Who Said It? -- New Testament Quotes Quiz

Answer: Nicodemus

Nicodemus is the correct answer. In John 3:3, Jesus tells Nicodemus no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again. Nicodemus then responds with the questions, "How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?" Jesus, in responding to the question, makes the famous declaration in verse 16: "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life." It's that statement which has become a pillar of the evangelical Christian movement.

According to verse 2, Nicodemus visited Jesus at night and there is considerable conjecture as to why he visited Christ in the evening. One school of thought has it that Nicodemus didn't want it to be known that as a teacher of the law, he had any interest in Jesus' teachings as Christ was often surrounded by tax collectors and the dregs of society. Another school of thought has it Nicodemus had no choice but to visit Jesus at night if he wanted a one-on-one meeting because Christ was always surrounded by large crowds in the day time.

Answer: Bartimaeus

There's no mistaking Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, was persistent with Scripture stating he shouted "Son of David have mercy on me" in an all-out attempt to get Jesus' attention so he could regain his sight. However, the people apparently thought Jesus would want nothing to do with a filthy blind beggar like Bartimaeus and they told him to be quiet. However. Bartimaeus shouted all the louder: "SON OF DAVID HAVE MERCY ON ME!" Finally he got Christ's attention and what unfolded next was a miracle -- Bartimaeus regained his sight. (See Mark 10:46-52 for details.)

Answer: Nathanael

Nathanael originally shot down the idea Jesus is the Messiah, stating nothing good could come out of Nazareth. Some theologians believe Nathanael made the statement not out of contempt for the people of Nazareth, but because he knew the Scriptures stated the Messiah would come out of Bethlehem.

Most theologians believe Bartholomew and Nathanael are the same person. The disciple is referred to as Bartholomew in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke as well as in the book of Acts, which was also written by Luke. In John, however, he is apparently called Nathanael. Although Nathanael originally shot down the idea Jesus was the Messiah, he is known for being the first disciple to make the declaration Jesus was the Son of God. He made the declaration in John 1:49, months, possibly years before Peter.

Answer: Andrew

Andrew made the statement. Scripture reports there were 5,000 men fed, but it was the custom of the day not to include women and children in such reports. As a result, theologians estimate that 15,000 people were fed with the tiny bit of food from the little boy who was led to Christ by Andrew.

Andrew was the brother of Peter and according to John 1:44, they came from Bethsaida, a fishing community on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee. Prior to becoming disciples, Peter and Andrew were fishermen. In Mark 1:17, when Jesus extended an invitation to the brothers to become disciples, He is quoted as saying "follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men."

Answer: Zacchaeus

Zacchaeus, the chief tax collector of Jericho, made the statement to Christ. Tax collectors of the day were largely believed to be guilty of overcharging residents and keeping a portion of the taxes for themselves, before turning the rest of the money over to the Romans. Since he was the chief tax collector, it is easy to surmise how Zacchaeus accumulated his wealth.

Verse 7 tells of the people muttering about Jesus associating with a sinner like Zacchaeus, and he responded in verse 8 by stating "Look, Lord, I give half of my goods to the poor; and if I have taken anything from anyone by false accusation, I restore fourfold."

Zacchaeus, of course, was the short man who climbed up a sycamore tree in Luke 19 to get a better look at Jesus passing through Jericho. According to Wikipedia, Jericho is believed to be one of the oldest continually inhabited cities in the world.

Answer: Martha

Martha, the sister of Lazarus, made the statement in John 11:39. Remember his body had been in a tomb in the hot Mediterranean sun. It wouldn't be a case of rigor mortis being set in, it would be a case of decaying flesh. The smell would be repugnant. In other words, Lazarus was a stinking corpse!

