Post Author: Darrell I recently spent some time on a Christian Facebook page that ministers to Mormons. It is mostly made up of ex-Mormon Christians who feel very strongly about their faith and want to reach out to Mormons. They write articles explaining the differences between Traditional Christianity and Mormonism and the problems with Mormon Theology … Continue reading Do The Creeds Matter?
Post Author: Bill Pratt Continuing from the first post on this topic, we will look at two more methods that physicists and astronomers use to determine the age of the universe. Again, this information has been gathered from Hugh Ross’ A Matter of Days. The third method physicists use to calculate the age of the … Continue reading Why Do Scientists Believe the Universe is Almost 14 Billion Years Old? Part 2
Post Author: Bill Pratt Some in the evangelical community dismiss the science that shows the universe is old (almost 14 billion years), and I think partly because they never considered the reasons why scientists make this claim. I am not a physicist or an astronomer, but I am an electrical engineer, so I had to … Continue reading Why Do Scientists Believe the Universe is Almost 14 Billion Years Old? Part 1
Here is a summary of the Christian faith in the form of a narrative. Note that the bold text indicates primary doctrines of Christianity. God, who is perfectly good, just, and wise, created the universe (all time, space, and matter). Human beings were the greatest part of His creation, for He made humans to represent … Continue reading What Is the Christian Story?
Many critics of the Bible have noted that Mark’s account of Jesus’ trial, in chapter fourteen of his Gospel, must be an invention. They reason that the Jewish authorities would never have conducted themselves in such a manner. Mark Strauss, in [amazon_textlink asin=’0310218063′ text=’Matthew, Mark, Luke: Volume One (Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary Book)‘ template=’ProductLink’ … Continue reading Is Mark’s Account of Jesus’ Trial a Fictional Invention? Part 1
The Synoptic Gospels clearly indicate that Jesus and his disciples celebrated the Passover meal together on a Thursday evening. During that year, the Passover ran from about 6:00 pm Thursday to about 6:00 pm Friday. The crucifixion occurred the next day, on Friday. However, many scholars are convinced that the Gospel of John places the … Continue reading Does the Chronology of the Passion Week in John Contradict the Synoptic Gospels? Part 1
Some Bible scholars believe that the Book of Jonah is a fictional tale written purely for teaching purposes by its original author. They argue that the original author never meant for the story to be taken as real history. While it may be impossible to know just based on the contents of the book itself, … Continue reading #2 Post of 2016 – Is the Story of Jonah Fictional?
One of the thorniest historical problems in the Gospel of Luke is the census that Luke reports in chapter two, verses 1-2. Here is the wording in the NIV: “In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. (This was the first census that took … Continue reading Did the Census Reported in Luke 2 Actually Occur?
The traditional view of the Book of Nehemiah is that it was written by Ezra the scribe as a sequel to the Book of Ezra. Nehemiah contains two main sections: the Nehemiah Memoir (chapters 1-7, 12-13) and the Ezra Memoir (chapters 8-10). These memoirs appear to be first-hand accounts of the activities of Ezra and … Continue reading Commentary on Nehemiah 1-6 (Rebuilding the Walls of Jerusalem)
The Book of Micah was likely written by the prophet of that name who lived during the 8th century BC. Micah was born in a town about 25 miles southwest of Jerusalem (in Judah), but he may have lived in Jerusalem during parts of his ministry. He prophesied during the reigns of the following kings … Continue reading Commentary on Micah 1-6 (A Promised Ruler from Bethlehem)