rel228 workshop3

Workshop 3

How Did Things Get So Bad?

REL 228 - Defending The Faith

The Impact of a Christian Worldview

Glenn Johnson

Biblical Wisdom and Prayer

1 The fool says in his heart, "There is no God." They are corrupt, their deeds are vile; there is no one who does

good. 2 The Lord looks down from heaven on the sons of men to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God. 3 All have turned aside, they have together

become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one.

4 Will evildoers never learn-- those who devour my people as men eat bread and who do not call on the Lord?

5 There they are, overwhelmed with dread, for God is present in the company of the righteous. 6 You evildoers

frustrate the plans of the poor, but the Lord is their refuge. 7 Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion! When the Lord restores the fortunes of his people,

let Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad!

OVERVIEWWS 1: What is Truth?

WS 2: How Did We Get Here?WS 3: What Has Gone Wrong With The World?

WS 4: What Can We Do To Fix Things?WS 5: How Now Shall We Live?

Defending The Faith:The Impact of a Christian Worldview

TONIGHT’S OBJECTIVES1. Explain the concept of natural law and its role in the

revelation of sin and salvation.2. Describe the results of sin because of the effect of the

natural law.3. Explain the role of the Holy Spirit in convicting people

of their sin.4. Compare and contrast the alternatives to God’s salvation that are conceived by the non-Christians.

5. Describe the plan of salvation that is provided through the redemptive sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

6. Provide several historical proofs for the existence of Jesus Christ and the truth of New Testament accounts.


EACH PRESENTATION= 5 Minutes

PRESENTATION BREAKDOWN:

1)2 Minute Summary of Film2)3 Minute Worldview

Analysis

Defending The Faith:Individual Movie Analysis Presentations

WHAT HAS GONE WHAT HAS GONE WRONG WITH WRONG WITH

THE WORLD? The THE WORLD? The Problem of EvilProblem of Evil

THEODICY

The Problem Of Evil

Theos=“God”

Dike=“Justice”

-ISSUE: How can we justify what we believe about God in relation to evil in the world?

-2 Kinds of Evil-Both Types Highlighted in Luke 13:1-5

Now there were some present at that time who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices.

Jesus answered, "Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way?

I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish. Or those eighteen who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them--do you

think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem? I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish."

WHAT HAS GONE WRONG WHAT HAS GONE WRONG WITH THE WORLD? The WITH THE WORLD? The

Problem of EvilProblem of Evil

THEOLOGICAL UNDERSTANDING…What Do We Mean When We Say……..

OMNIPOTENCE?

GOODNESS?



NATURAL EVIL

Moore, OK 1999 Tornado

“Active Will vs. Passive Will”Limited Creatures

Live In Violent Energy SystemChance Factors

God’s Purposes Elsewhere…Not A Hedonistic ParadiseRedemptive Possibilities….

Christian Hope…..



MORAL EVIL

Civil Warfare in Darfur Region

-Genuine Free Choice Required-God Respects Freedom

-God Does Not Create/Will Moral Evil

-God CONCURS in the Natural…..

-Demonic Influence?



HUMANS & MORAL EVIL

Civil Warfare in Darfur Region

Freedom Required for Goodness to be Possible

Human GuiltIndividual Sin

Intensifies Impact of Natural Evil

WHAT HAS GONE WRONG WHAT HAS GONE WRONG WITH THE WORLD? The WITH THE WORLD? The

Problem of EvilProblem of Evil

REDEMPTION & MORAL EVIL

CROSS OF CHRIST: Solution

CROSS & RESURRECTION (Romans 8:28)And we know that in all things God works for the

good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

HOPE: In The End

WE ONLY SEE IN PART….

WHAT HAS GONE WRONG WITH WHAT HAS GONE WRONG WITH THE WORLD? The Problem of EvilTHE WORLD? The Problem of Evil

Defending The Defending The Christian Faith: The Christian Faith: The

Impact of A Christian Impact of A Christian WorldviewWorldview

BREAKBREAK

• God created all thingsJohn 1:3 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.

• God created man & woman in his own image – Imago DeiGenesis 1:27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.

• God gave man “free will” to decide how to behaveGenesis 2: And the LORD God commanded the man, "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die."

• God gave humans dominion over all creationGenesis 1:28 God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground."

• God created a perfect or “good” worldGenesis 1:31 God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning-the sixth day.

Understanding Creation

http://www.free-clipart.net/cgi-bin/animated/directory.cgi?action=view&link=animations/earth&image=misc53.gif&img=

1. As you look at the world is it still good?

2. What examples prove your point?

3. Do the problems in the world cause people to doubt the existence of God?

God’s Creation is Good! Right?

