The Sean McDowell Show

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  The Book of Enoch Explained: Nephilim, Demons & Genesis 6 18.09.2026 1ч 7мин

  The Book of Enoch has exploded online, and the claims run in both directions: some say it unlocks the Bible's biggest mysteries, others say it can't be trusted at all. Dr. Joel Muddamalle this time talks about First Enoch specifically. Why has it captured so much attention, what kind of literature is it, and how much interpretive weight should it carry? READ: The Unseen Battle, by Joel Muddamalle: (https://amzn.to/4xyQnM9) CHECK OUT: Logos Bible 60 Day Free Trial (https://logos.com/mcdowell) CHECK OUT: Consider Supporting the Ministry! (https://seanmcdowell.org/give) *Get a MASTERS IN APOLOGETICS or SCIENCE AND RELIGION at BIOLA (https://bit.ly/3LdNqKf) *USE Discount Code [smdcertdisc] for 25% off the BIOLA APOLOGETICS CERTIFICATE program (https://bit.ly/3AzfPFM) *See our fully online UNDERGRAD DEGREE in Bible, Theology, and Apologetics: (https://bit.ly/448STKK) FOLLOW ME ON SOCIAL MEDIA: Twitter: https://x.com/Sean_McDowell TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sean_mcdowell?lang=en Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seanmcdowell/ Website: https://seanmcdowell.org Timestamps 0:00 — Why has the Book of Enoch exploded online? 5:02 — What is First Enoch, and what kind of literature is it? 9:14 — When was it written, and by whom? 11:34 — What "pseudepigraphical" actually means 14:03 — Who was the biblical Enoch? 16:24 — How the Qumran community treated it 22:14 — A viewer challenges the method 24:48 — What Joel thinks First Enoch is actually doing 28:28 — The main readings of Genesis 6 31:07 — Why he holds the supernatural view 33:12 — Spiritual beings who eat, walk, and are seen 38:04 — What Jude and 2 Peter are doing 40:11 — The early church fathers on Enoch 42:19 — Not canonical — but not worthless 54:34 — Why quoting something isn't endorsing it 1:02:02 — Should Christians read it? Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.
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  Where Demons Actually Come From, According to Heiser 16.09.2026 1ч 21мин

  Most of what Christians picture when they hear "angel" came from medieval art and Vacation Bible School, not from the biblical text. Dr. Joel Muddamalle worked alongside Michael Heiser at Logos Bible Software and became a friend and protégé. In this conversation he walks through what Heiser argued about the unseen realm, where he thinks Heiser pushed the church in the right direction, and where he'd refine him. READ: The Unseen Battle, by Joel Muddamalle: (https://amzn.to/4xyQnM9) CHECK OUT: Logos Bible 60 Day Free Trial (https://logos.com/mcdowell) CHECK OUT: Consider Supporting the Ministry! (https://seanmcdowell.org/give) *Get a MASTERS IN APOLOGETICS or SCIENCE AND RELIGION at BIOLA (https://bit.ly/3LdNqKf) *USE Discount Code [smdcertdisc] for 25% off the BIOLA APOLOGETICS CERTIFICATE program (https://bit.ly/3AzfPFM) *See our fully online UNDERGRAD DEGREE in Bible, Theology, and Apologetics: (https://bit.ly/448STKK) FOLLOW ME ON SOCIAL MEDIA: Twitter: https://x.com/Sean_McDowell TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sean_mcdowell?lang=en Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seanmcdowell/ Website: https://seanmcdowell.org 0:00 — Intro 2:35 — Working with Michael Heiser 4:34 — The traditional picture, and where it came from 9:54 — Cherubim, seraphim, archangels, sons of God 14:06 — "Angel" as a job description 15:05 — The divine council and the hasatan 19:07 — Where Heiser was right, and where Joel would refine him 29:50 — The traditional picture of demons 31:55 — Deuteronomy 32 and the gods of the nations 39:38 — Genesis 6 and the Nephilim 45:22 — Why "unclean spirits" meant something specific 48:26 — The three rebellions 52:42 — Azazel and the scapegoat 1:00:06 — Jesus in the wilderness 1:04:51 — Where Satan fits 1:13:24 — The angel of the Lord as pre-incarnate Christ 1:16:14 — What this changes for the church Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.
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  The "Lost" Gospels Are Back. What Do They Really Say About Jesus? 11.09.2026 1ч 17мин

