* Notes from my talk at the Christian Challenge "Proclaim" evangelism conference.
Proclaim
Christian Challenge Evangelism Training
“Confronting Idols with Our Evangelism”
Richard Klaus
October 25, 2025
1. Introduction
a. Me! (Richard Klaus)
b. Ratio Christi
i. Apologetics AND Evangelism
ii. Can’t do evangelism today without doing apologetics!
iii. Thoughtful Christianity—Transforming lives on campus today, changing culture tomorrow!
· “Thoughtful” Compassionate AND Reasonable
iv. Giving historical, philosophical, and scientific reasons to follow Jesus
c. Notes for this talk
i. Online: Whiterosereview.blogspot.com
ii. Email me: richardjklaus@gmail.com
2. 1 Peter 2.9
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who has called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
a. Evangelism as WORSHIP
b. Proclaim God’s excellencies
i. To whom? To an idolatrous culture!
ii. We need to know our God!
1. Attributes and character
2. Can’t be “fuzzy”
3. A belief in a mere generic “god” is not good enough
3. Psalm 96.1-6
1Sing to the LORD a new song; sing to the LORD, all the earth. 2Sing to the LORD, bless his name; proclaim good tidings of his salvation from day to day. 3Tell of his glory among the nations, his wonderful deeds among all the peoples. 4For great is the LORD and greatly to be praised; his to be feared above all gods. 5For all the gods of the peoples are idols, but the LORD made the heavens. 6Splendor and majesty are before him, strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.
a. “proclaim good tidings”—v. 2
b. “gods” (vv. 4-5) idols fail
c. Comparative analysis: Our God versus other gods
d. YHWH
i. Sovereignty (v. 5)
ii. Worthy of Worship (vv. 4, 6): Splendor, majesty, strength, beauty
4. Other texts against the idols:
a. Psalm 95.3
b. Psalm 97.9
c. Psalm 135.5
d. Exodus 18.11
i. Jethro (Moses’ father-in-law): priest of Midian
ii. Even a “non-believer” can see God’s goodness and power
5. Our cultural moment of evangelism
a. 1 Chronicles 12.32—Sons of Issachar, “men who understood the times, with knowledge of what Israel should do.”
b. Rise of the “Nones” and alternative spiritualities: RE-ENCHANTMENT
c. “None” does NOT equal atheism
d. Resource: Semi-Secular Worldviews and the Belief in Something Beyond, Carl-Johan Palmqvist and Francis Jonback (Cambridge Elements: Global Philosophy of Religion, 2025).
i. 70% “believe in, if not God, at least a higher power or that ‘there is something spiritual beyond the natural world’” (p. 7—quoting Pew Research Center [2024])
ii. 60% believe in at least one of the following phenomena[1]:
1. Astrology
2. Psychics
3. Spiritual energy in physical objects
4. Reincarnation
6. Worldview and spirituality of the “Nones”
a. Opposition to external authorities: no institutional structures
b. Individualism
c. Subjectivism
i. “sacralisation of subjective experience” (p. 6)
d. Syncretism
i. “Religious hybrids” (p. 7)
ii. Not seekers but explorers (p. 7)
e. Epistemology = experience and intuition
i. Rejection of canonical authorities
1. Scripture
2. Church structures
3. Science
4. Tradition
7. Q: What does evangelism (and apologetics) look like in this context?
a. Proclaim the excellencies of our God revealed in Jesus Christ!
b. Closer to the New Testament world and Old Testament world
i. Filled with competing “gods” and “powers”
c. Demonstrate/show the folly of idolatry
i. Idols fail and people are damage by idols!
