Amen!Freak said-I also thank God for his service to Christ. It reminds me of the ministry of Apollos.
Amen!Freak said-I also thank God for his service to Christ. It reminds me of the ministry of Apollos.
I agree completely. So why is Mr. Enyart doing this? Why are you telling me this and not Mr. Enyart?Dude, beating Zakath over the head with something he doesn't believe to be true isn't going to make him accept it.
I have nothing against that as long as it is done biblically.You need to cross a step over into his world and entertain his fallacious logic to really get the point across.
So what. It doesn't justify a Christian using unbiblical and godless reasoning to try to persuade an anti-theist of what he already knows to be true.If you are reading the same thread I am, Zakath and Bob are currently discussing numerous philosophical issues, such as: what is truth, the absoluteness of right and wrong, evidence regarding the origin of the universe, etc. Those are questions that philosophers (both Christian and non-Christian) have been debating for centuries.
See my discussion above on Proverbs 26:4,5. If you want further elaboration, let me know. Also consider the fact that we have numerous examples of confrontations with gainsayers in scripture. Not one of them describes or presents an example of someone arguing for the existence of some "creator thing" that might exist. The Bible doesn't allow this kind of argumentation. Furthermore, the corollary truth of Romans 1, describing the anti-theist as already knowing, having sufficient evidence, yet suppressing the truth emphatically underscores this principle. Let me hasten to say that I'm not claiming we must use the exact words as the Bible, as it has been alleged, but that we employ the biblical methodology when presenting the truth.Please show me the chapter and verse that states a prohibition against discussing philosophy "unbiblically"......it's important that the passage from the Bible you present also defines what method is of discussion is "unbiblical", and why.
It's not a question of terms, but of method.Eh, you just cast aspersions on Bob for referring to God in those terms
I would never refer to the Creator as an intelligent designer". He is THE Creator, Jesus Christ. It really sounds as if you're ashamed to say Who He is, which is particularly noteworthy given the passage I cited and its context, in which Paul says that he is not ashamed of the gospel (Ro 1)......but you apparently agree that those terms apply to God.
General theism? Where is that principle taught in scripture? There is nothing "general" about the Lord or Truth. He is specifically the true God among countless false ones. To refer a god or gods, who is/are intelligent, eternal, and wise is anti-biblical.Actually, it would start off that way. You build a case for general theism, ...
Paul says we are to be casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of a general deity. No wait ... every thought captive to a creative, intelligent designer thing or things. No wait ... every thought captive to whom? Christ, specifically. (2Co 10:5).... and once that case is built, you can then go further and begin sharing the reasons for why you believe the Christian God is the true God.
Your answer beats the one the Bible gives? Amazing. Who would have thought the day would come when a Christian would ridicule another for relying on the claims of the Bible for their Hope.It certainly beats your answer, which would be - "I'm going to heaven because the Bible says so".
Yeah, educated people know better than to rely on the Bible. You'd have to be an idiot, or a someone with the mind of a 6-year-old to be persuaded by the words of scripture. Good thing there are people in the world like Mr. Enyart and Scrimshaw who come along and take up the slack where God's word has fallen short.That answer might work for 6 year-olds, but in the realm of educated adults - it ain't gonna fly.
This is talking about anti-theists, Scrimshaw. Are you including yourself among them? It says that the knowledge of God's existence and attributes are understood -- that is, already sufficiently proven -- by the anti-theist via the creation. God doesn't need your or Bob's help in this.In Romans chapter 1, Paul says " [20] For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities--his eternal power and divine nature--have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made". So the Bible teaches that our belief in God is based on the evidence we see in "what has been made" - which is the universe and it's laws.
No, if his answer were in agreement with Romans 1:20, he would have said to Zakath, "You already know this, but you suppress it in unrighteousness."So when Enyart says that his belief in God is based on the laws of the universe, he is basing his belief in God on "what has been made". Thus, Bob's answer is in total agreement with Romans 1:20.
It was way back in October of 2000. I don't think the current archives at KGOV.com go back that far.I wasn't aware that it was freely available for download. Do you have a link? I'd like to listen to it myself. Thanks.
