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mid-week apologetics booster (4-30-2026)

Good morning friends,

Two quotes of the week:

From earliest times men wholly ignorant of the Bible have concluded on the basis of the design in the universe that God must exist. – William Lane Craig (On Guard)

In light of our research and experience, we believe the primary reason Gen Z (people born between 1997 and 2012) disconnects from the church is our failure to equip them with a biblical worldview that empowers them to understand and navigate today’s culture. – Sean McDowell and J. Warner Wallace (So the Next Generation Will Know)

Now, here are your weekly links:

J Warner Wallace: Developing a Forensic Faith – YouTube – 47-minute presentation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T_lyyw-x2Kk
4 Reasons Why Christianity is True – YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ata3XrCiGtY
Dr. James White – What Christians Need to Know About Islam – YouTube – How well do you understand the Islamic faith? Join the guys as they unpack its intricacies and nuances with Dr. James White, whose experiences offer a unique perspective on the challenges Christians face when sharing the gospel with the Muslim community. This clip is from the Living Waters Podcast, hosted by Ray Comfort, Emeal “E.Z.” Zwayne, Mark Spence, and Oscar Navarro.: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ETa1LdRcDE
The Claim That the Bible Was Corrupted Just Backfired – YouTube – For years critics of Christianity have repeated the same claim: “The Bible is just a translation of a translation a copy of a copy.” You’ll hear it in debates, documentaries, podcasts, and even from popular Muslim apologists like Zakir Naik. But what if that claim completely misunderstands how the Bible was actually preserved? In this presentation, Christian apologist Wes Huff explains why the famous “telephone game” argument against the Bible falls apart when we look at the historical evidence. In this video we explore: – Why the Bible is not a translation of a translation – How thousands of ancient manuscripts help reconstruct the original text – Why the “telephone game” analogy doesn’t fit the history of the Bible – How the Gospel writers demonstrate historical reliability – What scholars call “undesigned coincidences” in the Gospels The question is no longer: “Do we have what the original authors wrote?” The evidence strongly suggests that we do. Which raises a deeper question Jesus asked His disciples: “Who do you say that I am?” Watch the full video and decide for yourself.: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WX31qs_6m2o
Rapid Fire Apologetics: Wes Huff Answers 10 Tough Questions About the Bible and Theology – YouTube: https://youtu.be/jdKhbBzZOmg?si=eNraWLeGgXidfmR8
Allie Beth Stuckey DEBATE: Are Mormons Christians? LDS Apologist vs. Evangelical Christian | Jacob Hansen | Ep 1338 – YouTube: https://youtu.be/71bW-nM9DEE?si=h18-rhZB7iQxP2nG
John’s use of the word “World” | Berean Baptist Church – I found this fascinating, if for nothing else than the chart indicating how many times John uses the word “World” compared to other NT books: https://bbcfnc.org/christ-centered-bible-focused-blog/johns-use-of-the-word-world/
John 1:10 Meaning: The World Did Not Know Its Creator – Have you ever felt completely invisible? I don’t mean in some sci-fi, “cloak of invisibility” kind of way. I’m talking about standing in a room full of people, a place you belong, maybe a place you even helped create, and feeling totally, utterly overlooked. People talk around you and use things you made, but they don’t actually see you. It’s a lonely, isolating feeling. Now, imagine that feeling amplified to a cosmic level. That’s the gut-punch at the heart of John 1:10: “He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him.” This one sentence is packed with a universe of meaning, irony, and heartbreaking tragedy. Exploring the John 1:10 meaning isn’t just for scholars; it’s a dive into divine presence, our own blindness, and a personal invitation to finally see what the world missed. It’s a statement that should stop us cold. The Creator came to visit. He walked the dusty roads of His own creation. And somehow, He went unrecognized. Why? And what on earth does that mean for us today?: https://readingjohn.com/john-1-10-meaning/
N.T. Wright: what is the best explanation for the early belief in a bodily resurrection? | WINTERY KNIGHT: https://winteryknight.com/2022/12/11/n-t-wright-what-is-the-best-explanation-for-the-early-belief-in-a-bodily-resurrection-2/
Sean McDowell has had some amazing guests on his popular YouTube channel | WINTERY KNIGHT: https://winteryknight.com/2026/04/29/sean-mcdowell-has-had-some-amazing-guests-on-his-popular-youtube-channel/
15 Questions for Evolutionists – YouTube – A dynamic version of the brochure from Creation.com, “15 Questions for Evolutionists”. (Actually, several of the questions have follow-up questions.) These come from the “Question Evolution” campaign http://creation.com/15-questions. Links are provided for supplemental information. Unless, of course, you blindly accept evolution by faith, and do not want to be confused by facts! More information refuting evolution and affirming creation is at The Question Evolution Project home page, http://www.piltdownsuperman.com: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YkArKmj9tvA
