All right, when Brant's asked me to consider the fourth Sunday of the month, and I thought to myself, you know, I think apologetics is a interesting topic, and it's one that I don't think we spend a lot of time on. And so I thought we would start out this morning with just kind of an introduction to apologetics, what it is, what it isn't, a little bit of a contrast. between apologetics and evangelism, because they are two different things, and then focus a little bit on worldviews, and what our worldview is as believers, and what some of the opposing worldviews are, because we do have a number of worldviews that are contrary to our worldview as believers. So we'll get started. And first off, I wanna open with our base scripture, the foundational scripture that we have, which is 1 Peter 3.15. And I'm gonna start with 14 because I think we need to read all the verses that have the context here. So let's start with 3.14, 1 Peter 3.14. But even if you should suffer for the sake of righteousness, you are blessed. And do not fear their intimidation, and do not be troubled. But sanctify Christ as your Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence. And keep a good conscience, so that in the things in which you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ will be put to shame. So that's our main verse is 15, but I wanted to get those three verses in. So why apologetics? And I've got a question there. Isn't this a topic for others? And do we really need to know about apologetics? And I think we do, because what does our scripture tell us? Be ready to what? make a defense, right? So we have to be ready at all times to make a defense for our belief. So that's why apologetics. So again, we've covered our first foundational verse, 1 Peter 3.15, also Jude 3. Let's take a look at Jude 3. When it said Jude 3, it's like, man, Jude 3, there's only one chapter in Jude, so we're covered. And so Jude 3. Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you do what? Content earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints. So again, we're to do what? contend earnestly for the faith. And I think apologetics is part of that, contending earnestly for the faith. So as Christians, we're what? We're commanded in scripture to take the gospel to the world. However, as I have studied and as I've talked to other people, many of us really don't have a good understanding of what apologetics is. So I've got here, what is apologetics? And basically it's based on the Greek word apologia, which is defense. And so apologetics then is the defense of the faith. And so refers to a systematic argumentative discourse. And so I've got the question there, does this mean we argue loudly with those who disagree with us? Because it does kind of indicate, you know, a systematic argumentative discourse. Kind of would lead one to think that they were supposed to argue with people. But I don't believe we are, because as it says in our verse, that we are to do what? Gentleness and reverence. So, Vahdi Bakam gives an example of what an apologist should be, and we should have unity of mind, sympathy. So why do we have sympathy? We're dealing with unbelievers, aren't we? So we should have sympathy for them and their lack of faith. brotherly love, so we should do it with a loving spirit towards our brothers and sisters and towards those who are unbelievers. A tender heart, all right, so we should have a heart that's open to discussing with unbelievers as well as believers what our position is with our faith and also in a humble mind. And I think that that's probably one of the most important is to have a humble mind. And so we want to be sure that we approach people with a, as Vadi says, you know, knowing that they're not believers, we have to defend our faith, but again, defense doesn't need to be offensive. So we should be defensive and again, not offensive. When I think of the word offensive, what do you think of? Some people think of sports right away and playing offense. And first thing that comes to my mind when I think of offensive is it's nasty or, you know, just being offending people. And so we do want to be defensive but not offensive. So the Apostle Paul also wrote about how we should answer in Colossians 4, 5, and 6, and be wise in the way you act towards outsiders. Make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace. seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone. So we need to have what? A ready answer, don't we? When people ask us about our faith, we have to have the answer, and we have to be able to answer people. And so we want to make sure that we are defending our faith at the same time while we're being defensive. We also want to be able to be objective and be able to present the gospel to them as well. So as I say here, how do we respond? The last part of our verse says, with meekness and fear, which is out of the King James. And other translations say, with gentleness and reverence, the NASB, or with respect. So we want to make sure that as we respond to people with the defense of our gospel, that again, we're doing it with gentleness and reverence. And you know, what do they say, a soft word turns away wrath. Well, that's what we want to make sure that we focus on is as we defend our faith, that we are doing it in a way that is not offensive. It's with gentleness and reverence or respect. We have to respect other people's viewpoints. We don't have to agree with them. But I think the best way to approach people is to respect their opinion and then offer them the I guess, the different viewpoint of where we are coming with our Christian worldview. So, root word, as we already talked about, of apologetics, Greek word apologia, which means an answer given in reply. So, it is the rational response against objections that people bring up about Christianity. Has anybody ever faced anybody that had objections about