Apologetics Profile

Perhaps you have heard skeptics say that "extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence." What exactly does that mean? From where does it come? How can we as Christians intelligently respond to this claim when engaging our unbelieving friends and neighbors?  On the second part of our discussion about David Hume with Christian philosopher Dr. Timothy McGrew, we unpack this popular phrase that...

David Hume (1711 - 1776) penned what has arguably become one of the most widely quoted works against the possibility of miracles. Hume's essay, "Of Miracles," appears in his larger work, An Inquiry Concerning Human Understanding. In this short essay, Hume tries to argue in such a way that virtually no evidence for a miracle would be sufficient to establish a claim that a miracle has taken place. ...

In this week's episode of Apologetics Profile, Daniel Ray concludes his discussion with CERN experimental particle physicist Dr. Michael Strauss. They explore further wondrous evidences of God's design and handiwork at levels never before imagined by anyone. Mathematics and the designs in the physical world, as counterintuitive as they may seem to our common sense, all point us to a benevolent Cre...

On the next two episodes of Apologetics Profile, Watchman Fellowship staff apologist Daniel Ray interviews University of Oklahoma particle physicist, Dr. Michael Strauss. A devout Christian, Dr. Strauss discusses some of the growing scientific evidences for the existence of God including in his field of particle physics. Dr. Strauss splits his research time between the University of Oklahoma and t...

Skeptics who disbelieve in the Bible will often propose different reasons for why the New Testament was written. One popular objection suggests "legendary" information crept into the texts we have today and there is just no way to tell fact from fiction. Others say that the Gospels contain real historical information but that the disciples and others were simply mistaken about Jesus' resurrection....

A burgeoning challenge for Christians today is the increasing criticism from skeptics and atheists about the historical reliability of the Gospels, especially the resurrection of Jesus. While some atheists and skeptics, such as New Testament scholar Bart Ehrman, affirm Jesus really did exist, almost all either deny or doubt that Jesus actually rose bodily from the grave and afterward appeared to e...

At Watchman Fellowship, our staff is routinely exposed to the objections about the Bible from skeptics and atheists. Such objections often include arguments against the historical reliability of the New Testament. It seems those objections become even more intensified over the historical reliability of the Gospel of John. Critics often ask of John: If Jesus really said what John reports, why don’t...

At Watchman Fellowship, our staff is routinely exposed to the objections about the Bible from skeptics and atheists. Such objections often include arguments against the historical reliability of the New Testament. It seems those objections become even more intensified over the historical reliability of the Gospel of John. Critics often ask of John: If Jesus really said what John reports, why don’t...

How should believers defend their faith and share the Christian gospel with those of other worldviews, religions and philosophies? Just what are the "best practices" for Christians seeking to incorporate apologetics as they engage in evangelism and gospel conversations? Perhaps one of the clearest biblical examples effective apologetics is the Apostle Paul's brief address to the Epicurean and Stoi...

The New Testament is historically reliable. Part of what gives us the confidence in their historical trustworthiness are what are known as undesigned coincidences ; details about names, places, and peculiarities of first-century Israel under the provincial oversight of the Roman Empire that would have been difficult to fabricate for someone writing outside of the region and time of the events in q...

Skeptics will routinely make the claim that the Gospels and New Testament are filled with contradictions and historically unreliable. Maybe at times you feel like you have to be a biblical scholar to refute such claims.  Don't worry! On this special two-part episode, we sit down with professor of philosophy and apologetics at Oklahoma Baptist University Dr. Tawa Anderson to discuss a simple way to...

David Henke , the founder of Watchman Fellowship, has over 45 years experience in witnessing and sharing the gospel with Jehovah's Witnesses. In part two of this podcast, David wraps up his conversation with Daniel Ray about controversial history and theology of the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society, some of his unusual experiences through the years, and what motivates him to pursue apologetics a...

David Henke , the founder of Watchman Fellowship, has over 45 years experience in witnessing and sharing the gospel with Jehovah's Witnesses. In this two-part podcast, David sits down with Daniel Ray and talks about the controversial history and theology of the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society, some of his unusual experiences through the years, and what motivates him to pursue apologetics and ev...

