(Note: This article first appeared in 2010.)By Thomas A. Miller, M.D.
The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the greatest event in human history. Not only does it declare loud and clear that death has been conquered, but it also validates that Christ’s sacrifice of His life on our behalf is sufficient, enabling forgiveness of our sins and release from sin’s power and penalty. It further assures us that the Christian hope in eternal life is secure and guarantees that it is not a hollow fantasy.
Debunking Naturalism
But the Resurrection has another dimension that is often forgotten by the Christian. It totally dismantles the naturalistic worldview and debunks its fundamental assumptions. This view, so commonplace in our society (and vigorously espoused by many in the scientific community), sees everything through the “lens of nature” and contends that nature is complete in and of itself. To put it another way, “naturalism” sees nature as the ultimate reality, and nothing else is needed to explain the world in which we live.
Followed to its logical conclusions, man is nothing more than a material being, the most complex animal on the evolutionary scale. Life is defined as that interval of time between birth and death, and when we die, we cease to exist. In short, after death, we are nothing more than a “memory” to those left behind, and any hope of life after death is foolishness in the extreme.
The naturalist argues that there is no “force” or “being” out there that has caused nature’s existence or has any influence on how it expresses itself. Thus, the idea of a god that has any role in impacting or coordinating the affairs of nature is ludicrous. If there is a god, he is unknowable, and even if he does exist, there is absolutely no reason why we should concern ourselves with him. Not surprisingly, any alleged reality referred to as the supernatural is meaningless, and the idea of life-eternal is an oxymoron. Further, the “laws of nature” preclude any possibility of the miraculous.
Read more at http://byfaithonline.com/eternal-life-is-a-solid-hope/