← ArchiveYou Asked for itYou Asked for It: Jesus and ScienceDateSeptember 3, 2023SpeakerDr Josh BurnhamText—Passages in this sermonPsalms 193:071 Corinthians 154:42Genesis 112:27Genesis 1:112:43Acts 1734:26TranscriptMachine transcribed. Click any line to jump there.0:00We'll be right back. We'll be right back.0:30I'm a special guest here on campus today.1:00Some of you might have noticed, some of you might have not, but we today started a brand new Hispanic Bible study on this campus. So today, for the first time in recorded history that I know of, we are one church in two languages. So let's let our Hispanic community know how thankful we are of God's work. So that's exciting to see, church, that's your heart for the nations. And it doesn't stop at two languages. One day when Jesus returns, the Bible says that every nation, every tribe, and every tongue1:29will confess. So we're at two languages. We have a lot of work to do until we get to every. And by the grace of God, may he bring the nations to us. And may we be found faithful. So today we continue a sermon series called Because You Asked. Are You Asked For It? And it's answering questions you have from a biblical perspective. So today we look at the intersection of faith and science.2:00Faith and science. So we're going to start this message with powerful words from a children's song by Rend Collective. And it goes like this. You started science and quantum physics. Wrote the law of gravity. You are the smartest, you are the greatest scientist in history. You thought of narwhals and armadillos. All the creatures great and small, even the dinos a long, long time ago, with their teeth2:30and terrible claws. And here's the chorus. Our great God of all things bright and, our great God of all things beautiful, our great God of all things wild and free, free, thank you God for making me. There is a lot of theology and simple truths found in scripture.2:53So if you have your Bibles, as Pastor James has already read, not knowing until this morning that I would look at this passage, we will be in Psalms chapter 19 this morning. The message is simply called Jesus and science, not super creative.3:14Because you asked Jesus and science. Now notice the title, Jesus and science, not Jesus or science. Because in modern era, there appears to be an inherent rigidity, often, that we think that scientific endeavors or matters of reason are inherently against our faith.3:40So some of you today, when you asked about science and Jesus, you checked that box on Easter with some nervousness, thinking, oh no, what in the world are we going to hear from the pulpit about Jesus and science? So let me just acknowledge in the room today, and for those of you who watch online, to speak4:06of faith and reason in the same breath, often can create some consternation, but it should not be that way, as we will see shortly. So first of all, I'm going to ask you, why are you scared if you are? Why are you so scared? If you think that science is a legitimate threat to Jesus Christ, why are you scared, bro? And that's not simply a question we ask today.4:38Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15, he said, if Christ had not been raised from the dead, your faith is worthless. Because there were some in the early church saying that the resurrection is not possible. And Paul said, if that were true, then our faith is worthless and your sins are not forgiven. And let me say this right now publicly. If science or any other man-made endeavor could disprove the resurrection of Jesus Christ,5:05I would want to be the first to know. Because then my faith is not true, my sins are not forgiven, and my eternity is in doubt. So if our faith could be attacked legitimately by any man-made endeavor, I would want to be the first to know. And Paul says the same. But I am not worried. Because I believe that Jesus actually died on the cross.5:34Historically. Physically. He didn't, he wasn't in a weakened state, but he died on the cross. I believe he was buried for three days. And I believe what the scripture says, that when Mary and Mary went to the tomb, that his body was not there, not because someone took his body away, but because he rose again from the dead. And if you call yourself a Christ follower, you stake your life on the reality of the resurrection.6:03And if you've given your life to that, and that was false, would you not want to know? So let me just tell you this, science or any other man-made method of observation is not a threat to the gospel of Jesus Christ. So may we not be scared. Secondly, what is science? Science, and I would include the STEM sciences, right?6:31Science, technology, engineering, and math. Those are the four parts of my life I avoid. Science, technology, engineering, and math. So I would include all the STEM research languages in that. Science is defined as this. It's a study of the structure and the behavior of the physical and natural world. And this is key. Through observation, experimentation, and testing.6:59So science is man's way of saying, I see something, I test something, hypothesis, and then I experiment upon those observations. So science is simply the discipline of observation. It's a discipline of hearing, and seeing, and sensing, and asking questions that can be falsified7:22based on observation. And you might be thinking, Pastor, really, the whole