Question: What evidence for Jesus is there outside the Bible? Answer: Let me supply a set of notes I just put together for a class I am teaching on the subject this weekend. They may not be fully edited, but the notes are fairly complete. John Oakes Extra-Biblical references to Jesus: 1. Tacitus, Roman historian […]
My question is, why are disobedient children stoned in Deuteronomy 21:18-21? Isn’t that cruel? Answer: This is certainly a reasonable question. I will have to say that my first emotional response to this commandment is to say that it certainly seems harsh. I am not sure about cruel, but certainly it appears harsh or like […]
Question: The Philistines did not come to Palestine until circa 1200BC at the time of the invasion of the Sea Peoples. How did Abraham & Isaac come to meet them? Answer: I do not know. Believe it or not, I had never noticed this, which is surprising to me. The evidence, as you point out, […]
Question: I read "Daniel, Prophet to the Nations" recently and was quite awestruck by the prophesies! I’ve been reading online that the Christian persecution under Domitian was historically uncertain and debated. Although the early church fathers routinely mention Domitian, the persecution is seemingly absent from the writings of Tacitus and Suetonius (and other Roman historians). […]
Question: I have a question about the idea of theistic evolution (I have been reading many of the articles under "creation" by you and John Laing). This interpretation seems to resolve many questions such as: Why was Cain was afraid someone would kill him? Who would be living in the city Cain built? etc… (Genesis 4:14-18) […]
Question: On the site http://bibleblunders.com, many claims are made based on failed prophecies and contradictions. Can you please address some of them, Dr. Oakes? Answer: Which ones do you want me to address? I have already responded to most of these supposed contradiction at my web site. If you go the question and answer section, then […]
Question: It seems just about every time I come across a Christian program on TV there is some mention to how we are getting very close to the end of times. Is it reliable for people to draw the conclusion that the coming of Jesus is going to happen in the near future? Answer; That […]
Question: I just read an article that puts forth some pretty convincing evidence that places the validity of Pliny the Younger, Tacitus, and Suetonius and a few other well known historians that many apologetics use to help confirm the existence of Chirst into question. Just wondering what the names of the other non-christian scholars are to […]
Question: I’m reading the book From Shadow to Reality and have a question on the comment made on page 151 concerning the Levitical sacrificial system. The comment states " The sacrifices for sin definitely were not a pleasing aroma to God and are never described in that way. On the contrary, they involve things which […]
Question: A couple of my buddies always ask about God in the Old Testament: especially about how harsh he can seem to be at times. Have any advice or recommended reading about the topic? Answer: Clearly this is a good question. I have gotten one version or another many times. If you do a […]
Question: Greetings from your brother in Soweto –South Africa. My brother, what scriptures do you use to help someone from the JW’s group to see the truth? I’ve read in Hebrews 1 to guide me and also the scripture in John 1. Thomas also calls Jesus, God It would seem that they have their own Bible, […]
Question: I am not a Christian and had no kind of guided religious upbringing, though I have admittedly felt drawn towards Christianity at times. I never really thought about my origins or the reason for my being. However, lately I have been nearly consumed by those "big questions." The idea that the universe and our […]
Question: A- Deuteronomy 30:11-12 says: "For this commandment which I command thee this day, it is not hidden from thee, neither is it far off. It is not in heaven, that thou shouldest say, Who shall go up for us to heaven, and bring it unto us, that we may hear it, and do it?" […]
Question: I have come across a statement which a 7th Day Adventist claims. They say Jesus and the Archangel Michael is one and the same person. Their reading is in Daniel and also revelation with the war in heaven, I think its chapter 12. I find this hard to believe. What are your views in this? Answer: No, […]
Question: Can you please explain the origin of the trinity belief to me? Answer: The extremely brief answer to your question is that origin of the doctrine of the trinity is the teaching of Jesus and the New Testament (with a little bit of support from the Old Testament). However, this is a grossly simplified […]
Question: Someone shared this with me and I was curious of your thoughts on it. " Daniel B. Wallace disagrees with you. The preposition εἰς can mean many different things and be used numerous ways, including – A spatial use, a temporal use, a use of purpose, a use of result, a use of reference, […]
Question: I wonder just how much evidence some scholars need. What reasoning is required to decide that these two men (Imhotep and Joseph) were not one and the same? What are the odds that any two of the facts are about these two would be identical? What about three, four or five? Well there are even […]
