"Blind Men and an Elephant" Fallacy

The "blind men and the elephant" fallacy is one of the many smokescreens that are used to cover the fact that the reasoning is based on one of the three fallacies of Agrippa's trilemma. Whenever a logical fallacy is committed, the fallacy has its roots in Agrippa's trilemma. All human thought (without Divine revelation) is based on one of three unhappy possibilities. These three possibilities are infinite regress, circular reasoning, or axiomatic thinking. This problem is known as Agrippa's trilemma. Some have claimed that only logic and math can be known without Divine revelation; however, that is not true. There is no reason to trust either logic or math without Divine revelation. Science is also limited to the pragmatic because of the weakness on human reasoning, which is known as Agrippa's trilemma.

The "Blind Men and an Elephant" Fallacy occurs when partial information is used to make dogmatic claims. Note that each of the blind men would have been able to make a logical claim of partial knowledge, but none could make a claim of complete knowledge.

Examples of the "Blind Men and an Elephant" Fallacy

One group of theologians agrees that it is possible to fall away even after a person is born again. They gather the Bible verses to back this up. Another group of theologians agrees that once a person is saved, they don't have to continually be re-born-again every time they commit a sin. They then decide that no one can fall away after they are born again. They gather the Bible verses to back this up.

One group of theologians agrees that salvation is by grace apart from works. There are no works needed. They gather the Bible verses to back this up. Another group of theologians agrees that faith without works is dead. They gather the Bible verses to back this up.

No one has the complete understanding of this, but here is something that may help this apparent conflict between grace and works. There is no conflict between grace and works. Faith comes by hearing the rhema (utterance) of God. God gives a gift of supernatural belief to believe whatever leading or direction He has just given. This is accompanied by a vision of reality (hope) that allows the Christ-follower to see how he or she fits into Christ the Body at this moment and in relationship to this particular leading. Faith gives access into God's grace. God's grace does God's works through the Christ-follower. That is, grace does whatever God led or directed the Christ-follower to do. The only thing that the Christ-follower could do is to submit to God and allow Him to do His works through the Christ-follower. This is works by grace through faith.

So, grace doesn't conflict with works. Grace is the power of God to do His works. That's why it says, "Yield ye your members as instruments of righteousness."

This process is about learning to hear God's Voice and to respond in submission. It is cooperating with the Holy Spirit. It's not about obeying rules; yet the Holy Spirit obeys the Law of God and fulfills it. When we slip or step off of the path that leads to the genuine and absolute fullness of life of the coming age by failing to hear God's Voice or failing to submit, God merely calls us back to the path. We confess our sin and are forgiven, and so, we carry on from there.

Sin is stepping or slipping from the path. (literal translation) Jesus said that he is the Way, the Path. How? In that He is leading us moment by moment. We step off when we listen to our own fleshly nature instead. Jesus also said that He is the Life. How? He is the end goal. He is the Life to which the Path leads. He is both the Path and the goal to which the Path leads.

This process is so powerful because we must stand in the Presence of God. You cannot stand in the Presence of God and come out of the experience the same. It is an experience that transfigures. What happens is that you are changed in your nature to be more like Jesus. This is what it means to walk from light to light, from glory to glory, or from faith to faith. This progressive holiness leads to progressive redemption (the setting free of the slave).