I submitted my proposal for the science-based devotional to a publisher on Monday. The fellow I spoke with is excited about it, but the proposal needs to excite everyone else at the review meeting, too. This concept may be too “out there” for most people, but you never know. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
To commemorate the shot I did take, here is another entry in my science-themed devotional.
The chief aim of all investigations of the external world should be to discover the rational order and harmony which has been imposed on it by God and which He revealed to us in the language of mathematics. – Johannes Kepler
As a space scientist, I am sometimes asked about the practical benefits of astronomy. How does it improve our lives to know about other planets, stars, galaxies, and black holes when there is very little expectation of humans venturing outside of our Solar System? It is reasonable to wonder why we, as a society, spend so much time and treasure on this endeavor, especially when there are seemingly more pressing human issues, like the eradication of disease and poverty.
If you were to ask the great Renaissance astronomer, Johannes Kepler, one of God’s most devoted servants in the sciences, he would answer that the most pressing issue for the inhabitants of Earth, above even curing people of dreadful diseases and lifting them out of poverty, is to know God. As a natural philosopher, Kepler sought to know God through the natural world. It was his passion, in every sense of the word.
To someone who is not Christian, the idea that science should be devoted to the knowledge of God may sound esoteric at best and frivolous at worst. A Christian might likewise be confused by this application of science since it is widely believed that we are to know God mostly through the Bible. Should not the chief aim of the sciences be to study the natural world in order to benefit humankind? The answer to that is, although we hope science benefits humankind in material ways, that is not the primary purpose of science.
When I was young, and before I had come to know Jesus Christ, I believed the highest purpose of science was the pure pursuit of truth about the material world. I now believe that is an incomplete definition of science.
The study of the natural world is not just about truth, but about the ordering of our priorities. God is not only the law-giver of human beings and the universe, but the sole reason human beings and the universe exist. God is the ground of all existence, the very root of being. Once you accept that truth, you cannot do anything less than try to understand that basis for existence as best you can. As devoted followers of Jesus Christ, we know that studying his written word is one way we understand God; but we can also know him by studying his handiwork. (“The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.” — Psalm 19:1)
The true purpose of science, therefore, is the pure pursuit of knowledge about God through the study of the material world he created. (“For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made.” — Romans 1:20)
What we have come to understand fundamentally about God through the natural world is that he is what he says he is: a law-giver who is good, trustworthy, wise, and precise. In the hundreds of years that have passed since Kepler’s time, we have discovered that the historical record of the natural world, from its earliest measurable moment after the beginning of the universe up to the very moment you are reading these words, concords exquisitely well with God’s written word. Knowing that God’s written word is reliable about that which we can see gives us confidence to trust him in all things, particularly in that which we cannot see. (“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” — Hebrews 11:1)
Humankind has, imperfectly, and in fits and starts, produced many good things as the fruits of our worshipful study of God’s creation. The Scientific Revolution, which began with Copernicus’ reordering of our understanding of the Solar System and ended with Newton’s uniting of the heavens and the earth, led directly to the Industrial Revolution, which lifted millions of people out of poverty. Since that time, scientifically driven advances in technology and medicine—many as byproducts of advancements in space-based endeavors—have lifted many more out of poverty and lengthened human life expectancies.
These are not the reasons we pursue knowledge of the universe—science is ultimately for knowing God—but our Heavenly Father is a good Father who loves to give us good gifts, not least of which is to enjoy the earthly fruits of our scientific labors.
Prayer
Dear Lord Jesus,
We give thanks that You have graciously invited us to know You through Your good creation.
We stand in awe of Your intelligence and rationality, displayed so beautifully and magnificently in Your ordered and harmonious universe.
Though our greatest scientific minds pale in comparison with Yours, we have managed to understand, through Your graciousness, a little of what You have created. It is sufficient for us to know that You are immense, wise, lawful, reliable, knowable, and loving. What we know of You through Your creation allows us to trust you in every way.
Please help us to trust You completely.
You are our God, forever and always.
Amen.
To know God, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. To know what the "universe" is, what it's part of. To know who we are, WHY we are, where we are going (the consequences of our lives)-->the practical benefits of astronomy. As opposed to living for the moment, to get high, and buy stuff, which requires no knowledge of astronomy, or much of anything else.
So well stated. I’m in a group of guys one of our pastors has put together to formally study some of the basics of theology. I’m a bit of an eclectic wierdo with 2 music degrees, M. Div; but spent last decade + of career teaching HS Physics, Astronomy, Engineering. Kind of a sounding board in this group. Some of these guys seem to have no use for science. They seem to think there is no reason to “prove” God’s creation. Even after explaining the Christian foundation to scientific revolution. Thanks for your service to the kingdom! I’m forwarding to them!