Share

The "authority" of the Christian believer

The "authority" of the Christian believer. 

The Nicene Creed (*) which gave authority to the New Testament became the foundational creed of Christianity, and today is the only creed acknowledged by Protestant/Reformed, Eastern Orthodox, and Roman Catholic traditions. 

However it is quite ironic and amusing that the creed, which created the New Testament Bible canon and is the foundation of Christian belief and doctrine, is also in contradiction to much of biblical literature. Nevertheless, Christians continue to make the creedal profession despite it being an internal contradiction at the very foundation of Christianity. 

Christians have no real evidence for anything that they believe in and have made the mistake of believing that a collection of ancient human texts are actually some kind of infallible communication from the creator of the universe. 

If you read the Christian Creed (*) you will find that the words "We believe", stated at the beginning, and that, Your Honour; represents the core problem of the Christian religion. 

These words establish, at the outset, that Christianity is not based on reason, logical argument, or scientific evidence, but on a subjective experience - which obviously is common to all religions. If Christians ascribe to the creed, then as Christians they willingly subjugate reason to subjective experience. 

Christians believe by faith “IN” trinity God and his word (Bible). Not as you would believe in Santa Clause but as you would believe if someone was real. They believe that God exists because they assume that he already exists. How do they know things that are impossible to know? How do they know that the Universe creating God is trinity God? Well who else could he be? The indoctrination is so strong that no amount of reason will dislodge their faith. 

It’s a matter of trust. Christians can’t believe in Santa, because they know he is a fictitious character. They can’t believe in Allah, or any of the other thousands of gods worshipped over the aeons either. They don’t exist. Only trinity God exists. 

Without faith it is impossible to believe in God. Hence the greatest virtue mentioned in the Bible is faith. You see it’s simple, if you have faith in God you can believe in him, if you don't have faith you cannot. Christianity is a belief system based on faith. 

Belief is highly personal. Personal beliefs are simply a set of instructions that a person receives from sources that they consider to be authoritative. It involves a willingness to suspend reason or rational review. Belief is formed in a number of ways, and we all practice it. 

I am not saying belief is "bad" - however, it must always be tested (eventually). In the test of belief, Christianity has largely failed. 

The Christian creed states: 

 "we believe", 

 not 

"we conclude". 

There’s is not a conclusion drawn on the basis of offered evidence. Yet you will find many evangelical Christians know things, that are impossible to know and don’t want to know things that are possible to know. They make the weirdest proclamations when confronted “ I don’t only believe, I know that I know, that I know.” 

Pathetically trying to convince themselves that Christianity is more than a belief when it is not. Therefore belief, in the case of religion, is a weakness and possibly a terminal mental illness. It leads individuals towards delusional thought patterns and behaviour. It both incites emotion and denounces it. It causes people to walk around as if they know God. 

Who, or what, can challenge a personal, subjective profession? The only real authority in Christian religion is the "authority of the believer". The authority of one's experience and opinion is ultimate - even the Bible says so- 

"What we have seen, and heard, we declare to you." (1 John 1"3). 

How can it be tested? Christian religion spurns the test, calling it a challenge to faith, even calling it the activity of the devil. 

They will confidently (almost boastfully) with pride and joy declare before all men that the Bible gives them authority to be called the sons and daughters of God. 

But is that really true? Are all humans not made in the image of God and hence children of God? And if we are not all children of God why can some call themselves children of God and not others? 

So do Christians have knowledge or do they have a belief? The relationship between belief and knowledge is that a belief is knowledge if the belief is true. A belief based on lack of evidence has to be entertained by faith and no matter how sincere it cannot be considered to be knowledge. 

For instance a sincere believer in the flat earth theory does not know that the Earth is flat, he believes that it is flat, despite the evidence suggesting otherwise.

Anyone who believes something contrary to evidence has to do so by faith - and that is the problem with faith believers. It is okay to believe something if it is based on evidence, but when one needs faith you have moved from the realm of knowledge into the realm of mysticism. 

For instance before I start my car in the morning I turn the key knowing that it will start. That is not faith based belief, it is justified evidence based belief; because my car is relatively new, it has a starter motor, it has a charged battery, it has never dropped me, etc. In fact I would need faith to start my car by turning the key if it never had a battery or starter motor. 

The same logic can be applied to sitting on a chair; I know that the chair has always held me; it looks strong enough to hold me etc. That is not faith in action that is common sense in action. Faith in action would be to sit on a rickety chair and for it to hold my weight when it looks like it should crash to the ground with me on top. 

Therefore the problem with believing something is when faith must be applied to fill in the absence of evidence.  The problem with believing is when I need to apply faith. 

The Christian who says he "knows" something because of a feeling he has that he calls the inner witness/moving of the spirit is simply not using the word "know" correctly. It's a belief, and a blind one at that. It's possible to believe something blindly. It's also possible to base a belief on pretty solid looking evidence (still without truly knowing). 

It's possible to mistakenly believe that you know something. However there is no doubt that Christians have been given a false assurance from the Bible, the religious spin doctoring and apologetic gymnastics that they mull over, which creates an illusion, a sense, a feel of having “revelation knowledge”. 

It is this “feel good false knowledge” that is very addictive especially during “hard times” and it “allows” them to say with sincerity and an almost insane certainty that they are in a relationship with God. 

This dependency (addiction) results in them becoming misfits and outcasts from a rational world where they suffer ridicule, scoffing and derision. They become separated from the world and abhor its system of reality. They far rather dwell in fantasy land then fraternise with unbelievers. 

They yearn for the end of days when Jesus will rapture them to heaven and all their worldly mundane troubles will be over. They are even proud and unashamed to be considered the laughingstock of the rational world and take comfort from scripture that if people mocked Christ they will also mock his followers. 

Christians think the official New Testament Bible came first and then the doctrines or creed followed. But it was the other way round. The doctrines came first and the New Testament was canonised based on the books that agreed (scores of Gospels were discarded) with the majority of a council of elders. So the New Testament Bible has been created to reflect a particular religious and political power agenda. 

And all God’s children said…..? 

* Nicene Creed 

 I  believe 

in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible. 

And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all worlds; God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God; begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made. 

Who, for us men for our salvation, came down from heaven, and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary, and was made man; and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate; 

He suffered and was buried; and the third day He rose again, according to the Scriptures; and ascended into heaven, and sits on the right hand of the Father; and He shall come again, with glory, to judge the quick and the dead; whose kingdom shall have no end. 

And I believe in the Holy Ghost, the Lord and Giver of Life; who proceeds from the Father [and the Son]; who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified; who spoke by the prophets.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Voting Booth
Do you think corruption-accused National Assembly Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula will survive a motion of no confidence against her?
Please select an option Oops! Something went wrong, please try again later.
Results
No, her days are numbered
42% - 526 votes
Yes, the ANC caucus will protect her
58% - 739 votes
Vote
Rand - Dollar
18.89
+0.2%
Rand - Pound
23.83
+0.3%
Rand - Euro
20.36
+0.3%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.31
+0.3%
Rand - Yen
0.12
+0.2%
Platinum
908.05
0.0%
Palladium
1,014.94
0.0%
Gold
2,232.75
-0.0%
Silver
24.95
-0.1%
Brent Crude
87.00
+1.8%
Top 40
68,346
0.0%
All Share
74,536
0.0%
Resource 10
57,251
0.0%
Industrial 25
103,936
0.0%
Financial 15
16,502
0.0%
All JSE data delayed by at least 15 minutes Iress logo
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE