Should we Apologize for Christ?
If you’re not sure what I mean by this title, let me explain. In modern English, “apologize” means saying you’re sorry – expressing regret and embarrassment for some offense or failure. No Christian would apologize for Christ in that sense! The word “apologize,” however, comes from the Greek word apologia, which in New Testament times meant “to give a verbal defense” – the very opposite of what “apologize” means today. The Greek word appears 17 times in the NT in noun or verb form and can be translated “defense” or “defend” in every case.
The apostle Peter wrote that every believer should be ready to “apologize” for Christ in this sense: “But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense [apologia] to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect” (1Pe 3:15).1 Peter was writing to Christians who were experiencing persecution (3:13-17; 4:12-19). He encouraged them to maintain a good conscience by living righteously, and to be ready to give a reasoned defense for what they believed – the “hope” within them – to anyone who asked.
Peter assumed that living a godly life would not only invite persecution but also bring opportunities for witnessing. If the state begins to sponsor oppression, we believers will have to give our apologia before civil authorities in court (Luk 12:11; 21:14; Act 22:1; 24:10; 25:8; 26:1; 2Ti 4:16).
But today, if we live as we should, we will meet ordinary people who notice our righteous life and our godly response to adversity and ask for an explanation. Some may be skeptical or openly hostile, but others who observe our faith and hope will want what we have. Since they have no hope (Eph 2:12; 1Th 4:13), they will long to have our “living hope” – an eternal inheritance, preserved for us in heaven as we are kept for it on earth (1Pe 1:3-9).
Peter exhorts us to be ready to give answers to all inquirers, whether they are hostile, neutral or searching. But what kind of answers? In modern parlance, how do we “do” apologetics? Many people immediately equate apologetics with the philosophical and scientific arguments used by uber-educated Christians to defeat militant atheists in YouTube debates. They assume an effective apologist is that rare individual who has mastered all the evidence for the existence of God, the fallacy of evolution, the veracity of Scripture, the identity of Jesus Christ and the historicity of the resurrection. These sophisticated arguments are important and do bring some people to Christ. But the unbeliever’s chief problem is moral, not intellectual. So, no lost person can be argued into salvation. “A man convinced against his will is of the same opinion still.” Faith is more than intellectual assent; it is surrender.
Peter was certainly not using apologia in this modern, technical sense. Instead, the answers Peter had in mind are the kind that he and the other apostles gave, as recorded by Luke in the book of Acts. Before turning to Acts, however, it is important not to forget the rest of what Peter had to say about giving answers. We are to do so “with meekness and fear, having a good conscience” (1Pe 3:15-16 KJV). The goal of apologetics is not to win arguments but to win souls. An expert apologist might riddle his opponent’s arguments with holes and leave him lying on the ground breathless and defeated – and yet more bitter and antagonistic than ever. According to Peter, a successful answer must begin and end with kindness. Our good behavior in Christ starts the whole interaction, and we explain our hope with meekness toward the inquirer and with reverence for Christ. A good conscience doesn’t matter in academic debates but is crucial for effective witnessing. We should speak the truth in love (Eph 4:15). If in our hearts we have honored Christ the Lord as holy, we can be confident that He will help us give an effective answer in the power of the Spirit.
Peter showed how to give a proper apologia when he answered his Jewish audience in Acts 2:15-30. He declared the truth about the life, death and resurrection of Christ, and buttressed his claims by quoting from Joel and the Psalms. Similarly, Stephen’s answer in Acts 7:2-53 is a sustained argument from Scripture. Paul’s answer to his Jewish audience in Acts 22:1-22 was the story of his conversion, and his answers to Felix (Act 24:10-21) and Agrippa (26:2-29) again include his personal testimony, the facts about the resurrected Christ and allusions to Scripture.
Following the example from the Acts, the answer we should give when others ask is simply the gospel message with our personal testimony, supported by quotations from the Bible. So, apologetics is not for seminarians who took the course but for all believers. Even a young Christian can give his testimony and share the verses that the Spirit used in his salvation. The best apologist turns out to be the believer who sets Christ apart as Lord in her heart, lives a consistent Christian lifestyle, maintains a good conscience, prays for guidance and knows her Bible.
A common objection to this simple advice is that unbelievers won’t listen to the Bible unless we first prove to them that the Scripture is true. But that is not so. It may help, of course, to begin by asserting that Scripture claims to be God’s Word (2Ti 3:16), and by pointing out that accepting this claim is not circular reasoning (assuming what we want to prove) because the initial premise, “the Bible is God’s Word,” rests on amazing evidence. The New Testament authors repeatedly argued for the inerrancy and reliability of Scripture by demonstrating the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy and the fact of the resurrection; we can do the same. But in the end, we don’t have to prove anything because the Bible takes over as soon as we quote it.
Many people hotly deny God and His Word, but when we peel back the layers, we find that every human heart knows that God is real and that His Word is true (Joh 1:9; 16:8; Rom 1:19-22). The Holy Spirit who authored the text applies it infallibly to the consciences of all who hear it. God’s Word is therefore self-authenticating. So, when we speak to unbelievers, we can presuppose the truth of the Bible rather than having to prove it and still be successful. Even when we feel tongue-tied, the power of the verses we unleash cannot be stopped. Although many refuse the gospel, all intuitively recognize God’s truth when they hear it. We just need to make sure they hear it.
If the philosophical and scientific arguments that comprise modern apologetics are neither necessary nor sufficient to win a soul for Christ, why bother studying them? Because they are still useful. First, apologetics greatly encourages and invigorates believers who are exposed at school or work to the barrage of hollow arguments against God. Apologetics is part of our “defense and confirmation of the gospel” (Php 1:7), of contending for “the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints” (Jud 3), of destroying “arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God” (2Co 10:5), and of wrestling against “the cosmic powers over this present darkness” (Eph 6:12). And apologetics can stimulate unbelievers to take the Bible seriously and remove initial obstacles in the way of those who seek the truth.
We can summarize the use of apologetics by comparing it to the account of the raising of Lazarus. After approaching the tomb, the Lord Jesus asked His followers for assistance. Although He could have vaporized the stone that covered the mouth of the tomb, He recognized that ordinary men were capable of removing that stone. They could not raise the dead, but they could shift a rock. In the same way, Christ allows us to remove obstacles in the way of a person’s salvation. In rare cases, that might involve brainy arguments; in most cases, it simply involves our changed lives – the most powerful apologetic of all. Although Christ alone can bring a sinner from death to life, He delights to involve us in the preliminaries.
So, never underestimate these elements of biblical apologetics: the influence of our testimonies and the power of God’s Word. C.H. Spurgeon had this to say about the latter: “The Word of God can take care of itself, and will do so if we preach it, and cease defending it. See you that lion? They have caged him for his preservation; shut him up behind iron bars to secure him from his foes! See how a band of armed men have gathered together to protect the lion? What a clatter they make with their swords and spears! These mighty men are intent upon defending a lion. O fools, and slow of heart! Open that door! Let the lord of the forest come forth free. Who will dare to encounter him? What does he want with your guardian care? Let the pure gospel go forth in all its lion-like majesty, and it will soon clear its own way and ease itself of its adversaries.”
1 Bible quotations in this article are from the ESV unless otherwise noted.
