10-30-2004 - Apologetics

Today, we are going to learn some Apologetics!

Whoa! Wait a minute! Apolo - what?

That sounds like a soup with alphabets or something in it, or could that be a space ship launched from the US to the moon in the late 60's?

Although the word apologetics does not appear in the New Testament, the New Testament uses the vocabulary of apologetics, which is derived from Greek legal practice, in a popular and technical way. In Greek law, an accusation was lodged against a person, who then attempted to vindicate himself with a reply, an answer, a defense. If a person had no defense, he was "without excuse" a term Paul uses in Romans 1:20;2:1. Paul's speeches before various officials (Acts 22:1; 24:10; 25:8; and 26:1,24) are called apologies. Paul says that he is set for the defense of the Gospel. (Phillipians 1:16)

Peter best defines apologetics for us in (1 Peter 3:15), Peter says that Christians should always be ready to give an answer for the hope that is within them.

When I was a younger Christian and still really close to the crowd in the world that was not Christian, I had no idea what apologetics meant, or that I was trying to do it at times, and ending up as one "without excuse." One of those time was when an atheist - I'll call him Mike attacked my faith.

Mike used a simple argument to attempt to invalidate my faith that really had me stumped. Everything that he said made sense, and I didn't know how to answer him. Here's the dialogue of our conversation.

Mike: "Rob, if your God is all powerful, can he create a rock that He can't move?"

Rob: "Yes Mike, He can."

Mike: "Robert, can your all-powerful God now move the rock?"

Rob: -silent-

Mike: "then how can he be an all-powerful God?

No matter which way I answered this question logically, with a YES or a NO, would say that God wasn't all-powerful, and therefore invalidate my belief.

Well since that time, the Holy Spirit revealed to me the answer to this "trick question".

Question, If your God is all powerful, can he create a rock that He can't move?
Answer, Yes, my all-powerful God can create a rock that He can't move.

Question, Can your all-powerful God now move the rock?
Answer, No and Yes.

Question, Then how can he be all powerful?

Here is the apologetical answer in defense of the Gospel!

My God created a rock that He can't move. He created a rock with intelligence, and breathed life in to it and gave it a free will, meaning that He would not make man do anything, but He would allow man to move how he chooses to move.

Can he move the rock? No, He could make the rock do what he wanted it to do, but He bound himself to allow man to choose to do what it wants to do. However, He made a way for the Rock to move in the direction He desired, as the rock believed and trusted in Him, and chose to follow his directions.

God created the rock, which is, all mankind, beginning with Adam, who was formed from the dust of the Earth. God breathed life into the Adam, and made Adam an independent individual who could choose a destiny. He could choose to follow God's destiny, or he could choose his own destiny.

God promised himself to not move the rock and make it do what He wanted it to do. He helped man to realize that man could make own decision. God moves that rock by calling the rock to follow Him. He kept His promise, and yet He moves the rock by calling it to follow Him, or make its own move.

I stand for Jesus Christ as Lord and God and defend Him, despite the maligning that people attack Him with.

My God is an all-powerful God. Romans 1:16 says "For I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ or His name, for it is the POWER OF GOD unto salvation unto all men who believe, given first to the Jew and also to the Greek."

If you don't know Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior, and what His purpose is for your life and want to know, e-mail me and let's chat.

God Bless,
Rob

rob@cfdevotionals.org
http://www.cfdevotionals.org