Confusing Truth and Fiction
While The Da Vinci Code is a work of fiction, many people believe it to be truth because Dan Brown makes some claims of truth in the book. As a result, some people now claim that the Bible has twisted the history of Jesus. In the end, the actual truth is confused with fiction, and many other deceptions about the truth. A few of them are outlined in this article.
The Pagan Agenda of the Code
The author of this article looks at the spiritual background to The Da Vinci Code, noting that Dan Brown was advocating for believers to embrace "pre-Christian" symbols. The religious view he advocates is paganistic pantheism, which generally includes a number of cultic groups and religions including Freemasons, Gnostics, magicians, satanists, and Hinduism.
Historical Propaganda
"Let the buyer beware." This is the warning that is contained in this article for those who would read The Da Vinci Code. Some of the problems pointed out are the twisting of truths with regard to Jesus' alleged marriage to Mary Magdalene, the fallacy of the woman perceived to be Mary Magdalene in Leonardo Da Vinvi's portrait The Last Supper, and the gnostic texts discovered at Nag Hammadi.
Cults ‘R’ Us
It is becoming increasingly difficult to use the word "cult" from a Christian point of view. This is because those who have been lured by the culture of relativism (including Christians) have developed their own definition of a cult, which is identified as a religious group that stands on the truths of the Word of God.
Angels of Darkness
The article handles the important issue of being able to identify false teachings and false religions that lure people from salvation in Christ. Knowledge of Scripture is one good tool and defence weapon against these false teachings. The other is the testimony of the assurance of salvation in the redemptive work of Christ.
Modern Cultic Tendencies
This article bemoans the prevailing anti-intellectual trend in today's popular culture as one of the reasons for the rise of cultic groups that lead people astray from true teachings of the Word of God. Other factors mentioned include the hyper-individualistic culture, as well as the coming of the internet. To recover from this, believers must regain the desire and the ability to think, loving God with all their heart and mind.
The Lordship of Christ
The article exposes some of the holes in the arguments of the Islamic faith that accepts Jesus as a true prophet of God and yet denies his deity. There is a fundamental error in accepting both Jesus and Muhammad as true prophets of God.
Orthodox Obedience
This is a general reflection on the richness of the Reformed Orthodox tradition. It mainly appreciates this tradition's refusal to let its view of the infallibility and centrality of the revealed Word of God be swayed by unbiblical thinking.
Answering Door-Knockers
Some Apologetical Meanderings
Is the Christian Faith Defensible? Two Suggested Methods to Win the War of Ideas
Polemic Theology: How to Deal with Those Who Differ from Us
Christians are called to contend earnestly for the faith (Jude 3). This is a form of apologetics. Nicole argues that there are three major questions we must ask when confronted with views with which Christians differ strongly: What do I owe the person who differs from me? What can I learn from the person who differs from me? How can I cope with the person who differs from me?
Is There a God?
This article discusses the philosophical, historical, and existential arguments that God exists.
Unapologetic Apologetics
Lamenting the death of apologetics as a subject in some seminaries, this article shows that presenting the Christian faith can be done through reasoning, although reasoning alone does not have the ability to convert anyone. The author calls for the use of affirmative apologetics.
Imaging the Image
This article looks at the fourth tenet identified in Covenental Apologetics, written by Scott Oliphint. The author discusses how man is created in the image of God, and what this means for doing apologetics.
The Glorious Groan of the Gospel
Nor The Heart of Man Imagined
An objection frequently raised against the existence of a good God is the existence of suffering and evil. This article shows that this objection has no grounds, because in scripture it is clear that evil and a good God do exist and that this existence is not incompatible. The author shows how through apologetics one can move from this objection to the heart of the gospel.
Making Faces
Satan can deceive us by making us think that our reasoning is independent of Christ and through this autonomy we are able to win people for Christ. This article shows that following such a path is to fall in the hands of the Satan and his craftiness. Apologetics and evangelism are only done in dependence on Christ.
Defending our Faith to the Man in the Street Evangelism and Apologetics
Miracles? Can They Happen?
An Atheist Finds Salvation
The Empty Tomb
The Absurdity of Life without God
No Satisfaction
Jesus Christ Lives!
No Third Way
The Value of Apologetics
Ten Things You Should Know about the Exclusivity of Jesus Christ or the "Scandal of Particularity"
Particularism or exclusivism or restrictivism explains the reality that Jesus Christ is the only way to salvation. This article explains ten things you need to know the exclusivity of Jesus Christ to salvation.
The Virgin Birth
Christian Apologetics: Apologetics and The Gospel
A Mini Primer in Apologetics
The Problem of Evil
Who Made God ?
Why Faith in God Is Not Stupid
How do we know that God exists? This article considers three categories of responses: empiricism, rationalism, and faith.
Our Faith Is Historically Verifiable or It's Nothing
Is the Christian faith historically verifiable or is it just a leap of faith? The resurrection of Jesus Christ makes the Christian faith historically reliable.
"Apologies": Why Is there Something and Not Nothing?
"Apologies": What are Apologetics?
