Ever play “Simon Says”? Who has not? The object of the game was to do exactly what Simon said, nothing more, nothing less. To win the game required careful listening and strict adherence to whatever silly thing that Simon came up with for the players to do. It generated a lot of laughs. The thing is, even though Simon spoke as one having authority, we all knew it was just make believe and it was treated as such. It was an innocent game.
Have you ever heard “Science says”? Who has not? No, it is not an innocent game that we play to generate some laughs. It does, however, bear some similarities to the aforementioned game. There are those who say “Science says” as though with great authority. Their intention is to incite oh so careful listening that would lead to faithful adherence to whatever it is that “science says.” It can be a tool of deception used for the purpose of moving people against their own best interests.
Writing on this same subject, R. J. Rushdoony said, “Many scientists tell us that a healthy skepticism is basic to science; what we too often see is the blindest of faith.” We understand that science is a mixture of truth and error. If one scientific calculation is proven incorrect, it can be studied again and hopefully amended to reflect truth. The scientific process can be very helpful. A commonsense view of it is that it is an imperfect work in progress. Another factor that lends balance is that the intellect involved is something that God gave mankind the ability to work with. Rushdoony’s observation, however, is that faith in God is being replaced by blind faith in science.
God is the greatest scientist of all. He knows exactly when and how the heavens and the earth and all that is in them were made. God reminded Job of these facts when Job’s focus was on himself. “Now prepare yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer Me. “Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell Me if you have understanding. Who determined its measurements? Surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon it? To what were its foundations fastened? Or who laid its cornerstone” (Job 38:3-6). The danger for any of us today is in getting so self-focused that we let our faith in God slowly die. The Apostle Paul speaks to this, “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools” (Romans 1:20-22).
“Science says” is not a game. “God says” is our way of life!
Marshall Stiver
