Welcome to Topical Studies!  Here you will find material on a variety of subjects, organized by general category.  Whether you are a believer, skeptic, or a follower of another faith, we invite you to explore the material presented here and the links to our exegetical commentaries contained in the Apologists Bible Commentary.

 

Topical Studies, like the Apologists Bible Commentary, is a work In progress.  If you have ideas for articles, please let us know.

 

 

 

 

 

General

Biblical Hermeneutics Robert Hommel

Three articles on tongues Robert Zerhusen.

The Biblical Basis of the Doctrine of the Trinity: An Outline Study Robert Bowman (from Apologetics.com) Got the Right Doctrine?  How Do you Know?  Robert Hommel
The Plural  Maker Called God Ray Goldsmith The Morality of Everlasting Punishment Mark Talbot
A Brief Articulation of Sola Scriptura Sam Shamoun What is an Evangelical? Michael Horton
The Deity of Christ J. Gresham Machen (from The Christian Faith in the Modern World) Understanding the Basics of the Faith: A Question and Answer Bible Study Series Greg Herrick
Apologetics, Truth, and Humility Douglas Groothuis The Meaning of the Passover Chosen People Ministries
Peter Jennings on Jesus and Paul Robert Bowman Tools for Personal Bible Study Robert Hommel

The Da Vinci Code Reviews

   Craig Blomberg, PhD "Online Review, Denver Journal"

   Ronald V. Huggins, ThD "Cracks in the Da Vinci Code"

   Darrell Bock, PhD "The Good News of Da Vinci"

   Ben Witherington III, PhD "Mary, Mary, Extraordinary"

Are We Alone in the Universe? Raymond G. Bohlin, PhD

A Microbiologist discusses the evidence for life on Mars and it's implications for Christianity

 

Human Fossils:  Just So Stories of Apes and Humans Raymond G. Bohlin, PhD

 

 

 

Answering Jehovah's Witnesses

Greek Grammar

Sharp's Rule and Antitrinitarian Theologies: A Bicentennial Defense of Granville Sharp's Argument for the Deity of Christ Robert Bowman

Sharp Redivivus? A Reexamination of the Granville Sharp Rule Dan Wallace

The Text and Grammar of John 1:18 Dan Wallace

The New World Translation and Christologically Significant Article-Substantive-Kai-Substantive
Constructions in the New Testament
J. Ed Komoszewski

Revisiting the Colwell Construction in Light of Mass / Count Nouns Don Hartley

Jesus and Latreuô Sam Shamoun

The One and Only Son Richard Longenecker

"Smart's Rule" - A Critique  Robert Bowman

Is Prototokos a 'Partitive Word?' Luis C. Reyes

Verse Studies

Subordinationism in John 5 Barry Hofstetter

Old Testament Background of the Firstborn:  Dr. Robert Keay on Col 1:15

The Structure and Rhetoric of Colossians 1:15-20: Luis C. Reyes (hosted by Bible Studies on the Web)

The Latest JW Argument from Col 1:15 Ray Goldsmith

"I Said Ye Are Gods:" Psalm 82:6 and John 10 Jerome Neyrey

An Apologetic Study of John 10:34-36 W. Gary Phillips

Jesus as "a god" Alongside God: JWs and John 1:1 Sam Shamoun

Theos is a Count Noun: Is the Word "God" or "a god" in John 1:1c Robert Hommel

Jesus as the Mighty God of Isaiah 9:6 Sam Shamoun

John 8:58: How Do We Translate? Kelton Graham

Monotheism & Christology

Were Early Christians Trinitarians? Robert Hommel

Biblical Monotheism Examined: Trinitarian or Henotheistic in Nature? Sam Shamoun

Jehovah's Witnesses and the Deity of Christ Sam Shamoun

Jesus is Yahweh Sam Shamoun

The Modern Arians J. P. Holding on Greg Stafford, Wisdom, and John 1:1  (from Tektonics.org)

Paul's Christology of Divine Identity Richard Bauckham

What Do We Mean by First Century Jewish Monotheism Larry W. Hurtado

Watchtower Theology

Power in the Blood J.P. Holding (from Tektonics.org)

Jehovah's Witnesses and the Cross Sarah J. Roberts (fifth year doctoral student in linguistics at Stanford University).

Jehovah of the Watchtower: The Theism of Jehovah's Witnesses James Stewart

Romans 8:11 and the Resurrection Robert Bowman

Where is the Great Crowd?  Robert V. Frazier

The Anointed's Inescapable False Prophecy James Stewart

The Watchtower Testifies about False Prophecy: The Walsh Trial

Book Reviews

 

Rolf Furuli: The Role of Theology and Bias in Bible Translation

   A Review by James Stewart

      James Stewart Defends His Review

   A Review by Luis Carlos Reyes

   A Review by Robert Bowman

 

Brian Holt:  Jesus: God or the Son of God

   A Review by "Phantaz Sunlyk"

 

Greg Stafford: Jehovah's Witnesses Defended

     A Summary Critique by James White

 

Jason BeDuhn Truth in Translation

     A Review by N.E. Barry Hofstetter

 

The Old Testament and the Afterlife: A Review of Philip Johnston's Shades of Sheol N.E. Barry Hofstetter

Watchtower Literature

The New World Translation: What the Scholars Really Said  Robert Hommel

Dr. Julius R. Mantey and the Watchtower Robert Hommel

A Response to the Pamphlet 'Should You Believe in the Trinity' Barry Hofstetter

References used in the "Should You Believe in the Trinity" booklet (courtesy of Freeminds). 

