THE TENSION OF LIVING
BETWEEN THE LINES
As Christians, we
find ourselves in tension. This tension may be expressed
in different ways: the already/not yet; seen/unseen (the physical reality governed
by its absolutes/spiritual reality governed by its absolutes); the
uncertainty/certainty of the future.
Ironically, it is our very faith that gives rise to the
tension. We're on a time line moving
toward what God has determined and promised.
We are in the world but not of the world. We don't know what the immediate future
holds, but know who holds the future and whose we are. Living in this tension is neither contradictory
nor illogical, but it is positive (full of hope).
Non
Christians are also in tension governed by their unbelief:
the uncertainty of the next moment/certainty that there will be a final moment;
the unknown/known. This is life without
hope.
TYPES
OF PERSONAL APOLOGETIC APPROACHES
People who are involved in Humanism, Wicca,
Buddhism or anything else (including Christians), are there for all kinds of
reasons, their actual real beliefs, hang-ups and motives may not be
readily apparent, but these
represent the core that must be addressed. Further, reasoning with people willing to
engage in discussion is entirely different from speaking with the uninterested or the unreasonable. So, the problem is getting through the
surface stuff and reaching the core. [see Cultural Mand, Great Com, Machen http://pop.eradman.com/]
Several approaches
to evangelizing the lost [building bridges is assumed to benefit all -
showing kindness etc., getting to know people, including them in your life as
part of your circle of friends or family, etc.]:
A Wait for an opportune time and give them the
gospel - there's power in God's word.
This approach requires sensitivity to people's emotional state and
understanding of the gospel.
B Based on the fact that everyone must live in
God's world and be what God made them to be: discover and identify their
philosophical foundation [everyone has one] and the point at which they are inconsistent,
force them toward the logical conclusion of their position. This pre-evangelism varies from person
to person and is necessary to bring a person to the place where he is ready to
hear the gospel, which is the same for everyone. [See sec.4-6 THE GOD WHO IS THERE by
Francis Schaeffer.]
C Many people wear masks which hide
(even from them) what's really going on inside, help them realize it and deal
with the underlying reasons. They are
not ready for the gospel until they are exposed. [This is the
psychological counterpart to the philosophical approach at B above.]
D Many people have been hurt in this life and
have developed a reaction which constitutes a barrier to believing the gospel -
fear, disappointment, pain, suffering etc.
[This is a sensitive approach, as are B and C, dealing with feeling
for the cracks in a person's life].
E Basic ignorance of God and Biblical
history precludes telling the gospel without setting it in proper context. It has been discovered in missionary work
that natives recognize Christ when they are taken through the Biblical history:
creation; fall; flood;
F Supposed intellectuals
for quite a number of years have held the high ground in world views. Christianity has suffered terrific beatings
in popular media (news, film, etc.) by caricature, stereotype, straw men,
etc. People who are full of false philosophy
and pressing Christians as poor, foolish and naive open themselves to a substantive
counterattack that exposes and mocks their vacuousness. It's time to use sarcasm with the self-assured and smug to wipe the smirk off their
faces. These kind of people need to be
put down hard before they will be inclined to listen.
G Everyone has a conscience and knows
something about morals intuitively as they constantly pass moral judgment on
others and feel their own guilt. This
approach appeals to that knowledge of conscience and has the advantage of
dealing with what people know to be true and right, good and wrong.
H The facts throughout the physical world point
to God's existence - evidentialism.
APOLOGETIC QUESTIONS
1 What do you mean [by what you
say]? (Request for
clarification)
2 How do you know [that what you are
saying is true]? (What is the basis for
your assertion? What is your source of
knowledge or information? By what
authority do you say that? What proof do
you have?)
You may wish to press this further
by asking, “Is that a fact or a matter of faith?”
3 So what?
What difference does it make [in your life]? (What effect does this have? Why is it true, right, good, etc? Do you live consistently with that? Why not?
Do you find yourself rationalizing your inability to live consistently?)
4 What if you are wrong? (What are the consequences?)
What if someone returns the question
by asking you “How do you know”? or “Prove it to me.”?
What would you accept as evidence? (What criteria do you judge by? and What
makes you think you can use it that way?)
Suppose they [or their society] are
the determiners of truth?
Does truth change? (Do
facts depend upon societal acceptance, moods, your feelings or desires?)
Where did you get your ideas from? Have you read the Gospel of Mark and given it
a chance to inform your thinking? Why
don't we read it together and discuss it?