Debates and Arguments in Evangelism
I just read an interesting article: “Why you can't debate unbelievers into the Kingdom of God,” By Michael Wicker . It’s a great example of the current ideas of the Evangelical Christian Church regarding the place of apologetics and argument. Three points of contention below. First, everything positive it says could be said equally about sharing the gospel as it is said about apologetics or winning arguments. For example, our sharing of the gospel message does not change hearts; only the Holy Spirit does. The Spirit uses the biblical content of our massage about what Christ has done for us, but that message does not change anyone's heart unless the Spirit brings conviction. This is important because apologetics and argument are used by the Spirit to change hearts as well. For example, Josh McDowell, J. Warner Wallace, and Lee Strobel all share the importance of apologetics and arguments to their conversion. Second, arguments for God's existence, the resurrection of Christ...