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I regret that this response must be written. The atheist blogger Aron Ra and I recently participated in an event together. We were at a church, answering questions on the topic of creationism and Darwinism in front of about 300 high school students. Despite the fact that we differ greatly on the topic at hand—I, a creationist, and he, a Darwinist—we had a fairly cordial discussion, if it can be called a discussion. You can watch the video by clicking here . However, about a w

The debate between Calvinism and Molinism has consumed much of my time in recent years. I once identified as a Calvinist, but now identify as a Molinist, and my story has provided fuel to this debate's fire. With that said, however, many who are involved -- on both sides of the theological aisle -- often make a mistake by simply being involved in the debate. To clarify: to directly compare Calvinism with Molinism is to compare apples with oranges. This is the case because Ca

Critical theory is an ideology that is rapidly growing in influence: in the social justice movement, in academia, and in the culture at large. If you’ve ever been told that men cannot make statements about the morality of abortion, or that you should never challenge someone’s ‘lived experience,’ or that you are suffering from ‘internalized oppression,’ then you’ve encountered ideas that are rooted in critical theory.  In this brief essay, I’ll outline the basic tenets of crit

The second part of Dr. Jacobus Erasmsus' interview is here. We finish up our discussion on the Kalam and the argument from an actual infinite. Also, Dr. Erasmsus and Tim talk about their co-authored journal articles on Calvinism and Molinism. Finally, Dr. Erasmsus finishes up with his assessment of the "current state" of South Africa (where he's from). It is really a fascinating interview that I'm glad we were able to give you guys. Like last time, be sure to go to Dr. Erasm

Greg Koukl is one of my favorite apologists and theological thinkers. I have been reading his blogs and listening to his podcasts for years. His book "Tactics" is one that all Christians who care about evangelism should own. In my professional opinion, Koukl's ministry, Stand To Reason , is one of the best resources available to the Body of Christ today. One thing I love about Greg is that he affirms humans possess limited libertarian freedom -- even though he also affirms

In the latest volume of Perichoresis (an academic theology journal) Jacobus Erasmus and I offered an argument abductively concluding that Molinism is the best explanation of all the data. Our argument is a slightly revised version of the Omni Argument Against Irresistible Grace  that I have been advancing over the past few years. Instead of specifically targeting the "I" of the TULIP acronym, this time we chose to expand the scope of our efforts to deductively dismantle the

The first genealogy within the Gospel of Matthew is an important cornerstone of the Gospel. This genealogy—a relic of the pre-Jewish-Roman War—contains, at the very heart of it, a Jewish tapestry that may only be deciphered by a thoroughly Jewish mind. In interpreting the genealogy, we find that it is indeed the pinnacle of the Jewish message of the Gospel. Containing within it is the stupendous claim that Jesus of Nazareth—the carpenter and the Son of Mary—is in the line of

We've got Dr. Jacobus Erasmus on the show for this episode, who is likely one of the smartest people we'll have on the podcast. In this episode we talk about how he met Tim and the contributions he makes to Freethinking Ministries, including making Tim appear much smarter than he actually is. Not only that, but Dr. Erasmsus talks to us about the application of computer science to philosophy, as well as his book on the Kalam cosmological argument. In the middle of the episode

“I’m thinking about starting an apologetics blog, but what can I say that hasn’t already been said?” I asked myself this many times before I started blogging, and I’ve heard it from plenty of others as well. Also, “Do we really need another blog? Would anyone actually read it?” etc. Well, obviously I do blog, and so I had to answer those questions for myself before I started. So let me offer 4 reasons why I blog, which may encourage you to start blogging too. 1) Unique Audien

The primary goal of FreeThinking Ministries is to equip the church to engage the culture. In my opinion, no one is doing that better than Brett Kunkle. Kunkle became well-known in the apologetics community through his time at Greg Koukl's organization, Stand To Reason . Recently, however, Kunkle has branched out and started MAVEN , an organization focused on helping the next generation know truth, pursue goodness, and create beauty. What exactly is a "maven?" Wikipedia defi

That's right, it's another Q&A episode about free will! What can we say, we love to talk about it! In this episode, we look at a reader question dealing with the evil that happens to devoted Christians and babies. So yeah, not a light and breezy topic at all! This certainly is a question that is common among non-Christians. Why would God allow evil to happen to babies? Maybe they can understand so-called "regular evil," but the idea of something horrible happening to the mos

James White responded to my article Molinism and Creaturely Essences: A Response to James White (Part 1)  over Twitter. Here is the link where you can read White's response to my essay:  https://twitter.com/freethinkmin/status/960528913524019201 . Just in case White's Twitter comment is compromised, I shall reproduce White's statement below. He states: "Classic example of missing the point due to being too smart for your own britches. Regular folks fully understand that the

Summary: In  The Dividing Line  episode  Behold the Secular Woman & WLC on Molinism (Once Again)  James White argues that Molinism lacks the explanatory resources to sufficiently answer what determines the truth value of counterfactuals of creaturely freedom (hereafter, CCFs). In this essay I highlight an ambiguity in White's use of the word 'determine'. I then address his objection, refuting it under a variety of interpretations. I also address potential counterresponses Whi

“deus absconditus” (the hidden God) – Thomas Aquinas Having stumbled across the doctrine of Hell, Atheist Smith frets over the seemingly harsh punishments promised to the unbelievers within Christianity. Deep within, he wants to submit to the “fairy-tale” that billions of people believe in the world. Yet, he just can’t wrap his head around one issue: “Why doesn’t God just appear before me now and make me believe?” He had attempted to pray before—begging for Jesus to appear b

Can we still make real choices after God creates the world? One of the readers at the Freethinking Ministries website asked essentially this question, so Tim and I decided to take a stab at answering it (okay, so mainly Tim. But I edited the episode which has to count for something). If you're wondering if we'll ever run out of things to talk about when it comes to Molinism and free will, then your answer is no! At least, not until Tim finishes his dissertation. After that,

Recall the most beautiful landscape you have ever witnessed. Think about how you felt a need to take an extra moment (or several) to stare at the scene as to sear it into your memory -- almost as if it were the right thing to do. Does it not seem wrong to ignore such magnificence? In a recent Reasonable Faith podcast , William Lane Craig was asked if it is possible to argue for the existence of God based on objective beauty in such a way that would be similar to one of my f

In the second part dealing with the problem of evil, Tim comes to the incredible conclusion that not only is God's allowing evil consistent with his moral character, but it actually would be EVIL for God to eradicate evil! You'll definitely want to hear his argument (or you can read it at the link below). It's likely clear after listening to this episode that understanding Molinism is a huge part of how Tim and I answer the problem of evil. As I always say, if you've got a t

Protestors. Death threats. Misleading newspaper articles. In the days leading up to a talk I was doing on campus at North Carolina State University last year, the environment consistently became increasingly hostile. I was simply speaking about my story of struggling with sexuality issues, and how God’s overwhelming grace had rescued my soul. Why the hostility from the LGBT community on campus? It was because my very existence is a threat to the foundation on which they have

After hearing a bunch of arguments FOR God's existence, it's important to understand what the other side has to offer in terms of arguments AGAINST God's existence. Most of the time, this boils down to the problem of evil, without a doubt one of the toughest questions for the Christian to answer. However, it is not without an answer, as Tim explains throughout this episode. The problem of evil seems fairly intimidating at first, but I think it can be answered fairly well thr

I love the Evangelical Free Church of America! I was born and raised in this denomination and I was a pastor in the EFCA for nearly a decade. I am no longer employed as a pastor, but I continue to be actively involved in the local church and although I seek to serve a number of churches, Kearney Evangelical Free Church officially recognize me as the "Apologist in Residence." One reason I like the EFCA is because of their Statement of Faith. The EFCA prides itself in "majori