Teaching notes for course taught at LTCi Siliguri

1. Christian
Apologetics
LTCi course 702

3. Acts 17:19 The Areopagus is the “hill of Ares” (Ares
being the Greek god of war). The Court of the
Areopagus was a long-established body with extensive
authority over the civil and religious life of Athens.
It exercised jurisdiction especially in matters of religion
and morality.
Paul would have addressed them either on the “hill of
Ares” (i.e., Mars Hill), located below the acropolis, or
northwest of the acropolis in the northwest corner of
the Agora, where at the time of Paul the group held its
ordinary meetings in the Royal Colonnade.

4. Pocket
Handbook of
Christian
Apologetics
(2003)
Peter Kreeft &
Ronald Tacelli

5. Defining Christian
Apologetics
Christian apologetics is a field of
Christian theology which aims to
present a rational basis for the
Christian faith, defending the faith
against objections.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_apologetics

6. Defining Christian
Apologetics
apologetics ¦ə pälə jetiks¦
Christian apologetics isina field of
Greek ἀπολογία, "speaking defense"
plural theology which aims to
noun [treated as sing. or pl. ]
Christian
reasoned arguments or writings in
present a rational basis for the
justification of something, typically a
Christian faith, defending the faith
theory or religious doctrine.
against objections.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_apologetics

7. “Apologetics” comes from the
Greek word apologia, originally
used of a speech of defence or
an answer given in reply.
In ancient Athens it referred
to a defense made in the
courtroom as part of the
normal judicial procedure.
After the accusation, the
defendant was allowed to
refute the charges with a
defense or reply (apologia).
APOLOGIA
Australian stallion

8. The accused would attempt
to “speak away” (apo—away,
logia—speech) the accusation.
The word appears 17x in the
NT, being translated
“defence” or “vindication” in
every case. Usually it refers to
a speech made in one’s own
defence.
APOLOGIA
Australian stallion

9. (Is that) a good point?
I am an atheist. I
don't believe in God
There are too many
hypocrites in the
church
http://carm.org/objections-and-answers

10. (Is that) a good point?
I am an atheist. I
don't believe in God
There are too many
hypocrites in the
church
http://carm.org/objections-and-answers

11. Good, bad or…?

12. Good, bad or…?

13. A non-Christians response
http://truth-saves.com/are-you-a-good-person
A person is not considered a
"liar" unless that person
repeatedly lies. Telling a lie on
occasion does not mean the
person is actually a liar, just as a
person who played baseball
once as a child would not be
considered a "baseball player."
Such descriptive titles are
based on frequency AND
degree.

14. Again, whether or not a
person is considered a
thief is based on the
extent of their thievery.
Stealing a pen will not
lead you to being
charged as a thief,
stealing a TV will.

15. This does not, by any means, make
you a bad person. It just makes
you a person. We are biologically
designed to lust after others. If a
person thinks lusting after
someone is a bad thing then they
should be taking it up with the
designer, not the design. Humans
and other animals have no control
over such desires, they were built
to have sexual tendencies.
If one wishes to assume that God
created/designed life then God is
the one to blame for human lust.

16. This does not, by any means, make
you a bad person. It just makes
you a person. We are biologically
designed to lust after others. If a
person thinks lusting after
someone is a bad thing then they
should be taking it up with the
designer, not the design. Humans
and other animals have no control
over such desires, they were built
to have sexual tendencies.
If one wishes to assume that God
created/designed life then God is
the one to blame for human lust.

17. Almost everyone that Living
Waters accuses of "taking the
lord's name in vain" are 100%
innocent. Saying something like
"God Dammit" is NOT taking
the lord's name in vain
because it does not involve the
use of the lord's name. God is
what the lord is, it is not his
name. His name is Yahweh, so
only if one said "Yahweh
Dammit" would they be taking
the lord's name in vain.

