Christian Critical Thinking is imperative since it has become clear that the battle is for the mind. All the powers of darkness appeal to you that you must think the way they want you to think. You must think according to their assumptions and presuppositions. They push. They accuse. They poke fun. They do whatever it takes to squeeze you into their mold. Don't let them do it, though. Instead, be transfigured by the renewing of your mind. (Romans 12:1-2)
Once you lose the ability for critical thinking, it is very hard to regain it. Unfortunately, when lies are taught as fact and most people never say anything (they don't dare) about it, then the ability for critical thinking is lost. This video is an example of how someone can speak effectively while saying nothing that makes sense. Nothing this person says is true, yet you might think that it is true and that you just don't understand. Many college students and high school students listen to the same sort of nonsense that is posing as knowledge. This is what happens when Post Modernism is taught as if it were reality while denying that there is anything like reality. This is what happens when Evolutionism is taught as if it were science or fact. This is what happens when various theories about the ecology are taught as if they were fact. Other similar topics include: feminism, liberalism, socialism, atheism, agnosticism, Naturalism, uniformitarianism, and materialism. Much of what is taught in history classes is of this nature. Listening with an uncritical mind will cause you to lose your ability for critical thinking. The colleges are not the only ones to blame for the loss of critical thinking. Movies are full of ideas that cannot work in reality. TV shows are also full of such ideas. Newspapers, magazines, and TV news is guilty of this. Sermons in churches that have strayed away from the Bible. All of these involve people trained in giving a message in a convincing way. Most of these people are deluded themselves, having lost the ability for critical thinking.
This page may be a shock to some who have learned ungodly critical thinking. The ungodly often eliminate the possibility of God from their thinking using assumptions and forgotten presupposition. Not that the presupposition of Naturalism or materialism is forgotten, but the fact that Naturalism and materialism are simply made up stories is forgotten. They become iron towers that cannot be moved in the mind of those who push God from their awareness. As a result, what is taught as critical thinking is often just scoffing at the truth. These people mentioned above teach you to be very skeptical of truth but to accept lies without any analysis. In fact, they tend to demonize anyone who examines the evidence for ideas like feminism, liberalism, socialism, atheism, agnosticism, Naturalism, uniformitarianism, perversion, casual sex, covetousness, and materialism.
Watch the video. It is really quite funny.
Critical thinking means:
relying on the mind of God rather than emotion or the human intellect
realizing that, as soon as you are born into God's family, your whole focus and way of thinking is directly opposed to the way that the ungodly think
avoiding jumping to the conclusion that there are always many options or the conclusion that there are always two options
example: It is true that there is only one Way, Jesus Christ, to come to God, and that is a free gift from God, but ungodly thinking (which is actually the opposite of true critical thinking) claims that you have to consider many ways. That is because ungodly thinking is guided by Satan.
example: It is not true that you have to choose between the Bible and science. That is a false dichotomy. The Bible is in total agreement with what can actually be observed and discovered through real science.
example: It is true that at any moment you either choose to follow God's leading or the leading of your sinful flesh. The flesh and the Spirit of God are diametrically opposed and cannot be reconciled. Either the flesh must die and Christ in you live the Christ will die (or you will never accept Him at all) and the flesh will live.
example: God is exclusive. There is no other. And there is no other acceptable way other than His way. Every way that is not His way is opposed to Him.
The Spiritual truth can be very confusing to the natural mind
example: If the Christ lives, that is life. If the flesh lives, that is death.
realizing that there are many ways to reason, and that the human mind was never designed to be used without the Holy Spirit
requiring evidence, ignore no known evidence, and follow evidence where it leads
being concerned more with finding the correct explanation than ego and winning arguments
realizing that we have finite knowledge and it is better to say, "I don't know," than to lock into a speculative "best" unproven answer.
avoiding speculation.
if assumptions, suppositions, or axioms are used, holding them loosely, because they are almost certainly wrong
always realizing that we don't know anything in it's fullness and that we don't really know anything until we know everything
avoiding the tendency in the culture to have a closed mind to a spiritual explanation
Self-awareness
Critical thinking means:
weighing the influences of motives and bias
recognizing assumptions, prejudices, biases, viewpoints that distort reality in self and others
recognizing that only God can pull away the veil of the flesh to see reality as it really is
using the checks that God has put in place to guide us: the Bible, those ministries who have been set into authority by God, my own consceince and consciousness of God's will, and the counsel of godly members of the Body of Christ
skepticism of the counsel of the ungodly
Honesty
Critical thinking means:
admitting my own tenancy to have emotional impulses
admitting my own tenancy to have selfish motives
admitting my own tenancy to have nefarious purposes
admitting my own tenancy to have many modes of self-deception
admitting my own sinful nature and fallen mind
admitting my need for the Holy Spirit to anoint my mind
realizing that there are many lies and hang ups that still dwell in your mind
realizing that you are only one part of the Body of Christ and your ministry cannot function without the rest of the Body of Christ, which must come into unity, and be assembled and functioning fully according to the pattern of Scripture
admitting that the human mind, without the Holy Spirit, is incapable of critical thinking
Open-mindedness to God and closed-mindedness to the world
Critical thinking means:
realizing that you will either be open-minded to God or to the world at any given time
realizing that what seems reasonable to your fleshly nature is not reasonable to God
evaluating every inference that is reasonable to God
asking God for the answer to the problem and not leaning on your own understanding
when there are a variety of possible viewpoints or perspectives, seeking God for revelation
when there is doubt as to how God is leading, wait on God for the answer
using the resources God has provided, the Bible, your elders in the local church, the traveling, universal elders (apostles), a mature brother or sister in Christ
being aware of the things that harden your heart and close it to God: worldly music, sensuality, ungodly counsel and teachers, violent or sensual movies, magazines, or other media, unforgiveness, failure to spend time with God, your own communication that does not come from the Holy Spirit, anger, feeling sorry for yourself, being self centered, and anything else that is not the leading of the Holy Spirit
remaining open to the leading of the Holy Spirit to take you to higher heights and deeper depths of knowledge, wisdom, and understanding
realizing that there is no knowledge, wisdom, or understanding that does not come from God
understanding that trying to have two minds (ungodly and godly) is what James wrote about as being double-minded, and that the double-minded will receive nothing from the Lord
not be swayed by the majority or coercion
example: the majority of scientists believe such and such and if you don't believe the same, you will lose your job
example: the majority of theologians believe such and such and if you don't believe the same, you aren't even saved
Discipline
Critical thinking means:
being precise in your thinking where God has given revelation
avoiding speculation completely
avoiding snap judgments--the first thought that pops into your head is not automatically the leading of God
testing the spirit of what is said
depending on the gifts and ministries that God has given to the Church rather than running out on your own ego
resisting the manipulation of the ungodly, including ungodly or confused but aggressive Christians
Judgment
Critical thinking means:
recognizing that all valid judgment is a revelation from God
recognizing that the Bible's meaning, leading for specific circumstances in life, and the way that the creation works and is ordered--all of these must be revealed by God
recognizing that Scripture is often interpreted by the fallen mind of man, and that the fallen mind of man can be very deceptive (This is also true of interpreting the observation of science, social interactions, business, and anything else)
Common mistakes
The Lack of Critical thinking means:
assuming that your mind is capable of being open to everything
assuming that your natural mind is not blind and deceitful
assuming that there is no black or white, no right or wrong (the ungodly teach critical thinking as knowing that there is no black or white, but this is the religion of relativism and relativism is self-refuting)
being passive in your thinking rather than actively allowing the Holy Spirit to enlighten your mind at every moment
