Anti-suicide and anti-discouragement page

(For much-more information about this blog, see the home page at https://reasonbasedfaith.com/.)

A recommended, personal post: #11

Post #11 is titled: How I Overcame Depression and Suicidal Thoughts by Understanding the Fine-Tuning of the Universe. It’s partially about the fine-tuning, but more-importantly, it’s the story of how I was powerfully released from continual depression and suicidal thoughts, in 2004.

I wrote: I feel that it would be helpful to explain how I (Roger, the author of this blog) overcame depression and suicidal thoughts. I did it in an unusual way that may be helpful to those who are depressed or have suicidal thoughts. The causes of my depression years ago (which had the greatest intensity in 2003) were trauma and loss, but these are not as important as the remedy I found, which is the theistic implications of the fine-tuning of the universe, combined with an insight from a potent Scripture passage.

These theistic perspectives can, if carefully understood, overcome reasons for suicide, and thereby prevent suicide as an outcome. This happened in my own life—obviously, I’m still here—and I have no trace of a depressed or suicidal thought today, though in 2003, I was consumed with these thoughts. This approach has therefore eliminated ALL depression and suicidal thoughts in my own life!

The link to this post is: https://reasonbasedfaith.com/2022/04/30/11-how-i-overcame-depression-and-suicidal-thoughts-by-understanding-the-fine-tuning-of-the-universe/ 

Returning to the content

To return to the content of this page (which I had previously written): this page contains selections that I copied from the home page, from my first and fourth posts, and from my “About Roger” page; I’ve also added some new information and insights. This information includes logical reasons that SHOULD deter any objectively-minded, logically-thinking person from committing suicide—some very cogent reasons are among them. Of course, these reasons apply to discouragement as well and are why, for years now, I’ve almost always been positive and optimistic, and very-rarely discouraged.

If these reasons are at least POSSIBLY true, discouragement should decrease and suicide becomes an inadvisable option. Why? Because it’s then POSSIBLE that someone discouraged or contemplating suicide may still be able to enjoy life, both here and in eternity, following the specifics provided on this page.

1A. The afterlife is real

One should carefully consider the fact established by evidence and logic—that the afterlife is REAL. This is seen in “#9: Are Near-Death Experiences Real? Is There Life after Physical Death? Part 1 (click on link)”—particularly in sections 5A through 12C. The logic here is extremely compelling in favor of the real existence of an afterlife.

And thus, possible eternal destinations should be seriously considered. Cf. Imagine Heaven by John Burke, Chapter 16 (Baker Books, 2015) and Near-Death Experiences as Evidence for the Existence of God and Heaven by J. Steve Miller (Wisdom Creek Press, 2012).

1B. For problems of various addictions

An extremely-powerful ministry (in terms of life transformation) for teen and adult addicts is found at https://teenchallengeusa.org/about. People who have been severely addicted for years (to alcohol, drugs, eating disorders, or other addictions) have been set free; some have been delivered from the worst addictions imaginable! (A list of addictions is at https://teenchallengeusa.org/addictions.) As they say on their website, “Throughout the years, studies have been conducted about our process. These studies show that faith in God is the main reason our students are still sober after completing the program.” (https://teenchallengeusa.org/about)

2. The “no good options” scenario

In our journey along life’s road, there can be a point at which all of the options in front of us appear to be horribly BAD. The road in front of us spreads out into two or three forks—ALL of which are miserably bad; no good options are among those from which we must make a choice. We can’t stand still; we MUST move forward, and we must choose one of the two or three BAD options that present themselves!

I’ve faced this situation in my life; it was incredibly uncomfortable and depressing. Since I knew the wisdom of Scripture, I was able to discern and choose what seemed to be the slightly-better (but still bad) option at the time. (By the way, though all of Scripture presents certain types of wisdom, I feel that the best wisdom for modern living is found in the New Testament and, of course, in the Book of Proverbs.)

