Defending Your Faith: An Introduction to Apologetics (Hardcover)

~ (Author) "Years ago I was reading a novel (whose title and author escape my memory) in which a dialogue ensued between a priest and a scientist..." (more)
Key Phrases: eternal something, basic reliability, apologetic task, Holy Spirit, God's Word, Big Bang (more...)

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Product Description

There is a widespread belief that reason and faith are incompatible and opposed to each other. Faith is viewed as subjective, emotional, a crutch for those who find the real world too hard. Though many of the world's finest minds hold this view, the Bible teaches that it is the fool who says there is no God.

Dr. R. C. Sproul clearly and simply argues that at its core Christianity is rational. He focuses on defending the basic truth claims for two of the most crucial issues of apologetics: God's existence and the Bible's authority.

In this primer of apologetic thought, Dr. Sproul affirms four logical principles that are necessary for all real discussion and teaches you how to defend your faith in a faithless world. Using the writings of church fathers and philosophers throughout the ages, he uncovers the common ideologies that work against faith.

The defense of the faith is not a luxury or an intellectual vanity. It is a task appointed by God that you should be able to give a reason for the hope that is in you as you bear witness before the world.

About the Author

R. C. SPROUL is the founder and president of Ligonier Ministries and serves as senior minister of preaching and teaching at Saint Andrew's Chapel in Sanford, Florida. He is featured daily on Renewing Your Mind, an internationalradio broadcast with an estimated two million listeners per week, and has written over sixty books.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 208 pages
• Publisher: Crossway Books (September 19, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1581345194
• ISBN-13: 978-1581345193
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #149,210 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

50 of 53 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Basic but Good Philosophical Apologetics Text, December 2, 2003

By	T. B. Vick "Learn 2 Discern" (The Lone Star State) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

R.C. Sproul as devoted his life to teaching the lay people in the Christian community sound biblical theology as well as apologetics. This text is a strong reflection of his lifelong work in the arena of apologetics.

Sproul is a classical apologists with a strong philosophical background. That philosophical background comes shining through in this text.

He begins the work by delineating the 'Task of Apologetics.' In other words, how do we go about defending our faith, and why is that necessary. After he has described the early Church Father's apologetic task, how faith and apologetics work together, and how proofs and persuasion fit into the equation, he turns his attention to the epistemological rub of apologetics.

In this book, Sproul focuses his attention on four 'principles of knowledge.' These four principles are (as best as I can determine from the way the book is formatted): The law of non-contradiction, The law of causality, The basic reliability of sense perception, and The analogical use of language. Within these four principles, Sproul provides his reader with examples of how these laws function, their effect upon our thinking, and certain philosophers who have either criticized these laws, or failed to use them in one way or the other.

A little later in the book, Sproul tackles God's existence via what he calls 'Four possibilities. These possibilities include Illusion (Descartes is the major thinker here), Self-creation, Creation by chance, and a self-existent being and universe.

The fifth section of the book is a look into what Sproul calls "God and the Philosophers." This of course is apparently in the same vein as Etienne Gilson's past work "God and Philosophy." In this section Sproul tackles Kant's moral argument for the existence of God from Kant's work 'Critique of Practical Reason.' Moreover, Sproul discusses nihilism, the psychology of atheism (which he has done quite well in the past via a book of the same title), and finally Sproul wraps up his work in a final section on a case for biblical authority - why the Bible is without error and authoritative.

The only downfall that I believe exists in this work is Sproul's view on Kant's epistemology. Like Norman Geisler, I believe Sproul has unfairly misread, or better, only 'half read' Kant. What I mean here is Sproul (like Geisler) holds to a Neo-Kantian view of Kant. The Neo-Kantian view declares that Kant has asserted that there is a 'gap' between the noumenal and the phenomenal and never the twain shall meet or be crossed. This view, I firmly believe is a misunderstanding of Kant's overall philosophy. Of course, this view would certainly be the case had Kant only written the 'Critique of Pure Reason,' but Kant is quite clear in his 'Critique of Practical Reason' how this 'gap' is crossed (a point that could not be adequately delineated in this review). Otherwise, Sproul's book is wonderful and I highly recommended it for those who are beginning their research in Christian Apologetics.

Other apologetics text I recommended are Geisler's 'Christian Apologetics;" Moreland's "Scaling the Secular City;" and Boa's and Bowen's "Faith Has Its Reasons."

42 of 47 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Defending Your Faith: An Introduction to Apologetics, September 26, 2004

By	Joel (Ottawa) - See all my reviews

Mention the word Apologetics to your average Christian and know what happens? At best, you get that deer-in-the-headlights gaze as a response. At worst, you're told that Apologetics has to do with being sorry. Granted, if Christian Apologetics were about being remorseful, Dr. R.C. Sproul (Sr.) would write a read-worthy book on the subject. Truth be told, Sproul couldn't be boring if he tried. Christian Apologetics, however, is about providing a rational defence of Christianity's truth claims.

If you are a Christian and feel yourself lacking when your friends or family or colleagues challenge what you believe, you could scarcely find a better primer on how to respond than what is offered in _Defending Your Faith: An Introduction to Apologetics_. The book consists of twenty-three chapters. But - and this is important - each chapter is little more than five pages in length. Combine the chapter length with Sproul's readable style and unique ability to communicate complex Christian truth claims clearly, and what you have is a palatable and helpful book. As a testimony from my own experience, I couldn't put this book down once I started reading it.

After dealing with some preliminaries (e.g. the biblical mandate for Christian Apologetics, the inability of Christian Apologetics to convert a non-Christian apart from the Holy Spirit, etc.), Sproul lays out the four pillars of knowledge, namely, the law of non-contradiction, the law of causality, the basic reliability of sense perception, and the analogical use of language. In so doing, Sproul points out that non-Christians have to undermine at least one of these pillars when denying Christian truth claims. Some very helpful examples from the history of philosophy are proffered. For example, Sproul provides a brief analysis of two of the greatest sceptics of modern thought, namely, David Hume and Immanuel Kant.

As an aside, it is refreshing to come across a theologian like Sproul, who can hold his own in the world of philosophy. Granted, some may argue that Sproul oversimplifies betimes. But remember you philosophy buffs out there: _Defending Your Faith: An Introduction to Apologetics_ is a primer just as the title suggests. Regardless of one's assessment of Sproul, however, it ought to be patently obvious that he has a broad knowledge and profound understanding in a wide range of areas. It should come as no surprise, then, that Sproul is the Christian thinker who communicated privately with Carl Sagan in scientific and philosophical matters prior to the latter's death.

Following the introduction of the four pillars of knowledge, Sproul addresses the two issues that, when established as true, account for ninety percent of the apologetic task, so we are told (p. 196): The existence of God and the authority of the Bible. I would like to speak more of how Sproul approaches the existence of God and the authority of the Bible, but I don't want to spoil all the fun! Sproul's take on the existence of God, for example, I found particularly stimulating.

As with any of Sproul's books, you will not be disappointed if you decide to purchase _Defending Your Faith: An Introduction to Apologetics_. This book would be a great gift for a young Christian entering college or university.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A RESTORATION OF FAITH, February 2, 2006

By	S. Carter "4Real" (USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Outstanding! For any and all, christian and non-christian that hold to the notion that faith and reason are opposites of each other, I highly recommend this book. I have always been a christian however this book revealed truths to me that have stimulated a new and revitalized reason for believing. It also has revealed to me the half-truths that permeate the philisophical world and has helped me understand where many of the false notions and concepts dealing with the existence of God originated.