  Bart Ehrman posed it as a hypothetical question: What if the canon had ended up containing the Gospels of Peter, Thomas, and Mary instead of Matthew, Mark, and Luke? I put that question to Dr. Greg Lanier, who has just written a GREAT BOOK on the Apocryphal Gospels. His answer is that the scenario has no historical basis, and that if you actually had only those three, you'd have no coherent story of Jesus at all. Dr. Lanier's argument throughout is that the Apocryphal writings are downstream of the canonical Gospels, not competitors with them. CHECK OUT: Greg's channel: https://youtube.com/@GregLanier-d5r CHECK OUT: Consider Supporting the Ministry! (https://seanmcdowell.org/give) READ: Apocryphal Gospels: Separating the Real Jesus from Fan Fiction (https://amzn.to/4qqO3nM) CHECK OUT: Logos Bible 60 Day Free Trial (https://logos.com/mcdowell) *Get a MASTERS IN APOLOGETICS or SCIENCE AND RELIGION at BIOLA (https://bit.ly/3LdNqKf) *USE Discount Code [smdcertdisc] for 25% off the BIOLA APOLOGETICS CERTIFICATE program (https://bit.ly/3AzfPFM) *See our fully online UNDERGRAD DEGREE in Bible, Theology, and Apologetics: (https://bit.ly/448STKK) FOLLOW ME ON SOCIAL MEDIA: Twitter: https://x.com/Sean_McDowell TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sean_mcdowell?lang=en Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seanmcdowell/ Website: https://seanmcdowell.org Timestamps 0:00 — Do these writings threaten the historical Jesus? 0:51 — Responding to Ehrman's what-if 3:36 — Why write a book on fake gospels? 6:42 — What "apocryphal" actually means 11:08 — Sayings, fragments, and full compositions 16:57 — Peter, Mary, Thomas, and Judas 22:28 — How much history is in them? 27:04 — Why scholars now say they're downstream 31:11 — From the Jesus Seminar to the Da Vinci Code 33:33 — The Jesus Wife fragment 41:56 — Bad apologetics on both sides 44:05 — The Infancy Gospel of Thomas 52:15 — The Protoevangelium of James 57:16 — Your nativity scene isn't in Matthew or Luke 1:00:07 — How the apocryphal gospels argue for the four 1:07:19 — What the church fathers actually said 1:12:04 — Why he does this work Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.
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  Daniel 1:1-8: The Principles You Decide Before the Pressure Comes 08.09.2026 31мин

  Here's a question worth sitting with: what are the principles you actually live by? In this message I look at Daniel. They changed where he lived, what he studied, the language he spoke, and even his name. But the text says he had resolved not to defile himself (past tense). He didn't develop those convictions under pressure. He arrived with them. CHECK OUT: Logos Bible 60 Day Free Trial (https://logos.com/mcdowell) CHECK OUT: Consider Supporting the Ministry! (https://seanmcdowell.org/give) *Get a MASTERS IN APOLOGETICS or SCIENCE AND RELIGION at BIOLA (https://bit.ly/3LdNqKf) *USE Discount Code [smdcertdisc] for 25% off the BIOLA APOLOGETICS CERTIFICATE program (https://bit.ly/3AzfPFM) *See our fully online UNDERGRAD DEGREE in Bible, Theology, and Apologetics: (https://bit.ly/448STKK) FOLLOW ME ON SOCIAL MEDIA: Twitter: https://x.com/Sean_McDowell TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sean_mcdowell?lang=en Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seanmcdowell/ Website: https://seanmcdowell.org 0:00 — What principles do you actually live by? 1:15 — A lesson from my dad 3:06 — Daniel: a man of principles 6:08 — Daniel 1: the siege of Jerusalem 11:01 — Why Babylon actually won 13:42 — Chosen for the king's court 17:16 — Living somewhere unsympathetic to your beliefs 19:38 — They changed his name 21:09 — Why the food? 23:59 — What hills will you die on? 25:43 — Jana and the assignment she wouldn't do 27:20 — An athlete who walked away 29:31 — What Os Guinness told me about legacy 30:56 — Decide before the pressure comes Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.
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  The Lost Site of the Tabernacle...Have We Found It? | Big Update 04.09.2026 46мин

  Scott Stripling's team put out a press release about their latest season at Shiloh. Roughly 400 news stories followed. What his team actually found is more interesting. Since 2017 they've been excavating a building whose dimensions, orientation, and dating all match what we'd expect of the tabernacle and Scott is careful to say it's a strong candidate, not a confirmed identification. He's running the largest dig team in the Middle East, largely funded by people who want the Bible confirmed. What keeps that from shaping the conclusions? His answer is worth hearing. CHECK OUT: Logos Bible 60 Day Free Trial (https://logos.com/mcdowell) CHECK OUT: Consider Supporting the Ministry! (https://seanmcdowell.org/give) *Get a MASTERS IN APOLOGETICS or SCIENCE AND RELIGION at BIOLA (https://bit.ly/3LdNqKf) *USE Discount Code [smdcertdisc] for 25% off the BIOLA APOLOGETICS CERTIFICATE program (https://bit.ly/3AzfPFM) *See our fully online UNDERGRAD DEGREE in Bible, Theology, and Apologetics: (https://bit.ly/448STKK) FOLLOW ME ON SOCIAL MEDIA: Twitter: https://x.com/Sean_McDowell TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sean_mcdowell?lang=en Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seanmcdowell/ Website: https://seanmcdowell.org   Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.
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  What 50 Years Studying the Resurrection Taught Me - Gary Habermas 01.09.2026 55мин

