The Chronicles of Keimathea, Part III - Hints of Redemption

The Keimathea Chronicles - A Christian Worldview Parable

Part 3 - After the Fall, Hints of Redemption

We return to the Korrupted Kingdom of Keimathea – once a realm of undisturbed peace and prosperity, protected from darkness and harm by the sovereign rule of King Ma’alekei the wise.  After Joronae’s treacherous theft of the royal diadem, however, all was no longer well in Keimathea.  Ma’alekei continued to shower his blessings upon the people, freely bestowing upon them all that they could need and want—food, shelter, music, books, entertainment—even NHL hockey.  But, just as Joronae had coveted the king’s crown, so too now his fellow Keimatheans began to focus, not on the Great King who had blessed them, nor the good things with which he had blessed them—no, instead, the citizens of the Kingdom were no longer content with what they had.  They each and all noticed the good things that others had, and began to desire and seek those good things in addition to their rightful gifts.  The desire for others’ good things led to theft, violence, even murder, as Keimatheans opposed and hated one another in their pursuit of what they thought would complete their lives. 

Chronicles of Keimathea - a Christian Worldview Parable - Part II: Joronae's Fall

The Keimathea Chronicles, Part II

King Ma’alekei continued to rule his realm with wisdom, and the people continued to enjoy prosperity and peace.  During one of the King’s nightly banquets at the palace, a young man joined in the festivities for the first time of his life.  Joronae was exceptionally handsome, his mind razor-sharp.  He was well-loved by his fellow Keimatheans, and King Ma’alekei inwardly held Joronae to be the pinnacle of his kingly work.  Ma’alekei had personally taught and guided the young man for years, instructing him in botany, alchemy, architecture, zoology, astronomy, and law.  Joronae had come, at a tender young age, to understand the intricacies of royal law, and had a very bright future before him serving in Ma’alekei’s court.

The Chronicles of Keimathea - A Christian Worldview Parable - Part I: Wise King, Good Kingdom

Chronicles of Keimathea I - Wise King, Good Kingdom

Over Easter weekend, I had the privilege and joy of teaching a D-Now (Discipleship-Now) event at our home church (Temple Baptist Church, Shawnee OK).  We walked through various aspects of the problem of evil, working within the narrative framework of a Christian worldview: Creation - Fall - Redemption - Glorification.  As part of the teaching materials, I told a series of stories about the Kingdom of Keimathea.  I hope you enjoy them.  Each installment is relatively short, and there will be five altogether.

An Introduction to Christian Worldview: Worldview Matters!

Why Worldview Study Matters!

In the past few years, I have had the privilege of co-authoring a textbook on Christian worldview with Michael Clark and David Naugle.  As I shared recently, we are excited to announce that the book is now available for pre-order via Amazon, and will be released by IVP Academic on October 28, 2017.  Worldview Textbook - Amazon link  

Last week we finished the "copy-editing" process, the last major round of revisions and additions.  All that remains now is type-setting, indexing, and proof-reading.  In honor of completing the next major portion of the project, I wanted to share a few thoughts regarding the importance of the project - so over the next few weeks we will look at why Worldview is important, and why you ought to engage in some intentional worldview examination and consideration.

Keller, The Reason for God, Part III of III

Keller, Timothy.  The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism.  New York: Dutton, 2008. 293 pp.

In introducing the positive apologetic of the second half of the book (“Intermission”), Keller notes that he will be seeking to establish a ‘mere Christianity,’ a faith which affirms the major ecumenical creeds of the early centuries (117).  The reasons he will lay out do not serve as epistemologically compelling proof, a goal which is impossible and cannot even live up to its own standards (118-20).  Rather, he seeks to establish rational arguments that will persuade most rational people (120).  Finally, he suggests that the Christian worldview “makes the most sense of the world,” and invites the reader to put on Christian lenses to see the world through (123).

Keller, The Reason for God, Part II of III

Keller, Timothy.  The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism.  New York: Dutton, 2008. 293 pp.

I noted in my last blog post that I consider Timothy Keller to be, potentially, a C. S. Lewis of our age – an apologist who has the intellectual, emotional, spiritual, and literary gifts to communicate the truths and truthfulness of the Christian faith effectively to a broad audience.  I have embarked on a six-part series interacting with Keller’s two most prominent apologetic works, The Reason for God (2008) and Making Sense of God (2016).  Last time, I noted that The Reason for God is split into two major sections – the first half of the book dealing with ‘negative apologetics’ – that is, responding to typical objections against the Christian faith; the second half dealing with ‘positive apologetics’ – that is, setting forth reasons to believe that Christianity is true.  I previously summarized and evaluated the first half of the first half of The Reason for God, analyzing Keller’s responses to charges of religious intolerance (Chapter 1), the problem of evil (Chapter 2), and the inhibition of freedom in Christianity (Chapter 3).  In this post, we will cover the last half of part one, and in my final post on The Reason for God we will look at his positive arguments for Christian faith.

Timothy Keller, The Reason for God - Part I of III

Keller, Timothy.  The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism.  New York: Dutton, 2008. 293 pp.

I am, in many ways, an apologetics junkie.  I love the various aspects, topics, issues, styles, methods, approaches, insights, and personalities of Christian apologetics.  Like anyone, I have my favorite apologists.  The Apostle Paul is certainly one; St. Augustine another.  Thomas Aquinas is high up on my list, as is Thomas Sherlocke.  In the 20^th century, James Warwick Montgomery, Josh McDowell, Lee Strobel, Gary Habermas, and William Lane Craig have been apologetic heroes.  But my absolute favorite 20^th-century apologist is indubitably C. S. Lewis – not because I agree with him about everything, but because he is a masterful communicator, and because his basic approaches to apologetic questions is both sound and winsome.  Lewis was a genius at grasping complex theological truths and communicating them in terms that everyone could comprehend.  Lewis was a master wordsmith who took pride in the craft of creating beautiful prose, even in argumentative form.  Lewis also understood the mind and heart of the non-Christian, and engaged them in their terms on their turf – very effectively at that.

In all of those ways, I tend to hold up Timothy Keller as a 21^st-century C. S. Lewis.  Like Lewis, Keller is a broad reader, with deep understanding of the theological truths of the faith as well as the mind of the non-Christian.  Like Lewis, Keller loves learning and language, and crafts lovely literature.  In this next series of blog posts, I intend to interact with two of Keller’s most prominent apologetic works: his 2008 The Reason for God, and his 2016 Making Sense of God.  I will have three blog posts on each book: this post covers the first half of the first half (yes, the repetition was deliberate) of The Reason for God.