February 14, 2026 • 28 mins
On today’s Bible Answer Man broadcast, Hank interviews William Lane Craig about his book On Guard, a great resource for equipping you to defend your faith.
Hank also answers the following questions:
Isn’t the word “apologetics” a poor choice for designating the defense of the faith for sounding like we are apologizing? John - St. Louis, MO (15:13)
Is there evidence for the resurrection and the martyrdom of the disciples that I can show to my skeptic friend? Israel - El Paso, TX (16:54)
At what age do we become accountable for our sins? Andrea - Springfield, MO (20:49)
Hank also answers the following questions:
Isn’t the word “apologetics” a poor choice for designating the defense of the faith for sounding like we are apologizing? John - St. Louis, MO (15:13)
Is there evidence for the resurrection and the martyrdom of the disciples that I can show to my skeptic friend? Israel - El Paso, TX (16:54)
At what age do we become accountable for our sins? Andrea - Springfield, MO (20:49)
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:07):
From the Christian Research Institute in Charlotte, North Carolina. You
are listening to the best of the Bible answer Man
Broadcast with Hank Anagraph. We're on the air because life
and truth matter. The mission of the Christian Research Institute
is to equip believers to always be prepared to give
an answer to everyone who asks you, to give the
(00:27):
reason for the hope that you have with gentleness and respect.
For more information resources or to donate to CRI, call
eight eight eight seven thousand CRI, or go online to
equip dot org. That's equip dot org. The following program
was pre recorded and now here's Bible Answerman host Hank Canagraph.
Speaker 2 (00:52):
Thank you very much for RANDI in just a moment,
I want to talk to William Lane Craig, whose Research
Professor of Philosophy at Tulbot School of Theology. A common
mistake that Christians make derives from the notion that someone
can be talked into the Kingdom of God. The motivation
might be sincere. The consequences, however, are often devastating. No
(01:18):
matter how eloquent you may or may not be, you
can't talk anyone into the Kingdom. You can't change anyone
else's heart. Only the Holy Spirit can do that. While
it's your responsibility to always be prepared to give an
answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason
(01:40):
for the hope that you have, it is God who
changes the heart. The problem is not that people cannot believe.
It is all too often that they will not believe.
In other words, it is often not a matter of
the mind, it's a matter of the will. That's what
(02:02):
Jesus was talking about when he said, this is the verdict.
Light has come into the world, but men love darkness
instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who
does evil hates the light and will not come into
the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed.
(02:23):
The Christian faith is reasonable, but reason by itself will
not compel anyone to embrace christ. I'm utterly convinced that
if we are prepared to give an answer, God will
bring into our past those whose hearts He has prepared.
(02:49):
Thus it's your responsibility, it's my responsibility to prepare ourselves
to be the most effective tools in the hands of
all my dead, and one of the resources that will
help you be an effective tool in the hands of
Almighty God. Is a book titled On Guard, Defending Your
(03:11):
Faith with Reason and Precision. Lee Strobel wrote the forward
to this book, and he says, in part, this book
is so absolutely vital. In its pages, you'll learn the
most compelling arguments in favor of Christianity. And not only that,
(03:32):
but you'll also find out how to respond to the
most popular objections to those arguments. You'll discover that On
Guard is factual, personal, practical, and ultimately convincing in its
presentation of the case for Christianity. Joining me now the
author of On Guard, William Lane Craig. Good to have
(03:55):
you on the broadcast.
Speaker 3 (03:56):
Thank you, Hank Good to be with you.
Speaker 2 (03:58):
Why is a legetics, from your perspective, so important.
Speaker 3 (04:02):
Well, I think there's several reasons. One reason would be
it's a means of creating a culture in which Christianity
can still be heard as a viable option for thinking people.
My wife and I lived for thirteen years in Europe,
and the prevailing culture in Europe is so deeply secular,
so post Christian, that to invite people to believe in
(04:25):
Jesus Christ is like inviting them to believe in the
tooth fairy. It seems that absurd to them. Part of
the task of apologetics is to shape a cultural milieu
or context here in the United States where the Gospel
can still be heard as a viable option for people,
So that would be one reason. A second reason I
(04:45):
think it's so important is because of the effects in
the life of the believer himself. As Christians were called
not just to be converts to Christ, but to be disciples,
that is, learners of Christ. And part of learning to
love God with all of our minds is being equipped
to articulate what we believe and why we believe it,
(05:06):
and when we go through times of doubt or spiritual dryness,
this can be tremendously helpful in persevering in the Christian
faith rather than just writing the emotional rollercoaster. And then
the third reason I think is that it's a vital
tool in evangelism. We see people coming to Christ all
the time through giving presentations of the Gospel coupled with
(05:29):
an intellectual defense of the truth claims of the Christian faith.
So for those three reasons, I think that the study
of the defense of the faith is a vital part
of Christian maturity.
Speaker 2 (05:41):
In Christian discipleship, I've oftentimes said that the real issue
is never evangelism. The real issue is equipping for evangelism.
If you're equipped to communicate the Gospel, you're going to
have the most incredible experience the power of the Holy
Spirit moving through you in the process of change another
life for time and for eternity. Talk about the fruit
(06:04):
of becoming an equipped evangelism.
