Bible Answer Man Podcast with Hank Hanegraaff The Christian Research Institute

On today’s Bible Answer Man broadcast (05/03/24), Hank picks up his overview of the days of Holy Week, arriving at Holy Friday, the day a united Church is brought face-to-face with the fatal torment of Jesus Christ. A torment that began in the garden of Gethsemane following the emotional Last Supper of Holy Thursday. That night Jesus was betrayed by Judas, disowned by Peter, and arrested by the temple guard. Before Caiaphas the high priest, he was mocked, beaten, and spat upon. The next morning Jesus—battered, bruised, and bleeding—was stripped and subjected to the brutality of Roman flogging, reducing his body to quivering ribbons of bleeding flesh. As Christ slumped into the pool of his own blood, soldiers threw a scarlet robe across his shoulders, thrust a scepter into his hands, and pressed sharp thorns into his scalp. After they mocked him, they took the scepter and repeatedly struck him on the head. A heavy wooden beam was thrust upon his bleeding body and he was led away to a place called Golgotha. There, the Lord of glory experienced ultimate physical torture in the form of the cross.

Today as we remember the passion of the Christ upon the cross, as we recall his dying words “Father, into thy hands I commit my spirit” we are reminded that we too will breathe our last. Whether we are old or young, rich or poor, male or female, we light the sky for the briefest of moments. And then eternity. In the meantime, what we do today will have direct consequences for all eternity. Thus, while the culture seeks to focus your gaze on greatness, Christ rightly focuses your gaze on grace and godliness.

On today’s Bible Answer Man broadcast (05/02/24), Hank resumes his overview of Holy Week with Holy Thursday, the epicenter of the divine narrative. A narrative that begins with the Tree of Life in the Garden of Eden. If Adam and Eve had rejected the serpent, they would have eaten from the Tree of Life and the Tree of Knowledge would not have been withheld from them. Instead, they were exiled from the Edenic garden and from traversing the slope leading upward toward the peak of deification. Thankfully, the narrative does not end there. For in the panoply of history a Second Adam clothed himself in fallen humanity. It was above all in his death on the cross and resurrection from the dead that Christ returned humanity to the life of Eden. This then is the great arc of the biblical narrative. From the tree of life in the Edenic garden to the tree of life in the eternal garden. An arch that finds its apex with the Eucharistic bounty spilling forth from the trodden grapes of Golgotha’s hill. The Last Supper that we commemorate on Holy Thursday constitutes the central mystery of the Church. It is the source and zenith of Church life. By it, we are changed from human multiplicity to one body in Christ, the temple of the Holy Spirit. Within the Eucharistic assembly, divine life flows into us and penetrates the fabric of our humanity. The future life is infused into the present one and is blended with it, so that our fallen humanity may be transformed into the glorified humanity of the new Adam, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

On today’s Bible Answer Man broadcast (05/01/24), Hank continues to provide an overview of the days of Holy Week, picking up with Holy Wednesday, otherwise known as Spy Wednesday. For on the Wednesday of the last week of Christ’s earthly sojourn, Judas became a spy for the enemies of the Messiah. On this day, the ancient Church commemorates the ultimate in contrasts. A prostitute transformed into a pure bride, in contrast to a chosen disciple who conspires with sinful men to betray the King of Truth.

Hank also answers the following questions:

I have a friend who is a member of Rodney Howard-Browne’s church. If he believes in the essentials, how does that make his ministry a cult and how can I explain that to my friend? Nancy - PA (15:49)
What is your take on sola scriptura now as an Orthodox Christian and do you think it is biblical? Chris - Seattle, WA (19:37)
I heard you say the other day that there was no rapture, am I incorrect or did you actually say that? Charles - Dexter, MO (23:09)

On today’s Bible Answer Man broadcast (04/30/24), Hank continues to highlight the days of Holy Week. On Holy Tuesday we commemorate the Parable of the Ten Virgins as found in Matthew chapter 25. In this parable—this extended simile with extraordinary sharp teeth—the coming of Christ is likened to the coming of the bridegroom to the home of his bride during the sacramental ritual of marriage. In the narrative of the parable, there are ten virgins—five wise and five foolish. The five wise virgins are illustrative of those who practice almsgiving and mercy. The five foolish represent those who selfishly squander God’s provisions upon themselves. In the end, the bridegroom arrives and the five who were prepared went in with him to the eternal wedding banquet. And then, says Jesus “the door was shut.” To the five foolish virgins who belatedly asked for the door to be opened the bridegroom replied, “I tell you the truth, I don’t know you.”

Hank also answers the following question:

My son struggles with knowing that he’s saved. He said that he’s prayed and prayed but doesn’t feel like he hears from God. What can I say to him? Carol - Nashville, TN (19:40)

On today’s Bible Answer Man broadcast (04/29/24), Hank focuses on Holy Week, with Christians in the Eastern Church celebrating Palm Sunday yesterday. Holy Week for Christians in the East begins on Lazarus Saturday. It is on that day that we remember afresh that our Lord Jesus Christ raised Lazarus, a historical reality that points forward to the universal resurrection of all humanity. The next day, Palm Sunday marks the commemoration of Christ’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem. Christ’s entrance into Jerusalem announced the establishment of the Kingdom of God and a foretaste of the time that He will gather His perfected bride and carry her over the threshold of Jordan into the New Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God. On Holy Monday, the fig tree is set before us as a reminder of the danger inherent in having an appearance of godliness but being devoid of its reality; a reminder to be vigilant and bear fruits of righteousness and repentance.

Hank also answers the following questions:

If you believe that salvation is “once saved, always saved,” would this mean your free will no longer exists? Tim - Keller, TX (15:51)
To me, the term replacement theology seems to be an accurate term as opposed to a misnomer, would you not say? Mark - Vancouver, BC (21:11)

On today’s Bible Answer Man broadcast, Hank answers the following questions:

When Jesus was on the cross, did the Father turn His back on Him? Christopher (0:52)
When did the doctrine of the pre-tribulation rapture originate? Krystal - Oakland, CA (3:53)
Is it acceptable for a church to take out a loan to build a building? Brian - Lincoln, NE (7:12)
Does Luke 22:35-37 justify owning a gun? John - St. Louis, MO (9:18)
Is it wrong for our motivation for tithing to be a financial blessing? Curtis - St. Louis, MO (15:10)
Do you believe that sins have spirits associated with them that can be transferred to other people? Jonathan - El Paso, TX (19:16)
What is your opinion of the Aramaic English New Testament by Andrew Gabriel Roth? Laura - Butte, MT (20:29)
When we die, do we go immediately to Heaven or do we rest until the coming of Jesus? Vincent - KS (21:26)