Christianity? Sure, it's pretty much, as we go out in the world today, a lot of people object to it, don't they? We see a lot of people that attack our faith. that are, you know, unbelievers. And as we live in society today, there is just more and more of that attack on our beliefs. And, you know, as we deal with our issue of apologetics, again, we need to respond to them with gentleness, with reverence, with respect, but at the same time, know what we believe. be able to offer a ready defense. So that's one of the reasons that I think that the study of apologetics is so important is because we do need to be trained and prepared to offer that defense. So as it states in our key verse, that we are to always be ready to give a defense. We've got to understand what we believe. So what do we believe? We need to know that. We need to know that in our hearts. We need to know it in our minds. We need to be able to express that intelligently and objectively. And we need to be able to articulate our thoughts and our beliefs. Again, here we are with humbly. thoughtfully, reasonably, and I've got down here, most important, biblically. Because what? There's a lot of people out there floating around that have a lot of opinions about scripture, a lot of opinions about our faith, but what? It's not really biblical. So we want to make sure that we're responding biblically, to have the opportunity, the training to come back to people with the truth. And the truth is in the Gospels and is in Scripture. So we want to make sure that we are able to do that. And then we, you know, as I said, we have to be able to make a defense for everyone, to ask you to give an account for the hope that is in you. What is the hope that is in us? We have to think about that. And I always think about there's really two ways I look at hope. I hope it doesn't rain this afternoon, all right? Or that that's kind of a speculative hope. We have a firm hope, don't we, in our faith. We have Christ. We have our belief. And that is a firm hope that we know what we are going to eventually spend eternity in heaven. We know that through our relationship with Christ. And so it's not really a speculative hope, it's a firm hope. And that is what we have. We have an anticipation of the eternal glory that awaits us in heaven. That is our hope. And so we need to be able to, again, defend where we're coming from and apologetically. So as I've got here, think of the difference between playing defense or playing offense. And the following is from nine marks. And there are differences between evangelism and apologetics. So we're going to talk a little bit about the difference between those. So the difference is basically, are we playing defense or are we playing offense? And defense is apologetics. Offense is evangelism. So we look at difference number one, evangelism is telling others the gospel. Apologetics is defending the truth of the Christian faith. So think of evangelism as sharing the gospel. Think about apologetics as our defense of our faith. So again, difference two, apologetics addresses everything from the existence of God to the reliability of the Old and New Testaments. In contrast, evangelism is telling one specific message, the good news about what Jesus Christ has done in order to save sinners. So as we look at those two differences, when we look at apologetics, it's being able to defend everything from the existence of God. How many people today in our world don't even believe in the existence of God? So we have to be able to defend our belief in the existence of God and the real reliability of both the Old and New Testaments. Many believers today, I'll put that in quotes, discount the Old Testament a lot. Those of us in the Reformed tradition are looking at it as the entire scripture. It's not just the Old Testament and the New Testament. There's so many correlations between the New and the Old that we can't discount the Old Testament at all. So we need to be able to talk about the reliability of both the Old and New Testaments. But in contrast, you know, evangelism, we got one message, don't we, when we're evangelizing. And that message is good news about what Christ has done for us in order to save sinners. So difference number three, another difference between apologetics and evangelism, is that apologetics usually requires some level of intellectual sophistication. Apologetics can involve logical arguments, historical debates, philosophical discussions, and interpretive disputes, and more. On the other hand, evangelism is simply telling others the message about Jesus Christ. That's something every Christian, even a brand new Christian, should be able to do. So basically what this is saying is that evangelism, you know, we're a new believer, We should be able to what? Tell others about Christ, his salvation, and what we have with our hope. But with apologetics, sometimes it takes a little bit more understanding, a little bit more study, in order to be able to do what? intellectually appeal or defend our faith. And so it's really something that, as it says here, requires some level of intellectual sophistication. I think that's a little bit heavy in terms of intellectual sophistication. That sounds like you've got to have a PhD or something like that. But you really don't. And so just be ready to give a defense. So that's what we're going to talk about over the next few months as we do the Fourth Sunday, is how do we become apologists for our faith? So there's some great debaters out there that are great apologists. And many of us have heard of Cornelius Van Til, who's written a lot of books and done a lot of studies on apologetics. And there are others as well. And we're going to talk some about some of those apologists as we go through the course in the future. So then the link, the two can be closely linked. Apologetic conversations can do what? Can lead to good