Did those with Saul/Paul at his conversion hear a voice?
ACT 9:7 And the men which journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice, but seeing no man.
ACT 22:9 And they that were with me saw indeed the light, and were afraid; but they heard not the voice of him that spake to me.
Since span lang="el">ἀκούωcan mean “understand” as well as “hear,” why do we have to assume that Luke used the word the same way in both passages and force a contradiction? It would be better to follow the wording of the NIV in Acts 22:9.
Where was Jesus three days after his baptism?
MAR 1:12 And immediately the spirit driveth him into the wilderness.
JOH 1:35 Again the next day after John stood, and two of his disciples.
(various trapsing)
In the Mark passage, the word εὐθὺς translated “immediately” can also be translated “then.”25 In the events that interested Mark and his audience, the next thing after the baptism was the temptation in the wilderness. This does not preclude, however, that there was some other activity in between the two events. It was quite common in ancient biographies, the gospels being no exception, not to follow a consecutive description of events.26
How many apostles were in office between the resurrection and ascention [sic]?
1 Corinthians 15:5 (12)
Matthew 27:3-5 (minus one from 12)
Acts 1:9-26 (Mathias not elected until after resurrection)
MAT 28:16 Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, into a mountain where Jesus had appointed them.
Actually, Acts 1:9 describes the ascension, not the resurrection. Paul is referring, in 1 Corinthians 15, to the original eleven plus Matthias (selected in Acts. 1:26 after the ascension). The appearances described in 1 Corinthians 15 took place after the ascension. The events of Matthew 27-28 were before the ascension, but after the death of Judas and after the resurrection when there were only eleven disciples.
Judging
1 Cor 3:15 " The spiritual man makes judgments about all things, but he himself is not subject to any man's judgment:" (NIV)
1 Cor 4:5 " Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men's hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God."
First of all, the author has incorrectly cited the passage. He means 1 Corinthians 2:15, not 3:15. We have two different words for the verb “judge.” In 1 Corinthians 2:15 the word is ἀνακρίνωwhich means “investigate, examine, scrutinize.” In 1 Corinthians 4:5 the word is κρίνω which means “to choose or resolve/render an opinion as in a court of law.” In the first reference, the one who judges is like a prosecutor. In the second reference, the one who judges is like an actual judge—only the Lord can render this kind of judgment.
Good deeds
Matt 5:16 "In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven." (NIV)
Matt 6:3-4 "But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you." (NIV)
In Matthew 5, Jesus is referring to good deeds in general. In Matthew 6, Jesus is referring specifically to the giving (of money and goods) to the poor. The point is God must get the glory by what is done, not the person.
For or against?
MAT 12:30 He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad. (default is against)
MAR 9:40 For he that is not against us is on our part. (default is for)
LUK 9:50 And Jesus said unto him, forbid him not: for he that is not against us is for us. (default is for)
In Matthew, Jesus is discussing with the Pharisees after having discerned their thoughts that He cast out devils by the prince of the devils. In Mark, Jesus is discussing with His disciples after they had forbidden a man to drive out demons in the name of Jesus. In Luke, the situation is the same as in Mark. Since the situation in Matthew is quite different from the situation in Mark and Luke, why is this a contradiction?
Whom did they see at the tomb?
MAT 28:2-5 And, behold, there was a great earthquake: for the angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat upon it. His countenance was like lightning, and his raiment white as snow. And for fear of him the keepers did shake, and became as dead men. And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified.
MAR 16:5 And entering into the sepulcher, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clothed in a long white garment; and they were affrighted.
LUK 24:4 And it came to pass, as they were much perplexed thereabout, behold, two men stood by them in shining garments:
JOH 20:12 And seeth two angels in white sitting, the one at the head, and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain.
They saw two angels that looked like young men.
Does God change?
Malachi 3:6; James 1:17; 1 Samuel 15:29; Jonah 3:10; Genesis 6:6
God does not change his purposes or his nature. When the situation changes (e.g. man repents) then God responds to the change in the situation (cf. Jonah 3:10 and Genesis 6:6). However, his purpose and nature remain the same.
