God’s command to Adam and Eve was to rule over creation. It is called the science mandate. It means that man investigates nature with the help of science and applies it for the benefit of society. Science is a tremendous benefit to the public. God knew we would need the help of science in technology, food production, disease prevention, et cetera.
# However, look carefully: there is no command in the Bible to investigate the origin of anything.
It is of no value, because God is the Creator. Origins research has no benefit to society and doesn’t lead to patents or inventions. If we compare this principle to the Bible, we find an interesting parallel. God is the ‘Creator’ of Scripture. There is no command in the Bible that we are to research who wrote the different books (their origin).
# God wants us to find out how nature and the Bible ‘work.’
- That means study the mechanisms at work in nature. Find out what universal laws can be formulated. How can we apply them to technology and other disciplines? In other words, we are to research how nature works and use it for our benefit.
- It is the same with Scripture. With the help of the Holy Spirit we are to find out how Scripture ‘works’ and to apply it in our daily lives.
- The practical aspect in both science and the Bible is what benefits us.
# Study of your subject is important.
- Scientists can be of any belief. In the laboratory what you believe has no bearing on experiments. The scientists who are equipped through hard study can understand their work, but outsiders cannot. Outsiders can shout against scientific facts, but their arguments carry no weight.
- Scripture is similar. Only those who have repented, accepted Jesus and were baptised by the Holy Spirit can understand it. Outsiders can shout against Scripture, but their arguments carry no weight.
Science has value for this life. Scripture has value for this life and the coming one. Both are important, so we should not neglect either of them.