Answer: Judas

Judas, also known as Judas Iscariot, is the correct answer. Scripture states Judas became extremely remorseful after he betrayed Christ for thirty pieces of silver. Matthew 27:3-5 in the NKJV Bible states: "Then Judas, His betrayer, seeing that He had been condemned, was remorseful and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, saying, 'I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.' And they said, 'What is that to us? You see to it!' Then he threw down the pieces of silver in the temple and departed, and went and hanged himself."

Judas was one of the original Twelve Disciples. According to John 6:71, he was the son of Simon. Whenever a list of names of the Twelve Disciples appears in Scripture, Judas is last. According to John 12:6, Judas was in charge of the money collected for Christ's ministry, "but because he was a thief... he used to help himself to what was put into it."

Answer: Paul

The statement was made by Paul in Acts 23:3 while speaking to Ananias the high priest. According to Scripture, he made the statement after Ananias ordered others to strike Paul on the mouth.

Acts 23:1-2, states: "Then Paul, looking earnestly at the council, said, 'Men and brethren, I have lived in all good conscience before God until this day.' And the high priest Ananias commanded those who stood by him to strike him on the mouth."

Paul basically apologized for his statement. Acts 23:4-5, states: "And those who stood by said, 'Do you revile God's high priest?' Then Paul said, 'I did not know, brethren, that he was the high priest; for it is written, 'You shall not speak evil of a ruler of your people.'"

Regarding Paul's about face, notes in the NKJV Study Bible state this: "There are several possible reasons Paul did not know Ananias was the high priest. It could be that Paul's eyesight was poor and he could not see Ananias clearly. Or perhaps this was not a normal assembly of the Sanhedrin, and the high priest was not wearing his normal robes and sitting in his normal place."

Notes also have this to say about a whitewashed wall: "Whitewash is a thin paint used to make something dirty look clean. Ananias deserved this rebuke. The fact Ananias had someone else 'do his dirty work' did not absolve him from the ordering of the act."

Answer: Peter

Peter made the statement while in the company of John.

Acts 3:2 states the man was paralyzed from birth, although no further details are given in the chapter. However, Acts 4:22 states the crippled beggar was more than 40 years old. This is the first documented account of a specific miracle performed by the disciples in Acts, a chapter which documents the growth of the early church after the resurrection and ascension of Jesus. However, Acts 2:43 states "many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles", but no further information is given.

The crippled beggar had only one thought on his mind when he saw Peter and John: he wanted money. Verse 3 states the man asked the two disciples for money and they responded by asking the man to look at them. Verse 5 goes on to state: "So the man gave them his attention, expecting to get something from them." The beggar, however, would receive something much more valuable than money. He would soon be able to walk for the first time in his life.

As is the case with practically all the miracles performed by the disciples and Paul in the Acts, few words were spoken. In other words, the miracles were preceded by a sharp command invoking the name of Jesus. Incidentally, an old joke goes like this: "Where do you find the church's first financial statement?" Answer: "Acts 3:6 -- Silver and gold I do not have."

Answer: Thomas

Thomas is the correct answer. Some people believe the five words ('My Lord and my God') by Thomas are among the most important five words in the entire Bible.

Thomas, of course, made the statement after Christ appeared to the disciple and presented His wounded hands and side as proof He had risen from the dead. Previously, Thomas scoffed at resurrection reports from the other disciples, saying he would only believe if he could put his fingers in the wounds of Christ's hands and his hand into the wound of His side.

The 20th chapter of John tells of Jesus appearing before the Thomas and the other disciples who were meeting in a locked room. Many theologians believe the door was locked because the disciples were afraid of being rounded up in a mass persecution against anyone who had anything to do with Jesus.

When Christ appeared in the room, it must have been an electrifying moment for Thomas. By putting his fingers in the wounds on Christ's hands and by putting his hand in Christ's side, Thomas had irrefutable evidence Christ had indeed ascended from the dead. His life would be forever changed.

Notes in the NKJV Study Bible perhaps sum up things best: "In awestruck wonder, Thomas not only believed that Christ was risen from the dead, but he also saw that the Resurrection proved His deity."