The Tempter’s Creed
The most serious enemy facing mankind today is the same one that has always been…the “Tempter’s Creed” known as secular humanism–a.k.a. the worship of MAN. We are just seeing the full-blown fruit of it in America as we are burying the last shreds of our founding father’s faith and devotion to God’s laws, replacing it with our devotion to man’s law.
“Humanism is the second oldest religion known to man. It goes back to the Garden of Eden…Its first article of faith is the belief that all things, including every word from God, must be put to the test of man’s reason and experience: ‘Yea, hath God said, ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?’ ” R.J. Rushdoony
Humanism is the belief that all things exist for man’s good and betterment, and therefore man determines right and wrong; Christianity is the belief that man exists for God and as such, He knows what is best for us. (The chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.)
Accomplice
The two are antagonistic in nature. But there is a MAJOR problem…many Christians have unknowingly begun to follow the doctrine of humanism, wounding the body of Christ, rendering themselves impotent–and even worse–accomplice to man’s destruction.
Satan tempted Eve with the power to “be as gods, knowing good and evil”. Never has the church been so divided about truth, and more and more pastors are falsely teaching that truth is relative and we can determine for ourselves what constitutes good and evil, rather than looking to the laws of God given to us for instruction and life.
Look closely
It’s difficult to just make a list of how humanism has infected us; we may be tempted to point the finger at others–you know, the biggies like the churches who have ordained homosexual pastors, and recognize the humanism there. But if we look closely, we may see it in our own lives, if we are willing.
“Humanism in the church sees Christ as our great fire and life insurance agent, not as the Lord.” -Rushdoony
We want everyone to get saved, pour all of our resources into that mission (which we falsely believe we control) and then we breathe a big sigh of relief and don’t dare tell the new convert “Thus saith the Lord” in case we might offend him and he leave the church (would a real convert leave in such a case?)
We don’t live our theology out of our fingertips (nor are we taught to); our lives often do not reflect the reign of the sovereignty of God in every area. And when they don’t, we serve the religion of humanism, deciding for ourselves “what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”
We see it in our view of children (being anti-abortion does not make one pro-life), our view of marriage (reduced to self-fulfillment), our view of education (giving authority to the state which usurps the family’s), and on it goes, each area adversely affecting another.
Life
That the Lord desires to rule in the hearts of His children because it brings them LIFE is a fact to be reckoned with. But He will not barge in and take control. He wants submission to the authority of His lordship. And those who refuse that submission will self-destruct by the very nature of God and the laws He set forth from Creation.
“See, I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil; In that I command thee this day to love the Lord thy God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commandments and his statutes and his judgments, that thou mayest live and multiply: and the Lord thy God shall bless thee in the land whither thou goest to possess it. But if thine heart turn away, so that thou wilt not hear, but shalt be drawn away, and worship other gods, and serve them; I denounce unto you this day, that ye shall surely perish, and that ye shall not prolong your days upon the land… I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy descendants may live…” Deuteronomy. 30: 15-19
Well said Kelly!
excellent.
I guess I am a humanist. The big argument against humanism seems to be that, as human beings, we are prone to error and sin. So we should not rely on ourselves to figure out the truth, but rather rely on God, who is believed to be all-knowing and all-powerful.
But I think that humanity’s tendency to both err and to sin are also an argument FOR humanism — which I know seems paradoxical, but hear me out for a minute. The reason is that, if there is a God, the only way we can know about God is through what we ourselves see, hear, read, and sense. But we are error-prone — so how do we know that our understanding of God is correct? For example, there are millions of Muslims who believe the Koran is the infallible Word of God. There are also millions of Christians who believe that the Bible is the infallible Word of God and that the Koran is a lie. The only conclusion to reach from this is that there are millions of people (either Christians or Muslims or both) who are in error as to what constitutes the will of God.
The reason for this is that we have no way of knowing anything, whether about God or anything else, without relying on our own brains and experience. Our brains and experience are the only tools we have for filtering truth — so, in a way, we are all humanists, even if we don’t realize it.
I think what we have no choice but to make the best of this reality — and use all the resources at our disposal to learn about the world, to reason about ethics and morality, and to do our best to live the most productive lives we can. Certainly, human beings are not perfect and all sorts of strife and error results whether we are believers in God or not. But on the other hand, our brains are extremeley powerful instruments, and despite our many errors, we have managed to come up with checks and balances (i.e. science) for minimizing error in learning about the world, as well as other systems for thinking through the important issues we all need to be concerned about. If there is an all-knowing and all-powerful God who cares about us, I imagine that, while he sorrows over the misery we inflict on each other, but also that he is proud of the many positive accomplishments of the human race.
Elizabeth,
I can’t spend a lot of time answering you both for practical purposes and the fact that I believe it’s futile to convince someone of God on a purely intellectual basis…that isn’t my ministry here, and there are ministries that devote more time to that task.
However, though you speak some truth about our tendency to err and our limited capacity to reason, you leave out faith and the power of the Holy Spirit to reveal God’s will to His people, given to them when they become believers. “..and be transformed by the renewing of your mind that you may prove (know?) what is that good, acceptable and perfect will of God.”
An unbeliever can’t understand this, because it is not in his realm of experience. But a believer is given an extra measure of “understanding” if you will, by the divine inspiration of the Holy Spirit that helps us unravel the mysteries of God’s Word.
