Why do the gospels differ in showing how Jesus called his first disciples? The book of John describes the encounter differently from the other gospel books. I am assuming that you are referring to John 1:35-42, which is obviously significantly different from, for example Mark 1:14-20. I have always assumed that when Jesus formally called […]
Is there life on other planets? The answer to your question is really quite simple. I do not know. No one knows one way or another for sure about life on other planets at this point, leaving the entire issue up to speculation. But since it is a matter of speculation, and since I am […]
I’m confused about Carbon-14 dating. What is it based on? (besides the amount of radioactive carbon in an organism and its atmosphere at a given time) I know that it is extremely inaccurate, but what is it that makes scientists somewhat believe that it works? Carbon-14 dating works on the basis of the fact that […]
Are Jehovah’s Witnesses considered part of a cult? How did this religion come to be and what is it they believe? Whether or not the Jehovah’s Witness are a cult would depend on your definition of the word. For me, personally, the word cult has come to have a very negative connotation. The working definition […]
I have been studying the Bible and understand from the teaching of Jesus that there is only one church. Is the correct? If so, should the teaching/doctrine of the church be flawless because it is following the Bible which is the flawless word of God? You are absolutely right in saying that there is only […]
What about when the words of Jesus in red in one Gospel, describing a one-time event do not EXACTLY match other accounts? The temptation of Christ, for example. I am not upset about this for some reason, and it doesn’t shake my faith in Christ, but is there a reasonable answer? Just different ways the […]
Is it considered anti-Christian to believe in the concepts of the zodiac, such as reading your horoscope and taking it to heart, or of psychic abilities? That is an easy one. Yes, from the perspective of the Bible and of belief in Jesus Christ, it definitely is a sin to rely on one’s horoscope rather […]
What’s the deal with deism? Is it almost considered atheist? Could one go to hell with the belief in deism? You will find a wide range of groups and individual religious beliefs which could be labeled as deist. It is wise to take any definition of deism with a grain of salt. However, let me […]
What are common characteristics to religious nationalism? I am not completely confident of how you would define religious nationalism. Let me give you the definition I would use and answer the question based on that definition. If I have missed the mark, please rephrase your question so that I can be sure how you would […]
Paul was baptized by Ananias, but did any of the Apostles lay their hands on him to pass the out pouring gift of holy spirit? If not from whom did he received the baptism of Holy Spirit? You are asking me to speculate on something which is not specifically stated in the New Testament–a thing […]
Do you know the reason given as to why Jewish people no longer offer sacrifices. I have read that in the time of the exile, more weight was given to study of the law and scribes, but even then, the Levitical line was preserved and once the captives returned, sacrifices and temple worship were reinstated. […]
Did Moses live at the same time as Noah? No. Moses lived in the period around 1400 BCE. That is an approximation, and scholars will debate the exact date. Some would place the Exodus from Egypt (under Moses) as late as about 1300 BCE, others would date it at around 1460 BC. That is a […]
Did Christianity originate in Ethiopia? No. Christianity originated in Jerusalem, probably in either AD 29 or AD 33 (the two years which have the Passover fall on the right day to fit the description in the gospel accounts). To be specific, Christianity as a publicly proclaimed religion, began on the Day of Pentecost, forty-nine days […]
I have read that many churches, worship service is man-made and they are following in the foot steps of Abel not Cain. But I have also thought about the way we worship outside the church; we should be able to do inside. example playing instruments while singing. many people sing along in their cars or […]
Do Christians have to be baptized in the Holy Spirit to speak in tongues or is it also possible to speak tongues when they are water baptized? This definitely would not fall into the area of Christian evidences, but let me take a stab at this one, based on the Bible study I have done […]
Who wrote the book of Hebrews? That is an easy question. The answer is that no one knows who wrote this book. It is one of my three or four personal favorite books in the Bible, but, bottom line, the book is not signed. We can assume that the very early church considered it to […]
Explain what Hebrews means in chapter 6 and 10 about being saved. I have been taught that once saved always saved is true but according to the Book of Hebrews this is not true. I would say that your own personal Bible study has led you to understand the correct sense of Scripture on this […]