Bob is appealing to the tools of reason that Zakath claims to favor: science and logic. Zakath does trust these things. So Bob is just trying to lead him through the truth using the tools that Zakath favors. That is biblical. Paul did it all the time, using elements of each culture he visited to teach the Word.Originally posted by Hilston
I agree completely. So why is Mr. Enyart doing this? Why are you telling me this and not Mr. Enyart?
Please call me Jim.Hilston;
The ends do not justify the means. I know someone who was actually influenced by Madonna's music to pursue Christ and became a zealous witness for the Lord. That doesn't justify Madonna's music. I myself came to Christ through studying Mormonism. That doesn't justify the false doctrine of the LDS.Brother, you could not be more wrong about Bob’s approach. I am living proof of this. I was an adamant atheist and only started watching Bob’s old TV show because of his conservative bent. I remember saying, to my then also atheist wife, that I liked the show, but I sure wish he would leave all that stupid biblical stuff out of it.
There's nothing wrong with debating and reproving and teaching, but it must be done biblically. It's also good to distribute Bibles, but not if you stole them from the local bookstore.You of course are absolutely right that atheist are suppressing the truth and rejecting God rather than having the excuse of ignorance, however, the truth was the same for those following Christ and His apostles but still they debated and reproved and taught.
Indeed. Wonder why God didn't say, "Come, let us reason together ... though you think I don't exist, rocks cannot create themselves and fires don't burn forever."Remember that God says Himself, “Come, let us reason together… though your sins were as scarlet they will be as white as snow.”
Freak said - "I also thank God for his service to Christ. It reminds me of the ministry of Apollos." Amen.
Acts 17:22-23Then Paul stood in the midst of the Areopagus and said, “Men of Athens, I perceive that in all things you are very religious; for as I was passing through and considering the objects of your worship, I even found an alter with this inscription: TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Therefore, the One whom you worship you worship without knowing, Him I proclaim to you.General theism? Where is that principle taught in scripture?
No, what he is saying is that you would just say “The bible says so!” Where as he shows them where and how the bible tells them. Because if someone will not guid them, (Acts 8:27-35 how will they learn?Scrimshaw said-It certainly beats your answer, which would be - "I'm going to heaven because the Bible says so".
Hilston answered-Your answer beats the one the Bible gives? Amazing. Who would have thought the day would come when a Christian would ridicule another for relying on the claims of the Bible for their Hope.
That's the wrong method. You said yourself that "beating Zakath over the head with something he doesn't believe to be true isn't going to make him accept it." So instead of using what he already trusts, Mr. Enyart should be dismantling Zakath's anti-theistic trust in those very things. That would be answering the fool according to his folly. Mr. Enyart would then show that Zakath trusts logic and science irrationally. That is the Biblical critique of Zakath that Mr. Enyart should be using. Instead of "Do you believe in truth?", the question should be "How, on your worldview, do you even claim to engage in a debate?" Make Zakath justify his use of logic and science (exclusively theistic principles). The atheist can't do it. But rather than excavating the very root upon which Zakath's anti-theistic worldview rests, Mr. Enyart chooses instead to shoot at the leaves. "That's OK," the anti-theist says, "I can grow more."Bob is appealing to the tools of reason that Zakath claims to favor: science and logic. Zakath does trust these things. So Bob is just trying to lead him through the truth using the tools that Zakath favors.
Sure, but he didn't use unbiblical methods or compromise the Word the way Mr. Enyart is doing.Paul did it all the time, using elements of each culture he visited to teach the Word.
ROTFL!!!!I think Proverbs 26:11 describes you best...
"As a dog returns to its vomit, so a fool repeats his folly"
You repeatedly show your folly in everyone elses folly because they don't folly the way you would folly.
True, but just because the means are not Jim’s means, in no way shows they are not God’s means.Hilston- The ends do not justify the means.
What a stupid comparison.There's nothing wrong with debating and reproving and teaching, but it must be done biblically. It's also good to distribute Bibles, but not if you stole them from the local bookstore.
