General – Page 49 – Evidence for Christianity

Can we believe the eyewitnesses to the resurrection are reliable? Might they have subconsciously convinced themselves that Jesus was raised or might they have conspired to lie?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Resurrection of Jesus .

Note: There are so many questions here that the question and answers are interspersed. Hopefully, this will make sense.,John Oakes,Eyewitnesses are notoriously unreliable. There’s some elements of psychology that prove that a false memory can be planted in someone’s mind by repeated reinforcement. Police witnesses can produce varying accounts of what happened in certain circumstances […]

Given all the religious confusion, how can I be sure what is right? How can some people go to hell just because they have a different belief system? Why does God allow all this to be so unclear?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Interpretation, General, Other Religions, Theology and Doctrinal Questions .

Question: I see what you say about the laws of the old testament having been “fulfilled” and therefore do not have to be followed. However, many Jews still do follow those rules and, it has to be said that in doing so they are following the word of God as that is what is written […]

Is baptism one of the requirements for salvation?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Theology and Doctrinal Questions .

Question:,Is baptism one of the requirements for salvation? ,Answer:,The very first time the gospel was preached publicly was in the Temple precincts in Jerusalem on the Day of Pentecost, 50 days after the Passover when Jesus was killed. This event is described in Acts 2. It seems obvious that God would want to get things […]

Is it possible that the claims of the resurrection of Jesus happened because people confused writings from before he actually died?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Resurrection of Jesus .

Question: I have heard that the accounts of Jesus resurrectioncould be misleading as the dates could be inaccurate. In other words,accounts of Jesus appearing seemingly after he is resurrected could have been written before he had died. Is this true? Answer: If an account of Jesus being resurrected was written before he died that would […]

If God is perfect, then why is he jealous? Jealousy does not seem like a positive characteristic to me.

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Theology and Doctrinal Questions .

Question: If God is perfect, then why is he jealous? Jealousy does not seem like a positive characteristic to me. Answer: This is a very good question. I think my answer will be similar to one I might give if I were asked how a perfect God can have anger as part of his character. […]

Is there anything distinctively Christian about apologetics? Do all religions include apologetics? How much can reason accomplish in religion (and many more questions)

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, General Apologetics, Other Religions, Philosophy .

Question: 1) Is there anything distinctively Christian about apologetics? Why or why not? Do all religions include apologetics? Why or Why not?;2) How much do you think natural human reason can accomplish in religion? In general?;3) What good does it do to argue for your faith? What harm can it do?;4) How useful are merely […]

How does the zodiac principle relate to the Bible if they do and was the system of the zodiac developed before the Bible?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Other Religions, Theology and Doctrinal Questions .

Question: How does the zodiac principle relate to the Bible if they do and was the system of the zodiac developed before the Bible? Also , many people believe that the repetition of specific numbers i.e 7 , 3 , 40 , 12 are related to the zodiac.Who influenced who in this subject? Answer: The […]

Who were the "sons of God" in Genesis 6:2?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Interpretation, General .

Question: Who were the “sons of God” in Genesis 6:2? Answer: Note, this answer is taken directly from one given to the same question at www.douglasjacoby.com John O. Sons of God 11/21/2003 ?????????????????????????????????????????????? There has been much speculation about who these “sons of God” mentioned in the sixth chapter of Genesis were. Three basic interpretations […]

Does the Lost Son in Luke 15 represent a sinner who needs to become a Christian or a Christian who has left God?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Interpretation, General .

Question:,I recently read an article written by a person named Raul in his website ( www.santiagoicc.org) about the Luke 15, and he say that “the lost son” it is not in fact a walk away son of God, but a lost person as any non-Christian is. I would really appreciate your comments of both. ,Answer:,Please […]

Given that the education our children receive is from a worldly point of view, how should we feel and what should we do about this?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Practical Christianity, Social Issues .

Question: I want to ask about “Education”. Where did education came from? Who started it? What does the Bible or God says about it? How should a disciple of Jesus feel about worldly educational systems? In my mind that education comes from the world, and in our generation in finding a job the standard of […]

An atheist friend challenged me: How can suffering and evil exist if God is loving and all-powerful? (This person also proposes almost every difficult question about Christianity)

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, General Apologetics, Philosophy .

