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Other than my wife, you have been my closest relative in the Lord. My question is regarding the Virgin Birth of Jesus our savior. My wife (a baby nurse practitioner) and I are trying to confirm that Jesus was placed in the womb of Mary. We believe that the entire person of Jesus (egg and sperm; i.e. zygote) was placed in her womb by the Holy Spirit (God). Luke 1:28-31 are the appropriate verses.

If God only put the sperm into her egg, the egg material would contain the sin from Mary. Jesus was without sin; so we think all the material that God provided was his, and Mary carried Jesus to birth. In other words, we think that Mary just carried the baby Jesus in her womb to term, but had no part in the Lord’s physiology.

In Mark 14:51 at the arrest of Jesus in Gethsemane, there was a “certain young man, having a linen cloth cast about his naked body ,and the young men laid hold on him: and he left the linen cloth, and fled from them naked.” In all my years, I do not remember reading this portion before, nor hearing anyone address this…why is it there and what does it mean?

It seems that if Jesus were buried Thursday afternoon, he wouldn’t have been in the grave 3 full days and 3 full nights. For that to have happened, he would have had to been crucified on Wednesday. Any thoughts?

Can you tell me if Mary, the Mother of Jesus, finished her life as a virgin? I’ve heard both versions of this one. I assumed that after Jesus was born, then the sons and daughters that came after Jesus were both hers and Joseph’s. However I’ve also heard that the additional children were Joseph’s from a different marriage (maybe the woman passed away?) Do you know which is true, and also, does it even matter whether or not she was a virgin at the end?

I have been studying up on the fig tree parable. in Luke 21 and Matthew 24. Both passages mention the fig tree. Does the fig tree represent Israel or not? I’ve heard both ways and it sure makes more sense for the fig tree to represent Israel. Remember when Jesus put a curse on the fig tree that bore no fruit and the scripture that is mentioned in Jeremiah 24 about Israel as a fig tree? I’m so confused because isn’t Israel the tell-tale sign that we are the last generation? The generation that witnesses the budding of the fig tree will witness everything last thing? Can you explain this? Thank you!

I heard of a Vietnamese man who has been forced to recant his new found faith in Christ; he has signed a document saying he recants, but will also be required to sacrifice to his ancestors in order to publicly prove he has recanted. Matthew 10: 33 says that if we deny Christ before men he will deny us before the father. Would you please comment on this terrible situation, and also what relationship Matt 10:33 has to OSAS, in your opinion.

I have a question about Isaiah 56:1,2 and 58:13,14. What is profaning the Sabbath and how can we, as believers, apply these passages to our lives?

I just read an article in the Jerusalem Post that quotes a 13th century Rabbi saying that Esther’s son was named Darius.

I am not real familiar with the exact period of time that Ester lived and affected the life of the Persian King but I believe it was during the time of the Babylonian exile. Is it possible that this Darius is the same king that gave the order to rebuild the Temple?

I love your articles and find such encouragement here. I have a question about “storing up treasure”. I’ve asked so many different Christians about preparing for the hard times ahead and have received as many different answers. Most people think we are to be good stewards of our money and invest and save to take care of our families. Others think the Lord will take care of them completely. Some think a combination of the two. I personally, do not have time or brains to investigate different investments and watch them. I’d rather spend my time in the Bible, but I do want to do what the Lord said. Searching the scriptures, I don’t find store up in barns and banks, I can only find “take no thought for your life, what you will eat, drink, etc.” My husband is not a believer, so I can’t take the 401K out and give it away, but I’d like to. What should I do?

I was told to tithe off of gifts too. Is this biblical? I tithe off of my gross & also give offerings. I thought tithing was off of your “income” (ex. paychecks, investment profits) but I’ve never heard it taught where you also tithe off of gifts. I do not want to be under a curse, please give me your views.

Also, if I get a scholarship award for schooling, am I to tithe off of that even if the total went to the school & I received no money personally? Thank you so much for your time!

I believe Jesus said to his disciples that all power was given to him in heaven and on earth after his victory at the cross. (Matt. 28:18) Didn’t this break the power of Satan and remove his “god of this world” title?

I love the Lord and have responded to His call to a music ministry. Some Christians condemn contemporary Christian music as satanic and deceiving, but I have seen and felt the spirit of God flow through our congregation during worship. I respect the individual tastes and preferences of his saints. But I think it’s unfair for people to make blanket condemnations about this type of ministry. What is your take on this issue?

What do you think about choirs or individuals singing songs of worship for competition where there is a winner and a loser? Do you think they are singing to please God of man?

