A Pactical Application of Van Tilian Prusuppositional Apologetcs

 A Practical Application of Van Tilian Presuppositional Apologetics

APOLOGETICS IN PRACTICE

By Dr. Greg Bahnsen

WHY I AM NOT A CHRISTIAN (1927)

By Bernard Russell

        On the first part of Apologetics in Practice we can see here every point and the right approach of Apologetics. And they have 15 points about how to approach the task of Apologetics.

1, Engaging in Apologetics is a moral necessity for every believer, we must be “always ready” to offer an answer for the hope within us (1 Peter 3:15)

2. To avoid misconceptions, we note that apologetics is not: pugnacious, a matter of persuasion, or based on a different ultimate authority than theology.

3. For the Christian “reason” should be used as a tool, not as the ultimate authority, in our thinking.

4. Our claim before the world is that the believers “know” the Bible to be true—we have adequate justification for believing its claims.

5. This conflict between believers and unbelievers is ultimately over their differing worldviews—networks of presuppositions in terms of which all experience is interpreted and reasoning is guided.

6. Consequently we need to argue from “the impossibility of the contrary,” showing that only Christianity provides the preconditions of intelligibility of man’s experience and reasoning. If Christianity were not true, the unbeliever could not prove or understand anything.

7. Unbelievers are self-decided: they know the truth about God, but suppress it (rationalizing the clear evidence within them and all around them).

8. True defendant, intellectually and morally, is the unbeliever—not God.

9. There are large variety of different kinds of attacks upon Christianity, and they cannot be dealt with adequately by defenses which rest upon: subjectivism, relativism, or eclecticism.

10. Apologists must use argumentation. Sanctified argumentation need not be contentious; we find that sanctified arguing with unbelievers is warranted by Biblical example.

11. An argument asserts the truth of proposition on the basis of others.

12. Rationality in argumentation is broader than simply using the rules of syllogistics deduction.

13. God wishes for us to master the tools of rationality in defending the faith. It is our task to refute the challenges of unbelievers and to offer an internal critique of the position from which those challenges arise.

14. The two key intellectual sins which are committed by people are inconsistency and arbitrariness.

15. In dealing with the unbeliever, the Christian should be alert to point out the critic’s, prejudicial conjectures, unargued philosophical bias, presuppositions which do not comport with each other, logical fallacies, and behavior which betrays his proffesed beliefs. (page. 2)

 

Looking for a Fire to Fight

     According to this article we can see the material that Bernard Russell wrote and this is big help to us to practice our defense of the Christian faith. The title of his article is “Why I am not a Christian”.   The brief history of Russell’s philosophical evolution is rehearsed so that the reader may correctly appraise the strength and authority of the intellectual platform from which Russell would presume to criticize the Christian faith. Russell’s brilliance is not in doubt; he was a talented and intelligent man. (page. 3)

 Why Russell Said He Could Not Be a Christian

Russell argued that he could not be a Christian because: The Roman Catholic Church is mistaken to say that the existence of God can be proved by unaided reason. Serious defects in the character and teaching of Jesus show that he was not the best and wisest of men, but actually morally inferior to Buddha and Socrates. People accept religion on emotional grounds, particularly on the foundation of fear, which is “not worthy of self-respecting human beings” and The Christian religion “has been and still is the principal enemy of moral progress in the world. (page. 6)

 Internal Tensions

     The second reason above presupposes some absolute standard of moral wisdom by which somebody could grade Jesus as either inferior or superior to others. Likewise, the third reason presupposes a fix criterion for what is, and what is not, “worthy” of self-respecting human beings. Now if Russell had been reasoning and speaking in terms of the Christian worldview, his attempt to asses moral wisdom, human worthiness, and moral progress—as well as adversely judge shortcomings in these mattes—would be understandable and expected. Christians have a universal, objective and absolute standard or morality in the revealed word of God. Russell was embarrassingly arbitrary in this regard. He just took it for granted, as an unargued philosophical bias, that there was a moral standard to apply, and that he could presume to be the spokesman and judge who applies it. (page. 7)

 

                                        

        PERSONAL RESPONSE

         In the beginning of the article of Russell he was indicated who is really worthy and qualified should a Christian have and called to be a Christian? And it’s come to my mind while I’m pondering and reading his message it attracted my attention and started to piqued my curiosity. What is a Christian? It says in this book that there are 2 different items which are quite essential to anybody calling himself as a Christian. The first is the Dogmatic nature and the second is Mohammedams both of these are believe in God and immorality but why the Mohammedams are not qualified to called Christian. For me Christian is not the religions or sects you involve it’s all about accepting Christ as my personal savior, strive to walk who does is righteous, who speaks the truth from their hearts and also having an intimate relationship in God and you to be called as a Christian is to obey His great commandments the first is Thou shalt love the Lord Thy God with all your heart and with soul with all my mind and secondly is Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. When you obey his commandments and striving to bestow the fruit of the Holy Spirit and also you become the light and the salt for me this the true basis what is a Christian mean.

          The existence of God is really hard to believe if they don’t the basis and where it came from. Like the Catholic Church they believe in the existence yes! Through their own unaided reason and the freethinkers of the leaders an adopted the habits and sayings. For me the existence of God is in John 1:1 In the beginning was the word was with God, and the word was God. This verse is the proven that God in the beginning is already existing until now. God also promised that He will be with us always to the end of the age. In the cause argument is the reason why the things in this world existence and whom the cause of it. Same with the different belief, a vary perspective, different point of view, dissimilar doctrine all of these are acquired from our ancestors and people in our surrounding. There is no reason why the world could not have come into without a cause. But the importance for me is believing that God is the cause of everything in this world. My mind and my heart is firming that the cause of my existence the God who made me. God chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful. The natural law no one can able to predict only it is in the God hands no one can specifically predict. Even the wise men, no one can fathom the depths of his power. There will be things we won’t understand, we must need is to keep believing and trusting Him because God’s wisdom is unfathomable.

          Argument from design for me it is true that every living things and none living things is design by God but for us as a human being we have to choose to become good or bad we can alter by own because we gave a free will for us. God’s designed for each one of us is perfect. In Isaiah 48:13 says own hand laid the foundations of the earth, and my right hand spread out the heavens; when I summon them,  they all stand up together. We must do now is to find the truth and the best place to find the truth is in the bible there is no perfect and beautiful book in this world but only the bible that God says in Timothy 3:16-17 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. A truthful witness does not deceive, but a false witness pours out lies. The mocker seeks wisdom and finds none, but knowledge comes easily to the discerning. (Proverbs 14:5-6). The book of Proverbs is full of godly wisdom broken into short, practical sayings. In Proverbs 14:1-12. Solomon tells us the best place to seek truth is in God’s word.