I was profoundly unhappy and depressed after making that choice. But what I didn’t realize or understand was what would happen afterwards. Since I was (and still am) a committed Christian, I kept trying (despite my discouragement) to follow God’s leading as to what to learn and where to go to learn it—including online. In various circumstances, and over a number of years, I learned Christian apologetics—essentially the study and application of objective evidences and logical reasons for God’s existence and identity. (Cf. Reasonable Faith; Reasons To Believe; Dr. Craig Videos)

These evidences and reasons are applied to one’s own life—they incredibly strengthened my faith (my trust in what good evidences and reasons show to be true—that the biblical God exists and that He has the good nature or character that the Bible declares that He has). Secondly, they (the evidences and reasons) are of course shared with others.

Thus, with this knowledge, I’ve reached out with this blog and a Twitter feed. Shortly (God willing), I’ll add an audio podcast and a YouTube channel!

In summary, the slightly-better but still bad choice that I made years ago has been transformed into an interestingly good, positive, and encouraging path for my life! And yet, I NEVER HAD A CLUE THAT THIS WOULD HAPPEN YEARS AGO WHEN I MADE THAT CHOICE!

I believe that a similar scenario can occur with anyone who is willing to trust God (especially in salvation; see section #5 on this page and see my fourth post for more details) and to follow His leading.

3. Addressing suicide

My specific response to the tendency to consider suicide is that those (1) who have examined the evidences and reasons for the biblical God’s existence, and for His nature and character (especially as revealed in the New Testament), and (2) who have accordingly entered into the assurance of eternal life (that’s explained in my fourth post)—those individuals don’t have to have the SLIGHTEST desire to commit suicide, because these evidences and the evidence of Scripture give us powerful reasons to remain alive just as long as God wants us to.

(Scripture itself is supported by numerous evidences, particularly for the New Testament. Cf. The Historical Reliability of the New Testament by Dr. Craig Blomberg; B&H Academic, 2016. I also recommend the lay-friendly book, I Don’t Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist by Drs. Norman Geisler and Frank Turek, Crossway Books, 2004, especially, in this regard, Chapters 9-14.)

That they may have and enjoy life

For example: God’s desire for us to have and enjoy life is seen in Jesus’ statement in John 10:10b, that “I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows).” (Amplified Bible, Classic Edition, Zondervan Corporation and the Lockman Foundation, 1987.)

By the way, the Amplified Bible “amplifies” or clarifies the meaning of the text by inserting additional phrases as commentary into the text itself, based on the implications of the original Greek language or on clarifications from other Scripture passages.

Therefore, when reading from the Amplified Bible, we should bear this in mind: the Christian scholars who added these phrases are perceptive and balanced; that is, I believe that they’re usually right and in harmony with all of Scripture. But they could occasionally be mistaken in the appropriateness of the phrases they add. By contrast, Bibles that are translated more-literally (i.e. word-for-word) include the King James Version, the New King James Version, the New American Standard Bible, and the English Standard Version, which I often link to at classic.biblegateway.com.

But what does this “abundant life” mean? Christians have discussed this for two thousand years! A balanced view was offered by theologian and prolific author William MacDonald: “We receive life the moment we accept Him as our Savior. After we are saved, however, we find that there are various degrees of enjoyment of this life. The more we turn ourselves over to the Holy Spirit, the more we enjoy the life which has been given to us. We not only have life then, but we have it more abundantly.” (MacDonald, Believer’s Bible Commentary, Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1997, under John 10:10.)

4. Enjoying life

In other words, the more we live to fulfill God’s desires for us, the more we enjoy life. I’ve experienced this innumerable times, so I’ll emphasize this truth again: THE MORE WE LIVE TO FULFILL GOD’S DESIRES FOR US, THE MORE WE ENJOY LIFE!! (This is also supported by such verses as John 15:7-11, and Ephesians 5:18-20 plus Galatians 5:22-23.)

Someone in deep discouragement may say, “I don’t see how I could ever enjoy life again.” Well, when I was an atheist, I had no concept that living to fulfill God’s desires would give me enjoyment in life—but it did and does! God sometimes works in ways that we don’t anticipate or fully understand; He doesn’t wait for our understanding to catch up with His actions!

This means that we can receive enjoyment in life if we live to fulfill God’s desires—even if we don’t understand how it works!

