Facing The Gates

If Christianity were true, why are there so many non-Christians living better lives than the Christians? If Christianity were true, why has the institutional church supported war, injustice, and violence over the years? Even if Christian teaching has much to offer, why would we want to be together with so many smug, self-righteous, dangerous fanatics? Today we’re going to talk about that.

SOURCE:

The Reason for God - Tim Keller

CONTACT INFO:

Email: [email protected]

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FacingTheGates

Twitter: https://twitter.com/FacingTheGates

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/facingthegates/

How can any one religion claim to have the absolute, exclusive, salvific truth? Isn’t that intolerant? It's a big claim and can come off as egotistical that someone could make a metaphysical assertion with certainty like that. Today, we’re going to talk about the problem of exclusivity in Christianity.

SOURCES:

Tim Keller - Exclusivity: How can there be just one true religion? | https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/timothy-keller/exclusivity-how-can-there-be-35sc9_umN0D/

Tim Keller - The Reason for God

The Size and Distribution of the World’s Christian Population - Pew Research Center | https://www.pewforum.org/2011/12/19/global-christianity-exec/

China's Communist leaders fear Christian population may reach 300 million by 2030 - The Christian Post | https://www.christianpost.com/news/chinas-communist-leaders-fear-christians-may-rise-to-30-million.html

Unbelievable? - Are there many paths to God? John Hick vs Chris Sinkinson | https://www.premierchristianradio.com/Shows/Saturday/Unbelievable/Episodes/Unbelievable-Are-there-many-paths-to-God-John-Hick-vs-Chris-Sinkinson-Classic-Replay

CONTACT INFO:

Email: [email protected]

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FacingTheGates

Twitter: https://twitter.com/FacingTheGates

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/facingthegates/

The Old Testament is notoriously difficult to read without proper context and can be a barrier-of-entry for people who aren’t Christians. Even people who are Christians sometimes struggle to make sense of God’s character in the Old Testament. In this episode, we’re going to discuss the type of slavery described in the Old Testament & the controversial command of God for Israel to wage war on the Canaanites.

SOURCE:

Paul Copan - Is God a Moral Monster? Making Sense of the Old Testament God

CONTACT INFO:

Email: [email protected]

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FacingTheGates

Twitter: https://twitter.com/FacingTheGates

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/facingthegates/

The Old Testament is notoriously difficult to read without proper context and can be a barrier-of-entry for people who aren’t Christians. Even people who are Christians sometimes struggle to make sense of God’s character in the Old Testament. In this episode, we’re going to cover topics of God’s wrath, the shortcomings of the Old Testament heroes, the strange laws of the Jewish people, and what seems on the surface to be a passage about child sacrifice.

SOURCE:

Paul Copan - Is God a Moral Monster? Making Sense of the Old Testament God

CONTACT INFO:

Email: [email protected]

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FacingTheGates

Twitter: https://twitter.com/FacingTheGates

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/facingthegates/

How can it be possible for an all-loving God to send people to hell, a place of torment, for all eternity? Even if it were possible, why would anyone worship this tyrannical and sadistic being? This is the monotheistic doctrine of hell, and it is the subject of today’s discussion.

SOURCES:

The Reason for God - Tim Keller

23 Minutes in Hell - Bill Weise

The Rich Man and Lazarus - Luke 16:19-31 | https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2016%3A19-31&version=ESV

The Great Divorce - C.S. Lewis

CONTACT INFO:

Email: [email protected]

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FacingTheGates

Twitter: https://twitter.com/FacingTheGates

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/facingthegates/

If God exists, why isn’t that self-evident? Why isn’t there a neon sign in the sky saying “God exists” or a physical God residing somewhere on earth? Why do we have to have philosophical debates to determine the answer to a very simple question? If God really exists, why isn’t it more obvious? Today we’re going to talk about that.

CONTACT INFO:

Email: [email protected]

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FacingTheGates

Twitter: https://twitter.com/FacingTheGates

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/facingthegates/

SOURCES:

Divine Hiddenness: A Christian Response - Inspiring Philosophy | https://youtu.be/3YvXeLtdVBE

34 Bible Verses About God Hiding - Knowing Jesus | https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/topics/God-Hiding

How can an all-good, all-loving, omnipotent and omniscient God allow suffering? Is He capable of stopping it and chooses not to? Or is He not all-good/all-loving? Today we’re going to talk about that.

CONTACT INFO:

Email: [email protected]

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FacingTheGates

Twitter: https://twitter.com/FacingTheGates

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/facingthegates/

SOURCES:

Tim Keller - Suffering: If God is good, why is there so much evil in the world? | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZaOjKoAVyE

Philosophize This! - Episode #15 … A Period of Transition: Plotinus | https://www.philosophizethis.org/podcast/plotinus-a-period-of-transition

God’s Response to Job - Job 38-40 | https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Job+38-40&version=ESV

Inspiring Philosophy - The Problem of Evil: A Christian Response | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ei0gPoqx_bQ

August Burns Red - Beauty in Tragedy | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-noYJ459dE

Ask NT Wright Anything - #38 Lockdown Livestream | https://www.premierchristianradio.com/Shows/Weekday/Ask-NT-Wright-Anything/Podcast/Ask-NT-Wright-Anything-38-Lockdown-livestream-Tom-answers-questions-on-Facebook-Live

C.S. Lewis - Mere Christianity

“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” - Matthew 27:46 | https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2027%3A46&version=ESV

What Christianity Ultimately Points To - Revelation 20-22 | https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Revelation%2020-22&version=ESV

Over the past several episodes, we have analyzed the case for Christianity. A case that explains how the Bible was written, canonized, and translated; a case that shows we can trust the New Testament and that its claims about Jesus are reliable; a case that argues for the validity of the Resurrection; as well as a case that reveals the cost of Chistianity and its lasting impact on society. Today, we’re going to look at our final case: Why Christianity over other religions?

