Search — Theology Explorer

Bart Ehrman Resurrection of Jesus Biblical manuscripts

Twitter response 3: Want documented accounts with originals protected — which is what we have

Third respondent's example of extraordinary evidence.

Biblical manuscripts Textual criticism New Testament reliability

Textual criticism: the discipline that traces copies back to originals and why we can trust the transmission

Brief explanation of how we verify the integrity of the New Testament text.

1 Corinthians 15 1 Corinthians 15 Resurrection of Jesus Early creed

Twitter response 5: Contemporary writings of life, death, resurrection with originals — we have near-contemporary documents, especially 1 Corinthians 15

Fifth respondent example; Mike pivots to addressing 1 Corinthians 15 as key early evidence.

Existence of God Prior probability New Testament reliability

Adding corroborating evidence: reasons to believe God exists and Scripture is reliable further overcome any prior improbability

Mike adds to the cumulative case by connecting evidence for God and Scripture to the prior probability question.

Bart Ehrman Biblical manuscripts Textual criticism

Bart Ehrman acknowledges we probably have what the originals said, despite popularizing text-critical skepticism

Mike's nuanced engagement with a prominent skeptical scholar on textual transmission.

Mike Winger idea 2019-05-08

Isaiah 53 is a powerful messianic prophecy whose parallels to Jesus are so strong that people often do not realize it predates the New Testament

Continuation of response about compelling prophecies for skeptics

Isaiah 53 apologetics Isaiah 53 messianic prophecy

Mike Winger idea 2019-05-15

Q&A: Modesty in dress is a New Testament command—not law-keeping—and our culture is distorted about it

Pastoral application question about dress standards

Christian living modesty New Testament ethics

Mike Winger idea 2019-05-16

Winger invitation to deeper study: Jesus in the Old Testament series

Mike Winger points viewers to his 20-video series on Jesus in the Old Testament and other examples of intricate harmonies (Abraham/Isaac, priestly robes, Melchizedek, the Servant of the Lord).

typology Abraham Jesus in the Old Testament

Mike Winger idea 2019-05-16

New Testament as the decryption key for Old Testament theology

Winger summarizes the unity argument: the NT makes sense of the OT, and the OT prepares for the NT.

New Testament Old Testament progressive revelation

Mike Winger idea 2019-05-16

Undesigned coincidences — definition and how they demonstrate historicity

Winger asks McLatchie to explain undesigned coincidences as a distinct argument for the historicity of the New Testament.

undesigned coincidences eyewitness testimony Jonathan McLatchie

Mike Winger idea 2019-05-30

Homework challenge: find one verse where kosmos clearly means the elect — D.A. Carson says no such verse exists

Winger issues an exegetical challenge and cites D.A. Carson's agreement.

D.A. Carson limited atonement elect

Lee Strobel Mike Licona University of Pretoria

Guest introduction: Dr. Mike Licona, historical Jesus scholar with PhD from University of Pretoria

Guest credentials and background

scholarly consensus Jesus mythicism historicity of Jesus

Scholarly consensus: Jesus mythicism is not a live discussion in academic New Testament studies or history

Mike Licona characterizes the state of scholarly opinion on mythicism

scholarly consensus Jesus mythicism historicity of Jesus

Joseph Hoffmann (agnostic, Harvard/Oxford) calls mythicists the greatest threat to calm academic study of religion next to fundamentalism

Third non-Christian scholar quoted condemning mythicism

argument from silence Josephus Philo

Roman historians didn't mention Jesus more because he wasn't significant to Roman history — they didn't even mention Pontius Pilate, known only from Philo, Josephus, and NT sources

Explaining the relative silence of Roman sources about Jesus

James Crossley John Dominic Crossan scholarly consensus Bart Ehrman historicity of Jesus

Objection that scholars affirm historicity only because they signed faith statements is refuted by citing atheist/agnostic scholars who agree

Responding to the claim that Christian bias explains scholarly consensus on historicity

Richard Carrier Bart Ehrman Jesus mythicism

Advice to those influenced by Richard Carrier: read other skeptical scholars — Ehrman, Lüdemann, Casey — who have proper training in historical Jesus scholarship

Practical guidance for those following Carrier's mythicist arguments

Plutarch Mike Licona historical methodology

Licona's book Why Are There Differences in the Gospels? required classicist review to avoid errors in Plutarch material — illustrating disciplinary boundaries

Personal example of the importance of disciplinary specialization

Mike Winger idea 2019-06-26

Rebuttal: the inscripturation claim for prophecy and knowledge is unsubstantiated; New Testament prophets generally did not produce Scripture.

First major exegetical objection to the Masters Seminary argument. Winger demonstrates that NT prophets were not primarily Scripture-writers.

