Apologetics

The necessity of apologetics for the Christian is regulated first by the Scripture. The evidence points to the obligation of being prepared and ready to give a defense, answer, or reason of the faith and hope that is within the believer’s heart. Laying out that responsibility often begins with Peter in his epistle (1 Peter 3:15). Our pluralistic multi-cultural world has changed so rapidly that many Christians were caught sleeping, or with their head in the sand, and suddenly found themselves unprepared to give an adequate defense of Christianity in a post-modern world. The informed student of the information age often has difficult questions that are not always flippantly addressed. The good news is that there really are sufficient answers. The child of God needs to energetically prepare to provide those answers according to Peter’s admonition. Norman Geisler echoes this charge, “Unbelievers have good questions. Christianity has good answers. And God has told us to give them the answers they are looking for.” It is certainly time for Christians to erase the stigma of being ignorant and uninformed. Perhaps some have been afraid, or just too lazy, to put forth the effort needed to be a studious workman of the Scripture that is not ashamed (2 Timothy 2:15). The honest skeptic deserves to have answers to eternal questions. But what about the dishonest skeptic, do they deserve answers? Josh McDowell gives illustration of a student who refused to believe no matter what the answer. The challenge is, “Would you believe if I could prove the Bible is reliable, and that Jesus Christ is Lord as He claimed?” If the answer is, “No” the problem is not with reason but with will. Because of this some have reasoned that it doesn’t matter what you present factually, a person can only come to God through faith. Certainly faith is the avenue of salvation and conversion. But faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God (Romans 10:17). As believers we have a responsibility to present the truth of the gospel and allow the Holy Spirit to convict the sinner. They may not respond with the first planting of the seed, but as the seed is watered it could possibly produce fruit. Ours is not to judge the motive of the hearer, but to provide them with the truth and answers. Therefore apologetics is necessary for evangelism. As provided in class notes, “Apologetics is the art and science of presenting the gospel in such a way as to overcome the objections of a reluctant person for whom Christ died.” This responsibility rests not only with the Christian, but also with the church in curriculum, Biblical education, and training. If our young people do not understand a reason for their faith they become easy prey for the vain philosophies of the world. Apologetics should therefore be a priority for both the church and the Christian.
Tracy Roby