Still, someone may ask, “How do I know what God’s desires are?” We know this to a degree from general revelation (creation plus conscience; cf. Romans 1:19-20; 2:14-15), yet even more specifically, we know this through His written revelation; i.e. God’s Message to mankind, the Bible. (Cf. Psalm 19:7–11; John 8:31-32; 1Thessalonians 2:13; 2Timothy 3:16-17; 2Peter 1:20-21)

God desires that we know Him

And what does the Bible tell us? In part, it tells us that God desires that we know Him. This is easily seen in two related Scripture passages. The first is John 3:16-17, which tells us, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” (English Standard Version) Thus, God desires that we have eternal life.

Secondly, Jesus said to the Father: “This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.” (John 17:3, New American Standard Version) Since God desires that we have eternal life, and since we have eternal life when we know Him; therefore, God desires that we know Him!

Also, the Bible tells us that God desires that we exhibit or yield to the fruit of the Spirit (the fruit of what the Holy Spirit wants to do in us): “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.” (Galatians 5:22-23, English Standard Version)

Of course, there are other aspects of this as well, but the bottom line is that God’s commandments are not burdensome; once they’re understood from a balanced perspective, they’re actually easy and delightful to follow! (Matthew 11:28-30; 1John 5:3-5)

5. How this is possible

Now, how do we do this? Or, more specifically, how do we yield to this—to what God wants to do? Jesus gave us the method in John 15. In verses 4 and 5, he told us to: “Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” (ESV)

In verses 7 and 8, he explained further: “If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.” (ESV) To understand this, of course, we should harmonize it with 1John 5:14-15; we can’t ask for outlandish or absurd things and expect God to answer us. Still, all things are possible with Him. (Luke 1:37)

And finally, John 15:11 “tops off” this passage, like adding whipped cream: “These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.” (ESV)

The key verse is John 15:7, which reads in the Amplified Bible, Classic Edition: “If you live in Me [abide vitally united to Me] and My words remain in you and continue to live in your hearts, ask whatever you will, and it shall be done for you.” This reflects an understanding of the Greek verb for “abide,” which, in this context, may be translated as, “to be in a close and settled union.” (Meno in the Analytical Lexicon to the Greek New Testament, edited by William D. Mounce, Zondervan Publishing House, 1993) Therefore, the Lord wants us to have a close and settled union with Him and with His Word; by this, we can know Him closely, exhibit the fruit of the Spirit, and enjoy life!

A possible prayer

Here’s a possible prayer about one’s relationship to God, formulated by Dr. William Lane Craig. I recommend praying this prayer if it expresses your heart’s desire to know God, to do His will, and to have a relationship with Him:

“God, I really need You. I’ve wandered in darkness long enough. I’ve thought and said and done things that are wrong. I believe that You exist and that You sent Jesus to die for my sins. So right now, in the best way I know how, I commit myself to him as my Lord and Savior. Come into my life, forgive my sins, cleanse me, and make into the person you want me to be. Thank you for hearing this prayer. Amen.” (https://www.reasonablefaith.org/writings/question-answer/what-to-do-now-that-im-convinced)

6. Defeating thoughts of suicide

Paul told the early Christians: “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” (Romans 12:2, English Standard Version)

Therefore, I believe that the strongest way to defeat suicidal thoughts is to learn, know, and understand the really-cogent evidences and reasons for God and, in my opinion, the New Testament. When I was under severe stress, THIS WORKED POWERFULLY FOR ME, to propel me out of and away from discouragement and thoughts of suicide.

I’ll repeat and rephrase this: I was under unbelievably-severe stress and contemplated suicide, but I became familiar with the evidences and reasons for God’s existence, and with the New Testament; doing this propelled me out of ALL depression and thoughts of suicide. In addition, after I learned the New Testament better and understood God’s sovereignty and promises, I was released from all discouragement as well. Knowing the biblical God under the New Covenant (i.e. through Jesus, Jeremiah 31:31-34; Luke 22:20; Hebrews 8:6-12) is an incredibly positive and optimistic experience! (E.g. Romans 8:28-39)

Therefore, if a reader is discouraged or tempted with suicide, I recommend reading the New Testament, reading all of my posts (of course; cf. https://reasonbasedfaith.com/), and viewing the following websites:

Evidences and logical arguments for God

Here’s a list of videos – many of them animated videos – that feature logical arguments for God, based on evidence, from Reasonable Faith, the organization founded by Dr. William Lane Craig:

More websites

If an individual has a fair-minded, reasonably-objective perspective, understanding the New Testament and the basic content on these websites will almost-certainly help strengthen and fortify him or her against discouragement, depression, and the thought and temptation of suicide.