Question: I am a sophomore in high school, and I recently began to engage in dialog with one of my atheist friends about the existence of God. My interest in the subject began last summer while my friend was attending a philosophy camp at Duke. He knew I was a Christian, so he sent me […]

Would voting for Hilary Clinton for President be unbiblical, as she is a woman in authority position?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Social Issues, Theology and Doctrinal Questions .

Question:,Would voting for Hilary Clinton for President be unbiblical, as she is a woman in authority position?,Answer:,Let me answer your question with another question. What passage in the Bible can you use to show that women cannot take a leadership role in a secular job?,OK, now we have that out of the way. There is […]

The Jewish leaders took the threat of the body of Jesus being stolen seriously. Is this not an agrument in favor of the idea that the disciples might have tried to steal the body of Jesus?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Resurrection of Jesus .

Question: It has been argued that one reason for the historicity of Jesus’ resurrection, as opposed to the disciples having stolen the body, was that the idea of a crucified and subsequently risen savior was foreign to first century Jewish thought. If I understand the argument correctly, its strength is in the assumption that the […]

How do one defend to a postmodern generaton the fact that Christianity is the only means of salvation?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Philosophy, Theology and Doctrinal Questions .

Question:,How do one defend to a postmodern generaton the fact that Christianity is the only means of salvation?,Answer:,First of all, I am sorry for being so slow about a response. We moved this month and besides I got caught up a bit in all the Christmas stuff.,This is a very good question. I am afraid […]

Jesus came in human form. Should we worship him? Deuternomy 5:7 seems to say that we should not. Is this a contradiction?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Supposed Inconsistencies in the Bible, Theology and Doctrinal Questions .

Question: Jesus is a human form. Should we worship him? I ask this because in Deutronomy 5:7 God said do not make a an idol in any form. Jesus is inthe flesh.but when Jesus? disciples worshiped him he acceptedit. It appears to be a kind of contradiction. Answer: First comment is that it is worth […]

A recent article claimed that Jericho and Ai were destroyed 1000 years before the biblical date of conquest. Can you comment on this?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Archaeology and the Bible, General .

Question: I read an article that on Joshua, claiming that archaeological evidence suggests the cities of Ai and Jerichowere destroyed roughly 1,000 years before the Biblical account of the Israelites’ arrival. Can you comment on this? Answer: The article you referred to is not written by a careful scholarly person, you can be assured of […]

How do I find balanced and unbiased information on questions such as biblical archaeology? How do I balance accuracy (for example in questions of biblical inerrancy) when I share my faith?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Archaeology and the Bible, General, General Apologetics, Practical Christianity .

Question: Where can I find balanced information on historical/theological reading of the Word? As a born again, Bible-following Christian for 22 years, I’m always excitied to read of some archaeological development that sheds light on people, times and/or places of the Bible. But I’ve also I’ve read enough about what archaeology has not been able […]

Can you explain Daniel 9:27 and the ceasing of sacrifice and offerings. Does this not refer to the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD? If so, doesn't this go beyond the 490 years to fulfill the prophecy?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Daniel, General, Historical and Messianic Prophecy .

Question: I read the explanation of Daniel chapter 9 prophecy in your book “From Shadow to Reality”. You were really quite explicit on that. What I am unable to understand is verse no 27 which predicts the putting to an end of sacrifice and offering. I think the prophecy refers to the crucifixion which took […]

You state in "Reasons for Belief" that to grow deep in our faith we must explore the basis of our faith. Can you expand on each category of that statement?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, General Apologetics .

Question: I am reading one of your book titled “Reason for Belief”. I must say it is really impactful. However, I have a question on one area there. You mentioned about the base of our faith. If we want to grow deep, we must explore the basis of our faith, could you expand on each […]

How can Matthew 24:36 (only the Father knows the day and hour, not even the Son) be true if Jesus was God and omniscient ?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Reliability of the Bible, Theology and Doctrinal Questions .

Question:,How can Matthew 24:36 (only the Father knows the day and hour, not even the Son) be true if Jesus was God and omniscient ?,Answer:,To be honest, I do not know exactly how this worked. Jesus lowered himself in ways which I do not throroughly comprehend when he came to earth and took on a […]

What is the definition of work in the Old Testament and how were people to know what constituted or did not constitute work?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Interpretation, General .

