CrossExamined Blog
Tackling today’s toughest questions, these posts explore topics on God, morality, science, and culture.
Whether you’re a skeptic or believer, each article challenges your worldview and sharpens your thinking. Engaging, thought-provoking, and unapologetic, this is a place to dig deeper and follow the truth wherever it leads.
Jesus, The Bible, The Quran, and The Law of Non-Contradiction
Theology and Christian ApologeticsBy Derrick Stokes In the Quran, the Gospel, or Injil, is considered to be from God and is incorruptible. The Bible says scripture is God-breathed. Yet, they contrast on what they say about Jesus. In comes the Law of Non-Contradiction. The Law of Non-Contradiction, or the law of the excluded middle, states that (A) cannot […]
My Favorite Bible Verse
CrossExaminedBy Tim Stratton Many times I am asked the question: “Tim, what is your favorite Bible verse?” This is a hard question for me to answer because there are many verses contending for this top spot. Off the top of my head, some of my favorites include (in no particular order): Romans 12:2; Matthew 22:37-39; Romans 1:20; 1 Corinthians […]
Convince Me There’s A God: Fine-Tuning
2. Does God Exist?By Mark McGee I was comfortable as an atheist. I could do anything I wanted to do (or could get away with) and laugh at the masses of people stuck in the merry-go-round of belief in a “higher power.” I laughed at them privately, with friends, and publicly on my radio talk show. So, it […]
The Wisdom Chronicle
Wisdom ChronicleThe Wisdom Chronicle is designed to bring nuggets of wisdom from the dozens of books I read every year. I endeavor to share the best of what I have gleaned. The determination of relevance lies with you. Blessings, J. Whiddon JET-POWERED ATTACK HELICOPTER PARENTS “The “jet-powered attack model” of the helicopter parent. These parents are […]
Faith: ‘wishful thinking’?
CrossExaminedBy Steve Wilkinson I often hear people talk about faith as if it is ‘wishful thinking’. This is especially true in the ‘science vs. religion’ debates. “I have my reason…. you have your faith…” is the general sentiment. I have even heard Christians use a similar way of speaking. In some circles, there seems to be […]
Yes, You Do Have Time to Learn Apologetics
Theology and Christian ApologeticsBy Melissa Cain Travis Whenever I was in graduate school studying for my M.A. in Science and Religion, I was often the recipient of wide-eyed stares and exclamations of, “How on earth do you have enough hours in the day?!” After all, I was running a household, homeschooling two elementary-age boys, teaching intermittently at church, and […]
5 Common Objections to the Moral Argument
2. Does God Exist?By Paul Rezkalla The Moral Argument for the existence of God has been graced with a long tradition of defense from theistic (and atheistic!) philosophers and thinkers throughout the history of Western thought…and a long tradition of misunderstandings and objections by even some of the most brilliant minds. To be fair, the argument is not always […]
On the Historical Accuracy of the Book of Acts
4. Is the NT True?By Tim McGrew Here are some of the details that Luke gets right in Acts that cannot be derived from Josephus. Most of these can be found in Colin Hemer’s magisterial work, The Book of Acts in the Setting of Hellenistic History. 1. A natural crossing between correctly named ports. (Acts 13:4-5) Mt. Casius, which is […]
What it Takes to Raise a Christian Child in a Country Ruled by Moral Confusion
Apologetics for ParentsBy Natasha Crain Oh, this election. How it’s brought out the worst in everyone, including the two people running for office. As crazy as the last few months leading up to the election have been, I haven’t felt inspired to write anything about it…until now. The recording of Trump making vulgar and lewd comments about women […]
Does It Matter Whether God Exists?
