Apologetics Profile

182 JW Escape! [Part 2] Former Jehovah's Witness Elaine Bales shares her story with James Walker

Jehovah's Witnesses are presently experiencing a tremendous institutional and public relations crisis as never before in the history of their organization. Many members have grown tired of the fear, intimidation, and unceasing, impossible demands of trying to earn favor with the wrathful and implacable god in whom they p...

This week and next, President of Watchman Fellowship James K. Walker sits down with Elaine Bales, a former Jehovah's Witness, to discuss her experiences as being a member since childhood, and her difficult escape from it to embrace the real Jesus and His gospel of grace. 

Our very own Daniel Ray had a recent encounter with two Jehovah's Witnesses at the Dallas/Love Field Airport. On his phone, he pulled up Watchman ...

On this episode of Apologetics Profile, Watchman senior apologist Brady Blevins talks with Christian author and apologist Dr. Richard Howe about what Satanism is today and how we as Christians can prayerfully and thoughtfully engage those whom we may know who self-identify as Satanists.

• What is Satanism?
• Are there different kinds of Satanism?
• Why is it that Christians today can not afford to ignore this growing movemen...

Pantheism comes from the Greek Pan meaning “all or everything” and Theos meaning “God.” In Pantheism, everything that exists is One (Monism) and that one substance is God. God, however, is not personal but impersonal – an “It” rather than a “He.” This worldview has significant implications. If everything is "God" then humans must also be a manifestation of God. This is reminiscent of the Serpent's temptation in Genesis 3, ...

Pantheism is one of four foundational “world views” held by millions of people around the world. It is the common theme of many of the world’s eastern religions including Hinduism, Buddhism and Taoism. In the West, it underlies the basis of Transcendentalism, Wicca (witchcraft) and much of New Age spirituality. How do we recognize Pantheism today? How should we respond? On the next two episodes of the profile, we sit down ...

TWO FREE BOOKS - Take advantage of the special offer mentioned at the end of this episode: Watchman.org/Waco

Thirty years ago this week, a small army of federal agents stormed the compound of the Branch Davidian cult led by David Koresh with armored vehicles, knocking down walls and launching tear gas. That deadly assault outside of Waco, Texas was the culmination of a 51-day standoff between government agents, four of ...

TWO FREE BOOKS - Take advantage of the special offer mentioned at the end of this episode: Watchman.org/Waco

Thirty years ago this week, a small army of federal agents stormed the compound of the Branch Davidian cult led by David Koresh with armored vehicles, knocking down walls and launching tear gas. That deadly assault outside of Waco, Texas was the culmination of a 51-day standoff between government agents, four of ...

TWO FREE BOOKS - Take advantage of the special offer mentioned at the end of this episode: Watchman.org/Waco

Thirty years ago this month, a small army of federal agents stormed the compound of the Branch Davidian cult led by David Koresh with armored vehicles, knocking down walls and launching tear gas. That deadly assault outside of Waco, Texas was the culmination of a 51-day standoff between government agents, four of...

According to the General Social Survey, there has been a dramatic increase in the rise of the religiously non-affiliated in the U.S. since 1972. Who are the Nones? What do they believe? Are they atheists? Agnostics? What does the data from the GSS suggest is happening to the religious practices and affiliations in the U.S. today? 

This week, we continue our conversation with pastor and assistant professor of political s...

Since 1972, the General Social Survey, or GSS, has influenced and informed our cultural understanding of the religious landscape in the U.S. A multitude of college students, journalists, media outlets, and peer-reviewed articles and papers have cited the data from the GSS. You've probably seen a graph or two in the newspaper or on line somewhere which featured information from the GSS. 

So what exactly is the survey? Ho...

Have you ever wondered why the Gospel writers included the details they did? Our guest this week on the Profile, Dr. Timothy McGrew, suggests that if we pay careful attention to the lesser details included by the authors of the Gospel accounts, we will see with greater clarity how the accounts interlock and compliment one another. These details offer but one further bit of evidence that the Gospel narratives are historical...

If we are to love those who are not Christians, as Jesus commands, one of the essential components of loving our neighbors is being able to listen to them with intent, compassion, and sincerity. Discussions and debates about God can quickly become heated. We often don't really listen to another person's position carefully, but only wait for opportunities to make our point or speak over them. 

Our guest this week and nex...

You have likely heard a skeptic or two say that the New Testament is riddled with contradictions and therefore it is likely an untrustworthy source for understanding what happened in and around Jerusalem some 2,000 years ago. 

This week on the Profile we continue our discussion with leading resurrection scholar Dr. Gary Habermas who gives us very practical insights about how we can answer our skeptic friends and why we ...

You have probably heard of atheist and New Testament scholar Dr. Bart Ehrman. Ehrman believes Jesus really existed in history but does not believe Jesus is God, does not believe Jesus really performed miracles, and does not believe Jesus resurrected from the dead. 

This week and next on the Profile we sit down with leading resurrection scholar Dr. Gary Habermas who offers us some helpful insights to counter such skeptic...

Many of the top grossing box-office films of all time often feature story lines in some way related to the universe. "A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away" is almost as widely recognized as "In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth." 

Our guests this week authors Frank Turek and his son Zack sit down with us to discuss their latest book Hollywood Heroes - How Your Favorite Movies Reveal God. They ar...

How well do we know what interests our non-Christian friends and neighbors? How much do we know about what they enjoy or what they believe? Can we take the beliefs and interests of unbelievers to build common ground and facilitate conversations about Jesus and the Gospel? 

Our guests this week and next on the Profile, as well as we here at Watchman, say "Absolutely yes!" Author and Christian apologist Frank Turek and hi...

We live in an age where the scientific definition of what it means to be human is not only radically different than the biblical understanding of our existence, but that the scientific view trumps any theologically informed beliefs about what it means to be created in God's image. Our imageo Dei is reduced to a matter of feeling and personal opinion, nothing more. 

Our guest this week is philosopher Dr. Paul Tyson, auth...

Today we launch a two-part episode featuring philosopher Dr. Paul Tyson talking about his book, A Theology of Science. We take modern science quite for granted today, hardly ever thinking about where it came from or how it became to be the dominant cultural paradigm of our time. Science seems to dictate virtually every aspect of our lives. From the vastness of the cosmos to every bird of the air and every hair on our head,...

BONUS EPISODE - This podcast is the conclusion of a special mid-week bonus interview with Pastor David Marini of Calvary Chapel in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Pastor David just recently was interviewed by an atheist street epistemology practitioner and shares his experience with us on our next two episodes. 

We hope the insights learned from Pastor Marini's encounter can encourage, strengthen and guide other Christians...