The final session of a six-week series on apologetics at Above Bar Church, Southampton. May 2010.

1. Question Time
1

2. Should we be personally convinced of the
validity of an apologetic argument to use it
with someone?
?

3. Is it worth specialising in a particular
worldview – researching it thoroughly to
develop good apologetics?
?

4. Principles of
apologetics

5. Truth
1

6. correspond to reality

7. coherent

8. relevant

9. biblical

10. Grace
2

11. gentleness

12. respect

13. openness

14. Witness
3

15. move towards Christ

16. live and speak with integrity

17. leave people wanting more

18. make use of others

19. keep learning

20. trust the Holy Spirit to work

21. pray!

22. Has Christianity taken a number of its core
beliefs from first-century mithraism?
?

23. Who is Mithras?

24. Mithra = Persian god

25. Mithras = Roman god

26. heroic slayer of a sacred bull

27. ‘born of a virgin’

28. born from a rock

29. born on 25 December

30. Jesus wasn’t born on
25 December

31. Mithraic festivals in summer

32. Messianic figure

33. no evidence

34. twelve disciples

35. two companions

36. offered eternal life

37. only one reference

38. ‘. . . and us, too, you saved by spilling the
eternal blood . . .’
200 AD

39. miracles

40. which ones?

41. bread & wine sacrament

42. bread & wine were staples

43. who’s copying?

44. earliest evidence of Mithraism
in ~AD 80

45. What about the Bible?
?

46. Gospels – internal evidence

47. historical accuracy

48. unexpected details

49. honesty of the authors

50. issues raised

51. Gospels – external evidence

52. Jesus
Died AD 30; 9 authors—most writing
independently; Gospels written before AD 70

53. Emperor Tiberius
Died AD 37
1 author: Tacitus wrote around AD 110

54. Alexander the Great
Died 323 BC
1 author: Arrian wrote around AD 130

55. Gospels – external evidence

56. Early Christian writers quoted
from the Gospels

57. • Clement (AD 96) refers to Matthew, Mark & Luke
• Ignatius (AD 108) refers to all four gospels
• Polycarp (AD 110) refers to all four gospels
• Josephus (AD 90)
• Pliny (AD 98-117)
• Tacitus (AD 110)
• Suetonius (AD 120)

58. Evidence for the whole Bible

59. Jesus’s view of the
Old Testament

60. The Bible’s claims for itself

61. Fulfilled prophecies

62. The Bible’s unity

63. Changed lives

64. www.tonywatkins.org
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