SCIENCE VS. THE BIBLE

"In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth" (Genesis 1:1).  "By the Word of the Lord the heavens were made, and all the host of them by the breath of His mouth...For He spoke and it was done, He commanded, and it stood fast" (Psalm 33:6,9).

Where do science and Bible truth fit together? Some think they are at diametric poles-- one is the epitome' of faith and the other of cold facts. But it all depends on your assumptions. On what foundation will you build? ? If you acknowledge that science is the study of a world that God created in six literal days, your results will not war against Scripture. But if you study matter and its properties from a Godless viewpoint, your theories (thought revered as laws by many) will be in direct conflict with faith, inspiration, and God Himself!

"The greatest minds, if not guided by the Word of God in their research, become bewildered in their attempts to trace the relation of science and revelation. Because the Creator and His works are far beyond their comprehension, that they are unable to explain them by natural laws, they regard Bible history as unreliable. Those who doubt the reliability of the records of the Old and New Testaments will be led to go a step further, and doubt the existence of God" (Patriarchs and Prophets, pg. 113).

This last sentence may seem unbelievable. But once we abandon the authority of Scripture, as being the highest authority of truth (since it is the message from God), we will begin to look for a substitute. Inevitably, we will turn to our own fallible ideas. Truth will become reinvented to suit our tastes and inclinations. Sin will be redefined if it is even acknowledged at all. And once we set ourselves up as the voice of what's true or right, where is God in all this? Haven't we kicked Him out of the picture? Even if we admit His existence, we have, in effect, kicked Him off the throne. For He's no longer the source of truth--we have usurped that right!

So, it's no small thing to doubt the reliability of Scripture. To doubt one truth of its pages or to redefine it to suit our lifestyle or culture, is to slide down the slippery slope of unbelief. For once we begin to say, 'this is inspired, but this is not' or 'this never really happened but this did,' we rob the Scriptures of its power in our lives. And we strip God of who He says He is.

GOT FAITH?

Jesus asks good questions. They're certainly worth thinking about. One of them is, ''When the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?" And Paul says something very similar--"Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith'' (1 Timothy 4:1). It makes you pause and wonder--how will this happen? Or better yet, how is it already happening? For we are living in those latter times. Jesus is at the door! 

One way Satan works is to keep us distracted--to fill our lives with frantic schedules or with fun things that turn our minds from heaven. God knows it's important for us to take care of our families and to have time for wholesome recreation--time that recharges our batteries and relaxes the brain. But Satan takes a simple pleasure or a simple responsibility and cranks it up so that it becomes a top priority. It fills our life to such an extent that Jesus is crowded out. The Bible is set aside, gathering dust. Our prayers become ritual or nonexistent and Christian service goes out the window.

This morning I read, "While God's servants are giving the message that the end of all things is at hand, the world is absorbed in amusements and pleasure seeking. There is a constant round of excitement that causes indifference to God and prevents the people from being impressed by the truths which alone can save them from the coming destruction" (Patriarchs and Prophets, pg. 103).

It's like the birds that Jesus talks about in His sermon on the Sower--when the seed (which is the Word of God) fell by the side of the road, the birds came and ate it up. It just had no chance to grow. 

Sometimes when I think about preparing for the coming of Jesus, I end up thinking about studying my Bible, praying,and sharing my faith. But it's much more. For what I learn from Jesus--when I sit at His feet--must permeate how I spend my time during the day. It's guarding my mind from the lure of pleasure, for one thing. Cutting off the avenues that would poison me with the values and distractions of the world. I'm fully convinced that a battle is going on for my soul--and the battle begins in my mind.

As my favorite author puts it, "Those who would not fall a prey to Satan’s devices, must guard well the avenues of the soul; they must avoid reading, seeing, or hearing that which will suggest impure thoughts. The mind must not be left to dwell at random upon every subject that the enemy of souls may suggest. The heart must be faithfully sentineled, or evils without will awaken evils within, and the soul will wander in darkness. 

“Gird up the loins of your mind,” Peter wrote, “be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; ... not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: but as He which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy" (Acts of the Apostles, pg. 518).

THE COMING STORM

"As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man" (Luke 17:26).