sermon is on this? Yes, it is. That's science. It is the study of observation. Now, when we think of science, and when we think of the tension between faith and reason, some of us go here. Now, let me make a third point.7:52Scientism is a lousy God. Scientism is a lousy God. So over and above the pure definition of science is the idea of a scientific worldview. And a scientific worldview sounds like this. It's also called naturalism. It's the view that science provides the ultimate truth test for every question in life. And if that's what you believe, then yes, your worldview clashes with a biblical worldview.8:23Because scientism or naturalism, which is based upon modernity, makes a lousy God. Because there are questions in your life, and if you've not reached that point of your life, there will be questions in your life that will never be answered through observation alone. For instance, what's going to happen to you when you die?8:51How are you going to verify that? Because that is only an answer that you will find when you meet God face to face. So no matter how hard you try to observe, you cannot verify that before you meet Jesus, which means if you don't know where you will go before you die, you need to get your life right today. Scientism is a lousy God.9:18It's based on the fact, the scientific worldview, not science, but scientism, is based on modernity that would say humanity. You are the center of the universe. Which would tell me that you did not grow up in my house. Because my parents let me know often and regular that I was not the center of the universe. And above that fact, humanism, naturalism, would then say,9:47if humanity is the center of the universe, and where we live is the habitat for humanity, then it's easy to see how things like climate change can become gods. Because if our climate falls apart, then our livelihood is attacked. And if we as humanity are gods, then you see how we begin to worship certain aspects of our worlds.10:13And let me say this, naturalism, modernity, and scientism make lousy gods. They make lousy gods. And lastly, they are reductionistic. Meaning that scientism tries to take everything to its smallest part. So scientism would say you are not a person, you're a collection of cells. Maybe by chance, maybe by purpose.10:42But at the very basic core, you are simply a collection of molecular molecules. And by extension, then a baby is not a baby. It is a fetus. It's a simple collection of cells. And you see now with the scientific worldview, how we lose the imago Dei in a person. Because you are no longer a person, you're a, you're cellular, you're cells, or you're only a cellular level thing.11:11And again, scientism makes a lousy god. Scientism and naturalism as a worldview leads to idolatry. And it will never satisfy the curiosity of your soul. And it will never provide the truth for every question of your life. Now let me give us some positive aspects of science. Science, on the other hand, relies upon God himself.11:42And I can prove it to you. Science relies upon God. The Christian worldview is a unique soil in which scientific endeavors grow. First, science holds the conviction that the material and physical world has inherent value. So science would say the material world has value. It is worthy of our efforts. It is worthy of our intellectual pursuits.12:11And that is not a scientific desire alone. Because we see in the word of God that the material world has value, do we not? Look at Genesis 1. It's amazing that when we start where the Bible starts, that human flourishing begins. Right here, Genesis 1.1, in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.12:43Verse 3 and 4. God said, let there be light. And when God says it, it happens. There was light. God saw that the light was what? Good. So when science says that we should give our lives or give our intellectual pursuits to study the material world, because the material world has value, we should say, absolutely it does.13:09Because our God created all things good. And if it is good, it has value. So in the fact that science is observing what God has made good and righteous and valuable, scientific endeavor is only desiring to see what God has created good. You see, church, science relies upon God. Good is not an empirical word.13:40It's a measure of value and worth. And science grows in the soil of God's good creation. Science grows in the soil of God's good creation. Creation has value because God made it good. That's the first step. Second, common grace. If God's goodness is the soil where science grows, then God's common grace is the fertilizer.14:06Now, I wanted to push that metaphor further, but we'll just use the word fertilizer for the growth that we can experience. Augustine, writing around 354 A.D., said this famously. He said, all truth is God's truth. All truth is God's truth. Which means that common grace is a heavenly favor falling short of salvation.14:34Right? So it's not salvation, but it's every other good and perfect gift that God has given to the world. Which means this, that if there has been an atheist scientist who says, I do not believe in God, I hate God, actually I am God. If that atheist scientist has found anything that is right in their life, if they have discovered any truth in their life,15:01they have discovered that truth because God is a good God and his common grace gave them the mind to think, the breath to breathe, and the observation skills to see what God has created in his creation. Which means that there has been any scientific endeavor in the history of the world, it is only but from the common grace of God. God's grace is the fertilizer for any scientific endeavor.15:32That is true of the Christian and the non-Christian alike. That's why the Bible says that it rains upon the righteous person. And you know who it also rains upon? The unrighteous. Because that is the common grace of God on this world. God's creation is the soil. This common grace is the fertilizer.15:59And whether we think about it or not, the scientific approach itself is founded upon the principles that God has created. Now, we have scientists in this room. We have physicians. We have nurses. We have people in this room that have been trained on the scientific process. I'm going to speak to you for about two minutes. The scientific theory itself is grounded on these two important principles.16:28Evidence, because science is the study of observation. There has to be evidence and probability. And it goes like this. If I see something happens, then I can make hypothesis on the fact that it might happen in other places and at other times. For instance, the law of gravity says that if you jump today here, you will not float indefinitely.16:55Because there is a force called gravity that holds you to the core of the earth. Did you know, by extension, though, that the measure of weight is not really a measure of body weight. It's a measure of the effects of gravity on your body. Which means the heavier we weigh, the more gravity you have upon you. I'll let you go home and work through that.17:26That's free of charge today. That's a Labor Day gift to you. So the law of gravity would say that the effects of gravity are not simply true in this location right now, but they're true around the world. And not simply on this date, at this time, in this year, but that the laws of gravity have been true throughout time. Does that make sense? So, now, let me give you God's underpinning and his undergirding behind the scientific theory.17:56In theology, we have words for at all places and at all times. We say that God is omniscient, that he is everywhere. That is a spiritual principle that undergirds the observation of the scientific theory. Whether we acknowledge that or not, it is true. We say that God has, he was, he is, and he will be.18:23What's the spiritual word for that? He is eternal. You see how God undergirds his creation on a daily basis. Science is nothing more than the study of the character of God through his creation. What a great joy it is to see. Now, let's redeem science as we end today.18:52We need science because as a human endeavor, it observes the effects of sin on a fallen world. And we need science because it helps us see God's creation. Which, as Pastor James has already said, when we see God's creation, then the purpose of God's creation is not to stop at creation. Because you are not the center of the universe. And I am not the center of the universe. And creation is not the center of the universe.19:20God has given us his creation that we might see the creator. So let's spend some time together and redeem science because that's why God has given it to us. Genesis 1-1. In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. Church, the Christian worldview begins where? If you need to cheat, look at Genesis 1-1, okay?19:50In the beginning, what's the next word? God. Christian worldview does not begin with creation. Christian worldview does not begin with humanity. A Christian worldview in a biblical reading and right context is what? In the beginning, God. We start with God. That is where all paths should lead us to.20:19That's why the Catechism says that the chief end of every person is to know God and glorify him. And we must be very careful how we speak of the gospel. The chief end of man is not for you to go to heaven one day. The chief end of man is not for you to have a mansion or to have streets of golds with Wi-Fi that will never go out. And a cable provider that will never cut off ESPN.20:47That's not God's eternal desire for you. Listen, heaven is heaven because God's presence is there. And the greatest thing that you and I can ever experience for eternity is to be in the presence of God because our lives begin and end where the Bible begins, in the beginning, God. Science should be the eternal pursuit of knowing the creator personally.21:16Knowing the creator personally. And the Bible takes this for granted. Did you notice that the Bible does not try to explain God to you? We don't open Genesis and the Bible doesn't say, okay, before we start from the beginning, let me explain where God came from and how he got his origins and let's explain this creation thing. The Bible assumes that God has always been there.21:45As if God needs to explain himself to us. Because whether you or I believe in him as creator, he created you. And if you say to me, pastor, I don't believe in God. He has given me a mind to reason and everything that I need to know in life, I know by my mind. I'm going to tell you, that's quite interesting. Because the mind that you say elevates you to a spiritual reality was created by someone.22:13And the mind that you used to think was given to you by a creator who