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.

If you wish to know more about Apologetics you can study these Free Courses

Mountain

What is Faith?

“It is the confident assurance that what we hope for is going to happen.  It is evidence of things we cannot yet see.”  Hebrews 11:1

This is what a true christian lives by – faith. 

Many people don’t believe in God the creator because they cannot see him.  Even the Israelites that Moses led out of Egypt lacked faith from time to time.  They even built an image to worship when they got impatient after Moses went up to Mount Sinai.  This is what we do sometimes, when our patience runs out because God does not seem near, we falter in faith.

“So you see, it is impossible to please God without faith.  Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that there is a God and that he rewards those who sincerely seek Him.”  Hebrews 11:6

We must live by faith and not by sight.  Anything you want for your life can be achieved if you just have faith.

Now don’t confuse faith with wishful thinking.  It is not a matter of sitting around waiting for things to happen, but by working toward making it happen.  But while you are working, you are praying and believing.  Some things just take a little time, and there may even be times when we don’t get what we want, but that does not mean that God is not with us.

God promised Abraham that he would be a father of many nations.  Abraham did not live to see this happen, but it did happen because God promised.  Some of the things we hope for may not happen in our lifetime, but it still can happen and benefit our loved ones.  God does things His own way and we should not question it.

However there are some things that you do need to wait on God for.  Perhaps you are terminally ill, then you need to have faith that God can heal you.  It takes a little faith to make big things happen.

“I assure you, even if you had faith as small as a mustard seed you could say to this mountain, ‘move from here to there’, and it would move.  Nothing would be impossible.” Matthew 17:20

Have you ever seen a mustard seed?  It is very small indeed.  So imagine what you could do with a whole lot of faith.

We must live by faith for you see, we will not always get what we want in this life, and we have to face trials and challenges that we sometimes don’t understand, but there is a higher reward awaiting us.

“Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of highest privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory.” Romans 5:2

 In God’s Kingdom we will be rewarded for all our faith and patience.  We should not be anxious about anything but continually trust in God for all our needs.

When you hold hatred and malice in your heart you rob yourself of happiness and peace.  It literally destroys you.  You know, when somebody does you wrong, intentionally or otherwise, they may at some point, feel sorry for what they have done to you.  If they seek forgiveness from you, give it to them.  Let go of the hurt and pain and move on with your life.

“If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him.  If he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times comes back to you and says, ‘I repent’, forgive him.”  Luke 17:3-4 NIV

Another thing to keep in mind is, when you hold a grudge against someone, you are actually doing nothing to them.  They would probably go about their lives normally and happily, while you make yourself sick with feelings of hate and revenge.  It really makes no sense doing that to yourself.  The best way to avenge anyone is to show them love and leave their actions up to the Lord.

“Dear friends, never avenge yourselves.  Leave that to God.  For it is written,

‘I will take vengeance; I will repay those who deserve it, says the Lord’. 

Instead do what the Scriptures say: ‘If your enemies are hungry, feed them.  If they are thirsty, give them something to drink, and they will be ashamed of what they have done to you.’ 

Don’t let evil get the best of of you, but conquer evil by doing good.”  Romans 12:19-21

Most importantly, when we forgive others, we allow ourselves to be forgiven also.  You must remember our lives are infallible and there may come a time when we may do something to offend someone and look for forgiveness.  If you don’t know how to forgive, chances are you will not be forgiven, especially by the one who matters most – God.

“If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you.  But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins”.  Matthew 6:14-15

“But when you are praying, first forgive anyone you are holding a grudge against, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your sins, too”.  Mark 11:25

If you find your prayers are not being answered, it could be you have animosity towards someone.  Check it out, forgive and experience the peace of mind you deserve.

girl worrying

“So don’t worry about having enough food or drink or clothing.  Why be like the pagans who are so deeply concerned about these things?  Your heavenly Father already knows all your needs, and he will give you all you need from day to day if you live for him and make the Kingdom of God our primary concern”.  Matthew 6:31-33

In today’s current financial climate, what is commonly called the ‘global economic crisis”, it is difficult not to worry about what the future holds.  People have lost jobs, their houses, cars and are generally finding it difficult to make ends meet.

