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*Here’s a link to the questions already answered

Q:  Were there really four wisemen? Where in the bible can I find the info?

A:  The Story of the Wisemen is found in Matthew 2:1-12. Notice that the Bible really doesn’t tell us how many there were, only that they brought three different gifts—gold, frankincense, and myrrh. It was an early Christian tradition that there were three.

Years ago, I remember seeing a TV story about a 4th wiseman who got lost and spent his whole life searching for the Christ child only to find him on the cross. That was a fictional story however.

Here is a link to a previous Q & A about the wisemen:  -Re: The Wisemen and the First Christmas

Here’s a great article by William Lane Craig, professor of philosophy at Talbot School of Theology in La Mirada, California.

He looks at the facts concerning the resurrection of Jesus–a timely pursuit for the Easter season:

"To answer the question of Jesus’ resurrection from a historical standpoint, we must first determine what facts concerning the fate of Jesus of Nazareth can be credibly established on the basis of the evidence and second consider what the best explanation of those facts is. At least four facts about the fate of the historical Jesus are widely accepted by New Testament historians today."

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Q:  Leviticus 19:28 prohibits wearing tattoos, yet there are many Christians who seem to have them including a pastor and several musicians I know. Why are they violating the Bible teaching?

“You shall not make any cuts in your body for the dead nor make any tattoo marks on yourselves: I am the LORD.” Leviticus 19:28 — NASV

A:  First of all, the context of the whole passage of Leviticus 19:26-31 has to do with pagan and cultic religious practices. The cuts and marking of the body was related to mourning, remembering, and worshipping the dead and false gods– reflecting the cultic practices of the false religions that in the area at the time.

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Q:  In Isaiah 7:14, the prophesy states that the Messiah will be born of a virgin and called Immanuel.  Yet Mary names her son Jesus, not Immanuel, so it would seem this prophesy was not correctly fulfilled.

A:  Mary named her son Y’shua (Joshua or Yehshua)–meaning: ‘Yahweh is Salvation’.  ‘Jesus’ is the English transliteration of the Greek form of the name.  Why did Mary name her son Jesus? Because the angel Gabriel told her too on orders from God himself (remember, angels only say and do what God specifically tells them too). Who better to know if the scriptures were fulfilled or not than God himself?

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(This is a reprint from December 2006)

A Good Question For The Christmas Season:

     Q:  Did the three Wisemen really visit baby Jesus in the stable on Christmas?  Some say that they didn’t show up till later.

     A:  Matthew 2:1-12 contains the answers.  First, it is clear from the text the ‘Magi’ were still in the east when they saw the Christmas star the night that Jesus was born.  So all of those Christmas nativity scenes that display the three Wisemen are not completely accurate.  Nevertheless, the Magi are part of the traditional events associated with the birth of Christ. 

They probably showed up in Jerusalem some months later.  Then they found their way to the house (*note- house not stable) where baby Jesus was living, by following some kind of supernatural light that reminded them of the star that they originally saw in the east.

Notice that the text does not really tell us how many magi there really were.  It only mentions three different gifts:  gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

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Q: Jesus is a man of peace, yet states to his disciples in Luke 22:36:

“But now if you have a purse, take it, and also a bag, and if you don’t have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one.”

Seems to contradict his other teaching about turning the cheek?

A: Is Jesus really a man of peace? Wait till he comes back! –he fights the Anti-christ and conquers the whole world. Also, he wasn’t so peaceful when he cleared the Temple that one day. Nevertheless, it is true when he was on the earth that he taught his disciples to ‘turn the cheek’. He never lead an army or even resisted his own arrest–but went willingly to his death. Yes, Jesus truly was ‘a man of peace’.

The statement of Jesus in Luke 22:36 has to be considered along with, and in contrast to, Luke 10:4-7, particularly verse 4:

“Do not take a purse or bag or sandals;…”

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Q: There seems to be some discrepancies in the Gospels concerning the reactions of the two thieves crucified with Jesus. In Matt. 27:44 and Mark 15:32, both criminals insulted Jesus along with the Priests and teachers. However, in Luke 23:39-43, only one insulted Jesus while the other stood up for him?

A: The Crucifixion lasted for at least 6 hours–from the third hour till the ninth. Do the Gospels represent all the events and everything that happened and was said by everyone there? –of coarse not!

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Q: I have been told when you go to Heaven you will know nothing of your life on Earth, but can not find this anywhere. Is this true and if so where can I find it?

A: The scripture that you are probably referring to is Isaiah 25:8:

He will swallow up death forever.
The Sovereign LORD will wipe away the tears
from all faces;
he will remove the disgrace of his people
from all the earth.
The LORD has spoken.

The message of Isaiah 25:8 is also found in Revelation 21:4:

He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.

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Q: Recently a Bishop in Europe suggested that we should use the name Allah instead of God to foster better relations between Christians and Muslims. What do you think?

A: A link to the original news article your are referring to and my initial response is posted on my main page. My answer is no, I do not believe that it is a good idea for Christians to use the name ‘Allah’ instead of God unless one speaks Arabic or lives in a country or culture dominated by Islam. I more fully address this issue in an article on my Apologetica page. Dr. Albert Mohler also addressed this issue has some good responses.             *Top