Practical Apologetics: Clear Answers for the Everyday Christian

Kenneth Willis
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  • Christianity
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Practical Apologetics is here to provide clear, Biblical answers to common questions about the Christian faith. Each short, practical episode is designed to help everyday Christians understand and defend what they believe and why they believe it. As Christians, we are called to be able to give a respectful response to those who ask us “Why?” we believe what we do, as outlined in 1 Peter 3:15 (ESV): “But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect.” https://ko-fi.com/practicalapologetics

  1. 6d ago

    Episode 31: Is America a Christian Nation?

    Was America founded as a Christian nation, or was Christianity just one of many influences on its founding? In Episode 31 of Practical Apologetics, Kenneth Willis examines the historical evidence behind one of America's most debated questions. From the Declaration of Independence and the original state constitutions to George Washington's Revolutionary War orders, colonial laws, and the founding of America's earliest universities, the historical record reveals just how deeply Christianity influenced the nation's development. We'll also examine the Constitution's prohibition on religious tests, the religious beliefs of prominent founders, and the often-quoted Treaty of Tripoli. The central argument is straightforward: Christianity wasn't just something that existed in America. It helped shape what America became. Even if a nation called America could have existed without Christianity, would it have been the same country? Let's follow the evidence. Historical Sources & Further Reading Declaration of Independence (1776), National Archives: https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/declaration-transcript United States Constitution, Article VI, and First Amendment, National Archives: https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/constitution-transcript Delaware Constitution (1776), Article 22: https://avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_century/de02.asp Pennsylvania Constitution (1776), Section 10: https://avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_century/pa08.asp North Carolina Constitution (1776), Article XXXII: https://avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_century/nc07.asp George Washington, General Orders, July 9, 1776: https://www.battlefields.org/learn/primary-sources/washingtons-general-orders George Washington, Farewell Address (1796), Library of Congress: https://www.loc.gov/resource/mgw2.024/?sp=243&st=text John Adams, Letter to the Massachusetts Militia (October 11, 1798): https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Adams/99-02-02-3102 Massachusetts Body of Liberties (1641), Massachusetts Government Archives: https://www.mass.gov/info-details/massachusetts-body-of-liberties Harvard University, Institutional History: https://www.harvard.edu/about/history/ Treaty of Tripoli (1796–1797), English Text: https://avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_century/bar1796t.asp Treaty of Tripoli, Hunter Miller's Historical Notes and Translation Analysis: https://avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_century/bar1796n.asp Support Practical Apologetics Ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/practicalapologetics Read More on Substack https://practicalapologetics.substack.com/

  2. Oct 8

    Episode 30: Can Christians Be Pro-Choice?

    For the last three episodes, we’ve been building toward one question. In Episode 27, we established that the unborn is biologically human and alive. In Episode 28, we asked whether differences in size, development, environment, dependency, intelligence, usefulness, wantedness, or convenience can justify treating one human being as less valuable than another. In Episode 29, we turned to Scripture and asked where human worth ultimately comes from. Now we bring the whole series together. In Episode 30 of Practical Apologetics, we ask whether the pro-choice position can be consistently reconciled with a Christian worldview. We look at the “personally pro-life, politically pro-choice” position, bodily autonomy, the claim that morality can’t be legislated, rape and incest, and life-threatening pregnancies. We also compare how Baptist, Catholic, and Orthodox traditions approach abortion and look at the broader responsibility Christians have to care for mothers, fathers, children, and families before and after birth. And finally, we ask the question the whole series has been building toward: If the unborn is biologically human and alive, if human worth doesn’t depend on development or wantedness, and if Scripture grounds human value in God, what Christian principle would justify intentionally ending that life? Scripture Used: Genesis 1:26–27Psalm 139:13–16Jeremiah 1:5Job 31:15Luke 1:41–44Luke 2:12Exodus 21:22–25Proverbs 31:8 Sources: The Case for Life by Scott Klusendorf Abortion: A Rational Look at an Emotional Issue by R. C. Sproul Southern Baptist Convention resolutions on abortion and the sanctity of human life Catechism of the Catholic Church, teaching on abortion Orthodox Church in America, statements on the sanctity of life Support Practical Apologetics:https://ko-fi.com/practicalapologetics Read more from Practical Apologetics:https://practicalapologetics.substack.com/

  3. Sep 25

    Episode 29: What Does the Bible Say About the Unborn?

