Tactics in Defending the Faith: DVD Review

The Tactics in Defending the Faith DVD is an interactive group study course created by Stand to Reason. Presented by Greg Koukl, this is designed to be a "plug-and-play" tool for small group study. This short review will give a synopsis of the contents and assessment of its value as a teaching tool.

What’s in the box:
You get a DVD album which contains two DVDs and one data CD. Each DVD contains three 30-minute sessions. The data CD contains a PDF with table of contents, a 109-page student manual, student instructions, a 109-page teacher manual, and teacher instructions.

What’s on the DVDs:
The DVDs contain teaching sessions delivered by Greg Koukl in a church setting. In essence, you will be hearing Greg teaching on the main content of his Tactics for Defending the Faith (see also the book here). The title menu has links to each of the 3 sessions contained on each DVD. As Greg teaches, PowerPoint slides are shown onscreen as you watch. At key moments Greg will instruct the group to do various exercises or group activities outlined in the study guide, which the student will use as they watch. Here are the titles of each of the sessions:

• Session 1: Learning the “Columbo” Tactic
• Session 2: Refining the “Columbo” Tactic
• Session 3: Perfecting the “Columbo” Tactic
• Session 4: The “Suicide” Tactic
• Session 5: The “Taking the Roof Off ” Tactic
• Session 6: The “Steamroller” Tactic

The quality of the physical product:
The DVDs are provided in a standard quality album. The actual discs have been labeled with full-face color-printed labels. The six PowerPoint slides (1 for each session) are simple and attractive. (They are only needed if you don’t use the DVDs to do the teaching.) The really impressive part is the 109-page PDF study guides, suitable for printing and putting in a binder. This is very well produced, thorough, and will actually add a lot to the teaching. Excellent material.

The quality of the actual content:
For those familiar with Greg Koukl’s Tactics in the Defending the Faith, this is his excellent, tried and true content. There is nothing new here as far as the Tactics content goes – but it is presented in a way specifically designed for small groups to interact and master the material. The way STR put it together seems to accomplish that purpose very well.

Who will find this useful:
This is a great resource for those who run small groups, home groups, apologetics study groups, or Sunday school classes. The materials provided allow the DVDs to do the teaching part, while the group leader can facilitate the discussion. For a practical, accessible DVD resource that teaches Christians how to be good ambassadors this is a great choice.

Where to get it:

Get it from Stand to Reason here. Apologetics 315 readers can receive a 20% discount by entering the discount code 315TACTICS during checkout. This is a one-week offer. Enjoy!

Greg Koukl Tactics Resources MP3 and Video

In tandem with his new book release, Greg Koukl discussed some apologetics Tactics on Issues, Etc. Here are the MP3 files from the podcast.

• The Need for a Tactical Approach - MP3
• The Columbo Tactic - MP3
• The Columbo Tactic, Refined - MP3
• The Suicide Tactic & Taking the Roof Off - MP3
• Rhodes Scholar & Just the Facts, Ma'am - MP3

Also, the Stand to Reason blog recently released some short video snippets where Koukl answers some questions about tactics, below:
• Tactics and Diplomacy - video
• Tactics and Calvinism - video
• Tactics on the Internet - video
• Tactics and Non-Christians - video
• Tactics and Courage - video
• Tactics and Taking the Roof Off - video
• Tactics and Christians - video

• Dealing with Doubt - video

Enjoy.

Greg Koukl's Tactics Blog Tour

Today we welcome Greg Koukl to interact on the blog. His new book Tactics has just been released. Today he will be answering a couple of questions and interacting with your follow-up questions in the comments.

Be sure to follow the tour throughout the week:
Today also: Rightly Dividing the Word of Truth
Wed. 2/18 Truthbomb Apologetics
Wed. 2/18 Apologetics.com
Thurs. 2/19 Zondervan Koinonia
Fri. 2/20 Stand to Reason

Question #1 from Brian @ Apologetics 315: What key personal disciplines, spiritual or otherwise, have played the most vital role in your development as a critical thinker, clear communicator, and effective apologist?