The Early Defenders of the Faith
Three Ways to Respond to Opposing Views
How do you answer doubts and opposition to the gospel? This article explains that there are two wrong ways of responding to opposition: change the gospel or pounce on any opposing view. THe article also offers the right way of addressing opposing views: respond to the gospel yourself, which will impact your posture towards objecting views in a number of significant ways.
Seven Reasons Why Apologetics Might Be Good
Is apologetics good? This article gives seven reasons why the discipline is good.
The Need for Apologetics
If apologetics is the discipline that deals with a rational defence of the Christian faith, then Christians must engage in it. For as the article explains, God commands it, the world needs it, and reason demands it. The article also answers objections to apologetics.
Have You Got the Whole Story?
In apologetics, it is important to show how Christ fits within the unfolding story of salvation from creation to new creation. This article gives an overview of the story from creation to the new creation, and explains how this story puts into perspective issues such as the reliability of the Bible, suffering, and pluralism.
Six Enemies of Apologetic Engagement
What is it that hinders Christians from engaging in apologetics? This article identifies six reasons that hinder Christians from witnessing.
Are You Ready to Give an Answer?
Christians will be called to defend the faith. How do you defend your faith in public? How can you engage in evangelism? This article explains the temptations facing Christians when it comes to defending their faith, the reason for this defense, and the manner of defending the faith on the basis of 1 Peter 3:15.
What Is "Apologetics"?
What is apologetics? It is an activity of the Christian mind that attempts to show that the gospel message is true in its affirmations. This article discusses the difference between negative apologetics and positive apologetics. It also shows the necessity of apologetics for missions.
Presuppositional Apologetics: A Summary
This article defines and explains what presuppositional apologetics is.
Bahnsen on the Role of Reason
This article includes an excerpt from Greg Bahnsen's book Always Ready, in which he makes a case for using reason in our apologetics.
Why There's No Such Thing as an Atheist
Was the Tomb Really Empty?
Stein takes an apologetic approach in this article on the topic of the resurrection of Jesus, emphasizing its historicity. He expands on the importance of the empty tomb as part of the early Christian message.
How We Live Defending Our Faith
Apologizing for the Gospel
"Christianity is Antiquated": A Human Response to a Divine Quality
Christian Apologetics: C.S. Lewis
The Reason for Our Hope: Christ in Our Apologetics
Persuasion: Beyond the "Burp Effect"
Defending the use of persuasion as a method of apologetics, this article shows that persuasion takes into account both the one communicating the gospel and the one to whom it is communicated. Persuasion can be inoffensive without compromising the truth of the gospel.
How Should We Then Defend?
Using homosexuality and abortion as examples, this article shows how sin works to the point that vices become embraced as the norm. The author of this article encourages Christians to use the unreasonableness of sin as a foundation for apologetics.
Swimming in the Glorious Deep Blue Sea
This article discusses an objection raised against covenantal apologetics. The author states that reformed apologetics requires an affirmation of the absolute necessity of God's existence, and of the Bible as the self-attesting revelation of this God.
The Accident of Two Legs
This article looks at the tenth tenet identified in Covenental Apologetics, written by Scott Oliphint. Reformed apologetics is rooted in the knowledge that everything is a result of the sovereign plan and purpose of God.
Proofs, Persuasion And The Truth Problem
This article looks at the ninth tenet identified in Covenental Apologetics, written by Scott Oliphint. The author of this article talks about how we should seek to persuade others when we practice apologetics.
The Problem of Theological Cataracts
This article looks at the eighth tenet identified in Covenental Apologetics, written by Scott Oliphint. Due to the Fall into sin, individuals suppress the truth about God. The author of this article discusses this fact in relationship with the topic of apologetics.
Living in Wonderland or Lost in Wonder, Love and Praise
This article looks at the seventh tenet identified in Covenental Apologetics, written by Scott Oliphint. The author maintains that Christian theism is absolute truth, and anything opposing it is false. It is important to understand this when practicing apologetics.
Treading Through the Tenets: Of Metaphysics and Marriage
This article looks at the sixth tenet identified in Covenental Apologetics, written by Scott Oliphint. The author discusses how there are two kinds of people: those who are in Christ, and those who are in Adam. This understanding of man's position is unique to Reformed apologetics, and has implications for the practice of apologetics.
Our Phlegmatic Façade
This article discusses the fifth tenet identified in Covenental Apologetics, written by Scott Oliphint. Looking at the text of Romans 1:18-21, the author shows that all people know God, and this knowledge entails covenental obligations. The author discusses what this means in relation to apologetics.
Only Two Companies Hiring
This article looks at the third tenet identified in Covenental Apologetics, written by Scott Oliphint. The effectiveness of apologetics is dependant on the work of the Word and the Holy Spirit in the individual.
Treading Through the Tenets: Triunity
This article looks at the first tenet identified in Covenental Apologetics, by Scott Oliphint. The author discusses how apologetics starts with God and His revelation, highlighting creation and redemption as the work of the Triune God.
Extracting Nectar from a Painted Rose
Of Adamites and Aromas
The author of this article discusses where we stand in our covenant with God. Every individual is represented either in Adam or in Christ. This article relates this concept to the topic of apologetics.
