Rowan Kemp
A solidly Biblical doctrine of creation is powerful and liberating: that’s what I’ve been loving at CMS Summer School this year.
Bible-honouring Christians can feel boxed in. If I embrace science and its findings I’m sometimes made to feel I’m betraying Christian belief in creation and respect for God’s Word. On another front if I suggest that there is intrinsic value in the arts, science, culture or work I run the risk of being told I’ve inappropriately elevated the merely temporal—the only thing of real value is evangelism and ministry.
Underlying both issues is our doctrine of creation. That’s why the Bible studies on Genesis 1-11 at this year’s CMS Summer School have been so refreshing and liberating.
In his exposition of these foundation chapters Peter Jensen has shown how ‘Genesis v Science’ should never have been an issue. Genesis provides a framework in which scientific enquiry finds its ultimate validation. The challenge to understand and harness the creation in which God has placed us is part and parcel of our mandate from God to tend and care for his world.
Moreover, careful attention to the detail and nature of these chapters shows that we are not obliged to adopt a literal ‘six days’ or ‘young earth’ position in order to be faithful to Scripture. As Peter Jensen observed these opening chapters contain hints within them that suggest God is revealing truths selectively and sometimes symbolically. We’re not told everything that is going on everywhere: the old question of from where did Cain find a wife? Maybe there were otherhumans around—the text does not preclude it. Sometimes it seems the truth is being communicated to us in ‘parable-like’ form: was the LORD really ‘walking’ through the garden? Maybe the communication of truth in these chapters is like Jesus’ parables or the prophet Nathan’s parable to King David: it’s true, it concerns real events, but maybe they did not occur precisely as they are described to us.
In conversations with Christian university science students over the last six years, I’ve been struck by how un-integrated almost all of them have been on the issue of science and their Christian faith. Very few can articulate how their growing scientificunderstanding fits within the Genesis accounts. In fact, I think Christians are less able to articulate a meaningful integration than in generations past. I find this very disturbing. I suspect that at some point, whether it be now or years hence, the tension from an un-integrated set of beliefs will become too much. Something will be jettisoned—and for many it will not be the science.
What Peter has helpfully done is show how there is space within the (ultimately authoritative) Scriptures themselves for the integration of science and God’s revealed truth. We do not have to sacrifice one to validly give thanks for the insights of the other.
The liberation flowing from this doctrine of creation extends to more than just science. The arts,work and ‘culture’ more generally are all part of God’s mandate to humanity to tend, care for and develop his creation. So we rightly rejoice in wonder at the created creative capacities with which God has endowed us his creatures.
Yet, as Peter noted, whether it be in capitalism or communism there are still great wrongs because human sin distorts human culture. We can exercise our cultural mandate by dominating and beating into submission. Or we can exercise it in Godly ways, resist the temptation to turn cultural ‘work’ into an idol and give thanks to him for the privilege.
Photo: Lindsay Brown addresses Summer School delegates
Rowan Kemp is the leader of the Evangelical Union (EU) staff team at Sydney University and the CEO of the EU Graduates Fund.
