The Goals & Function Of Apologetics
The Goals & Function Of Apologetics Definitions are where we start but where we are shooting for the end is also important. So here we cover the goals & functions of apologetics so we know when we are off tract and what our final destination is. And we’ll be taking some camels – that will […]
Scott Christensen On What’s Next For His Work
Scott Christensen On What’s Next Scott Christensen on what’s next for him. He gives some details on the book that’s going to come out from What About Evil and maybe hope for a continuation of his “What About…” series. Today’s short clip comes from episode 181 which can be found here. Books mentioned in this […]
Scott Christensen On What Message To Give To Those Experiencing Evil
Message To Give To Those Experiencing Evil Here’s the amazing message Scott Christensen says should be on what message to give to those experiencing pain, suffering, and evil right now. The message of hope and redemption has been the staple that has been at the Christian message that sustained believers in persecution, overturned empires, and […]
Scott Christensen On The Theodicy That Leads To The Greater-Glory Of God
Scott Christensen On The Theodicy Scott Christensen on the theodicy that he writes about in his book, “What About Evil” that he believes is the most consistent with both Scripture and logic. To find out more check out our walkthrough of the book or pick it up here. Today’s short clip comes from episode 181 […]
Scott Christensen On The Scriptural Case Against Free Will
The Scriptural Case Against Free Will Where the logic of free will might be debatable between philosophers, the Scriptural case is the one that should encapsulate all Christians. What does the Bible have to say about the freedom of God when it meets the freedom of man? Scott Christensen says there’s a scriptural case against […]
Scott Christensen On The Free Will Defense – Limiting God & His Revelation
Scott Christensen On The Free Will Defense One of the most prominent explanations for why there is evil is that man’s free will allows him to do evil and God allows that free will to happen lest God tramples on the freedom of man. Scott Christensen on the free will defense calls for us to […]
Scott Christensen Explains Why Evil Needs To Be Explained
Scott Christensen Explains Why Scott Christensen literally wrote the book on evil – well, ok maybe not the very first one but we’ve gone through it. Now, he comes on and joins your hosts and talks about why evil needs to be explained. TIMELINE 00:00 – A Quick Overview Of What About Evil 01:44 – […]
A Quick Review Of “What About Evil?”
A Quick Review Of “What About Evil?” Here’s a quick review of “What About Evil”. A fuller text review will be available soon on the Cave To The Cross blog that will also be posted on Patrick’s Goodreads page. All reviews and links can be found at CaveToTheCross.com and soon our next book we will […]
Something Is Rotten In The State Of The Universe
Something Is Rotten Here’s the overview of the book, “What About Evil”. Something is rotten in this world. You know it. Your neighbor knows it. The store owner knows it. The criminal holding up the store owner knows it. The grannie with a loaded .45 behind the criminal knows it. We all want “it” to […]
The Grace Effect
The Grace Effect The Grace Effect is the result of the Greater-Glory Theodicy. Going from a specific example to a general. There are victims of the Holocaust that need grace. There are people who desired to help that need and give grace. And there are those who perpetrated the Holocaust that needs grace and forgiveness […]
Can Any Transgression Be Forgiven By God?
Can Any Transgression Be Forgiven? The thing about humanity is that if we can imagine the worst thing we could do, we can usually accomplish it. With that being the case, can any transgression be forgiven? Mass slaughter, genocide, another example that YouTube would flag? Who is more powerful – God or man? Today’s short […]
Victims Of The Holocaust Bearing Up Under God’s Mercy
Bearing Up Under God’s Mercy Another group that deals with the reality of evil are victims of the Holocaust who did not escape confinement for their help. Yet, bearing up under God’s Mercy their apologetic was evidenced by word and action. This isn’t done flippantly but seriously undertaken. In the midst of abject terror and […]
Christians Showing Mercy To Holocaust Victims
Mercy To Holocaust Victims Taking on one of the biggest examples of evil in the 20th century, we see that God’s mercy is shown to victims of the Holocaust by Christians. These Christians showing mercy to Holocaust victims didn’t do so because of a reward or ransom or pats on the back. They saved others […]
The Christian Story Is That Of Grace Overcoming Evil
Grace Overcoming Evil This is why the Christian should not shy away from the so-called “problem of evil”. Grace overcoming evil is baked into the very existence of the Christian message. The Christian takes part in the pain and suffering and evil. The Christian is freed from that very chain of evil. And ultimately, it […]
The Purpose Of Pain Leads To The Grace Effect
The Purpose Of Pain In a world where death is supposed to improve the species and pain should be the means which tells those of us who are stronger who should survive, why are we so averse to pain and death? Because it’s all about survival we should embrace and encourage pain and suffering so […]
Cosmic Renewal
Cosmic Renewal The upward swing after Christ’s Second Coming is one that doesn’t just return Eden to its proper form. The cosmic renewal that happens shows an amplified glory that wouldn’t have been possible without the Fall. But how should we live in this time and the next? TIMELINE: 00:00 – Cosmic Renewal 00:49 – […]
Why Was Satan & The Law Allowed To Come & Stay In The World?
Stay In The World? The Cross and the Resurrection happened. Why doesn’t The Law pass away? Why is Satan allowed to stay in the world? Today’s short clip comes from episode 177 which can be found here. Books mentioned in this episode: What about Evil? A Defense of God’s Sovereign Glory by Scott Christensen Kindle […]
How Is God Good When So Many More People Will Not Be Saved?
