Apologetics

Compiled by Paul Chamberlain, PhD

Ahmad, Esther & Borlase, Craig.  Defying Jihad: The Dramatic True Story of a Woman Who Volunteered to Kill Infidels—And Then Faced Death for Becoming One. Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2019. This gripping story provides steps for discussions with Muslims concerning the Qur’an, including real life exchanges with adherents of Islam by one of the authors.  It is a living demonstration of how to defend Christian faith even in the face of severe persecution.

Blomberg, Craig A. Can We Still Believe the Bible? An Evangelical Engagement with Contemporary Questions. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 2014. This is a readable treatment of contemporary discussions underway concerning the Bible’s textual reliability, the canon of Scripture, translations, Scripture’s truthfulness, genres of Scripture, and miracles.

Blomberg, Craig. The Historical Reliability of the Gospels, 2nd ed. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2007. The author analyzes interpretive methods used by New Testament scholars.  Benefits and limitations of these methods are highlighted as well as ways they are sometimes misapplied, leading to overly skeptical criticism of the Gospels.  The book also includes a masterful analysis of discrepancies between the gospels.

Casey, Maurice.  Jesus: Evidence and Argument or Mythicist Myths?  London, England: 2014. Maurice Casey was a highly regarded nonchristian professor at the University of Nottingham prior to his death in 2014.  In this book, he wrote against the mythicist view, promoted by such people as Richard Carrier and Robert Price, that Jesus probably never existed.  Among other things, Casey contended that the mythicists are extremely deficient in their historical method and also that many of their arguments are sweeping arguments from silence which fail miserably.

Copan, Paul & Flannagan, Matthew.  Did God Really Command Genocide:  Coming to Terms With the Justice of God.  Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2014. This text is a comprehensive treatment of violence in the Old Testament, especially the charge that God commanded genocide.  It provides readers with tools to discuss the God of the Old Testament “versus” the God of the New, Islamic jihad compared to the Old Testament, and the Crusades.

Craig, William Lane.  On Guard: Defending Your Faith With Reason and Precision.  Elgin, Il: 2010. Here is an accessible one-stop manual to equip Christians to engage others in discussions about faith and religion and defend their own faith.  It includes four arguments for God’s existence, a discussion of Jesus’ claims and resurrection, and responses to the problems of evil, suffering and religious relativism.

Chamberlain, Paul.  Why People Stop Believing.  Eugene, Or: Wipf & Stock.  2018. This book responds to arguments of Christian leaders who have rejected Christianity and often become some of its most well-informed critics.  Its sections address the reliability of scripture, evil and suffering, the existence of the supernatural, and the character of God, all issues under attack from former Christian leaders.

Chamberlain, Paul & Price, Chris eds.  Everyday Apologetics: Answering Common Objections to the Christian Faith.  Bellingham, WA: 2020. Nine experienced authors provide highly readable responses to specific challenges Christians will encounter when engaging others about their faith.  This book is designed for non-experts unfamiliar with academic terminology.  Logical reasoning is blended with anecdotes, humor, and illustrations and each chapter contains practical tips for applying the information in actual dialogue.

Habermas, Gary R., and Michael R. Licona. The Case for the Resurrection of Jesus. Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel, 2004. This book explains the historical arguments for Jesus’ resurrection in a readable form and also responds to many objections to it.  Its method is to build on the “minimal facts” accepted by most historians (death of Jesus, empty tomb, etc.) to show how Jesus’ resurrection best explains these facts.

Johnson, Jeremiah J.  Unimaginable: What Our World Would Be Like Without Christianity.  Minneapolis: Bethany House Publishers, 2017. The author shares his wide-ranging research into many specific ways Christianity has benefited the cultures it has been an influential part of throughout the ages.

Keener, Craig. Miracles: The Credibility of the New Testament Accounts, 2 vols. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2011. Keener provides a full-length treatment of the trustworthiness of miracle accounts in the Gospels and Acts and responds to arguments by skeptical philosopher David Hume and miracle-claims in other religions.  He then shows miracles are not as rare as some in the west may think by documenting hundreds of healing miracles in Jesus’ name from history and around the world.

Lewis, C. S. Miracles: A Preliminary Study. New York: Macmillan Publishing, 1978. Here is a classic study of the supernaturalism of Christianity in relation to naturalism and pantheism.  Lewis demonstrates the power of one’s presuppositions regarding the supernatural for determining one’s eventual views.

McGrath, Alister.  Science and Religion: An New Introduction, 3rd edition.  Hoboken, New Jersey: Wiley          Blackwell, 2020. This text addresses prominent themes and controversies in the relationship of science and religion, including recent developments and discussions by one of the world’s leading authorities on both fields of study.   It incorporates history, philosophy, the natural sciences, and theology.

Stackhouse, John G.  Can I Believe?: Christianity for the Hesitant.  New York: Oxford University Press, 2020. The author outlines steps for religious seekers to follow for evaluating a wide variety of religious claims including relevant questions to ask of any religion.  He also sets out specific grounds for Christianity along with responses to Christian particularity and the problem of evil.

Wright, N. T. The Resurrection of the Son of God. Minneapolis, MN: Augsburg Fortress Publishers, 2003. This book is a formidable defense of Jesus’ resurrection by a renowned New Testament specialist.  It addresses such questions as what happened at Easter, why Christianity formed as it did, what early Christians meant when they spoke of Jesus’ resurrection, and what we can say today.

Paul Chamberlain, PhD, is Professor of Leadership, Ethics, and Christian Apologetics and Director of the Institute for Christian Apologetics at Trinity Western University.  He also has worked with Ravi Zacharias International Ministries. He is the author of five books on apologetics and numerous articles addressing current social and moral issues.  His most recent book, co-edited with Chris Price, is Everyday Apologetics (2020). Dr. Chamberlain has appeared on numerous radio and television talk shows, debated on university campuses, and is a frequent guest speaker at public functions. 

 Posted/Updated: 2020/12/01

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