Speaker 3 (06:08):
Well, I think it will make you bolder and more
forthright in you're sharing Christ. I see this happen on
university campuses where I do debates with university professors, and
the Christian side usually emerges head and shoulders above the
non Christian position in these debates, and the bracing effect
that this has upon Christian students is just tangible. They
(06:31):
get so excited to share their faith because they're convinced
it's true. They can give good reasons for why they
believe what they do. They're proud to be Christians rather
than ashamed, and so I think there's few things that
can make a person a bolder and more faithful witness
for Christ than having good answers to the unbelievers questions
(06:53):
and good reasons for what you believe.
Speaker 2 (06:56):
Speaking of your debates and arguments you use in almost
all of your debates goes something like this, whatever begins
to exist has a cause. The universe began to exist. Therefore,
the universe has a cause. How is that argument a
powerful counter to the notion of philosophical naturalism.
Speaker 3 (07:17):
Well, what it shows is that the natural world is
not all there is. The natural world came into being
at some point in the finite past. And since something
just doesn't come into being from nothing, it shows that
there has to be a literally supra natural, transcendent cause
beyond the natural order upon which the natural order depends
(07:40):
for its very existence. So this is I think a
very powerful argument for a supernatural reality and therefore for
the falsity of naturalism, which says that nature is all
there is.
Speaker 2 (07:53):
How significant, Doctor Craig, is the issue of cosmic origins?
Speaker 3 (08:00):
Well, I think it's one of the many arguments for
the existence of God. I think we're living at a
time in history where physical science is more open to
the existence of a creator and designer of the universe
than at any time in recent memory. And so I
think we have very powerful grounds for thinking that the
(08:21):
universe is not eternal, that it's not all there is.
That it's dependent upon a supernatural cause. And if that's true,
that narrows down the field of the world's religions to
basically the great monotheistic faiths like Judaism, Christianity in Islam,
because it eliminates pantheism, it eliminates naturalism, it eliminates polytheism. Really,
(08:47):
this notion that the universe has a transcendent creator and
designer narrows the field down to basically these great monotheisms.
Speaker 2 (08:57):
In your book, you contend that the moral argument is
the most effective of all arguments for the existence of God. Why.
Speaker 3 (09:07):
I think the reason is that it really connects with
people where they live. You can ignore the evidence for
the beginning of the universe and live your life in
a normal way if you want to. You can ignore
the evidence for design and get by in life. But
every day you get up, you answer the question by
how you live, whether or not you think other people
(09:30):
have objective moral value or are just worthless animated bits
of matter to be used for your own purposes. So
the moral argument is inescapable because every day, by how
we live, we answer the question of whether we think
there are objective morals and duties and Therefore, we are
(09:51):
faced with the question, if there are such things, where
do they come from, what's their basis? How do you
explain it?
Speaker 2 (09:57):
In a chapter that's titled w about Suffering, you write this,
the health and Wealth Gospel and the Gospel of positive
thinking that are being proclaimed in various megachurches and denominations
are false gospels that are setting people up for a fall.
Speaker 3 (10:15):
How so, because it leads people to expect that anyone
who is really walking with God will lead a life
that is free of suffering, that is prosperous and materially happy.
And since that is false, people will be devastated when
they encounter pointless and seemingly gratuitous suffering in the lives
(10:40):
of themselves, their family, their children, and those people will
be racked with doubt and disappointment with God because they're
believing in a sort of Santa Claus deity that is
not the God of the Bible.
Speaker 2 (10:56):
Thank you so much, Bill. The book on Guard available
through the ministry of the Christian Research Institute Again. You
can order online at equip dot org. You can also
speak with our resource consultants, Triple eight seven thousand Crright,
we'll be right back with more.
Speaker 1 (11:14):
To find out more about the materials mentioned on the show,
call a CRII resource consultant toll free at eight eight
eight seven thousand cri that's eight eight eight seven thousand CRII.
Our website is also an excellent reference destination to help you.
Just go to equip dot org and find articles by Hank, books,
(11:37):
CDs and DVDs. Again, that's equip dot org. Or write
crip O Box eighty five hundred, Charlotte, North Carolina, ZIP
two eight two seven one. The Bible answer Man will
continue in just a moment. The Complete Bible answer Book
(12:02):
Collector's Edition is the comprehensive collection of the most often
asked questions Hank Hannigraph has received throughout his four decades
as host of The Bible answer Man broadcast. With more
than half a million copies already in print, this newly
revised and expanded Collector's Edition helped seekers and skeptics alike
sort through the truth on topics such as reliability of
(12:25):
the Bible, religions and cults, the resurrection and afterlife, and
many more issues vital to a better understanding of God
in Christ and our relationship to Him. To receive your
copy of the Complete Bible answer Book Collector's Edition, Revised
and expanded. Call eight eight eight seven thousand CRII and
(12:46):
make a gift to support the Christian Research Institute's life
changing outreaches eight eight eight seven thousand CRII or visit
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people would rather die than think, and many of them
(13:07):
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CRI's Support Team helps to equip hundreds of thousands of
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(13:30):
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home and abroad to stand for life and truth. Check
out the benefits of membership at equip dot org. Once again,
(13:53):
that's equip dot org.
Speaker 4 (14:01):
Truth Matters, Life Matters More by Hank Hannigraph is essentially
two books in one, because truth matters Part one equips
Christians to defend the essential truth of the historic Christian faith.
