Meme’s have become very popular these days. Those everyday pictures which suddenly produce either laughter, deep thinking, or ridicule with some short and witty statement. Some of these Meme’s can be of good taste, but in most cases they are classless and just plain offensive. Meme’s like other things placed in the hands of the wrong people can produce some sinful and evil material. I would go even further to say that Meme’s in the hands of the right people can ultimately produce sinful and evil material. I have nothing against Meme’s. I think Meme’s can be fun to produce as long as it is clean and uplifting. Positive Meme’s are produced all the time. I see Christians producing some biblically based Meme’s which can be inspiring as well as funny. As of late, however, I have found Christians producing some “apologetic and theological” Meme’s which have rubbed me the wrong way as a Christian apologist. A few examples would be helpful to begin:

As a born again believer, Christian apologist, and one who is formerly of a cult group (Church of Christ), I find these Meme’s very offensive and troublesome. I would even go further to say that Meme’s like the ones posted above are a stumbling block and danger to the work of apologetics. In no way whatsoever do these Meme’s and others like them demonstrate the love of Christ to those spiritually trapped in false doctrine. I know if Meme’s was around during the time I was trapped in the false doctrine of the Church of Christ and I saw my church being mocked and made fun of by “apologists” via Meme’s, I sure would have remained in the Church of Christ until some loving Christian would have showed me biblically why the doctrine of the Church of Christ is not biblically sound. At the core of Christian apologetics we should find this at work, “but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— (Ephesians 4:15).” Try to find this core in these Meme’s! It’s nowhere to be found in these Meme’s! The only things I find at the core of these Meme’s is pride, mockery, immaturity, and a lack of love and sensitivity for those who follow false teachers and false doctrine.

It will be no surprise to me if some who read this will get offended and say I am making a mountain out of a molehill. Some will attempt to defend this pseudo way of doing apologetics by perhaps claiming this is just a springboard to engage people in conversation about the false teacher(s) and false teaching(s) they are following. Nonsense! Purposely sparking anger and outrage in the person you are attempting to reach with the truth of the Scriptures defeats your “apologetic outreach” and disqualifies you from having any future dialogue with that person. As Christian apologists we are instructed to do apologetics with humility and reverence for God (I Peter 3:15). Speaking the truth in love is at the core of Christian apologetics and the Holy Triune God is the foundation of Christian apologetics. When God is the foundation of Christian apologetics, humility and reverence must follow. When God is not the foundation of Christian apologetics, pride, mockery, immaturity, and insensitivity must follow. Christian apologist Ravi Zacharias hits the nail on the head when he said:

“Yes, if truth is not undergirded by love, it makes the possessor of that truth obnoxious and the truth repulsive.”

Christians who produce Meme’s like the ones posted at the beginning of this blog need to take heed to the Scriptures giving in this blog as well as heed the words of Ravi Zacharias. It is true indeed that these Meme’s are to both seasoned apologists and those trapped in false doctrine alike both obnoxious and repulsive. It’s one thing for a person to be offended by the truth of Scripture presented by the messenger, it’s a whole different thing, however, for that same person to be offended by the messenger.

The goal of apologetics is to defend and declare the truth of the Christian faith with the hope that many souls will have the veil of deception removed from their minds and hearts so that they may receive the Lord Jesus Christ as the forgiver of their sins and their Savior. The function of apologetics is to tear down the lies of Satan ( the doctrine of demons) with the truth and knowledge of God:

“For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, and being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled.” — II Corinthians 10:3-6.

I find Meme’s such as those at the beginning of this blog to be very carnal and loses sight on where the war truly lies at. The war lies in the spirit realm, not in the flesh. The war lies with Satan’s many lies and deceptions, not with the people who are being lied to and deceived by Satan. It is true that there are many people who exchange the truth of God for lies, however, they are never to be the object of our warfare. If you do not know this simple truth, it is better for you to leave apologetics alone until you mature and finally understand the true purpose of apologetics.

In conclusion I hope this blog helps some, if not all, to realize the damage they are doing with such “apologetic” Meme’s as these. Such “apologetic” Meme’s only repels people from the Christian faith. The love of Christ is absent from such Meme’s as these. Humility and respect, as it should be exercised in apologetics, is nowhere to be found in these Meme’s. God is not glorified in these Meme’s, “Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God (I Corinth. 10:31).” So please stop with these insensitive Meme’s for the sake of Christ and His work which is being done in the field of apologetics. Please stop hindering the preaching and teaching of the gospel with Meme’s that produce theological pride and Ad hominem’s (attacks on the person, not dealing with the issues). The work of apologetics is challenging enough as it for us. Please my fellow Christians, don’t make it even more challenging for us with these Meme’s your producing. Repent and pray for us as we pray for you all.