    In Episodes 27 and 28, we started with science and philosophy. We established that the unborn is biologically human and alive, then asked whether differences in size, development, environment, dependency, intelligence, or wantedness can justify treating one human being as less valuable than another. Now we turn directly to Scripture. In Episode 29 of Practical Apologetics, we ask what the Bible actually says about human life in the womb. We begin in Genesis with the image of God and the foundation of human dignity. Then we look at Psalm 139, Jeremiah 1, Job 31, and Luke 1 to see how Scripture speaks about human beings before birth. We also examine Exodus 21:22–25, one of the passages most often raised against the Christian pro-life position, and look at why Christians disagree over how that text should be understood. And because abortion isn’t just an abstract issue, we also talk about grace, repentance, and forgiveness for those who have participated in abortion. The question underneath all of it is simple: If human worth doesn’t come from development, intelligence, independence, usefulness, or wantedness, where does it come from? Sources: The Holy Bible, English Standard Version Abortion: A Rational Look at an Emotional Issue by R. C. Sproul The Case for Life by Scott Klusendorf Scripture Used: Genesis 1:26–27Psalm 139:13–16Jeremiah 1:5Job 31:15Luke 1:41–44Luke 2:12Exodus 21:22–25 Support Practical Apologetics:https://ko-fi.com/practicalapologetics Read more from Practical Apologetics:https://practicalapologetics.substack.com/

  4. Sep 17

    Episode 28: Is the Unborn a Person?

    In Episode 27, we established that the unborn is biologically human and alive. But that still leaves another question: Does being biologically human and alive make the unborn a person with the same basic right to life as you and me? In Episode 28 of Practical Apologetics, we look at the philosophical question of personhood. Using Scott Klusendorf’s SLED argument, we examine whether size, level of development, environment, or degree of dependency are enough to justify treating one human being as less valuable than another. We also look at what happens when human value becomes conditional on traits like intelligence, independence, health, usefulness, wantedness, or convenience. That takes us into some difficult historical and modern examples, including eugenics, Nazi Germany’s Aktion T4 program, and concerns surrounding Canada’s Medical Assistance in Dying system. The question underneath all of it is simple: If some human beings get to decide which other human beings count as persons, who draws the line? Sources: The Case for Life by Scott Klusendorf Abortion: A Rational Look at an Emotional Issue by R. C. Sproul United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, “Euthanasia Program and Aktion T4” Health Canada, Sixth Annual Report on Medical Assistance in Dying in Canada Canadian Human Rights Commission, What We Learned: Housing for People with Disabilities Support Practical Apologetics:https://ko-fi.com/practicalapologetics Read more from Practical Apologetics:https://practicalapologetics.substack.com/

  5. Sep 10

    Episode 27: When Does Human Life Begin?

    Abortion is one of the most controversial issues in our culture. But before we ask whether abortion is right or wrong, whether it should be legal, or even what the Bible says about it, there’s a more basic question: What exactly is being aborted? In the first episode of a four-part series on abortion and the Christian worldview, we begin with science rather than Scripture. When does a new human organism begin? Is an embryo really “just a clump of cells”? Is the unborn simply part of the mother’s body? And do implantation, cardiac activity, brain development, viability, or birth determine when human life begins? We’ll look at mainstream medical embryology and the Carnegie stages of human development to separate the biological question from the moral and philosophical questions that will follow later in the series. Science can tell us what the unborn is. But can science tell us what the unborn is worth? That’s where the next episode begins. Sources: The Developing Human: Clinically Oriented Embryology by Keith L. Moore, T. V. N. Persaud, and Mark G. Torchia Langman’s Medical Embryology by T. W. Sadler Carnegie Stages of Human Embryonic Development The Case for Life by Scott Klusendorf Support Practical Apologetics:https://ko-fi.com/practicalapologetics Read more from Practical Apologetics:https://practicalapologetics.substack.com/

  6. Aug 27

    Episode 26: Did Jesus Drink Alcohol?

