Transcript
Speaker: Well, Dustin, how you doing, man? I'm doing well. How are you? I'm good. We're going to be talking about the Bible today. it Sounds good. hit Hopefully we talk about that. Yeah, yeah, right. We talk about the Bible every week. but ah In a sense, um...
Speaker: We're going to be talking about a worldview level. Okay. Maybe. why I should believe the Bible or why I do believe the Bible. On the last, I think it was the last broadcast, might have been. a previous one, but nevertheless.
Speaker: I had said something toward the end that... The Bible is the only... precondition or is the precondition for intelligibility okay And I think we were talking in the context of Sola Scriptura, if I'm not mistaken.
Speaker: which of course means scripture alone. So scripture alone is our ultimate authority. Sure. And we're not going to rehash what we were talking about on that previous episode. But.
Speaker: I just want to flesh that out a little bit. What did I mean when I made that statement? okay And part of what I meant really is that God himself is the precondition for intelligibility.
Speaker: And so that's what we want to talk about, you know what what we mean by that. And part of what we mean by that is that. Without God. or without.
Speaker: laws of logic by way of example. which come from God. he He's a God of order. He's a God of rationality. And we're going to flesh that out a little bit. but You...
Speaker: When someone... Tries to critique. our morality or when someone tries to hold out something as as an authority. That's not God or God's word.
Speaker: Well, they're appealing to... somebody else's standard. And so unless there's a universal standard, you can't You don't really have any basis or any ground.
Speaker: on which to stand or or on which to judge. Um, we We should do a broadcast on... Unapologetic. of the christian faith against deconstruction yes and we can do that very easily at a worldview level Because ultimately...
Speaker: They would like to say, well, they're going to stand on neutral ground and judge our moral value system. But there is no such thing as neutral ground. Right. They're using their own moral value system to judge our moral value system.
Speaker: yeah So in order for us to even kind have a conversation, there has to be some kind of. Precondition. for intelligibility. In other words, how do we understand one another? Well, it's predicated on laws of logic, for example. And we're going to talk about some other things. um Didn't want to get too bogged down there.
Speaker: yeah One of the things, and I want to try to make it practical for folk as well. We're not just trying to be academic here. We're just having a conversation. So there was a survey done not long ago.
Speaker: And they do these all the time, asking evangelical teenagers why they believe the Bible. Okay. And most of them were like, well. I mean, it's it's what I've always been taught. And of course, that's one of the things that.
Speaker: A lot of folk who are. deconstructing from Christianity. That's one of the things that... that They'll say, yeah, this is what we've always been taught. well How do I know that's true? What about all these other?
Speaker: religions over here all these other folk over here you know that's not fair or whatever the case may be and you only believe the bible because that's what you've been taught and so That's why I want to do a broadcast on that. We'll push back on that just a little bit. Sure, yeah. um yeah Like you said at the onset, our standard that...
Speaker: we feel like there has to be one, is God himself. Yep. And we agree on that. but The question is... How do we know who God is or how do we know about God? Well, the answer is that he reveals himself.
Speaker: through his word through scripture through the bible that's right uh you know he's revealed himself in creation right we've talked about that before a general revelation But I can't. I can go out and I can look at a beautiful sunset or I can look at the majesty of the mountains or the vastness of the ocean.
Speaker: And I can understand that there was a creator. Yep. but i can't really learn anything about him just by observing that general revelation right So that special revelation is what we're talking about. yeah This word that he's given to us is how we can know him.
Speaker: And so if we're going to start with the... premise that God is the standard. for all of life for logic as you said for morality all of these things Then the next question that has to come is how can we know?
Speaker: about God, who he is, and and all of these things. And that's the Bible. So that's why it's so important. for us to talk about this yeah that's exactly right Yeah, as you said. ah we go out and we look at nature and of course this is the whole natural law discussion comes into play here which is another topic for another time, of course, but...
Speaker: yeah You know, the Bible says... Because of our sinfulness, which is what you're alluding to. We don't really understand Uh... who God is, and you can't know God in a saving way apart from... him revealing himself to us. We can look at creation.
Speaker: And we understand that there's a God. and we know something about him, but but because of our sin, we're suppressing that truth. Which means... Practically speaking, we really don't know him. We don't understand him. So you know him, but you don't.
Speaker: yeah And again, a whole other discussion. But. um So then the question is, and I think this is is partly where you're going to. The only way we'll put it this way, I'll put it this way. The only way we can know there is a God.
Speaker: We can't find him through. merely mere human reason. We can't, we can't see him. You know, we we don't observe him with our five senses. So the only way for us to know him.
Speaker: because he's completely distinct from us in the universe. that he created. ah is for him to reveal himself to us, as you said. so That's part of where we're going. But that practical dynamic. um Hopefully this will help.
