Scriptural Analysis of Human Limitations
As Opposed to
Human Perceptions of How Things Work
by Pastor George D. Cutler
Grace Gospel Ministry
(MANKIND DETERMINES THINGS)
Human institutes of contemporariness deferentially flow to social and cultural wisdom for guidance rather than what the Scriptures testify. Most things presumably believed or projects deemed worth pursuing are gathered and addressed socially and scientifically. Also, the challenging entropies of depraved creation are viewed as symptoms of social, cultural, political or ideological malaise (worry, discontent or dissatisfaction, resulting in lethargy), as humans seek directions from science for their goals and the ordering of society. Hence, philosophers, scientists and other related experts are viewed as secular priests commissioned to formulize the conduct and work functionality of the world. In this regard, there is absolute reliance upon the phrase 'human nature' in attempting a critical examination of the moral, political and ideological positions, which are bound up with that concept. Fatally flawed points are evidenced from scripturally scrutinizing this phrase, specifically when juxtaposition of the term 'human' with that of 'nature' is viewed as part of the cause of functionality interjected.
The Scripture’s connotation of 'human nature' conveys that which is deeply problematic, in combining these two words. Scripturally heightened sensory awareness juxtaposition of humanity with nature, reflects concealing of very deep issues in the area of questing: 'What is mankind like? What is characteristic of mankind? What regularities of what one does, think and feels as guides in relations; exude consistency or that which is clearly precise? The juxtaposition of depraved humanity’s nature is straightforward in many ways as something different from the concept of enhanced nature. Hence, such is 'over-against” in the pervasive trends of humanized intellectual traditions. Yet, humanity is merely a “naturally designed phenomenon” about mankind, which is not, at least in divine principles, explainable by concepts and methods of consistent serenity and order.
II Timothy 3:7 states: "always learning and never able to come unto a perfect knowledge of the truth." The Greek present participles manqa,nonta (mahn·thahn·on·dah) rendered "learning" and duna,mena (thee·nahm·ehn·ah) rendered "able" denote the basic thought of learning ones and enabled ones respectively; inherently signifying those to whom these actions actually apply. The Greek adverb pa,ntote (pahn·doteh) rendered "always" is derived from paj (pahs) and tote (toteh) literally denoting “all time,” at all times, ever or perpetually. In this regard, "learning" denotes to always be acquiring knowledge, gaining information and being instructed, i.e., learning, which results from corrupting knowledge taught by the debauching information exclusively gained through secular experiences. This passage clearly depicts the process of learning what is not good in itself, i.e., the wrong kind of learning, producing detrimental results. Even though one might be “always learning,” such one is mhde,pote eivj evpi,gnwsin avlhqei,aj evlqei/n duna,mena (mee·thehp·ot·eh ees ehp·eeg·no·seen ahl·ee·thee·ahs ehl·theen thee·nahm·ehn·ah) rendered "never able to come unto a perfect knowledge of the truth."
The Greek adverb mhde,pote (mee·thehp·ot·eh) rendered "never" denotes not once, not at any time or not ever coming unto a perfect knowledge of Truth. The noun evpi,gnwsin (ehp·eeg·no·seen) rendered "perfect knowledge" denotes a full, complete and mature knowledge. Here the plea is not to be ignorant of the Truth, which transcends a partial knowledge of the Truth, for it is impossible to get a right perspective of God's eternal plan and purpose apart from knowing all the Truth pertaining to it. The most key word in this verse is avlhqei,aj (ahl·ee·thee·ahs) rendered "truth," which is retrospectively used with multiplied meanings but its definitive connotations is exclusively authenticated in the Scriptures. II Corinthians 13:8 states, “for we are not able to do anything against the truth but on behalf of the truth." In Galatians 2: 5, Paul conveys to the Galatians that he withstood the opposition, "in order that the truth of the Gospel might continue with you." In Ephesians I: 13, Paul states, “and you having heard the word of the truth, the gospel of your salvation, in which also having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of the promise." These passages clearly define the word “truth” with reference that aside from such, men are "never able to come unto a perfect knowledge." Why? Because as long as mankind persist in relying upon humanly rebellious comprehension, NONE are duna,mena (thee·nahm·ehn·ah) rendered "able."
Secular assumptions construe that scientific naturalism is what in fact constitutes man’s relations to his environment and to all of his works, which is fundamentally the sine qua non (the essential condition or prerequisite) of psychology and of the social/ 'behavioral' / 'human' sciences. These assumptions have become fundamental interrelated phases in the history of thought applied to the mind. The development of so-called “association psychology” is interacted in complicated ways with the development of the modern “theory of evolution.” Thus, association-ism, evolutionism and other related neurological conceptions were combined with ideas from philosophy to produce the psychoanalytic theory in the works of Sigmund Freud. Unfortunately, this vogue of psychoanalysis is the cultural crescendo, in which many construe these naturalistic assumptions, even in terms of the disciplines of etiology (the philosophical investigation of causes and origins) and genetics.
These unscriptural aspects of the social and human sciences are propagated as indeed demographic statistics of exclusive causation, founded on further assumptions that the aspects of mankind, which are most significant, are mental functions. This is construed ultimately on natural processes in the human brain, as a physiological system instituting the controlling appendages of life functionalities. The Scriptures unequivocally challenge this humanistic perception, in highlighting the spiritual gap between the principles of scientific naturalism and determinism on the one hand, as opposed to speculations of such on the other. Traditionally and orthodoxy, the themes, which have been developed condemn the acknowledgement of exclusive Divine Determinism (the doctrine or belief that everything, including every human act is caused by God and no actualization in free will) as a kind of fatalism. This is foisted in favor of the allusions that mankind induces the defining courses of what actually occurs through his socio-political-scientific role.
This is profoundly dispelled in realistically examining and searching the limits of human nature, which lay bare the futility of its goals and latent functions to instill its “moral” and/or political criteria to bear. What shred of evidence exudes actualization of anything independently through the actions of humankind? Undoubtedly, fruitfully searching for the “control” of nature to define the functions of creation; raises many more queries than such even attempts to answer. Searching the regulation of nature is itself problematic in conducting critique through etiology, which exposes the limits of biology, psychology and sociology of knowledge purely from physical perspectives. Actually there is both implied and imposed fatalism in the view that things actually rely on capabilities and reliabilities of humankind because none possess either. The defining aspect of being alienated from God is one’s belief that mankind can shape the world - or at least try to shape the world ……as he wishes.
Scriptural documentation of human limitations is 100% (one hundred percent), denoting that its nature is Totally Depraved. According to the theory of evolution, man's origins and nature are the results of and are controlled by the uniform laws, which govern all natural processes. Persevering in the face of these laws, e.g., setting unattainable goals in depraved creation is quixotic (unrealistic) because such is strictly impossible. Thus, in the assessment of how men should live, it is certainly prudent to inquire about the constraints on how they can live. Since nothing transcends the Divine Decree of God, relevant scriptural revelations direct how men must live. Philosophical/science merely postulates humanistic naturalized opinions, whereas the Scriptures reveal the facts of actualization. The investigation of natural processes is the domain of science but merely the doormat of God’s Word. Therefore, behavioral functionalities of creation conform to the Scriptural Analysis of Human Limitations as Opposed to Human Perceptions of How Things Work!