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Why Doesn't God Require a Designer?

If life is so complex that it requires a designer, then why does an even more complex God not require a designer?

 

The Authority of the Scriptures

As the church continues to face cultural challenges from outside the church, we must strengthen our views of God’s Word within the church. Our culture is increasingly and brazenly running counter to the wisdom of the Word, and one of the church’s tasks is to help our people stand confidently and courageously in the face of such confrontations. Yes, make no mistake, we are in a war as the Apostle says in 2 Corinthians 10:3-5.

However, simple appeals to the authority of Scripture or mere assertions the Bible is God’s Word are inadequate for the church in this day and age. We must help our people, and especially our young people, understand WHY the Bible is authoritative. Thus, apologetic arguments for the reliability of the biblical text, the historicity of its claims, and its divine origins are vital. But some leaders in the church think such an approach is not the best way forward for the church. Instead they suggest we focus on the role of Scripture in our communities and ground its authority in its ability to accomplish Kingdom work.

However, these activities are neither necessary nor sufficient to ground Scripture’s authority. Do the positive actions of the church confer authority on Scripture? No more than the positive actions of Hindus confer authority on the Bhagavad Gita or positive actions of Muslims confer authority on the Qur’an. Furthermore, if the efforts of the Christian church were wholly impotent in the renewal of men and the world, would the authority of Scripture be diminished? Absolutely not. In fact, this is an important theme in the Old Testament narrative. Israel’s history is fraught with accounts of the nation turning its back on God’s Word, yet the Word of the Lord remains. And this is precisely the prophet’s claim: “The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever” (Isaiah 40:8).

Such attempts to ground the authority of Scripture in its functions fail to deal with the ontological status of Scripture itself. What something is is separate and distinct from what it does. Certainly God’s authority is displayed in His kingdom work through the church, but the functions of the church do not constitute that authority. Here is the central question we must ask: What is the status of Scripture as God’s Word? As Christians, we cannot ignore the rich reservoir of biblical passages that speak of the Bible itself. The self-testimony of Scripture and Jesus’ view of Scripture shed clear light on the source of the Bible’s authority. Our understanding of Scripture can certainly be aided by the narratival character of Scripture and discussions on how it forms the body of Christ, but we cannot avoid the discussion of the authority of Scripture grounded in the nature of Scripture.

How to Handle Opposing Theological Influences on Your Children

Brett helps you know what to do when friends or relatives with differing viewpoints seek to influence your children in negative ways.

 

Challenge Response: Jesus Wasn't a Very Nice Guy

Here's my response to this week's challenge:

 

Hearing from God and Hearing from God's Word

I recently had a conversation with a man about hearing from God. He referenced Dallas Willard’s book, Hearing God: Developing a Conversational Relationship With God. I’ve benefited greatly from some of Willard’s teaching, but this is one of his books that causes me serious concern. It’s certainly a more thoughtful book on the topic, so if you’re interested in looking at all sides, definitely read it. But here is my primary objection: Willard’s biblical case for the normative discipline of hearing the voice of God is very weak. Now let me just make something very explicit. I certainly think people can experience hearing God’s voice. However, my concern is with the teaching that such experiences should be a regular, normal part of the Christian life, and that your walk with Christ is somehow defective if they are not. So let’s look at some of Willard’s biblical case for this.

First, Willard appeals to the “ministry of Eli,” referencing I Samuel 3:8–9, that he was offered by various Christian writers of the past, stating, “They helped me to identify and respond to experiences of God’s speaking, just as Eli helped Samuel in the biblical story” (p. 17). But this seems to be a misuse of the text. Here a few quick observations:

• Willard assumes that Eli had developed the skill of hearing God and was able to teach others.
• A reading of the first four chapters of I Samuel indicate Eli may have not even been a believer and that Samuel “did not know God.”
• Eli does not even recognize the fact God is speaking to Samuel the first two times.
• Eli does not teach Samuel any skills of recognition, just how Samuel should respond.

The biblical text simply does not support the idea that Eli was someone who had developed the skill of hearing God's voice and was able to help others recognize it too.

