Abstracts for Computer Presentation Talks
by
Dr. Robert C. Newman
RCNewman@ibri.org
Last Update April 17,
2012
New
Powerpoint:
A Universal
History
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NOTICE
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Powerpoint presentations are synchronized with an audio talk. To hear
the powerpoint with the audio, download the powerpoint (ppt) and audio
(mp3) files and place them in the same folder on your computer. Then
the powerpoint "slide show" option will play with audio.
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INTRODUCTORY
ASTRONOMY FOR HOME-SCHOOLERS
Talk 1 The Earth and Sky. This talk discusses the
earth as a viewing platform (its shape &
motion), the resulting apparent movement of heavenly objects, and the
calendar.
Talk 2
The Solar System.Starting with earth, we move
into toward the sun, then outward from Mars to Pluto and beyond.
Talk 3
Stars and Galaxies.What are stars?
Constellations; different kinds of stars and their
lifespans; star clusters; galaxies; galaxy types; our Milky Way.
Talk 4 The Cosmos.What can we see from in here
on earth? How have our observations & theorizing
interacted? Dark matter and dark energy.
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Dr. Robert C. Newman is Professor Emeritus at Biblical Theological Seminary in Hatfield, Pennsylvania (a suburb of Philadelphia), and is Director of the Interdisciplinary Biblical Research Institute. He is a frequent speaker at churches and colleges on evidences for the truth of Christianity and on the interaction between science and the Bible. Dr. Newman earned a doctorate from Cornell University in theoretical astrophysics, and the Master of Divinity and Master of Sacred Theology degrees from Biblical Theological Seminary. He is past President of the Evangelical Theological Society, author or co-author of five books, and has also published over a hundred articles in Christian magazines, scientific and theological journals. See also Autobiography. |
Both Microsoft Powerpoint and Adobe Acrobat readers are available for free download if your computer does not have the software.
Talks are arranged alphabetically by title with topic noted in left column:
B: Bible; E: Evidences/Education; G: Government/Geography; H: History; I: Intelligent Design;
O: Origins; R: Responses; S: Science/Science & Christianity; T: Theology
Download by double-clicking on the appropriate link. Approximate file size (Kb = thousands of bytes; Mb = millions of bytes) is shown.
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Topic |
Title/Abstract |
Web Page |
Powerpoint |
Acrobat |
Audio |
| H |
Autobiography: This is Your Life, Bob Newman
– A sketch of Bob Newman’s life up to 2005, covering birth, family,
ancestry, education, teaching, writing, and other interests. |
Download-ppt |
Download-pdf |
Download-mp3 |
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| B, E |
2004
Singapore-Malaysia Trip – A sketch of my trip to Singapore and
Malaysia in January 2004, noting my main activities and speaking
engagements |
Download-ppt |
Download-pdf |
Download-mp3 |
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| B, E |
2004
Summer Ministry – Ministry teaching two Sunday School classes on
objections people often have to Christianity; my trip to the UK, with
speaking & sightseeing there. |
Download-ppt |
Download-pdf |
Download-mp3 |
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| B, E |
2006
Six Weeks in the Far East – A ministry and vacation trip to
Singapore, Malaysia, and New Zealand August 21 to October 6, 2006,
noting and picturing my speaking & sightseeing in these places. |
Download-ppt |
Download-pdf |
Download-mp3 |
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| B, E |
2007
Trip to Volgograd, Russia – A sketch of my trip to Russia in May
2007, which was mainly concentrated in Volgograd, the Stalingrad of
World War 2. |
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Download-pdf |
Download-mp3 |
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| B, E |
2008
Europe Ministry – My visit to Europe March 17 to April 10, which
included time in Lyon, France; at Swiss L’Abri; in Amsterdam at Tyndale
Theological Seminary; and in Cologne, Germany. |
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| B, E |
2009
Taiwan Trip. My visit to Taiwan (Taipei and Taichung) in May
2009, mostly meeting with Christians there and sightseeing, but
including two talks at China Evangelical Seminary and Central Taiwan
Theological Seminary. |
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Download-pdf |
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| B, E |
2009
Ukraine Trip. My visit to Kiev, Ukraine in November 2009, with
the intention of speaking in some college and seminary venues. The
swine flu problem led to the cancellation of these, so the trip was
mostly meeting Christian workers there, and speaking in church settings. |
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| B, E |
2010
Costa Rica Trip. My visit to San José, Costa Rica
in March, 2010, speaking at ESEPA Bible College and Seminary, at the
Iglesia Biblica Nazareth, and sightseeing. |
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| B, E |
2011
Europe Trip. A sketch of my activities in Amsterdam and
Cologne during my visits there March 18 to April 19, 2011. My
major activity in the Amsterdam area was teaching at Tyndale
Theological Seminary, with some miscellaneous speaking and preaching in
churches. My briefer time in Cologne involved speaking for a
Christian group at the University and speaking to Turkish Christians. |
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| B,
T |
Angels
and Demons. A tour of what the Bible has to say about the
unseen world and its inhabitants, the angels, demons and Satan. |
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Download-mp3 |
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| B,
H, T |
Another
Jesus. As both Paul and Jesus indicate, humans have a
strong tendency to want a different Jesus than the One whom God
sent. We give a sketch of these who have shown up so far,
categorized under the headings: Another Historical Jesus, Another
Spiritual Jesus, and Another Political Jesus. |
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Download-pdf |
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|
E, I |
The Anthropic Phenomena: Design or Chance? Some examples are given of phenomena that have come to be explained under the anthropic principle, and why these seem most strongly to point to a Designer. |
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B, H, R |
Apocalyptic Genre. A look at the features which are usually present in works described as apocalyptic, together with a listing of such works as they appear in the Old Testament, New Testament and extra-biblical sources. Some important qualifications need to be made in lumping these works together. |
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| B,
T |
Apostasy
and Assurance. An examination of Hebrews chapter 6,
considered by many to be one of the prime passages suggesting that
believers can fall away from the faith. We here consider
especially the illustration of the two kinds of land (soil) in verses
7-8 and the significance of God’s oath in verses 13-18. |
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| B, R,
T |
Are the
Right Books in the Bible? A tour of the pertinent
evidence, particularly biblical, regarding the canon of the OT and NT. |
Download-ppt |
Download-pdf |
Download-mp3 |
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|
R |
Astrology: Is Your Destiny in the Stars? Astrology, the attempt to predict one's future from the stars, is popular today. In spite of attempts to make it look scientific, it is really a technique from ancient paganism. Here we sketch the history of astrology from Babylon to modern times, some scientific problems facing astrology, and what the Bible has to say about it. |
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Download-mp3 7.7Mb |
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B, S |
Astronomy and the Bible. Though the Bible is often dismissed as a book of ancient superstitions, it provides us with evidence that its author is the Creator of the universe. One area of such evidence is its pre-knowledge of astronomy, particularly its avoidance of ancient errors in this area. We look here at the size of the universe, the number of stars, the support of the earth, and the shape of the earth. |
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| B, S | Astronomy and the Bible (Spanish) |
Download-ppt |
Download-pdf |
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E, H |
Authorship & Date of the Synoptic Gospels. Sketches the historical evidence regarding the author and date of writing of each of the three so-called "synoptic" Gospels – Matthew, Mark and Luke. Also included is a brief sketch of some of the distinctive features of each. |
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| B,
T |
Avoiding
Favoritism. A look at James 2:1-13, which exhorts
Christians to avoid the practice of favoritism or bias. |
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Download-pdf |
Download-mp3 |
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|
S |
Beliefs and Physics. A sketch of ancient Greek physics from Thales to Aristotle reveals a strong interaction between metaphysical beliefs and the practice of physics, an interaction working in both directions. Metaphysical views suggested and inhibited questions and approaches to the physical realm, and physical observations and experiments favored or disfavored various metaphysical views. Some lessons are suggest re/ how we should view current theories in modern physics. |
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B |
The Bible: Its Transmission and Value. A series of PowerPoint talks. Beginning with a discussion of modern Bible translations into English, why they differ and what difference it makes, the first talk ends with some suggested tests for a theologically sound translation. The second talk discusses the problems of hand-copying manuscripts, various sources of error, and how these may be detected and corrected. The third talk provides a brief survey of our earliest Bible manuscripts and how these compare with the manuscripts of other ancient works. The fourth talk answers the question: given that we have reliable copies of the originals of the various books of the Bible, what are these originals really worth? |
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B, R |
The Biblical Firmament: Vault or Vapor? Modern liberal claims are examined that the Bible teaches the sky is a hard, solid dome. The biblical data are sketched, including the word translated "firmament" and its related verb, the "pillars" of heaven, the "heavy metal mirror," and other passages. It is suggested that these are mistranslations, and that the biblical data actually points to the "firmament" as being our atmosphere. |
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B, T |
Biblical Pictures of Salvation. The Bible provides a number of word-pictures to help us understand salvation better. Here we sketch several: salvation, redemption, pardon, justification, cleansing, healing, reconciliation, adoption, regeneration, resurrection, and creation. |
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Download-pdf |
Download-mp3 5.7Mb |
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B, T |
Biblical Pictures of the Christian Life. A short discussion of various pictures used in the Bible to help us visualize the Christian life. Major subdivisions include: Growth, Work and Athletics. Subdivisions include: Human Growth, Plant Growth, Growth of Buildings; Shepherding, Fishing, Farming, Trading, and Warfare; Running, Boxing, and Hiking. |
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Download-mp3 9.3Mb |
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B, T |
Biblical Theology of the Synoptics. What is Biblical theology? What are some unifying themes in the Synoptic Gospels? A tour and commentary on Ridderbos' book The Coming of the Kingdom. |
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Download-pdf |
Download-mp3 348Kb |
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B, S |
The Biblical View of Nature. Various features of the biblical view of nature are compared and contrasted with those of other worldviews. |
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Download-pdf |
Download-mp3 |
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B, T |
The Birth Pains of the Messiah. Explores the concept of "birth pains" in connection with the end of the age. Asks whether these birth pains have started yet, and looks at evidence from false religions, wars, famines, earthquakes, persecution, moral decay, and the spread of the Gospel. |
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B, T |
The Birth Pains of the Messiah. Spanish Language |
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Download-pdf |
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B |
The Book of Daniel. An overview of its contents, including a sketch of its major prophecies, and some practical values for daily Christian living. |
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Download-pdf |
Download-mp3 |
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B, T |
The Book of Job: Understanding Suffering. The book of Job is helpful for understanding cases of apparently inexplicable suffering. Here we look at the plot of the book, and draw a number of lessons from it. |
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B, T |
The Bruised Reed & the Smoldering Wick. A study of this phrase as used in Matthew 12:20 and Isaiah 42:3, and as fulfilled in Jesus. It is suggested that the phrase refers to the behavior of Jesus (also the agenda for his followers) toward the wicked rather than toward the weak. |
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E |
Can We Really Know God? To answer this important question, we suggest the following. We can know God exists. He does not guarantee us special appearances. We cannot know God as our friend if we remain his enemies. We can know God personally (though not exhaustively) through the provisions He has made. |
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B, H, T |
The Canon of the New Testament. How we can be sure that the right books are in the Bible? Here we look at some general principles regarding this matter, and then specific evidence regarding the books of the New Testament. |
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Download-pdf |
Download-mp3 |
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|
R |
Chariots of the Gods: Fact or Fiction? Erich von DŠniken's book (and its sequels) have created quite a stir. Almost 40 years later, there are still numerous websites devoted to the idea that extraterrestrials have not only visited earth, but are responsible for the most impressive structures of antiquity as well as the miracles of the Bible. Here we examine a sample of the evidence that von DŠniken puts forth. |
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B, S |
Christianity and Science. What is Christianity? What is science? Are Christianity and science compatible? Some areas in which Christianity speaks on matters relating to science are sketched. Several areas are noted in which science or nature impacts on the claims of Christianity. A tour of Genesis 1 is provided, noting correlations between planetary astronomy and the Bible. |
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B, G, T |
Christians & the State. Some tensions between Christianity and various secular governments today are sketched, followed by a detailed discussion of the Biblical teaching on government. The Old Testament background is surveyed, then several major New Testament passages, and lastly, a number of NT examples of the interaction of believers with government. Some suggestions are made for how Christians today should interact with their governments. |
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Download-mp3 10.4Mb |
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| B, T |
The
Church & the Poor. Some causes of poverty and wealth
are discussed as pairs of opposites. What are the
responsibilities of Christians in the light of these? |
Download-ppt |
Download-pdf |
Download-mp3 38.5Mb |
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I, O |
Computer Simulations of Evolution. A discussion of three computer programs which simulate certain features of evolution. Two of these are similar to programs devised by Richard Dawkins and discussed in his book The Blind Watchmaker: one of these (BIOMORPH) exploring relationships between the genetics and morphology of an organism, the other (SHAKES) demonstrating how selection can speed a process that would be very slow if left to pure chance. The third program (MUNSEL) explores the capabilities of mutation and natural selection in constructing organisms that consist of letters organized into English words and phrases. |
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I, O |
Computer Viruses, Artificial Life and the Origin of Life. Recent work in computers has allowed us to understand much about life that was mysterious before. Here we examine computer viruses and attempts to produce artificial life. These all point strongly to a designer behind living things rather than their being a product of blind forces. |
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|
S |
Conflict between Christianity and Science. We discuss this commonly-envisioned conflict, with a sketch of alternative scenarios. Some reasons for such conflict are considered, together with a response to the claim that Christianity has always opposed science. |
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| S |
The Cosmos – The fourth of four talks
on introductory astronomy for homeschoolers. What can we see from
in here on earth? How have our observations & theorizing
interacted? Dark matter and dark energy. |
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B, O, S |
The Cosmos and the Bible: Looking at Modern Cosmologies. A walking tour of the data of cosmology and how it constrains our theory-making regarding the origin and nature of the universe. Both Christian and secular models are surveyed and a suggestion is made for a best model. |
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E, I |
Cosmos and Contact: Evidence of
Design in the Universe. Playing off of Carl Sagan's dictum
"the cosmos is all that is, or ever was, or ever will
be," and his interest in the search for extraterrestrial
intelligence as depicted in the science fiction film Contact,
we note that the universe actually contains at least three messages
indicating a super-intellect has put it all together: (1) the design of
the universe itself; (2) the striking nature of our place in it; and
(3) the existence and nature of living things. Available in Russian. |
Download-htm Russian |
Download-ppt Russian |
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R |
Cracking the Bible Code. A response to the claim that God has hidden messages about the future in a letter-skipping code in the text of the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament). We suggest that the phenomena discovered, as exemplified in Drosnin's Bible Code, is actually the result of a combination of chance and human manipulation. |
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O, S |
Creation-Evolution Debate: Recent Developments. After sketching some favorable evidence for evolution, we ask, "Could so many scientists be wrong?" We note that science finally depends on evidence, not opinion. We provide a look at some serious scientific problems for evolution. Several of these relate to problems generating the order known to exist in living things with no other mechanism than random phenomena selected for survival: the origin of life, of specific biochemicals, of chemical processes and organs. We then turn to problems with the fossil record: the relative lack of transitional fossils, the shape of the fossil record, the capabilities of small populations to produce large changes, the phenomena of punctuation and stasis, and the problem of islands of function. |
