Blog

by Charlie Wolcott

There is a fierce battle going on today. It is the same battle that has been going on for 6000 years ever since the Serpent first questioned what God said. It is a war for truth. It takes very little time to be around me to see that I am an apologist pretty much by default. I can hardly write even a social media post without doing some kind of apologetics, without giving something about why we believe what we believe and what we must mark and watch out for error. The Bible commands believers to defend the faith and to protect the truth. This is all over the place, but two of the “famous” verses are 1 Peter 3:15 and Jude 3.

I recently read the book The Truth War by John MacArthur. It’s an expose on the book of Jude, the need to content for the faith, and how to spot and identify false teachings. I picked up quite a few quotes from the book, but this one stood out:

To be an effective warrior in the battle for truth today, several old fashioned, Christlike virtues are absolutely essential: biblical discernment, wisdom, fortitude, determination, endurance, skill in handling Scripture, strong convictions, the ability to speak candidly without waffling, and a willingness to enter a conflict.
~John MacArthur: The Truth War, page 146

I immediately wanted to do a blog series on this quote, and I’ve been saving it for now. Worldview Warriors did not start out as a specifically apologetic ministry, but it’s almost impossible to carry out the vision and mission of this ministry without addressing apologetics. So, what I plan to do with this series is to define apologetics, who should do it, and what should be required to do it. Then, I’ll analyze this quote and deal with a few other topics related to apologetics. I will make clear that while I am well-experienced in apologetics, by no means do I have all these details mastered. In some of the posts of this series, I am going to be aiming the lesson to me specifically because I lack what I know is needed for that task. So, let’s get to work.

What is apologetics? The term comes from the word “apologia” which is not “apologize” but rather “make a case.” Why do you believe what you believe? This is not just what do you believe, but why? This is a command given to all believers. Again, see 1 Peter 3:15 and Jude 3. We must contend for the faith and give a reason for why we believe what we believe. But in 1 Peter 3:15, there is the hard part: “in meekness and love.” It’s not easy to do that when dealing with false teachings. Jesus said we are to go make disciples of all nations. So when sharing our faith, we are bound to be asked: “Why do you believe that?” Right there, you are forced into an apologetics scenario, especially in our intellectually driven society. It’s actually not any different than Paul’s time. The Greeks were also known for being an intellectually driven society, so Paul had to be in position to give a reason for why he believed what he believed. The same is true for us.

Who should do apologetics? The answer is simple: everyone. Everyone is called to give a reason for why you believe what you believe. There is a “job” or “ministry” of apologetics which is different. Everyone is called to preach, but not everyone is a preacher. There are big name apologists for the Christian faith. Ken Ham and Henry Morris are known for apologetics in Creation. Frank Turek and William Lane Craig are known for defending the Resurrection and the existence of God. Josh McDowell is known for defending the reliability of the Bible as a whole. However, I bring a caution.

Because these names have become “big” and they have large platforms, there are many people who want to do apologetics because of the prestige that comes with the name. While everyone is called to do apologetics, not everyone is qualified to do it, especially on larger platforms. The appeal to the “big name” is enticing, but it comes with a big target on your back and a high level of responsibility. As a result, there is no reason any person on this planet should be in a spot-light position without being under the direct authority of a local congregation where proper church discipline is carried out. That’s one thing I love about my new church. They treat church membership seriously, and it’s for the purposes of church discipline and the protection of both the church and the person. Ray Comfort, Paul Washer, and Justin Peters are big name evangelists/preachers, but all three have submitted themselves to a local congregation who supervises them and sends them out with proper authority. Not all of the big name apologists have done that, and we have only recently seen the fallout from that.

Now, it is very important to study. The least qualified apologists are those who are self-taught, and they are the most dangerous ones too. While you should not be required to have a formal piece of paper that says you passed certain classes in a seminary (none of the original apostles did), you still need to be trained. You still need to be equipped. To what extent you are going to have a platform will determine how intensely you need to study. If you are going to engage on technical debates, you need to be studied on technical details, which may include taking formal courses. But everyone who engages in apologetics needs to be rooted in their theology first and foremost. I would recommend getting teaching or a book on systematic theology, which should perhaps be your #1 book besides the Bible to study. If you are not grounded in your theology, whether origins, theology proper (study of God), soteriology (study of salvation), eschatology (study of the end times), Christology (study of Christ), or the other major “systems” of theology, then you will end up dealing more damage than doing good.

Be careful, because being wrong on one of these areas can impact all the others. If you are wrong in an area or unsure about a major field of theology these are your options: 1) Don’t talk about it, or 2) Don’t be an apologist. You need to be well-rounded. You can focus on particular areas, but you can’t afford to teach error. An apologist should be “sent out” from their congregation for that job and should never launch their own “ministry” without such a backing. So what about me? I am part of the ministry of Worldview Warriors, and one of the things I am looking for at my new church is a home church that will truly have my back and “send me out” as I do what I am called to do. This church will do that and as of writing this, I am in the membership application and approval process.

Finally for this post, what is the point and purpose of apologetics? There should always be three primary goals in apologetics: 1) To proclaim Christ, 2) To proclaim from the Bible on the issue, and 3) To showcase the Bible’s position to be the ultimate authority. As the Bible’s primary purpose is to reveal Christ, how you view Scripture is how you view Christ. However, Christ should always be our end goal. If you only go to argue about the existence of God or even just the reliability of the Bible and don’t go to Christ out of it, then you have missed the whole point and purpose of it all. I have done this and often missed Christ in defending my faith – too often if I am honest.

So, to wrap up this post, we are all called to defend the faith, but we must do so correctly. Over the next four posts, I will go over each qualification to be a warrior for truth from John MacArthur, and then I will address 2 Timothy 2:24-26 and its surrounding context because it all relates and that passage has hit me hard. Stay tuned.

This forum is meant to foster discussion and allow for differing viewpoints to be explored with equal and respectful consideration.  All comments are moderated and any foul language or threatening/abusive comments will not be approved.  Users who engage in threatening or abusive comments which are physically harmful in nature will be reported to the authorities.