Faith and Science: (3)

Text: Topic: Beyond Science, Human Being, Fulfillment in God Big Idea of the Message: Human beings are more than just our natural bodies, and there is more than just the scientific universe. We long for more in life that can only be found in God. Application Point: We will find our meaning for life in God.

Faith and Science: 3

Topic: Beyond Science, Human Being, Fulfillment in God Big Idea of the Message: Human beings are more than just our natural bodies, and there is more than just the scientific universe. We long for more in life that can only be found in God.

Acts 17:24–31 NLT

“He is the God who made the world and everything in it. Since he is Lord of heaven and earth, he doesn’t live in man-made temples, and human hands can’t serve his needs—for he has no needs. He himself gives life and breath to everything, and he satisfies every need. From one man he created all the nations throughout the whole earth. He decided beforehand when they should rise and fall, and he determined their boundaries. “His purpose was for the nations to seek after God and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him—though he is not far from any one of us. For in him we live and move and exist. As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’ And since this is true, we shouldn’t think of God as an idol designed by craftsmen from gold or silver or stone. “God overlooked people’s ignorance about these things in earlier times, but now he commands everyone everywhere to repent of their sins and turn to him. For he has set a day for judging the world with justice by the man he has appointed, and he proved to everyone who this is by raising him from the dead.”

Today we’re continuing our Faith and Science: Unraveling the Mysteries series.

Application Point: We will find our meaning for life in God.

Application Point: We will find our meaning for life in God.

In our past couple of sessions, our main thought has been how indescribable God is. We try to come up with words to explain his beauty, his majestic awesomeness, but we quickly fall short.

In this series we’re using information science has taught us about life, the earth, the universe to see the creator behind it all.

Often, people assume that faith and science are in opposition of each other, but we’re looking at how they actually compliment each other.

First off, everyone has a specific worldview. This is how specific information we receive is filtered through, its our belief system.

A worldview is the fundamental cognitive orientation of an individual or society encompassing the whole of the individual's or society's knowledge and point of view. A world view can include natural philosophy; fundamental, existential, and normative postulates; or themes, values, emotions, and ethics.

Where did we come from?

Why are we here?

Is there a God?

If there is a God, who is he/what does he want?

What happens to us after we die?

What is morality? Is it absolute or subjective?

Your worldview will direct the way you interpret surrounding information. Example, fossils.

Watch this quick video.

Fossils and the Flood

As you see, our worldview influences what we do with the evidence we have.

It’s kind of like the Baader-Meinhof (badder mainhoff) phenomenon, also know as the recency illusion.

This phenomenon occurs when the thing you've just noticed, experienced or been told about suddenly creeps up constantly.

For example, you’re in the market for a new car. You go to the car dealership and the car salesman shows you a car that you weren’t aware of.

This happened to me when the Prius came out in the early 2000’s.

You like the car but want to do more research on it. As you’re driving home you see one at the stoplight. There’s another one at the store. My neighbor has one? All of a sudden, you start seeing them everywhere.

The recency illusion isn’t some matrix type conspiracy of an alternate dimension that has been hidden from your actual reality. It’s a phenomenon that’s called selective attention.

Our brains will tune out seemingly unimportant details and focus on relevant information. This happens with our worldview bias as well.

If you believe the world is billions of years old, when you see a dinosaur fossil, that will conform your worldview.

If you’re a young earth creationist, that same fossil will confirm the biblical account of a worldwide flood.

Selective attention can happen when we our belief system is being threatened.

Watch this video about selective attention.

Gorilla Video

How does all of this relate to what we’re talking about today?

People in general tend to focus their attention toward things that confirm or validate their worldview. If you believe the earth is millions of years old, you will use the data around you as evidence toward your belief.

But, it goes both ways. We must look at everything subjectively through the lens of the Bible.

Looking through the lens of the Bible.

If we believe the Bible is the infallible word of God, we use it as the foundation of our worldview, as a lens to filter the information we observe on a daily basis, giving us a proper view of the world.

Arnold Schwarzenegger image

Think sunglasses.

I haven’t noticed a lot of sunglasses up here in Oregon. Southern California, now, everyone wears sunglasses year-round.

Sunglasses image

Other than looking cool, sunglasses are used to filter out harmful sun rays and they make it easer to view our surroundings when the sun is bright.

Or reading glasses.

