July 24, 2008
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A Primer for Atheists
I like to read blogs,
especially the ones that have long discussions in the comboxes. But I
don’t let myself comment or get into the discussions, since I just
don’t have the time or emotional energy to deal with that. I just
think a lot, and occasionally get my thoughts on some of these
discussions down.One phenomenon I’ve
noticed is that a lot of atheists seem to object to Christianity
because of the hypocritical behavior of Christians over the ages.
Now, there’s no doubt that Christians have done some nasty things in
the last 2000 years, but from a Christian perspective, while this
constitutes a problem for the Church, it doesn’t mean that there’s
something wrong with the fundamentals of Christianity.So here’s a primer for
atheists:-
The Bible teaches
that everyone is fundamentally evil. Jeremiah 17:19 – “The
heart is deceitful above all
things, and desperately wicked:”, Romans 3:23 – “For
all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;”
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The Bible teaches that although we can be forgiven of
our sins, we will struggle against sin all our lives. Romans 7:18-19
- “For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth
no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform
that which is good I find not. For the good that I would I do not:
but the evil which I would not, that I do.”
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The
Bible teaches that hypocritical non-believers will attach
themselves to the church. Matthew 7:22 – “Many will say to
me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and
in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many
wonderful works?”
4. Jesus
himself was killed by the leaders of the established church of his
day.So you see, the issue is not only covered in the Bible, but the whole religion of Christianity is founded upon the
hypocritical actions of religious people. Obviously, that implies a
recognition of the fact that religious hypocrites exist and are very, very
dangerous.When you consider the underlying assumption that everyone is fundamentally evil, it’s pretty much a given that you’re going to get faithless people trying to pass themselves off as good.The faithlessness of those
who supposedly follow the Lord is actually a major theme in the
Bible. Throughout the Old Testament the nations of Judah and Israel
are constantly disobeying God and coming under judgment. The
traditional Christian understanding is that these nations are the Old
Testament church, and that faithlessness and judgment are to be
expected as well in the New Testament era. The beginning of
Revelation starts off with letters to the churches, condemning their
sins and warning that they are facing judgment. And this is while
the Apostle John is still living.Hypocrites are, of course,
consistently condemned by the Scriptures. Take a look at John the
Baptist who denounces the Pharisees in Luke 3:7 – John said to
the crowds coming out to be baptized by him, “You brood
of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Jesus
also called the Pharisees “vipers,” “wolves,” and “blind
guides.” In fact, the Bible warns that harsher
judgment will fall upon them. And while the Church is warned to be
discerning and to administer discipline (though it regularly fails in
both,) all the same the Church is to anticipate the coming of those
who adhere to an external form of religion while inwardly not
conforming.For atheists to object to
Christianity on the grounds of the hypocrisy of those who call
themselves Christians betrays a pathetic lack of understanding. But
more than that, it is fundamentally illogical since Christianity
itself teaches that faithlessness will be an ever present evil for the
Church. They might as well object on the grounds that they see
evidence of the Resurrection, or the Virgin Birth, because affirming what
the Bible teaches and then calling it an objection to the Bible is
completely irrational. But then, atheists are rarely as rational as they claim to be. -
Comments (5)
Great post, Sis! Well said. Have a great day! -Jenn
PS. The kids had a blast talking to Kevin on the web cam last nite!
Good points! I would also note, that in general the more a society lives by the Bible, the more law-abiding it is, and Christians who live by the Bible are usually very good, law-abiding citizens.
It’s as bad (or worse) as saying that Muslim terrorists are characteristic of the Muslim faith. It is attacking a straw man, not the true Christian faith.
Some atheists (like Richard Dawkins) try to condemn ALL religions as the main reason for killings over the ages. There are two big flaws with this argument:
2) History actually shows that the worst atrocities/greatest amount of overall killings have come from those who espouse no particular religion, like Stalin, Mao, and the hundreds of everyday murderers who kill for drugs or anger, etc.
1) Religions, like ANY movement, are defined by their principles. Do their principles espouse mass killings? If not, it is simply the sinful nature of the murderer rather than the fault of the religion. Again, as noted above, those who TRULY seek to follow Christianity are usually some of the most compassionate, law-abiding of citizens!
I had a really really really bad day and this cheered me up. I mostly had a bad day because the first thing I discovered this morning was that my bank card and visa had been stolen and taken for a ride. Then I was reminded all day of just how liberal the northwest is. You are so incredibly right and you’ve laid this out well. I don’t like to get involved either in comments because I feel like I can’t usually take the time to explain things so well or in an organized comprehensive manner. My husband and I usually come away from church discussing what we didn’t learn and how the church is afraid say anything that might convict people. We’ve been hurt over and over for living contrary to the culture. It’s not that we care so much about what people say, but it’s hard when you know or hear that people are talking about you and you know that people are looking at your life as if it’s a fun soap opera and they want something to gossip about. People want us to get divorced or they are looking for problems. It makes it pretty difficult to make friends at church when they see you that way. How I feel here about the things people have said is probably the way you feel when people say stupid things to you about your family. And how do you explain to someone who doesn’t get it, that the most amazing blessing of your life is your family and there’s nothing in the world that means more?? What I don’t get is how any church going person that’s a Christian doesn’t get that, no matter how many children they have, or when they marry, or when they have kids – how could anyone judge any family for putting marriage and kids first in their lives when that is the very first relational establishment God made after his relational establishment with us? The fact that our world has that completely out of priority, is enough to tell me that we don’t get God.
I don’t find too many people that believe what I believe. Most of my friends are non Christian. Some of our Christian friends are less conservative, but we accept that decisions they’ve made. Church is something we commit ourselves to, but I have to admit for the past few years I almost entirely have to force myself to go and I feel like it’s an incredible waste of time. It’s been a huge challenge. It’s confusing. I think the church for the most part is a business that promotes consumerism like anything else. It survives on branding and marketing to it audience.
I don’t know if any of that made sense, but great post.
~ Catherine
Tim didn’t sleep well either. Maybe it’s something in the air.
Tim’s results come back mid-next-week. Meanwhile he is feeling much improved today, though his heart is still beating too fast.
Today actually went pretty well, I was able to get a lot done! Praise God!