Christian apologetics is for the purpose of explaining the faith and defending it from erroneous accusations. No one is argued into believing, but Christians should know and understand as well as internalize the truth of God’s Word, to be able to identify fallacious charges against Christianity. Refuting false arguments may include, for example, an online entry or video from someone who asserts that any person’s god is just an extension of his own ego; in other words, we “choose our own religion” based on our biases and values.
Again, epistemology (the study of how we know things) is a vital tool to refute allegations made against Christianity. In the case of “god-choosing”, the unbelievers cannot explain how they could know that unless they are divine. They hold to the myth of human objectivity, as recently defined here as the fallacy or untrue belief that some have little or no bias which renders them capable of purely impartial, unprejudiced, wholly rational thought. Of course, if they are honest, they must include themselves in the charge of choosing the biases they desire to believe. Ironically, that is exactly how the Scriptures describe us humans as we are with our sin nature.
Long ago, I had a conversation with an unbiblical, liberal clergyman who told me that if I left his church and searched long enough, “you will find someone who will tell you what you want to hear”. Although taken aback by what I understood as his confession of unbelief, I did find a church which proclaimed what I wanted to hear. Although I considered myself a believer, I avoided reading the Scriptures and became merely a churchgoer. A decade passed before I was brought to repentance and believed. My understanding is that my denial, like all unbelievers, was driven by my sin nature. The Holy Spirit is the giver of our faith in Christ and proclaimed by God the Father through the Scriptures. We do not know when or how the Holy Spirit moves some believers from superficial to deeper, fulfilling faith. But He does. (John 6:44, Matthew 7:7)
Ten days after our Lord’s ascension, and fifty days after Easter comes the Day of the Pentecost, when some disciples of Christ were given the Holy Spirit and began sharing the gospel of good news of salvation by grace alone, through faith alone in Christ alone. Today, we receive God’s Law and Gospel through the Scriptures. For six months, from Pentecost Sunday until Advent, four weeks before Christmas, anticipating the birth of our Lord, we believers, the Church, share God’s love through outreach efforts such as prayer canvases, VBS, presence in planned community gatherings, adopting a needy family, etc., all while deliberately focusing on God.
After the Sunday of Pentecost is the Sunday of the Holy Trinity. We Christians believe in God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. We ponder His sovereign holiness, goodness, grace, and mercy. We know through His Word that the eternal God the Father begot (not made) the also eternal God the Son (Christ) who created and saved us. The third co-equal Person of the One Triune God, the Holy Spirit, turns our hearts to Christ who taught His most blessed believers to pray: “Our Father, who art in heaven…” Gloria Deo—Glory to God