Larry Dixon, an Evangelical author, speaker, professor (his words), and professional bullshitter, aka apologist (my words) started a new series on his blog several months ago titled Bless-ed! 52 Blessings Your Lost Friend Doesn’t Have . . . And What You Can Do About It! As you might imagine, Dixon paints poor, pathetic, ignorant unbelievers in a negative light, positing that Hey-Zeus is the solution for what ails us. Standard Evangelical pablum, but I do want to focus on Part Ten of Dixon’s series.
Here’s what Dixon had to say:
Not to get too philosophical, but any worldview other than that given by God in His Word is susceptible to attack and eventual overthrow. Wow! What a dogmatic statement! But seriously, if biblical Christianity isn’t true and the Bible isn’t God’s Word, why should we bother following Christ? But there are clear evidences of the Bible’s truthfulness; Christ’s life, death, burial, and resurrection; and the fact that the God of the Bible is real and holy and angry at sin.
….
How do I pray for my unsaved friend? First of all, I need to understand his present worldview. Then do whatever I can to challenge it in light of the gospel. And, second, I need to pray for God the Holy Spirit to open my friend’s eyes to how he ought to view life and eternity and . . . Jesus.
Spoken like a true presuppositionalist, Dixon emphatically states:
[A]ny worldview other than that given by God in His Word is susceptible to attack and eventual overthrow.
What is this singular worldview given by God? Which God? How does Dixon know this worldview was given to us by God? When was this worldview given to us? The Old Testament? The New Testament? Both? SO many questions, yet Dixon presupposes his peculiar worldview is that which was delivered to humans by the Triune God of the Protestant Christian Bible. Perhaps Dixon can put this worldview in writing for all to read, and then ask his fellow Christians if he is right. Something tells me that no two Christians have exactly the same worldview. How do we determine who is right?
Dixon goes on to ask an awesome question: If biblical Christianity isn’t true and the Bible isn’t God’s Word, why should we bother following Christ?
Unfortunately, Dixon doesn’t spend any time pondering this question before saying: there are clear evidences of the Bible’s truthfulness; Christ’s life, death, burial, and resurrection; and the fact that the God of the Bible is real and holy and angry at sin.
Another bold statement by Dixon. Where, exactly, can these “evidences” be found? Wait . . . drum roll, please . . . the B-I-B-L-E.
Please cue:
The B-I-B-L-E,
Yes that’s the book for me;
I stand alone on the Word of God,
The B-I-B-L-E.The B-I-B-L-E,
Yes that’s the book for me;
I stand alone on the Word of God,
The B-I-B-L-E.The B-I-B-L-E,
Yes that’s the book for me;
I stand alone on the Word of God,
The B-I-B-L-E.The B-I-B-L-E,
Yes that’s the book for me;
I stand alone on the Word of God,
The B-I-B-L-E.
Sadly, Evangelical apologists have little to offer to atheists, agnostics, humanists, pagans, and other unbelievers, those who do not believe that the Bible is an inerrant, infallible collection of books. All, it seems, that Evangelicals have to offer is prayers and Bible quotations. And that is why Evangelicalism continues to hemorrhage church members, particularly young adults. We are winning the battle one worldview at a time.
Other posts featuring Larry Dixon
Beware of Evangelicals Coming in the Name of “Friendship”
Do We Need to Believe in the Christian God to Have a Meaningful Life?
Larry Dixon Says Premarital Sex is Abnormal, Unnatural, and Definitely Not Fun
Larry Dixon’s Followers Dish the “Truth” about Atheist Bruce Gerencser
My Response to Larry Dixon’s Starbucks Story
Bruce Gerencser, 66, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 45 years. He and his wife have six grown children and thirteen grandchildren. Bruce pastored Evangelical churches for twenty-five years in Ohio, Texas, and Michigan. Bruce left the ministry in 2005, and in 2008 he left Christianity. Bruce is now a humanist and an atheist.
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ah, the usual claim of every single flippin’ christian that their version, and only their version is “biblical”.
“How do I pray for my unsaved friend? First of all, I need to understand his present worldview. Then do whatever I can to challenge it in light of the gospel. And, second, I need to pray for God the Holy Spirit to open my friend’s eyes to how he ought to view life and eternity and . . . Jesus.”
poor dears, I’ve had hundreds of Christians claim they are doing this for me. Since the bible promises that every prayer asked in ol’ JC’s name will be answered with what is asked for, no exchanges, and answered quickly, they have a problem. Nothing has happened so they are left with three possiblities: their god loves me as I am, their god hates them, or their god is imaginary.
