The second part of the series has to do with taking down philosophical fortresses. Although we have not covered chapter 3 on worldviews you may consider this prep work as a number of principles will nicely lead into the next series.

Try to understand why the unbelieving mind is hostile to the Christian worldview; understand why no one can be neutral and still remain philosophically consistent; what is meant by the “noetic” effects of sin.

 

The main points to be observed from this chapter are:

• Factually we must recognize that the unbeliever is not neutral.
• Morally, we must understand that the believer should not be neutral.
• Any claim to neturality is a pretense, and it is philosophically impossible.
• “Noetic” is derived from the Greek word, nous, which means “mind”.
• This is one aspect of the doctrine of “total depravity”, which declares that the fall reaches deep down into a man’s very being, even to his mind, and his reasoning faculties.
• The world and the universe do not operate randomly by blind chance or under their own inherent power.
• In fact, you will even give account for every “idle word” that you speak (Matt 12:36).
• None of your words is neutral; each one is subject to God’s evaluative judgement.
• We are not saying unbelievers “know nothing.” We are saying that they do not know anything “truly,” because they do not recognize the most fundamental reality: All facts are God-created facts, not brute facts.

Recommended Reading

Flashing, Sarah J., “The Myth of Secular Neutrality: Unbiased Bioethics?”

Kruger, Michael J., “The Sufficiency of Scripture in Apologetics”

Oliphant, Scott, “The Noetic Effects of Sin”

Woodward, Thomas E., “Staring Down Darwinism: A Book Review”