In Part two, Hank explains why life matters more and
how we can experience the height of human existence union
with God in Christ. Simply put, the map is not
(14:24):
the territory, the menu is not the meal. We cheat
ourselves of authentic union with Christ when we elevate the
message above the Messiah. Truth matters, Life matters more is
a modern classic and the magnum opus of one of
the great theological minds of our time. To receive truth matters,
Life matters more, simply call eight eight eight seven thousand
(14:46):
CRI and make a gift in support of the life
changing work of the Christian Research Institute. That's eight eight
eight seven thousand CRI, or go online to equip dot org.
Speaker 1 (15:07):
Let's return to your host and canagraph.
Speaker 2 (15:10):
Thank you very much, Randian. We're going to go right
to our phone callers. Let's go right to John listening
in Saint Louis, Missouri.
Speaker 5 (15:18):
Hi, John, Hey, cal are you sir?
Speaker 2 (15:21):
I'm doing well. It's good talking to you.
Speaker 5 (15:23):
What an honor to speak with you. I've been listening
to your program for a long time.
Speaker 3 (15:26):
I love it.
Speaker 2 (15:27):
Thank you.
Speaker 5 (15:28):
I just had to make a bit of editorial comment
if I may, sure, I think the word apologetics, I
understand the import is an extremely poor choice for a
defense of the faith that is so wonderful, so powerful,
and absolutely so true. Every time I hear the word apologetics,
it sounds like we're apologizing for what we believe.
Speaker 2 (15:50):
Well, you make a good point. You know, words take
on the barnacles of time and they become depronnotative instead
of denotatives. So I think you make a good point.
I mean, we're talking about the defense of the faith,
and it's very important that when we mention apologetics we
define what we mean by what we're saying, because denotatively
(16:11):
it comes from the Greek apologia, and therefore it makes sense.
But you're right, to the average ear, it is very
connotative today.
Speaker 6 (16:19):
It is.
Speaker 5 (16:19):
It absolutely is. I would love to spend an hour
just talking to you on the phone. That would be great.
I think, as I've told so many people who don't believe,
I just tell them straightforwardly. Let me just tell you
one thing, sir or man. I can assure you that
you absolutely will have the opportunity to explain your beliefs
and your position to the Almighty himself face to face.
(16:42):
I can assure you that will happen eventually.
Speaker 2 (16:45):
Do not be amazed at this. The time is coming
when all who in the grays will come out, Some
will rise to live, and some will rise to be
a content. Hey, thanks for your call. John. Back to
the phone lines Israel and they'll pass out Texas next. Hi.
Speaker 6 (16:58):
How you doing, Ka, How are you wonderful? I have
a question. I was trying to do a skeptic friend
of mine, and I was trying to explain the resurrection
of Jesus Christ, trying to give him some evidence, you know,
saying that the disciples died for their faith, you know,
and no one would die for what to be a
known lie. And he kind of came back and be saying, well,
(17:21):
how do you know that they actually died, that they
were actually martyred? And I couldn't give him anything besides
our oral tradition.
Speaker 2 (17:29):
Well it's not just oral tradition. I mean, we have
all kinds of written tradition. You look at Josephus or Tacitus.
In fact, I was writing a book and in that
book I talked about Plentyus, the younger who was famous
for interrogation, torture, and murder of Christians. And by his
(17:50):
own account, in his own hand, he says he extracted
information from two church deaconesses, and he used torture to
do so. And his manner was simply to ask three
times whether you were a follower of Jesus Christ. If
the answer was yes, Plentius writes, I order them to
(18:11):
be taken away for execution whatever they have admitted to.
I am sure that their stubbornness and inflexible obstinacy ought
to be punished. If a person responded by denying the faith,
Plinius had them repeat and invocation to the gods, offer rites,
(18:31):
wine and incense before the statue of Trajan, and with
utter imprecations to at the same time curse the name
of Jesus Christ. So he speaks in his own hand
about murdering Christians. And you see this in the Annals
of Tacitus. As I said Flavius Josephus, who was a
Jewish historian writing to please the Romans. We know that
(18:55):
Paul was martyred, but more than that, we.
Speaker 7 (18:59):
See co complete agreement by all credible thinkers that Nero
persecuted Christians, and that during the Naronian persecution, Christians were
dipped in tar lit a blaze.
Speaker 2 (19:13):
We know that they were torn apart in hippodromes. We
also know that such eminent scholars as doctor Simon Greenley,
who you might recall was the famous Royale Professor of
law at Harvard and perhaps the greatest American authority on
common law evidence of the nineteenth century, wrote about the
(19:35):
very torture and vilification of Christians and that in the
midst of cruel deaths, they continued to testify to the
resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Speaker 6 (19:48):
Wow, well that's a lot.
Speaker 2 (19:50):
Yeah, there's ample evidence, and its extra biblical evidence, not
just biblical evidence that Christians suffered and were martyred for
their faith. They were persecuted, and it was the persecuted
church who believed in the reality of resurrection that ended
up turning an empire upside down because they knew that
(20:10):
though they died, yet they would live.
Speaker 4 (20:13):
Right.
Speaker 6 (20:14):
But we see a lot of persecution nowadays. I guess
I see it right over the border in what is Mexico,
my friend.
Speaker 2 (20:20):
Yeah, you're right, you see it all over the world,
and we need to pray for the persecuted church. But
even more than that, pray that the persecuted church is
praying for us, because I have seen authentic New Testament
Christianity in action, and it is a shame to those
of us in the West. Right.
Speaker 6 (20:39):
Well, we'll keep praying, and we'll keep praying that God
touched you know, all Christians in America and all over
the world.
Speaker 2 (20:46):
Hey, thank you so much for calling my friend Andrea
next listening in Springfield, Missouri.
Speaker 8 (20:52):
High Hi, Hank, I'm a new listener. I am having
some really good, deep discussions with a coworker who is
not a believer, and our conversations as of late have
really started to stump me. Last night, I was speaking
with her and we were talking about how, you know,
(21:12):
everyone who is born is condemned because of our sin nature,
and that we have to choose to believe in Christ
and become a part of his family. And she asked
me where in the scriptures I could tell her about
you know, at what age or at what time in
(21:33):
a person's life they would begin to be held accountable
for that choice of choosing Christ or not choosing him.
Speaker 2 (21:41):
Yeah, a good question, but I think you have to
start with something that precedes that particular issue, and that
is the nature of God himself. We know that God
wants a relationship with us if in fact, he suffered
more than any man, more than the cumulative sufferings of humankind,
so that he could have a really relationship with us
for time and for eternity. We can suppose that He's
(22:04):
not just going to capriciously say you, as a child
didn't have the capacity to choose me, therefore you're out.
That's not the point. The point is those who do
not want a relationship with God in this life are
not going to be forced into that relationship in eternity.
(22:24):
So those who genuinely, on the other hand, want a
relationship with Jesus Christ, he is never going to turn away.
So that's the premise that comes from the nature of
God himself. All who want a relationship will have that relationship,
and we can extend that to people even prior to
(22:46):
what we would call an age of accountability. We find
in Matthew eighteen that Jesus pointed to children as examples
of those who will, according to Jesus Christ inherit the
Kingdom of Heaven. And we see in Second Samuel, the
poignant story of David who expresses belief that one day
(23:08):
he's going to be with his child who had died,
And those passages demonstrate the nature of God with respect
to children. He loves children and he would never drive
them away. He didn't do it during his earthly sojourn,
so there's no possibility that he's going to do it
(23:32):
in eternity.
Speaker 8 (23:33):
Okay. And I'm assuming that you know, goes along with
someone who would have a mental handicap as well.
Speaker 2 (23:43):
Yeah. Absolutely, And you also have to recognize this that
we are called into account for the light that we had.
There is light that we have, according to the Apostle Paul,
that comes from creation. There is light awarding to the
Apostle Paul in the second chapter of Romans, that comes
(24:04):
from conscience. And there's the evidence that if we respond
to the light we have, God will give us more light.
And Paul argues this actually at the Areopagus. He says,
from one man, God made every nation of men that
they should inhabit the entire earth. He determined the exact
times and places that they should live. And he did
(24:26):
that so that we might reach out for him and
find him. Though He's not far from each one of us.
So the real issue is this light came into darkness.
Men love darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil.
If we respond to the light, God's going to give
us more light and certainly will not reject us on
(24:49):
capricious grounds. We can know that of a certainty, based
on the nature of God. We have this situation. We
lost a child, baby Grace, and we have no doubt
out whatsoever that that child will be running into our
arms in eternity, based on the very nature of God.
Speaker 8 (25:07):
Well, I really appreciate it. When she asked me this yesterday,
I told her, I said, well, I'm going to try
to talk to Hank, and she had never heard of you.
So I gave her the radio station call letters and
she may be listening now, so I'm anxious to share
what you said with her.
Speaker 2 (25:22):
Well, thank you so much for calling. Hope to have
further contact with you in the future. God bless you.
Speaker 8 (25:27):
Thank you so much.
Speaker 2 (25:28):
Hank, and I did a message on what I consider
one of the most significant issues ever, and that is
the authority of scripture. What is your authority? Is it
the Quran? Is it the Book of Mormon? Is it
some other religious book? What is your authority? We say
the Bible is our authority. And we say that because
we believe that God has spoken, that these are love
(25:51):
letters etched in heavenly handwriting, and we can demonstrate that
the Bible is divine rather than merely human in origin.
So that's not just an odd predilection on our part.
It's faith in fact has got spoken as a CD
available for your gift. Check it out on the web
at equipp dot org. Out of time, see you next
time with more at the Pipelinemen Broadcast.
Speaker 1 (26:13):
Thank you for joining us today. Our mission at the
Christian Research Institute is to defend the faith, answer Bible
questions and encourage Christians to watch their life and doctrine closely.
To find resources to help equip you, go to equip
dot org. That's equip dot org, or call us at
(26:34):
eight eight eight seven thousand CRII. You can also write
CRI at Post Office Box eighty five hundred, Charlotte, North Carolina,
two eight two seven one. The Bible answer Man Broadcast
is supported by listeners like you. We're on the air
because life and truth matter to the Complete Bible answer
(27:02):
Book Collector's Edition is the comprehensive collection of the most
often asked questions Hank Hannigraph has received throughout his four
decades as host of the Bible answer Man broadcast. With
more than half a million copies already in print, this
newly revised and expanded Collector's Edition helped seekers and skeptics
alike sort through the truth on topics such as reliability
(27:25):
of the Bible, religions and cults, the resurrection and afterlife,
and many more issues vital to a better understanding of
God in Christ and our relationship to Him. To receive
your copy of the Complete Bible answer Book Collector's Edition
Revised and Expanded, call eight eight eight seven thousand CRII
(27:46):
and make a gift to support the Christian Research Institute's
life changing outreaches eight eight eight seven thousand CRII or
visit us at EQUIP dot org.
From the Christian Research Institute in Charlotte, North Carolina. You
are listening to the best of the Bible answer Man
Broadcast with Hank Anagraph. We're on the air because life
and truth matter. The mission of the Christian Research Institute
is to equip believers to always be prepared to give
an answer to everyone who asks you, to give the
(00:27):
reason for the hope that you have with gentleness and respect.
For more information resources or to donate to CRI, call
eight eight eight seven thousand CRI, or go online to
equip dot org. That's equip dot org. The following program
was pre recorded and now here's Bible Answerman host Hank Canagraph.
Speaker 2 (00:52):
Thank you very much for RANDI in just a moment,
I want to talk to William Lane Craig, whose Research
Professor of Philosophy at Tulbot School of Theology. A common
mistake that Christians make derives from the notion that someone
can be talked into the Kingdom of God. The motivation
might be sincere. The consequences, however, are often devastating. No
(01:18):
matter how eloquent you may or may not be, you
can't talk anyone into the Kingdom. You can't change anyone
else's heart. Only the Holy Spirit can do that. While
it's your responsibility to always be prepared to give an
answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason
(01:40):
for the hope that you have, it is God who
changes the heart. The problem is not that people cannot believe.
It is all too often that they will not believe.
In other words, it is often not a matter of
the mind, it's a matter of the will. That's what
(02:02):
Jesus was talking about when he said, this is the verdict.
Light has come into the world, but men love darkness
instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who
does evil hates the light and will not come into
the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed.
(02:23):
The Christian faith is reasonable, but reason by itself will
not compel anyone to embrace christ. I'm utterly convinced that
if we are prepared to give an answer, God will
bring into our past those whose hearts He has prepared.
(02:49):
Thus it's your responsibility, it's my responsibility to prepare ourselves
to be the most effective tools in the hands of
all my dead, and one of the resources that will
help you be an effective tool in the hands of
Almighty God. Is a book titled On Guard, Defending Your
(03:11):
Faith with Reason and Precision. Lee Strobel wrote the forward
to this book, and he says, in part, this book
is so absolutely vital. In its pages, you'll learn the
most compelling arguments in favor of Christianity. And not only that,
(03:32):
but you'll also find out how to respond to the
most popular objections to those arguments. You'll discover that On
Guard is factual, personal, practical, and ultimately convincing in its
presentation of the case for Christianity. Joining me now the
author of On Guard, William Lane Craig. Good to have
(03:55):
you on the broadcast.
Speaker 3 (03:56):
Thank you, Hank Good to be with you.
Speaker 2 (03:58):
Why is a legetics, from your perspective, so important.
Speaker 3 (04:02):
Well, I think there's several reasons. One reason would be
it's a means of creating a culture in which Christianity
can still be heard as a viable option for thinking people.
My wife and I lived for thirteen years in Europe,
and the prevailing culture in Europe is so deeply secular,
so post Christian, that to invite people to believe in
(04:25):
Jesus Christ is like inviting them to believe in the
tooth fairy. It seems that absurd to them. Part of
the task of apologetics is to shape a cultural milieu
or context here in the United States where the Gospel
can still be heard as a viable option for people,
So that would be one reason. A second reason I
(04:45):
think it's so important is because of the effects in
the life of the believer himself. As Christians were called
not just to be converts to Christ, but to be disciples,
that is, learners of Christ. And part of learning to
love God with all of our minds is being equipped
to articulate what we believe and why we believe it,
(05:06):
and when we go through times of doubt or spiritual dryness,
this can be tremendously helpful in persevering in the Christian
faith rather than just writing the emotional rollercoaster. And then
the third reason I think is that it's a vital
tool in evangelism. We see people coming to Christ all
the time through giving presentations of the Gospel coupled with
(05:29):
an intellectual defense of the truth claims of the Christian faith.
So for those three reasons, I think that the study
of the defense of the faith is a vital part
of Christian maturity.
Speaker 2 (05:41):
In Christian discipleship, I've oftentimes said that the real issue
is never evangelism. The real issue is equipping for evangelism.
If you're equipped to communicate the Gospel, you're going to
have the most incredible experience the power of the Holy
Spirit moving through you in the process of change another
life for time and for eternity. Talk about the fruit
(06:04):
of becoming an equipped evangelism.
Speaker 3 (06:08):
Well, I think it will make you bolder and more
forthright in you're sharing Christ. I see this happen on
university campuses where I do debates with university professors, and
the Christian side usually emerges head and shoulders above the
non Christian position in these debates, and the bracing effect
that this has upon Christian students is just tangible. They
(06:31):
get so excited to share their faith because they're convinced
it's true. They can give good reasons for why they
believe what they do. They're proud to be Christians rather
than ashamed, and so I think there's few things that
can make a person a bolder and more faithful witness
for Christ than having good answers to the unbelievers questions
(06:53):
and good reasons for what you believe.
Speaker 2 (06:56):
Speaking of your debates and arguments you use in almost
all of your debates goes something like this, whatever begins
to exist has a cause. The universe began to exist. Therefore,
the universe has a cause. How is that argument a
powerful counter to the notion of philosophical naturalism.
