How Do You Know? Defending Truth Through the Christian Worldview

When I was a child, a frequent comeback in our playground disputes was, “Well, how do you know?” Ironically, that childish retort strikes at the very heart of apologetics, because it raises the central question of epistemology—how we know what we know. This question is essential to the Christian worldview, which offers the only coherent foundation for truth and knowledge.

Childhood Questions, Eternal Truths

In defending the faith, this question often proves more fruitful than simply marshalling an array of “facts.” Classical apologetics tends to pile up evidences, but facts are never interpreted in a vacuum; they are always filtered through one’s presuppositions. For example, when discussing origins, a Christian worldview may recognize design in creation, while a naturalist interprets the very same evidence as the product of blind chance.

Why Presuppositions Matter in Apologetics

The difference is not the facts themselves, but the worldview lenses through which those facts are viewed. This is why, rather than beginning with evidence, it is often wiser to begin with presuppositions. We can gently press the unbeliever to live consistently with their worldview.

If someone claims the universe is nothing more than matter in motion, then on what basis do they trust their own reasoning, or speak meaningfully about morality? If human thought is merely chemicals “fizzing” in the brain, how could one claim to have truth at all?

The Christian Worldview: A Foundation for Truth

Thus, the task of apologetics is not simply to win a debate with more data, but to expose the foundations beneath the debate. The Christian worldview uniquely provides a coherent basis for logic, morality, and truth itself—because “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge” (Proverbs 1:7).