Question: Why do people use the first eleven chapters of Genesis for data on creation even tough it is one big poem pointing to our amazing creator? Answer: Probably the best way to get an answer to your question is to ask the people who do this. They are in a position to tell you […]
Dr. John Oakes is teaching a 16 hour class together with Glenn Giles for the Los Angeles School of Ministry and Mission 9/13-14/2019. Because I am sharing the class with Glenn, this material does not cover the entire book. The notes, however, do cover the entire book. Old Testament Allusions and Foreshadows of Revelation […]
Question: A Jewish Rabbi said that the Hebrew Tanakh (Tanach) and the Christian Old Testament are quite different . It seems Tanakh is not an Old Testament. More so, he said that Catholic Church misinterpreted several important verses (over and over) of the Old Testament to suits New Testament claims in order to make it fit […]
Dr. John Oakes is teaching a twelve hour class on Christian evidence specifically for a group of campus ministry interns in Fresno, California July 11-12. Power Point presentations and audio will be uploaded from the class.
Question: How do we know that the Bible consists of real-life events and is not just a story put together by some bloke in the first century using characters based off people around that time. For example we do not know that Jesus actually said any of the words that he is recorded as saying […]
Question: Is Zechariah 13:7 talking about the Messiah or is it about the false shepherd whom God strikes in Zechariah 11:17 or perhaps the false prophet in Zechariah 13: 1-6? Answer: The shepherd of Zechariah 13:7 is the Messiah. I know this for sure because in Matthew 26:31 the inspired gospel writer Matthew tells us […]
Question: I have three questions: 1- I have searched and found that there is division between scholars about dating the Gospel of Luke and the Book of Acts. Although some believe that they were written before 62 AD because there is no mention of Paul’s death or destruction of Jerusalem, most scholars believe that they […]
John Oakes taught a four-day thirty hour class on Church History for the Los Angeles School of Mission and Ministry. This is a lot of material!!! Church History audio 1 Church History Audio 2 Church History Audio 3 Church History Audio 4 Church History Audio 5 Church History Audio 6 Church History Audio 7 Church...
Dr, John Oakes taught a series of lessons for the Pilgrim Valley Church of Christ in Central Massachussetts March, 2019 God and Science UMass Christianity and Postmodernism Living by Faith Heb 11 Mass Problem of Pain and Suffering
Question: Jehovah’s Witnesses state that Constantine made the Bible pagan, Hence their New World Translation. Do you have any evidence against this as nobody yet has been able to provide me something that backs up their claim. Thanks very much. Answer: This claim is so blatantly unfounded that for anyone to make the it they […]
Dr. John Oakes gave a sermon for the Bakersfield Church of Christ 12/08/2018 on Hebrews 11. Power Point and audio are attached. Living by Faith Audio HebrewsLivingbyFaith
Dr. John Oakes gave a sermon on finding Jesus in the Old Tesatment in Temecula, California on 10/14/18. Notes, PPT and audio are included. Shadow to Reality Notes FSTR PPT FSTR Temecula Audio
Question: Is PSALM 14 7 ” someone out of zion ” or “salvation out of zion” Answer: The Hebrew word in question here is yeshua. It is the word translated as salvation in most Bibles, which is the word equivalent of the names Joshua and Jesus, both of which are yeshua in Hebrew. The word Jesus means salvation. […]
Question: In Leviticus God tells the Jews not to eat winged insects which fly. Why, then, did John the Baptist eat unclean locusts and honey in the desert? Answer: About locusts being clean, Leviticus 11:20-23 addresses this issue. This passage declares all flying insects as unclean with the exception of those which walk and hop […]
Question: Is the Hebrew word “Lord” really a pagan title? I have come across teachings in books that claim to reveal the truth about Christianity’s pagan roots. Of course most of these sources claim to be Christian but they call themselves Messianic. I really think some of the things they teach are true but they […]
Question: In Colossians 4:16,Paul asks them to read a letter he wrote to the Laodiceans. Is this book available anywhere or is it permanently lost? Answer: That is one of the easier questions I have gotten. The answer is that this letter is lost. It is possible, but very unlikely, that this letter will surface. […]
Dr. John Oakes gave a sermon in San Diego on 3/25/28 on Philippians 3. The Title is Our Confidence in Christ. Philippians 3 Notes Philippians 3 PPT Philippians 3 Audio
Question: Shabir Ally frequently uses the ‘number miracles’ in the Quran to prove that it is the word of God. Here are 2 clips which shows what he’s trying to claim: 1) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lEmCZ968PQI 2) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8qunUypvBQ4 How would you respond to this claim? Answer; Actually, I have met Shabir Ali personally. We arranged a debate between […]
Dr. John Oakes is teaching for the Salt Lake Christian Church at the University of Utah. God and Science SLC Science and God PPT From Shadow to Reality SLC1 From Shadow to Reality SLC 2 From Shadow to Reality SLC 3 From Shadow to Reality SLC 4 From Shadow to Reality PPT Living by […]
Dr. Jennifer Konzen taught a class on the part professional counseling plays in the life of Christians. Christian Counselor 1 Christian Counselor 2 Christian Counselor 3 Christian Counselor 4 Christian Counselor 5 Christian Counselor 6 Christian Counselor 7 Christian Counselor 8 Christian Counselor 9...
