Groothuis Gig

I am teaching on a prophetic theme from the book of Hosea at Wellspring Anglican Church in Englewood, CO, on June 17. Services begin at 9:00 and 10:35 AM. I am limited to 25 minutes. My theme will be "The Responsibility of Knowledge" (4:6).

I am speaking at Cherry Creek Presbyterian Church on Sunday, June 10, in the adult education class. Here is my outline:

Douglas Groothuis, Ph.D, Professor of Philosophy, Denver Seminary, Head of the Christian Apologetics and Ethics Masters Degree. Doug.Groothuis@denverseminary.edu

Worldviews and the Bible:

Reading the Bible Rightly and Discerning False Worldviews

I.                   What is a Worldview?

A.    Philosophy of life, conceptual system, scheme of things

B.     Answers perennial questions:

1.      What is the ultimate reality?

2.      Does life have a purpose?

3.      Who are human beings?

4.      Is there an afterlife?

5.      What is the basis and meaning of ethics?

II.                What is a Biblical Worldview?

1.      The scandal of worldview ignorance

2.      Based on the Bible (epistemology): 2 Timothy 3:15; John 17:17

3.      Takes knowledge from outside the Bible (general revelation): Romans 1-2.

4.      Reads the Bible according to the author’s intension taken in its context, both literarily and culturally (hermeneutics).

No “deconstruction” (relativizing) of the text. This destroys the intrinsic authority of the biblical text.

5.      Biblical worldview essentials

a.       Creation (Genesis 1; Psalm 90:1-2; John 1:1-3)

b.      Fall (Genesis 3; Romans 3; Mark 7:20-23)

c.       Redemption (John 3:16-18; Romans 1-8)

                                           

d.      Consummation (Revelation 21-22)

III.             Two Competing Worldviews

A.    Naturalism or Philosophical Materialism

1.      Dominates elite culture in America and the West

2.      Nature is only material: physicalism

3.      Natural all that there is; a closed system of cause and effect; the causal closure principle.

4.      There is no revelation, soul, miracles, purpose in life, or afterlife

5.      Religion is a useless or dangerous superstition. See Richard Dawkins, The God Delusion (2006) and my review of it. The Bible is a collection of myths and legends. It must be “demythologized.”

6.      A few problems with naturalism

1.      The Big Bang refutes it (see Douglas Groothuis, Christian Apologetics, chapter 11)

2.      Cosmic fine-tuning refutes it (See Groothuis, Christian Apologetics, chapter 12)

3.      It cannot give meaning to humans who crave meaning (See Groothuis, Christian Apologetics, chapter 15)

B.     Pantheism or non-dualism

1.      More influential at a popular, not academic level. See Oprah Winfrey, Eckhart Tolle, Deepak Chopra.

2.      All that exists is a divine oneness (monism or non-dualism)

3.      God is impersonal and amoral—an It, not a He (see Exodus 3:14)

4.      Salvation is found within the self (“the God within”)

Misinterpretation of the Bible: “The Kingdom of God is within [or among] you” (Luke 17:21). “Among” is in ESV and NLT. This does not teach pantheism, but the presence of Christ himself in the midst of the Jews.

5.      Reincarnation and karma (see Hebrews 9:27)

Misinterpretation of the Bible: “John the Baptist is Elijah” (Matthew 11:13-14); this is taken to be reincarnation, but it is a figure of speech to refer to the character of Elijah, not reincarnation. See John 1:19-21.

6.      A few problems with pantheism (see Douglas Groothuis, Unmasking the New Age (InterVarsity, 1986); Confronting the New Age (1988; Wipf and Stock reprint); Jesus in an Age of Controversy (1996; Wipf and Stock reprint)

1.      It denies basic sense experience and intuition of a world of diverse things and the finitude of the self

2.      It dissolves any justification for objective morality, since all is one.

3.      It cannot fulfill our yearning for love and healthy relationships

4.      It distorts the meaning and person of Jesus Christ, reducing him to a guru, yogi, swami, avatar, adept, and so on. See Matthew 11:27; John 14:1-6; Acts 4:12; 1 Timothy 2:5)

IV.             Know and Spread the Truth of God

A.    Explore and develop a Christian worldview faithful to the Scripture and logic (Romans 12:1-2). Study, memorize, and meditate on the Holy Bible.