He did, Gen 1:1 In the beginning…Indeed. Wonder why God didn't say, "Come, let us reason together ... though you think I don't exist, rocks cannot create themselves and fires don't burn forever."
Just because you don’t understand science (as evidenced by your replacant theory) doesn’t mean it is unbiblical to persuade someone to God by explaining science. Bob uses the scriptures when appropriate, and at other times the princibles behind scripture that, show that God is God, at others.Here is how Apollos preached: "For he mightily convinced the Jews, and that publickly, shewing by the scriptures that Jesus was Christ." It doesn't say, "For he mightily convinced the Jews, and that publickly, shewing by anti-theistic reasoning that a rock cannot create itself and a fire cannot burn forever." Apollos reasoned from the scriptures. Mr. Enyart is not doing that. Anyway, Scrimshaw thinks the Jews would have to have had the minds of 6-year-olds to be persuaded Apollos's method.
Vindictive? For what could I possibly want to take revenge against Bob Enyart?It seems very strange to me that you would take such a vindictive attitude to a brother in Christ and the way in which he is led by the Holy Spirit to bring people to the Lord.
I would be remiss if I didn't point it out. I am obligated to defend the scriptures and to condemn the misuse of them.I think you are judging a brother wrongly and should repent.
See above and previous page.Otherwise, state what Bob has said to ZaKath that is unbiblical.
You're wrong, cheeezywheeezy. I like him a lot. I was debating someone who kindly sent me a complimentary copy of The Plot. He wanted to know what I thought, so I felt obliged to critique it. Your kneejerk assumptions make me curious. I could be wrong about you, cheeezywheeezy, but this kind of false assumption (i.e. that a critique implies disdain) is a pattern I find among sycophants. It's gross.... the review of The Plot...and you just don't like Bob do you.
Tell, me, what biblical references are you using in your replacant theory? Aren’t you trying, in that thread, to show what you think to be a biblical concept through unbiblical means? Are you now playing the hypocrite?
It's not backbiting. Bob Enyart is well aware of my position on this.Please repent and apologize to Bob for your evil backbiting.
Mr. Enyart doesn't have to blaspheme God or speak an untruth about God to lose this debate and to be wrong in his apologetic method.Or show where Bob has in any way blasphemed God during this debate or spoken something untrue about God.
In the beginning ... what? "In the beginning, an intelligent eternal creator thing or things ..."?He did, Gen 1:1 In the beginning…
Has Bob explained science? Show me where. It is apparent that he, like Zakath, assumes the verity of science without explaining it. If Bob did explain science to Zakath, it would have been made clear to Zakath that he has no justifiable grounds to appeal to science anti-theistically.... doesn’t mean it is unbiblical to persuade someone to God by explaining science.
Nope. The purpose of that thread is made clear in the opening post.Tell, me, what biblical references are you using in your replacant theory? Aren’t you trying, in that thread, to show what you think to be a biblical concept through unbiblical means?
Nope. I'm not trying to prove the existence of God or anything about God in that thread.Are you now playing the hypocrite?
Originally posted by Hilston
Nope. I'm not trying to prove the existence of God or anything about God in that thread.
Hmmmm… are you saying you think God is not the intellgeant, eternal Creator? “In the beginning, God created”. And that is what Bob is proving to Zaaaakath in this debate. And he is doing it using the science that God created and has shown us through His creation. There is nothing wrong about that in any way shape or form.In the beginning ... what? "In the beginning, an intelligent eternal creator thing or things ..."?
What are you talking about? He is very carefully taking Zaaaakath through the princibles of science (IE the scientific method) and proving there is a God, using the facts of the creation as a guid. Does this mean Zaaaakath will believe? No, of course not, (although I believe it is far more likely that he might turn using Bob’s approach than yours, just as I did) but there are countless others that can read these posts and learn about God’s wonders. It will also give others valuable tools for combating atheistic beliefs.Has Bob explained science? Show me where. It is apparent that he, like Zakath, assumes the verity of science without explaining it. If Bob did explain science to Zakath, it would have been made clear to Zakath that he has no justifiable grounds to appeal to science anti-theistically.