With all wisdom and understanding he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment – to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ. Ephesians 1:8-10
So in essence, as Christians, we believe we CAN know the will of God, though we may differ on non-salvific issues; but God has clearly revealed Himself and His will throughout Scripture if only we are willing to hear it and submit to it.
GO GIRL!!!
WELL SAID!
Excellent post!
Elizabeth said: The reason for this is that we have no way of knowing anything, whether about God or anything else, without relying on our own brains and experience. Our brains and experience are the only tools we have for filtering truth — so, in a way, we are all humanists, even if we don’t realize it….
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I have to disagree. First, Kelly is correct in saying that there is no place for humanism in true Christianity. Jesus made it very clear that it is impossible to effectively “serve two masters” (Matt 6:24;Luke 16:13). And James speaks very strongly against being “double minded”. A professing Christian is not free to worship human intellect or ability.
A Christian will either be listening for his Shepherd’s voice or he will be wandering away on his own.
There is only one way to “know” with assurance what we need to know. God Himself must awaken our dead spirits to the truth of His nature and humanity’s hopeless status in comparison.
He has promised that He will send His Holy Spirit to indwell those who belong to Him. That is different from other religions which rely solely on an externally applied moral code to “better themselves” or gain favor with God. The change begins with a “heart transplant” and the behavior follows because the individual now begins to find value in the perspective of God.
That isn’t a promise that every Christian will be able to figure out everything there is to know. It means that we no longer pridefully trust in man’s ability and we humbly approach the Author of life and trust Him to give us individual “marching orders” which do not contradict that which we can understand of His nature which is revealed in the Bible. This does not mean we are mindless followers who no longer use our brains and ability to reason. We certainly do and God will hold us accountable for what we do with the things He reveals to us. But because our desires and thoughts are being conformed to reflect those of Christ, we recognize the necessity of honoring God with our lives.
Error occurs even among Christians. We now have what might be called a “dual nature” because
1.although our spirits have been resurrected,we are still living in bodies that are affected by Adam’s rebellion.
2. our spirits are “reborn” but not yet perfectly mature. Like babies, we need to be taught and practice what we learn.
We make “honest mistakes”, sometimes willfully sin and are certainly limited in knowledge. But our deepest desire is to please God–so we are willing to be corrected by and learn more from Him.
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Elizabeth: But on the other hand, our brains are extremeley powerful instruments, and despite our many errors, we have managed to come up with checks and balances (i.e. science) for minimizing error in learning about the world, as well as other systems for thinking through the important issues we all need to be concerned about.
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Have you considered the possibility that we need these “checks and balances” because our penchant for sin has systematically muddied our ability to clearly reason? Maybe we’ve become so dumb we have to rely on computers and formulas in order to do complex calculations that people used to be able to do in their heads–and humanists only *think* we’ve evolved to an “advanced degree” when it’s actually the opposite.
Consider all of the “ancient wonders” that modern man marvels about.
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Elizabeth: If there is an all-knowing and all-powerful God who cares about us, I imagine that, while he sorrows over the misery we inflict on each other, but also that he is proud of the many positive accomplishments of the human race.
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NO.
God is not proud of us when we disregard His magnificence in favor of our own pathetic (in comparison) efforts.
Elizabeth, I want to be clear that I am not trying to “pick on you” or be unkind. If God has taught me anything, it is that if I am “right” about any topic, it is only because He has been gracious to show me. I believe He even allows unbelievers to “see” various aspects of His nature. Romans 1 supports this concept. But, unbelievers will not accept that what they see is of God. They try to find other “more rational” explanations so they can continue to feel comfortable about denying the need to humbly bow before their all-powerful Creator. That idea is terrifying to me because, although God is patient at this time–giving everyone a chance to be reconciled with Him, He has promised to put an end to man’s rebellion.
And then it will be too late to recognize that what He has told us is true.
Kelly,
I was just guilty of this Sunday. I was praying for my aunt to be completely healed and that God would supply her miracuously with a new liver. Then I said to God “so that my entire family will know you are God and come and serve you!!!” Doesn’t that sound so spiritual? Well, I got the ache in my gut that God uses to let me know I am off from HIs will. I asked Him what was wrong with my very spiritual prayer. His response: “I heal for MY GLORY.” I became a humanist and put my focus on/for their benefit. When all things point to Christ’s glory. The Lamb is worthy of His reward! Thanks again!
Kelly, Fair enough. I don’t mean to turn your comments section into a debate blog.
Heather, I don’t take your comments as at all unkind.
I don’t think it is so much about worshiping human reason or human beings. Being a humanist (whether we are right or wrong) has a lot to do with humility. Humanists admit that they don’t have all the answers, that they don’t have special access to the divine, and that we have to take account of our limitations in our search for truth and justice.
Elizabeth,
I wouldn’t want to end this conversation without telling you (imagine a loving embrace 😉 that I am, as a Christian, of all people humbled, presicely because of “my special access to the Divine”. But, the offer is to everyone. He has granted us that access when He didn’t have to. And now, anyone who desires to embrace the faith that is in Christ becomes “a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.”
Anyone can be granted the “special access to the Divine” when he comes admitting just what you said–we don’t know all the answers, but we can know THE Answer…it is a free gift.