Economic Evidences for Christianity

W. Robert ReedDepartment of EconomicsUniversity of Oklahoma

Four Main Points

I. Introduction

Humans consistently and pervasively behave in ways that violate standard economic theory.

A fundamental, and unique, teaching of Christianity is that human beings possess a “sin nature.”

The concept of the “sin nature” is central to Christian doctrine.

The violations of economic theory provide empirical evidence that man has a “sin nature,” and hence, are evidence for Christianity.

II. Violations of Economic Theory

(But first we have to know what we’re violating!)

Part 1: The Indifference Curve(s)

CD’s

DATES

1

3 8

3

7

1

An Infinite Number of Indifference Curves

CD’s

DATES

U3U2 U1

U1 > U2 > U3

Part 2: The Budget Constraint

CD’s

DATES Income = $150

PDATES = $30

PCD’ s= $155

10

3

4

1

8

A Pop Quiz:What happens if PCD’s ?

CD’s

DATES Income = $150

PDATES = $30

PCD’ s= $155

10

3

4

1

8

The Answer…

CD’s

DATES Income = $150

PDATES = $30

PCD’ s= $155

10

3

4

1

8

The Economic Paradigm of Choice

CD’s

DATES

A

C

B

Utility-Maximizing Point

People will never choose to raise prices to themselves…

A Fundamental Proposition of the Economic Paradigm of

Choice

…Because when P, U

CD’s

DATES

U2

U1

U2 < U1

People DO raise prices to themselves!

An Empirical Fact

Leaving spending money at home Studying in the library Placing alarm clock across room Many others…

Examples where people deliberately raise the price of

“undesirable” activities

Why?

III. The Christian Teaching of the “Sin Nature”

The biblical account of how man acquired a “Sin Nature (a.k.a. “The

Original Sin”)

Genesis 2:15-17,3:1-6: “…The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. And the LORD God commanded the man, "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die…Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God really say, `You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?“ The woman said to the serpent,

"We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, `You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.' "You will not surely die," the serpent said to the woman. "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.“ When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.”

The concept of the “sin nature” is central to three fundamental doctrines of Christianity.

The Doctrine of DamnationThe “sin nature” results in

condemnation

Romans 5:19: “…through the disobedience of the one man, the many were made sinners.”Romans 5:18: “…one trespass was condemnation for all men…”

The Doctrine of Grace and Salvation

Deliverance from condemnation comes solely by relying on Jesus

Christ—not on oneself or another religious figure—to address the

problem of the “sin nature”

John 14:6: (Jesus speaking): “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to

the Father except through Me.”

Since People Are Fatally Flawed, the Solution To Their Sin Problem Cannot Lie Within Themselves.

Rather, It Must Lie Outside Themselves. Hence the Reliance On Jesus Christ In Order To Be Delivered From the Power of Sin.

The Doctrine of Regeneration The sin nature cannot be reformed

—it must be replaced

Galatians 2:20: (Paul speaking): “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.”

2 Corinthians 5:17: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation;”

IV. The Connection Between the “Sin Nature” and the Violations of Economic Theory

A Description of the “Sin Nature”

Romans 7:15-24: “I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do…As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing…

“…Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it. So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death?”

Three Characteristics of the “Sin Nature”

#1) The sin nature has a mind of its own

“…it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me.”

#2) The sin nature is intent on evil

“…For what I do is not the good I want to do; no the evil I do not

want to do—this I keep on doing.”

#3) The sin nature is engaged in a battle against my will

“…For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; but I see

another law at work in the members of my body, waging war

against the law of my mind.”

Before Self-Control Strategy

“Right” Choice 10

“Wrong” Choice 15

Price-Raising is a “Self-Control” Strategy

Before Self-Control Strategy

After Self-Control Strategy

“Right” Choice 10 10

“Wrong” Choice 15 15 – 10 = 5

What is the Significance of “Price-Raising” Behavior?

It clearly indicates that we are engaged in an internal struggle…

…a struggle within ourselves to do the “right” thing

The “sin nature” has a mind of its own It is “evil” in the sense that it leads us

to do things which are destructive to ourselves and others

It is engaged in a battle against our wills

Could This Be Evidence for the Existence of the “Sin Nature?”

Could This Be Evidence for Christianity?

No other religion has a “Romans 7”

No other religion describes man as

having a “sin nature”

Other religions talk about “sin” and “temptation”

They speak of sin as an immoral or unwise choice…

…and “temptation” simply as something that shouldn’t be given into.

But if we can’t stick to exercising, if we can’t make ourselves study, if we can’t stop from eating Snickers bars…

…why would we ever think we could do the really hard stuff and “be good?”

Christianity Teaches That People Are Fatally Flawed and Need Outside, Divine Intervention to “Fix” Them

Closing ThoughtThink about that next time you find yourself

“raising prices”

A Short Bibliography on the Problem of “Self-Control”

•Ainslie, George. 1975. Specious reward: A behavioral theory of impulsiveness and impulse control. Psychological Bulletin 82(4): 463-96.•Deily, Mary and W. Robert Reed. Temptation, willpower, and the problem of rational self-control. Rationality and society 5(4): 455-472.•Elster, Jon. 1986. The multiple self. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.•Hare, R.M. 1971. Backsliding. In Weakness of will, edited by Geoffrey Mortimore. London: Macmillan.•Lukes, Steven. 1971. Moral weakness. In Weakness of will, edited by Geoffrey Mortimore. London: Macmillan.•Matthews, Gwynneth. 1971. Weakness of will. In Weakness of will, edited by Geoffrey Mortimore. London: Macmillan.•Schelling, Thomas. 1984a. Self-command in practice, in policy, and in a theory of rational choice. American Economic Review Papers and Proceedings 74(2): 1-11.•----. 1984b. The intimate contest for self-command. In Choice and consequence. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. •----. 1985. Enforcing rules on oneself. Journal of Law, Economics, and Organization 1(2): 357-74.•Thaler, Richard H. and H.M. Shefrin. 1981. An economic theory of self-control. Journal of Political Economy 89(2): 392-406.

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http://faculty-staff.ou.edu/R/William.R.Reed-1/PPoint