The civil magistrate cannot function without some ethical guidance, without some standard of good and evil. If that standard is not to be the revealed law of God (which, we must note, was addressed specifically to perennial problems in political morality), then what will it be? In some form or expression it will have to be the law of man (or men) — the standard of self-law or autonomy.

There is no way to use non-Christian language and logic to arrive at Christian utterances, conclusions, and behavior.

God either rules as sovereign in interpretation over *all* areas of life or none.

A god or revelation capable of proof or rational verification by an autonomous man would be worthless.

Faith in the self-attesting Christ of Scripture is the beginning, not the end result of wisdom.

We must not be satisfied to present Christianity as the most reliable position to hold among the competing options available. Rather, the Christian faith is the only reasonable outlook available to men.

The civil magistrate cannot function without some ethical guidance, without some standard of good and evil. If that standard is not to be the revealed law of God (which, we must note, was addressed specifically to perennial problems in political morality), then what will it be? In some form or expression it will have to be the law of man (or men) — the standard of self-law or autonomy.