Editor’s note; The answer belos is a response to a very long and involved question which comes down to this. What is the definition of work in the Old Testament and how were people to know what constituted or did not constitute work? For the entire question, go to the bottom of my answer. Answer. […]

What are some of your thoughts of global warming and 2 Peter 3: 10-13?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in End Times, General, Science and the Bible, Theology and Doctrinal Questions .

Question: What are some of your thoughts of global warming and 2 Peter 3: 10-13? Answer: My thoughts are that there is absolutely no connection whatsoever between global warming and 2 Peter 3:10-13. This passage is certainly not talking about some sort of extremely slow process of raising the temperature of the earth a few […]

What are some of your thoughts of global warming and 2 Peter 3: 10-13?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in End Times, General, Science and the Bible, Theology and Doctrinal Questions .

Question: What are some of your thoughts of global warming and 2 Peter 3: 10-13? Answer: My thoughts are that there is absolutely no connection whatsoever between global warming and 2 Peter 3:10-13. This passage is certainly not talking about some sort of extremely slow process of raising the temperature of the earth a few […]

Is it true that the Catholic Church has hidden evidence of other gospels, and possibly one from Jesus himself?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Manuscripts and Textual Questions, General, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: I have heard and seen articles so many times about the Catholic faith hiding evidence of other gospels and possibly a gospel from Jesus himself? This concerns me since I used to be Catholic (now a non-denomintated Christian) and still have many Catholic friends that may be oblivious of this information and frankly get […]

How are we to understand Mark 16:15-18 (about the signs which would accompany the believers) if we take it literally. We do not see these signs today.

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Interpretation, General .

Question: Mark 16: 17-18 of the NIV translation reads: “And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their […]

How do you reconcile Matthew 16:27 and 16:28? What is the time frame for the fulfillment of this prophecy?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Interpretation, End Times, General, Historical and Messianic Prophecy, Supposed Inconsistencies in the Bible .

Question:,One of my sons asked me a Bible question tonight and after doing a little study I am still baffled, so I wondered if you had any insight into it. The question is: how do we reconcile Matthew 16:27 and Matthew 16:28? I read your response to a questioner who asked about Matthew 16:28 and […]

Our preteens went to a Planetarium and asked " What is the number of stars approximately?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Science and the Bible .

Question:,Our preteens went to a Planetarium and asked ” What is the number of stars approximately?”,Answer,The answer is that there are approximately one hundred billion stars in an average galaxy and there are approximately one hundred billion galaxies in the universe, which means that there are 1.0×10^11 x 1.0×10^11 stars or 1 x 10^22 stars […]

How do we know there is a God (please answer for a 10 year old).

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, General Apologetics .

Question:,How do we know there is a God (please answer for a 10 year old).,Answer:,We know that there is a God because of his wonderful and marvelous creation. Science may be able to describe the creation, but it can never EXPLAIN the creation. The variety, the organization and the beauty of the galaxies, stars, planets, […]

It is said dinosaurs lived millions of years ago and that dinosaur fossils prove this. How can you explain this?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Creation, General, Science and the Bible .

Question:,Can you help me about dinosours. It was said that they live here on earth millions of years ago and there were fosils of dinosaurs that were found. How can you explain this?,Answer:,Yes, dinosaurs lived a very long time ago. They appeared on the earth somewhere a little more than two hundred million years ago. […]

Am I violating the Lord's Sabbath by atteding Sunday services? Is Sunday a false Sabbath?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Theology and Doctrinal Questions .

Question:,I’ve read somewhere that the Lord’s Sabbath is on a Saturday. Yet I am attending Sunday services. Am I violating the Lord’s Sabbath? The article I read also states that worshipping on Sunday is a false Sabbath and is actually the doing of the devil, so am I doing anything wrong?,Answer,Actually, from the Christian perspective, […]

Why does God allow people to be born who will not have an opportunity to hear and accept the good news about Jesus? How will they be justified?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Theology and Doctrinal Questions .

