God is Great - Apologetics 102 Podcast. The second of a two-lesson examination of atheism. Now that we’ve defined atheism, how do we present our case to them? What are somethings we should know going into a discussion with atheists, and how do we keep the conversation on God? This lesson examines the two wills of mankind, the differences in our ultimate authorities, the powerful apologetics arguments based on Roman 1.20, and common philosophical fallacies as we set the stage for dialoging with atheists. Less

John Muether, professor of church history and director of the library at Reformed Theological Seminary/Orlando and historian of the OPC, talks with the Christ the Center panel about his recent book Cornelius Van Til:  Reformed Apologist and Churchman, the latest volume in the American Reformed Biography series published by Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing.  Professor Muether discusses various aspects of the life and thought of Van Til, including his involvement in the so-called Clark/Van Til controversy, his critical analysis of Karl Barth, his interaction with his Christian Reformed Church critics, and his involvement with the founding and first several decades of existence of Westminster Theological Seminary and the OPC.  Like the book, our conversation with Professor Muether will leave the listener longing to hear more. Panel John Muether Jim Cassidy Jeff Waddington Nick Batzig Camden Bucey Bibliography Bahnsen, Greg L. Van Til’s Apologetic: Readings and Analysis. P & R Publishing, 1998. Beale, G. K., and D. A. Carson. Commentary on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament . Baker Academic, 2007. Berding, Kenneth., and Jonathan Lunde. Three views on the New Testament use of the Old Testament : single meaning, unified referents . Grand Rapids, Mich.: Zondervan, 2008. Cowan, Steven B., and William Lane. Craig. Five views on apologetics . Grand Rapids, Mich.: Zondervan Pub. House, 2000. Hart, D. G., and John R. Muether. Seeking a Better Country: 300 Years of American Presbyterianism . P & R Publishing, 2007. —. With Reverence and Awe: Returning to the Basics of Reformed Worship . P & R Publishing, 2002. Muether, John. Cornelius Van Til: Reformed Apologist and Churchman. Phillipsburg N.J.: P&R Pub., 2007. Muller, Richard A. Christ and the Decree : Christology and Predestination in Reformed Theology from Calvin to Perkins . Durham, N.C.: Labyrinth Press, 1986. Van Til, Cornelius. Christianity and Barthianism . P & R Publishing, 2004. —. Christianity and Idealism. Philadelphia: Presbyterian and Reformed Pub. Co., 1955. —. Defense of the Faith . P & R Publishing, 1967. —. The confession of 1967, its theological background and ecumenical significance. Philadelphia: Presbyterian and Reformed Pub. Co., 1967. —. The new modernism an appraisal of the theology of Barth and Brunner, Philadelphia Pa.: Presbyterian and Reformed Pub. Co., 1946. —. Why I believe in God. Philadelphia: Committee on Christian Education, Orthodox Presbyterian Church, 1966. VanGemeren, Willem. The Law, the gospel, and the modern Christian : five views . Grand Rapids, Mich.: Zondervan, 1993. Other Formats Zotero RDF Dublin Core RDF Less

It’s our 2008 Halloween special, comparing classic and modern horrors and hearkening back to the glory days of monster fandom: the years when Famous Monsters of Filmland magazine could still be found on the magazine shelf at your local drugstore. God bless Uncle Forry, editor of FM, and Basil Gogos, frequent cover artist, both of whom are still with us so far as I know. I sort of trounce modern horror in this episode. Perhaps I should do a little more thinking about the subject, particularly the modern zombie film with reference to Kim Paffenroth’s book Gospel of the Living Dead and the essay collection The Undead and Philosophy edited by Green and Mohammad. Certainly the zombie has become the iconic monster of the late twentieth, early twenty-first century. Strange, though, that there is no particular actor celebrated for his or her performance as a zombie (isn’t that kind of strange?) as Karloff or Lugosi are still celebrated for their portrayals of the Frankenstein Monster and Dracula. It’s practically impossible to be a horror fan without a fave actor to hang your hat on — like Vincent Price, Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing, Peter Lorre, Lon Chaney, or even Angus Scrimm! Lord willing, a real horror revival will occur in years to come based on talented performers and directors. Less

