Philosophy
Oat of
the Lab by Dr. Donald O. Robertson
In
Life by Dr. Paul M. Aijian
His Handiwork T he Bible is primarily concerned with revealing how God has dealt with man in providing His plan of redemption through the Lord Jesus Christ. In pur suance of this goal it became necessary to refer to certain facts about the world in which man finds him self; a world that continually presses itself upon him. A complete revelation from God, as the Bible declares itself to be, could not neglect the physical world, since to the average man this part of his environment is more real than the spiritual. Of course, it was not the intent of God to inspire a textbook on science, but He did in clude in His Word sufficient background in the realm of nature so that man could correctly orient himself in his thinking of God. The heathen worship the things of nature: the sun, the moon, the stars, etc. Thus it w,as necessary for God in His Word to relegate these things to their proper position as part of God’s creation. Only by doing this could His people be kept from worshiping the creation instead of the Creator. The heathen also worship the phenomena of nature such as the earthquake, lightning, or fire. So God revealed His authority over these phases of nature as well. An understanding of God’s work in nature then leads one out of the fear with which the heathen holds the physical world into one of amazement and reverence for the eternal God, the Creator and Sustainer of all the universe. Hence we find David saying in Psalm 19:1, “ The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firma ment sheweth his handiwork.” The Christian then expects and does find in the Bible many references to nature. God in fact introduces the whole of Scriptural truth with the description of the origin of the physical universe in order to build a foundation for all of revelation. The Biblical writers, trader divine guidance, never ignored the place of God in nature. Because of this we have many statements concerning the physical world throughout the Scriptures. Now, the Christian believes that the God who created and directs the universe is the same one who inspired men to write the Scriptural record. Therefore, the Chris tian expects that the Biblical references to nature will not contradict what man' actually finds in his daily contact with his environment. Because of this confidence the Christian can turn to the discoveries of Science ex pecting them to substantiate what he reads in the Scrip tures. For example, he should not be surprised when the modem discoveries and theories of astronomy are found to be in close agreement with the Genesis account of the creation* because of his expectation that ultimately there will be agreement between the scientific and the Biblical descriptions of nature. * The purpose of this column in future months will be to consider this natural witness of God to see how it shows forth His handiwork and where possible to correlate Scriptural revelation with scientific discoveries. * See Stoner, P. W ., Modem Science and the Christian Faith, Wheaton, 111: Van Kampen Press, 1950. pp. 9-22.
Philosophers are blind men in a dark room looking for a black cat which isn’t there. T his bit of scintillating prose expresses the opinion of those who in literature and in conversation have caricatured the thoughtful men of each succeeding generation. Such an opinion probably represents more wit than information. Actually, almost everyone philoso phizes sometime in his life. The little boy who after receiving a spanking asks himself whether he was made to be good or to be bad comes closer to appreciating the true philosophic spirit than his more cynical adult con temporaries. When a man muses upon the deeper mean ings of a tragic experience he is engaging in the work of the philosopher. Even that most common of ordinary choices, “This is right” or “This is wrong,” is philosophy from still another point of view. Surely there are few if any who have not wondered “Where did I come from?” and “Where am I going?” These, too, are demonstrating simply that wherever people become “ aware” of their existence, there Philosophy is in Life. Philosophy is an Ideal Thinking men in every age have sought an ultimate answer to what life is all about. Each generation has enjoyed a measure of success in this effort. Yet, the an swer has never been expressed completely. Even the genius of the Christian experience awaits the “ completed revelation” for its full exposition. Philosophers rejoice in the present achievement of knowledge, but scan the hori zons of an unknown future with anticipation. They thrill to what they possess intellectually and spiritually today, while hope for much more drives them into tomorrow. Philosophy is a Mood Some people possess the ability to remain happy and to live securely even though they do not have all the answers. These are the folks who are content to wait until the long processes of exploratory living settle the significant questions of human existence by a verdict of history itself. Theirs is a faith, a faith in the Jesus of history become the Christ of experience; a faith which awaits the emerging pattern of the divine plan without the demanding compulsion of a desire to see it all now. It is this long-range look at life which marks the philo sophic mood. There is even a willingness to admit the possibility of never knowing all that there is to know— and to “ rest” inwardly in this possibility. Such a mood rejects as a necessity that all of life be embraced in small packages neatly tied with red ribbon; even though these packages may be called doctrine, or dogma, or just idea. Always glad when a part of life is concluded in an un derstandable category, the philosopher does not rush to compel the intellectual and practical aspects of experi ence into formal organization. With a willingness to accept ordained processes of a living experience, the phil osopher is not undone because he sees “ through a glass darkly.” Rather his is the attitude of “ assurance in things hoped for” and “ proving the things not seen.”
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