5 Apologetics Questions Every Christian Should Learn How To Answer

​In my years of studying apologetics, several themes tend to pop up over and over again. This post will address the 5 questions I think every Christian needs to be aware of, and be able to answer.

All of these questions require further commentary, and I plan to write a blog post to respond to each one individually in the future. (As I post them, I will link them below.) For now, I will offer some "barebones" quick answers that can easily be committed to memory.

Question #1: Have the New Testament Documents been corrupted?

​When the original documents no longer exist, scholars use a science called textual criticism to reconstruct the wording of ancient texts. When they have a lot of manuscripts (handwritten copies), and early manuscripts, they can do this with a great deal of accuracy. The New Testament documents have more manuscripts and earlier manuscripts to support their accuracy than any work of ancient classical literature. In fact, it has been copied with 99.5% accuracy, and the .5% in question doesn’t affect any core Christian doctrine.

Question #2: Is there any evidence that the resurrection of Jesus actually happened?

Esteemed historian and New Testament scholar Gary Habermas collected over 1,400 of the most critical scholarly works written between 1975 and 2003 about the resurrection. These works ranged from ultra-liberal to far-right conservative. He discovered that virtually every scholar agreed on several points surrounding the resurrection of Jesus. Here are four of them :

          1. Jesus died by Roman crucifixion.
          2. Jesus’ disciples believed He rose from the dead and appeared to them, and they
               were willing to suffer and die for these beliefs.

          3. Church persecutor Paul suddenly became a Christian, after having an experience
               with what he believed was the risen Jesus.
          4. The brother of Jesus and skeptic James was suddenly converted after he believed
                he saw the risen Jesus.

Habermas noted that around 75% of scholars also agree that Jesus’ tomb was found empty. The best explanation of these "minimal facts" is that Jesus was, in fact, resurrected from the dead!

Question #3: Has science disproved God?

Scientists study the material world, and by definition, God is not material. The statement, “God does not exist” is not a statement of science, but it's a philosophical statement that cannot be proven in a lab. In order for scientists to assert that God does not exist, they have to filter their evidence through the philosophical lens of materialism, which excludes the possibility of anything outside the material realm. Frank Turek offers this illustration in his book, Stealing From God: 

          To say that a scientist can disprove the existence of God is like saying a
            mechanic can disprove the existence of Henry Ford . It doesn’t follow.

Question #4: Does the Bible condone slavery? 

When Americans hear the word "slave," we think of the abuse and forced labor of African Americans in the antebellum South.  In the Old Testament, the Hebrew word 'ebed, which is often translated "slave" in English, did not carry the same negative connotation it does in our modern context. In ancient Israel, this type of servanthood was a system in which a destitute person could voluntarily work to pay off a debt. Although not a perfect system, they were given food, shelter, legal rights and protection from physical mistreatment. After seven years, they were released from debt and servitude and given a generous gift of flocks, wine, and grain.(1) In some cases, the Israelites kept servants from surrounding nations as a result of war, but they were commanded to treat them humanely, and those servants were also protected from mistreatment under biblical law. (2) Human trafficking was punishable by death in the Old Testament. (3)
​
Roman slavery in the time of the New Testament is a bit more like the "chattel" slavery we are acquainted with in a modern context. However, nowhere in the New Testament is this type of slavery condoned.  85-90% of the Roman population were slaves, and encouraging slaves to rebel against their masters would have meant execution or branding. Instead, the Apostle Paul taught that slaves were on equal terms with free people in the eyes of God, (4) and encouraged change, beginning in the heart. (5) This radically counter-cultural teaching began to play out in history and would eventually inspire people like John Wesley and William Wilberforce to oppose modern slavery and support abolition.
 
*For a deeper look at the more problematic Bible passages regarding slavery, I recommend Paul Copan's book, Is God A Moral Monster?

Question #5:  Is there any evidence outside of the Bible that Jesus actually existed?

​The claim that Jesus isn't mentioned anywhere outside the Bible and may not have actually existed tends to make the rounds on social media from time to time. The answer to this question is simple:

There are ten known, non-Christian sources that mention Jesus as an actual person within 150 years of His life. He is mentioned by Josephus, Tacitus, Pliny the Younger, Plegon, Thallus, Seutonius, Lucian, Celsus, Mara Bar-Serapion and the Jewish Talmud. This does not include the abundance of Christian historical sources who wrote about Him, including the eyewitnesses.

What are some other questions you think Christians should be ready to answer? Please comment or reply below!

(1)  Deuteronomy 15:12-18
(2)  Exodus 21:20; Exodus 21:26-27; Deuteronomy 23:15-16; Deuteronomy 24:7
(3)  Exodus 21:16
(4)  Galatians 3:28; 1 Corinthians 12:13

(5)  Colossians 4:1; 1 Timothy 6:1-3; Ephesians 6:5-9

ABODUNRIN, Oluniyi Abiola

2/19/2017 03:29:49 pm

Who is the god of this world and how he has different attributes from the God of heaven and earth, the Ancient of days the God of Bethel, etc.?
Where exactly is this everlasting kingdom? Heaven and earth shall pass away the only place I could find If I'm not mistaken that is eternal is hell.
Jesus quoted scripture whenever possible why questions aren't answer using scripture ie concerning sacrifice scripture states that they sacrificed to devils, the host of heaven and not God? When I read answers to that question that scripture isn't quoted.

There are new theories on archaeology and Jesus' resurrection like the Nazareth Inscription discovered in 1878. Its been over 140 yrs since its discovery and RARELY does anyone talk about it, including this post.

Hi Rick, in my opinion, the Nazareth Inscription is not a strong piece of evidence…. this is probably why you don't hear many apologists talking about it.

How might answer that Jesus was based off Horus, Mithras, et. al concisely? I know He wasn't, but I want a simple way to explain that.

The Christian apologist assumes a defensive posture in order to repel false accusations whenever they come.
Before we answer this objection, let us remember Peter’s words, “Yet do it with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame” (1 Pet. 3:16).
The apostle clearly expects that one outcome of apologetics is that the enemies of Christ are put to shame. This is reminiscent of the great Genevan reformer John Calvin (1509–1564), who wrote in his Institutes regarding the proof of the authenticity of biblical prophecies, “If godly men take these things to heart, they will be abundantly equipped to restrain the barking of ungodly men; for this is proof too clear to be open to any subtle objections.”
If anyone believed that the total inability of man required the Holy Spirit to convert a soul, it was Calvin. Likewise, if anyone believed in the total inability of apologetics to convert a soul, it was Calvin.
Calvin did not abandon the apologetic task but still used evidence and argument to prove matters of faith—not to convert the hearts of the ungodly, but to “stop their obstreperous mouths.”
This is a large part of the task of the Christian apologist: to prove the Christian worldview, and to rely on God to cause the acquiescence of the unbelieving heart to the soundness of biblical doctrine.
The church is up against not mere ignorance but biased enmity (Rom. 8:7). Only the Spirit can overcome this enmity, but the Spirit never asks people to believe what is absurd or irrational.

I have a friend who swears they have read factual information that Jesus and Mary Magdalene had a sexual relationship and that there r descendants of Jesus alive today

Questions from pantheistic religions who say that they believe in Jesus as a god but not the true God and by Christians asking them to follow Jesus is converting?

Hi Alisa, I’m enjoying your material. Here’s a couple of assertions often posed by atheists which I’d suggest Christians should be ready to answer: “Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence”, and “Absence of evidence is evidence of absence.” There are solid, uncomplicated answers for both of those.