7. More media input

I heard that someone was suicidal, but recovered by listening to the Bridge Christian Radio, a network of stations in New York and New Jersey. Their streaming page is at https://bridgeradio.liberatedstreaming.com/; this page has a live online audio stream. There are numerous pastors on this network who offer sound Bible teaching, in my opinion. I especially like pastors Chuck Smith, Skip Heitzig, and Lloyd Pulley.

As to Skip Heitzig, Senior Pastor of Calvary Church in Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA: Christians will be interested to know that he studied under the late Chuck Smith, formerly pastor of Calvary Chapel in Costa Mesa, CA. Skip holds a Ph.D. in Philosophy, Biblical and Theological Studies from Trinity Southwest University and is an Associate Professor of Pastoral and Biblical Studies at Veritas International University. His messages are balanced, informative, and edifying; his radio website and audio feed are here; his teaching library is here and also here. The “Calvary Church with Skip Heitzig” YouTube Channel is here. Videos of Skip’s distance-learning course (“The Bible from 30,000 Feet”) are here.

8. The featured image

The featured image of this page (above) is a view of the Planet Earth from space. Why? I want to encourage everyone NOT to leave our planet (to go to an eternal destination) prematurely! Eternal destinations are real; see the fourth post and especially the ninth post on “#9: Are Near-Death Experiences Real? Is There Life after Physical Death? Part 1 (click on link).”

For several reasons, it’s the wisest thing to stay alive on this Earth just as long as God wants us to. For example, it’s important to influence others for good and to share the Gospel with whoever is open. (Again, see more in the fourth post and especially in the ninth post.)

9. Following My Blog

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10. About reason-based faith

I’ve copied in the following eight paragraphs from the home page and my first post; they aptly explain the concept of reason-based faith; for more information, see the home page, my first post, and my “About Roger” page.

Every one of us has reason-based faith in something. Many of us have faith in someone’s abilities because these abilities have been consistently demonstrated. Many of us have faith that the plans we’ve made for our lives will work out or succeed because they’ve worked out or succeeded thus far. We have faith that our doctor will prescribe, and that our pharmacist will give us, helpful medicine—not poison! (Otherwise, we wouldn’t take it.)

Except, at times, for those living above the Arctic Circle or below the Antarctic Circle, every one of us has the faith that the Sun will rise tomorrow morning! Those of us living a significant distance from Earth’s Equator also have the faith that we will continue to experience our normal seasonal variations in weather, especially in temperature. Why do we have this faith? We’ve observed these occurrences over a sufficiently-long period of time (these observations are a form of evidence) and we reason or logically infer that they will most-probably recur or repeat as they have in the past.

Thus, faith can be based on one or more logical reasons, which, in turn, are based on one or more objective evidences. Dr. William Lane Craig, a well-known philosopher and theologian, accordingly provided this definition: “Faith is trusting in what we have good reason to think is true. And so, the question is: Do we have good evidence for God? If we do, then we face the question: Am I going to put my trust in Him?” (This quote is from the video, “Why Should I Believe that God Exists? Ratio Christi Clemson welcomes Dr. William Lane Craig” at the 1 hour, 2-minute mark; accessed 9/21/2020.)

(Of course, there are those who have faith instinctively, without apparently basing it on evidence or logic. The Bible does not say that this is wrong—it may be the faith mentioned in 1Corinthians 12:8-9. But I’ll speak for myself here: since, as an atheist, I wanted to base what I believed on evidence and logic, I felt a need to be sure that my newfound faith in the biblical God was similarly based on evidence and logic, and so it is.)

