I went to US Air Force Survival School in January 1990 in Spokane, Washington. When we went into the field, we had only what we could carry to survive for three days. We had to travel, make shelters, build fires, and procure food with these limited supplies. Many people today prepare for emergency situations by taking certain items, their Every Day Carry (EDC), when they leave home. This post will discuss ideas for an apologist’s EDC.
What is EDC?
Some of you may be asking “What in the world is EDC?” EDC is “stuff you bring with you to get through the day and make life a little easier” according to techwriteredc.com and is “built around the normal and not so normal situations you are in on a regular day.” Everyone carries some sort of EDC, even if they don’t think of it that way; your wallet, keys, credit cards, etc. Today many people carry more robust EDC in their daily lives. This can consist of a small flashlight, a handkerchief, a knife, a multi-tool, an individual first aid kit, a lighter or ferro rod, a pen, and possibly a firearm; among other items.
Apologist’s EDC Tookkit
In much the same way, an apologist needs to equip themselves to “be prepared to give a defense” (1 Peter 3:15). There are various skills and tools he should carry every day to prepare for situations that may present themselves. They may encounter a Christian who has questions or is experiencing doubts, he may have doubts himself, or receive challenges to his worldview from skeptics and critics. What should an apologist make part of his EDC to meet these challenges?
First and foremost is the Bible. In military terms this is our “Commander’s Intent”. It not only tells us God’s plan for salvation, but also how we should conduct ourselves. Paul referred to Christians as ambassadors of God in 2 Corinthians 5:20. This means we need to understand God’s message and live in a way that is honoring to God. We gain this knowledge through church attendance, small group participation, reading and meditating on the Bible, and discipling and being discipled. In the same way that we have been given the Holy Spirit, we have the Bible to show us how to act and respond. Paul told Timothy the “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.” So, the Bible gives us guidelines of what we should be teaching about Jesus and God’s truth.
Next should be a reliance on the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit can guide us in recognizing opportunities to share the truth of God’s word and then to speak through us to reach the needs of that person. In John 14:26 Jesus said “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.” In Luke 12:11-1 Jesus told his disciples “do not be anxious about how you should defend yourself or what you should say, for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.” So, we can count on the Holy Spirit to help us when we feel at a loss for words.
Having a good understanding of the arguments for God’s existence and the truth of the Bible is our next “tool”. In order to engage peoples questions and challenges we have to understand, at least in general terms, what the evidence is for God and why the Bible can be trusted. Some of these arguments are the Kalam Cosmological argument, the Argument from Design, and the Moral argument. We should also understand the basic ideas of biblical manuscript transmission and the historical facts of the Bible. There are a plethora of books, websites, podcasts, and videos out there to help you increase your knowledge in these areas.
Once we understand the arguments for God and the Bible, we need to familiarize ourselves with the critics’ and skeptics’ arguments against God, the Bible, and Christianity. Sun Tzu said “know your enemy.” While we should not consider them our “enemy,” they are our opponents. In 2 Corinthians Paul said, “We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ”. By knowing the arguments critics will make we can be better prepared to “give a defense”. Again, just like the arguments for God, there are numerous resources to familiarize yourself with the arguments against Christianity; from both skeptics and other apologists.
The next Apologist EDC tool is a winsome manner. This means that although we may be in a mental battle against critics, we should’ve act like it is a battle. We should present ourselves in a controlled and pleasant way. The way we conduct ourselves reflects directly on the One who sent us. Greg Koukl of Stand to Reason has a saying; “If either of you gets angry, you lose.” What he means is that if your get angry it perpetuates the skeptics’ ideas of hypocritical Christians. If they get angry, they put up a wall and are unwilling to listen to your message. Being eager to defend Christianity is understandable, if we are not careful and conscious of our delivery we can come across as harsh and judgmental. People who have had a bad experience in the past with a church or Christian will likely withdraw from the conversation or become confrontational. Either reaction undermines our goal of sharing the Gospel. As ambassadors of God, we represent God and His message.
An apologist must also have a desire and drive to evangelize to a lost world. In a lot of ways apologetics is pre-evangelism. The number of people that see the Bible as authoritative has dropped significantly. Apologetics can be used to tear down walls to belief they have built up. You will see many people claim intellectual objections to Christianity, when really there are emotional reasons underlying the intellectual excuses. Apologetics can show them that these questions don’t have the power they appear to have and can be answered from the Christian worldview when properly understood.
Finally, in order to be successful an apologist should have a sharp mind. All the knowledge in the world is useless unless we can properly put it into use. This is a battlefield of ideas and the apologist must be able to analyze arguments, respond to challenges, and maneuver tactically to be able to successfully use his other EDC tools. A great place to start is Greg Koukl’s book “Tactics”. It gives you a game plan to be able to skillfully address challenges and lead skeptics to see their mistaken ideas. Another way to improve this skill is to find likeminded Christians and role play using your EDC. Not only will this give you more confidence in your abilities, but also highlight areas for improvement and make you both more familiar with your opponents’ arguments in order to refute them.
This is only a brief look at the tools an apologist should have in his EDC. If you are just starting your apologetics journey don’t try to master them all to begin. Pray that the Holy Spirit would guide you and begin increasing your Bible knowledge. Then pick an area or two that interest you and learn the arguments in those areas that support the truth of God and the reliability of the Bible.
Hopefully this has started you thinking and motivated you to begin fulfilling the direction of 1 Peter 3:15; “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”.
sheepdogapologetics.org 