Can you prove it?

Some people want proof that the Christian view corresponds to reality… What type of proof would be valid?

If you mean evidence from laboratory experiments, what science consistently shows is that:

• We have no experimental evidence that something comes from nothing.
• We have no experimental evidence that life arises from non-life (abiogenesis remains unproven).
• We have no experimental evidence that highly complex systems arise spontaneously from simplicity without guidance.
• We have no experimental evidence that sustained order naturally emerges from total chaos without external input.

All known experimental evidence points in the opposite direction.

If you want proof from logic, we can reason that:

• If the human mind is purely the product of blind chance and undirected evolution, then we have no ultimate reason to trust our conclusions as reliable indicators of truth (a point made by thinkers like Alvin Plantinga).
• If there is no meaning or purpose to anything, then debate, opinions, or moral judgments ultimately have no binding significance.
• If we operate only from what the human mind can perceive or reason, then there is no ultimate guarantee that our thoughts correspond to reality (thus the need for divine revelation paired with human investigation).

If you mean proof from history, scholars widely agree that:

• The Bible provides an accurate historical record of events, geography, cultures, languages and archeological data, aligning with other authoritative records. The evidence shows it is deeply rooted in real history, contrary to the claim that it is merely myth.
• Jesus of Nazareth was a real historical person.
• He was crucified under the Roman governor Pontius Pilate in the first century.
• His earliest followers were utterly convinced he rose from the dead, providing strong evidence of his claims, and many endured persecution and death because of this belief.
• The life, death, and resurrection of Jesus and the Bible (his story) have had an unparalleled influence on global history, shaping law, justice, science, philosophy, art, literature, education, healthcare, and more.

Taken seriously, these historical points provide a foundation for the Christian claim that Jesus is God, arguing also for the Bible’s trustworthiness and thus its thesis statement: “In the beginning, God created…”

When applied to questions of ultimate origins, evolutionary theory functions more as a belief system than as observable science. Microevolution (small changes within species) is well-documented, but questions remain about how entirely new kinds of life (macroevolution) arise and how life itself began. Similarly, beliefs such as “matter is eternal” or “the multiverse exists” cannot be proven; they are philosophical extrapolations from a belief system. Many leading atheists admit their position begins with a prior commitment against God. Believing in eternal matter is no less a leap of faith than believing in creation ex nihilo.

On the other hand, design is evident everywhere in the universe. Intelligence gives order, meaning, and purpose—matter alone cannot. At every level, even down to the cell, life is built on information. The genetic code, for instance, is not just biological—it is linguistic. Richard Dawkins, though an atheist, acknowledges that DNA functions like a code: “What lies at the heart of every living thing is not a fire, not warm breath, nor a ‘spark of life’. It is information, words, instructions...” At the heart of biblical creation is not merely matter, but the spoken word. “And God said…” introduces a universe built through divine speech—through information, intention, and order.

Come and Drink

I meant to post this back in May during the season of graduations... It is a joy to celebrate these accomplishments, especially when we look back at how each one has grown in many ways. But it also makes us wonder what God has next for them and where they will invest their life and the blessings God has given them. What is worth our time and energy? What are the goals, desires and commitments that drive us and motivate us? How will we be successful and how do we even define success? I'm thinking even more about these questions and the process of transition as our oldest son moves through his Senior year of high school and considers moving to the US for college.

These are the questions that set the course of our life and either provide a stable foundation or an endless search for identity and purpose. Education can contribute positively to this in many ways:

1. A good education is one that points us to the glory of God. The glory of God is seen all around us in creation. We enjoy beauty, design, contrast, emotion, relationships, creativity, order and so much more because of who God is, how He created the world and how He has enabled us to understand and appreciate it.
2. A good education is one that models and teaches us humility. Our place in God's world is that of stewardship, not ownership. This means we do not have all the answers but work as His agents to restore, to care for, to guide, to forgive, to heal as an extension of God's character and activity. 
3. A good education is one that identifies the source of our problems. Conflict continues to escalate all around us. How is this possible when we have so much knowledge, wealth and power available to us? We must address the basic problem of humanity which is the sin condition of my own heart.
4. A good education is one that recognizes and implements the only real solution. Our search for happiness and comfort leads often to anxiety and distress. Our preoccupation with wealth and position leaves many lonely and empty. Through repentance and faith in Christ we abandon our self-will and self-worship in a restored relationship with our Creator and Redeemer who is the source of life. That is Good News!

