1. Introducing Apologetics

2. What is Apologetics? Apologia – to make a ‘defence’ or a ‘reply’ Read ◦ Acts 22:1 ◦ 2 Timothy 4:16 ◦ Philippians 1:7, 16 ◦ 1 Peter 3:15

3. “...a presentation and defence of [the Christian faith’s] claims to truth and relevance in the great market place of ideas.” Alister McGrath

4. “Apologetics is that branch of Christian theology which seeks to provide a rational justification for the truth claims of the Christian faith. Apologetics is thus primarily a theoretical discipline, though it has practical application...[it] tries to answer the question, What rational defence can be given for the Christian faith?” William Lane Craig

5. “...an activity of the Christian mind which attempts to show that the gospel message is true in what it affirms. An apologist is one who is prepared to defend the message against criticism and distortion, and to give evidence of its credibility.” Clark Pinnock

6. 5th SepIntroduction to Apologetics 12thCan you take the Bible literally? 19thIsn't belief in God just a childish myth? 26thHow can a loving God send people to Hell? 3rd OctHow can God allow suffering? 10thDon't all religions lead to God? 17thStreet Angels commissioning service 24thIsn't Christianity repressive? 31stIsn't the deity of Christ a fabrication of the Church? 7th NovWhat happens to those who have never heard the gospel? 14thUnderstanding apologetic conversations 21stHasn't science proved that religious belief is bad? 28thIsn't the Christmas story just a myth? 5th DecHumble apologetics without compromise

8. The apologetic choice... To build walls or bridges between people...?

9. Objections to the Christian Faith Philosophical – how can you know? Religious – how can you be so exclusive? Moral – how can you be so judgemental? Historical – how can you trust the evidence? Scientific – how can you be so naive? Political – how can you still think you are relevant?

10. Remembering an apologetic conversation... What question/s did the person ask? What answer/s did you give? What objection/s did they raise to your answers? What was the attitude of the person? What triggered the conversation in the first place? How did you feel about the conversation once it was over?

11. The Problem with Apologetics The Problem of God – some things aren’t easily explained! The Problem of Jesus – some things aren’t easily ignored! The Problem of the Bible – some things aren’t easily accepted!

12. The Limits of Apologetics Cannot replace the Holy Spirit Cannot replace a faithful and godly life Cannot guarantee successful evangelism Can do much harm Cannot be ignored Has been a means through which God saves people Clear answers can never replace humble but mysterious faith

13. “To be a witness does not consist in engaging in propaganda nor even stirring people up, but in being a living mystery. It means to live in such a way that one’s life would not make sense if God did not exist.” Cardinal Suhard

14. People who simply ride the roller-coaster of emotional experience are cheating themselves out of a deeper and richer Christian faith by neglecting the intellectual side of the faith. They know little of the riches of deep understanding of Christian truth, of the confidence inspired by the discovery that’s one’s faith is logical and fits the facts of experience, of the stability brought to one’s life by the conviction that one’s faith is objectively true. Intellectual impoverishment with respect to one’s faith can thus lead to spiritual impoverishment as well. But the results of being intellectually neutral extend far beyond oneself...

15. ...If Christian laymen (and women!) don’t become intellectually engaged, then we are in serious danger of losing our children. In high school and college Christian teenagers are intellectually assaulted on every hand by a barrage of anti- Christian philosophies and attitudes. As I speak in churches around the country, I continually meet parents whose children have left the faith because there was no-one in the church to answer their questions. For the sake of our youth, we desperately need informed parents who are equipped to wrestle with the issues at an intellectual level. William Lane Craig, Reasonable Faith