ShankArticleBy Jeriah D. Shank

Examining Why Some Arguments for Our Faith Are More Persuasive Than Others

I love barbecue ribs. They are, without a doubt, my favorite food. Why? For a whole host of reasons. I love the way they taste, I love the way they smell, I love the way they look. I love the process of making them and I love the look on other people’s faces when they admit that my special way of doing them is the best they have ever tasted!

But a while back, I made ribs for my family and some friends and, to my horror, one of those friends (you know who you are!) didn’t like my ribs! I could not believe it! Who could possibly not like ribs, especially when I am the one making them?

When we approach the issue of sharing our faith or beliefs with other people through arguments and debate, we often do so by sharing those arguments that are most convincing to us personally. Granted, it is only the Spirit of God who gives life to dead sinners, but God does use the sharing of His Word to do so! Further, we are commanded, in passages like 1 Peter 3:15, to “give a defense of the hope that is in” us. Perhaps the Lord used the godly life of a parent or friends to bring you to Himself. Perhaps it was a time of crisis that gave you the push you needed. Or, for those of us more inclined to strict arguments, perhaps it was the cosmological argument that won the day, revealing that the universe itself cannot, because it began to exist, explain its own existence, therefore an explanation outside of the matter of the universe is needed. Even still, perhaps it was that the facts surrounding the resurrection of Jesus or the reliability of the Bible are so well attested to by history that convinced you to give your life to Christ. Whatever method used for you is most likely your “go to” approach when it comes to sharing your faith with others.