Taking Every Thought Captive

Note: there is also a podcast episode on this subject here.

Many unbelievers object to Christian doctrine of “self-authentication,” which is the belief that the Bible is to be believed because it is the Word of God.  Two main objections are:

1. That is circular reasoning.
2. Other religions claim the same thing.

In this post, I will discuss the first objection.  Let me begin by quoting E. J. Young who puts this “circular reasoning” in context.

In reply we may answer that in the nature of the case, if we are but creatures, and God is the Creator, this is the only way in which it is possible to reason. If God has actually created us, it follows that all we know we must recieve from Him. He must tell us what we are to believe about anything. Apart from Him there is no other source to which we may go. God alone must be the fount of all our knowledge.  If, therefore, He tells us, as He does in the work of the inward testimony of the Holy Spirit, that the Scriptures are His Word, we must obey His voice. On the other hand, because He has thus identified that Scriptures as His Word, we must in turn listen to them when they tell of Him. They point to Him and reveal what we are to believe concerning Him and what duty He has required of us. There is no other way. Any other way is a deception and will ultimately lead to the point where we shut God out of our thoughts. [1]

Since God is the creator and the fountain of all knowledge, we must begin our reasoning with Him and His revealed will.  There is no other way for the Christian. To do otherwise would be unfaithful to God and it would contradict the teachings of Christianity. Biblical apologetics makes use of this fact.  The presuppositional method of apologetics defends the faith by using the “impossibility of the contrary,” that is, unless you assume the Christian faith and worldview, you cannot prove anything. Greg Bahnsen explains,

Differing worldviews can be compared to each other in terms of the important philosophical question about the “preconditions of intelligibility” for such important assumptions as the universality of logical laws, the uniformity of nature, and the reality of moral absolutes. We can examine a worldview and ask whether its portrayal of nature, man, knowledge, etc. provide an outlook in terms of which logic, science and ethics can make sense. It does not comport with the practices of natural science to believe that all events are random and unpredictable, for instance. It does not comport with the demand for honesty in scientific research, if no moral principle expresses anything but a personal preference or feeling. Moreover, if there are internal contradictions in a person’s worldview, it does not provide the preconditions for making sense out of man’s experience. For instance, if one’s political dogmas respect the dignity of men to make their own choices, while one’s psychological theories reject the free will of men, then there is an internal defect in that person’s worldview.

It is the Christian’s contention that all non-Christian worldviews are beset with internal contradictions, as well as with beliefs which do not render logic, science or ethics intelligible. On the other hand, the Christian worldview (taken from God’s self-revelation in Scripture) demands our intellectual commitment because it does provide the preconditions of intelligibility for man’s reasoning, experience, and dignity. [2]

Unless we reason in a circle, we cannot prove anything.  We must reason in a circle so we can show the consistency of the Christian faith and worldview and how it alone can account for the foundations of logic, science, and ethics.  The truth of the Bible is a presupposition of Christianity.  It is an assumed premise. All worldviews hold to presuppositions, those things which are assumed to be true from the outset. Apologetics seeks to show the validity of the Christian’s presuppositions, one of those being self-authentication, while at the same time showing that the unbeliever’s presuppositions are invalid in that they do not account for the preconditions of intelligibility. This is how the “circular reasoning” of the Christian differs from the classical use of the phrase.  Using inductive reasoning to justify induction would be circular in the classical sense. For example, you are asked the question, “How do you know that a ball when thrown up in the air for the one hundredth time will fall back down to earth as it did the previous ninety-nine times?” That is, how can you generalize your experience to the hundredth time or even to other balls that are thrown up in the air at different times all over the earth? How can you justify your use of inductive reasoning? If you seek to justify it by using past experience were it has been successful, that assumes the future will be like the past. Therefore, induction is justified by induction. This is circular reasoning in the classical sense. Christians on the other hand are appealing to the authority of God since He has saved them and they can do no other. They cannot deny their Savior. Christians also make use of this fact when testing the consistency of worldviews. In order to do so, you must assume the premises of that worldview are true. Every worldview has presuppositions, so this is not something that is unique to the Christian faith.

This discussion leads to the second argument raised against self-authentication. We will save that for a future post. For now, let us hold fast to the authority of God as revealed in the Holy Bible.  He is the Creator and the Redeemer of His people. He alone is the authority. Let us give Him all the praise and glory. Let us use these truths to witness to others that they might be pointed to the Savior.

For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen. Romans 11:36.

I will end this post with a quote from Cornelius Van Til who states the following after having an imaginary conversation with an unbeliever in his pamphlet, Why I Believe in God, “Well, my meanderings have, to be sure, been circular; they have made everything turn on God.” [3]

Indeed, everything does turn on God.

References

[1] Young, E.J., Thy Word is Truth. Edinburgh: The Banner of Truth Trust, 1957, pg. 188-189.

[2] http://www.cmfnow.com/articles/PA099.htm, accessed 7/4/10.

[3] Van Til, Cornelius, Why I Believe in God. Philadelphia: Great Commission Publications, pg. 16.