French-htm |
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B, O, S |
Creation, Science & the Bible. Don't the teachings of science contradict those of the Bible? It is true that many scientists have interpreted nature in ways that contradict the Bible, and that many Bible believers have interpreted the Bible in ways that contradict nature. But we suggest that there is no real contradiction when we look at what the Bible and nature really say. We consider the origin of the universe, fine-tuning in its basic forces, the origin of the earth, of life and its diversity, and the origin of humans. Following this we provide a tour of Genesis chapter one and show how its details and those of the current model for the origin and early history of the earth fit together. It appears that the Author of nature and the Author of Scripture are one and the same. |
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| B, T | B, T The Crooked Business
Manager. Jesus’ puzzling parable of Luke 16:1-13 is
unpacked to suggest how we are to both resemble and differ from the
crooked business manager pictured therein. Like him, we too, are
business managers who are to be shrewd and to make friends using our
untrustworthy wealth; but unlike him, we are to be faithful to our Boss. |
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| B, T | Cultivating Biblical Peace. A
sketch of some biblical passages that illustrate, facilitate and exhort
believers to a lifestyle characterized by peace. |
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|
R |
The Da Vinci Code and the NT Canon. Responds to the particular claims of Dan Brown's mystery-thriller The Da Vinci Code regarding how the Gospels of the NT came to be accepted. |
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R |
The Da Vinci Code and OT Messianic Prophecy. The OT prophecies regarding the coming Messiah are fulfilled in history in such a way as to show that the canonical Gospels of the NT are historical and the reconstruction of Jesus in The Da Vinci Code is not. |
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H, O, R |
The Darwin Conversion Story. Since 1915, a story has been circulating that Charles Darwin apparently became a Christian near the end of his life. What are the details of this story? Is there reason to believe that it is true? |
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B, T |
Describing God in Gender Terms. In the midst of the feminist controversy of recent times, some are advocating elimination of the masculine flavor of God in Christianity, or at least balancing it with a feminine flavor. What does the Bible have to say about the nature of God in this respect? |
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B, H |
Diatribe Genre. A sketch of this quasi-genre, a teaching and exhortation technique that was developed by the Greeks and found considerable use in early Christian writings, especially those of Paul and James. Here we illustrate this method from the Letter of James. |
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B, H, R |
Did Moses Write the Torah? What is the JEDP Theory? What sort of evidence is put forward for it? How may we respond to it? A concise summary of the lectures of Allan A. MacRae. |
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| B,
E, T |
Disaster: What to Make of It?
A talk given at Muhlenberg College just three days after the 9-11
disaster. Jesus’ interaction with the crowd in Luke 13 gives us
some insight into some of the points of significance of disasters,
whether those caused by wicked humans, or those that insurance
companies used to call “acts of God.” |
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E |
Discovering God's Fingerprints: Why the Christian Faith Makes Sense. God exists, and he has actually provided quite adequate evidence of this for those who really want to know. We look at the existence of the universe, problems with atheistic evolution, evidence of design in inanimate nature, fulfilled prophecy in the Bible, Jesus of Nazareth, changed lives and changed societies. |
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S |
Doing Science in a Theistic Universe. What is science? What should we expect nature to be like? Some atheistic and theistic expectations are discussed. If our universe is theistic, what difference will this make on how we do science? Some candidates for supernatural causation are proposed in cosmology, planetary astronomy, biology, and anthropology. |
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| S |
Earth & Sky – The first of
four talks (the Solar System, Stars & Galaxies, the Cosmos) forming
an introductory astronomy course for homeschoolers. This talk
discusses the earth as a viewing platform (its shape & motion), the
resulting apparent movement of heavenly objects, and the calendar. |
Download-ppt |
Download-pdf |
Download-mp3 |
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S |
Ecological Disaster: What Does the Future Hold? A sketch of some potential disasters that may occur in the near future: nuclear war, ozone depletion, global warming, AIDS, earthquakes, pollution/toxins. |
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| B,
T |
Encountering
Jesus. A narrative sermon on John 1:43-51 concerning
Nathanael’s encounter with Jesus. The puzzling remark about
angels ascending and descending on the Son of Man (1:50-51) is
discussed. |
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B, G, T |
The Ethics of War. Can Christians, who are concerned about the sanctity of life, hold any other position than pacifism? To answer this, we consider: Where does sanctity of life come from? Does God place any bounds on this sanctity? Has God delegated his authority for putting people to death to humans? Is this authority restricted to OT Israel? Does this God-given authority extend beyond the bounds of police action in one's own country? Does this authority extend to offensive warfare? What is the responsibility of Christian individuals to their government in regard to warfare? What is a "just war"? |
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E, T |
Ethics: Some Thoughts on How We Should Live.
A comparison of Biblical ethics with some other suggestions, and a
discussion of how Christianity is more than just an ethical system. |
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B, E, H |
Evidence for the Resurrection. The resurrection of Jesus is enormously important to the truth of Christianity, yet many have sought to substitute various alternatives for it. Here we look at the stolen body theory, the coma theory and the hallucination theory, and the various problems these views face. We then sketch the evidence from history and prophecy for a real, physical resurrection of Jesus. |
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B, S, T |
Evidence of Angels? Angels and similar spirit beings have been banished from the physical world for some centuries now. Is this attitude warranted? How might the existence and activity of such beings be detected scientifically? |
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E |
Evidence of God in Cosmos and Conscience. The Bible claims God's invisible qualities – his power and divine nature – are clearly seen in what he has made. This is supported by a tour of nature. In the cosmos, this includes evidence of a beginning and of a designed universe. In human nature, we see a number of items which are not well-explained by a mindless evolution: a high level of order, initiative, a level of intellect far beyond what is necessary, an unusual match between human rationality and the structure of the universe, the presence of moral, logical and esthetic standards, the existence of unnecessarily large amounts and varieties of pleasure, and the existence of futility. |
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B |
Exegeting Controvery Passages. Here we look at those narratives or discourses which can be categorized as controversies. What are we to look for in such passages? We work through a few samples: the calling of Matthew, paying taxes to Caesar, the debate over resurrection, the dispute between Mary and Martha. |
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B |
Exegeting Jesus' Parables. What are parables and how do they work? Parables are brief stories that are also analogies. Here we work through one of Jesus' parables and give a list of the various parable categories in the Gospels. |
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B |
Exegeting a Miracle Account. An examination of the genre "miracle story" in the Gospels. How miracles function in the ministry of Jesus. The miracles are listed, together with a quick tour of a few of them. |
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| B,
T |
Facing
Old Age. Why do people grow old and begin to go
downhill? This is a result of mankind’s fall in Eden, a reminder
of death, and the last lap of a long life. |
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B, T |
The Fifth Commandment. An exposition of the biblical commandment to honor one's parents; its application and limitations today. |
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| B,
T |
Psalm
49: The Foolishness of Materialism. The psalm is unpacked
to show how the very common worldview of practical materialism (far
more widespread than philosophical materialism) can betray its
adherents into disaster. |
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B |
Foot Racing Image. A tour of athletics and especially foot racing in the ancient Greco-Roman world, as a background to various NT references, especially Hebrews 12. |
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B, H |
Form Criticism and Redaction Criticism. An examination of two methods often used to try to "get behind" the message of the Gospels to find out what "really happened." We examine the methods and suggest that their proponents are far too optimistic about their own abilities and far too skeptical about the reliability of the information we have in the New Testament documents. |
