God and Science
God created every object of science, but He is not a direct object of science. He has made us in His image, and has given to us the ability to think rationally. He has providentially sustained science to reveal His glory and to benefit mankind, and His Word guides the ethics of science.
This most beautiful system of the sun, planets, and comets, could only proceed from the counsel and dominion of an intelligent and powerful Being. This Being governs all things, not as the soul of the world, but as Lord over all. – Sir Isaac Newton
Definition of Science
According to Webster, science is:
1. Knowledge (as opposed to ignorance)
2. Systemized knowledge as an object of study
3. A system of knowledge obtained through the scientific method
The National Academy of Science defines science as “a particular way of knowing about the world. In science, explanations are limited to those based on observations and experiments that can be substantiated by other scientists. Explanations that cannot be based on empirical evidence are not part of science.”
Christians must understand the importance of not surrendering science to the world. Science, the observation of God’s creation, does support at every point the literal Biblical account of creation. Although creation cannot be proven pragmatically, neither can evolution. Both evolutionism and creationism have presuppositions.
Studying Origins
Because the studies of origins are not reproducible, they are not science according to the scientific method. Evolutionists presuppose naturalism, which assumes nature being all that it is, without outside intervention. Creationists presuppose that the Biblical records are literally true, and that God controls the entire universe.
Evolutionists believe that objects evolved from simpler, nonliving material by chance selection without design or purpose. Creationists believe that God created everything with a specific design and purpose.
So why does the world promote evolution?
· They are indoctrinated.
· They desire to maintain the prestige of science as the source of knowledge.
· They reject God as “the Lord over all.”
Humanism
Human chauvinists believe that man is the source of all knowledge. Bertrand Russell wrote in “Why I Am Not a Christian,”
Science can teach us, and I think our own hearts can teach us, no longer to look around for imaginary supports, no longer to invent allies in the sky, but rather to look to our own efforts here below to make this world a better place to live in, instead of the sort of place the churches in all these centuries have made it.
For the humanist, science and technology have assumed the role as savior, and man is solely responsible for the fate of the “biosphere.”
Creationism
Creation science is the scientific evidence for a created universe. It uses both deductive logic from the Bible and inductive logic from experimentation.
Creation scientists generally take one of two approaches. The first, a literal acceptance of the Biblical account of creation, argues from the Bible and scientific discoveries. Fundamentalist creation research groups use this approach. The second approach contends that life was intelligently designed, and is thus called the Intelligent Design (ID) movement. The ID movement argues from empirical facts only and not from the Bible. While this theory has gained popularity in the recent past, and supports a creator, it does not support the Creator, the God of the Bible, and it does not establish Him as our Lord.
Reasoning and the Scientific Method
Sir Francis Bacon first proposed the inductive method of reasoning in the 1600s. Bacon on rationality –
A little philosophy inclineth men’s mind to atheism; but depth in philosophy bringeth men’s minds about to religion.
The Scientific Method is based solely on empirical (observed) evidence. There are no supernatural revelations in science, and no unchangeable theoretical presuppositions. For the scientific method to work, it must be observable, testable, and repeatable.
This method, however, has many limitations.
· It is limited in use to the observable, physical world.
· Conclusions are tentative.
· Applications are at the will of main.
· History cannot be reproduced.
· It cannot account for special revelation from God.
Sir Isaac Newton, in his Principia Mathematica, explained these limitations:
Hitherto we have explained the phenomena of the heavens and of our sea by the power of gravity, but have not yet assigned the cause of this power. . . But hitherto I have not been able to discover the cause of those properties of gravity from phenomena, and I frame no hypotheses.
Our Responsibility as Christians
God created the objects of science, and He enabled us to examine them for His glory. In our study of science, we must be careful to separate what is true from what is false. Christians have a tremendous privilege and responsibility to explore creation and science discerningly—through the lens of God’s Word.