Question: How can I understand the meaning when the Lord’s Prayer says- lead us not into temptation. This is confusing to me because of what James 1:13-15 suggests, which is that God does not tempt us. The Lord’s prayer seems to clearly say Jesus is telling us to ask God, “Please don’t lead us into […]
Question: Today I came across a difficult passage of 1Timothy 2:11 about how a woman should learn in quietness and that Paul doesn’t permit women to exercise authority over men. He further argued that this is because of how Eve first fell into temptation and not Adam and that Adam was formed first. The passage […]
The following is an essay by Dr. John Oakes. It is a reflection on the Christian Reformation in light its 500th Anniversary. A Reflection on the 500th Anniversary of the Protestant Reformation There is much interest in the Christian world on the 500th Anniversary of the Protestant Reformation. Even in mostly-atheist Germany, awareness of the […]
Question: I read your book Daniel: A Prophet to the Nations (editor’s note: available at www.ipibooks.com) and enjoyed it very much. I was going over my notes from it and got to the part where you talked about the prophesies in Daniel about Antiochus IV and how he was going to desecrate the temple and […]
John Oakes taught a class on Walking in the Light for the singles ministry in San Diego on 5/9/17. In the lesson he is attempting to provide a nuanced definition of walking in the light and the importance of being open with one another, with oneself and with God. Notes are posted here for those […]
Questions: If the Passover of the New Covenant (Jesus flesh and blood) is the only way to receive forgiveness of sins, then why did the Council of Nicaea remove this important teaching in AD 325? If the Passover of the New Covenant (Jesus flesh and blood) is the only way to receive forgiveness of sins, then […]
Question: I have a question for you. In the book of Ezra there are several decrees to rebuild Jerusalem. You count 490 years from Ezra 7, why not Ezra 1? [Editor’s Note: This is significant because in my book Daniel, Prophet to the Nations, I use Artaxerxe’s decree of 458 BC, combined with the 490 […]
Question: Is it true that 1 john 5 :7 was added later and was not in Greek manuscripts until the 1500s? Please explain this to me. If so why is it in King James Version? If this is the case, has the Bible been subject to changes by human hands? Answer: Yes, this is true. […]
Dr. John Oakes gave many lessons to eight different churches in India, Bangaladesh and Sri Lana Jan 5-22, 2017. From Shadow to Reality India Audio Existence of God DelhiAudio Reliability of the Bible Delhi Audio Marriage Divorceand Remarriage Delhi Audio Acts and Church History Delhi Audio Holy Spirit Delhi Audio Hebrews Living by Faith Audio Freedom in...