The Christ the Center panelists engage Dr. K. Scott Oliphint, professor of apologetics and systematic theology at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, in a wide-ranging discussion about Cornelius Van Til and the recent publication of th fourth edition of his The Defense of the Faith .  Dr. Oliphint, who is arguably the most authoritative expert on Van Til, shares about the historical context which gave rise to this book, including disputes with individuals connected with Calvin College, Calvin Theological Seminary, and what is now Kuyper College, in the 1950s concerning common grace and philosophical idealism.  Much of the material in the original edition of the book that evinced this debate was removed in subsequent editions and has now been restored and amply expanded with a helpful introduction and explanatory notes.  Of special interest is the discussion of Van Til’s connection with Reformed Scholasticism and Herman Bavinck through his doctrine of analogy.  When all is said and done, it comes down to this: Van Til was simply applying orthodox Reformed theology to apologetics. Panel K. Scott Oliphint Jeff Waddington Jim Cassidy James Dolezal Camden Bucey Bibliography Bahnsen, Greg L. Van Til’s Apologetic: Readings and Analysis . P & R Publishing, 1998. Bavinck, Herman. Reformed Dogmatics, Vol. 1: Prolegomena . Baker Academic, 2003. —. Reformed Dogmatics, Vol. 2: God and Creation . Vol. 2. Reformed Dogmatics. Baker Academic, 2004. —. Reformed Dogmatics, Vol. 3: Sin and Salvation in Christ . Baker Academic, 2006. —. Reformed Dogmatics, Vol. 4: Holy Spirit, Church, and New Creation . Baker Academic, 2008. Bristley, Eric D. A Guide to the Writings of Cornelius Van Til, 1895-1987 . Chicago: Olive Tree Communications, 1995. Johnson, Gary L. W., and Ronald N. Gleason. Reforming or Conforming? : Post-Conservative Evangelicals and the Emerging Church . Wheaton, Ill.: Crossway Books, 2008. Kim, Seyoon. Christ and Caesar: The Gospel and the Roman Empire in the Writings of Paul and Luke . Grand Rapids, Mich.: William B. Eerdmans Pub., 2008. Letham, Robert. The Holy Trinity: In Scripture, History, Theology And Worship . P & R Publishing, 2005. Muether, John. Cornelius Van Til: Reformed Apologist and Churchman . Phillipsburg N.J.: P&R Pub., 2007. Muller, Richard A. Post-Reformation Reformed Dogmatics: The Rise and Development of Reformed Orthodoxy, ca. 1520 to ca. 1725 . 2nd ed. Baker Academic, 2003. Rehnman, Sebastian. Divine Discourse: The Theological Methodology of John Owen . Texts and studies in Reformation and post-Reformation thought. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2002. Sproul, R. C., John H. Gerstner, and Arthur. Lindsley. Classical Apologetics: A Rational Defense of the Christian Faith and a Critique of Presuppositional Apologetics . Grand Rapids, Mich.: Zondervan, 1984. Turretin, Francis. Institutes of Elenctic Theology 3 vol. set . P & R Publishing, 1997. Van Til, Cornelius. A Survey of Christian Epistemology . 2nd ed. Presbyterian and Reformed Pub. Co, 1980. —. Christian Apologetics . 2nd ed. P & R Publishing, 2003. —. Christian-Theistic Evidences . Philadelphia: Westminster Theological Seminary, 1961. —. Common Grace and the Gospel . Presbyterian and Reformed Pub. Co, 1973. —. Defense of the Faith . P & R Publishing, 1967. —. “God and the Absolute,” 1927. —. Introduction to Systematic Theology: Prolegomena and the Doctrines of Revelation, Scripture, and God . 2nd ed. P & R Publishing, 2007. —. The Defense of the Faith . 4th ed. Phillipsburg N.J.: P & R Pub., 2008. Other Formats Zotero RDF Dublin Core RDF BibTex Less

Hello, folks. It’s time for part two of our Stephen King retrospective — which is actually spreading out a bit this time to become a general autobiographical look at mid to late twentieth century literary horror of the sort that once haunted library shelves in such anthologies as Whispers and Shadows. Wow, that was quite a run-on sentence. Anyhow, those of you who were introduced in the Seventies to writers like Manley Wade Wellman, Karl Edward Wagner, Hugh Cave, Frank Belknap Long, Russell Kirk, and artists like Steve Fabian and Lee Brown Coye will get a nostalgic kick out of this episode — while others will find new wonders to explore. I promise a more specifically King oriented finale next time with a bit of Flannery O’Connor thrown in the mix as well as specific reference to King’s recent film version of The Mist. This episode is dedicated to Stuart David Schiff and Lee Brown Coye. Less

