Science and the Bible
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<!-- .slide: data-background-image="https://sermons.seanho.com/img/bg/unsplash-Jztmx9yqjBw-stars.jpg" id="title" --> # Science and the Bible # <span class="zh">科學與聖經</span> >>> + **science**: observation of current real world + not scientists' **opinions** / theories + **Bible**: you can read for yourself + not **commentaries** about Bible + pastors / theologians' **opinions** + Bible itself does not **avoid** science + in fact, in very **first** verse: --- <!-- .slide: data-background-image="https://sermons.seanho.com/img/bg/earth.jpg" --> In the **beginning** <br> **God** created the **heavens** and the earth <div class="zh"> 起初， 神創造天地 </div> [Genesis <span class="zh">創</span> 1:1](# "ref") >>> + **Creation** important: where did we come from? + **who** made us and the universe? + **Time**, **space**, and matter had a beginning + but God was **pre-existent** + **Why** is creation important? --- ## The Designer <span class="zh">設計師</span> <div class="imgbox"> <div></div> <div></div> </div> >>> + car **owner** must listen to **manufacturer** + e.g., **fuel**: gasoline, not green tea + Creator defines **right** vs **wrong** for us --- ## The Manual <span class="zh">手冊</span> <div class="imgbox"> <div></div> <div></div> </div> >>> + manufacturer includes **owner's manual** + the **Bible** is our manual! + not just moral **fables** / allegory + not just great **literature** + or Western **culture** + tells us how we were **designed** + and **consequences** if we disobey + applies to **all** people, all cultures + Bible **invites** us to ask **questions** + engage the **mind** --- <!-- .slide: data-background-image="https://sermons.seanho.com/img/bg/unsplash-A1FW9lntloA-deer.jpg" --> But ask the **animals**, and they will teach you, <br/> or the **birds** in the sky, and they will tell you; <br/> or speak to the **earth**, and it will teach you, <br/> or let the **fish** in the sea inform you. <div class="zh"> 你且問**走獸**， 走獸必指教你； <br/> 又問空中的**飛鳥**， 飛鳥必告訴你； <br/> 或與**地**說話， 地必指教你； <br/> 海中的**魚**也必向你說明。 </div> [Job <span class="zh">約伯</span> 12:7-8 (p.1/2)](# "ref") >>> + Bible not **opposed** to science + zoology, ornithology, geology, marine biology + all evidence will point to the **Creator**: --- <!-- .slide: data-background-image="https://sermons.seanho.com/img/bg/unsplash-8CwoHpZe3qE-hands.jpg" --> Which of all these does not know <br/> that the **hand of the Lord** has done this? <br/> In his hand is the **life** of every creature <br/> and the **breath** of all mankind. <div class="zh"> 看這一切， 誰不知道是 <br/> **耶和華的手**做成的呢？ <br/> 凡活物的**生命**和人類的**氣** <br/> 息都在他手中。 </div> [Job <span class="zh">約伯</span> 12:9-10 (p.2/2)](# "ref") >>> + **purpose** of science: proclaim God as + **Creator** and **Sustainer** of all life + so don't be **afraid** to study science! + but ask **questions** + discern **fact** vs **opinion** --- ## Matthew Maury <span class="zh">莫里</span> (1806-1873) <div class="imgbox"> <div></div> <div></div> </div> >>> + Christian, US **naval** commander, + father of modern **oceanography** + He and his 8 siblings **memorized** + the Psalms from a young age. + Ps8:8, "all that swim in the **paths** of the seas" + used ship **records**, drift **bottles**: + map the **ocean currents** + used by ships to this day + God is the best **scientist** there is: + He made it, so + He knows what He's talking about! --- <!-- .slide: data-background-image="https://sermons.seanho.com/img/bg/unsplash-NaWKMlp3tVs-bible.jpg" --> **Knowledge** puffs up while **love** builds up. <div class="zh"> 但**知識**是叫人自高自大， <br/> 惟有**愛心**能造就人。 </div> Those who **think** they know something <br/> **do not** yet know as they ought to know. <br> But whoever **loves God** is known by God. <div class="zh"> 若有人**以為**自己知道甚麼， <br/> 按他所當知道的， 他仍是**不知道**。 若有人**愛神**， 這人乃是神所知道的。 </div> [1 Corinthians <span class="zh">歌林多前</span> 8:2-3](# "ref") >>> + quest for **knowledge**: becomes self-serving + to puff up own **ego** + "Knowledge is **power**": for **own** prestige + seek **wisdom** from God: more than **information** + even **more important**: to be **known** by God + than to know about the world. + Better to be a **child** loved by God + than PhD / CEO think self expert --- <!