Answering Objections to the New Testament Gospels

Name: Answering Objections to the New Testament Gospels
Rating: 4.7 (41 reviews)

Apologetics for the Gospels and the Bible

Created byJohn Schwandt

Last updated 3/2020

English

What you'll learn

You will learn how archaeology and history support the validity of the New Testament Gospels and the Bible.
You will be able to discuss the importance and integrity of eyewitness accounts and of oral tradition.
You will be able to answer objections raised about the consistency of the Gospels.
You will be able to answer objections regarding the reliability of the manuscript tradition and the texts preserved for us.
You will learn how the Gospels are trustworthy and accurate accounts about who Jesus was (and is).

Course content

3 sections • 24 lectures • 3h 15m total length

Introduction1:35
Examine major objections to the gospels' historical reliability and gain a clear historical background on Jesus, strengthening faith and enabling informed discussions with skeptics.
The Basis of the Biblical Text8:40
Examine the basis of the New Testament text in Greek, highlighting over 5,800 manuscripts, 25,000 translations, and more than a million early church quotations to assess reliability.
The Problem of Variants8:21
Explore how abundant manuscripts both help and complicate the New Testament text, as scribal errors, harmonization, and marginalia create variants that textual criticism addresses to recover the earliest text.
The Purpose of Translations7:38
Explain why many English Bible translations exist by detailing literal, dynamic, and hybrid approaches with examples such as KJV, NIV, NLT, ESV, NASB, and NRSV.
Testing the Validity of the Bible: Archaeological and Historical Proof6:58
Explore how archaeology and ancient historians test the New Testament's claims, citing ossuaries, crucifixion nails, Caiaphas, and Tacitus's references to Pilate and early Christianity.
Testing the Validity of the Bible: External and Internal Sources9:32
Josephus mentions Jesus in two passages, one disputed and revised, shaping historicity debates. The lecture compares external sources and Acts and Luke, with corroborations from Roman records.
Confirming Scripture: Undesigned Coincidences & Canonization7:24
Explore undesired quaint coincidences in gospel accounts, like the John–Pilate dialogue, and trace the fuzzy canonization process that made Luke, Paul’s letters, and the four gospels scripture.
The Criteria and the Debate of Canonicity12:06
Explain the four candidacy criteria for canonicity—apostle or apostolic colleague, orthodox teaching, relevance, and widespread usage—and trace how early debates shaped the 27-book New Testament canon.

Eyewitness Testimony7:30
Examine eyewitness testimony in the gospels, showing that Matthew, John, and Luke rely on eyewitnesses and report from those who witnessed events, with scriptural references in Luke and John.
Protective Anonymity2:15
Explore protective anonymity in the gospels, noting Mark's ambiguous references to disciples and how John later identifies figures, reshaping memory and the reception of Jesus's events.
The Formality of the Oral Tradition9:50
Explore how gospel traditions were preserved through eyewitness oral transmission, not a simple telephone game. Disciples' repeated teaching and apostolic oversight by Peter, James, John, and Paul safeguarded accuracy.
The Integrity of the Oral Tradition5:04
Explore how the integrity of the oral tradition makes the gospels credible eyewitness accounts of Jesus, and how Paul distinguishes his teaching from Jesus to guard transmission.

The Truth about Contradictions10:11
Explore how Gospels' differences pose objections to historical reliability, showing that some contradictions don’t negate Christianity's core truth of Jesus' resurrection and early New Testament writings.
The Influence of Genre8:52
The gospels align with Greco-Roman biography, presenting a biographical portrait of Jesus rather than a strict historical record.
The Purpose of Redaction: Clarifying the Text8:20
Explore how gospel authors use redaction to clarify theology, highlighting Jesus as the son of David through fourteen generations, and address differences in divorce teachings and hyperbolic sayings.
Handling Differences in Communication Styles6:27
Explore how different communication styles shape gospel narratives, highlighting detailed versus concise storytelling, and examine oral tradition and redaction among Paul, Luke, Mark, and Matthew.
The Teaching and Application of Ancient Writing Techniques12:13
Explore ancient writing techniques that teach paraphrase, syntax changes, additions, substitutions, dialogue, and inflection, with concrete examples showing how Matthew, Mark, and Luke adapt and differ in gospel narratives.
Examples of Redaction in the Gospels11:48
Explore how gospel authors use minor redaction, audience shifts, and paraphrase in Mark, Luke, and Matthew to convey theological points and clarify meaning.
Introducing Secular Examples of Redaction in Ancient Biographies7:42
Explore how Plutarch's biographies, written near the gospel era, reveal compositional devices and redaction patterns that help explain differences among the gospels.
Examples of the Accepted Practice of Transferal9:09
Explore transferable, where authors attribute others’ words or actions. The lecture uses Pompey and Luke–Matthew gospel examples to show this device in ancient biographies.
Examples of the Accepted Practice of Literary Spotlighting10:19
Explore how authors use literary spotlighting to feature main subjects in gospel narratives, such as Mary Magdalene and Peter, and how ancient conventions shape these focal choices.
Examples of the Accepted Practice of Simplification10:19
Explore how authors simplify portraits by omitting details, using Brutus as an example, and compare John's downplaying of Jesus's garden struggle to the synoptic portrayal of his human weakness.
Remembering Genre9:47
Explore how the gospels fit the ancient biography genre, using hyperbolic language and anthropomorphism to emphasize meaning, and recalibrate expectations to assess historical reliability.
Concluding the Course3:09
Conclude by showing that manuscript evidence and genre-aware analysis support the gospels' historical reliability, addressing authorship, contradictions, harmonization, miracles, and parallels in world religions.
Consider the working through the expanded version of this course in Logos.

Requirements

The only prerequisite is a curiosity about the reliability and truth of the Gospels.
Having heard criticisms or objections concerning the validity and credibility of the New Testament Gospels makes the course even more engaging.

Description

In his Objections to the Gospels course, Dr. Michael R. Licona explores the major objections to the reliability of the Gospels posed by modern critics. This course provides you with strong historical background to the text and authorship of the Gospels and a greater appreciation for these works. After you complete this course you are welcome to consider an expanded version on the Logos Mobile Ed platform (Logos Mobile Ed AP113) that provides training for digging deeper into the subject using Logos Bible Software tools.

Who this course is for:

If you have questions about how to answer objections to the Gospels, you will want to take this course.
This course will interest you if you ever wanted to take an apologetics course at a seminary.
You will enjoy this course if you are curious about the origins of the Gospels and how they were preserved.
If you have read books by Dr. Michael Licona or heard him teach, you will love this course taught by him.

Answering Objections to the New Testament Gospels

What you'll learn

Explore related topics

Course content

Overcoming Objections to the Gospels8 lectures • 1hr 2min

Eyewitness Accounts Preserved through Oral Tradition4 lectures • 25min

Redaction with a Purpose12 lectures • 1hr 48min

Requirements

Description

Who this course is for: