How celibacy became common and why it became required are two very different things. In the third and fourth centuries it became common in primitive Christianity for men to choose asceticism as a way of expressing their devotion to God. Asceticism is a general term to describe the philosophy that one becomes close to God […]
I’m studying with two Mormons currently and a question was brought up that stumped me. I was asked “what happens to people who haven’t heard about Christ”. They weren’t referring to individuals today but to the time before Christ and even people on different continents. After reading the book of Mormon I see they believe […]
While you’ve written a very good book it seems to be based on the premise that Jesus actually existed. What non biblical evidences can you provide that speak to his existence? (the questioner is referring to my book, Reasons for Belief: A Handbook of Christian Evidences, available at www.greatcommission.com) Actually, the book you mention provides […]
I was reading your book about Daniel, and I wanted to ask some questions about Daniel chapter 7 and your comment, because there were some thingswhich weren’t clear to me. 1) In the Roman Empire there weren’t just 11 kings, I mean after Domitian came a lot of other kings in the Roman Empire who […]
In Gen 16:10-12 and 17:20 God promised that He would make descendant of Ishmael to be too numerous to count and that they would be a great nation. Was it already part of God’s plan to make the Islam religion to be the second biggest religion believe by people in the world? Referring to Gen […]
I have been asked a lot of questions over the years, but believe it or not, no one has ever asked me this question! Without context, I am not sure exactly what question you are asking. I would assume you are asking one of the following two questions: 1) What is the philosophical/theological definition of […]
Yes, this is essentially correct. The Bible describes the peoples who came to be known as the Arabs as having been descended from Ishmael. As Muhammad, the founder and chief prophet of Islam is Arab, he would be a direct descendent of Ishmael. This is why historians of religion would claim that Judaism, Christianity and […]
Will people who make it Heaven have free will there? Is there sin in Heaven, and if we have free will, wouldn’t we have a choice to sin? What about Lucifer, how did he get kicked out of Heaven, or was he ever in Heaven. This is a very interesting theological question. It is really […]
What is the importance of God’s anger against everyone, especially in the Old Testament through the plagues and such? First, it is extremely important to understand that anger toward those who rebel against him is a very real part of the God of the universe. It is natural that Christians should emphasize the love of […]
Believe it or not, the Bible does not give a direct, straightforward answer to this question, so one must infer the answer from passages indirectly related to the question. Common sense tells us that God definitely would not send a baby who never had the opportunity to even know about God or to commit willful […]
Certainly there are a number of views on what Jesus meant when he referred to the “unforgivable sin” of blasphemy against the Spirit. Rather than summarize the many points of view, please allow me to give my own best understanding of what Jesus had in mind when he mentioned blaspheming against the Spirit. A general […]
This is one of those unanswerable questions. I myself struggled over this question at earlier points in my life. Philosophers have certainly struggled with this question as well. Although I cannot give a totally satisfactory answer to your question, God himself provided a hint of an answer in Exodus 3:13,14. When Moses asked God what […]
This is an excellent question. I believe I have already answered it pretty thoroughly, so I refer you to one of the articles already at this web site, “The Ultimate Miracle.” This article goes into great detail describing all the alternative explanations of the evidence about what happened to Jesus, showing that the only even […]
In asking this question, you are bringing up a very broad subject of theology. This area of theology is known as eschatology. Eschatology is the study of end times–such concepts as the nature of a future Kingdom of God, of Judgment Day, of heaven and hell. In the Bible, the end times could be used […]
I was walking to Sainsbury’s with a Muslim friend and we stumbled upon the conversation of religion, through a discussion of Israel and recent events, My friend has aroused some very good questions and I have realized that I know little about Islam and other religions. She said that the Bible was changed to suit […]
In 1 Corinthians 13:10 it says when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears. What does ‘perfection’ represent in this passage? I’ve heard that it’s talking about the NT Canon, but how do we know? People have told me that perfection is being face to face in Heaven with God. I understand somewhat that spiritual gifts don’t […]
