LEAVE THIS PAGE BLANK UNTIL WE WATCH THE VIDEO. This page is only included to allow you to print it in advance and to use when watching the video next week. For now, just skip down to question 1, below. VIDEO NOTES Session 2 : Our duty to make the case for Christianity Jesus: If you don t believe Me, believe the evidence. Three types of faith: 1) Unreasonable 2) Blind: 3) Forensic: Evidence doesn t answer everything; we still need faith. Page 1
Discussion Questions: Chapter 1 Distinctive Duty: 1. Some religious systems are based purely on the, proverbial statements of their. Although Christianity makes its own ideological and philosophical claims, these proposals are intrinsically to a singular validating : the of Jesus Christ. 2. What s the answer to the question, Why should anyone believe what Jesus said rather than what Buddha, the Hindu sages, or Confucius said? a. 3. The Christian s claims are claims. Christianity is established on the basis of an in. This kind of is a Judeo-Christian distinctive. [580] 4. Mormonism is also based on claims of events. Why doesn t that make Mormonism equally valid? a. 5. Why does Wallace say that Christianity encourages rational exploration and reasonable examination.? a. 6. Wallace claims that Christianity is, and it s our Christian duty to and what we so we can be fully convinced. 7. The Bible calls us to be. The biblical authors confidently challenged us to their claims. The writers of Scripture had nothing to. Page 2
8. Speaking of Jesus as the first case maker, Wallace writes, He didn t expect His followers to believe what He said (direct evidence) without good (the support of indirect evidence). Jesus continually supported His testimony with the evidence of the miracles He performed. 9. Jesus was so committed to this evidential approach that He stayed with the disciples for over a month following His resurrection to give them additional : 10. Given all the possible ways they could have shared the message of the gospel, the apostles chose to make the case based on the of their own observations. 11. Wallace calls the gospel writers and Paul the canonical case makers and explains that, mattered to the believers. They trusted the accounts offered by John and Matthew` because these men knew Jesus personally. These disciples provided evidence ( testimony) in their gospels. Luke s gospel was embraced by the early church on the basis of Luke s evidential, approach. Luke interviewed the and included their. 12. Who was Papias of Hierapolis and why does it matter? a. Hint: (http://bibleresources.americanbible.org/resource/papias-of-hierapolis) 13. What amazing claim was made by Quadratus of Athens and to whom did he make it? a. Page 3
14. What amazing claim was made by Aristides of Athens and to whom did he make it? a. 15. Speaking of other canonical case makers, Wallace says, We could easily fill this book with of fascinating stories of Christianity s historic, 16. If some of us are equipped to be evangelists (and if some are not), Wallace asks, How, then, are we supposed to the Great Commission if only some of us are evangelists? 17. How did Peter answer that question? a. 1 Peter 3:15-16 18. Arguing for the importance of every Christian being prepared to defend the faith, Wallace writes, We re in a growingly environment. Fewer Americans identify themselves as Christians than ever before, more young Christians are walking away from the church than in prior generations, Christian values are more fervently under attack, and atheistic skepticism is more and. The trajectory doesn t favor Christianity, 19. Jesus did not affirm the notion of blind faith, and He didn t ask us to believe something unsupported by the. 20. What is forensic faith when compared to unreasonable faith and blind faith? a. 21. We hold a forensic belief when we believe something because it is the most inference from, even though we may still have some questions. Page 4
22. In order to hold his prior unreasonable (naturalistic) view of world, Wallace says he had to the evidence and accept atheistic explanations for the complex in the genetic code, the in the universe, the appearance of in biology, and the existence of minds and mental free agency 23. For clarification, he then says, let me make something very clear: I do believe in what some Christians call the witness of the. 24. But Wallace blind faith was a Christian requirement. But he goes on to say, The New Testament proved me. He was repeatedly encouraged and by the evidential approach taken by, the, and the of the New Testament. Jesus asked His follower to believe because of the ; 25. Addressing the elephant in the room question that causes considerable controversy, Wallace asks, If God calls His chosen, can t He achieve this without any case-making effort on our part? 26. Even though God is clearly sovereign, He graciously me to a in reaching David. I got to make the for what I know is true about salvation, and in the process, my grew as I mastered the for Christianity. God s sovereign purposes and amazing love were ultimately expressed both in the son He called and in the son He encouraged. 27. How would you respond if someone objects to apologetics by saying we deny God s sovereignty, that only God can save anyone? a. Page 5