What this Course Covers
- Defending Faith. Why Jesus Used “Convincing Proofs” & So Should We.
- Jesus Exists. What Historical Facts Confirm Gospel Truths About Jesus.
- Best Record. How the New Testament is the Best Factual Record in Ancient History.
- Gospel Reliability. What Eyewitness Testimony Supports New Testament Reliability.
- Resurrection Evidence. Who Are the Eyewitnesses Standing Up for the Resurrection.
- Miracles Recorded. What Historical Evidence Affirms Miracles.
- Lord Jesus Christ. How the Earliest Records Proclaimed the Deity of Jesus Christ.
- Acts as History. Why the Book of Acts Corroborates All That We Covered.
What the Course Includes
For each of the 8 sessions, you will have three resources:
- Written Materials. In about 8-12 pages, each session condenses the essential facts to arm your faith defense.
- Oral Presentation. Each session comes with an oral presentation geared to the written materials.
- Sharing Faith. As our mission is making disciples, sharing these resources may bring others to Jesus Christ.
Each session stands alone, allowing you to focus on the topic of interest to you. Each session also reinforces historical proof and top experts from prior sessions, thus building an ever stronger case for the reliability, authenticity, and truth of the New Testament and Jesus Christ.
How to Become a New Testament Defender
The New Testament represents ancient history at its finest. With its broad and deep historical sources, the New Testament far surpasses all other ancient records with the strongest historical facts and best experts. Begin your faith defense here.
#1 Defending Faith & Using Proof
Historical Proof. “Why Seek Proof for the New Testament? A Study of How Historical Evidence May Serve the Great Commission.”
What You Will Learn
- Defending Faith. We have a Scriptural & practical duty to defend our faith. If we don’t, who will?
- Making Disciples. Using proof serves the Great Commission of “making disciples” by reaching those with doubts, fears, and even unbelief.
- Using Proof. From “doubting Thomas” and fearful disciples to modern experts, using proof has a powerful track record of building and restoring faith.
Quotes to Remember
- Duty to Defend. “An intelligent Christian ought to be able to point up the flaws in a non-Christian position and to present facts and arguments which tell in favor of the gospel. If our apologetic [defense] prevents us from explaining the gospel to any person, it is an inadequate apologetic.” [Clark Pinnock, Set Forth Your Case]
- From Proof to Faith. “Can someone come to a ‘saving faith’ by following evidence?….But this book is my ‘salvation story.’ It describes the evidential journey I took to become a follower of Jesus.” [J. Warner Wallace, Cold-Case Christianity]
Apostle Paul Defending Gospel Before Sanhedrin
“I am appointed for the defense of the gospel.” (Philippians 1:16 (NASB)
#2 Jesus in Fact & In History
Jesus’ Existence. “Did Jesus Exist? A Study of the Wealth of Historical Evidence for Jesus Christ.”
What You Will Learn
- Top Scholars. Virtually all scholars agree on the existence of Jesus.
- Skeptical Scholars. Even skeptical scholars concede Jesus’ existence.
- Multiple Sources. The multitude of historical sources (Christian, Jewish, & Roman) leads virtually all scholars to confirm Jesus’ existence.
Quotes to Remember
- Expert Consensus. “That Jesus existed is virtually undisputed among scholars teaching in the relevant fields of ancient history, classics, and biblical studies.” [Justin Bass, The Bedrock of Christianity]
- Atheist Scholars. “[T]he view that Jesus existed is held by virtually every expert on the planet.” [Atheist Bart Ehrman, Did Jesus Exist?]
- Non-Christian Sources. “Both those authors [Josephus & Tacitus] agree on four sequential points. First, there was a movement started by Jesus or Christ. Second, there was an execution by Pilate. Third, there was a continuation despite that attempt to end it. Fourth, there is still an ongoing movement of Christians.” [Skeptic John Dominic Crossan in The Historical Jesus]
Josephus (Jewish Historian)
“Pilate condemned [Jesus] to be crucified and to die.” [“Testimonium Flavianum”]
Tacitus (Roman Historian)
“The founder of this name, Christ, had been executed in the reign of Tiberius by procurator Pontius Pilate.” [Annals 15:44]
#3 New Testament vs. Other Ancient Records
Comparative Proof. “How Does the New Testament Stack Up Against Other Ancient Records? A Study of the New Testament as the Best Authenticated Record in Ancient History.”
