Apologetics

What is Apologetics and Why is it Important?

 Apologetics comes from the Greek word apologia, which means “a reasoned statement or a
verbal defense.”
 Christian Apologetics is intellectually defending and arguing for the veracity of the claims of
Christianity.
 Apologetics not only deals with the defensive, but the offensive as well. It is necessary to
construct a coherent case for Christianity, thereby demonstrating that it is true and that the
other religions/worldviews are false.
 There are 3 main elements that make up saving faith: notitia (sometimes called the notei),
assensus, and fiducia.
1. Fiducia (the 3rd element of faith) is a personal trust and love for Christ that is the
result of a new heart and mind. This is the work of the Holy Spirit. The other 2
elements have to do with apologetics.
2. Notitia (the 1st element of faith) has to do with the content or data concerning
Christianity that a person needs to know before he or she can either reject or accept it.
3. Assensus (the 2nd element of faith) has to do with intellectual assent, i.e., whether the
mind gives assent to the proposition or not. Take George Washington for example.
After reviewing facts (the notitia) about him, a person must either accept or reject
(assensus) those facts. “George Washington was the first president of the United
States of America.” That is a proposition (notitia) that a person must intellectually
accept as true or not (assensus).
 Notita and assensus alone do not comprise saving faith but are necessary aspects for it. It is
the job of apologetics to educate people regarding these two essential elements of faith.
 Fideism is rampant in churches and in our culture as a whole. Fideism asserts that a person
does not need to have reasons for believing what he does, he can just take a blind leap of
faith. This is not the kind of faith the Bible calls for. Christians are not supposed to check
their brains at the church door. Functional faith is built on knowledge:
1. “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your
strength and with all your mind” (Luke 10:27, emphasis added)
2. “And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and
depth of insight” (Philippians 1:9, emphasis added)
3. “This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all men to be saved and to
come to a knowledge of the truth.” (1 Timothy 2:3-4, emphasis added)
 Deficient faith is ultimately due to deficient knowledge:
1. Paul and James ask the question “Don’t you know…?” (James 4:4; Romans 6:3, 16;
11:2; 1 Corinthians 3:16, among others)
2. Jesus asks, “Have you not read…?” (Matthew 22:31) and tells the Sadducees that
they “are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God.”
(Matthew 22:29)
3. Isaiah asks, “Do you not know? Have you not heard?” (Isaiah 40:21, 28)
 The Bible charges every Christian with the responsibility of apologetics and explains that we
are in a real intellectual battle to convince people of the truth:
1. “But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer
to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this
with gentleness and respect” (1 Peter 3:15, emphasis added)
 Apologetics

A. απολογια (apolog’a) is the Greek word that is translated in this verse as

“answer”. It comes from the Greek words meaning “out of logic/reason” and
refers to a reasoned defense given in a court of law.
B. logos) is the Greek word that is translated in this verse as “reason” and
means, in this context, evidence that provides rational justification for one’s
belief.
2. “…earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.”
(Jude 3, emphasis added)
3. “The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they
have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every
pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive
every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”
(2 Corinthians 10:4-5, emphasis added)
 Martin Luther stated: “If I profess with the loudest voice and clearest exposition every
portion of the Word of God except precisely that little point which the world and the devil
are at that moment attacking, I am not confessing Christ, however boldly I may be professing
Him. Where the battle rages there the loyalty of the soldier is proved; and to be steady on all
the battle front besides, is mere flight and disgrace if he flinches at that point.” (Luther's
Works. Weimar Edition. Briefwechsel [Correspondence], vol. 3, pp. 81f.)
 Apologetics makes a case for the Truth. Its purpose is to show that the Bible can be trusted
and because it is reliable, it commands our utmost attention and commitment. Christianity
does not ask people to believe without any reason because God never asks people to put their
trust in something irrational or absurd.

Information from:
1. Defending your Faith: An Introduction to Apologetics by R.C.Sproul
2. Loving God with all your mind: logic and creation by Dr. Jonathan Sarfati.
Available at http://www.answersingenesis.org/tj/v12/i2/logic.asp
3. Remarks on Scripture by Martin Luther. http://www.bible-researcher.com/luther03.html