Emperor Constantine of Rome was the first to write a law of worship on Sunday. Why do so many religions go to church on Sunday when God’s day of worship is the Sabbath day?(Isaiah 66. 22-23.) It may be true that Constantine wrote some sort of Sunday worship law. To be honest, I am not […]
Let me try to answer the question I think you are asking, and feel free to ask a follow-up question. Let us first consider the use of the word sin in the Bible. The principal word in Hebrew translated as sin is the word chatta’ah and its derivatives such as chata and chet. The word […]
My men’s group is studying the life of David. Good stuff! I have a question regarding David and Jonathan’s friendship. Specifically, 2 Samuel 1:26 where David speaks “your love for me was wonderful, more wonderful than that of women.” Some gay communities argue or use the David/Jonathan friendship to mean more… Would you comment on […]
In Mathew 24:35 when the Lord says this generation will not pass away or taste death before you see these things happen, speaking of His coming. What did He mean? Since it seems that every place the Lord says this generation or age He means the one He’s talking to right then. Many believe that […]
What is the Song of Songs about? I heard I’m not supposed to read it because it’s for married people. If we say we need to read the whole Bible, why not Song of Songs? If we don’t read Song of Songs than we cannot we say we’ve read the whole Bible. I’m kind of […]
I would like to know some information about the Prophet Daniel. 1.Why did Daniel become a prophet?2.What did he do that was so important3.When and Where was he born and lived?4.How did he go about doing God’s work?5.Why do you think Daniel was able to talk with God? Have you read my book on Daniel? […]
In Matthew 2:15, Matthew is quoting the OT text that was referring to Jesus (Hosea 11:1). This is a so called messianic prophecy. But if you read the context of the OT verse, it was speaking of Israel whom God called, not at all about Jesus. If it is talking about Jesus when you read […]
Was the Holy Spirit already in existence during the Old Testament or only after the New Testament? What was Holy Spirit doing in the beginning? The Holy Spirit, being God, existed before the creation of the world. He was not created, but has always existed, just like the Father and the Son. As proof of […]
In Leviticus 11:20 it says the Israelites must not eat ‘four-legged’ insects. I was wondering what ‘four’ meant for that passage and if all insects were considered four-legged literally? Actually, my English translation says “all flying insects that walk on all fours are to be detestable to you.” I would take “all fours” to be […]
How do you proclaim the truth to Atheists? There’s been times where they just don’t understand that the Bible is the word of God. How would one talk to atheists, being a good friend, and relating the love of Christ to them? I have answered similar questions at the web site. Let me add that […]
I would say the answer is none. Perhaps you are referring to the statement of Job in Job 3:11, 12 in which he was so worn out and full of grief that in an emotional outburst he declared; “Why did I not perish at birth, and die as I came from the womb? Why were […]
The only thing I can imagine you are referring to are the five gold rats given in an offering by the Philistines to appease God in 1 Samuel 6:4. These gold rats were fashioned by the idol-makers of the Philistines. John Oakes, PhD
I am a student at the University of Georgia and I am taking Human Anatomy and Physiology. My question is this: I learned the other day in our text that basically all thoughts and emotions stem from our nervous system, specifically nerve cells, as well as hormones, etc. When I die, these processes, chemicals, cells, […]
I was wondering what your take on Matthew 24:14 is. I’ve been reading through it and, before reading any commentaries, I thought that perhaps Jesus was teaching us that when we’ve accomplished the great commission, reaching all the world with the gospel of God’s kingdom, he would come back for his church and for judgment. […]
Since, I want to make my time studying as useful as possible, my question is this: When studying the Bible with non-Christians, what “Christian apologetic subjects” have you found to make the greatest impact? The subject I have found to make the most difference, by far, is prophecies; especially prophecies about the Messiah. This material […]
Are there still prophecies that need to be fulfilled from the Old Testament and the New Testament? Absolutely. If you think about it, you will realize this yourself. For example, consider 1 Thess 4:16f, “For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with […]
I have a question about your website article on the NT canon. You said that the Muratorian Fragment is the earliest list of NT letters, but that it did not contain Hebrews, James or 1 John. Since Origen was also skeptical about these, should we be? Is there any proof to believe that these are […]
