According to contemporary culture, what you see is what you get. Nothing exists beyond the material universe. So the world is a closed box - a cosmic cube that embraces all of reality.
But when God is excluded, philosophy loses its universal reference point and cannot discover true reality. And without God, it makes so sense to talk about right and wrong.
Key Scriptures Mentioned in the Video
Mark 9:2
Romans 12:2
2 Corinthians 3:18
Colossians 2:8
2 Timothy 2:24-26
Themes
Philosophy,
according to Dr. R.C. Sproul, is "a scientific quest to discover
ultimate reality." This would seem to indicate that
philosophical ideas about truth are closely aligned with the biblical
definition given in Lesson 1: truth = reality. The 1828 edition of
Websters Dictionary included the following affirmation: "true
religion and true philosophy must ultimately arrive at the same
principle." The definition also asserted that philosophy aims
"to enlarge our understanding of God." God, of course, has
been edited out of subsequent editions of the dictionary. This is
consistent with the perspective of contemporary culture, which has
been taken captive by the unfounded assumption
that "the cosmos is all there is or ever was or ever will be"
(Carl Sagan). Another way to say this is that current thought
pictures reality as a closed box - a cosmic
cube
- in which there is no room for anything that cannot be sensually or
materially perceived. The problem is that with the lid of the box
closed and God excluded, philosophy is deprived of a universal
reference point and thus crippled in its "scientific quest for
ultimate reality." As a result, it cannot answer the most basic
questions about right
and wrong
behavior.
Points
to Watch For
Dr.
Tackett persuasively argues that even the most outspoken adherents of
"cosmic cube" thinking and relativistic ethics - thinkers
like Carl Sagan and William Provine - cannot possibly live
by their own reductionist and materialistic principles. On the other
side of the coin, he suggests that many contemporary Christians have
been unwittingly taken captive by the assumptions of our age
("conformed to this world"). He concludes the lesson by
challenging students to think
more aggressively about what it means to be "transformed by the
renewing of the mind" (Romans 12:2).
Key Terms:
Assumptive Language
Powerful and
deceptive use of words in which a seemingly simple statement is made,
hoping the hearer will buy the simple statement without recognizing
the huge assumptions that come with it. When one buys the simple
statement, you buy its assumptions without knowing it.
Biblical worldview
A formal worldview
based ultimately upon that nature, character, and being of God as it
is expressed in His infallible Word and His creation. It becomes the
foundation for a life system that governs every area of existence.
Capricious
Impulsive,
unpredictable, characterized or subject to whim. Not guided by steady
judgment, intent or purpose.
Carl Sagan
An American
astronomer and proponent of scientific naturalism who promoted the
Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence (SETI). Cosmos was the most
watched television show on PBS of all time (more than 600 million
people have seen it since it first aired in 1980), and his novel
Contact was made into a film of the same name in 1997 staring Jodie
Foster.
Cosmic Cube
The philosophy
that has consciously or subconsciously captured our culture which
says the material world is all that is, was, or ever will be; nothing
exists outside of the box. This philosophical position has severely
damaging implications.
Epistemology
the branch of
philosophy that studies the nature of knowledge, its foundations, its
presuppositions, and its extent and validity. How we know what we
know.
Ethics
Formal worldview
A comprehensive
set of truth claims that purports to paint a picture of reality.
Fundamental biblical presuppositions
God is and He has
revealed Himself to us through His creation (general revelation) and
through His Word (special revelation).
Hollow and deceptive philosophy
Philosophies that
are based on human traditions and worldly principles that set
themselves up against God's truth claims. See Colossians 2:8
Immanent
Present in and
involved in the created universe. God is at work, actively involved
with His creation, but separate from it. (see "Transcendent")
Metamorphoo
Greek for
"transformation." Root of the word metamorphosis. This
is the primary goal of The Truth Project: for individuals to be
transformed into the likeness of Christ by gazing on the face of God.
This process is not easy and we often struggle with God's Truth
claims in the "cocoon." Metamorphoo is used in Romans
12:2Where it is usually translated as "transformed."
Metaphysics
the
branch of philosophy that examines the nature of reality, existence,
and the relationship between mind and matter, time and space, fact
and value.
Morality
The
rightness or wrongness of conduct; that which is. Habits of life or
the practices of an individual or culture.
Naturalism
Truth
and reality are derived from nature and natural causes. Rejects all
spiritual and supernatural explanations of the world and holds that
science is the primary basis of what can be known.
Particulars
Individual
truth claims'; the small details that describe "particular"
objects.
Personal
world view
The
set of individual truth claims that you have embraced so deeply that
you believe they reflect what is really real and therefore they drive
what you think, how you act, and what you feel.
Philosophy
The
love of wisdom. The systematic examination of basic concepts such as
truth, existence, reality, freedom, etc. Webster's 1828 dictionary
definition:"The objects of philosophy are to ascertain facts or
truth, and the causes of things or their phenomena; to enlarge our
views of God and his works..." True religion and true philosophy
must ultimately arrive at the same principle.
Postmodernism
cluster
of philosophies with the underlying assumption that no one worldview
or belief system (metanarrative) can claim to be the truth, which
often results in relativistic thinking and the use of language as a
power play.
Pragmatic
more
concerned with practical results than with principles or truth.
Primary
doctrine
Theology
and Anthropology. Who is God and who is man? These are the two basic
foundations for a person's and a culture's worldview.
Reductionist
1.
considering or presenting something complicated in
a simple way, especially a way that is too simple
2.
relating to the belief that complex living systems can
be explained by the laws of physics and chemistry,
or having this belief
Spiritual
Naturalism
Truth
and reality are derived from nature and natural causes. Accepts a
spiritual dimension to this world, but adds spirit inside the Cosmic
Cube and, as a result rejects and transcendent creator.
Transcendent
Existing
outside, above and independent, of the material universe. God is
transcendent, but also immanent.
Universals
Broad
"universal" truth claims that provide meaning to the
smaller "articular" questions life. "Universals"
provide answers to the great philosophical questions we face.
Utilitarian
relating
to or advocating the doctrine that value is measured in terms of
usefulness, concerned with practicality.
William
Provine
A
professor of evolutionary biology at Cornell University who is an
atheist and adamant opponent of intelligent design.