opportunities to share the gospel. And evangelistic conversations will often lead to apologetics when non-Christians respond with questions or criticism that require a reasoned response. So a lot of people, when you go out and you're evangelizing, they're going to do what? They're going to ask you some questions, aren't they? And again, we all of a sudden have to do a shift, don't we? From evangelist to apologist. We share the gospel, they start asking us questions. At that point we have to do what? Be ready to defend our faith, answer those questions, and be able to answer them. Can we always answer all the questions? No. That's when we call on Branson Paul. And we say, you know, I know a guy that you need to talk to. But again, as believers, we need to be able to at least be able to start a conversation from an apologetics viewpoint. So the bottom line We shouldn't let apologetics distract us from sharing the gospel. That's our first command, isn't it? To go forth and share the gospel. Secondly, we need to be able to defend that. But we should also work to be ready to give an answer to ask to give an answer to anyone who asks about the hope that is in us. And so again, that focuses back on 1 Peter. It's all part of scripture, isn't it? And we need to take scripture as a whole. And that is one of the, I'm not sure it's a, Command per se but I look at it as definitely instruction if not a command is that we Should be ready to give an answer so again Hopefully as we go through the next few lessons on apologetics that we prepare our minds we prepare ourselves to be able to give that answer and so You know one I'm kind of I get kind of hung up sometimes on culture and where we are in the culture today, how we can reach people with such adversarial viewpoints about Christianity and how, you know, how do we respond to culture? And because what we're dealing with culture that is, we are, we are living in a post-Christian age. And, you know, a lot of people still think that, you know, we're a Christian nation. I would argue that we're not. And we are living in post-Christian times. And so we, more than ever, need to be ready to do what? Evangelize and be an apologist for our faith. So in order to reach the world effectively with the gospel, we need to have a good understanding of the culture and views of the world around us. And we need to grasp not only why we believe what we believe, so why do we believe what we believe? We need to be ready with that, but also to what those who oppose us believe in order to be an effective apologist. So we have a lot of people who do not believe as we believe. They oppose us. And so in order to be an effective witness, we really need to be an effective apologist. So as I was getting ready for this, I got thinking about, all right, what are some of the opposing worldviews? And, you know, we all have a worldview. You know, my world view is done what? It's based on how I grew up, my faith, a lot of things, my profession, all these things form our world view but we should all have what? We should have a consistent scripture, Christ-based worldview as believers. But there are a lot of different worldviews out there that are in opposition to our Christian worldview. So I thought we really need to know what's a worldview and why is it important. And then we're going to take a look at some of the opposing worldviews. So as defined in Merriam-Webster, worldview is defined as a comprehensive conception or apprehension of the world, especially from a specific standpoint. All right. A lot of words. And so defined as a comprehensive conception or apprehension. So that's how we perceive the world. It's our conception of it. and especially from a specific standpoint. So when we think about our worldview as believers, what is our specific standpoint? It's based on scripture, isn't it? And it's based on our faith. It's based on scripture. So that is our specific standpoint. There are others who come from a different standpoint. And so it's important to understand what a worldview is in order to have an understanding of how people look at and perceive the world. So again, we're dealing with opposing worldviews. And we may have worldviews that are similar to ours. Good, moral people have a worldview, don't they? But is that necessarily based on scripture? May or may not be. And so morality is not always based on scripture. Some people just are having stronger, I guess for lack of a better term, moral compass than other people do. I've met people in my profession that have absolutely no moral compass. I mean, just none. They'll lie. They'll do whatever they have to do to get their point across. Those of us with a Christian worldview have got what? We have a very strong moral compass, don't we? So we're basing our lives on scripture and our faith. But again, understanding how these people look at and perceive the world, we need to be able to respond to them from understanding their viewpoint. We don't have to agree with their viewpoint. We don't have to accept their viewpoint. But I think we need to have at least a basic understanding of where they're coming from in order to be able to respond. So it's been stated that whatever worldview or worldviews we hold shape what we notice or ignore. So we've got what? What do we notice? We're looking at that through a lens of our worldview. And just as a little humorous viewpoint, Really has nothing to do with world view, but what we notice or ignore. I don't notice dirt on the floor. June is running around behind me constantly with a broom or vacuum sweeper. I'm kind of like Pigpen. I leave a trail of stuff behind me. But I don't notice it. But other people do. And so those are things that's kind of a simplistic view of what we notice or ignore. But again, that's what? That's how we view things. And that's how we are going to see what we want to see. I think there was a TV show a while