Lightbulb Moments

Am I sitting on a chair?

Is my laptop on a desk?

Is this a laptop?

Epistemology leads to acquiring knowledge about life and explain how we think, what reasoning we use to get there, and The study of epistemology and professed Christianity have a very close relationship because both point to knowing God more. Epistemology assists in our acquiring of knowledge to worship God in our professed Christianity. God is the base of all knowledge, so epistemology directly points to Him from a Christian worldview. God created us with a rational brain to give us a desire to inquire more about Him. It makes us devote ourselves to His knowledge and the truth of His Word. His Word points to realizations about our role in His plan and the purpose we have in His creation, but also to realizations about Him as our eternal creator.

A lightbulb is a great analogy for these realizations. God is the inner wiring, the source for the light of knowledge. Stemming from it is light, produced from the center and pointing towards the center. Our quest for knowledge is like turning on the light. As we see the result of the light shining, we know it is because of the wiring that Thomas Edison discovered. Epistemology is the strands of light and God is the central wiring. Without each other, the bulb wouldn’t be complete. Both are necessary for to find God’s truth within the realm of professed Christianity. Proverbs 2:6 says that “For the Lord gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.” God’s wisdom and truth can be found in the Bible, but also through having a professed, personal relationship with God. A good analogy for us to remember when studying epistemology as a Christian is to have a lightbulb moment. Without each other, they wouldn’t work, but both are important to the overall architecture. You can have that “aha” moment while learning about God and worship God by learning about Him by applying (and shining) the meaning (light) to Him. Christianity and knowledge MUST work together to shape our faith. Both are necessary for professed Christianity.

An epistemological understanding of truth is important because it answers life questions, but also because it points to our reasoning behind conclusions, just like how the strands of light point to the inner wiring. If we never understand why we make the decisions we make, how do we know those are valid decisions associate with what we believe? Knowledge about God and our faith will assist in our ethical decisions and even mundane decisions. Our knowledge of God is the deciding factor behind all decisions we make in life. Once again, this is another case where epistemology and Christianity coincide to form the truths of our lives.

Epistemology works also to explain the way we think, therefore explain the way we worship God. This study helps us to evaluate our worship and, in doing so, worship God further. By evaluating our worship, we learn what we value, what God values, and how we best worship God. Each person is different, so learning how to best worship God in the most appropriate way is very important to our Christianity because spending time with God is a key role of our faith. Self-evaluation is valued in aspects of other faiths, so this can give us a way to relate to other people. It also helps us to learn about ourselves, more importantly. Values and induction/deduction play prevalent roles in the way we think, so exploring those are incredibly important to a professed faith.

I’ve heard the saying “knowledge is power” so many times before, but as I’ve studied epistemology, I’ve realized the importance behind it. When we study our knowledge and the questions behind our knowledge, it gives us a greater understanding for the world. Whether it’s empathy for the suffering or encouragement for the thriving, understanding for our worldview as Christians is important because it gives us a distinct kind of power. A power to defend our faith against critics and strengthen it amongst other believers.  The knowledge behind faith is power because it gives supportive explanations in both directions. Knowledge opens many doors (of opportunity and for worship) for us as believers, and, in a way, closes doors for contradictions against us. Epistemology should be viewed as an empowering aspect of philosophy for Christians, not degrading. Why wouldn’t we want to learn more about our Almighty God? We are so blessed to have the ability to use an aspect of philosophy in this way. All in all, yes, epistemology and professed Christianity can work together. In fact, in the eyes of a Christian, they are necessary for the other. Both coincide with our worship for God and faith.

 

God of Wonders

🎶 God of wonders beyond our galaxy… You are holy, holy 🎶

Metaphysics creates many mindgames for Christians because it causes questioning of reality and existence. The broad topic of Metaphysics poses hard questions and plays mindgames on Christians because it results in the questioning of the relationship we have with our own existence and reality, often a sensitive and defensive subject.

I think that when Christians get defensive and sensitive when they really start to contemplate metaphysics and the topics associated. We are taught the same thing over and over again (most from a young age) so when these questions are posed to us, either by others or our own minds. This brings up the broad question of “does God exist?” God is defined in the Bible as the eternal Spirit and Creator of all the universe. This is what his identity was, is, and always will be. As Genesis 1:1 says, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.” The song God of Wonders by Third Day describes God as an eternal creator perfectly. The line that comes to mind is the chorus: “God of wonders beyond our galaxy; you are holy, holy; the universe declares Your majesty; you are holy, holy.”

There are many ways to prove the existence of God, but to me, the most obvious is the design of the Earth itself. Without God, there would be no Earth. The complex design of how the Earth works to promote life and display God’s deliberate design. He created it perfectly to sustain us and, if you look at it as a whole, it is quite amazing how it works together. For example, water is necessary for life. To go into chemistry terms, it is the universal solvent and without it, there wouldn’t be survival for any living thing. Water was designed purposefully to fulfill many purposes for life. Another scientific example is bacteria. The detail and purpose of bacteria alone show God’s existence incredibly well. Some of the things that God has purposefully created are so beyond our galaxy (or beyond us), that we haven’t even discovered and can’t understand them. The universe declares God’s majesty by physical appearance as well. The beauty of the Earth can be attributed to God and only God, the creator of all things. The mountains, beach, jungle, Arctic, desert, and rolling meadows are a gift from God. Even the quantity and depth of the innumerable stars in the galaxy display it. He knows all the stars by name. WOW. Just thinking about God’s identity as a Creator makes me want to worship him more. They are an everyday reminder of God’s existence and there is no doubt that he is the eternal Creator. Another broad question is “is God part of reality?” I think by what I just wrote about, you can probably guess my bias on the subject. Yes, God is part of reality. Without God, there would be no reality. Reality was created by God. God created everything in the beginning of Genesis. Reality is a part (or associated with) God because of this. Reality is a result of the eternal Creator and it is by his will that we exist.

A lot of people tend to shy away from asking these questions because they get defensive about these topics, and often, its a sensitive topic, especially in diverse religious communities. It is important to address our personal and religious views on metaphysics, especially while we are young, because these questions do come up often in the real world. As we exist, it is an obligation for us to define existence and reality in our terms. As Christians, we can have confidence that God exists as our eternal Creator, but some religions don’t have any confidence in their views. This is a HUGE blessing for believers. We don’t have to question our existence and reality because we have a God who is all-powerful. Instead, we must evaluate and ponder our metaphysical worldview to strengthen our faith and have strong, factual answers for the people who try to question us. As high school seniors, we are going to head into a world where people will try to persecute us as believers. Because we are learning about how metaphysics work, we will be able to come back with a strong answer and contradiction to people who seem to disagree. We don’t have to be defensive about it because we know the answer to the broad questions like “does God exist? and “is God part of reality?” Those questions are answered for us in Genesis when God creates the universe. As the song says,” God of all creation; of water, earth, and sky; the heavens are your tabernacle; glory to the Lord on high.” These lyrics perfectly exemplify, in my opinion, what a Christians view on metaphysics should be. God created everything and by doing so everything worships him. As we stand up for our metaphysical views, we should take that into account. God, the greatest of all creators, created us to worship and display his wonderful creation, and his existence as a whole. Existence and reality are a huge struggle for people who don’t have a God who created the universe and everything in it because they don’t have those direct answers like Christians. Existence depends upon God because he is the eternal creator. Our God has an identity full of wonders and his design for existence and reality is amazing.