The Historical Accuracy of the Bible

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/HistoricalAccuracyOfTheBible.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Isaiah 41:21-29   I.         When we claim that the Bible is inspired, we are giving a vague notion that it uplifts a person (though it does) or that it is unique (though it is).             A.        Inspiration means it came from the mouth of God – II Timothy 3:16-17             B.        But it is…

Read More

Archaeology and the Old Testament

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/ArchaeologyAndTheBible.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Isaiah 41:21-29   I.         Mankind’s memories of the past are poor at best             A.        In general, we don’t keep extensive records and those records we do keep are often on material that does not last.             B.        There is a branch of science, called archeology that attempts to bring the past to light.…

Read More

What Did Jesus Really Say?

by Jacob Wooten I saw this picture below posted on Facebook and I’ve seen similar statements before, so I feel like this kind of thinking might be widespread both in the world and perhaps among those who would say they are of faith. Let’s examine this reasoning and see what Jesus really says according to the Bible. …

Read More

Biblical Infallibility: The Bible’s Claims for Itself

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/BiblesClaimsForItself.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Deuteronomy 31:24-29   I.         A.        When talking about whether we can trust the Bible or not, it may seem strange to turn to the very book we are considering.             B.        We want to show that it is not a optional belief.             C.        The Bible claims to be infallible. If it is not in…

Read More

Validating the Good News

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/ValidatingTheGoodNews.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Isaiah 41:21-29   I.        How do I know that the Bible is inspired? How can I be really certain that it comes from God?            A.       There are various ways to show that the Bible must have came from God.            B.       Today we will use methods that the Bible itself suggests. II.       If the…

Read More

What about the claim that camels were not used during Abraham’s time?

Question: All these links keep popping up on my Facebook feed due to atheistic friends. Could you explain this one to me as well? It’s got me stumped, not enough to discredit the Bible or anything, but another to make me feel confused.  Carbon Dating on Camel Bones Contradicts Bible’s Accuracy Thanks. Answer: The claim…

Read More

Why didn’t John the Baptist get killed with the rest of the children?

Question: Why didn’t John the Baptist die, as is stated in Matthew 2:16, but lived to adulthood, baptized Jesus, and was ultimately beheaded, or is Matthew 2:16 simply wrong? Answer: When the wise men came, Herod found out where the Messiah was to be born. “And when he had gathered all the chief priests and…

Read More

Is the Bible mathematically wrong in I Kings 7:23?

Question: Is the Bible mathematically wrong in I Kings 7:23? If the diameter of the laver is 10 cubits, then shouldn’t the circumference be 31 cubits? Answer: “And he made the Sea of cast bronze, ten cubits from one brim to the other; it was completely round. Its height was five cubits, and a line…

Read More

Do you accept that there are more than 400,000 mistakes in the Bible?

Question: I am thinking of going to this church, but I would like to know: do the churches of Christ accept that there are more than 400,000 mistakes in the documents and books of the Bible? Answer: If there are that many mistakes, then how do these people know they are mistakes? In other words, what…

Read More

There are so many parts of the Bible that don’t seem right to me

Question: Hello, Lately, I’ve been deciding to take Christianity more seriously, but not completely from the perspective of some scripture. I feel at a loss because so many people wish to just cling to the Bible like it’s the only thing God ever has and ever will try to use to communicate with us like…

Read More

Could the Freer Logion have also been removed from Mark?

Question: Mr. Jim Snapps, I have read your article about the various endings of the book of Mark. Since you mentioned the possibility of the deliberate removal of Mark 16:9-20 due to heretical tampering, isn’t it also possible that the Freer Logion could have been also removed by heretics? The Freer Logion also suffers from mentioning…

Read More

Are the stories in the Bible just “true myths?”

Question: I recently read that C.S. Lewis, who is one of my favorite authors ever, believed that some chapters in Genesis were “true myths” as he called them. “True myths” being stories of both fact and fiction. Chapters concerning the history of Adam and Eve or Noah and the Ark or Jonah and the Whale…

Read More

Anachronism?

by Steven Harper This past week, I got to witness a large-scale display of anachronous events near the town of Florence as the Society for Creative Anachronism [SCA] put on Estrella War XXIII. [There’s humor in that name if you do a little research.] We went down with several other families from my hometown of…

Read More

Is there any non-biblical evidence that proves the prophecies in the Bible?

Question: A friend and I talked for a little while tonight regarding Bible evidence, and when we talked about prophecy, he raised the argument that prophecies from the Bible verified purely from within the Bible can’t be used to prove the Bible. Is that a fair argument? And are there non-biblical evidence of prophecies coming…

Read More

Why do Christians always try to justify the Bible’s error?

