Tag Archives: Thinking About Big Questions

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Why Does Truth Matter?

“Truth yields life. If we are sailors lost at sea, we need true north. If we’re branches on tree hoping to bear fruit, which we are, we need connection to a true vine. Truth tells us where we are, who we are, to whom we belong, and the real story in which we can fully live. It seems to me that our American culture, in its present condition, is both lost and starving for truth, and therefore vulnerable to the deception of power politics, marketing schemes, and politically correct slogans of professors, politicians, and media that often lead to the death of the soul and the body. Lies lead to death and a culture of death, but the truth sets people free for life.”—Kelley Monroe Kullberg

See also, John 8:31-32.

Is the Bible True?

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Knowledge isn’t that important…is it?

“People perish for lack of knowledge, because only knowledge permits assured access to reality; and reality does not adjust itself to accommodate our false beliefs, errors, or hesitations in action. Life demands a steady hand for good, and only knowledge supplies this. This is as true in the spiritual life as elsewhere.” – Dallas Willard

Not only is it critical to be able to ask and argue if Christianity is true but even more important is whether it can be known to be true.

Here’s a good place to start your search and learn how to make the case for the Christian worldview.

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Why Intellectual Virtues Are Important

One of the ways that we can increase the chances of forming true beliefs and arriving at knowledge is by pursuing intellectual virtues. An intellectual virtue is “a characteristic of a person who acts in a praise-worthy manner in the process of forming beliefs.” For example, James Beilby and David Clark describe the intellectual virtues of honesty and courage: “Being intellectually honest means making a fair appraisal of the evidence at hand, dedicating effort to reach valid conclusions, admitting personal biases that affect beliefs, and seeking to reduce those biases. In an intellectual context, courage involves, among other things, being willing to take the minority position when the evidence points in that direction. It also means investigating personally held beliefs with rigor” (Why Bother With Truth?). These virtues do not happen by accident, they are the result of forming healthy intellectual habits over time.

But the goal of knowledge is not just to accumulate data. The acquisition of knowledge should help us along the path of becoming virtuous people and flourishing as followers of Jesus Christ. Knowledge, over time and with effort, becomes understanding. Understanding then describes the growing integration of our fragmented knowledge into an increasingly coherent picture of God and our world. And as we grow in understanding, we have the opportunity to grow in wisdom as well, which is the skillful application of knowledge and understanding to life.

Solomon speaks of the blessing that accompanies this dynamic pursuit: “Blessed is the man who finds wisdom, the man who gains understanding” (Prov. 3:13; cf. 2:6). Knowledge is the crucial first step in this process. And as Christ-followers, we should remember that our actions flow out of what we truly believe (cf. Rom. 12:1–2).

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What are FACEBOOK and GOOGLE hiding from the world?

Perhaps more than you think…The internet opens up the whole world of ideas to you right? Maybe not. This video underscores why you need to be aware of what doesn’t show up in your Facebook feed and Google searches.

 “The first to present his case seems right, till another comes forward and questions him.”–Prov.18:17

 

(H/T Kevin Perry)

Think Christianly with Jonathan Morrow
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Is Science Our Only Source of Knowledge?

With the rise and success of modern science (and these advances have been beneficial in many ways), some people have unfortunately come to believe that science, and science alone, offers true knowledge of reality. Famous atheist Bertrand Russell put it this way: “Whatever knowledge is attainable, must be attained by scientific methods; and what science cannot discover, mankind cannot know.” Initially, this sounds sophisticated and intelligent. You will hear variations of this slogan all over the place, and it is implied in most documentaries you see on TV. The only problem is that if it is true, we couldn’t know it to be true. Why? Because the state-ment itself is not testable by the scientific method and is therefore by its own stan- dard unable to be known! It’s self-refuting. It’s a statement that commits suicide.

Contrary to what you may have been lead to believe, science is not capable of providing comprehensive knowledge of reality. It does great with bacteria, supernovas, genes, and gravity, but it falters when trying to discuss virtue and vice, souls, free will, moral responsibility, success, joy, love, forgiveness, wisdom, salvation, redemption, hope, purpose, meaning, and beauty (just to name a few!). The scientism espoused by Russell, which is hand in hand with naturalism, must be resisted by Christians if we are to engage our world with the good news of the kingdom of God. We don’t need to be bullied into thinking that if we can’t examine something with a microscope or telescope, then we can’t know it. For this is a self-evidently false statement. 

Think Christianly with Jonathan Morrow