  Gary Habermas has likely studied the historical evidence for the resurrection more than anyone who has ever lived. He's just finished a four-volume work on it and he told me the final volume, on theology and practice, may be the last thing he writes on the subject. It's my favorite of the four, and I wanted to ask him why he made the turn. READ: On the Resurrection: Volume 4, by Gary Habermas (https://amzn.to/4gE7qGI) Make sure to subscribe and check out some of my other videos for more on Christianity, Theology and other aspects of culture! CHECK OUT: Logos Bible 60 Day Free Trial (https://logos.com/mcdowell) CHECK OUT: Consider Supporting the Ministry! (https://seanmcdowell.org/give) *Get a MASTERS IN APOLOGETICS or SCIENCE AND RELIGION at BIOLA (https://bit.ly/3LdNqKf) *USE Discount Code [SMDCERTDISC] for 25% off the BIOLA APOLOGETICS CERTIFICATE program (https://bit.ly/3AzfPFM) *See our fully online UNDERGRAD DEGREE in Bible, Theology, and Apologetics: (https://bit.ly/448STKK) FOLLOW ME ON SOCIAL MEDIA: Twitter: https://twitter.com/Sean_McDowell TikTok: @sean_mcdowell Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seanmcdowell/ Website: https://seanmcdowell.org Timestamps 0:00 — How central is the resurrection? 1:21 — Why he turned from evidence to practice 2:32 — Why the resurrection completes the gospel 6:50 — Faith and radical commitment 9:04 — Not by works, but unto them 10:47 — Suffering: his first wife, and now Eileen 13:31 — Why errors in the gospels wouldn't undo the resurrection 16:44 — Persecution 21:11 — Emotional doubt, and why it's most of it 25:32 — The fear of death 28:05 — Living in the power of the resurrection 30:37 — Why the final chapter is on heaven 36:03 — The card he received when his first wife was dying 37:08 — Is he finished writing on the resurrection? 44:06 — The book he might still write, on simple living 47:20 — The new questions he's living with at 76 50:07 — Living with questions you can't answer Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.
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  Book of Mormon vs the Gospels: Comparing the Witness Testimony 28.08.2026 1ч 28мин

  How reliable are the eleven witnesses who attest to the Book of Mormon? Dr. Rob Bowman, author of Jesus' Resurrection and Joseph's Visions, joins me to do a deep dive comparing them alongside the Gospel witnesses to the Resurrection of Jesus, asking questions such as: What did they really see? Can we trust their testimony? Etc. Let us know what you think! READ: Jesus' Resurrection and Joseph's Visions by Robert M Bowman Jr (https://amzn.to/4wMqmbn)  CHECK OUT: Logos Bible 60 Day Free Trial (https://logos.com/mcdowell) *Get a MASTERS IN APOLOGETICS or SCIENCE AND RELIGION at BIOLA (https://bit.ly/3LdNqKf) *USE Discount Code [smdcertdisc] for 25% off the BIOLA APOLOGETICS CERTIFICATE program (https://bit.ly/3AzfPFM) *See our fully online UNDERGRAD DEGREE in Bible, Theology, and Apologetics: (https://bit.ly/448STKK) FOLLOW ME ON SOCIAL MEDIA: Twitter: https://x.com/Sean_McDowell TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sean_mcdowell?lang=en Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seanmcdowell/ Website: https://seanmcdowell.org   Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.
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  The New Mormonism: How LDS Beliefs Are Changing 26.08.2026 1ч 8мин

  Mormonism is changing and the version of it a Latter-day Saint holds today may look almost nothing like the version their parents held. I sat down with Aaron Shafovaloff and Brandi Bronson to map what's actually happening. Aaron has done evangelism in Utah for two decades and volunteers with Mormonism Research Ministry. Brandy was LDS for 27 years before leaving. Aaron lays out seven distinct streams within the movement today and Brandy describes the Mormonism she was raised in divine nature, eternal progression, creating worlds, and what made her start to question it. CHECK OUT: Logos Bible 60 Day Free Trial (https://logos.com/mcdowell) *Get a MASTERS IN APOLOGETICS or SCIENCE AND RELIGION at BIOLA (https://bit.ly/3LdNqKf) *USE Discount Code [smdcertdisc] for 25% off the BIOLA APOLOGETICS CERTIFICATE program (https://bit.ly/3AzfPFM) *See our fully online UNDERGRAD DEGREE in Bible, Theology, and Apologetics: (https://bit.ly/448STKK) FOLLOW ME ON SOCIAL MEDIA: Twitter: https://x.com/Sean_McDowell TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sean_mcdowell?lang=en Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seanmcdowell/ Website: https://seanmcdowell.org Timestamps 0:00 — What is "the new Mormonism"? 0:27 — Brandy: 27 years as a Latter-day Saint 1:08 — Aaron: two decades of evangelism in Utah 2:05 — The eras: early, pioneer, correlation, neo-orthodoxy 4:54 — Is it changing faster now? 5:42 — Ships at sea with no anchor 6:51 — Brandy's 1.0, 2.0, 3.0 7:16 — The great apostasy and the exclusivity claim 9:16 — When the cracks appeared for her 11:09 — The seven streams 12:37 — Correlated Mormonism 13:24 — Neo-orthodoxy and "a crush on evangelical grace" 15:08 — Revisionism 16:21 — Primitive Mormonism 17:23 — Progressive Mormonism 18:29 — Cultural Mormonism 19:13 — Which streams are actually biggest 21:26 — Why the apologist and the stake president sounded so different 22:22 — Why Mormons are forced to be more nuanced now 24:19 — "I even considered staying" 27:15 — The Gospel Topics essays 30:06 — Who is Blake Ostler? 31:14 — The regress of deities 32:24 — Ostler's reinterpretation 35:02 — Is any stream moving genuinely orthodox? 36:38 — "More rhetorical than structural" 41:17 — What used to make something essentially Mormon 45:13 — What holds it together now 46:45 — Do you have to believe in Jesus to stay a member? 50:32 — Why orthopraxy over orthodoxy 52:23 — Universalism and "we're all going to make it" 55:18 — 2 Nephi 25:23, before and after 59:07 — Are more people coming to Christ? 1:03:32 — The one change Aaron celebrates without reservation 1:04:25 — If you're LDS, I want to hear from you 1:05:03 — Where to follow Brandy and Aaron Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.
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  Asking a Mormon Leader My Hardest Questions 21.08.2026 42мин

