The other day, I received an invitation from Chris Date to appear on his YouTube program Rethinking Hell. I knew Chris Date from the time he handed Al Mohler his lunch on Unbelievable. Chris’s only weakness was that he knew too much about the topic and was trying to pack nine points into every thirty-second segment. […]
eschatology
Raised to Die Again? And Other Fiery Debates
Is the misery of hell self-imposed?
C.S. Lewis famously said the gates of hell are locked on the inside, and many people think this idea that the misery and suffering of hell are self-imposed somehow lessens the moral problems with the doctrine. But does it? In this fantastic video with atrocious production values, I suggest otherwise.
The Top Three Worst Reasons to Reject Universalism
If an atheist says they don’t think hell will be so bad, what do you say in reply?
Why would God send people to hell?
My Tribute to My Father
My dad died on April 3, 2019. Ten days later on April 13, we held the memorial service, and I was honored to take part. This is important to me, not simply because I loved my dad and I grieve his passing but because I value others thinking about life and death from the perspective […]
Responding to a half-baked objection to hell
This morning I tweeted a link to an article I wrote on the complexity of salvation: “If God wants us to be saved, why isn’t salvation simple?” This prompted a response from a gentleman on Twitter named David Reilly. Reilly believed that this fact constitutes an objection to Christian faith. I argued to the contrary […]
Will there be sex in heaven?
I recently received an emailed question asking whether there will be sexual intercourse in the new heavens and new earth. While I have never undertaken a systematic study of the question, the standard response among theologians has been no. But why? So far as I can see, one can attribute this response to the following […]
Some Christians say the world is getting worse. Are they right?
Many conservative Christians believe the world is progressively getting worse. Are they right? In this video, I challenge that assumption by way of a thought experiment which provides evidence that North America, at least, is becoming a more just society.
Is atheism a more hopeful view of the future than Christianity?
Honestly, it's one of the best facts about life that major religions like Christianity and Islam are false. There is no hell, no billions of people suffering eternal conscious torture. Simple non-existence after death is literally infinitely better. — Counter Apologist (@CounterApologis) August 2, 2018 I have often heard atheists express sentiments like this, so […]
N.T. Wright and the Universalist Strawman
Christian universalism is the doctrine that eventually all creatures will be reconciled to God and each other through the reconciling work of Jesus Christ. While universalism has been a minority report throughout the history of the church it has often been misunderstood and even caricatured by non-universalist Christians. This trend continues unabated into our own […]
To Cremate or Not To Cremate?
A few weeks ago, I posted the following Twitter survey on cremation: Historically, the church rejected cremation in recognition of the value of the body and anticipation of the bodliy resurrection. Today, however, many Christians cremate. Forgive me if this is too forward, but what are your posthumous plans? — Tentative Apologist (@RandalRauser) February 2, […]
Does Christianity promise that everything sad is going to come untrue?
Today I visited a church in which the speaker addressed the problem of evil. Near the end of the sermon, he appealed to this famous quote from The Lord of the Rings: “I thought you were dead! But then I thought that I was dead myself! Is everything sad going to come untrue?” The speaker then […]