Question: I’m a Christian but I’m finding it hard to rebutt some contradictions of the Bible I believe atheist are taking their questions from this website. http://humanknowledge.net/Philosophy/Metaphysics/Theology/Christianity.html Can the Bible challenge his theories? Answer: It is obviously not possible for me to respond to all the criticism of biblical Christianity at this web site. However, […]
Question; Is baptism required to become a Christian or can I just pray Jesus into my heart? Answer; I am assuming you are aware that there are many ideas about the role of baptism in Christian salvation. Let me consider two avenues we can use to answer your question, which is the testimony of NT scriptures […]
Question: If there is so much evidence supporting the validity of the Bible. Why do some Biblical scholars still remain so skeptical? Answer: Those who do not accept the validity of the Bible ought to speak for themselves. It is not my place to determine the motives of other people. Obviously, the reasons people choose […]
Question: What evidence you have for the Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covernants and Pearl of Great Price as I couldn’t find any on your web site. Answer: You do not find evidence for the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants and the Pearl of Great Price at my web site because I am […]
Question: Authors such as Bill Weise (23 minutes in Hell) and Mary Baxter claim Jesus allowed them to experience hell in order to warn us. They portray hell as an eternal torture chamber with excruciating physical pain. I wanted to get your input as to whether you believe their portrayals or think it’s a big […]
Question: What do you think about the time factor explained by Dr Zakir? He says that Christ did not complete the three days & three nights in the heart of the earth. Please, enlighten me on that issue. Answer; I looked around for a while but could not find the specific Youtube video you are talking about. […]
Question: Daniel chapter two talks about the statue in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream. I understand the statue as the timeline of the world empires and through the establishment of Gods Kingdom. What empires did those parts of the statue represent, and what was the historical time frame of those empires? Answer; The four kingdoms prophesied by the […]
Question: My question is about the relationship between brain and soul, and how damage to the brain can damage the soul. Say if I am a careful Christian who does everything the Bible asks of me and takes all its lessons to heart. But say if I have an accident that damages my brain and disrupts […]
Question: Would you help me? I see many answering the questions: Is the Bible true? Is the Bible inspired? Is the Bible the Word of God? I have a different question that I do not find answered anywhere — at least, not answered in so many words. Those other questions start with the Word of […]
Question: I wanted to know your opinion about the flood being a somewhat localevent in which the Caspian sea started as a much smaller lake in a valley that was flooded. At least at first glance, it seems to fit the science and the Bible. Here’s an abstract of about the same idea: http://gsa.confex.com/gsa/2003AM/finalprogram/abstract_63243.htm Answer: Here is […]
Question: The work that I have been reading a great deal about is that of Christina Hayes, who is absolutly brilliant. Also, the work of Naham Sarna is another of my favorite biblical scholars. They both are finding many examples of symbolism and contridictions. You say that these things are simply not true, but I […]
Question: I had an interesting discussion with a Christian friend the last few days about certain TV shows that are clearly not good for Christians to watch. One such example includes "South Park" though some Christians I know would debate about this and perhaps about "Family Guy" and "The Simpsons." I used to think (and […]
Question: How do you explain the meaning and purpose of John chapter one? Answer: My suggestion is that you ought to find a good commentary on the book of John to help you answer this question. You are probably asking too big a question for me to answer in brief form here. Nevertheless, let me […]
Question: I learned that the Pentatauch is attributed to Moses was, in fact, a compilation of 4 very different sources, which reflect the interests and biases of the author. This is a highly accepted theory and can be found everywhere in the Pentatauch if you know where to look. Like the story of the ark, […]
Note; Each of four questions is followed by an answer, so there are four separate Q & As below. Question #1: I noticed on your power point concerning prophesy that when talking about Daniel’s vision of four beasts you referred to ancient kingdoms I thought this vision referred to the end times or does it have a […]
Question/Comment: Your interpretation of Sura 19:32-33 is a little inaccurate. This is a quote from Jesus, not about Jesus, about what he knew of his life. He could not see the future, and therefore made a statement about what everyone knows, we live, we die. He didn’t know that his life would bring about uncommon […]