  I got a tour inside the San Diego Latter-day Saint temple and now I'm following up with an interview with Neal Walton who is a stake president in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in San Diego. Apparently, I was the first Christian apologist who'd ever shown up with a film crew and asked for an interview. We worked through the differences plainly. The Trinity. Whether God the Father has a physical body. Baptism for the dead. Faith and works. Exaltation versus salvation. Whether Jesus is the uncreated, eternal God. Neither of us pretended those are small, and neither of us tried to win. READ: End the Stalemate, by Sean McDowell (https://amzn.to/4eLrUdM) CHECK OUT: Logos Bible 60 Day Free Trial (https://logos.com/mcdowell) CHECK OUT: Full Mormon Temple Tour https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vfgyW-s5KTE&t=1065s *Get a MASTERS IN APOLOGETICS or SCIENCE AND RELIGION at BIOLA (https://bit.ly/3LdNqKf) *USE Discount Code [smdcertdisc] for 25% off the BIOLA APOLOGETICS CERTIFICATE program (https://bit.ly/3AzfPFM) *See our fully online UNDERGRAD DEGREE in Bible, Theology, and Apologetics: (https://bit.ly/448STKK) FOLLOW ME ON SOCIAL MEDIA: Twitter: https://x.com/Sean_McDowell TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sean_mcdowell?lang=en Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seanmcdowell/ Website: https://seanmcdowell.org 0:00 — What a stake president actually does 0:47 — "Has an apologist ever shown up before?" 1:20 — No pay, no degree, no formal training 2:05 — The morning I went to seminary at 5 a.m. 2:48 — Losing a four-year-old daughter 3:14 — "If your God is good, why would he allow this?" 4:40 — Did it make you doubt? 5:21 — The verse that settled him 6:26 — Do you have doubts now? 7:51 — What am I missing out on? 9:03 — Temples, service, and interfaith work 10:28 — Pushing back on "one big happy family" 11:01 — "Go straight to the source" 12:04 — Seven questions to gauge whether you love truth 12:21 — I read it. I prayed. I wasn't settled. 12:57 — "So what's my next step?" 14:44 — My dad's story 16:13 — "Son, love truth" 16:44 — Is there evidence behind the Book of Mormon? 17:12 — Questions versus doubts 19:16 — What a Sunday sermon looks like 21:26 — How he defines faith 22:36 — The biggest misconceptions 23:26 — Three distinct beings 25:13 — Where we actually differ 27:20 — The Trinity 28:16 — A physical body, baptism for the dead, faith and works 29:02 — Exaltation, and whether Jesus is uncreated 29:30 — His response 32:36 — Temple recommends and the celestial kingdom 32:54 — "There's order in God's house" 34:38 — He turns the question on me 35:50 — Why I actually came 36:19 — "I don't find it true or compelling — and I think I get it" Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.
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  Scott Rae Debunks 10 Common Moral Slogans 20.08.2026 44мин

