Evolution, science and Christian faith

Notes on two sermons in connection with the 200th anniversary of Charles Darwin and the 150th anniversary of “The Origin of Species”

The sermons started with the purpose and nature of the Bible, then dealt with some common myths, before aiming at putting science and faith together.

The purpose of the Bible

This is summarised most clearly in 2 Timothy 3:15-17 -

  the scriptures are given to us to lead us to salvation through faith in Christ

  and to provide teaching (positive and negative) about the truth and about how to live.

The nature of the Bible

A library of books, by different people speaking to different situations, for different purposes

Not dictated, but has a real human element

Different “genres”, e.g. narrative, poetry, prophecy, and story-with-meaning

Not all the Bible is literally true, e.g. the parables of Jesus

So how should we see the opening chapters of the book of Genesis? Beware making assumptions!! Seeing them as story-with-meaning makes most sense.

The origin of the Bible

“The writings that now comprise our Bible are ... the product of, and witness to, the ultimate mission of God. The Bible renders to us the story of God’s mission through God’s people in their engagement with God’s world for the sake of the whole of God’s creation. The Bible is the drama of a God of purpose engaged in the mission of achieving that purpose universally, embracing past, present and future, Israel and the nations, ‘life, the universe and everything’.”

Chris Wright

What the Bible isn’t

The Bible is not given to us to teach us about science

So it was a mistake when people thought the Bible could decide the question as to whether the sun went round the earth or the earth went round the sun

It is equally a mistake to think the Bible can tell us whether the theory of evolution is right or not.