Speaker: Lots of people. um I remember when I was in college. I was a Christian. in a sense. I was born. and raised well -born. But you know what I mean. I was raised in a Christian home. We'll put it that way.
Speaker: And so i I was taught to believe the Bible. But I didn't know God. I was lost. I wasn't born again. until after I graduated. Shortly after, thankfully, but nevertheless. so But I do remember, you know, as a philosophy major. Well, I started out in business, got out of that.
Speaker: Anyway, that's another story. I don't want to be too personal here. because it's boring. But. That's philosophy major, and I took. all kinds of philosophy courses. I took sociology and psychology. I took anthropology and all that.
Speaker: And most of my professors were atheists. And they would come against ah a Christian worldview openly, a biblical worldview openly, and attack. Christianity, the Bible, etc.
Speaker: And I remember thinking, man. why what in the world who are these people so i was you know i was like a fish out of water But because my parents had taught me to believe the Bible,
Speaker: I believed it. But I couldn't defend it because I knew nothing about it. Yeah. So that's another reason. Like like the average teenager. in In my case, I believe the Bible because my parents told me to. I think there are compelling reasons for anyone to believe the Bible. We're not going to, but we could talk about evidence. I mean, there's a lot of evidence.
Speaker: for the the the veracity of the scriptures, the truthfulness of the scriptures. There's a lot of evidence for... Just take the resurrection of of Jesus. There's a lot of evidence for that.
Speaker: Well, you've got 500 witnesses, for example, according to 1 Corinthians. You've got... you know, accounts of people. talking about Jesus and and and other things and and all the various.
Speaker: atheistic theories, you know, like the swoon theory and... The disciples stole the body and all of that. None of those arguments really make sense. We're not going to go down that road. One of the big questions is.
Speaker: Every one of the 12 disciples, the 12 apostles... except for Judas, and and I would be... talking about the the addition of... Gosh, his name just went right out of my head. Matthias? Yeah, maybe. Anyway.
Speaker: uh in acts But my my point is the the apostles... People would not be willing to die for a lie. Right. And a lot of people will say, well,
Speaker: Muslims die for a lie. Well, yeah, their religion is a lie. They don't believe it's a lie. They believe it's truth. Yeah. And so they're willing to die for it. That's right.
Speaker: theory that you're referring to. would indicate that the... The apostles, the disciples were intentionally. Lying. yeah about Jesus dying and and resurrecting.
Speaker: And so... No one would die for an intentional lie. Yeah. They would die for something that they believe is true, but they're deceived. Yes. which is what we would believe that Muslims are doing. But yeah, no one's going to be willing to give their life for something they know is not true. That is exactly the point.
Speaker: And so we could talk about all of that and and we have, but not at length. I think there's some other compelling reasons to believe the Bible. And again, let me stipulate to this.
Speaker: When people talk about evidence. the The Holy Spirit still has to work in someone's heart. Exactly, yes. that's you know We preach the gospel. Some believe, some don't.
Speaker: We say that the gospel is the power of God unto salvation, which it is. The Bible says that. but It is the power of God and salvation because it's the truth about salvation. And when it's energized by the Spirit, when when the Spirit...
Speaker: opens your eyes, when the Spirit changes your life. As you said about your own life. Yeah. You you grew up being taught the Bible. you You even went to a Christian. So you were taught the Bible every single day. yeah um I was.
Speaker: raised in a very similar situation. Both of my parents were believers from... as long as i could remember my dad actually became a believer shortly after i was born but My only recollection of him was he was he was a believer.
Speaker: Went to church my whole life, you know. I did come to faith at ah a fairly young age, but even... at that young age, it was a realization that It was more than just. believing that the Bible was true.
Speaker: Right. and and those types of things. And understanding that they're. you know, the way that I would have worded it at the time was that there's a relationship. between me and the Lord that has to take place.
Speaker: um And so, yeah, and and again, that's... That's the work of the Holy Spirit. that's taking facts. that you believe. but then converting it into faith. Yeah, yeah, that's right.
Speaker: And so... You know, we would we would say You could take all the evidence. in the world Let's just say for the resurrection of Jesus, and let's say... Somebody looked at all that evidence and and believed it because man, it's compelling. I mean, there's a mountain.
Speaker: But then they're like. I still don't believe he's the son of God. i mean Or they still reject the gospel. Yeah, this is we didn't just we didn't talk about this beforehand, but um it's interesting. I've i've noticed on... ah some social media channels.
Speaker: recently. there's a growing trend of some young Atheists. who are um I can't remember what the term they're using for it. One guy that I was watching, he keeps saying he's...
