Jonah and the Big Fish (Part 1)

3. Are Miracles Possible?, Anthony Williams, Apologetics, Archaeology, Assyria, bellatorchristi.com, Big Fish, Christianity, Gospel, history, Jonah, miracles, Nineveh, Old Testament, Prophet
The Book of Jonah is very short, only four chapters long. It tells of a prophet named Jonah who was told by God to go to the great city of Nineveh and warn them of a coming judgment. Jonah goes the opposite way on a ship, but a violent storm ends with Jonah being tossed overboard by the sailors because they learn he is fleeing from God. Jonah is swallowed by a great fish, and after three days and some prayers of repentance, he is spit out at Nineveh. [1] He gives his short warning and waits for God to destroy the evil inhabitants. However, the Ninevites repent, and God spares them from the judgment. Jonah is upset with God, Who reminds Jonah that He (God) has every right to…
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Advice to Young Aspiring Apologists

Apologetics, Christianity, Evangelism, Gospel, Jonathan McLatchie.com, ministry, Practical Apologetics, Theology and Christian Apologetics
David Wood recently posted an excellent video featuring a series of short interview clips with various apologists (Douglas Groothuis, Gary Habermas, Craig Hazen, Mike Licona, Nabeel Qureshi, Mary Jo Sharp, and Frank Turek) on advice to future apologists. As one who is of the younger generation myself (I am almost 27)[1], and who has been active in the public apologetics arena from relatively young (from around 20 years of age) I have some experience to speak of when it comes to being a young defender of the Christian faith. In this article, I want to address those who are young, perhaps in their late teens or in their 20’s, and who aspire to do public work in apologetics. In particular, I want to reflect on my observations over the past six or…
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Jesus as Clark Kent

3. Are Miracles Possible?, Apologetics, Christianity, Christmas, Clark Kent, Gospel, HeavenNotHarvard.com, Hidden Identity, Jennifer Defrates, Jesus, Superman, Theology and Christian Apologetics
My inner geek is going to show for just a second here. I love superhero origin stories. My favorite part of the story is watching them learn who they truly are, struggle with their powers, and choose the responsibility of sacrificial heroism. Can you imagine Jesus as Clark Kent? Jesus is the ultimate hero, but we really don’t know what his life was like before he was the teacher we know. I really wish we could see those early moments of Jesus’s life. Talk about the origin of the hero of all heroes! This advent, I’ve been really focusing on Christ’s coming to earth, becoming human, really imagining what that had to be like for Him, to live as a child while being God. We know from Luke 2, that…
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5 Biblical Men Every Boy Should Know

4. Is the NT True?, Amy Davison, Apologetics, Bible characters, Biblical manhood, Boy Mom, Christianity, Gospel, MamaBearApologetics, Raising Boys
A Twitter post caught my eye a while back from a brother in Christ who was fed up with his church’s take on biblical manhood. Manhood, it was implied, was a burly trinity of plaid, football, and Clint Eastwood. As if the lost 11th commandment was: Thine beard shall be like Jesus, and thou shalt give John the Baptist a run for his money with thine outdoorsman skills!  I know a lot of guys who would have no problem with this definition of manhood. But our guy on Twitter felt out of place, at church and even with his own manly identity. Mamas, our boys have been fed a line or two about what it means to be a man. Just like our girls (read about women your girls should know here),…
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Arguing from the Extremes

1. Does Truth Exist?, Apologetics, Argumentation, Christianity, fallacy, FreeThinkingMinistries.com, Gospel, logic, Phil Kallberg, “arguing from extremes”
There is a very common type of fallacious reasoning that I have termed arguing from the extremes. Once you see this, you’ll notice that it’s everywhere in our society and especially political discourse. Roughly speaking it’s the idea that one or an extremely small number of counter examples disproves a whole theory. This is simply not how to do good reasoning. If you see x follow y 1,000 times you will rightly conclude that there is some type of causal link between x and y. If on try 1,001, x does not follow y, that should give you pause, but it shouldn’t prompt you to conclude that your established theory (x follows y) needs to be completely thrown out.[1] That would be stupid. But a lot of people do reason like this. So, for example, it has…
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What is Truth?