Augustine is the most influential theologian in the Western church. His works have become the foundation for much of the Western church’s thinking. Join us as we sit down for a discussion of this immense figure in church history. Links Presbyterian and Reformed Publishers Mission to the World Desiring God 2006 National Conference Audio Bibliography Augustine. Confessions . New Impression. Penguin Classics, 1961. Augustine, and NetLibrary, Inc. On the Trinity. Cambridge UK ;;New York: Cambridge University Press, 2002. Augustine, St. The Works of Saint Augustine: A translation for the 21st century . New City Press, 1990. Dever, Mark. 12 challenges churches face. Wheaton Ill.: Crossway Books, 2008. Fesko, J. What is justification by faith alone? Phillipsburg N.J.: P&R Pub., 2008. Frame, John. Doctrine of the Christian life, 1979. Frame, John. The doctrine of God. Phillipsburg N.J.: P&R Pub., 2002. Hall, David. A theological guide to Calvin’s Institutes : essays and analysis. Phillipsburg N.J.: P&R Pub., 2008. Hall, David. The legacy of John Calvin : his influence on the modern world. Phillipsburg N.J.: P&R Pub., 2008. Hansen, Collin. Young, restless, reformed : a journalist’s journey with the new Calvinists. Wheaton Ill.: Crossway Books, 2008. Hippo, Augustine of. City of God . Penguin Classics, 2004. Lucas, Sean. On being Presbyterian : our beliefs, practices, and stories. Phillipsburg N.J.: P&R Pub., 2006. Muether, John. Cornelius Van Til : Reformed apologist and churchman. Phillipsburg N.J.: P&R Pub., 2007. Packer, J. In my place condemned He stood : celebrating the glory of the atonement. Wheaton Ill.: Crossway Books, 2008. Pratt, Richard. Every thought captive : a study manual for the defense of Christian truth. Phillipsburg N.J.: Presbyterian and Reformed Pub. Co., 1979. Robertson, O. The Christ of the prophets. Phillipsburg N.J.: P & R Pub., 2004. Van Til, Cornelius. The defense of the faith. 4th ed. Phillipsburg N.J.: P & R Pub., 2008. Wells, David. Above all earthly pow’rs : Christ in a postmodern world. Grand Rapids Mich. ;Leicester: W.B. Eerdmans Pub. Co. ;;Inter-Varsity Press, 2005. Wells, David. The courage to be Protestant : truth-lovers, marketers, and emergents in the postmodern world. Grand Rapids Mich.: William B. Eerdmans Pub., 2008. Other Formats Zotero RDF Dublin Core RDF BibTex Less

Back by popular demand, Dima and Auke return for a discussion on why understanding the creation vs. evolution debate should matter to the believer. Does it matter if the days of creation are literal, or allegorical? Does it make a difference to the rest of our doctrines how we view the beginning chapters of this Book? Join us for what will also serve as the first episode of Dima & Auke’s podcast, an extension of their creation ministry. Find out how Genesis is actually key to winning our nations for Christ and removing roadblocks from many peoples’ hearts in our generation and culture. Less

The group continues their discussion of Cornelius Van Til by examining Van Til’s critique of the theology of Karl Barth. Van Til’s two books The New Modernism and Christianity and Barthianism were extremely influential in developing an understanding of Barth among English-speaking theologians. The discussion brings the critique to the foreground particularly in the light of Barthianism’s dominance in the current evangelical landscape. Bibliography Other Formats Zotero RDF Dublin Core RDF BibTex Barth, Karl. Church Dogmatics . T&T Clark Ltd, 2005. Brunner, Emil. Natural theology : comprising “Nature and grace” by Professor Dr. Emil Brunner and the reply “No!” by Dr. Karl Barth. Eugene OR: Wipf & Stock Publishers, 2002. Colyer, E. “How to Read T. F. Torrance.” THEOLOGICAL STUDIES 63 (2002): 400-401. Gaffin, Richard B., Jr. God’s Word in Servant-Form. Reformed Academic Press. Grenz, Stanley. Beyond foundationalism : shaping theology in a postmodern context. 1st ed. Louisville Ky.: Westminster John Knox Press, 2001. Gunton, Colin. Becoming and being : the doctrine of God in Charles Hartshorne and Karl Barth. Oxford [Eng.] ;;New York: Oxford University Press, 1978. Hunsinger, George. How to read Karl Barth : the shape of his theology. New York: Oxford University Press, 1991. Machen, J. Gresham. Christianity and Liberalism . Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1923. McCormack, Bruce. Karl Barth’s critically realistic dialectical theology its genesis and development, 1909-1936. Oxford: Clarendon, 1997. Muether, John. Cornelius Van Til : Reformed apologist and churchman. Phillipsburg N.J.: P&R Pub., 2007. Muller, Richard A. “The Barth Legacy: New Athanasius or Origen Redivivus.” The Thomist 54 (1990): 673-704. Oliphint, K. Revelation and reason : new essays in reformed apologetics. 1st ed. Phillipsburg N.J.: P&R Pub., 2007. Oliphint, K. Scott. Reasons (for Faith): Philosophy in the Service of Theology. P & R Publishing, 2006. Van Til, Cornelius. Christianity and Barthianism . P & R Publishing, 2004. Van Til, Cornelius. Defense of the Faith . P & R Publishing, 1967. Van Til, Cornelius. The new modernism an appraisal of the theology of Barth and Brunner, Philadelphia Pa.: Presbyterian and Reformed Pub. Co., 1946. Webster, John. The Cambridge Companion to Karl Barth . Cambridge University Press, 2000. White, William. Van Til, defender of the faith : an authorized biography. Nashville: T. Nelson Publishers, 1979. Less

Cornelius Van Til (1895-1987) developed a unique approach to apologetics which stemmed from a solid foundation in reformed theology and a background in Idealist philosophy. His method has been called presuppositionalism, transcendental and covenantal. Many recent theologians have been influenced by Van Til’s thought, especially current faculty members of Westminster Theological Seminary where he so faithfully taught. Jeff Waddington, Jim Cassidy and Camden Bucey discuss Cornelius Van Til and his tremendous contribution to reformed apologetics. Bibliography Bahnsen, Greg L. Van Til’s Apologetic: Readings and Analysis. P & R Publishing, 1998. Boa, Kenneth D., and Robert M. Bowman Jr. Faith Has Its Reasons: An Integrative Approach to Defending Christianity (An Apologetics Handbook). Paternoster, 2006. Cowan, Steven B., Stanley N. Gundry, William Lane Craig, Paul D. Feinberg, Kelly James Clark, John Frame, et al. Five Views on Apologetics . Zondervan, 2000. Frame, John. Cornelius Van Til : an analysis of his thought. Phillipsburg N.J.: P&R Pub., 1995. Keller, Timothy. The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism . Dutton Adult, 2008. Muether, John. Cornelius Van Til : Reformed apologist and churchman. Phillipsburg N.J.: P&R Pub., 2007. Plantinga, Alvin. Warranted Christian Belief . Oxford University Press, USA, 1999. White, William. Van Til, defender of the faith : an authorized biography. Nashville: T. Nelson Publishers, 1979. Other Formats Zotero RDF Dublin Core RDF BibTex Less

Today, I want to share a talk that I gave to a church in Georgia. It is a brief sketch on how we should approach the apologetic task. Feel free to email me with questions, comments, suggestions at biblestudypodcastsmatt@gmail.com Less

How do we know that God is speaking to us?  What is the role of a woman in the church?  Do we have free will?  Send your questions and comments to me at Cleanslate.Ministries@hotmail.com! Less

Will the Rapture of the Church happen mid-way through the seven years leading up to Jesus coming back to establish the Kingdom on Earth?  Don’t be shy if you have any questions pertaining to theology, Christian living, Jesus, God, the Bible, etc….shoot them over to me at Cleanslate.Ministries@hotmail.com Less

For those of you waiting for Dan to come back and record another episode of Fire On Your Head, here’s a teaching he gave at the 2006 FIRE For Life summer school on a subject he’s passionate about. Yep, you guessed it, creationism. Listen in as he gives some juicy nuggets about flaws in evolution theory. Less