Question: It is said that the writings of the historians Publius Cornelius Tacitus and Titus Flavius Josephus, born Yosef ben Matityahu were forgeries. Is there any historical evidence that the writings of the historians Publius Cornelius Tacitus and Titus Flavius Josephus were forgeries? How far it is true? Answer: About these authors, the answer depends […]
Question: Do early Church Fathers support Catholic doctrine, as the Catholics claim? For example, St Ignatius writes: “Make no mistake, my brothers, if anyone joins a schismatic he will not inherit God’s Kingdom. If anyone walks in the way of heresy, he is out of sympathy with the Passion. Be careful, then, to observe a […]
Question: If Jesus died for our sins…why should we need to be baptized for the forgiveness of our sins (besides the fact of it being a command)? Answer: I do not mean to be facetious, but the simple answer is “Because God said so.” If God tells us to do something, it is not required […]
Question: How can i differentiate between biblical principles and commandment? Answer: This is a great question. I only wish I had a great answer. My answer is to offer you some potential questions to ask yourself. Q: Is God asking me to do something specific here? If so, what is he asking me to do? […]
Question: Please what are the Jewish customs that are still binding on us Christians today? Answer: This goes down as my easiest question this week. None. Period. Not one. We are not subject to the Law of Moses. Jesus fulfilled the Law (Matthew 5:17) so that we are not obligated to the Law of Moses. Jesus […]
Question/Comment: If Paul can see a bright light on a dark desert highway and believe that he has seen the physically resurrected Jesus then it is entirely plausible that this is what happened to Peter, James, the Twelve, and the “Five Hundred”. They all saw a strange bright light and believed it was an appearance […]
Dr. John Oakes is teaching a 16 hour class together with Glenn Giles for the Los Angeles School of Ministry and Mission 9/13-14/2019. Because I am sharing the class with Glenn, this material does not cover the entire book. The notes, however, do cover the entire book. Old Testament Allusions and Foreshadows of Revelation […]
Question: Is it true, as said by Bart D. Ehrman, that the early church father Papias of Hierapolis ,who lived around 120-140 A.D , is not referring to our Mark or our Matthew of the gospels of the/our Christians Bible? He (Bart D. Ehrman) said that there are very solid reasons that Papias of Hierapolis […]
Question: Muslims say that Jesus did not die on the cross. Is there any historical evidences to their (Muslims)claims? Answer: First of all, the fact that Muhammad claimed Jesus did not die or was not resurrected has a problem up front. Muhammad lived nearly six hundred years after Christ. How would he know anything that […]
Dr. John Oakes gave a class titled “Devoted to Prayer in Bakersfield 12/3/19. Audio, ppt and notes are attached. Devoted to Prayer Devoted to Prayer PPT Devoted to Prayer Notes
Question: How can we really know for sure that the Gnostic gospels- The gospel of Thomas, the gospel of Philip, the gospel of Mary, the gospel of Judas, etc. were actually not written by the disciples of Jesus Christ? Answer: I suppose we cannot absolutely “prove” in the mathematical sense of proof that Thomas did […]
Question: My friend asks if Jesus is the only parameter to get to heaven. Not everyone gets to know Jesus like some do in their privilege. So she finds it hard to believe in a religion that doesn’t give everyone a chance. When she asks how the people prior to Jesus were saved, she was […]
Question: Bart D. Ehrman says that the gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) of the Christians Bible don’t have names attached to them. The early church fathers who quote these gospels don’t say anything about them being Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Here is what Ehrman claims: 1.The gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) don’t […]
Question: What are your thoughts on the 1995 radiocarbon dating performed on charred cereal remains found at Jericho’s (Tell Es-Sultan) Middle Bronze Age City IV which dated these remains to the 17th or early 16th century BC? (Link to report below) Many use this finding as a counter to Bryant Wood’s conclusion that the Middle […]
Dr. John Oakes gave a public lecture at Bakersfield College on the Christian and other worldviews. Worldviews such as materialism, postmodernism, Hindu, Buddhist, Muslim and Christianity are described and it is proposed that the Christian worldview is the only one consistent with reality and which answers the questions that people really care about. What Is […]
Dr. John Oakes is giving a series of lessons on the Book of James for the Bakersfield Church of Christ. Notes, PPT and audio will be attached. James PPT James Notes James Part I James Part II James Part III James IV […]
[Editor’s note: What I say below is rather strong and uncategorical. Normally I hesitate to make such strong statements, but in this case I do not apologize. This is pseudoscientific junk and should be called out for what it is] Question: What do you think about what Mauro Biglino says about the Bible ? Answer; […]