8. Isaiah 44.9-20
a. Idols fail—they harm people and delude their creators (vv. 9-11 and 18-20)
i. “futile”—9
ii. “no profit”—9
iii. “witnesses fail to see or know”—9
iv. “put to shame”—9
v. “no profit”—10
vi. “put to shame”—10-11 (3xs)
vii. “they do not know, nor do they understand”—18
viii. “smeared over their eyes”—18
ix. “they cannot see”—18
x. “smeared over their hearts”—18
xi. “they cannot comprehend”—18
xii. “no one recalls, nor is there knowledge or understanding”—19
xiii. “feeds on ashes”—20
xiv. “deceived heart”—20
xv. “cannot deliver himself”—20
xvi. Cannot say, “Is there not a lie in my right hand?”—20
b. Story/illustration of the folly of idols—Isaiah 33.12-17
i. Piece of the created order is deified (made to be God)!
ii. Essence of idolatry
9. Comparison of our God versus the idols
a. Jeremiah 10.10-12
10But the LORD is the true God; he is the living God and the everlasting King. At his wrath the earth quakes, and the nations cannot endure his indignation. 11Thus you shall say to them, “The gods that did not make the heavens and the earth will perish from the earth and from under the heavens.” 12It is he who made the earth by his power, who established the world by his wisdom; and by his understanding he has stretched out the heavens.
b. Our God is INCOMPARABLE—no one like you!
i. “O God, who is like you?”—Psalm 71.19
ii. “To whom then will you liken me?”—Isaiah 40.18, 25
10. EXERCISE in groups: Acts 17.22-31
a. Read and find attributes of God
b. Acts 17 notes—(for fuller discussion of all the attributes below, see the APPENDIX at end of these notes)
(1) Knowable (v 23)
| (5) Self-sufficient (v 25) | (9) Immanent (v 28) |
(2) Personal (v 27)
| (6) Sovereign (v 26) | (10) Patient & Gracious (v 30) |
(3) Creator (v 24)
| (7) Desiring of relationship (v 27) | (11) Judge (v 31) |
(4) Sustainer (v 25) | (8) Transcendent (v 24) | (12) Act in history and perform miracles (v 31) |
11. Tool to use—conceptual tool—ABSOLUTE PERSONALITY (John Frame)[2]
a. God’s…
i. Unique Nature
ii. Utter Significance
iii. Ultimate Value
b. Absolute
i. “God is ‘absolute’ in the sense that he is the Creator of all things and thus the ground of all other reality. As such, he has no need of any other being (Acts 17:25) for his own existence. He is self-existent and self-sufficient (‘a se’). Nothing brought him into being; he always was (Pss. 90:2; 93:2; John 1:1). Nor can anything destroy him; he will always be (Deut. 32:40; Ps. 102:26-27; 1 Tim. 6:16; Heb. 1:10-12; Rev. 10:6). His existence is timeless, for he is the Lord of time itself (Ps. 90, esp. v. 4; Gal. 4:4; Eph. 1:11; 2 Peter 3:8). He knows all times and spaces with equal perfection (Isa. 41:4; 44:7-8).” –John Frame[3]
ii. Absolute (Frame’s def. broken down into parts)
1. Creator and Sustainer of all things
2. He has no need for anything else for his existence: Acts 17.25
3. Self-existent and self-sufficient
4. Nothing brought him into being and nothing can destroy him
· He always was: Psalm 90.2; 93.2; John 1.1
· He always will be: Deuteronomy 32.40; Psalm 102.26-27; 1 Timothy 6.16; Hebrews 1.10-12; Revelation 10.6
5. Lord of time (timeless): Psalm 90, esp. v. 4; Galatians 4.4; Ephesians 1.11; 2 Peter 3.8
6. He knows all times and spaces with equal perfection: Isaiah 41.4; 44.7-8
7. Answer to question 4 of the Westminster Shorter Catechism:
· God is a Spirit, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable, in his being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth.
c. Personality
i. Capable of relationship and relationality
ii. Eternally in relationship—TRINITY
iii. God…
1. Loves
2. Judges
3. Seeks
4. Comforts
5. Hears
6. Responds
7. Etc….!!
d. Acts 17.22-31 and “Absolute Personality”
Absolute | Personality |
v. 24—Creator of all things | v. 27—we can seek him |
v. 25—he doesn’t need anything | v. 30—patient (“overlooked the times of ignorance”) |
v. 25—he gives to all life and breath and all things | v. 30—speaks and calls for repentance |
v. 26—made humankind and nations | v. 31—judges the world in righteousness through a Man |
v. 26—sovereign over history | v. 31—speaks through the miracle of the resurrection |
v. 27-28—Immensity +omnipresence (“not far from each one of us” |
|
v. 29—not created by thought of humans |
|
12. Absolute Personality—Applied to some specific religious ideas[4]
a. Asatru—Norse gods (i.e., Thor, Odin, Loki, etc.)[5]
i. Personal: YES
ii. Absolute: NO
iii. Evangelism stress:
1. Personal: Jesus cares; gives his life, alive from the dead
· “Thor doesn’t give a rat’s ass about you!”
