| Part VI. Of Christianity |
| Ch 35 – In general In this part, I will examine the traits of Christianity, and basic Christian Theology. Thus, I move from the realms of Locke and Hobbes, to that of CS Lewis and DL Moody. Ch 36 – Of the Verification of Christianity First, let us look at our attributes of God in comparison to those of the Christian God: 1. One – in Christianity, the oneness of God is continuously stressed. 2. Spiritual – in Christianity, God exists on a different level than the physical world, thus, He is spiritual 3. Infinite – whereas the Christian God is omniscient, omnipotent, and omnipresent, He is infinite. 4. Eternal – according to Christianity, God’s name is “I AM”, an eternal statement. 5. Creator – According to the Book of Genesis, God created the heavens and the earth (Gen. 1:1), thus God is the Creator. Now, let us look at our preferences: 1. Availability – Since all may be forgiven, Christianity is available to all. 2. Afterlife, Punishment, and Reward – Heaven and Hell (thus the Afterlife) are a part of Christian belief. 3. Consistency – in the original language, to my knowledge, the Bible is consistent. Thus, we see that Christianity meets all our standards of religion. Ch 37 – Of the basic ideas of Christianity I will now sum up Christianity (for a further explanation, I refer you to the Bible.) “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” (Gen. 1:1), and God instructed Adam (the first man) not to eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, or else he would die (Gen. 2:17). But Eve (Adam’s wife) was deceived by the serpent and ate the fruit, and gave some to Adam (Gen. 3:6). This brought sin into the world. Then, thousands of years later, Jesus Christ came into the world, God in flesh. Christ, who was sinless, died on a cross, and thus was a sacrifice for our sins (John 3:16). Through accepting this gift we may have our sins erased, and gain favor with God. Thus, I move on to my next Chapter. Ch 38 – Of Verification of and Reliance upon the Scriptures Here I ask for a lot of faith. Much of the Bible is physically verifiable (Christ’s empty tomb, Noah’s Ark, etc.). Unfortunately, it’s theology and doctrine cannot be proven, only trusted by accepting the physical evidence as verification of the Scriptures as a whole. The only verification of theology and doctrine which can be carried out is a logical examination of the Scriptures, which I have already shown in Chapter 36. Also, we must learn to rely upon the Scriptures which we have accepted. The Scriptures are there for a reason: guidance. If we add to, or take away from, or change the meaning in any way, we change the direction of its guidance, thus we must learn to trust our Scriptures as unerring as is. Ch 39 – Of the Necessity of Sacrifice In the Old Testament, God gave Moses several laws, many concerning sacrifices for sins (guilt and sin offerings: Lev. 6:24-7:10). These must be administered by the priests of the tabernacle (or later the temple) of God. These sacrifices were necessary for God’s forgiveness. Then, God sent his Son, Jesus Christ, to live a perfect life and die for the sins of the world. The moment Christ died on the cross, the curtain in the temple of God was torn from top to bottom (Matt. 27:51), showing that the priests were no longer needed as a mediator between God and Man. Also, this sacrifice was the final sacrifice that was atoning for all the sins that had been committed and would be committed in the future. Ch 40 – Of Free Will Just as when sacrifices were given in the Old Testament, the acceptance of the gift God offers us must be a personal choice. Many cling to a philosophy of active predestination or election. They quote a few scriptures (Rom. 8:28-30) and claim that God will save whom he wants to save (Rom. 9:15), and our salvation has already been decided. Here we have a few points that must be addressed. First, we must define election correctly. The elect are, indeed, the believers. But, we must draw a line between foreknowledge and forced salvation. God knows who will be saved (the elect), however, he does not force man into a certain future. If God determined who would come to be saved, all would be (1 Tim. 2:3-4), but all aren’t, therefore, we are not destined but given the choice whether to accept Christ. Also, many seem to forget the large middle ground that exists between complete free will and complete predestination. Scripturally speaking, the most likely truth is that God “elected” everyone to be saved (Christ died for sinners, not just the elect), and that we have the choice whether to receive the gift that God has given us. John 3:16: “For God so loved THE WORLD (note: the whole world, not the elect) that he gave his only begotten Son (note: Christ died to forgive the sins of the whole world, not just the elect), that whosoever BELIEVETH IN HIM shall not perish but have ever lasting life. (Final note: Belief is a choice, salvation is a gift from God to all, but must be accepted by each individual.) Ch 41 – Of Baptism Another issue that is often debated in Christian circles is the issue of baptism. Quite simply, baptism is not necessary for salvation. However, we have been commanded to be baptized as an act of obedience, not of salvation (John 4:2). Thus, salvation does not require baptism, but obedience does. Ch 42 – Of Charismaticism Often, Christian Churches are divided into two major categories: legalist and charismatic. Often, the legalistic are known for denying the minor doctrinal beliefs of the charismatic (who often inflate the importance of these beliefs out of proportion). I will now consider several parts of the charismatic faith. Of possession and exorcism – Demons do exist and do possess people (Mark 5:15), however, assigning every negative action to a demon’s influence appears (to me) to remove free will, and make humans merely spiritual pawns rather than the important beings that they are. Quite simply, there are two equal and opposite mistakes concerning demons: one is to overestimate their power and involvement, the other is to underestimate their existence and involvement. Both can be spiritually devastating. Of speaking in tongues – Many legalists (seemingly) contradict their name and deny the existence of the gift of tongues (1 Cor 14:39). This error is also often based in the belief that people who have the gift of tongues experience the same effect that was seen in Pentecost. This is scripturally inconsistent. At Pentecost, the disciples experienced a one-time occurrence. This is shown because the people who were present from foreign lands understood them (they were speaking in tongues of men)(Acts 2:1-12). However, 1 Cor 14:2 states that “He who speaks in a tongue speaks NOT TO MEN but to God” Thus showing, the tongues of fire at Pentecost as a different spiritual phenomenon than the gift of tongues. People do speak in tongues, this is scripturally and observationally proven. However, not every saved individual speaks in tongues (it cannot be assumed that everyone has the same spiritual gift: is everyone a prophet? (1 Cor. 12:29-31), therefore, we see a similar error as to that with demons. Either tongues does not exist, or is necessary for salvation. Both are incorrect. Of holy laughter and slaying in the Spirit – there are relatively common parts of charismaticism. However, there is absolutely no biblical basis supporting either of these practices. Therefore, their existence cannot be accepted on a purely scriptural basis. Ch 43 – In summary Christianity is the most likely religion to be true and also I have resolved many of the issues that are dealt with in Christian circles. Part VII |
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