33 Defenses for the Resurrection of Jesus

3. Are Miracles Possible?, 4. Is the NT True?, Apologetics, Brian Chilton, Christianity, Easter, Gospel, historical apologetics, Jesus, New Testament, Resurrection, www.bellatorChristi.com
I told someone recently that Easter (aka., “Resurrection Sunday”) is my favorite holiday. It holds a greater prominence for the child of God than even Christmas. Up until the commercialization of Christmas, Easter was the central holiday for the Christian. One of my good friends recently stated that her pastor called Easter the “Super Bowl for Christianity,” and for good reason. Easter celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Are there, however, good reasons for believing that Jesus of Nazareth literally arose from the dead on that first Resurrection Sunday? The historicity of the resurrection and the Gospels were a major sticking point for me in my time of doubt. If the resurrection was only wishful thinking, then believers have no genuine hope for their eternity. Yet if the resurrection is…
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10 Historical Facts About Jesus From Non-Christian Sources

3rd Day, 4. Is the NT True?, Alisa Childers, AlisaChildersblog, Apologetics, Christianity, Easter, Gospel, historical apologetics, Jesus, New Testament, Resurrection
If you have ever been involved in religious discussion on Facebook or Twitter, you have probably come across some version of the comment below: I just think it’s interesting that the only book that even talks about Jesus is the Bible! I’m not even sure we can prove he actually existed. Although this assertion is largely rejected by scholars in all spheres of historical and biblical studies, it tends to pop back up on social media like a never-ending game of digital whack-a-mole. The truth is that Jesus is not only documented in the eye-witness testimony compiled in the New Testament, but He is mentioned as a historical person by several non-Christian sources within 150 years of His life. From those sources, we can learn 10 things about Jesus without…
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Are the Gospels Hopelessly Contradictory? with J. Warner Wallace

Bart Ehrman, Christian Apologetics, Christianity, Contradictions in the Gospels, Dr. Frank Turek, J. Warner Wallace, Jesus resurrection, morality, New Testament, philosophy, Podcast, religion, theology
Are there contradictions between the gospel accounts? If so, how can we trust the central tenet of Christianity–the Resurrection of Jesus? Last week, J. Warner Wallace and his son Jimmy Wallace joined Frank to discuss their exciting new graphic novel, ‘Case Files: Meaning and Murder‘. For this midweek podcast, J. Warner Wallace returns to share how he used his skill set as a detective to investigate the claims of the New Testament gospels and compares his findings to those of atheist/agnostic New Testament scholar, Bart Ehrman. Together, Frank and Jim answer questions like: What’s necessary to prove an event occurred in the past? Why weren’t first-century historians bothered by textual differences found in the Gospels? Why is it better to have four different gospel accounts vs. one harmonization? Why would God allow these…
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Can I Trust the Bible? with Dr. Andy Steiger

Apologetics Canada, Bible’s reliability, Christian Apologetics, Christianity, Dr. Andy Steiger, Dr. Frank Turek, Jesus, morality, New Testament, philosophy, Podcast, religion, theology
In an age of growing skepticism and hostility toward the Bible, are there any good reasons to take it seriously? Last week, Dr. Andy Steiger, president of Apologetics Canada, joined Frank to tackle the problem of evil and to explore the ultimate purpose of suffering. This week, Andy returns to discuss, ‘Can I Trust the Bible?‘—a brand-new video series he co-created with Wesley Huff, defending the Bible’s reliability. In this episode, Frank and Andy dive into pressing questions like: Should Christians engage with secular platforms? How has Wes Huff’s debate with Billy Carson and recent interview with Joe Rogan influenced Apologetics Canada? What is Bart Ehrman getting wrong about New Testament manuscripts? How do we know the Pauline epistles were written early? What did plagiarism look like in the ancient world? Are there…
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Was Jesus Really Born of a Virgin? Does It Matter?

