Love one another and giving reasons for the hope within you are commands from the same Bible (John 13:34 & 1 Peter 3:15). One isn’t more “spiritual” than the other. In fact, I would suggest you can’t really love someone unless you are willing to tell them the truth at some point in that relationship or dialogue. Below is an excerpt from Lee Strobel’s recent interview. But let me say that I agree and resonate with the points he makes and as a graduate of Biola University / Talbot School of Theology, I am proud to be a part of this movement for the next generation. God is at work!
According to Strobel: “Christianity in general and the Bible in particular are under widespread and vociferous attack by militant atheists, radical scholars, critical authors, skeptical professors, misguided documentaries, and a proliferation of online spiritual confusion. Books by the so-called New Atheists have received a lot of media attention, which has emboldened cynics to become even more outspoken. The Internet has helped atheists and agnostics coalesce as never before.
Skeptics are becoming more determined to proselytize. In public high schools and colleges, the Secular Student Alliance, an umbrella for atheist organizations, has doubled in size in two years, with 250 chapters in the U.S. Not long ago, the American Humanist Association launched the largest national multi-media campaign ever by an atheist organization, preaching that the Bible advocates “fear, intolerance, hate, and ignorance.”
And we’re seeing the country drift toward skepticism. Among 18-to-29-year-olds, nearly one in four now claims no religion, which has doubled since 1990. Recent books have said that young people are dropping out of church at five or six times the historic rate, many because of intellectual doubts.
All of these trends have awakened a sleeping giant – Christian apologetics, or the defense of the faith. We’re seeing apologetics books on the New York Times bestsellers list. Schools like Biola University and its Talbot School of Theology, which are leaders in apologetics, are filled to capacity.” (more)
If you are looking for a place to start, you might enjoy the book I co-wrote with Sean McDowell answering the 18 toughest questions the “new atheists” raise against God.
Think Christianly with Jonathan Morrow
Think Christianly with Jonathan Morrow
