Christianity and Science III: Evidence and the God Who Speaks
[Part 3 of 4 on a Christian’s view of science.]Faith vs. Evidence?
One of the most common objections to Christianity goes something like this: “Faith is believing without evidence. Science is based on evidence. So faith and science are opposites.”
The objection sounds persuasive—until you look closer. Biblical faith is not a leap into the dark or a guess against the facts. Faith is trust in the God who speaks. And the evidence for God’s existence is not absent. In fact, Scripture says that God has filled the world with signs of his presence. But there is a problem: without God’s Word, we misinterpret the signs.
This article explores the relationship between evidence and faith. We will see how creation testifies to God’s love, why that testimony is often misunderstood, and how God’s Word in Christ enables us to see clearly.
The Testimony of Creation
The Apostle Paul makes a bold claim in Romans 1:20: “Since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made.” Creation itself testifies that there is a Creator. The regularity of the seasons, the beauty of the stars, the power of storms—all of it points beyond itself.
Paul makes the same point in Acts 14. When the people of Lystra tried to worship Paul and Barnabas as gods, the apostles redirected their attention to the true God: “He has not left himself without testimony: He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons; he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy” (Acts 14:17).
Notice how Paul frames the evidence. It is not just the existence of creation, but the kindness of creation—the rains, the harvest, the joy of eating and celebrating—that points to the living God. Creation is full of tokens of God’s love.
Why Evidence Isn’t Enough
If that is true, why doesn’t everyone recognize God in creation? Why do some look at the vastness of the universe and see only emptiness? Why do some study biology and see only blind chance?
The problem is not with the evidence, but with us. By nature, our hearts are suspicious of God. We see the gifts but misinterpret the Giver. We enjoy creation but doubt the Creator’s goodness.
Think of how often people explain away what they know deep down to be God’s work:
The order of the cosmos is credited to “laws of physics” without asking why such laws exist.
The marvels of the human body are credited to “evolutionary processes” without asking why such processes would lead to life.
The longing for meaning and love in human hearts is credited to “chemical reactions” without asking why chemistry produces longing at all.
Evidence by itself cannot overcome the suspicion of the sinful heart. The Bible says that humans have a sinful nature and so, left to ourselves, we will always distort evidence of God’s love. The Apostle Paul wrote in Romans 1:21, “Although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him.” Later in chapter 8 of the same letter he says: “The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so.” And 1 Corinthians 2:14 he adds: “The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit.” To sum it up, without faith in Christ, we all misinterpret evidence and stand guilty of ignoring the Creator and misusing his gifts. Something more than evidence is needed.
An Illustration: The Man with Alzheimer’s
Imagine a man with advanced Alzheimer’s disease. His family brings him gifts—flowers, meals, and cards. But because of his illness, he misinterprets everything. He is paranoid and so he thinks someone is trying to poison him. He suspects the flowers are hiding a trap. He cannot recognize the gifts as love. What would change his perspective? Not more gifts. He needs his family to enter the room, take his hand, and speak clearly: “We love you. We are here for you.”
Creation is like those gifts. The rains, the harvests, the stars, the seasons—they are tokens of God’s love. But because of sin, humanity misinterprets them. We suspect the worst of God, we reinterpret the signs, we turn away. What we need is not more evidence but God’s Word. Only when God speaks can we see creation for what it really is: a testimony of his kindness.
God Speaks Through His Word
That is exactly what God has done. He has not left us groping in the dark, guessing about his intentions. He has spoken. “These things are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God” (John 20:31). “In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets… but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son” (Hebrews 1:1–2).
In Christ, the Word (logos) made flesh (John 1:14), God enters the room, takes us by the hand, and says, “I love you. I am here for you.” That Word gives us the lens to see creation rightly. The rains are not accidents; they are gifts. The harvest is not blind luck; it is provision. The joy of life is not chemical illusion; it is kindness coming down from the Father of heavenly lights. “He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?” (Romans 8:32)
Faith and Evidence through a Christian Lens
So how do faith and evidence relate?
Faith is not opposed to evidence. Faith does not mean closing your eyes to reality. Faith sees creation as evidence of God’s goodness, but interprets it through God’s Word.
Evidence does not create faith. Evidence can point to God’s existence and kindness, but only the Spirit through the Word creates trust in the living God.
Faith gives the right interpretation of evidence. Just as the man with Alzheimer’s needed his family’s voice to interpret the gifts, we need God’s Word to interpret creation.
This perspective frees us from two extremes: On the one hand, we don’t need to be afraid of evidence. Scientific discoveries are not enemies of faith; they are further witnesses to God’s creativity. On the other hand, we don’t put our faith in evidence alone. Arguments for God’s existence may be helpful, but they cannot save. Only God’s Word in Christ creates faith.
Conclusion: The God Who Speaks
Christian faith is trust in the God who speaks. Creation is filled with evidence of his power and love, but only through his Word do we interpret the evidence rightly. Martin Luther, in his explanation to the First Article of the Apostles’ Creed, said God has given me “my body and soul, eyes, ears, and all my members, my mind and all my abilities…All this he does only because he is my good and merciful Father in heaven.” Evidence and faith meet in the God who speaks.
Like the man with Alzheimer’s, we misinterpret the gifts until the voice of a loved one enters the room. And that voice has entered—in Jesus Christ. He is the Word made flesh, the full and final testimony of God’s kindness. In him, evidence and faith are united in testimony of God’s grace. Christians see both creation and salvation as gifts of God’s grace.
Reflection Questions:
When you look at creation, what evidences of God’s love do you notice most?
How does the Alzheimer’s illustration help you understand why evidence alone cannot create faith? How should this perspective inform how you deal with those who don’t believe in God?
How can you use the distinction between the “book of nature” and the “book of Scripture” in conversations with skeptical friends?
Suggested Scripture: 1 Corinthians 1:18-31
Further Sources for Diving Deeper
C.S. Lewis, Miracles (HarperOne, 1947).
A classic defense of why evidence invites inquiry but ultimately points to the need for divine revelation.Alister McGrath, The Open Secret: A New Vision for Natural Theology (Blackwell, 2008).
Explores how creation testifies to God while maintaining that Christ-centered revelation remains essential.Francis Pieper, Christian Dogmatics, Vol. 1 (Concordia Publishing House, 1950).
A confessional Lutheran perspective on natural knowledge of God and why Scripture is necessary for true understanding.Oswald Bayer, Martin Luther’s Theology: A Contemporary Interpretation (Eerdmans, 2008).
Shows how Luther understands divine revelation as God speaking effectually—not mere human speculation.