2. Does God Exist?By Eric Chabot After talking to hundreds of college students for several years about spiritual beliefs, one thing that comes up from time to time is whether the existence of God is even relevant. In other words, the discussion kind of goes like this: “I don’t see what difference God would make in my life!” As a […]
5 Signs You’re Forcing Your Religion (or Atheism) on Your Kids… and 5 Signs You’re Not
Apologetics for Parents, Theology and Christian ApologeticsBy Natasha Crain Since my book, Keeping Your Kids on God’s Side, came out in March, I’ve been blessed to receive 75 five-star reviews of it on Amazon. To all who have taken the time to leave those reviews, thank you! It means a lot! In addition to those 75 reviews, I’ve also received 2 […]
Approaching the Existence of God
2. Does God Exist?By Eric Chabot How do we know God exists? In the past when I was asked this question I used to automatically jump to an argument for God. I would sit down and try to explain it in detail to the individual. I have now decided to take a different approach and back up: I ask the person “How […]
Apologetics 101: Having an Argument for the Existence of God
Theology and Christian ApologeticsBy Melissa Cain Travis The Scene: Monday morning, your cubicle at work. You’re enjoying the last of your Starbucks joy-in-a-cup while reading your emailed daily devotion. You’re the first one in to the office, so all is quiet. <Sound of door opening and closing. Footsteps somewhere behind.> Coworker Joe: Hey, how’s it going? You: Oh, morning […]
11 Objections to the Kalam Cosmological Argument
Philosophy of Science, Theology and Christian ApologeticsBy Randy Everist The Kalam Cosmological Argument is one of the most popular cosmological arguments around today. The argument is fairly straightforward and enjoys intuitive support. It goes like this: “Whatever begins to exist had a cause; the universe began to exist; therefore, the universe had a cause.” The argument has several common objections, and eleven of […]
Christians and Donald Trump: Our Meeting with Him
Legislating Morality, Culture & PoliticsI was asked to participate in a meeting between Donald Trump and about 35 Christian leaders Friday night in Charlotte. There was no requirement for participants to endorse Mr. Trump. Instead, it was a chance to exchange ideas with Mr. Trump on issues especially important to the Christian community, such as life, judges, and the […]
Tetragrammaton And Jehovah’s Witnesses
Theology and Christian ApologeticsBy Prayson Daniel Unwarrantedly Watchtower Society’s Translation Committee added “Jehovah” in 237 places in New Testament. By doing so, New World Translation (NWT), Jehovah’s Witnesses’ Bible, blurs many passages that depicts Christ Jesus as Lord (Kyrios) of Old Testament. In Journal of Biblical Literature, Kurt Aland showed that the Tetragrammaton, YHWH, does not appear in any […]
Genocide and the God of the Old Testament
Theology and Christian ApologeticsBy JC Lamont Many people take issue with the idea that God commanded the Jewish nation to initiate war against the Canaanites, ordering them to wipe them out and take their land for their own. Not only have some people rejected Christianity over this, but it has even spurred some Christians to leave the faith. Are […]
An Open Question to Presuppositionalists
Theology and Christian ApologeticsBy Spencer Toy I’ve recently been listening to a number of the Reformed critiques of Andy Stanley and the defense of him that Frank Turek posted here at Cross Examined. While I believe that some of these criticisms have merit, I believe there is a major problem with the Presuppositional Apologetic method and would like […]
Andy Stanley Responds to the “Who Needs God” Controversy
Theology and Christian ApologeticsWho Needs God? Some Christians say Andy Stanley does. In fact, he gets more attacks from Christians than non-Christians. Is it his message, his method or both? Some are upset with him because, in their judgment, he uses the wrong apologetic method by not assuming the Bible is true. Others are upset with him because, […]
Presuppositions of Science
Philosophy of ScienceBy Philip Carlson Often I am told that science should be the ultimate arbitrator of truth. While it would be nice if this were true it just does not hold up under scrutiny. Science would need to be the final authority on all matters and while that might be a nice thought, it can’t stand under its […]
Atheism and the burden of proof.
AtheismBy Richard Playford When someone makes a claim about the world, if they want to convince others, they are required to provide justification for that claim. This is not a contentious or strange idea, but what does this mean for atheism? Is atheism a belief and does it require justification? In this article I will show […]