18. Almost everyone that Living
Waters accuses of "taking the
lord's name in vain" are 100%
innocent. Saying something like
"God Dammit" is NOT taking
the lord's name in vain
because it does not involve the
use of the lord's name. God is
what the lord is, it is not his
name. His name is Yahweh, so
only if one said "Yahweh
Dammit" would they be taking
the lord's name in vain.

19. Despite what Living Waters
dishonestly insinuates,
people are not in control of
their thoughts. How we act
upon our thoughts is what
defines us morally and
personally. Psalm 44:21 also
refers to a person's
conscious desires and
intents, not his
subconscious
uncontrollable thoughts.

20. It is true, if you are
actually guilty of a crime
then asking to "just let it
slide" will not make you
innocent of your crimes.
But do you know what
else wont work in court?
Asking if someone else
*cough* Jesus *cough*
can carry out the
punishment for your
crimes instead of you.

21. As this tract says, "a GOOD judge
would say that justice demands
that YOU pay for YOUR crimes."
This is very true but since the
Bible says that God will allow
JESUS to pay for YOUR crimes
then Living Waters just admitted
that God is NOT a good judge.
This is not an act of love. Keep in
mind that God can magically
create as many sons as he wants.
He also committed adultery and
created Jesus for the specific
purpose of having him sacrificed.

22. If Jesus is the immortal son of
God (or God himself) and not
subject to death then he did
not die and thus a sacrifice
never occurred. Jesus
pretending to die for our sins
has less of an impact.
So you can't earn God's gift
but you can also earn God's
gift through "humbling"
yourself to Jesus? Wow, Living
Waters changed their claim in
the same sentence. Impressive.

23. They
conclude by
saying that
this is what
the tract
SHOULD
have looked
like...

24. …from the Bible that we
should be engaged in
apologetics - what are the
important texts?

25. Texts About Evangelism
adapted from an original by Tim Challies
1. There is work to be done
Matthew 9:37-38
Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is
plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray
earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out
laborers into his harvest.”

26. Texts About Evangelism
adapted from an original by Tim Challies
2. Jesus has commanded you to do it
Matthew 28:18-20
And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in
heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go
therefore and make disciples of all nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father and of
the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to
observe all that I have commanded you. And
behold, I am with you always, to the end of
the age.”

27. Texts About Evangelism
adapted from an original by Tim Challies
3. Success is guaranteed - John 10:16
And I have other sheep that are not of this
fold. I must bring them also, and they will
listen to my voice. So there will be one flock,
one shepherd.

28. Texts About Evangelism
adapted from an original by Tim Challies
4. Jesus is the only salvation
John 14:6
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the
life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
(
5. You were given the Holy Spirit for this purpose
Acts 1:8
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come
upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and
in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.

29. Texts About Evangelism
adapted from an original by Tim Challies
6. People won’t be saved without hearing
Romans 10:11-15
How then will they call on him in whom they have
not believed? And how are they to believe in him of
whom they have never heard? And how are they to
hear without someone preaching? And how are they
to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How
beautiful are the feet of those who preach the
good news!”

30. Texts About Evangelism
adapted from an original by Tim Challies
7. Evangelism is necessary for your own
growth in Christ - Philemon 6
And I pray that the sharing of your faith may
become effective for the full knowledge of every
good thing that is in us for the sake of Christ.

31. Texts About Evangelism
adapted from an original by Tim Challies
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,
“Apologetics is the enterprise of obeying that
command”

32. 2 Corinthians 10:5
5 We demolish arguments and every
pretension that sets itself up against the
knowledge of God, and we take captive every
thought to make it obedient to Christ.

38. That’s a good point!
I am not a sinner / I
am a good person
I tried Christianity
once
I already believe in
God
http://carm.org/objections-and-answers

39. Is Christianity a leap of faith?

40. Is Christianity a leap of faith?

41. Reasons for apologetics
Some Christians think that
apologetics is intellectual,
rational and abstract - they
say reason is less important
than love and sanctity.
How would you respond to
them?

