[Editor’s note: This question clearly has nothing to do with Christian evidence, but I have gotten similar questions enough times, that I thought I should post an answer. John Oakes] QUESTION: Is it right to take communion/Lord‘s supper even if someone is in sin or have unconfessed sin or hidden sin? Answer: The Bible does […]
Question: I’ve recently listened to an interview by Grant Palmer who is a former Mormon but applied “critical analysis” to the Mormon Bible and converted to Christ. In his interview, he also expressed some concern with the Christian Bible including: 1. timing issues in the creation account 2. Adam and Eve being actual/symbolic 3 the tower […]
Question: Was David the 7th or 8th son of Jesses? I ask because of the two following scriptures: 1 Samuel 16:7-11 NIV [7] But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks […]
Question: You may already know of my doubts of my Calvinistic views from one of my previous emails. Specifically the lore of election. Now I was wondering if you can absolutely refute the five points of Calvinism? [Editor’s note: he is referring to the standard formula of Calvinism: TULIP Total Depravity, Unconditional election, Limited Atonement, […]
Question: Recently I’ve been getting a lot of arguments that dark matter and dark energy are unscientific because they aren’t empirical, and only used to keep the Big Bang Theory alive which goes on to make the Big Bang Theory unscientific. This is something I too had thought before I recently observed the evidence and […]
Question: I have a question about the Old Testament canon. It is about the Old Testament antilegomena. These are the books that some Jewish scholars doubted. I know that Ezekiel, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of songs, and Esther were questioned as being canonical books. What made these books still become canonical, despite the apparent contradictions in question […]
QUESTION: I used to be a follower of Christ. I was wondering is there any PROOF outside of the Bible that proves the miracles that he performed including him coming back from the dead? I would like the sources that where written by non-believers at that time period if this is all possible with you. […]
Question: I read your article on how to help convert our Jewish friends, the problem is that yes, “our version” the Old Testament mentions things about Jesus, but when you bring that up, they show you in “their version” that is in Hebrew it is different. Where ours says a virgin will give birth…but in their […]
Question: When Did God give Jesus all authority on heaven and Earth?: After His resurrection, and just before Jesus returned to heaven, He told the disciples, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations…” (Matthew 28:18) Then, in Ephesians 1:20-23 we are told […]
Question: I have read some of your articles. I do not see how Jesus meets the criteria given for Messiah in the Tanakh… SITUATION OF HIS BIRTH Christians say he had no biological father. Therefore he had no lineage through Joseph to forebears. Christians then claim that he was ‘adopted’ or that the lineage was through […]
Question: One last question if you have time . Was there an Old Testament canon completed before the time of Christ that the Jews used? Or was it not until 90AD at Jamnia that it was established? I’m seeing different claims on this topic. Was hoping maybe you could help me clear it up? […]
Question: Thank you so much for writing “From Shadow to Reality.” It has strengthened my faith by seeing how only God could have orchestrated the foreshadowing in the Old Testament. I have learned a lot, and have had theories of my own on foreshadowing confirmed by your explanation of the related Scriptures. One issue […]
Editor’s Note: This question and answer are taken from an exam by Randy Hroziencik, a student in our ARS Apologetics Certificate Program. It is used by permission. Question: In your own words, try to present the “explanation” of evil from the point of view of at least three other world views other than Christian theism. […]
Question: It is almost unreasonable to deny that God has shown some evidence of His existence ( in the resurrection of Christ as prophesied before His time and witnessed afterwards) But, one reason why people don’t believe in God is because He doesn’t seem to answer or guide when there is a physical need (starving […]
QUESTION: I recently came across a friends post on Facebook in which he quoted Jesus saying to love one another, to bless those that curse you and do good to those that persecute you. One of the follow up posts was from another person who quoted the section in 2 Kings 2 where Elisha curses […]
Question: I can’t find any solid information on the Old Testament Pseudepigrapha and why these books are not considered inspired scripture. I know they are considered false writings, but why? Are the Old Testament pseudepigrapha and the Old Testament apocrypha consideredto be the same thing? Is the OT Pseudepigrapha just a branch of the OT apocryphal writings? […]
