When Hollywood gets God and virtue right

Apologetics, Christianity, Culture, Frank Turek, Heroes, Hollywood, Legislating Morality, Culture & Politics, movies, Theology and Christian Apologetics
By Frank Turek Imagine if there were a fun way to raise your kid’s interest in God while imparting some of the most important virtues every Christian parent wants their children to learn. There is. You can use an unlikely source that will help you get your point across without you sounding all “preachy.” Pollster George Barna found that young people get their theology more from movies than the pulpit.  So why not use the power of Hollywood to give them good theology where you can? Stories inspire and instruct more vividly than commands, which is one reason why Jesus not only gave commands but also told stories. Yes, I know. Unlike Jesus, Hollywood’s stories often glorify much that is immoral. But Hollywood’s most successful movies often tell inspiring stories…
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How We Got Our Bible: Manuscript Tradition

4. Is the NT True?, Apologetics, Bible, Inerrancy, New Testament, Ryan Leasure, Textual Criticism, Theology and Christian Apologetics
By Ryan Leasure  This article is part 6 in a nine-part series on how we got our Bible. Part 1 dealt with inspiration and inerrancy. Part 2  looked at Old Testament development. Part 3 investigate the Old Testament canon and the Apocrypha. Part 4 considered attributes of the New Testament Canon. And Part 5 inquired into the early church’s reception of the New Testament Canon. This post will consider the manuscript tradition and preservation of the New Testament text. No Original Autographs Sadly, none of the original autographs remain. Most likely, they wore out after constant usage and copying. Now, all that we possess are copies of copies of copies—a lot of them actually. Yet these copies differ in lots of different places. But do these differences render our Bible unreliable? Bart Ehrman…
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Moloch: Bruised but not Defeated

abortion, Apologetics, Bible, Culture, Culture CrossExamined, Free Thinking Ministries, Josh Klein, Legislating Morality, Culture & Politics, Moloch, Old Testament, Theology and Christian Apologetics
By Josh Klein For decades our country has been mired by a decision that enshrined the sacrifice of human babies to the god of Moloch (also known as Molech). You might know this practice by its current moniker, abortion, but the practice is essentially the same. Sacrificing our children on the altar of prosperity is a tail as old as human civilization. Instead of molten hands the altar is often a Planned Parenthood operating table. We have chosen, as a nation, to ignore the obvious humanity of the infant in utero and have embraced the lie that sex is a right but having children as a result is anathema.  That is, unless you want the baby. In 1973, possibly the worst decision in the history of the Supreme Court was…
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I’m Having Doubts. Is that Okay?

Apologetics, Apologetics for Parents, Christianity, Doubt, faith, Jesus, Levi Dade, The Rebelution, Theology and Christian Apologetics, Unbelievers
By Levi Dade Is doubting sinful? If you have ever asked this question, you’re not alone. It’s an important question because doubt is part of the human experience. Therefore, Christians should ponder the question and seek to find out if God condones his people to have doubts. If so, to what extent? What are the boundaries if doubt in itself is not sinful? What should God’s people do with their doubts? Before we get too far, let’s define some terms:[1] Doubt: 1) verb. To be undecided or uncertain. 2) noun. A feeling of uncertainty about the truth, reality, or nature of something. Unbelief: noun. The state or quality of not believing; skepticism, especially in matters of religion. Faith (or belief): noun. 1) confidence or trust in a person or thing.…
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Why Am I A “Sinner” And Why Do I Need To Be Forgiven?

Apologetics for Parents, Boby Perry, Christianity, Jesus Christ, morality, Sin, theology, Theology and Christian Apologetics, True Horizon
By Bob Perry Here’s a question I got recently: “It has always bothered me that I am a sinful human. None of my good efforts, leading a good life can deter sin. I was born with sin and I have to be forgiven? I don’t get that. Why am I a ‘sinner’ and why do I need to be forgiven?” This is a difficult question to answer, especially when it comes from a genuine, good-hearted person. Nobody wants to think of themselves as a “sinner.” For the most part, all of us try to be kind, nice, and loving. We’re not serial killers, or bank robbers, or child molesters, or even shady politicians. It seems unfair to call someone a sinner — especially when you also seem to be saying…
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Norman L. Geisler: A Student’s Tribute