Second, Willard offers the idea that the experiences of those in the Bible are not meant to be exceptional (p. 18); rather, we must assume they are the kinds of experiences we should expect today (p. 35). This seems to be a difficult position to justify, without further argument, in light of the historical context of those events and their unique place in the historical narrative of God’s plan to bless the peoples of the world. And does this apply to every single experience recorded in scripture? For example, given this line of reasoning, should I also expect God to regularly communicate to me through a donkey, like Balaam experienced (Numbers 22:21-29)? If not, why not? Just because the biblical narrative describes particular experiences with God, why should we assume they are prescribed for us today and should be a normative part of our Christian experience?

Third, Willard points to I Kings 19:11-12 to support the idea of God’s “still small voice.” However, this is the only reference in the entire Bible where you will find this phrase. If God’s “still small voice” is to play a central role in our daily walk with Him, wouldn’t you expect more than a single Old Testament passage? In addition, even biblical translators seem to be unclear on how to translate the Hebrew here. A check of different translations renders the King James version of “still small voice” very differently:

• Revised Standard Version: “sound of sheer silence”
• New American Standard Version: “sound of gentle blowing”
• New International Version: “a gentle whisper”

And again, I cannot see how this passage commends the discipline of hearing God in a normative sense.

This is a good reminder that we must always go back to the objective word of God to see how various ideas, whether they are related to spiritual formation, or philosophy, or any topic, comport with the Scriptures.

How to Respond When Someone Says, "No One Comes to Faith Through Arguments."

Brett shares how the Holy Spirit uses multiple means of bringing people to faith:

Belief as Saving Faith

Yesterday, a Summit student asked me, “If Christianity is true, why do we need faith?” Mapping out the distinction between belief-that and belief-in provides a helpful way to answer this question. 

The traditional conception of belief is reflected in the Scriptures by the concept of saving faith. The New Testament uses one particular word group to express the idea of faith. In the Greek, faith is conveyed by the noun pistis and the verb pisteuo. It is important to note that the New Testament writers make no distinction between “belief” over against “faith.” Indeed, they are both articulated by the pistis word group. Furthermore, when we examine the constructional variety of this Greek term we observe that pistis is used in conjunction with several prepositions (see chart below) that give us the full expression of faith, or what we refer to as saving faith. 

Greek Usage	English Equivalent
pisteuo hoti	“believe that”
pisteuo en / pisteuo eis	“believe in” / “believe into”

First, as the chart indicates, pisteuo is constructed with the Greek word hoti to express the phrase “believe that.” Hebrews 11:6 states that “he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is the rewarder of those who seek Him.” We see this construction again in Romans 10:9, when the apostle Paul instructs “that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” According to these verses, one must (at the least) believe that God exists and that He raised Jesus from the dead for salvation. Additional passages throughout the New Testament (e.g. John 20:31, Acts 8:37 and 15:11, Romans 6:8, I Thessalonians 4:14) lend support to the idea that saving faith includes believing certain propositions to be true, or in other words, having certain beliefs-that. 

Biblical saving faith is more than merely belief-that, however. Even if one believed the necessary true propositions about Christ, it does not follow that this belief would be sufficient for saving faith. The relevant biblical data reveal a second feature. In John 3:16, pisteuo is paired with the preposition eis and literally means “to believe into”: “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” 

From these passages, as well as others (e.g. John 3:36 and 14:1, Romans 4:24 and 10:14), we discover that saving faith includes an affirming disposition toward, or trust in, the object (propositional content[1]) of one’s belief. The kind of faith that saves is marked by an attitude of trust in, or belief-in, Christ for all that salvation means. Hebrews 11:1 seems to indicate this pro-attitude associated with saving faith: “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” 

________________________

[1] It is important to note that one’s believing a certain set of true propositions is logically prior to one’s being disposed affirmingly toward that set of propositions. Thus, the strength of one’s beliefs-that has direct bearing on the strength of one’s correlating beliefs-in.