What You Will Learn
- Best Support. No ancient record can match the volume & early dating of the New Testament.
- Eyewitnesses. The New Testament has far more eyewitness support than any other ancient record.
- Corroboration. No ancient record comes anywhere near the mountain of corroboration for the New Testament.
Quotes to Remember
- Authentication. “There is no body of ancient literature in the world which enjoys such a wealth of good textual attestation as the New Testament.” [F. F. Bruce]
- 100-Fold Difference. If skeptics reject the New Testament, then “whatever doubts we cast on the text of the New Testament must be cast a hundred fold on virtually any other ancient text.” [Komoszewski, Sawyer, & Wallace]
- Corroboration. “Because the early church fathers . . . quote the New Testament so much (36,289 times, to be exact) that all but eleven verses of the New Testament can be reconstructed just from their quotations.” [Norman Geisler & Frank Turek]
Jesus Christ
Tiberius Caesar
“authors mentioning Jesus outnumber those mentioning Tiberius 43 to 10.”[Norman Geisler & Frank Turek]
NewTestament
23,986 Manuscripts (Ancient Copies in all Languages)
Gallic War
251 Manuscripts
About 1% of the Documentation for the New Testament
#4 Eyewitnesses & New Testament Reliability
New Testament Reliability. “How Do Eyewitnesses Support New Testament Reliability? A Study of the Eyewitness Evidence Corroborating the New Testament.”
What You Will Learn
- Eyewitnesses. The New Testament rests upon eyewitness testimony – what the witnesses saw, heard & touched.
- Historical Criteria. Against the toughest historical criteria, the New Testament far surpasses the test.
- Evidence. The New Testament meets basic standards of evidence with multiple eyewitnesses, “strongest evidence,” and no opposition witnesses.
Quotes to Remember
- More Witnesses. “The number of eyewitnesses supporting or writing the New Testament accounts is large. . . . No like testimony is possessed for any event from ancient times.” [Norman Geisler]
- Named Eyewitnesses. “[I]n the period up to the writing of the Gospels, gospel traditions were connected with named and known eyewitnesses, people who had heard the teaching of Jesus from his lips and committed it to memory, people who had witnessed the events of his ministry, death and resurrection . . .” [Richard Bauckham]
John as Eyewitness
“What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes what we have looked at and touched with hands, concerning the Word of Life.” 1 John 1:1 (NASB)
Legal Standard
“what did you see or hear or smell or touch or taste.”
#5 Resurrection & Eyewitness Evidence
Resurrection Eyewitnesses. “Does Eyewitness Testimony Confirm the Resurrection? A Study of Eyewitness Evidence Corroborating the Resurrection.”
What You Will Learn
- Many Eyewitnesses. The New Testament identifies more than a dozen named eyewitnesses (& 100s of additional witnesses) for the Resurrection.
- Top Experts. Both top experts and skeptical scholars acknowledge eyewitness proof for the Resurrection.
- Unbeatable Credibility. The Resurrection witnesses pass the toughest tests for credibility, as they would not die for a lie – nor stake their salvation on a lie.
Quotes to Remember
- Consensus. “The appearances to Peter, to the Twelve, to James, and Paul are all bedrock appearances in that 99 percent of scholars agree that these three individuals (Peter, James, and Paul) and a group of Jesus’ followers believed the risen Jesus appeared to them.” [Justin Bass]
- Historical Event. “I accept the resurrection of Easter Sunday not as an invention of the community of disciples, but as a historical event.” [Pinchas Lapide (Jewish theologian)]
- Certainty. “I am sure that the disciples saw Jesus after his death.” [Dr. Dale Allison (skeptical scholar]
“that He appeared to Cephas [Peter], then to the twelve. After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep; then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles.” 1 Corinthians 15:5-7
Passage dates back to 2-3 years after Resurrection
Many Resurrection Eyewitnesses
Over 1,000 pages, 4,500 sources, and
50 years of Resurrection expertise
Who Can Rebut It?
#6 Miracles & Historical & Scientific Proof
Did Jesus Perform Miracles? A Study of the Historical Evidence for the New Testament’s Miracles
What You Will Learn
- Historical Criteria. Jesus’ miracles pass the most difficult historical criteria, including early sources, real eyewitnesses, and multiple historical sources.
