Scripture & Truth

Why Apologetics

I apologetically apologize about my message on apologetics if it’s boring. I tried real hard.

I asked Angela, what her thoughts were on Apologetics before she heard my message, she said, “some kind of academic stuff”.

My prayer and objective today, is that you leave challenged and aware of the importance of apologetics in this world and culture to win the lost. Peter Kreeft says “apologetics is the courtship of souls”. It’s all about introducing people to Jesus - The Eternal Logos.

This is our scripture we are building from. This comes at the end of the letter, Paul already discussed many things but here is asking for prayer and also putting responsbility on the Colossian church.... lets see what that is.

Colossians 4:2-6 “Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should. Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.”

Paul spent time warning about false teachers which they indeed must resist, however, this does not imply isolation, they must continue to reach out to their fellow citizens and win them to Christ.

Paul doesn’t simply highlight their need to pray, rather, their devotion to prayer. Habitual/persevering prayer… As Jesus said, “[we] should always pray and not give up.” Effective prayer is no sporadic but consistent, devoted, lifestyle.

Astonishingly, as he is in prison, he is not asking for prayer for himself. His prayer was for the welfare of the word not himself. As he said in Acts 20:24 “However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace.”

His interest is only in his missions calling and the fruit, exaltation of God’s Word. It is the word that must be given entrance because it is the word that has the power to transform human beings. - It is this Word that “grows and bears fruit” - It is God who prepares the way for the message of the Gospel. He provides opportunities; he softens the hearts of listeners by his grace.

Notice his prayer is not to save lost people but to have “new opportunities” for witness

“Be watchful” always implies an eye on Christ’s return, a sense of urgency. Successful evangelism requires a sense of urgency. Scott states it well: “If men are to be won to Christ before he comes to judgment it must be done now.” If Christians felt the same urgency to reach others with the gospel as they do about securing their own welfare in this world, our churches would see amazing results.

Paul places the responsibility of evangelizing unbelievers on the Colossians as much as themselves - traveling missionaries.

Notice he said, “conversation full of grace and seasoned with salt” -Christians are to work to at making their witness as interesting, thoughtful, kind, and colorful as possible. We have the joy of the Lord! Especially making sure that they have thoroughly mastered the essentials of their faith so that they may know how to answer everyone.

As Peter says:

1 Peter 3:15 “But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,” (not as an arrogant know-it-all)

As He is Lord in our hearts, what follows is confrontation with every issue and ideology that prevents us and others from knowing the Lord and walking in truth.

What is Apologetics?: is the discipline that deals with a rational defense of Christian faith. It comes from the Greek word apologia which means to give a reason or defense. Is essentially the enterprise of trying to win men and women for Christ. Apologetics is not a job, it is the courtship of souls.

Challenge Time!

The Steps: The overall argument in defense of the Christian Faith can be put in twelve basic propositions. They flow logically one from another:

1. Truth about reality is knowable. (Truth is absolute, not relative)

2. Opposites cannot both be true. Logic/Rational Thought - God is God and God is not the devil.

3. The theistic God exists.

4. Miracles are possible.

5. Miracles performed in connection with a truth claim are acts of God to confirm the truth of God through a messenger of God.

6. The New Testament documents are reliable.

7. As witnessed in the New Testament, Jesus claimed to be God.

8. Jesus’ claim to divinity was proven by an unique convergence of miracles.

9. Therefore, Jesus was God in human flesh.

10. Whatever Jesus (who is God) affirmed as true, is true.

11. Jesus affirmed that the Bible is the Word of God.

12. Therefore, it is true that the Bible is the Word of God and whatever is opposed to any biblical truth is false.

If a theistic God exists and miracles are possible and Jesus is the Son of God and the Bible is the Word of God, then it follows that orthodox Christianity is true.

And since mutually exclusive propositions cannot both be true, then all opposing world religions are false religions.

Why Apologetics?

(As we saw in the previous text) God commands it.

It’s not just having all the information available but also an attitude of readiness and eagerness to share the truth of what we believe.