    The Bible clearly says Jesus drank wine. But was that wine actually alcoholic, or was it more like grape juice? In this episode of Practical Apologetics, we look at what Scripture says about wine, the wedding at Cana, the difference between drunkenness and drinking, and the common claim that biblical wine was nonalcoholic. We also trace how the nineteenth-century temperance movement helped popularize the idea of “two wines” in Scripture and how that belief became a piece of Christian folk theology still repeated today. This episode is not an argument that Christians should drink alcohol. It is an argument that we should practice exegesis rather than eisegesis and let Scripture say what it actually says. Scripture discussed:John 2:1–11Luke 7:33–34Ephesians 5:181 Timothy 5:23Psalm 104:14–15Proverbs 20:1Proverbs 23:29–35 Sources:John Anthony Dunne, The Mountains Shall Drip Sweet Wine: A Biblical Theology of AlcoholChristopher C. H. Cook, Alcohol, Addiction and Christian EthicsJohn L. Merrill, “The Bible and the American Temperance Movement: Text, Context, and Pretext,” Harvard Theological Review Read more from Practical Apologetics:https://practicalapologetics.substack.com/ Support the ministry:https://ko-fi.com/practicalapologetics Practical Apologetics will always be free. But if this content has helped you and you'd like to support the work, your generosity is greatly appreciated.

  7. Aug 20

    Episode 25: What is Faith?

    What is faith? Is it believing something without evidence, or does the Bible give us a very different picture? In this episode of Practical Apologetics, we look at what Scripture actually means by faith. Using Abraham as our primary example, we examine the difference between just believing something is true and actually placing our trust in God. Abraham and Sarah had tried and failed to have children. Sarah was barren, they were growing old, and yet God promised Abraham a son. Abraham couldn't see how God would fulfill that promise, but he trusted the One Who made it. We'll look at Abraham's struggles, God's command to sacrifice Isaac, what Hebrews means by “the conviction of things not seen,” and Thomas's demand for evidence after the resurrection. We'll also consider insights from William Lane Craig and C. S. Lewis as we examine the relationship between faith, reason, and evidence. Faith isn't believing without evidence. It's trusting where the evidence leads. Scripture Referenced:Genesis 15–16; Genesis 22; Romans 4; Hebrews 11; James 2; John 20 Sources:The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (ESV) William Lane Craig, Reasonable Faith: Christian Truth and Apologetics C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity Read more from Practical Apologetics:https://practicalapologetics.substack.com/ Support the ministry:https://ko-fi.com/practicalapologetics Practical Apologetics will always be free. But if this content has helped you and you'd like to support the work, your generosity is greatly appreciated.

  8. Aug 13

    Episode 24: What Is Repentance?

    What does it actually mean to repent? Is repentance just feeling guilty or sorry for our sin, or does the Bible describe something more? In this episode of Practical Apologetics, we look at the biblical meaning of repentance and why Scripture distinguishes genuine repentance from remorse. We examine what it means to turn away from sin and toward Jesus Christ, why repentance does not mean earning salvation or achieving sinless perfection, and the important difference between struggling with sin and defending it. Biblical repentance is more than looking back at our sin and wishing we had done something differently. It is a genuine change of mind and direction, turning away from sin and toward Christ. Sources referenced in this episode: The Gospel According to Jesus by John MacArthurChosen But Free by Norman Geisler Scripture References: Matthew 3:8, Matthew 27:3-5, Mark 1:14-15, Luke 5:31-32, Luke 13:3, Luke 22:62, John 21, Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19, Acts 11:18, Ephesians 2:8-9, 2 Corinthians 7:10, 1 John 1:8-9 Read more from Practical Apologetics:https://practicalapologetics.substack.com/ Support the ministry:https://ko-fi.com/practicalapologetics Practical Apologetics will always be free. But if this content has helped you and you'd like to support the work, your generosity is greatly appreciated.

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Practical Apologetics is here to provide clear, Biblical answers to common questions about the Christian faith. Each short, practical episode is designed to help everyday Christians understand and defend what they believe and why they believe it. As Christians, we are called to be able to give a respectful response to those who ask us “Why?” we believe what we do, as outlined in 1 Peter 3:15 (ESV): “But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect.” https://ko-fi.com/practicalapologetics

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