"At the level of their literary and historical character we have good reason to treat the gospels seriously as a source of information on the life and teaching of Jesus, and thus on the historical origins of Christianity. Ancient historians have sometimes commented that the degree of scepticism with which New Testament scholars approach their sources is far greater than would be thought justified in any other branch of ancient history. Indeed many ancient historians would count themselves fortunate to have four such responsible accounts, written within a generation or two of the events, and preserved in such a wealth of early manuscript evidence. . . . Beyond that point, the decision as to how far a scholar is willing to accept the record they offer is likely to be influenced more by his openness to a ‘supernaturalist’ world-view than by strictly historical considerations."

—R. T. France
“The Gospels as Historical Sources for Jesus, the Founder of Christianity,” Truth 1 (1985): 86. (link)

The following transcript is from an Apologetics 315 interview with Peter J. Williams. Original audio here. Transcript index here. If you enjoy transcripts, please consider supporting, which makes this possible.

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BA: Hello. This is Brian Auten of Apologetics 315. Today's interview is with Peter J. Williams, the warden of Tyndale House Cambridge. He was educated at Cambridge University, where he received his M.A., M.Phil, and PhD in the study of ancient languages related to the Bible. Peter is an excellent communicator and competent to speak to a variety of Biblical issues, including the text of the Old and New Testament, moral objections to the Old Testament, and the reliability of the Gospels.

The purpose of this interview is to discuss the reliability of the Gospels, look briefly at Old Testament morality, and get Peter's advice on the subject of apologetics.

Thanks for joining me for this interview, Peter.

PW: It's a pleasure.

In this series of posts at the Christian Apologetics Alliance website, Dr. Tim McGrew explores the topic of Undesigned Coincidences in the New Testament. Citing numerous examples, McGrew notes the cumulative case that can be made for the reliability of the scriptures by looking at textual evidence by various authors. Also check out the classic work of the same name by J.J. Blunt. And be sure to visit the Library of Historical Apologetics for more classical apologetic works. Here are links to the series articles:

• Part 1 • Part 2 • Part 3 • Part 4 • Part 5 • Part 6

Enjoy.

The following transcript is from an Apologetics 315 interview with Craig Evans. Original audio here. Transcript index here. If you enjoy transcripts, please consider supporting, which makes this possible.

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BA: Hello, this is Brian Auten with Apologetics315. Today’s interview is with biblical scholar Professor Craig Evans. He is Payzant Distinguished Professor of New Testament at Acadia Divinity College, Acadia University, Nova Scotia. Professor Evans is author or editor of more than sixty books, and author of hundreds of articles and reviews. His area of expertise is Jesus and the Gospels, as well as New Testament manuscripts. Along with countless interviews on radio networks across Canada and the US, Evans has been seen on Dateline, NBC, CBC, CTV, Day of Discovery, and many documentaries aired on the BBC, the Discovery Channel, History Channel, History Television, and others. He’s also served as a consultant for the National Geographic Society. The purpose of this interview is to gain some insight from Professor Evans on the historical Jesus and the reliability of the Gospels. Well, thank you for joining me today Professor Evans.

CE: Oh, my pleasure, glad to be with you.

BA: Now Professor Evans, you have a resume that is quite extensive in the area of biblical scholarship. And looking at the historical Jesus, the Gospels, and the New Testament manuscripts. So you’ve done countless interviews and it’s certainly impressive work for which the Christian community is thankful for, so I want to thank you for your work in this area.

New Testament scholar Michael J. Kruger has been working through a blog series entitled 10 Basic Facts About the New Testament Canon that Every Christian Should Memorize. Check out his book Canon Revisited: Establishing the Origins and Authority of the New Testament Books for more. Hear the interview with Michael Kruger here.

1. The New Testament Books are the Earliest Christian Writings We Possess
2. Apocryphal Writings Are All Written in the Second Century or Later
3. The New Testament Books Are Unique Because They Are Apostolic Books
4.   Some NT Writers Quote Other NT Writers as Scripture
5.   The Four Gospels are Well Established by the End of the Second Century
6.   At the End of the 2nd Century, the Muratorian Fragment lists 22 of 27 NT Books
7.   Early Christians Often Used Non-Canonical Writings
8.   The NT Canon Was Not Decided at Nicea—Nor Any Other Church Council
9.   Christians Did Disagree about the Canonicity of Some NT Books
10.   Early Christians Believed that Canonical Books Were Self-Authenticating

Enjoy.

A June 3rd article that appeared on Christianpost contained an interview with Dr. Bart Ehrman who is a noted author and professor of religion. Ehrman is most famous for his criticisms of the New Testament’s reliability, with various books he’s produced on the topic reaching the top of certain best seller lists.

The Christianpost interview focused on his skepticism of the New Testament, with very predictable results occurring in the reader comments that followed. Atheists and skeptics high-fived each other, reveling in the fact that they had a credible champion who fuels their hope that the Bible cannot be trusted, while some believers cast disparaging remarks at Ehrman saying he’s not worth listening to.

Both sides need to step back from their rhetoric.

