Empty Philosophy

Colossians 2:8  Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.

The wise men of this world, considered geniuses and prodigies, whilst capable of developing many useful things with the materials we have access to in this world, are automatically stunted in terms of any philosophical thought.  As one who has been called by Christ from my hatred of God to the truth and given a new heart to love that truth, I recognise that the true treasures of wisdom and knowledge are in Christ (Colossians 2:3).  The word philosophy comes from the Greek word meaning ‘the love of wisdom’.  But if one does not have a love of Christ, they can never truly love wisdom and never truly be equipped to understand the world around us philosophically, as the Lord Jesus is the eternal purpose of all things (Ephesians 3:11).

For example, the Technology, Entertainment and Design (TED) talks are conducted worldwide and bring the very best minds from various fields and faculties of study or development and allow them to share ‘great ideas’ with one another and the world.  The aim is to make a more collective effort in tackling problems, develop society and to better understand ourselves and the world around us.  Some of the technological advances proposed are mind-bogglingly advanced.  But it becomes apparent that general understanding and development have been hindered by the casting aside of any thought that all things in this universe would have been created with purpose by a wise Creator.  Whilst some display how remarkable spider’s silk is compared to man-made Kevlar and express its almost endless applications, electronic, surgical etc., others describe how trial and error led to the deaths of thousands of animals before they realised that the solution to the increasing desertification of fertile land was as simple as observing the natural processes which should normally occur to prevent it. 

Biomimeticists seek to mimic nature, but observe how greatly this has been hindered by the Reductionist, ‘Atheistic’ paradigm which sees no purposeful intelligence in creation, but rather sees the universe as some convenient accident full of happy coincidences and that nature, therefore, may very well not have patterns and materials etc. to be harnessed and used properly, in good stewardship. 

Nevertheless, these intelligent minds believe this worldview to be absolutely correct, allowing no thoughts to be shared to the contrary.  They remove videos in which glands in the brain are discussed which release naturally release chemicals to allow a sense of there being a spiritual existence interacting with the physical.  The implications of this are apparently too great.  It appears that people are without excuse for denying God, just as we are told by the Lord (Romans 1:20).

But, as they profess themselves to be wise, let us analyse this mindset philosophically to show that this worldview is not just a hindrance to the areas of science founded by Creationists, but is also based on that empty philosophy which we are warned of in the Bible:

The philosophy of the Reductionist asserts that all men begin a thought-process or indeed any process by assuming the universe exists.  They feel uncertain as to whether the universe they inhabit actually exists and so the further ‘assumption’ that a Creator of this possible universe exists is an unnecessary addition.  This is ridiculous. 
Firstly, we must ask whether the brain-dead are assuming the universe exists and assuming their own existence – assumptions which require a conscious and competent mind; secondly, we must ask who it is that is doing the assuming to begin with.  A being of some sort, a self-conscious and self-aware being; they did not choose to become aware of themselves or conscious of the life they are living and the universe within which they do so.  But, nonetheless, here they are, inescapably so.  In fact, tell the person who suffers from chronic pain that they are simply assuming the universe exists; if this is merely an assumption, they can be corrected at any time and cease to exist, ending all pain.  But even the most devout of Buddhists can still be found sitting cross-legged on their bottoms in a monastery atop Tibet.  It appears that the simple and obvious adage still works best: ‘I am thinking, therefore I am existing’ – Descartes.

Now, we can look at another philosophical argument, the Kalām cosmological argument:
1. Everything that begins to exist has a cause;
2. The universe began to exist.
Therefore,
3. The universe has a cause of its existence.

So, we can say that this well-ordered universe, which bears life on this tiny jewel of planet, has a cause.  Either it is the God of Jesus Christ, the awaited Messiah and Saviour of all mankind who came, fulfilling hundreds of prophecies, the chances of which are astronomically beyond that of the recognised realms of possibility; or the cause of this universe is some unknown accident, a strangely happy coincidence which caused the exact fine-tuning of the universe.  This is not to mention how life and the miraculous processes found within it have only ever been disproven to have come about by chance.

The options left for the Reductionist are either accepting what they believe to be the improbable – that there is an intelligent and infinite Creator; or accepting the impossible and hoping the facts might eventually make it sound more probable.  Sadly, they choose the latter.

James Glattfelder, earlier this year at a TED talk in Zurich admitted: ‘No one really knows why the thoughts in our heads should actually relate to the fundamental workings of the universe’.  Those who know their God know why.  But those who accept the impossible, who willing believe a lie, they shall continue to stumble into such quagmires.

2Timothy 2:13  If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself.