Exploring the Bible

  Investigating Angels, Demons, Mystical Dreams, Near-Death Encounters, and other Mysteries of the Unseen World By Lee Strobel Published by Zondervan 320 Pages Published on March 18, 2025 Lee Strobel was once an investigative reporter in Chicago. He had very little use for Christians and did not believe in God. At some point, he turned his investigative techniques to the question of Faith and God and found there was a surprising amount of evidence in favor of the divine. He became a Christian and began writing a series of books to help people see that there really is evidence for God if you just look. In his latest book, Strobel turns his attention to the supernatural. Is there a supernatural realm that exists outside or in conjunction with our physical world? Are Angels real? Do Demons stalk the earth doing the Devil’s bidding? Is there any such thing as a miracle, a near-death experience (NDE), or a mystic dream? What about ghosts, spirits, and psychics? Do they reall...

  John 3:16, you see it everywhere, at sporting events, on billboards, T-shirts, yard signs, and online. It is perhaps the most searched Bible Phrase in history. A recent study indicated people search for John 3:16 approximately 70,000 times each day. That is over two million Google searches each month. Why is this single verse so popular? Why do so many people have questions about what it says and what it means? There could be any number of reasons for so many to be curious, but the fact is, this single verse sums up the basis of Christian Faith in just twenty-five words.   "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16   In order to find out what makes this verse so special, we need to break it down. Let us look at the five elements of this passage. Beginning with, “For God so loved the world.” This is not a statement of love for the physical world, the planet Ear...

 The story of Noah's Ark is one of the most well-known tales in the Old Testament. The story is found in the Book of Genesis, chapters 6 through 9. It is the story of Noah as he receives a command from God to build a mighty boat, an Ark, to save both the animals of the Earth as well as Noah's family.  Genesis 6: God tells Noah that due to the wicked nature of mankind, He plans to send a flood to destroy the earth. God then tells Noah that he will be spared, but he must construct an Ark. Genesis 7: Covers the plans for the Ark, its construction, and the gathering of the animals. This chapter also tells of the beginning of the flood that would cover the entire earth.     Genesis 8: Tells of the conclusion of the flood as the flood water receded and the Ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat. During this chapter, Noah releases the birds as a test to see if the flood waters have receded.    Genesis 9: God makes a covenant with Noah and all of his descendan...

Noah’s Ark National Park is located in Turkey, approximately 18 miles south of Mount Ararat. It is also known as the Durupinar Location. This location is somewhat shaped like a boat and its measurements closely match the measurements for Noah’s Ark listed in the Bible. While the site does have the rough shape of a boat, geologists insist it is a natural rock formation. Its shape and dimensions are nothing more than a coincidence. End of discussion, or is it? Proponents of this being the landing spot for Noah’s Ark claim the dimensions, shape, and location are indications the site is more than a natural rock formation. In an attempt to prove this theory, a number of tests have been conducted on the Durupinar Site, including soil samples and GPR scans (Ground Penetrating Rader). The soil samples indicate a much higher level of organic material than in surrounding areas. What is far more interesting are the reported results of the GPR. Researchers claim the GPR, which can show voids bel...

 The Dead Sea Scrolls, a collection of approximately 15,000 scrolls and fragments, were discovered in eleven different caves near the city of Qumran. The original scrolls were discovered by Bedouin Shepherds in 1947. Other scrolls and fragments continued to be found over the next ten years and are thought to make up some 972 different manuscripts. Now, a new study using AI (Artificial Intelligence) has shown the scrolls may be even older than initially thought. The scrolls contained all but one book of the Bible’s Old Testament and were thought to be approximately 2,000 years old. Along with the biblical materials were a large number of other parchments. Interestingly, the text found in the Dead Sea Scrolls matched almost perfectly with the current Bible texts. This offers proof that the Bible text has been accurately passed down for more than twenty centuries. The new study examined several Dead Sea Scrolls, particularly the book of Daniel. Original evaluation and evidence al...