More People Will Not Be Saved A couple of questions that can be asked about God’s salvation plan is to ask about people who will not be saved seem to be numerous. Why is that? What purpose does it serve? Why is not the wide path that leads to salvation? However, the question that should […]
Christ The Coming King
Christ The Coming King When Jesus Christ, the coming King, returns He brings the culmination of Sovereign redemption, judgment, and glory. Evil has no place to hide. TIMELINE: 00:00 – Christ The Coming King 00:31 – The Cosmic Redemption 01:26 – The Cosmic Judgment 02:39 – The Cosmic Glory Today’s short clip comes from episode […]
Holistic Benefits Of The Resurrection
Holistic Benefits Of The Resurrection Believe it or not, there are holistic benefits to the Resurrection. It’s not just for the single, time and place of 33AD but functions over the whole system of the Christian faith. Justification, Sanctification, and Glorification are three practical areas that Jesus’ death and Resurrection make possible and affect and […]
Why The Resurrection Is Important
Why The Resurrection Is Important It might seem silly to ask why the Resurrection is important in the Christian religion. However, many people might want to take it as a “neat” event to show Jesus is “neat”. Others try and use it just as direct evidence of Christianity being true. However, the interpretation of the […]
Putting Satan Into Perspective At The Cross
Putting Satan Into Perspective In the ministry of Jesus’ Incarnation, we have to put Satan into Perspective at the culmination of his first coming. At Jesus’ Second Coming, we see the King handling rebellion once and for all. And there – Satan, and sin, get their final due. But, what about right now? TIMELINE: 00:00 […]
Jesus Christ – The True Passover
The True Passover Among the numerous complete works that Jesus accomplishes in His Incarnation one of the biggest is being the True Passover. In the work of God in the Old Testament you might wonder, why are all these things happening? Why the Exodus at all? Why all these “weird” Laws? It is all to […]
The Victorious Christ Is Coming To Deal With Evil Completely
The Victorious Christ As we approach the end of our book, we talk about who The Victorious Christ Jesus comes at the end of His Book and deals with evil completely. While He broke the bonds of sin & death at the Cross, He’s not done yet. His Second Coming will be a conquering Lion […]
Tetelestai!
Tetelestai! Tetelestai. One Greek word. Usually used in a courtroom setting. The final words of Jesus Christ, the Messiah. And like the Christian message, this word that ends an event – the pinnacle event of human history, is not the end of the story. It leads to new life. The old life? It is finished. […]
The Divine Wrath On The Suffering Servant
The Divine Wrath God’s divine wrath was exhibited at the Cross on Jesus Christ. This isn’t just a person being really, really, really mad at someone. This is the Creator of the 100 billion stars, every person who ever existed, and the Maker of sugar cane punishing all the sins of all of His sheep […]
Understanding Sin & The Need For Christ To Suffer
The Need For Christ To Suffer The need for Christ to suffer is solidly linked to what sin is. Christians, we really need to study our theology and therefore understand God more. From that, we need to understand sin better and just how terrible it is. It is antithetical to who God is and its […]
2 Functions Of Suffering In The Incarnation
Functions Of Suffering In The Incarnation Jesus clearly suffers during the events of the Crucifixion. He also suffers during His life. In comparison to being God and stepping down into this world in humiliation, He suffers greatly. However, are there functions of suffering in the Incarnation? In fact, there are a couple of reasons. Today’s […]
Did God Have To Suffer To Save Humanity?
Did God Have To Suffer To Save Humanity? As Christians, we focus on the Cross which is understandable. We talk about Jesus’ words, work, and suffering on the Cross. With Christ’s suffering, we even talk about the Passion of Jesus Christ. The question to ask is “Why?” Why suffer? Did God have to suffer to […]
Does God Have Feelings Like We Have Feelings?
Does God Have Feelings Like We Have Feelings? So if God does have feelings, does God have feelings like we have feelings? Or is it that what we ascribe to God as emotions are really just a way to relate to what events were going on around those times? Or are they rough approximations to […]
Does God Have Emotions?
Does God Have Emotions? The Bible is littered with God expressing love, anger, joy, sorrow, and grief. But does the Supreme Being of the universe have those things? Does God have emotions that we can identify? TIMELINE: 00:00 – Divine Impassibility 02:20 – Passions Vs. Affections 05:37 – God Is Not Shocked Today’s short clip […]
Did God Die?
Did God Die? When talking to Muslim apologists one of the questions you should expect is the question of, “Did God die?” To answer yes, is to admit that God can be ended by man. To answer no, is to deny Jesus either died or was God. However, like most things that are important in […]
The Temptation Of Christ
The Temptation Of Christ The Temptation Of Christ happens immediately after Christ’s first sermon to repent and announce the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand. Why is that account there? Why is it important? Because at the very beginning of Jesus’ ministry, He wants us to see how He will operate throughout his ministry and […]
What Does The Emptying Of Christ Mean?