Question: The Catholic Church says that we must be perfectly sinless before we can enter heaven. So we can’t go directly to heaven after death if we have sin in us because God does not allow imperfection to enter heaven. Therefore the Catholic Church invented purgatory as a place to cleanse ourselves before we go […]
Question: Scholar Bart D. Ehrman says that we have very scanty evidence and documentation of Jesus’ life. Bart D. Ehrman says that Jesus is never mentioned in any Greek or Roman, non-Christian sources until 80 years after his death. There is no record of Jesus having lived in these sources. In the entire first Christian […]
[Editor’s note: The video in question is a lecture claiming that the most important manuscript of the Greek New Testament, Codex Sinaiticus proves that Jesus was never called Jesus in the New Testament (using Mark 1:1) and that his followers were never called Christians (using 1 Peter 4:16). Feel free to look at the video […]
Comment: I was reading some of your explanations as to why Paul was a valid apostle. I must disagree with you for a number of reasons. You made this claim, “Paul is described as an apostle multiple times, both by himself and by others” Paul describing himself as an apostle invalidates his claim because he becomes […]
Question: It is said that Matthew and Luke have skirted around the obvious contradiction of Jesus’ conception; that Mary and Joseph were only betrothed and not married. Clearly, Virgin Mary would not have allowed Joseph to have sex until they were married. Thus, he must have raped her. This is covered up by using his […]
Question: Please could you clarify the doctrine of original sin? Some say there is such a thing as original sin and some deny this. Why is it that believers, theologians and Bible students are unable to have a single conclusion about original sin? Please help me with my doubts about this. 1. What is the […]
Question: An archaeologist excavating the underwater ruins of Alexandria’s ancient harbor turned up something of divine interest: a bowl engraved with what could be the earliest reference to Christ. Scientists dated the bowl to between the late second century BC and the early first century AD. According to the team, the full inscription reads “DIA […]
Question: Please tell me about Christianity when it comes to literacy: what about people who can’t read and write, do they have only to rely on what they hear? Is there any other way for those people to learn about Christianity without relying on other people’s interpretations? How can they know, verify or understand the […]
Question: I am doubtful about Jesus’ purification of the temple in John 2:12-25 / Mark 11:15-18, were there two purifications or only one? Answer: There are three possibilities: 1. Jesus never cleansed the Jewish temple and these stories are all just made up in order to create a false narrative about Jesus. 2. Jesus cleared […]
Dr. John Oakes is on a teaching tour in Poland, Denmark, Norway, Estonia and Latvia. Recordings, power points and notes will be posted. Problem of Suffering Polish Problem of Suffering Russian/English Audio From Shadow to Reality Russian Shadow to Reality PPT Russian Shadow to Reality PPT English Evidence for Jesus […]
Question: I need help with an apparent contradiction in the gospels, because the disciples’ call is reported differently. In the synoptics they were called one way, and in John another. I would like to know why this discrepancy actually happened? The passages I am having difficulty understanding are in relation to Matthew 4:18-22 (Jesus calls […]
Dr. John Oakes is traveling and teaching in Poland, Denmark, Norway, Estonia and Latvia. A journal, as well as lessons will be posted here. Right now I am in Riga, Latvia. Warsaw, Poland 8/23-8/25 This is my first visit to the wonderful country of Poland. We Americans tend to think of Poland as a former […]
Dr. John Oakes gave a lesson on Science and God at Cal State, Fresno on 9/27/19. The audio is attached, including a lengthy Q & A session. God and Science Fresno God and Science PPT
Question: In Malachi 1:2-3, God says he loved Jacob, and hated Esau . Why? Answer: This is a fairly common question. We need to look at the context, both of Malachi and of the whole Old Testament in order to understand what God is talking about when he speaks to his people in this way […]
Question: In Mark 13: 25 there is “And the stars of heaven shall fall, and the powers that are in heaven shall be shaken.” Here Jesus said stars of heaven shall fall…. According to astronomy and science stars will not fall but asteroids can fall, and when I google the idea some websites say stars […]
Question: Could you help me to understand this apparent contradiction? Did Jesus ascend to heaven Easter evening (Luke 24:13-52) or forty days later (Acts 1:3-9)? This is one of the apparent bible contradictions which has led many skeptics to say the Bible is not the word of God. But I believe there must be a […]
Dr. John Oakes gave a sermon 10/28/19 which was for the Bakersfield Church of Christ, but was specially designed so that the children present could be drawn in. It was an interesting experiment that worked pretty well. Check it out. Daniel 3 Sermon for Children ...