Faith in a chair—and in God

Here’s another example: when I sit in a particular chair for the first time, I have faith that the chair will hold me up—not because my faith is blind and based on no evidence—but because my faith is based on the evidence that, every time I’ve sat in a chair, it has supported my weight. My faith is therefore based on reason, or on evidence plus logic: (1) the evidence that chairs have always supported my weight, plus (2) the logic that, because chairs have always done so, this particular chair will probably do so as well.

Thus, reason, or evidence plus logic, gives me the faith that I have for successful sitting! I have faith in or trust the chair to support my weight, and I therefore sit in it. As Dr. Craig defined it, “Faith is trusting in what we have good reason to think is true.” (Ultimately, I have faith not just in a chair, but also in the chair’s manufacturer—that he or she did a good job, as most apparently do.)

Reason-based faith is also the faith I have in God: today I base my faith in God’s existence and identity on many reasons, which are the conclusions of logical arguments (inferences to the best explanation) that are formulated from premises describing objective evidences, accepted as such by the majority of scholars or scientists in a given discipline or field of study.

Evidence and logic affirm God’s existence and identity

Years ago, as an atheist, I tried to persuade Christians to become atheists! But when I was challenged by a Christian, I discovered that many evidences and associated logical arguments support and affirm God’s existence and identity. I found thatit would have actually required more faith for me to continue to disbelieve, rather than to simply believe in the biblical God’s existence! Since I didn’t have THAT much faith (i.e. to believe contrary to the evidence), I realized that it would be more rational for me to believe rather than to disbelieve, and therefore, I chose to believe—I took a step of faith—and became a Christian.

By way of explanation: the stronger the evidence is, the less faith we need to believe what that evidence supports or demonstrates to be true. The stronger the evidence is, the more rational and logical it becomes to believe something because it’s more likely to be true. If something is highly probable on the basis of evidence and logic, it’s easy to believe it—you only need a little bit of faith to do so! I call this belief “reason-based faith” or “RBF.” (This is explained well in the Introduction—in the section, “The Faith of an Atheist”—of the lay-friendly book, I Don’t Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist by Drs. Norman Geisler and Frank Turek, Crossway Books, 2004.)

Thus, the reason-based faith approach can make it comparatively easy to believe in God. Specifically: we examine evidences and reasons (ideally in the form of logical arguments) and then understand WHY they cumulatively show that God’s existence is very reasonable and probable. We can become familiar with the many (over thirty groups of) evidences and associated arguments, and then understand why God’s existence and identity are so logically and cogently supported by them.

11. Three affirmations

Now it’s my contention that, if you use the opinions of the majority of astrophysicists and biochemists as premises in certain logical arguments, the conclusions of those arguments will support the intelligent design or God hypothesis—essentially, the existence of the theistic God. (Therefore, I don’t find that science detracts from God’s existence; science, objectively interpreted, supports His existence. Cf. https://www.reasons.org/; https://www.reasons.org/explore/blogs; https://reasons.org/explore/blogs/todays-new-reason-to-believe; https://reasons.org/explore/blogs/the-cells-design; https://reasons.org/explore/blogs/impact-events; https://www.youtube.com/user/ReasonsToBelieve1?reload=9)

If you use the opinions of the majority of New Testament scholars as premises, the conclusions will support the historical reliability of the New Testament and arguably, the identity of that theistic God as the biblical God! (Cf. https://www.reasonablefaith.org/; https://www.reasons.org/explore/blogs/reflections; https://www.youtube.com/user/ReasonableFaithOrg; https://www.youtube.com/user/drcraigvideos)

This is partly why, from my perspective, the strongest atheistic arguments have been soundly and thoroughly refuted, while the strongest theistic or pro-God arguments remain logically and compellingly conclusive. I’ll provide clear examples of both scenarios in my developing blog posts. (Cf. Dr. William Lane Craig’s debate videos; On Guard Conference: William Lane Craig – What is Apologetics?)

12. More resources

I’ve copied in the following three sections from my “About Roger” page: “Resources for philosophical, historical, and biblical apologetics” (evidences and reasons for God from philosophy, history, and the Bible), “Resources for science apologetics” (evidences and reasons for God from science), and “More resources.”