4. Is the NT True?, Alisa Childers, AlisaChildersBlog.com, Apologetics, Christianity, Christmas, Gospel, Jesus, miracles, Nativity, New Testament, virgin birth
“It doesn’t really matter if Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit or by Joseph’s seed. What matters is that Jesus came to earth, died, and was resurrected.” This is more or less what was said in a conversation I had several years ago with a now self-proclaimed progressive Christian. At the time, he was trying to work out his theology. Today, his words ring with expectancy to be answered. Was Jesus born of a virgin? Does it matter in regard to our faith if He was? Virgin Birth: Negotiable or Not? The virgin birth of Jesus Christ has always been considered a non-negotiable core doctrine of Christianity and is mentioned in the earliest creeds. Among Christians, this doctrine wasn’t broadly questioned until a period of history referred to as…
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Natural Selection: The God that Failed

Alfred North Whitehead, Apostle Paul, Catholic Church, Christians, Darwinian paradigm, Darwinism, earthquakes, Europe, Evolution, Faith & Science, faith and science, god-of-the-gaps fallacy, Greek philosophers, Human Origins, human soul, intelligent agent, Intelligent Design, John Lennox, lightning, New Testament, Nobel laureates, non-coding, Poseidon, pre-Socratics, Robert Laughlin, Scriptures, thunder, Zeus
The god-of-the-gaps objection does have some merit to it, but it does not rule out ID. The progress of science has dethroned a multitude of false gods. Source
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The Fate of Evolution Without Natural Selection

Annabel Lustig, autopilot, Charles Darwin, Christianity, Connop Thirlwall, Erasmus Darwin, Evolution, Evolution: A Theory in Crisis, Friedrich Nietzsche, Industrial Revolution, Intelligent Design, Jerry Fodor, Jesus, Massimo Piattelli-Palmarini, natural selection, neo-Darwinists, New Testament, North Wales, Old Testament, Origin of Species, Phillip Johnson, primary school, Richard Dawkins, Richard Milner, Saint Asaph, South Wales, Spanish Inquisition, The Blind Watchmaker, The Selfish Gene, Thomas Malthus, Wales
It does not seem reasonable to accept the veridical status of evolution on the basis of what an increasing number of scientists perceive as a “dodgy dossier.” Source
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Do Oral Cultures Operate the Same as the Telephone Game?

4. Is the NT True?, Apologetics, Bellatori Christi, biblical apologetics, Christianity, Gospel, Inerrancy, Infallibility, inspiration, Liberty University, New Testament, reliability, Sherene Khouri
Secular scholars, especially those who attack the historicity of the New Testament, claim it is difficult to establish historical knowledge that is valid and reliable because of the infallibility of the human memory. People do not recall information accurately, especially if the account is written years after the event. However, historians and archaeologists have been able to make strong cases for their accounts considering several factors, such as the closeness of the written document to the event, multiple attestations to the incident, and so on. In this article, I will discuss the factor of oral tradition communities, how literate people recorded their history, and whether their methodology is reliable or not. Western and advanced societies might not realize that there is a pattern that oral communities usually follow to preserve…
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The Early Martyrs Were Cross Examined to Death

4. Is the NT True?, Al Serrato, Apologetics, Early Church, Gospel, historical apologetics, Martyrdom, New Testament, Persecution. Evidential Apologetics
Skeptics often challenge believers by claiming that the “evidence” for Christianity would never hold up in a courtroom. It’s hearsay, they contend, and since these witnesses can’t be cross-examined, the case would never even see the inside of a courtroom. For many unfamiliar with the legal system, this challenge seems solid. After all, why should we trust our eternity to a message that wouldn’t pass muster in a court dealing with comparatively less important issues? Christianity On Trial A bit of reflection shows the problem with this line of reasoning. First, it doesn’t take into consideration that we know many things that could never be “proven” according to the rules of evidence in a courtroom. Just about any historical event that is beyond the lifetime of living persons would suffer…
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In the Gospels, Jesus is Pro-Life

abortion, Apologetics, bioethics, ChristianConcern.com, Christianity, Gospel, Jesus, Legislating Morality, Culture & Politics, New Testament, pro-choice, pro-life, Sean Redfearn
When you encounter Jesus in the gospels, it’s not hard to see why the world would be a better place if everyone was more like him. And in the gospels, Jesus is pro-life. In fact, life is the issue for Jesus. ‘Life’ is why Jesus came into the world. The Bible is About Life The Bible’s most famous verse even says: “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.” (John 3:16 NIV) Humans weren’t originally created to face death (Romans 5:12), and Jesus hates death – that’s why he conquered it (Romans 6:9; 2 Timothy 1:10). Jesus’ mission is to bring dead people to life (Mark 10:45; John 5:24; 1 Timothy 1:15)…
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