Speaker: Larping. His way through Christianity, which... uh that I don't know if you know what that term is, live action role playing. Basically, he's playing the part. he still Doesn't.
Speaker: believe. in the truth of the gospel. but he's going to give it a try. So he's spending every day praying. He's spending every day reading the Bible, trying to actually obey the teachings of Jesus like he's going through all these things. Yeah.
Speaker: to see. He's literally saying to see if I can manufacture faith. Interesting. So, yeah. So I think that's an interesting footnote to this discussion. Yeah. Is apparently there's there's a growing trend.
Speaker: Of. younger. atheists who are not convinced but they're saying there's a lot of Good things about a Christian worldview. yeah um about having peace and you know all of these things that sound really attractive. yeah So they're like, all right, well, I'm just going to give it a try. and see if just doing all the things on the checklist, you know, yeah will give me that piece I'm looking for. Yeah. Interesting.
Speaker: Well, we know those that that won't save them, but we can pray that God will. in that quest or that search, whatever you want to call it, that that God would open their eyes and that they would be saved. Yeah, interesting.
Speaker: I bring that up because... I think. the more Let me put it this way. The more tools you have in your tool belt, I guess when you're. trying to, first off, encouraging Christians, but secondly, when you're doing evangelism, is what I was going to say.
Speaker: Yeah, evidence is good, but but I think being able to engage at a worldview level. is important as well. and so God still has to do that work in the person's heart.
Speaker: But if you can... if you can you know, on the one hand. help people to see the flaws in their own worldview. Okay, well, now you're a little bit further down the road.
Speaker: And then you can show them. why the biblical worldview is the only worldview that makes sense out of reality. Now you're way further down the road. Now now God still has to do the work, but God uses means. Sometimes he uses evidence. Sometimes he uses worldviews. Sometimes he uses something that happens to people, a tragedy, yeah or maybe even LARPing through Christianity. He may use that. Yeah, yeah.
Speaker: yeah the spirit as we said has to do a work yeah but and and and we believe that the spirit is who generates faith in a person. It's not something I can manufacture on my own, right? We yeah we definitely believe that.
Speaker: The Bible teaches that. so the holy spirit has to create that faith in a person. but that faith does still have to have. a basis in truth. yeah And, and again, that truth is going to be found in God's word.
Speaker: which we believe is. holy spirit inspired yeah so that's still the spirit doing the work on both ends of that um But yeah, that we need that truth. in order to have the faith. yeah So it's it's yeah it's both, but both are a work of the Holy Spirit. Yeah, that's exactly right.
Speaker: Well, Let's just sort of... kind of segue into what yeah What we wanted to put on the table, we could put. Lots of. dynamics on the table but we've Pick three.
Speaker: They may or may not be the most compelling. but nevertheless uh we've picked three and and just to clarify what we're saying We're talking about... reasons to believe the Bible. Let me put it that way, or reasons that...
Speaker: that the Bible... The... You really have to. The Bible itself, which is God's revelation of himself, and of course us and our problem, our need. and the solution and all that.
Speaker: But God himself and then the the revelation of himself through his word. If we didn't have that. If God wasn't real. We'll put it that way.
Speaker: This world wouldn't even be possible. I mean, it wouldn't even be possible. so One of the things that that we would say is that the Bible... provides the only suitable precondition In other words, it's got to exist first. So the Bible provides the only suitable precondition for...
Speaker: intelligibility, Okay, well what does that mean? Again, like I said... o We... You know, we talked on a previous broadcast about ultimate questions and again we don't want to spend a lot of time on that but Where do we come from?
Speaker: evolution or naturalistic worldview the the Yeah, the naturalistic worldview, which says all that we... Canoe. We detect with our senses.
Speaker: scientific method, etc. Some would say evolution's proven science. But it's not. And so. Nobody was here when the universe came to be.
Speaker: And so we're all extrapolating from something, whether it's an idea or whether it's something we observe. scientifically. we're all extrapolating back what happened we're doing historical science but it's still a faith issue. Evolutionists believe.
Speaker: You know, on the one hand. that something can't come from nothing. Life can't come from non -life. Order can't come from chaos. But... They believe that's exactly what happened, that there was nothing, and not just empty space, but nothing.
Speaker: And yet... Something came from nothing. Life came from non -life. order came from chaos whether it's a big bang quantum fluctuation whatever the case may be So the point is...
Speaker: When you ask these ultimate questions... Where do I come from? They have no explanation on their worldview because their worldview says something can't come from nothing. And yet.
Speaker: We're here. Okay, I just, and I know I'm belaboring the point, but. If anybody's familiar with this, they can fast forward or whatever. But if they're not, this is why, you know, we're dealing with all of this. so We want to take that a step further and say, okay.