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Form Criticism (Slides 1-11) |
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B, H, R |
Fulfilled Prophecy: Nostradamus and the Bible. Nostradamus is considered a true prophet by many today, particularly by those into the occult or the new age movement. Here four prophecies of Nostradamus are compared with four from the Bible. We suggest there is a real difference between the two sources. |
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B, T |
A Future for National Israel? Christians have disagreed for centuries on whether or not God still has a future for the nation Israel, or whether His promises to them have been transferred to the Church. Arguments for both sides are discussed. |
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B, O, S |
Genesis One and the Origin of the Earth. A proposed model for harmonizing the biblical and scientific data regarding the origin and early history of the earth, as sketched in my book Genesis One & the Origin of the Earth. |
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|
S |
Genetic Engineering and Cloning. What is genetic engineering? Where did it come from and what is it doing? We discuss transgenic plants and animals, what has been accomplished so far, some advantages and concerns. What is cloning? We discuss the history of cloning before and after Dolly the sheep, and its advantages and concerns. How should Christians react to all of this? What are God's commandments in this area? What should we expect to happen in the future and what should we do? |
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B, G |
The Geography of Jerusalem. An introduction to the geography of the city of Jerusalem -- its hills and valleys, walls and city sections, buildings and sites ¾as the city existed at the time of Jesus. Features photos of the sites as they look today, or as reconstructed in the model city at the Holy Land Hotel in Jerusalem. |
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B, G |
The Geography of Palestine. An introduction to the geography of the Holy Land, its major physical features, and the political divisions, cities, roads, and fortifications at the time of Jesus. Features photos of the sites as they look today. |
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| B,
T |
A
Glimpse Beyond This Life. Among the various views of what
happens when one dies, Jesus (who came from beyond, who is God and
cannot lie) gives us a glimpse in Luke 16. Here we look at this
parable story of Lazarus and the Rich Man, and see what it has to tell
us about life beyond the grave. |
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| H, T | Gnosticism. A quick sketch of Gnosticism, a diverse collection of attempts to meld ancient paganism with Christianity. A survey of the aeons (gods or spirit beings) in Valentinian Gnosticism is given. | ||||
| B,
T |
Going
Home. The talk I gave a my mother’s funeral in August of
2004, recently converted into a PowerPoint presentation. For the
believer, death is going home, pictured in the Bible as moving to the
perfect city, living as a lifelong guest in the palace of the King, and
being wed to the King. |
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|
| B, G, T | God
& Caesar. In a short sound-bite narrated for us in
Matthew 22:15-22, Jesus turns the perfect trap set by the Pharisees
& Herodians into a stunning defeat, at the same time sketching for
us how humans should relate to God and government. |
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| B,
T |
God
and the Nations. In the midst
of globalization and
growing ethnic diversity in the US and throughout the world, how should
Christians respond? A look at spiritual warfare on the level of
nations, God’s mercy in the history of nations, righteousness and
national prosperity, obedience to God and national testimony, and the
church as a ‘nation’ scattered among the nations. |
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| B |
God and Reward: Parable of
the Vineyard Workers. In
Matthew 20:1-16, Jesus tells the story of the day-laborers in a
vineyard and the unusual way in which the vineyard owner paid
them. Here we look at some of the features of this parable and
suggest some lessons on how God will reward those who serve Him. |
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| B, T |
God as Lord of Our Time. Just as people living under rulers in ancient times recognized the lordship of their kings by paying tribute, so we as citizens of God’s kingdom owe him tribute. In terms of our time, God is Lord of our past, present, and future. We here examine some ways in which we recognize God’s lordship over our time. |
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| B,
E, T |
God
in Action. A series of six talks on God’s work in
creation, providence and revelation: evidence of God in creation;
creation and evolution; history as God’s story; guidance and prayer;
general and special revelation; can we expect revelation today as in
Bible times? |
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|
R |
The God of the Bible on Trial. Answers are given to a number of common objections to the real existence of the God of the Bible. |
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|
E, I |
God's Faithfulness as Seen in Our Universe. A tour of some of the major ways in which our Earth is especially favorable to the existence and continuation of life, as seen in our galaxy, our sun, our solar system, our moon, and a number of features of the Earth itself. |
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| B,G |
God’s
Image and the Sanctity of Human Life. A study of Genesis
9:1-6 in the context of other biblical passages on humans as made in
God’s image. To take a human life (other than under the penal
conditions specified in Scripture) is to attack the image of God. |
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|
B, T |
God's Self-Portraits. Though God has forbidden us to make pictures of Himself, He has provided us with word-pictures to help us understand Him better. We examine some of these here: God as potter, farmer, shepherd, king, master, father, and husband. |
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| H,
T |
Gnosticism
– A quick sketch of Gnosticism, a diverse collection of attempts
to meld ancient paganism with Christianity. A survey of the aeons
(gods or spirit beings) in Valentinian Gnosticism is given. |
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|
| B, T | The
Good Samaritan. In this sample parable in Luke 10:25-37,
Jesus sketches not only who our neighbor is, but how we should go about
helping someone who is in distress. |
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|
B |
Gospel Genres. A survey of the common literary genres in the Gospels and how each is characterized. |
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|
B |
The Gospels as Literary Works. A consideration of the NT Gospels from the perspective of how the function as literature. To what genre do the Gospels belong? What techniques are employed by the Gospel writers to connect most strongly with their readers? |
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| H,
T, R |
The
Gospel of Judas – A recently-discovered manuscript of the lost
Gospel of Judas allows us to sample its contents. It appears to
be the work mentioned by Irenaeus in his 2nd century work Against
Heresies, and shows us a version of Gnosticism in which Judas performs
the “mystery of the betrayal” allowing spirit to escape from the world
of matter. |
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|
B, R |
Gospel of John. A sketch of the authorship and date of the fourth Gospel, with responses to alternative claims. Some of the literary features of the Gospel, as well as its theological emphases. |
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|
B, H |
Greco-Roman Symbolism in the Book of Revelation. A survey of the symbolic materials in Revelation suggests that at least a small part of this is drawn from the Greco-Roman culture of the time rather than the Old Testament or Jewish culture. Here we look at some of these in detail and suggest that God has put these in Revelation to communicate with its early Gentile readers. |
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B, H, T |
Habakkuk: Through the Dark Valley with God. An examination of the prophecy of Habakkuk, with applications for today. |
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B, T |
Heaven and Hell. Here we look at the biblical descriptions of the future of the righteous and the wicked. |
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|
B |
Hebrews. A look at the Letter to the Hebrews: its author, date, recipients, background, outline, and a condensed paraphrase. |
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B, E, H, R |
The Historical Jesus. We can divide the various pictures moderns have of Jesus into two broad categories: basically religious views, and allegedly historical views. Here we sketch these briefly, look at some recent developments (including the Jesus Seminar), and respond to their basic arguments. |
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| B,T |
Historic
Premillennialism. An overview of this eschatological view,
distinguishing it from Amillennialism, Postmillennialism, and
Dispensational Premillennialism. Some of the evidences in favor
of the view, and a sketch of what the church is called to do in the
interim between Jesus’ first and second comings. |
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| B,T |
How Do
You Know You Are Saved? In the recent “Lordship
Salvation” debate, Zane Hodges and others see a person’s belief as the
sole evidence for his/her salvation. We suggest, from the content
of 1 John, that this is mistaken, and that Scripture provides a number
of tests by which we can make our calling and election sure. |
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B, T |
How Near is the End? There are many out there ready to set dates for the second coming of Christ, and others who think he will never return, or at least not visibly or for hundreds of years. Does the Bible give us any information on this question? Here we attempt some sort of answer. |
