Presuppositions - To Have or Not to Have

I read the following statement in a "reformed" publication and it left me nearly speechless; it's not that there isn't much to say about it, rather, where do you begin??

"Some want to know whether there was human death prior to the disobedience of our first parents. But others are asking whether there was death of any sort before the fall. Our reflection on this will be affected by whether we’re willing to learn from paleontologists who exegete God’s world or if our exegesis of God’s Word is such that we force the findings of scientists to conform to our foregone conclusions." You can read the rest of the article here.

The question of death before the fall is a good one and deserves serious inquiry. But as I read the final sentence of the quote, several things come to mind. The author sets up a scenario where willingness to learn is pitted against foregone conclusions. The implications are many - that presuppositions prevent learning, that learners don't have presuppositions, that paleontologists don't come to their field of inquiry with presuppositions, that the serious learner is at the mercy of the data and where it leads him, that interpretation of data is accomplished without any presuppositional framework.

Even more disturbing is the broad-brush characterization of those who have a system of belief based on God's Word as being unwilling to learn from fields of study outside theology. That is certainly a perjorative expression of opinion about a diverse group of people, an assertion without benefit of proof. But what is most troubling and in my view thoroughly discrediting to the author is the subordination of special revelation to general revelation. He expects us to interpret the verbal communication of God's Word in light of the nonverbal communication of God's world. He expects us to reason from the finite back to the infinite, a logical fallacy, and the point of failure for all those who try to prove the existence of God.

Every system of thought starts with at least one presupposition, an axiom which is accepted without proof otherwise known as a First Principle. If you don't have a First Principle, by definition you cannot have more principles and thus you cannot have a system of thought. The key to developing a consistent and useful system is beginning in the right place with the right presupposition.

Since all systems but one have as their logical conclusion irrationalism and a complete failure to explain reality, let's at least begin in the right place. The Infinite God has revealed absolute truth about Himself and all that exists; He has done so in His Word. Starting with the Word of God is the only beginning that provides real answers to all the questions in a logically consistent way.

To start anywhere that subordinates God's Word to anything destroys its authority and usefulness, leaving us with nothing but skepticism. It places man in a position of authority over God and His Word, claiming that man's reason is a better judge of what is true and real than God Himself. The reality is that Scripture teaches us that worldly reasoning can never be reconciled to the truth of Scripture so we shouldn't even think about starting there.

If every thought is to be captive to Christ, then it is essential that we have a comprehensive view of men and things founded on God's absolute truth.

By His grace,
Sundoulos

Finding the Image of God

Dealing with death is tough if you are basically clueless about the answers to ultimate questions - where did I come from, why am I here, where am I going. It is no easier for those left behind to deal with it, especially when it is an untimely death. It is nearly impossible to figure out why a young person died when you don't have answers to the other questions. The hopelessness of family and friends at the funeral for such a one is obvious and palpable.

From the perspective of the one officiating at the funeral, the challenge is immense. Two things need to happen - the deceased must be properly remembered and the family and friends comforted. Such comfort as is offered must be genuine and based on ultimate truth, not empty platitudes like "God is love and He has surely taken a good person like _____ to Heaven". If it is apparent that the deceased showed no fruits of righteousness, then it is irresponsible to offer the comfort that "they are in a better place now". Better to be honest or even silent than give false hope.

But what about properly remembering and honoring the deceased, especially when the individual was a real scoundrel and contributed to their demise by a long history of wrong choices? We talk about finding good in everyone even though it takes a great deal of searching. It's true, we should do that. But I believe we should look for something more than just good.

It is not the good in people that gives them worth and dignity. That mindset is where our culture is at and is the result of building a worldview in a false premise. If we got here by the mechanism of evolution, then what is good and most useful is what survives and therefore has value. A Biblical worldview starts in a different place, with a different premise, particularly with regard to the origin of human life. Man unlike all other creatures was created in the image of God. It is that truth alone that sets mankind apart from the rest of creation.