The Emptying Of Christ The emptying of Christ is something often misunderstood. It’s understandable as the Incarnation is a unique event and one where analogy and metaphor fail earlier than in other times. And yet, we need to understand why Jesus doesn’t just walk around and call things into being randomly and snapping his fingers […]
Nihilist Albert Camus On How Christianity Solves The Problem Of Pain
Nihilist Albert Camus This is a really interesting take from Nihilist Albert Camus and how he saw that if the reality of Christianity was true then the problem of evil, pain, and suffering is answered! Today’s short clip comes from episode 172 which can be found here. Books mentioned in this episode: What about Evil? […]
Why God Had To Be Incarnate
God Had To Be Incarnate Why God had to be Incarnate is done so that God may be the most glorified. Its uniqueness preclude every single person in human history because it’s only something God can do. However, it is not so transcendent that we are unable to know about it or be a part […]
The Need For Jesus To Be Fully God & Fully Man
Fully God & Fully Man 50/50? Demigod? No real body only a spirit? A mixture? No, the need for Jesus to be fully God & fully man is centralized not in Greek philosophy but in the necessary conditions established by God in The Bible. TIMELINE: 00:00 – The Need For Jesus To Be Fully God […]
Council of Chalcedon Clarifies The Incarnation
Council of Chalcedon The Incarnation was so unique that the Council of Chalcedon was convened in 451 AD to reject heresy, clarify understanding, and consult the Scriptures to codify. This wasn’t a secret cabal of king-appointed scholars used to consolidate power. It wasn’t the mightiest faction winning out. This was one of many times church […]
The Usual Unusual Way God Deals With Evil
The Usual Unusual Way God Deals With Evil Scripture consistently shows the subverting of expectations that God engages in. The usual unusual way God deals with evil is by using unexpected means. He chooses the second born or the liar or the weakest person. Or He enters into His creation so that He can once […]
God’s Redemptive Glory In The Cross
Redemptive Glory In The Cross The pinnacle of human history. The peak of God’s creation. The most important scene in history is the death of Jesus the Messiah. What seems like the bottom valley of the story is actually the peak of God’s work in His Creation. God’s redemptive glory in the Cross shows the […]
God’s Redemptive Glory In Blindness & Raising The Dead
Redemptive Glory In Blindness Would giving sight to the blind and life to the dead show the glory and power of the one who gave it? It’s hard to not SEE it. God’s redemptive glory in blindness being healed and the dead life shows that evil has no power but allows for Him to give […]
God’s Redemptive Glory In John’s Gospel
Redemptive Glory In John’s Gospel God displays His redemptive glory in John’s Gospel. John decided to exemplify and uplift the divine nature of Jesus as the Christ. He rules over and deals with evil and sin as the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. Today’s short clip comes from episode 171 which can […]
Why Universal Atonement Is False According To Romans 9
Universal Atonement Is False Universal Atonement is false. Jesus talks about Hell and damnation. The imagery of the sheep and goats being separated in the next life. And here in Romans 9, we see the false hope of the false gospel of the belief that everyone is saved. And God has a reason for not […]
Romans 9, The Exodus, & God’s Purpose For Evil
Romans 9, The Exodus, & God When looking at questions of theodicy and the explanation of evil, Romans 9 is a key passage that answers a lot of questions. When asking “Why, God? Why, Us?!” Romans 9, The Exodus, & God’s freely dealing with evil should make our tone change, shift our focus, and ask […]
God Redeeming Evil In The Exodus & Passover
Redeeming Evil In The Exodus A touchstone in both the New & Old Testament is God redeeming evil in The Exodus and all the events leading to the Promised Land. This Pilgrim’s Progress for a people group, fulfilled in Christ, and exhibited constantly in the Church is of a particular manifestation and blessing unable to […]
God Redeeming Evil With Abraham & Future Generations
Redeeming Evil With Abraham The choosing of redeeming evil with Abraham is not something that happened because Abraham was a demigod or was a man of a mighty people, born and bred to rule the world. Abraham was from a small tribe from a pagan place called Ur who held nothing of significance and he […]
God Redeeming Evil In The Fall & The Flood
Redeeming Evil In The Fall & The Flood Redeeming evil in The Fall and The Flood is where the story immediately begins. There is no shying away from evil, the effects of evil, and God’s judgment of it. And yet, from this evil pops up qualities of God’s character we wouldn’t have been able to […]
Evil Allows God To Display His Glory More Fully
Display His Glory More Fully Evil allows God to display His glory in such a way that is unable to be viewed by His creation to a fuller extent. This is why the Greater-Glory Theodicy does what the other theodicies do not and fail to do. Now, the question is, is it Scriptural? Today’s short […]
4 Hopes God Gives Us When Evil Comes Into The World
4 Hopes God Gives Us Four hopes God gives us when evil is present are manifestations that are only possible when we see the character of God we would be unable to see without sin and evil in the world. TIMELINE: 00:00 – 4 Hopes Of The Greater-Glory Theodicy 02:16 – 1) Christ Bears Our […]
Yes, The Fall Of Adam & Eve Was Necessary
The Fall Of Adam & Eve Was Necessary So God can only exist and be Him if sin and evil are in the world? That’s not the argument. The key feature of the Greater-Glory Theodicy is the focus on the word “Glory” and then after that “Greater”. This focuses on why The Fall of Adam […]
The Location Of God’s Supreme Glory
Location Of God’s Supreme Glory The location of God’s supreme glory isn’t a spatial location but centered on a personal and unique Being. From this, we find the motivation for the infinite Godhead. Today’s short clip comes from episode 167 which can be found here. Books mentioned in this episode: What about Evil? A Defense […]
The Two Types Of Glories Of God
Two Types Of Glories There are two types of glories of God and The Bible presents both of them. To miss one is the deny important aspects, desires, and attributes of the Creator of the universe. LINKS: 05:06 – Did Moses See God Face To Face? – Bible Contradiction Explained! Today’s short clip […]
Here’s How You Can Lessen Life’s Pain With God
Evil’s Ultimate Purpose Life has pain in it. It has disease, death, heartbreak, liars, cheats, murderers, megalomaniacs, warmongers, and tax collectors. Yet, there is a way to lessen life’s pain with God as your focus. Today’s short clip comes from episode 167 which can be found here. Books mentioned in this episode: What about Evil? […]
God’s Ultimate Purpose Is Evil’s Ultimate Purpose
Evil’s Ultimate Purpose Evil’s ultimate purpose is to show the glory of God to His creation in a way that would not be possible otherwise. If we try and read The Bible seeing us as the main character we miss the point of the story. Focusing on Paris in Romeo & Juliet without realizing who […]
Glory Is God’s Ultimate End Especially With Evil
Glory Is God’s Ultimate End Glory is God’s ultimate end and He factors each part of reality to reflect it, exhibit it, magnify it. In the vastness of the universe, in the division of reality, in the Incarnation to destroy evil. Here is where God stands at the apex of all roads for us to […]
Is God Required To Save Anyone?