Question: I have a question about something you said in a CD on Science and God I got from IPI. You stated that circumcision was done on the eighth day due to Vitamin K levels being 120% above normal during this period. And thus making the procedure safer to save the Hebrew boys for Gods […]
Question: I have a question about Theistic Evolution, which clearly puts death before sin. Evolution would state that many organisms died in the intermediate steps leading to man, which then sinned. How would you reconcile death before sin to Romans 5:12? "Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, […]
Question: My question is do we have any answer to the question of the Pharaohs in Genesis/Exodus that some say no names so no way to verify. and because of no names no reliability. Any help on this? Answer: A good question. For whatever reason, the fact is that Exodus does not name the Pharaoh […]
Question: My question is one to do with the Big Bang. The creationist argument is that everything that has a beginning needs a cause and since the Universe had a beginning it need a cause- God. Since God did not have a beginning he did not need a cause. However, quantum electrodynamics claims that subatomic […]
Question: One of the Bible passages most often pointed to by Jews and Muslims is Mark 10:17-31. They claim in this passage that Jesus claims not to be God; however there are many passages where Jesus undeniably claims divinity for example Mark 14:62. What was Jesus trying to say then when he said: "Why do […]
Question: Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom." (Matthew 16:28) I thought that Jesus might be referring to his ascension here, but it didn’t seem to make sense in the context of the passage. Jesus […]
Question: (a very long one!!!) The books of the Bible are written by people claiming inspiration from God. Many people claim inspiration from God or supernatural forces. Muslims claim the Koran is divinely inspired, Mormons claim their Book of Mormon is divinely inspired, and I am sure many pagan sects say that their "book of […]
Question: One of the popular evidences for the resurrection of Jesus is the martyrdom of his disciples. It is claimed that eleven of Jesus’ twelve disciples went to their deaths defending their faith. It is later concluded that no one would die for something knowing it is a lie. I agree completely. However, this […]
Question: I’m interested in hearing your thoughts on Proverbs 20:30. I could see how based on this, many have taken things far (like monks constantly hitting themselves – I think in the Philippines they practice crucifixion – etc, etc)….Knowing that Proverbs are to help us "attain wisdom, discipline, understanding, discernment, guidance." (Proverbs 1:1-7) I’m struggling […]
Question: During your recent trip to teach in Dallas, I mentioned to you an article published recently, challenging the authenticity of the Dead Sea Scrolls. As promised, here are the links: http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1885421,00.html?cnn=yes Here is a 2nd article: http://mideast.blogs.time.com/2009/03/18/more-doubts-on-dead-sea-scroll-auth ors/?iid=sphere-inline-bottom While I don’t have a speicfic question, I would appreciate your general opinion of the articles. […]
Question: What do you think about the seven statements Jesus made on the cross? How do you explain those words? Can you explain to me each of these words, with scriptures. Answer: If we take together all four gospel accounts, scholars have compiled seven statements made by Jesus while he hung on the cross. This does not mean that […]
Question: An athiest friend asked me about the story of Jonah being eaten and thrown up by a fish. She said that this seemed imposible. How can I explain this to her? Answer: Your friend is right that the story of the swallowing and later regurgitation of Jonah alive on the third day is impossible. […]
Questions and Answers: 1] In Matthew 8;12 Who are the subjects that Jesus is talking about? "The subjects of the kingdom" are the Jews who do not receive Jesus. One can generalize this to include anyone who has been saved but later chooses to ignore his own calling, but in the context, Jesus is telling […]
Question: Someone told me that theres is no hell because sheol means grave and when we die we go to the grave and sleep. Answer; Your friend is partly right. Both the New and the Old Testament describe a place where the soul goes after life which is a sort of in-between existence before the […]
Question: Someone once said something like this "Even if someone tells me the truth, I will above it hold God’s truth". I can go online and search for the ark of the covenant, or Noah’s ark, and I can find all sorts of lies. I can go online or to libraries and find books talking […]
Question: There is so much info out there it is hard to get accurate information! I was reading Prepared to Answer (by Gordon Ferguson) in its section on Jehovah’s Witnesses. Here the author referred to the name "Jehovah" or Yahweh as refering to the Godhead or Father Son and Holy Spirit. How would I find the […]
Question: How would I go about defending the Bible translation as accurate in comparison to the New World Translation that the Jehovah Witnesses use? Answer: First of all, I do not want to discourage you, but I am afraid that the majority of Jehovah’s Witness believers are so well trained to not think or ask […]
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