Certain Truth in an Uncertain World: Postmodernism

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Certain Truth in anUncertain WorldPostmodernism
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Biblical Defense
Always being ready to make a defense to
everyone who asks you to give an account for the
hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and
reverence (1 Peter 315).
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Biblical Thinking
We are taking every thought captive to the
obedience of Christ (2 Corinthians 105).
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What is Postmodernism?
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Three Umpires

• Theres balls and theres strikes, and I call
  em the way they are.
• Theres balls and theres strikes, and I call
  em the way I see em.
• Theres balls and theres strikes, and they
  aint nothing until I call them.

Truth Is Stranger Than It Used to Be (1995)
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Three Views of Truth

• Pre-modernism God-centered universe,
  revelation, truth is absolute.
• Modernism (1850-1945) Enlightenment, science,
  truth is relative.
• Postmodernism (1945) loss of hope for truth,
  truth is created.

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Modernism

• Modernism is the belief that the world can be
  explained through scientific examination.
• Modernists see the world as one big machine.
• They have faith in rationality, in empiricism,
  and in science.

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Postmodernism

• Postmodernism is the belief that truth is not
  discovered but created.
• It is the belief that truth doesnt exist except
  as the individual wants it to exist.
• Truth isnt objective or absolute.
• Truth is personal and relative.

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Postmodernism

• Postmodernism isnt really a set of doctrines
  or truth claims.
• It is a completely new way of dealing with the
  world of ideas.
• Literature, history, politics, education, law,
  sociology, linguistics, even the
  sciences.

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Postmodernism

• It is skeptical of people (e.g., Christians) who
  claim to know truth.
• But it doesnt actually seem hostile to religion
  or spirituality.
• Postmodernists have no problem with religion
  unless it makes certain claims about its
  religion.

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Postmodernism

• Postmodernists tolerate religion as long is it
  makes no claim to universal truth and has no
  authority.
• They are very critical of Christian missionaries
  because they believe they are destroyers of
  culture.

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Other Key Terms

• Religious pluralism the belief that every
  religion is true.
• Relativism the belief that there are no
  criteria by which one can tell which worldview is
  true or best.

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Self-defeating Propositions

• Assert that all worldviews have an equal claim to
  the truth (deny absolute truth).
• Denial of absolute truth is self-defeating.
• Claim that relativism is true for everyone,
  everywhere, at all times.
• But that itself is an absolute truth.

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Is Truth Exclusive?

• Law of Non-contradiction A and the opposite of
  A cannot both be true.
• Many believe that truth claims are both/and
  rather than either/or.
• Mutually exclusive propositions cannot both be
  true (square circles).

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An Exclusive Claim

• John 146 Jesus said to him, I am the way, and
  the truth, and the life no one comes to the
  Father but through Me.
• Jesus taught that salvation was through Him and
  no one else.
• This contradicts other religions.

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The New Capital T

• We used to live in a society that believed in
  Truth (with a capital T).
• This has now been replaced by a new word with a
  capital T.
• Tolerance
• This new orthodoxy also affects Christian
  adults and youth.

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What is the Impact?
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PEERS Test

• Nehemiah Institute has given the PEERS test to
  thousands of teenagers and adults since 1988.
• The PEERS scale has four categories
• Christian Theism
• Moderate Christian
• Secular Humanism
• Socialism

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PEERS Test

• Christian students at public schools currently
  score in the lower half of secular humanism,
  headed toward a socialistic worldview.
• 75 of students in Christian schools score as
  secular humanists.

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PEERS Test Question

• Moral values are subjective and personal. They
  are the right of each individual. Individuals
  should be allowed to conduct life as they choose
  as long as it does not interfere with the lives
  of others.
• 75 of youth agreed with this.

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George Barna

• Less than 10 of American Christians possess a
  biblical worldview.
• Two out of three born-again believers assert
  there is no absolute moral truth.
• Only 4 out of 10 people are absolutely
  committed to the Christian faith.

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Churched Youth Survey

• Barna Research conducted a Churched Youth Survey
  (1994) for Josh McDowell.
• 57 could not say that an objective standard of
  truth exists.
• 85 reason that just because its wrong for you
  doesnt mean its wrong for me.

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There is no absolute truth
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Biblical Interpretation

• People are reading literature (including the
  Bible) differently than before.
• Literary interpretation uses what is called
  postmodern deconstruction.

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Biblical Interpretation

• Many Christian no longer interpret the Bible by
  what it says.
• Instead, they interpret the Bible by asking what
  the passage means to them.

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What Can We Do?
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Be Prepared for a Battle

• See to it that no one takes you captive through
  philosophy and empty deception, according to the
  tradition of men, according to the elementary
  principles of the world, rather than according to
  Christ.
• Colossians 28

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Search the Scriptures

• Paul says the Bereans were noble-minded
  because they received the word with great
  eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see
  whether these things were so.
• Acts 1711

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Leading Influencers

• Barna research has identified what are called
  sources of significant influence.
• The leading influencers are

• Movies
• Television
• Internet
• Books

• Music
• Public policy
• Family

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Media and Discernment

• Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever
  is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is
  pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good
  repute, if there is any excellence and if
  anything worthy of praise, dwell on these
  things. Philippians 48

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Resources
Various articles on postmodernism are on the
Probe website
www.probe.org