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THINK ABOUT THIS: Why A Great Archeologist Came To See Luke As A First-Rank Historian

“Sir William Ramsay, one of the greatest archeologists ever to have lived, was a student of the German historical school, which taught that the Book of Acts was a product of the mid-second century AD and not of the first century, as it purports to be.

Photo by Trish H-C on Unsplash

“After reading modern criticism about the Book of Acts, Ramsay became convinced that it was not a trustworthy account of facts of its time (50 AD), and therefore was unworthy of consideration by a historian.

“So in his research on the history of Asia Minor, Ramsay paid little attention to the New Testament. His investigations, however, eventually compelled him to consider the writings of Luke, the author of the Book of Acts.

“The archeologist observed the meticulous accuracy of the historical details and gradually his attitude toward the Book of Acts began to change. He was forced to conclude: ‘Luke is a historian of the first rank … This author should be placed along the very greatest of historians.'” — From “More Than A Carpenter,” by Josh and Sean McDowell, pgs 65-66

WANT A FREE COPY OF ‘MORE THAN A CARPENTER’?

Josh and Sean McDowell’s concise classic on the explosion of evidence for the literal resurrection of Jesus. Send your name, “MTAC” and snail mail address to: mt.hillfaith@gmail.com. Your copy will be on its way!

 

EMERGING ISSUES ON THE HILL: Great News For Kids! The Nuclear Family Is NOT Disappearing

It’s almost a truism among academics, the mainstream media commentariat and many Washington policymakers that the nuclear family  — one  married man and woman plus their kids — is a dying institution in America.

Photo by Limor Zellermayer on Unsplash

Not so, according to Institute for Family Studies (IFS) Senior Fellow W. Bradford Wilcox, writing recently in The Atlantic in response to David Brook’s claim that the nuclear family was a “mistake.” Here’s the top of Wilcox’s article and a link to the rest of an important and timely piece that should be of interest to everybody working on Capitol Hill: Continue reading “EMERGING ISSUES ON THE HILL: Great News For Kids! The Nuclear Family Is NOT Disappearing”

New Academic Survey Of Top Scholarship Declares The Quest For ‘Historical Jesus’ Failed

If you attended college at any time in the past several decades, odds are you were taught some variation of the claim the Jesus of the Bible cannot be documented in history, so the book is really nothing more than a collection of myths, fables and exaggerations  written long  after  His  death.

But then this past October along came “Jesus, Skepticism and the Problem of History: Criteria and Context in the Study of Christian Origins,” co-edited by Darrell Bock and Ed Komoszewski. Biola University Apologetics Professor Sean McDowell, writing on seanmcdowell.org, said in a crisp review of the book:

“The editors list a range of facts about Jesus that are affirmed by virtually all historical scholars, including his birth about 6 to 4 BCE, teachings about the kingdom of God, reputation as a miracle-worker, his baptism by John the Baptist, and so on. Continue reading “New Academic Survey Of Top Scholarship Declares The Quest For ‘Historical Jesus’ Failed”

Sean McDowell Explains Why The Martyrdoms Of Jesus’ Disciples Are VIP Today

Among the most significant evidence from logic to support the credibility of the Gospels — Matthew, Mark, Luke and John — is the fact none of the original disciples ever disavowed their claims about Jesus’ life and miracles, including the Resurrection.

The absence of any such disavowal, either documented or merely rumored, is not prima facie proof, but it does provide a weighty addition to the case for the truth of the Bible.

Biola University Professor Sean McDowell looks in the following video at the biblical and secular evidence on the question, lays out the main points of debate and offers conclusions about the significance:

 

‘God Made Me Fast And When I Run, I Feel His Pleasure’ Do You?

Scotland’s Eric Liddell is best-known these days, where he is known at all, as one of the heroes of the 1981 classic movie, “Chariots of Fire,” thanks to his winning gold medals at the 1924 Paris Olympics.

Screen shot from “Chariots of Fire’ clip on youtube.com.

What is less well-known is that Liddell was a deeply committed, born-again believer in the Lord Jesus Christ as his savior. He came from a missionary family and died of a brain tumor while in Japanese internment in China a few months before the end of World War II.

“Chariots” remains to this day my favorite movie of all time for one scene in particular in which Liddell explains to his critical sister that he will return to the mission work in China, but first he must honor God by competing in the Olympics. Thus his wonderful declaration that “God made me for a purpose. God made me fast and when I run, I feel His pleasure.” Continue reading “‘God Made Me Fast And When I Run, I Feel His Pleasure’ Do You?”

STAFF MOVES: Look Who’s Getting Promoted On The Hill This Week

Recent Staff Moves, As Reported By Legistorm:

Jake Johnsen has set up shop as Chief of Staff for Rep. Hal Rogers (R-KY). Jake is a 2009 graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in political science.

Natalie Johnson, press secretary for Sen. Martha McSally. Screen shot from Facebook).

Natalie Johnson is now Press Secretary for Sen. Martha McSally (R-AZ), moving up to the Senate side after serving Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) and the House Republican Conference. Natalie’s BA in political science was awarded in 2015 from James Madison University.

Caroline Goodsen has made the move from the American Enterprise Institute (AEI) to serve as Military Legislative Assistant to Rep. Jim Langevin (D-RI). Continue reading “STAFF MOVES: Look Who’s Getting Promoted On The Hill This Week”

Atheist Richard Dawkins Is, Sort Of, Talking Approvingly About Cannibalism, Again

Richard Dawkins is among the world’s best-known atheists, having debated just about every major contemporary Christian apologist, including John Lennox, his Oxford faculty colleague, as well as philosopher William Lane Craig, and Ravi Zacharias.

Screen shot from Facebook.

Whatever you may think about Dawkins’ arguments against the existence of God, or how he performed versus Lennox, Craig or Zacharias, my interest here is in a strange but significantly revealing aspect of the evolutionary biologist’s recent statements about … cannibalism.

Tweeting the link Monday to a Forbes article about the growth of cell-grown meat products, Dawkins observed that “human steak could, of course, be cultured. Would you eat it? I wouldn’t, but it’s hard to say why. It would be cultured from a single nameable person. Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall served human placenta, also clone of 1 person, in this case the baby. I wouldn’t eat that either.” Continue reading “Atheist Richard Dawkins Is, Sort Of, Talking Approvingly About Cannibalism, Again”