“Worrying is like a rocking chair, it gives you something to do, but it gets you nowhere” – Glenn Turner

Worrying really gets you nowhere.  As a matter of fact there are two things you can do to stop worrying:

1. Don’t put yourself in a position to worry, and
2. Find a solution to your problem.

Let’s look at the first point.

What is the most common thing that most people worry about –  Money.

A lot of people spend more than they earn.  They borrow to get what they want quickly.  This causes debt and debt makes them worry about their finances.   Of course sometimes there is no choice to borrow money, but there must be proper planning, and proper planning is the key to living a successful life.

Then there are those who prefer to sit and worry about situations instead of finding solutions.  There is a solution to every problem.  Let’s use finances as an example.

You are in debt.  You are having diffulty paying your bills, and that has you worried.  The best thing to do is find a way to get out of debt.  Talk to your creditors, together you all can work out something.  When you have gotton rid of your debt, start saving and don’t put yourself in a position to be in debt again.

Then there are situations we have no control over.  Maybe you or someone you know has been diagnosed with a terminal illness such as cancer.  Worrying about death and your family is certainly understandable.  But the whole point of living a spiritual life is to be able to cope with life in general.  You will be able to face any situation that life brings in a confident and faith filled manner.

“Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about what happens to you.”  1 Peter 5:7

And then there are chronic worriers, those who worry about things that are not worth worrying over at all.  It is something that on their own they have no control over, but there is help, there always is.

“Don’t worry about anything; instead pray about everything.  Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.  If you do this, you will experience God’s peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand.  His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus”.  Philippians 4:6-7

Whatever the problem in your life, there is help.  Worrying will not solve it, but prayer and faith in Jesus Christ certainly will.

The best type of prayer is simple, spontaneous prayer.  In other words pray whenever you feel the need.

In Matthew chapter 6, Jesus gives instructions on how to pray.  Here’s what he said in verse 7:

“When you pray, don’t babble on and on as people of other religions do.  They think their prayers are answered only by repeating their words again and again.  Don’t be like them because your Father knows exactly what you need even before you ask him!”

He then goes on to give an example of what to pray for by what we call the Lord’s prayer today.

God does not care about eloquence or how many fancy words you know.  He just wants to hear what is in your heart.  These are the prayers he listens and responds to.

Could you remember a time in your life when there was an emergency or something tragic happened and you called out to God for help?  Do you remember what you said?  It could have been a simple ‘please God, help”.  This would have come directly from the heart without you even having to think about it.

Simple prayers are effective prayers.  If you don’t know what to pray about just take the Apostle Paul’s advice:

“Don’t worry about anything, instead pray about everything.  Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.”  Philippians 4:6

Girls jumping for joy

If you are a true believer in God and use him to take control of your life, then your life should be filled with joy.  Even if you are going through a difficult time right now there is no need to fill your life with sorrow or negative thoughts.  Times like these do not last forever.

“Dear brothers and sisters, whenever trouble comes your way, let it be an opportunity for joy.  For when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be strong in character and ready for anything.”  James 1:2-4

God is good, he will not allow circumstances in your life if he felt you will not benefit from it.  God does want you to be happy, and everything that happens in your life, happens for a reason.

“But remember that temptations that come into your life are no different from what others experience.  And God is faithful.  He will keep the temptation from becoming so strong that you can’t standup against it.  When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you will not give in to it.”  1 Corinthians 10:13

So keep smiling.  Be happy.  Don’t let anyone steal your joy.  A positive spirit will always attract positive conditions in your life.  You owe it to yourself and God to be always happy.  Remember the fruit of the Spirit is joy.

“But when the Holy Spirit controls our lives he will produce this kind of fruit in us: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control…”  Galatians 5:22

Fill your life with joy and you will be able to overcome any situation you face in life.