Starting God-Conversations: Take the “Class-Photo” Approach | Come Reason’s Apologetics Notes – How can you get “God conversations” started where others are interested in engaging instead of arguing with you? How do you set the stage so others won’t be put off before the conversation has begun?: https://apologetics-notes.comereason.org/2016/11/starting-god-conversations-take-class.html
Cutting the Roots-But Still Expecting Fruit – Apologetics Press – Here’s a quote from the U.S. Supreme Court which may surprise you: “Where can the purest principles of morality be learned so clearly or so perfectly as from the New Testament? Where are benevolence, the love of truth, sobriety, and industry, so powerfully and irresistibly inculcated as in the sacred volume?” That statement, part of the official records of the nation’s highest court, was made by Justice Joseph Story, appointed by President James Madison in 1811. Known as the “Father of American Jurisprudence,” Story had earlier written, “Christianity ought to receive encouragement from the state, so far as is not incompatible with the private rights of conscience, and the freedom of religious worship. An attempt to level all religions, and to make it a matter of state policy to hold all in utter indifference, would have created universal disapprobation, if not universal indignation.”: https://apologeticspress.org/cutting-the-rootsbut-still-expecting-fruit-5598/
Nancy Pearcey on X: “Christians may think they are marrying another Christian. But many are merely nominal. And after getting married, nominal evangelical men test out as the most toxic men–worse than secular men. Nominals are men who, in a survey, might check the Baptist box because of their family and cultural background, but they don’t actually attend church very often, if at all.” / X – It seems that nominal men hang around the fringes of the Christian world just enough to hear the language of headship and submission but not enough to learn the biblical meaning of those terms-and instead interpret them through a grid of male superiority and entitlement that they have absorbed from the secular world.: https://x.com/NancyRPearcey/status/1755302553061892344
Defending the Bible with Internal Evidence | by Aaron Shamp | Medium – Can you trust something that is 2,000 years old? We have a hard time accepting the stories of people who lived many centuries before us. Their testimony, no matter how ordinary or down to earth, seems like mythology. Our teachers trained us to be skeptical. The ancients were pre-scientific and often saw the world through a superstitious lens. This is the same attitude that people take toward the Gospels in the New Testament.: https://medium.com/@aaronmshamp/defending-the-bible-with-internal-evidence-5f3453890298
Why is the cleansing of the temple by Jesus at the beginning of his ministry in John but at the end in the synoptic gospels? – Evidence for Christianity: https://evidenceforchristianity.org/why-is-the-cleansing-of-the-temply-by-jesus-at-the-beginning-of-his-ministry-in-john-but-at-the-end-in-the-synoptic-gospels/
Bart Ehrman’s Misquoting Jesus – an analysis – bethinking.org – Bart D. Ehrman is a world expert in the textual criticism of the New Testament who has recently written a best-selling book entitled Misquoting Jesus (Harper San Francisco, 2005). This lecture asks what it is that has made this book a best-seller. Misquoting Jesus builds on Ehrman’s earlier work in his book The Orthodox Corruption of Scripture (Oxford University Press, 1993). In both books Ehrman argues that early orthodox scribes changed the text of the New Testament in significant ways. It is, however, in Misquoting Jesus that he argues that because of the corruption that has gone on in the New Testament text, it is not possible to believe that the originals were verbally inspired by God. This lecture considers Ehrman’s arguments, presuppositions and rhetorical strategies and explains how an evangelical should go about addressing the issues raised by Ehrman or others from a similar perspective.: https://www.bethinking.org/is-the-bible-reliable/bart-ehrmans-misquoting-jesus-an-analysis
Greg Koukl: Relativism Discussion Starters – What is moral relativism? It’s simply the idea there are no real moral facts in the world. Morality is a matter of preference or opinion. Moral views are “true for you” if you believe them. Your views are not universal or true for everyone. Think about the difference between ice cream and medicine. Is there a single flavor of ice cream everyone ought to affirm as the one best-tasting flavor? Do you spend time trying to convince others they are wrong if they prefer chocolate over vanilla? Of course not. Our choice of ice cream flavors is a matter of personal preference. It’s subjective. My favorite flavor of ice cream is true for me but you might have a different favorite flavor. No problem. But do we take this same approach when it comes to medical choices? If doctors were to discover you had Type 1 (or Insulin-dependent) diabetes would you ask for a treatment you like or prefer? Of course not. You want what works or what is objectively true. The cure is in no way dependent on your preference or belief. You might believe ice cream can control diabetes but if that’s the course of treatment you follow, you’ll soon be dead. In the case of Type 1 diabetes you need insulin, not ice cream. So, moral relativism says that moral choices are much like our ice cream choices. Our moral views are personal and private, not objective. There are no moral rules or laws that are true for everyone whether he or she believes in them or not.: https://educateforlife.org/greg-koukl-relativism-discussion-starters/