  Can you legislate morality? Is secular ethics neutral? Did Jesus really say "never judge"? Dr. Scott Rae, one of the world's leading Christian ethicists and Sean's Think Biblically co-host, is here to work through ten of the most common moral slogans in circulation, and why each one falls apart under scrutiny. Scott addresses all ten in the newly released fifth edition of Moral Choices, updated with new material on the ethics of technology and AI, criminal justice, gender, race, immigration, and gene editing. CHECK OUT: Logos Bible 60 Day Free Trial (https://logos.com/mcdowell) *Get a MASTERS IN APOLOGETICS or SCIENCE AND RELIGION at BIOLA (https://bit.ly/3LdNqKf) *USE Discount Code [smdcertdisc] for 25% off the BIOLA APOLOGETICS CERTIFICATE program (https://bit.ly/3AzfPFM) *See our fully online UNDERGRAD DEGREE in Bible, Theology, and Apologetics: (https://bit.ly/448STKK) FOLLOW ME ON SOCIAL MEDIA: Twitter: https://x.com/Sean_McDowell TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sean_mcdowell?lang=en Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seanmcdowell/ Website: https://seanmcdowell.org 0:00 — The slogans, and why they don't hold up 0:55 — Introducing Dr. Scott Rae 1:57 — #1 "You can't legislate morality" 4:31 — #2 "Secular ethics is neutral, religious ethics is biased" 8:41 — #3 "You shouldn't force your morals on others" 12:05 — #4 "Right and wrong are products of evolution" 16:50 — #5 "Religion is private and has no place in public ethics" 18:55 — A word from Logos 19:49 — What counts as a religion? 23:11 — #6 "Morality is subjective taste, not objective truth" 27:38 — #7 "Science can tell us what is right and wrong" 31:19 — #8 "Cultural disagreement proves there's no moral truth" 33:51 — #9 "Jesus said never judge, so don't" 36:37 — #10 "Religious views don't belong in politics" 40:32 — What's new in the fifth edition of Moral Choices 43:25 — Send us your ethics questions Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.
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  J.P. Moreland on Suffering, Doubt, and Facing Death Without Fear 14.08.2026 1ч 6мин

  J.P. Moreland is one of the most influential Christian philosophers alive and he's spent the last twelve years enduring what most of us never will: a rare genetic condition, more than two dozen cancer surgeries, and two seasons of debilitating anxiety and depression. In this deeply personal conversation, he sits down with me to talk about pain, doubt, and why he says he now has no fear of death. CHECK OUT: Logos Bible 60 Day Free Trial (https://logos.com/mcdowell) *Get a MASTERS IN APOLOGETICS or SCIENCE AND RELIGION at BIOLA (https://bit.ly/3LdNqKf) *USE Discount Code [smdcertdisc] for 25% off the BIOLA APOLOGETICS CERTIFICATE program (https://bit.ly/3AzfPFM) *See our fully online UNDERGRAD DEGREE in Bible, Theology, and Apologetics: (https://bit.ly/448STKK) FOLLOW ME ON SOCIAL MEDIA: Twitter: https://x.com/Sean_McDowell TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sean_mcdowell... Instagram:   / seanmcdowell   Website: https://seanmcdowell.org   CHAPTERS 00:00 – The worst physical pain of my life 00:38 – Introducing J.P. Moreland 02:18 – From skeptical chemistry major to Christian 07:49 – Why he chose philosophy of mind 09:19 – Advice for young apologists and thinkers 13:04 – How Talbot shaped Sean 14:11 – Where the church needs thinkers next 16:03 – The most important training: philosophy 19:04 – Distinctions that dissolve bad arguments 23:04 – Two seasons of anxiety and depression 26:17 – "Don't waste your suffering" 30:24 – Depression, the body, and the soul 34:09 – Two kinds of doubt, and how to handle each 37:00 – "When did you last hear a truly new objection?" 40:47 – Afterlife apologetics and near-death experiences 42:15 – Facing death in a hospital parking lot 48:12 – 25 surgeries and a rare genetic condition 54:52 – Sean's own season of pain 58:00 – Faith, politics, and getting removed from a church 1:05:48 – What he's working on now 1:09:46 – Closing Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.
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  The Most Uncomfortable Chapter in Acts? Peter, James, and the Problem of Evil 11.08.2026 36мин

  God sent an angel to break Peter out of prison. But one chapter earlier, He let James be executed. Same God, same church, same prayers. Why rescue one apostle and not the other? In this message, I work through Acts 12 and the question underneath it: where is God when we suffer? CHECK OUT: Logos Bible 60 Day Free Trial (https://logos.com/mcdowell) *Get a MASTERS IN APOLOGETICS or SCIENCE AND RELIGION at BIOLA (https://bit.ly/3LdNqKf) *USE Discount Code [smdcertdisc] for 25% off the BIOLA APOLOGETICS CERTIFICATE program (https://bit.ly/3AzfPFM) *See our fully online UNDERGRAD DEGREE in Bible, Theology, and Apologetics: (https://bit.ly/448STKK) FOLLOW ME ON SOCIAL MEDIA: Twitter: https://x.com/Sean_McDowell TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sean_mcdowell?lang=en Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seanmcdowell/ Website: https://seanmcdowell.org   Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.
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  Transforming Power of Bible Study 10.08.2026 39мин

  CHECK OUT: Logos Bible 60 Day Free Trial (https://logos.com/mcdowell) - use code "McDowell" *Get a MASTERS IN APOLOGETICS or SCIENCE AND RELIGION at BIOLA (https://bit.ly/3LdNqKf) *USE Discount Code [smdcertdisc] for 25% off the BIOLA APOLOGETICS CERTIFICATE program (https://bit.ly/3AzfPFM) *See our fully online UNDERGRAD DEGREE in Bible, Theology, and Apologetics: (https://bit.ly/448STKK) FOLLOW ME ON SOCIAL MEDIA: Twitter: https://x.com/Sean_McDowell TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sean_mcdowell?lang=en Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seanmcdowell/ Website: https://seanmcdowell.org Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.
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  Does Evil Actually Prove God Exists? | Christian vs. Atheist Dialogue 24.07.2026 1ч 31мин

