The difference between Creationism and Intelligent Design theory (Level 1 discussion)

Before reading below, I recommend you read my post - What is the Faith Pyramid?

Predictably, many Darwinists and far too many media pundits have painted Intelligent Design theory (ID) as "Creationism in disguise," but this is terribly misleading and is the direct result of either unfortunate ignorance or willful disingenuousness. Where the train derails is when Intelligent Design theory is thought to presuppose the existence of God. This is when it is often mischaracterized as simply being "creationism in disguise." In fact, a quick Google search of "intelligent design theory creationism is disguise" will achieve over 54,000 hits! The reason this is a misunderstanding of ID is because it is actually "creationism" that has theism as its presupposition - not Intelligent Design theory. This is where they differ. In essence, "I believe in God; therefore, I'm a creationist" is the logical flow of the argument. This is not a scientific argument - In fairness, creationism is not trying to be a scientific argument. It is simply a statement of belief. Of course, "creationism" is no more guilty than naturalism/materialism of adopting a particular religious belief. Truthfully, "materialism" (the philosophy that everything that exists is matter) is atheistic by definition. In fact, it could be argued that ID is the least religious view of the three, because (with ID) the existence of God is very much a logical implication of the theory; however, it is not a presupposition of the theory. Propositionally, it could be understood the following way:

1. Atheism (religious belief) --> Materialism or Naturalism (philosophy) --> Darwinism (view of origin)
2. Theism (religious belief) --> Creationism (view of origin) --> "Supernatural-ism" (philosophy)
   
3. Intelligent Design (view of origin) --> Theism (religious belief) --> "Supernatural-ism" (philosophy)

Notice that materialism has atheism as its foundation (or precursor) - truly, they are synonymous. This logically leads to Darwinism, or the view that mankind has descended from a common ancestor, via natural selection and genetic mutation. With #2, the religious belief of theism necessitates creationism as the view of origin. This, in turn, leads to the belief or "philosophy" that God supernaturally works in the world. With Intelligent Design theory (#3), notice how it is one's view and study of mankind's origin that implies or leads to a belief in God. And, as with #2, "supernatural-ism" logically follows from there. This is truly a scientific argument, because it is the study of the data that has created the conclusion. There is no religious belief or philosophy (or metaphysical presumption) that is necessitating a certain view of the origin of mankind.

Check back for further posts on Intelligent Design theory and how beneficial it can be for "Level 1" discussion - for the purpose of converting someone to theism.

The Depth Chart

Before reading below, I recommend you read my post - What is the Faith Pyramid?

When it comes to being able to proclaim a truth (or even an opinion), I believe there are varying stages of "understanding" as illustrated below. (Note: The "stages" are superior as they descend, because this chart is meant to connote "depth" of understanding). 

1. BELIEF [or assertion]

("I believe that Jesus rose from the dead.")

2. REASONS for belief

("I believe that Jesus rose from the dead, because of A, B, & C")

3. EXPLANATION of reasons

("I can explain A, B, & C")

4. DEFENSE of reasons

("I can defend A, B, & C")

For the sake of an evangelistic/apologetics encounter, it's important for a Christian to achieve the deepest stage of understanding and, therefore, a sound proclamation of truth. There are far too many Christians who possess only a first or second stage of understanding in many of their beliefs. A true Christian worldview is developed only at the bottom half of the chart. How deep are you?

The Cosmological Argument for the Existence of God (Level 1 discussion)

Before reading below, I recommend you read my post - What is the Faith Pyramid?

The Cosmological Argument for the Existence of God:

1.  Everything that begins to exist has a cause.

2.  The universe began to exist.

3.  Therefore, the universe has a cause.

Before getting into the details of the argument, it should be noted that this argument is sound, in that, if the premises (#1 & #2) are true, then the conclusion (#3) must be true.

1.  Everything that begins to exist has a cause.

-This point is instinctively known. We have never experienced or heard of anything that came into existence without a cause, which is why this premise is usually not even challenged. Let me illustrate: Let's say I locked you in a room with no way out after giving you a pill that made you live forever. While in this room, you hear a banging sound outside the room...10 years later, you hear it again. Then you only hear it two or three times a century from then on. At no point (even after being in that room for a million years) would it be rational or smart to hear the sound and conclude that nothing had caused it. Logically, you know it was caused...every single time! Likewise, anything and everything that begins to exist has a cause.