2. Absolute: Confidence and comfort in God’s sovereignty
b. “Something Beyond”—“Somethingism”
i. Absolute: MAYBE (?)
ii. Personal: NO (or Probably Not)
iii. Evangelism stress:
1. The Christian God is both Absolute and Personal
2. Communicates—most fully in Jesus (John 14.9; Hebrews 1.1-3)
3. Historical reality of Jesus
4. Can be known!
13. Conclusion and Review
a. We live in a religious time.
b. Compare God with gods
c. We need to know the attributes, character, and actions of our God
d. Remember the detailed theology of God the apostle Paul was teaching
e. Absolute Personality: A Summary Tool to Use
f. Rejoice and worship considering the unique nature of our God!
APPENDIX: Acts 17—NOTES
1. EXERCISE FOR GROUPS:
a. Read Acts 17.22-31: Paul’s sermon
b. List out as many attributes and actions of God as you can
2. The importance of our view of God
a. Most important thoughts… what comes to mind when you hear the word “God”
b. Important for worship
i. Deep view of God leads to deep worship
ii. Shallow view leads to shallow worship
c. Important for evangelism
i. Need to communicate a proper view of God
ii. People tend to make God in their own image
iii. Psalm 50.21 “… you thought that I was just like you…”
iv. “I believe in God.” Which one?!
1. Thor
2. The Force of Star Wars
3. Flying Spaghetti Monster
4. Moralistic Therapeutic Deism
v. Before Paul can get to Jesus, he has to make clear the proper view of God!
3. The Doctrine of God in Acts 17.22-31
(1) Knowable (v 23)
| (5) Self-sufficient (v 25) | (9) Immanent (v 28) |
(2) Personal (v 27)
| (6) Sovereign (v 26) | (10) Patient & Gracious (v 30) |
(3) Creator (v 24)
| (7) Desiring of relationship (v 27) | (11) Judge (v 31) |
(4) Sustainer (v 25) | (8) Transcendent (v 24) | (12) Act in history and perform miracles (v 31) |
a. (1) God is Knowable (v 23): “…this I proclaim to you.”
i. God is not shrouded in complete mystery
ii. Agnosticism is refuted
1. “Soft-boiled” agnosticism: “I don’t know whether God exists.”
2. “Hard-boiled” agnosticism: “No one can know for sure if God exists.”
iii. God is knowable because he has revealed himself
1. General revelation
2. Special revelation
b. (2) God is Personal (vv 27, 31): “seek for him”; “he will judge the world in righteousness”
i. Pantheism is refuted (“paneverythingism”—Francis Schaeffer)
ii. We stand in some relationship to God
c. (3) God is Creator (v 24): “the God who made the world and all things in it”
i. Defining point in God’s self-disclosure
1. Isaiah 44.24
2. Jeremiah 10.10-12
ii. “He uttered one word by which he has subverted all the doctrines of the philosophers.” Chrysostom (c. 4th Century A.D.)
iii. If you do not see the world around you in terms of God’s creatorship, then your “vision” is faulty!
“Ideally, to know something is to know how it relates to other things—to know what it is for, where it is from, what obligations I have concerning it, what is its worth, what it signifies. The non-Christian scientist will give intellectual assent to all sorts of truth statements. But he will not be able to provide any ultimate explanation of the facts in terms of these relationships. The more explanation he gives, the more it will be seen that his interpretation runs counter to God’s.
“For example, as any scientist knows, apples come from trees and are normally good for eating. But where do apple trees come from? Ultimately the secular scientist will say that trees are a product of evolution, that is, chance. In other words, apple trees are not designed by God. Thus, for the nonbeliever, apples are Creator-denying apples: to really understand applies is to deny the biblical concept of God; apples prove that the God of Scripture does not exist, and each apple is an evidence against such a God. Ultimately, the nonexistence of God becomes part of the definition of apples.
“Of course, the non-Christian rarely states the matter this strongly. He prefers to soften his expression of rebellion against God in order to project an unbiased profile. At bottom, however, the stance of the nonbeliever is not unlike the portrayal I give it here. And as he is pressed to provide an ultimate interpretation of facts, he will voice increasingly explicit anti-Christian sentiments. Yes, even his definition of apples is affected because he defines all the terms of his experience on the basis of atheistic presuppositions.”[6]
iv. Creation has a purpose: 1 Corinthians 8.6 “… we exist for him…”
v. God is to be worshipped for his Creatorship: Revelation 4.11
d. (4) God is Sustainer (v 25): “… gives to all life and breath and all things…”
i. “Moreover, to make God a momentary Creator, who once for all finished his work, would be cold and barren, and we must differ from profane men especially in that we see the presence of divine power shining as much in the continuing state of the universe as in its inception.” John Calvin (Institutes of the Christian Religion Bk 1, Ch XVI, Sec 1—p. 197)
ii. Deism is refuted.[7]
iii. Colossians 1.17 “…and he is before all things and in him all things hold together.”
iv. Hebrews 1.3 Christ “upholds all things by the word of his power”
v. We are ever-dependent for life each moment—take a breath, that is God’s air you breath and he gives you the life to breath it!
e. (5) God is Self-sufficient (v 25): “… as though he needed anything…”
i. Psalm 50.10-12
ii. Isaiah 66.1-2
iii. Job 41.11
iv. God did not create humans because he was lonely
v. God’s self-sufficiency should comfort us. God’s power can be directed to us as the objects of his love; he is not trying to fill some lack in himself
1. a se = Aseity
“The term aseity comes from the Latin phrase a se, meaning ‘from or by oneself.’ In the theological literature, the term designates a divine attribute by which God is ‘what he is by or through his own self.’ Since God is a se, he does not owe his existence to anything or anyone besides himself, nor does he need anything beyond himself to maintain his existence. He is not like the idols that depend for their existence on select materials, skilled craftsman, and ritual offerings (Isa. 40:19-20; 44:15-17; Ps. 50:8-15). Indeed, he has no needs at all (Acts 17:25). So the terms self-contained, self-existent, self-sufficient, andindependent are often used as synonyms for a se.”[8]
2. Everything else depends for its existence on God but God depends on nothing for his existence.
f. (6) God is Sovereign (v 26): “… having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation…”
i. Purpose pervades the universe!
ii. God deals with the sparrows that fall to the ground and the hairs on your head (Matthew 10.29-30).
iii. He also raises nations up and thrusts them down
1. Psalm 33.10-11
2. Isaiah 40.22-23
3. Daniel 4.34-35
iv. Do you see the news of the world through the lens of God’s sovereignty?
v. We tend to see the world (the nations) as ruled by political, economic, and even environmental forces. We invest these forces with omnipotence and tell ourselves, “That’s the way the world is!”
vi. “…the way in which we view our world should be relativized by the truth of God’s Word.” David Wells, God in the Wasteland, p. 161
g. (7) God is Desiring of relationship with people (v 27): “… that they would seek God…”
i. His sovereignty is directed so “that they should seek God.”
ii. Not a “need-desire” (v 25) but rather this desire flows from the full well of his love
iii. People spurn this God (Romans 1.21) and thus become foolish (Romans 1.22)—they grope about blindly
iv. A person can’t “take or leave” God—he desires a loving response!
h. (8) God is Transcendent (v 24): “… he is Lord of heaven and earth…”
i. God is exalted, high and lifted up; enthroned in heaven
ii. Isaiah 66.1-2
i. (9) God is Immanent (v 28): “… for in him we live and move, and exist…”
i. God’s nearness; he is not far removed
ii. Jeremiah 23.23-24
iii. Transcendence and immanence must be kept together!
iv. Faulty views of:
1. Transcendence: God is wholly other; far removed from us; he doesn’t care; can’t reveal himself in the Scriptures
2. Immanence: God is identical to the world and world processes; his activity cannot be identified in space and time (i.e., miracles don’t happen)[9]
v. Proper view:[10]
1. Transcendence: God’s sovereign lordship
2. Immanence: God’s presence
j. (10) God is Patient and Gracious (30): “Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent.”
