Argument in Favour of a Theistic God

What is Standard Argument Form?

 

The standard form of an argument is a way of presenting the argument which makes clear which are premises, how many premises there are and which proposition is the conclusion. In standard form, the conclusion of the argument is listed last.

 

In a standard argument, you must have at least one premise and only one conclusion. 

 

 

P= Premise (add a number with each premise you add such as P3, it is your third premise). These are your reasons for your conclusion.

 

SC= Sub conclusion (use this if you need to make a conclusion in something else before the main conclusion of the arguement. Usually this is only done if another conclusion needs to be made to get to the final conclusion).

 

C= Conclusion (This is the concluding result of your premises, this is your last statement that determines the result of the arguement).

 

Why does Standard Argumentation Matter?

 

It matters because this is the standard way widely accepted by the world as the structure and form for an academic argument. For many of the arguments that directly deal with reason, this format will  be used to show the unity in process with current academic tradition and christian apologetics. 

 

What does it Mean for God to be Theistic?

 

Theism is the belief in a god or gods who intervene in the universe.

 

There are numerous different philosophies. Alternatives to theism include deism, which is the belief in a god or gods who do not intervene, atheism which is the belief that there is no god or gods, and pantheism which is the belief that everything is god.

 

Christianity has always been at its core a Theistic religion, specifically a Monotheistic religion (belief in only one theistic God). This is important to argue for because a Theistic view of God means that God is seperate from the world, and yet actively involved in it. This means that us humans are distinct beings, God is a distinct being, and God does interfere in our affairs. Interfering would include but is not limited to giving us his word, and coming down to the earth in the person of Jesus.

 

Why God is Theistic

 

P1. More complex living things have higher levels of consciousness.

 

P2. This trend begins with the least complex living thing (the cell), it has the least amount of consciousness.

 

P3. This trend continues the more complex a living thing is. An example is human beings being able to type this argument consciously, we are very complex and conscious.

 

P4. God is the most complex living thing.

 

SC: God must then be the most conscious, which implies being personal.

 

C: Since God is the most conscious, he cannot be an impersonal God, meaning a theistic view of God is correct and any other un-relational/impersonal idea such as pantheistic or deistic view of God is incorrect.

 

Source: Brennan Stulp