Gate Breakers: An Apologetic Study to Equip God's People Regarding Cults and World Religions

Pastors and Christian leaders sometimes face the problem of "new" Christians being lured away by cults, and they often feel ill-equipped to adequately train even "mature" Christians to stand their ground as effective witnesses. I know personally the pain of having someone call up, who had been baptized through our church, and ask for their baptism papers because they were joining the Jehovah's Witnesses.
Christians, in general, know the anguish of being confronted by aggressive, well-versed cult members and feel ill-equipped to respond in a confident fashion. In an age when people are proclaiming themselves to be "the new world messiah"3 and New Age ideas are encroaching upon traditional Christian doctrine, new approaches to equipping Christians about the cults and world religions must be developed, conducted, and evaluated, in order to produce the best possible means for protecting Christians and making them effective witnesses in the end times. In an age commonly referred to as the "information age," it is amazing that so little effective training is available for Christians regarding the cults and world religions.
The question central to this project is: How effectively will an apologetic catechism with study guide, combined with group teaching, equip Christians with knowledge and confidence pertaining to the cults and world religions?
In this project, I have created twenty lessons pertaining to the cults and world religions and have used these to train Christians. The research and conclusions will suggest applications for pastors, Christian leaders, and various other Christian training centers.
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3Ron Carlson and Ed Decker, Fast Facts on False Teachings (Eugene, OR: Harvest House Publishers, 1994), 147.