A Crisis in Evangelicalism: Thinking, Part II

Even the most worship-minded Christians who are actively working to be intellectually fully engaged have an uphill battle to properly use our minds. Why? Even though God created us with a mind and intellectually perfect according to His creation, these were negatively affected by the fall. That’s right. Even our ability to think has been impacted when Adam sinned. Our intellect and our minds are all changed by the effects of sin. Before we can hope to think in a way that has a positive impact on ourselves and on our culture, we must be able to acknowledge the noetic effects of the fall. If we refuse to recognize the mountain before us, we have no hope of climbing. If we choose to ignore the effect of sin entering the cosmos on our mental ability and intellect, we are hopelessly lost with no means of relief.

What’s the point? What does this have to do with young-earth creation and the literal and historical events of Genesis? Before we can recognize the impact of the consequences on what we believe about Genesis and the creation, we must first account for the very effect the events described in Genesis have on our ability to think about those events. If you think on that for any length of time, it may make your head hurt.

So. Before we can see the consequences of a wrong view of creation, we must account for and understand the barriers to thinking about thinking. The first barrier is perhaps the greatest. All the other effects flow from this one effect. And, all we need to do is return to the Apostle Paul and his letter to the Church at Rome.

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.[1]

The principal noetic effect of the fall is that humans in community and humans individually are actively suppressing the truth God has revealed. The English Standard Version uses the word “suppress” for the Greek word κατέχω (kat-ekh’-o), which means to hold down, restrain, hinder. Adam Clarke[2], in commenting on this passaged, suggests this “should be translated, ‘who through maliciousness hinder the truth.’” This is a very good understanding of the challenge we face in ourselves when we work under the burden of knowledge. It is also important when we are laboring in the fields of the Gospel with those who have not been regenerated by the Holy Spirit. These are actively suppressing the truth. John MacArthur notes,

“Sinful men oppose the idea of a holy God because they innately realize that such a God would hold them accountable for the sins they love and do not want to relinquish.”[3]

Even the regenerated person still struggles with the sin nature that is being redeemed by the work of the Holy Spirit. Christians who have worked long at submitting their minds to the changing truth of God’s Word effectively applied by the Holy Spirit will still need to watch, repent, and change their thinking that may be suppressing God’s truth. Only by having a mind to be on guard can we begin hoping to not be forever unable to come to the truth.

Our sinful nature works against the revelation of God. Against knowing the truth God has given. Until we can acknowledge this, we have no hope of working in the opposite direction. No hope of moving from rebellion to the truth to acceptance of the truth.

We’ve made an important first step. By realizing the in-grained active push against God’s revealed truth, we can begin to account for the effects of that rebellion, and repent. Actually, remain repentant. Be constantly repenting, as in “turning away” from the active suppression of truth, and turn to accepting and realizing the treasure God has given in truth. That is the first step.

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[1] Romans 1:18-23

[2] Adam Clarke was a British Methodist Theologian (1760-1832). As with any other reference, this incorporation of a helpful point should not be taken as full endorsement or acceptance of all of his theology.

[3] John MacArthur, The MacArthur New Testament Commentary, Romans 1-8, Moody Press, Chicago, 1991, p. 68.

The featured image is a portion of Rodin’s “The Burghers of Calais”. Rodin’s “The Thinker” is one of the most well-known art works. It is an interesting study in the annuals of art representing historical events. The controversy surrounding its creation and purpose, as well as history it portrays, is a fascinating view into a clash of thinking.

A Crisis in Evangelicalism: Thinking, Part I

Christians should be careful and dedicated thinkers. Not dedicated to thinking, as in making intellectual activity our purpose or highest goal. When that occurs, knowledge and intellectual achievement have become an idol, making knowledge and intellect our gods. They are not. The chief purpose of mankind is to glorify God, and enjoy Him forever. Therefore, we must purposefully avoid both traps of underemphasizing or overemphasizing knowledge, and rightly bring thinking, and thinking about thinking, into the worship composed of everyday living.

At the heart of knowing is the question, “how do we know what we know?” This is an epistemological event in our lives. We come face to face with knowledge theories. With our own theory of knowledge. How do we know that God exists? How do we know that what we believe to be true is really true?

Our worship of God must acknowledge Him as the creator of all things to include knowledge, intellect, and reason. He is the source, creator, and giver of what is knowable and what we do know. Of what can be known and what is known. He created our minds and gave us the ability to think and process knowledge and given us the ability to gain new knowledge. Amazingly, we are not limited to only discovering existing knowledge. God has given us the ability to synthesize knowledge. We can add to the manner, method, and tools of how we discover and develop understanding.

God is logical and reasonable. Because He is the source of all things, both logic and reason are from Him, also. Our ability to be logical and use reason is because God has created a logical and reasonable universe, has revealed Himself in logical and reasonable ways, and created in us the ability to be logical and reasonable while being able to comprehend logic and think reasonably. All of the functions of our minds to interact with what is knowable are designed by God to be used to the fullest extent of that design for His glory. This need to fully worship God with our bodies as well as our intellect is what Paul had in mind as he encouraged the church at Rome¹.

