Foreword
Foreword
To loosely paraphrase the late Mark Twain, “The news of the demise of apologetics has been greatly exaggerated.” For decades now, skeptics who prematurely proclaim their beliefs as “settled science” have been assisted by Christians who prematurely proclaim apologetics—the practice of presenting arguments for the Christian worldview and against non-Christian worldviews—no longer helpful, if it ever was in the first place. They couldn’t be more wrong.
It certainly sounds spiritual to say things like, “Arguments never saved anyone,” or, “No one is ever argued into the kingdom.” Such clichés are, however, silly straw men. I don’t know a single apologist who thinks of their arguments as salvific. Perhaps there are one or two who do, but I’ve never met them. More importantly, however, such statements display a misunderstanding of who we are as people. Certainly, faith involves more than our brains, but it does not involve less.
Humans are not necessarily rational, but they are curious. Humans may not be able to shake off some level of subjectivity in their personal perspectives and experiences, but they consistently share those experiences with others, argue for their legitimacy, and attempt to make sense of them. To be human is to do more than just think like animals do. To be human is to reason, to reflect, and to ask questions about life and its meaning.
Because everyone we meet is one of these question-asking, meaning-seeking creatures, apologetics will always be helpful to those who seek to fulfill Christ’s command to make disciples. Unfortunately, too many Christians have bought into the secular myth that religious truth is in the realm of “belief,” a realm separate and incompatible with evidence and reason, and therefore unknowable in any true sense. This assumes that while we Christians deal with myth, secularists deal with facts. While our deeply held commitments are mere beliefs, their deeply held commitments are based on reality. That sort of thinking has already given up the best thing Christianity has going for it: that it’s true. Actually true. Not true just for those who believe it, not “true for you but not for me.” Christianity is really True. With a capital T. True for everyone, whether they believe it or not. Christianity describes reality as it actually is.
A few years ago, several ministry friends and colleagues asked if I knew of Jim Wallace. “Of course,” I would reply, though I had in mind Jim Wallis, the theologically liberal social activist who founded the Sojourners organization. “Not that one,” one of them told me while handing me the book Cold-Case Christianity. “This one.”
I must admit, when I learned that this Jim Wallace was an LA homicide detective now applying the tools of his trade to the field of apologetics, I was concerned. An approach like this, I feared, could easily take an unfortunate turn to the hokey; heavy on cliché and light on depth. Within just a few chapters, however, it was clear to me that my concern was unfounded. Jim knows his stuff. He’s worked hard to become one of the most well-respected, studied, and articulate defenders of Christian truth. That’s why so many people, Christian and skeptic alike, follow him on social media, read his books and blogs, and flock to hear him speak.
In his first two books, Jim applied his considerable skill in relentlessly pursuing the truth behind horrific crimes to relentlessly pursuing truth about the Gospels and the existence of God. In Forensic Faith, he opens up his tool kit and shares those skills with us. Like all the best teachers, Jim wants you to join him in his work. Along with Paul, Jim challenges us to examine everything carefully (1 Thessalonians 5) and to be fully convinced in our own minds (Romans 14:5) about the truth we say we embrace—and then share that conviction with others.
So jump in. Along the way, you will find yourself better at evaluating evidence, thinking through arguments, and making the case for Christian truth. And, I am willing to bet, you may also find yourself better at being you. After all, it was God who gave us these brains in the first place. We should use them.
John Stonestreet
President of the Colson Center for Christian Worldview
Author of Restoring All Things