Thoughts vs Things

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02/16/16 - Christian Focus

Thoughts vs. Things

“One form of the question between matter and spirit is, which was first, and caused the other--things or thoughts; whether things without thought caused thought, or thought without things caused things.”

- George MacDonald

Many of our friends and neighbors just cannot bring themselves to have confidence in a Creator. To those of us who are Christians, it is a matter of faith, a conviction of the reality of unseen things [Heb 11:1-3]. But to them, it seems an unscientific or “fairy tale” way of thinking. You can’t convince them from the Bible, because they have no confidence in the Bible. But next time you have a chance, guide them toward a simple way of thinking about the question. Where do thoughts come from? Shall we with a straight face declare that thoughts just arose from things, from strictly material things? Did inanimate molecules randomly bouncing around in some primeval soup eventually assemble into a living organism, and did that organism eventually evolve through an infinite number of forms until the chemicals suddenly made the organism “aware” of itself, and then by further evolution over the eons gradually begin to think and reason? If so, how can any thought be trusted? How could any thought be true while another is false? On what basis is the atheist’s thought “right” and the believer’s thought “wrong”? How could ANY thought be right or wrong? How can there be such a thing as good thoughts or evil thoughts? How were Mother Theresa’s ideas any more noble than Adolf Hitler’s? Such thinking about thoughts can drive a man to despair.

[Beyond all that, if chemicals eventually gave rise to thought, where did the chemicals come from?]

But think of the grand alternative - that thoughts gave rise to things. Or more to the point, the one SPIRIT [Jehovah God] gave rise to all things. He conceived them and He spoke them into existence. All things derive from Him. We have confidence in our thoughts because they derive from Him who is Truth. We see things as right or wrong, good or evil, because we think after Him, being made in His image. Oh the joy to know that God the Spirit stands behind all things material! He is THE one thought, THE one idea, THE source of our being, thinking, moving, and speaking. To Him be the glory forever and ever!