\n\t\t\t\t\t\tDownload Audio\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\tText: I Corinthians 1:18-31<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
I. Mankind has long fooled themselves into thinking they can accurately determine the truth<\/p>\n
A. We call this search for Truth “Science”<\/p>\n 1. “Knowledge covering general truths or the operation of general laws\nespecially as obtained and tested through scientific method.” – Webster’s\nCollegiate Dictionary\n 2. “Science is a way of thinking, an error-correcting process by which we\nfigure out what is true and what is not.” — Carl Sagan\n
B. Often this search leads to contradictions<\/p>\n 1. Daily, our papers publish “new findings” from some study that contradicts\nthe knowledge we previously had.\n 2. Philosophers sometimes take the easy way out and declare that Truth must\nbe relative to the beholder.\n 3. When Jesus claimed to be the witness of the Truth, Pilate replied “What is\ntruth?” – John 18:37-38\n
a. Pilate didn’t think this question had an answer<\/p>\n
b. But the Bible claims otherwise<\/p>\n
C. Sometimes Science conflicts with Biblical teachings<\/p>\n 1. Through many influences, we are encouraged to believe that Science is\nmore accurate than the Bible “in its own realm.”\n 2. After all, wasn’t Copernicus ridiculed by the religious people of his day\nfor thinking that the earth wasn’t the center of the universe?\n 3. How often are we told that Science is based on the observation of facts. \nReligion is just based on faith in the unobservable and the untrue.\n 4. Too many religious people and too many Christians have accepted these\nlies.\n
II. The Bible is the Truth<\/p>\n
A. John 17:17 – God’s word is truth. <\/p>\n
1. It is true that the Bible deals with spiritual matters.<\/p>\n 2. It wasn’t written to teach physical science or history, but it sometimes\nmentions things in these realms.\n 3. Just because it is not a teacher of physical science, doesn’t mean that when\nit mentions a physical fact it cannot be trusted. \n
4. This is the way we deal with the writings of men, not the writings of God.<\/p>\n
B. Titus 1:2; Hebrews 6:18 – It is impossible for God to lie<\/p>\n 1. If the Bible is found false or even misleading in these incidental facts, then\nit means the book as a whole cannot be fully trusted\n
2. Either it does not come from God or we claim that God is fallible.<\/p>\n C. If we study the teachings of God, then we will come to know the truth – John\n8:31-32\n
III. Man is not known for accuracy<\/p>\n
A. Jeremiah 9:3-9 – Men are full of lies, deceit, and treachery<\/p>\n
B. People prefer to follow a lie – II Thessalonians 2:9-12<\/p>\n
C. Science doesn’t have the truth<\/p>\n
1. It is based on the works of fallible and erroneous men<\/p>\n 2. “Science thrives on errors, cutting them away one by one. False\nconclusions are drawn all the time, but they are drawn tentatively. \nHypotheses are framed so they are capable of being disproved … Science\ngropes and staggers towards understanding.” – Carl Sagan\n a. In other words, Science doesn’t have the truth right now and will\nnot in the future, but we are getting closer all the time.\n
b. Contrasted to the Scriptures, which claim to be truth.<\/p>\n c. The Bible talks about people like this – II Timothy 3:7-9, they are\nfalse teachers! \n 3. Sagan goes on to say that a scientist has no more trust of science as an\nauthority than he does of religion, government, or superstition. Science\nteaches a distrust of authority and a distrust of your own hypothesis.\n D. And people actually prefer to listen to the teachings of people with Ph.D.s behind\ntheir names over the plain teachings of God?\n 1. I Timothy 6:3-5 – If we do not consent to God’s teachings we are proud,\nignorant people without truth in our lives. \n
IV. But what about all these facts that contradict the Bible?<\/p>\n A. Here I could go on and on about how men, in the name of Science, have duped the\nunsuspecting. We will look at just a few conflicts.\n B. The Bible says the world is about 6,000 years old, but Science has proved the\nworld to be billions of years old.\n 1. First note that if a person doesn’t want to believe in God, they will create\nan explanation of how this world came to be without God. Without a\ndesigner, you must rely on chance to get things into being. But the odds\nagainst it are so long, you need large quantities of time to even make such\na solution thinkable.\n 2. There are many ways to measure the age of the earth, but the ones\ntrumpeted are the ones that give the longest answers. The short answers\nare rarely mentioned!\n![\"candle\"](\"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2004\/01\/Candle.jpg\")
\n 3. Suppose you walk into a room and find a candle\nburning. You watch and find that it is being\nconsumed at a rate of one inch per hour. How long\nhas the candle been burning?\n a. What a minute! How much candle was\nthere originally? Can I be certain it burned\nat a constant rate? What if it was tapered at the top and is thicker\nwhere it is currently at? What if a stiff breeze fanned the flame\nearlier and made it burn faster at some point?\n b. How old is the earth? No one can know unless you are shown how\nit began and how rapidly it changed since then.\n c. Since the world was created for man (Psalms 115:16; Isaiah\n45:18), does it make sense that God waited billions of years to\naccomplish His purpose?\n![\"volcano\"](\"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/volcano.avif\")
\n 4. “Sidney P. Clementson, a British engineer, has\nanalyzed the published studies of rock samples\nfrom twelve volcanoes in Russia and ten samples\nfrom other places around the world which show\nages from 100 million to 10 billion years by typical\nradioactive dating methods, whereas it is known\nthat these volcanic rocks were formed within the past 200 years!”\n a. Remember reading about Australopithecus and their 4-5 million\nyear age? How did they arrive at these dates?\n b. They were found buried in volcanic rock. The age of the bones are\nassumed to be approximately the age of the surrounding rock.\n c. I don’t know about you, but when I die and am buried 6 feet under,\nI hope no one thinks I’m as old as the dirt I’m buried in. It gives a\nwhole new meaning to the phrase “old as dirt.”\n d. Also, have you ever noticed that with each new discovery, the\nfinder declares an even older date? Sounds like “my bones are\nolder than your bones!” competition.\n 5. I love looking a cave formations, but without fail, the guides will tell you\nabout the millions of years it took to form the various formations. It is true\nthat at their current progress, it would have taken a long time. But who\nsays the rate is constant?\n![\"lincoln](\"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2004\/01\/LincolnMemorial.jpg\")
