Christian Apologetics: A Lutheran Introduction

by Nathan Greeley

In this day and age, the truth of Christianity is rarely taken for granted. Many are outright skeptics. Even among churchgoers, there are widespread doubts about the truth and credibility of central doctrines of the faith. This all creates serious difficulties and challenges for both the Christian life and witness. It is therefore crucial that all Christians, even ordinary laypeople, learn about apologetics, which is the art of showing the plausibility of Christian claims. In this accessible guide to apologetics for Lutherans, you will be shown how to make simple yet convincing cases for the most foundational Christian beliefs, such as the reality of God, the trustworthiness of Scripture, the deity of Jesus, and the factuality of the resurrection. Strategies for answering popular objections to Christianity, such as those that arise from evolutionary theory, the existence of evil and suffering, and the widespread acceptance of relativism will also be discussed. Last but not least, the question of which Christian tradition one should belong to is explored in a chapter outlining the major reasons to be a confessional Lutheran. After reading this book, you will be more confident in the truth of your faith and more prepared to share that faith with others.

132 pages, Paperback

Published November 10, 2021

Reviews

[Javier Perdomo · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a solid introductory text for someone who is brand new to Christian apologetics. Greeley does a good job of taking a reader who may start out knowing absolutely nothing about how to defend the Christian faith and equipping them with a solid foundation of understandable arguments that they can use in everyday conversation with others—along with giving the reader reasonable strategies and expectations for their future apologetics endeavors.

Overall, this is a great apologetics primer from a Lutheran perspective covering:

1. Practical considerations for engaging in apologetics discussions.

2. A few classic proofs for God's existence.

3. Arguments for the reliability of the New Testament.

4. Arguments for the Resurrection.

5. Brief responses to several popular atheist objections.

My only critique is that I think the book may have benefitted from the inclusion of a few additional illustrative examples or thought experiments to help fully drive some of the arguments home; however, this may be intentional given that the book is meant to provide a brief introduction to these arguments, not a comprehensive treatise. That being said, this is remedied by the fact that every chapter concludes with suggested books for further reading on the covered subjects—an inclusion that I always love to see in introductory texts like this.

[Jose · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful lay level book on apologetics. The author first gives an introduction to and a history of apologetics before moving on to cover topics such as arguments for God's existence, the reliability of the New Testament, the resurrection of Jesus, etc...

At the end of each chapter there is a "For Further Reading" section which provides the reader with book recommendations that cover the topic of the chapter in greater detail. The author also dedicated a chapter making a positive case for why Christians should consider joining a confessional Lutheran church.

I really enjoyed reading this book but more importantly I feel more confident approaching my love ones in evangelism and discussing some of their objections to the Christian faith. May God bless this book.

[Michael T Moos · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good little book. The various arguments for the existence of God the author presents are easy enough for anyone to understand.

The author did his best to explain in only a few short pages why he is a Lutheran and believes Lutheranism is a better tradition than RC, EO, Anglicanism and the rest of Christianity.

Overall this was well laid out and a great addition to any apologetic shelf.

[David Madewell · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought it was a very good introduction for Lutheran apologetics (and some polemics) for a layperson just dipping their toes into this work.

I really appreciate the other sources for further reading

[Jared Mindel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perfect for what it's setting out to do. Looking forward to interviewing Nathan soon.