Reading Glasses image

Some of us need glasses to read. We use a lens to magnify letters so that we can read. Reading glasses help bring important information into focus so that we can read correctly.

Here’s the cool part. Faith and Science is just an example. We must look through the lens of the Bible even when it’s difficult and hurts.

Here’s the not so cool part. Most christians have never read through the Bible completely. I’m not talking Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus… 1, 2, 3 John, Jude, and Revelation in order. I’m talking at some point in time, having read with comprehension, each book of the Bible.

Believe me, I know. It’s not easy.

But, how can we look through the lens of the Bible without the Bible?

Missing Lens image

We can’t. It’s not possible. We’ll have a distorted view of reality.

Dirty Lens image

Like when you haven’t cleaned you glasses in a while.

Still Blurry Image

Or if your lens prescription isn’t up-to-date.

If you don’t know where the Bible stands on a specific topic, then a correct biblical worldview will be difficult.

We’re going to start a new series in a few weeks on the Bible. I’m really excited about it. I’m still working on the exact date to start on. School stuff is about to ramp up. But, I’m looking at September 1 or 8. We might have a Sunday morning chapel on the 1st.

This is going to be a fun series.

Okay, back on track. Worldview, biblical lens, selective attention.

Selective attention. Just like in the video, we tend to pay attention only to what is important to us and skip over the other details.

If you believe in monsters, you’ll see monsters in the night.

If you believe in aliens, you’ll see evidence of their existence in our vast universe.

If you believe in billions of years, you’ll interpret the fossil record as evidence.

If you believe in a young earth, the data will reinforce that belief.

The point is, we’ll see what we want to see. We select the information that benefits our belief system and ignore opposing thoughts. Remember willingly ignorant?

We all do it.

What’s the answer?

Here’s my challenge. It’s difficult, I know.

Boy with Glasses image

What if we looked at the Bible, God’s message to us, with new eyes?

Not like this boy, stacking various views upon views.

One thing missionaries around the world have to do is make sure that new believers don’t just add Jesus to their current worldview or belief system.

We are a new creation in Christ. The old is past, the new has come.

Let’s look at God’s message to us, with new eyes.

Not tainted with the lens of a specific political view point.

Not tainted with the lens of this is how I was raised.

Not tainted with the lens of tradition.

Not tainted with the lens of this is how we’ve always done it.

What if we approached life with a new set of biblical glasses as our starting point and adjusted our beliefs accordingly?

Go ahead and turn to or you can follow along with the text on the screen.

As Paul and Silas were preaching the word of God, some religious leaders seised Paul and took him to Athens. Athens was full of philosophers that spend the majority of their time discussing the latest ideas. They asked Paul about his new teaching because they though is was strange and they were curious. Paul noticed idols all through the city and one was even dedicated “To an Unknown God.” Let’s pick up here in verse 22.

Acts 17:22–28 NLT

So Paul, standing before the council, addressed them as follows: “Men of Athens, I notice that you are very religious in every way, for as I was walking along I saw your many shrines. And one of your altars had this inscription on it: ‘To an Unknown God.’ This God, whom you worship without knowing, is the one I’m telling you about. “He is the God who made the world and everything in it. Since he is Lord of heaven and earth, he doesn’t live in man-made temples, and human hands can’t serve his needs—for he has no needs. He himself gives life and breath to everything, and he satisfies every need. From one man he created all the nations throughout the whole earth. He decided beforehand when they should rise and fall, and he determined their boundaries. “His purpose was for the nations to seek after God and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him—though he is not far from any one of us. For in him we live and move and exist. As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’

22 So Paul, standing before the council, addressed them as follows: “Men of Athens, I notice that you are very religious in every way, 23 for as I was walking along I saw your many shrines. And one of your altars had this inscription on it: ‘To an Unknown God.’ This God, whom you worship without knowing, is the one I’m telling you about.24 “He is the God who made the world and everything in it. Since he is Lord of heaven and earth, he doesn’t live in man-made temples, 25 and human hands can’t serve his needs—for he has no needs. He himself gives life and breath to everything, and he satisfies every need. 26 From one man he created all the nations throughout the whole earth. He decided beforehand when they should rise and fall, and he determined their boundaries.

27 “His purpose was for the nations to seek after God and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him—though he is not far from any one of us. 28 For in him we live and move and exist.”

We’re back to significant insignificance.

We will only find true meaning for life in God.

Let’s pray.