Apologetics
Using Reason to Study Faith
Fellowship Church
Fall 2021
Description: Our God is the God of reason, and he encourages us to “Let your reasonableness be known to everyone” (Phil. 4:5). We will study the role of reason in defending the faith and in daily Christian living. This includes the relationship between faith and reason, proofs for the existence of God, the problem of evil, materialism, the reliability of Scripture, comparison with other religions, and the role of logic in everyday wisdom.
Resources
Websites
Apologetics Seminar at Capitol Hill Baptist Church (9Marks, Mark Dever)
Websites by topic are listed below.
Books
Questioning Evangelism by Randy Newman
I Don’t Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist by Norman Geisler & Frank Turek
Reason to Believe by R. C. Sproul
The Reason for God by Timothy Keller
What We Can’t Not Know by J. Budziszewski (Read Chapter 1 online).
Books by topic are listed below.
Lessons
Part 1: Foundations
1. Evangelism & the Sovereignty of God
What is the Gospel? by Greg Gilbert (9Marks). Download Code: WGOM17EN
Read “Finding the Gospel in the Bible” (Chapter 1)“God Will Give You Something to Say” by John Piper.
Questioning Evangelism by Randy Newman
Read “Why are Questions Better Than Answers?” (Chapter 1)“The Sovereignty of God and Evangelism” by Paul Helm
Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God by J. I. Packer
2. Faith & Reason
Mere Christianity by C. S. Lewis. (Read 2 chapters on faith)
Natural Law: A Brief Introduction and Biblical Defense by David Haines & Andrew Fulford (Davenant Institute)
3. Objectivism vs. Relativism (& World Religions)
Objectivism
“C. S. Lewis and 8 Reasons for Believing in Objective Morality” by Stephen S. Jordan
Mere Christianity by C. S. Lewis (esp. Book I). Watch/listen at CSLewisDoodle
Ethics: Discovering Right and Wrong by Louis Pojman (Read Chs 2–3 online)
What We Can’t Not Know by J. Budziszewski (Read Chapter 1 online)
General Revelation & Natural Law:
What We Can’t Not Know by J. Budziszewski (Read Chapter 1 online)
Abolition of Man by C. S. Lewis (Read online here)
Natural Law: A Brief Introduction and Biblical Defense by David Haines & Andrew Fulford (Davenant Institute)
World Religions
Kingdom of the Cults by Walter Martin
Out of the Cults and Into the Church: Understanding & Encouraging Ex-Cultists by Janis Hutchinson
Part 2: Proofs
4. Five PRoofs (Thomas Aquinas)
5. The Problem of Evil
“God’s Sovereignty and Our Responsibility” by Ligonier Ministries
“Why Would God Ordain Evil?” by John Piper
Reason to Believe by R. C. Sproul
The Reason for God by Timothy Keller
Questioning Evangelism by Randy Newman
Making Sense out of Suffering by Peter Kreeft
6. Materialism
See Apologetics books at the top of this list.
7. Science
Creation
“Non-Negotiable Beliefs About Creation” by Tim Keller at The Gospel Coalition.
“A Theology of Creation in 12 Points” by D. A. Carson at Desiring God.
Fine Tuning
“The Fine-Tuning Argument for the Existence of God” by Thomas Metcalf.
“Intelligent Design and the Complexities of the Human Body” by Jacob Rhodes.
“Design Arguments for God & ‘Irreducible Complexity’” by Stuart Burgess.
“The Fine-Tuning Design Argument” by Robin Collins, In Reason for the Hope Within.
Archaeology
8. The Moral Argument (C. S. Lewis)
Mere Christianity by C. S. Lewis (Book 1).
Watch/listen at CSLewisDoodle.“The Absurdity of Life Without God” By William Lane Craig (Read here).
9. Reliability of Scripture
Handout by Andrés Vera
Is the New Testament Reliable by Paul Barnett