Does it say in the New Testament that we are not to go by the laws of the old testament only the Ten Commandments? First of all, you should understand that for the Jews, the distinction between the Ten Commandments and the other commandments in the Law of Moses is not particularly important. It is […]
In the opening chapters of Genesis, the Bible says that Cain was afraid of others who might take vengeance upon him. Where did these people come from??? They could not have been his brothers for there is hardly enough time for procreation to have resulted in a population large enough for Cain to be concerned […]
1. I believe whether a person is saved is predestined by God. Once God has chosen us to be his people, He will do anything to protect us till the end, no matter how bad we are. But if a person sins and falls it is because s/he is not the selected one, and there […]
Why does the miracle of turning the water into wine and the temptation of Christ in the wilderness take place at the same time if you read the story in two different books of the NT? Why are the 10 rules found in Ex. 20 and Ex 34 not the same ? It took me […]
Why did Jesus tell Judas he would be the head of one of the twelve tribes if Judas was going to betray him? Who were the Twelve who saw the risen Christ in Paul’s account of the resurrection. If Judas was dead how could he be one of the “twelve” who saw Christ. Jesus did […]
How do you reconcile the accounts in Matthew and Luke regarding the events immediately following the birth of Jesus? In Matthew, Jesus is brought to Egypt from Bethlehem and then later to Nazareth after the death of Herod. In Luke, from Bethlehem he is brought to Jerusalem and then immediately to Nazareth. The way Matthew […]
Lately I have been wondering about the atrocities of murder, genocide, etc. today. I do not have a problem understanding the existence of evil or human suffering. But throughout the OT God told the Israelites to conduct genocide; including the murder of women and children. I can accept instances like Sodom and Gomorrah were God […]
I have been a Christian for the past few years and have been seeking the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. I have been told by my fellow brethren that if I ask God for the Baptism of the Holy Spirit I will receive Him. Well I have been doing this for years now and nothing […]
I do not see the Ark of the Covenant mentioned in the Bible, after the time of Solomon? What happened to it? Where might it be? Is recovering it of any importance? You are correct, as far as I know, about the last time the Ark of the Covenant is known for sure to have […]
There is increasing argument that many of the sayings of Jesus (the Lord’s, prayer for example) had already been recorded in early historical manuscripts. They suggest that Jesus simply borrowed them. Is this true? In order to answer this question, I would need specific examples. If you have some specific claims about Jesus repeating the […]
What is the deity of Christ ? The “deity of Christ” refers to the New Testament teaching that Jesus Christ is God. Almost all those who would call themselves Christians would accept this most basic of all Bible teachings. The most significant exception is the Jehovah’s Witness denomination. Thanks to the teaching of their founder, […]
Could you please give me some black/white, concrete, and clear evidence that proves The Koran to be false? I have been reading a researching myself, but whenever I find something that I can say, “ha! I’ve got it. This proves The Koran is false and not the word of God,” I then find someone who […]
I recently viewed a documentary claiming that ancient tablets (older than OT manuscripts) were found in Iraq, telling a story almost identical to Noah’s… and that the soil there showed signs of an ancient flood as well (unlike the land around Mount Ararat). The final conclusion was that Israel received this “story” from the Babylonians […]
Was Satan kicked out of Heaven? There is a very common belief that Satan was kicked out of heaven. Yet, perhaps surprisingly, you will not find this clearly stated in the Bible. This is one of many examples of a common misconception taking on the appearance of authority or truth simply because it is repeated […]
What are the names of the seven angels listed in the New Testament? what is the name of the beast of the New Testament? I have heard the claim in the past that there are seven named angels in the Bible, but I cannot confirm this claim from studying the Bible itself. The specific named […]
When did Christianity begin? Public Christianity began on the day of Pentecost, as described in Acts Chapter two. One could debate this date. For example, one could say that Christianity began the day Jesus rose from the dead, or one could say that Christianity began the day Jesus was born, or the day he began […]
In 2 Corinthians 12, Paul’s had a vision about the “Third Heaven”. What was Paul referring to when he mentioned the “Third Heaven” in verse 2-3? I am going to do something I have never done at this web site, which is copy another person’s answer to this question verbatim, without changing it at all. […]