The story of Noah's flood is such a gripping one because this man was such a tower of strength. It hit me this morning that Noah endured an incredible tempest twice in his life. Before God sent the flood to destroy all living things, Noah stood for 120 years as a fearless preacher of righteousness. For 120 years, he warned everyone he could of the coming judgment. He entreated them with the love of a father to come into the ark and be saved--to return to God, for He would forgive! But the more he preached, the more they mocked him, and the more they rebelled against the law of the Lord.

"But Noah stood like a rock amid the tempest. Surrounded by popular contempt and ridicule, he distinguished himself by his holy integrity and unwavering faithfulness. A power attended his words, for it was the voice of God to man through His servant. Connection with God made him strong in the strength of infinite power" (Patriarchs and Prophets, pg. 96).

Though surrounded by wickedness in every form, when wickedness was at its zenith, Noah was blameless, righteous in word and deed, a man of flawless integrity. And through his sterling example, his whole family embraced the God that he loved so much! 

The story of Noah has something for every generation, but especially for these last days (before Christ comes). For very soon, this world will be destroyed again--not by a flood of waters, but by heaven-sent fire. This earth will be cleansed before God makes "a new heaven and a new earth in which righteousness dwells" (2 Peter 3:13). And like it was in the days of Noah, He will have a remnant who will speak for God, warning all to return to the Lord and come into His ark of safety. That ark is His church who ''keeps the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus'' (Revelation 14:12). 

I'm praying this morning that I may be the witness Noah was--today and every day until He comes. I know, by God's grace, I can be strong in God's power--blameless, righteous, and perfect in my generation. I'm not able on my own to do it, but I know if I put my life into Christ's hands, He will ''sanctify [me] completely'' so my ''whole spirit, soul, and body'' may ''be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ'' (1 Thessalonians 5:23). For the One who called Noah is the one who calls me--and He who calls me is faithful, who also will do it (1 Thessalonians 5:24). As I cooperate with my Savior, He'll live His life through me! Praise the Lord!

NOT JUST THE BIG STUFF

"Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, "Has God indeed said, 'You shall not eat of every tree in the garden?' And the woman said to the serpent, "We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, 'You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.' Then the serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die, for God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate" (Genesis 3:1-6).

The test set up by God in Eden--forbidding Adam and Eve to eat from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil--was a small one. Only one tree in the garden was off limits. And this was no hardship on them--Eden was full of abundance! There must have been hundreds of fruits to make them happy. God really asked so little!

And that's what makes their sin so great. God didn't give them a severe test, impossible to reach. It was a small test, but one big enough to measure their loyalty and love for their Creator.

This small test also shows that what we call 'little things' matter to God. "The Lord made it evident that sin in any degree is offensive to Him" (Patriarchs and Prophets, pg. 61).

What seems little to me and you is big stuff to God. If He's thought it important enough to say it, proclaim it, or command it--it's not a little thing. Details matter. For little steps lead to bigger ones, and big steps ultimately determine our destiny. Because they forge the fabric of our character. "It is the little things which reveal the chapters of the heart" (Adventist Home, pg. 108).

"Little things have an important relation to the great whole" (Child Guidance, pg. 129). Eating or not eating an apple may have looked like a little thing, but it was part of the bigger picture--of being loyal to God, submissive to His word, trusting in His love and wisdom, making Him Lord of every inch of our life, belonging to Him 100%, 24-7.

"Never underestimate the importance of little things. Little things supply the actual discipline of life. It is by them that the soul is trained that it may grow in the likeness of Christ, or bear the likeness of evil" (ibid). For as Jesus says, "He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much" (Luke 16:10).

Faithfulness in even small matters--even in what we eat or drink--develops strength of character. It is received through an unreserved surrender to God. "Living apart from Christ [we are] subject to Satan's temptations" (Christ's Object Lessons, pg. 356). Deviating from God's will, even in what looks like a small thing, opens a crack through which Satan can come in. And the devil doesn't stop with one deviation. He doesn't rest til one becomes 2, 2 becomes 4, until our allegiance is broken down, disobedience snowballs and we end up doing whatever looks "right in [our] own eyes" (Judges 21:25).

So if I want to be faithful to Jesus and please Him in all things, I must learn to shun sin in its very beginnings. I can't afford to look at anything God says as "just a little thing." I must be faithful in whatever He asks, big or small.