4 Tips for Getting Started as an Apologist
Apologist Blake Giunta from BeliefMap.org shares four tips for getting started as an apologist.
Focus on the Gospel.
It’s very easy for Christian intellectuals to become entranced with side debates on predestination and so forth, but these should take a backseat to issues that most effectively move a non-believer from skepticism to basic faith.
Those basic issues include the debates over
- God’s existence
- Jesus’ existence
- Jesus’ resurrection
The Christian case for these three is very secure, and you can safely invest in mastering them. This is relevant because, if you can convince someone that God exists and raised Jesus from the dead, then they will usually be at the doorstep of the Gospel. Notice as well that you can get them there relatively easily by postponing discussions about Biblical inerrancy—i.e. whether or not the Bible has errors in it.
Stick with the tried and true arguments.
By this, I mean (a) avoid fringe arguments you’re personally impressed by, and (b) never ever formulate your own arguments. Everyone who engages with apologetics long enough looks back in shame at their early attempts to make their own arguments, or at arguments they were convinced were good but became embarrassed to learn are deeply flawed. And you’ll never see it coming! It’s genuinely shocking. That’s the problem!
Professor Craig is widely regarded by the apologetics community as the greatest living apologist, and Craig appropriately focuses his scholarship and ministry specifically on those three main issues relevant to the Gospel mentioned above. In fact, Craig is the only highly published academic who has been able to come down from the ivory towers and successfully provide accessible material to the masses through ReasonableFaith.org.
Start with books focused on the Gospel.
On the case for God, again, try William Lane Craig’s Reasonable Faith.
On the case for Jesus’s resurrection, Lee Strobel’s, The Case for Christ is fun and valuable.
If you’d like to press further, I strongly recommend The Case for the Resurrection of Jesus by Gary Habermas and Michael Licona.
Know where to get answers as challenges come.
Reading these books is a great start, but you may encounter people with questions or objections not covered by them. They may push you a little bit deeper.
I recommend two resources. The first is my own site, BeliefMap.org. This website is focused on mapping out the case for God’s existence and Jesus’ resurrection. It is designed to unfold like a conversation. With just a few clicks, you can arrive at the specific topic you and your friend are discussing, and it will have waiting for you all the directions the conversation could go from there. At each stage, you’ll have relevant academic citations and quotes to share. It’s powerful!
The second resource is Facebook. In particular, consider joining an apologetics group (like the “Christian Apologetics Alliance”). These groups are incredible, and the people in them want to help you!
If you follow these four bits of advice, I think you’ll find yourself on your way to becoming a competent apologist.
Kurt Jaros
Kurt Jaros is the Executive Director of Defenders Media, where he oversees numerous apologetic web ministries including Apologetics315 and his weekly podcast, Veracity Hill.
