Erosion occurs in the Christian mind when we do not carefully evaluate the propositions that bombard us. And make no mistake. The mental assault is relentless and subtle. For instance, consider one of the central statements in the movie, Megamind – “Destiny is not the path given to us but the path we choose for ourselves.”
How does this square with Scripture and a well-informed Christian worldview? The statement runs contrary to Scripture because God ordains everything that comes to pass. This sweeping theological reality shines brightly in Ephesians 1:11 and speaks of God “who works all things according to the counsel of his will.”
The Westminster Confession of Faith (1647) adds, “God from all eternity did, by the most wise and holy counsel of his own will, freely and unchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to pass …” In other words, God is in sovereign control over all things – including free decisions. It is critical to note that these decisions are “free” in the sense that they are compatible with God’s eternal decree.
“Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the LORD that will stand” (Prov. 19:21, ESV).
“The king’s heart is in the hand of the LORD;
he directs it like a watercourse wherever he pleases” (Prov. 21:1, ESV).
“The counsel of the LORD stands forever,
the plans of his heart to all generations” (Ps. 33:11).
Spurgeon believed in meticulous Providence and expressed it this way: “I believe that every particle of dust that dances in the sunbeam does not move an atom more or less than God wishes – that every particle of spray that dashes against the steamboat has its orbit as well as the sun in the heavens – that the chaff from the hand of the winnower is steered as the stars in their courses. The creeping of an aphid over the rosebud is as much fixed as the march of the devastating pestilence – the fall of sere leaves from a poplar is as fully ordained as the tumbling of an avalanche. He that believes in God must believe this truth. There is no standing-point between this and atheism. There is no half way between a mighty God that worketh all things by the sovereign counsel of his will and no God at all. A God that can not do as he pleases – a God whose will is frustrated, is not a God, and can not be a God. I could not believe in a God as that” (Spurgeon Sermons – Volume 2, God’s Providence, p. 201).
Ever since the Fall, sinful people have been doubting and contradicting God’s Word. In postmodern culture, it is in vogue to trifle with and reject God’s Word. But contradicting God’s Word is sinful activity. Denying the authority of Scripture is tantamount to cosmic treason. When one contradicts the Word of God, one sets himself up as the autonomous man – the man who makes decisions and sets forth propositions that are not in keeping with the truth of God’s Word. John Frame says, “Intellectual autonomy is the view that human beings have the right to seek knowledge of God’s world without being subject to God’s revelation” (The Doctrine of the Word of God, 16).
The Christian mind erodes when we do not subject every proposition to the teaching of Scripture. So heed the subtle warning in the sign: “Keep on the trail that is consistent with the Christian worldview … to prevent further erosion and harm to the Christian mind.” And pay close attention to the imperative in Scripture to love God with all our minds. Jesus reminds us, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” (Matt. 22:37, ESV).
Veritas et Lux 