Zach’s Theological Musings

  I think we sometimes do a disservice to the truth by defending it. Statements which are obvious do not need to be defended. Therefore when we defend a statement we are implicitly acknowledging that it is not obvious. Certainly a great many statements DO need to be defended. But some don’t. In particular, it can sometimes be counter-productive to try to “defend” facts like:

1. God is real (i.e. a divine being with eternal power created this world), and
2. The thing growing inside of a human mommy is a baby human-being.

  Now someone will say, “The truth of those statements is not clear to everyone.” But the person who says that is wrong. I’ll get back to the second point above in a subsequent post. Regarding the first point, God says this,

For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. (Rom 1:20-21)

An “atheist” or “agnostic” standing before God on Judgment Day cannot defend themselves with, “But God, I just didn’t know. I mean, the ontological argument seemed to have all these philosophical gaps and, and…”. Now, I can’t claim to know what God would say to such things, but He very well could say, “You knew about Me. I made it obvious. Now why did you choose to reject Me?”

  A couple of years ago I realized that by endlessly trying to “defend” the existence of God to an atheist friend, I was not adequately preparing him for that Day. My friend may be able to light-heartedly banter around excuses for ignoring his Creator today, but on that Day there will be no more excuses. “I grew up in a society that doesn’t believe in God. God never revealed Himself to me. How can there be a good God when there is so much evil in the world?” None of these things will allow anyone to slip past the penetrating examination of the Judge of man’s soul. Rather, on that Day every mouth will be silenced, and the whole world held accountable to God for our sin (Rom 3:19-20). So I warned my friend, “God is not going to accept any of your excuses for ignoring Him.”

  Someone has pointed out that the language of the Bible calls Christians to be “witnesses” not “attorneys”. Picture the courtroom analogy; our job is not to defend the truth, but to state what we know. That’s what I Peter 3:16 is talking about, “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.” I don’t think that I Peter 3:16 is a mandate to be well versed in apologetics. The reason for the hope that is within me is because I have come to know that Jesus Christ the Lord died for my sins, once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring me to God. And that is the hope that I need to be prepared to communicate.

  The Bible begins with, “In the beginning God created…,” not, “In the beginning there was a God and He created…”. Note the difference; God does not cater to the self-delusion of the “atheist/agnostic” by even counting it as necessary to state the fact of His existence. As God has spoken, we also in the spirit of assured faith can speak confidently and authoritatively about what we know to be true. “Since God is Lord of heaven and earth,… therefore you should repent” is an appropriate way to speak, even to unbelieving pagans (Acts 17:24-30).

  Pluralists speak from the perspective of their pluralistic worldview. If we don’t share their worldview then we won’t talk like them. We give in to a pluralistic society if we allow them to train us to speak like them, saying, “Well, my belief is that there is a God…”.

  I can think of only two times in the Bible that God addresses atheism head-on:

The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.” (Ps 14:1)

The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.” (Ps 53:1)

We are acting like fools if we even speak in terms like, “If God exists,” or, “If God does not exist”.  Now, there is a time to answer a fool as his folly deserves, that he not be wise in his own eyes (Prov 26:5). But there is also a time to not answer a fool according to his folly, lest you become like him yourself (Prov 26:4). Oftentimes, an adequate response to atheism is simply, “Stop being foolish. You are going to have to answer to God one day.”

  I have often heard it said, “You can’t put God in a box.” That’s true. And while not undermining the truth of that statement, I would just add, “And you can’t take God out of a box either.” Fact is, you just can’t put or take God anywhere, one way or another, against His will. The only way God could ever be in a box would be if His own nature and His own will compelled Him to be there. And yes that does happen.

  Covenants are one way that God puts Himself in a box. And anyone who has come under God’s unfailing lovingkindness should be extremely grateful that God puts Himself in covenantal boxes. If God has promised today to be faithful to us forever, then tomorrow we can be sure He won’t hop out of the box and abandon us.

  Then there are all of God’s promises, which I suppose are like covenants in miniature. Many of God’s promises come in affirmative form, but the box imagery seems to be more conducive to looking at God’s self imposed restrictions. So here are some examples of reasons to be thankful that God has voluntarily boxed Himself in [with emphasis added to the text].

Yet in spite of this, when they are in the land of their enemies, I will not reject them or abhor them so as to destroy them completely, breaking my covenant with them. I am the LORD their God. (Lev 26:44)

I am the LORD; that is my name! I will not give my glory to another or my praise to idols. (Isa 42:8)

Remember these things, O Jacob, for you are my servant, O Israel. I have made you, you are my servant; O Israel, I will not forget you. (Isaiah 44:21)

For my own sake, for my own sake, I do this. How can I let myself be defamed? I will not yield my glory to another. (Isaiah 48:11)

Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you! (Isa 49:15)

I will not accuse forever, nor will I always be angry, for then the spirit of man would grow faint before me— the breath of man that I have created. (Isa 57:16)

I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never stop doing good to them, and I will inspire them to fear me, so that they will never turn away from me. (Jer 32:40)

All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. (John 6:37)

I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. (John 14:18)

Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” (Heb 13:5)

He who overcomes will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out his name from the book of life, but will acknowledge his name before my Father and his angels. (Rev 3:5)