The year is 1683 in the north of England. You see a man take a sample of reddish soil in order to take it to his laboratory to do experiments on it. You wonder why an intelligent man would do such a thing. The reason why he does experiments is because of the inductive principle. The inductive principle is the fundamental axiom forming the basis for all experimental science. The inductive principle is derived from teachings contained in the Bible. The whole edifice of modern science and high technology rests squarely on the biblical worldview.
The ancient and medieval thinkers who studied the material world did not use the biblical inductive principle but instead used deductive reasoning. To deduct means to subtract. Deductive reasoning meant that a scientist (called a natural philosopher in medieval times) would consult an authority such as the writings of Aristotle and deduce or subtract his conclusion from the wisdom and general observations of the expert.
Aristotle (384-322 BC), son of a physician and student of Plato did much study of the material world. He did not formulate any scientific experimental methodologies, however, because he regarded the material world as random and disordered. The ancient Greek worldview considered the natural world to be chaotic and inconsistent. No one with such a worldview would do much experimentation because in this worldview the results of an experiment would not be conclusive but just be considered a chaotic event.
Even a secular source such as Chambers' Biographical Dictionary admits that the preoccupation with Aristotle's teachings during medieval times held up the advance of science.
Inductive reasoning is an entirely different way of looking at the world. To induct means to add. Inductive reasoning means to draw general conclusions from particular cases. You add the findings of your experiments together to draw your conclusion.
The inductive approach to physical science is inferred from the biblical worldview because the Bible teaches that God is a lawgiver who created an orderly, consistent universe. Scientists with this view reasoned that, for instance if water freezes at 32 degrees in one place it freezes at the same temperature in all places. Therefore experiments can be done and the results can be generalized to the entire universe and general principles, called scientific principles or natural laws, can be discovered. God gave laws to govern man and God also gave laws to govern nature.
Francis Bacon (1561-1626), a devout believer in the Bible, was the formulator of the scientific method, the basic underpinning of all modern science. Bacon wrote "There are two books laid before us to study...first, the volume of the scriptures, which reveal the will of God; then the volume of the creatures, which expresses his power," (from Men of Science, Men of God by Dr. Henry M. Morris p. 15)
More than 200 years after Bacon's death, modern experimental science was still called "Baconianism." Bacon did much to repudiate Aristotelian deductionism and to promote inductive reasoning. Virtually all founders of modern scientific disciplines were either ardent Christians or held to a biblical worldview.
It is not mere coincidence that a century after the Bible was translated into the language of ordinary people in the 1500s that the fundamental scientific breakthroughs occurred. Biblical literacy and biblical reasoning hit the European people like a tidal wave.
The ancient Greeks did engineering and mathematics but no inductive science. The Greek Pagans believed in a random universe. The Hindus of the East believed the physical universe is "maya" or illusion. Hindus did virtually no scientific inquiry. The Islamic intellectual elite was heavily influenced by Aristotle and his deductionism. The Animists of Africa believed that spirits inhabit trees and animals and therefore they typically did no experimentation on nature.
Modern secular man looks with pride on the wonders of science and technology as if it was all the work of human minds and hands. The Bible is disdained as an archaic book yet it is the Bible alone that gives the very basis for science!
When you start your car or turn on your computer or use any other high tech equipment remember that the Bible made it possible. Let's give thanks to God who inspired the Bible. The fact that the Bible gives the correct worldview for physical science is just one more reason to trust the Bible in other areas including spiritual matters. The Bible gives the message of salvation through Christ who died for our sins.
The Bible is scientifically accurate! Find the evidence at www.icr.org.
Steps to salvation:
Jesus said "Ye must be born again." (John 3:7)
- Believe that God created you and loves you and sent the Messiah (Messiah is Hebrew for Christ) to redeem you.
- Believe that Jesus the Messiah came in fulfillment of over 300 Bible prophecies to die for you to take upon Himself the penalty for your sins. (Isaiah 53:5-6, John 6:29, Romans 4:5, First Peter 3:18)
- Turn from sin and call on the name of Jesus to receive forgiveness. (Romans 10:13)
- Receive Jesus as Savior and experience the new birth. (John 1:12, Acts 2:38)
- Follow Him as Lord. (John 14:21)
"Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Romans 10:13)
To receive the salvation that Jesus purchased for us at the terrible cost of His suffering and death on our behalf I invite you to pray this simple prayer:
"Dear heavenly Father, I thank you for sending Jesus, the promised Messiah, to die for my sins. I admit that I am a sinner and I ask for your forgiveness on the basis of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. I ask you to fill me with your Holy Spirit to empower me to serve you under the Lordship of Jesus Christ, Amen."
If you prayed that prayer in the humble sincerity of your heart then you have received everlasting life, which includes power to live right in this life and entrance into heaven in the afterlife!
Bill Nugent, Overcomer Ministries of West Harrison, New York, USA
(C) 2010 William P. Nugent, permission granted to email or republish if credit given
Read Bill Nugent's award winning Christian book, Lawful or Legalistic: How New Testament Believers Must Understand Old Testament Laws. For more information and to order click here.
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DEFENDING THE FAITH
APOLOGETIC ARTICLES
Bill Nugent currently writes a series of articles called "Defending the Faith" which, as the title suggests, defend the Christian faith from the many attacks leveled against it in our postmodern world.
The articles deal with such topics as evolution, UFOs, cults, modern/postmodern philosophy, liberal theology and popular culture. At the end of each article is an invitation to receive Christ as Savior and Lord. These articles are sent out over the Internet to several opt-in email lists. People who receive these articles are encouraged to resend them to their own lists and in this way reach their own unsaved relatives and friends with the Gospel.
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