157 - Behold the Man with Peter S Williams

Summary
In this episode, Brian Auten and Chad Gross welcome back philosopher and author **Peter S. Williams** to discuss his book, *Behold the Man: Essays on the Historical Jesus*. This engaging conversation explores the intersection of worldview, epistemology, and historical scholarship in the search for the real Jesus.

Topics Covered:

• The Structure and Purpose of Behold the Man
A collection of revised essays exploring various historical, philosophical, and theological dimensions of Jesus.

• Worldviews and Historical Inquiry
How modernism, postmodernism, and the emerging metamodern perspective affect approaches to the historical Jesus.
• Epistemology and Openness to Evidence
Why the worldview and theory of knowledge you bring impacts whether you can honestly assess historical claims about Jesus.
  
  
• An Early High Christology in James
Peter argues for early Christian belief in Jesus’ divinity based on linguistic and contextual clues in the Epistle of James.
  
  
• Dating the Gospels – Especially John
Examination of internal and external evidence supporting the traditional dating of the Fourth Gospel and its authorship by the Apostle John.
  
  
• Miracles and the Resurrection
Responding to philosophical objections to miracles, with particular focus on David Hume and the resurrection as a historically reasonable belief.
  
  
• Minimal Facts vs. Maximal Data Approaches
Comparison between Gary Habermas’s minimal facts method and broader evidential strategies in defending the resurrection.
  
  
• Responding to UFO and Ancient Alien Theories
Why Christian apologists should engage with these alternative explanations, and how to challenge them both philosophically and scientifically.
  
  
• Emotional Barriers to Belief
How personal experience and discomfort with change often block serious consideration of evidence—and how to engage that pastorally.
  
  
• The Role of Apologetics in Spiritual Formation
Why apologetics is a signpost, not a substitute, for commitment to Christ. Knowing *about* Jesus is not the same as *following* Him.

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