09 Feb Here’s What I Memorized About Arguments for the Existence of God
AGAIN… IF IT’S BIG OR NEAT, REDUCE AND REPEAT
The only thing worse for me than having to work hard at remembering important information is forgetting it after once having learned it. It is so frustrating for me to learn something, and then… after however long… I don’t mentally own it anymore.
Many of you do not have that problem. If you were straight A students, you probably have a much more permanent memory than I. You probably don’t need my help. But for those of you who are more like me, here’s how I cope.
First Limit the scope – memorize only information you consider extremely important.
Second Boil that information down to an irreducible minimum (very subjective…you decide).
Third Review the reduced content however often you need to in order to keep it memorized.
So, as we look at large blocks of information related to worldview issues, from time to time I’ll give you a summary that I use to keep it memorized. This system is very helpful for me, and I hope you’ll find it helpful too.
Here is what I keep memorized about arguments for the existence of God. You’ll notice that I have key words underlined.
WHY BELIEVE IN GOD? (See this previous post for the content for this part of the outline.)
The Existence of the Universe
Matter is eternal – incongruous
Something came from nothing – incomprehensible
God created it – consistent with reason
The Design of the Universe
The universe is like an impossibly fine-tuned watch
A watch implies a watch-maker
The Uniqueness of Humanity
Concept of beauty and morality
Concept of the divine and the afterlife
WHICH GOD? (See this post for the content for this part of the outline.)
Not an eastern god (Hindu, Buddhist, Confucius)
Not a naturalistic god (pagan, idols, spirits)
Not the God of Judaism (due to “incomplete” belief) or Islam, but
The God of Abraham revealed in Jesus
Jesus’ credibility rests on the resurrection
News of resurrection became widely known immediately
Alternative explanations for the resurrection are not credible (Disciples stole body: impossible, Jews stole body: incomprehensible, Wrong tomb: unmistakable)
Only explanation for explosion of the church
Below, you’ll see the same information but with the underlined words left blank, except for the first letter. I call these “Lock-it-in” Exercises. I review them as often as I need to in order to be able to fill in the blanks from memory. A few minutes a day for a few days is usually enough.
WHY BELIEVE IN GOD? (See this previous post for the content for this part of the outline.)
The E_____________ of the Universe
Matter is e________ – incongruous
Something came from n________ – incomprehensible
God c_______ it – consistent with reason
The D of the Universe
The universe is like an impossibly f – t watch
A watch implies a w -m_____
The Uniqueness of Humanity
Concept of b_________ and m___________
Concept of the divine and the a____________
WHICH GOD? (See this post for the content for this part of the outline.)
Not an e god (Hindu, Buddhist, Confucius)
Not a n god (pagan, idols, spirits)
Not the God of J or I , but
The God of A revealed in Jesus
Jesus’ credibility rests on the r
N of resurrection became widely known immediately
A explanations for the resurrection are not credible (D s body: impossible, J s body: incomprehensible, W t : unmistakable)
Only explanation for e of the church
Now here is the wonderful thing about all this. If you have been studying worldview issues, such as following those in this blog, you know much more about the existence of God than this outline. But if you memorize this outline then you will be able to recall, not just the outline, but all of that other “loose” information lying around in your brain that is tied to points in the outline.
If you master this outline, you would likely be able to talk for an hour, based on all the other things you know that are related to the points in the outline. So, mastering an outline such as this places great power at your fingertips. And the same is true of any large package of information that you master, whether related to the Bible, or gardening, or computer maintenance.
So, as we go through large data-dumps in the future related to worldview issues, I will occasionally pause and give you an outline like this. I hope you find it as helpful as I do. And in the process, I hope it inspires and leads you to create your own outlines of any information that you want to master. Remember, if it is big or neat, reduce and repeat.
Knowledge is power, and a person with a little knowledge at his/her fingertips holds sway over someone who has none. God can use that reality to multiply your impact in other people’s lives.
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