Is God Required To Save Anyone? God must give grace in order for anyone to come to salvation from sin. God is the sole source of that grace and there is only one path for salvation. If that’s the case, does that mean God is required to save anyone at all? TIMELINE: 00:00 – Is […]
Was Sin Necessary For This World To Be The Greatest Possible World?
Was Sin Necessary For This World So was sin necessary for this world to be the most magnifying for God’s glory? Did The Fall, sin, death, disease, pain in child birth, hard work, ruling over others all have a purpose and a place? Did the Son of God go to the Cross, having a perfect […]
Why There Is Evil – The Answer
Why There Is Evil – The Answer Evil didn’t sneak it. It didn’t pop into the universe. It didn’t take God by surprised. The answer to why there is evil is, like all things, tied to the character and nature and will of God. Why there is evil, the answer is made known to us. […]
Could God’s Story Been Good Without Evil? (Teaser)
Good Without Evil? (Teaser) So that’s God’s Story. The Book lays it out. It’s good and it’s complete. But could God’s Story been good without evil? That’s what’s coming up! Today’s short clip comes from episode 165 which can be found here. Books mentioned in this episode: What about Evil? A Defense of God’s Sovereign […]
Paradise Restored, No Longer Lost
Paradise Restored Where most stories decide to end with a “happily ever after” or “and everyone died and everyone else was very sad”, God’s story actually ends in a better standing than when it first started. It is not a return to the status quo. It is not just Paradise restored, but actually made greater […]
God’s Wars – Return Of The King
Return Of The King As we wait for the return of the King to happen, His subjects are called to declare His message that evil is waiting for its final days. The Church age is a time to declare that the King has already won and will soon come again. Evil is in a desperate […]
God’s Wars – The Return Of The Messiah
The Return Of The Messiah The long wait is over. The Messiah has come and – He’s cut down; dead. However – but – suddenly, the return of the Messiah as He rises again and He brings in a new Way that is more complete and sin and death are defeated. Here is the climax […]
God’s Wars – The Hebrew Hope
The Hebrew Hope While preparing His people and His Way, God offers the Hebrew hope. In a small nation, He grows a great people. From that great people, He preserves them. In their failure, He raises up boys, men, servants, women, and kings to point to the Incarnate God boy, the fully God and fully […]
God’s Wars – The Rise Of Redemption
The Rise Of Redemption The story is set and it doesn’t just end after Chapter 3! Here, God prophesizes the call for the rise of redemption. While looking forward to ultimate redemption occurring, we see glints of hope shine through the history of man. We see a lot of failure and evil. But we see […]
The Exposition Of God’s Story – The Creation & The Fall
The Exposition Of God’s Story The exposition of God’s story begins actually before everything. It ultimately starts with God. He exists already, is all-powerful, self-sustaining, and complete. From there, He makes everything and time – He sets the stage. Then He casts His actors – Adam and Eve. Then quickly He introduces the conflict – […]
God’s Glory Is Seen In Our Story Even With Evil
God’s Glory Is Seen In Our Story Even With Evil God’s glory is seen in our story even with evil. When we look at the whole story of human history (and even its future) we see that the Author of the story is using evil for an important purpose. From that evil we see character […]
The Bible Is The One, True Myth Story
The Bible Is The One, True Myth Story The Bible is the one true myth story. “Myth” here doesn’t mean a fake story like what we learned about in mythology class with Greek and Roman stories. The Bible just isn’t The Odyssey by Homer but longer. It is different than Pagan myths and offers up […]
The Importance Of Stories In The Bible To Explain Why Evil Exists
Stories In The Bible To Explain Why Evil Exists How many times have you been bored in a classroom or meeting? In dealing with learning math what’s something we hear a lot? “When are we going to use this?!” If you have a good teacher or good story problems, then explaining when you’ll use the […]
God’s Complete Worldview Monomyth Story
God’s Complete Worldview Monomyth Story Why does God’s story count as the first narrative and not one among many? The biggest distinction is what it results in that other stories are missing – a complete and consistent worldview. God’s complete worldview monomyth story is the source of truth. Today’s short clip comes from episode 163 […]
God Tells The Ultimate Story In Which All Other Stories Are Derived From
God Tells The Ultimate Story The structure of storytelling is a universal concept. It is shared across cultures, time settings, and people groups. God tells the ultimate story. God’s story of redemption, which also includes evil, is the source of this storytelling desire. It is a shared characteristic we have with the First Author. Today’s […]
All Stories Model After God’s Story Of Good & Evil
All Stories Model After God’s Story Freytag’s Pyramid provides a five-act structure that most comedies and tragedies are entrenched in. This pyramid is the same structure that we’ll look to explain why evil exists in God’s story as God’s story goes from a tragedy to a comedy. All stories model after God’s story. TIMELINE: 00:00 […]
Humanity’s Stories Are Derived From The Story Of Humanity As Told By God
The Story Of Humanity As Told By God The term “myth” has a colloquial understanding of being made up or fake. But that’s not the true meaning of the word. Myths are stories told in a worldview used to relay information to a group and that story is made to stick. This universal concept derives […]
Everyone Likes A Good Story – Even God
Everyone Likes A Good Story – Even God We use stories, not just in fiction form, but for the purposes to speak to the inherent nature of man that enjoys stories. We can learn about facts in school, in history, in the news but the stories that stick with us are told in a fashion […]
Men, Myth, & Legends – Humanity As Told In Stories
Humanity As Told In Stories Every culture, every society, every in-group has made and told stories for various reasons. Sometimes it’s to teach a lesson. Sometimes it’s to remember an important person. Sometimes it’s to entertain. Where does this universal concept and desire come from? As humans, we can trace it back right to our […]
The Fall Of Mankind Was Not An Accident
The Fall Of Mankind Was Not An Accident The Fall of mankind was not an accident. God had a plan from before the moment time began and is one of the reasons He made mankind. And as we learned from every Hallmark channel movie – God doesn’t make accidents. But what does Scripture say? Today’s […]
Is God Still Sovereign Or Responsible For The Fall Of Mankind?
Is God Responsible For The Fall Of Mankind? So if Adam and Eve pre-Fall is a possible issue, the question would be is God still responsible for the Fall of mankind? Is God still sovereign? TIMELINE: 00:00 – God Is Still Sovereign In The Fall Into Sin 05:43 – Was God The Direct Cause Of […]
The Biggest Problem With Compatibilism – The Fall Of Mankind
The Biggest Problem With Compatibilism The biggest problem with compatibilism is when dealing with Adam and Eve. When it comes to the discussion of moral responsibility the discussion of sinful man who desires to do evil makes the system coherent. But what if man doesn’t have sin – yet? TIMELINE: 00:00 – The Biggest Problem […]
Best Biblical Proof That God Is Not Morally Responsible For Evil But Does Decree It
God Is Not Morally Responsible For Evil God is not morally responsible for evil but does decree it. We don’t derive this from philosophical foundations but from biblical foundations. Genesis 50 is one of the clearest examples of God being the primary means and man as the secondary. The responsibility lies with man and the […]
The Nature Of God Allows Him To Be Free Of Evil
The Nature Of God Allows Him To Be Free Of Evil Tying together the who God is, the nature of His decrees, and the nature of moral responsibility we see that the nature of God allows Him to be free of evil. He is the creator of all things but He is not the author […]
Ought Does Not Imply Can
Ought Does Not Imply Can If there are things we OUGHT to do some things does that mean we CAN do those things? This seems to be a point against Reformed understanding of determinism. But this short video shows that ought does not imply can. Today’s short clip comes from episode 159 which can be […]
The Source Of Moral Responsibility In Evil
The Source Of Moral Responsibility In Evil When it comes to understanding the source of moral responsibility there are two main factors that establish that. One relates to knowledge and one to intentionality. TIMELINE: 00:00 – Moral Responsibility Is Tied To Intentions 01:29 – Knowledge Of Good & Evil 02:46 – Intentions Of The Heart […]
God Has No Evil Intentions In His Decrees
God Has No Evil Intentions Getting into the facts of how God can’t be blamed for puppeting people to sin against their will we look at an important fact. God has no evil intentions in His decrees. This isn’t a colloquial thought of “the road to Hell being paved with good intentions” but speaks about […]
God, Shakespeare, & Evil – Transcendence Over Evil
God, Shakespeare, & Evil The question of God being the alleged author of evil is nothing new. The Westminster Confession, Jonathan Edwards, & John Frame have all spoken on the fact that God is the allower of evil but not the author of sin. One way we can see this as being the case is […]
Is God Morally Culpable For Evil? (Teaser)
Is God Morally Culpable For Evil? (Teaser) We provide a summary of Chapter 8 and give a sneak peek of one of the best chapters of the whole book where we discuss is God morally culpable for evil – teaser video. Today’s short clip comes from episode 158 which can be found here. Books mentioned […]
God’s Good In The Greatest Evil To Ever Happen – EVER!
