Christianity, Logic, and Circular Reasoning
Recurring Theme: One of the attacks on the Christian worldview that sounds reasonable is that Christianity is a faith-based system grounded on circular reasoning not supported by evidence. The Christian claim is that “the Bible is the word of God” and it is supported by “because the Bible says it is” therefore concludes the Bible is without error and authoritative. The argument is that the premise does not support the conclusion but is simply a restatement of the premise in different or stronger terms.
However, let us examine the statement that human reason based on the laws of logic is the best way for people to know and believe things. This statement begs the question, “Why is logic coupled with human reason best?” The defender of this statement will immediately build a reasonable argument based on the laws of logic in an attempt to support his first conclusion. Do you see the problem? The defender of the statement is using logic and human reasoning to prove that logic and human reasoning are best. When a Christian uses the Bible to prove that the Bible is the word of God he is accused of circular reasoning and dismissed.
Exchange of Ideas: So what do we do? First, realize the Bible is not contrary to logic and human reason. It affirms and gives the foundation for both in the character of God. Next, we need to realize that logic by itself is a faith-based system.[1] The laws of logic are metaphysical, not contained in the material world. A person cannot examine the law of non-contradiction. He can evaluate instances of the law in effect but the law is beyond the material world. Further, no one has examined every possibility of “A equals not A” to say with certainty that it is impossible. To do so he would have to examine every particle in the whole of the material world – and that is impossible.
So what does one do? Support the law by examining as many cases as possible. We see that the law holds true in every sphere tested. In the end, one evaluates this data and believes (take on faith) that the law is true everywhere, even places it has not been tested. This is done with all the laws of logic. Therefore, logic as a system is faith-based in the same way as Christianity is a faith-based system.
Information: The question is “has the Bible been supported (humanly speaking) as logic has?” Does it stand up to scrutiny as the laws of logic have?
Once again, the laws of logic are grounded in the character of God supported by the Biblical account. This means that the laws of logic, substantiated by experiment, may be used to support the accuracy of the Bible. Remember, much of the Old Testament, which establishes the character of God, was written before the age of logic, which began approximately 600 - 400 B.C.[2] The character of God, as the creator, is expressed in His creation and revealed in the Bible. One of these expressions is the laws of logic, which can be supported in the pages of Scripture. Therefore, the concept of logic itself supports the accuracy of the Bible because the character of the God revealed in the Bible grounds its laws.
However, most of the content in the Bible is not tested in the same way as the laws of logic. The laws of logic are tested by reproducible experimentation (scientifically). However, the Bible is a book of history as well as theology. It is tested by establishing the authenticity of the documents and the documents accuracy supported by historical and archeological discoveries.
Christian experts in the establishment of the authenticity of the ancient texts from which the modern versions of the Bible come give strong evidence that the ancient documents of both the Old and New Testament communicate accurately the original data of the original author. In other words, the Bible we have now today accurately communicates what the original documents said.[3]
We have an accurate account, but is the account accurate? For this, we look to history and archeology. The Bible has always been supported as accurate by the historical and archeological discoveries of man.[4] Therefore, considering these points, the Bible we have is supported by the laws of logic, it is an accurate account of what the original authors wrote, and what the authors wrote is accurate to history.
If this is true, why is the Bible rejected and why is the argument for a Christian worldview considered a circular argument and rejected? The answer is the fantastic, miraculous, the idea that the God who created the material world, intervenes in His creation, that he declared to man what was right, that man rejected it, became sinful, and is in need of a savior. People, who claim to be rational, reject the Bible’s claims at an irrational level. The Bible has been supported as accurate according to human reason but some determine not to believe its claims.
Their argument is: the Bible reports historically accurate events and persons. However, these historical events and people have reached a level of mythology and religion by the addition of the supernatural quality of the events. The argument is based on an anti-supernatural determination and an evolutionary process of the biblical literature. In other words, they disbelieve the Bible’s claims that God created and intervenes in the world, specifically in directing the record of Scripture, miracles, and prophecies.
The issue with this position is that there is NO manuscript or historical evidence to support such a claim. There is nowhere found a biblical document recording only the historical event and another that has the supernatural event added later. Eyewitnesses in the presence of other eyewitnesses recorded the biblical events with the supernatural elements included. Therefore, the Bible’s critics expect people to believe their “theory” without a shred of historical or manuscript evidence against the plethora of historical and manuscript evidence to the contrary.