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B, T |
The Humility of God. When we recite the attributes of God, we don’t usually think of God as humble, since that quality is not mentioned, say, in the Westminster Shorter Catechism. Yet God is really more humble than any of His creatures. |
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E, R |
If God Exists, Why So Many Atheists? Responding to a common objection. From a biblical perspective, there are good reasons why we should expect many atheists. What does the evidence for the God of the Bible really look like? |
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| B,
E |
The
Incarnation and the Text of the Septuagint. When Heb 10:5
quotes Ps 40:6, it says “a body you have prepared me” instead of “my
ears you have pierced.” Why is this? We suggest that this
is neither a mistranslation, nor a copying error, nor an intentional
change by the author of Hebrews. Instead we propose that the
translator of Psalm 40 in the LXX paraphrased the passage in order to
preserve an ambiguity in the text that is significant for Messianic
prophecy. |
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|
I |
Intelligent Design. A sketch of the intelligent design controversy, giving a little of its historical background. A number of arguments for intelligent design are given, citing various authors and books for further reading. |
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B, S |
Interpreting Biblical Descriptions of Nature. Starting with Bernard Ramm's characterization of Biblical language, we consider whether the Bible gives us scientific information, and how we are to distinguish literal and figurative usage therein. |
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|
B |
Introduction to Exegesis & Narrative Genre. A brief sketch of the competencies we need to develop in preparing to do responsible exegesis of the Bible. A list of the genres we cover in our Synoptic Gospels course, and an introduction to the narrative genre. |
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| B,
E, H |
Introduction
to Ireland – A little of Ireland’s history illustrated with
pictures from a few sites I visited in June of 1989; Irish climate and
culture; churches & shrines; missionaries and believers; the
speaking sites from my 1989 visit. |
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|
E, H |
Israel: Evidence of God in History. A tour of the history of Israel, from ancient times to the present, sketching how the biblical prophecies about the nation have been fulfilled. |
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| B,E,T |
Is
the Bible Reliable? A sketch of evidences for the
reliability of the Bible, concentrating on the Gospels. Arguments
against miracles; tests for Biblical reliability: evidence of
intervention into nature and history, corroboration from other
sources. Do we have the right books in the Bible? The
canonical Gospels vs. the various Gnostic gospels. Do we know
what the canonical Gospels originally said? |
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| B, S, T | Jesus
Discusses the Weather. Jesus’ unusual response to a
request that he show a sign from heaven has got some important lessons
for us today. An attempt to unpack Matthew 16:1-4. |
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| B,
E, H |
Jesus
Lives! Convincing Evidence. The Bible presents a
number of features regarding Jesus’ resurrection that are
convincing: many post-resurrection appearances; appearances to
many people at once; multiple-sense appearances; lengthy appearances;
appearances which convey teaching. We suggest that these indicate
that Jesus really did rise from the dead. |
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| B,
T |
Jesus:
Foundation of the New Testament – The introductory lecture of a
course of this title given at Biblical Theological Seminary for a
number of years. What is a “testament”? A “covenant”?
The various biblical covenants, including the new covenant. The
rock, stone and foundation themes in Scripture. Jesus as
fulfillment. |
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|
E, H |
Jesus: The Testimony of Prophecy and History. The Jewish Scriptures we call the Old Testament point to a promised individual, called the Messiah, who is to come and rescue his people from oppression, bring in a Golden age, make Israel the chief nation, rule humanity with justice for all, ensuring that all may live safely on their own property and enjoy the fruits of their labor. Christians think he has already come and he is Jesus. Jews believe he hasn't come, but he will; he is certainly not Jesus! Secularists think the whole idea is wishful thinking. Who is right? We suggest that the evidence of biblical text and human history supports two propositions: (1) If the Messiah has come, he is Jesus. (2) The Messiah has come. |
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|
R, T |
Jesus and the New Age. The New Age Movement, prominent since the 1960s, has sought to reconfigure the picture of Jesus given in the Bible to fit its own worldview. Here we look at the views of two prominent New Age figures, Edgar Cayce and Benjamin Creme. We make some suggestions on how we can respond biblically to such views. |
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B, H, T |
Jesus Heals Demon Possession. A brief look at demonism in the NT period as a background and then discussing the narrative of Mark 5:1-20. |
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|
B |
Jesus' Ministry. An outline of Jesus' earthly ministry, fitting the various incidents into a chronological structure. |
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B, H |
Jewish Background to the New Testament. A tour of the Intertestament (or Second Temple) Period, sketching sources and major events, from Persian rule (539 BC) to Roman rule, ending shortly after the Bar Kochba Revolt in AD 135. |
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|
R |
Joshua's Long Day and the NASA Computers. A story that has excited many Christians for the past generation claims that NASA's electronic computers discovered evidence of Joshua's long day back in the 1960s. Here we evaluate this claim and look at its historical antecedents. |
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| B,T |
Laying
Up Treasure. Jesus commands us to lay up treasure in
heaven? How can we tell (down here) how we’re doing up
there? We consider the contrast between the world’s system of
rewards and God’s system. |
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B, R |
Letter of James. The authorship of the letter, the author's life and relationship to Jesus, the letter's recipients, its claimed contradiction with Paul, its content. |
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B, R |
Letter of Jude. The author of Jude, its connection with 2 Peter, with extra-biblical works, its occasion and content. |
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B |
Letters of John. The authorship and date of the letters 1, 2, and 3 John, with a sketch of their background and contents. |
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B, R |
Letters of Peter. The authenticity of 1 and 2 Peter, their dates, their background, and their content. |
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B, S, T |
Light 1: The Creation of Light. The first in a series of eight talks on light as it occurs in Scripture. The first two talks deal with physical light. In this talk we discuss the creation of light (Gen 1:3-5) and the appearance of light sources (Gen 1:14-19). What are the purposes of light for our benefit as humans? |
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B, E, T |
Light 2: Light Revealing God. A discussion of Psalm 19:1-6. What are the heavenly lights telling us about God? |
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B, T |
Light 3: God’s Word is Light The remaining six talks deal with light as a picture
for various spiritual truths. Here, we discuss Psalm 119,
especially verses 130 and 105, where God’s Word (the Bible) is compared
to light in illuminating the world spiritually and providing guidance
for our lives. |
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B, E, H, T |
Light 4: Messiah, the Light. Here we discuss the closing verses of Isaiah 8 and the opening verses of Isaiah 9, in which the Messiah is pictured as a light to the nation Israel (and we briefly mention Isaiah 49, where he is a light to the nations). We see here something of how this was fulfilled in Jesus. |
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B, T |
Light 5: God, our Light in Bad Times. A look at
Micah 7:1-13, where we see how God was a light to his people in Micah’s
time, with some lessons for our own times. |
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B, T |
Light 6: God Is Light. A discussion of
selected verses in 1 John 1 and 2, how God’s character, compared to
light, should influence our own attitudes and actions. |
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B, T |
Light 7: Walk as Children of Light. A look at Ephesians
5:1-20, in which the apostle Paul urges Christians to live so as to be
God’s children, characterized, as He is, by light. |
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B, T |
Light 8: Let Your Light Shine. In his Sermon on the
Mount, Jesus tells us that we by our lifestyle are to be like salt and
light. What is salt like and what does it do? What does
light do? |
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|
B |
Living as Christians. A talk for believers on how to live in our secular world, directed especially toward college students and those working in secular, especially scientific fields. Using Micah 6:8 and Jeremiah 9:23-24, we consider how these passages are exemplified in the careers of Joseph, Moses and Daniel, drawing out lessons for today. |
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| B, T | Living
the Good Life. Is your life one worry after another?