-- .slide: data-background-image="https://sermons.seanho.com/img/bg/unsplash-YN_JWPDYVoM-mtns.jpg" --> | The **Bible** <span class="zh">聖經</span> | **Evolution** <span class="zh">進化論</span> | | --- | --- | | **Design** and purpose <br/> <span class="zh">有設計,目的</span> | **No** intelligence <br/> <span class="zh">没有智能設計</span> | | Distinct **kinds** <br/> <span class="zh">各從其類</span> | **Common** ancestry <br/> <span class="zh">共同的祖先</span> | | **Good** creation, <br/> corrupted by sin <br/> <span class="zh">所造的都甚好</span> | Increasingly **complex** <br/> organisms <br/> <span class="zh">愈來愈複雜的生物體</span> | | **Short** history, short future <br/> <span class="zh">幾千年</span> | **Billions** of years <br/> <span class="zh">幾十億年</span> | >>> + **origins**: history, not **repeatable**. + **test** claims about **present** world + ⇒ **evidence** in support + define **evolution**: "molecules-to-man" + no God, no intelligent Designer + Kinds: a wide diversity of life was present in the original creation + "And God saw it was very good": originally a paradise, now degenerating (arrow of time goes downward, not upward) + Chronology of ~6000-9000 years also reminds us of the imminent judgment + focus on the **second** point: --- ## Evolutionary tree <span class="zh">進化樹</span> <div class="imgbox"> <div>[](http://culturedvultures.com/evolution-will-one-day-disproved-using-human-model/)</div> <div>[](http://www.nature.com/articles/nmicrobiol201648)</div> </div> >>> + **common** ancestry of all life + computer-generated **phylogenetic** trees + from organisms' DNA + (here, ribosomal proteins) + how much is **real** + alive today or recorded in fossils + how much is "artist's rendition" + (or computer simulation)? + Where are the **transitional** forms? --- ## Each according to kind <span class="zh">各從其類 <div class="imgbox"> <div></div> <div>[](https://answersingenesis.org/creation-science/baraminology/variety-within-created-kinds/)</div> </div> <div class="caption"> [AiG: Variety Within Created Kinds](https://answersingenesis.org/creation-science/baraminology/variety-within-created-kinds/) </div> >>> The phrase "each according to its kind" (10x in Gen1, and also elsewhere) implies the existence of **boundaries** between kinds of life. "Kind" is not necessarily "species" (the "Linnean lawn"), but there would be divisions, say, between fish vs frogs, or reptiles vs birds, and certainly apes vs humans. The idea is a forest of trees, with variation within a kind (e.g., tall dogs, short dogs, wolves, etc) but not crossing over into another kind (e.g., sheep). Which model fits better with what we see in the world? Not scientists' opinions, but what we see. --- ## Origin of life <span class="zh">生命的起源</span> <div class="imgbox"> <div> <!-- .element: style="background-color: white" --></div> <div><ul> <li> Only amino acids <span class="zh">氨基酸</span> </li> <li> No oxygen <span class="zh">沒有氧氣</span> </li> <li> Chirality mix <span class="zh">右旋左旋</span> </li> </ul>  <!-- .element: style="background-color: white" width="70%" --> </div> </div> <div class="caption"> [ICR: The Problem with Chirality](http://www.icr.org/article/evolution-hopes-you-dont-know-chemistry-problem-wi/) </div> >>> - Miller's experiment: ammonia + reducing atmosphere + spark: produced amino acids - Chirality: property of molecules. Proteins in life only use left-handed amino acids. DNA uses only right-handed nucleotides (essential for double-helix)! - Any experiment only reinforces the need for a designer: the experimenter put intelligence into selecting for a desired result. - Similarly with "genetic algorithm" computer simulations: the intelligence is all in the goal function - origin of life is still problematic for evolutionists today! Seeded by comets / meteors? Aliens? --- ## Pasteur's soup <span class="zh">巴斯德</span> <div class="imgbox"> <div></div> <div></div> </div> <div class="caption"> [Creation.com: Louis Pasteur](http://creation.com/louis-pasteur) </div> >>> - spontaneous generation: life (e.g., mold) from non-life (e.g., boiled soup) - Pasteur's germ theory of infection: life only comes from life - pasteurisation of milk - "The more I study nature, the more I stand amazed at the work of the Creator" --- ## Natural selection <span class="zh">自然選擇</span> Peppered moths <span class="zh">胡椒蛾</span> <div class="imgbox"> <div>[](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Biston_betularia)</div> <div>[](https://www.flickr.com/photos/drinkermoth/7889770032)</div> </div> <div class="caption"> [Creation.com: The Moth