How Pastors Can Include Apologetics In Their Sermons

Given the rise of religious “nones” in the United States, and fewer and fewer Christians holding to a Biblical worldview according to a Barna study, now more than ever pastors must defend the Christian worldview against its opponents. Many pastors would agree that demonstrating the truth of Christianity and defending it against attacks ranks high on the priority list. However, how does one make that a reality in the pulpit? Can a pastor faithfully preach the Scriptures and also make the case for Christianity? I believe the answer is “Yes.” Let me offer five suggestions for pastors looking to incorporate apologetics into their preaching.

1. Learn The Evidences

I suppose this point goes without saying, but before you can incorporate the defense of Christianity in your preaching, you must first learn a few key evidences and defenses. I am not suggesting you dive headlong into apologetics, but begin giving yourself a steady dose of content to increase your knowledge base in this area. There are so many great resources available that you should have no problem finding quality material. I will list several resources at the end of this article.

2. Show That The Text Is Historically Reliable

A common question looming in the back of the minds of many is whether or not we can trust the text of the Bible. Is the history of the Bible true? Does the history even matter? Has the Bible been changed over time? There are many great books, videos, and articles on these topics and it would be wise of the pastor to avail himself to them. Now when it comes to preaching, these historical issues are easy to insert into a sermon. For instance, if you were preaching through one of the Gospels, you could regularly point out features of the text that point to its reliability. This need not be the emphasis of the sermon, but it could give your congregation a regular dose of knowledge related to the historical veracity of the text.

3. Demonstrate The Divine Nature Of The Text

Many Christians, at some point during their life, will wonder how they can know the Bible is the inspired Word of God. This is actually a great question and one that ought to be asked by every mature believer. Certainly mom and dad, or the pastor, is not enough reason to believe in the doctrine of inspiration. However, there are many other evidentially based reasons to have confidence that the Bible is God’s Word. Fulfilled prophecy, miracles, the unity of Scripture, the power of the Bible, the fitness of its plan of salvation to the wants and needs of man, and perfection of its moral teaching are just some of the many evidences Christians possess. Nearly every passage you choose to preach from will have some component from which you can train your congregation in the evidences for the inspiration of Scripture.

4. Illustrate That Christianity Matches Reality

It is one thing to know the truth of something in an abstract way, but it is another to experience that truth in your own life. The Bible claims to be an objective, exclusive, and all-encompassing view of reality. In every nook and cranny it states, “This is the way the world is.” The wonderful thing about this feature of the Scriptures is that you can test it. We can look around and see if the doctrine of sin is true. We can test and observe whether or not Jesus’ moral teaching is good. We can observe whether or not the Gospel is the only method of real and lasting moral change in the human heart. These and so many other truth claims can be tested against reality. Here the pastor has a tremendous opportunity to show his congregation, on a regular basis, how they can know the Bible is true: because it matches reality.

5. Clarify How Christianity Is More Compelling Than The Alternatives

While truth is important, it is not enough for the human heart. Your congregation wants to know if Christianity is true, but they also want to know that it is good and desirable. As John Piper has said regularly, human beings are pleasure seekers by nature and they want what is satisfying, desirable, and gives them great pleasure. If your church cannot see that Christianity is good, they may intellectually believe with their head, but the weak embrace of the heart will not compel true Christian obedience. To remedy this head-heart dilemma, demonstrate through your preaching that the Gospel is beautiful, supremely satisfying, and infinitely good. But don’t stop here! Show how every other worldview pales in comparison to Christ and his Gospel.

Pastor, if you are willing to put in the time of study and intentional sermon preparation, you can give your congregation a regular dose of Christian apologetics without them realizing. The church, and the world, is starving for such preaching!

Here are some resources to help you on your journey.

Recommended Resources

Peter Williams, Can We Trust the Gospels

Lydia McGrew, Hidden in Plain View: Undesigned Coincidences in the Gospels & Acts

Edmund Bennett, The Four Gospels From a Lawyer's Standpoint

J. Warner Wallace, Cold Case Christianity

Charles Row, A Manual of Christian Evidences

C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity