Welcome to The Apologist’s Bookshelf, a podcast dedicated to exploring the best books in Christian apologetics. I’m Gary Zacharias, a professor of English, avid reader, and passionate follower of Jesus Christ. This podcast is for anyone curious about the intellectual foundation of the Christian faith—whether you’re a believer seeking to deepen your understanding, or a skeptic exploring the truth claims of Christianity. Each episode, I feature a key book on topics like the existence of God, the historical evidence for Jesus, the reliability of the Bible, creation and design in the universe, and how to engage unbelievers with wisdom and grace. These are the books that have earned a permanent place on my apologetics bookshelf—and I want to share them with you. If you’re interested in faith and reason, defending the Christian worldview, or simply love diving into thought-provoking Christian books, this podcast is for you. Contact me at: theapolgistsbookshelf@gmail.com.
Episodes
Saturday Aug 10, 2024
Saturday Aug 10, 2024
This book, which has garnered a lot of attention, deals with how we should live in a post-Christian America. Aaron Renn says we need to focus on three key domains of our evangelical life: personal, institutional, and missional. This podcast looks at the first of these three areas.
Wednesday Aug 07, 2024
Wednesday Aug 07, 2024
Chuck Colson says in this book that salvation is a free gift--but it costs everything. He then tells the story of Dietrich Bonhoeffer and relates this to all of us.
Saturday Aug 03, 2024
Saturday Aug 03, 2024
D. A. Carson, author of many books, offers here a landmark critique of tolerance in contemporary Western culture. The chapter I cover today looks at the old and the new definitions of tolerance
Wednesday Jul 31, 2024
Wednesday Jul 31, 2024
This podcast covers the ancient meaning of happiness, according to J.P. Moreland.
Saturday Jul 27, 2024
Saturday Jul 27, 2024
J. P. Moreland, a wonderful writer and thinker, deals here with the world's idea of happiness and how empty it leaves people.
Wednesday Jul 24, 2024
Wednesday Jul 24, 2024
This book, by Clay Jones, deals with the human fear of death and what we can do about it. I'm looking this time at chapter 5, which discusses various unsuccessful secular attempts to give us a sense of transcendence over death.
Saturday Jul 20, 2024
Saturday Jul 20, 2024
God is doing amazing things in the Muslim world, bringing people to faith in Jesus through dreams and visions. I discuss a few of these and cover what the author says about interacting with Muslims.
Wednesday Jul 17, 2024
Wednesday Jul 17, 2024
I'm covering several more important questions Hank Hanegraaff answers in this book: How can the eternal Son of God be "the firstborn over all creation"? What distinguishes Christianity from other religions? Don't all religions lead to God? What happens to a person who never heard of Jesus? What is a cult? Are Jehovah's Witnesses Christians?
Saturday Jul 13, 2024
Saturday Jul 13, 2024
Here's the second half of the chapter dealing with worldviews and culture wars.
Thursday Jul 11, 2024
Thursday Jul 11, 2024
Chuck Colson and Nancy Pearcey challenge all of us to understand biblical faith as an entire worldview. In this podcast I discuss what a worldview is and what the current culture war involves.