What is Christian Apologetics?
Are we prepared to give an answer for the reason for the hope we have?
“But in your hearts, set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you for the reason for the hope that you have, but do this with gentleness and respect” 1 Peter 3:15
In the above passage, the apostle Peter issues a command, which eventually becomes foundational to the discipline of Christian Apologetics. He says “we should always be prepared to give an answer (apologia),” which literally means to give a “reasoned defence,” for the reason for the hope that we have. Now, to whom is Peter writing this? He is writing to the church that is scattered throughout the world, which is suffering severe persecution. Throughout this letter Peter exhorts his readers to lead holy and obedient lives. Every chapter contains practical instruction as to how we should live and what attitude we should adopt. In the midst of all of this instruction, comes a very clear command – be prepared to give an answer for the hope that you have. The challenge Peter places for us, today, is: are we prepared to give an answer for the reason for the hope that we have?
But, even before beginning to prepare to give an answer for the reason for the hope we have, Peter urges us to “set apart Christ as Lord in our hearts” (v.15a). What does this mean? It means that we submit every area of our lives under the Lordship of Christ. “Heart,” here, not only indicates the seat of our feelings but also the seat of our thoughts as well. Every part of us needs to be under the authority of Christ. A complete surrender to the Lordship of Christ is an essential ingredient in giving an “answer” for the reason for the hope we have as believers in Christ Jesus.
Secondly, since this passage is written in the context of holiness, when we give an answer for the reason for our hope, we should speak from the context of holiness. Our attitude, our actions and how we treat other people is vitally important (1 Peter 3:8 onwards). Even when faced with persecution, evil is not to be repaid with evil. 1 Peter 3:15 is saying that because our lives and attitudes are different, due to living in obedience to God’s commands, people will ask questions as to why and we should therefore be prepared. In other words, there should actually be a demand for an apologetic because of the quality of our lives.
After we have set apart Christ as Lord in our hearts, Peter, then, urges us to be “prepared.” Now, what does it mean to “be prepared?” The word in Greek has its roots in the idea of “being fit.” Now, physical fitness does not happen instantly; it takes dedication, commitment, hard work and a lot of resilience. And, most importantly, after one gets fit, one cannot, for a moment, think that he/she is fit forever. In order to maintain his/her fitness, consistent exercising is required. It’s not like the degree one earns after college, which, no matter how many years go by and the person remembers absolutely nothing about it, he still, proudly, can say he/she is such and such. Similarly, “getting prepared” is going to involve us exercising the effort necessary to make sure that we are ready. Opportunities to share our faith should not be lost because we haven’t taken the time to think through what we would say.
After we have prepared, we must give answer for the reason for the hope that we have. Now, what is the reason for our hope? The gospel is our hope. What is the gospel? The salvific work of Jesus Christ on the cross and his resurrection from the dead is the gospel. There is no other reason for our confidence. Also, this is an event that happened in history. So, believing that Christ died so that we might be saved is not a superstition. Instead there is a reason for the hope that we have and that reason is falsifiable. We must be ready to give an explanation, a defence, of why the Gospel is true. However, at the same time we must recognise that people may have other legitimate questions that need to be dealt with before they are prepared to give us a hearing. We need to deal with these issues so that we can clear away false ideas. Then Christ can be seen for who he is.
Finally, Peter addresses the question: how do we give an answer? In other words, what should be our attitude when we share the gospel? The gospel should always be shared with gentleness and respect. The gospel itself is a message of peace and grace. The Gospel, however, is not to be compromised in any way. But the way we present it must be consistent with its content. One of the reasons we find evangelism so scary is because we’re afraid of offending people. Talking about Jesus does involve using some challenging words. It’s not easy to talk about His exclusivity, or the call to take up our cross and die. But friends, can I urge you – let the offence stay with the gospel. Don’t be offensive in how you share it. Do it with gentleness and respect.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, are we prepared to give an answer for the reason for the hope we have? Let’s examine and commit ourselves!
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