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The Complete Book of Bible Answers
Tackling the difficult issues, popular bible teacher Ron Rhodes offers straightforward, easy-to-understand responses to your questions about God, faith, and living for Christ, drawn from his five years of participation on the "Bible Answer Man" program.
- GenresReligionBiblical Studies
395 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1997
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September 17, 2024
THE APOLOGIST AND CULTS SCHOLAR ANSWERS MANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THE BIBLE
Ron Rhodes is currently President of "Reasoning from the Scriptures Ministries," and sometimes teaches cult apologetics at various seminaries. He was formerly Editor/Associate Editor of the Christian Research Institute's Journal and Newsletter, and a frequent guest on the "Bible Answer Man" radio program. He has written many books, such as 'The New Age Movement,' 'The 10 Most Important Things You Can Say to a Jehovah's Witness,' 'The Challenge of the Cults and New Religions' 'Reasoning from the Scriptures with the Mormons,' 'Reasoning from the Scriptures with Muslims,' 'Answering the Objections of Atheists, Agnostics, and Skeptics,' 'Halloween: What You Need to Know,' etc.
He wrote in the introductory section of this 1997 book, "this book does not attempt to provide a full treatment of every Christian doctrine. This is not a theology textbook. My goal in this book is simply to answer common questions people are asking about some of these doctrines... you'll notice that i answer some questions very briefly, while others are allocated a number of pages to answer. This is very much like it was on the Bible Answer Man show. The fact is, some questions are easily answered, while others require a lot more detail." (Pg. 9)
He acknowledges, "Mark 16:9-20 is absent from the two oldest Greek manuscripts in our possession... As well, these verses are absent from the Old Latin manuscripts, the Siniatic Syriac manuscript, about 100 Armenian manuscripts, and the two oldest Georgian manuscripts. Further, Clement of Alexandria and Origen show no knowledge of the existence of these verse. Eusebius and Jerome attest that the passage was absent from almost all the Greek copies of Mark known to them. Understandably, many scholars believe that Mark 16:9-20 does not belong in the Bible. Fortunately, Mark 16:9-20 does not affect a single major doctrine of Christianity." (Pg. 31)
He states his own view that "the days of Genesis are literal solar days with no time gap between them." (Pg. 42) Furthermore, he also states his believe that "the flood [of Noah] was universal." (Pg. 45) He also asserts that the Witch of Endor DID (1 Sam 28:3-25) actually bring back Samuel's spirit: "That God allowed Samuel's spirit to appear on this one occasion should not be taken to mean that witches have any real power to summon the dead. God had a one-time purpose for this one-time special occasion." (Pg. 48)
With regard to the reconciliation of free will and God's sovereignty, he observes, "Scripture portrays God as being absolutely sovereign... Scripture also portrays man as having a free will... It is certainly inscrutable to man's finite understanding how both divine sovereignty and human free will can both be true, but both doctrines are taught in Scripture... It has been suggested that divine sovereignty and human free will are like parallel railroad tracks that are often found side by side in Scripture, and the tracks never come together on this side of eternity. When we enter glory, we will no doubt come to a fuller understanding of these biblical doctrines." (Pg. 137)
In response to the question, "Does Satan have access to God's presence in heaven?" he replied, "Apparently so. It is clear from events that took place in the Book of Job that Satan has the freedom to appear before God and engage in discourse with Him... We are told in Revelation 12:10 that Satan is 'the accuser of the brethren,' which probably involves Satan going before God's throne and making slanderous statements about the saints." (Pg. 207)
About whether pets will have an afterlife with us, he suggests, "I used to be of the opinion that only human beings have an afterlife in the presence of God. But R.C. Sproul has caused me to at least reconsider my position... Even though animals are NOT created in the image of God, Sproul thinks it's possible that they may have souls... I would like to think that we will see our beloved pets again someday as they participate in the benefits of the redemption that Christ has achieved for the human race." (Pg. 230-231)
He also argues, "it seems to me that there are several good reasons that point to the likelihood of there being no intelligent life on other planets... Scripture... gives us no hint that life exists elsewhere... earth is nevertheless the center of God's work of salvation in the universe... The centrality of the earth is also evident in the creation account, for God created the earth before He created the rest of the planets and stars... One might ask why God would create such a vast universe of stars and galaxies if He did not intend to populate them. Psalm 19:1 gives us the answer... The sheer vastness of the physical universe points us to the greater vastness and infinity of God Himself... it seems to me that from a theological perspective it is improbable that there is intelligent life on other planets in the universe." (Pg. 262-263)
While one may or may not agree with all of Rhodes' opinions, this clearly-argued book will be of great interest to students of apologetics.
Ron Rhodes is currently President of "Reasoning from the Scriptures Ministries," and sometimes teaches cult apologetics at various seminaries. He was formerly Editor/Associate Editor of the Christian Research Institute's Journal and Newsletter, and a frequent guest on the "Bible Answer Man" radio program. He has written many books, such as 'The New Age Movement,' 'The 10 Most Important Things You Can Say to a Jehovah's Witness,' 'The Challenge of the Cults and New Religions' 'Reasoning from the Scriptures with the Mormons,' 'Reasoning from the Scriptures with Muslims,' 'Answering the Objections of Atheists, Agnostics, and Skeptics,' 'Halloween: What You Need to Know,' etc.
He wrote in the introductory section of this 1997 book, "this book does not attempt to provide a full treatment of every Christian doctrine. This is not a theology textbook. My goal in this book is simply to answer common questions people are asking about some of these doctrines... you'll notice that i answer some questions very briefly, while others are allocated a number of pages to answer. This is very much like it was on the Bible Answer Man show. The fact is, some questions are easily answered, while others require a lot more detail." (Pg. 9)
He acknowledges, "Mark 16:9-20 is absent from the two oldest Greek manuscripts in our possession... As well, these verses are absent from the Old Latin manuscripts, the Siniatic Syriac manuscript, about 100 Armenian manuscripts, and the two oldest Georgian manuscripts. Further, Clement of Alexandria and Origen show no knowledge of the existence of these verse. Eusebius and Jerome attest that the passage was absent from almost all the Greek copies of Mark known to them. Understandably, many scholars believe that Mark 16:9-20 does not belong in the Bible. Fortunately, Mark 16:9-20 does not affect a single major doctrine of Christianity." (Pg. 31)
He states his own view that "the days of Genesis are literal solar days with no time gap between them." (Pg. 42) Furthermore, he also states his believe that "the flood [of Noah] was universal." (Pg. 45) He also asserts that the Witch of Endor DID (1 Sam 28:3-25) actually bring back Samuel's spirit: "That God allowed Samuel's spirit to appear on this one occasion should not be taken to mean that witches have any real power to summon the dead. God had a one-time purpose for this one-time special occasion." (Pg. 48)
With regard to the reconciliation of free will and God's sovereignty, he observes, "Scripture portrays God as being absolutely sovereign... Scripture also portrays man as having a free will... It is certainly inscrutable to man's finite understanding how both divine sovereignty and human free will can both be true, but both doctrines are taught in Scripture... It has been suggested that divine sovereignty and human free will are like parallel railroad tracks that are often found side by side in Scripture, and the tracks never come together on this side of eternity. When we enter glory, we will no doubt come to a fuller understanding of these biblical doctrines." (Pg. 137)
In response to the question, "Does Satan have access to God's presence in heaven?" he replied, "Apparently so. It is clear from events that took place in the Book of Job that Satan has the freedom to appear before God and engage in discourse with Him... We are told in Revelation 12:10 that Satan is 'the accuser of the brethren,' which probably involves Satan going before God's throne and making slanderous statements about the saints." (Pg. 207)
About whether pets will have an afterlife with us, he suggests, "I used to be of the opinion that only human beings have an afterlife in the presence of God. But R.C. Sproul has caused me to at least reconsider my position... Even though animals are NOT created in the image of God, Sproul thinks it's possible that they may have souls... I would like to think that we will see our beloved pets again someday as they participate in the benefits of the redemption that Christ has achieved for the human race." (Pg. 230-231)
He also argues, "it seems to me that there are several good reasons that point to the likelihood of there being no intelligent life on other planets... Scripture... gives us no hint that life exists elsewhere... earth is nevertheless the center of God's work of salvation in the universe... The centrality of the earth is also evident in the creation account, for God created the earth before He created the rest of the planets and stars... One might ask why God would create such a vast universe of stars and galaxies if He did not intend to populate them. Psalm 19:1 gives us the answer... The sheer vastness of the physical universe points us to the greater vastness and infinity of God Himself... it seems to me that from a theological perspective it is improbable that there is intelligent life on other planets in the universe." (Pg. 262-263)
While one may or may not agree with all of Rhodes' opinions, this clearly-argued book will be of great interest to students of apologetics.
July 12, 2011
This was a good book. I learned many interesting facts, some very thought provoking.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews