Tactics and Tools

Questions about what to say to those who refuse to engage with a “script” and questions to ask someone who doesn’t care about spiritual things to get them to care about eternity now.

Greg and Amy explain that when someone calls you “stubborn” or “dogmatic,” you can respond by asking for clarification and returning the conversation to the reasons behind each person’s view.

Questions about suggestions for a book to give a strong pantheist who’s a fan of Neale Donald Walsch, and how karma is different from the parable of the sower in Matthew 13 or the teaching about reaping what you sow in Galatians 6.

Questions about how the unity of the Bible can be evidence it’s from God if the books could have been cherry-picked later, whether the fact that some passages in our Bibles aren’t canonical means every part of the Bible can be called into question, and why the Gospels don’t tell who wrote them.

Some believers go head-to-head with talented academics in public without taking their opponents’ skills or ideas seriously, but having the truth on your side is simply not enough to successfully persuade an audience. Here’s how you can prepare both strategically and tactically for an encounter with a thoughtful challenger.

Tripp Almon explains that the claim “Jesus is the only way” is not a subjective preference Christians seek to force on others. It is an objective claim about reality that is either true or false.

Questions about how to deal with someone whose mission is to tear down everyone else’s beliefs about Jesus, how to help a child or teen who seems liable to turn away form God due to peer pressures, and how to reach a daughter who says she wouldn’t be a Christian even if it were true.

Greg answers questions about whether or not we can see evidence that God sustains the universe, and how to respond to someone who says autonomy is his guiding principle for morality.

Greg and Amy explain how to respond when someone cites an expert to challenge a Christian claim. Instead of trading one expert opinion for another, ask what reasons and evidence support the expert’s conclusion.

Greg talks about the upcoming Reality season, then he responds to questions about what to ask someone who casually refers to karma, the Latter-day Saint claim that they received the true priesthood authority, and whether new Christians ought to go back and correct past wrongs.

Questions about our best answer when an atheist asks us to prove God exists, how God can be merciful and forgiving without the existence of fallen humanity, and why, if God is complete in himself and already receives glory from the angels, he would create us to witness his glory.

Questions about what to say to a confused four-year-old grandson whose father is telling him there are hundreds of gods, why it’s difficult to persuade a Mormon or Jehovah’s Witness, and how to engage someone who claims to be Christian yet attends a Unitarian Universalist church.

Slippery slope arguments link one way of thinking to an unintended consequence that’s likely to follow. Some such appeals are faulty, but some are valid. Here’s the difference.

Jon Noyes reviews a conversation he had at a women’s march in Washington, D.C., demonstrating how asking clarifying questions can uncover contradictions in views about abortion and the humanity of the unborn.

Greg talks about a clip from Wes Huff’s interview on Diary of a CEO and responds to objections to Hell, then he answers a question about whether ancient Greeks viewed their mythology the way we view Christianity now and people in the future will view Christianity the way we view Greek mythology now.

Greg explains a three-point response to the problem of evil, then he talks to callers about a strategic question to ask someone who doesn’t trust the Bible because he thinks anything touched by man has been tainted, and whether Acts 17:26–27 is a good proof text for Molinism.

Jon Noyes takes Stand to Reason to the streets in his new video series, asking honest questions in unscripted conversations and then providing commentary with takeaways you can put into practice.

Greg answers questions about how to dive into controversial conversations in a sensible way, the proper way of doing missions, whether boxing can be enjoyed to the glory of God, the line between temptation and sin, and whether Luke 20:37–38 points to the B-theory of time.

Greg walks through how to identify the underlying flaw in an objection and then use simple questions to engage and lead others to affirm key truths.

Here’s something to remember when you find yourself avoiding certain truths our culture dislikes because you think that will attract people to Jesus.