Apologetics Can't Save You

The Christian community goes by many names, sometimes we are called the church, the Bride of Christ, early in our history we were called the followers of the Way.  One name that we really never use to refer to ourselves by is ‘family’.  However, it is one of the names we most often live up to, unfortunately, it is as a dysfunctional family.  Seldom does any family take such joy at attacking their own as the Christian family.  Unlike most highly dysfunctional families we seem to take the greatest joy in airing our differences in the most public of ways.  Maybe that is a good thing.  The non-Christian community surely can’t accuse us of hiding behind doors to work out our issues (although I wish more idifferences were worked out instead of the constant festering that we end up with).

Apologetics can be defined as reasoned arguments or writings in justification of something, typically a theory or religious doctrine.  Specifically, Christian apologetics use a variety of methods to defend the tenets of the Christian faith.

Some Christians take issue with any idea that reason can be a tool utilized by Christians.  However, I feel this is based on a faulty view of apologetics as well as salvation.  A very common argument that is raised is “has anyone ever been saved by apologetics.”

The answer to that question is an unequivocal and emphatic, “NO”. I am not aware of any person that has ever been saved through apologetics. Then again, I am not aware of anyone that has ever been saved through discipleship, evangelism, prayer, or any other category of works. We are by grace saved through faith. The efficacious work of salvation was done by Christ in his life, death, and resurrection. So, apart from Him, we are not saved by any work of man (apologetics, evangelism, prayer, etc).

I am actively involved in an apologetics ministry — so, obviously I will be a proponent of the discipline. I discovered the discipline of apologetics several years ago when I was challenged by an atheist about my beliefs.  I was being challenged as we find in 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”.

Are there bad examples of apologists? Yes. I probably initially served as a bad example of an apologist. I was primarily focused on winning the argument. It was actually because of a statement Greg Kouklmod Stand To Reason  made that I was became aware of the specific harm that attitude was causing. Greg says in his book, “Tactics” that we should be involved in a dialogue not to win an argument but to win a brother/sister. If at the end of my part in the discussion a person is unwilling to consider the truth of the gospel because of an additional offense that I have attached to it by my method, then I have offended the gospel. Let’s be realistic, the gospel is offensive to the non-believer, let’s not add to that by our poor presentation of it.

If the gospel is true, then the non-believer has to deal with their response to that truth, no matter how offensive that truth may seem. But, if they can choose to not respond because I am a jerk, then I have added unnecessarily to the offense of the gospel.

Let me expand that a bit more — are there bad example of other areas of our faith — say evangelism? Do the members of the Westboro Baptist Church provide a bad example of evangelism when they protest at the death of a US servicemember? We all recognize the bad practitioners of the discipline, yet we still can separate that from the overall call to evangelism that we each have. We strive to practice good evangelism, we should strive to practice good apologetics.

Sometimes apologetics may be focused on the validity of rational arguments, but they may also be applicable to helping someone deal with emotional issues. Unfortunately, in many of our churches we have left the mind outside the sanctuary and decided that we will only deal with the emotional side of faith. There are numerous problems with this approach (just as there are with a rationalistic/head only approach some equate to apologetics).

It is time we bring the mind back into the church.  We need to understand apologetics as a call to both evangelism and discipleship.  We need to be true to the examples of the apostles in presenting clear and cogent reasons for theor faith. And always doing so in a manner that brings honor to Christ as our reason and Truth! 

Maybe it is time for those who would attack apologetics to  consider that we can’t be true to 1 Peter 3:15 nor the call of Christ on our lives if we don’t engage the mind and that apologetics provides an avenue to reach yet another demographic in our culture.  We need to quit acting so much like that really dysfunctional family we sometimes are and maybe realizing that working together might just allow us to celebrate some bigger reunions.