Posts by Sean McDowell

Sean McDowell

Sean McDowell (Ph.D.) is an associate professor in the Christian Apologetics program at Talbot School of Theology, Biola University. He is a gifted communicator with a passion for equipping the Church, and in particular young people, to make the case for the Christian faith. Sean travels throughout the United States and abroad, speaking at camps, churches, schools, universities, and conferences. He is the co-host for the Think Biblically podcast, and he has authored or edited over twenty books, including Chasing Love: Sex, Love, and Relationships In A Confused Culture and So The Next Generation Will Know (with J. Warner Wallace). Sean hosts one of the leading apologetics blogs at seanmcdowell.org, and he hosts some great conversations on his YouTube channel. Sean and his wife, Stephanie, have three children and live in San Juan Capistrano, CA.

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The Good Book Blog
How Do You Develop a Public Speaking Ministry?
Sean McDowell — September 30, 2016
For the past fifteen years (or so), I have had the privilege of speaking at camps, conferences, schools, churches, and universities worldwide. People quite frequently ask me what it takes to develop a speaking ministry. While there are certainly people with platforms far beyond mine, here are some personal thoughts that I hope will help those of you desiring to become a public speaker.
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What are the Toughest Ethical Issue Facing Christians Today? — An Interview with Dr. Scott Rae
Sean McDowell — September 28, 2016
Professor Scott Rae is one of the leading Christian ethicists today. As an undergrad, I had the opportunity to take his class on business ethics...and it was one of my favorites. I have used his book Moral Choices for my high school honors Bible class, and I consider it one of the best texts on ethics. Now, he has written a short, concise introduction to ethics called Introducing Christian Ethics: A Short Guide to Making Moral Choices, which officially releases today. If you are looking for a book to use as a text for a class, a small group, or even personal study, this book would be an excellent choice. Dr. Rae briefly answered a few of my questions regarding ethics today.
The Good Book Blog
5 Misconceptions about the Bible
Sean McDowell — August 18, 2016
The Bible is the most influential book of all time. Given its impact over literature, history, governments, philosophy and more, it should come as no surprise that there are many misconceptions about its nature. Christians need to avoid these misconceptions because Paul said, “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth” (2 Tim. 2:15) ...
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Epic Failure: My Biggest Evangelism Mistake
Sean McDowell — August 10, 2016
During a trip to Breckenridge, a beautiful ski town in the mountains of Colorado, a friend and I decided to get our hair cut at one of the little shops downtown. As we waited our turn, I read another chapter of the book I had brought along with me, a book whose title clearly indicated my interest in spiritual things ...
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What are the Best Apologetics Resources for Students?
Sean McDowell — August 03, 2016
When I first wrote my book Ethix in 2006, the reviewer for the Christian Research Journal said its one of a few, but growing number of apologetics resources for students. It’s amazing how much has changed in a decade. Now we have tons of good apologetics resources for students, and the challenge is to highlight the best ones. The purpose of this post is simply to highlight some of my personal favorites. Please let me know if there are any good ones I need to add to my list ...
The Good Book Blog
5 Myths about Teaching Apologetics to Students
Sean McDowell — July 27, 2016
Training students in apologetics is one of the most important tasks for any youth leader today. Whether through classroom teaching, speaking, personal conversation, on apologetics mission trips, or through writing, I have been training students to defend their faith for nearly two decades. While there are certainly some exceptions, in my experience, the vast majority love it ...
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J.P. Moreland Answers Three Important Questions
Sean McDowell — July 20, 2016
In my recent book, A New Kind of Apologist, I was able to interview my friend and colleague J.P. Moreland. He is the distinguished professor of philosophy at Talbot School of Theology and the author or coauthor of thirty books, including The Kingdom Triangle ...
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Are Christians in a Culture War? Interview with Josh McDowell
Sean McDowell — July 13, 2016
This goal of this blog is for me to soak up wisdom from my father and share it with you. I have been blessed to have an incredibly influential father, Josh McDowell. He has written over 150 books and spoken to more young people live than anyone in history. But what I appreciate most about my father is his love for my mom, for his kids, and now for his many grandkids. Enjoy! ...
