This weeks A.S.K chapter….I was delighted to hear of a church where the minister used one of the chapters in his sermon and as a result adults are now reading and studying the book….or rather, using it to study. Feel free to do the same…
BIBLE READING: Romans 1:18-23
TEXT: For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse (Romans 1:20).
The devil is the father of lies. Lying is the way he operates. He tries to separate us from the Father of truth by causing us to doubt God’s Word. In this regard one of his greatest and most successful lies is that science and Christianity are opposed.
It is really important that when we use words we know what they mean – and what others mean when they use them. Science is the study of what God has created. Christianity is the faith based upon what God has revealed in his Word – especially about Jesus, his Son. God has given us two books – the book of nature and the book of Scripture. They don’t contradict each other.
The question also implies that, whereas science gives us certain knowledge of the world, the Bible doesn’t. But that is to misunderstand both science and the Bible. Science works on a principle of falsifiability – if there is no possibility of testing it for falseness then it can’t be called science. It’s a great method of working and finding out knowledge. But it isn’t always ‘certain’ and even more importantly there are lots of things that science does not tell us – and will never be able to tell us. For example, if you are boiling a kettle, science can tell you how the electricity works, and what temperature causes the water to boil, but it cannot tell you why the kettle was being boiled in the first place (you want to make a cup of tea for your granny). In other words science is great at answering the ‘what’ questions, but not so good at answering the ‘why’ questions.
The Bible is not a science textbook – but it is a revelation of the God of science. All wisdom is found in Jesus Christ. Our verse tells us that whilst science might tell us about nature, nature tells us about God – and the Bible tells us what God says. There is no contradiction. Science and the Bible are not two opposed ways of knowing – they are complementary ways of knowing.
So can it be proved scientifically that God exists? The answer is both yes and no. Everything about the creation, points us to the Creator. In that sense the answer is yes. But if you are asking it in the way that so many atheists do – ‘Can you put God in a test tube and conduct an experiment to prove he exists?’ – the answer is no.
I once heard Professor David Wilkinson of the University of Durham speaking at the University of St Andrews on the subject of God and the universe. He was asked, ‘Are you saying that science proves God?’ He answered, ‘No … I am saying that science points to God’. Just as nature points to God so does science.
Let me give you one example that comes from Professor John Lennox. The human genome, the genetic code in each human cell, contains 23 DNA molecules each containing from 500 thousand to 2.5 million-nucleotide pairs. DNA molecules of this size are about 5 cm on average. You have about 10 trillion cells in your body, so if you stretched the DNA in all the cells out, end to end, they’d go for around 750 million miles. The sun is 93,000,000 miles away, so your DNA would reach there and back about four times! What’s equally amazing is that all this DNA consists of four building blocks, A, T, C and G. And every human genome is unique. In other words we are all made of this information.
It’s such an amazing code. Lennox asks:‘If you went down to the beach and saw the words ‘I love you’ written in sea shells on the shore – would you just assume that they had been washed up by the waves, or would you think that someone had done the arranging? The answer is obvious. Given that the human DNA code is a million times more complex than that, why should there not be an equally obvious answer as to why we have such a code? The glories of God are seen as much in the human genome as they are in the billions of stars!‘
CONSIDER: Given the overwhelming evidence for a Creator, why do you think some people refuse to believe in him? What does Romans 1 give as the reason why people ignore the evidence? Why is knowing that there is a Creator, not enough to save us?
RECOMMENDED FURTHER READING:
God’s Undertaker – John Lennox
PRAYER: Lord God, you are the Creator of heaven and earth. You are the one who made the billions of stars beyond me, and the billions of cells within. I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Help me to marvel at your works and to worship you the Creator, rather than the creation. For your glory. Amen.
Yes I do like the interplay between science and faith and it’s sad that this can degenerate into a false dichotomy between the two.
I guess the devils advocate would look to demand evidence and claim that “overwhelming evidence for a Creator” is down to indoctrination, quoting Lennox is the logical fallacy of an argument from authority, and equate faith to belief in the spaghetti monster etc. And I can guess the usual suspects for this, one or two of which have appeared on this blog.
But to do so I think with such deconstruction and mocking is to do a disservice to something that has underpinned much of western society. And given western society has the prominence it has on the world stage, it’s not so easy to discount faith. If it were, wouldn’t it have died out? And yet worldwide is not Christianity on the rise, along with persecutions of Christianity? Is everyone involved with this deluded?
Or is this something of an indication of the joy of life that comes not principally from earthly sources?
Only a Christian could have possibly written this blog post.
I’m forever perplexed as to why this instrument of eternal power just doesn’t do away with what has been and apparently remains the greatest impediment to the acceptance of the truth of his existence, the devil.
He will. That’s why hell exists. To destroy the devil and all his works.
“I’m forever perplexed as to why this instrument of eternal power just doesn’t do away with… the devil.” And on cue the devil’s advocate appears.
And if he were would the same devils advocate be calling a Jesus a hypocrite for teaching about loving enemies?