Challenge Response: God Is Only Forgiving When He Smells Blood?

Here's my response to this week's challenge:

Should Christians Pull Their Kids out of Public Education?

I recently answered the question “Should Christians keep children in public schools to be ‘salt and light?’” for our weekly video blog. This, and the larger question of whether Christians should allow their kids to be publicly educated, period, are questions I have been wrestling with for some time. I tread carefully with this question because I know many good Christian parents who enroll their kids in the local public school, and I also know many good Christians who are public school administrators and teachers. And I certainly don’t want to offer simplistic answers that minimize the gravity and implications for my brothers and sisters in Christ. I also know that school districts within the same states and even the same local region can vary widely in terms of their quality, culture, and commitments, so I don’t want to paint with too broad of a brush and be dismissive of the entire enterprise without taking these things into account. But, given the current cultural context, I think this is a question every Christian parent must seriously grapple with and do so year-in and year-out.

Let me offer a question to my Christian friends whose kids are being publicly educated, or who are working in public education, that should help guide this conversation: What is your tipping point? In other words, can public education and all that it involves disintegrate to a level where you would say “enough is enough” and pull your kids out? Of course, I would hope your simple answer is yes. But beyond that, you must begin to outline some specific criteria. You must make explicit the tipping point in your own mind so that you can effectively evaluate whether your local public school has reached that point. Andrew Walker summarizes this well in his article “How the Federal Government is Transforming Public Education”:

Christian parents need to establish a tipping point. This may be the most important response to consider. What actions taken by your local school will be sufficient for you to re-evaluate public education? Is having a teacher reprimand your child for his or her belief about marriage, sex, and gender acceptable? Will you allow them to be in schools where bathroom policies are based on gender identity rather than biological sex? Not establishing a tipping point could leave your child over-exposed to environments they shouldn’t be in. Not thinking about a tipping point is irresponsible and will communicate carelessness about a child’s education and Christian formation. This is not a call to exit the public schools; it is a call to vigilance. It is advisable that spouses have a candid conversation and establish a line in the sand.

So, what’s your tipping point? Christian parents, I’m pleading with you to consider this question carefully and, indeed, to even write out specific criteria that will guide you into the future. The challenges are coming at breakneck speed. For example, entire school districts are adopting pro-transgender policies and will use coercion to enforce them. Therefore, you and I cannot simply float along with the cultural currents, as the church has for the last century, without reaping serious consequences, which we certainly are now. As one possible example, here is a Christian principal who has reached a tipping point in his role as administrator.

I know this opens up a huge conversation, and there are significant practical consequences for individuals and families to face (e.g. leaving a job as a public school teacher or moving from a two-family income household to one in order to homeschool). And of course, the way in which we are most effectively salt and light in the culture must be carefully reflected upon too. But before you consider those things, maybe first we need to spend some time rethinking our views about education itself. Is there a Christian view of education and if so, what it is? What does Scripture say? And given these things, what does wisdom demand from us in this day and age? Biblical thinking about education and our role in it will help clarify what our tipping point(s) should be.

Here are a few resources to get you thinking about a Christian view of education:

BOOKS

• For the Children’s Sake: Foundations of Education for Home and School by Susan Schaeffer Macaulay
• Education for Human Flourishing by Paul Spears and Steven Loomis
• Beauty in the Word: Rethinking the Foundations of Education by Stratford Caldecott
• Norms and Nobility: A Treatise on Education by David Hicks
• The Abolition of Man by C.S. Lewis

ARTICLES

• The Role of Education—Part 1 by Glenn Sunshine
• The Role of Education—Part 2 by Glenn Sunshine
• The Myth of a Value-Free Education by Ronald Nash
• To Know the Lord: A Christian Education Prospectus by T.M. Moore
• Why Christian Education by Jim Drexler

Take a first step. Now. Read an article. Discuss the question of a tipping point with your spouse, trusted family member, friend, or mentor. Purchase one of the books above. Take action immediately. The Body of Christ is responsible for raising up the next generation of Christian ambassadors, so doing nothing is not an option.