Speaker 3 (07:17):
Well, what it shows is that the natural world is
not all there is. The natural world came into being
at some point in the finite past. And since something
just doesn't come into being from nothing, it shows that
there has to be a literally supra natural, transcendent cause
beyond the natural order upon which the natural order depends
(07:40):
for its very existence. So this is I think a
very powerful argument for a supernatural reality and therefore for
the falsity of naturalism, which says that nature is all
there is.
Speaker 2 (07:53):
How significant, Doctor Craig, is the issue of cosmic origins?
Speaker 3 (08:00):
Well, I think it's one of the many arguments for
the existence of God. I think we're living at a
time in history where physical science is more open to
the existence of a creator and designer of the universe
than at any time in recent memory. And so I
think we have very powerful grounds for thinking that the
(08:21):
universe is not eternal, that it's not all there is.
That it's dependent upon a supernatural cause. And if that's true,
that narrows down the field of the world's religions to
basically the great monotheistic faiths like Judaism, Christianity in Islam,
because it eliminates pantheism, it eliminates naturalism, it eliminates polytheism. Really,
(08:47):
this notion that the universe has a transcendent creator and
designer narrows the field down to basically these great monotheisms.
Speaker 2 (08:57):
In your book, you contend that the moral argument is
the most effective of all arguments for the existence of God. Why.
Speaker 3 (09:07):
I think the reason is that it really connects with
people where they live. You can ignore the evidence for
the beginning of the universe and live your life in
a normal way if you want to. You can ignore
the evidence for design and get by in life. But
every day you get up, you answer the question by
how you live, whether or not you think other people
(09:30):
have objective moral value or are just worthless animated bits
of matter to be used for your own purposes. So
the moral argument is inescapable because every day, by how
we live, we answer the question of whether we think
there are objective morals and duties and Therefore, we are
(09:51):
faced with the question, if there are such things, where
do they come from, what's their basis? How do you
explain it?
Speaker 2 (09:57):
In a chapter that's titled w about Suffering, you write this,
the health and Wealth Gospel and the Gospel of positive
thinking that are being proclaimed in various megachurches and denominations
are false gospels that are setting people up for a fall.
Speaker 3 (10:15):
How so, because it leads people to expect that anyone
who is really walking with God will lead a life
that is free of suffering, that is prosperous and materially happy.
And since that is false, people will be devastated when
they encounter pointless and seemingly gratuitous suffering in the lives
(10:40):
of themselves, their family, their children, and those people will
be racked with doubt and disappointment with God because they're
believing in a sort of Santa Claus deity that is
not the God of the Bible.
Speaker 2 (10:56):
Thank you so much, Bill. The book on Guard available
through the ministry of the Christian Research Institute Again. You
can order online at equip dot org. You can also
speak with our resource consultants, Triple eight seven thousand Crright,
we'll be right back with more.
Speaker 1 (11:14):
To find out more about the materials mentioned on the show,
call a CRII resource consultant toll free at eight eight
eight seven thousand cri that's eight eight eight seven thousand CRII.
Our website is also an excellent reference destination to help you.
Just go to equip dot org and find articles by Hank, books,
(11:37):
CDs and DVDs. Again, that's equip dot org. Or write
crip O Box eighty five hundred, Charlotte, North Carolina, ZIP
two eight two seven one. The Bible answer Man will
continue in just a moment. The Complete Bible answer Book
(12:02):
Collector's Edition is the comprehensive collection of the most often
asked questions Hank Hannigraph has received throughout his four decades
as host of The Bible answer Man broadcast. With more
than half a million copies already in print, this newly
revised and expanded Collector's Edition helped seekers and skeptics alike
sort through the truth on topics such as reliability of
(12:25):
the Bible, religions and cults, the resurrection and afterlife, and
many more issues vital to a better understanding of God
in Christ and our relationship to Him. To receive your
copy of the Complete Bible answer Book Collector's Edition, Revised
and expanded. Call eight eight eight seven thousand CRII and
(12:46):
make a gift to support the Christian Research Institute's life
changing outreaches eight eight eight seven thousand CRII or visit
us at equip dot org. Bertrand Russell famously said most
people would rather die than think, and many of them
(13:07):
do not so with CRI Support Team members. Support Team
members are not only serious thinkers, but their membership and
CRI's Support Team helps to equip hundreds of thousands of
fellow believers around the globe each and every month. Are
you not a member, then you're missing out. Not only
do Support Team members form the backbone of Christian Research
(13:30):
Institute's outreaches, but they enjoy their selection of resources from
our Equipping Essentials library to discover how you can make
a difference twenty four to seven and equipping believers at
home and abroad to stand for life and truth. Check
out the benefits of membership at equip dot org. Once again,
(13:53):
that's equip dot org.
Speaker 4 (14:01):
Truth Matters, Life Matters More by Hank Hannigraph is essentially
two books in one, because truth matters Part one equips
Christians to defend the essential truth of the historic Christian faith.
In Part two, Hank explains why life matters more and
how we can experience the height of human existence union
with God in Christ. Simply put, the map is not
(14:24):
the territory, the menu is not the meal. We cheat
ourselves of authentic union with Christ when we elevate the
message above the Messiah. Truth matters, Life matters more is
a modern classic and the magnum opus of one of
the great theological minds of our time. To receive truth matters,
Life matters more, simply call eight eight eight seven thousand
(14:46):
CRI and make a gift in support of the life
changing work of the Christian Research Institute. That's eight eight
eight seven thousand CRI, or go online to equip dot org.
