DISPUTATION OF DOCTOR CLIFF MCMANIS ON THE POWER AND EFFICACY OF NATURAL THEOLOGY AND RELATED MATTERS
The biblical word for “apologetics” (apologia and apologeomai) is used 20 times in Scripture and its meaning varies depending upon the context of each occurrence.
The 20 usages of “apologetics” in Scripture describe a theological enterprise not a philosophical one. Scripture explicitly warns of the folly and vacuous nature of human philosophy (1 Cor 1:20; Col 2:8).
When the apostle Peter said, “give an apologia” (1 Peter 3:15), it was a command for every Christian; every Christian is called to do the work of apologetics.
There is no such thing as a special category of Christian called “apologist”; to assign any one man the specific moniker of “apologist” at the exclusion of any other Christian is to “go beyond what is written” (1 Cor 4:6).
One can be a faithful and effective apologist without knowing the history of Western philosophy (1 Cor 1:20-21).
Peter’s command to proclaim the “hope” was not given to only elitist, Christian philosophers (1 Pet 1:1-9).
And the content of the believer’s apologia was concerning their “hope” (1 Pet 1:3).
The “hope” of the Christian is knowing the risen Lord Jesus and being with Him forever (1 Pet 1:3, 13).
This saving hope is centered in the atoning work of Christ (1 Pet 1:21).
This hope that we proclaim to unbelievers who ask is the gospel (Rom 5:2; Acts 23:6).
This gospel message is special revelation, not natural theology (Eph 3:3).
This gospel message of hope is special revelation and not human philosophy (1 Cor 2:1-5).
This gospel message is an objective message based in actual historical events (1 Cor 15:3-4).
This message of hope in Christ is the only means of salvation available to humanity (Rom 1:16)
Those who say sinners can be saved apart from hearing and believing in the gospel message of hope in the risen Christ shall be anathema (Acts 4:12; Rom 10:14).
This apologia of hope in Christ that we proclaim to the inquiring unbeliever is evangelistic.
The one who says that the message of hope is not inextricably related to the work of evangelism is both deceived and a deceiver (2 John 1:7).
The message of hope that Peter commanded to proclaim to inquirers is not about establishing theism.
Every person is made in the image of God, thus bearing an innate sensus divinitas (Gen 1:26).
Anyone who denies an innate sensus divinitatis is both deceived and a deceiver (Ps 14:1).
Being made in God’s image, every person is born with a conscience (Rom 2:15).
Being made in God’s image, every person has the law of God written on the heart from birth (Rom 2:15).
Being made in the image of God, having a conscience and the law of God written on the heart from birth, every person knows by nature that God exists (John 1:9; Rom 1:19).
By virtue of internal general revelation, every person knows God exists (Eccles 3:11).
By virtue of external general revelation, every person knows God exists (Rom 1:20).
Since every person knows God exists from birth, there are no true atheists (Rom 1:20; James 2:19).
Since every person knows God exists from birth, there are no true agnostics (Rom 1:20).
Being made in the image of God who is inherently religious in His being, every person is inherently and inescapably religious by nature (Acts 17:22- 23).
Being inherently religious by virtue of creation, every person will worship either the true God or the creation in some form or another (Rom 1:22- 23).
Since every person knows inherently that God exists, biblical apologetics is not about trying to prove or establish theism to skeptics.
Every person is born with a sin nature inherited from Adam, the first man (Gen 6:5; Rom 5:12).
Because of innate sin, every person is born separated from God, an enemy of God, a child of wrath, and spiritually dead, and therefore unable on one’s own to respond to a spiritual stimulus (Eph 2:3).
Because of innate sin, every person by nature hates God, truth, and Christ (John 7:7; Rom 1:30).
Because of innate sin, every person by nature suppresses the true knowledge of God they were born with (Rom 1:18).
Only the gospel, which is special revelation, can overcome innate sin (Rom 1:16).
Only supernatural faith can overcome sin (Eph 2:8-9).
Supernatural faith comes only from special revelation by the superintending work of the Holy Spirit (Rom 10:17).
General revelation does not generate supernatural faith (Rom 1:18).
Natural theology does not generate supernatural faith (Ps 19:7; John 8:32).
Supernatural faith is a gift from God, alien to human nature (Eph 2:8-9); saving faith results from knowing truth via special revelation (Rom 10:17).
Satan, the devil, is a real, created, personal, spirit being and not a metaphor or fictitious being (Luke 22:3; 1 Pet 5:8).
Satan became evil through disobedience (John 8:44).
Anyone who denies the personal reality of Satan as literally taught in Scripture is deceived and a deceiver (2 Cor 11:17; 1 Pet 5:8).
Satan’s demise is detailed in the historic account written by Moses in Genesis chapter 3.
Anyone who denies that Genesis 3 is a literal and historical account written by Moses denies the authority and integrity of Christ (John 5:46- 47).
Jesus taught that Genesis was written by Moses (John 5:46-47).
Jesus taught that the book of Genesis was literal history (Matt 23:35; 24:37; Luke 17:32; John 8:44).
Satan hates God, Christ, truth, and God’s people (Mark 4:15; 1 Pet 5:8).
God has declared that Satan is a deceiver (Rev 12:9).
God has declared that Satan is completely evil, incorrigible and is doomed to eternal conscious torment in Hell, the Lake of Fire (Matt 25:41).
Satan has supernatural, but limited and delegated power (Job 1).
Satan supernaturally blinds the minds of unbelievers, thus preventing their belief in the gospel of Christ (2 Cor 4:4) and their access to true knowledge.
Because Satan inhibits an unbeliever’s ability to understand, Satan affects one’s epistemology (Eph 2:1-2).
Satan’s epistemological blinding work over an unbeliever is supernatural in nature (Eph 6:12).
Only God can override Satan’s supernatural blindness imposed on an unbeliever (Eph 6:13).
God overrides Satan’s epistemological blinding work on unbelievers only through the means of the Holy Spirit working in tandem with the gospel (Rom 1:16).
The Holy Spirit produces supernatural faith by working in tandem with special revelation (Rom 10:17).
The Holy Spirit does not create supernatural, saving faith apart from special revelation.
The Holy Spirit does not create saving faith working only with natural theology.
Natural theology is not natural revelation or general revelation.
Natural theology is constructing theology apart from special revelation.
Natural theology is interpreting natural (general) revelation apart from special revelation.
Natural (general) revelation is sufficient to impart a general knowledge of God, but not a saving knowledge of God; natural revelation apart from special revelation cannot save (Rom 1:19-21).
Natural revelation is sufficient to make every creature accountable and culpable before God (Rom 1:20).
Universal, false religion is a form of natural theology (Rom 1:23).
False religion results from practicing natural theology apart from special revelation.
Jesus and the Apostles never taught or condoned natural theology (John 5:19; 12:49).
Because the God of the Bible exists, the valid theistic arguments are true to reality.
The theistic arguments do not establish the plausibility of God’s existence.
No one comes to know Christ through the theistic arguments (Rom 1:16).
Historical evidences in Scripture are special revelation; evidences not in Scripture are not special revelation.
Biblical history is special revelation; non-biblical history is neither special nor general revelation (2 Pet 1:19-20).
Historical evidences in Scripture can evoke faith; evidences apart from Scripture cannot evoke faith, but can confirm faith.
The evidences of Christ’s gospel are His historical eyewitnesses and their written testimony as objectively preserved by and subjectively attended to by the Holy Spirit (Matt 16:19; John 1:14; Acts 1:8; 1 Cor 15:5-6; 1 John 1:1).
The truth of the gospel is rooted in verified, historical events (1 Cor 15:1-6).
There is a natural faith and a supernatural (saving) faith, and they are distinct in origin and essence; belief or trust that does not result from special revelation is merely natural and not supernatural faith.
Saving faith and reason are interrelated, inseparable, and complementary (Rom 10:8-15).
Saving faith is based on historical realities and objective evidence; saving faith does not exist apart from evidence (Matt 28:16-17; John 20:27; 1 Cor 15:6).
Every person lives by natural faith, which is based on experience.
Unbelievers cannot acquire supernatural faith without God’s initiative (Eph 2:1).
The most important thing an unbeliever needs to know or hear is the gospel (Rom 1:16).
Atheists and religious unbelievers are equally depraved and lost (Matt 12:30).
The gospel is the only thing that can save an atheist, agnostic, skeptic, cultist, legalist, or false religionist.
Apologetics as modelled in Scripture is not solely defensive.
Apologetics as modelled in Scripture entails positive gospel proclamation (Phil 1:16).
Socrates and other pagan Greeks are not the models of Christian apologetics.
Jesus, the apostles, and the prophets are the models of biblical apologetics.
Defending the faith is one element of apologetics and does not exhaust the practice and definition of the discipline.
Apologetics was practiced in the Old Testament. Old Testament saints defended the faith.
The elders of the church have been charged by God with formally defending the faith (Acts 20).
Jesus defended God’s truth and the faith using special revelation (Matt 21:13).
The apostles defended God’s truth and the faith using special revelation (1 Thess 2:13; 1 John 4:6).
The elders are charged to defend God’s truth and the faith using special revelation (Acts 20; Titus 1:9).
Jesus and the Apostles most often defended the faith against religionists rather than atheists and agnostics.
The Bible teaches a distinct, specific, and comprehensive theology of knowledge, also known as a theology of epistemology (Prov 1:7; 9:10; John 8:32; 1 Tim 6:20-21; James 3:15-17; 1 John 2:21). Jesus is the sole source of true knowledge, for He declared, “I am the truth” (John 14:6); as such, there is no true knowledge apart from Him (Col 2:1-7).
This article was taken from our most recent book, Redeeming Apologetics, by Cliff McManis. You can read Redeeming Apologeticsfor free as a PDF by clicking here. You may also purchase a physical copy here.
Cliff McManis is pastor-teacher at Creekside Bible Church in Cupertino, California and professor of theology at The Cornerstone Bible College and Seminary. He lives with his family in the San Francisco Bay Area.