Speaker: God himself or the Bible. is the only Thing I'll just try to keep it simple that gives us a justification for reason. So not just where do I come from?
Speaker: which we talked about. What is my purpose now that I'm here? Revolutionary worldview doesn't explain that. How do I live? None of them here. Like morals. Where does morality, where do ethics come from? You can't explain it in a naturalistic worldview. yet Everybody has them. We might not all agree on what they are, but everybody has a so a set standard.
Speaker: So where's the universal standard? Um... What happens when I die? We, our worldview, go back to that previous episode. Our worldview has explanatory power. the naturalistic worldview, relativism. None of these other worldviews have any explanatory power. None of them.
Speaker: Only biblical Christianity. So you got to go back and watch that episode if you haven't seen it. We're going to take it a step further and say, okay. Reason. Not just where does reason come from.
Speaker: But... How can we even? Talk about these things Without a precondition. Well, the precondition, the ability to reason. Where does that come from?
Speaker: Well, it can't be explained on an evolutionary worldview. It can be explained on a biblical worldview. Right. So, and we're going to make that a little bit more clear, but that's kind of where we're coming from. so Let's segue into that. Let's talk about laws of logic.
Speaker: Okay. Because that's part. We can't reason and we we can't even communicate without laws of logic. I can't. You know, if I Just by way of example, before we get technical, is that okay? And I heard somebody use this ah example years ago.
Speaker: So I could have come up with my own, but I'm going to steal this one. On an evolutionary... on my world view If I take my car keys... And.
Speaker: Put it in the... the Well, I was going to say put it in the ignition. I i punch a button now. but right Yeah, I do too. Anyway, back when you put it in the ignition or like a door you put your key in the door you turn it it unlocks.
Speaker: How do I know? That's how the... that I'm going to get in the house? You know, how do I know that? i If I put the key in the ignition or punch that button. that the car is going to start up.
Speaker: How do I... Why do I not stick the key in my ear sometimes? Well, it's because There's the uniformity of nature. you know It's because we live in a logical world. It's because...
Speaker: We have natural laws. Now, I want to just side issue, forgive me. But... When I say natural law, I do think Christians need to think, it's a whole other subject, but I do think Christians need to think a little more deep.
Speaker: deeply about that. Because a lot of times people say, well, gravity and... inertia and all that. These are just natural laws. Okay, true. But I think sometimes they think.
Speaker: You know, they wouldn't say they're deists. They don't think God wound the universe up like a clock. and Now it's just kind of running on its own. They they think God's involved. And they would think in terms of God's providence.
Speaker: Only. they But they would kind of speak about. the law of gravity in a naturalistic way. And I'm saying that's really not. Christian, that's deism. Gravity certainly...
Speaker: works What goes up must come down. but
Speaker: God is the one who's... involved in that. Gravity exists because God says it exists. Yeah. And he's intimately involved. Right. Yeah. Yeah. He he made the laws of nature. Right. So, yeah, we want people to understand that.
Speaker: When we talk about a biblical worldview. we're not saying that that is something that's outside of science outside of logic and outside of reason We believe in science. We believe in logic. We believe in reason.
Speaker: Would it? The difference is is that we believe that all of those things come under the authority of the biblical worldview. Right. And that they spring forth from it, as you've already said. you can't have true science you can't have true logic true reason True morality.
Speaker: Whatever the the list you want to add to. You can't have these things without first. tying it to a biblical worldview. you can have a semblance of it.
Speaker: but it would ultimately fall apart. if it's not built on the foundation of a biblical world. That's right. And so to segue into that, and I'll say one more thing. The know the Bible says, God upholds all things by the word of his power. right Colossians tells us that...
Speaker: In Christ, all things hold together. All things consist. So... If Christ were to let go of the universe, it would fly apart. and So that's part of what I'm getting at when I say.
Speaker: He's... intimately or intricately. Mm -hmm. And what you said is is true by way of explanation to get us back on track. Sorry. So.
Speaker: but Let's just think in terms of what what are some laws of logic. I mean, there are like three or four that are the most common things that people talk about. The first one would be the law of... Identity.
Speaker: A. cannot be non -A. Right. Um... I think that's how. the easiest way to put it. something.
Speaker: you know this microphone your black pants can't be red pants true at the same time yeah Right, and they can't be not -pants. Right. Yeah. They could be square pants now. That was dumb. Forgive me for that. No, they can't.
Speaker: That's not logical. It is not. SpongeBob SquarePants is not logical. Not logical by any stretch of the imagination. yeah so No, so... A cannot be non -A. Now, here the law of non -contradiction, I think most people understand this.
Speaker: I'm just looking at my notes so I don't say it wrong. But. Anyway. It is not possible that something be true and not true at the same time. So that'd be a contradiction. So this is a law of logic.
Speaker: Otherwise again, we wouldn't be able to communicate. We wouldn't be able to. um Reason wouldn't be able to put things together. We wouldn't even know how to drive a car Just as a side issue.
Speaker: We were talking about this on a previous episode, too. but i've got a little I've got two grandsons. One is going to be 12 soon. and we don't think it's any big deal that he can talk.
Speaker: So, you know, praise the Lord. He can talk. And. But I've got a grandson who's also... 20 months old. He's not two years old yet. Listen, I just forget i just forgot with my first grandson and my own children.
Speaker: He's basically talking in sentences. Now, I don't always understand what they are, but there's something going on in his head. yeah And he's literally. talking, and if you say certain sentences,
Speaker: He knows what you mean. The other day, my daughter said to him, Go turn on the light. He walked over and turned on the light. It was like a lamp um on the table. Bring me the ball.
Speaker: He did it. So he... He's comprehending complex. and Just think about that. The kid's literally 20 months old. And it's not that he's not, I'm not saying he's advanced. I'm saying this is normal yeah for human beings.
Speaker: Dogs? Can't do this. You you can. through a pavlovian kind of exercise you can train dogs to to do certain re certain things yeah actions but to understand and be able to In your mind, communicate. you You just can't formulate the words because you're Tongue and mouth is not that developed yet, but in your brain.
Speaker: You're telling Mama, bring me the ball, or... I'm hungry. Bring me some food or whatever. And he understands. So anyway. I don't need to belabor that point. It's... that We're created in the image of God.
Speaker: that's why we have that it's not evolution evolution doesn't explain that So, anyhow. Where I was going with that. Oh, laws of logic. So the third law of logic, real quick. Not that we have to get too mean on the table, but the law of the excluded middle.
Speaker: says that every statement is either true or false. There's nothing in between. Okay. And then the last one we'll put on the table, the love. rational inference. It says that inferences can be made from what is known. to what is unknown.
Speaker: And so that's how we can. You know. Invent things, for example. okay all right Come up with other things. Now here's where I'm going with that. We affirm the laws of logic, as you said a moment ago. Yes.
Speaker: Evolutionists affirm the laws of logic. and i'm we're using evolution We should really be saying naturalist. yeah Because evolution is a subset of naturalism, but we're kind of using them synonymously. But they would affirm ah laws of logic, but they can't account for them on their worldview. Because again, and you explained this last time, their worldview says, and I just alluded to this a moment ago.
Speaker: The only way that we can know something, knowledge, is through our through observation. Five senses. Yeah. yeah So... They would say. And again, there's There's nothing that exists except for the natural realm.
Speaker: There's nothing beyond the physical universe. It's like a closed box. Right? So... They don't believe in the spiritual realm. They deny that.
Speaker: Naturalists do. And of course, atheists take that. to the nth degree, but... So... But here's here's the reality. They would say there's nothing you know metaphysical.
Speaker: But laws of logic are metaphysical. Laws of logic are not material. But they are real. So they're... they're And they're universal.
Speaker: Dude. Excuse me. If you went to Tibet. Lots of people probably have a different worldview than me and you. Over there.
Speaker: But they operate on laws of logic, whether they understand it or not, whether they know where they come from or not, where they don't. They don't know where they come from. It just is. but we know where they come from.
Speaker: may come from God because he's logical. He's rational. Just think about. John 1. In the beginning was the Word. Well, what's the Greek word there?
Speaker: Logos, from which we get logic. And. um God spoke the universe into being, Genesis chapter 1. see all these connections And the Bible says that that everything that is made...
Speaker: and created was was made through Christ. So... Anyway. Yeah, you you mentioned your grandson. going over and turning on the light.
Speaker: Well, how do we even we as adults? Understand. And. Believe. That if I walk over to the other side of this room and flip that switch, that the light is going to come on. Yeah.
Speaker: And it's. That is its logic. And if the light doesn't come on. What do we assume? something's malfunctioning. There's something wrong with the switch, something wrong with the wire, something wrong with the light bulb that needs to be changed or whatever it is.
Speaker: So we believe that something is wrong, malfunctioned in that system because we believe that there's an order to a system. Well, how can there be order to that system? How can we trust that every time we flip that switch? The light is supposed to come on yeah because that's logic. Yeah.
Speaker: um And that's reason. and If everything. only exists based on what we can see. and what we can touch and all of that.
Speaker: And there is no... metaphysical or anything Then. And if everything is random chance. then we can't. Trust that.
Speaker: Something like that. It's supposed to happen every time. Right, right. Yeah, absolutely. which So let's let's go down that road just a little bit and we can come back to...