i. Exodus 34.6-7: “compassionate, gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness”
ii. Acts 14.16: “… and in generations gone by he permitted all the nations to go their own ways…”
iii. With the coming of Christ the world-wide scope of the gospel is put into stark relief! All the nations are to turn to Jesus Christ—none are to be left out!
k. (11) God is Judge (v 31): “… he has fixed a day in which he will judge the world…”
i. Exodus 34.7: “… yet he will by no means leave the guilty unpunished…”[11]
ii. Presupposes God’s holiness
iii. Psalm 7.11: “God is a righteous judge, and a God who has indignation every day.”
l. (12) God is able to act in human history and perform miracles (v 31): “… having furnished proof to all men by raising him from the dead.”
4. “Three theological ‘non-negotiables’ on display in the Areopagus address guide the Apostle in his ability to address reigning philosophical assumptions. First, the Apostle stresses the sovereign lordship of the one true God. This lordship is manifest in creation ex nihilo and in maintaining the history of nations. Second, proof of divine disclosure can be found in the resurrection of the God-man, Jesus Christ. A stumbling-block to any generation, the resurrection ‘forces the issue,’ as it were, in validating Christianity’s truth-claims. As cultural apologists, Christians need to be equipped with an understanding of philosophical and theological ‘first things.’ Competing in culture are diametrically opposed world views, and the ultimacy of Christian truth-claims stands or falls with the resurrection. Third, the movement of a faithful apologetic is always in the direction of moral accountability. By underscoring the reality of future judgment, the Apostle dismantles religious inclusivity: all people everywhere must repent and confront the knowledge of the Creator that has been imparted to them.”[12]
[1] Quoting Tara Burton, Strange Rites: New Religions for a Godless World (New York: Public Affairs, 2020), 22.
[2] John M. Frame, Apologetics: A Justification of Christian Belief, 2nd ed.—edited by Jospeh E. Torres, (New Jersey, Presbyterian and Reformed, 2015), 34-39.
[3] John M. Frame, Apologetics: A Justification of Christian Belief, 2nd ed.—edited by Jospeh E. Torres, (New Jersey, Presbyterian and Reformed, 2015), 34.
[4] For the application of the “Absolute Personality” concept to some world religions (Buddhism, Hinduism, and Islam) see my notes, “Christianity and World Religions: Exploring the Differences,” White Rose Review (October 24, 2025)—online: https://whiterosereview.blogspot.com/2025/10/christianity-and-world-religions.html.
[5] For more on Asatru see my essay, “Asatru: Some Critical Interaction on One Version of Polytheism,” White Rose Review (February 1, 2018)—online: https://whiterosereview.blogspot.com/2018/02/asatru-some-critical-interaction-on-one.html.
[6] Thom Notaro, Van Til and the Use of Evidence (Phillipsburg, Penn.: Presbyterian and Reformed, 1980), 38-39.
[7] See my “Some Thoughts on Deism” White Rose Review (July 30, 2017)—online: https://whiterosereview.blogspot.com/2017/07/some-thoughts-on-deism.html.
[8] John M. Frame, “Divine Aseity and Apologetics” in Revelation and Reason: New Essays in Reformed Apologetics editors: K. Scott Oliphant and Lane G. Tipton (Phillipsburg, New Jersey: Presbyterian and Reformed, 2007), 115.
[9] See my two short essays: “Liberal Theology and Its Pantheizing Tendency” White Rose Review (December 26, 2014)—online: https://whiterosereview.blogspot.com/2013/12/liberal-theology-and-its-pantheizing.html and “Liberal Theology and Its Naturalizing Tendency” White Rose Review (January 28, 2014)—online: https://whiterosereview.blogspot.com/2014/01/liberal-theology-and-its-naturalizing.html.
[10] See my essay “Thoughts on God’s Transcendence and Immanence” White Rose Review (February 17, 2013)—online: https://whiterosereview.blogspot.com/2013/02/thoughts-on-gods-transcendence-and.html.
[11] For more on the wrath of God see my “The Wrath of God” White Rose Review (December 8, 2015)—online: https://whiterosereview.blogspot.com/2015/12/the-wrath-of-god.html.
