This week I will look at the fallacy of denying the antecedent. Before I can elaborate exactly what is involved in this fallacy, it is important to introduce and analyse some valid arguments that are superficially similar. Modus Ponens One of the very first valid inferences one learns in logic is modus ponens. To use the well worn example that was repeated ad nauseam when I … [Read more...]
Jesus’ birth shows “God helps those who help themselves” is a lie.
My church, Redeemer Modesto, is doing a four-part Christmas series on Jesus’ birth, focusing on one Gospel each week, with the theme of “He Came to Us” throughout each sermon: 12/2: He Came to Us: In our brokenness. Matthew. 12/9: He Came to Us: To all of us. Mark. 12/16: He Came to Us: Knowing we are skeptics. Luke. 12/23: He Came to Us: For all eternity. John. I’m going to … [Read more...]
Apologetics: Fighting Last Year's Battles, Last Year's Way
I was privileged to lead the True Reason project earlier this year, which I undertook because I thought it would be good to show how weak New Atheist leaders are in reasoning, even as they try to feature it as their great strength. I think the book has probably done a lot of good. I hope so, anyway. But I am coming to see that it's a skirmish being fought on an old … [Read more...]
Who Am I? A Study of Who We Are In Christ: Part 1
Quick ask yourself this question: “Why am I a Christian?” How long did it take you to think of the answer? And, no, “Because my parents are Christians” is not a correct answer. Atheists and Agnostics can write you a novel on the spot about why they believe the way they do; however, many Christians struggle with this answer. Many reasons abound as to why this fundamental … [Read more...]
What's so Merry about Christmas? Truth.
During the Christmas season I usually spend time contemplating what makes this time of year merry. As a Christian, my focus is on a baby born in a manger nearly 2000 years ago. What bearing does it have on merrymaking that a child was born in poverty so long ago? One word in particular keeps coming to mind. That word is truth. John’s Gospel tells us that the child is God, the … [Read more...]
The No True Atheist Fallacy
My Atheism I used to be an atheist. That doesn't necessarily mean I was a Hitchens/Dawkins (insert other religion despiser) style atheist, in fact I wasn't anti-religious at all. Yes perhaps I thought it was all a little silly but to be honest it was more out of ignorance than disdain for the religious. Coming from a single-parent, dysfunctional and working class household I … [Read more...]
Handling an Objection: "But God Doesn't Have a Son!"
Introduction When I was a new Christian I lost count of the number of times that I told people that my new faith was based on the tenet that Jesus is the Son of God. I still do this to this day. In many cases, people ask me “How does God have a Son?” Or, the common objection from both Muslims and Jewish people is ”There is only one God and he has no Son!” In order to answer … [Read more...]
Hell and the Character of God
A few years ago, the United States played a major role in bringing democracy to a small Middle Eastern country owned by a very wealthy oil sheikh named Aamir Karim. Instead of a dictatorship, the country was to be ruled by a prime minister elected by the people. … [Read more...]
Did Jesus of Nazareth Fulfill Ancient Predictions?
This is another video in our series "Great Thinkers & Great Questions", where we examine and comment on articles in the Apologetics Study Bible. Here we will be taking a short look at what is called Messianic Prophecy, in which well over 100 predictions in the ancient document of the Old Testament Scriptures, predict a specific individual that will come onto the … [Read more...]
The Correct View of Creation? – part 2
In part one, I discussed four different elements of the debate surrounding views of creation. Depending on the question you will find two of the views under consideration (young earth, old earth, and framework) agreeing with each other. Also, again depending on the question, you will find different combinations of views that agree with each other. This observation occurred to … [Read more...]