Question: Peace be with you, My dear friend, why do Christians always try to justify the Bible’s error? Answer: “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear; having a…

Read More

How can I be sure that the Bible is fully correct?

Question: I’m a teenager wanting to know the truth, so please help me out. How can I be sure that the Bible is fully correct? I mean people must have added or taken out scriptures to try to confuse us. How can I know what religion is correct? I know I have to have faith,…

Read More

Was Goliath six cubits and a span or four cubits and a span?

Question: The King James Bible reports the giant Goliath as “six cubits and a span” in height — over nine feet tall, (over 2.75 m) (I Samuel 17:4), but the Septuagint, a Greek Bible, also gives Goliath’s height as “four cubits and a span” (~2.00 m). So by the interpretation which one is correct? Answer: This…

Read More

Did Absalom have sons or not?

Question: Hi, I am just wondering why there’s a discrepancy in what II Samuel says about Absalom.  In II Samuel 14:27 it says that Absalom has three sons and a daughter, but in II Samuel 18:18 it says that Absalom erected a monument for himself because he thought he has no son to carry on…

Read More

Why does the Bible have so much repetition?

Question: Is there a reason why the Bible has many repetitions, e.g. the gospels of Luke, Mark, Matthew, etc., and also repeated verses found throughout the Bible? Do the verses mean they more important repeated more often throughout the Bible when compared to a single verse? Is there a divine reason why there is repetition…

Read More

Why are the counts of the Levites off in Numbers 3?

Question: Okay, so I know this is probably going to sound like a pointless question, since it’s just about numbers of people in Numbers, and population censuses are usually rounded off anyway, but why do the rules change throughout the taking of the census? What I mean is, when Moses tallies up all the men…

Read More

Could Stephen be making Moses out to be bigger than life?

Question: I know from Acts 7 it is said that Moses knew he was a Hebrew prior to the burning bush event.  What is your take on the possibilities that this was based on the Jewish tradition?  Acts was written by Paul who was brought up a Pharisee and in the strictest Jewish tradition, could…

Read More

Could Jasher be right about Jacob spending 14 years with Eber?

Question: You wrote: The Book of Jasher claims that Jacob fled to Eber’s home: “And Jacob was very much afraid of his brother Esau, and he rose up and fled to the house of Eber the son of Shem, and he concealed himself there on account of his brother, and Jacob was sixty-three years old…

Read More

Is Genesis just a myth based on the Epic of Gilgamesh?

Question: I have read your Facebook writings on Adam and Eve with interest.  However, as a Unitarian I was presented with the beautiful Genesis story, not as a biblical illustration of the origin of sin, but as an important myth long misinterpreted in the Judaic/Christian tradition. Almost all the constituents of the garden paradise myth…

Read More

Doesn’t the Bible say the earth is a circle as opposed to a sphere?

Question: Quick question or comment about the statement of the Earth being flat: You refute that claim with this: The real core of the argument is a claim that the Hebrew word tehom implies that something is flat. There is just one small problem. “Flat” isn’t in tehom’s definition. Tehom is “A noun meaning ‘the depths of the ocean'” But…

Read More

Why did Paul say Sinai was in Arabia?

Question: I am a great admirer of your well-studied responses. I wanted to ask about a comment from the question; “Could Israel crossed the Red Sea on the eastern side of the Sinai Peninsula?” In your response, you said, “Typically people wish to claim that Mount Sinai was on the Arabian Peninsula.” In Galatians 4:25…

Read More

Answering a Muslim Critic

by Larry Rouse Part 1 This week I received an e-mail from a Muslim, Mr. Husain, that was severely critical of those who believe that the Bible is the inspired word of God. He reasoned that because the Bible was so discredited that our only alternative was to believe in the “only 100% purely existing…

Read More

The Weight of the Nails

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/WeightOfTheNails.mp3 Text: Psalm 139   I.         For a book as concise as the Bible, it contains a surprising amount of detail             A.        Detail that many ignore             B.        So much detail that Reader’s Digest once took it upon themselves to produce a condensed version of the Bible, for which they were justly ridiculed.             C.        I Corinthians 2:12-13 – God selected…

Read More

Why are the lists in Ezra 2 and Nehemiah 7 different?

Question: When I read Ezra and Nehemiah, I had some problems with the counting numbers recorded in both books. I believe the list of names in Ezra chapter 2 and Nehemiah chapter 7 are the same thing. But the number of singers and porters are different in these two books. While in Ezra 2:41-42 there…

Read More

Inspiration and Trivia

Short Talk   Question:        How can the Bible claim to be from the mouth of God when it contains so much trivial information, such as Paul’s request to bring his cloak in II Timothy 4:13? Surely, these things cannot be inspired! Answer: I.         What superficially appears to be trivial may, upon deeper reflection, be a rich depository…

Read More