Where in the Bible did God promise David that he would place one of his descendants on his throne? That would be in 2 Chronicles 17:12-14 and Psalms 89:4 as well as 2 Samuel 7:14-16. Other passages could be used as well, such as Psalms 2:7, where he is speaking through David to his “son” […]
Is smoking sin? I’ve heard it was disputable and can go either way. Can you please give me deep detailed insight on this matter? Thanks. Yes, smoking is a sin. It is true that the Bible does not prescribe “thou shalt not smoke tobacco.” This is not surprising, because tobacco was not known to the […]
What does Christianity say about birth control and planned parenthood? The Bible does not say anything directly about birth control or planned parenthood. Nevertheless, a number of biblical principles may be applied in order to help a disciple of Jesus make personal ethical decisions regarding these very important and sometimes controversial topics. Some have taught […]
Where was Islam originate? Islam originated in what is now known as Saudi Arabia . It was founded by an Arab named Muhammad. In the year AD 610, at the age of 40, Muhammad claims to have been visited by the angel Gabriel in a vision. Muhammad claims that over the course of the next […]
Did the gospel writers borrow material from one another? Dozens of books and hundreds of ThD’s have been written on the subject of the sources of the gospels. Much of this is pure speculation–often an unfounded, biased attack on the veracity of the New Testament. It is fashionable to mention a supposed document Q, possibly […]
I recently watched a tv show about Moses, and it was discussing the Red Sea Crossing. They claimed that Moses never led the children of Israel through the “Red Sea,” but through an unknown sea. They also said the original Hebrew for Red Sea was Yam Suph which meant Sea of Reeds, and the “Red […]
I understand that the entire Bible is God-breathed. In the light of this unchangeable truth how are we to apply the book of Job to our lives? I don’t mean here, the overall theme i.e. that sometimes bad things do happen to good people. God’s integrity was at stake here. Job’s friend’s speeches take up […]
Psalm 51:5 says David was born into sin, and in sin did his mother conceive him. Can you explain to me please what that passage is referring to and the meaning of it. I’m kind of confused and it seems like it’s talking about original sin or necessary infant baptism? Also, Romans 5:12 says sin […]
I understand Isaiah 14 is a prophecy against Babylon (is Nebuchadnezzar intended? or the entire Babylonian kingdom – this is a sub-question). However, I have read a number of books where the authors have stated that this is a reference to Satan. They quote vs.12-14 and say these contain the five ‘I Will’s’ of Satan. […]
How do we know how to interpret the Bible correctly? How many interpretations are there in general? I was thinking one, but I don’t know for sure. You are asking a very broad question. One can take an entire college course in this subject. In fact, one can earn a PhD in the study of […]
What is 1 Corinthians 15:5, mean when it says Jesus appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve? Are the Twelve, the 12 apostles during Jesus’ ministry? Because Judas was dead when Jesus appeared to everyone who saw. And Matthew 28 says he appeared to the Eleven. Do you know what the scripture is referring […]
I was reading your answer to the question about if anyone was saved before Jesus came. I wanted to ask an additional question: Do you know any scriptures which contain hints from the OT and NT of people getting accepted to Heaven based on their acts of faith? Also I read the Douglas Jacoby answer […]
I have been a disciple of Jesus for five years. I am having a hard time overcoming my sinful nature especially with my purity…a lot of times I am even confused about whether I am still saved. I have been falling to a lot of pornography, masturbation, and impure thoughts…over and over again…the Bible gives […]
Will people who have never heard of God/Christianity be saved in the end? Like for example African tribes or monks in the mountains of China, people who’ve never even heard of the name God? This is the classic question I have heard dozens of times. The other one is “what about someone who wants to […]
What does Jesus mean when he says in Matt 24:36-37: “No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.” I have wondered myself […]
Was everyone before the New Covenant saved? This is one of the easier questions I have been asked. Certainly not. If this were true, then that would mean that thanks to Jesus it became harder for a person to be saved. In fact, Jesus himself said in Matthew 7 that the gate is small and […]
Is the Old Testament plagiarized from the Zoroastrian scriptures? Quite simply, no. Many wild theories are thrown about by theologians looking for something to put into their ThD theses, and this is one of these ideas. The Zend Avesta is the principle scripture of Zoroastrianism, the pseudo-monotheistic sun-worshiping religion which began in Persia in about […]
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