Question: Do you have material at your site which will help me to show that Jesus is God? You probably discussed this subject somewhere but I could not find it on your website. Can you please direct me to where it is located? Response: Yes, I definitely deal with this question a lot at my […]
Teaching Weekend in Puebla
Dr. John Oakes taught a class on apocalyptic literature, including the Book of Revelation on six consecutive Saturdays beginning September 28 at the Mission Center of Hope in San Diego. Revelation notes Revelation Power Point The audio of this lesson is now available in the web site store. Go to the front page and click on […]
QUESTION: I really need help on the following-I was on a website recently that claims that Aaron’s feast day of the golden calf that is said to have occurred in around 1446 BC in Exodus was copied from a events that took place within the same time period (between 17-15 century BC) by a group […]
Question: I have spent the last two years trying to learn from the Holy Spirit. During this time the issue of Bible translations has arisen. The Lord led me to look at and compare all the different versions. I found the NIV translation to have omitted many vital scriptures. This has also left me wondering […]
Question: I need your help with a Christian in the church I am leading who has started struggling with some thoughts about how aliens have been visiting us for a long time and controlling everything on the earth from the beginning. There are a lot of movies on youtube talking about that with a lot of evidence […]
Question: The typhoon that hit the Phillippines was completely devastating. Possibly over 10,000 dead. I understand through Christian teaching, that these events, according to some, are the result of a fallen world. Others say that this is just a natural part of God’s created Earth. My question is this. There are thousands of Christians living […]
ARS is proud to announce that the ninth of ten classes in our Apologetics Certificate Program is now available. The class is on the reliability, inspiration and inerrancy of the Bible. The instructor of the class is Dr. John Oakes. The class includes a study of biblical manuscripts and the canon of the Old and […]
ARS is excited to announce the eighth of our ten courses in our Christian Apologetics Certificate is now available. This is a ten hour class on the historical and archaeological support to the reliability of the Bible. The instructors are Dr. John Wilson, professor emeritus of archaeology from Pepperdine University, as well as Dr. John […]
Question: Hello Dr. Oakes. I wanted to ask you a question about studying the Bible with a friend of mine who is a Hare Krishna. How should I approach it? I know a little bit about the religion through talking with him and reading a bit of the Baghavad Gita. I really want him to […]
Hello sir, I want to know about what happens to our whole life’s stored memory after death? Answer: I am assuming you want a biblical answer to this question, not a scientific answer or my opinion. The Bible is not explicit about what happens to our memories when we are in heaven (or in hell, […]
Question: I am a 20 year old college student from Louisiana and I have been a Christian all my life. There came a time this past summer where I began to question my faith and why I believed what I did. I began searching and instead found a lot of atheist arguments which proceeded to […]
QUESTION: I have a question for in regards to an article posted by Fox News today. Apparently a 1.8 million year skull has been found which apparently is some evolutionary link. Does this mean tha there was some sort of pre-adamic race? Are they even sure the skull is that old? How would this reconcile […]
Question: I did not grow up Christian. I was in my forties when I studied the Bible. There is an idea, a concept, that Christians seem to hold on to ferociously that I don’t see in the Bible. Am I missing something? The strong majority of people that I talk to see forgiveness and salvation […]
Question: If God understands my humanity and sin nature better than I do, why does He still hold me accountable for what I cannot help doing?” Answer: A good question. When my children were young, I understood their “humanity and sin” better than they did. Despite this, I held them accountable for their actions because […]
Question: May I ask why anyone should believe in the Bible? You claim that the global flood was miraculous, yet what does that have to do with evidence? Did God completely heal the earth? Is that what you’re saying? You wish people to believe that God kept the ocean animals, plant life, bacteria all from […]
Question: I recently was won over to a more Evolutionary Creationist (is that what you’d call it? Belief in the Bible and evolution?) philosophy. I’m trying to research more and more as I begin to debate with my strictly Creationist friends. I don’t expect to win them over but I’d like to be able to […]