Oh, so then you don’t believe that we are hard wired human beings with free will? You don’t believe that this is a biblical concept? Is that what you are saying?Nope. The purpose of that thread is made clear in the opening post.
What you are trying to do with that thread is to show how God could create a hard wired being that still has free will, and you think this is a biblical concept. Therefore you are playing the hypocrite because you are using a non biblical argument to support what you consider to be a biblical concept. Just as Bob is doing.Nope. I'm not trying to prove the existence of God or anything about God in that thread.
You should do both, but biblically. This is what Prov. 26:4,5 is saying.Shall I argue strictly from my "God is" position,
or do I try to argue from their "God is not" position and try to lead them where I might go where I actually in that position or else to lead them to the illogic of their position.
I've encountered this sentiment before. I think the reason is that we don't immediately see the harm in trying to prove things that anti-theists deny. But the attempt to make these proofs neglects a vital, but often hidden fact, which is that the anti-theist is a liar and self-deluded. When we do not immediately confront this fact, the anti-theist is allowed to continue his lie and self-delusion.I am still trying to understand the nuances of your position. I don't think all of us here fully understand the dynamics and boundaries of a biblical approach as you perceive it.
At first blush, it does appear that Paul is violating Proverbs 26 and his own teaching in Romans 1. A closer look at the context shows more: Note that the disputants on Mars Hill have already heard Paul's preaching about Jesus Christ and His resurrection. Scrimshaw would say that Paul was mistaken in doing this. By the time Paul is on Mars Hill debating the Athenians, Paul has already directly and unabashedly preached Christ (not some creative intelligent thing or things that created rocks and fires).It does seem that Paul went to Mars hill and reasoned from their "UNKNOWN GOD" position to bring them to the truth.
Bob constantly preaches on Christ being God, and Zaaaakath already knows his position on this issue, just as you say the Greeks did on the hill. So what’s the difference?At first blush, it does appear that Paul is violating Proverbs 26 and his own teaching in Romans 1. A closer look at the context shows more: Note that the disputants on Mars Hill have already heard Paul's preaching about Jesus Christ and His resurrection. Scrimshaw would say that Paul was mistaken in doing this. By the time Paul is on Mars Hill debating the Athenians, Paul has already directly and unabashedly preached Christ (not some creative intelligent thing or things that created rocks and fires).
Acts 17:18 "Then certain philosophers of the Epicureans, and of the Stoicks, encountered him. And some said, What will this babbler say? other some, He seemeth to be a setter forth of strange gods: because he preached unto them Jesus, and the resurrection."
Prov 26:17 He who passes by and meddles in a quarrel not his own is like one who takes a dog by the ears.
See my discussion above on Proverbs 26:4,5. If you want further elaboration, let me know.
Also consider the fact that we have numerous examples of confrontations with gainsayers in scripture. Not one of them describes or presents an example of someone arguing for the existence of some "creator thing" that might exist. The Bible doesn't allow this kind of argumentation.
Furthermore, the corollary truth of Romans 1, describing the anti-theist as already knowing, having sufficient evidence, yet suppressing the truth emphatically underscores this principle. Let me hasten to say that I'm not claiming we must use the exact words as the Bible, as it has been alleged, but that we employ the biblical methodology when presenting the truth.
I would never refer to the Creator as an intelligent designer". He is THE Creator, Jesus Christ. It really sounds as if you're ashamed to say Who He is, which is particularly noteworthy given the passage I cited and its context, in which Paul says that he is not ashamed of the gospel (Ro 1).
General theism? Where is that principle taught in scripture? There is nothing "general" about the Lord or Truth. He is specifically the true God among countless false ones. To refer a god or gods, who is/are intelligent, eternal, and wise is anti-biblical.
Your answer beats the one the Bible gives? Amazing.
Who would have thought the day would come when a Christian would ridicule another for relying on the claims of the Bible for their Hope.
Yeah, educated people know better than to rely on the Bible. You'd have to be an idiot, or a someone with the mind of a 6-year-old to be persuaded by the words of scripture.
Good thing there are people in the world like Mr. Enyart and Scrimshaw who come along and take up the slack where God's word has fallen short.