Question:,Why does God allow birth in all kinds of races, cultures, remote places where people will not get a worthy opportunity to hear, believe or accept the good news in Christ through discipleship? How is He going to justify them — is it act on your conscious scale for them? ,Answer:,About God allowing people to […]

Have findings of Lucy and Neanderthals or other prehistoric ancestors ever been proven wrong?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Anthropology, General, Science and the Bible .

Question:,There have been all these findings of skeletal remains scientists claim to have been prehistioric ancestors, like Lucy, the Neanderthals, etc. In truth, from the looks of these remains, I can’t say I believe it. I wanted to know, have any of these findings ever been proven wrong?,Answer:,I am not sure what you mean when […]

How can we know the date of an event or writing from thousands of years ago if the date was not recorded at that time? For example, someone may say, "this was written around 58 AD". How can we know that for sure?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Archaeology and the Bible, Bible Manuscripts and Textual Questions, General, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: How can we know the date of an event or writing from thousands of years ago if the date was not recorded at that time? For example, someone may say, “this was written around 58 AD”. How can we know that for sure? Or even when someone says, “the book of ____ was written […]

If Genesis One is in agreement with science, then why is it that the stars and the moon do not appear until the fourth day?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Creation, General, Science and the Bible .

Question:,I recently went to the Museum of Science in Boston, and was fascinated to find how closely their presentation of how the earth was created matched that in Genesis. My one question is, the biblical account explains that the stars and the moon were created after the earth. I can see the moon being created […]

What is the exact meaning of the Hebrew word m'lacha and its variants? What types of work were prohibited by the Old Testament?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Interpretation, General, Theology and Doctrinal Questions .

Question: ,I’d like to hear your opinion on the following question I heard… In the first narrative of the Ten Commandments, the verses regarding sabbath observance read as follows: Ex.20:8-11 “Remember the Sabbath day to sanctify it. Six days shall you work and accomplish all your work,but the seventh day… you shall not do any […]

In the Bible it says heaven and earth will pass away but his word will live forever…. What does it mean by heaven will pass away?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Interpretation, End Times, General .

Question:,In the Bible it says heaven and earth will pass away but his word will live forever…. What does it mean by heaven will pass away? I thought heaven would last forever…,Answer:,I am not sure exactly what this fairly enigmatic passage means. To some extent, all I can do is quote the scripture and say […]

Is Acts 22:17-21 an example of the principle that God can use our own disobedience to bring about his own glory?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Interpretation, General .

Question:,Acts 22 :17 “When I returned to Jerusalem and was praying at the temple, I fell into a trance 18and saw the Lord speaking. ‘Quick!’ he said to me. ‘Leave Jerusalem immediately, because they will not accept your testimony about me.’,19” ‘Lord,’ I replied, ‘these men know that I went from one synagogue to another […]

Why are there 41 generations from David to Jesus in Luke, but only 28 generations in Matthew? Also, why do we not follow all the laws in the Bible, such as the Sabbath?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Interpretation, General, Supposed Inconsistencies in the Bible .

Question:,I would like some help with something someone said to me about the Bible. They said that it can’t all be true as Matthew and Luke do not agree about lots of things about the story of Jesus. They said that Matthew says Jesus was born 28 generations after King David and Luke says it […]

We believe God is just. How can it be just that when a person sins, someone else (ie. Jesus) takes the penalty for our crime?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Philosophy, Theology and Doctrinal Questions .

Question: I had a line of reasoning posed to me by an agnostic friend yesterday that I can’t seem to answer. It started with the question, “If God makes all the rules why did Jesus have to die? Why couldn’t he just absolve human sin?” to which I replied, “Along with being perfect love, God […]

How long would it take for an olive tree to produce new leaves once uncovered by the waters of the flood? Is seven days enough? (Genesis 8:6-12)

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Science and the Bible, The Flood .

Question:,How long would it take for an olive tree that was under water for more than a year to form leaves once the water receded? The scriptures seem to say in a 7-day period the tree went from being underwater (the dove had no place to set his feet) to leaf producing. When looking at […]

Do we have any archeological evidence to back-up the long lifespans of Genisis?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Anthropology, Archaeology and the Bible, General, Science and the Bible .