2.  The universe began to exist.

-There are both philosophical and scientific reasons to accept this premise. Philosophically speaking, the universe had to come into existence, because it is not possible for there to have been an "actual infinite" past in time (meaning a past that goes on and on backwards). Otherwise, an infinite number of steps must have already been crossed to arrive to the present. This is not possible. Scientifically speaking, there is good evidence that the universe did come into existence at the "Big Bang." Scientists have confirmed that the universe is expanding and began at a first moment or "singularity." An additional scientific reason for there being a finite past (a past that has a beginning) to the universe is the Second Law of Thermodynamics, which teaches that the amount of usable energy is running out and eventually there will be no usable energy left. This implies that there has always been a finite amount of usable energy, which means that the universe had to have begun a finite time ago.

3.  Therefore, the universe has a cause.

-Once again, if premises 1 & 2 are true, then the conclusion must be true. Something (or Someone) "Big" indeed caused a "Bang"! This First Cause of all things is God, who must transcend time because time was created in the Big Bang, He must transcend space because space (or "material") was created in the Big Bang (this is consistent with God being Spirit), and He must be enormously powerful to cause such an effect. The Cosmological Argument is a sound and rational argument for the existence of God.

Finally, notice how these attributes of God - that He is timeless (or eternal), spaceless (or Spirit), and enormously powerful - are known without even having to open your Bible! This is called general revelation, or the way in which God has revealed Himself through nature and reason..."For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that they are without excuse." - Romans 1:20

Did Jesus actually think he was God? (Level 3 discussion) - Part 3: Jesus' personal understanding of his bodily resurrection

Before reading below, I recommend you read Part 1: The self-references of Jesus and Part 2: The teaching and behavior of Jesus.

Continuing with the evidence that Jesus did, in fact, believe himself to be God, I now turn to Jesus' personal understanding of his bodily resurrection. In multiple places, he reveals a clear expectation of his resurrection.  Immediately following Peter’s confession, Jesus states, “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed and be raised on the third day” (Luke 9:22; italics mine).  This proclamation is also recorded in Matthew 16:21 and Mark 8:31.  In another place, Jesus explicitly prophesies, “For He [the Son of Man] will be handed over to the Gentiles, and will be mocked and mistreated and spit upon, and after they have scourged Him, they will kill Him; and the third day He will rise again” (Luke 18:32-33).  Jesus also implies his death and resurrection when he states, “In a little while you will see Me no more, and then after a little while you will see Me” (John 16:16).  He further implies his death and resurrection in his mentioning of the prophet Jonah: “For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the sea monster, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth” (Matt. 12:40).  Finally, Jesus states, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up…But He was speaking of the temple of His body” (John 2:19-21).  Without question, Jesus had a personal expectation of his own resurrection.

A further point concerning Jesus’ divine self-understanding is in regards to Who raised Jesus from the dead.  Paul teaches in Romans 10:9, “If you…believe in your heart that God raised him [Jesus] from the dead…” (italics mine).  However, in addition to John 2:19 already mentioned, Jesus states, “For this reason the Father loves Me, because I lay down My life so that I may take it again. No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own initiative.  I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again” (John 10:17-18).  Jesus is clearly teaching that he will raise himself.  Finally, you also have Paul teaching the role of the Holy Spirit in the resurrection: “But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead…” (Rom. 8:11).  Furthermore, Peter likewise states, “For Christ also died for sins…having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the Spirit” (1 Pet. 3:18, italics mine).  The obvious question must be asked, Who raised Jesus from the dead?  God the Father, God the Son, or God the Holy Spirit?  A close examination of Scripture reveals that the answer is…YES.

The fact that Jesus claims a direct role in his resurrection expresses an even stronger divine self-understanding, because it illustrates, from his perspective, that he is God.

Did Jesus actually think he was God? (Level 3 discussion) - Part 2: The teaching and behavior of Jesus

Before reading below, I recommend you read Part 1: The self-references of Jesus.

As stated in my previous post, the question of Jesus' understanding of who he was has been the center of much debate, especially since the late eighteenth century. But the evidence is overwhelming: Jesus of Nazareth, indeed, believed himself to be God in the flesh. And the self-references discussed in my last post are only a part of the ample evidence...Jesus' teaching and behavior also allows us a peek at Jesus' self-portrait. Here are several examples:

• First, note how Jesus interprets his own miracles. He states, "But if I cast out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you" (Luke 11:20). Jesus' miraculous acts are not similar to other miracle workers who do extraordinary things, only for life to go on as it always has. Jesus views his own miraculous acts as a sign of the ushering in of God's Kingdom. This sets him apart. The scholar Ben Witherington has stated, "Jesus sees his miracles as bringing about something unprecedented - the coming of God's kingdom...And that's a not-too-thinly veiled claim of transcendence." (qtd. in Lee Strobel's Case for Christ, pgs. 135-36).

