With the many scientific discoveries and achievements that have been made in modern times and all the benefits that modern science has brought to man, Science has acquired tremendous esteem in the eyes of man – and quite often, much greater esteem than it deserves.

Some believe that Science will solve every ailment and problem. They say we are close to discovering the secret of immortality and those who can afford the treatment may soon be able to prolong their life indefinitely. Babies may soon be born with built-in immunity to diseases. High blood pressure, diabetes and even cancer may be eliminated in time to come. In such an environment some will wonder whether God and His Word are still relevant. Who needs them when Science can do everything for us?

But the truth of the matter is that Science is meant to serve God and bring glory to Him. It was not man’s invention but the product of man’s obedience to God’s command to subdue the earth and to exercise dominion over creation. Soon after Adam was created, the Lord brought the animals and birds to him (Genesis 2:19). And Adam named all of them probably according to what he observed in them. This was how science began – as man’s attempt to observe, classify, analyse, understand, and explain in detail the operation of the universe and its inhabitants. This knowledge is then used by man to improve his life, to harness all the properties of creation for his own benefit, and ultimately for God’s glory.

Psalm 8:6 records the divine mandate that God gave to man: "Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet" Every marvel of science that we learn about through subduing the earth shows us how great God really is. This is why the psalm begins and ends with the words – "O LORD our Lord, how excellent is Thy name in all the earth!"

At the same time, Science ought to make us realise how small we are. Psalm 8:3,4 – "When I consider Thy heavens, the work of Thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which Thou hast ordained; What is man, that Thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that Thou visitest him?" From this we see that Science will tend to produce humility rather than pride. This has been amply demonstrated in the lives and testimonies of many godly scientists.

Johann Kepler (1571-1630), the founder of physical astronomy, wrote "Since we astronomers are priests of the highest God in regard to the book of nature, it befits us to be thoughtful, not of the glory of our minds, but rather, above all else, of the glory of God."

John Ray (1627-1705), the father of English natural history who was the greatest zoologist and botanist of his day, wrote a book entitled, "The wisdom of God Manifested in the Works of Creation." Carolus Linnaeus (1707-1778), the father of biological taxonomy, attempted to delineate the original "kinds" of Genesis 1:11,12,21 and 25. This gave rise to his system of classification which is still in use today. He firmly believed in the Genesis account as literal history.

Michael Faraday (1791-1867), the great physicist who developed the foundational concepts of electricity and magnetism, was active in the various ministries of his church and had an abiding faith in the Bible and in prayer. Charles Babbage (1792-1871), the founder of computer science who developed information storage and retrieval systems, was also a Christian with strong convictions. He wrote an important book defending the Bible and miracles. John Dalton (1766-1844), the father of atomic theory, was an orthodox, Bible-believing Christian.

Werner Von Braun (1912-1977), the father of space science, wrote, "...the vast mysteries of the universe should only confirm our belief in the certainty of its Creator. I find it as difficult to understand a scientist who does not acknowledge the presence of a superior rationality behind the existence of the universe as it is to comprehend a theologian who would deny the advances of science."

We have seen that the Bible provides man with the very basis of Science, which is: To glorify God and to humble man. However, some would insist that Science conflicts with the Bible. They allege that there are scientific mistakes in the Bible, especially in the first 11 chapters of Genesis.

Although the Bible is not a science textbook it does speak accurately and authoritatively on Science. In fact, there is much evidence that the Bible is fully consistent with true Science. E.g. Job 26:7 – "He stretcheth out the north over the empty place, and hangeth the earth upon nothing." When this was written about 3,500 years ago, many were mistakenly believing that the world was supported by a giant turtle, and others thought that it was carried on Atlas’ broad back. The foundation upon which the earth rests is now known to be nothing.

Job 38:31 – "Canst thou bind the sweet influences of Pleiades, or loose the bands of Orion?" This refers to the constellation of stars called the Pleiades. But what does the ‘binding’ refer to? Photographs taken with the use of modern telescopes show the principal stars of this constellation as enveloped and "bound" together by delicate streams of nebulous matter.

Job 28:24,25 – "For He looketh to the ends of the earth, and seeth under the whole heaven; To make the weight for the winds; and He weigheth the waters by measure." The weight of air is known today as 101,325 pascals. The amount of water in this world was carefully measured by God. It is now known that the earth’s water content cannot be appreciably increased or decreased without destroying life.