Speaker: logic if if we need to. But, um... Heh. I'll just say this on the way to... Adding to what you said, or or at least... you know interacting with it.
Speaker: Laws of logic. are real, they're universal, they don't change. Okay. And. We were just using the example of go turn on the light. You got to comprehend.
Speaker: literal words, right? Go. Okay, you got to travel. Turn on, you get to flip a switch. You got to know what. the light is you gotta know where i'm telling you to go Because you got memory.
Speaker: Yep. Anyway. All kind of stuff going on there. Come back, et cetera. Bring me the ball when you do. What if I gave you three sentences, you know? When you go in the kitchen, when, that's an expression of you may or may not be going right now. Dogs don't understand that. Hey, when you go outside, will you bring the ball?
Speaker: Dog doesn't understand that. You can train a dog, like you said. You throw the ball, he can run, get it, bring it back. But. It did. When you go outside.
Speaker: It's a whole different level of rationality. Yeah. yeah Okay. Now. So reason... It is a... a Reason can be justified in laws of logic on a biblical worldview because we've got ah ah a rational God.
Speaker: can't be justified on any other worldview. And what you said. can only be justified on a biblical worldview, and that is... I'll just call it our experience.
Speaker: But you were talking about. the uniformity of nature, or how did you put it? How do I know? if I flip the switch, that is like a light's going to come on. you You're assuming, like you said, that...
Speaker: All of those things work. at a philosophical level. Aside from an electrical malfunction, Right, or the light bulbs burned out. but you're assuming that the way to make the light switch come on or the middleweight, the light, sorry. The way to make the light bulb come on is to flip that switch. You don't go and...
Speaker: Pick up the car keys and hope and jiggle them and hope the light comes on. Yeah. And that that's your point because. Um... And.
Speaker: So i'll I'll make the point that, okay, naturalists believe in the uniformity of nature. That's what we're talking about. unify It's uniform. The sun comes up every day. We expect the sun to come up every day.
Speaker: And we're using phenomenological language. We'll stipulate to that. Yes. um We know that the earth rotates around the sun. Yeah. The position of. Art. position on the earth.
Speaker: Makes it look like the sun is rising. The sun doesn't, but we can all. Yeah, exactly. so But... That's how the scientific method Pezzini. Value.
Speaker: if ah If things happen by random chance. then you couldn't. have things like cars, lights. you You couldn't build buildings, architecture. You couldn't do anything.
Speaker: Because... if It'd all be random. but on their worldview, What do they say? Go back to the beginning. How did we get here? Something weird happened. How?
Speaker: What? Yeah. And again, on a naturalistic worldview. We're no different than animals. right yeah we're just living organisms just like they are Some would say we're even no different than plants. Right. So an animal...
Speaker: Mike can understand a what. Go get the ball, you know. or wear, you know, some of those things. But an animal can never answer the question why. That's true. No other living organism can answer the question why, but humans.
Speaker: can answer the question why, or at least think about. the question why. Why is that? why are Why is it that humans are the only ones that can do that? And as you've already said a few minutes ago,
Speaker: It's because we believe. that there is that. metaphysical that nature of God. that image of God that's placed in human beings. that is unique to the rest of creation yeah and so Humans are the only...
Speaker: organisms that can answer the why question because We're created in the image of God. Yeah. Yeah. That's good. I was thinking about training a dog while you were talking about that though which is dumb Sorry.
Speaker: But again, that. Yeah, you can train the dog to get that ball. You you start with giving him some kind of ah a reward, right? Whatever that reward might be, whether it's a... piece of meat or Head rub, you know good boy, whatever.
Speaker: And they. It's just a reaction. To a positive stimuli. There you go. Thank you. Thank you. But, yeah, why? they Yeah, they they don't they don't have that reason. And like we said, you know, if you were to tell the dog, okay, run around the block.
Speaker: And when you get back. you know, go get the ball. Well that. That'll never happen. So anyway. Yeah. And so you know humans... being able to answer the why question that's Um,
Speaker: That's... Again, using Logic, and that's how... we can say that... We believe that if we flip the light switch again, to go back to that, that the light's going to come on.
Speaker: Because... Why do we believe that? Well, we believe that because we believe that there is order and repeatability to yeah the way that the universe operates. yeah And so we believe that electrical engineers...
Speaker: who designed this circuit so that when you flip the switch the light overhead is going to come on and everything And we believe. That they figured out how to do that and that it's going to work every time unless something malfunctions. Right.
Speaker: Because of reason and logic and because. We can answer the why question. Phew! a dog does not understand why the light comes on no he can see the light That's right. But he can't understand why. No. No, that's right. so Yeah, so reason.
