Introduction to Christian Apologetics: Philosophy

Bahnsen’s definition of worldview (see last post) leads us to the three major branches of philosophy:

1. Metaphysics/ontology – what is prime reality? Why is there something and not nothing? What does it mean to “exist” and to “not exist”?
2. Epistemology – how do we know what we know? What is the criterion for knowing? What is knowledge? How can it be obtained, understood, and transmitted?
3. Ethics – what’s right and wrong? How are norms in society developed and how should they be enforced? What is the real basis of objective morality or subjective ethical standards?

Philosophy in its simplest definition means the “love” (philo) of “wisdom” (sophia).

“We call people wise if they know how to live – if they know what is important in living. And when we speak about living we mean something to do with the whole of the person – that which goes to the very roots of an individual’s life. And that is what we mean when we say philosophy is the love of wisdom. It is the desire to seek that which will give purpose and meaning and unity to life…Philosophy is for those who have moved beyond any simple certainty. It is for those who have come face to face with the mystery of existence and who have seen how profound a mystery it is. Philosophy is the attempt to fathom that profundity.”[1]

“The history of philosophy could be described as the history of the lost goal. Philosophy is like a ship whose name does not cover the cargo. And it is the cargo that is wrong. This came about when it was put on the foundation of autonomy…therefore the wisdom of the cross of Jesus Christ was a stumbling block to the Jews and foolishness to the Greeks.”[2]

Philosophy forces us to think foundationally.^[3] It talks about absolute basic truths, such as our existence, meaning behind societal norms, the use, nature, and limitations of logic, etc.

A “Christian” philosophy is almost synonymous with saying “Christian worldview,” because a person’s “philosophy of life” functions very much like a person’s “worldview.” In any case, a truly “Christian philosophy” unashamedly flows from a Christian worldview, and a Christian worldview is based upon the revealed truths in Scripture (revelation). Thus, a Christian philosophy must not remain ignorant of Christian theology; they are different but interdependent. A truly Christian philosophy must be accountable to the teachings and claims in the Bible. Granted the Scriptures do not dedicate entire chunks to what we would normally recognize as formal philosophy, but the Bible does make claims relevant to knowledge (II Cor. 10:5, Col. 2:3-4, Prov. 1:7, etc.), metaphysics (I Cor. 8:6, Col. 1:15, Acts 17:25, etc.),[4] and ethics (Ten Commandments, moral teachings of Jesus, etc.).

[2] H. Van Riessen. Christian Perspectives (Pella: Pella Publishing, 1962), 85, 87.

[3] R.C. Sproul. The Consequences of Ideas (Crossway 2000), 9.

[4] “It is He who also makes things to differ from each other (I. Cor. 4:7; Ex. 11:7; Rom 9:21; 1 Cor. 12:4-6; 15:38-41)…God is the source of all possibility (Isa. 43:10; 44:6; 65:11) and thus sets the limits of possible reality by His own will and decree.” Greg Bahnsen. Always Ready (Covenant Media Press, 1996), 179.