I begin
by encouraging you to learn as much as you can about Biologos. Start here - https://biologos.org/about-us.
Why would
I direct you to learn about this organization? It is where excellent scientists
and committed followers of Jesus gather in cooperation to explain the natural
phenomena of the world and to glorify God in the process. When I became the pastor
of Hillside Church in 2006, I realized I would be preaching a few miles from one
of the top research institutions in the country. Would I be able to
intelligently explain faith in Jesus to a scientist who understood the natural
world better than me?
My
attempts to answer that question drew me down a path of learning. I have read
works from atheist/agnostic scientists and philosophers who deny God’s
existence. I have studied extremely conservative Christians who, from their interpretation
of scripture, reject established scientific truths like evolution and a universe
that’s billions of years old. The God-rejection and science-rejection are
extreme viewpoints.
Apart from
these extremes we can find true scientists who are also true believers in Jesus.
How does this all fit together? One must do a lot of reading to answer this
question. There are many podcasts and YouTube videos that also help.
Of
course, a believer could just say, “I believe in Jesus and that’s it. I don’t
know about evolution and am not interested in learning. I don’t know how old
the earth is or how old the universe is, and I don’t care.” You have the
freedom to take this type of approach. But, if you get into conversations with people,
and they say, “Well, I don’t believe in God because I understand science,”
how will you respond?
The Bible
tells us, “Always be ready to make your defense to anyone who demands from you
an accounting for the hope that is in you” (1 Peter 3:15). We are commanded to
love the Lord our God will all our … mind (Matthew 22:37). How will you
explain your faith to someone who knows science in detail, and based on that
knowledge, rejects all faith? We are called to be informed about the Gospel. We
also compelled by God to explain the gospel intelligibly in our context. Readers
of this blog who live near me in Chapel Hill share a hometown with some of the
most knowledgeable scientists in the world. We must be ready to share the
gospel in a way that makes sense to our neighbors.
Our
neighbors still might reject God. We know from 1 Corinthians 1 that the wisdom
of God seems likes foolishness to the world. We can’t control what people will
choose to accept or reject. That’s between them and the Holy Spirit. We can,
though, control how much we know. If we were witnessing in Cuba or Mexico, we
better learn Spanish. If we are sharing the gospel in a rural setting, we can’t
just be blithely ignorant about farming. It is imperative that our testimony be
understandable. In the world UNC and the Research Triangle, it helps that we recognize
that science is a gift from God.
That’s
why I find the science-faith conversation so important. I will continue to read
works by scientists and believers of different persuasions, and I invite you
into the conversation. Discover God’s majesty as it is revealed in the natural
world He has made. Scientists are the ones working to understand that natural
world. Appreciate their work and help them see how their work can glorify the
Lord.
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