The Apologist‘s Bookshelf

I focus on five good books that look at world religions and cults.

There are excellent books that defend the Bible from modern skeptics. I discuss eight of them.

I have an armful of good apologetics books that take on important social issues that Christians are dealing with today.

I have created a list here of my favorite apologetics books and magazines in the areas of science, history, general apologetics, social issues, the Bible, and other religions and sects. Any of these would make a great present for someone interested in defending the truth of Christianity.

I cover seven books the listener might want to add to his/her bookshelf to set the story straight regarding Christianity's impact on world history.

I picked six books that I think do a great job exploring the relationship of Christianity and science.

Here is a wonderful book full of essays in honor of Gary Habermas, the world's leading expert on the resurrection of Jesus. I talk of Craig Hazen's chapter that explains why someone starting a religious quest should consider Christianity first.

John Lennox writes about a contentious issue--science and Genesis. I cover a chapter in this book that deals with the age of the earth as described in the early chapters of Genesis.

Hank Hanegraaff, who hosts a radio program, has put together a book that has many of his answers to questions he gets about God, Jesus, Christianity, and many other topics. I cover several questions he answers about the Trinity, life after death, polygamy, Pharaoh's hardened heart, baptism, James on works, and women in the church.

Here's a terrific updated version of a classic book. Josh and Sean McDowell put together new evidences for the truth of Christianity. I want to discuss what they say at the beginning of the book: why apologetics is necessary and ten misconceptions about Christianity.

This is a good book for seeing how worldviews understand key disciplines of life--theology, philosophy, ethics, psychology, . . . In this podcast I go over the ten disciplines as they seek to explain biology, the study of life.

This is an excellence guide for parents and Christian leaders to help our youth survive and thrive in a poisonous culture. In this segment, I talk about the way our society encourages a perpetual adolescence and how to move youth toward adulthood.

A wonderful thinker and writer, Nancy Pearcey, shows how the modern worldview has dehumanized us. She points out it is Christianity that sustains the dignity of the body and accords with science and biology. In this podcast, I review her chapter on the casual "hook-up" sex that's so prevalent today. 

J.P. Moreland is a prolific author, and that's a good thing. His book on scientism is well worth reading. I cover a chapter that explains why Christians should be concerned about this dangerous ideology that has made such huge inroads into our society.

The Bible at one time was called the "Good Book," but now it's come under attack. Robert Hutchinson shows how it was the Bible that formed our American understanding of human rights--gifts from God rather than privileges given (or withdrawn) by the State.

Don't let the title confuse you. The authors argue against those who want to change how we see early Christianity. I look at a chapter that explores the creation of the New Testament canon, the collection of divinely inspired books. Was the canon a late creation of the Roman church? They answer "no" using good research.

Jonathan Morrow defends the Bible against several major challenges. For this podcast I review his reaction to the idea that the Bible supports slavery, promotes genocide, is homophobic, and demeans women. Another good book that goes into more depth with these issues is Paul Copan's Is God a Moral Monster?

Here's a powerful set of apologists who argue for the Christian worldview. Instead of looking at one of their arguments, I want to share an article by Craig Hazen that defends the use of apologetics.

The title is not a typo--it's a look at the history of the Mormon church. I use this podcast to examine the origins and problems with the Book of Mormon as discussed in the book.

Three Christian professors take on Bart Ehrman and other skeptics who challenge the Christian faith. This podcast deals with the challenge that there can't be a God since there is so much evil in the world.

We may have some troubling questions with difficult Bible passages, so here's a book that has informed answers. I look at a couple of issues people have had with the Bible--Did Moses really write the first five books of the Bible? Was the book of Daniel really written well before the empires he predicted would arise?

Ken Samples takes on several challenges to Christianity. This podcast deals with the explosive growth of Christianity--was it supernatural or natural?

Richard Bauckham does a masterful job arguing that the Gospels are the results of eyewitness testimony. I cover several of his reasons.

Christians often need help in reading and understanding the Bible, and this book does an excellent job for this purpose. I look at the final chapter that explores effective ways to understand the book of Revelation. 

Hugh Ross, a well-respected scientist and author, examines UFO sightings. This podcast focuses on his discussion of interstellar travel and a possible connection between UFOs and demons.