Question:,Do we have any archeological evidence to back-up the long lifespans of Genisis? If lifespans were commonly long back then wouldn’t at least some skeletons from that range of time show evidence of great age?,Answer:,There is no physical evidence supporting the several hundred year life spans listed in Genesis. Not as far as I know. […]

What is the evidence that the kingdom Chist promised his appostles that "Most of you will not taste death until they see it come?" Or are the apostles still alive? Did the Kingdom exist before they died?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Interpretation, General, Historical and Messianic Prophecy .

Question:,What is the evidence that the kingdom Chist promised his appostles that “Most of you will not taste death until they see it come?” Or are the apostles still alive? Did the Kingdom exist before they died?,Answer:,The kingdom of God came with power within the lifetime of almost all the apostles. This prophecy of Jesus […]

Assuming that there existed an oral tradition given to the Jews beyond that we have in the Pentateuch, what purpose did these additional laws serve? What do they contain? Are the ultraorthodox Jews right that they are contained in the Talmud?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, History, Other Religions .

Question:,You agree with me that there was probably some sort of oral tradition given to the Jews which did not make it into the Old Testament. (editor’s note: this is based on an earlier question and answer) I would like to ask you the following three questions:,1) What purpose do you think this oral tradition […]

How can 100's of thousands of years of humans on the earth and millions of years from scientific dating be squeezed into 6000 years. Also, why does Genesis not mention dinosaurs?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Creation, General, Science and the Bible .

Question: I have the question of new earth versus old earth trouble me the most. I’m pretty sure you know that the Bible is backtracked to 6,000 years old for the earth. How is it that we find Neanderthals and “cavemen” that lived a supposed 100’s of thousands years ago. And why did the Bible […]

How can I prove to my Jewish friends that Jesus is the Son of God and the Messiah?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Historical and Messianic Prophecy, Prefigures and Foreshadows .

Question: I have many Jewish friends. How can I prove that Jesus is the Son of God and the Messiah? Answer: Good question! Let me make a couple of suggestions: 1. Purchase a book on Judaism and its relationship to Christianity. My favorite is “You Bring the Bagels, I’ll Bring the Gospel” by Barry Rubin. […]

If we have free will, then why are we held responsible for Adam and Eve's sin?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Theology and Doctrinal Questions .

Question: If I have free will then how am I held responsible to Adam and Eves sin? I did not have any say nor free will in that and you say I am the reason for sin? I mean seriously think about it, why because of the fact that Adam and Eve ate some fruit […]

Are we saved by/at baptism? Or is it simply by belief, given that there are so many more passages on the importance of belief?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Theology and Doctrinal Questions .

Question: It seems to be the general understanding that people are saved by or at baptism. For a long time it is what I used to think. Now, after I have read John and verses in other books in the New Testament, it seems there is a big focus on belief – believe in Jesus […]

How is it that God says that something will last forever (ex. Ex 12:14, Lev 3:17, Deut 12:1), but then God changes his mind and does something different? One example is with the Sabbath.

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Interpretation, General, Reliability of the Bible, Theology and Doctrinal Questions .

Question: The Old Testament declares many times in very explicit language that certain commandments shall be observed forever. (To name a few: Exodus 12:14, Leviticus 3:17, Leviticus 23:21, Deut 12:1) If so, how does it make any sense that the Creator would change His mind/contradict Himself and do away with these commandments!? If a religion […]

Can you explain the apparent contradiction between Genesis 50:12 and Acts 7:15-16? (regarding the cave Abraham bought)

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Supposed Inconsistencies in the Bible .

Question: I had a question regarding (Acts 7:15-16), (Matthew 9:18 / Mark 5:22-23) and (Matthew 27:8-10).;-In the Acts passage, it says that Abraham bought the tomb from the sons of Hamor, but it seems to conflict between what Genesis says.;-In the first Matthew passage compared with Mark, did the daughter die or was she dying? […]

Why was it such a sacrifice for god to lose his only son Jesus, when he has the power to tell the future and knew he would be resurrected?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Resurrection of Jesus, Theology and Doctrinal Questions .

Question: Why was it such a sacrifice for god to lose his only son Jesus, when he has the power to tell the future and knew he would be resurrected? Answer: I am guessing that you are not a parent. For me, to imagine watching my one and only son (I actually have one son […]