Apologetics: Engaging the Word, Engaging the World (High School)

WELCOME TO APOLOGETICS!
ENGAGING THE WORD, ENGAGING THE WORLD

What is apologetics?
Definition from the Merriam-Webster Dictionary:
a branch of theology devoted to the defense of the divine origin and authority of Christianity.

Wheeler Definition: A head/heart/Holy Spirit approach to building relationships with those who do not (yet) know Jesus and offering a reasonable, compassionate, and Biblically sound witness to the good news. Our job is not to "win souls" but to plant seeds, let God do the heavy lifting (through the Holy Spirit), and to be present and available in the moment to what Jesus wants to do in us and through us, through His Word and our testimony.

 Course objective:
We all need Jesus. Every day. It doesn't take long to see the fruits of our own labor when we try it on our own. It also becomes clear when we step out the door that our schools, our jobs, our family, our friendships, our city, and our world also need Jesus. Desperately.  It's how things were created to be from the beginning: the rhythm of filling up and pouring out, being connected to the well of living water, to be grafted into the vine, to let the living Word and lover of our souls breathe life in us and through us, to be tuned in to the voice of our Loving Father and Good Shepherd.

We want to dig deep. 

One of the foundational verses for this course is Deuteronomy 6: 5 -- "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength." My goal for this class is that it will provide good knowledge (head), but also good practical application (heart). We will have opportunity to explore Scripture together, examine worldviews, talk through cultural "hot topics" and examine the life-giving good news of Jesus when we sit down and when we get up, when we're on the road, or at home.
 
 Course methodology (what you can expect from this course):
Here are the things we will explore:
1) A definition of worldviews and worldview categories
2) Some of the major worldviews/philosophies/world religions and their comparison to Christianity
3) A Biblical/theological dive into key ideas in Scripture (nature of God and the Trinity, salvation, the resurrection, etc).
4) Different "evidences" for Christianity (see Lee Strobel's Case for Christ)
5) A practical approach for creating conversations with non-believers and some of the big questions in culture (Tactics by Greg Koukl).

This course would be appropriate for high school students and adults. No prior knowledge is required, and all questions will be taken seriously. This will be an elective class. Weekly reading, discussion, and some quizzes will be given. Come with questions, notes, and be ready to discuss!

HOMEWORK:

Students will be expected to engage with this year-long course by doing the weekly reading and writing assignments. They will demonstrate knowledge through their written responses and also in-class discussions. There will also be a final project where they incorporate what they learned from the semester. We learn by "wrestling" with the ideas and texts and by engaging with each other.

REQUIRED MATERIALS: 

• • Tactics by Greg Koukl
  • The Case for Christ by Lee Strobel
  • Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus by Nabeel Qureshi
  • Bibles
  • Pen/Pencil
  • Notebook

TUITION:

The cost of this course is $160/semester plus a $25 material fee/semester. Payment will be made directly to Cliff Wheeler through Venmo (@Cliff-Wheeler-2). 

This amount will be split into four payments as follows: 

First Semester

$25 due first week of August

$60 due first week of September 

$50 due first week of October

$50 due first week of November

SECOND SEMESTER:

$75 due first week of January (Materials + tuition )

$50 due first week of February

$60 due first week of March

Contact Information:

• Instructor: Cliff Wheeler
• Email: [email protected]
• Cell: 616-901-5725