Hey, Calvary Fremont –
Science says that the resurrection of Jesus couldn’t happen. History says that the resurrection of Jesus did happen. The resurrection of Jesus is a historical claim – not a scientific claim. It’s not science vs. theology, it’s science vs. history. The Bible claims that the resurrection of Jesus really happened. The resurrection of Jesus is a historical claim, not a theological one. It’s a historical claim with theological implications.
Someone says, “Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States.” Is this a scientific or a historical claim? It’s a historical claim. Can science prove that Abraham Lincoln was or wasn’t the 16th President? Science would say that this claim is out of its jurisdiction. Science could no more disprove the historical claim that Lincoln was the 16th President any more than history could disprove the scientific claim that water freezes at 32 degrees Fahrenheit. Scientific inquiry proceeds by one set of rules and historical inquiry proceeds by another set of rules. “Did the resurrection of Jesus take place?” That’s a historical question.
The testimony of competent witnesses that the resurrection of Jesus took place is countered by many in the scientific community who say that this is impossible. Dead is dead – there’s no coming back – and that’s a fact. If science proceeds through repeated observation, the evidence of billions of cases is overwhelming: death is final. We live in a culture where King Fact sits on the throne of science and all bow before him. Or so it seems… In reality, King Fact is being plotted against by Queen Feeling, who is seeking to make laws on her own behind his back.
King Fact says that a male is a person with a certain combination of sex characteristics, including X and Y chromosomes, a penis, scrotum, and testicles. King Fact says that a female is a person with two X chromosomes, and ovaries – a pair of reproductive glands. They are located in the pelvis, one on each side of the uterus, and they have two functions – to produce eggs and female hormones.
Queen Feeling says, “Not so fast Kingy-Poo. There are some people with an X and a Y chromosome who feel like a person with two X chromosomes, and there are those with two X chromosomes who feel like a person with an X and a Y chromosome.” King Fact blusters back, “But all this is scientifically established with billions of test cases.” Queen Feeling quickly responds, “Feelings trump your cold, sterile science, King. Science doesn’t encompass the totality of reality.” A flustered King Fact says, “But no matter what people say about themselves, you can’t change the science. People with two X chromosomes will continue to have two X chromosomes no matter what they say or how they feel. And those with X and Y chromosomes will continue to have X and Y chromosomes no matter what they say or how they feel.” To this, Queen Feeling says, “O King, you’re so cute when you get upset.”
My point isn’t that the resurrection is a subjective claim – like a male who identifies as a female, or a female to identifies as a male. My point is that a culture that kisses the hand of King Fact is bowing to Queen Feeling behind his back. King Fact isn’t being dethroned – he is merely being ignored. My point is to expose the double standard of a culture that claims they are following King Fact when, in fact, they are following Queen Feeling when it suits them. King Fact married someone much younger than him. The King was born in the modern era. The Queen was born in the post-modern era. Actually, the Queen is the King, and the King is a Lame Duck. We find ourselves deluged by science-deniers who exalt feeling over fact. Not only has God been pushed off to the side in the pursuit of self-fulfillment, Science now finds itself on the sidelines with God. Science says to God, “Now I know how You must feel. I thought people preferred me to You – but they were just using me. When my facts stood in the way of their desires, they got rid of me, too.”
But Queen Feeling isn’t wrong in all she says. She’s right – science doesn’t encompass the totality of reality. Not only do we live in a natural world, one that has been quite capably described and catalogued by science, we also live in a supernatural world where the rules that govern the natural world don’t always apply. “I am a male that identifies as a female,” makes perfect sense in a post-modern world. “Jesus is risen from the dead,” makes perfect sense in a supernatural world. The resurrection of Jesus is not a post-modern claim whose truth is determined by how you feel. The resurrection of Jesus is a historical claim that the supernatural has invaded the natural and whose truth is determined by credible witnesses – and the witness of the Holy Spirit.
A male identifying as a female, and vice-versa, is anti-science. The resurrection of Jesus is supra-science – it’s above science. It’s supra-natural – it’s above the natural. It’s supernatural and historical. The truth of the resurrection of Jesus is to be judged by history, not science. There are scientific facts, and there are historical facts. Christianity is anchored in history and has implications for eternity. It’s a historical claim with theological implications. What are those implications? The God who is above Time and Space and Matter entered Time and Space and Matter and in Time and Space and Matter provided salvation for those trapped in Time and Space and Matter. The God who is above it all, entered it all, and triumphed over it all. Hallelujah!
Be blessed and stay healthy and follow Jesus – Pastor Tim
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