Atheists who believe Bart fully sides with them may be surprised to learn what he does support on the topic of Jesus (and what that foundation points to). And Christians who call into question Ehrman’s intelligence or skill should understand that he is indeed a very smart and well-trained scholar who deserves respect.

Here's a good listen: Peter J. Williams critiques Bart Ehrman's book Misquoting Jesus. If you are interested in New Testament studies, this MP3 audio will be worth your time. You'll hear more about Ehrman, the claims he makes, as well as a fine critique.

Enjoy.

Be sure to visit bethinking.org for other great resources.

(audio quality starts patchy, but clears up after the intro)

The following transcript is from an Apologetics 315 interview with Daniel B. Wallace. Original audio here. Transcript index here. If you enjoy transcripts, please consider supporting, which makes this possible.

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BA: Hello. This is Brian Auten of Apologetics 315. Today, I’m speaking with Dr. Daniel B. Wallace, professor of New Testament Studies at Dallas Theological Seminary and an authority on Koine Greek grammar and New Testament textual criticism. He also influences students across the country through his textbook on intermediate Greek grammar, and it’s used in more than two-thirds of the nation’s schools that teach that subject. Dr. Wallace served as senior New Testament editor for the NET Bible and has founded The Center for the Study of New Testament Manuscripts (CSNTM). The purpose of the CSNTM is to preserve the Greek text of the New Testament by taking digital photographs of all extant Greek New Testament manuscripts and that is found at CSNTM.org.

The purpose of our interview today is to find out more about Dr. Wallace’s work, his debates with Bart Ehrman, the reliability of the New Testament, and his advice for Christian defenders. Thanks so much for joining me today, Dr. Wallace.

DW: Thank you. I’m glad to be on the show, Brian.

In this audio, Jonathan Morrow of ThinkChristianly interviews Michael J. Kruger on the canon of scripture. Kruger's most recent book is Canon Revisited: Establishing the Origins and Authority of the New Testament Books. (Apologetics 315 interviewed Kruger here.) This is another helpful interview looking at the formation of the canon and why we have the books of the Bible that we do.

Interview Audio here. ThinkChristianly podcast here.
Michael Kruger's blog here.
Enjoy.

New Testament scholar Michael J. Kruger has been working through a blog series entitled 10 Misconceptions About the New Testament Canon. This series exams some common beliefs out there in the academic (and lay-level) communities that prove to be problematic upon closer examination. Here is the complete list of posts over at his blog Canon Fodder. Check out his book Canon Revisited: Establishing the Origins and Authority of the New Testament Books for more. Hear the interview with Michael Kruger here.

1. The Term “Canon” Can Only Refer to a Fixed, Closed List of Books
2. Nothing in Early Christianity Dictated That There Would be a Canon
3. The New Testament Authors Did Not Think They Were Writing Scripture
4. New Testament Books Were Not Regarded as Scriptural Until Around 200 A.D.
5. Early Christians Disagreed Widely over the Books Which Made It into the Canon
6. In the Early Stages, Apocryphal Books Were as Popular as the Canonical Books
7. Christians Had No Basis to Distinguish Heresy from Orthodoxy Until the Fourth Century
8. Early Christianity was an Oral Religion and Therefore Would Have Resisted Writing Things Down
9. The Canonical Gospels Were Certainly Not Written by the Individuals Named in Their Titles
10. Athanasius’ Festal Letter (367 A.D.) is the First Complete List of New Testament Books

"It may not, perhaps, be useless to my younger readers to observe on this part of my subject, that the very circumstances which contribute to this species of obscurity in the epistles [of Paul], form at the same time the strongest internal proofs of the genuineness of these compositions, and of the truth of all the transactions on which the proof of Christianity depends.

Such a variety of references to particular times, and places, and persons; and above all, appeals to individuals as to facts which they knew, and conversations they had heard, answers evidently given to letters that had been received, and inquiries that had been made; appeals and answers, such as would be clear and intelligible, if we suppose the facts alluded to real, and these letters to have been before the writer of the epistles, and these inquiries to have been made, but which could have no conceivable object or meaning otherwise—such particulars never find place in the artful texture of forged and fictitious compositions. These always avoid unnecessary references to circumstances, which would only make their detection easy and certain; they deliver their doctrines unconnected with facts; they guard as much as possible against objection; they every where betray marks of reserve and caution, of artifice and design.

Far different are the epistles of St. Paul: every line of them speaks the language of a man intent on present, real, urgent business, addressing others equally engaged in the same transactions, and anxious to influence, and to direct them in some particular mode of conduct. In a word, we see in the epistles of this great apostle nothing of the fictions of imposture, nothing of the visions of fanaticism; every thing bespeaks reality and truth."

—Richard Graves

Essay on the Character of the Apostles and Evangelists, in Richard Hastings Graves, ed., The Whole Works of Richard Graves, vol. 1 (Dublin: William Curry Jun. and Co., 1840), pp. 116-17.

Can we trust the Gospels? Did reliable eyewitnesses pen them? In our search for the “historical Jesus”, should we consider them accurate sources?

