There is a story I heard once about a scientist who told God, “Mankind does not need you, we can create from the dust of the earth. We can even create humans better than you!” To which God replied, “Okay, you’re on.” The scientist reached down to pick up a handful of dirt, and God quickly interrupted “Uh-uh, you get your own dirt.”
This story holds a much deeper truth than is initially evident. The common response of the non-believer, when challenged about the existence of God is, “Prove it.” This challenge has precipitated the study of apologetics by many Christians, in an effort to “prove” the validity of our belief system. The danger that many apologists face is to allow the non-believer to utilize science, reason, and logic against the Christian intellectual position. This is impossible for the non-believer. The use of reason and logic by the non-believer to try to discredit the philosophy of the believer is akin to taking a pen and paper and writing an argument against the existence of ink. The very fact that reason and logic exist is proof of an objective reality. The naturalistic viewpoint argues that the entire cosmos is a product of random chance. Isn’t random chance the basis of evolution? How did the scientist arrive at that conclusion? Was it through a scientific method, based on the rules of reason and logic? Science is based on experiments that are repeatable and observable. If everything were random, and not guided by objective laws, nothing would be repeatable (this also shows the struggle of science to prove or disprove the past, but that is for another posting). The believer has sole authority to use reason and logic, for it is only through a presupposition of order and design that reason and logic are used. The non-believer has a philosophy that is fundamentally flawed, and is irreparable, unless objective truth is conceded. The mind of the unbeliever is in need of regeneration. It is not merely a matter of two competing arguments; there really is no ground on which the non-believer can base an argument. The mind of the non-believer is in complete opposition to the truth of the Gospel. It is only belief in the God of the scriptures that man is able to see clearly the world around him.
Science and logic have many uses, but science will never be able to answer the greatest questions regarding the meaning of life. Science is not equipped to answer these questions, and the unbelieving man will search in vain to find them. It is only through faith in Christ that science can accomplish its purpose, to glorify and honor the Creator.