back that had a lot of different events that occurred and then they would go back and they would ask people, you know, what did you see? It was amazing. People saw different things. And sometimes when you think about witnessing an accident, people are going to see what? Different things based on what their perception of that particular event was. So we need to understand that the worldview that we hold shape what we notice or ignore, then how we interpret what we see and experience. So again, looking through that lens, we're going to have a different interpretation about what we see. how we process that, and ultimately what decisions we make and how we act. It's all based on how we look at things and what our worldview is. So one author stated, whether we know it or not, whether we like it or not, each one of us has a worldview. And so that, you know, the term worldview didn't even come about until I think it was in the 1800s sometime. And, but, you know, as I look at that, there's a lot of truth to that, isn't there? That as we, you know, whether we know it or not, whether we like it or not, we all have a worldview. And what we're What's important is understanding what our worldview is and what the formation of it is. So a worldview is how a person asks and answers the biggest questions in life, then interprets reality and acts accordingly. So again, it's how we ask and answer big questions in life. So that's all formed as we look at what we notice or ignore, how we interpret what we see or read. So that's all based on our worldview. So one of the leading thinkers on the topic of worldview today is James Seyer. Obviously, it's probably not today. It seems how he died six years ago. But he's got a book called Naming the Elephant, Worldview as a Concept. And he defines a worldview as a commitment a fundamental orientation of the heart that can be expressed as a story or in a set of presuppositions, and presuppositions are assumptions which may be true, partially true, or entirely false, which we hold, consciously or subconsciously, consistently or inconsistently, about the basic construction reality and that provides the foundation on which we live and move and have our being. So, James Sire was a believer. and wrote a lot on worldview. And so, I may end up getting that book just for interesting reading to see where it's coming from. But again, set of presuppositions, all right? So, we all have what? We enter into things with a priori assumptions, all right? We base our thinking on what we have been taught to think. learned how to think, and so some of them are conscious, some of them are subconscious. And, you know, whether it's consistent or inconsistent. And so, let's break it down a little bit. So, first, our worldview deals with an orientation of the heart. All right? So it's important to recognize that worldviews don't only deal with intellectual issues. So biblically speaking, as he said, the heart is the CEO of our thoughts, emotions, and will, and desires. And that comes from Proverbs 4.23. So I'm not sure I agree with the term CEO, but definitely the heart is basically the base of our emotions and our thoughts, will and desires, along with our minds. And so I think I remember R.C. Sproul talking about one time about the connection between our hearts and our minds. And we have both of those that we as believers have. We have our heart, which rules our emotions, desires, but we also have our mind. All right, you can describe a worldview as a story or a narrative or set of assumptions about reality to which we are committed. You'll also notice that worldviews are a mixture of true and false beliefs that sometimes we are aware of and sometimes we are not. And that's why, as believers, we need to what? We need to have a sound worldview based on what? Scripture. And so that will be our worldview is actually true. If we're basing our worldview on scripture, it's truth. But how many people today don't either have the whole truth or don't have any truth? As we deal with the result of public education over the last 50 years, maybe longer than that, You know, we're taught in school, what? A lot of untruths, a lot of things that are just absolutely patently false. And so, we need to be able, as we go through life, raising our children, raising our grandchildren, making sure that they have what? The truth to rely on, so that they can form a worldview that is scripturally-based, that's a Christian worldview, as opposed to a worldview that's influenced by others, outside of our beliefs. Lastly, we live out or act upon these heart commitments. In other words, if we're committed to a false narrative about reality, all right, that moral, for instance, that moral truth is relative to individuals or cultures. We see that a lot with what? Moral relativism. And, you know, what's true for you isn't true for me. I've had a lot of people tell me that over the years. That's your truth. And my truth is something different than what your truth is. Well, if our truth is based on what? Again, I hate to keep pounding this in, but if our truth is based on scripture, we know we have what? The truth. And their truth is based on something totally unrelated. And so that leads to moral relativism. And it's just not... They don't have a good, sound, moral foundation. And so, it's a, could be a false narrative about reality, and they range our relationships and lives accordingly. They will have specific, significant consequences, often painful ones. And so, as we look at that, as we look at our heart commitments, and we're committed to a true reality, then we can base our thought pattern on that. So I thought just kind of a overview of some of the worldviews that are out there. And according to R.C., he talks about isms and several isms that influence the worldview of society today. And we're going to hit a few of them in humanism. I think that's probably one