Foster Tukwila Presbyterian Church
ftpcweb@gmail.com
  • Home
  • About Us
    • From the Pastor
    • Theology >
      • Relating Well: Same-Sex Attraction & FTPC
      • Statement on Marriage
      • Racial Justice - Summary
    • Philosophy
    • Membership Covenant
  • What's New?
    • Sermons 2023 >
      • December 2022
      • November 2022
      • October 2022
      • September 2022
      • August 2022
      • July 2022
      • June 2022
      • May 2022
      • April 2022
      • March 2022
      • February 2022
      • January 2022
    • Bulletins 2023
    • Photo Gallery >
      • Welcome Eleazar "Lee" McGruder!
      • Pastor Aaron's Installation
      • 2019 Annual Picnic
      • 2017 VBS Mattawa Galactic Starveyors
      • Tukwila's Farewell to Chaplain Al Patterson
      • 2017 VBS Galactic Starveyors
      • Isaac Jefferson Eaton's Baptism
      • FTPC Generations
      • 2014 Mattawa VBS
      • 2014 FTPC SonTreasure Island VBS
      • Extravagant Dimensions of His Love
      • ChristFest 2013
      • The Walk of the Vine 2013
      • Trunk o' Treats 2013
      • The Eubanks climb Mt. Rainier
      • 2013 Women's Retreat
      • February 2013 Potluck
      • Baptism of Hallie Heier
      • National Day of Prayer 2012
      • OneCry
      • Wealth & Honor
      • Sweetheart Potluck 2012
      • Fran Still's Memorial
      • Community of the Cross 2012
      • Christmas 2011
      • Roofing Project
      • Mattawa 2011
      • VBS 2011
      • Dunamis IV Walk
      • GDOP 2011
      • NDP 2011
      • Prayer Garden
      • Bride's Garden
      • FTPC Centennial
      • Trunk o' Treats 2010
      • Church Move
  • Calendar
  • Community Resources
  • Missions
  • Online Giving
  • Contact Us
    • Directions

How Can Christian Faith Doctrines be Logical?

7/23/2012

0 Comments

 
This is a big question and I really appreciated the answers given in "Come Let Us Reason" by Norman Geisler and Ronald Brooks.  They really are champions of using our minds/reasoning and logic.
Remember an earlier blog article about the 4 laws of logic which we all know within ourselves to be true becasue they cannot be refuted or argued against?  One was the law of noncontradiction- a dog is not a sand dollar and no one can prove that it is, because it is contradictory and illogical.  Another law was the law of identity, a samurai sword is a samurai sword, 5=5, the letter B is the letter B.  Now we will apply these laws of logic to some Christian doctrines. 

Some people have asked, "Don't some doctrines like the Trinity, the Incarnation ... involve contradictions?" 

The Trinity, the Incarnation of Jesus Christ and Predestination are mysteries and go beyond human reason.  We cannot grasp them fully, but they are not contradictions that go against reason.  Here is why.
The Trinity is God in 3 persons, but only one being.  There is no contradiction between persons and beings.  There would be contradiction if the Trinity was God in 3 persons and only one person.  Based on what we humans know a person to be- it is not possible to be one person and 3 people at the same time or in the same space.  But we do not understand  what all is involved with a being.  He knows and His reason is greater than ours.  The point being that it is possible for a being to be 3 persons at the same time, because there is no contradtiction in reasoning between the definition and understanding of what a person is and what a being is.  They are different, A and B.  There is no contradiction in saying A is A (persons are persons) and B is B (beings are beings).  You may not know the rest of the definition of what a being is, but just because we don't know much about beings, does not prove that beings cannot have 3 persons within them, nor does it prove that the statement about the Trinity is illogical or against reason. 

The Incarnation would be self-contradictory and against logic if it said Jesus had 2 natures: one human and one divine which were united in one nature.  This would be self-contradictory in that 2 natures cannot equal one nature.  1 does not equal 2.  One cannot be the other, it must be itself. This would be illogical.   But the Incarnation is not self-contradictory as we know it in the Bible.  The Incarnation is explained logically as Jesus, the person, having 2 natures, human and divine.  Again this may be mysterious, but it is not illogical. From what we understand of persons and natures this statement is possible and not contradicting itself.  So it is logical.  We may not be able to understand all of what this means because we have human reason and not God's perfect reason, but being mysterious is not the same as being illogical.


0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Tamera Brockman

    Member of FTPC currently aware of the greatness of the adventure in faith with Christ.  She hopes to share some of the adventure with you through this blog. Her views are not necessarily held by FTPC.

    Archives

    April 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012

    Categories

    All
    Determinism
    Dimensions
    Faulty Logic
    Free Will
    Logic
    Story
    Testimony

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.