The Bridge of Persuasion
How should we practice apologetics with unbelievers? This article discusses how we can share the gospel with those who remain dead in Adam instead of alive in Christ.
Crossing the Chasm
Holding to the absolute truth of the antithesis (that either one is in Adam or in Christ), this article shows that the antithesis should not hinder the practice of apologetics. The fact that all are created in the image of God creates room for the persuasion of apologetics.
All Other Ground is Sinking Sand
All forms of epistemology must appeal to some form of authority as their standing ground. This article shows that for Christians doing apologetics this standing ground is the Bible. There is no way of going beyond this foundation in evangelism.
Et Tu, Brute?
This article shows how the book of Jude serves as encouragement to do apologetics within the church.
The Eternal, Inextricable Link
This article shows how the link to the covenantal heads constitutes the antithetical view to life. Individuals are connected either to the first Adam or the second Adam - Christ Jesus. This connection shapes the practice of apologetics for Christians. The author discusses the antithesis from Romans 5:12-21.
Transcendental Meditation
Looking at the meaning of the term 'transcendental meditation', this article shows that Van Til used this term in apologetics to express the idea that the Christian faith alone is true.
Wholly Upon God
This article looks at the relationship between apologetics and the use of Scripture.
From Theodicy to Theophany: Inscrutability and the Problem of Evil
Who Knows?
This article looks at Romans 1:18 and its implication for apologetics. The author shows that what man denies about God says something about his knowledge of God.
Is Christianity True?
Science and Apologetics
Apologia
Speaking Out against Atrocities
Christian Apologetics: C.S. Lewis
One by One Helping Unbelievers Means being Sensitive to their Situations
Mercy for Doubters Apologetics, or Pre-evangelism, is a Form of Compassion
A Question of Understanding Why I teach Apologetics to Teenagers
Answering Life’s Eight Ultimate Questions
What are life's ultimate questions? These questions are different, from the Bible and the world. This article discusses such questions from the Bible.
Philosophical Apologetics, the Church, and Contemporary Culture
Should philosophy be eschewed in the church? If the church does, Moreland argues, believers will then continue to speak largely to themselves. In this essay, he aims to clarify the nature and tasks of philosophical apologetics, identify in the contemporary culture areas where the church need to focus its attention as a community, and offers some brief remarks about a strategy for the future.
The Apologetic Argument
Can we argue for the existence of God? This article attempts to deal with the arguments used by atheists in their use of science to argue that God does not exist. It uses the evidentialism method to show that since a person feels guilty, has a sense of absolute justice, has a sense of the dignity of mankind, an appreciation of the beauty and design in nature, then it is possible to argue for the perception of the existence of God.
Both/And: The Uncomfortable Apologetic
Apologetics and mission are closely related and can never be divorced. The essay wants to set parameters for all missiological endeavors.
Christ or Chaos – Much Ado about Nothing
How do we evaluate our faith in the light of the challenge that Christianity is irrational? These challenges are put to Christians by people like Richard Dawkins. This chapter is a Christian defence of faith in God the Creator.
The Inadequacy of the New Evangelicalism and the Need for a New and Better Method
This article is written as a sympathetic confrontation with the New Evangelicalism. It explores the developments in modern apologetics, the so-called new method as it is reflected in New Evangelicalism, and it proposes its own apologetic method.
God's Holy Love
The author reviews the publication by Steve Chalke and Alan Mann on their view of retributive justice. He rejects their views that the wrath of God and punishment have no place in the preaching of the gospel. The author emphasizes that the love of God is fully demonstrated in his giving his Son to die for us while we were yet sinners.
Guardian of the Word
This article discusses the major works of B.B. Warfield, a reformed scholar who specialized in apologetics.
"Christianity is Illogical"
Embracing Religious Contradictions to Proclaim Christ Crucified: Tolerance and Coexistence
Christians should practice religious tolerance and seek to gain knowledge about other belief systems? A better understanding of other religions will assist the Christian in evangelism and apologetics.
Augustine – Calvin – Van Til
The Role And Use Of Evidence In Reformed Presuppositional Apologetics (Part 2)
Looking at the relationship between positive apologetics and negative apologetics, this article shows that positive apologetics does not have room in the Christian faith since the word of God is self attesting, while negative apologetics on its own is not sufficient to stand the ground. The author of this article calls for offensive apologetics as a way of confronting unbelievers, since it has room for the use of evidence.
The Role And Use Of Evidence In Reformed Presuppositional Apologetics (Part 1)
Looking at the relationship between evidentialism and presuppositionalism and their views on the place of evidence in Christian apologetics, this article shows that dividing apologetics between the two schools does injustice to apologetics. The author maintains that the study of apologetics should be seen in light of salvation history, which can yield new possibilities for practicing apologetics.
Why I believe in God
This article looks at the existence of God and logic, and the existence of God and faith.
I Can Lie to Myself: Self-Deception and Apologetics
This article is about defending the faith and the self-deception of the unbeliever. The author talks about the self-deception we find in this world, and then looks at what Scriptures says about self-deception, especially Romans 1:18-32. The author then continues to look at how we should confront self-deception and the concludes with some remarks on 1 Peter 3:15.