Science has been called the Messiah of the modern world.
Science will fill all our material needs, it is said; and the study of our brain and of life will in the end lead to the fulfillment of all spiritual needs, and it will conquer death. This seems possible to the unbeliever because to him time is eternal.
But in this the Christian sees precisely the limits of science, because he knows that time is only short, and lasts from creation to consummation.
In the following we will show by three examples the limits of science with regard to time—the past, the present and the future.
SCIENCE LIMITED IN THE PAST
If it were possible for a scientist to study Adam in Paradise, let us assume one day after his creation, then this scientist would come to the conclusion, based on intimate knowledge of scientific laws, that Adam was about thirty-five years of age (e.g.).
The truth is that Adam was only “one day old.”
This limitation of science should be borne in mind when discussing the problems associated with creation or evolution.
It seems to this writer illogical to explain the “coming into being of this universe” with scientific or natural laws which in themselves are only the result of this “coming into being of the universe.”
If this is still attempted, then creation becomes evolution, and Genesis 1 and 2 becomes a lie.
SCIENCE LIMITED IN THE PRESENT
When Jesus fed five thousand people, He took two fishes and divided them into, let us say, four parts each, so obtaining possibly some twenty thousand fragments.
To the scientist two times four is eight. And any other answer than eight is impossible.
Thus any miracle shows the true nature of science in the present time: limited in scope to the temporal laws of our own finite universe.
SCIENCE LIMITED IN THE FUTURE
The Bible tells us that Jesus will return to this earth the same way as He ascended after the resurrection: with a visible body, with nail-scarred hands, as the Apostles knew him.
And all human beings, regardless of which side of the earth they happen to be on, or if they are “alive” or “dead,” will see him; not on television, but as the disciples saw him on Ascension Day.
This is scientifically impossible; but it is truth. For then time will stop, and science will cease and we shall be with the Lord for ever.
Our views on time and the relationships between the spheres of life and eternity are taught us by the Bible God’s revelation to us today.
A proper understanding of science is subject to God’s Word. However, in our days, and sometimes even in our own ranks, the Bible is made subject to science.
The phrase: “The Bible is not a science book, but a book that shows us the way of salvation” dismisses many an argument in favor of science. But jf the Bible were only that, the gospel according to John would have sufficed.
No, the Bible is much more; it is God’s revelation for all of life and as such stands high above any science book; it puts all spheres of life in their proper place, and it shows us science for what it is: A blessing if used to the glory of God, but a colossal deception if seen as an eternal truth.
L. Stellingwerff