Matthew 28:16-20
The Great Commission
16 Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. 17 When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. 18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Luke 12:11-12
The Holy Spirit Will Help the Disciples Speak
11 “When you are brought before synagogues, rulers and authorities, do not worry about how you will defend yourselves or what you will say,12 for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you should say.”
Luke 21:12-15
Jesus Will Help His Disciples Speak
12 “But before all this, they will seize you and persecute you. They will hand you over to synagogues and put you in prison, and you will be brought before kings and governors, and all on account of my name.13 And so you will bear testimony to me. 14 But make up your mind not to worry beforehand how you will defend yourselves. 15 For I will give you words and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict.
Apologetics can mean to defend the teachings of Jesus...Some define apologetics as reasoned arguments or writings in justification of something, typically a theory or religious doctrine...Jesus' Disciples were in a position to defend their faith in Him...After all they had been with Him for three years...And thus they were given the Great Commission by Him...When Jesus told His Eleven remaining Disciples to go and make disciples of all nations, baptize them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit -that would be a daunting task...And He told them to teach others to obey everything that He had commanded them...And surely He would be with Disciples always, to the very end of the ages...
So when Jesus gave His Disciples this Great Work, this Great Commission, they would definitely need His help...After all making disciples of all nations would be a monumental task...And He asked them to do this two thousand years ago, when travel and information were by foot...They would need the help of the Holy Spirit also...And Jesus said something interesting in respect to defending their faith in Him...He told them that they would be brought before synagogues, rulers and authorities...But they were not to worry about how they would defend themselves or what they would say, for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you should say and need to say...And He added that none of their adversaries would be able to resist or contradict what they had said...You cannot contradict the Truth...This would no doubt get the Word, His Word out to all people over time...
Jesus, it seems, did not want them memorizing and mastering a specific speech to get others to believe in Him...No, He says that the Disciples would bear testimony to Him...But they were to make up their minds not to worry beforehand how you would defend yourselves...For He would give them the words and the wisdom that none of your adversaries would be able to resist or contradict...So His Disciples had this big advantage over over followers and other apologetics...They had been with Him purposely for three years and He had taught them what they would need to know about Him, His ideas, and His teachings...And they had seen Him...They were eyewitness to His Majesty...He would continue to be with them and help them with what they were saying, and the Holy Spirit also would be helping them...How nice, and how great...So He would give them the words they needed and the wisdom they needed when talking to others about the Teacher, so that none of their adversaries and opponents would be able to resist what they had said...With this in mind many would be listening to the Disciples to hear what they had learned from Jesus -not resisting and not contradiction...
In the end, those who would be converted to Christianity and be a follower and being a true believer of Jesus is about having faith in Him...It is about learning about His ideas and His teachings so that they are deeply imprinted in our minds and on our hearts and truly believing in Him and that He still is alive and impacting our daily lives...And if you believe this, then surely He will be with us always, even to the very end of the ages...