Why Do Some Bible Versions Omit Certain Verses?

"Christianity Questions and Answers" podcast CQA 020

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Have you had the experience of reading through a Bible and finding a few (small) sections left out or noted that they don’t appear in the oldest manuscripts? Perhaps you’ve wondered, “Why do some Bible versions omit certain verses?”

Dr. Hal Seed

On this podcast Dr. Hal Seed answers the reason why do some Bible versions omit certain verses.

Hal and I have led a number of question and answer sessions at our church. Hal is the Senior Pastor and I am serving as the Chairman of the Leadership Board. This question is one that has come up and Hal gives a masterful answer in this recording.

You can listen by hitting the play button above.

To listen via iTunes, click HERE.

Hal is the Founding and Lead Pastor of New Song Community Church, in Oceanside, CA. New Song is a multi-site church that has seen over 18,000 come to Christ and is one of the Outreach 100 Fastest Growing Churches in America.

Hal’s Pastormentor ministry provides tools and training to grow bigger and better churches. He has authored six books, including The God Questions, and his latest book I Love Sundays. 

Hal and Lori have two grown children and who are working on the next generation of “Seedlings.” Hal’s website is: www.pastormentor.com

To learn about why we can trust the Bible, check out my articles:

• 4 Reasons You Can Love and Trust the Bible Today

• How Digging in the Dirt Proves the Bible is Reliable

• Have You Written Your Own Bible?

For more help:

• To receive Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord click HERE to learn how.

• To develop your relationship with God, get my free eBook “10 Prayers to Unlock Heaven on Earth” click HERE.

To learn more about this podcast and how to submit questions, click HERE. 

Why Would God Take Away Our Free Will In Heaven For Eternity?

"Christianity Questions and Answers" podcast CQA 019

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This question is a deep one. Someone in our church was thinking about eternity, free will and pondering our ability or inability to sin in heaven for eternity. It’s a great question that I reflected on and researched for a while. Will there be free will in heaven and would God allow us to keep it or would He take away our free will in heaven for eternity?

But I think I came up with a good answer regarding our free will in heaven and you can listen by hitting the play arrow above.

Here are some of the verses related to our free will in heaven:

“If any man is in Christ he is a new creation, all things have passed away, behold all has become new.” (2 Corinthians 5:17)

“I have discovered this principle of life—that when I want to do what is right, I inevitably do what is wrong. I love God’s law with all my heart. But there is another power[e] within me that is at war with my mind. This power makes me a slave to the sin that is still within me. Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death? Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord. So you see how it is: In my mind I really want to obey God’s law, but because of my sinful nature I am a slave to sin.” (Romans 7:21-25 NLT)

“You know that He appeared in order to take away sins; and in Him there is no sin. No one who abides in Him sins; no one who sins has seen Him or knows Him. No one who is born of God practices sin, because His seed abides in him; and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.” (1 John 3:5-6, 9)

To read a great article on this question click HERE:

For an interesting article on “free will” on earth click HERE:

To listen via iTunes, click HERE. 

For more help:

• To receive Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord click HERE to learn how.

• To develop your relationship with God, get my free eBook “10 Prayers to Unlock Heaven on Earth” click HERE.

For more about Sin, Heaven and Eternity, see my articles and podcast:

• What is the Worst Sin in the World?

• How Moving is Like Going to Heaven

• How to Prepare for Eternity Now and Face Death with Confidence Later

For more about this podcast and how to submit your questions, click HERE.

Is Christianity Willing To Make Peace With Islam?

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Recently I spoke with Pastor Ken Eze from Africa about the question:  Is Christianity willing to make peace with Islam?

Perhaps you too have wondered if it’s possible for believers to make peace with Islam in light of all of the terrorist attacks.

Here I am with Ken Eze last month when he visited here in California.

Because Ken has worked for years in an area with a large Muslim population, I asked him to answer this question. Is Christianity willing to make peace with Islam?

Ken also provided this biography:

My name is Kenneth Eze. Born 62 years ago. I gave my life to Christ in 1974, three years later in 1977 I was called into full time ministry. I got married in 1981 to the love of my life, Grace. We are blessed with two daughters and two grand children.

Called to serve in Northern Africa, where Islamic challenges have been ongoing for as long as I can remember. Only becoming worse with the passage of time. The Lord has helped us over the years and we have used to plant dozens of churches and daughter churches.

By God’s grace, I am the founder and senior pastor of a church with growing daughter and grand daughter churches across  the area.

Please listen to Ken’s excellent answer to this question. To listen just click the play arrow above.

John Stonestreet wrote recently about forgotten persecuted believers in an article titled “Paris Aftermath, No Quick Fix: Where do We Place Our Trust,”

Yet, as Elie Fares, a Lebanese doctor, wrote on his blog “When my people died, no country bothered to light up its landmarks in the colors of their flag . . . When my people died, they did not send the world into mourning. Their death was but an irrelevant fleck along the international news cycle, something that happens in those parts of the world.”

Speaking of “those parts in the world,” The State Department estimated that, worldwide, 33,000 people were killed in terrorist attacks just in 2014. And it might surprise you to learn that the worst offender isn’t ISIS, but it’s Boko Haram, which like its Arabian counterpart, has declared war on its Christian neighbors.

The center of activity for Boko Haram: northern Africa, where Ken lives.

Please listen carefully to what Ken has to say on this podcast. To listen just click the play arrow above.

Consider this verse as you listen: “Remember those who are in prison, as though in prison with them, and those who are mistreated, since you also are in the body.” (Hebrews 13:3 ESV)

To listen via iTunes, click HERE.

You might also want to read my article on “I Love Muslims, But…”

For more help:

• To receive Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord click HERE to learn how.

• To develop your relationship with God, get my free eBook “10 Prayers to Unlock Heaven on Earth” click HERE.

Additional resources about related subjects on this site:

• The Koran Says to Kill Infidels, the Bible Doesn’t

• 3 Proofs Jews, Muslims and Christians Don’t Worship the Same God

• I Love Muslims But…

• Podcast: Do Christians and Muslims worship the same God?

To learn more about this podcast and how to submit your questions, click HERE.