Resources for philosophical, historical, and biblical apologetics

In regard to answering questions pertaining to philosophical, historical, and biblical apologetics, I recommend the following resources:

The lay-level book: Why Suffering? Finding Meaning and Comfort When Life Doesn’t Make Sense by Ravi Zacharias and Vince Vitale (FaithWords, 2014). Careful responses are given to the questions: If a loving and powerful God exists, why would He allow so much suffering in this world? And: What can one do to cope with suffering?

The lay-level book: I Don’t Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist by Drs. Norman Geisler and Frank Turek (Crossway Books, 2004). This book is written for the layperson (it’s eminently accessible to non-technical readers), yet it deals with some of the most-important evidences and reasons for believing. It answers many questions pertaining to philosophical, historical, and biblical apologetics on the one hand, AND to science apologetics on the other.

The lay-level book: On Guard: Defending Your Faith with Reason and Precision by Dr. William Lane Craig (David C. Cook, 2010). This is an excellent explanation of apologetic evidences and arguments for the layperson by a reputable philosopher and theologian (with two doctorates). I also recommend the student edition, On Guard for Students: A Thinker’s Guide to the Christian Faith. Topics include the difference made by God’s existence versus His non-existence, the beginning of the universe, the fine-tuning of the universe, the implications of objective morality, the problem of suffering, the identity of Jesus, and the Resurrection.

The lay-level book: The Case for Christ Movie Edition: Solving the Biggest Mystery of All Time by Lee Strobel (Zondervan, 1998, 2016, 2017). My comments: this is the latest edition of Lee’s best-known book describing his investigation into the main evidences for Jesus. It’s a “movie edition” because (in the “Letter to the Reader” and in the “Interview” appendix) it discusses the Pure Flix 113-minute movie (with the title The Case for Christ) released in 1,174 theaters in 2017. As I mentioned earlier, Lee Strobel is a journalist, a former atheist, and a nationally-known author. He holds a Master of Studies in Law degree from Yale Law School and has been interviewed numerous times on national television, including CNN, ABC’s 20/20, and Fox News. In each chapter of this book, Strobel records an interview with a highly respected scholar—Craig Blomberg, Bruce Metzger, Edwin Yamauchi, John McRay, Gregory Boyd, Ben Witherington, Gary Collins, D. A. Carson, Louis Lapides, Alexander Metherell, William Lane Craig, Gary Habermas, and J. P. Moreland. The content of these interviews demonstrates that the historical evidences for Jesus are cogent and compelling.

The lay-level book: The Case for the Real Jesus: A Journalist Investigates Current Attacks on the Identity of Christ by Lee Strobel (Zondervan, 2007). My comments: this is an excellent discussion of the main logical reasons, held by mainstream scholars, against the well-publicized skeptical theories about alternate (i.e. non-biblical) identities for Jesus. In each chapter, Strobel first describes a skeptical theory and then interviews a prominent scholar—namely, Craig Evans, Daniel Wallace, Bruce Metzger, Michael Licona, Edwin Yamauchi, Michael Brown, and Paul Copan—who explain in detail why a particular theory conflicts with evidence and logic. I’m impressed by the compelling nature or cogency of their answers, each of which soundly refutes the theory addressed. The resulting over-all implication is clear: the historical Jesus is accurately described in the New Testament. The topics dealt with are as follows:

  • The supposedly Gnostic Jesus of the apocryphal “gospels,” which were written in the second, third, and fourth centuries to promote Gnosticism
  • The supposedly inaccurately-transmitted Jesus of Bart Ehrman, who ignores the fact that 100% of the doctrinal teaching of the original manuscripts is presently preserved in our modern New Testaments
  • The supposedly un-resurrected Jesus of some skeptical scholars, whose speculations are refuted by a close examination of the evidence  
  • The supposedly mythical Jesus of internet skeptics. Virtually all scholars now reject this long-refuted copycat theory, that the story of Jesus was supposedly based on pagan myths. One distinct factor is that no Jewish writer would have based his writing on a pagan myth, which he regarded as abhorrent according to Deuteronomy 7:25-26 & 12:1-3. If he somehow managed to do this anyway, other Jews would have regarded his writing as abhorrent! If this had occurred, Christianity would have never gained thousands of Jewish adherents, as it did in the first century.
  • The supposedly un-Messianic Jesus postulated by some Jewish rabbis
  • And the supposedly tailor-made or relativistically-perceived Jesus of philosophical relativists.

