At Men’s Alliance, training men is at the core of what we do. During a recent conversation with a couple of fellow tribesmen, we discussed the difference between apologetics and evangelism and how they work together.
Apologetics focuses on using reason and logic to build a case for your faith. It’s a way to remove intellectual obstacles that stand between a person and Jesus. It’s defending your faith by answering fundamental questions like “Why are you a Christian?” and “How do you know it’s true?”
Evangelism is sharing the message of the gospel. It’s sharing the bad news, (that we are all sinners, and that our sin separates us from God and leads to death), the good news (that Jesus fully paid that debt on the cross) and finally giving someone the opportunity to respond (by confessing with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believing in your heart that God raised him from the dead). I would like to highlight two key points. First, you can not fully understand the good news without first realizing that there is bad news. Second, the gospel demands a response.
Apologetics and evangelism are two sides of the same coin. You can give evidence for Christianity being true without sharing the gospel, and you can share the gospel without giving evidence that it's true. But they work best when done hand-in-hand.
Thor