Thinking to Believe

In this first episode of the detailed analysis of the Kalam cosmological argument, I provide four reasons for thinking that premise 1 is true ("Anything that begins to exist requires a cause"). 

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My third argument for God’s existence is the Kalam cosmological argument. In this 1-N-Done episode, I summarize the argument. I will explore the argument in-depth starting next week. 

The essence of the Kalam cosmological argument is that temporally finite things require a cause for their existence. Since the universe began to exist in the finite past, it also requires a cause. An examination of the properties required of such a cause match the properties of the theistic God.

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My second argument for God's existence is the Argument from the Impossibility of Nothingness. This is a lesser-known argument for God's existence, but I think it is quite powerful.

The essence of the argument: If there was ever a time when nothing existed, there would still be nothing now because nothing has no potential to become something. And yet something exists, so there could never be a time in the past when nothing existed. Something must have always existed. The universe is not that something since physical reality came into existence at the Big Bang, so the eternal something must transcend physical reality. The eternal something must be immaterial, spaceless, and eternal, which is a basic description of God.

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My first argument for God's existence is the argument from personal experience. The essence of the argument is that if one has an experience of God, then God must exist. I argue that this experience is not aimed at convincing atheists of God's existence so much as it is demonstrating that theists who believe in God based on experience are rational for doing so. I end the episode by examining a few common objections raised against the argument, including the "well, then, why haven't I experienced God?" objection.

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I begin the conversation on theism, looking specifically at the relationship between reason and belief in God. I discuss two kinds of reasons, explain why empirical evidence is not required for belief in God, discuss whether we can prove God's existence, discuss how best to argue for God’s existence, and why we need to make people want God to exist before we give them evidence that He exists. 

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I show the connection between moral rebellion and atheism (the third reason for atheism), develop a Biblical theology of atheism, and address the objection that atheists don’t exist and thus an apologetic for theism is pointless. 

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I argue against the notion that atheism is the default position unless and until theists can provide sufficient evidence that God exists. I also look at two reasons people become atheists: rational reasons, emotional reasons. 

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This is the first episode in a new series on God's existence. I will provide evidence for the existence of God. This episode gives an overview of what I will cover. I begin by examining agnosticism and atheism. I address the recent attempt to redefine atheism. 

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Email: [email protected]
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Truth: @ThinkingToBelieve
Parler: @thinkingtobelieve

My second miscellany episode covering a range of topics:
1. There are stages in our relationship with God
2. Explaining why Christians have so many different beliefs
3. Why we should not use the term "cisgender"
4. Christians who are practical atheists
5. Be careful what you win people to

Web: ThinkingtoBelieve.com
Email: [email protected]
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Twitter & Gettr: @thinking2believ
Truth: @ThinkingToBelieve
Parler: @thinkingtobelieve

We know Jesus taught that divorce and remarriage is justified in the case of sexual sin, but are there any other moral justifications? In this final episode of the series, I consider other possible justifications for divorce including abuse, criminal activity, abortion, financial mismanagement, pornography, and transgender identity. I provide a principle for evaluating any suggested justifications, and conclude that it’s reasonable to think there are at least some additional moral justifications for divorce and remarriage – albeit limited in scope. The most common reasons for seeking divorce (incompatible, incessant arguing, grew apart, no longer in love) do not qualify as valid reasons for divorce.

Web: ThinkingtoBelieve.com
Email: [email protected]
Facebook: facebook.com/thinkingtobelieve
Twitter & Gettr: @thinking2believ
Truth: @ThinkingToBelieve
Parler: @thinkingtobelieve