good arguments? (old stuff #4)

I would encourage you to have a well thought out worldview." How do you you have a well thought out worldview? I have heard it said that "All people are equal, but not all ideas are equal." Logic is one way that we know when one idea is more reasonable than another, because the rules of logic reveal to us the difference between good and bad logic. There are many logical fallacies that I will discuss in a separate post, but in this post I will address some of the aspects of good logic. 

To be clear, I believe Christian faith is pro-logic, and I believe you can have a reasonable faith that does not rest purely on feelings or some authority that others may not recognize. With that being said, make no mistake about it, my personal interactions with Jesus over the past twenty years have made my faith unshakeable. Yet even with my personal interactions with Jesus to rest on, I continually seek to develop a reasonable faith founded on logic so that I can explain well the salvation message of Jesus to those who cannot necessarily walk in my shoes. 1 Peter 3:15 states “But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an  answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you  have. But do this with gentleness and respect, ..." 

So with that said, an idea starts with an argument. No, not the type of argument that ends in yelling and hurt feelings, but the type of argument that links an assertion or premise (truth claim) to a rational discussion about whether it reflects reality. A good argument is composed of unambiguous language with valid logic about a premise. The language must be unambiguous (ambiguity=murky meaning) so that the premise is clear or without double meaning. The logic must be valid so that the conclusion follows the premise, and the premise when examined must reflect reality. By avoiding logical fallacies, we can have a good argument and form a well thought out worldview.

​I encourage everyone to have a good argument, and follow the evidence where it leads. The maintenance of preparedness requires continued effort.