The Greatest Evil If we want to look at the best example of the maximum amount of evil to take place, we don’t need to turn to the holocaust or starving children, or communist dictators. The Bible gives us the best example of God’s good in the greatest evil even in human history – the […]
The Decree Of Evil Consistent With The Nature Of God
The Decree Of Evil The decree of evil was allowed to come into the world because of who God is and what His will entails. This is where libertarian free will and atheists try to find fault; however just because you might not like God’s revealed will and sovereignty over ALL of creation doesn’t mean […]
God Restrains Evil
God Restrains Evil On the opposite end of the spectrum for those who are hesitant in saying that God allows evil to take place is the fact that God restrains evil from occurring. The Bible talks about the desires of man’s heart being evil and that God actually steps in and restrains the maturation of […]
God’s Divine Hardening & Evil
God’s Divine Hardening One of the ways that the Bible speaks about God being active in the allowance of evil is in God’s divine hardening. The biggest example of this is Pharaoh in continually withholding the freedom of the Hebrews from captivity. TIMELINE: 00:00 – Divine Hardening & Evil 03:06 – Pharaoh & Divine Hardening […]
God Has A Specific Hand Of Control Over Evil In Job
The Bible Talks About God Being In Control Of Evil One of the biggest examples in all of Scripture of God being in control of evil is the book of Job. In it; we see God as sovereign, God as controller, and God as planner to use evil for His purpose and His glory. The […]
The Bible Talks About God Being In Control Of Evil
The Bible Talks About God Being In Control Of Evil We must speak as The Bible speaks. We must view God as The Bible reveals Him. And in The Bible it does not shy away from the fact that God uses and has a plan for every evil act and intention of man and nature. […]
Understanding God’s Sovereignty To Understand The Role Of Evil
Understanding God’s Sovereignty When it comes to the existence, spread, and degree of evil, understanding God’s sovereignty comes right into full-frame. Having a proper understanding of God’s sovereignty is needed to fully address the “problem of evil” and a proper theodicy. Today’s short clip comes from episode 157 which can be found here. Books mentioned […]
Understanding God’s Goodness, Holiness, & Righteousness To Understand The Role Of Evil
Biblical Proof For Compatibilism Divine Simplicity is often misunderstood. God is not made up of parts but each characteristic He holds, He holds in perfect and completeness and in balance with every other characteristic. To inform us about God’s sovereignty that will help us to understand His rule over evil, we can understand God’s goodness, […]
How God’s Choosing & Man’s Choosing Relates To The Role Of Evil (Teaser)
Biblical Proof For Compatibilism A teaser looking at what the next chapter will bring like, “Can man choose evil and still be held responsible?” and “Is God evil for allowing a world to choose evil”. Choosing relates to the role of evil in some way. Today’s short clip comes from episode 156 which can be […]
Biblical Proof For Compatibilism
Biblical Proof For Compatibilism We take a small look at the biblical proof for compatibilism. As Scripture is our sole rule of faith and because of it, we are able to understand all things we come upon in God’s world. Today’s short clip comes from episode 156 which can be found here. Books mentioned in […]
Compatibilism As Seen In The Real World
Compatibilism As Seen In The Real World Compatibilism as seen in the real world can be pulled not just in strictly secular ways. We can see it in the understanding of economic processes like praxiology in Austrian Economic theory. But we can also see it in the Golden Rule. Treating others like how we want […]
What About Compatibilism?
Compatibilism Compatibilism is the key. But what about compatibilism? We look at what the concept is and try and break down what can be a difficult concept. A concept which even many secular thinkers believe is the correct outlook. However, when it comes to the nature of the mind, a greater Mind must be what […]
Can God Choose & Man Choose The Same Action?
Choose The Same Action Digging into the true understanding of free will in the Reformed perspective, we see that when it comes to God & man, they can choose the same action and it is not contradictory. This isn’t an immovable object and unstoppable force. This is where libertarian free will have to hinder God. […]
Understanding God’s Providence To Understand The Role Of Evil
Understanding God’s Providence When most people think about God acting in the world or in history they most likely think of miracle actions taken by God. While these direct actions are God entering into the world in some fashion they are rare. However, understanding God’s Providence is the nature by which God enters and sustains […]
God Is Sovereign – In None, Part, Or All?
God Is Sovereign The quality that would be most beneficial to focus on is the fact that God is sovereign. He is God. He exists apart from His creation. Nothing exists that He didn’t make. He’s responsible. But how sovereign is God? And what does that level of sovereignty speak to about our theodicy? TIMELINE: […]
The Gulf Between God & Man – Not Too Big To Understand
Not Too Big To Understand On the opposite end, from God being incomprehensible is the fact that He is not too big to understand. The image of God infused in our nature and the supreme power of God allows Him to communicate with us and relate to us in some fashion. This type of communication […]
The Incomprehensible, Transcendent Lord Of All Even In An Evil World
The Incomprehensible Transcendent Lord Probably one of the hardest qualities of God to understand – is the incomprehensible, transcendent Lord. It’s not just a slight against us and our intellect but a quality we would want to exist in the nature of God. Today’s short clip comes from episode 155 which can be found here. […]
The Magnificence Of God To Help Understand The Problem Of Evil
The Magnificence Of God When we hear “God is magnificent” we probably actually hear “God’s pretty cool”. The biblical quality of magnificence of God stems from His transcendent sovereignty and informs our ideas about how to deal with the problem of evil. TIMELINE: 00:00 – Secondary Characteristics From Transcendent Sovereignty 03:57 – The Magnificence Of […]
God As Transcendent Is Important With The Problem Of Evil
God As Transcendent What does it mean that God as transcendent and why is it important? Why do the qualities like sustainer, possesser, and creator of all things; Supreme Lordship; Infinite; Eternal; Compatible with human freedom have to inform us about the problem with evil? That’s what we’re building to. Today’s short clip comes from […]
Why Hell Is The Way It Is
Why Hell Is The Way It Is Why Hell is the way it is can often be misunderstood. We have images from Dante’s Inferno and cartoons and caricatures of fire and brimstone preachers. However, the second death is presented in a less cartoonish form and shows the contrast of this life with God’s common grace […]
What About Hell?