1. Does Truth Exist?, Apologetics, Christianity, Correspondence Theory, Deanna Huff, Gospel, Objectivism, relativism, truth, What is truth, www.bellatorChristi.com
Most people expect others to tell the truth, and we can witness this expectation in many spheres. In law, truth is taken so seriously that people must be sworn in by raising their right hand and making an oath to tell the truth. In football, referees are accountable for making calls based on the truth. In business, people are expected to be truthful employees. Yet it seems that our society is confused about what truth is. We witness this when we hear statements like, “that can be true for you, but it’s not true for me,” or “that’s just your perspective.” These statements often stump people when they encounter someone with a contradictory view. Let’s clear up the conversation by unpacking what truth is and preparing ourselves to promote truth…
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The Argument from Martyrdom: A Response to Rabbi Tovia Singer

4. Is the NT True?, and paul, Apologetics, Argument from Martyrdom, Book of Acts, Christianity, Gospel, JonathanMclatchie.com, Peter, Tovia Singer
Rabbi Tovia Singer is an orthodox Jewish rabbi and the founder and director of Outreach Judaism. He is widely known for his counter-missionary polemics and his criticism of the New Testament presentation of Jesus as the Hebrew Messiah (see his two volume set, Let’s Get Biblical: Why doesn’t Judaism accept the Christian Messiah?.[1] In a video published this week, provocatively titled “Why Would Paul Willingly Die for His Belief? Another Church Lie!”, Rabbi Singer makes a number of bizarre claims. One such statement is that “the notion that Paul was beheaded by Rome is complete nonsense. It’s an invention of the church, and it’s mentioned nowhere in the Christian Bible.” Singer notes further that “the book of Acts — which is devoted to Paul — ends with Paul being freed from prison.” Singer gives…
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Did Jesus Rise from the Dead?

3. Are Miracles Possible?, 4. Is the NT True?, Apologetics, Christianity, Did Jesus Rise from the Dead?, Gospel, history, IsChristianityTrue.Wordpress.com, New Testament, Resurrection, Steve Lee
When it comes to the fate of Jesus and determining if he rose from the dead, a historian employs a two-step or stage process to uncover the relevant historical facts surrounding the fate of Jesus and then sifts through the various live explanations to determine the best explanation.  It is somewhat like being a detective. A detective gathers the clues (the established historical facts) and then solves the case (provides the best explanation for the historical facts). ESTABLISHING THE HISTORICAL FACTS There are four established historical facts or truths concerning the fate of Jesus that are widely accepted by critical scholars today.  Here is a quick acronym to remember these four historical truths: BEAT.   B = Burial E = Empty Tomb A = Appearances of Christ T = Transformation of the Disciples   Dr. Craig…
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Faith in Action

Apologetics, bellatorchristi.com, Christianity, Gospel, Theology and Christian Apologetics, Tim Woods
Each and every sermon we listen to, every teacher we hear, every Bible verse we read, and even the article you’re reading right now has only so much effect. We can listen and agree with what is being said. We can agree that the words we read hold truth. But then what? Do we give our “Amen” in agreement and swiftly move on? Do we skip the prayer and application process, hoping it will fill and meet our needs? Are we simply only hearing the Word? If we say we are faithful followers of Jesus Christ, are we living out that truth every day, or are we just listening? But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. (James 1:22 NKJV) When we truly trust in God,…
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The Ultimate Kalam Cosmological Argument Resource List: 80+ Curated Picks from Top Philosophers and Apologists, Part 2

2. Does God Exist?, Apologetics, Arguments for God, Big Bang, Christianity, Cosmological Argument, First Cause, Gospel, Graham Oppy, Kalam, Miguel Rodriguez, SmartFaith.me, william lane craig
[Editor’s Note: this blog series was originally posted as a single blog. The section “Introduction to the Kalam” is repeated here in both entries, for context, for the reader.] Introduction to the Kalam The Kalam Cosmological Argument (KCA) is one of the most widely discussed arguments for the existence of God in contemporary philosophy and apologetics. It goes like this: Whatever begins to exist has a cause. The universe began to exist. Therefore, the universe has a cause. Though it sounds simple, the implications are profound. If the universe had a beginning—and beginnings require causes—then something (or Someone) beyond time, space, and matter must have brought it into being. The Kalam has sparked conversations among scientists, philosophers, theologians, and skeptics alike, making it a cornerstone of modern theistic argumentation. This post…
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