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

Romans 12:1-2

Throughout scripture, we encounter God calling for His people to use their minds. The prophecy of Isaiah begins with God confronting Israel with their self-righteousness and sin. He calls them to a test. He invites them to stand before judgement. God initiates this revelation by reaching out to His people using a court-like trial designed to reveal to them their self-righteousness. God is using an intellectual tool to help them (and us) understand self-righteousness for what it is. He makes this call by noting they will be able to participate in and understand and comprehend. They are called to reason.

“Come now, let us reason together, says the LORD: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool.

Isaiah1:18

This is not a call to “feel” or to “experience”. It is not a call to describe our place in a community, or the importance of an existential feeling. It is a call to come to a correct knowledge. To repent of our sin we must first comprehend that it is sin, and that it is an affront to God, and that there is a way and a reason to turn from sin. We must know what to turn to. Comprehension of Jesus Christ as the sinless sacrifice who gave His life in the place of ours is a necessary intellectual component of salvation. We must likewise comprehend that this same Jesus, after dying on a cross, was raised from the dead after three days and remains alive to this day.² These all require a level of intellectual action and comprehension of the consequences of intellect and intellectual action.

Even though highly educated Christians are well known in our culture, and many churches now desire a pastor with a graduate degree, Christians are still resistant to thinking. We want our pastors to be characterized by Biblical thinking, but we don’t really know how to determine if he is thinking faithfully or not. Dr. Mohler, who’s quote began this chapter, makes this need and distinction very clear.

Children do not often think about thinking. Within the developmental stage of early adolescence, there comes a sudden acknowledgment that there are other minds. “People think differently than I, or even my parents, think,” a young teen will exclaim. By adolescence, we perceive ourselves thinking and begin to think about that process. Most human beings, however, never attempt to think deeply about thinking.
By contrast, a Christian understands that he or she was made to bring God glory, to point persons to Christ, to exalt in the things of Christ, and to meditate upon God’s Word. Because of the biblical imperative to be transformed by the renewing of our minds, Christians must perpetually think about thinking. Philosophers call this a “second-order discipline.” Thinking is a first-order discipline, but thinking about thinking is a second-order discipline. This complex thinking is required if we are to measure and contrast faithful thinking over against unfaithful thinking.³

To be the activists that Christians are truly called to be, to be the Gospel-carrying and transmitting people we are commissioned to be, to be the image-bearers we are created to be, we must think rightly, and we must think about thinking rightly. And, we must be able to discern between right thinking and wrong thinking. Yet, this is often the last thing Christians think about, if at all.

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1 Of course we mean the city in Italy, not the one in Georgia. And, specifically, the Church as incorporated in 40-90 A.D., as opposed to any modern. Though, of course, the message is just as applicable to all of the greater Church today.
2 1 Corinthians 15:3-4 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,
3 R. Albert Mohler, Jr., Ph.D., “The Way the World Thinks: Meeting the Natural Mind in the Mirror and in the Marketplace”, in Thinking, Loving, Doing, John Piper and David Mathis, Eds., Crossway, Wheaton, Illinois, 2011, p. 48.

How Right(euos)?

Allow me to pose a thought exercise. It’s not quite a thought experiment. If it helps, you can think of it that way, too. Here goes…

If God saved, or redeemed, every individual out of all of humanity except for one, would that make Him less just? Would the damnation of that single person make God less righteous, or less good?

Before you answer – I know, it’s too late. But, continue along anyway, if you can – consider the opposite.

If God saved, or redeemed, out of all of humanity only one individual , would that make him less just? Would the damnation of all of humanity except a single person make God less righteous, or less good?

Your righteousness is righteous forever, and your law is true. Trouble and anguish have found me out, but your commandments are my delight. Your testimonies are righteous forever; give me understanding that I may live.

Psalms 119:142-144

No. I will not share my answer, yet. Feel free to share your answer or comments here or on the WordPress blog page (if you are reading this on Facebook, you are free to answer here…just know that not everyone may see your answers).

Let’s extend the thought exercise. It may be helpful in thinking about this to add another pair of questions:

Why would God not save everyone? After all, He is God. He can do anything He chooses to do. And, whatever He would decide to do would be in agreement with His character and attributes. So, let me pose the question again: why does anyone have to be condemned? Couldn’t God redeem all individuals?

Here’s the question’s pair:

Why would God save anyone? After all, He is God. He is perfect and sinless. He created the first humans who chose to rebel against Him. And, we continue to show our incredible propensity for sin and evil. In our sin, we are repugnant to God. He doesn’t need us. Why would he save even a single individual?

In a proper theology, we confess that God is fully sovereign in salvation. He decides who is saved, and how they are saved. A good theology also confesses that every individual deserves damnation. None of us have a right to redemption. None of us deserve salvation. Much less the act of redemption that is a finished work of God. A Biblical theology also acknowledges that no human would ever, in their own capacity of will and intellect choose to turn to God. We are “hell bent” in our rebellion. We are dead in any capacity to obtain righteousness on our own.

Before answering, it is important to note the word choice in each question. “Why would God save anyone” as opposed to “Why does God…” or “Why can God…” I believe each of these are excellent questions worth answering. However, they will not properly yield the same answer, even though each answer will spring from a common truth.