Atheism, Christianity, J. Brian Huffling, Legislating Morality, Culture & Politics, Norman Geisler, theology, Theology and Christian Apologetics
By Brian Huffling  I first heard about Dr. Norman L. Geisler when I was in high school. I bought his When Skeptics Ask. I glossed over it but thought it was beyond me. During my senior year of college, my wife and I decided to move back to my native Charlotte after graduation and study apologetics under Dr. Geisler at Southern Evangelical Seminary. Before making the move, we visited the seminary. While sitting in the registrar’s office, Dr. Geisler walked by, and I was star struck. After the tour, Dr. Doug Potter introduced us to Dr. Geisler. I was so nervous. He asked if we had lunch plans. I got even more nervous. We said no, and he asked if we would have lunch with him. Of course, we said…
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Why Good Friday is the Best News Ever

Bible, Crucifixion, Culture CrossExamined, Frank Turek, Jesus Christ, New Testament, Resurrection, Theology and Christian Apologetics
By Frank Turek Despite intense personal and political division, we all agree on one thing: something is terribly wrong with this world.  Pain, suffering, injustice, and death affect us all at some point because we live in a broken world.  And we live in a broken world because we are all personally broken. Who hasn’t committed any moral wrongs? (If you claim you haven’t, you just committed a moral wrong—lying!)  The truth is we are all fallen.  While we hate the evil done by others, we rarely notice the evil we do. We may call our political opponents hypocrites, but we don’t even live up to our own standards much less God’s.  None of us are perfect.  We are all guilty of something. It’s only when we admit our guilt…
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5 Reasons the Resurrection of Jesus is NOT a Copy of Ancient Pagan Myths

3. Are Miracles Possible?, Alisa Childers, Easter, Jesus, Jesus Christ, miracles, New Testament, Resurrection, Theology and Christian Apologetics, Uncategorized
By Alisa Childers We are coming up on a time of year when the resurrection of a virgin-born child whose followers called the “Good Shepherd” and “Messiah” is celebrated. He had twelve disciples, performed miracles, and sacrificed himself for the peace of the world. He was buried in a tomb only to rise from the dead three days later. His followers went on to celebrate his resurrection every year, and this celebration eventually became what we call “Easter. Think I’m talking about Jesus? Nope. I’m talking about Mithras. This is a common claim that is made by skeptics all over popular media, the internet, and even in some universities. The only problem—it’s simply not true. According to Mithraic tradition, Mithras was born out of solid rock (I guess it counts…
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D.O.U.B.T.S.: An Evidential Filter For Miracle Claims

4. Is the NT True?, Bible, Erik Manning, IsJesusAlive, Jesus Christ, miracles, New Testament, reliability, Theology and Christian Apologetics
By Erik Manning When it comes to miracles, Christians are often accused of special pleading. We’re quick to accept Christian miracle claims, but we suddenly turn into Richard Dawkins when it comes to miracle claims made by other religions. Why should skeptics start investigating the resurrection of Jesus when we don’t give other miracles the time of day? The truth is that there are dozens of different religions and thousands of miraculous claims out there. So how can the Christian hope to use miracles as an argument for their faith? But the fact that there are miracle claims in other religions doesn’t require us to dismiss all miracle claims out of hand. Nor is it necessary for us to be haplessly credulous about all historical miracle claims. There’s a middle way.…
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How We Got Our Bible: New Testament Canonical Reception

4. Is the NT True?, Apologetics, Bible, Canon, Christianity, Church Fathers, Jesus Christ, New Testament, reliability, Ryan Leasure, Theology and Christian Apologetics
By Ryan Leasure   This article is part 5 in a nine-part series on how we got our Bible. Part 1 considered inspiration and inerrancy. Part 2 looked at the unfolding of the Old Testament. Part 3 examined the Old Testament canon and the Apocrypha. Part 4 considered the canonical attributes for New Testament books. This article will unpack how the early church received the New Testament canon. Marcion (AD 85-160) Before diving into the the corporate reception of the canon, it’s first necessary to say a brief word about Marcion. According to church historian Henry Chadwick, Marcion was “the most radical and to the church the most formidable of heretics.”[1] What was Marcion’s heresy? He promoted Gnosticism—the belief that the god who created the world was evil, and thus the OT was evil. This belief led Marcion to reject the…
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