A Basis of Knowing

• How do we know in God's world?
• In Christianity, it is God who ultimately reveals understanding to humanity.
• Since God has revealed in truth, we can rely upon our mind & senses.
• Given the wealth of supporting evidence, one can rely on the Bible's claims.
• Authentic Biblical revelation substantiates Christianity & God's very existence.
• While evidence abounds, Christianity has not been meticulously proven here.
• Even though there is evidence, one must still believe in the God who reveals.
• In general, all worldviews have a set of assumptions which must be accepted.
• Likewise, the Christian faith relies upon belief in the God of the Bible.
• Let us now examine the full spectrum of belief & conviction in Christianity.

• Belief & trust in God is fundamental to life.
• Figure: "Reflecting God's Image in Three Relationships."
• At least four areas of belief can be distinguished in the Christian faith.
• These areas of belief range from philosophical to practical:

Knowledge - The God who reveals upholds rational & empirical knowledge.
Meaning - God & His works explain & give meaning to all of life.
Salvation - The God who entered history can be trusted as Savior.
Daily Living - The God who oversees history can be trusted as Lord of our lives.
 

• Salvation & daily living are common themes in the Bible.
• Historic Jewish & Christian culture had an underlying belief in God & His works.
• Underlying God & His works is the seldom questioned foundation of knowing.
• While rarely pursued, the Bible upholds the deep underpinnings of belief.
• Figure: "A Spectrum of Belief."

• Most who come to know God have not considered the depths of belief.
• While God is accepted at the center of all, the details are not enumerated.
• The elaborate underpinnings of the faith as shown here are not typically known.
• Very few consider the questions of life, let alone the intricacies of knowing.
• Of course, the detailed depths of belief are not necessary to accept to Jesus.
• Christianity is a simple faith which can be accepted as a child (Mk 10:13-16).
• God's answers are as deep as the individual needs them to be.
• In Part V, we will focus on the critical point of belief, God's work of salvation.

• Closely associated with the spectrum of belief is the spectrum of conviction.
• Within the context of belief, things are held with varying degrees of conviction.
• As shown earlier, reality is balanced with limits:

true is distinguished from false
real is distinguished from imaginary
 

• Figure: "The Expansion & Boundaries of Knowing."
• While true/false & real/imaginary distinctions differ, there is a correlation.
• These distinctions & correlations are readily seen in the arts & sciences.
• Figure: "Three Spheres of Knowing."
• Another helpful distinction in the realm of knowledge is constancy & change.
• Figure: "Constancy & Change."
• Constancy & change correlate (not equate) with true/false & real/imaginary.
• With these correlations, a spectrum of conviction can be depicted.
• The spectrum of conviction parallels the three spheres of knowledge.
• Our convictions span truth, reason, preference & chance.
• Figure: "A Spectrum of Conviction."
• We can assess the degree of truth, reality & constancy in things we know.

• The God Who reveals supports our basis of knowing.
• The spectrum of belief spans knowledge, meaning, salvation & daily living.
• God's answers are as deep as the individual needs them to be.
• The spectrum of conviction spans truth, reason, preference & chance.
• We can sort & prioritize what we know within a spectrum of conviction.