of the ones that we hear most about is humanism. It's an approach to life based on reason and our common humanity, recognizing that moral values are properly founded on, what's it say? Human nature and experience alone. You see anything in there that says based on scripture? Not at all. So it's all based on humans. No God involved. And existentialism. Back when I was in college, I had a roommate who claimed to be a believer, but he was really heavy into existentialism. At that point in my life, I wasn't a Christian, so I had no idea what he was talking about. But now I could say that, you know, your basis of your worldview on existentialism is not a Christian worldview. And so it's a philosophical theory or approach which emphasizes the existence of the individual person as a free and responsible agent determining their own development through acts of the will. Again, what don't we see there? We don't see anything about scripture. We don't see anything about God. And so it's the existence of the individual person. One that I hadn't heard of before was positivism and R.C. had a whole lesson on positivism. But it's a philosophical system that holds that every rationally justifiable assertion can be scientifically verified or is capable of logic or mathematical proof. And that therefore rejects metaphysics and theism. So basically it can be scientifically verified or it can be mathematically proven. Again, we're missing a pretty key element, right? With scripture. Hedonism, I think hedonism is probably one of the rampant worldviews that exist in the world today. And it is the ethical theory that pleasure, in the sense of satisfaction of desires, is the highest good and proper aim of human life. So again, what do we see? We see people, what, pursuing pleasure at the loss everything else, and so hedonism is one that really is, like I said, rampant in the world today. Pluralism, condition or system in which two or more states, groups, principles, sources of authority coexist. Anybody ever seen those bumper stickers that say coexist? Drives me nuts. I just feel like going up and ripping them off. But it's somebody's property, so I don't do that. But coexist, all right? So we can coexist with two or more states when we're dealing with pluralism. And can we coexist with two or more states? Absolutely not. I mean, it defies rational. thought to think that you can exist or coexist in two or more states with two or more sources of authority. So what you've got is you've got confusion as a result of pluralism. Relativism, the doctrine that knowledge, truth, and morality exist in relation to culture, society, or historical context, and are what? Not absolute. So how can we counter with that? We have what? We have absolute truth, don't we? And it's contained in scripture. So we know that relativism is obviously cannot exist. And we do know that there are absolute truths. And when I was serving on the school board, you know, we had a lot of teachers that would come in and they were relativists. And, you know, it was, you know, what's, what is my absolute is not your absolute. And again, it was all relative in the context of culture, society. And, you know, it was, they were, they were teaching our children basically moral relativism. And so we need to be able to counter that. Pragmatism. an approach that assesses the truth of meaning, theories, or beliefs in terms of the success of their practical application. So it's, you know, pragmatism. I think there's a lot of pragmatists in the world today that are basically saying, you know, that that's based on a practical application. And it's really somewhat of a, well, it's not somewhat, it is a misleading, again, worldview because it's based on what? Their practical application. Nothing to do with scripture. It's what they have experienced and what their practical application is. So then I've got the chief of all isms, and is there an overarching system that incorporates all these and unifies them, and basically I think it's secularism. And that is probably the one that is the foundational ism for all these other ones, you know, hedonism, pluralism, humanism, existentialism, and so it's secularism. So secularism is a way of life and thinking that rejects religion. And so, if you are a secular humanist, what are you? You are a non-scriptural, human-based thinker. And how does that work in today's world? No truth. And so, secularism is, again, rejects religion. It's the foundation of all the isms that rejects God. To a secularist, there is no God. And as there is no God, what? man is a principle determinant of all things. So that's what we really, I think, are dealing more with as we try and address the defense of our faith as we're dealing with secularism and that is probably the overarching ism that drives all other isms in our country and the world today. So many people have a secularist worldview. So as we go through the next several sessions on apologetics, how do we respond to the secularist? And how do we defend our faith? And that's what we are called to do, isn't it, in 1 Peter. is to be ready to offer a defense of our faith. And so others to look up, I've got down here individualism, consumerism. Consumerism is rampant in the world today. Nationalism. Then I got moral relativism. We talked a little bit about that. Scientific naturalism. Obviously new age thinking. Postmodern tribalism and postmodernism as we talked. A little bit, we live in a post-Christian nation, but we are living in a post-modern society. And we have to understand that that is a whole way of thinking that rejects biblical authority. So, I think we're just about ready to wrap it up. But as we go forward over the next several months, we're going to try and teach us all to be good apologists, defenders of our faith, but also doing it in a non-offensive manner. So with that, I think we'll wrap up. Just a quick word of prayer.