Scripture mentions "everlasting," "eternal," and "forever and ever" in regards to the final judgment of the unrepentant unbeliever in hell (see Mark 9:42-48; Rev. 14:11; 20:10; Matt. 25:41-46). Do those words and verses suggest or teach that the unbeliever will eventually be annihilated from conscious existence?  There is a minority belief within Christianity that claims lost souls will eventually...

"We cannot magnify God's love by minimizing his holy wrath against sin," writes John F. MacArthur, Jr. "Some of the most tender pleadings in Scripture are Jesus' warnings to unrepentant unbelievers in danger of being caught up in the eternal wrath of God."  But there is a minority point-of-view among Christians about the nature of hell called annihilationism which claims that unrepentant souls in...

How silently, how silently, the wondrous gift is giv’n! So God imparts to human hearts the blessings of his heav’n. No ear may hear his coming, but in this world of sin, where meek souls will receive him, still the dear Christ enters in. You have likely heard or sung these very lines over the course of the last few weeks. They are a verse from Philip Brooks' 1868 Christmas hymn O Little Town of Be...

Stars, and the heavens in which they reside, all declare the glory of God. They were created for signs and for seasons and for days and years. They were created through Christ Jesus and for Him. They are numbered and named by God Himself. They are silent messengers of divine glory. The LORD Himself told Abram that his descendants would be as the multitude of the stars in the sky. And in Revelation...

On part two president of Watchman Fellowship, James Walker, concludes his keynote on the nature of God and the Trinity presented at the Witness Now for Jesus Ex-Jehovah's Witness conference. We examine the history behind some of the classic heretical teachings that confronted the early Christianity, how they reappear in our time and how you can recognize them. We hope these insights will give you...

Was Jesus the creator of all things or was He actually a created being? Creator or creature? God with us or the angel Michael with us? These are foundational questions for Jehovah's Witnesses and other controversial religions. This two-part episode of Apologetics Profile features Watchman Fellowship president, James Walker, sharing a keynote message given at the Witness Now for Jesus Conference of...

This podcast is also available in video format on YouTube: https://youtu.be/2gGvCl4Kbbs What would you say to an atheist who says “I don’t believe your God exists. I just believe in one less God than you do?”  This is part two of our special two-part episode recorded live at our Atheist & Christian Book Club featuring guest authors Timothy McGrew , a Christian philosopher, and Graham Oppy , an...

This podcast is also available in video format on YouTube: https://youtu.be/2gGvCl4Kbbs This two part special edition of Apologetics Profile was recorded live at our Atheist & Christian Book Club , a monthly gathering of believers and skeptics respectfully discussing important book from both perspectives. Our guest authors were atheist philosopher Graham Oppy and Christian philosopher Timothy...

Theology, or more simply, the study of God, can seem like a daunting task for us, something only scholarly professionals or seminary students bother thinking about. There are many sub-disciplines of theology, such as historical theology, biblical theology, and philosophical theology. What do they all mean? Why are they separate? Is one more important than the other? And how might a layperson begin...

As Christians, it can be a challenge to figure out how our faith in Christ and our knowledge of God can address the difficulties and problems of our time. In a world of what seems like nothing more than a patchwork quilt of disparate and disconnected events, how can we even begin to make sense of it all? The first step in the attempt is a proper foundational understanding of Christian theology and...

We live in an age of uncertainty, war and rumors of wars. Headlines filled with news of pestilence, famine, earthquakes, fires, and political turmoil seem poised and ready to engulf us in despair and hopelessness at every turn. But this could be said of any age. A hundred years ago or a thousand years ago, there was never any such time where life was without its trials and tribulations. On this ep...

Former Mormon James Walker , president of Watchman Fellowship, had the rare opportunity to participate in a public dialogue with a top Latter-day Saint defender, Scott Gordon , president of FairLatterDaySaints.org. Their discussion question was "What is the Gospel?" The dialogue was held at the [un]Apologetic Conference sponsored last month by the Baptist General Convention of Texas (BGCT) and hos...