Thinking to Believe

I’ve demonstrated that evil doesn’t make God’s existence impossible or even unlikely, but one might wonder why, if God exists, He permits evil. What is the purpose? This is the question of theodicy.  I cover five reasons God might permit evil: 1.       To better our souls via moral growth (soul-making theodicy) 2.       To bring glory to God 3.       To make moral freedom and love possible 4.     ...

On this miscellany episode I cover: -- How the NYC mayoral race helps us think through our voting philosophy -- What gerrymandering is, why it's a danger to our democracy, and which party does it the most -- Don't assume that those who believe different than you do so because of a spiritual problem.  -- Stop worrying about people being offended. -- 2 pet peeves - using foreign words and...

The evidential problem of evil falsely assumes that if God had a purpose for permitting the amounts/kinds of evil we see in the world, we would be able to discern what those reasons were. The bottom line is that so long as the existence of evil and the existence of evil are logically compatible, there is no good reason to think that greater amounts of evil make God's existence more unlikely....

While there may be no logical incompatibility between a theistic God and evil, can certain amounts or kinds of evil make it highly unlikely that theism is true? That's the claim of the evidential problem of evil. In this episode, I examine the claim that there is too much evil in the world to think that God exists.  Web: ThinkingtoBelieve.com Email: ThinkingToBelieve@gmail.com Facebook: faceb...

I finish my discussion of the logical POE, showing how evil is actually one of the best evidences for God’s existence – not against God’s existence, and showing how the atheist’s answer to the problem of evil is far less satisfactory than the theist’s. Web: ThinkingtoBelieve.com Email: ThinkingToBelieve@gmail.com Facebook: facebook.com/thinkingtobelieve Twitter & Gettr: @thinking2believ Truth:...

Is the presence of evil in our world evidence against the existence of God? How could an all-good and all-loving God allow so much evil? In this episode, I begin to evaluate the logical problem of evil. I discuss what evil is (a privation of good), the different kinds of evil, and why the logical problem of evil does not succeed in undermining theism or proving atheism.  Web: ThinkingtoBelieve.com...

Is the presence of evil in our world evidence against the existence of God? How could an all-good and all-loving God allow so much evil? In this 1-N-Done episode, I tackle this problem head-on. I cover: Why there is no logical incompatibility between God and evil Evil is actually evidence for God's existence, not against it Theism offers a better solution to the problem of evil than atheism E...

Does the multiplicity of religions and their cultural-rootedness show that religions are just human inventions? Are religions just examples of wish fulfillment? Did humans invent religion as an emotional crutch?  Web: ThinkingtoBelieve.com Email: ThinkingToBelieve@gmail.com Facebook: facebook.com/thinkingtobelieve Twitter & Gettr: @thinking2believ Truth: @ThinkingToBelieve Parler: @thinkingtob...

Many think that science has disproven God, or at least shown that He is superfluous. Nothing could be further from the case. I show how science cannot, even in principle, disprove God's existence. I also examine whether science has truly been able to explain the things God has typically been invoked to explain such as the origin of the universe, the origin of life, and the diversity of life....

In today's episode I cover two objections: (1) Divine omniscience is incompatible with human freedom; (2) A Person without a body is impossible.  Web: ThinkingtoBelieve.com Email: ThinkingToBelieve@gmail.com Facebook: facebook.com/thinkingtobelieve Twitter & Gettr: @thinking2believ Truth: @ThinkingToBelieve Parler: @thinkingtobelieve

This episode is in honor of Charlie Kirk and his legacy.  Web: ThinkingtoBelieve.com Email: ThinkingToBelieve@gmail.com Facebook: facebook.com/thinkingtobelieve Twitter & Gettr: @thinking2believ Truth: @ThinkingToBelieve Parler: @thinkingtobelieve

I address the nature of the problem (it's more emotional than intellectual), and then focus on two key objections: (1) Hell is contrary to God’s love; (2) Hell is contrary to God’s nature (eternal nature of hell).    Web: ThinkingtoBelieve.com Email: ThinkingToBelieve@gmail.com Facebook: facebook.com/thinkingtobelieve Twitter & Gettr: @thinking2believ Truth: @ThinkingToBelieve Parler: @th...

Many consider the doctrine of hell to be the best reason for rejecting the God of Christianity. Can we reconcile the doctrine of hell with the loving, merciful, and just God of the Christian faith? Yes, we can. In this episode I cover the Biblical teaching on hell, explain why hell is necessary, and explain why hell is just.  Web: ThinkingtoBelieve.com Email: ThinkingToBelieve@gmail.com Facebook:...

I address three objections in this episode: 1. Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence (and theists don't have it) 2. No one can know if God exists (so theists are just blowing smoke) 3. It is impossible to falsify theism (so it is not worthy of our belief) Web: ThinkingtoBelieve.com Email: ThinkingToBelieve@gmail.com Facebook: facebook.com/thinkingtobelieve Twitter & Gettr: @...

I round out my discussion on possible reasons God seems hidden to unbelievers, and then explain why one of those reasons is not because too much evidence would violate people's free will. I end by explaining some possible reasons that God feels hidden from believers.  Web: ThinkingtoBelieve.com Email: ThinkingToBelieve@gmail.com Facebook: facebook.com/thinkingtobelieve Twitter & Gettr: @t...

God has plenty of critics, and His critics raise numerous objections against Him.  So I’m beginning a new series that will answer God’s critics, starting with their objection that God has not provided enough evidence to convince rational people that He exists – the so-called problem of divine hiddenness. If God exists, why isn’t His existence more obvious? Why doesn’t God provide evidence sufficie...

We often hear it said that the rich should pay their fair share in taxes. Actually, they’re paying more than their fair share already. It’s the non-rich who are paying too little. I also make the case for trickle-down economics and why property taxes are a scam.  Web: ThinkingtoBelieve.com Email: ThinkingToBelieve@gmail.com Facebook: facebook.com/thinkingtobelieve Twitter & Gettr: @thinking2be...

Capitalism is the natural economic system, meaning it's what people do naturally until and unless they are constrained to do otherwise by the State. In this episode, I argue for the moral and practical superiority of capitalism. It is not perfect, but it is the best economic system available. I also discuss minimum wage laws and argue that increasing the minimum wage has many negative, uninte...

Economic theories have both a moral foundation and moral implications. As such, Christians ought to critically evaluate economic theory. I contend that socialism is a morally evil and ideologically naïve economic philosophy that has failed everywhere it has been tried, resulting in tyranny and poverty. In this episode, I provide five more reasons for rejecting socialism, and then argue against the...

Economic theories have both a moral foundation and moral implications. As such, Christians ought to critically evaluate economic theory. I contend that socialism is a morally evil and ideologically naïve economic philosophy that has failed everywhere it has been tried, resulting in tyranny and poverty. In this episode, I provide four reasons for rejecting socialism: 1 . Socialism requires big gove...

In this miscellany episode, I address: Justin Welby's recent comments as to why he changed his view on homosex and same-sex relationships Who is authorized to baptize people, and where should baptisms take place? What is proper church attire? Should it be formal, casual, or somewhere in between?  The difference between the Bible and theology Ministerial bios Web: ThinkingtoBelieve.com Email:...

In recent days, N. T. Wright made some remarks on the morality of abortion and the necessity of believing in the bodily resurrection of Jesus. Regarding abortion, he essentially articulated the view that early abortions are morally acceptable, particularly in the cases of rape, incest, and physical deformity.  Regarding the resurrection, while Write believes that Jesus was raised bodily from the d...

I demonstrate that while Jesus was God incarnate, He functioned as an ordinary human being, which meant that He was anointed by the Holy Spirit for ministry. To equip His followers to continue His ministry after His ascension, Jesus transferred the Holy Spirit to them on the Day of Pentecost. Web: ThinkingtoBelieve.com Email: ThinkingToBelieve@gmail.com Facebook: facebook.com/thinkingtobelieve Twi...

Jesus’ ascension into heaven not only signaled a major transition of Jesus’ ministry, but also a major transition for His disciples. It meant their training was over, and now it was time to pick up Jesus’ mantle and carry on His ministry. In this episode, I begin to connect the dots between Jesus’ ascension into heaven and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, showing how the...

I finished up my discussion of the significance of Jesus' ascension, arguing that it was when Jesus was fully glorified, and it includes a promise of His return to Earth. Then, I reviewed five things Jesus is doing right now in heaven: 1. He's with His church 2. He's preparing a place for us 3. He's building His church 4. He's dispensing the Holy Spirit 5. He's functi...