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Evil was on full display on your screens, X feed, Facebook and Instagram.  We could either look away and pretend it does not exist or we could stare it in the face and grieve. In the past week we have been inundated with harrowing news and details concerning the Hamas terrorist attack on Israel on October 7 th of 2023. The worst attack against the Jewish people since the holocaust and the worst terror attack in the world since 9/11 and perhaps, even worse than 9/11 when we c

I wrote a poem about free will. Now, the odd thing about it, is that if you read it, you were determined to read it; and if you don’t, you were determined not to. Of course, free will exists, and those who claim otherwise are simply pulling our legs for the fun of it; but this poem is magic because it’s the one thing you lack free will in reading. - Jacobus Erasmus Originally posted at JacobusErasmus.com Free Will Why do some turn away from God, While others live very close t

Challenge For those who like the moral argument, here are my five challenges (framed as questions) for you. 1. Why think that moral realism is true? 2. Why think that moral facts/obligations need an explanation? 3. Why think that God would be able to explain the existence of moral facts/obligations? 4. What about non-theistic accounts of morality? 5. Can you show that theism surpasses all non-theistic accounts of morality as an explanation for morality? I expect that yo

There has been a new term floating around the Evangelisphere (if that’s a word, if it’s not, let's coin it) in the last few years: “post-Christian.” FreeThinking Ministries recently changed some verbiage on the website to indicate that the mission of the ministry is to equip the church to engage with the post-Christian culture . Some might say, "you (FTM) minister to all sorts of people all over the globe. You ought to relate to culture in general." Yes, this covers both p

Challenge Here's a challenge for those who think that libertarian free will is necessary for rationality and/or knowledge (I am defining rationality as believing some proposition justifiably and I am defining knowledge as justified true belief). Imagine two worlds: world A and world B. In both worlds, John believes the same proposition on the basis of the same evidence. Moreover, in both worlds, that proposition is true. In world A, John used his libertarian free will to bel

The following is a recent conversation I had with a Calvinist. I enjoyed it because it was not emotionally charged even though he was asking questions in an effort to refute my arguments against Calvinistic determinism. His questions were thoughtful and allowed for clarification from which all can benefit. Please enjoy the following exchange (for clarity, the Calvinist's words are in blue. My words are in black): Calvinist : Dr. Stratton, you have said this many times, but h

Objection Dear Dr. Stratton, I saw the video An Epistemological Case Against Calvinism right when it came out. And I was surprised that the whole video you assumed that a determinist has to argue for general reliability. I can simply reject this premise and argue that God is absolutely reliable. Seems to me that you have to argue for a specific sense of deception. But in the coloquial sense, deception often refers to some form of coercive act. And calvinists deny coercion, s

This article has been updated with notes on recent events that lend further credence its thesis. Edits are marked within the article. Recently, I wrote a movie review about Sound of Freedom (See Here: Sound of Freedom ). The review received praise and push back. Which I welcomed. The problem, as far as I can tell, is partly because both sides fell into the partisan trap. This happens when we politicize something that ought not be politicized or assume something is being po

Question: Dear Dr. Tim,  I'm interested to know if you have any biblical thought on the alien thing?!? Do you think there might have been sightings, contact, etc.? I was wondering if there is anything biblical in regards to that? With the recent government hearings on this and the conspiracy theories going around for some reason you were the first person I thought to contact. - Tammi Dr. Tim's Response: Hi Tammi! Yes, I do have some thoughts about what to do with extraterrest

Is slavery good?  Absolutely not! The first book of the Bible makes it clear that being sold into slavery against one's will is the epitome of evil. Scripture also shows how this specific evil (as well as all evil, suffering, and affliction) will ultimately be used by God for good. In Genesis, chapters 37 through 50 , the Bible recounts the story of Joseph being sold into slavery. Joseph was a favored son among his brothers and faced betrayal when they sold him into slavery o

One of my favorite arguments for the existence of God is known as the Moral Argument (made famous by William Lane Craig). I believe that it is sound and forceful. The deductive syllogism is typically stated as follows: If God does not exist, then objective moral values and duties do not exist. Objective moral values and duties do exist. Therefore, God exists. Click here to watch a short video of how William Lane Craig defends the premises of this argument. Click here to wat

Edit 9/29/23 -  I can no longer recommend this movie in good conscience. For more, see my YouTube episode of FTMonthly released on 9/29/23 and read this article entitled the Ballard of Truth . Recently, I had the opportunity to watch the hot new film Sound of Freedom .  If you have not heard of this movie, you may be living under a rock of some sort as it has been making headlines since its release on July 4 th . A fairly low budget film that was completed five years ago bu

A few months ago I was invited to speak to a group of parents at a church. The topic: Standing on Truth in Love .  A few months prior I was invited to another church to speak on Identity and how to address it in a post-Christian culture (to book speaking engagements click: HERE ).  In both instances I started my talk on the topic the same way: with a quick note on conversations, and how to have them in different contexts. Over the past decade I have become convinced that on

Although I have offered multiple arguments against exhaustive divine determinism (EDD), one of the best ways to see the absurdity of EDD -- a view advanced by Calvinist scholars -- is to simply read the Bible carefully. That is to say, if one intentionally reads the Bible through deterministic lenses, one will quickly see that determinism opposes biblical Christianity. Indeed, a careful reading of Scripture might provide the most powerful reason to reject determinism.  A par

Question Dear Dr. Stratton, Why do you spend so much time arguing with other Christians about free will? Why do you spend so much time arguing against Calvinism? We are all on the same team. We all worship the same God. We all share the same gospel.  While these topics are very interesting and fun to think about, do they really make that much difference at the end of the day?  - Jared Dr. Tim's Response Thank you for the question, Jared. I fear that answering it will make som

The holiest month of our culture’s liturgical calendar is upon us. June, when pride is linked to sexual identity and the eschewing of the historical norms of sex and gender. A month when nearly all corporations will virtue signal their fealty to the secular religion of Sexual Gnosticism under the guise of the misguided notion of self-actualization. Every year, in June, we are hit in the face with a barrage of rainbow flags, pride-progress flags, parades, and logo changes. Pa

If you have followed Dr. Douglas R. Groothuis’ work through the years you will know him as an excellent philosopher and dynamic apologist.  His work in philosophy at Denver Seminary is among the best in the nation and his keystone work on Christian Apologetics released in 2022 is as well. Dr. Groothuis' most recent work, however, carries the most significance yet. I have taken a keen interest in racial issues and ideologies within the American historical framework for quit

As a pastor, I have primarily received formal training in the fields of Christian theology, biblical studies, and church history (BA: Christian Theology, SPU; MDiv, Fuller Theological Seminary). Nevertheless, my theological studies have led me firmly to this conclusion: that a robust acquaintance with the tools and foundations of philosophical thinking is essential to doing clear, unconfused theology. As a result, both during and posterior to my graduate studies, I have sough

An outspoken proponent of Calvinism, exhaustive divine determinism, and compatibilism, recently objected to my claim that the Held Hostage Objection was a silly reason to be a compatibilist (see, What If Science Proves Determinism ). In summary, my response to this so-called "hostage crisis" is threefold: Science is the wrong tool for the job. The Free-Thinking Argument and the Arguments from Reason provide  reasons  to reject potential ignorant claims of scientists. If one i

I've spent inordinate amounts of time debating the issues of determinism and libertarian freedom with those who believe that antecedent (prior) conditions determine all things about humanity. In essence, I have attempted to dialogue with humans who don't think we are much different than puppets or robots .  Since I have had so many debates with people who think they are basically wet robots, I thought it would be fitting to have this conversation with an actual robot -- an on