Question: Is it true that a Christian must necessarily must marry a Christian? What about a member of a particular church marrying within their group? What the Bible says on this subject? Answer: The Bible clearly teaches that a Christian must marry a Christian if he or she is to be married. Many use 2 Corinthians 6:14 […]
Question: Why the Mark 11:26 in brackets? Answer: What an interesting coincidence. I got two questions on Mark 11:26 in the same week. I am copying my answer to the other question below. Actually, he was asking about a different aspect, so I will add a couple of thoughts on your question as well. Like […]
Question: Why did God place the tree of knowledge of good and evil in the garden? Answer: This is a good question. Of course, we do not have a direct answer to this question, either in Genesis or anywhere else in the Bible. Yet, I believe that from what we know of God elsewhere in […]
Question: We are about to begin homeschooling our 4th and 6th grade boys and are looking for a great science curriculum that honors God and is also scientifically sound. Do you have any suggestions? Answer: I get many requests for this. I would love to have the time to produce such materials, but have not […]
June 23-July 12, 2010 Report East Africa East Europe
The power point and outline are for a class taught 6/22/2010 for the LAICC intern by Dr. John Oakes. The theme is how the early church grew and why it grew like it did which is accomplished by looking both at Acts and church history. Thoughts on Acts and World History 14.56 Mb Acts/Church History notes
View a video of Dr. John Oakes giving a lecture The Bible, From God or Man? in both English and Hungarian. Go to this URL http://vimeo.com/13257586
Question: I read your article on why there is no Mark 11:26, and it made me wonder, how than can we be sure that the Bible hasn’t been altered by other scribes somewhere else down the line. If scribes tryed to insert their own verses, han how can we be sure that the Bible is perfect […]
Question: What is the underlying issue that influenced the formation of the Essene religious group? Answer: It is hard for us to trace the roots of the Essene group. As far as I know, its history is not well known at all. We know quite a bit about the history of the Pharisees, a bit less […]
Question: Transubstantiation has been described on the website as a false doctrine of the Catholic Church (a doctrine I am not convinced of one way or another). Please, allow me a moment to play devil’s advocate… Several close Catholic friends of mine have explained that the doctrine for Transubstantiation was extrapolated from several biblical verses […]
Question: I just got back from a Bible camp I go to each summer. Every time I go I feel close to God and I almost accept Jesus as my savior. Then I drift away as the year goes on. I would like to know how to accept him as my savior. I’m almost there […]
Question: I recently saw an article in the telegraph stating that a scholar had claimed Jesus was not crucified on a cross but rather a stake like the Jehovas witnesses believe, explaining that "stauros" does dont mean cross but pole or stake. While I couldn’t care less on what shape the wood was that Jesus was […]
Question: Can we infer from Acts 18: 24-26 that Apollos did what was required to be saved? Did he undergo baptism in the name of Jesus for the forgiveness of his sins? Answer: If we take Acts 18:24-26 together with Acts 19:1-5 together, then we can reasonably infer that Apollos was baptized into Christ in […]
See below for outline of the class "Master and Commander: The Moral Argument for the Existence of God" by Dan Conder from the 2010 ICEC. Master and Commander: The Moral Argument for the Existence of God Romans 1:18-2:16 (see also Genesis 1-3) "You don’t have to believe in God to be moral." In principle, […]
Question: Is it possible for a baptized saved Christian to lose the Holy Spirit after receiving it like in Saul’s case who was disobedient and it was taken away from him? Answer: Yes, it definitely is possible for a baptized/saved Christian to lose the gift of the Holy Spirit. I do not believe what happened […]
Question: Most Christians generally agree that abortion is a sin. But what about abortion to save the life of the mother or abortion because of rape? I am stuck on determining these answers. In the first case, to save the life of the mother, I can see that it might not be a sin, yet […]
