Lesson 7: The Christian Mind – Its Acceptance of Authority
Objective
To survey and identify how the Christian concept of authority is present in the Church and Word here and now.
REVIEW
Lesson 6 Conception of Truth
The net that doesn’t catch fish
INTRODUCTION
Eve in the Garden.
Discussion about whether Eve would have sinned if she had refused the apple on the grounds that she was trying to watch her figure.
A: yes. She refused the authority of God in submitting to His command and presumed (presupposed) her own authority to judge Gods command vs. the serpents notion of removing the creature/creator distinction.
Discuss on what rational grounds she had authority to judge the Word of God.
Apologetic method of using Scripture (e.g. Christ’s temptation in the desert) makes the authority of Scripture the issue.
A MOST DIFFICULT TOPIC
The issue is the authority of Gods word
P 132: “By the very nature…”
The world has rejected the Authority of God. Characterize the world’s response. Christians seen as foolish, simple, stupid for accepting the Bible on its own authority.
P 133 ”Indeed…”
Blamires looks down through the ages to see how unparalleled is our rebellion. “But for the most part…’
AUTHORITY TO THE SECULAR MIND
But the secular mind has authorities, too. How does he see it?
AUTHORITY AS:
DOGLIKE
Authority of the State
Authority as bland: Bland, bookish bureaucrats blithely blabbering with a “sheltered aloofness.”
Authority as irrelevant. The government speaks fully expected things; politicians toe the party line, can’t say what they really think or feel, etc. Not “free agents”
Human authority not thinking. Therefore, authority is like a dog.
PATHETIC
Authority of the Father
p. 137 “There is now something faintly ridiculous.”
Father figure as Homer Simpson. Authority is a silly looking thing to be ridiculed if at all found wanting or weak.
ILLUSION
Authority as illusory. Consider what we grew to think of an adult we found so authoritative when we were younger.
p 139 “The mighty authority…”
SUSPICIOUS
Authority of the employer, to be united against to limit its operations.
UNDER CONTROL
The employer, by union and the egalitarian state
THE CHALLENGE
In this world – as a Christian to not be viewed as having simply another opinion. God’s word is not opinion, but authority. P 140, the elder and his opinion.
P 141 But there is “Only obedience or disobedience” “Christian faith leaves Christians with little or no choice….
“Opinion” as practice, p 143, and its effect on doctrine.
AUTHORITY OF THE CHURCH
In salvation – that assent to Christianity is not Christian, p 143 “in so far…”
What is that presupposition? The same presupposition as Eve had in the Garden, that my mind is the judge of what is Gods truth and what is not Gods truth when I encounter it.
Blamires considers the importance of title if properly placed. E.g. the practice of removing title in names p 143 “The practice…”
P 143 The Church has authority to “heal and teach, to baptize and forgive, to bless and eat the bread and wine.”
AUTHORITY AND THE SECULAR MIND – god as convenience.
P 144 the secular mind conjures up “god”. “The individual intellect….”
“god” as means to my end.. p 145 “God is docked…”
ANTITHESIS
P 146 the key to the difference…” Christianity flips secular thinking on its head.
Yet the secularists p 146 “are men and women…”
The secular mind patronized Christianity, p 147 “fraught with pride” in its favorable approach to, say, Christ vs. Hitler.
AUTHORITY AND THE CHRISTIAN MIND
P 148 “anyone who has been trained….”
Again, the issue of discourse with the world raises its head “ Because his contemporaries…”
THE BIG PICTURE
P 148 “For if the Christian faith is true….” This is ultimately what we are talking about. Winning the world over for Christ.
“What are we Christians about if not that?”
Don’t defend the Church on the grounds that it is good for society
Don’t defend the Church as meeting the requirements of secular well-being
Don’t defend the Church as being “up to date” since new is not always good
Don’t defend the World as having authority (i.e. vs. “Thomism” of Thomas Aquinas etc who view both reason/faith secular/religious as having separate truths and separate ultimate authorities.
Don’t speak of the authoritative Word, or Church, as “to come”
Do defend the Church as being the vehicle for eternal life and eternal truth
Do defend the Church as authoritative in AD 300 as AD 2006
Do speak of the Church as authoritative now and always.
Blamires “Christianly trained mind” p149
Van Til “epistemologically self-conscious”
THE IMPOSSIBILITY OF THE CONTRARY
We will not find a suitable alternative than the Church p 151 “(the Church) is not at all a means…”
THE CHURCH IS SECURE
P 153 Secularism will not prevail, nor will the Church’s “crisis”, etc.
P 153 If the crash comes…”
We are not laying some great, religious foundation, nor are we developing one. Authority now is as it ever was.
