Apologetics an why the church needs it

It is amazing to see how years of looking at the Christian faith with a view of exposing the church as a fraud, have left me with an apologetic basis that can be drawn upon for the greater good. For those
of you not familiar with the term I refer to 1 Peter 3:15, 16 which is
can be used as the biblical rationale for apologetics:

“… 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, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who
speak maliciously against your good behaviour in Christ may be ashamed
of their slander.” (1 Peter 3:15,16)

There are many definitions when it comes to what is to be understood as apologetics. In very short terms it could be described as the reasoned defence for what you hold to be the truth. Other descriptions I
have come across relate to both the content and function of
apologetics. Lane Craige, a well known apologetic himself, speaks for
instance of “rational justification.” R.C. Sproul explains it as
“helping Christians know what they believe and why they believe it” and
“providing intellectual defence for the truth claim” which is the
Christian truth claim. J. Moreland explains it as “overcoming
intellectual obstacles” for a Christian faith. You could see
apologetics as a Christian theological exercise that addresses the
intellectual obstacles that keep people from taking the Gospel of Jesus
Christ serious. Apologetics addresses amongst others the common known
objections hear against the Christian faith such as:

• Why does evil exist?
• Has the Christian faith not been proven wrong by science?
• How do we know Christianity is true in light of the existence of other world religions that also make claims to ultimate truth?
• Why is homosexuality or abortion bad?
• Sex outside of marriage?

There appears to be this conception that apologetics is something for a select minority; the inquisitive minds, the intellectual elite. The fact that some universities now offer a major and degree in apologetics
may have contributed to this fact as well as the association o
apologetics with such brilliant minds as C.S. Lewis whom once wrote:

“To be ignorant is simple now – not able to meet our enemies on their own ground – would be to throw down our weapons, and betray our uneducated brethren who have, under God, no defence but us,
against the intellectual attacks of the heathen. Good philosophy must
exist, if for no other reason, because bad philosophy needs to be
answered. “ C.S. Lewis

While it may hold some truth that apologetics is associated with
sharp minds such as C.S. Lewis, serving God with the mind has always
been part of the life of the church. Look at some of the trinity creeds
and the precision with which words were entrusted to paper. They are a
perfect example of how God can be served with the mind the intellect.
Lack of answers has been a contributing factor in people leaving the
churches. People will need to be enabled or to use a popular self-help
catch phrase, empowered, by the church to reconcile the worldly in which
they live with the spiritual. It is my simple belief that the heart
cannot follow what the mind cannot conceive or justify.It is also my belief that it is and has been for that very reason that
we have seen secularism and even atheism grow in such enormous
popularity. If there is one thing that may be said about the church and
the church losing the game from atheists like for instance Dawkins or
Hitchens, it is not because their ideas and arguments are necessarily
more compelling but because we never entered the arena.

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