In addition, I recommend:

Resources for science apologetics

In regard to answering questions pertaining to science apologetics, I recommend the following resources:

This lay-level book pertains to science apologetics as well as to philosophical, historical, and biblical apologetics: I Don’t Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist by Drs. Norman Geisler and Frank Turek (Crossway Books, 2004). As I wrote in the last section, this book is written for the layperson (it’s eminently accessible to non-technical readers), yet it deals with some of the most-important evidences and reasons for believing. It answers many questions pertaining to philosophical, historical, and biblical apologetics on the one hand, AND to science apologetics on the other.

Likewise, this lay-level book pertains to science apologetics as well as to philosophical, historical, and biblical apologetics: On Guard: Defending Your Faith with Reason and Precision by Dr. William Lane Craig (David C. Cook, 2010). As I wrote in the last section, this is an excellent explanation of apologetic evidences and arguments for the layperson by a reputable philosopher and theologian (with two doctorates), and it includes two current issues in science apologetics. I also recommend the student edition, On Guard for Students: A Thinker’s Guide to the Christian Faith. Topics include the difference made by God’s existence versus His non-existence, the beginning of the universe, the fine-tuning of the universe, the implications of objective morality, the problem of suffering, the identity of Jesus, and the Resurrection.

The scholarly book: The Creator and the Cosmos: How the Latest Scientific Discoveries Reveal God by Dr. Hugh Ross (RTB Press, 2018). Written by a cosmologist and astrophysicist, this is an in-depth explanation of recently-discovered evidences that logically point to the existence of an intelligent Creator. Michael G. Strauss, David Ross Boyd Professor of Physics at the University of Oklahoma, wrote: “This book is required reading for any person who asks if there is sufficient evidence for God obtained through careful observations of nature. The answer is unequivocally, ‘yes.’”

The scholarly book: The Cell’s Design: How Chemistry Reveals the Creator’s Artistry by Dr. Fazale Rana, biochemist (Baker Books, 2008). This is another in-depth explanation of recently-discovered evidences that logically point to the existence of an intelligent Designer of the living cell. Hank Hanegraaff, president of the Christian Research Institute, explained that: “In Darwin’s day, a living cell was thought to be quite simply—for all practical purposes—little more than a microscopic blob of gelatin. Rana lays out what contemporary science has learned about the cell’s design, and he poignantly and provocatively shows that it is the handiwork of not only an Intelligent Designer but specifically the God revealed in Scripture.” 

In addition, I recommend:

Even more Resources

Here are other lists of resources (including some I’ve already mentioned) that I’ve copied in from my sixth post on “Five Formulations of the Moral Argument for God’s Existence, Part 1 (of 3)”:

Other evidences and reasons (logical arguments) for God may be found in the following resources that I recommend. I describe as “intermediate level” those resources that are scholarly, yet are understandable to the layperson, perhaps with the use of a dictionary or thesaurus.

As I stated in my third and fourth posts, there are abundant evidences for the New Testament’s historical reliability, some of which we covered in the second and third posts, and more of which we shall examine in future posts. I recommend the scholarly or intermediate-level book, The Historical Reliability of the New Testament by Dr. Craig Blomberg; B&H Academic, 2016. I also recommend the lay-friendly book, I Don’t Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist by Drs. Norman Geisler and Frank Turek, Crossway Books, 2004, Chapters 9-14. In addition, for the historicity of Jesus, I recommend the intermediate-level book, The Historical Jesus: Ancient Evidence for the Life of Christ by Dr. Gary Habermas, College Press Publishing, 1996. Cf. Are the Gospel narratives legendary or historically reliable?; Are there historical documentations of Jesus outside the Bible?

I recommend the following websites:

I recommend the following books:

  • The lay-friendly book, On Guard: Defending Your Faith with Reason and Precision by Dr. William Lane Craig, published by David C. Cook, 2010.
  • The lay-friendly book, I Don’t Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist by Drs. Norman Geisler and Frank Turek, Crossway Books, 2004.
  • The intermediate-level book, Reasonable Faith: Christian Truth and Apologetics by Dr. William Lane Craig, Crossway Books, 2008.   
  • The lay-friendly book (essentially an anthology in that Mr. Strobel interviews a different scientist or scholar in each chapter and quotes him word-for-word), The Case for the Creator: A Journalist Investigates Scientific Evidence that Points toward God by Lee Strobel, Zondervan, 2004.
  • The lay-friendly book (essentially an anthology again), The Case for Christ: Solving the Biggest Mystery of All Time by Lee Strobel, Zondervan, 2017.
  • The lay-friendly book (essentially an anthology again), The Case for the Real Jesus by Lee Strobel, Zondervan, 2007.
  • The lay-level anthology, Come Let Us Reason: New Essays in Christian Apologetics, edited by Raul Copan and William Lane Craig, B&H Publishing Group, 2012; this anthology has a dynamite chapter (#11) by Dr. Mark Foreman, debunking the Jesus-myth theory; he carefully explains all of their many logical fallacies.
  • The lay-level anthology, Passionate Conviction: Contemporary Discourses on Christian Apologetics, edited by Paul Copan and William Lane Craig, B&H Publishing Group, 2007.
  • The lay-level anthology, Evidence for God: 50 Arguments for Faith from the Bible, History, Philosophy, and Science, edited by William A. Dembski and Michael R. Licona, Baker Books, 2010.
  • The lay-level anthology, Is God Just a Human Invention? And Seventeen Other Questions Raised by the New Atheists, edited by Sean McDowell and Jonathan Morrow, Kregel Publications, 2011.
  • The intermediate-level book, The Historical Reliability of the Gospels by Dr. Craig L. Blomberg, IVP Academic, 2014.
  • The intermediate-level book, The Historical Reliability of the New Testament by Dr. Craig L. Blomberg, B&H Academic, 2016.
  • The intermediate-level book, The Historical Jesus: Ancient Evidence for the Life of Christ by Dr. Gary Habermas, College Press Publishing, 1996. 
  • The intermediate-level book, The Case for the Resurrection of Jesus by Drs. Gary Habermas and Michael Licona, Kregel Publications, 2004.
  • The intermediate-level book, Reinventing Jesus: How Contemporary Skeptics Miss the Real Jesus and Mislead Popular Culture by J. Ed Komoszewski, M. James Sawyer, and Daniel B. Wallace, Kregel Publications, 2006.
  • The intermediate-level book, Fabricating Jesus: How Modern Scholars Distort the Gospels by Dr. Craig A. Evans, IVP Books, 2006.
  • The intermediate-level anthology, Jesus Under Fire: Modern Scholarship Reinvents the Historical Jesus, edited by Michael J. Wilkins and J. P. Moreland, Zondervan, 2010.
  • The intermediate-level book, The Creator and the Cosmos: How the Latest Scientific Discoveries Reveal God by Dr. Hugh Ross, RTB Press, 2018.
  • The intermediate-level book, Creating Life in the Lab: How New Discoveries in Synthetic Biology Make a Case for the Creator by Dr. Fazale Rana, Baker Books, 2011.
  • The intermediate-level book, The Cell’s Design: How Chemistry Reveals the Creator’s Artistry by Dr. Fazale Rana, Baker Books, 2008.  
  • The intermediate-level book, Escaping the Beginning? Confronting Challenges to the Universe’s Origin by Dr. Jeff Zweerink, RTB Press, 2019.
  • The intermediate-level book, Who Was Adam? A Creation Model Approach to the Origin of Humanity by Dr. Fazale Rana with Dr. Hugh Ross, RTB Press, 2015.
  • The intermediate-level anthology, Science and Human Origins, by Ann Gauger, Douglas Axe, and Casey Luskin, Discovery Institute Press, 2012.

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