• Jesus also flatly states while teaching, "I and the Father are one" (John 10:30). This definitely aroused a reaction from his Jewish audience! The next verse states, "The Jews picked up stones again to stone Him."

• In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus reveals his perceived authority in his teaching on the Old Testament Law. Jesus takes the 7th commandment against adultery and extends its meaning to include lust of the heart. He does this in several instances and at one point later proclaims, "It is not what enters in the mouth that defiles the man, but what proceeds out of the mouth, this defiles the man" (Matt. 16:11). You have to see what Jesus has done here! He has, in fact, set aside large portions of the Old Testament book of Leviticus, with its rigorous purity laws. Clearly, Jesus believed he had the authority to teach something new.

• Early in his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus states, "Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill" (Matt. 5:17). This teaching undeniably implies a divine self-understanding. In fact, Jesus later makes a similar statement in which he extraordinarily claims that he is, in fact, the grand subject of the Old Testament!  He states, "...all things which are written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and Psalms (or Writings) must be fulfilled" (Luke 24:44).

• Jesus had twelve disciples, but notice how he's not one of the Twelve. Ben Witherington has noted, "If the Twelve (disciples) represent a renewed Israel, where does Jesus fit in? He's not just part of Israel, not merely part of the redeemed group, he's forming the group - just as God in the Old Testament formed his people and set up the twelve tribes of Israel. That's a clue about what Jesus thought of himself" (qtd. in Lee Strobel's Case for Christ, pg. 134).

• There's also the obvious question - How did Jesus end up on the cross? He was crucified during Passover season when no Jew wants any Jew to be crucified by the Romans. And while on the cross, the sign above his head read, "This is the King of the Jews." Either Jesus had made this claim or someone sure though he did.

• Jesus also stated that the way people viewed him would determine God's judgment toward them on judgment day. He proclaimed, "I tell you, everyone who acknowledges me before men, the Son of Man also will acknowledge before the angels of God; but he who denies me before men will be denied before the angels of God" (Luke 12:8-9). William Lane Craig has stated, "Jesus is claiming that people will be judged before him on the basis of their response to Jesus. Think of it: people's eternal destiny is fixed on their response to Jesus. Make no mistake: if Jesus were not divine, then this claim could only be regarded as the most narrow and objectionable dogmatism. For Jesus is saying that people's salvation depends on their confession to Jesus himself" (Reasonable Faith, pgs. 325-26).

• Jesus claims to have authority to forgive sins. Mark 2:5-7 states, When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, "Son, your sins are forgiven." Now some teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves, "Why does this fellow talk like that? He's blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?"

Finally, note all of the times that Jesus accepted worship:

• Matthew 8:2 - A leper came to Jesus and worshiped him without rebuke from Jesus.
• Matthew 14:33 - The disciples in the boat worshiped Jesus without rebuke.
• Matthew 28:9 - Jesus' disciples took hold of his feet and worshiped him without rebuke.
• Matthew 28:17 - Jesus' disciples saw him and then worshiped him without rebuke.
• Mark 5:6 - The man with the unclean spirit ran to Jesus and worshiped him without rebuke.
• Luke 24:52 - As Jesus ascended into heaven, the disciples worshiped him without rebuke.
• John 9:38 - The blind man who was cured by Jesus worshiped him without rebuke.
• John 20:28 - Thomas says "My Lord and my God!" to Jesus without rebuke.

The teaching and behavior of Jesus clearly exemplifies a divine self-understanding. Don't forget to check my final post on this subject - Part 3: Jesus' personal understanding of his bodily resurrection.

Faith Pyramid Strategy In Action (Example #2)

Before reading below, I recommend you read my post - What Is The Faith Pyramid?

The Faith Pyramid Strategy forces one to stay focused when sharing the truth of God with someone, as I experienced recently. I was confronted by a rather combative atheist, who began our conversation sarcastically asking, "What would you say if I told you that I ride a dinosaur to school everyday?" My response was, "I actually have good reasons to believe you don't ride a dinosaur to school everyday." This is pretty typical mantra from an atheist. Supposedly believing in God is the same as believing in Santa Clause, the Tooth Fairy, and the Easter Bunny. Of course, there are a couple of holes in this line of thinking. As I shared with my new atheist friend, there are good reasons to not believe in such nonsense. Furthermore, fairy tales are for children who aren't inclined to think logically and rationally, whereas statistics reveal that belief and faith in God tends to be higher (in devotion) among adults than among children and teenagers. Back to my new atheist friend...

