Over the years of serving in the local church, I have discovered that many people still have the question, “Why apologetics?” From laity to pastors, I’ve heard that apologetics only teaches people to argue (rather, to be argumentative), and isn’t a needed focus of the church. Such statements hit me like a ton of bricks; why is there such a lack of interest in learning about the tough questions of belief in God? I have come to discover, however, it is not so much a lack of interest as it is a lack of acquaintance. 

Apologetics means to make a defense of what you believe. It is about offering reasons for the hope that you have in Jesus Christ. The word itself comes from the Greek word apologia, which is found in 1 Peter 3:15, “defense.” In this passage, Peter encourages a group of persecuted Christians to not be afraid of the people who persecute them. Instead, he says to set apart Christ as the Lord, which includes always being ready to tell others the reason of your hope. However, Peter does not imply being “argumentative” in any way, an attitude the apostle Paul discourages in his second letter to Timothy.

I find that apologetics serves us in three ways: it answers doubts, builds confidence and changes our lives. Apologetics is a field that handles the difficult questions people have regarding belief in God.

Some questions people ask about apologetics include:

1) How can anyone say God is good, when there is so much evil in the world?

2) How do I know that Jesus rose from the dead?

3) Why should I trust the Bible?  

4) How do I know God exists?

Unanswered questions may eventually lead to uninvestigated doubt. Those doubts, after festering for many years, can lead a person to live a defeated life; one that lacks the power of the Lord Jesus Christ. Further, a person cannot reasonably trust God if they do not know whether or not He exists: in bigger things such as salvation, or even in smaller things found in daily living. Yet, when a person begins to answer their doubts those answers can build their confidence in what they believe. As a person gains confidence in their faith, that confidence can begin to change their lives.