42. Reasons for apologetics
The problem is such
thinking needs reasoning we all reason our
arguments, we simply need
to make sure we do it well.
In fact many Christians
argue that reason is a
“friend of faith”

43. Reasons for apologetics
The problem is such
thinking needs reasoning we all reason our
arguments, we simply need
to make sure we do it well.
In fact many Christians
argue that reason is a
“friend of faith”

44. Some people decide with
their hearts more than with
their heads - biblically the
heart is the centre of our
being - apologetics gets to
the heart through the head
- the head is the gate to the
heart. We love what we
know.

45. Arguments can keep you
from faith - we cannot
believe what we believe to
be untrue, and we cannot
love what we believe is
unreal. So we have to join
the battle of arguments. In
essence reason has veto
power

46. Arguments can keep you
from faith - we cannot
believe what we believe to
be untrue, and we cannot
love what we believe is
unreal. So we have to join
the battle of arguments. In
essence reason has veto
power

47. “Arguments can bring you
closer to faith in the same way
a car can bring you to the sea.
The car can’t swim; you have
to jump in to do that. But you
can’t jump in the sea from
100 miles inland - you need a
car to bring you to the place
where you make the leap of
faith into the water. Faith is a
leap, but not a leap in the
dark but in the light.”

48. 1. Apologetics Defends the
Faith: Proof or Vindication
Defending Christianity against
the many attacks made against
it by critics of varying belief
systems. This function involves
clarifying the Christian
position in light of
misunderstandings and
misrepresentations;

49. answering objections,
criticisms, or questions from
non-Christians; and in general
clearing away any intellectual
difficulties that nonbelievers
claim stand in the way of their
coming to faith.

50. Every Christian, to some
degree, is called to be an
apologist and should know
God’s word well enough to be
able to answer the questions
and objections our friends,
families etc.
Apologetics shows that it is
reasonable to be a Christian
and that our faith is grounded
in reality.

51. (Is that) a good question?
The Bible is full of
contradictions - so
how can we trust it?
What makes you
think the Bible is the
word of God?
http://carm.org/objections-and-answers

52. Ex. 15:33 - Rom 15:33
Matt 1:16 - Luke 3:23
1Kings 4:26 - 2Chron 9:25
Matt 27:5 - Acts 1:18

53. 2. Apologetics Affirms the
Faith of Believers:
Apologetics reinforces the faith
of Christians - showing
Christians that they can
proclaim the faith boldly
because the evidence is on
their side. Christianity is based
upon sound historical claims
such as the life, death and
resurrection of Jesus.

54. 2. Apologetics Affirms the
Faith of Believers:
Reinforcethe faith
Apologetics reinforces
of Christians - showing
(リインフォース)
Christians that they can
proclaim the faith boldly
is a key evidence is on in
character
because the
their side. Christianity is based
Magical Girl Lyrical
upon sound historical claims
Nanoha A's
such as the life, death and
resurrection of Jesus.

55. Apologetics shows the validity
to the Christian truth claims and
uses history, philosophy, science
and logic to provide evidence in
its favour. No other religion in
the world can boast the
impressive weight of evidence
that Christianity has going for it.
If you understand how
reasonable our faith is and how
much support it has, you should
be confident in your faith and in
sharing it.

56. 3. Apologetics Removes
Barriers to Faith:
While defending the faith we
can answer the sincere
questions of unbelievers essentially we are tearing
down walls of unbelief that
are keeping them from
trusting in Christ.

57. E.g. Paul Acts 17:16-34 Paul
reasoned with thinking men
about God and the person of
Jesus - not all believed but
some did.
By dealing with people who
are hostile to our faith or
who use objections to avoid
dealing with the truth - when
we answer their objections,
then we strip away their
barriers and leave them face
to face with God.

58. E.g. Paul Acts 17:16-34 Paul
reasoned with thinking men
about God and the person of
Jesus - not all believed but
some did.
By dealing with people who
are hostile to our faith or
who use objections to avoid
dealing with the truth - when
we answer their objections,
then we strip away their
barriers and leave them face
to face with God.

