Many people think that science is synonymous with truth. Actually, science is also based on unproven postulates, just like mathematics. For example, one of the most basic assumptions is that the universe is rational, governed by laws that we can discover. Without this assumption, science is completely futile. However, can we prove this assumption to be true? It is impossible. One might think that the laws of nature that we have already discovered prove that the universe is rational. Can we be certain that is the case? The universe is so vast, and we are in such a miniscule part of it. Are the laws that we have discovered also true in a galaxy 10 million light years away?

That brings us to another assumption of science—that the universe is uniform. Scientists assume that the laws of physics are true not only on earth, but in each corner of the universe. Not only so, they assume that the laws were the same a billion years ago, and will still be the same a billion years from now. This assumption is responsible for many of the conflicts between science and faith. It is actually the faith of non-theistic scientists, who reject many parts of the Bible, especially miracles, because of it.

Christians, on the other hand, believe that these laws of nature were created by God. The creator of these laws can break them if he so chooses, and when the laws of nature are broken, we have miracles. This is also pertinent to the understanding of the age of the universe. Scientists say that the universe is billions of years old, while the Bible gives the impression that God created heaven and earth about ten thousand years ago. Again, scientists have assumed that the laws of nature are uniform, and also assumed that the earth started at age zero. What they have not considered is that God could have created a mature universe. When God created Adam, he did not create an infant, but a fully grown man, with an apparent age greater than zero. Likewise, when God created the earth, it can have an apparent age that scientists interpret as billions of years.

What Is Most Important

These theoretical discussions are not of primary importance. What is important is a new life. Science and mathematics cannot give us spiritual understanding. True understanding comes from the Holy Spirit, who opens our eyes and heart. Paul wrote to the Ephesians, “I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better” (1:17). If we know God personally, then it does not matter what others say, for we know in our heart that he exists and cares for us. Our relationship to God is what is vital. Human knowledge is secondary.

Joseph Yam Ting Woo grew up in Hong Kong and received his Ph.D. in mathematics from the University of California at Berkeley in 1973.