What I understand hell to be is separation from God. Eventually God having had enough of the devil to say, OK have things your way – you don’t want my authority, have your own but I’m not going to be there with you.
I am re-blogging this because there is so much controversy over science and faith. I teach Sunday school using a curriculum from Answers in Genesis. Amazing insight you have in this short post!
I don’t know how many Laws of Physics have come into individual and concerted operation to create the Cosmos but, however many there are – each one has two distinguishable qualities.
The first attribute, although startlingly obvious when revealed, is not one which is generally recognised by ‘the man in the street’, this feature being that these natural Laws, although responsible for the creation and continuing preservation of the physical universe – have, in themselves, no physical existence…NONE! They belong to another, dare I say, higher dimension of reality – dare I even go as far to suggest that they belong to a constant/eternal – spiritual sphere?
The apple which Sir Isaac Newton observed falling from the tree was acting under the influence of the Law of Gravity – it did not contain the Law of Gravity; the latter survived the apple’s fall from the tree (and its subsequent consumption).
Without doubt the Laws of Physics existed before the alleged ‘Big Bang’ of Creation’s material genesis – they had to, because they caused the ‘Big Bang’ – and you can’t cause ‘something’ to happen without pre-existing that ‘something’. This logic isn’t rocket science.
The second attribute which is associated with the creative Laws is (like the first) startlingly obvious when pointed out, but again, not generally recognised by ‘the man in the street’. This second feature being that the outworking of each creative Law comprises three interdependent partners…
For every creative Law (or Prescription) – there is a compliant and co-operating Process, and for every such Process – there is a Product. Truly it is the interaction of this tripartite relationship – this functioning ‘family unit’ of Prescription, Process and Product which, through its different manifestations in all forms of life and reality, has created – and continues to sustain the entire universe.
The Prescription, the Process and the Product.
One in three – and three in one.
A triune relationship of spiritual origin which constitutes the essence of everything which exists in the physical realm – across all spectrums of life and reality:
First the stable, foundational (prescriptive) Neutron – partnered by its twin – the active Proton which opens and gives off its life to obediently activate and process their mutual, creative prescription – thereby powerfully projecting and imparting their order and life – their authoritative ‘Let there be’ into a myriad mist of otherwise dead, formless and void Electrons – through which impartation (process) is formed the product – the atom, the unit base of all physical form.
First the DNA – partnered by the RNA which gives off itself to process the genetic prescription of the DNA – resulting in the production of Protein (the basis of all cells and therefore all life).
First the Highway Code – whose instructions are processed by the road user – resulting in Road Safety.
First the Architect’s plans and specifications – which are followed and processed by the builder – resulting in the completed building.
First any viable concept – followed by the sacrifice of energy to obediently process that concept – resulting in the birth of the actual reality.
Actual reality – given, preserved and sustained by a life-giving trinity – a creative, ordered relationship between equals which must, without doubt, emanate from a spiritual intelligence which must, in turn, constitute the essence of the life of a greater spiritual being – a Creator God, no less.
And to relate these factors to the triune God from whom they most definitely derive:
God the Father – the definitive, legal prescription or genetic base of His eternal being – as presented through the Law and prophets (promises) of the Old Testament.
God the Son – the active and obedient processing of His Father’s genetic base for eternal life – all as presented through the birth, life, crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ – as faithfully recorded in the Gospels.
God the Holy Spirit – God’s completeness – His eternal Life and power – the promised fulfilment of the relationship between God the Father and God the Son which feeds back to maintain the eternal life of the Godhead and extends outward to create new eternal life – in His image – all as introduced in the Epistles.
It doesn’t matter at what point in Creation the scientist might choose to look – he or she will always find that discreet triune relationship of Prescription, Process and Product working to create and uphold all things by its divine power.
Nothing, absolutely nothing can be born – or introduced into this universe except as the product – or child of the parental factors (genetic laws and processes) which worked in tandem to produce it. Nothing can infringe this universal law of divine origin – which is why Jesus Christ – the Son of God, in compliance with His Father’s Eternal Laws and promises, had to come into this world as a child.
Where life prospers – in all its myriad biological and socially organised forms, the influence of God’s sacrificial, triune nature – as lived through and embodied in Jesus Christ will be seen to be freely operating, and where life is disordered, decaying or dead – the effects of that same trinity pattern will be seen to be diminishing, corrupted or non-existent.
Truly, to deny or thwart the trinity – in whatever realm it is operating, is to court disorder and constitutional breakdown – all as manifested in the dead, disintegrating and decomposing state of Britain.
This nation doesn’t need revival – it needs resurrection – and this will require our God to turn His face, once more – towards this god forsaken, confused and celebrity worshipping land – and say, authoritatively – ‘Enough is enough’.
Wow, Jack! I have learned a lot from your reply to the original post!
That’s good to hear Vickie – My attention was drawn to Romans 1/19-20 a good number of years ago and, since then, I have been taught to discern so, so many parallels between the natural world and the spiritual realm. Its mind blowing just how consistent and constant our God is the outworking of His creative purposes.