Earlier this year, I noticed a video on YouTube entitled, "Jewish scientist makes the greatest Jewish discovery!" Intrigued, I watched it and was glad I did. The scientist was Dr. James Tour, a Messianic Jew. In other words, he believes that Jesus is the Messiah who was promised in the Bible. Tour's amazing scientific work was also fascinating to hear about.
Tour is a brilliant research scientist and a respected professor of chemistry at Rice University in Houston. To be more specific, he's a synthetic organic chemist and inventor who specializes in nanotechnology. He is a very smart man with 129 patents to his name.
As a Christian thinker, he was quoted in Lee Strobel's book, A Case for Faith. In it he said. "I build molecules for a living. I can't begin to tell you how difficult that job is. I stand in awe of God because of what he has done in his creation. Only a rookie who knows nothing about science would say science takes away from faith. If you really study science, it will bring you closer to God."
It is not unusual that a brilliant scientist would believe in God, read the Bible, and trust in Jesus. My twin brother Don is another smart person who loves Jesus. Don, who lives in Texas and works in several states, is a licensed public adjuster, one of those rare highly-trained individuals who fight big insurance companies in order to win fair settlements for clients with huge losses.
Don and his wife Kay were visiting with us in Arkansas recently. The occasion happened to be our 50th wedding anniversary. While here, Don gave me a gift, a copy of a book he had found. The title was Genesis and the Big Bang. It was about the discovery of harmony between modern science and the Bible, written by Gerald Schroeder. Schroeder is an applied physicist who obtained his doctoral degree from MIT. He is also a theologian who lives in Jerusalem and lectures around the world.
Because I love science and I love the Bible, I am always happy to read material or listen to someone teach who speaks both languages. Science and the Bible are not in conflict. The same God described in the Bible as Creator and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ is the same God who gave us an ordered, beautiful world that can be scientifically understood.
There is only an apparent contradiction between science and the Bible when we don't know the whole picture. When we know something partially, or misunderstand what the Scriptures say, we may mistakenly assume they oppose each other. But they don't clash at all once we know the whole story and fully understand.
Dr. Werner Von Braun, the father of America's space program, once said, "The further we go into space, the greater my faith in God." Some of the greatest thinkers in the world are also some of the strongest believers in the Bible. While the secular media is polluted with unbelief and anti-Christian bias, the pillars of faith remain durable and standing. There are brilliant, wealthy businessmen and women and accomplished artists and performers who unashamedly put their trust in Jesus Christ as a real person whose death for our sins is rooted in well-grounded, documented history. You don't need to believe in make-believe to put your faith in God. Skeptics may mock and doubters may scoff but, in the end, those who believe in the God who created the laws of science will be vindicated while those who reject God's word will be ashamed.
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Ron Wood is a writer and minister. Email him at [email protected] or visit www.touchedbygrace.org. Opinions expressed are those of the author.
Editorial on 06/19/2019