These are only a sampling of passages which show that the Bible is consistent with true science. However when people claim that there are scientific mistakes in the Bible, what they are talking about is not true science but speculative science. E.g. the Big Bang is a speculation about the origin of the universe. Evolution is a speculation about the origin of Life on earth. These speculations or theories are false science (1 Timothy 6:20) since they are based on the very unscientific assumption that miracles never happen. By this assumption anything supernatural or miraculous that cannot be explained without God’s intervention must be rejected.

Because miracles are historical events that can never be repeated, it is impossible to study how they took place. We can only examine the existing evidence of these miracles, as recorded in the Bible.

David Hume, an 18th century Scottish philosopher and historian, claimed very boldly that biblical miracles cannot be proved. He wrote several essays attempting to disprove religion and in one of them he dealt with the subject of miracles. In most debates and discussions on this subject this essay is cited as indisputable proof that the miracles of the Bible did not take place. Hume’s main argument is that, "There is more likelihood that the witnesses of a supposed miracle were deceived, than that such a ‘violation of the laws of nature’ in contradiction to universal experience, should have taken place."

There are at least two things wrong with this argument. The first is Hume’s definition of a miracle as ‘a violation of the laws of nature.’ Miracles do not violate the laws of nature. They only transcend the range of natural forces. For instance, when you raise up your arm you are not violating the law of gravity. You are merely using a greater force to overcome it. In the same manner, when miracles took place, all the laws of Science were still at work, but they were simply overcome by a force greater than nature.

The second thing that is wrong with Hume’s argument is that he labels miracles as being in contradiction to universal experience. This begs the question – What is universal experience? Is it limited only to the experience of skeptics like Hume? If so, how can it be universal? To be fair, the term universal experience must also include all the witnesses who testify to miraculous events. In any court of law, the judge’s decision is based on the testimony of all available witnesses. As long as they are of good character their testimony cannot be rejected. No testimony can be dismissed from consideration just because the judge is prejudiced against some witnesses.

Because miracles are such rare events in history, the number of human eyewitnesses to them is understandably small. But when we say "a small number" we do not mean that only 1 or 2 persons witnessed each Bible miracle. It may be possible for 1 or 2 to be deceived by what they saw, but this is most unlikely for the witnesses of biblical miracles, who numbered from several tens to several thousands. The ten plagues of Egypt were witnessed by the whole nation of Egypt and the Israelites. Christ’s miracle of multiplying 5 loaves and 2 fishes was witnessed by more than 5,000 people (Matthew 14:21). The resurrected Christ was seen by more than 500 brethren at once (1 Corinthians 15:6). But when all these witnesses are added up, they are still few compared with the rest of humanity who did not see these miracles and who must be content to accept the testimony of these ‘few’ witnesses on the basis of their reliable character.

This is precisely what we do whenever we read the newspapers about an event that goes on in some part of the world. We who do not have the opportunity to have first-hand experience of the events rely entirely on the testimony of a few reporters at the scene. But we fully accept what they have written on the basis of their reputation as truthful reporters. And when the reports from different reporters are consistent with each other, then we have greater confidence to trust what they have written. This is also the way that every court of law verifies the facts of a case – it is all based on the strength of the unified testimony of some credible witnesses. If the court refuses to accept this, then it is no longer possible to make fair judgments on any matter!

Hence, the proof of miracles in the Bible ultimately lies in the character of their witnesses and the quality of their testimony. Although the witnesses of the miracles of the Bible are no longer around to give us a full report of what they saw or to be cross-examined, we do have the next best thing which will be accepted in any court of law – their affidavits (cf. John 21:24 and 1 John 1:1-3).

Since we now possess the affidavits of those who witnessed the miracles, we can scrutinize them thoroughly and compare them one with another. For instance, the 4 Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) provide parallel accounts of Christ’s miracles and can be used to verify the accuracy of their witness. Going further than that we may also compare their records with evidences from geography, archaeology and history, such as the writings of Josephus, Suetonius, Tacitus, and Pliny the Younger. Many who have done this have emerged fully satisfied with the reliability of the biblical records of the miracles and reached the conclusion that there is no reason to doubt their authenticity.

The phenomena of science are established in the same way as the miracles of the Bible – by reliable witnesses. The conclusions of science are founded on eye-witness observations of things that still happen, while the miracles of the Bible are founded on eye-witness observations of things that have already happened. The fact is both witnesses are reliable and trustworthy.

And both also have the same origin and purpose. They come from God, the Creator of heaven and earth, and they direct us to look to God, to praise Him and know Him! May we always respond to Science and the Bible by glorifying the Lord – "O LORD our Lord, how excellent is Thy name in all the earth!" —CS