Blog Archive
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Come Reason's Apologetics Notes blog will highlight various news stories or current events and seek to explore them from a thoughtful Christian perspective. Less formal and shorter than the www.comereason.org Web site articles, we hope to give readers points to reflect on concerning topics of the day.
Sunday, October 19, 2014
Why Christians Need to Grow Intellectually (video)
I was recently asked which apologists influenced me the most in my study. Here in this short clip I provide some of my primary influences and also talk about the importance of Christians stretching themselves just a bit intellectually in order to become more mature in the faith and to love God more fully.
Sunday, October 12, 2014
The Explosion in Apologetics Education (video)
Christians find their faith questioned more than ever before. That's one reason we are seeing an explosion in ways believers can learn to defend their faith with reason and precision. Here, Lenny sits down with Dr. Craig Hazen, who is the Founder and Director of M.A. Program in Christian Apologetics at Biola University to talk about the incredible growth of apologetics and the increasingly diverse programs available to those who wish to study apologetics at home or for a degree.
Saturday, September 27, 2014
The Heresies of Mormonism
What is a heresy? Any belief that denies those Christians have historically recognized as essential to the faith; such beliefs include the triune nature of God, the divinity and humanity of Jesus Christ, His eternality, and the nature of His incarnation. Mormonism rejects these essentials and substitutes its own fictions. In this video clip, Lenny takes a brief look at the teachings of the LDS church and demonstrates why Mormonism is not a Christian faith.
Sunday, September 21, 2014
Two Key Problems with Darwinism (video)
In this video, Lenny teaches on two insurmountable problems for modern Darwinian theory and shows why life points to an intelligent designer.
Saturday, August 23, 2014
Postmodernism is Infecting the Church
When the Church abandons truth, it is one of the most offensive acts you can imagine.
The concept of tolerance is so prevalent today that you cannot help but be pummeled by it anywhere you turn. It's a huge problem and a big danger to the health of Christianity. As the influence of relativism becomes more dominant in society, we need to be more intentional in countering its message. Watch this short video as I comment on the recent trend by believers of accepting a relativistic view of truth and morality and offer a few points on how to counteract this dangerous precedent.
Sunday, August 03, 2014
Thinking Less About Stuff and More About God (video)
Is pragmatism replacing piety in the church today? There are six megathemes—shifts in the way Christians think and act—that show how much the world's ideas are corrupting the church today. In the third of our six-part series, Lenny notes that growing numbers of people are less interested in spiritual principles and more desirous of learning pragmatic solutions for life. But by avoiding wrestling with ethical and theological questions, we are doomed to hold a very superficial view of both Christianity AND life. That is not only sin, it is a travesty of living.
Saturday, July 26, 2014
Christianity Is Not a Private Party
Is Christianity stuck in a Holy Huddle? How can we reach the world if we're only talking to ourselves? There are six mega-themes—shifts in the way Christians think and act—that show how much the world's ideas are corrupting the church today. In this second of a six-part series, we look at the charge that Christians are becoming more ingrown and less outreach-oriented.
For more on this point, see the accompanying blog post here.
Saturday, July 19, 2014
We Don't Know What We Believe
Is the Church letting itself get corrupted by the world? There are six megathemes—shifts in the way Christians think and act—that show how much the world's ideas are corrupting the church today. The first is the fact that the Christian Church is becoming less theologically literate. We have Christians who don't even know why we celebrate Easter! See the danger this represents and what we can do about it by watching the clip below.
To read more about these Christian megathemes and a few simple steps individuals and the Church can take to walk more strongly with Christ, click here. For the complete video series on Christian megathemes, click here.
Sunday, June 15, 2014
The Problem of Evil - The Free Will Defense Explained (video)
Why would God allow evil and sin to plague humanity? In this short clip, Lenny explains how God's desire to create creatures that truly love Him means that God must allow those creatures the freedom to choose. That means they could also choose to rebel. This clip is taken from a longer teaching entitled "How Could a Loving God Allow Evil in the World?"
Sunday, May 25, 2014
Christianity and Superhero Movies
They're smashing box office records and have become one of Hollywood's most bankable formats. But why are movies like The Avengers, Captain America, and the Dark Knight so popular? And do they hold a secret to sharing the Gospel? Listen to this class and find out how superheroes derive their power from the Christian tradition.
Friday, May 09, 2014
Defending Your Faith May Help Save a Christian
Why should Christians learn how to defend their faith? Many people think that while specialists like professional apologists can argue for Christianity, it isn't necessary for the person in the pew to know all those things. Perhaps it's better to ignore the Jehovah's Witness or Mormons knocking on your door, rather than get into countless arguments. However, such an attitude may be more dangerous than you know, and we can lose church members because of it.
In this short video, I tell a story about one man who left the Baptist church to become a Jehovah's Witness because his pastor wouldn't help answer the objections they gave him. Apologetics can help keep Christians in the fold as well as provide reasons for those outside the faith.
Saturday, April 12, 2014
Modern Heresies: Christian Science (video)
What is Christian Science? How does it relate to historic Christianity? In this video, Lenny reviews a bit of the history and beliefs of Mary Baker Eddy and the Church of Christ, Scientist. Drawing parallels to the ancient heresy of Gnosticism, Lenny show why Christian Science is really a wolf in sheep's clothing.
Sunday, March 30, 2014
Jehovah's Witnesses and Jesus: What does "Firstborn" Mean?
In this video, Lenny dispels those teachings by showing what the word firstborn really means and why Jesus must be more than someone who is created.
Image courtesy Emw and licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported
Sunday, March 23, 2014
The Best Question in Apologetics
When defending or sharing your faith, many people ask "What's the one thing to say that will change someone's mind? What's the best argument to give?" Actually, the best thing is to ask a question, not preach a sermon. Many times Christians can forget that one is talking with a person, not an opponent. Here, in this short story, I share one encounter I had with a Jehovah's Witness and how asking a question made all the difference in the ensuing conversation.
Sunday, February 17, 2013
Is It Fair That Hell Is Eternal? (video)
I recently received a letter from a person asking how a loving God could sentence people to Hell for all eternity. The writer said that it didn't seem fair that a finite amount of sins should be punished for an infinite amount of time. However, this misunderstands both the difference between sin and holiness as well as the status of a person who has an active will even after death.
Watch this short clip on my response to this particular question and see why an eternal separation from God is both fair and makes perfect sense.
Wednesday, February 06, 2013
Can We Be Equal on Evolution's View? (video)
"If evolution is true, then what makes all people equal to begin with?"
Here's a quick video clip to share with young people that will help provoke their thinking. I discuss the problem of anchoring equality of persons from an evolutionary viewpoint and how the early 20th century eugenics movement was the natural outgrowth of this view. Feel free to share with your friends!
Wednesday, August 03, 2011
Just Because You're Smart Doesn't Mean We Should Listen to You
Here's a great interview with Thomas Sowell making the same point, but from the perspective of societal decision-making. Sowell even brings up Noam Chomsky and Bertrand Russell in the beginning of his talk. This video is a half hour well spent. H/T @simonfoust
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