 

Christian school leaders and Christian school teachers, while being responsible to teach Christianly, are also in the process of growth and learning themselves. We remind ourselves of the real source of our problems each day, our own sin. We remind ourselves of the actual solution each day, a surrender and a commitment to Christ and His purposes in the world. The hope of Christ-centered education is not in education as the solution, but rather in Christ as the solution and in education as a process to knowing Him and engaging effectively in His world.

I'm reminded of Christ's words in John 7:37-38.

"If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, 'From his innermost being shall flow rivers of living water.'"

We will never be satisfied with education that does not lead us to Christ. He is the only One who can satisfy our longing and actually provide for our most desperate and deepest need.

Understanding reality

Many of the observations in Ecclesiastes are related to work. We might even say that Solomon is investigating the significance of our work on earth. This is highlighted by the repeated phrase "under the sun". If you want more on this topic and an interesting overview of the book, read this article. 

We often wonder if what we do will have any real significance for the future. We seek not only to find meaning in our own lives through what we do, but also to have what we do or say have a significant impact on future generations and to help them find meaning through what we leave behind.

Solomon gives us no guarantees! There is no assurance, from his perspective, that what we do will be significant either for us or for those in the future. So what is the point of life? Chapter 1 focusses on the repetition revealed within all of nature. There is nothing new. There is nothing that is unique enough to be remembered or to make a real change in the cycles of the years and seasons. He even observes that, "in much wisdom there is much grief, and increasing knowledge results in increasing pain." Eccl. 1:18

What can we observe from this reality in our fallen world?

• The more we know, the more we find that we don't understand.
• The more we try to repair, the more we find to work on.
• The more we see, the more disappointed we are with the the brokenness around us.
• We are always surrounded by grief and pain in this life.

These realities are where we live and what constantly causes anxiety and fear in our own hearts and in our relationships. This is the starting point but it does not mean that we must maintain this perspective forever. If we stay here, if there really is nothing more than this, then we certainly have nothing to live for and nothing to hope for. Our task now is to gain a higher perspective which acknowledges this temporal reality but sees beyond it and beyond our limited humanity to a spiritual reality. A new and hopeful perspective is not possible without a calm and reasoned assurance that a spiritual reality does exist and can actually inform a higher perspective.

So, where do we stand? We have to know what is real. We have to know our current context and how our current culture has shaped our concepts about identity and reality. Most importantly, we have to be able to measure and evaluate our perceptions of reality against what is actually true for all time and all people in all situations. Only then as we begin to broaden our perspective of reality can we get a better understanding of our own purpose and value within that reality. 

Solomon summarizes it in this way: "I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live. That each of them may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all their toil—this is the gift of God. I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that people will fear him." Eccl. 3:12-14 (NIV)

What is real? God is real. He is the Creator and His power and wisdom maintain both the spiritual and physical realities of our existence. "In these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe. The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word." Heb. 1:2-3 (NIV) What is valuable in our universe? That which He has called "good" as described in Genesis chapter 1, which includes the heavens and the earth, the sea and dry land, the birds and the fish, the animals and the plants, and finally humanity made in His image. 

Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”  So God created mankind in his own image,
in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.
God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.” Genesis 1:26-28 (NIV)

This is central to our reality, that God has created the physical universe, that he made us in His image as the caretakers of this reality and that we honor the value that He has placed on His creation by faithfully carrying out His commission. There are many opinions on the "what" and the "how" of reality but no good answers can never be reached without the "why" of reality. Everything begins with God. There is no purpose to anything without Him as Creator. Our own purpose begins to take shape when we understand this reality.