I would recommend studying presuppositionalism in the following order:
1. Listen to Michael Butler’s lectures on presuppositionalism
(The last lecture deals with the Westminster Confession of Faith and can safely be skipped, unless you enjoy studying the WCF.)
2. Read some of my articles to cement foundational concepts
3. Read Always Ready by Greg Bahnsen or listen to some his lectures, available for purchase in .mp3 format at www.cmfnow.com. You could also watch some of the videos of Bahnsen on Youtube.
4. Beyond this, if you really want to hone your epistemology then I’d recommend books like John Frame’s The Doctrine of the Knowledge of God. I’ve heard that Faith Has Its Reasons by Boa and Bowman is a good overview of different methodologies (own it but haven’t read it). Better than Five Views on Apologetics, I can imagine (own it, started reading it, quit reading it).
5. If you are looking to become a master at TAG, listen to Bahnsen’s lectures on TAG (also available at CMF) and take notes (because you’re not going to remember everything he says, obviously). The earlier lectures in his series on TAG will also help you hone your reductio ad absurdums.
6. Gordon Clark has written about reductios at length, though I am not terribly familiar with his works so I can’t even say which books of his are the best in this regard. On the Bahnsen Youtube page I link to earlier there is a series called “Problems for Unbelieving Worldviews.”
7. For those more interested in scientific and historical evidence than epistemological arguments, as well information on “cults”, world religions, Catholicism, etc, I’d recommend you check out the following:
Answers in Genesis – your one-stop-shop for creation vs evolution resources
Christian Apologetics and Research Ministry – straight-to-the-point resources for nearly every religious movement you can think of, good Bible difficulties section
Tektonics (JP Holding) – Holding is notorious for being obnoxious; nevertheless, his site is a good resource for historical arguments, good Bible difficulties section
Just For Catholics – good, concise writings from a former Catholic who loves Catholics
8. If you want to learn about certainty, I’m trying to put together some materials. Give me a few days.
9. Presuppositionalism is very reformed, obviously. If you are looking to study up on reformed theology, then I’m probably not the person to ask for top resources, though I can imagine that the best lists would include Calvin’s Institutes of the Christian Religion and Jonathan Edwards’ Freedom of the Will. Edwards is probably hard to understand though. I’d recommend Ron’s blog, then. Check out “Free Will Refuted” (on the right-hand bar) Ron has also dealt with Molinism at length.
10. If you want to hone your debate skills, or practice using presuppositional arguments, sign up for any of the millions of forums out there (e.g., RichardDawkins.net, Infidels.org, DebatingChristianity.com, TheologyWeb.com), post an article presented your case for Christianity or against atheism (or whatever), and watch the sparks fly. Be gracious, be patient, avoid ad hominems, and don’t waste time squabbling over petty matters. Just stick with your thesis and determine whether you are able to defend it. Eventually you’ll need to just stop responding. That’s fine–you’ve accomplished what you need. Let them have the last word. Don’t expect to persuade them, and don’t throw pearls before swine. Online debating can be an easy way to practice arguing and it can be an even easier way to waste tremendous amounts of time. Go in to the debate knowing that you plan on leaving shortly.
11. If, during your studies, you have a really burning question, you may email me. Take my WordPress user name and append it to “@gmail.com”. Remember, too, that there is something to be said for those who take the time to prayerfully digest material on their own before going to others. That is part of the journey, part of the challenge. The frustration can actually be enjoyment, or at least an opportunity to trust in God. Furthermore, avoid being presumptuous. At many times in the past years I sincerely believed I “had it figured out” only to realize later that I either had it totally wrong or my understanding was far weaker than what I had first assumed.
Finally, I should say that I am still on that journey. It is a good journey. I am thankful that God has strengthened my faith and taught me to truly fear Him through my apologetics studies. Eventually, however, we all need to put away the books, sign off of the blogs, and actually hit the streets. One time, after talking to fellow about apologetics, he said to me, “You must love evangelism.” I responded, “Yeah, I do love evangelism. How did you know?” “Because apologetics without evangelism just doesn’t make sense.”
May God bless you on your journey!
“The heart of the righteous studies how to answer” -Prov. 15:28
