Being, Exuding, Doing, Accompanying

Christian apologetics is typically defined as a rational defense of the faith. Thus, believers are encouraged to use their minds in such a way as to ward off error and prove to others that the Christian faith is indeed true. There is little question that this is a part of what is involved in the apologetics task, and there is certainly a place for such a stance in today’s world.

Too often, however, we have made apologetics a negative thing, and we have often been guilty, I think, of constructing nice sounding arguments that few people care about. Indeed, I am often mystified by the sheer one-dimensionalness and blindness of many believers, who walk around thinking they’ve taken a stance for the gospel when, in some cases at least, they have done nothing or, worse, have even done harm to the cause.

While I have no intention of placing everyone under this rubric, I honestly think that apologetics (along with evangelism and other matters of faith and life) has often taken on a shape that is more related to current evangelical assumptions and paradigms than it is to truth and reality. To that end, I’d like to suggest a handful of different yet overlapping ways of envisioning apologetics.

Being - A good portion of the life of faith has nothing to do with programs, agendas, and the like. Rather, it entails just being, that is, being what God wants us to be. We are to be the conduits, if I might use that term, of the living Spirit. Rather than taking on some artificial persona and adopting a pre-planed agenda, much of what really matters is about just being ourselves. Rather than being simply concerned about having answers and following some prescribed path, wouldn’t it be better to also embrace the real us/me? If God works through human personality, we mustn’t short-circuit the process by embodying something other than who and what we are (and are becoming). So, be!

Exuding - Perhaps, this is almost the same as the previous point, except that exuding provides more “meat” to the idea. It appears that what God wants us to be is greatly tied to great biblical themes that, properly embraced, shine forth–however imperfectly and inconsistently–from our lives. For instance Scripture mentions hope as an important trait, as is faith, which ought to impact and permeate everything else. Likewise, love is something that is to be not merely spoken (though we could use a lot more of that, as well) but lived out and expressed in our many relationships. What a thought . . . an apologetic, indeed a life, in which the power, compassion, and truth of God’s Son can’t help but “leak out” and touch the lives of others. Exuding the truth . . . I like the way that sounds!

Doing - While we connect with God through faith, our faith is shown to be valid and useful when it actually affects the way we live. We are to be doing the will of our Father, which means, among other things, that our lives should parallel (as much as that's possible now) that which is already present in that perfect sphere. Of course apologetics still needs to produce reasonable arguments and intelligent answers. Wouldn’t it be nice, though, if the advocates of such arguments were doers and not just talkers of the Word? It’s fascinating to consider the words of James from an apologetics perspective: “Show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works” (James 2:18). To (sort of) paraphrase: “Show me your arguments through simple argumentation and logic, and I'll show you the validity of my thinking and rationale by means of my active, energetic, caring lifestyle.”

Accompanying - What I mean by this is that we simply have to learn to approach our relationships with others in genuine and meaningful ways. Who the heck do we think we are when we treat people as mere objects of study? What motivates us to be so confident, even defensive, about matters that, sometimes at least, are quite complicated? How is it that we’ve almost treated apologetics as a barrier to faith instead of an avenue to it? Why can’t we stop pretending (or deluding ourselves into thinking) that we have it all figured out, that we never doubt, that our arguments are air-tight, and that any reasonable person simply has to follow our line of reasoning? Wouldn’t it be refreshing to actually understand the objections and the uncertainty of others? How shocking and revolutionary it would be if we were to accompany others, journeying with them, traveling together toward the truth! Imagine what it would be like if we joined others in (some of) their complaints, scratching our heads, as well, when it comes to the harder questions of life? Are we so shallow that we cannot embrace an apologetic that allows for both faith and doubt, confidence and uncertainty, understanding and ignorance? “I believe, Lord. Help my unbelief.”–What a paradigm! Sometimes, of course, we must confront, defend, and be dogmatic. But can’t we also recognize that one of the best ways of reaching others is by (genuinely) “feeling their pain,” acknowledging their better points, and walking along side them. If the Spirit can walk along side fools pitiful fools (i.e., all of us!), can’t we learn to do the same with our equals?

Okay, I’ve said enough . . . for now. Some might argue that what I’m presenting shouldn’t even be categorized as apologetics. But isn’t apologetics ultimately about giving people reasons and encouragement to believe. But, whatever categorizations are chosen, we could all sure use a healthy dose of being, exuding, doing, and accompanying.