Files](http://creation.com/the-moth-files) </div> >>> - Peppered moths, black and white, in England, resting on pale lichen - Industrial revolution killed lichen, blackening trees, shifting proportion of W to B. - Evolution in action? - Before: B+W moths. After: B+W moths. Still moths, not bees! - Pollution actually had little effect on moths - Moths don't rest on trunks in daytime! - Had to be glued on for photos - No new information, only loss of information if white went extinct --- ## Degeneration <span class="zh">退化</span>, <br/> not Evolution <span class="zh">進化</span> <div class="imgbox"> <div></div> <div></div> <div>[](http://research.amnh.org/paleontology/artwork/knight/index.html)</div> </div> >>> According to the Bible, we would never see *new* kinds of life appearing (new genetic information), but only extinction. We need to protect endangered species because genetic diversity is *decreasing*, not increasing. We're not evolving, but devolving. --- ## Homology <span class="zh">同源性</span> (similarity) <div class="imgbox"> <div>[](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kibale_National_Park)</div> <div></div> </div> <div class="caption"> [AiG: Homology: Evidence of Creation?](https://answersingenesis.org/biology/homology-comparative-similarities/) </div> >>> - But we look so similar! Two eyes, two ears, DNA, etc. - => Common ancestry, or common Designer? - We hear music and recognize, "it sounds like Mozart" -- why? - Same composer --- <!-- .slide: data-background-image="static/img/creation_of_adam.jpg" --> ## Implications <span class="zh">含義</span> + Is there a Creator we are **accountable** to? + Who defines what is a "**good**" person? + How much **longer** will our world last? ⇒ **science** is not independent of **morality**! >>> - These scientific questions are not merely academic curiosities. - If there really is a Creator, then He defines what is right and wrong, what is sin and what is justice. - In addition, the Bible's timeline for the universe is very short: creation was a few thousand years ago, and also the judgment is coming very soon, not in a billion years. --- <!-- .slide: data-background-image="static/img/wm-The_Water_Planet.jpg" --> But they **deliberately forget** that long ago <br/> by God’s word the **heavens** came into being <br/> and the **earth** was formed out of water and by water. <br/> By these **waters** also the world of that time <br/> was **deluged** and destroyed. <div class="zh"> 他們**故意忘記**， 從太古， <br/> 憑神的命有了**天**， <br/> 並從水而出、 藉水而成的**地**。 <br/> 故此， 當時的世界**被水淹沒**就消滅了。 </div> [2 Peter <span class="zh">彼得後</span> 3:5-6 (p.1/2)](# "ref") >>> The Bible reminds us of the importance of both Creation and the Flood. The Flood was God's judgment on a wicked world. After the Flood, God promised never again to use water to wipe out the earth. The symbol of this promise is the rainbow. --- <!-- .slide: data-background-image="https://sermons.seanho.com/img/bg/wheeler-rainbow.jpg" --> By the same word the **present** heavens and earth <br/> are reserved for **fire**, <br/> being kept for the **day of judgment** <br/> and destruction of the ungodly. <div class="zh"> 但**現在**的天地 <br/> 還是憑著那命存留， <br/> 直留到不敬虔之人受審判 <br/> 遭沉淪的日子， 用火焚燒。 </div> [2 Peter <span class="zh">彼得後</span> 3:7 (p.2/2)](# "ref") [© James Wheeler)](http://www.souvenirpixels.com/photo-blog/double-rainbow "caption") >>> However, this world is getting just as wicked, if not more so, as the world of Noah's time. And God has a coming judgment, this time by fire. God provided an Ark to save all who would enter, and Noah was surely telling all his friends and family of the coming judgment and inviting them into the Ark to be saved. In the same way, the only salvation from the coming judgment is through Jesus Christ -- and we must, like Noah, spread the word with urgency. --- <!-- .slide: data-background-image="https://sermons.seanho.com/img/bg/unsplash-Jztmx9yqjBw-stars.jpg" --> The **heavens** declare the **glory** of God; <br/> the skies proclaim the **work** of his hands. <div class="zh"> 諸**天**述說神的**榮耀**； <br/> 穹蒼傳揚他的**手段** </div> [Psalm <span class="zh">詩</span> 19:1](# "ref") >>> The more we study the creation, the more it leads us to glorify the Creator. We should not be afraid of science, but discern clearly between scientific fact and scientists' opinions. The Creator has revealed Himself, via His Word and His work, and He will glorify Himself again in the coming judgment.