Intention: My intent is not to prove the Bible’s claims by philosophical, historical, or archeological means. My purpose is to display that human evidences support the accuracy of the manuscripts we have today and the historical accuracy of what is written in the Bible, including the supernatural. I do not expect this argument to cause anyone to believe what the Bible claims. I believe this because the Bible says so…Jesus says so. Starting with the most famous verse in the Bible Jesus says,
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.” (John 3:16-21, ESV)
Biblical Issue: The issue is belief. Remember, logic coupled with human reason is a faith-based system and a Christian worldview based on the Bible is a faith-based system. A committed belief is a necessary requirement to begin understanding either system. The system of logic purportedly compels you to exclude the supernatural, fantastic, and miraculous as natural phenomenon that you do not yet understand. The Christian worldview says God occasionally interrupts the order of the material world to uniquely display himself (his glory) and communicate to us truths we would otherwise not know. The Bible says the system you believe is based on whether you stand condemned by God or have been saved by God. Belief in Christ according to the Bible is the evidence of those who have been saved.
Notice that those who do not believe refuse to come to the light lest their deeds be exposed as evil. In other words, they do not wish to admit that they are sinners before God and in need of a savior. The issue is not intellectual but moral. They refuse to admit their deeds are evil…it is not that they do not know their deeds expose them as evil. They refuse to admit that they are evil.
Let me ask, have you ever lied (even a white one), stolen (even time from work), or looked at another person lustfully. The usual answer is “yes.” Truthfully, the Christian should answer yes to these questions even after they believe and are saved (hopefully they do these things less and less frequently).
But let’s take this a step further, the Bible says that the greatest commandment is to love not “not do something.” The command is to love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all you mind, and all your strength, and the second is to love your neighbor as yourself (Mark 12:30 – 31). Have you ever in your life loved God with all of your being, which caused you to love the people around you as you love yourself? If the answer is no, then your deeds are not good, whatever they are. Good deeds begin with loving God and are expressed in love toward others. Otherwise, God considers them evil.
Do you see why the Bible condemns everyone? The most benevolent humanitarian deed done by one person to another if not compelled by a love for God expressed to others, it is not good but evil in the eyes of God. People refuse to admit that such deeds are evil because they do not believe what God has said in the Bible. If they do not believe, they stand condemned. If they believe, they admit that they are evil and are forgiven, saved. The issue is belief.
Biblical Answer: The salvation we receive comes through the work of Jesus the Christ. The Bible says that Jesus bore the penalty for the evil deeds we have done by dying on the cross (1 Peter 2:24). It also says he accomplished all the good deeds we were supposed to do (Romans 5:19). Belief in this clothes the evil person in these accomplished works of Jesus. The one who believes receives credit for dying according to what his deeds deserve and he receives credit for living perfectly, in the manner of Jesus. The believing person having received the love of God in Jesus begins to learn how to love God in return. He loves God no longer as means of doing good to justify himself before God and man but purely because he loves God. The grace offered in salvation has won his heart.
This Christian worldview based on the Bible is actually less circular than human reason based on the laws of logic. History, archeology, and the laws of logic themselves support it as accurate. A person’s belief in its message regarding the person and work of Jesus is the means by which God saves a person. The person who is saved loves God and others, which is the only real evidence of that salvation, the manifestation of his belief. Some questions remain: Do you believe the laws of logic are supportably true? If so, the Bible stands up to the same type of testing. Do you then believe the message of the Bible regarding your sin and Jesus work? If not, do you want to believe? If so, God is expressing his love to you in salvation. Love him in return. Believe Him!
[1] For the purposes of this pamphlet, faith and belief are used synonymously. I do this because this is the way these words are used in the Bible. The English word belief and faith translate one Greek or one Hebrew word. In other words, Biblically speaking faith and belief mean exactly the same thing.
[2] Fredrick Coplestone S. J., A History of Philosophy vol. I, Doubleday Dell Publishing Group, New York, NY, 1993 (266); Colin Brown, Christianity & Western Thought vol. 1, Intervarsity Press, Downers Grove, IL, 1990 (19)
[3] Bruce Metzger, The Text of the New Testament, 3rd ed. Oxford University Press, New York, NY, 1992 pg 52 & 158; Paul D Wegner, A Students Guide to Textual Criticism of the Bible, IVP Academics, Downer Grove, Ill, 2006 pg 25; Brotzman, Ellis R.: Old Testament Textual Criticism : A Practical Introduction.
[4] Story, Dan: Christianity on the Offense : Responding to the Beliefs and Assumptions of Spiritual Seekers. Grand Rapids, MI : Kregel Publications, 1998, S. 85; Josh McDowell, Evidence That Demands a Verdict, chapters 9 and 11, and John Warwick Montgomery, ed., Evidence for Faith, chapter 4.; John Ankerberg, John Weldon, and Walter C. Kaiser Jr., The Case for Jesus the Messiah: Incredible Prophecies that Prove God Exists (Eugene, Ore.: Harvest House, 1989).
