Peter wrote to the Christians suffering persecution in Anatolia: “But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander” (1 Pet. 3:15-17). The King James Version translates set apart as sanctify. The latter word was in use in the seventeenth century, but its basic meaning is better conveyed in the NIV translation of set apart.

Peter is prescribing a necessary pre-requisite for our responding to anyone who asks us concerning our beliefs. Defending the faith is clearly a matter that was quite important to the apostles (Phil. 1:7, 16; Jude 3). In the case of Paul, as he wrote to the Philippians, it was a matter of defending the gospel against the charges of the Jews accusing him to Roman authorities; and in the case of Jude it was a matter of defending the gospel from false teachers. Obviously, defense of the gospel is a good and proper consideration for Christians. And there is but one gospel (Gal. 1:8-9). We may conclude that in similar circumstances when we are asked by those who differ with us, and when there occurs teaching that contradicts what we believe the gospel to be, we should be prepared to answer.

However, before that answer is framed in our minds or given in words, we must be certain that Christ is set apart in our hearts as our Lord. We must be sure that we seek to honor, glorify, and serve Christ our Lord and not our own pride. We are not defending our beliefs but His Word. We are not defending ourselves but the holiness and honor of our Lord. We should see ourselves as slaves of Christ who seek to exalt Jesus Christ as Lord so that others will want to so exalt and honor Him, not those who seek to build up our own pride and self-esteem by proving our opponents or inquirers to be wrong.

Many religious teachers are quick to condemn and criticize a fellow Christian who teaches something differently, who holds a different doctrinal interpretation, who belongs to a different denomination, or who adheres to a different confessional statement because the very existence of differences becomes a personal threat to them. Thus they feel they must attack. But the question is: is this attack an attempt to honor Christ or to maintain their own sense of identity and religious significance by demeaning those who differ from them? This question may be quickly answered if we will first ask ourselves why we are defending our beliefs – is it Christ as Lord we defend or ourselves?