Are you afraid that life will pass you by, that you will miss out on
the “good life”? Jesus tells us in Matthew 6:19-34 how we can
deal with this fear. |
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B, T |
The Lord's Supper. A sketch is given of the multiple meanings of this major ceremony which characterizes the Christian church. How does it fit in with other liturgical actions depicted in the Bible? What is its significance for today? |
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| B,
T, S |
Maker
of Heaven and Earth. Starting from the first clause of the
Apostles’ Creed, we suggest several reasons for believing in God the
Maker of heaven and earth. We believe in this God because his
existence explains the nature of the universe, the nature of living
things, and the nature of the Bible. |
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|
B, H, R |
Mary Magdalene: History and Hype. As a result of Dan Brown's book The Da Vinci Code, there has been considerable interest recently in Mary Magdalene. Was she really married to Jesus? Did they have a child who united the two royal houses of Israel? What do we really know about Mary Magdalene? Here we survey and evaluate our ancient sources. |
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|
S, O |
Meteors, Mars, and Extraterrestrial Life. A consideration of how the so-called Mars Rock, ALH 84001, might bear on the question of life beyond Earth, and how Christians ought to deal with the possibility of extraterrestrial life. |
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B, T |
The Millennial Question. A sketch of the three major views, Pre-Mill, Post-Mill, A-Mill, and the arguments pro and con. |
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| B,
R, T |
The
Millennial Question: An Attempt at a Solution. A sequel to
the PowerPoint talk “The Millennial Question.” Here we propose
two lines of argument for a pre-millennial solution, based on the
continuities between Revelation 19 and 20, and the OT allusions in
Revelation 19. |
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| B,
T |
The
Miracles of Jesus. A series of four talks covering five of
Jesus’ miracles: the wedding at Cana (John 2:1-11), the stilling of the
storm (Mark 4:35-41), the Gerasene demoniac (Mark 5:1-20), and the
intertwined miracles of the healing of the woman with a hemorrhage and
the raising of Jairus’ daughter (Mark 5:21-43). |
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|
B, T |
Modern English Versions of the Bible. With the large variety of Bible versions now in print, how are we to evaluate which ones are reliable? A series of criteria are suggested. These are applied to the King James Version, where it is noted that these criteria were satisfied when the version was made in 1611, but are not satisfied any longer due to changes in the English language and to additional evidence regarding the text of the Bible that was unknown at that time. Some theological developments since 1611 are also sketched, and the criteria proposed are applied to some recent versions. |
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|
R |
Mormonism. The history of Mormonism and the LDS church is sketched. Some of the main Mormon doctrines are described and tested by the Bible. Positive Mormon evidences are examined. |
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B, T |
Motivation to Do God’s Will. A look at how Jesus was motivated in order that we, in following him, may do so with sufficient and proper motivation. |
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| B,
R, T |
Narnia
and the Watchful Dragons. A sketch of the seven Narnia
Chronicles and CS Lewis’ purposes in writing them. How Lewis uses
mooreeffoc to help us see anew the power of the biblical salvation
story. Some lessons we can learn from the series. |
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|
B, E |
New Testament Prophecy. A series of prophecies made by Jesus and Paul are shown to have been fulfilled in the centuries following, or as apparently in the process of now being fulfilled. |
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| B,
T |
1994?
When is the Second Coming? A talk originally given in
January of 1994, playing off of Harold Camping’s prediction that Jesus
would return in 1994. We note several indicators that the time
may be near, and then point out that Scripture says the time is
unknown, but that certain signs will precede it |
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|
O |
The Origin of Life. Where did life come from? Was it an accident or was it designed? What do we mean when we use the term "science"? Can we recognize the presence of mind scientifically? What are some problems for naturalistic models for the origin of life? We here consider the problems of formation of proteins and nucleic acids, self-replication, bootstrapping, and information. |
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B, T |
Overcoming Temptation. A study of temptation, and lessons from Jesus' testing in the wilderness to help us in our temptations. |
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B, T |
Parables of the Kingdom. The seven parables of Matthew 13 are examined, beginning with the three parables interpreted by Jesus, followed by the four that are not interpreted. It is suggested that the parables form a chronological grid, showing the typical progress of the gospel in a society into which it is introduced. |
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| B, T | Parables
of Lost & Found. A quick sketch of Jesus’ three
parables in Luke 15: the Lost Sheep, the Lost Coin, and the Lost
Son. We should care about the lost as God does, and rejoice with Him
when they are found. |
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|
B,T |
Parable of the Talents. Jesus’ parable (Matthew 25:13-30) of servants entrusted with
substantial sums of money is here unpacked. |
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B,T |
Parable of the Tenants. Jesus tells a memorable story (Matthew 21:33-46) of some
tenant farmers who refused to pay the rent at harvest time. Not
only does this story have an application to the circumstances of Jesus’
ministry among the Jews of his own time, it has a broader application
to all humans at all times. |
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H, R |
The Passion of the Christ or the Da Vinci Code: Which is Good History and How Do We Know? These two recent popular works give a very different picture of the historical reliability of the NT Gospels and of the person of Jesus. Various lines of evidence are examined to give judgment on the historical reliability of the film and the mystery-thriller. |
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| B, H, T | The
Pharisee & the Tax Collector. Jesus’ sample parable in
Luke 18 shows us what sort of attitude and prayer will characterize
those who are declared righteous by God. |
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|
B,T |
Practicing Restraint. An exposition of
Mark 9:38-50, in which Jesus urges his followers to restrain themselves
from hindering that which is good or encouraging that which is
evil. Rather he urges us to be like salt. |
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| B,
E, T |
Preaching
the Parables. A series given at a seminar for
Homiletics Renewal at Biblical Seminary in 1984. What are
parables? How do we interpret them? How do we apply them? |
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| B, E | Presenting
the Gospel to Those Who Reject Scripture. Though the
classical recent Gospel presentations assume that the audience accepts
the Bible as God’s Word, many today do not. Here we give some
suggestions on how we should “become all things to all men” that we
might be able to reach out to such people. |
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|
| H,
R |
The
Priory of Sion – Is this organization really a secret group
going back to the Middle Ages that guards the secret of the Holy
Grail? A sketch of its Grand Master Pierre Plantard and a
response to claims made in Holy Blood, Holy Grail and The Da Vinci Code. |
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| B,
E, S, T |
Proclaiming
God’s Glory in Nature. An exposition of Psalm
19:1-4a and a call for Christians in the sciences to study nature in
the light of God’s creative work and to help others to appreciate His
glory displayed therein. |
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|
B, H, R |
Prophecy: Ancient & Modern. A look at prophecy in the Qur'an, the Book of Mormon, Nostradamus, and the Oracle of Delphi, and how these fail reasonable tests for successful prediction. Two biblical prophecies are examined, prophecies about Edom and Jerusalem's Golden Gate. These are compared with the prophecies of Jeane Dixon and David Wilkerson. Some lessons are drawn. |
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B, E, H |
Prophecy, Probability and God. A tour of a number of fulfilled Bible prophecies, followed by an attempt to estimate the probabilities of all these fulfillments occurring merely by chance. We suggest that the numbers indicate this is the work of the God of the Bible, who knows the end from the beginning. |
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|
B |
Psalm 22: The Crucified Messiah. A verse-by-verse tour of this psalm that so vividly pictures the crucifixion of someone written centuries before crucifixion was used in Palestine. The details go beyond mere crucifixion to single out the execution of Jesus of Nazareth, the crucified Messiah. |
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| B,
T |
Psalm
23: God: Our Shepherd, Our Host. A sketch of this most
familiar psalm, suggesting that it pictures the believer’s relationship
to God as that of sheep to shepherd in this life, and of guest to royal
host in the life to come |
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| B,
T |
Psalm
50: A Glimpse of the Coming Judgment. A sketch of