At the beginning of our conversation, he had pretty standard questions that were all over the place, but I needed to know exactly where he fell in the FP, so using the Engage-Listen-Adjust methodology, I initially (and rather quickly) discovered that he was in fact "about as atheist as one could be." This of course meant that I must "adjust" completely to Level 1 ("My Belief in God") and keep the conversation focused on that discussion!

I found the Faith Pyramid Strategy to be very fruitful in our 45-minute discussion. As I stated earlier, he was all over the place. He wanted to discuss religion, why I believe Christianity is true instead of other religions, the Big Bang theory, etc. The most interesting part about the FP Strategy in the context of our conversation is that it forced me to refuse discussion in many places he wanted to go. Once again, this young man was not even a theist (Level 1), so many points of discussion would be absolutely ridiculous. I told him I would not talk to him about religion, because "it makes no sense to discuss what different religions believe about how God has revealed Himself, if you don't believe in God in the first place!" To help him understand my thinking, I asked him if he believed in miracles. He (of course) said no. I told him, "Good, you shouldn't. Believing in miracles would be stupid if you don't believe in a God who can interfere with nature." He understood my reasoning at this point, which allowed for valuable discussion focused specifically on the topic of God's existence. At the end of our conversation, I gave him a couple of resources and we're planning to talk further in the coming weeks.

I am praying that the Holy Spirit opens his heart, because Jesus stated, "No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent me draws him..." (John 6:44). As I trust God to do the impossible (such as transform my friend's heart), I will seek to do all that is possible, by first proving God exists (Level 1), that the Bible and Christianity is reliable to reveal specific truth about God (Level 2), that the Gospel message is his hope for salvation (Level 3), so that he can grow into a fully-developed follower of Jesus Christ, who is assured of Heaven (Level 4).

How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him who they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher? - Romans 10:14

Did Jesus actually think he was God? (Level 3 discussion) - Part 1: The self-references of Jesus

Before reading below, I recommend you read my post - What Is The Faith Pyramid?

Did Jesus think himself to be God? Or another way: What was Jesus' divine self-understanding? What would he think of millions of people worshiping him as the God in flesh? A fairly popular misconception among skeptics, as well as those genuinely seeking to understand the life and teachings of Jesus Christ, is that Jesus never actually claimed to be God. Clearly, he viewed himself as a rabbi, and perhaps even a prophet, but God in the flesh is something his followers projected on to him years after his death, so these skeptics claim.

[NOTE: I have this as a Level 3 discussion ("My faith in Christ"), because I don't think you should have this discussion until a "belief in God" is established (Level 1), nor can you have this discussion until a "trust in the Bible" has been affirmed (Level 2). The main reason you need Level 2 is due to the dependency on the four gospels to answer this question.]

Before I get specific, let me state flatly that there is extensive evidence that Jesus believed himself to be God. I am dividing the evidence into three posts: 1) The self-references of Jesus; 2) The teaching and behavior of Jesus; and 3) Jesus' personal understanding of his bodily resurrection.

Let me begin by helping us gain a proper perspective. Jesus of Nazareth did not introduce himself by saying, "Hey, I'm God. Thanks for inviting me to your wedding." Such a statement would have been viewed as absolutely blasphemous, since the Jews of that day didn't have a concept of the Trinity and would not have easily understood that God could be a man. Nevertheless, Jesus' divine self-understanding is clear...

The main self-references of Jesus (or another way - How did Jesus refer to himself):

1. Christ (or Messiah) - The title of Christ/Messiah is an important self-reference for Jesus of Nazareth. The so-called Peter’s confession incident is recorded in all of the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke), in which Peter states, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matt. 16:16). Jesus’ response was not to correct a misunderstanding of Peter. In fact, his response is rather revealing: “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but my Father who is in heaven” (Matt. 16:17). Jesus accepted the title of Christ, as well as Son of God. Jesus of Nazareth also refers to himself as Christ in a discussion concerning an outside exorcist. Jesus tells his disciples, “For whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because of your name as followers of Christ, truly I say to you, he will not lose his reward” (Mark 9:41). In John’s gospel, Jesus converses with a Samaritan woman who mentions the coming Messiah. Jesus responds to her, “I who speak to you am He” (John 4:26). In his trial before the high priest, Caiaphas demands to know if he is the Christ, the Son of God. Jesus accepts both titles by responding, “You have said it yourself” (Matthew 26:64), “I am” (Mark 14:62), “Yes, I am” (Luke 22:70). The reason the Messiah/Christ self-reference implies divinity is due to the fact that the coming Messiah prophesied in the Old Testament is taught to be pre-existent (Micah 5:2), to be eternal (Isaiah 9:6), and he is called "Lord" (Psalm 110:1; Jeremiah 23:6).