CONCLUSION
To survey and identify how the Christian concept of authority is present in the Church and Word here and now.
REVIEW
Lesson 6 Conception of Truth
The net that doesn’t catch fish
INTRODUCTION
Eve in the Garden.
Discussion about whether Eve would have sinned if she had refused the apple on the grounds that she was trying to watch her figure.
A: yes. She refused the authority of God in submitting to His command and presumed (presupposed) her own authority to judge Gods command vs. the serpents notion of removing the creature/creator distinction.
Discuss on what rational grounds she had authority to judge the Word of God.
Apologetic method of using Scripture (e.g. Christ’s temptation in the desert) makes the authority of Scripture the issue.
A MOST DIFFICULT TOPIC
The issue is the authority of Gods word
P 132: “By the very nature…”
The world has rejected the Authority of God. Characterize the world’s response. Christians seen as foolish, simple, stupid for accepting the Bible on its own authority.
P 133 ”Indeed…”
Blamires looks down through the ages to see how unparalleled is our rebellion. “But for the most part…’
AUTHORITY TO THE SECULAR MIND
But the secular mind has authorities, too. How does he see it?
AUTHORITY AS:
DOGLIKE
Authority of the State
Authority as bland: Bland, bookish bureaucrats blithely blabbering with a “sheltered aloofness.”
Authority as irrelevant. The government speaks fully expected things; politicians toe the party line, can’t say what they really think or feel, etc. Not “free agents”
Human authority not thinking. Therefore, authority is like a dog.
PATHETIC
Authority of the Father
p. 137 “There is now something faintly ridiculous.”
Father figure as Homer Simpson. Authority is a silly looking thing to be ridiculed if at all found wanting or weak.
ILLUSION
Authority as illusory. Consider what we grew to think of an adult we found so authoritative when we were younger.
p 139 “The mighty authority…”
SUSPICIOUS
Authority of the employer, to be united against to limit its operations.
UNDER CONTROL
The employer, by union and the egalitarian state
THE CHALLENGE
In this world – as a Christian to not be viewed as having simply another opinion. God’s word is not opinion, but authority. P 140, the elder and his opinion.
P 141 But there is “Only obedience or disobedience” “Christian faith leaves Christians with little or no choice….
“Opinion” as practice, p 143, and its effect on doctrine.
AUTHORITY OF THE CHURCH
In salvation – that assent to Christianity is not Christian, p 143 “in so far…”
What is that presupposition? The same presupposition as Eve had in the Garden, that my mind is the judge of what is Gods truth and what is not Gods truth when I encounter it.
Blamires considers the importance of title if properly placed. E.g. the practice of removing title in names p 143 “The practice…”
P 143 The Church has authority to “heal and teach, to baptize and forgive, to bless and eat the bread and wine.”
AUTHORITY AND THE SECULAR MIND – god as convenience.
P 144 the secular mind conjures up “god”. “The individual intellect….”
“god” as means to my end.. p 145 “God is docked…”
ANTITHESIS
P 146 the key to the difference…” Christianity flips secular thinking on its head.
Yet the secularists p 146 “are men and women…”
The secular mind patronized Christianity, p 147 “fraught with pride” in its favorable approach to, say, Christ vs. Hitler.
AUTHORITY AND THE CHRISTIAN MIND
P 148 “anyone who has been trained….”
Again, the issue of discourse with the world raises its head “ Because his contemporaries…”
THE BIG PICTURE
P 148 “For if the Christian faith is true….” This is ultimately what we are talking about. Winning the world over for Christ.
“What are we Christians about if not that?”
Don’t defend the Church on the grounds that it is good for society
Don’t defend the Church as meeting the requirements of secular well-being
Don’t defend the Church as being “up to date” since new is not always good
Don’t defend the World as having authority (i.e. vs. “Thomism” of Thomas Aquinas etc who view both reason/faith secular/religious as having separate truths and separate ultimate authorities.
Don’t speak of the authoritative Word, or Church, as “to come”
Do defend the Church as being the vehicle for eternal life and eternal truth
Do defend the Church as authoritative in AD 300 as AD 2006
Do speak of the Church as authoritative now and always.
Blamires “Christianly trained mind” p149
Van Til “epistemologically self-conscious”
THE IMPOSSIBILITY OF THE CONTRARY
We will not find a suitable alternative than the Church p 151 “(the Church) is not at all a means…”
THE CHURCH IS SECURE
P 153 Secularism will not prevail, nor will the Church’s “crisis”, etc.
P 153 If the crash comes…”
We are not laying some great, religious foundation, nor are we developing one. Authority now is as it ever was.
CONCLUSION
posted by Tulipman @ 4/22/2006 06:44:00 p.m.
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