A power point by Dr. John Beggs, professor at Indiana University for 2010 ICEC on his research in neuroscience and the philosophical and theological questions of the existence of the human soul. PPT Defense of the Soul 2.36 Mb
The notes and power point are from a class taught by Dr. William Golightly at the 2010 ICEC. The notes/essay attached are particularly good, providing a fairly comprehensive description of where cosmology is at today, as well as listing anthropic fine tuning arguments. Essay: God and Cosmology PP God and Cosmology 3.78 Mb
Question/Comment: You say, with regard to the Letters, that "my assumption…. is that these are inspired writings." I have to point out that whenever God-inspired Scripture is spoken of in the NT, that it is the Jewish Bible that is spoken of. There is in fact no Biblical warrant for the inspiration of the NT […]
This power point is the one used by John Clayton at the 2010 ICEC in Irvine, CA Why Human Suffering 11.72 Mb
This is the power point used by John Clayton for his public lecture "Why I Left Atheism" at the 2010 ICEC in Irvine, CA Why I Left Atheism 12.57 Mb
A sermon given by John Oakes, PhD 6/13/2010 in Long Beach. Faith That Answers the Hard Questions
A class taught by John Oakes, PhD at the 2010 ICEC. A Defense of Christian Theology 1.17 Mb Notes: A Defense of Christian Theolgoy
A class taught by Dr. John Oakes for Proyect Esdras, Mexico City May 8, 2010. ppt Four Christian Views of Evolution (English) 4.10 Mb ppt Four Christian Views of Evolution (Spanish) (
This class was given at the 2010 ICEC by Dr. Robert Kurka of Lincoln Christian University. Note, the notes are more thorough than the ppt. PPT Science: Christianity’s Lost Child Notes for Science: Christianity’s Lost Child
Question: I am a Christian, but I am tempted to let go of my faith. My faith is based on fear (eternal damnation, hell, etc.). I just want to know any evidence of the authenticity of Christianity which is different from other religions. Others also have their divine scriptures and revelations. What makes Christianity different […]
Question: Out of curiosity, how do you address the problem of Israel’s population in Exodus? Supposedly I’ve heard that the increase in population from 70 to 600,000 isn’t realistic? Answer: I can see how one might wonder about this. Well, let us assume 430 years for the time in Egypt. I am not at all […]
Questions: 1. Moses was prevented from crossing the Jordan and entering the promised land by God, because of Numbers 20. If the promised land is a foreshadow of heaven, and Moses did not enter it, are we to infer that Moses did not make it to heaven? 2. We can see how God has protected […]
Question: I’m just curious; if there was nothing before Adam and Eve when did the dinosaurs exist? Answer: According to scientific evidence, based on fossils radioisotopic and other kinds of data, we know that dinosaurs lived from about 240 million years ago until 65 million years ago, at which time it appears that the last […]
An Article by John Oakes, PhD describing four Christian views of evolution, along with strengths and weaknesses of the four views. This essay is intended as a guide for the upcoming forum at the 2010 ICEC in Irvine, CA. Four Christian Views of Evolution John Oakes 6/3/10 We at ARS will be sponsoring a […]
Question: Looking at Mark 9:1 and 1 Cor. 15:51, it is clear that both Jesus and Paul were mistaken in expecting, the arrival of the Kingdom of God in the case of Jesus and in Paul’s case, the second coming, in the lives of some of those present in each situation. How do you cope […]
Question: When did Jesus become sin ? 1)When baptised by John the Baptist? 2)When he was tempted by Satan was he carrying our sin? 3)What does it mean to fulfill all righteousness? 4)When he was on the cross? Answer: Jesus "became sin for us" on the cross. This is why Jesus cried, "My God, My […]
As part of the 2010 ICEC John Clayton will be giving a public lecture titled Why I Left Atheism. Clayton was once a devoted atheist who set out to write a book "The Bible: A Book by Ignorant People in and Ignorant Age" The result: he became a Christian! 7:30 PM Location: 10 Goodyear, Irvine, […]
