WR Thurs

Intro and Review

Yesterday, we discussed the idea that all worldviews make truth claims and attempt to answer the same foundational questions about reality, meaning, morality, and destiny.

Can anyone tell me the five criteria for evaluating a belief system?

They are:

Internal Consistency

Coherence

Correspondence to Reality

Explanatory Power

Practical livability

Before applying this framework to other religions, we need to ask an important and necessary question:

Can Christianity meet its own standards?

Because if Christianity is true, then it should be able to stand up to careful and honest examination.

But, if it is false, it should fail against scrutiny.

Why Evaluate Christianity First?

Because we are in a Christian school, Christianity is the primary worldview that is encountered on a day-to-day basis.

Because we are so familiar with the view, it can actually be a weakness.

See, if we refuse to examine Christianity critically, then comparing it to other religions would be intellectually dishonest.

And what most people don’t know is that Scripture itself actually encourages examination.

Acts 17:11 tells us about the Bereans who were being ministered to. The Bible says about them, “Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.”

Christianity does not ask us for blind faith—it invites testing its words.

Christianity’s Core Claims

To fully understand Christianity, we must understand what it actually claims. So, Christianity claims that:

God exists and is personal (Genesis 1:1 “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.”)

God created humanity in His image (Genesis 1:27 “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” )

Humanity is morally broken by sin (Romans 3:23 “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” )

God is both just and loving (Psalm 89:14 “Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne; steadfast love and faithfulness go before you.” )

Jesus is God incarnate (John 1:1 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” John 1:14 “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” )

Salvation is through Christ alone (John 14:6 “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” )

History is moving towards a restoration (Revelation 21:1–5 “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”” )

None of these claims are symbolic—rather each one asserts something about reality.

The Framework Applied

So now that we have evaluated the claims, lets apply the framework to Christianity.

Internal Consistency

Does Christianity contradict itself?

It teaches that

God is holy and just (Isaiah 6:3 “And one called to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!”” )

Sin must be punished (Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” )

God is loving and merciful (1 John 4:8 “Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.” )

God desires reconciliation with man (2 Peter 3:9 “The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.” )

Do you guys think that justice and mercy create a contradiction?

Because at first glance, justice and mercy appear to conflict.

However, the cross addresses this tension.

Romans 3:26 “It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.”

In the cross justice is satisfied in the eyes of God, while mercy is extended to man.

Rather than a contradiction, Christianity presents resolution.

Let me ask two questions

What do you think happens to justice without mercy? (If needing example use someone stealing to feed their family)

What happens if you have mercy without justice?

Coherence

Christianity presents a unified narrative

It starts with creation in Genesis 1 and 2.

Then it moves into the fall of man in Genesis 3

Because of the fall, man needed redemption where Jesus died for us and we read that in Luke 19:10 “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.””

And finally the world will be brought to completion and restored back to its original design in Revelation 21.

Jesus Himself affirms the unified story in Luke 24:27 where we see Him instruct people about the Scripture. The Bible says, “And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.”

Let me ask

Does Christianity’s teachings fit together logically?

Does the New Testament fulfill rather than contradict the Old Testament?

Correspondence to Reality

Christianity claims that:

Humans know what is right but fail to do it (Romans 1:32 “Though they know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.” )

We experience moral conflicts internally

We long for meaning, justice, and redemption

Romans 7:19 “For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing.” describes this tension for us.

Let me ask

Do these descriptions match the real human experience?

Why do people universally recognize moral failures?

It is important to note before moving into the explanatory power, that Christianity does not deny suffering and pain—rather it explains the origins and purpose of it.

Explanatory Power

Christianity explains:

Why does evil exist (Genesis 3)

Why humans have dignity (Psalm 8:4–6 “what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him? Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor. You have given him dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under his feet,” )

Why sacrifice and love matter (John 15:13 “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” )

Why history feels purposeful (Ephesians 1:9–10 “making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.” )

Let me ask

Does Christianity explain both the beauty and brokenness that is in the world?

Does it explain why we long for things to be made right?

Practical Livability

Christianity does not teach salvation by effort.

Ephesians 2:8–9 teaches, “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”

It acknowledges that humans will fail, so it explains why we need the forgiveness and transformation that Christ provides.

2 Corinthians 5:17 tells us “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”

Let me ask

Is this worldview livable for flawed people?

Does it produce humility, or does it produce moral superiority?

I think after evaluating this, its pretty clear that Christianity offers transformation rather than perfectionism.

Activity

Okay, I’ve been talking for a bit, so lets do a quick group exercise.

I want you to split yourselves into groups.

Okay, now that we are in groups I will assign you a criterion.

With your criterion I want you to:

Identify one Scripture that supports Christianity in that area

Identify one objection to that area that is commonly raised

And then I want you to explain how Christianity could respond to that objection.

Once we are done, we will discuss our results, get to work.

Discussion

So after evaluation, I have some questions for discussion.

Which criterion would you say is the strongest for Christianity?

Which one do you think critics of Christianity often misunderstand?

Does Christianity invite examination or avoid it?

Wrap-up and Preview

So today we saw that:

Christianity makes real, testable claims

It can be evaluated using consistent criteria

Scripture invites an honest investigation

Christianity presents a coherent explanation of reality

Realize that none of this is designed to force a belief on you—but it does demand serious consideration.

Tomorrow we will finish our preparation for evaluating other religions by:

Identifying common patterns among world religions

Learning what questions must be asked about each belief system

Establishing a comparison chart that we will use all semester.

We do this because as we start on Islam, we want to have everything established.

PRAY

Our Father in heaven, thank you for truth that can be both examined and tested. We ask that you give us humility, honesty, and wisdom as we continue to seek the truth. Reveal yourself to us clearly through your word. In your holy name I pray, Amen.