Science, God, and Evidence

When discussing God and Christ, some people ask some of the following questions:

• I need proof.
• Can you prove that God exists?
• Can you prove that Jesus was a real person?
• Can you prove that Jesus did the things He did and said the things He said?

These are excellent questions and you are encouraged to ask them—all of them. In fact, I believe that you should have these questioins and more answered before you can make an intellligent, informed decision about God. This topic and a few others intend to provide some of those answers.

Let's start with a quick discussion about how we answer these questions.

The Scientific Method

We are accustomed to thinking scientifically and that science plays a big part in getting answers about the universe. There is no doubt about this. For example, how would we know the answers to the following questioins without science?

• How far is the sun from the earth?
• At what temperature does water boil?
• How high is Mount Everest?
• What happens when you mix bleach and vinegar? (DON"T DO IT - BAD)

Modern man knows the answers to these questions by using scientific measurements and experimentation. For centuries, we have developed scientific methods and built upon previous knowledge.

Let's ask a science-oriented question and apply the scientific method. For example:

Example 1: Does your iPhone float?

I know, kind of a joke, but let's apply the scientific method. To do so, we would:

• Fill up a tub with a specific amount of water. Record the amount.
• Drop your iPhone into the tub of water. Record the results.
• Repeat dropping the phone another 99 times. Record the results.

The experiment was repeatable. Good. It wais observable. Good. We can record the results. Good.

The results are in: Your iPhone does NOT float. It sinks to the bottom—every time! We now have a verified scientific fact.

Now, let's use the scientific method of another kind of question.

Example 2: Was George Washington the first president of the United States?

So, to determine if Georgy boy was the first president, our method has to be:

• Observable
• Repeatable
• Recordable

I'm sure that you are seeing the problem already. Yeah, we need a time machine. That won't be invented for quite a few years. Just kidding. What to do? We already know that the answer to the quesion is "Yes", but how do we "know"?

Evidence

The George Washington question is not a scientific question. It is a question that can only be answered with evidence.

So, the questions are:

• Is there any evidence that George Washington existed?
• Was he was a historical figure?
• Was he the first president of the United States?

Here is some evidence:

• His picture is on all those one-dollar bills in your wallet and the quarters in your pocket.
• Existence of written historical documents—histories, letters, speeches, etc.
• The existence of his home in Virginia (Mount Vernon).
• Paintings of his portrait in famous museums.
• Universities and colleges have been named after him.
• A state and our capital was named after him.
• A monument was named after him.

Evidence. Quite a lot.

The Results are in: George was the first president of the United States. The evidence method works well for this question.

The God and Jesus Question

For a minute, let's separate God and Jesus (much more about that in other topics):

• The God question is a philosophical/evidence question, so we have to deal with that separately.
• Because Jesus was a historical figure, the Jesus question is an evidence question—similar to the George Washington question.

The Jesus Question

Now, let's apply evidence to the question:

Was Jesus of Nazareth a historical person? Can we reliably know what He said and did?

Here is a brief list of some of the areas of evidence:

• A man of history—document sources of the historical person of Christ apart from the Bible.
• His claims of Deity
• Messianic prophesies in the Old Testament fulfilled in Christ
• The resurrection—hoax or history?

Note: The information above can be found in "Evidence That Demands a Verdict" by Josh McDowell, available on amazon.com.

The Results are in: the existence and historical record about Jesus is reliable. But, you will have to decide that for yourself. The evidence method works well for this question.

The God Question

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