The Good Book Blog
What are the Top Books to Give a Non-Christian?
Sean McDowell — July 06, 2016
One of the most common questions I receive regards which books I would recommend Christians to give their non-Christian friends who they hope may become believers. While there are many excellent books, these six come from both my personal experience of hearing stories of how people have become believers, and also an assessment of the apologetic and evangelistic value of each book ...
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How Do You Minister to Second Generation Christian Students?
Sean McDowell — June 29, 2016
Even though I grew up in a Christian home, with parents in professional Christian ministry, there was a time that I walked away from God. I was tired of the rules, authority, and simply wanted to live life my own way. And as you can imagine, I hit rock bottom. Feelings of loneliness, despair, and the weight of sin simply overwhelmed me and I hit the end of my rope … and so when I was four years old, I got down on my knees and decided I was going to follow Jesus ...
The Good Book Blog
What are the Top Academic Books on the Bible and Homosexuality?
Sean McDowell — June 22, 2016
In my last post, I listed my top five popular books on the Bible and homosexuality. This post is designed for those who want to go deeper and explore the academic sources firsthand ...
The Good Book Blog
Top Ten Verses to Defend Your Faith
Sean McDowell — June 15, 2016
For the past few days I have been trying to think of the top ten verses that would be most helpful to apologists and evangelists. I have reflected on my own experience and also gotten feedback from many of you on Facebook and Twitter. So, here are my top ten verses to defend your faith (in no particular order) ...
The Good Book Blog
How Do We Help Kids Who Have Left the Faith?
Sean McDowell — June 08, 2016
Perhaps the toughest question parents ask me is how they can help their wayward kids. The difficulty of this question stems not solely from the intellect, but from seeing the pain in the eyes of parents who are genuinely hurt and disappointed in the choices of their kids. What can we do? Here are some humble thoughts from my work with students ...
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Did the Apostle Thomas Die as a Martyr?
Sean McDowell — June 01, 2016
In my last post, I evaluated the tradition that the apostle Thomas ministered in India. While the evidence for Thomas in India is not as strong as for Peter and Paul in Rome, it is at least probable that he founded the church in India. But did Thomas die as a martyr?
The Good Book Blog
Did the Apostle Thomas Minister in India?
Sean McDowell — May 30, 2016
In my recent book The Fate of the Apostles, I examine the evidence the apostles of Jesus died as martyrs. Because the evidence is early and consistent, there is widespread agreement that Peter, Paul, and both James died as martyrs. But scholars are much more divided over the tradition surrounding “doubting” Thomas. Did he really make it to India, as tradition suggests, and die there as a martyr? ...
The Good Book Blog
Should Experience Trump Scripture?
Sean McDowell — May 23, 2016
In my recent book The Beauty of Intolerance, my father and I discuss how a new view of tolerance has crept its way into the church. One powerful way this is seen is how an increasing number of Christians approach Scripture. For instance, in his book God and the Gay Christian, Matthew Vines begins by affirming the final authority of scripture on questions of morality and doctrine.[1] And yet when Vines discovered his own same-sex attraction, his perspective began to change based on his personal experience. Now he has become an outspoken advocate for LGBT rights within the church, and his goal is to lead a movement to convince Christians that they can affirm the full authority of scripture and also affirm committed, monogamous same-sex relationships ...
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5 Tips for Young Apologists
Sean McDowell — May 11, 2016
It seems strange to be writing a blog with advice for young apologists. After all, I still think of myself as young! There are many “seasoned” apologists I turn to for advice and direction that are much older and more experienced than me (don’t worry, dad, I won’t mention any names!). But since I’m turning 40 this May, I do have some insights for younger apologists that I have learned along the way ...
