Link to source - http://home.houston.rr.com/apologia/sec1p1.htm
Goals of the course
For believers:
Gaining knowledge for defense of our Faith
Sanctification of our own hearts
Love for those without hope
For nonbelievers:
Learning why Christians believe in God and in the Bible as His Word
Understanding how their world view and that of believers influence interpretation of evidence and development of reason
Finding a rational basis for making a decision about faith in God
Why do Christians need to know about Apologetics? A lot of Christians have been raised as children by Christian parents, with Christian values, and have studied the Bible for most of their lives. Their faith is unquestioned, and they are growing spiritually. What interest is there for them?
Norman Geisler answers the question this way:
One objection often made is that the Bible does not need to be defended; it simply needs to be expounded. "The Word of God is alive and powerful..." (Heb. 4:12). It is said that the Bible is like a lion; it does not need to be defended but simply let loose. A lion can defend itself. Several things should be noted in response. First, this begs the question as to whether or not the Bible is the Word of God. Of course, God's Word is ultimate, and it speaks for itself. But how do we know the Bible is the Word of God, as opposed to the Qur'an, the Book of Mormon, or some other book? One must appeal to evidence to determine this. Second, no Christian would accept the claim of a Muslim without question that "the Qur'an is alive and powerful and sharper than a two-edged sword...." We would demand evidence. Third, the analogy of the lion is misleading. A roar of a lion "speaks for itself" with authority only because we know from previous knowledge what a lion can do. Without the tales of woe about a lion's ferocity, its roar would not have that authority. Likewise, without evidence to establish one's claim to authority, there is no good reason to accept that authority. (The Need for Defending the Faith - Norman L. Geisler, 1996.)
2 comments:
read it
cas
Posted for gsiano
A scientist trying to use science to answer all things is like a drunk man in the dark looking for his lost keys only in the light of a street lamp. He refuses to look elsewhere because the light is better under the street lamp. In fact, its worse than that; The drunk man refuses to acknowledge that his keys could be anywhere other than in the light of the street lamp because it wouldn't make sense for the keys to be out of the light!
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