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Part One: Can Christians Go on the Offense without Being Offensive?

For several years I taught an apologetics course in Bible College. On the students’ final exam, I asked this question:  “What is the most important thing you learned in this class?” The majority of the students responded that the topic which benefited them most is what I will be sharing in this new blog series—how to put the burden of proof non-Christian who challenge Christianity.  In today’s blog post and continuing in the weeks ahead, I will explain what this tactic is and how to use it in witnessing and apologetic encounters. I believe it may be the most beneficial apologetic tactic readers can learn. Here’s why.

Too often in religious discussions, we Christians find ourselves pushed into a corner, with our arms folded, defending what we believe. But it shouldn’t be this way. Why? Because Christianity is the worldview with a grasp on what is real in religion, ethics, origins, and so on. Therefore, unbelievers should be the ones who defend what they believe—not us. In light of this, I believe our best apologetic strategy, at least initially, is to put the burden of proof on the unbeliever.

This entire tactic is summed up beautifully in Proverbs 18:17: “The first to present his case seems right, till another comes forward and questions him (NIV).”  The arguments and assumptions unbelievers use to challenge Christianity may sound convincing—until we pause a moment, think about what’s being said, and then question it. When we do this, almost every time, their arguments begin to fall apart.

Going on the Offensive

Usually, when apologetics is needed during a witnessing opportunity, most apologists rely on defensive tactics. We confront challenges raised by unbelievers with logical counterarguments supported by verifiable facts and other objective evidence. For example, if a skeptic declares that later editors corrupted the Bible, we can muster a considerable amount of evidence to prove him or her wrong. Similarly, if an unbeliever argues that pain and suffering disprove the existence of a loving, all-powerful God, we can challenge that view with compelling theological and philosophical arguments.

This same kind of defensive tactic can be applied to virtually every apologetic issue, including the existence of God, the deity of Jesus Christ, the resurrection, divine creations, and so on.

In this new blog series, however, I will stress a second apologetic approach. It’s called the “Socratic Method” because it uses a teaching technique similar to that of the ancient Greek philosopher Socrates. By asking specific questions that challenged his students’ assumptions, Socrates led them into a kind of self-discovery, where they eventually concluded for themselves the error of their existing beliefs and went on to accept a new truth or a different conclusion.

In this series, I’ll apply the Socratic Method in Christian apologetics as a way to go on the offensive in encounters with skeptics and other critics. Our goal is the same as Socrates. In our case, help unbelievers “concluded for themselves the error of their existing beliefs” as well as their misbeliefs about Christianity. The goal is to encourage them to reconsider Christianity as a world and life view. ©

Next week’s blog post will look closely at how offensive apologetics work.

Note: This series is adapted from my book, Engaging the Closed Minded; Presenting Your Faith to the Confirmed Unbeliever, with a foreword by Dr. John Warwick Montgomery (Kregel Publications, 1999). This book is out of print, although you may be able to find copies online (?).