one of the major Bible passages describing the Last Judgment. The
psalm begins with God’s call to judgment, followed by his judgment of
the true people of God, and then by his judgment of the false people of
God. |
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|
B |
Psalm 90: A Psalm of Moses. A sobering poem that helps us to understand life in view of our inevitable death, and how we can have a life that is fulfilling in spite of death. |
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| B,T |
The
Psalms in the New Testament. A survey of the various
psalms quoted in the NT, categorizing them by the sort of use that the
NT writers make of them. |
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|
| B,T |
Rabbinic
Parables. A comparison of the parables of Jesus and the
parables of the rabbis in the centuries following the time of Jesus. |
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| B,T |
Rabbinic
Parables. Spanish Language |
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|
B, T |
The Rapture. A sketch of the different views and arguments for each. |
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|
S |
Recent Developments in Physics: Implications for Theology. Some features of physics as discovered since 1900 are described: the quantum world, relativity, the question of an open vs closed universe, and chaos theory. How might these affect Christian theology? |
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| B,R |
Responding
to Jehovah’s Witnesses. The major problem with the group
known as JWs is their view of Jesus as merely a created being and not
Jehovah God. We look at several biblical features in response:
(1) that the NT frequently applies OT passages about Jehovah to Jesus;
(2) that Jesus is worshiped in the NT while worship is forbidden to
anyone but God; (3) that Jesus is called God in the NT; and (4) that
Jesus is characterized as God is. |
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|
B |
Revelation. An overview of the contents of the book. |
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B, R, T |
Revelation Beyond the Bible? Here we seek to think through how we should respond to various claims that this or that person today has received revelation from God. |
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|
| B | The
Rich Fool. Jesus’ parable of Luke 12:13-21 is an old story
that is very relevant for today. If life is not about
possessions, what is it about? |
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|
E |
Russia Seminar Talks. A series of 8 talks given in two different venues in Russia in October 1992. (1) Does God Exist? (2) What Kind of God Exists? (3) Why Believe the Bible? (4) What's Wrong with Mankind? (5) Who Is Jesus? (6) Did Jesus Really Rise from the Dead? (7) Is There Life After Death? (8) How Can I Know God? |
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| B,
T |
Satan’s
Schemes. Picking up on a remark by Paul in 2 Cor 2:11, we
ask, “Are we aware of Satan’s schemes?” We look at some of
Satan’s schemes against unbelievers, against believers, and how we can
escape these. |
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| E,
S |
Scholarship
& Spirituality. Spirituality is defined as a manner of
living which seeks to conform oneself to the standards set by the Holy
Spirit in Scripture. Some tensions between scholarship and
spirituality are discussed, as well as some ways in which the two
mutually reinforce each other. |
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|
O, R |
Scientific Problems for "Creation Science." "Creation Science" is often used as a synonym for young-earth creationism, though the latter is really the better term. Young-Earth Creationism depends very strongly on the idea that most of the geologic record is that of the one-year flood at Noah's time rather than being spread over geologic history. Problems with flood geology are sketched, including the number and types of fossils, the distribution of sediments, the presence of structures which must have formed slowly. Other problems which face a recent creation but do not involve flood geology concern the rates of various processes and various astronomical evidences. |
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|
R, S |
Scientific Problems for Scientism. The idea that this world is all there is, that there is no supernatural, has had a profound effect on modern, especially Western, society. Here we examine a number of scientific problems facing this worldview: its inability to predict the future, its aversion to real evidence of discontinuities in nature, its inability to explain the evidence of a mind behind the universe, evidence that the universe is not eternal, and the peculiar phenomena of quantum reality, which point to some sort of omnipresence. |
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| B,
T |
Scribes
of the Kingdom. In Matthew 13:51-52, Jesus explains (by a
brief simile or parable) how his followers are to function as “scribes”
in his kingdom. |
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B, H, T |
Scripture in the Early Church. A survey on the use of Scripture by the early church according to various New Testament passages. We find that OT Scripture was used to bring the message of Jesus to Jews and God-fearers, as a record of God's activity in previous centuries, as a revelation of God's character and human nature, and a guide for how believers ought to live. The New Testament Scripture was being prepared to record the testimony of the apostles (who would not be living much longer) to the person and work of Jesus Christ. |
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|
H. R |
Search for the Historical Jesus. Why all the variety of opinions about the real Jesus? Many don't like the biblical Jesus. Others won't admit the occurrence of miracles. So they try to reconstruct Jesus from various hypothetical sources. But the historical evidence regarding Jesus is really quite good if one doesn't reject the miraculous in advance. We sketch evidence from early pagan and Jewish sources compared with the Gospels and the testimony of Paul. The earliest sources, though they disagree in their estimation of Jesus, agree on several items that moderns often wish to reject. |
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| B,T |
Self-Righteousness:
the Blasphemy of the Holy Spirit? We suggest that the
blasphemy of the Holy Spirit may be the sin of self-righteousness, as
it keeps us from recognizing our need for a savior, it causes us to
view the conviction of the Holy Spirit as a temptation from Satan, and
it makes us stumbling blocks that keep others from coming to Jesus. |
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|
B, H, T |
The Significance of Christmas. Here we unpack the statement of Paul in Galatians 4:4-5. Jesus came in the fullness of time, both as regards God's preparation of the world for Jesus and in fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy. We examine the significance of the manner and place of Jesus' birth; how his redemptive activity, his death and resurrection work and how they fulfill prophecy. The significance of his coming is still influential even in our secular Christmas celebrations. |
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| S |
The Solar System – The
second of four talks, forming an introductory course for homeschoolers
on astronomy. Starting with earth, we move into toward the sun,
then outward from Mars to Pluto and beyond. |
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B, O, R, S |
Some Problems for Theistic Evolution. Theistic evolution is defined, noting that there are various forms of the view. Scientific problems with some of these versions are sketched: in regard to transitional fossils, irreducible complexity, the shape of the fossil record, and natural law. Theological problems related to Genesis chapters 2 and 3 are discussed, including exegesis, theology, and hermeneutics. A possible analog to a theistic evolutionary reading of Genesis 2 and 3 is examined in Ezekiel 16. Howard Van Till's model, "Fully Gifted Creation," is critiqued, and the connection of the mind-body problem to theistic evolution is discussed. |
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B, O, R, S |
Some Problems for Theistic Evolution. Spanish Language |
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B, R, T |
Some Thoughts on Causation. Beginning with the questions of who caused David to take a census and who hardened Pharaoh’s heart, we look at the layered nature of causation, which is something like the layers in an onion. We suggest this is common in nature. We look at the nature of an author’s causation in a novel, and suggest this is analogous to God’s activity in history. This has some implications for the problem of evil and for the relationship between God’s sovereignty and human responsibility. |
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B, T |
Spiritual Drama. The Bible makes use of drama in a number of ways, which can help us in understanding its message and in better communicating it to our modern, visually-oriented world. The spoken parables of Jesus are one example, the acted parables of the Bible another. Both in the OT and NT, the liturgy of the temple and of the church function as acted parables to help us visualize what God is doing. |
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B, S |
The Star of Bethlehem: What Was It? Here we propose a hybrid view, featuring both natural and supernatural elements. This involves a very striking and rare conjunction of planets together with something like the pillar of fire in the wilderness. |
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| S |
Stars & Galaxies – The
third of four talks on introductory astronomy. What are
stars? Constellations; different kinds of stars and their
lifespans; star clusters; galaxies; galaxy types; our Milky Way. |
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| B,
T |
Substitutes
for Sanctification. A humorous (ironic, cynical?)
