern eclectic, or
“critical,” text of the Greek New Testament and that M-Text means Majority
Text. Since these two sources say that Bethabara is the same as Bethany, I need
to see where Bethany is located in relation to the Jordan River.]
[In looking this up, I found lots of different locations, but none of
those gave me an idea of how far Bethany was from the Jordan River except for
Atlas Tours, Bethany, Jordan found at https://atlastours.net/jordan/bethany/
This is their description:
Less than 2 kms east of the Jordan River is one of the
most important places associated with the lives of Jesus and John the Baptist (pbut), the settlement of Bethany, or Al-Maghtas in Arabic, where John lived and
baptized. John 1:28 refers to it as "Bethany beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing". ]
[In my opinion, the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and John are consistent
with the location where Jesus was baptized. In that John says that Bethany is 2
kilometers from the Jordan River, which is approximately 1 ¼ miles, makes this
possible as a site close to the Jordan River. In that Luke 3:21 didn’t say
where Jesus was baptized, in my opinion, does not invalidate that Jesus was
baptized and that God said that Jesus Is His Beloved Son.]
[The next inconsistency that I am going to tackle is whether John the
Baptist is the one who baptized Jesus. Again, I will put the portions of the
Bible pertaining to this below to better analyze the passages.]
Matthew 3:13-15 says: Then Jesus came from Galilee to John [the Baptist]
at the Jordan to be baptized by him. And John tried to prevent Him, saying, “I
need to be baptized by You, and are you coming to me?” But Jesus answered and
said to him, “Permit it to be so now,
for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he [John the Baptist] allowed Him [Jesus].
Mark 1:9-11 says: It came to pass in those days that Jesus came from
Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized by John in the Jordan.
Luke 3:21 says: When all the people were baptized, it came to pass that
Jesus also was baptized; and while He prayed, the heaven was opened.
[Normally, I wouldn’t put the whole passage below, but it all seems
significant in making a determination about who baptized Jesus.]
John 1:26-34 says: John answered them, saying, “I baptize with water,
but there stands One among you whom you do not know. “It is He who, coming
after me, is preferred before me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose.”
“These things were done in Bethabara beyond the Jordan [River], where John
[the Baptist] was baptizing. The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and
said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! “This is He
of whom I said, ‘After me comes a Man who is preferred before me, for He was
before me.’ “I did not know him; but that He should be revealed to Israel,
therefore I came baptizing with water.” And John bore witness, saying, “I
saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and He remained upon Him
[Jesus] “I did not know Him, but He [God] who sent me to baptize with
water said to me, ‘Upon whom you see the Spirit descending and remaining on
Him, this is He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ “And I [John the
Baptist] have seen and testified that this is the Son of God.”
[Now for my analysis on this: Both Gospels of Matthew and Mark say that
John the Baptist was the one who baptized Jesus. Special note: Luke 3:21: When
all the people were baptized, it came to pass that Jesus also was baptized; and
while He [Jesus] prayed, the heaven was opened. Just prior to the previous
passage: Luke 3:19-20 says: but Herod the
tetrarch, being rebuked by him [John the Baptist] concerning Herodias, his
brother Philip’s wife, and for all the evils which Herod had done, also added
this above all, that he shut John [the Baptist] up in prison. [This would mean
that John the Baptist was not there when Jesus was baptized, if this particular
passage is correct.]
[If John isn’t the one who baptized Jesus, does this invalidate that
Jesus was baptized and that God said that Jesus Is His Beloved Son? After lots
of thorough research of these passages, whether John the Baptist did or did not
baptize Jesus doesn’t invalidate that Jesus was baptized or that God said that
Jesus Is His Beloved Son.]
[Additionally: John 1:26-34 doesn’t exactly say that John the Baptist
baptized Jesus, but it somewhat implies it. John 1:30-34 says: “This is He of
whom I said, ‘After me comes a Man who is preferred before me, for He was
before me.’ “I did not know Him; but that He should be revealed to Israel,
therefore I came baptizing with water.” And John bore witness, saying, “I
saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and He remained upon Him
[Jesus] “I did not know Him, but He [God] who sent me to baptize with water
said to me, ‘Upon whom you see the Spirit descending and remaining on Him, this
is He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ “And I [John the Baptist] have
seen and testified that this is the Son of God.]
[So, John the Baptist was
baptizing and Jesus was there at this time. John the Baptist says that He [God]
sent him to baptize with water and that he will see the Spirit descending on
Him who baptizes with the Holy Spirit. John the Baptist attests to seeing the
Holy Spirit descending and remaining on Jesus, but never actually says that
this happened as he, John the Baptist, baptized Jesus. Is this significant?
After reading these passages over and over again, in that John the Baptist
doesn’t say that he actually baptized Jesus doesn’t invalidate that Jesus was
baptized or that God said that Jesus Is His Beloved Son. On the contrary, it
corroborates that John the Baptist did see the Spirit descend on Jesus after he
had been told this by God. John testifies that Jesus Is the Son of God.]
[The most significant of all the things we are analyzing would be
whether God said that Jesus Is His Beloved Son at Jesus’ baptism, meaning that
Jesus Is God’s Son. I will put the pertinent passages below to better be able
to review them.]
Matthew 3:16-17 says: When He had been baptized, Jesus came up
immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He
[John the Baptist] saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting
upon Him [Jesus]. And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”
Mark 1:9-11 says: It came to pass in those days that Jesus came from
Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And immediately,
coming up from the water, He saw the heavens parting and the Spirit descending
upon Him like a dove. Then a voice came from heaven, “You are My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”
Luke 3:21-22 says: When all the people were baptized, it came to pass
that Jesus also was baptized; and while He prayed, the heaven was opened. And
the Holy Spirit descended in bodily form like a dove upon Him, and a voice came
from heaven which said, “You are My beloved Son; in
You I am well pleased.”
John 1:29-34 says: The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and
said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! “This is He
of whom I said, ‘After me comes a Man who is preferred before me, for He was
before me.’ “I did not know Him; but that He should be revealed to Israel,
therefore I came baptizing with water.” And John
bore witness, saying, “I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove,
and He remained upon Him [Jesus] “I did not know Him, but He [God] who
sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘Upon whom you see the Spirit
descending and remaining on Him, this is He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’
“And I [John the Baptist] have seen and testified that this is the Son of
God.”
[After analyzing these and reviewing what all four Gospels say, I feel
they all basically say the same thing: that when Jesus was baptized, the Holy
Spirit descended on Jesus. The Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke use basically
the same words that God said about Jesus Being
His Beloved Son in Whom He is well pleased! Although the Gospel of John doesn’t use those words, it does say that
God let John the Baptist know prior to Jesus’ baptism that he would see the
Spirit descending on Jesus who baptizes with the Holy Spirit. When this
happened, John the Baptist testified that Jesus
Is the Son of God. In my opinion, John the Baptist’s being told by God
in advance and seeing it happen as God told him, is just more corroboration
that Jesus Is God’s Son!]
In addition, 2 Peter 1:16-18 says: For we did not follow cunningly
devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus
Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His majesty. For He [Jesus] received from God
the Father honor and glory when such a voice came to Him from the Excellent
Glory: “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” And we heard this voice which came from heaven when we were with Him on
the holy mountain.
[I’m not sure this was at Jesus’ baptism or at His Transfiguration,
because God the Father said similar things at both. Despite the fact that I
can’t tell which time God said this about Jesus, it does provide additional
proof about Jesus being God’s Son, not to mention all the witnesses at Jesus’
baptism who saw and heard this!]
[Don’t let people try to confuse you about inconsistencies. You have to analyze them the way that we have to determine whether they are significant enough to disprove the points they’ve made. I have yet to find any inconsistency in the Bible that disproves that Jesus Is God’s Beloved Son. In and of itself, that is additional proof that Jesus Is God’s Son! If you need more proof, try going to How to Know Jesus Is the Son of God at https://JesusIsGodsSon.blogspot.com , a blog I felt led to create to provide a vast majority of the biblical proof that Jesus Christ is truly the Son of God!]
