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Contentiously Contending: A Word to Today's Apologetics Emphasis
Are You Contending for the Faith in a Wrong Way?
Contentiously Contending is given as a clarion call to a growing empidemic of christians using social media, blogs and other online venues to create great harm to the testimony of Christ and of His servants. Though corrective words are needed to men publically Anton Bosch teaches us how to do this in the same way Christ and the Apostles did in love and humility. This book will help you to truly contend for the faith.
Contentiously Contending is given as a clarion call to a growing empidemic of christians using social media, blogs and other online venues to create great harm to the testimony of Christ and of His servants. Though corrective words are needed to men publically Anton Bosch teaches us how to do this in the same way Christ and the Apostles did in love and humility. This book will help you to truly contend for the faith.
62 pages, Kindle Edition
First published December 30, 2013
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
July 11, 2021
I stand challenged
This book gave me an opportunity to really think about the motives behind any form of correction I desire to make. Sometimes pride can easily masquerade as great zeal for the LORD. This book allows that moment to reflect. Truly a necessary read.
This book gave me an opportunity to really think about the motives behind any form of correction I desire to make. Sometimes pride can easily masquerade as great zeal for the LORD. This book allows that moment to reflect. Truly a necessary read.
November 20, 2016
This short book is to apologetics what jus ad bellum and jus im bello are to war. Why we do apologetics and how we do apologetics are important. Christians can be just as mean and nasty as non-Christians and have a long history of name-calling and other abusive behavior. Bosch notes that many apologists who engage in such behavior often appeal to Jude 3 for justification:
Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints (NASB).
They focus on the word "contend;" hence the title of the book, Contentiously Contending. Dr. Bosch looks at the example of Jesus as well as various instructions from Paul and Peter regarding how to engage with unbelievers and perceived heretics. If I had to distill all of this guidance into a single mantra, it would have to be "humility and meekness." In this context, humility is essentially an absence of self righteousness. We Christians have absolutely no right to be self righteous because we are saved by God's grace and not by our own merit. Besides, people can sense self-righteousness a mile away and are often turned off by it, making it an obstacle to evangelism. Meekness is often viewed as weakness, like George McFly's groveling behavior around Biff. Instead, it is the attitude and behavior of restraint even when able to mop the floor with an antagonist. It is a choice.
The ultimate objective of apologetics is to win souls to Christ and to rescue them from the snare of hell. It is not to blow non-Christians away with our knowledge and intelligence and to win the argument, however much that might stroke our ego. Dr. Bosch drives this point home forcefully and effectively, noting that such behavior is inconsistent with the Christian attitude. We have a duty to defend and teach the good news of Christ, but we must do it in a Christ-like manner. Paul is given as an example for us to follow. Before he was converted, he aggressively sought to force his beliefs on others. This changed after his conversion. He just as zealously defended the Truth and denounced evil, but did this with meekness, not aggression.
I have read a number of apologetics books until now have not seen one quite like this one. It is worth reading.
Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints (NASB).
They focus on the word "contend;" hence the title of the book, Contentiously Contending. Dr. Bosch looks at the example of Jesus as well as various instructions from Paul and Peter regarding how to engage with unbelievers and perceived heretics. If I had to distill all of this guidance into a single mantra, it would have to be "humility and meekness." In this context, humility is essentially an absence of self righteousness. We Christians have absolutely no right to be self righteous because we are saved by God's grace and not by our own merit. Besides, people can sense self-righteousness a mile away and are often turned off by it, making it an obstacle to evangelism. Meekness is often viewed as weakness, like George McFly's groveling behavior around Biff. Instead, it is the attitude and behavior of restraint even when able to mop the floor with an antagonist. It is a choice.
The ultimate objective of apologetics is to win souls to Christ and to rescue them from the snare of hell. It is not to blow non-Christians away with our knowledge and intelligence and to win the argument, however much that might stroke our ego. Dr. Bosch drives this point home forcefully and effectively, noting that such behavior is inconsistent with the Christian attitude. We have a duty to defend and teach the good news of Christ, but we must do it in a Christ-like manner. Paul is given as an example for us to follow. Before he was converted, he aggressively sought to force his beliefs on others. This changed after his conversion. He just as zealously defended the Truth and denounced evil, but did this with meekness, not aggression.
I have read a number of apologetics books until now have not seen one quite like this one. It is worth reading.
June 26, 2015
Contending without being contentious
Great read on how to share truth biblically. Don't argue. Don't try to "be right". Simply and humbly care deeply enough to help people see truth.
Great read on how to share truth biblically. Don't argue. Don't try to "be right". Simply and humbly care deeply enough to help people see truth.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews