CBG - A ministry of J Richard & Virginia Fugate : Philosophical Position

The Foundation for
Biblical Research

Philosophical Position

The Bible As A Source of Information for Man

The following development sets forth why the author looks to the Bible for the truth man should live by, and this discussion establishes the Bible as the basic premise for all of the Fugate's materials.

God Exists

Genesis 1:1 "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth."

Psalm 90:2 "Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God."

The Bible never attempts to prove or explain God's existence. It simply declares it to be true. All our materials, therefore, begin with this absolute: God's existence is certain truth. The Bible further states that no man can escape the recognition of the fact that God does exist:

Romans 1:19 & 20 "Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shown it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse;"

Man may attempt to reject God, but man can never honestly deny his knowledge of God's existence. This passage reveals that God has made Himself known to man both rationally and empirically. The knowledge of the existence of God has been placed by God within the rational perception of man's mind. Creation, through its order and consistency, clearly presents the empirical proof of God the Creator. Acceptance of the knowledge of the existence of God as Creator will lead to the next logical assumption.

Mankind Exists as a Creation of God

Genesis 1:27 "So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them."

Man as a creature is dependent on his Creator, God. As Creator, God is responsible for His creation. To bring a creature into existence, but to fail to provide for the needs of that creature would be an act of irresponsibility. Because God cares for His creatures and takes full responsibility for His creation, He has provided for man's needs.

God Has Provided for Mankind's Physical Needs

Genesis 1:28 & 29 "And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth. And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for food."

The Hebrew word translated "to subdue" means "to tread down with the feet, to dominate"; 1 and the word translated "dominion" means "to rule." 2 Man was given the command to rule all earth's living creatures. He was given the command to control and use all earth's resources. God's provision for man's physical needs is the entire physical universe including air, water, land, plants, living creatures, and the climatic range required for man's existence. Physical science recognizes the extremely narrow range of environment in which man can survive and how perfectly it has been arranged to support all man's physical requirements.

Man is not merely a physical creation that exists in only a physical universe. He is also a creation of soul and spirit. As such, he has needs of the soul and the spirit, not just physical needs. In taking full responsibility for His creation, God has also provided for all man's soul and spiritual needs just as completely as He has for the physical.

God Has Provided for Mankind's Soul and Spiritual Needs

Matthew 4:4 "But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God."

Bread is the example of God's physical provision, while God's Word is God's provision for man's soul and spiritual life. God's Word has been provided for man's benefit. It has been recorded and preserved according to the faithfulness and justice of God. Because God cares for His creation, He has provided all that man needs to live; not only to survive physically, but to live abundantly in both soul and spirit.

Man was given the ability by God to subdue the physical universe and to rule the living things. Man was given strength and dexterity, but above all he was given mentality. With this mentality man could, on his own, discover the principles by which God governs the physical universe. Man has gradually obtained knowledge of the physical universe by observation of these natural laws, in other words, by science. Geology, astronomy, physiology, and mathematics are examples of true science. By contrast, the principles that govern the soul and spirit of man are not of a physical nature and cannot be discovered through the mentality of man.

Man has the need to understand his own soul, to know how to relate to other human beings, and to know his proper relationship with the physical universe. When man attempts to discover soul information by means of his own mentality apart from God's revelation, he is limited to his ability to observe and to reason. He therefore invents the pseudo-sciences of psychology, sociology, and anthropology in an attempt to answer man's soul questions and to solve man's soul problems.

Man also has the need to understand his spiritual relationship to His Creator, God. He needs to know where he came from, where he is going, who he is, and why he exists. Without knowing his own origin, destiny, make-up, and purpose, man is disoriented to life -- even though he is physically alive. When man attempts to discover spiritual information by means of his own intellect apart from God's revelation, he develops various types of pseudo knowledge such as philosophy and religion, both of which are man-centered.

For soul and spiritual knowledge, man is totally dependent on God. Man cannot discover the principles that govern the soul or the spirit apart from the information that God has provided. God's Word is infinitely superior to any thought man could possibly have.

God's Thinking is Superior to Man's

Isaiah 55:8 & 9 "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts."

God's thinking is far beyond the ability of man. It is foolish for man in his arrogance to question God's Word by means of his own viewpoint. As God declares:

Proverbs 28:26a "He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool,"

When God presents information on any subject, it will naturally conflict with the human systems of thinking. Human philosophy, psychology, sociology, or religion apart from God's Word is the attempt of mere man to organize thoughts that are inferior to God's thoughts. These systems of thinking must be evaluated by God's Word, not God's Word by them.

Each person's opinions are a combination of these human systems of thinking plus their own experiences. As the Biblical position is presented, it will be necessary for the reader to evaluate objectively his existing opinion by God's Word.

The Bible is God's Word

The Bible declares itself to be God's Word:

2 Timothy 3:16 "All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness,"

2 Peter 1:20 & 21 "Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not at any time by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit."

God did not cause His Word to be recorded for His own benefit, but to benefit mankind. It is a complete instruction manual containing soul and spiritual principles; therefore, mankind can look to the Bible for the information he needs on any moral or spiritual issue. The Bible has the answer for all of man's non-physical questions from eternal salvation to every practical matter in life. It is the only true source of moral and spiritual information by which man can successfully live each day. Since God's Word is to benefit man, it is meant to be understood.

Mankind is Meant to Understand God's Word

Deuteronomy 29:29 "the secret things belong unto the Lord our God; but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law."

God is infinite and omniscient. He has not revealed all His knowledge to finite man, but what He has revealed can both be understood and utilized. God's information is available to those who diligently search out its meaning and can be used successfully by those who accept its teaching. God has not hidden His soul and spiritual provision from mankind. God's Word is dependable and verifiably true.

God's Word Equals Truth

John 17:17b "thy word is truth."

It is impossible for God to lie (Hebrews 6:18). The Bible presents true principles (or laws) which can be applied in practice with predictable results. There are natural, fixed consequences for either observing or violating the soul and spiritual laws just as surely as for violating the physical laws. No man would expect to violate the law of gravity and not pay the consequences, but he will often foolishly violate soul and spiritual principles with total abandon. When physical laws are properly observed, the results are predictable and beneficial to man. Proper observance of the soul and spiritual principles will also produce consistent, beneficial results. God's Word declares the natural consequences of either observing or violating truth.

Observing Truth Results in Blessing; Violating Truth Results in Cursing

Deuteronomy 28:1 & 2 "And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the Lord thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth; And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God."

Deuteronomy 28:15 "But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day, that all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee."

Deuteronomy 30:19b "I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore, choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live,"

Joshua 1:8 "This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth, but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein; for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success."

These verses clearly declare that it is to man's benefit to learn and to follow God's Word. For example, What the Bible Says About . . . Child Training presents the principles that the Bible reveals concerning child training so that both parents and their children may experience the blessings promised by God. Child training is soul training, and therefore the Bible is man's only reliable source of truth on this subject. All our materials are based on this same philosophical premise.

FOOTNOTES
1. Hebrew, kabash "subdue, bring into bondage, tread down with the feet;" thus "to dominate" (Zechariah 9:15; Micah 7:19; Jeremiah 34:11, 16; 2 Chronicles 28:10; Nehemiah 5:5). In Genesis 1:28 the aspect of "control" is evident and kabash is in the imperative mood of command. (Foundation for Biblical Research, "Child Training.")

2. Hebrew, radah "have dominion, rule, dominate" over someone or something; used here to indicate a position of dominance once the subduing has been accomplished. Like kabash, radah is a command. God commands man to "subdue" and then "rule" over that which has been subdued. (Ibid.)