Apologetics for an Ever-Changing Culture: A Biblical and Culturally Relevant Approach to Talking About God

by Sean McDowell

320 pages, Paperback

Published January 7, 2025

About the author

Dr. Sean McDowell is a gifted communicator with a passion for equipping the church, and in particular young people, to make the case for the Christian faith. He connects with audiences in a tangible way through humor and stories while imparting hard evidence and logical support for viewing all areas of life through a Biblical worldview. Sean is an Assistant Professor in the Christian Apologetics program at Biola University.

Sean still teaches one high school Bible class, which helps give him exceptional insight into the prevailing culture so he can impart his observations poignantly to fellow educators, pastors, and parents alike.

Read more about Sean on his website.
Connect with Sean on Facebook.

Reviews

[Tuty · Rating 5 out of 5]

Apologetics for an Ever-Changing Culture is an essential resource for any minister in the body of Christ, especially youth ministers. The book contains 23 thought-provoking essays designed to equip you to help young people trust and follow Jesus in today’s rapidly evolving culture. While the topics are particularly relevant to youth, as they are often most immersed in these cultural shifts, the insights apply to everyone.

The essays cover a wide range of subjects, from the importance of apologetics to how the church can effectively engage with individuals shaped by modern ideologies. These relevant topics spark curiosity and encourage readers to delve deeper into the issues presented. Each essay provides enough substance for months of reflection, allowing readers to explore the implications and applications thoroughly.

What stands out most is the book’s practical approach. Nearly every chapter offers actionable steps for engaging in apologetics on specific topics, making it an invaluable tool for ministry. Additionally, the essays include numerous resources to help deepen your understanding and expand your study. The writing is clear and easy to follow, with the authors thoughtfully defining terms and bringing readers up to speed on complex ideas. This ensures that readers of varying levels of familiarity with apologetics can engage meaningfully with the material.

Having previously read Apologetics for a New Generation, I find this book to be a revised and updated version, making it highly relevant for today. A resource like this should be published every 5–10 years to reflect the evolving cultural trends from a biblical perspective. This book is a much-needed tool for the body of Christ and a valuable asset for anyone committed to effective ministry.

[Joshua Walker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super grateful for Sean and those at Harvest House sending this to me early to read before the publish date!

Apologetics for an Ever-Changing Culture is a gem. This book is jam packed with how one can integrate apologetics into everyday life. The selection of authors and as spot on and the content was 10/10!

I was grateful for the foundation that was laid in part 1: new culture. It laid out the need for apologetics in our current society and the urge for apologists to rise up! As a Pastor, I found chapter 5, Effective Apologetics in the Local Church by Derwin Gray to be of much value!

Part 2: New Methods was a fruitful section, especially for navigating everyday apologetics. It highlighted: doing apologetics in the home, apologetics as storytelling, apologetics in youth ministry (one of my favorite chapters), online apologetics, and helping others on a personal level navigate doubts. This section was jam packed with practical information for all people!

Part 3: New Challenges addressed hot topic items in brief detail. Sean did a great job picking these authors for each section! These topics were handled with biblical authority and sensitivity. Some topics were: urban apologetics, homosexuality, abortion, critical theory, mental health, transgenders, & new ageism. All of these things are incredibly prevalent in our society and Christian apologists must be well versed in each.

I very much appreciated the final chapter on biblical authority. Christian apologetics hinges on biblical authority. I appreciated that this book valued biblical authority and it was the center of everything!

[Justin Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book covers 23 chapters of fresh new takes on apologetics and the current culture by some of the leading apologists in the field. It discusses the immediate and great need for apologetics in our culture but gives very practical insight in how to go about doing it. The wide range of apologists and evangelists detail how to communicate personally (Tim Muehlhoff), online (Allen Parr), or in the church (Derwin Gray). You’ll hear great wisdom from giants like Josh McDowell, Lee Strobel, and Craig Hazen on how to effectively captivate hearts and minds through relationships, story and imagination which is fresh and needed for most apologetic minded people. Jeremiah Johnston leads the way in ensuring that we must consider the mental health aspect of these relationships and those we are looking to disciple. There are so many more great chapters here from talented and thoughtful leaders including the hot-press issues like transgenderism to the New Age. If you’re a Christian, then you are an apologist on some level, and need to consider adding this to your 2025 reading list to help equip you for today’s cultural venue. Dr. Sean McDowell has gathered a great team to help Christians today effectively listen, love, communicate, and share the gospel in the marketplace of ideas. I highly recommend this book!

[Ash Wells · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a life changing book! I loved reading different apologetic responses to different cultural topics. I will be passing this book on to my child’s teen youth leader because I think it’s so relative to his ministry. But this book was so informative to a parent as well raising Gen Z and Gen Alpha kids.

[Bridget Golubinski · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book on how to engage the culture, especially for those who are already more intellectually/apologetically minded. Many different topics are discussed with various contributors. I especially liked the chapters on emotional and mental health.

[Shelby · Rating 3 out of 5]

Helpful resource! A couple chapters were overly dense for me. I don’t love the whiplash style of each chapter being written by a different author. But I learned a lot and this helped me on my apologetics journey for sure!