May 27No, The Author of Acts Didn’t Use JosephusThere’s an ongoing debate among scholars about whether the author of the book of Acts used Josephus’ writings. Some critics argue that the author heavily relied on Josephus, which would raise doubts about the author’s claim of being a companion of Paul. This is because Josephus’ writings didn’t appear until…History9 min readHistory9 min read
May 24Pervo’s Pitfall: Acts Is Independent from Paul’s LettersDid Luke really travel with Paul like Christians have always believed? Richard Pervo, a New Testament scholar, has a different idea. Pervo thinks the Book of Acts, which tells us about Paul’s adventures, was made up much later, in the second century. Pervo believes they took parts of Paul’s letters…Christianity12 min readChristianity12 min read
Jul 24, 2022What You Might’ve Missed About the Mount of TransfigurationDoes John’s Gospel give us a much higher view of Jesus than what we find in Matthew, Mark and Luke? Bart Ehrman certainly thinks so. He says: If Jesus went around Galilee proclaiming himself to be a divine being sent from God…could anything else that he might say be so…Jesus7 min readJesus7 min read
Jul 24, 2022Bart Ehrman’s Worst Argument Against John’s ChristologyBart Ehrman is fond of saying that if Jesus really said “Before Abraham was, I am” and “I and my Father are one” the Synoptic Gospels would’ve surely reported it. Since they don’t report it, Ehrman infers that it didn’t happen. The author of John’s Gospel made it up. …Jesus5 min readJesus5 min read
Jun 10, 2022The Historical Paul vs. The Legendary Paul?Skeptical critics argue that Luke wasn’t a traveling companion of Paul’s. Why do they say this? Let’s discuss one reason. NT scholar Uta Ranke-Heinemann asserts that in: “Acts and the epistles there are two Pauls. The historical Paul of the authentic epistles and the legendary Paul of Acts.” 1 In…Christianity7 min readChristianity7 min read
Apr 22, 2022Sneaky Good Evidence for the Reliability of JoshuaThe Book of Joshua tells us about Rahab, a Canaanite prostitute who ends up becoming an unlikely champion of faith. Jericho was one of the main hubs of idol worship, being particularly devoted to the moon goddess Ashtaroth. Here centered the most offensive and shameful aspects of the Canaanite religion…Bible4 min readBible4 min read
Apr 16, 2022Christianity Has Spread Worldwide, Therefore Prophecy is RealIn Isaiah chapters 40 through 56, we find some of the most stunning prophecies in the Hebrew Scriptures. The section is dubbed the Servant section because of its many references to a figure that God calls “my Servant”. I believe Jesus of Nazareth very clearly fulfilled these Servant passages, and…Christianity5 min readChristianity5 min read
Apr 11, 2022Undesigned Coincidences in the Old Testament: Why David Was Betrayed By His FriendI’m continuing a series on undesigned coincidences in the Old Testament. As a reminder, an undesigned coincidence is a notable connection between two or more accounts or texts that doesn’t seem to have been planned by the person or people giving the accounts. Despite their apparent independence, the items fit…History4 min readHistory4 min read
Apr 4, 2022An Undesigned Coincidence in the Old Testament: King Hezekiah’s TreasuryThere are many popular Undesigned Coincidences in the New Testament. In this post, I want to look at an undesigned coincidence in the Old Testament. But before we jump in let’s get a few of you up to speed. What the heck is an undesigned coincidence anyway? …Bible8 min readBible8 min read
Mar 11, 2022What’s With the Story of Elisha and the Bears?One of the strangest stories in the Old Testament comes at the end of 2 Kings 2 with Elisha, the bears and 42 children. After God took the prophet Elijah up to heaven in a chariot, Elisha became his successor and received a double portion of Elijah’s anointing. Just your…Bible6 min readBible6 min read