What About Hell? Taking this opportunity to address the important question of “what about Hell?” seems to fit well here. With some critics decrying that it’s not fair or that Hell is evil, we see that fairness isn’t really desired or we’d be in bigger trouble than we area. From our creaturely domain, we have […]
Why Evil Affecting The “Innocent” Is Actually Fair
Why Evil Affecting The “Innocent” Is Actually Fair Another objection to the divine-judgment defense is that it doesn’t really explain why evil affecting the “innocent” is actually fair. The Bible does give us a reason for why this is the case but the defense does not. TIMELINE: 00:00 – Objection 4 – Evil Affects The […]
Helping Leibniz – Preserving God’s Freedom In Creation With Evil
Helping Leibniz Here we are helping Leibniz with his best possible world defense by better grounding his theory in the nature of God. Here, we don’t have a theory that forces God to act but instead preserves His freedom to create and to bring about His creation in the way He sees fit. TIMELINE: 00:00 […]
The Best Possible World Has Evil In It
Best Possible World Has Evil A very popular theodicy is one where the best possible world has evil in it. Here, a principled stance on the character and nature of God flows to a creation and existence of evil in a deductive, logical format. TIMELINE: 00:00 – The Best-Of-All-Possible-Worlds Defense 02:14 – The Purpose Of […]
Objections To The Soul Making Theodicy
Objections To The Soul-Making Theodicy Where the fault in the Soul-Making Theodicy lies is that it doesn’t really help us in explaining specific examples of evil. We see the evil prosper and evil acts committed that don’t seem to build character. And while a Christian’s soul may be made better, one of the big objections […]
Evil Exists Because Stories Without Evil To Overcome Are Boring
Stories Without Evil To Overcome Are Boring The Soul-Making Theodicy gives an accounting for evil in that God uses it to hone and forge a person into a better form than when he/she started. We see this in pretty much every book, show, movie, or song that resonates with us. When people speak of the […]
The Ultimate Good From The Ultimate Evil – The Death Of Jesus Christ
The Ultimate Good From The Ultimate Evil Should we just give up and do the utmost evil possible? That way God can bring about an even greater good? Scripture tells us not to do that specifically. However, one of the surest ways we can see that good can come from evil is to look at […]
Unaccounted For Evil Exists In The Greater-Good Theodicy
Unaccounted For Evil Exists One of the biggest objections to the Greater-Good Theodicy is that unaccounted for evil exists. That is, gratuitous evil seems to escape a resulting good. One of the possible solutions put forth is the idea of being a skeptical theism defender. TIMELINE: 00:00 – Objection 3 – Gratuitous Evil Exists 03:04 […]
God As Author Of Evil & Can We Know Good Results?
Can We Know Good Results? A couple of issues that come up from the Greater-Good Theodicy is it seems to make God the author of evil and that sometimes we can’t even see the good that comes from the evil. Again, not being the solution solver that God is, we have a difficult perspective to […]
The Theory That Greater Good Can Come From Evil
The Greater-Good Theodicy Here’s an overview look at what the theory that greater good can come from evil. This theodicy says that God is able to draw out of evil a greater amount of good than evil was able to take. TIMELINE: 00:00 – The Greater-Good Theodicy 03:37 – Second-Order Goods Come From First Order […]
Two Practical Examples Where Natural Law & Free Will Defenses Fail
Natural Law & Free Will Defenses Fail Free will and natural law seem like they work well. We want them to work as 21st-century independent thinkers. The thing is, though, we aren’t independent. We are the created creatures of the God who creates ex nihilo – out of nothing. We don’t start independently and we […]
How Natural Law Defense Helps Free Will
Natural Law Helps Free Will Natural Law defense goes hand-in-hand with free will. While free will attempts to handle the human factor of evil, natural law deals with the, well, natural evil in the world. Floods, tornados, thorns, child-birth pain need to be accounted for to “get God off the hook”. This is how natural […]
One’s View Of Free Will Can’t Compromise The Revealed Character Of God
Can’t Compromise The Revealed Character Of God While this is a philosophy podcast, we’ve always made clear that philosophy is not the ultimate standard. Philosophy apart from God’s revelation for the Christian is not a Christian position. Yes, philosophy is true. However, the philosophy is only true when it’s tied to the thoughts of God […]
Different Theories Free Will Theists Use To Explain Gratuitous Evil
Free Will Allows Gratuitous Evil There are three main theories that free will theists put forward to explain gratuitous evil. Two of them seem very outlandish and are hard to sway with the testimony of Scripture. The other theory is more plausible – however, problems still arise. TIMELINE: 00:00 – Theory 1 – God Cannot […]
Free Will Allows Gratuitous Evil
Free Will Allows Gratuitous Evil Narrowing in on the problem of evil, free will tried to answer the call to explain the answer. However, what we get with that answer is unattached evil – bad things that happen without good resulting in the end. And that evil, seems to be independent of God and God’s […]
Problems With Molinism & Middle Knowledge
Problems With Molinism & Middle Knowledge There are problems with Molinism & middle knowledge. What’s introduced are still the issues of simple divine foreknowledge but also a false sense of real freedom. And probably one of the biggest is not having the ability to ground the foreknowledge. It seems God must play the hand that […]
Molinism & Middle Knowledge Tries To Save Human Freedom & God’s Foreknowledge
Molinism & Middle Knowledge One of the most popular free will stances is that of Molinism and middle knowledge of God. This theory, touted by those like William Lane Craig, is an attempt to save both human free will and God’s ability to have foreknowledge. This counter-Reformation theory from a Roman Catholic of Molinism & […]
Does Open Theism Save God Choosing & Free Will For Humans?
Open Theism You may or may not have heard of open theism before. One of the reasons is that supporters of open theism redefines who God is in some major ways. What this view shows is just how tightly some view the need to maintain a hold on human freedom that they attempt to dethrone […]
Simple Foreknowledge Attempts To Regain Free Will Standing
Simple Foreknowledge One of the responses to the problems of free will having a direct impact on God’s foreknowledge is the Arminian camp’s response of simple foreknowledge. Here God decrees what He sees when he looks down the corridors of time. There are a whole host of problems with this view – internally, with God’s […]
Free Will Doesn’t Account For God’s Foreknowledge
Free Will Doesn’t Account For God’s Foreknowledge A big issue with those who believe in libertarian free will is when it comes to what God knows and how He knows it. If free will is accurate then how is God able to make true and accurate predictions of future events like the prophecies of the […]
Why Can’t Humans Be Free To Choose Only Good Choices?