Question: How can I decide if a particular writing by one of the church fathers is authentic? I’m asking this question because critics [editor’s note: he is talking about Muslim critics of Christianity] criticize any writing, not only Irenaeus. They say, for example, that we don’t know who wrote the writings of Justin Martyr, Origen… […]
Dr. John Oakes gave a lesson for Proyecto Esdras in Mexico City on the sacrifices and festivals in the Covenant of Moses as prefigures of things in the New Testament. The Power Point is attached. John Oakes dio una leccion para el Proyecto Esdras en D. F sobre los sacrificios y festivales en el covenento […]
Mark your calendar: Nov. 11-13 The Apologetics Research Society is excited to announce our tenth International Christian Evidences Conference. The theme will be the evidence from History and Archaeology which supports the reliability and the message of Old and New Testaments. The dates will be Nov 11-13. The conference will begin on Friday morning. Speakers […]
Dr. John Oakes taught a new class on the controversial biblical topic of divorce and remarriage for the staff of the Delhi Church of Christ. Audio and notes are attached. Marriage and Divorce Notes Marriage Divorceand Remarriage Audio
Question: One philisophical principle is that in a set of hypotheses, the one with less assumptions should be validated. Most of my friends think that materialism is the worldview with the least assumptions since it only requires that we assume the physical world can be perceived, measured and understood by our human senses. These materialist friends say […]
Question: I have several questions I hope you may help with: -Does Jesus not fall under the Curse of Jeconiah in Jer. 22:30, 36:30 in which none of Jeconiah’s descendants (Matt.1:11 states Jesus is a descendant) shall sit on the throne of David nor rule in Judah? -Did Paul violate Deuteronomy 23:16 and Jer. 34:13-17 when […]
Pedro Figueroa dio una clase por 5 semanas sobre el libro de Galatas en San Diego. Galatas en Espanol Power Point Galatians Notes (Perdonenos. Se encuentra solamente en ingles) Galatas Parte 1 Galatas Parte II Galatas Parte III Galatas Part IV Audio Galatas Part V
Dr. John Oakes gave a lesson for the Seattle Church of Christ titled “What is Truth?” The lesson discusses the Christian and other Worldviews and how to explain Christianity to those who have a different world view. This lesson has been posted before, but the PPT has been updated extensively. What Is Truth PPT What is […]
Dr. John Oakes gave many lessons in Kiev, Odessa, Kishinev (Moldova), St. Petersburg and Moscow in June/July, 2016. All are in English with Russian translation. GodandScience Moscow Church History Russian Daniel Moscow World View Moscow Freedom in Christ StPet Great Bible Study Russ Revelation Russian II Revelation Russian III God and Science Russian How...
Dr. John Oakes taught classes for a teen camp near Seattle July 16-17, 2016. So sorry, but the recording of the Anchored in Christ was not made. Godly vs Worldly Wisdom Teens Worldly Wisdom vs Living by Faith PPT Anchored in Christ PPT...
Dr. John Oakes taught a class on the books of Ezekiel and Jeremiah in San Diego March and April, 2016. Pedro Figueroa taught the fifth of six classes. Prophets of Exile PPT Prophets of the Exile Prophets of Exile Audio 1 Prophets of Exile Audio 2 Exile Proph SD 4 Prophets of Exile audio […]
Robert Carrillo and Dr. John Oakes taught a four hour workshop on the Gospel of Luke May, 2014 at San Diego State University. In this class Robert finishes the Galilean ministry and begins to cover the road to Jerusalem. Luke workshop partIII
QUESTION: I’ve been hit with this following point before and I am not sure how to answer. Is it a contradiction in God’s nature to say that He is a God of love/mercy/forgiveness and at the same time be a God of justice? In other words, how can God be a God of love/mercy/forgiveness/omnibenevolence and […]
Question: (maybe you need to change 4 Kings to 2 Kings. In the Russian Bible, 2 Kings is 4 Kings) Can I ask you to help me deal with the chronology of events in the life of Hezekiah? In the Bible, king Sennacherib wanted to conquer Jerusalem, threatening its residents. After this comes a description […]
Randall Hroziencik, one of the students in our ARS Apologetics Certificate Program submitted a paper on the cultural and theological background to the two Genesis creation accounts, focusing on the genre of the first part of Genesis. We feel that this paper is of a very high quality and offer it for your consideration. Thank […]
Question: I was studying the Bible with a friend and she told me that in John 3:1-5 when Jesus states that you must be ‘born again’ to see the Kingdom of God he is referring to amniotic fluid, not baptism. In other words, she said that Jesus is stating that one must be born again […]
Question: What does John means when he says that God is Love? What love he is talking about? I s it the same if we say that Love is God? Answer: What John means is that, biblically, love is defined by God’s relationship with us. This is love, not that we loved him, but that […]
QUESTION: In Genesis 1:27 it is stated that God created “man”, with gender male and female. In Genesis 2:5-7 it is stated that God formed a man and called him Adam. Does this mean that God has created “man” first then later God formed Adam and Eve? In Genesis 6:1-2 it is stated that in […]
Editor’s Note: This is included, more because of the interesting and helpful comment from the one who wrote than because of the comments we had to make to her. Question: I just wanted to say thank you for all the time you put into writing Shadow to Reality. listened to a message you recorded on […]
Question: I have a science background and looked at theology too. I was wondering if you had an answer to the variations between different races if we descend from Adam and Eve. For example, if we say that we came from them, how do we make sense of different skin colour and eye shape? Even if we […]
A Harvard professor recently announced what she called evidence that the early church, or at least sectors of it, believed that Jesus was married. Not surprisingly, a question about this came to the web site within hours. The question and answer are below.
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