Why Isn’t the Church More Eagerly Embracing Apologetics? Here’s an Idea! | Sean McDowell: https://seanmcdowell.org/blog/why-isnt-the-church-more-eagerly-embracing-apologetics-heres-an-idea
Six Enemies of Apologetic Engagement – bethinking.org – The evangelical world today suffers from apologetic anemia. Despite the fact that holy Scripture calls believers to give a reason for the hope we have in Christ (1 Peter 3:15; see also Jude 3), we sadly lack a public voice for truth and reason in the marketplace of ideas. We do not have a strong intellectual presence in popular or academic culture (although some areas, such as philosophy, are more influenced by evangelicals than others). The reasons for this anemia are multidimensional and complex. There are three books I highly recommend that explore the lack of a ‘Christian mind’ in contemporary evangelicalism. Mark Noll’s The Scandal of the Evangelical Mind (Eerdmans, 1994) explores the historical roots of evangelical anti-intellectualism. Os Guinness’s Fit Bodies, Fat Minds (Baker Books, 1994) discusses some of the historical problems and also outlines what a Christian mind should look like. J.P. Moreland’s Love Your God with all of Your Mind (Navpress, 1997) explains why Christians don’t think, develops a biblical theology of the mind, and offers helpful apologetic arguments and strategies to empower the church intellectually. My modest purpose is briefly to lay out six factors that illegitimately inhibit apologetic engagement today. If these barriers are removed, our apologetic witness may grow into what it should be in Christ.: https://www.bethinking.org/apologetics/six-enemies-of-apologetic-engagement
An Investigation: Is Jesus Liar, Lunatic, or Lord? – Sightline Ministry – While many have asked and offered to answer this question, the evidence clearly shows that He was a historical person and that His life radically altered human history. As world-renowned historian Jaroslav Pelikan put it: “It is from His birth that most of the human race dates its calendars, it is by His name that millions curse, and in His name that millions pray.” Due to His influence, Jesus has been transforming lives for almost two millennia. In the process, He has rewritten the direction and outcome of human history. It’s a fact that the teachings of Jesus have been a force of overwhelming good throughout the history of the world. Unfortunately, it also is true that much harm has been committed in Jesus’ name – both by the Church at large, and by individuals seeking to use Him to further their own agendas.: https://sightlineministry.org/jesus-liar-lunatic-lord/
An Eternal Perspective on the Losses of Aging | Christian Research Institute – Discovering your first gray hair at age thirty. Watching the baby you once diapered drive off to college. Receiving doctor’s orders for your first colonoscopy. Learning your high school boyfriend has prostate cancer. Being offered the option of early retirement. Noticing your once sharp-witted mother’s cognitive decline. Whether you’re thirty, forty, fifty, sixty, seventy, eighty, or older, you see the signs – you are aging. Indeed, we are all aging, all the time. Time flies, whether you’re having fun or not, and the losses of aging mount even as new mercies rise with the sun. How do we engage the inevitable losses aging brings? If we believe this life is all there is, then aging ends in death, and death is the end of the story. But for the Christian, there is a different way of viewing time, an eternal perspective that recognizes we live not on borrowed time but on God’s time. For the believer, God’s time leads to eternal glory. Eternal glory is God’s peaceable kingdom, where wholeness and harmony reign, where worship flows freely from our wonder at God’s beauty, where enjoyment of God and others never ends. When we view the losses of aging with an eternal perspective, we age graciously and wisely.: https://www.equip.org/articles/an-eternal-perspective-on-the-losses-of-aging/
How a 29-Year-Old G. K. Chesterton Flipped 4 Arguments Against Christianity Upside-Down: https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/trevin-wax/how-a-29-year-old-g-k-chesterton-flipped-4-arguments-against-christianity-upside-down/
Jeff Hester Debates William Lane Craig On The Topic “Is Belief In God Rational In A Scientific Age?”: https://crossexamined.org/jeff-hester-debates-william-lane-craig-on-the-topic-is-belief-in-god-rational-in-a-scientific-age/
Christian Evidences by R.C. Sproul | Ligonier Ministries – this series by R.C. Sproul includes 4 messages: Does God Exist? Are There Absolutes? The Problem of Evil. The Uniqueness of Christ.: https://learn.ligonier.org/series/christian-evidences
The Absurdity of Life Without God: What if There Is No God – A Clay Jar: https://aclayjar.net/2020/06/absurdity-of-life-without-god/
Six Apologetic Topics Every Christian Should Try to Learn About – THINKAPOLOGETICS.COM: https://chab123.wordpress.com/2026/04/30/six-apologetic-topics-every-christian-should-try-to-learn-about/

Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is recognized by its fruit. You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned. Matthew 12:33-37

Blessings to you all