Struggle Between Good and Evil

Star Wars: Return of the Jedi

Luke, Darth Vader and the Emperor

Struggle Between Good and Evil

Star Wars: Return of the Jedi

Naturalism's Answers

• Good & evil are human fiction designed for behavior we want

• Evil is whatever discourages survival of human species

• Encourage behavior to provide security of people

• Stuff just happens

• Doesn’t explain glories of goodness

• Doesn’t explain shamefulness of badness

• Doesn’t explain why people have inherent sense of right

Transcendentalism’s Answer

• Evil is an illusion

• Material world doesn’t exist

• What happens to our bodies is unimportant

• Every person is divine

• Can’t explain selfishness & separateness

• Can’t explain why people should do good

Christianity’s AnswerThe Fall

• Adam & Eve choose to disobey God Genesis 3:6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband,who was with her, and he ate it.

• They aspired to be “like God” Genesis 3:5 "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."

• They became aware of good and evil Genesis 3:7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.

• The world was cursed because of Adam & Eve Genesis 3:17 "Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life.

• Sin, pain, suffering, and death entered the world Genesis 3:13-24

Skeptics Response to Evil

• An all powerful God could destroy evil

• A holy and loving God would destroy evil

• Evil is not destroyed

• Therefore, there must not be a good and powerful God

Christian View of Evil

• Evil is not a thing but a wrong choice and damage done by the result of a wrong choice

• Not the result of the Creator but the result of humanity’s selfishness & sin

• God cannot be blamed as an unloving God for allowing evil because he gave the ultimate sacrifice to fight it

• We are not “good” people that deserve to be spared from evil

• An assumption that suffering produces no good is fallacious

• We cannot totally understand the “why” of evil

• Even hell is the result of evil—meaning choice

Fallacies About Human Nature & Evil

• People are basically good

•There are no absolute moral values (LOR: Return of the King)

• It is possible to humanly overcome evil

• Social engineering can make people better

• Evil is obvious to detect

• The human race is gradually making things better

• There is no personal responsibility

• Everyone goes to heaven

• There is no Satan or Devil

Providence of God

• An intelligent & wise God continues to govern the world he created

• An omnipotent God intervenes in His creation

• An omnipresent God chooses to take an active part in his creation

• A just God refuses to abandon His creation to fate or chance

• A merciful God intervenes when evil overwhelms people

• A holy God ensures that good will ultimately triumph over evil

2Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. 4Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. 5If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. 6But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. 7That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; 8he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does.

James 1

12Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned-- 13for before the law was given, sin was in the world. But sin is not taken into account when there is no law. 14Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, even over those who did not sin by breaking a command, as did Adam, who was a pattern of the one to come. 15But the gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died by the trespass of the one man, how much more did God's grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many! 16Again, the gift of God is not like the result of the one man's sin: The judgment followed one sin and brought condemnation, but the gift

Romans 5

followed many trespasses and brought justification. 17For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God's abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ. 18Consequently, just as the result of one trespass was condemnation for all men, so also the result of one act of righteousness was justification that brings life for all men. 19For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous. 20The law was added so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more, 21so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

TIME WITH LEWIS

Defending The Christian Faith: The Impact Defending The Christian Faith: The Impact of A Christian Worldviewof A Christian Worldview

BOOK 3•3 Parts To Morality (Fair Play; Harmonizing; Purpose of

Life)•The Cardinal Virtues

•Social Morality (X preached “nothing new” re:morality)•Sexual Morality (Unchastity: the supreme Xn vice?)

•Christian Marriage (one flesh, divorce)•Forgiveness (love for enemies)

TIME WITH LEWIS


BOOK 3STUDENT-LED DISCUSSIONS

Chapters 1-3

BREAK


TIME WITH LEWIS


BOOK 3STUDENT-LED DISCUSSIONS

Chapters 4-6

INDIVIDUAL NEWS ARTICLE PRESENTATIONSINDIVIDUAL NEWS ARTICLE PRESENTATIONS

Include In Your Presentation:-Article Title and Where You Found It

-Brief Summary-Why You Think It Supports/Attacks A Christian Worldview

-Not Everyone Will Be Called Upon To Present In Each Workshop


Workshop 4…Next Week

WS 4: How Do We Make Things Better?

Salvation1. News article: What can we do to fix things?

2. Review progress on Worldview Interview paper3. Read How Now Shall We Live: Chapters 22-294. Read Mere Christianity: Book3 Chapters 7-12

-TURN IN ASSIGNMENTS FOR TONIGHT!

rel228 workshop3

Spiritual

things god

lord god

image of god

creation god

god respects freedom

god dike

createwill moral evil

kinds of evil