Question: Hi, John! How are you? We are all well, thanks to God. I wanted to ask you about perfectionism. On the one hand the Bible many times calls us to be perfect: there are many direct passages about aspiration to the perfection: ” Be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect etc. On the other […]
Dr. John Oakes taught a class on worship in the Book of Revelation in San Diego October, 2013. It focuses on the picture of Jesus in Revelation Ch 1 and 5 as well as worship scenes in Revelation 7,11,15 and 19. A picture of believer’s before the throne of God is presented. Revelation Worship Notes […]
Question: I was reading the question and your response to Mr. Atwill’s claim about Christianity. My question is, why are other religions not attacked like Christianity? Why don’t Mr.Atwill, and others like him, do the same to Buhdah, Muhammed,etc. To me, this proves even more the validity of Jesus and Christianity. Answer: I am not […]
Editor’s note: Below is a paper submitted by Randy Hroziencik as part of his work on the ARS Apologetics Certificate. It was of a quality we are proud to publish at the web site. “Refuting the Skeptical Case against Fulfilled Messianic Prophecy” Randall L. Hroziencik Prophecy & Christian Apologetics October 2013
Dr John Oakes gave a class 10/17/2013 on how the Christian can know God’s will. Coll 1:9-10, Psalm 119:110, Romans 12:1-2 and others are used. The lesson focuses largely on how to obtain wisdom through advice. This is clearly not Christian evidence, but we thought we would publish it for those interested. Knowing and Doing […]
Question: I am asking a series of questions that come from 1 Cor. 15. Several times in the chapter Adam is referred to as “one man,” a single individual. If Adam and Eve existed as an “original couple” and had a real Fall, I believe this may present major problems in trying to harmonize evolution with […]
Question: I wanted to thank you for your last email and for answering some of the questions I had. I appreciate you taking the time out of your undoubtedly busy schedule to do so.It helped me greatly. I hope I do not wear you out with my somewhat simplistic inquiries. The reason for this question […]
Question: Which religion is correct? Answer: Because you sent this question to a web site with the name Evidenceforchristianity.org, it is fairly obvious that we believe that Christianity is the correct religion. I am guessing that there is a more specific question behind this request. Do you have a more specific question about why we […]
Question: I have been thinking lately about the the difference between willing yourself to change vs. being changed through and by the Holy Spirit. What’s the difference? I ask this because it seems as though when God wants you to grow in an area He allows you to go through situations that mold you into […]
Question: This is starting to circulate on the internet. Facebook……etc. I am sure young christians in our congregations may have a hard time with it. Just curious if you guys have heard about it yet. http://uk.prweb.com/releases/2013/10/prweb11201273.htm Response: Ancient Confession Found: ‘We Invented Jesus Christ.’ A new “theory” to explain the genesis of Christianity is making […]
Ancient Confession Found: ‘We Invented Jesus Christ.’ A new “theory” to explain the genesis of Christianity is making the rounds of skeptic websites and will soon appear at a college or university near you. It is found in a recent documentary by Joseph Altwill “The Roman Conspiracy to Invent Jesus” I would like to present […]
Question: Professor, one of the characters that I find most curious that there isn’t a lot of information about is Melchizedek. Besides Hebrews Chapter 7, Genesis 14, several references in Psalms, and mention in the Pseudoepigraph “The Book of the Bee” of the Book of the Cave of Treasures, are there any legitimate sources in […]
Question: The Magi/wise men who visited the young Jesus were obviously men of knowledge, possibly scholars of some sort. I would assume that when they returned to their home they documented their experience. Is there any evidence of this? Answer: I would agree that the Magi were probably of high birth and likely were scholars. […]
Question: I have recently been troubled by a theological dilemma regarding 1 Corinthians 11 and veiling. Actually, I should say I’ve been wrestling with it for years and the conflict comes and goes. How can we as disciples of Jesus KNOW that Paul is speaking culturally? I know that David Bercot is popular throughout churches […]
Question: One of the main reasons our founding fathers declared independence from Britain was because of taxation. Based on what Jesus said about” render unto Caesar…” in reference to paying taxes, were our founders going against what Jesus had said? Answer: This is a fun question. Probably there is no practical implication of this since […]
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