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Writer's pictureBible Brian

Deductive reasoning is valid. The exact words criteria is not.


The exact words criteria is the bane of any intelligent discussion. Time and time again, we hear people saying "show me where the Bible says..." before demanding very explicit words. If those explicit words cannot be found (which, let's be honest, they have been very intentionally selected to not be), then the position is said not to be true.


There are two very glaring issues with this attitude. The first is that those who use it usually hold another position that the Bible definitely does not say. The most common example would be the Trinity. I can assure you, the Bible nowhere says God is not a Trinity. Nor does it say Jesus is not God. Nor does it say the Holy Spirit is not a person. Nevertheless, the Bible does not explicitly say God is a Trinity. We must use deductive reasoning to arrive at the Trinity.


Which brings us to the second glaring issue: You can use deductive reasoning. We do it all the time. With the Bible, with the law, even in normal conversation. Even if it leads to wrong conclusions, it's still at least logical. "I'm going to the doctor today" suggests I might be sick, and you would be logical in assuming it, it's just that there are other valid interpretations. Of course, the Bible is much larger than a single sentence, meaning we have far more to make deductions from. There are multiple verses that show us the Trinity is a fact. Taken alone, you can twist a verse to any interpretation you want, but when all the relevant Scriptures are taken together, and in their correct context, the Trinity is the only logical conclusion.


What's interesting is that we see Jesus using deductive reasoning to interpret the Scriptures. During His ministry, He had a disagreement with the Sadducees, who did not believe in the resurrection. Now, the resurrection is quite clearly and explicitly taught in the Old Testament. Daniel 12:2, for example, leaves no room for interpretation. We must ask, did Jesus not know this Scripture? Was He magically ignorant of this one part of His book? He seemed very knowledgeable. When Satan tempted Him, He rattled off Scriptures like it was nothing. He taught and interpreted Scriptures with greater authority than the scribes and Pharisees. Jesus knew full well that Daniel 12:2 existed, and what it says, yet instead, He chose to reason from the Scriptures. God is called the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and He is the God of the living, not the dead. Therefore, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, though dead, are actually alive, and awaiting resurrection.


Thus, we see the fallacy of the exact words criteria. Jesus Himself did not agree with it. Using deductive reasoning, we see that Jesus used deductive reasoning. Therefore, we can too. Study the Scriptures with due diligence, and not with self-serving techniques designed to rule out the truth.

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