What is apologetics?  The word comes from the Greek word Apologia which means ‘defense’, so Christian Apologetics essentially means ‘defending the Christian faith’.  A person who is versed in apologetics is called an ‘Apologist’.

Even though apologetics may appear to be a new branch of Theology, it is rather quite old.  People have been defending their belief in a living God since in Old Testament times.  You will find scriptures in the bible that command you to defend your faith.

“Instead, you must worship Christ as Lord of your life.  And if you are asked about your Christian hope, always be ready to explain it”.  I Peter 3:15

I guess you can say Paul was one of the greatest Apologists of all time.  Here’s what he says in 2 Corinthians 3 -6:

“We are human, but we don’t wage war with human plans and methods.  We use God’s mighty weapons, not mere worldly weapons, to knock down the Devil’s strongholds.  With these weapons, we break down every proud argument that keeps people from knowing God.  With these weapons we conquer their rebellious ideas, and we teach them to obey Christ.  And we will punish those who remained disobedient after the rest of you become loyal and obedient.”

This is what being an apologist is all about – using God’s weapons to fight those whose purpose is to destroy God’s Word and those who believe in Him.

There are certainly a lot of tools to learn and master to become a good apologist.  Attacks on the bible and Christianity have certainly become more prominent and sophisticated in our time.  A true Christian now needs to know how to properly answer those questions that deny the existence of God and Jesus Christ, as well as those aspects of the bible that persons try to distort and discredit.  It is a lot of work, but certainly well worth the effort. 

It goes to show that I too, have a lot to learn, but I am well prepared to open my mind and heart to all that the Lord is teaching me so I can go out and teach it to others, as well as to effectively defend my faith.

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