Greg's Response:
I have always struggled, more or less, with the classical disciplines of Christianity: prayer, fasting, meditation on the Word, etc. Consequently, I can’t say that they have had a special impact in my life, although I think my prayer life has gotten richer and more meaningful as I have gotten older in the Lord.

The thing that has made the biggest difference—that has played the most “vital role,” I think—are the mentors, near and far, who have molded me. Since the beginning I have had strong Christians around me to guide me, teach me, and especially to correct me when I needed it. For the most part, I have welcomed criticism and critique of my views, my character, and also of the way I come across to others. Even now I have people I trust looking over my shoulder giving feedback on the content and tone of these missives I am posting for Tactics. I think it is lethal to effectiveness when any Christian fails to have those in his life that can serve that role.

So, I think I have learned to be a better critical thinker, communicator, and apologist by first apprenticing myself—either directly or indirectly—to others who excel in those areas. I listen to them, watch them, hang around if I’m able, drawing from their wisdom and experience. I think about how they think, not just what they think. I listen to how they use words, illustrations, gestures, and audience interaction. I then try to imitate what I see them modeling in any of those areas. For example, I listen to Dennis Prager and pay attention to the little things he’s doing on the air that I think make him so effective, then I try to work those elements into my own style as a broadcaster.

Second, I give others close to me permission to critique all aspects of my life, and I actively seek out that information even when it’s not volunteered. We almost never see our own weaknesses, though they are frequently obvious to others. If you enlist your family, friends, and colleagues as allies in the process of becoming better in any area you’re concerned about, you will improve much faster then you thought possible providing, that is, you have the mettle for it. It is an acquired skill and I confess I haven’t always been up to it. But if you can steel yourself to hear the truth from others who care, you will greatly benefit.

Question #2 from Kyle in Plano, TX: How do you see apologetics changing in the next twenty years or so as the culture continues to change?

Greg's Response:
This is very difficult to answer since it is hard to tell what the future holds and how Christians in general will respond to the challenges to the Gospel that arise in the years to come. In one sense, nothing should change. Our basic posture at Stand to Reason—and the idea at the heart of the Tactics book—is to be God’s ambassador presenting the truth as persuasively and as graciously as we are able.

Here is how I put it in chapter one:

Jesus said that when you find yourself a sheep amidst wolves, be innocent, but be shrewd (Matthew 10:16). Even though there is real warfare going on, our engagements should look more like diplomacy than D-Day. In this book I would like to teach you how to do that. I want to suggest a method I call the Ambassador model. This approach trades more on friendly curiosity—a kind of relaxed diplomacy—than on confrontation.

I then talk specifically about what the three main elements of the ambassador model:

Representing Christ in the new millennium requires three basic skills…. These three skills—knowledge, an accurately informed mind; wisdom, an artful method; and character, an attractive manner—play a part in every effective involvement with a non-believer. The second skill, tactical wisdom, is the main focus of this book.

I see no reason why anything about the ambassador model should change regardless of what we face in the future. That’s why I think this approach is so helpful. New challenges may mean adding to our knowledge or adjusting our tactics, etc., but the basic model remains the same.

I do envision stylistic changes, though, especially adopting a tone that is more sensitive to the prevailing ethos. Narrative is playing a much bigger part in the process now than before, for example. Post-modern sensibilities are forcing us to be kinder and gentler, so to speak, and that’s a good thing. My fear is that as a church we will drift into a new wave of anti-intellectualism, and this is never a good thing, on balance.

Feel free to respond to Greg's answers and ask him follow-up questions.

Greg Koukl's Tactics Blog Tour

Greg Koukl's Tactics Blog Tour begins next week, with a special stop here at Apologetics 315. Greg will be answering questions at each blog along the tour, as well as answering your follow-up questions in the comments. Be sure to follow him during his tour:

Mon. 2/16 Challies
Mon. 2/16 STR Facebook group page
Tues. 2/17 Apologetics 315
Tues. 2/17 Rightly Dividing the Word of Truth
Wed. 2/18 Truthbomb Apologetics
Wed. 2/18 Apologetics.com
Thurs. 2/19 Zondervan Koinonia
Thurs. 2/19 The Crux
Fri. 2/20 Stand to Reason

Be sure to visit here on Tuesday when Greg stops by for the day.

