Matthew 4:18–20
While walking by the Sea of Galilee, He saw two brothers, Simon (who is called Peter) and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. And He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” Immediately they left their nets and followed Him.
Luke 6:12–13
In these days He went out to the mountain to pray, and all night He continued in prayer to God. And when day came, He called His disciples and chose from them twelve, whom He named apostles.
Luke 24:1–11
But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they went in, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by them in dazzling apparel. As they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen. Remember how He told you, while He was still in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.” And they remembered His words, and returning from the tomb they told all these things to the eleven and to all the rest. Now it was Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James and the other women with them who told these things to the apostles, but these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them.
Matthew 28:1–4
Now after the Sabbath, toward the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow.
Mark 16:1–5
When the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint Him. And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. And they were saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?” And looking up, they saw that the stone had been rolled back—it was very large. And entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, dressed in a white robe, and they were alarmed.
John 20:1–3
Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him.” So Peter went out with the other disciple, and they were going toward the tomb.
I have a wonderful lady at my church who asks all sorts of theological questions. I love this—because I’d much rather answer questions people actually have than teach topics they aren’t thinking about. In other words, it’s not helpful for me to teach you differential calculus when your question is about American history.
That’s also why I don’t choose blog topics randomly. These conversations help guide what’s actually useful.
Recently, she asked about the first two scripture passages and how they aren’t contradictory. That one’s fairly straightforward—but it reminded me of something bigger: most people who say “the Bible is full of contradictions” can rarely name one. And when they do, the so-called contradictions often turn out to be different perspectives or separate events.
Let’s take the Gospel accounts of the resurrection, for example. Are they contradictory?
In a word: no.
What we usually see are either:
- Separate events (like the differing accounts of Simon and Andrew’s call), or
- Different details being highlighted by different authors—not contradictions.
Some say appealing to different perspectives is lazy. I don’t think so.
Consider this: on September 16, 2023, I attended the first Backyard Brawl in Morgantown since 2011, joining about 60,000 other blue-and-gold-clad fans at Mountaineer Field. I went with three other people. If I later say, “I went to the game with my cousin, her husband, and a friend,” am I contradicting myself for not naming them all earlier?
Of course not.
No one expects me to name everyone I sat near, talked to, or saw. I could say I saw certain players or mention that I saw Noel Devine in the Blue Lot. All of these things are true. But I might just as easily say, “Yeah, I got to go to the Brawl. It was a great time,” without listing anyone.
That’s how people talk. Yet many won’t extend this same grace to biblical writers.
Now consider the Gospel accounts:
- Luke first refers to “they,” later naming Mary Magdalene, Joanna, and Mary the mother of James.
- Matthew names only Mary Magdalene and “the other Mary.”
- Mark includes Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome.
- John mentions only Mary Magdalene.
Contradictions? Not at all.
This is just like me choosing to mention my cousin, her husband, or our friend at different times. Leaving out names isn’t the same as contradicting yourself. The full group included Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, Joanna, and Salome. The disciples were informed afterward. Each Gospel writer emphasized different details—but none contradict each other.
If someone is honest and open, these differences are easy to reconcile. But we must be prepared. For example, people will argue that Jesus couldn’t have been born during Herod’s reign because Herod “died in 6 BC” (or so they claim).
But where in the Bible does it say Jesus was born on December 25, 0000?
It doesn’t. The exact year isn’t specified. What is clear is that Jesus was born before Herod died. Luke suggests it was a couple of years earlier, which places His birth around 7 or 8 BC. That’s one reason why the term BCE (Before Common Era) actually makes more sense. Also, it’s unlikely shepherds would have been tending flocks in the middle of winter—this suggests Jesus likely wasn’t born in December. The December 25th date came from a pagan celebration that the early church repurposed. Nothing more, nothing less.
So, as Scripture says, be ready in season and out of season—and the only way to do that is to stay rooted in the Word.
Rooted & Reckoned 