Reggie Weems Blog

You already know that apologetics is not an ‘apology’ for Christianity in the modern sense but a reasonable explanation for and defense of the cardinal truths of Christianity.  Sunday morning, I mentioned that one portion of the message was intended to present an apologetic for Christianity.  Although I am committed to presuppositional apologetics as the scriptural and best methodology for defending the faith (what’s better, more reasonable or more powerful than the Bible?), in that moment, I offered an evidentialist apologetic for the deity of Christ.  I must confess that, around the house, I have been known to use a shoe, a butterknife, etc., to hammer a nail.  As such, I must also confess to using every possible method of apologetics as I see the need determine.  Oh, let’s not squabble; let’s just rejoice that nails are getting hammered. 

 
But, “Why ‘apologize’ at all?” 

 
First, we are commanded to do so.  1 Peter 3:15 says, “but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence.” Positively spoken, any believer in love with the glory of God delights in sharing that glory and helping others to see the beauty of Christ.  Negatively said, no believer in love with the glory of God can rest while that glory is not being displayed to all the world.  So let point one be that we are commanded to do so and the glory of Christ requires it!!!  After all, that same epistle states that we are saved so “that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light” (I Peter 2:9).  If you read this blog, you read the last blog, so let’s not even get started on the glory of Christ, who, according to Paul, “be honor and glory forever and ever” (I Timothy 1:17). 

Second, apologetics helps Christians understand and appreciate the faith “once delivered to the saints.”  There is a body of knowledge that undergirds Christianity and without which, Christianity is not Christianity.  Learning apologetics requires that Christians not only know the faith but be able to share the faith.  And until you can share it, you don’t fully understand it,  much less know why a Christian worldview is important to absolutely everything in life. So, in reality, learning to defend the faith helps Christians define their own faith. 

 
Third, apologetics is an attempt to populate heaven with an unnumbered points of light that all point to Jesus Christ and to keep people out of hell.  Passionless Christianity is not principled Christianity.  As we “adorn ourselves with doctrine” (Titus 2:10) we live out the principles of Christianity before a lost, blind and perishing world.  The passion of Christ on the cross motivates us to present Christ and persuade men.  Salvation is not found in Buddhism, Islam, relativism, self but only in Jesus Christ (Acts 4:12).   Thus we must defend the exclusivity of Jesus Christ for His glory and mankind’s good.  Only in Christ will people escape the judgment that is yet to come.

There’s much more to say on this topic.  Too much to write today and too long to read in one day.  But…let us all be convinced that to live as a martureo is to live apologetically.  Perhaps, if we are not having to explain and defend the faith it is because our lives sorely lack any witness to the reality of Jesus Christ. 

 
More tomorrow…