My Apologetics

No, not my apologies. I'm not sorry about anything, especially not my faith. I am nearing the end of a course in apologetics being offered at a local church. I jumped at the opportunity to take this class for several reasons (including but not limited to "I have to get out of this house!") and boy am I glad I did it. The first several weeks I was thinking that maybe it was a mistake because it felt like I wasn't really gleaning anything new. It felt too much like a community education class (which is essentially what it is) and just wasn't heady enough for me. I have recently come the realization that I am nerd. I love to stick my nose deep in a book, or several books. I look forward to writing a research paper. Basically, I love to learn - it is one of my favorite things to do.

People often ask "What is apologetics?" or if they know what it is, "Why is it called apologetics?"

So here it is for you, a definition. My interest in apologetics stems from my interest in church history. I don't remember exactly how it happened, but I know that I became interested in Martin Luther in 9th grade and wrote a paper about him for English that year. I continue to be intrigued by the question "how did the church go from Acts 2 to the the church of the 16th century?" So anyways, my academic interest in the church was further peaked when I heard Ravi Zacharias on the radio several years ago. I am consistently frustrated and embarrassed by Christians who don't have any idea what they believe or why they believe it. So I have set out to educate myself...

My expectation for an apologetics class was that it would consistently challenge my intellect and help me to expand my understanding of Christianity while improving my ability to defend what I believe. What I absolutely did not expect, was to have challenge after challenge posed to my heart. Our teacher's theme is reminiscent of a concept that his father (a salesman) taught him as a boy " you can win the argument but lose the sale". He has stated over and over again in a hundred different ways that if our defense of Christianity is not rooted in love we will never be able to win anyone.

This week we examined some of Francis Schaeffer's ideas including the one that we are not just called to interact with the world but to impact it. This goes hand in hand with what Jordan has been preaching (it is basically the whole idea behind our church). How do we impact the world? There were a few different points that were covered, but this one really challenges me: "The principle of the practice of an observable love and oneness among all true Christians regardless of who and where they are" It is also referred to as "The Mark of the Christian" which Jesus laid out in John 13:34-35 "Love one another".

I know lots of people (I think especially of a few different pastor's kids) who have been completely turned off by the lack of love that they experienced in the church. How often does the church embrace God's holiness (outwardly requiring everyone to live by some or all of the standards God has given us) and reject God's love? Conversely, many of the mainstream churches today are all about God's love (tolerance) to the point where they have put His holiness on a shelf. Holiness without love produces a harsh gospel, and love without holiness produces a weak gospel. The challenge, for those who desire to be set apart, is to demonstrate God's holiness and love simultaneously. I think that if we can teach whole groups of people to really live by that standard, there will be great impact on the world around us.