discussion of fake spirituality, so that we may recognize it in
ourselves and others, and (at least for ourselves) take appropriate
action. |
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B, H, R |
The Synoptic Problem. It is often claimed that the Gospels of Matthew and Luke are not independent witnesses to what happened in the career of Jesus of Nazareth, but are merely edited copies of material from the Gospel of Mark and another work we call Q which has not survived. We here examine the phenomena of the Gospels and suggest that another proposal better fits the internal and external data concerning the Gospels. |
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E, O |
Teaching Science Amidst Controversy. Among the various controversies in science teaching today, one of the sharpest involves the creation-evolution debate. How are teachers to respond to pressures from all sides on this? Here we take a brief look at some divergent definitions of science and religion, ask how we can teach science in a publicly-funded setting, and propose some solutions. These involve recognizing the limits of science, distinguishing the known from the unknown and facts from theories, discussing open questions, and handling the controversy sensitively. |
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| B,E |
The
Testimony of Unity. Opponents of Christianity often charge
us with divisiveness and disunity. Unfortunately, there is a
significant amount of truth to this! What does the Bible have to
say about causes of disunity and how we should think and behave? |
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R, T |
Theological Liberalism and Biblical Christianity. A sketch of the major differences between theological liberalism and evangelical or orthodox Christianity. Two major topics are considered: the Bible (its authority/inerrancy, its authorship, and its miracles) and the person and work of Christ (his deity & humanity, his sinlessness, his death as payment for sin, his resurrection, and his return). |
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E, H |
They Saw Jesus - Centuries in Advance. What did Jesus say to the two on the road to Emmaus that caused their hearts to burn with excitement? We look at some NT hints that point us to events in the experience of Abraham, David and Isaiah that point to Jesus. |
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| B,
E, R |
Three
Paradoxes of Biblical Apologetics. A brief sketch on
apologetic methodology, organized around three paradoxes: (1) Do
unbelievers really know the truth? (2) Just how plain to humans
is the truth? (3) What should we do to help? |
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| B |
Time-Management,
God’s Way. Our tendency to complain about our
circumstances may be very human, but it is a lousy testimony for the
truth of Christianity. Here we examine some Scripture passages
about how we should view time, circumstances and our use of them. |
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H, R |
The Tomb of Jesus? A response to the recent book and Discovery Channel documentary that claims a tomb found in 1980 is the family tomb of Jesus of Nazareth, including his remains. The claims and their implications are examined, followed by responses centering primarily on the inscriptions on the bone boxes found in the tomb. |
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| B,
T |
Two Debtors. The incident and parable in Luke 7:36-50 is unpacked. Something of Jesus’ person and work is indicated, and a puzzling statement that seems to sound like one earns forgiveness by one’s love is explained. |
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| B,
T |
Two
Parables on Selfishness. In Luke 14:7-14, Jesus gives
these two parables (both sample parables rather than earthly stories
with heavenly meanings) at a banquet. In the form of what at
first appears to be worldly advice on getting ahead, they strike at the
heart of human selfishness and point to the deep healing that all of us
need. |
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| B,R |
Understanding
Harry Potter. A look at the Harry Potter series in an
attempt to understand and respond to the controversy over whether it is
Christian and should be read by Christian children. |
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| B,R |
Understanding
Harry Potter. Spanish Language |
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R, T |
Understanding Islam. An introduction to Islam; its beliefs are compared and contrasted with those of Christianity. How should Christians share their faith with Muslims? |
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B |
Unforgiving Servant. Jesus’ parable in Matthew 18:21-35 tells us of
a man who owed an enormous debt to a king and what happened to him when
he could not pay. We suggest some applications to believers who
are unwilling to forgive others. |
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| B,
H, T |
A
Universal History. A narrative sketch of the history, both
past and future, of our world, based on the biblical narrative, from an
old-earth creation perspective. This sketch of salvation history
begins before creation and runs to the eternal state after the last
judgment. |
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B, T |
Various Views of Revelation. A sketch of the four main views of how to interpret this difficult book, with proponents of each, and a bit on their relative merits. |
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| B,
T |
Walking
on Water. Jesus’ nature miracle in Matthew 14:22-33
certainly teaches us something about Jesus, but it also teaches us
something about Peter (and ourselves). We suggest that this
miracle is also an acted parable. |
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H, R |
Washington's Vision at Valley Forge. For nearly 150 years, it has been claimed that George Washington saw a vision during the encampment at Valley Forge that predicted the future of the United States. What was this alleged vision? Did it really occur? How have its predictions turned out? |
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R, T |
What about those who have never heard? We discuss one of the common objections to Christianity, in which it is alleged that God would be unfair to condemn anyone just because they have never heard of Jesus. |
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| B,
T |
What
Attitudes Really Count? A brief study of Jeremiah
9:23-24 to look at God’s advice through the prophet on what sorts of
attitudes we should and shouldn’t have. |
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B, T |
What is Life All About? A tour of Psalm 1, considering the questions: Where do we find out what life is about? What difference does it make in this life? What difference does it make when we die? |
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B, H |
What is History All About? A tour of Psalm 2, looked at as a dramatic reading, sketching human rebellion against God, His response, His Messiah's commission, and what we should do about it. |
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B, R |
Where is Heaven? A response to the claim that the Bible teaches an "attic" view of heaven, that God's dwelling is in a space above the dome sky. Biblical passages are studied, showing that there are three heavens: the air, outer space, and the invisible abode of God, and that the last of these actually begins down here on earth around us. This third heaven is apparently either in our own space (but using different forces for interaction) or it is in another dimension. |
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|
R |
Why Atheism Cannot Be True. Though espoused by many educated people, atheism cannot be correct because it cannot explain a universe with a beginning, it cannot explain the origin and complexity of life, and it cannot explain Jesus. |
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B, R, T |
Why So Much Suffering? Atheists commonly object that an all-powerful, perfectly good God would not allow suffering, or at least not so much suffering as we see. We respond by considering these questions: (1) Is there a God? (2) Is He the God of the Bible? (3) Is He loving? (4) Why, then, is there suffering? (5) Why so much suffering? |
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R, T |
Witnessing to Jews. Some suggestions on how we might witness more effectively to our Jewish neighbors, compiled by a Jewish Christian with an effective outreach to his fellows. |
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|
B |
The Words of Jesus. A survey of Jesus' various forms of speech. |
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B |
The Works of Jesus. A study of Jesus' miracles, looking at the forms in which they are reported and the lessons they teach us. |
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| H,
R, T |
You
Bet Your Life! Pascal’s Wager and Modern Game Theory.
Blaise Pascal’s famous wager regarding the existential foolishness of
opting for materialism as a worldview may be expressed in modern game
theory as a simple 2 x 2 matrix game. We also suggest how it may
be generalized to multiple worldviews. |
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B, T |
You Will Be Like God. What does it mean for believers to be like God? Here we unpack Paul’s prayer for the Ephesian Christians in Eph 3:14-21. |
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