Speaker 1 (15:07):
Let's return to your host and canagraph.
Speaker 2 (15:10):
Thank you very much, Randian. We're going to go right
to our phone callers. Let's go right to John listening
in Saint Louis, Missouri.
Speaker 5 (15:18):
Hi, John, Hey, cal are you sir?
Speaker 2 (15:21):
I'm doing well. It's good talking to you.
Speaker 5 (15:23):
What an honor to speak with you. I've been listening
to your program for a long time.
Speaker 3 (15:26):
I love it.
Speaker 2 (15:27):
Thank you.
Speaker 5 (15:28):
I just had to make a bit of editorial comment
if I may, sure, I think the word apologetics, I
understand the import is an extremely poor choice for a
defense of the faith that is so wonderful, so powerful,
and absolutely so true. Every time I hear the word apologetics,
it sounds like we're apologizing for what we believe.
Speaker 2 (15:50):
Well, you make a good point. You know, words take
on the barnacles of time and they become depronnotative instead
of denotatives. So I think you make a good point.
I mean, we're talking about the defense of the faith,
and it's very important that when we mention apologetics we
define what we mean by what we're saying, because denotatively
(16:11):
it comes from the Greek apologia, and therefore it makes sense.
But you're right, to the average ear, it is very
connotative today.
Speaker 6 (16:19):
It is.
Speaker 5 (16:19):
It absolutely is. I would love to spend an hour
just talking to you on the phone. That would be great.
I think, as I've told so many people who don't believe,
I just tell them straightforwardly. Let me just tell you
one thing, sir or man. I can assure you that
you absolutely will have the opportunity to explain your beliefs
and your position to the Almighty himself face to face.
(16:42):
I can assure you that will happen eventually.
Speaker 2 (16:45):
Do not be amazed at this. The time is coming
when all who in the grays will come out, Some
will rise to live, and some will rise to be
a content. Hey, thanks for your call. John. Back to
the phone lines Israel and they'll pass out Texas next. Hi.
Speaker 6 (16:58):
How you doing, Ka, How are you wonderful? I have
a question. I was trying to do a skeptic friend
of mine, and I was trying to explain the resurrection
of Jesus Christ, trying to give him some evidence, you know,
saying that the disciples died for their faith, you know,
and no one would die for what to be a
known lie. And he kind of came back and be saying, well,
(17:21):
how do you know that they actually died, that they
were actually martyred? And I couldn't give him anything besides
our oral tradition.
Speaker 2 (17:29):
Well it's not just oral tradition. I mean, we have
all kinds of written tradition. You look at Josephus or Tacitus.
In fact, I was writing a book and in that
book I talked about Plentyus, the younger who was famous
for interrogation, torture, and murder of Christians. And by his
(17:50):
own account, in his own hand, he says he extracted
information from two church deaconesses, and he used torture to
do so. And his manner was simply to ask three
times whether you were a follower of Jesus Christ. If
the answer was yes, Plentius writes, I order them to
(18:11):
be taken away for execution whatever they have admitted to.
I am sure that their stubbornness and inflexible obstinacy ought
to be punished. If a person responded by denying the faith,
Plinius had them repeat and invocation to the gods, offer rites,
(18:31):
wine and incense before the statue of Trajan, and with
utter imprecations to at the same time curse the name
of Jesus Christ. So he speaks in his own hand
about murdering Christians. And you see this in the Annals
of Tacitus. As I said Flavius Josephus, who was a
Jewish historian writing to please the Romans. We know that
(18:55):
Paul was martyred, but more than that, we.
Speaker 7 (18:59):
See co complete agreement by all credible thinkers that Nero
persecuted Christians, and that during the Naronian persecution, Christians were
dipped in tar lit a blaze.
Speaker 2 (19:13):
We know that they were torn apart in hippodromes. We
also know that such eminent scholars as doctor Simon Greenley,
who you might recall was the famous Royale Professor of
law at Harvard and perhaps the greatest American authority on
common law evidence of the nineteenth century, wrote about the
(19:35):
very torture and vilification of Christians and that in the
midst of cruel deaths, they continued to testify to the
resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Speaker 6 (19:48):
Wow, well that's a lot.
Speaker 2 (19:50):
Yeah, there's ample evidence, and its extra biblical evidence, not
just biblical evidence that Christians suffered and were martyred for
their faith. They were persecuted, and it was the persecuted
church who believed in the reality of resurrection that ended
up turning an empire upside down because they knew that
(20:10):
though they died, yet they would live.
Speaker 4 (20:13):
Right.
Speaker 6 (20:14):
But we see a lot of persecution nowadays. I guess
I see it right over the border in what is Mexico,
my friend.
Speaker 2 (20:20):
Yeah, you're right, you see it all over the world,
and we need to pray for the persecuted church. But
even more than that, pray that the persecuted church is
praying for us, because I have seen authentic New Testament
Christianity in action, and it is a shame to those
of us in the West. Right.
Speaker 6 (20:39):
Well, we'll keep praying, and we'll keep praying that God
touched you know, all Christians in America and all over
the world.