2. Son of God - Jesus of Nazareth also claims to be the Son of God, as recorded and already mentioned in Peter’s confession and in his trial before Caiaphas. He also implicitly claims to be God’s Son in his parable of the vine-growers. In this story, a man (who is clearly God) plants a vineyard and places it in the care of vine-growers. At harvest time, he sends a slave (or prophet) who is beaten by the vine-growers and sent away with nothing. This happens a few times until the man finally decides to send his son, thinking they will respect him. “But those vine-growers said to one another, ‘This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours!’ They took him, and killed him and threw him out of the vineyard” (Mark 12:7-8). This parable clearly tells us that Jesus thought of himself as God's only Son and the final messenger of God. Jesus’ Son of God self-concept is even stated more explicitly in Matthew 11:27: “All things have been handed over to Me by My Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father; nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son wills to reveal Him." There are numerous other examples, especially recorded in the gospel of John, in which Jesus claims to be the one and only Son of God. Finally, it should be noted how this self-reference was interpreted in Jesus' day. John records in his gospel: "For this reason therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God" (5:18, italics mine). Therefore, the Son of God self-reference implied divinity.

3. Son of Man - Without question, the most often used self-reference for Jesus of Nazareth is the Son of Man. In fact, this title is found over 80 times in the Gospels. When James and John ask for preferential treatment in God’s Kingdom, Jesus ends his response, “…just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many” (Matt. 20:28). This is one of numerous examples in which Jesus refers to himself as the Son of Man. Without question, this title is an allusion to a vision of the prophet Daniel:

“I kept looking in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven one like a Son of Man was coming, and He came up to the Ancient of Days and was presented before Him. And to Him was given dominion, glory and a kingdom, that all the peoples, nations and men of every language might serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion which will not pass away; and His kingdom is one which will not be destroyed” (Daniel 7:13-14).

In this passage, the Son of Man approaches God Himself in His throne room and is given an eternal Kingdom and authority over all people. The Son of Man is thus a claim to divinity. Perhaps one of Jesus’ strongest allusions to this vision of Daniel 7 is during his trial with Caiaphas. After affirming that he is, in fact, the Christ and the Son of God, Jesus goes on to say, “…nevertheless I tell you, hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven. Then the high priest tore his robes and said, ‘He has blasphemed!’ ” (Matt. 26:64-65). The high priest’s reaction is very revealing, in that, Caiaphas clearly believed that Jesus was making a strong claim of divinity. In fact, these words would be the basis for Jesus’ condemnation by the Sanhedrin. This claim, in conjunction with the Roman condemnation, would lead to his execution on the cross.

4. "I Am" statements - Jesus states "I am" nearly two dozen times and joins it with a metaphor in at least seven instances: I Am the Bread of Life (John 6:35, 41, 48, 51); I Am the Light of the world (John 8:12); I Am the Door of the sheep (John 10:7, 9); I Am the Good Shepherd (John 10:11, 14); I Am the Resurrection and the Life (John 11:25); I Am the Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14:6); I Am the true Vine (John 15:1, 5).

This "I Am" statement is an allusion to God's personal Name as He reveals it to Moses in Exodus 3:14. It's the name "Yahweh," (or the latinized "Jehovah"). In this passage, God says to Moses, "This is what you are to say to the Israelites: 'I Am' (Yahweh) has sent me to you."

In a very telling and dramatic moment toward the end of Jesus' ministry on earth, soldiers and officials of the chief priests come to arrest Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. Jesus asks them, "Who is it you want?" "Jesus of Nazareth," they replied. Your Bible probably then states Jesus' response as "I am he." If you're lucky, it might state it as "I am he" (note the italics). The reason "he" is italicized (in most translations) is because it doesn't actually belong in your Bible. Here's how it really goes down:

Jesus asks them..."Who is it you want?" "Jesus of Nazareth," they replied. "I am" Jesus said. When Jesus said, "I am," they drew back and fell to the ground (John 18:4-5).

A powerful enough name to knock you off your feet.

It is clear who Jesus thought He was. Check out Part 2: The teaching and behavior of Jesus.