Question: I have recently come across this website apparently relating toward prophecy in the Bible (http://www.pillar-of-enoch.com/index.html). In the website, there are articles of apparent prophecies in Ruth, Ester as well as other books of the Bible. How should we respond to anyone who may bring these viewpoints up? Answer: I spent some time at this […]
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Question: Are there any specific arguments you can make that would make the possibility of an afterlife highly likely? For example, what about arguments for the soul, the resurrection of Jesus, or whatever? I keep running into people who say that when we die, we’re just dead. How would you respond to this? If we really […]
Notes for an OT survey class taught by John Oakes, PhD in 2004. OT Survey Notes
Question: How can one refute the ideas presented in Michael Drosnin’s Bible Code or other premillennialist viewpoints? Don’t these types of concepts hurt the integrity and validity of scripture? Answer: My answer with respect to Michael Drosnin and premillenialists will be very different. I believe it is not fair to lump premillenialists together with Bible […]
Pregunta: ¿Hay alguna base bíblica o escritura que soporte que ayunemos parcialmente o de algúna cosa por determinado tiempo? ¿es igualmente aceptable y agradable para Dios? Muchas gracias por tu atención a nuestras inquietudes. Respuesta: .No hay apoyo bíblico, por lo que yo sé de un ayuno parcial o para el ayuno de algo distinto […]
Question: I want to know if you have a class on Isaiah 55:6-7. How would you explain this passage? Answer: Thanks for your kind words. No, I do not have a class on Isaiah 55. I believe that the passage you mention has a fairly straightforward interpretation. "Seek the Lord while he may be found; […]
Question: Is there any [strong] evidence that the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke were written after 70 AD? I’ve been browsing wikipedia and found that some scholars believe that those 3 gospels, specifically Luke, believe that it was dated sometime after 80 AD to maybe around 125 AD. Is there any [strong] evidence […]
Question: God cannot and will not tolerate sin. "The wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23) If this is so, then why did God allow sin to occur? If he is all-knowing, before he created the world, didn’t he know that sin would occur? If he hates sin, and he is the creator of all […]
Este clase se ensenado por John Oakes, PhD 8 de Mayo, 2010 para el Proyecto Esdras en DF Mexico. Cuatro Perspectivas de la Evolucion 3.88 Mb
Question: There is a link to an audio message by Darrel Falk available on Douglas Jacoby’s website. The title of the talk is “Bridging the Worlds Between Faith and Biology”. In this talk, Darrel talks about Noah and the Flood as follows: "We can use science to test the story of Noah, and when we […]
Question: I’ve recently learned about these so called Deuterocanonical books that are accepted by Catholics and Eastern Orthodoxs, but not by Protestants. I even came across this from an Orthodox Christian (not a friend of his btw) on Facebook who claims that this predicts the coming of the Messiah: "The Book of Wisdom was the […]
Question: I have searched the Q&A’s and have not found an answer to this question. Is there a resource or an answer that you have to the following: If the point of us being on earth is to give us the opportunity to choose God, and suffering causes us to become more like Christ(simplified for […]
Question: It seems that the ideal of secular humanism is to do whatever benefits the well being of mankind. Does the idea of secular humanism conflict with God? Or does secular humanism put people on a pedestal above God? Answer: Secular humanism is a philosophy and world view which includes an assumption that the physical/natural […]
Question: I have a question about the Big Bang. Does the Big Bang state the the universe came from nothing? If so, would it support the idea of the genesis account? The reason I ask this is that I came across this on the internet and I wanted to get your thoughts on it: "Considering that […]
Question: I have a friend who suggested that I should get a Hebrew Bible because of supposed corruption with the translations. While I find his reasoning questionable, are there any current Bibles with the original Hebrew, Greek and Aramaic languages that are trustworthy? Answer: This is a good question! I believe that you will not […]
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