Josh and his son, Sean, have completely revised and updated the hugely influential Evidence that Demands a Verdict that was first released in 1979. Josh wrote the original book after so many people kept asking him for his notes that he would use for his apologetics talks. I had my own copy of this book in the 80's as a young teenager, and I remember being astounded at the comprehensive information and level of detail that was available as a resource.
Fast forward to 2017. Josh's son, Sean, is a fully qualified professor and apologist in his own right, working now as Assistant Professor of Christian Apologetics at Biola University in La Mirada, California. This father-and-son team came together to update this material for a new generation of Christians and seekers looking for evidence for the truth of Christianity.
Josh and Sean have accomplished their goal swimmingly by providing comprehensive evidence like it was their job. Actually, I think it was their job. They have a very full introduction that covers a lot of ground with the nature of what apologetics is, why it is important for the Church, and answering some objections and misconceptions that some will bring up.
Following this introduction, McDowell and McDowell offer a robust prologue which stands as an introduction to natural theology, that is, evidences from nature that point beyond the physical world to a Creator. It is here that Josh and Sean begin to target the philosophical idea of metaphysical naturalism, which is the reigning prejudice of our age, especially in the sciences. In simplified form, naturalism is the idea that all that exists is matter and energy operating according to natural law. Anything like a god or gods are denied to exist. They offer six evidences for the existence of God, including the origin of the universe, the fine tuning of the universe, the origin of life, the origin of consciousness, and the existence of free will and morality. These evidences then form the backdrop for the rest of the book since they offer good reason to think that something like the Christian God is reasonable. Given that it is entirely plausible that God does exist, we are now ready to explore the particular Christian evidences that take up the vast majority of Evidence.
Team McDowell has divided the book into four parts. Part I deals with the reliability of the Bible. Part II covers the evidence for Jesus, including his life, his unique claims and his resurrection. Part III offers evidence for the reliability of the Old Testament. Finally, Part IV answers skeptics and post-modernists with an exploration of what is truth and the possibility of miracles.
This book is a serious resource for all Christians. If you share your Christian convictions enough with others, someone is bound to ask you a question or to offer a challenge to Christianity. The only question is: will you answer those questions well or poorly? The updated Evidence that Demands a Verdict belongs on your shelf as a go-to in order to help you answer those questions well.
The verdict for this book? Buy it! (If you pre-order, you will be able to download and read two chapters now: "The Martyrdom of the Apostles" and "The Historical Existence of Jesus")
For more information, go to www.ReadEvidence.com.
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