11/22/2025
RANDOM 426. To do apologetics and defend the Christian faith, you need knowledge.
Study the evolution of Christianity and the early church fathers - Clement of Rome, Ignatius of Antioch, and Polycarp of Smyrna. They met the Apostles. Others like Papias of Hierapolis claimed to have known people who knew the Apostles.
Learn how the Bible came about. Learn about the church councils. The Council of Nicea (325 AD) affirmed the divinity of Christ. Council of Chalcedon (451 AD) defined the two natures of Christ (fully divine and fully human).
Learn about heresies. Arianism claims Christ was created. Gnosticism taught that salvation came through secret knowledge (gnosis). Docetism claims Christ only seemed human.
Learn about the Church and Rome. Nero executed Paul. Emperor Diocletian orchestrated the most severe persecution of Christians. Began in 303 AD. Was ended by the Edict of Milan issued by Constantine I and Licinius. It decriminalized Christianity in 313 AD.
Learn about Roman Catholism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Martin Luther, and the Reformation. And those 95 Theses. Learn about the popular phrase, "Sola scriptura." Learn about Protestantism, the birth of the Church of England (Anglican Church). Learn about the Methodists - the Wesley brothers - John and Charles. At Oxford University, they formed the "Holy Club," a group of students dedicated to a more rigorous and methodical approach to their faith. It earned them the nickname "Methodists." (Am I Methodist?)
Learn about the emergence of the African church, the rise of Pentecostalism, and the role of Pa Elton. Learn about the Christ Apostolic Church, the life of a man called Apostle Babalola.
Learn about world religions - Hinduism, Islam, African Traditional Religion, etc. See why they differ from Christianity. Study the beliefs of Jehovah Witnesses and Mormons. Learn the philosophies of Nietzsche, Satre, Camus, Descart, Heraclitus, Plato... Study science. Read Josephus and other historians on the historicity of Jesus. You can't counter or affirm what you don't know.