Articles

A Review of God and Moral Law by Mark Murphy

By Adam Lloyd Johnson, Ph.D.

In God and Moral Law: On the Theistic Explanation of Morality, Mark Murphy critiques the two most well-known theistic theories of morality, natural law theory and divine command theory, and then presents a third view which he argues is superior. In this book he doesn’t argue for theism; rather, he assumes theism is true and then explores what sort of relationship, given theism, we should expect between God and morality. He also explains that he’s arguing with the assumption of perfect being theology, though that doesn’t seem to play a large role in his argument, with the following exception: based on his understanding of perfect being theology, sovereignty is a perfection and thus any explanation of morality must put God in the center.


A Summary of The Problem of Evil for Atheists

By John Trapasso

This book review was written by John Trapasso. He is a freshman at Lamar University in Beaumont, TX. During his free time, John enjoys studying theology and the philosophy of religion.

Yujin Nagasawa’s The Problem of Evil for Atheists seeks to transform the debate on the problem of evil by demonstrating that it poses a significant challenge to almost all worldviews—not just traditional theism. In addition, Nagasawa claims traditional theists are better equipped to deal with the problem than their competitors.

Part 1 begins with a systematic analysis of the problem of evil for traditional theists. Nagasawa shows the general “scheme” of the problem always consists of three essential variables: (I) God, (II) evil, and (III) an allegedly conflicting relationship between (I) and (II).


Debate: Without God, Can There Be an Objective Ethics?

On April 24, 2024, Dr. James P. Sterba, a philosophy professor at the University of Notre Dame, debated Dr. Adam Lloyd Johnson, president of Convincing Proof Ministries. They debated the question “Without God, Can There Be an Objective Ethics?” Dr. Sterba took the affirmative position that there can be an objective ethics without God, and Dr. Johnson took the negative position, that there cannot be an objective ethics without God. The debate took place at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and was sponsored by the Ratio Christi chapter at UNL.

Debate Transcript Opening Speech: Jim Sterba

Without the existence of the all-good, all-powerful God of traditional theism can there be an objective ethics?


The Attempt to Assassinate Trump and the Rise of Political Rhetoric

By Adam Lloyd Johnson, Ph.D.

Political rhetoric is nothing new; it’s been around forever. But over the last few years, its intensity has skyrocketed. This causes many to struggle with anxiety, fear, frustration, anger, and hatred. It can get people so worked up that they feel compelled to take extreme, even violent, actions. As of July 18, 2024, we don’t know the motives of the man who tried to assassinate Trump. But it’s reasonable to assume that extreme rhetoric played a role in creating this horrendous event where people were injured and one man lost his life. I’m going to explain how and why political rhetoric comes about.


If God Is the Source of Morality, Would that Mean Morality Is Subjective?

By Adam Lloyd Johnson, Ph.D.

Introduction

The moral argument for God’s existence is often summarized as follows:

There is objective moral truth. The best explanation for how and why there is objective moral truth is the existence of God. Therefore, we have good reason to believe God exists.

Those who use the moral argument argue, as part of their defense of premise two, that God is the source of morality. However, some who push back against this argument (which includes atheists as well as theists who think the moral argument is a poor argument) argue that if God is the source of morality then morality would be subjective, not objective.


Artificial Intelligence: Promising or Terrifying?

By Michael Agerbo Mørch, Ph.D.

Michael Agerbo Mørch, Ph.D., is a theologian who specializes in systematic theology and an Assistant Professor of philosophy of religion, ethics, and apologetics at the Danish Bible Institute. He is an elder at his local church, preaches in various congregations and associations, and participates in the public debate on religion, politics, and morality. He is married to Elisabeth, and together they have three girls.

The Danish Bible Institute (DBI) is a private educational institution in Copenhagen, Denmark. There are two universities in Denmark where people can study theology, but both of them are characterized by liberal theology and biblical criticism.


How Stories Can Encourage Evil

Evaluating Hit Man, the #1 Movie on Netflix as of June 2024

By Adam Lloyd Johnson, Ph.D.

Some people dislike stories that involve appalling evil such as sexual immorality and murder. However, such stories can be powerful tools to encourage us to do what’s right and fight against our prideful, selfish desires. Often this is done by having an appealing character make an evil decision and then showing the audience how that decision destroys his life. A famous example of this is the story of David whose decisions to commit adultery with Bathsheba and murder her husband ruin his life, his family, and his kingdom.


How Apologetics Died in the Twentieth Century

A Critique of Karl Barth’s Reply to Emil Brunner

By Adam Lloyd Johnson, Ph.D.

There are several reasons that apologetics largely died out in the 1900s. Many of these reasons have to do with how postmodern thinking influenced how Christians thought about the role of human reason. In general, postmodern movements in the 1800s and 1900s, which viewed human reason too negatively, were overreactions to the modernism of the 1700s which viewed human reason too positively.

An example of how postmodern thinking influenced how Christians thought about human reason can be seen in the work of the most influential theologian of the twentieth century—Karl Barth.


He Was Raised for Our Righteous Living

An Argument that Romans 5:12-21 Is About Sanctification, Not Justification

By Joel Mohrmann

Romans 5 is a rich source of theology, but it can be difficult to understand. In this article, Joel Mohrmann makes a case for a unique, possible interpretation of this chapter based on his in-depth study of the original Greek text. We trust this will help you think through God’s Word carefully as we try to understand what He’s communicating to us. Joel serves on Convincing Proof’s Board of Directors and works in the field of electrical engineering in Lincoln, NE.

The Epistle to the Romans is a magnificent work that one could rightly consider Paul’s magnum opus.


Is It Morally Permissible for Some People to Rape and Murder?

Responding to Erik Wielenberg’s Argument That Divine Command Theory Fails to Explain How Psychopaths Have Moral Obligations

By Adam Lloyd Johnson, Ph.D.

In April 2023, Adam published a paper in the journal Religions which offers a response to an objection to Divine Command Theory put forth by Erik Wielenberg. In this paper, Wielenberg argued that Divine Command Theory is implausible as an explanation of objective morality because it fails to explain how psychopaths have moral obligations. Adam’s response to this in Religions is open-access (free to read) and can be found by clicking the button below:

Adam’s Article in Religions