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The authority of an atheist (Revised Edition)
by Jack Vorster For an atheist, to deny everything there is to deny about the God of the Bible, merely means that he or she is acting under the authority of the free will they have as human beings. No-one can deny anyone their right to choose the direction they wish or prefer to follow. For instance, Darwin did not force anyone to believe his theories and neither did any other iconic philosopher or scientist. An atheist or anyone for that matter has the undeniable right to apply the authority they have to intellectually stamp it on matter presented to them. And whether or not this is considered to be intellectual suicide, the fact remains that they are acting under the authority inextricably vested in them. And should they have been right about everything, then there is absolutely nothing to be concerned about at the end of it all. On the other hand, should they have been wrong about their unbelief in a creator God and find themselves where this God says they will find themselves then it does not matter either. They will simply be where the authority of their free wills has taken them which will not be a pleasant place at all. However, according to the God of the Bible, all people are living under the dispensation of His Grace, which is until death do us part from this earth or until this Grace comes to an end and the era as depicted in the last book of the Bible starts unfolding. Either way, when this Grace ends for any individual, then his authority as a free agent also comes to an end. This is only common sense. There is also a timeline in the Bible which makes it clear that we are in the very last days of the dispensation of Grace. And even though the events leading up to the last days are vividly spelled out in the Bible and now happening before our very eyes, it is likely that an atheist will continue to scoff regardless. The big difference is that Darwin and other unbelieving philosophers and scientists do not offer any kind of assurance in their books to readers, but the God of the Bible is emphatic about this aspect, stating, "I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live:" Deut 30:19. This simply means that those who have chosen life have used the authority of their free will to take this route and they have become Christians whereas atheists, by courtesy of their authority as free agents, have chosen to remain atheists, but still have time to change their minds. It also means that Christians believe that they know where they are going, but atheists not believing anything have no idea where they are going until they get there. For the latter this is the worst form of sudden death playoff if ever there was. Atheists are not so much on a mission to change the minds of Christians, but rather bent on pounding their chests to display the authority of their free will when they comment on articles written by Christians. Unfortunately, for an atheist to open a Bible and start reading attentively is like throwing a cat into a swimming pool. That cat wants to get out of there like it has wings. What atheists do not understand about this is that it is not their own personal desire to "escape" from the Book, but it is the spiritual entity that has them under control that wants to flee from it. As far-fetched as this may sound to an atheist, to him the background demon activity would be inaudible, but it is likely to be something like, "Oh no! He is about to open the Bible. Let's get him out of there before we lose him. Quick, let's fill his mind with unbelief, revulsion and blasphemous thoughts so that he throws that Book down like a handful of burning coals." And so the atheist succumbs to the mental attack, thinking that, once again, his authority as a free moral agent has saved the day. Yes, I am saying that the atheist does not have a mind of his own. "And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God." Romans 12:2 God loves every single human being on this planet and that includes the unbelieving masses. It is the sinful nature of man that He abhors and He is allowing enough time for everyone to be set free through the Cross. As for those demons, they have already been judged and their permanent incarceration lies ahead. But for now they represent the ongoing influence of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil so as to maintain the fallen condition of man and the Man on the Cross represents the Tree of Life by which fallen man can find redemption. Is this so hard to understand? Now here lies the mystery. Remove the influence of the spiritual forces of darkness and God will have an "unfair" advantage. It means that man will only have one choice without the interference of an adversity. There would only be one direction to go and God would have a totally captive audience. However, there is the matter of repentance in order to appropriate Salvation through the Cross. With evil removed the presence of which is the cause of and reason for man's ongoing deeds of sin - from what shall man repent? In fact, man would be irredeemable. Thank goodness for the authority we have as free agents. While we still have breath in our bodies we're in a position to choose "the way, the truth and the life" sooner rather than later. Now retired, Jack Vorster has a background in marketing in the field of newspaper advertising. As a result of a life-changing experience he turned his attention to the study of the human make-up and the realities connected to human behaviour based on the Word of God. Article Source: http://www.faithwriters.com |