Introduction The First World War was meant to be the war to end all wars. The world was shocked by the extent of cruelty and suffering experienced. Organisations like The League of Nations and later the UN were meant to bring war to an end. Sadly history tells us that human efforts to bring World… Continue reading Will War ever cease?
Category: Apologetics
Can I trust the Bible?
Can I trust what I’m reading? It’s an important question -especially if you are reading out the winner of the Oscar for best film! Actually, that probably doesn’t matter too much but what about a prescription for medicine, a repair manual, a letter from the Home Office? You want to know that those documents tell… Continue reading Can I trust the Bible?
Why does God allow suffering?
This is a big question. It’s big because it raises philosophical questions about God’s goodness (love, wisdom etc.) and his greatness (sovereignty, omnipresence, omniscience, omnipotence). Why do good things happen to bad people? How can a God of love tolerate suffering? God is sovereign -can’t stop the suffering If God is a God of love… Continue reading Why does God allow suffering?
No! Paul wasn’t infiltrating Christianity to destroy it
Every so often an attempt is made to place a wedge between the apostle Paul and Jesus Christ. The standard argument is that the Gospels present us with Jesus as the founder of a Jewish apocalyptic with limited appeal beyond ethnic Jews either within Palestine or in the diaspora across the Empire. Paul innovated by… Continue reading No! Paul wasn’t infiltrating Christianity to destroy it
Creation, evangelism and apologetics
I want to say a few words now about how our Doctrine of Creation and the Fall affects our approach to Apologetics. Creation reveals God and leaves us without excuse This theme is picked up particularly by the Apostle Paul in Acts 14, Acts 17 and Romans 1. In Acts 14, Paul and Barnabas pray… Continue reading Creation, evangelism and apologetics
Authentic Accounts
One of the apologetic challenges that some of us have had to engage with from time to time is that the four different accounts of the resurrection contradict each other. One helpful way of responding is to put together a harmonised account, on the one hand that isn’t too easy because, despite the claims, the… Continue reading Authentic Accounts
Why did Jesus Rise (Colossians 2:12 and 3:1-11)
A couple of days ago we raised two important questions: Why did Jesus die? Why did Jesus rise? When we looked at the first question, we saw that it was important for Christians because we want to follow Jesus and there are two challenges along the way The temptation to sin The threat of false… Continue reading Why did Jesus Rise (Colossians 2:12 and 3:1-11)
Dead people don’t come back to life
A little while back, I discussed a tweet from Professor Alice Roberts who is the professor of Public Engagement with Science at the University of Birmingham Here’s the professor’s offering for Easter 2021 which she shared on Good Friday. Some people took offence to the tweet. The professor is entitled to her views, they argued… Continue reading Dead people don’t come back to life
Friday is here
There’s a famous sermon that has the rhetorical line that says “It’s Friday … but Sunday’s coming” You can listen here. It’s powerful stuff and helpfully points us forward to the good news of the resurrection. The words have sustained many people in the dark hours of trouble. The preacher is right to point us… Continue reading Friday is here
Why Did Jesus Die? (Colossians 2:6-16)
We are coming into Easter week and so I want to ask a couple of questions. Why did Jesus die on the Cross? Why did Jesus rise again? They are important questions. Often, we ask them when we are talking about why you should believe in Jesus. They are good questions for people completely new… Continue reading Why Did Jesus Die? (Colossians 2:6-16)