A Faith Built on Sand The Foolishness of Popular Religion in a Postmodern Age

Expectations for this class Class slides will be printed. Engagement from every student. Read assigned text before every class. Classroom discussion (questions at end of chapter) Quizzes every two chapters. Everyone receives a number (write it in your book!) Quizzes are take-home (can work with others, call teacher). Quizzes will be self-graded. Memory verse every week!

Introduction This study is mission critical. Postmodernism is a cancer that must be identified, assessed and eradicated. 1 Peter 5:8

Two faiths: Matthew 7:24ff ““Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.” (Matt 7:24–25 NKJV) ““But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.”” (Matt 7:26–27 NKJV)

Key Definitions “Popular” 1. liked, admired, or enjoyed by many people or by a particular person or group 2. intended for or suited to the taste, understanding, or means of the general public rather than specialists or intellectuals

Key Definitions “Worldview” “Underlying all that we think, say, or do are basic assumptions that form what we call a ‘worldview.’ A person's worldview is the collection of all his presuppositions or convictions about reality, which present his total outlook on life. Nobody is without such fundamental beliefs, yet many people go through life unaware of their presuppositions. Operating at the unconscious level, their presuppositions remain unidentified and unexamined. The result is that people generally fail to recognize how their worldviews govern every dimension of their lives.”

Key Definitions “Worldview” "As individuals develop, they do seem to adopt certain answers to the fundamental questions of life. These answers are put together into a comprehensive system: a view of the world. At the same time, however, this view of the world becomes the way they view the world. It becomes the spectacles through which they look, the grid upon which they organize reality. This view affects the way they answer the fundamental questions of life, and so on.”

Key Definitions Our worldview determines how we answer... What is ultimate reality? Is there a God? Who is God? What does God expect from man? How are we to live? (Ethics)Human nature?Human origins?Human destiny?

Key Definitions

“Postmodernism” “A term used to designate a variety of intellectual and cultural developments in late-twentieth-century Western society. Postmoderns generally embrace pluralism and place value in the diversity of worldviews and religions that characterizes contemporary society” (IVP Pocket Dictionary). “In the second half of the 20th century, many extrapolated this argument to conclude that there are no facts, only interpretations...insists we are confined to a quagmire of relativity, and exults in the disappearance of any possibility of objective truth” (IVP Biblical Theology).

Key Definitions “Postmodernism” "Instead of attempting to fashion a rational worldview, postmodernism opts for lesser goals by cobbling together various ideas, practices, and goals for pragmatic purposes. As postmodernist Walter Truett Anderson puts it, “Truth isn’t what it used to be.” Postmodernism embraces a cluster of ideas, most of which contradict the Christian understanding of truth, authority, and rationality...Postmodernists claim that any comprehensive and authoritative worldview is forever out of reach and that to claim otherwise is an arrogant pretext for dominating those with whom one disagrees. For example, claims for the objective truth of the Christian worldview are unwarranted and lead to the oppression of non-Christians.” (Apologetics Study Bible).

Key Definitions “Postmodernism” “Although no major religion adheres to the postmodern view of truth, this mindset has affected how many people view spirituality, particularly in nations with significant religious freedom. Many think that religion is a matter of choice, taste, and preference. One seeks a designer religion that suits one’s taste, or one is born into a religion that defines who one is. One may even mix and match elements from several religions. Debating whether a religion is true or false is pointless. All are “true” in the postmodern sense because they give meaning to people’s lives” (Apologetics Study Bible)

Key Definitions NameRealityManTruthValues Postmoder n Reality is socially constructed. Humans are a product of their cultural setting. Truths are relative to one’s culture. Tolerance, freedom of expression, inclusion, and refusal to claim to have the answers are the only universal values. Christian Theism An infinite, personal God exists. He created a finite, material world. Reality is both material and spiritual. The universe as we know it had a beginning and will have an end. Humankind is the unique creation of God. People were created "in the image of God," which means that we are personal, eternal, spiritual, and biological. Truth about God is known through revelation. Truth about the material world is gained via revelation and the five senses in conjunction with rational thought. Moral values are the objective expression of an absolute moral being.

Postmodernism is not compatible with the bible Romans 3:4 2 Timothy 3:15-17 Acts 17:28 Jn. 8:32; Jn. 14:6 Eph. 6:11

Postmodernism is the root of two main problems in the church Ignorance (“I don’t know”) Apathy (“I don’t care”)