Acts 21:9 Acts 11 Acts 21:9 cessationism prophecy

Mike Winger idea 2019-07-03

Three biblical causes of natural evil: divine judgment, spiritual warfare, and the greater good

Mike surveys biblical reasons for calamitous suffering

Job John 9:1-3 spiritual warfare Job problem of evil

Mike Winger idea 2019-07-24

Calvinist "Jews and Gentiles" default reading of kosmos does not rescue limited atonement

Mike engages White's proposal about the default meaning of kosmos in the New Testament.

James White 1 John 2:2 James White Jews and Gentiles limited atonement

Mike Winger idea 2019-09-04

Atheists (Dan Barker) also use the cross-vs-stake argument to discredit Christianity

Beyond JWs, some atheists promote the idea that Jesus did not die on a cross. Winger specifically names Dan Barker, known in online atheist circles as an authority on New Testament Greek, who argues Christians are wrong about even the basic shape of the cross.

apologetics Dan Barker atheism

Mike Winger idea 2019-09-04

Theological Dictionary of the New Testament lists three cross forms including traditional cross

The Theological Dictionary of the New Testament (TDNT) is a third major scholarly source Winger cites. It describes stauros as used for three basic cross shapes.

TDNT crucifixion cross

Mike Winger idea 2019-09-04

Early NT manuscripts (P75, P66) abbreviate stauros with Tau-Rho symbol depicting a cross with crossbeam

In some of the earliest New Testament manuscripts, the Greek word stauros is abbreviated using the letters Tau (T) and Rho (P-shape), superimposed on each other to form a visual symbol. This combination appears to depict a man on a cross with a crossbeam.

crucifixion cross early church history

Mike Winger idea 2020-01-29

Tithing at 10% is not a biblical New Testament requirement, though generous giving absolutely is

Q&A: whether the tithe is biblically mandated for Christians

New Covenant tithing Old Testament law

Mike Winger idea 2020-08-28

In the New Testament, "kurios" (Lord) replaces "Yahweh" — this is standard Greek translation convention, reflected in English by small-cap LORD

Question from Zanet about the Mark series — why is "Yahweh" rendered as "kurios" (Lord) in the Greek NT, and whether that changes the meaning.

Mark Mark kurios Yahweh

Mike Winger idea 2020-08-28

Jeremiah 29:11 is often misapplied as a personal prosperity promise; properly applied, it points to eternal hope in the New Covenant

Question from Brandi about whether verses like Jeremiah 29:11, written to Israel, apply to Christians today.

Jeremiah 29:11 hermeneutics prosperity gospel Israel

Mike Winger idea 2020-09-18

1 Peter 2:24 quotes Isaiah 53:5 in a spiritual/relational healing context, not physical

Continuing the Isaiah 53:5 / healing-in-the-atonement discussion.

Isaiah 53:5 1 Peter 2:24 healing sin atonement

Mike Winger idea 2020-09-25

Assurance of salvation comes from 1 John and James, not from speaking in tongues

Positive alternative answer to what Scripture says proves salvation

James 1 John James 1 John sanctification

tithing New Testament ethics Christian giving

Christians are not required to tithe (give 10%), but are absolutely required to give generously

Opening question from Facebook: are Christians supposed to tithe?

tithing New Testament ethics Mosaic Law applicability

Jesus mentions tithing twice but always speaking to Jews under the law; this cannot be extended to Gentile Christians

Surveying New Testament evidence for tithing

James 1 Corinthians 9 James 1 Corinthians 9 Christian giving

New Testament giving priorities: the poor, the persecuted church, local ministers, and generosity as lifestyle — not limited to 10%

Constructive answer on what Christian giving should look like without a tithe mandate

Luke 22:36 Peter Gethsemane Luke 22:36

Jesus commanded disciples to carry swords before his betrayal, indicating readiness for self-defense is a godly posture

New Testament grounding for self-defense, contrasted with earlier sending-out instructions

Galatians Galatians preaching methodology verse-by-verse teaching

Advice for young ministers: teach verse-by-verse through whole books rather than purely topical studies

Question from Andrej Pollock about practical advice for a young man called to ministry in a small church

Colossians Paul Colossians New Age

Colossians — New Testament prohibition against borrowing pagan or Old Covenant practices

New Testament argument against adopting New Age spiritual practices

Luke 23:43 thief on the cross soul sleep intermediate state

Luke 23:43 — comma placement debate: "today" with Jesus or delayed until resurrection?

Question from Hot Wax 93 about the comma in Luke 23:43 (thief on the cross)

Luke 23:43 Greek grammar soul sleep Bible translation

Greek grammar does not support moving the comma — nearly universal translation consensus

Technical defense of the standard comma placement in Luke 23:43