We have seen that the Bible has been meticulously transmitted and accurately translated so that what we hold in our hands today is extremely faithful to the original texts. But how do we know that the original texts are true? And how do we validate the Bible’s claim that it is the Word of God?
The Bible claims to be written by God who moved men to pen His Word. We have seen that we have every reason to accept this claim. But we must eventually ask about other so-called holy books: non-biblical books that also claim to be inspired by God. In particular, what about the Quran or the book of Mormon? Are these also the Word of God?
The books that comprise the Bible are referred to as the canon. But how do we know that the early Church got the canon correct?
What is presuppositional apologetics? The word ‘apologetics’ refers to giving a rational defense of the faith – in this case, the Christian Faith. It is a way of demonstrating that Christianity is true, and refuting allegations to the contrary. But how should we defend the faith? What method should we use?
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction” (Proverbs 1:7). The fact that knowledge begins with God and that everyone has some degree of knowledge can be used in apologetics to expose the unbeliever’s suppressed knowledge of God. The argument is powerful and irrefutable. But what exactly is knowledge?
We previously covered the Münchhausen trilemma: an argument that knowledge is impossible because it can never be ultimately justified. Any (true) belief must be based on a good reason in order to be considered knowledge. But the reason is only good if it also is based on a good reason, which is based on a good reason and so on.