Apologetics Sermon Illustration #59: Bible Contradiction and Mistaking ‘poppers’ for Candy

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Point: Sometimes when one engage in apologetics the issue of alleged Bible contradiction comes up.  There are times when those who assert that there are contradictory verses in the Bible fail to acknowledge that words can have more than one meaning and thus a word used in one context does not mean the same thing in another context.  But if one fail to recognize there are differences of meaning of the word being used in two separate contexts, a skeptic can easily assume there’s a Bible contradiction when there are none.  Are there any examples of this error to get the point across to a skeptic of their foolish methodology and mistake?

Picture: I saw tonight this news headline: “Mother claims she was left with chemical burns after accidentally eating a handful of mini FIREWORKS thinking they were popping candy.”

The news article said this:

 mother-of-one has claimed that she was left with chemical burns after she accidentally ate a handful of mini fireworks thinking they were popping candy.

Lisa Boothroyd, from Rugby, Warwickshire, said she found the multicoloured box of Fun Snaps among the lollipops in a Costcutter store when she was buying snacks for her and her neighbours, and assumed because of the placement they were confectionery.

But the 48-year-old claimed that after returning home and throwing a handful into her mouth she soon realised that they were actually small novelty fireworks sold as trick noisemakers.

I admit I have a hard time thinking this is real.  I smell a fraud.  How do you open the box and see the wrapping of a firecracker and think that looks like candy?

Still I think if you read the box there’s clues its not a candy.  The “literary form” of the box should suggest what is the item that she’s purchasing.  The “texture” of the items itself once she opens it makes it hard to misinterpret what it is she has.  It has to be willful ignorance or some serious faculty problem to misinterpret “popper” that badly!

Likewise the BIble too must be interpreted according to what passage is located in what genre of writing (literary form).  See our hermeneutics series here: Veritas Domain Hermeneutics Series: Course Level One, Two and Three.

This story is ridiculous.  Sadly the skeptics often twists God’s Word in this ridiculous fashion.

POSSIBLE SCENARIO FOR EMPLOYING THIS ILLUSTRATION DURING APOLOGETIC EVANGELISM

OPPONENT: I can’t believe in Christianity because of the contradictions in the Bible.  For instance, isn’t it a Bible Absurdity when we consider this question: How to be a Good Christian according to Jacob?

CHRISTIAN: We don’t have a contradiction here at all.  <Insert response>

OPPONENT: That’s a cop out.

CHRISTIAN: That is not true.  <Insert Illustration>  Is the singer here saying no one should like and love God?

OPPONENT: No.

CHRISTIAN: Likewise that’s what you are trying to do with this alleged Bible difficulty.

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