Book Review: Tactics by Greg Koukl

by Brian Auten

This week I received my copy of Tactics: A Game Plan for Discussing Your Christian Convictions by Greg Koukl. I was anxious to have a look at the book, as I have been following Greg Koukl’s ministry of Stand to Reason for a number of years. On one hand, I was excited to see in book form what I have heard Koukl demonstrate so many times on his live radio program: an effective and gracious way to communicate one’s faith in an articulate and winsome way. On the other hand, my familiarity with Koukl’s Tactics audio program made me wonder if this was just a repackaging of the same material. I was thoroughly surprised. I’m a reader – but it’s been a while since I have devoured a book.

Tactics is an immediately practical book. The author’s heart is that Christians be equipped to be good ambassadors. An ambassador has three skills: “knowledge, an accurately informed mind; wisdom, an artful method; and character, an attractive manner.”1 Koukl describes the goal of a tactical approach – one that seeks to converse more persuasively by being thoughtful and reasonable, rather than emotional, about one’s convictions.

In a very balanced way, Koukl carefully introduces this approach and neutralizes some of the negative connotations that come with sharing and defending the faith. Some people immediately object at the idea of argumentation or “methods.” However, Koukl summarizes a more biblical approach:

Here’s the key principle: Without God’s work, nothing else works; but with God’s work, many things work. Under the influence of the Holy Spirit, love persuades. By the power of God, the gospel transforms. And with Jesus at work, arguments convince. God is happy to use each of these methods.2

Now Koukl dives into the meat of the book. He presents about a half dozen “tactics,” as he calls them – each with a memorable name, such as, “Columbo,” “Suicide,” and, “Taking the Roof Off,” among others. As he teaches you these tactics, Koukl’s experience and mastery in this area immediately become evident. He is not a theorist presenting untested ideas. Instead, he is a veteran, discussing situation after situation gleaned from countless personal encounters, public debates, radio interviews, and friendly conversations. The phenomenal part is that these approaches are simple and the applications are immediately accessible to the reader.

One particular insight Koukl shares should bring relief to those who feel fear come over them at even the thought of discussing their faith: you don’t have to hit home runs. In fact, Koukl stresses that you don’t even have to get on base. The goal is to leave them with something to think about. His advice: simply leave them with “a stone in their shoe.”

Navigating through the book, you will find gem after gem of wisdom. So many of the common objections that the Christian encounters are found here – but with answers that are actually useful in conversation. Although much of the substance is philosophical in nature, Koukl drops the jargon and replaces it with practical expressions. This is a handbook suitable for the layman and professional apologist alike.

After passing the halfway point in the book, you will realize that you are not just learning how to steer safely through a conversation – you are learning how to think. Koukl will sharpen your thinking skills and your ability to spot fuzzy logic and faulty arguments. You will realize that this is a book about truth. By the time you reach the end (it’s about 200 pages), you will be amazed at the amount of wisdom, insight, and courage you have gleaned. A second reading is definitely in order.

Koukl’s Tactics is endorsed by a long list of notable apologists and Christian thinkers: Norman Geisler, William Lane Craig, Gary Habermas, J. P. Moreland, Hank Hanegraaff, Jay Wesley Richards, David Noebel, Justin Taylor, Paul Copan, Sean McDowell, Frank Turek, and Craig Hazen.

For those familiar with Koukl’s Tactics audio program (found here), many of the same personal encounters are cited. However, this is not a repackaging of old material. I found the book to be immensely helpful even after recently re-listening to Greg Koukl’s Tactics in Defending the Faith audio program. In addition to the expanded and fresh material, I found the summaries at the end of each chapter to be particularly helpful.

Greg Koukl's Tactics: A Game Plan for Discussing Your Christian Convictions is not designed to give you pat answers or lists of facts to bring to your conversations. Far from being “another evangelism book,” Tactics is a book that will challenge you to be a critical thinker, a logical communicator, and a gracious ambassador for Jesus Christ.

1 Gregory Koukl, Tactics: A Game Plan for Discussing Your Christian Convictions (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2008), p. 29.
2 Ibid., p. 40.