The Good Book Blog
The Worldview Behind "The Jungle Book" Movie
Sean McDowell — May 03, 2016
My entire family went to see The Jungle Book this past weekend. From my 3 ½-year old son, to my mother-in-law, we all thoroughly enjoyed it. Disney is to be commended for making an engaging, creative, and faithful “live” version of this classic story. Like all fictional movies, The Jungle Book offers a story, which has worldview implications. Two questions lie at the heart of the movie: What does it mean to be human? And secondarily: How does man relate to nature? Specifically, these questions are explored through the life of Mowgli—a young boy whom wolves raise in the jungle ...
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Does the Church Have a "Plausibility" Problem?
Sean McDowell — April 27, 2016
Since writing my book on Same-Sex Marriage, I have been reading almost every book I can get my hands on related to homosexuality and the church. While there are some great books, there has been a huge need for a book that addresses the “plausibility” problem. I recently came across the book Same-Sex Attraction and the Church by Ed Shaw, and was pleasantly surprised that it dealt with this exact issue with clarity and insight. In my view, this book is one of the top five most important books for Christians to read on the subject. Pastor Ed was kind enough to answer a few of my questions. Enjoy! ...
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New Book Provides Short Answers to Big Questions about God
Sean McDowell — April 18, 2016
I recently received a copy of an intriguing book in the mail called Short Answers to Big Questions about God, the Bible, and Christianity. One of the authors, Dr. Clinton Arnold, is a friend and colleague of mine at Biola University. This father-son pair tackle some of the biggest theological questions raised about Christianity today, such as, “Is Hell a real place?” “Do angels and demons really exist?” and “Does God hate sex?” If you’re looking for an easy-to-read, insightful, and timely book that tackles these types of questions, then I highly recommend this book. To give you a sense of the content and approach of this book, the Arnolds answered a few of my questions ...
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Why Evolution Is Not "Just a Theory"
Sean McDowell — April 11, 2016
One of my favorite presentations to do at universities, schools, conferences, and churches is my Atheist Encounter, in which I interact with the audience while role-playing an atheist. After briefly setting up my character (which involves putting on my “atheist glasses”), I then take live questions from the audience and do my best to defend atheism so Christians can see how well—or how poorly—they defend their faith ...
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How Do We Help Students Resist our Pornified Culture? Part 2
Sean McDowell — April 07, 2016
In my first post, I discussed two underlying reasons why pornography has such a stronghold on many youth today. In this post, my goal is to offer six practical insights so we can best help students resist the lure of pornography. These are some of the points I will be sharing at the upcoming Set Free Global Conference on pornography.
The Good Book Blog
How Do We Help Students Resist Our Pornified Culture? Part 1
Sean McDowell — April 06, 2016
For the past two decades, I have been speaking, teaching, writing, and counseling students on a variety of issues. Yet in the past few years, no issue has become more critical to address with students than pornography. And yet, sadly, many parents, youth workers, teachers, and other adults simply ignore it ...
The Good Book Blog
Why Our Storytelling Nature Provides Evidence for God
Sean McDowell — March 30, 2016
I love stories. And I know that you do too. Whether it’s a captivating novel, an enthralling movie, or an anecdote from a friend, human beings love stories. We love to tell them and we love to listen to them. In fact, we can't resist them. In The Storytelling Animal, Jonathan Gottschall says it beautifully: “Human minds yield hopelessly to the suction of story. No matter how hard we concentrate, not matter how deep we dig in our heels, we just can’t resist the gravity of alternate worlds.”[1] Good public speakers know that the best way to engage an audience is through storytelling. Whenever I feel like I’m losing an audience, I quickly tell a story and they’re right back with me! ...
The Good Book Blog
The Resurrection Answers Three Big Questions
Sean McDowell — March 26, 2016
“The resurrection of Jesus Christ is either one of the most wicked, vicious, heartless hoaxes ever foisted on the minds of human beings—or it is the most remarkable fact of history.” My father has often shared these words to me in person, and he’s written them in his books. The older I get, the more I realize they’re unmistakably true. There’s no middle ground with the resurrection of Jesus. Either it is a colossal fabrication or the most important event in history ...