Leaps of "faith" in science

Stand to Reason has a blog entry worth reading. Here is an excerpt which is a quotation of Robert Jastrow speaking. He was an agnostic astronomer:

Theologians generally are delighted with the proof that the Universe had a beginning, but astronomers are curiously upset. Their reactions provide an interesting demonstration of the response of the scientific mind - supposedly a very objective mind - when evidence uncovered by science itself leads to a conflict with the articles of faith in our profession. It turns out that the scientist behaves the way the rest of us do when our beliefs are in conflict with the evidence. We become irritated, we pretend the conflict does not exist, or we paper it over with meaningless phrases.

There is a kind of religion in science...every effect must have its cause; there is no First Cause....This religious faith of the scientist is violated by the discovery that the world had a beginning under conditions in which the known laws of physics are not valid, and as a product of forces of circumstances we cannot discover. When that happens, the scientist has lost control. If he really examined the implications, he would be traumatized. As usual when faced with trauma, the mind reacts by ignoring the implications - in science this is know as "refusing to speculate" - or trivializing the origin of the world by calling it the Big Bang, as if the Universe were a firecracker.

For the scientist who has lived by his faith in the power of reason, the story ends like a bad dream. He has scaled the mountains of ignorance; he is about to conquer the highest peak; as he pulls himself over the final rock, he is greeted by a band of theologians who have been sitting there for centuries.

Science Isn't All There Ever Was

What then was there before science, you ask? Prescience, or "foreknowledge." I came across this word for the first time in Martin Luther's "Bondage of the Will." Here's what the Bible says about God's foreknowledge in Romans 8:28-30 ....



"28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. 29 For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30 And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified."



Truly, there was (and is) prescience before mankind ever had the chance to embark upon science. How does that hit you? Can you handle the fact that God was knowing before there was even a material world (Eph. 1:4)? Can you handle the fact that science is not ultimate, even in the present? Rather, it is foreknowledge that is ultimate in the realm of knowledge - specifically, being foreknown by God. If He has given you faith to know He is real and to know He can take your sin away - you were and are and always will be foreknown by God's "prescience".

I'm Not Perfect - But I Will be Perfected!

I will admit it freely, I'm not perfect. I know - tell me something I didn't know already. Well, maybe I will. Maybe you can relate to this too: I want to be a better person than I am right now. If you don't feel that, maybe you're not looking at yourself very honestly, and just go ask your spouse or co-workers if you could be any better.

This past week, our pastor taught on Philippians 1:3-11. It concerns the change that God brings about in our lives after we begin following Christ ("gospel transformation"). Verse 6 says this, "And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ." God is the one spoken of as beginning the good work, and the day of Christ Jesus is when Jesus will return to earth in all of His glory, and He will be the ruler of the earth. This verse promises that my Sovereign God, who breathed spiritual life into me and gave me faith (at the same instant by the way) will most certainly complete the work He has already begun in me. I, and all of God's beloved children, will be perfected.

One of the tough parts of gospel transformation for me has been the waiting. I mean, we have to wait for the completion of that transformation at "the day of Christ Jesus." I so wish sometimes that I could simply take off my old man like I take off my coat (Eph 4:22), and that I would then be done with it. In reality, my sinful nature has received the fatal blow through Jesus' crucifixion and my crucifixion with Him, but it will take the rest of my earthly life for my flesh to bleed out.

Reading earlier this week in Galatians I read, "For through the Spirit, by faith we ourselves eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness." Eagerly is a good way to describe it - I want it somethin' serious! My hope as the beloved of Jesus, is to be in the presence of our great God and Savior, with my glorified/resurrected and sinless body. Ponder that - just try to imagine that - in HIS PRESENCE! I'm talking unhindered experience of HIS PRESENCE. What a day it will be! What joy there will be, what freedom (from sin, shame and guilty feelings, and freedom to worship recklessly) on that day and every one after it. No more hoping, or waiting, only experiencing and wondering at His infinite glory in ever increasing measure!

LORD, we look forward to your kingdom coming!

Why I am a Follower of Jesus

I had a conversation with a co-worker yesterday in which he asserted that the main reason I am a Christian is that my parents raised me that way. So, I am asking myself, is that really so? If that is the ultimate reason I am a Christian, then can I really expect anyone to care about the message of the Gospel which I proclaim?

I have several things to say in response to my co-worker's statement.

1) I do think my parents played a role, even a significant one, in me becoming a Christian. They sowed seeds of the Word in me that the Spirit of God used to bring me to Himself, to bring to life my dead heart.

2) I do not think my parents' teaching me about the Bible and taking me to church was any more of a guarantee that I would continue in those ways than is it a guarantee that a person whose parents do not teach them those things will not want to follow Christ later in life.

3) The ultimate reason I am a Christian is the same that for why anyone is a true follower of Jesus; namely, because God loves me and has reconciled me to Himself through His Son Jesus. He opened my eyes to see Him as more beautiful than anything, more desirable than anything, and for the first time, I really wanted HIM. So, when God purposes to reconcile someone to Himself, He cannot be thwarted by anyone or anything, regardless of upbringing, environment, geography, etc. So, no one will be excluded because of what they have or have not been taught, nor because of where they were born and lived. Certainly there are some who have not and will not turn to Christ for their removal of guilt. But, God is Sovereign and brings all of His children to Himself. The preached word is often the means of that happening, and Christ is the only way for that to happen, but some report that God is even bringing people in hostile Islamic cultures to Himself through visions and dreams.


Now, even if I were to grant his assertion, it could not be true that the main reason I am STILL a Christian is because my parents taught me that way. Why you say? Well, I have a hunger for the truth, and have sought to see if the claims of the Bible and of Jesus can be sustained. What I have found is that they certainly can be - beyond any reasonable doubt. Further, I have talked with people of very different worldviews (atheist, universalists, Mormon, Jehovah's Witness), and have not found them to be sufficient in their claims to the truth nor in giving meaning to life.

Ravi Zacharias offers the following as tests for truth, and I have found these to be so helpful. I hope you will too. Any worldview must provide all three in order to be true:

1) Logical consistency - it must not be contradictory to itself. For example, it cannot claim to be all inclusive if it excludes those who are exclusivists.

2) Imperical adequacy - does the evidence support the claims?

3) Experiential relevance - truth maters. Would the claims matter?

Ravi also explains that for life to have meaning, we need
- Wonder
- Truth
- Love
- Security

These are what I find in being a follower of Jesus, and cannot find in other worldviews. They have not passed the tests for truth, and even if they can provide wonder and love, they still lack truth and security in giving meaning.

So, in short, this is why I am a follower of Jesus - purely God's grace - grace has given eyes to see, a mind to ask questions, and a heart to believe. Now how about you? Do you care about truth? Do you want your life to be meaningful? If so, here's a challenge for you, look at Jesus - he's not hiding anything. Ask questions to a Christian who's willing to spend the time with you that it will take to help you get some real answers. I'll even volunteer.

So, why a blog?

Well, I need a place to begin - so I thought I'd state at least some of the reasons I am starting a blog.

1) I want a place to put down some of my thoughts on theology, apologetics, missional living, etc., and I want that place to be such that other folks can read the blog to critique my thinking as well as to possibly grow in their own thinking.

2) Blogging is a means of communication that my generation is excited about, and I am called to communicate to people the good news that God has done everything through Jesus that is necessary to take away our sin and shame - so it seems like a good match for getting the word out.

3) I tend to think better when I write as opposed to just talking and thinking off the cuff.

4) It would make me so happy to find out that someone has been blessed by the thinking and discussion that will take place here - so I'm doing it for my own joy too!

How often will I write? I guess we'll just have to see, but I hope to write a couple of times per week.