Faith & The Science Method

What is science? When I was in school we were taught the scientific method. It was essentially a 4 step process of coming up with an idea and then doing experiments to either lend support to the idea or to suggest that the idea was wrong. It would break down something like this: 1) Make observations 2) Come up with a hypothesis (theory) 3) Test the hypothesis by doing an experiment 3)Analyze your data and come to a conclusion.
-
We were taught that as we did experiments, we had to be very careful to have a proper control group because we could easily come to the wrong conclusions. For example, if we left a piece of bread lay in the refrigerator and watched it turn moldy we might conclude that refrigerators caused mold. A better experiment would be to have 2 refrigerators side by side with the exact same humidity in each one but with different temperatures. Then have another experiment with the exact same temperatures but different levels of humidity. Soon you would realize that there are other factors involved in mold growth on bread. Mold growth was not caused by the refrigerator.
-
In our bread mold/refrigerator example we quickly see that although the scientific method is helpful and important, there are many factors that can easily be missed by the person doing the experiment. That should sound a loud warning that we must be careful about putting too much security in the conclusions one draws from the experiment. At the same time we must also realize that valuable data is being gathered.
-
So what happens when data is gathered and conclusions are too hastily presented as facts? Fortunately the scientific community is not publishing articles telling us to get rid of refrigerators because they cause mold, but some in the scientific community are suggesting that we reject the Bible because of the conclusions that they have come to based on their observations. Others have looked at the same data and suggested that it actually supports the Bible just as some would look at the bread experiment and suggest that it actually shows us how important refrigerators really are.
-
The field of science is made up of people- and people have biases. I know I do. With all the data available to us, we still have not settled the old debate about what is better, Ford or Chevy. Sure, you may have settled it in your mind, but your neighbor still has his bias.
-
Imagine if this were 80 years ago and you sold ice. Your bias against refrigerators may have tainted your conclusions. At the same time imagine if you sold refrigerators. Your bias may cause you to overlook some conclusions.
-
As a Christian, I understand that I have a bias in favor of the Bible. The reason I have such a bias is not because of greed to be able to sell a refrigerator, but rather because of my faith in my God. Hebrews 11:1 says, “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”
-
In every experiment there are things going on that we cannot see. Even if we watched the mold grow with a microscope, there are still things going on with our bread experiment that we could not observe. Because I have trusted Christ, I realize that my faith is a part of my evidence. But I also realize that those who do not believe the Bible bring their bias into the experiment; therefore, it is not valid for them to reject my conclusions simply because of my faith.