H46 - Theology and Apologetics

In this session, we look do a brief flyover of Genesis 4, looking at: What was wrong with Cain's sacrifice? Cain's response and his punishment Were there other people outside the Garden? And why would we think that? What do we learn from Lamech and the line of Cain? (Originally recorded on 02/26/2025)

In this session, we continue the story of the Fall in Genesis 3 and take time to unpack the consequences that result. (Originally recorded on 02/19/2025)

In this session, we begin Genesis 3, one of the most pivotal chapters in the entire bible. While covering the basics, we discuss: The nature of the serpent. Is this a talking animal? A spiritual being? How does the temptation of Eden create a pattern for later stories? (Originally recorded on 02/12/2025)

In this session, we finish Genesis 2 by parsing out what the trees are and what they symbolize, then finish by looking at the creation of Adam and Eve. (Originally recorded on 02/05/2025)

In this session, we move into Genesis 2 to look at: How the description of the Garden points forward to later temple imagery to communicate that the Garden is a sacred space, rather than simply a nice space. What the details about the rivers coming out of Eden tell us about God and the nations outside of Israel. What does it mean to have dominion over the Garden? What was Adam's job descriptio...

This week, we continue working through Genesis and the creation account, reviewing: What does it really mean to be made in the image of God? What are some often missed details from the creation of Adam? What are the geographical descriptions of Eden telling us? (Originally recorded on 1/22/25)

In this session, we compare the story of Genesis 1 with other creation narratives from Israel’s neighbors to understand what God wanted to communicate and correct in the common ideas of the day. Who is God? Who are we? How does humanity fit into creation? (Originally recorded on 01/15/2025)

*Note* Recording in a new location, the background noise in the start of the episode comes from the youth group playing games in the next room. In this session, we begin a new format by walking through the opening chapters of Genesis and using the bible as a springboard to talk about the deep questions it raises: - Why Genesis is important for reading the bible well - Do we understand the days of...

In this session, we continue discussing whether or not God exists in light of seemingly gratuitous evil and suffering. Having established that God and evil are not logically incompatible, we will discuss if the existence of evil and suffering justifies disbelief in general. - We can't determine what evil or suffering is "gratuitous" - The existence of evil and suffering does not outweigh the many...

*Note* Episode 2.22 was not recorded due to a technical issue. In this session, we look at one aspect of the most powerful evidence *against* the existence of God, the problem of evil and suffering. is there a logical incompatibility with the existence of an all-powerful, all-loving, all-knowing God and the rampant and seemingly pointless evil and suffering we see in the world? (Originally recorde...

In this session, we briefly look at two of the "headiest" arguments for the existence of God, but possibly the most powerful: - The Ontological Argument - The conclusion that God must exist if it's even possible that he exists - The Leibnitzian Cosmological Argument - Not the be confused with the Kalaam, Leibnitz argued that God is the only explanation for why anything exists at all (Originally re...

In this session, we finish our study of the Teleological (Design) Argument by reviewing what the options are to explain Fine-Tuning. The fine-tuning we see is well established by repeated mathematical and scientific evidence. The question is how it's explained. Could it be the product of random chance? Or some unknown physical law? What about the multiverse? Or is it best explained by a designer w...

In this session, we begin a study of the evidence for God from indicators of design we see in the natural world: - The history of the argument - What we mean by "Fine-Tuning" - Examples of Fine-Tuning that make life possible anywhere in the universe - Understanding the scale of the Fine-Tuning we observe (Originally recorded on 08/07/2024)

In this session, we look at the scientific evidence supporting the Kalaam Cosmological and summarize what sort of attributes a cause of the universe should have - a cause that looks suspiciously like the God of the bible. (Originally recorded on 07/31/2024)

In this session, we look at one of the most famous argument for the existence of God, the Kalaam Cosmological Argument, which argues for a creator based on the beginning of the universe. We start by reviewing the history of the argument and understanding the philosophical evidence showing that the universe cannot be past eternal and must have had a beginning. (Originally recorded on 07/24/2025)

In this session, we backtrack a bit to look at the concept of Natural Theology, its purpose, and reasons to think that there's anything at all beyond physical reality including evidence from: - Information Theory - The Mind - Near Death Experiences - Religious Experiences - A universal human search for something greater than ourselves. (Originally recorded on 07/17/2024)

In this session, we look at several other difficult biblical texts/stories that trouble believers or critics point to in arguing against God as the basis for morality: - God striking down Uzzah - Mosaic Law commanding a woman to marry her rapist - Elisha cursing a group of children to be eaten by bears - Why is God, in general, seem to be cranky, judgmental, and a killjoy? (Originally recorded on...

In this session, we continue discussing the Conquest of Canaan and why its common use as an objection against the moral character of the God of the bible is unfounded: NOTE: This session includes discussions of very mature concepts including human sacrifice and deviant sexual practices. While the discussion is not crude or unnecessarily graphic, the content is not appropriate for children. - God,...

How can God be the basis for objective morality when God does or commands things that seem so immoral? In this session we look at some well-known sections of the bible that modern readers find troubling and explore how they may not be what they seem to those of us reading it thousands of years after the events described. Specifically, we'll look at three reasons why the Conquest of Canaan desc...

In this session, we continue looking at the evidence for God from objective morality and deal with the perennial objection known as the Euthyphro Dilemma: (Originally recorded on 05/22/2024) Notes (PDF): https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/vnrw6ap2zztsuilza91d4/2.11-Existence-of-God-The-Moral-Argument-Pt.-1-Notes.pdf?rlkey=buxaoqiv1wrb05mgz4xsxbuq4&dl=0

In this session, we start looking at the ways we can have confidence that God really does exist. Specifically, we look at the evidence from objective morality and how, we conclude, it requires a moral lawgiver: What are "objective moral values and duties"? How do we know they're real? Do we really require a god to explain them What is the result of rejecting objective morality? Note:...

In this session, we look at some of the erroneous attempts through history to reconcile what the bible says about the relationship between the Father, the Son, and the Spirit: - Modalism - Arianism - Tri-theism - Partialism - Failed Trinitarian Analogies - How we should understand the Trinity today (Originally recorded on 04/24/2024) Notes (PDF): https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/cw57tfwn3i07af2flkjg...

In this session, we look at the biblical support for the doctrine of the Trinity, all of which point to facts that need to be explained by any biblically-faithful model: The Father, Son, and Spirit are God The Father, Son, and Spirit are distinct from each other There is only one God We also look at hints of Divine Plurality in the Old Testament to show that the Trinity was not a brand new idea in...

In this session, we look at God's attribute of omnipotence: - Can God do *anything*? - What are some things God can't do? - Why is it ok that there are things God can't do? - Can God make a rock so big even he can't lift it? (Originally recorded on 03/13/2024) Notes (PDF): https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/o9i9gz6ig8ownn67e04p8/2.08-Attributes-of-God-Omnipotence-Notes.pdf?rlkey=271cxh...

In this session, we finish our study of God's Omniscience and address the concepts of Middle Knowledge and Open Theism. (Originally recorded on 03/06/2024) Notes (PDF): https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/dazvwflwm6bpcogdqfjrl/2.06-God-is-Omniscient-Notes.pdf?rlkey=dng99644zyq7tdyslhyot3ofl&dl=0