The Vitality of Apologetics in Our Ministries (Part 3 of 3)

This month, David Holdcraft, regional director of Ratio Christi (ratiochristi.org) in Kentucky, answers the question, “How can an average Christ follower begin a study in apologetics?”

The plethora of apologetics resources available in print, on the web, and in regular podcasts is astounding. Start by subscribing to apologetics podcasts such as Reasonable Faith and the Defenders Class by Dr. William Lane Craig, CrossExamined by Frank Turek, Let My People Think by Ravi Zacharias, or Cold-Case Christianity by J. Warner Wallace.

I recommend the book On Guard by William Lane Craig. I also encourage those who want to become trained in apologetics to attend an apologetics conference.

Finally, I encourage people to read the Bible with “apologetic eyes”; that is, look for stories, verses, and truths that are found throughout the Bible. For instance, when you read Psalm 19, you will see both general revelation (general truths about God revealed through nature) and special revelation (more specific truths we discover about God through the supernatural). If you read Acts 17, you will see how Paul used apologetics in his message at the Areopagus in Athens. This speech is a masterful defense of the faith in a hostile environment.

Perhaps the most important way to begin a study in apologetics is just to begin. I have no doubt that as you get your feet wet in apologetics, you will eventually be jumping in with both feet and you will become a Christian apologist that God will use greatly in making disciples who will make disciples.

—David Holdcraft, davidholdcraft@ratiochristo.org