Choose Only Good Choices? An area free will advocates have a hard time explaining is why does the ability to do evil needed if you could choose between only good choices. There you’d have the ability to choose between alternative possibilities but only good ones. Why can’t we choose only good choices? Today’s short clip […]
Is God Not Able To Love Without The Ability To Hate Within The Trinity?
Is God Not Able To Love Within The Trinity? One of the biggest arguments free will advocates have is to claim that in order for real love to exist that it has to occur within the confines of libertarian free will. Without that absolute freedom then love is diluted or forced or compelled. So does […]
If Free Will Is So Important, Why Doesn’t God Have It?
Why Doesn’t God Have It? If free will is such an important characteristic to allow beings to have real choices then clearly God has that quality, right? God has to have the ability to make wrong choices or alternative choices for His actions to be truly free. But we don’t see that in Scripture. If […]
Free Will Renders Decision Making Arbitrary
Free Will Renders Decision Making Arbitrary If we are free to make alternative choices and nothing influences us to make those choices, then how do we make decisions when it comes to what we can choose? It seems that free will renders decision making arbitrary. But we don’t see our decisions as arbitrary and it […]
Free Will Undermines The Doctrine Of Depravity
Free Will Undermines The Doctrine Of Depravity Another issue with wanting to believe in free will is that free will undermines the doctrine of depravity. Not that we are as bad as we can possibly be but that we are wholely enslaved to sin. This is a clear teaching of Scripture. Salvation, likewise, is a […]
Free Will Denies God’s Providence
Free Will Denies God’s Providence Along the lines of free will not being biblical, free will denies God’s providence as revealed in the Bible. The constraint that free will advocates have to force God into appears to be in opposition to the characteristics and nature of who God is. Today’s short clip comes from episode […]
Free Will Is Not Biblical
Free Will Is Not Biblical The biggest hurdle for Christians for using free will as an explanation for why evil exists is that free will is not biblical. While there are many great Christians that believe the explanation is able to be found in Scripture, the Reformed perspective offers a more consistent and better explanation […]
What Is God’s Relationship To Free Will Beings Like?
God’s Relationship To Free Will Beings Here we have to ask then what is God’s relationship to free will beings like? Do the outcomes of this belief show us what is revealed in Scripture or does it present a different idea of God that is dependent and genuflect before His creation? Today’s short clip comes […]
Are Humans Able To Choose Alternative Choices?
Able To Choose Alternative Choices? Getting into the details of libertarian free will we see if we are able to choose alternative choices. Free will advocates would point to this as a logical and necessary ramification from being created with free will. We see that there are three benefits the free will advocates would point […]
Does Free Will & Natural Law Explain Evil?
Does Free Will & Natural Law Explain Evil? The free will defense has done a lot in answering the logical problems of evil. While determinism has become more popular in the past decade among academics, the culture at large still has the embracing of people wanting to have free will. So what is it and […]
The Difference Between A Theodicy & A Defense
The Difference Between A Theodicy & A Defense We cover the difference between a theodicy and a defense as one implies an offensive answer and the other provides a defensive answer. Going forward in the book, this distinction will help keep terms clear. Today’s short clip comes from episode 145 which can be found here. […]
Two Things An Answer To Evil Must Have
Two Things An Answer To Evil Must Have We look at the important point of the outcome we’re looking to achieve. A theodicy must include two main answers in order to be worth its salt as an answer to the problem of evil. Two things an answer to evil must have are an accounting for […]
Moving Away From The Logical Problem Of Evil To Other Claims
Moving Away From The Logical Problem Of Evil There are also evidential and emotional claims about evil that try and undermind the idea of God. These tend to be more employed in day-to-day conversations than what many academics would consider the “stronger” logical problems. There is a moving away from the logical problem of evil […]
Secular Morality Of Moral Realism – A Position Without A Standard
Moral Realism – A Position Without A Standard If not adopting moral nihilism, one is probably going to embrace moral realism – a position without a standard. To say there are objective moral realities in the world that are consistent and maybe even knowable is really hard to make a case for. There might be […]
The Unwanted Logical Conclusion To Secular Morality – Moral Nihilism
Secular Morality – Moral Nihilism One of the most consistent solutions to the outcome of secular morality – moral nihilism – is not something most secularists want to admit to or embrace. Who can blame them? But to say there are no standards to moral claims and they are just a facade of human survival […]
The Burden Of Proof For The Answer To Evil
Burden Of Proof For Evil The burden of proof for the answer to evil actually resides on both sides of the Christian and non-Christian worldviews. Everyone has some response to why things are the way they are and distortions to good or pleasure or whatever standard one may adopt. The secular side may want to […]
Biblical Understanding Of Evil Concerning Human Flourishing & Distortion Of Good
Human Flourishing While the secular attempt to define evil tries to use human flourishing & distortion of good as an attempted standard, the Biblical response concerning them is a much better and grounded one. Whereas human flourishing is really hard to put a pin on in the changing tides of society standards. Christian, even if […]
Different Definitions Of Evil Comes Down To Different Grounding Points
Different Definitions Of Evil Here again, we highlight the importance of definitions; especially when it comes to the different definitions of evil. It is fine if people have different definitions of words as long as they understood to be taken with that definition and not conflated for another one midstream. Where the stream starts, however, […]