Popular apologist Cliffe Knechtle urges students to evangelize with love and truth

Cliffe Knechtle, a Christian apologist, author, evangelist, and senior pastor of Grace Community Church in New Canaan, Conn., told students at Liberty University’s Convocation on Friday to be motivated by love when sharing the Gospel.

“God uses all of us differently to point people to Jesus Christ,” he reminded a packed Vines Center audience. “Love for God and love for people motivates us to communicate Him.”

Knechtle is best known for his “Give Me An Answer” program, where he evangelizes in public spaces (mainly college campuses) and challenges people on worldview, truth, and assumptions about God and the universe. His rise in popularity over the years earned him appearances on prominent national podcasts, including the “George Janko Podcast,” “PBD Podcast,” and “IMPAULSIVE,” shows that collect millions of listeners globally each week.

On Friday, Knechtle encouraged students to evangelize by mimicking the tactics of Jesus: listening and asking questions.

“He’s trying to prod people to think more deeply about God, about your life, about meaning and purpose, about life after death,” Knechtle said, noting that Jesus asked more than 290 questions in the Gospels. “And that requires listening to people carefully.”

Knechtle charged students to share their faith out of love for their neighbor and as a commandment from Jesus Christ to make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:19).

“At the very core of the life of a follower of Christ is to love God with your heart, soul, mind, and strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself,” he said. “And that is key in evangelism. We communicate our faith to others in obedience to Jesus Christ.”

Knechtle said that evangelism isn’t about “converting” people but about uplifting them to take one step closer to God. He said that each person’s path to salvation is a long chain of influences, with each evangelist acting as one link.

“Christ calls us to be faithful, which means I’m going to seek to talk with people about Christ,” he said. “And they’re going to think about it. And they’re not necessarily going to make a decision right then and there. But you’re going to be faithful to be the first link in that chain of them coming to Christ, a middle link in that chain of them coming to Christ, and then occasionally the last link.”

“He loves you so much, He wants to spend eternity with you. … That is the most important, most life-affirming message in the world,” he said. “You’ve got that message. You’ve got that faith in Christ. Use the unique personality and the unique gifts that God has blessed you with to communicate Christ to a world that desperately needs the love and truth of Christ.”

Following Convocation, Knechtle visited Liberty’s Standing for Freedom Center as a guest on the “Give Me Liberty” podcast, where he weighed in on the future of his ministry and his experiences working 44 years as an evangelist addressing atheists’ most pressing questions and concerns.