Tag: God
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Talking About the Problem of Evil: The Cross
Finally, I end with the cross and the hope of Christianity. Jesus agonized in enduring the nastiest evil that can be thrown at him: denial by his own adored people; abhorrence from the authorities in his own religion; unfairness at the hands of the Roman court; unfaithfulness and disloyalty from his closest friends; the public […]
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Talking About the Problem of Evil: The Greater Good
To review, so far, we’ve addressed how one can even object to evil, in the moral argument. We’ve talked about what evil is and is not, and the idea of it being a privation. We’ve talked about some possible reasons God allows evil, which included the best-of-all-possible-worlds argument and the free will defense. Today I […]
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Talking About the Problem of Evil: Human Free Will
Yesterday we covered the principle of sufficient reason as part of the best-of-all possible worlds. The last principle of the best-of-all-possible-worlds is human free will. For Leibniz, this idea was just a principle in part of his greater defense. For Augustine, CS Lewis, and Alvin Plantinga[i] it was an entire defense by itself. In its […]
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Talking About the Problem of Evil: The Best-of-All-Possible-Worlds
Yesterday we addressed how one can even object to evil, in the moral argument. Then we talked about what evil is and is not, and the idea of it being a privation. Today I want to move to the best-of-all-possible-worlds argument. The place to start is God’s omniscience. This allows God to understand all possibilities.[i] […]
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Talking About the Problem of Evil: What is Evil?
I have put together an intellectual response to the problem of evil that includes a theology of evil and suffering, and a philosophical/theological series of proper defenses of God and his righteousness considering evil. What is Evil? The problem of evil is famous. This problem is personal because my wife stayed stuck as an agnostic […]
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Can you defend the Gospels’ authenticity?
Generally speaking, the closer a report is to the event the more reliable it’s believed to be. Early, eye-witness reports are gold when it comes to verifying ancient documents. So how can we be sure of both the authorship and timing of the gospels? Dr. Gary Habermas, the world’s foremost scholar on the Resurrection of […]
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A Man After God’s Own Heart
What does it mean to be a man after God’s own heart? How could God refer to David this way even though he transgressed significantly? I think a man after God’s own heart is someone who loves God, loves God’s law, loves God’s people, seeks the will of God above his own, and loves no […]
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Tracing God’s Kingdom Program and Covenants. Part 14: Millennium & Conclusion
Millennium Eventually Jesus Christ will come back to earth (Rev. 11:15) and resume God’s theocratic kingdom program with Israel. He will judge all unbelievers and bound the ruler of the false kingdom (Rev. 20:2-3). He then will sit on David’s throne in Jerusalem and rule as King. “At the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in […]
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Tracing God’s Kingdom Program and Covenants. Part 12: New Covenant
New Covenant Then Jesus fulfills the New Covenant on the cross. The New Covenant is defined as “a covenant between God and his people that is anticipated in the Old Testament (Jer 31:31) and fulfilled in the New Testament (Luke 22:20; 1 Cor 11:25; Heb 9:15; 12:24). The new covenant involves forgiveness of sin, spiritual transformation, […]
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Tracing God’s Kingdom Program and Covenants. Part 10: Prophets
Prophets Eventually the administration of the kings ended after David and Solomon, and the administration of the prophets began. Deuteronomy 18:18-19 predicts God would raise up a prophet like Moses, having God’s authority. So, in the same way Moses carried the theocratic administration, the prophet was to carry it on. After Solomon’s passing, the kings only had authority […]