- Top Experts. Even the most skeptical scholars now concede the historical case for miracles.
- Miracles Today. Miracles still happen, as discussed in scientific studies, major medical journals, and public sources that the skeptics simply cannot refute.
Quotes to Remember
- Skeptical Scholars. “Despite the difficulty which miracles pose for the modern mind, on historical grounds it is virtually indisputable that Jesus was a healer and exorcist.” [Marcus Borg (Jesus Seminar member)]
- Ancient Skeptics. “Among non-Christian sources, the rabbis and Celsus are clear that Jesus performed miracles, although both sources are hostile to these miracles.” [Craig Keener]
- Power of Prayer. In one medical study of 400 coronary-care patients, those who received prayer had “a statistically positive effect on recuperation” in 21 of 26 monitored categories. [Randolph Byrd, Southern Medical Journal]
Jesus Healing Blind Bartimaeus
“clear indications of historicity”
“Over 900 articles on NDEs [Near-Death Experiences] were published in scholarly literature prior to 2011” [John Burke, Imagine Heaven]
#7 Jesus Christ as Lord, Savior, & Son of God
Jesus Christ’s Deity. “Is Jesus Christ Both Lord & Son of God? A Historical Analysis of How the Earliest Christians Worshiped Jesus”
What You Will Learn
- Paul’s Epistles. The teaching in Paul’s letters about Jesus Christ as Lord and Son of God dates “back to the earliest period ‘after Jesus.’” [Paul Barnett]
- Sermons & Hymns. Soon after the Resurrection, the earliest sermons & hymns show Christians worshiping Jesus as “Lord Jesus Christ” and “Son of God.”
- Gospels. The Gospels consistently show Jesus Christ’s divine powers, from forgiving sin, receiving worship as the Son and “Christ” of God, and claiming His fulfillment of Old Testament Messianic prophecies.
Quotes to Remember
- God’s Right Hand. “In the earliest Christian community, Jesus was already understood to be risen and exalted to God’s right hand in heaven.” [Richard Bauckham]
- Early Worship. “[T]he evidence indicates that Jesus was first given the sort of devotion that we associate with a deity among the circles of devout Jews who comprised the earliest adherents of the young Christian movement.” [Paul Barnett]
- Son of God. “Either this man [Jesus] was, and is, the Son of God; or else a madman or something worse.” [C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity]
“the name which is above every name”
Top Scholars
“early Christian hymn”
“earliest passages”
“early expressions of devotion to Jesus
#8 Acts as Verified History & Proven Source
Act’s Reliability. “Is the Book of Acts Based on Facts? A Study of the Historical Facts Verifying Acts.”
What You Will Learn
- Gospel Corroboration. The Book of Acts corroborates the Gospels, including Jesus’ ministry, crucifixion, Resurrection, miracles, deity, and eyewitnesses.
- Historical Criteria. Acts readily passes the historical criteria with multiple early eyewitness accounts.
- External Verification. Top scholars have identified over 95 facts in Acts (countries, cities, practices, officials, etc.) that have been verified by external sources, such as archaeology and ancient records.
Quotes to Remember
- Historicity. “For Acts the confirmation of historicity is overwhelming.” [A. N. Sherwin-White]
- Corroboration. “Acts is just full of these areas of confirmation. It may even be unsurpassed among New Testament sources in terms of external confirmation.” [Gary Habermas]
- Great Historian. “Luke is a historian of the first rank.” [Sir William Ramsey]
Acts based on historical facts verifiable by independent sources.
Trial lawyer builds case for Acts based on eyewitness testimony and contemporaneous historical records
Acts based on historical facts verifiable by independent sources.
Eyewitnesses in Acts
“This Jesus God raised up again, to which we are all witnesses.” Acts 2:32 (NASB).
“[You] put to death the Prince of life, the one whom God raised from the dead, a fact to which we are witnesses.” Acts 3:15.
“We are witnesses of all the things He did both in the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem.” Acts 10:39.
These early Acts sermons date within 2-3 years of Jesus’ Resurrection.
Verified Facts in Acts
- “100 different items throughout Acts have been verified”
- “84 facts in last 16 chapters” confirmed by research.
- 32 countries, 54 cities & 9 islands identified without error.