Existential Stillborn

Be careful as I reverse field here and go against the tide for a moment. I am in favor of being judgmental.

Cornelius VanTil: “…reason, or intellect is always an instrument of a person.”

What we reason, How we reason, and the conclusions we draw from that reasoning are (get this he says ALWAYS) always an instrument of a person. Like a hammer or a thermometer our capacity to reason or our intellectual capacity is nothing more than an instrument of something deeper within us. Following his line of thinking we remove reason and intellect from being innate identity and locate it closer to where we put our toolbox or dishes. Reason nor intellect make us WHO we are but are part of a toolkit issued to all human beings.

Christians are engaged in a thing called ‘regeneration‘. Deuteronomy 30:6 tells us: “The LORD your God will circumcise your hearts and the hearts of your descendants, so that you may love him with all your heart and with all your soul, and live.” We undergo a physical change (circumcision) symbolically so that we may undergo a spiritual change to our heart. The purpose of this change is obvious in the text - we would love God with all of our heart and all of our soul.

VanTil continues by saying “If he (the one who is regenerated) is a believer, his reason has already been changed in its set, as Hodge has told us, by regeneration. It (reason) cannot then be the judge; it is now part of the regenerated person, gladly subject to to the authority of God.” So he is saying that reason is subjected to the authority of God - because a believer is regenerated. Because reason is regenerated and no longer autonomous within a man (reason becomes subject to God - answerable to God) it no longer has the right to be the judge.

Ironically the more that one believes the less he himself is a ‘judge.’ In this model reason is externalized. Reason’s meaning, reason’s legitimacy, reason’s roll and reason’s capacity are all gathered from an external source - God. But remember we are being regenerated, into this ‘circumcision of the heart’ thing. Regeneration is causing an external thing to become a internal thing.

While we are in a process of letting go of the ‘judge’ within us in exchange for the ‘judge’ outside of us - we are becoming people who judge correctly. The more we engage in this exchange the more we embody right ‘judgment’. In this way I am in favor of being judgmental.

Exchange personal judgment for God’s judgment and become someone who has the capacity to judge rightly.

Listening to the Bob Edwards show on XM radio I was reminded of a reality.

Believing in Jesus is DANGEROUS.

My foggy memory tells me it was the Friday before last and Edward’s guest was a scholar/author of doubtless distinction. The topic they were discussing had turned to the new creation museum being built in the Cincinnati area.

What was not foggy was what he said about it; “These people are dangerous!”

“What people?” I replied to my absent antagonist. “The people who believe God created the earth are dangerous.” His rhetoric spun out of control. There was no analysis or reflection on the matter - He was certain anyone who believed in creation was dangerous to society. He was not saying dangerous like “If you fall off your bike you will scrape your knee” dangerous, but “The global community cannot tolerate the existence of these kinds of people!” dangerous.

Where was the dialogue? Where were the deep probing questions to uncover the heart of this animosity? Where was the open-mindedness that is suppose to come from honest scholarship? Here was a smart guy (Bob Edwards) interviewing a smart guy but the outcome was absurd. Actually it really was nothing more than good old fashioned scape-goating.

I believe it will not be long before society has little room for those who claim Jesus as Lord and Savior. I am not sure I want to be branded as dangerous - maybe even afraid of the trouble I will get into.

I guess go ahead and put me on your list.

Since everyone has been prodding me. I think it’s about time I started to BLOG!