Dr. John Oakes gave a lesson on God and Science at CSU Fresno in Sept, 2019. Audio is attached. God and Science Fresno ...
Dr. John Oakes taught a twelve-hour class on the Book of Revelation for the Los Angeles School of Mission and Ministry in West Covina, California Sept 5-6, 2019. The recordings are the part taught by John Oakes only, which is about half the book. Intro, Ch 1, Ch 4-5, Ch 12-13, Ch 16-19, Ch 21-22. ...
Dr. John Oakes taught many lessons on a teaching trip in Warsaw, Copenhagen, Oslo, Tallinn (Estonia) and Riga (Latvia). Several of the lessons are in both Russian and English. Problem of Suffering Latvia ProblemPainSuffering PPT Problem of Suffering Russian/English Audio From Shadow to Reality Russian Evidence for Jesus Oslo From Shadow to...
Dr. John Oakes taught a series of classes in Tlaxcala and Puebla Mexico 10/27-30/19. All classes are in both English and Spanish. Heb 11 Living by Faith Tlaxcala Jesu Cristo El Sumo Sacerdote Pueb Historia de la Iglesia Pueb I Historia de la Iglesia Puebla II Historia de la Iglesia Pueb...
Dr. John Oakes gave a workshop on the Book of Hebrews along with Robert Carrillo in San Diego 11/3/19. Unfortunately, only the parts taught by John Oakes are included, but this is about 2/3 of the book. Hebrews Audio 1 Intro Hebrews Audio 2 Ch 4-6 Hebrews Audio 3 Ch 7-9 Hebrews Audio 4...
Dr. John Oakes taught a four-part series of classes for midweek services at the Bakersfield Church of Christ in the Fall, 2019. Audio, ppt and notes are attached. James Part I James Part II James Part III James IV James PPT James Notes ...
Dr. John Oakes gave a seven-part series of lessons on Life in Christ. He has also published a book on this topic available at www.ipibooks.com Notes and PPT are also included. In Christ Part I In Christ Part II In Christ III In Christ Part IV In Christ V In Christ Part...
Question: Can you please explain the variation in the Bible between Mathew 8:28, Mark 5:1, and Luke 8:26-27 with regard to where the miracle took place and the drowning of the swine after casting out demons from a man by Jesus? Mathew places the event in Gadara and Mark and Luke in Gerasa. They are […]
Question: How should I respond to the false allegation that Jesus and Christianity were invented by the Roman imperial family, the Flavians (or by Titus Flavius) as claimed in a book Caesar Messiah by the scholar Joseph Atwill? He also claims that the religion (Christian religion) was headquartered in Rome. Can you explain this to […]
Question: I want to ask a few questions. Is there any historical evidences that: 1. Jesus actually died on the cross 2 . The tomb (Jesus’ tomb ) was indeed empty on the third day and 3. Jesus actually resurrected from the death? Answer: Yes, indeed, there is evidence for the first two. […]
Question: I have heard that some early church writers interpolated several scriptures/verses into the New Testament: (For eg: Luke 23:34 was included by Irenaeus and Alexandrinus and others) Also, I heard it claimed that Luke 22:43-44, 22:19-20, 1 John 5:7-8, John 7:53-8:11, Mark 16:9-20, and 1 Cor 14:34-35 are all interpolated. Apparently, New Testament scholars […]
Question: Do you believe Adam had an alternative to not to sin or God has predestined the sin of Adam and Adam had not an alternative and he must only have sinned? Since our choices are determined by our DNA, our environment, our past experiences, our education (all factors we have not chosen) do you […]
Question: A Jewish Rabbi said that the Hebrew Tanakh (Tanach) and the Christian Old Testament are quite different . It seems Tanakh is not an Old Testament. More so, he said that Catholic Church misinterpreted several important verses (over and over) of the Old Testament to suits New Testament claims in order to make it fit […]
Question: I have seen a line of thinking on social media that says “Christianity was made because people fear death/ was made for people who fear death. “ I don’t know if it’s because I personally fear death, but this view is really getting to me. Is there any insight or words you would like […]
Question: Jehovah’s witnesses teach that no one goes to heaven after death. In proof of this they cite Acts 2,34 and they say that here Peter denies that David ascended into heaven and so if a man of God like David did not go to heaven it means no one go to heaven. Personally I […]
Question: Jesus—who had no sin (Hebrews 4:15)—is said to be “perfected” (Hebrews 2:10). I can’t understand what Jesus was missing. What was still imperfect in him? Answer: The word translated as “perfect” from the Greek in the New Testmanet is teleos or teleon. This word is not identical to the English word “perfect.” It has […]
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