This is the sermon for Sunday, August 28, 2011.
Bless God part 5
Know what you believe and why you believe it.
Introduction
This is the fifth sermon in our topical series entitled, “Bless God: God, hell, heaven, and the chief end of man.”
In this sermon we are going to be looking into the subject of apologetics. Many people don’t know what that term means; and some people are way over abusive when it comes to apologetics.
Well let’s look at the definition of the word. It means, “the branch of theology concerned with the defense and rational justification of Christianity.”[1]
Now there are many apologetic ministries that are out there with podcasts and blogs. Many of them are good and really defend the faith well; others are just into name calling and hurling abuse, sometimes forgetting that someone who may have been aberrant in the past has since renounced and repented of their false theology.
A number of people just don’t know how to defend their faith. When questioned, they get nervous, string a few comments together, and then sometimes appeal to personal experience over Scripture.
Well, it is very important to know what you believe and why you believe it. Experience is not our authority on which we stand, but it is Scripture, that is why all of us should be students of the Bible. And while apologetic ministries may be good, we can’t rely on them alone to give answers and hope to people, we must be willing to offer those answers and hope.
Some of the ancient creeds of the church are good places to start. Let’s look at a one.
The Apostle’s creed.
Now this creed more than likely didn’t actually originate with the Apostles, but it is a very ancient creed that gives a terrific overview of what they actually taught. Let’s look at it.
I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come again to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy Christian Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.
There are other Creeds, like the Nicean Creed that are excellent teaching tools for a foundation of the doctrines found within the Scripture as well. Though for sake of time, we will not look at them.
There is a passage of Scripture that we need to look at; it is the classic passage when it comes to apologetics and giving a defense and answer for our faith. Let’s look at it, then we will use this passage as a guide on why it is so important to know what you believe and why you believe it.
1 Peter 3:15 ESV –…but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect…
Knowing what we believe is important because it exalts Jesus Christ as we dig and study within the Scriptures.
…in your hearts honor Christ as the Lord…
As we study the Scriptures, preparing our hearts for a ready defense of the faith, it shows that we believe that the great doctrines of Scripture are important; they are life or death, heaven or hell issues. We don’t search the Scripture to find contradictions, and disprove Jesus as Lord – but to see the evidence found within that He is in fact the Lord and Savior of our lives, and the only way to the Father.
Knowing what we believe is important because it provides answers to questions.
…always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you…
We live in a time that people are using questions not to arrive at answers, but to deconstruct fundamental beliefs. We must be prepared to defend the doctrines of Scripture against those types of questions and not be ashamed of the answers found within the texts.
The answers that we give come from the hope we have found in Christ revealed in the Scriptures.
…always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you…
Jesus in the Gospel of John says something about the Old Testament Scriptures that we can apply to all of Scripture.
John 5:39 – You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me.
The whole of the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation speak of Jesus as the Messiah – the one who would take away our sins. This is the hope that we have, this belief in Jesus as Savior and Lord is the truth that we defend. The doctrines of man’s fall, Christ’s atoning sacrifice, the Holy Spirit indwelling every believer, Jesus’ second coming, and the doctrines of heaven and hell all boil down to Jesus as being Lord and Savior. That is the heart behind all those doctrinal issues facing us today.
We must be respectful and gentle when answering with Scripture.
…yet do it with gentleness and respect…
It is unfortunate, but many times Christians can come off as arrogant when defending the faith. We must defend the faith with a humble attitude, knowing it is not the boldness in proclamation of the Scriptures that changes hearts, but it is the Holy Spirit Himself that produces these changes.
Conclusion
As we conclude, we need to realize that when it comes to knowing what we believe and why we believe it, we are going to be students of the Scriptures for the rest of our lives. As we study the Scriptures, see the truth and begin to proclaim it, let’s be gentle and loving, and yet at the same time firm in our convictions of Scriptural truth. Our job is to proclaim the truth; it is the Holy Spirit’s job to convert. Let’s remember that.
[1] “apologetics.” Collins English Dictionary – Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition. HarperCollins Publishers. 23 May. 2011. <Dictionary.com.