59. 4. Refuting opposing beliefs
This function focuses on
answering, not specific
objections to Christianity, but
the arguments non-Christians
give in support of their own
beliefs. This cannot stand
alone, since proving a nonChristian religion or
philosophy to be false does
not prove that Christianity is
true.

60. 4. Refuting opposing beliefs
This function focuses on
answering, not specific
objections to Christianity, but
the arguments non-Christians
give in support of their own
beliefs. This cannot stand
alone, since proving a nonChristian religion or
philosophy to be false does
not prove that Christianity is
true.
- prove (a statement
or theory) to be
wrong or false;
disprove:
- prove that
(someone) is wrong
- deny or contradict
(a statement or
accusation):

61. 4. Refuting opposing beliefs
This function focuses on
answering, not specific
objections to Christianity, but
the arguments non-Christians
give in support of their own
beliefs. This cannot stand
alone, since proving a nonChristian religion or
philosophy to be false does
not prove that Christianity is
true.

62. 5. Persuading
This is not simply convincing
people that Christianity is true,
but persuading them to apply its
truth to their life - bringing nonChristians to the point of
commitment. We do not simply
want to win an intellectual
argument, but to persuade
people to commit their lives and
eternal futures to Jesus Christ.
This is called evangelism or
witness.

63. They will then be forced to
deal with the fact that they
are rejecting Christ not on
the basis of genuine
objections but because in
their sin they want nothing
to do with the true God.

64. a good question to ask
Why did Jesus have
to die in order for
me to go to heaven?
What about
dinosaurs and
evolution?
http://carm.org/objections-and-answers

65. Concerning methodology
Kreeft and Tacelli state that
they try to use common sense
standards of rationality and
universally agreed principles of
logic in all their arguing. (it is a
good policy for us too!)
They do make the point that
human arguments have some
important features in their
context:

66. 1. The psyches (mind) of
the people involved
2. The relationship of the
two people involved
3. The immediate situation
in which they find
themselves
4. The larger social,
cultural, and historical
situation surrounding
them.

67. National, political, social
factors all affect our
apologetics - you do not
argue in the same way with a
Muslim woman in Tehran as
you would a Hindu in Siliguri.
Our arguments should be like
swords not bombs - the
sword is an extension of the
swordsman - tone, sincerity,
concern, listening and respect
matter a great deal in
ensuring you are heard.

68. National, political, social
factors all affect our
apologetics - you dowon for
The world was not
argue in the same way with a
Christ not by
Muslim woman in Tehran as
arguments but by
you would a Hindu in Siliguri.
Our arguments should be like
sanctity: “What you
swords not bombs - the
are is an extension of the
speaks so loud, I
sword
can hardly hear what
swordsman - tone, sincerity,
concern, listening and respect
you say.”
matter a great deal in
ensuring you are heard.

69. The need for apologetics today
1. Western civilisation is in danger
of dying - the reason is spiritual, it is
losing its life and soul, which was its
Christian faith - western countries
are engulfed by secularism - the
20th century has been dominated
by genocide, sexual chaos and
money worship - the authors
suggest we are doomed unless we
turn back the clock (spiritually)
secular |ˈsekyələr|
denoting attitudes, activities, or other
things that have no religious or
spiritual basis

70. 2. As well as the civil, cultural crisis
we are in there is a philosophical,
intellectual one too - there is a crisis
of truth
Any idea of objective, definitive, truth
is rejected or attacked - this is
especially seen in the schools and
media.
3. The deepest level of crisis in
society is not cultural or intellectual
but spiritual. The eternal souls of
men and women, for whom Christ
came to die, are at stake. Saying such
a thing, in such a definite way, is not
necessarily popular or acceptable
today.

71. The basis of the book
The authors declare in the book
they are dealing with the basic or
core beliefs which are common to
all Christians - those at the core of
the faith as outlined in the
Apostles Creed. This, they say,
unites many Christians whilst
Liberal or revisionist theologians
will not be happy about what is
written in the book - e.g. arguing
for miracles, the reliability of
Scripture, the reality of the
resurrection, the divinity of Christ
and the reality of heaven and hell.