0:00 Opening Remarks, THE CERTAINTY OF CHRISTIANITY / Review
0:56 GLB Foreshadows How To Break The Supposed Presupposition Stalemate In Debate
1:41 GLB Demonstrates, Through The Apostle Paul Defending The Resurrection Of JESUS Acts26:2, How An Appeal To Evidence Must Be Done Within The Context/Framework Of The Christian Philosophy Of Life: THE SOVEREIGNTY OF GOD, THE LORDSHIP OF JESUS CHRIST, SCRIPTURAL AUTHORITY
4:12 NOTE: The Groundwork & Context Paul Uses: THE VERY FIRST POINT HE MAKES IS TO LAYOUT THE PHILOSOPHICAL MEANS BY WHICH THE FACTS CAN BE INTERPRETED CORRECTLY…FACTS CANNOT INTERPRET THEMSELVES
10:36 GLB Demonstrates What Would Happen If Facts About The Resurrection Were Presented Without The Aforementioned Framework. eg, HOW A NATURALIST COULD INTERPRET THE RESURRECTION ON THEIR WORLDVIEW
14:12 IMPORTANT NOTE: IF WE DO NOT LOOK AT THE QUESTION OF WORLDVIEWS (UNDERLYING PHILOSOPHIES), IF WE DO NOT CHALLENGE THE PHILOSOPHICAL OUTLOOK OF THE UNBELIEVER, THE DECLARATION OF THE RESURRECTION OF CHRIST & EVEN SHOWING HISTORISITY, WILL NOT DO ANY GOOD APOLOGETICALLY OR THEOLOGICALLY
14:31 Foreshadows How We’re To Demonstrate The Truth Of Christianity…At The Heart Of Every Theory Of Knowledge Is The Search For Infallible TRUTH…Why Do Philosophical Questions Arise? (Answer) Is When There’s A Conflict In Our Underlying Assumptions Regarding Metaphysics, Epistemology, & Ethics
19:19 Theories Of Knowledge Are Developed Because Of The Threat Of SKEPTICISM
21:43 What’s The Christian’s Defense Against Skepticism?(GLB Foreshadows Self-Attesting Authority)…Circular Reasoning….Beliefs Aren’t Held In Isolation, But Rather Within A Web Of Beliefs. eg, The Story Of The Man Who Thought He Was Dead…Therefore, Verification Process Falls Short Of Defending Against Skepticism
26:56 SELF-ATTESTING AUTHORITY…GLB Illustrates That Without A Self-Attesting Authority You’ll Always Have An Infinite Regress Of Verification…At The Center Of Everyone’s “Web Of Beliefs” Is Their SELF-ATTESTING AUTHORITY
29:10 IMPORTANT NOTE: The Crucial Question Is, Can Any Belief/Worldview Be Self-Authenticating? (Answer) NO. Although, One Can Claim It So, No Other Worldview (Besides The Christian WV) Provides The Preconditions Of Intelligibility i.e. Makes Sense Of Metaphysics, Epistemology, & Ethics (More Next Lecture)…GLB Illustrates That Everyone Has A Self-Attesting Authority…GLB Shows How GOD’s WORD Is Self-Authenticating By The Nature Of The Case
41:33 What Would Christians Offer As The Basis For The Certainty Of THE FAITH? (Short Answer) Christianity Is True By The Impossibility Of The Contrary. (Longer Answer) VanTil Quote & Harry Frankfurt Quote
41:50 Van Til – “Christianity Can Be Shown To Be Not Just As Good As Or Even Better Than The Non-Christian Position, But The Only Position That Does Not Make Nonsense Of Human Experience.”
44:37 Harry Frankfurt – “The Claim That A Basis For Doubt Is Inconceivable Is Justified, Whenever A Denial Of The Claim Would Violate The Conditions Or Presuppositions Of Rational Inquiry.”
45:13 TRANSCENDENTAL REASONING – Means Arguing From The Impossibility Of The Contrary
45:42 Whose Worldview Provides The Preconditions Of Intelligibility? When We Ask That Question We Can See First Of All Why Unbelieving Systems Cannot Give A Self-Authenticating WV (More Next Lecture)
46:08 Christianity Does Provide The Preconditions Of Intelligibility…It Can Account For Rationality, Science, Ethics, Human Dignity, & Human Freedom…
48:00 Indirect Proof vs. Direct Proof…NO WORLDVIEW CAN BE PROVEN DIRECTLY BECAUSE THAT WOULD CALL FOR SOMETHING OUTSIDE THE WORLDVIEW OR MORE ULTIMATE THAN YOUR PRESUPPOSITIONS TO GIVE AUTHORITY TO YOUR WORLDVIEW & PRESUPPOSITIONS
49:00 THE CERTAINTY OF CHRISTIANITY – IS SEEN IN THE IMPOSSIBILITY OF THE CONTRARY
50:33 JESUS EXPLAINS THE CERTAINTY OF CHRISTIANITY – Matt7
52:00 Preview Of Next Lecture
52:22 RECAP
53:42 (Q)uestions & (A)nswers Period
53:48 (Q) How Does Self-Authentication Relate To Faith? (A) If You Don’t Begin With The Personal GOD That Has Revealed HIMSELF In The Scriptures You’ll Undermine Human Reason (Of Which Faith IS ITS FOUNDATION) Therefore What You’re Calling Faith At The Beginning Of The Christian WV Is Self-Authenticating Because Without It Rationality Is Destroyed
56:49 The Different Approaches To Apologetics Among Christians Parallel The Different Approaches To Epistemology In Secular Schools In The Challenge To Skepticism…GLB Expands Regarding Those Theories Of Knowledge…
58:45 THE FOUNDATIONALIST – THE EVIDENTIALIST
59:11 THE PRAGMATIST – THE EXPERIENTIALIST
59:28 THE FIDEIST
59:53 THE TRASCENDENTALIST – THE PRESUPPOSITIONALIST…Anecdote Of Francis Schaeffer’s “Mannishness Of Man” & C.S. Lewis On Naturalism
1:03:04 YOUR NEXT DOOR NEIGHBOR – GLB’s Quick Example Of How To Challenge The Unbeliever’s WV (Different Strokes For Different Folks) Regarding Ethics
In apologetics Christians are too often “on the defensive.” Dr. Bahnsen shows that believers need to take the offensive (without being offensive) against those who object to the truth of Christianity. He explains that this involves understanding their underlying worldviews and showing their intellectual futility while realizing that all unbelievers are secret believers who deceive themselves about their knowledge of God.
- Challenge to Unbelief (1 of 6) – Worldviews in Collision
- Challenge to Unbelief (2 of 6) – The Certainty of Christianity
- Challenge to Unbelief (3 of 6) – The Futility of Unbelief, Part 1
- Challenge to Unbelief (4 of 6) – The Futility of Unbelief, Part 2
- Challenge to Unbelief (5 of 6) – Self Deception (Romans 1)
- Challenge to Unbelief (6 of 6) – Apologetics Conference Q & A