Speaker 2 (20:46):
Hey, thank you so much for calling my friend Andrea
next listening in Springfield, Missouri.
Speaker 8 (20:52):
High Hi, Hank, I'm a new listener. I am having
some really good, deep discussions with a coworker who is
not a believer, and our conversations as of late have
really started to stump me. Last night, I was speaking
with her and we were talking about how, you know,
(21:12):
everyone who is born is condemned because of our sin nature,
and that we have to choose to believe in Christ
and become a part of his family. And she asked
me where in the scriptures I could tell her about
you know, at what age or at what time in
(21:33):
a person's life they would begin to be held accountable
for that choice of choosing Christ or not choosing him.
Speaker 2 (21:41):
Yeah, a good question, but I think you have to
start with something that precedes that particular issue, and that
is the nature of God himself. We know that God
wants a relationship with us if in fact, he suffered
more than any man, more than the cumulative sufferings of humankind,
so that he could have a really relationship with us
for time and for eternity. We can suppose that He's
(22:04):
not just going to capriciously say you, as a child
didn't have the capacity to choose me, therefore you're out.
That's not the point. The point is those who do
not want a relationship with God in this life are
not going to be forced into that relationship in eternity.
(22:24):
So those who genuinely, on the other hand, want a
relationship with Jesus Christ, he is never going to turn away.
So that's the premise that comes from the nature of
God himself. All who want a relationship will have that relationship,
and we can extend that to people even prior to
(22:46):
what we would call an age of accountability. We find
in Matthew eighteen that Jesus pointed to children as examples
of those who will, according to Jesus Christ inherit the
Kingdom of Heaven. And we see in Second Samuel, the
poignant story of David who expresses belief that one day
(23:08):
he's going to be with his child who had died,
And those passages demonstrate the nature of God with respect
to children. He loves children and he would never drive
them away. He didn't do it during his earthly sojourn,
so there's no possibility that he's going to do it
(23:32):
in eternity.
Speaker 8 (23:33):
Okay. And I'm assuming that you know, goes along with
someone who would have a mental handicap as well.
Speaker 2 (23:43):
Yeah. Absolutely, And you also have to recognize this that
we are called into account for the light that we had.
There is light that we have, according to the Apostle Paul,
that comes from creation. There is light awarding to the
Apostle Paul in the second chapter of Romans, that comes
(24:04):
from conscience. And there's the evidence that if we respond
to the light we have, God will give us more light.
And Paul argues this actually at the Areopagus. He says,
from one man, God made every nation of men that
they should inhabit the entire earth. He determined the exact
times and places that they should live. And he did
(24:26):
that so that we might reach out for him and
find him. Though He's not far from each one of us.
So the real issue is this light came into darkness.
Men love darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil.
If we respond to the light, God's going to give
us more light and certainly will not reject us on
(24:49):
capricious grounds. We can know that of a certainty, based
on the nature of God. We have this situation. We
lost a child, baby Grace, and we have no doubt
out whatsoever that that child will be running into our
arms in eternity, based on the very nature of God.
Speaker 8 (25:07):
Well, I really appreciate it. When she asked me this yesterday,
I told her, I said, well, I'm going to try
to talk to Hank, and she had never heard of you.
So I gave her the radio station call letters and
she may be listening now, so I'm anxious to share
what you said with her.
Speaker 2 (25:22):
Well, thank you so much for calling. Hope to have
further contact with you in the future. God bless you.
Speaker 8 (25:27):
Thank you so much.
Speaker 2 (25:28):
Hank, and I did a message on what I consider
one of the most significant issues ever, and that is
the authority of scripture. What is your authority? Is it
the Quran? Is it the Book of Mormon? Is it
some other religious book? What is your authority? We say
the Bible is our authority. And we say that because
we believe that God has spoken, that these are love
(25:51):
letters etched in heavenly handwriting, and we can demonstrate that
the Bible is divine rather than merely human in origin.
So that's not just an odd predilection on our part.
It's faith in fact has got spoken as a CD
available for your gift. Check it out on the web
at equipp dot org. Out of time, see you next
time with more at the Pipelinemen Broadcast.
Speaker 1 (26:13):
Thank you for joining us today. Our mission at the
Christian Research Institute is to defend the faith, answer Bible
questions and encourage Christians to watch their life and doctrine closely.
To find resources to help equip you, go to equip
dot org. That's equip dot org, or call us at
(26:34):
eight eight eight seven thousand CRII. You can also write
CRI at Post Office Box eighty five hundred, Charlotte, North Carolina,
two eight two seven one. The Bible answer Man Broadcast
is supported by listeners like you. We're on the air
because life and truth matter to the Complete Bible answer
(27:02):
Book Collector's Edition is the comprehensive collection of the most
often asked questions Hank Hannigraph has received throughout his four
decades as host of the Bible answer Man broadcast. With
more than half a million copies already in print, this
newly revised and expanded Collector's Edition helped seekers and skeptics
alike sort through the truth on topics such as reliability
(27:25):
of the Bible, religions and cults, the resurrection and afterlife,
and many more issues vital to a better understanding of
God in Christ and our relationship to Him. To receive
your copy of the Complete Bible answer Book Collector's Edition
Revised and Expanded, call eight eight eight seven thousand CRII
(27:46):
and make a gift to support the Christian Research Institute's
life changing outreaches eight eight eight seven thousand CRII or
visit us at EQUIP dot org.
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