Thursday, February 26, 2009

CHOOSING A DOCTRINAL SYSTEM

It should be apparent to us that our lives are based on our ability to choose. While it is true that there are certain things that we cannot choose such as our parents, hair color, body type, gender etc. These are physical attributes. Our ability to choose is spiritual, not physical. Choice is thus ethically based. Those who do not believe in absolutes will makes choices situationally. Situation ethics is based upon effects i.e. situations, not upon causes.

When using situation ethics there is no ability to foresee consequences because choice is based upon the visible situation. Situation ethics wholly ignores the future. Situation ethics is immediate moment oriented. Situation ethics is thus chosen on a moment by moment basis. This means that choices will be decided randomly. This randomness has a chaotic effect both in an individual’s life and the culture at large.

As Carl Menger said in his Principle of Economics, "All things are subject to the law of cause and effect." I came to the same conclusion when I have said that the "spiritual precedes the physical." This is saying the same thing. This also means that the subjective comes before the objective. Understanding means that the subjective will determine the understanding of the objective. The objective must be interpreted and all interpretation takes place at the subjective i.e. casual level.

All causes are spiritual and all effects are visible. This is so because the spiritual (cause) always comes before the physical (effect). The way to test if this statement is true is to go to the creation account of Genesis 1. The creation account begins not with "In the beginning..." Prior to the existence of the physical world, God existed. Ontologically, God is Spirit and Spirit is invisible. The physical world (effect) was created by God (the First and Final Cause). The created world (objective) existed in the mind of God (subjective) prior to its existence.

Since we were created in the image of God, we will think in like terms as Him. We think subjectively (cause) and it comes into reality (effect). Ayn Rand said about writing that something remained subjective until it became objective i.e. written and visible. Having this kind of understanding enables one to begin to look at doctrinal systems and making a choice for them which comports best to their level of understanding.

How does one become a Calvinist or a Wesleyan-Arminian? Both choose to believe one or the other. It is a matter of choice. One believes as the other believes that for him, he has discovered the truth of the Bible. God’s world is based upon ethical cause and effect and whether you are a Calvinist or a Wesleyan-Arminian, this must be the foundation of any doctrinal system. If all things are based on the law of cause and effect, then all interpretation is based upon the same law.

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