God and the rules of logic: Difference between revisions

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*1 Samuel 15:29 declares that God “will not lie nor change His mind”

These passages ground God’s truthfulness in his nature rather than external constraint. The language of impossibility in Hebrews and the contrast with human fickleness in Numbers and 1 Samuel suggest that God’s inability to lie flows from who he is. God cannot violate principles rooted in his eternal character.~~</ref>~~

These passages ground God’s truthfulness in his nature rather than external constraint. The language of impossibility in Hebrews and the contrast with human fickleness in Numbers and 1 Samuel suggest that God’s inability to lie flows from who he is. God cannot violate principles rooted in his eternal character.

=Why can't God break the laws of logic?=

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Logic flows from God’s rational nature, and he cannot change his nature without betraying himself, comparable to God breaking a moral law, which also flows from his nature. The analogy is direct: just as we cannot imagine God being unjust or unloving, we cannot coherently imagine him violating logical principles.

There is a difference between propositions that transcend human reason and those that contradict it; mysteries of faith go beyond reason but not against it.<ref>Norman L. Geisler, “Logic,” in ''Baker Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics'' (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 1999), 428–429 and Norman L. Geisler and Ronald M. Brooks, ''Come, Let Us Reason: An Introduction to Logical Thinking'' (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, 1990), 19.

There is a difference between propositions that transcend human reason and those that contradict it; mysteries of faith go beyond reason but not against it.<ref>Norman L. Geisler, “Logic,” in ''Baker Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics'' (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 1999), 428–429 and Norman L. Geisler and Ronald M. Brooks, ''Come, Let Us Reason: An Introduction to Logical Thinking'' (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, 1990), 19.</ref>

=Where did the rules of logic originate? =

Similar to the development of the laws of nature and science, the rules of logic were discovered through human intellectual pursuit. Logic’s rules reflect not arbitrary conventions but fundamental truths about how reality and human reasoning align. Mathematical methods significantly shaped logical development, with Aristotle’s Analytics establishing foundational principles of reasoning. Aristotle’s logic passed through Byzantine, Syrian, and Persian commentators before reaching medieval Latin scholars. Later thinkers reconceived logic’s scope: Mill defined logic as the science treating human intellectual operations in pursuit of truth, broadening it beyond mere argumentation to encompass all thinking operations.<ref>William Wallace, Prolegomena to the Study of Hegel’s Philosophy and Especially of His Logic (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1894), 295–296.</ref>

@@ Line 20: / Line 20: @@
 *1 Samuel 15:29 declares that God “will not lie nor change His mind”
-These passages ground God’s truthfulness in his nature rather than external constraint. The language of impossibility in Hebrews and the contrast with human fickleness in Numbers and 1 Samuel suggest that God’s inability to lie flows from who he is. God cannot violate principles rooted in his eternal character.</ref>
+These passages ground God’s truthfulness in his nature rather than external constraint. The language of impossibility in Hebrews and the contrast with human fickleness in Numbers and 1 Samuel suggest that God’s inability to lie flows from who he is. God cannot violate principles rooted in his eternal character.
 =Why can't God break the laws of logic?=
@@ Line 38: / Line 38: @@
 Logic flows from God’s rational nature, and he cannot change his nature without betraying himself, comparable to God breaking a moral law, which also flows from his nature. The analogy is direct: just as we cannot imagine God being unjust or unloving, we cannot coherently imagine him violating logical principles.
-There is a difference between propositions that transcend human reason and those that contradict it; mysteries of faith go beyond reason but not against it.<ref>Norman L. Geisler, “Logic,” in ''Baker Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics'' (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 1999), 428–429 and Norman L. Geisler and Ronald M. Brooks, ''Come, Let Us Reason: An Introduction to Logical Thinking'' (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, 1990), 19.
+There is a difference between propositions that transcend human reason and those that contradict it; mysteries of faith go beyond reason but not against it.<ref>Norman L. Geisler, “Logic,” in ''Baker Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics'' (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 1999), 428–429 and Norman L. Geisler and Ronald M. Brooks, ''Come, Let Us Reason: An Introduction to Logical Thinking'' (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, 1990), 19.</ref>
+=Where did the rules of logic originate? =
+Similar to the development of the laws of nature and science, the rules of logic were discovered through human intellectual pursuit. Logic’s rules reflect not arbitrary conventions but fundamental truths about how reality and human reasoning align. Mathematical methods significantly shaped logical development, with Aristotle’s Analytics establishing foundational principles of reasoning. Aristotle’s logic passed through Byzantine, Syrian, and Persian commentators before reaching medieval Latin scholars. Later thinkers reconceived logic’s scope: Mill defined logic as the science treating human intellectual operations in pursuit of truth, broadening it beyond mere argumentation to encompass all thinking operations.<ref>William Wallace, Prolegomena to the Study of Hegel’s Philosophy and Especially of His Logic (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1894), 295–296.</ref>
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