I Peter 3:15, “And be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you.”
What we believe about salvation will affect how we go about telling others about Jesus. The Bible tells us that spiritually, we are as dead as a doornail, and need the Spirit of God to give life and the Holy Spirit uses the instrument of His Word to regenerate sinners. So if we desire to see sinners saved, when asked about the hope that is in us, we must use the Word of God.
It is at this point the battle will be won or lost. The gospel is the power of God unto salvation, and the Word is sharper than any two-edged sword. The Bible can pierce the soul and spirit asunder and is like a hammer that breaks the rocks in pieces. The Scripture cannot be broken and endures forever. It is the incorruptible seed by which we are born again. The Bible is the Sword of the Spirit, so as a Christian, why would you ever lay down such a weapon when speaking to those without Christ?
When I was about eight years old, a friend and I were walking through the woods after a big snow storm, and because we were eight year old boys, we decided to walk across a frozen pond. My friend made it about 10 feet before the ice broke and he fell through. I grabbed a stick and stuck it out to him and pulled him to shore. Had I left the safety of the bank to jump in after him, I could have grabbed hold of him, but then we both would have been trapped. We cannot leave the solid ground of the truth to bring someone to safety relying on our own power. Being ready is understanding that there is no such thing as a neutral position. Everyone has a bias. I come to every conversation with the belief that God exists and we can know Him only through Jesus Christ. That is my presupposition. God’s word is God’s self-revelation, so in order to know Him and to know truth, we have to start with the authoritative Word of God. Some argue that’s a circular argument. But ultimate truth must be the foundation and starting point of any worldview. If logic, reason, and the scientific method is how we arrive at the truth, tell me how we arrived at that conclusion? By reason and logic; and that, my friend, is a circular argument too.
When discussing ultimate realities, there must be a place or a truth you start from and base everything else on. God has revealed Himself to us in His Word, through Jesus Christ and that ultimate truth is found in His Word. The Bible is are starting point. Being ready is to have confidence in the power of the Word and faith in God’s power to save.