Paul said:

Philippians 1:7 “It is right for me to feel this way about all of you, since I have you in my heart and, whether I am in chains for defending and confirming the gospel, all of you share in God’s grace with me.”

Titus 1:9 “He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it.”

2 Timothy 2:24-25 “And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful. Opponents must be gently instructed, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth,”

Reason Demands it

Socrates said, “The unexamined life is not worth living”, we could say, “the unexplained belief is not worth believing.”

God calls on us to use reason - Isaiah 1:18

Evidence of truth precedes faith. It does not force faith but tills the ground of hearts giving the will the choice to believe.

God is the author or reason, and he created us to be like himself.

Reason does not invent truth but simply discovers truth that God has revealed.

The World Needs It

Apologetics is love, and the lover must chase and pursue the beloved (We go to them)

People still want reasons because we still have heads. A rational God made rational begins with the ability to reason.

More important than ever because of the unending propaganda barraging our children and families with secular religiosity.

Today’s generation needs apologetics more, not less, than previous generations because their faith is constantly challenged by their culture - we must be equipped to unmask and refute the hidden agendas and messages within secularism’s covert attacks and have a strong defense against the overt attacks.

There are many arguments against apologetics which I hope to have time to refute throughout this series, however, in closing today’s message, I want to leave you with 7 very practical tools taught by some of the best apologists in the Christian Faith.

Don’t be afraid to be unpopular.

You can never make a good impression on other people until you stop worrying about making a good impression.

Mother Teresa says, “God did not call us to be successful but to be faithful.”

People don’t want cool or relevant, they want truth and holiness, they want Jesus! They want His fire, they want His power, they want His love.

Don’t be afraid of hard questions. Don’t avoid them

Christianity is not a nice, soft thing. It is a hard real thing with a shape of its own that we are called to conform to. We are messengers of His truth, not what we think will be socially acceptable.

Much of our work of apologetics is to prepare not convert

The truth has not changed but diseases have people’s minds have. 2 big strongholds in the way of the seed of God’s word growing are:

People do not believe in objective truth

People do not believe in objective morality

For many when the Gospel is presented as truth and Jesus - THE WAY, THE TRUTH, THE LIFE, the mind responds: “what you say may be true for you but not true for me, what right do you have to impose your personal beliefs on me?” and morality is often treated as a personal option whatever seems good to me.

When this Gospel is presented in love as a total truth, objective truth is liberating, and the heart rejoices to hear. So many have been following the high priests of secularism, doing their best to obey the goal posts of what is accepted and living without any certainty of purpose or future. The Gospel is invigorating.

You must love Truth

You can’t get what you don’t have.

Is your desire to always be affirmed right, or to come to the knowledge of truth.

Lovers of truth are always learning, seeking, growing… and are not generational snobs - we must read and learn from the first century just as much if not more than our own time. Truth doesn’t change, it existed before us and will continue to exist.

Be a good listener!

The best teachers are the best listeners. Let the teacher learn from the student first.

Show real interest in people, their feelings, their experiences, ideas, reasons, how is their soul?

Ask questions to help people become more clear about what they are trying to communicate.

They will listen to you because only listeners are listened to.

Rely on God

It’s 100% God and 100% you.

It’s prayer and ministry. Grace and Work

We also have the upper hand. God is the source of all truth. All truth is God’s truth. We should never be afraid of how much someone else knows or thinks they know.

“We should never be afraid to argue with an unbeliever, no matter how much more intelligent or better educated he may be, for we have something on our side far stronger than intelligence and education: the end and point of all intelligence and education, Truth. And where Truth is, God is.” - Peter Kreeft

Be optimistic

Secularism is dying

The modern world is old and dying

The modern ideals are tried and worn

The orthodox church is young. Our message is young and full of life.

We aren’t trying to save an old church but an old and dying world that is decaying and passing away

The truth shall set you free.

Baker Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics Objections to Apologetics

C. S. Lewis noted that “nearly everyone I know who has embraced Christianity in adult life has been influenced by what seemed to him to be at least a probable argument for Theism”