It is the image of God in people that gives them worth and dignity. Yes, I know the fall profoundly altered and distorted that image in Adam and his posterity. But don't forget - sin distorted God's image in man, it didn't destroy it. If the image were completely destroyed, man would have ceased to be man; man would have lost all ability to communicate with God and any possibility of being reconciled to God. So it's really the remnants of that image that we should be looking for in others - in the homeless person, the welfare dependent, the drug addict, our neighbor, our boss, even the scoundrel who is the guest of honor at the funeral.

Then comes the hard part, treating that person on the basis of what we see of God's image in them, that is, with the dignity and respect they deserve.

By His grace,
Sundoulos

Stones of Remembrance

I was reminded today of the wisdom of clear memorials and how quickly things can get lost when we blur the lines. Let me explain. I know I'm dating myself a little but when I was a kid we didn't celebrate Presidents' Day. We had two official holidays, Lincoln's Birthday and Washington's Birthday. When I asked a group of high school freshmen and sophomores the significance of February 12, 1809 all I got back was blank looks. The response was similar to February 22nd. No idea why those two dates might be important.

I'm sure that there's more to it than just the morphing of two specific birthday remembrances into a generic holiday to provide promotional fodder for auto sales. But if there were still two entries on calendars with the names of President Lincoln and Washington highlighted it would certainly remove an excuse for forgetting. Our national security obviously doesn't depend on high school kids remembering the significance of these two days but it highlights an important point. Remembering the past is important.

It was important enough that God instructed Joshua to set up a 12-stone memorial next to the Jordan River. He also told Joshua the precise purpose they were to serve - when future generations asked about the stones, they were to be told of God's particular mighty act in holding back the River so the ark of the covenant could pass over on dry ground. Remembering how God has worked in the affairs of men thereby directing the course of history is something we must not forget.

Since we are forgetful people (see Judges 2:10), God has wisely instructed us to erect memorials as reminders. He has also instructed parents to teach their children and grandchildren so they won't forget His truth. You see, it only takes a couple generations to start losing our rich heritage. Days like February 12^th and February 22^nd can serve as opportunities to not only remind our children and our children's children of the important facts of our country's history, but also show them how God is still moving in the affairs of men.

By His grace,
Sundoulos

Superman and Jesus??

Superman as a parable or point of reference for Jesus? That's what our friends across the pond would like us to think. According to Helen Cook, head of post-graduate teacher training in Religious Education at Sheffield Hallam University, there are many parallels between Superman and Jesus that will give 21^st century teenagers a point of reference. "Children aren't brought up to go to Sunday School any more and find it difficult to think about abstract concepts such as God and predestination and films give them an insight," she says according to the February 4, 2006 London Daily Telegraph.

If what I remember of 1^st century history is correct, the philosophers Paul encountered at the Areopagus weren't brought up to go to Sunday School either. Nor does it appear from the account given in Acts 17 that he had great difficulty in getting them to understand the abstract concept of God. Perhaps that is because of his worldview in general and his perspective of anthropology in particular came from the starting point of God and His revelation rather than human reason.

According to Romans 1, every human being is "pre-programmed" by the Creator with a knowledge of the Creator, a sort of instinctive recognition that there is a God somewhere. The natural response of fallen man to that knowledge is to deny it and try to believe in no God, or distort it and believe in a false God. It really makes sense, doesn't it, that our Creator would make us with the ability to comprehend at least a few things about Him and His existence?

So what was Paul's strategy? Find some character in Greek or Roman drama who could provide that frame of reference for the philosophers? No, he found the precise evidence in their own culture that showed they truly did think there was a real God not of their own making as shown by their temple to The Unknown God. They had the sense of the real, their attention was mis-directed by sin to focus on the wrong object. Paul began at Genesis and identified the proper object of their worship, the true God that they all knew existed but really didn't want to acknowledge.

If we are made in the image of God, then we have an ability to comprehend a certain amount of truth about that God. Whether teenager or old-ager, child or adult, we need to follow the model of Scripture and present them the truth first. If after the truth is established we need to bring in analogies for further application, fine. But I really don't think we can come up with any more effective method of evangelism than the Author of both us and the Gospel has already given.

By His grace,
Sundoulos