Speaker: Experience. our worldview makes sense out of our experience again the evolutionist naturalist is going to say Things that contradict his worldview.
Speaker: he you know before the universe was they don't believe the universe is eternal So before the universe was, there was nothing. And again, I hate to keep repeating myself, but not empty space. Nothing. And so on their worldview,
Speaker: nu Let me put it this way. Nothing. cannot be a catalyst. for something. But that is exactly what they believe. So their worldview philosophically falls to the ground.
Speaker: has no explanatory power. Of course, what we would say is, well, God exists outside of time and space. He's self -existent, and we could talk about all the attributes of God that would be necessary for a world to exist.
Speaker: But he's self -existent. He's eternal. Literally, the Bible says that he hung the world on nothing. How about that? I mean, just think about that statement. He hung the world on nothing. so There was nothing.
Speaker: Created? But God was not part of the box. part God was part ah was outside the box. Yeah. He's a spirit. John 4, God is spirit.
Speaker: So he's in that. metaphysical realm. He's in that spiritual realm. And then he creates a physical universe. and he's active in the physical universe.
Speaker: there's There's no scientific explanation for how we got here. But we have an explanation. there's no science There's no real explanation for the uniformity of nature. You're talking about the why question. Yeah, we can answer.
Speaker: Okay, why does light come on? mechanically, electrically. But... Why is there uniformity of nature? evolutionary worldview can't answer that question. biblical worldview can.
Speaker: Because cause God... is a God of reason and rationality and logic. and And the the universe is reflective of who he is. And he's a designer. And so he designed.
Speaker: the universe to operate in a certain way yes ah science can teach us science can't teach us where the world came from or how it began. but it can teach us how the world operates.
Speaker: But again... understanding why it operates that way is still taking something beyond. merely observational science. yeah Yeah. That's right. All right. Now you said something earlier, so let's, let's push forward just a little bit. You were talking about.
Speaker: Human beings and animals. not being ah The same. I forget exactly how you worded it. evolutionists would beg to differ. Okay. So let's talk about.
Speaker: Human dignity. Let's talk about the difference between humans and animals. At that level, human beings have. Essential dignity.
Speaker: they're creating them worker We're creating the image of God. Animals are not. Now, on the one hand... The Bible says, you know, A righteous man takes care of his animals.
Speaker: We don't believe in animal cruelty. But at the same time. We don't treat animals and humans the same way. You know what I'm saying? So let's just... If we're riding down the highway.
Speaker: Let's say Mr. Evolutionist is riding down the highway. And he sees a... a dead skunk or something on the side of the road. What's he going to do? Probably keep on driving. Keep on trucking. That's right.
Speaker: that's what i do i don't stop for dead animals and when i'm traveling at 70 miles an hour where we live we don't live in a big city Right. We we live near still. a decent amount of natural habitat and so we see lots of dead animals on the side of the road every day yeah Whether it's a squirrel or...
Speaker: Stopped for any of them. No, no. Now, If you saw a human being laying on the side of the road, you going to stop? Yeah. Mr. Evolution is going to stop. i would think so i would think so most of them i mean there's some cold people in this world. sure But I'm pretty sure.
Speaker: Richard Dawkins would stop and if he saw an injured person or someone maybe Just laying on the side of the highway, like, what's up with that? Yeah, you'd stop, and you'd call for help. How do you explain that?
Speaker: Because they would say... A dog is a roach is a cat is a human. we We're no different. But they don't believe that. We don't live that way. Exactly. Which is the whole point, isn't it? that People...
Speaker: who are atheists or naturalists. They don't live as if there are no laws of logic. They don't live as if there's no such thing as the uniformity of nature.
Speaker: they don't live as if There's no such thing as human dignity. They don't live that way So as we've said many, many times, they have to borrow from a Christian worldview. Right.
Speaker: Just to operate. If your belief system... can't match up with The... practicality of how you actually live your life.
Speaker: If those two things can't match up then your belief system can't ultimately be true. yeah um And so, like you said. you have to borrow from truth somewhere else.
Speaker: in order to live the way that you live. Yeah. and so that's again why we would say that the biblical worldview is the only one that makes sense. because it's the only one that gives humans intrinsic value.
Speaker: It's the only thing that gives logic and order to the universe. All of these things that we've been discussing. It's only only one that makes the scientific method make sense. It's... it's It's the only worldview that can explain.
Speaker: Morals. you You could say, well, other world religions have a system of morals. Yeah, but they can't account for them. Where do they come from? Well, they they come from. There has to be one source. There has to be the standard. There has to be the authority.
Speaker: And then again, we're talking about naturalist and evolutionist. the atheist who would deny the existence of God. But they're pretty outraged at... to And...
