I was sorting through my Apologetics cards before I wrote this, and I was looking over my card about the evidence for the resurrection. One of my points is "The Testimony of the Apostles,"specifically focusing on Peter, James, and Paul. Under that point I talk about how the incredible change in these three men after Jesus rose again makes the message they preached impossible to ignore.
Peter adamently denied even knowing Jesus, much less being a follower of Him, when Jesus was on trial. After Jesus rose from the dead, Peter boldly preached that Jesus was the Messiah. Prison, angry mobs, threats from the authorities, and crucifixion would not keep Peter from declaring Christ. Why this change? Because Peter knew Jesus and put his hope in Him.
James, Jesus' half-brother, was not a follower of Jesus during His earthly ministry, and even tried to persuade Jesus to stop preaching. Fast forward about fifty years and James is leading the Church and was thrown off the pinnacle of the temple and beaten by a crowd of angry jews demanding that he deny Jesus. Why? Because he believed that Jesus was God, and seated at the right hand of the Father.
Then there's Paul. This man had everything going for him. He could trace his heritage to the line of Benjamin, he was raised in (probably a well-to-do) family of Pharisees, he had trained under one of the most respected teachers of his day, the High Priest trusted him with the task of breaking up the Church in Damascus. And then his life completely changed. He went from persecuting the followers of Jesus, to bringing the gospel to as much of the known world as he could. Why? Because he had a personal encounter with Christ and God gave him a new heart.
Apologetics has to be more than a box full of answers, it has to be more than a head full of answers, it has to be more than refutation to the arguments the world presents to us. Apologetics has to be a lifestyle. Apologetics has to be centered around the fact that in our hearts we have sanctified Christ as Lord. The apologist, in order to be effective, must live in such a way that there is an obvious hope within them that permeates every part of them. No matter how solid your answers are, your most convincing testimony will be your life. I was listening to a podcast of one of my favorite speakers about applying apologtics, and in closing he said something that really stuck with me. He pointed out that no matter how many answers you know, "No one can argue with a life well lived."
Ultimately, the most persuasive argument we can give isn't one that we can keep in our apologetics boxes. You can have answers supporting the deity of Christ, you can explain why that's significant, you can give the historic evidence for His death and resurrection, but if you can't show how Christ has changed you, if you don't live like He is Lord of your life, you cannot persuade people. Because you can't persuade someone else to live for something you aren't willing to totally live for.
1 Peter 3:15 is sort of the battle cry of apologetics, "always being ready to make a defense to anyone who asks you to give an answer for the hope that is within you, yet with gentleness and reverence." There's another part of that verse that all too often gets left out. 1 Peter 3:15a says, "But sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts" and then continues with the part we all know so well, "always being ready to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is within you, yet with gentleness and reverence." I know that verse, I learned it many years ago. I have many answers for why I believe what I believe. But sometimes I'm missing the most important part. "Sanctify Christ as Lord."
Peter adamently denied even knowing Jesus, much less being a follower of Him, when Jesus was on trial. After Jesus rose from the dead, Peter boldly preached that Jesus was the Messiah. Prison, angry mobs, threats from the authorities, and crucifixion would not keep Peter from declaring Christ. Why this change? Because Peter knew Jesus and put his hope in Him.
James, Jesus' half-brother, was not a follower of Jesus during His earthly ministry, and even tried to persuade Jesus to stop preaching. Fast forward about fifty years and James is leading the Church and was thrown off the pinnacle of the temple and beaten by a crowd of angry jews demanding that he deny Jesus. Why? Because he believed that Jesus was God, and seated at the right hand of the Father.
Then there's Paul. This man had everything going for him. He could trace his heritage to the line of Benjamin, he was raised in (probably a well-to-do) family of Pharisees, he had trained under one of the most respected teachers of his day, the High Priest trusted him with the task of breaking up the Church in Damascus. And then his life completely changed. He went from persecuting the followers of Jesus, to bringing the gospel to as much of the known world as he could. Why? Because he had a personal encounter with Christ and God gave him a new heart.
Apologetics has to be more than a box full of answers, it has to be more than a head full of answers, it has to be more than refutation to the arguments the world presents to us. Apologetics has to be a lifestyle. Apologetics has to be centered around the fact that in our hearts we have sanctified Christ as Lord. The apologist, in order to be effective, must live in such a way that there is an obvious hope within them that permeates every part of them. No matter how solid your answers are, your most convincing testimony will be your life. I was listening to a podcast of one of my favorite speakers about applying apologtics, and in closing he said something that really stuck with me. He pointed out that no matter how many answers you know, "No one can argue with a life well lived."
Ultimately, the most persuasive argument we can give isn't one that we can keep in our apologetics boxes. You can have answers supporting the deity of Christ, you can explain why that's significant, you can give the historic evidence for His death and resurrection, but if you can't show how Christ has changed you, if you don't live like He is Lord of your life, you cannot persuade people. Because you can't persuade someone else to live for something you aren't willing to totally live for.
1 Peter 3:15 is sort of the battle cry of apologetics, "always being ready to make a defense to anyone who asks you to give an answer for the hope that is within you, yet with gentleness and reverence." There's another part of that verse that all too often gets left out. 1 Peter 3:15a says, "But sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts" and then continues with the part we all know so well, "always being ready to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is within you, yet with gentleness and reverence." I know that verse, I learned it many years ago. I have many answers for why I believe what I believe. But sometimes I'm missing the most important part. "Sanctify Christ as Lord."
Sometimes I feel like I'm making no progress in my spiritual life and I just keep ending up in the same pitfalls, making the same mistakes and learning (or almost learning) the same lessons. And as I thought about it, I realized that every time I had turned from a sin, or decided to change myself, I had had a "for now" mentality. I knew I was going to fail at some point, so I only partially committed. But to sanctify Christ as Lord in my heart means that I'm not giving Him partial control over my life, until I get busy and distracted and make mistakes. No, sanctifying Christ as Lord in my heart means that I am giving Him priority and honor. It means I won't settle with failure and accept sin in my life. It means surrendering every part of my life completely to His control. It means that even when I do sin - because I do, and I know I will - I will turn from it and continue to pursue Christ. That's the kind of life that the hope of Christ shines through. That's the kind of life that is better than any Apologetics speech I could ever give. That's the kind of life that is a testimony. And it's the kind of life that I want to live.
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