In your Isaiah study, you quoted:

“Do not be afraid; you will not suffer shame. Do not fear disgrace; you will not be humiliated. You will forget the shame of your youth and remember no more the reproach of your widowhood. For your Maker is your husband– the LORD Almighty is his name–the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer; he is called the God of all the earth. The LORD will call you back as if you were a wife deserted and distressed in spirit– a wife who married young, only to be rejected,” says your God. (Isaiah 54:4-6)

I thought only the Church was the Bride of Christ. Does this also apply to Israel?

I absolutely respect your knowledge of spiritual beliefs when it comes to the Bible etc. Will you on record tell us who follow your site, tell us is Enoch a TRUE Prophet of God? And should the book of Enoch never of been taken out of the Bible?

If B.C. is before Christ and A.D. is after the death of Christ, then what do we call the 33 years he was alive? Thank you. You are blessed to have God work through you in this way.

Recently I have had a friend come to me with struggles and I have directed him to forget all of his “bible answers” and truly search for God. He grew up in church as I did and I told him to go back to basics and find what truly makes him believe and that it would strengthen him. Was I acting like a teacher? I don’t wish to have a harsher judgment placed upon me, I only wished to help him and I feel as though I was led to tell him this. Can you describe just what being a teacher means?

First off I would like to say that I have recently found your website and have enjoyed reading it a lot! I have been searching your site for answers and have found many, however, I still have questions.

At one point not long ago, I was convinced that you could lose your salvation. However, after finding your site I have read numerous posts and verses that state to the contrary and now am convinced that you can not lose your salvation (PRAISE GOD!) My question now is: even though I am eternally secure and will go to Heaven, I feel as if I am at a loss at what I am expected to do on Earth. My issue is that I don’t feel as if I am grateful enough. Don’t get me wrong, I am glad that I will be spending eternity with Jesus in Heaven, but I feel that I should be more than just glad. To me, grateful means having the desire to go WAY out of your way to do something for someone even if it is a HUGE inconvenience. I truly want to serve God, I just don’t feel I know how. Any insight would be appreciated.

I found your web site this week and it has been a blessing. While some of what I have read I am still digesting, other things I agree with you about.

There is one thing that I disagree with you based on three articles I have read over the past couple of years that seem to have the mathematical evidence for Yeshua being born at Succot rather than Rosh Hashanah.

Thank you for an amazing website! So many things have been made clearer to me because of it. I was reading 1 Chronicles 25 this morning and the words “who were to prophesy with lyres, harps and cymbals” caught my attention. Can you explain how to prophesy with music?

My question is, during the time of Jesus Ministry, was there tribal identity? If yes, is that the reason Luke and Matthew were able to accurately write the genealogy of Jesus in the gospels? Did the Jews have some remnant of the other 10 tribes of Israel in their midst during the ministry of Jesus?

Also, how do the present-day people of Israel tell to which tribe they belong to? Can the tribal identity be found out through some of the latest Bio-technologies using DNA samples of a Jewish person? And how does God separate the twelve tribes apart in Rev 7:4-8 before the Great Tribulation begins? Will He be the first to separate the tribes of present-day Israel through His omniscience and allow them to enter the Millennium once again by their tribal identity?

Lately I’ve been conversing with a lot of rather vehement atheists–which tend to come with my line of work–and they’ve frequently confronted me with arguments that I know are weak, but I don’t have a good, biblical response and I don’t know where to look for one really. They are referring to Leviticus and Deuteronomy and all the laws within them about how to live, what to wear, what to eat, who to stone, and on and on. They call Christianity (and Judaism) barbaric for calling for the death sentence for these seemingly mild crimes.

What do I tell them? They would never accept a “God knows better than we do” sort of answer and they want more than a “You’re taking the verses out of context.” I know they’re just basing their argument on anti-religion websites, but there are unfortunately fewer good apologetic sites than there are anti-Christian ones.

In short: How do I explain Levitical law to an atheist?

I have a question I hope you can help me with. My wife was Christian all her life and accepted Jesus as her savior a few years ago. It changed her life. She asked her pastor to baptize her but every time something happened. They use a lake because they don’t have a place in the church so bad whether stopped it one time and sickness another time.

Anyhow it never got done she was killed in a car accident 4 months ago. She was only 35 and this has been eating at me ever since. Would God keep her out of heaven because she was never baptized?

I was born and raised Catholic but since the accident, I have read the Bible and done a lot of research. I don’t consider my self a Catholic anymore. Do I need to be baptized?

Are the Christians of today included in the group that will rule with Jesus in the New Jerusalem during the Millennium? It is unclear to me because Rev. 20:4 mentions “beheaded” Christians during the Tribulation period and I’m not sure if when Jesus was speaking to His disciples about them ruling with Him if that includes the Christians of today.

Thank you in advance for your time and any light you are able to shed on this question.