created you to know him and experience him forever. But God has given us free choice. He will not force himself upon you. He will not force you to worship him. One day, every knee will bow. And every tongue will confess. But he has given you a choice to know him today.22:43Science is the eternal pursuit of knowing the creator personally. Which means one day in heaven, we will all be scientists. Secondly, let's redeem science. Psalm 19, verse 1. C.S. Lewis says this. The heavens declare the glory of God. And the expanse proclaims the work of his hands.23:13Day after day, they pour forth speech. Night after night, they communicate knowledge. C.S. Lewis called this the greatest poem in the Psalms. And he said it was one of the greatest lyrics written in the entire world. It's the reminder that creation is not lifeless. You can study creation empirically.23:41You can quantify creation. You can hypothesize about it. And you can experiment upon it. But creation in itself is not a static, monolithic entity. It is dynamic. Actually, look what Psalm says about creation. What is creation doing? It is declaring the glories of the Lord. So when you experiment upon creation, you know what you're doing?24:08You are hearing creation call you in and say, hey, experiment upon me. But we're pointing you to Jesus. Because creation is declaring the glory of the Lord. And what does the expanse do? It proclaims the work of his hands. Creation is calling you in and saying, hey, listen up. Glorify the Lord.24:37Magnify the Lord with me. Remember Jesus? The people were telling him, hey, tell your followers to calm down. Tell them to quiet down. Why are they worshiping you like this? And Jesus says what? They can be quiet. But when they stop, the rocks begin. Jesus is pointing us back to Psalm 19 and saying, the heavens will declare, creation will proclaim the works of God's hand.25:00Scientific discovery through medicine and experimentation and mathematical proof is one way of observing and joining creation in a beautiful chorus of praise. So if you are a scientist, and I know we have some here, every time you experiment for the glory of God, you are joining creation in a chorus of praise to the creator.25:23Verse 2 and 3. Day after day, they pour forth their speech. Have you ever wondered if creation gets tired of praising? If you've ever wondered that, the psalmist would say, no, they never get tired.25:54Because day after day, they pour forth speech. And creation is not simply a morning person, as some of you are. Creation is also a night owl. Look at the next verse. Night after night, creation communicates knowledge. Now, verse 3. Proclaiming, explaining, communicating, declaring.26:22But there is no speech and there are no words. Their voice is not heard. Hebrew poet H.N. Bialik would call this the language of images. That creation is not saying verbally, but it is the images of God's imprint upon the world. Which means, scientists, every time that you conduct experiments, you are giving language to creation's praise.26:53Doctor, every time you help someone because of medical advancement that you have received from observing God's handiwork. Every time you do that, you are participating and you are giving language to the image of God upon this world. And may we participate in that pursuit. Let me give you some words of encouragement that help us live this out.27:24First, it is not healthy. It is not healthy to read the Bible as a scientific manual. You say, well, you just said science was a good thing. And now you're telling me not to read the Bible through the lens of science? That's not what I said. But if science in its purest form is the theory or the method of observing, experimenting, and testing.27:48Not everything in life is accessible through human observation. Again, Genesis 1-1. Can you prove to me through the scientific method that in the beginning, God? Can anyone here reduplicate that moment that God created all things?28:14No. So we must be very careful not to force the Bible through our theological lens or even scientific lens. So if you're reading the Bible and saying, I need an answer to my question and I'm going to read the Bible and make it fit my worldview, that is not the intent of the Bible. The Bible is not a scientific manual.28:42It's not a car manual. Actually, the Bible is not even a manual of humanity or a historical treatise. A Bible is a living, holy book that points us to a living, holy God. Read the Bible to see the glory of the Lord. Do not forget the purpose of Scripture is for you to know God. Secondly, let me encourage this.29:13If we have scientists here today, chemists, physicists, astronomers, and you say, well, I am struggling, but I cannot reconcile my field of study with the truth that I see in the Word of God. Listen to what Francis Schaeffer says. He says, when all the facts are rightly understood, there will be no final conflict between Scripture and natural science. Which means today, if you struggle because your understanding of natural science and your understanding of God himself do not reconcile,29:42there will be a day when science finally catches up and then all things will make sense. If there is a conflict in natural understanding and the holiness of God, it is not God who is the issue. We live in a fallen, broken world, and we can only help but to observe things from a