Bahnsen’s Basic Training for defending the faith Part 1

The myth of neutrality

What I expect to learn:

-          The myth of neutrality

-          Bahnsen’s training method

-          How could I defend my faith by knowing the myth of neutrality

Quote:

“Christ is the source of all truth and righteousness. He alone possesses the key to wisdom, so we will fail in any endeavor that refuses to acknowledge His Lordship.”

Book Review:

Dr. Greg L. Bahnsen was once described as "the man atheists fear most."  He was a distinguished scholar, author, and Christian apologist.  A graduate of Westminster Theological Seminary (M.Div., Th.M.), he received his Ph.D. in philosophy from the University of Southern California. While at Westminster, he had the privilege of studying under Dr. Cornelius Van Til, the father of presuppositionalism. He was an ordained minister in the Orthodox Presbyterian Church.  

In the first part of his article, Dr. Bahnsen encourages us to resist intellectual bullying that we will eventually encounter. We will not glorify God or win favor with our adversaries if we start bullying, even if our opponents try to bully us into subjection. We must learn genuine humility and refrain from “winning argument” by introducing concepts or using terminology that our opponents do not understand. If they try this tactic on us, we should acknowledge that we are unfamiliar with their concepts or terminology and ask them for clarification. Finally, we should realize that the world, including college professors, will have double standards. Such professors demonstrate that neutrality is impossible as they selectively emphasize or silence ideas according to their personal preferences, beliefs, and priorities.  

Among his important points that he wants to stress out are the following:

·         God wants us to be consecrated, holy, and set apart to Him. We cannot do this if we embrace neutrality, which compromises our standing before Him

·         Neutrality will rob us of our ability to gain knowledge and wisdom. We must fear the Lord in order to have wisdom. The unbeliever should live in dread of God; it is supremely      irrational for an unbeliever to live without fearing God’s judgment upon their rebellion and pretended autonomy. If we embrace neutrality, we rob ourselves of the treasures of wisdom      and knowledge in Christ.

·         We should reject so-called “wisdom” and “knowledge” that runs contrary to God’s Truth. Everyone has a system of presuppositions and a notion about truth called a worldview, and we should evaluate the ideas we hear in terms of their adherence to Scripture.

What I have learned:

I have learned the concepts on the myth of neutrality.

Integrative Question:

1)      What is the myth of neutrality?

2)      What is stand in this myth?

3)      Why should we aim for this myth?

4)      What is the myth’s concept about Christianity?

5)      What is the modern Christian apologetics?