Speaker: Certain things. you know They're pretty outraged at this moral value or that moral value, which means they... They have their own set of moral values. So where do those moral values come from? You can't even be outraged unless.
Speaker: There's a precondition. There's a necessary precondition for... a moral value system or a moral judgment. Otherwise On an evolutionary worldview, as you said on the the last episode where we were talking about these things in a little bit different way.
Speaker: It's just might makes right. survival of the fittest. Why should we care? So... This is just... sort of advancing that conversation just a little bit.
Speaker: arguing for The explanatory world power of the biblical worldview. I wish I'd known these things when I was in college. Could have talked to some of my friends. Even though I wasn't born again, I had a friend who was an atheist and I.
Speaker: I try to tell him, man, you got to believe in God or you're going to hell. He's like, really? Why? And I'm like. I don't know, but you are. I'm just telling you. that because i was taught that that's right that's what i was taught Now, of course.
Speaker: We'd share the gods or the gospel. and If he wanted to talk about evidence, I could give that. And if he wanted to talk about worldview, I could do that. He presupposes the existence of God. He just doesn't know it. He's suppressing the truth. yeah But he lives, my friend the atheist, he lives. if as if God is real, because see...
Speaker: Pretty logical guy. um He'd stop on the side of the road. he's Sure. He's a nice guy. Yeah, right. yeah Anyway, we could go on. I don't believe the point. Yeah, I mean, where would the concept of nice versus mean come from? Yeah. Right? Yeah. Well, yeah, you you listen.
Speaker: contracts would have no meaning apart from a biblical worldview. Why would why would I honor a contract if I'm an evolutionist? Why don't I just cheat people? Marriage. Marriage covenants may have no make no sense on a...
Speaker: On a... atheistic worldview. um i hope i'd why would why would i why would you call it cheating on my wife Yeah. What's cheating? Yeah. why is it why is it Why would you call that cheating? Yeah. And they would say, well.
Speaker: you know, civil society. Well, that's just a ah convention. So. Anyway. We could go on. So I'm... i'm well yeah yeah You go ahead. I think I'm done. I don't know. Okay. I'll do my best to put a bow on it. Oh, please. Yeah.
Speaker: So, yeah, so all of this discussion, we've been talking about, you know, worldview. And ah that the biblical... worldview. um the understanding of God.
Speaker: is the basis. for life and reason and morality, all of these things. but to kind of circle it back to how we started. And as we had just said and just mentioned again a couple minutes ago.
Speaker: this whole notion of so many young people. being told. are being asked why they believe the Bible. And the only answer that they could give is what that's what I was.
Speaker: Told to believe. And. We do agree that that is a problem. yeah And, you know, like I said, we... We didn't design this episode to be about deconstruction. We do want to talk about that at a future point, but...
Speaker: The fact that this deconstruction happens. is related to the fact that so many young people were just simply taught by their parents, which is a good thing. We want parents teaching.
Speaker: their children about the Bible. We want them taking their children to church, you know, all of those good things. That's the Bible. commands that that's right And we want that, but. When that is as as deep as their understanding, as their faith goes, it's just because this is what mom and dad.
Speaker: want me to do. Or tell me I have to do. then we we agree that there's a problem there. and then that's where we see this deconstruction start to happen is that Um...
Speaker: It's... When you discover... These new things. that are that are different than what I've been taught well the new thing that I've learned must be more true.
Speaker: than what I was always taught because it's a new thing and I never knew it before. And so yeah then they turn their back on it. And so. To answer the question that we asked at the very beginning, why?
Speaker: Should I believe the Bible? It's because we want people to to read and learn and know and understand. the Bible as the truth. of God revealing Himself.
Speaker: so that When we do. come up against other worldviews, other philosophies, other views. other religions. We can understand.
Speaker: what the truth is, why these things don't make sense. And we can actually, again, by the power of the Holy Spirit. Have a faith. to rely on rather than just something that we were taught.
Speaker: to believe. It's something that we actually do believe. And so that's what we want for people to have. Yeah, absolutely. so important to Teach our children.
Speaker: As you say, the Bible. But also, let's teach them how to think at a worldview level. Because I can't believe for my kids. Yeah. They have to know and understand that themselves. That's right. And we want to give them all the tools to be able to do that. But ultimately, as Christian parents, we want to pray.
Speaker: for the Lord to do that work in their hearts and reveal it to them. yeah That's right. All right. See you next time. See you next time on... Entering pilot. Entering pilot. The Answering Pilot Podcast is a ministry of Randall House Church in Greer, South Carolina.
Speaker: You can learn more at www .randallhousebeer .com You can also find us on Facebook and Instagram at at Randall House Church. Don't forget to like and subscribe.
Speaker: and we'll see you next time.