At one point in time, these questions would never have been asked. The historicity of Jesus was taken for granted as was the reliability of the accounts of his life. Thanks largely to the rise of form criticism and theologians such as Rudolph Bultmann, the Gospels came to be doubted. Today, in our post-modern culture in which all historical information is considered suspect, we are faced with having to defend the Bible and the fact that Jesus did indeed walk this earth. This task is made easier by scholars such as Richard Bauckham who has delved into the issue of the dependability of the Gospels in his book Jesus and the Eyewitnesses.

The following transcript is from an Apologetics 315 interview with Craig Blomberg. Original audio here. If you enjoy transcripts, please consider supporting, which makes this possible.

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The following transcript is from an Apologetics 315 interview with Michael J. Kruger. Original audio here. If you enjoy transcripts, please consider supporting, which makes this possible.

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BA: Hello, this is Brian Auten of Apologetics 315. Today's interview is with Professor of New Testament, Dr. Michael J. Kruger. Dr. Kruger teaches at Reformed Theological Seminary in Charlotte, NC. His area of expertise is in the development of the New Testament canon, the Gospels, and the development of early Christianity. His latest book is Canon Revisited: Establishing the Origins, and Authority of the New Testament Books.

The purpose of today's interview is to learn more about the formation of the New Testament canon, the writing of the Gospels, and gain some insights from Dr. Kruger about understanding and defending the Gospel canon.

Well thanks for joining me for this interview, Dr. Kruger.

MK: Thanks, Brian. Good to be with you.

Today's interview is with Michael J. Kruger, Professor of New Testament at Reformed Theological Seminary in Charlotte, NC. He talks about his background in New Testament studies, his new book on the canon, Canon Revisited: Establishing the Origins and Authority of the New Testament Books, the nature of the Bible, the meaning and formation of the canon, criteria of canonicity and attributes of canonicity, "other gospels," the apocrypha, how we can know what books belong in the Bible, advice for Christian apologists, and more. Dr. Kruger's blog is here.

Full Interview MP3 Audio here (42 min)

Enjoy.
Subscribe to the Apologetics 315 Interviews podcast here or in iTunes.

Michael J. Kruger, author of Canon Revisited: Establishing the Origins and Authority of the New Testament Books, and professor of New Testament at Reformed Theological Seminary, Charlotte, NC presents four lectures on the origins and development of the Canon. These are part of the Kistemaker Lecture Series, RTS-Orlando, March 2012.

• The Definition of ‘Canon’: Exclusive or Multi-Dimensional?
• The Origins of Canon: Was the Idea of a New Testament a Late Ecclesiastical Development?
• The Artifacts of Canon: Manuscripts as a Window into the Development of the New Testament
• The Messiness of the Canon: Do Disagreements Amongst Early Christians Pose a Threat to Our Belief in the New Testament?

Enjoy.

"The wealth of material that is available for determining the wording of the original New Testament is staggering: more than fifty-seven hundred Greek New Testament manuscripts, as many as twenty thousand versions, and more than one million quotations by patristic writers. In comparison with the average ancient Greek author, the New Testament copies are well over a thousand times more plentiful. If the average-sized manuscript were two and one-half inches thick, all the copies of the works of an average Greek author would stack up four feet high, while the copies of the New Testament would stack up to over a mile high! This is indeed an embarrassment of riches."

—Dan Wallace

HT: Jonathan Morrow

In this lecture, entitled The Resurrection of Jesus, Dr. Timothy McGrew present a case for the resurrection of Jesus based upon five facts found in the Gospels. He evaluated other competing hypotheses, showing that the resurrection alone accounts for all the historical data. This is about 45 minutes of content followed by fifteen minutes of Q&A. PowerPoint file is here. Handout PDF here. Visit the Library of Historical Apologetics. This is the sixth part of a series—part 1 here; part 2 here; part 3 here.

Full MP3 Audio here. (1hr 30min)
Video on YouTube here.
Enjoy.

Bible scholar Ben Witherington has an excellent course over at BiblicalTraining.org on New Testament Introduction. This is a 17-part audio series, with each lecture over an hour long. The course covers 5 main subject areas: 1) the history of the period in which the NT was written; 2) the social and cultural milieu in which early Christians lived; 3) the practice of the scholarly study of the NT; 4) questions of introduction about the books of the NT; and 5) the practice of exegesis and hermeneutics. Definitely worth examining, along with the other great resources provided by BiblicalTraining.org.

Check out New Testament Introduction here.
Enjoy.

In this lecture, entitled Internal Evidences for the Truth of the Gospels, Dr. Timothy McGrew presents internal evidence bearing on the authenticity of the Gospels, with a special emphasis on undesigned coincidences in the Gospel accounts. This is about 45 minutes of content followed by fifteen minutes of Q&A. PowerPoint file is here. Handout PDF here. Visit the Library of Historical Apologetics. This is the third of a series—part 1 here; part 2 here.

Full MP3 Audio here. (1hr 30min)
Video on YouTube here.
Enjoy.