Official Watchtower Teaching about the Internet

   1999: Use of the Internet: Beware of the Dangers

   2003: Beware the Voice of Strangers

 

Fred Franz, William LaSor, and the NWT Robert Hommel

 

Books from Tetragrammaton.Org...

   The Divine Name in the New World Translation

   The Tetragrammaton in the Christian Greek Scriptures

   Other Downloadable books...

 

 

Answering Latter Day Saints

Mormon Polygamy Chad Uretsky

The Doctrine of The Trinity in LDS and "Catholic" Contexts Paul Owen
Mormon Apologetic, Scholarship and Evangelical Neglect: Losing the Battle and Not Knowing It? Carl Mosser and Paul Owen

Mosser and Owen Address Some Concerns about how their paper has been used to discredit certain authors.

Philosophical Problems with the Mormon Concept of God Francis Beckwith A Review of How Wide the Divide: A Mormon and an Evangelical in Conversation Francis Beckwith
"Ye are Gods?" Orthodox and Heretical Views on the Deification of Man Robert Bowman To Those Who are Investigating "Mormonism" Richard Packham
A Mormon General Authority's Doubts About the Authenticity of the Book of Mormon (a book review of B.H. Roberts' Studies of the Book of Mormon) Changes to Latter-Day Scripture - LDS Leaders Have Made Thousands of Changes to Mormon Scriptures - Why?

DNA Evidence vs The Book of Mormon - New documentary film by Living Hope Ministries featuring secular and LDS scholars raises questions about the historicity of the Book of Mormon

     Video (order or view online)

     Review

A Review of New Approaches to the Book of Mormon: Explorations in Critical Methodology (Brent Metcalfe, ed.) - Ten contemporary scholars, most LDS, reflect on challenges to the authenticity of the Book of Mormon.

 

 

Answering the International Church of Christ

 

 

Answering Atheism and Agnosticism

Does God Exist?

In Defense of Intelligent Design William Dembski

Reflections on Human Origins William Dembski

The Intelligent Design Movement William Dembski

Science and Design William Dembski

Skepticism's Prospects for Unseating Intelligent Design William Dembski

Intelligent Design FAQ from the Access Research Network

Michael Denton on Intelligent Design Brief excepts from Evolution: A Theory in Crisis

The Existence of God and the Beginning of the Universe William Lane Craig

The Teleological Argument and the Anthropic Principle William Lane Craig

The Evolution of a Skeptic: An Interview with Michael Behe

An Introduction to Molecular Machines and Irreducible Complexity MIchael Behe (from the Access Research Network)

The Great Debate: Does God Exist? (Bahnsen-Stein)

Does God Exist?  The Bahnsen-Tabash Debate

Is an Atheistic Worldview Philosophically Sound?

An Interview with Anthony Flew Gary Habermas interviews the former atheist (now theist) philosopher.

The Presumptuousness of Atheism Paul Copan

Deconstructing Liberal Tolerance Francis Beckwith

A Summary Critique of The Case Against Christianity Stephen E. Parrish

Responses to Atheist Philosopher Michael Martin John Frame and Michael Butler

Can Michael Martin Be a Moral Realist?: Sic et Non Paul Copan

The Heart of the Matter: Knowing and Believing Greg Bahnsen (a summary of the Transcendental Argument)

Presuppositional Procedure Greg Bahnsen

Philosophical Problems with Moral Relativism Francis Beckwith

The Futility of Non-Christian Thinking - An outline of the Transcendental Argument for the Existence of God)

Monkey Morality: Can Evolution Explain Ethics? Greg Koukl

Methodical Naturalism?  Alvin Plantinga

Theism, Atheism, and Rationality Alvin Plantinga

Is the Bible Reliable?

The Historicity of the Empty Tomb of Jesus William Lane Craig (hosted by Leadership U.)

Support for the Authenticity of the Book of Matthew as reported in the Kansas City Star, June 2003.

Shattering the Christ-Myth J.P. Holding (from Tektonics.org)

Easter: Myth, Hallucination, or History Edwin Yamauchi (hosted by Leadership U.)

Qumran Fragment 7Q5: Possibilities and Impossibilities Carsten Peter Thiede

Does the Problem of Evil Disprove the God of the Bible?

Where is God?  A Biblical Answer to the Problem of Evil  Robert Hommel

The Problem of Evil Greg Bahnsen

Intelligent Design and the Problem of Evil William Dembski

How can a Good God Allow Evil? Rick Rood

Bosnia, Rape and the Problem of Evil Greg Koukl