  "If God is good, why is there pain and suffering?". Today, we have a video of atheist professor Paul Rinzler and I to discuss evil. This is our return to the Cal Poly Veritas Forum for a second year this time on the hardest question in apologetics. Not a debate to be won. A real conversation between two people who disagree deeply and like each other anyway. CHECK OUT:Paul Rinzler - Professor Emeritus at Cal Poly State University https://music.calpoly.edu/faculty/rinzler/index.html WATCH: Are Miracles Real? A Christian & Atheist Explore (Veritas Forum) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8cWui4CRfZc CHECK OUT: Logos Bible 60 Day Free Trial (https://logos.com/mcdowell) *Get a MASTERS IN APOLOGETICS or SCIENCE AND RELIGION at BIOLA (https://bit.ly/3LdNqKf) *USE Discount Code [smdcertdisc] for 25% off the BIOLA APOLOGETICS CERTIFICATE program (https://bit.ly/3AzfPFM) *See our fully online UNDERGRAD DEGREE in Bible, Theology, and Apologetics: (https://bit.ly/448STKK) FOLLOW ME ON SOCIAL MEDIA: Twitter: https://x.com/Sean_McDowell TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sean_mcdowell?lang=en Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seanmcdowell/ Website: https://seanmcdowell.org CHAPTERS 00:00 – Welcome and framing 00:28 – Sean's opening: four points on evil and suffering 08:19 – Paul's opening: the case from natural suffering 15:43 – A time you experienced pain 21:23 – Is pain part of God's plan? 22:47 – Would a "bad God" explain the world better? 24:04 – Does evil actually exist? 25:47 – Moral evil, free will, and determinism 33:46 – Does the moral project require agency? 36:23 – Making sense of randomness in natural disasters 42:25 – When suffering seems cruel and unnecessary 47:20 – Where do you find hope? 51:21 – What's more powerful: death or love? 54:01 – Advice for students in hard seasons 59:00 – What's the purpose of life for an atheist? 1:02:30 – Can objective morality exist without God? 1:04:46 – Why pursue justice if suffering is endless? 1:08:08 – The biggest doubt about your own worldview 1:10:18 – The question of hell 1:15:02 – Morality, evolution, and caring beyond your tribe 1:20:05 – How do you define love? 1:24:42 – Closing thoughts Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.
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  The Most Compelling Heaven Testimonies Ever Collected? | Skeptic Investigates 140 NDEs 17.07.2026 1ч 17мин

  Randy Kay was a biotech CEO and a self-described skeptic who didn't believe in near-death experiences until he flatlined for 30 minutes in 2005 and, in his telling, found himself face to face with Jesus. Now he's collected 140 NDE accounts he says he's vetted more rigorously than any single volume before. Today, I asked the obvious question: does the evidence actually stack up? READ: Heaven Encounters: 140 Near-Death Experiences Revealing the Afterlife by Randy Kay (https://amzn.to/4x1azpF) CHECK OUT: Logos Bible 60 Day Free Trial (https://logos.com/mcdowell) *Get a MASTERS IN APOLOGETICS or SCIENCE AND RELIGION at BIOLA (https://bit.ly/3LdNqKf) *USE Discount Code [smdcertdisc] for 25% off the BIOLA APOLOGETICS CERTIFICATE program (https://bit.ly/3AzfPFM) *See our fully online UNDERGRAD DEGREE in Bible, Theology, and Apologetics: (https://bit.ly/448STKK) FOLLOW ME ON SOCIAL MEDIA: Twitter: https://x.com/Sean_McDowell TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sean_mcdowell?lang=en Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seanmcdowell/ Website: https://seanmcdowell.org CHAPTERS 00:00 – "I was cheek to cheek with Jesus" 00:36 – Is heaven real? Meet Randy Kay 01:50 – The near-death experience: septic shock and seven blood clots 03:15 – What Kay says he saw and heard 05:22 – "How do you know it wasn't a dream?" 07:47 – The cost of going public after 14 years of silence 11:49 – Why Christians can be the hardest audience 14:11 – How the book vets 140 accounts 19:32 – What "verifying" an account does and doesn't mean 22:43 – What would signal a story is fabricated 27:05 – Reincarnation, universalism, and hellish NDEs 31:06 – The "core" features of a near-death experience 34:46 – Case: Mike Olson and the lung donor 42:19 – Case: Dean Braxton's 1 hour 45 minutes 45:14 – Case: Jeffrey Porter, the atheist 53:08 – Case: Lisa — a hellish NDE and a rescue 56:38 – The life review and what it implies 59:17 – Randy's own life review: a dying boy's prayer 1:04:23 – NDEs as a second chance 1:04:50 – Answering the skeptic 1:13:49 – Where to find Randy's work Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.
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  Is Michael Heiser's Unseen Realm the Best Way to Read the Bible? 15.07.2026 1ч 2мин

  Giants. A divine council. Demons and the Nephilim. Michael Heiser made the Bible's strangest passages impossible to ignore and sold hundreds of thousands of books doing it. So what does one of the world's leading spiritual-warfare scholars actually think of his work? Dr. Clint Arnold joins me today to say where Heiser gets it right, and where he pushes back. CHECK OUT: Logos Bible 60 Day Free Trial (https://logos.com/mcdowell) *Get a MASTERS IN APOLOGETICS or SCIENCE AND RELIGION at BIOLA (https://bit.ly/3LdNqKf) *USE Discount Code [smdcertdisc] for 25% off the BIOLA APOLOGETICS CERTIFICATE program (https://bit.ly/3AzfPFM) *See our fully online UNDERGRAD DEGREE in Bible, Theology, and Apologetics: (https://bit.ly/448STKK) FOLLOW ME ON SOCIAL MEDIA: Twitter: https://x.com/Sean_McDowell TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sean_mcdowell?lang=en Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seanmcdowell/ Website: https://seanmcdowell.org CHAPTERS 00:00 – Why Heiser captivated so many 00:35 – Who is Michael Heiser? Who is Clint Arnold? 02:45 – What makes Heiser's work unique 05:59 – Where Arnold agrees with Heiser 09:35 – The premise of The Unseen Realm: recovering a supernatural worldview 11:12 – Psalm 82, Job 38, and the divine council 14:01 – What "Elohim" actually means 15:21 – Isn't this just polytheism? 18:33 – Genesis 1:26 — "Let us make man" 21:47 – The Deuteronomy 32 worldview and cosmic geography 24:01 – David, Goliath, and the gods behind the idols 26:24 – Bashan, Caesarea Philippi, and "portals" 28:58 – Paul's theology of the unseen world (Ephesians 6) 32:14 – Does this change our spiritual warfare today? 32:32 – Peter Wagner and "strategic-level" spiritual warfare 34:12 – Why Arnold rejects targeting territorial spirits 38:24 – Command vs. prayer — and reprisal in the spirit realm 40:53 – The big disagreement: where do demons come from? 42:46 – The traditional view: a primordial angelic fall 45:59 – Genesis 6 and the sons of God 48:05 – How much weight should 1 Enoch carry? 50:53 – No exorcism in the Old Testament? 53:33 – Luke 10 and "I saw Satan fall like lightning" 56:14 – Arnold's one big addition to Heiser 58:16 – Should you read Heiser? 59:04 – Spiritual warfare at Talbot Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.
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  The Rapture: What Is It and When Will It Happen? 07.07.2026 54мин

  Talbot New Testament scholar Dr. Alan Hultberg joins Sean McDowell to sort out what Scripture says, walk through the three major views, and ask the question everyone wants answered: are we close? Hultberg starts by clearing away the "Left Behind" imagery most of us absorbed from movies and kids' Bible storybooks, then lays out the three positions evangelicals actually debate explaining what separates them, how each handles the tribulation, Israel, and the timing of Christ's return. CHECK OUT: Logos Bible 60 Day Free Trial (https://logos.com/mcdowell) *Get a MASTERS IN APOLOGETICS or SCIENCE AND RELIGION at BIOLA (https://bit.ly/3LdNqKf) *USE Discount Code [smdcertdisc] for 25% off the BIOLA APOLOGETICS CERTIFICATE program (https://bit.ly/3AzfPFM) *See our fully online UNDERGRAD DEGREE in Bible, Theology, and Apologetics: (https://bit.ly/448STKK) CHAPTERS 00:00 – The pop-culture rapture vs. the Bible 00:45 – Meet Dr. Alan Hultberg 01:06 – What is the rapture? (1 Thessalonians 4) 02:08 – Common misconceptions 04:15 – Is there even a debate that a rapture happens? 06:20 – View 1: Pre-tribulation 09:37 – Pre-trib, dispensationalism, and Israel 11:18 – Whatever happened to mid-tribulation? 11:41 – View 2: Pre-wrath 16:13 – Imminence: can there be signs? 18:32 – View 3: Post-tribulation 20:38 – How each view handles Israel 23:55 – The view Hultberg holds — and why 30:19 – The rapture through church history 33:48 – Where scholars land today 35:06 – Piecing together the whole end-times sequence 46:03 – "Newspaper in one hand, Bible in the other"? 48:33 – Signs and imminence, together 51:02 – Where to go deeper 52:42 – Closing thoughts   FOLLOW ME ON SOCIAL MEDIA: Twitter: https://x.com/Sean_McDowell TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sean_mcdowell?lang=en Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seanmcdowell/ Website: https://seanmcdowell.org   Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.
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  The Signs Are Clear: Why Jesus is Coming Soon! 03.07.2026 1ч 2мин

  Can we actually know Jesus is coming back or is this just a matter of blind faith? In this conversation, bestselling author and pastor John Bevere joins me to talk about his new book The King Is Coming. John makes for why Christians can have confidence that Jesus is returning, why he sees Israel's reestablishment in 1948 and the recapture of Jerusalem in 1967 as escatologically significant, his reading of the Hosea 6 timeline, his view on the rapture and the tribulation, and why he believes we're living in the generation that may see Christ's return. 00:00 Intro and the central question 01:51 Why John avoided this topic for four decades 06:33 How could a modern person believe Jesus returns in the clouds? 12:09 Have previous generations been wrong, and what makes this one different? 19:23 The biblical framework for John's view on the season of Christ's return 25:13 What the end-times sequence looks like — apostasy, revival, rapture, tribulation 28:30 The case for the pre-tribulation rapture 35:18 Why John waited 42 years to teach on this 41:42 Pastoral application — the wedding garment and being ready 49:48 Speculation on AI and end-times scenarios (conjecture) 55:21 Why the book has resonated with so many leaders CHECK OUT: Logos Bible 60 Day Free Trial (https://logos.com/mcdowell) READ: The King Is Coming: It's Time to Prepare for the Return of Christ by John Bevere (https://amzn.to/4vuexXk) *Get a MASTERS IN APOLOGETICS or SCIENCE AND RELIGION at BIOLA (https://bit.ly/3LdNqKf) *USE Discount Code [smdcertdisc] for 25% off the BIOLA APOLOGETICS CERTIFICATE program (https://bit.ly/3AzfPFM) *See our fully online UNDERGRAD DEGREE in Bible, Theology, and Apologetics: (https://bit.ly/448STKK) FOLLOW ME ON SOCIAL MEDIA: Twitter: https://x.com/Sean_McDowell TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sean_mcdowell?lang=en Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seanmcdowell/ Website: https://seanmcdowell.org   Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.
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  What We Can Learn About the Afterlife from Children’s Near Death Experiences 30.06.2026 1ч 9мин

  Children who have near-death experiences make for unusually strong evidence and almost nobody has studied them. In this conversation, near-death experience researcher Dr. Steve Miller returns to walk through what we actually know about children and NDEs. We get into the case from Dr. Melvin Morse's peer-reviewed work (the drowned girl who came back describing exactly what her family was wearing and doing at home), the documented patterns from Dr. Elizabeth Kübler-Ross's cross-cultural research, the children Dr. Diane Komp watched die at Yale that turned her from atheism to faith, and a few accounts from Steve's own circle of people he knows and trusts. *Get a MASTERS IN APOLOGETICS or SCIENCE AND RELIGION at BIOLA (https://bit.ly/3LdNqKf) *USE Discount Code [smdcertdisc] for 25% off the BIOLA APOLOGETICS CERTIFICATE program (https://bit.ly/3AzfPFM) *See our fully online UNDERGRAD DEGREE in Bible, Theology, and Apologetics: (https://bit.ly/448STKK) FOLLOW ME ON SOCIAL MEDIA: Twitter: https://x.com/Sean_McDowell TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sean_mcdowell?lang=en Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seanmcdowell/ Website: https://seanmcdowell.org   Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.
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  Top 12 Biblical Objections to Near-Death Experiences ANSWERED (Steve Miller) 26.06.2026 1ч 9мин

  Many Christians dismiss the evidence from near-death experiences on biblical or theological grounds by quoting Hebrews 9:27, citing soul sleep, worrying about new age associations, or treating any extra-biblical vision as automatically suspect. But are those objections actually warranted by Scripture? Dr. Steve Miller returns to walk through twelve of the most common biblical and theological objections Christians raise against NDEs.   CHECK OUT: Logos Bible 60 Day Free Trial (https://logos.com/mcdowell)   00:00 Intro 01:10 How should Christians approach NDE and deathbed accounts? 10:13 The Billy Graham and Dr. Randy Steer accounts 17:46 Objection #1 — Some NDEs report false doctrines 21:40 Objection #2 — NDEs lead people to new age teachings 28:23 Objection #3 — Hebrews teaches we die only once 34:15 Objection #4 — Unbelievers should experience judgment, not love 39:35 Objection #5 — NDEs are more consistent with new age than Christianity 45:00 Objection #6 — Visions are no longer needed after the New Testament 47:47 Objection #7 — Experiencers see their own gods 49:51 Objection #8 — The Bible teaches soul sleep 59:42 Objection #9 — Faith should come only from Scripture 57:00 Objection #10 — No one can go to heaven before death 59:36 Objection #11 — Experiencers may be demonically deceived 1:01:01 Objection #12 — There's no biblical precedent for NDEs 1:02:04 Common theological assumptions worth re-examining   *Get a MASTERS IN APOLOGETICS or SCIENCE AND RELIGION at BIOLA (https://bit.ly/3LdNqKf) *USE Discount Code [smdcertdisc] for 25% off the BIOLA APOLOGETICS CERTIFICATE program (https://bit.ly/3AzfPFM) *See our fully online UNDERGRAD DEGREE in Bible, Theology, and Apologetics: (https://bit.ly/448STKK) FOLLOW ME ON SOCIAL MEDIA: Twitter: https://x.com/Sean_McDowell TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sean_mcdowell?lang=en Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seanmcdowell/ Website: https://seanmcdowell.org Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.