fallen, broken lens.30:07But when Jesus Christ returns, our lens will be made whole again. And one day we will finally say to God, God, now it all makes sense. Because I see you as you are. So if you're frustrated because you live in a fallen, broken world, one day Jesus will make this world right again. And our observation of the natural world will be made clear.30:39And all conflicts will find resolution. And church, I simply want to give thanks that in this faith community, we have born-again chemists. We have born-again biologists. We have born-again researchers and physicians. We have born-again mathematicians. We have born-again engineers. And some of them have prayed over you.31:08Some of them have watched your children. Some of them have taught your life group today. I am thankful that God uses scientists and science to proclaim his glory to Bethel Baptist Church, to St. Clair County, and to the ends of the earth. I'm thankful that God uses our natural gifts, talents, and abilities to make sense of a world that he created good and holy.31:28Listen to how one man used his scientific mind to enhance his faith in Jesus. His name was Dr. Brand. Dr. Brand spent most of his formative years in India, working with Hansen's disease.31:54And you might not know that name, but Hansen's disease actually has an antiquated name. It's called leprosy. And if you've heard stories, you know leprosy can cause debilitating deformities on your face, your extremities, and ultimately amputation in feet, legs, hands. And Dr. Brand, through his scientific endeavors, realized that it wasn't necessarily an issue of skin.32:18But that the horrors of leprosy, Hansen's disease, would ask you that a person would lose feeling in their extremities and that they would cause damage to themselves. And he gave his life to curing this disease. Ends up coming to the United States and uses his understanding of Hansen's disease to help diabetic patients. And some of you today have been helped through the empirical research of Dr. Brand.32:48Listen to what Dr. Brand wrote in his personal journal. He says, But you, Lord, have made me for this perilous world. You knew the hazards of our life on earth. And you even risked your own son to live in human flesh and encounter these germs. This is the journal of a Christian physician, is it not?33:17He says, Later on, at the end of his life, Dr. Brand would write these words. Later on, at the end of his life, Dr. Brand would write these words.33:37He would say, Hold me, Lord, in such aweness and awareness of your presence that your love and your love, that my parting from this body shall be the opening of a more vivid intimacy and union with the spirit of my Savior.34:02This is a Christian physician and scientist at the end of his life saying, Lord, when I part this body, may I be ready to see you face to face. Acts 17, which we read last week. Actually, two weeks ago now.34:32Paul goes through the history of humanity and he says this to an unbelieving world in Athens. He says, God did all of this that you might seek him. And perhaps that you might reach out and find him because he is not far from each of us. Look to creation and find the creator. Observe. Ask deep questions. Because at the end of the day, all truth is God's truth.35:00And if you are here today looking for truth, you will find Jesus Christ. Because he said so. Jesus says that, World, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man comes to the Father but through the Son. And if you're here today and you've always wrestled with God, I can't have faith because I have reason. God would say,35:29I gave you the reason that you might have faith. Do not stop at creation. Creation is a diving board, a springboard that you would see the one who created you to know him and experience your love. But you cannot experience his love with sin in your life. You cannot reach out your hand and grab the holiness of God if you have in your hand the filth of your transgression. But Jesus came and lived a sinless life.35:59And he shed his blood on Calvary that your sins which are dark as scarlet might be made what? White as snow. So the gospel message is not get your act together, try hard, and know me. The gospel message is no matter how hard you try, you are fallen. But Jesus took your place. So have faith.36:29Turn from your sins. Turn to Jesus and be made white again. Be made holy again. Be redeemed. Be reconciled. And be made what you should be. And join creation in this chorus of praise. Because the heavens declare the glory of the Lord. And the skies proclaim the work of his hands. How about you?36:59What are you declaring today? What are you proclaiming? If you don't know Jesus, would today be the day where you say, God, I need you. I turn from myself. Forgive me. And today, Father, I will follow you no matter the cost. If you've already given your life to Jesus, would you spend the rest of this service proclaiming, declaring, and magnifying that we have a good Father.37:29We have a holy God. And he came to redeem sinners of whom I am the chief. But let me leave you with what Charles Spurgeon said. He said, the chief of sinners make the best singers. May we magnify Jesus today.37:56Father, we thank you.← Previous in You Asked for itYou Asked for It: Jesus and CultureNext in You Asked for it →You Asked for it: The End – Eschatology 101 (Luke 21:5-7)
