I have heard that Mark 16:9-20 does not belong in the Bible. When I looked this up on the internet, it would appear that many people hold to that idea also but go on to say that the fact that it appears in most Bibles is no problem as it does not affect and doctrinal beliefs. Now, I’m no scholar nor do I even remotely have a handle on history but I would think that this would cause a problem.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I believe in God and his son Jesus and what he did on the cross, however, this gives me an uneasy feeling. The Bible is supposed to be inspired by God and yet there are verses placed in that were not in the original transcripts to begin with. So, where did they come from? How did they get there? Why was this allowed?

John 3:5 says that unless a man be born of water and of the spirit he can’t enter the Kingdom of God. What water is he referring to?

I would appreciate an explanation of Matt. 7:21 in relationship to salvation. If you accept Christ’s gift of grace, and turn your life over to him, can you lose your salvation if you don’t do the will of God?

When the Holy Spirit convicts a person of one of their “multiple” sins and repentance follows to the point of not doing it anymore (removing the plank from one’s own eye), and out of a true heart of wanting others to do the same (on any given sin), how does a person come across as “graceful” without sounding like a Pharisee or too much like the “letter of the law”?

Seems like I get convicted by the Holy Spirit all the time of sounding like a “lawman” rather than a “spiritual” man. Even though Jesus gave us the new commandment of “love God and love your neighbor”, the NT is still filled with “do’s and don’ts” that sound a lot like laws. I don’t believe they are true written laws but are used to identify the means of fighting the flesh.

I’m finding this is probably my biggest and most fought struggle, trying to speak the language of “Grace!” without being thought of as a “better than thou” type person. And I don’t just go up to a person and say “hey you need to quit doing that”. I do try and find more subtle ways but seem to always end up in “lawman” mode.

I was reading Revelation again for the umpteenth time again and something struck me different. I was under the impression that when eternity begins, the entire 4 dimensions we live in will be destroyed. IE in eternity all things will either be 1) in the lake of fire or 2) in heaven (that exists outside our time domain) and there is no other possibility of any other location. Upon reading it again it appears to say that the new heaven and new earth that were created at the beginning of the millennial reign will continue for eternity. Am I missing something?

Just when I think I am getting things cleared I read your article about being awake or asleep at death and now I have a question. Paul’s statements about going and being with the Lord says nothing about being awake or aware. Is it just the breath of life as some have suggested or are we there in spirit waiting for the resurrection of our bodies to be reunited with them?

I have noticed that many scholars are divided over Luke 16:19-31 as to whether or not to classify this as a parable. If it is a parable, then it is not to be taken literally. If it is, then it sheds some light into the manner of the afterlife for those waiting for their resurrection. I was wondering what your thoughts on Luke 16:19-31 were as to whether or not it is a parable. Please also give reasons for your answer.

Thank you for your study and for answering our questions. My question is do you think we could be missing a literal reading of Dan 9:27? I know many translations vary, but Luther translated it “And upon the wings shall stand the abomination of desolation” and I was wondering if it could possibly mean that the antichrist might set up an image, whether a statue or a hologram of himself, right atop the rebuilt ark in the rebuilt temple. The mercy seat above the ark has two angels with outspread wings. Isn’t the mercy seat supposed to become the throne of Jesus when He comes to reign in the new Jerusalem. What better place to put an idol of himself?

I’ve noticed many times that when speaking of End Times, many teachers seem to give the Islamic prophecies the same credence as they do to Biblical prophecies. Is there a basis for belief in any Islamic prophecies? Some Christian teachers compare the Mahdi with the AC as if he is really going to show up in the End Times.

Thank you for your website. In Genesis 1:26 in the NKJV it says “Let us make man in Our image” and in Genesis 3:22 it says “Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil”. I believe Christians see these verses as references to the Trinity but my question is how have Jews of the past and present typically viewed these verses through Judaism?