CONTACT INFO:

Email: [email protected]

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FacingTheGates

Twitter: https://twitter.com/FacingTheGates

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/facingthegates/

SOURCES:

The Top 40 Messianic Prophecies - Jews for Jesus | https://jewsforjesus.org/answers/top-40-most-helpful-messianic-prophecies/

Josephus and Jesus - North American Mission Board | https://www.namb.net/apologetics/resource/josephus-and-jesus/

Why Muslims Are The World’s Fastest-Growing Religious Group - Pew Research Center | https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/04/06/why-muslims-are-the-worlds-fastest-growing-religious-group/

References to Jews in the Quran - Jewish Virtual Library | https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/references-to-jews-in-the-koran

Three Quran Verses Every Christian Should Know - David Wood | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n5Nu6EabQD8

Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus: A Devout Muslim Encounters Christianity | Nabeel Qureshi

Who Killed Muhammad? - David Wood | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6st_tFj6ouM

What Happened When Jesus Died? An Open Forum - Tim Keller | https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/timothy-keller/what-happened-when-jesus-87yxCiQEJZN/

“Father, Forgive Them” - Luke 23:34 | https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2023%3A34&version=ESV

Oftentimes we hear about how God became man, performed miracles, was crucified, rose again, and usually the story ends there. But what happened after Jesus’ ascension? Today we’re going to talk about the early Christian martyrs, the effects Christianity had on the world at large, and what it all points to.

CONTACT INFO

Email: [email protected]

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FacingTheGates

Twitter: https://twitter.com/FacingTheGates

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/facingthegates/

SOURCES

The Death of John the Baptist - Matthew | https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2014%3A1-12&version=ESV

The Death of John the Baptist - Mark | https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%206%3A14-29&version=ESV

St. Stephen - Britannica | https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Stephen

Stephen’s Speech & The Stoning of Stephen - Acts | https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Acts%207&version=ESV

Saint Peter the Apostle - Britannica | https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Peter-the-Apostle

Who Was Andrew the Apostle? - Overview Bible | https://overviewbible.com/andrew-the-apostle/

Who Was Saint James? - Overview Bible | https://overviewbible.com/saint-james/

Saint John the Apostle - Britannica | https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-John-the-Apostle

Saint Philip the Apostle - Britannica | https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Philip-the-Apostle

Who Was Bartholomew the Apostle? - Overview Bible | https://overviewbible.com/bartholomew-the-apostle/

Apostle Thomas - Kat Cendana | https://amazingbibletimeline.com/blog/apostle-thomas/

Who Was Matthew the Apostle? - Overview Bible | https://overviewbible.com/matthew-the-apostle/

Who Was James Son of Alphaeus? - Overview Bible | https://overviewbible.com/james-son-of-alphaeus/

Who Was Jude the Apostle - Overview Bible | https://overviewbible.com/jude-the-apostle/

Saint Simon the Apostle - Britannica | https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Simon-the-Apostle

The Death of Judas - Inspiring Philosophy | https://youtu.be/2_01suXK8lg

Who Was Matthias the Apostle? - Overview Bible | https://overviewbible.com/matthias-the-apostle/

Saint Paul the Apostle - Britannica | https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Paul-the-Apostle

Philippians 3:4-6 | https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Philippians%203%3A4-6&version=ESV

Galatians 1:13-14 | https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Galatians%201%3A13-14&version=ESV

The Truth About The Twelve Apostles Revealed - Grunge | https://youtu.be/3KnoAwh9cCs

How The 12 Apostles Died - Motive Scholars | https://youtu.be/uAd0Xr0uM9g

Murderous Games: Gladiatorial Contests in Ancient Rome - History Today | https://www.historytoday.com/archive/murderous-games-gladiatorial-contests-ancient-rome

Why Science & Secularism Come From Christianity - Capturing Christianity | 

https://youtu.be/Lehk-ZSsbpI

Dominion: How the Christian Revolution Remade the World | Tom Holland

Religious Quotations by Abraham Lincoln | http://www.abrahamlincolnonline.org/lincoln/speeches/faithquotes.htm

What Christianity Ultimately Points To - Revelation 20-22 | https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Revelation%2020-22&version=ESV

Did Jesus really rise from the dead? If so, this changes everything and we should follow him. If not, Christianity is entirely in vain, as Paul said. What evidence do we have that Jesus really did raise from the dead? In this second part, we’re going to look at the remaining historical claims surrounding the resurrection, and then put those various theories under the microscope to come to a conclusion about what really happened.

CONTACT INFO

Email: [email protected]

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FacingTheGates

Twitter: https://twitter.com/FacingTheGates

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/facingthegates/

SOURCES

Jesus Wasn't the Only Man to Be Crucified. Here's the History Behind This Brutal Practice - Live Science | https://www.livescience.com/65283-crucifixion-history.html#:~:text=In%20Rome%2C%20the%20crucifixion%20process,and%20hung%20from%20the%20cross.&text=At%20this%20time%2C%20the%20victims,times%2C%20according%20to%20the%20report.

Jesus’s Brothers Didn’t Believe - John 7:5 | https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John+7%3A5&version=ESV

Simon of Cyrene Carries Jesus’ Cross - Mark 15:21 | https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%2015%3A21&version=ESV

Inspiring Philosophy - The Resurrection of Jesus (The Historical Evidence) | https://youtu.be/A0iDNLxmWVM

Tim Keller - What Happened When Jesus Died? An Open Forum | https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/timothy-keller/what-happened-when-jesus-87yxCiQEJZN/

Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane - Matthew 26:39 | https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+26%3A39&version=ESV