When God destroyed the earth with great flood all the creatures of ground and air were destroyed (Gen 7:22-23), but what about the creatures of water ? Were they also destroyed? There is no evidence in Genesis that the creatures in water were destroyed wholesale by the flood–be they fresh or salt-water life. It would […]
Have you read Peter Gomes’ “The Good Book”? If so, how would you respond to the argument he makes in chapter 8 regarding homosexuality? I have not read this book. I did look it up at Amazon and looked at the table of contents and a few excerpts from the book. The chapter in question […]
How does Christianity explain human death? The traditional interpretation of Genesis chapter three is that the sin of Adam and Eve led to their eventual physical death, and, presumably to eventual physical death for all human beings. ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden and you […]
I was wondering if you could provide me with a list of the New Testament books in chronological order. I’m trying to prepare for an upcoming discussion about the reliability of Bible texts so if you could point me in any specific direction…that would be great Do you mean chronological order of when they were […]
Would you please share some scriptures for learning respect and responsibility. For passages in the Bible on respect and responsibility, I would definitely suggest turning to the book of Proverbs. In fact almost any aspect of one’s character will be addressed in the Proverbs. Specific passages I would mention would include; Prov 1:8 Listen, my […]
I came across your email about why people do not believe in God. I am an atheist, but I do not deny a god. For me there is no God to deny. I don’t suppress any truth. I have found some truths in science. If there were indeed a God, which I cannot prove either […]
Where did Christianity originate? Christianity originated in the city of Jerusalem in present-day Israel. The founder of Christianity, Jesus Christ, was born in the small town of Bethlehem, just a few miles southwest of Jerusalem. He was raised in the town of Nazareth in the region of Galilee, about one hundred miles north of Jerusalem. […]
How would you respond to the question: can’t you use existing facts to prove any claim, in this case Christianity, but in reality any thing you wish? I would say you raise a very good and valid question. The fact is that if one chooses to suspend use of correct lines of reasoning, then one […]
Did the “disciples” get baptized again on the day of Pentecost or was Jesus baptism the same as for the forgiveness of sins? This is a fairly common question. Unfortunately, to answer the question requires speculation. The Bible simply does not answer this questions. You can assume that the answer you get to this question […]
I was just reviewing that article you wrote about people believing God isn?t real. When you try to explain how God is or isn?t real, you can’t use the Bible because the Bible is a human written book. There is absolutely no proof that any of these actions occurred, well little if any. There is […]
“Jews do not believe that Jesus was the moshiach. Assuming that he existed, and assuming that the Christian scriptures are accurate in describing him (both matters that are debatable), he simply did not fulfill the mission of the moshiach as it is described in the biblical passages cited above. Jesus did not do any of […]
I have a question for you. I was wondering if you could give me advice on helping people who argue that the Bible we have today cannot possibly be the original Bible. I obviously cannot tell them that I believe by faith that it is the inspired word of God and that He protects His […]
*Did the messianic prophecies foretell of the “second coming?” *Does God explicitly reveal to Moses the 8 day circumcision decision procedure or is it more like it was a “best practices” act that was handed down over generations and then was written down by Moses? *Do we know how long Jesus was in Egypt? There […]
Why do we have Good Friday? Why is it called Good Friday? First of all, Good Friday is a religious tradition, and its celebration as an official church holiday is not supported or encouraged by the Bible (although it is not outlawed by the Bible either). Many Christian groups do not celebrate this holiday, as […]
Note: The question is quite long. The answer is about five paragraphs down the page How does Christianity justify its staunch and abusive criticism of so called “Pagan” Religions in the light that it developed well after many other religions that were also the belief of many people before it? Too often “pagan religions have […]
In the recent movie, The Passion of Christ, there was a reference to Pilate being warned by Caesar twice not to allow any more uprisings. Is there any historical basis for this? I’m sure there was some political reason Pilate allowed a man he considered innocent to be executed. Melissa (Denver) Relatively little is known, […]
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