A Response to Barna’s Definition of a Biblical Worldview
Here we go, point by point.
Absolutes exist and the Bible defines them.
There are no absolutes in nature, unless you state trivialities (Mountains are heavier than bacteria, always!).
(Jesus the) Christ lived a sinless life.
What he didn’t harvest grain on the Sabbath? Did he not state that the only way to “the father” was through him”? Actually I doubt he said that. I think those words were placed into his mouth. If anyone would have suggested that Jesus was co-equal with “the Father” I think Jesus would have rent his clothing and proclaimed Blasphemy! like any other good Jew.
God is the all-powerful and all-knowing Creator of the universe and he still rules it today.
If “He” was really all-knowing, why did He allow Satan, always a loyal follower of Yahweh, to make Job’s life a living Hell. Did Yahweh not know what the outcome of the experiment would be? Did He not know all that had happened along with all that would happen?
As to “ruling it today,” if this is so why does none of the knowledge we gain from study not require a god or supernatural power to explain it? In fact, there is no knowledge we have gained by studying nature (God’s Creation, that is) that requires any supernatural input at all. This is hardly a manifestation of our universe being ruled by a deity.
Salvation is by grace and not by works.
I guess Jesus was wrong, then. Jesus taught that what was necessary was to repent (confess one’s sins) and then follow all of God’s commandments. So, Jesus taught works, not grace. And, if you think all you need do is accept Jesus into your heart as your Lord and Master, if you had suggested that to Jesus, again I expect Jesus would have rent his clothing and proclaimed Blasphemy! like any other good Jew.
Satan is a real being.
Satan is as real as Yahweh and Jesus and was always, always a loyal servant of Yahweh. If you do not believe that, read the Book of Job again. The “devil” is an entirely human creation and there is no evidence of it in the Bible.
If Satan actually opposed Yahweh’s plans, well Yahweh could remove Satan and any memories we had of Satan with a mere thought, so Satan is not the Devil, nor does he mount any self-serving opposition to God’s Plans.
Christians have a responsibility to witness.
What the Bible implies is that they should emulate Jesus and by doing so would affect those around them. The mamby-pamby witnessing large accepted by limp-wristed Christians today, should only be done to other Christians because to us non-Christians it makes you look pathetic and weak.
The Bible is accurate in all of its teachings.
Interesting claims. Just which teachings are those? Are they they ones that say death is the only sentence for an abomination? Or that life is sacred? Is it “Thou shalt not murder (other Hebrews, murdering non-Hebrews was fine) or is it Yahweh killing 70,000 supporters of King David as a punishment of David?!
Clearly this is some kind of worldview but it is largely the construct of the author and not the Bible. Barna is just one of a long line of “scribes” condemned by Yahweh through the prophet Jeremiah who tells us that the Law of GOD was altered, changed, “falsified” by the “lying pen of the scribes”! (Jeremiah 8:8)
Jeremiah also provided this: “I gave your ancestors no commands about burnt offerings or any other kinds of sacrifices when I brought them out of Egypt. But I did command them to obey me, so that I would be their God and they would be my people. And I told them to live the way I had commanded them, so that things would go well for them.” — GOD, Jeremiah 7:22–23. It seems that “live the way I commanded them so that things would go good for them” sure sounds like works and not grace was what Yahweh wanted.
So this god forgot that it gave all of those laws, including those for “burnt offerings and any other kinds of sacrifices” to the israelites after they were out of egypt? “22 For in the day that I brought your ancestors out of the land of Egypt, I did not speak to them or command them concerning burnt offerings and sacrifices. 23 But this command I gave them, “Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be my people; and walk only in the way that I command you, so that it may be well with you.””
you know, all of that crap in Exodus 23?
interesting.
Dixon makes a lot of bold statements without a single shred of supporting evidence. He also fails to show evidence that he has tried to understand the world views of nonbelievers. He jumps from “they’re wrong” to “I’m right – because the Bible says so” with nothing in between. Sorry, dude, you need to do better than that if you want to have a conversation with me instead of monologuing at me and declaring me wrong because King Larry says so.
Obstacle–Sometimes I think that folks like Dixon wouldn’t be able to do what they do if they had any understanding of any non-believer’s worldview. Is their lack of understanding deliberate?
of course it is deliberate. Willful ignorance is all they have.