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The Creation Explanation

Creation Explanation Man in His World

Conclusions about the Origin of Man

The attributes and powers of man cannot be explained on the basis of a purely materialistic process of development from chemicals to cells to animals to man. In the creation view man is a spiritual and personal being who must have had a spiritual and personal source (See Chapter-9). In this chapter we have attempted to coordinate the information from archaeology, paleontology, and written history with the biblical creation model of origins. There are problems remaining with this interpretation, but there are equal or greater problems for those who insist upon the materialistic interpretation of the world, which rejects all immaterial causes.

A Christian investigator in the sciences, history, and other social sciences, a believer in biblical creation, has important advantages over those who are committed to a materialistic conception of origins. This is a matter of two faith world views in competition or conflict. But as we have shown in this chapter and will confirm in Chapter-7, a correct definition of science allows for believers in all such faiths to participate in the scientific enterprise, indeed, in all scholarly disciplines. Especially in the study of man, the biblical Christian perspective is, we believe, superior to all others for scholarly disciplines which--by definition--seek to discover truth. Strictly speaking, the subject of origins cannot be studied apart from philosophy and religion, for this a subject area in which the necessary historical and scientific data are not available and the required empirical testing ordinarily cannot be applied. As a scientist the believer in creation is able to search for knowledge and go as far as the observable data permit. As a historian he can study the past as far as written records and the artifacts of man's works and activities permit him to go. In contrast to the secular investigator, the Christian student of the past does not try to imagine materialistic processes of origins and thus introduce what he believes to be empty philosophy or pseudoscience into his scientific or historical research. This is a necessary element of his commitment to the biblical Christian faith, and he must always take care to distinguish between the knowledge that is grounded in empirical science and the divinely revealed knowledge which he has from the Scriptures. With a heart that is thankful for the Lord's special blessings to His people, the Christian in science recognizes that he must respect the corresponding freedom of scientists who are secularists or believers in other religions to function in accord with their respective belief systems. But this scholarly tolerance should work both ways. The Christian scientist must be as free to construct hypotheses within the framework of his theistic belief system as other believers, secularist or religious, are to work within the frameworks of their belief systems. Thus any kind of believer or unbeliever can pursue the facts, seeking to develop a model of origins corresponding to his or her personal belief system, and at the same time advance scientific knowledge in accord with the rules of the scientific method.

Christians practicing science have a solemn responsibility before God, as He leads them by His Holy Spirit, to use their knowledge to promote knowledge of the biblical view of the world and particularly the biblical view of the place of man in God's world.

"What is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of man that You visit him? For you have made him a little lower than the angels, and You have crowned him with glory and honor. You have made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet..."
Psalm 8:4-6

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