B.     Do not impose a naturalistic or pantheistic view on the Bible (2 Peter 3:16)

C.     Discern unbiblical and illogical worldviews and expose them in love (1 Peter 3:15; Ephesians 4:15)

D.    Be ready for intellectual and spiritual warfare as you battle to bring people to Christ and build up Christians in the knowledge of God (1 Peter 5:8-9; Ephesians 6:10-19)

References:

1.      Douglas Groothuis, Christian Apologetics: A Comprehensive Case for Biblical Faith. InterVarsity Press, 2011. 752 pages.

2.      Douglas Groothuis, Unmasking the New Age. InterVarsity Press, 1986.

3.      Douglas Groothuis, Confronting the New Age. 1988; Wipf and Stock reprint.

4.      Douglas Groothuis, Jesus in an Age of Controversy. 1996; Wifp and Stock reprint.

5.      Douglas Groothuis, Are All Religions One? Booklet. InterVarsity Press, 1996.

6.      Douglas Groothuis is on Twitter (#DougGroothuis) and Facebook. Join me!

7.      Nancy Pearcey, Total Truth. Crossway, 2005.

8.      James W. Sire, The Universe Next Door: A Basic Worldview Catalogue, 5^th ed. InterVarsity Press, 2009.

9.      James W. Sire, Scripture Twisting: 20 Ways Cults Misinterpret the Bible. InterVarsity Press, 1980.

On Tensions

1. Disjunctive tension: P or non-P (where the terms are clearly defined)
Response: suspend judgment if you don't know which is true. This is rational.

2. Conjunctive tension: P and non-P (where the terms are clearly defined).
Response: If you affirm (2), you are irrational. Sadly, many people do this in the area of spirituality or theology. If so, this terminates all apologetic efforts.

Acedia

Overheard in a bookstore: "I have a very personal belief. The syncronicity of things in the last three days has been amazing. Everything fell into place. Some people may call it God. Awesome. I try to not figure it out..." Think about that! It is another example of cognitive acedia, which is epidemic in our "information society." "The more words, the less meaning, and what does it profit anyone?"--Ecclesiastes.

As a former student of yours, one who took your apologetics course in the fall of 2008, I remember your references to what at the time was your forthcoming work, Christian Apologetics. That semester, I put it on my reading list and looked forward to its completion and arrival. With your works release, I promptly picked up a copy and began working through text. Christian Apologetics has more than exceeded my expectations. It is thoughtful, thorough and well written. Certainly the breadth and scope of the work lays not only a foundation for those with interests in apologetics, but also seems to build the first, second and third floors. Having sat through your tutorials and read a number of your works, I wanted to take the time to thank you and commend you for the effort and commitment you have so consistently demonstrated in furthering the cause of the cross. Undoubtedly you have been one of the biggest influences in my life as I work to cultivate my mind. --Ryan Smith.

“Jesus is not an ambiguous inkblot upon which we project our pet theories, hopes, or fears. He is a living reality who can be mastered by no one, since He is the Master of the universe. He challenges every counterfeit with His genuineness, every distortion with His veracity… The cross remains a fact of history, and the gospel continues to be the only means of setting people free”

~Douglas Groothuis “Jesus in an Age of Controversy ” (1996)

Third Edition of Christian Apologetics

"Congratulations: Christian Apologetics has been reprinted. This is the 3rd printing, bringing the total number of copies in print to 8,008. We are pleased to see your book have this continuing ministry."--To me from InterVarsity Press.