\n a. Some stalactites under the Lincoln\nMemorial are over five feet long! The\nLincoln Memorial was built in 1923 and\nthis photo was taken in 1968.\n b. Stalactite and stalagmite formation’s grow\nare dependent on the rate of water drip, the\nconcentration of the minerals in the water,\nand the rate of evaporation. All of which are highly variable\nfactors over time.\n![\"bat](\"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Bat-Caught-in-Stalagmite-Patton.avif\")
\n c. Evidently, stalagmites can form so rapidly at times that a bat can be\nentombed before bacteria can decay the body or predators can\nconsume it.\n C. There is more evidence available showing the world is young than there is\nshowing the world is old. Why are the old dates preferred? Because it proves a\ndifferent goal – that God does not exist!\n
V. I will stand for truth<\/p>\n
A. Psalms 26:1-12 – Try me; I will walk in the Lord’s truth<\/p>\n B. There is no need to feel we must harmonize the Bible with Science by\ncompromising the truth. Science is still looking. Maybe, one day, they will catch\nup with the facts that every Christian knows.\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Download Audio Text: I Corinthians 1:18-31 I. Mankind has long fooled themselves into thinking they can accurately determine the truth A. We call this search for Truth “Science” 1. “Knowledge covering general truths or the operation of general laws especially as obtained and tested through scientific method.” – Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary 2. “Science is…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[119,32],"tags":[80,474,441],"class_list":["post-62864","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-audio","category-sermon","tag-evolution","tag-science","tag-truth"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":7724,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/do-you-want-the-truth\/","url_meta":{"origin":62864,"position":0},"title":"Do You Want the Truth?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 18, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"by Raymond Warfel","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":57566,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/is-science-the-source-of-truth\/","url_meta":{"origin":62864,"position":1},"title":"Is Science the Source of Truth? (Article)","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 2, 2004","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Mankind has long deluded itself into thinking it can accurately determine truth. In the past charlatans and deluded men thought they could divine truth by observing animal organs or through drug-induced trances. Eventually, the search for truth has given way to the use of human reasoning.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2004\/01\/Candle-200x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":94555,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-truth-about-god-and-science\/","url_meta":{"origin":62864,"position":2},"title":"The Truth About God and Science","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 14, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"by Buddy Payne interviewed by Andy Diestelkamp via InLight Media Are faith and science in conflict? Does science disprove God? And can you believe in both Christianity and modern science without compromising your faith? In this long-form interview, we sit down with Dr. Buddy Payne, a Harvard-educated science professor, to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Video"","block_context":{"text":"Video","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/video\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":59504,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/science-and-the-bible\/","url_meta":{"origin":62864,"position":3},"title":"Science and the Bible","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 24, 2005","format":false,"excerpt":"by R. L. Whiteside from\u00a0Kingdom of Promise and Prophecy The claim that science and the Bible do not agree should disturb no one. What is called \"science\" is not static. Each generation brings new light; most of the old theories have been exploded by scientists themselves. Yet, each generation of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":38797,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/we-can-know-the-truth\/","url_meta":{"origin":62864,"position":4},"title":"We Can Know the Truth","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"May 6, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton \u00a0 I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Objectivity is not a strong point in our society \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Objective means the existence of something outside of oneself. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0B.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Our society prefers things to be subjective \u2013 belonging to one\u2019s own mind \u2013 especially when dealing with matters of right and wrong. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a01.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cIt doesn\u2019t really matter\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":92400,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/is-truth-essential\/","url_meta":{"origin":62864,"position":5},"title":"Is Truth Essential?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 30, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"by Raymond Warfel Download Audio","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/62864","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=62864"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/62864\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=62864"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=62864"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=62864"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}