Dear Brothers & Sisters,
It is common to hear today that "Religion and Science don't mix" as if God has nothing to do with how the world works :). Our culture, including many professing Christians, believe the lie that science and God have nothing to do with each other and never the twain shall meet. But this 'modern' narrative is nothing more than a form of the ancient serpent’s lie that we don't need God to understand and make our way in the world.
Ironically, we in our post-Christian 'wisdom' have forgotten that it was CHRISTIANS in the late-Medieval scholastic period and on into the time of the Reformation who first began to discover and formulate many of the principles of scientific study that we take for granted today.
One such man was Leonhard Eular.
Born in 1707, Eular proved to be remarkably gifted at mathematics. He developed many of the symbols in advanced calculations that we continue to use to this day. He wrote works on geometry, trigonometry, graph theory, applied mathematics, analytical number theory, physics, astronomy, acoustics, and optics just to name a few. His ability to concentrate and to remember things (he had a photographic memory) allowed him to continue his work even after going completely blind. To get a sense for how much Eular impacted the field of mathematics, you can find a Wikipedia article called "List of things named after Leonhard Eular" there are a LOT of ITEMS listed.
By the end of his life, he had written something like 90 volumes worth of material. Yet Eular was more than a mathematician. He was first a Christian, who believed that God created the universe out of nothing and ordered all things according to precise quantitative laws. As such he spoke out against the anti-Christian philosophies of his day, defending the doctrine of biblical inspiration and calling the idea that the laws of mathematics could arise from nowhere "heathen and atheistic."
Eular's life work flowed from His belief that all branches of study were rooted in Christ the logos (the sum of all truth). Eular put God, as it were, in the centre of the equation. He didn't sideline God or remain silent when he interacted with influential people like Fredrick the Great, or engaged anti-Christian philosophers such as Voltaire. We too would do well to recapture a renewed sense of the truth that ALL areas of life ought to be to the glory of God, for everything is "from Him and through Him and to Him" (Romans 11:36). Without Him everything falls apart.
God gave Eular a mind and Eular devoted his mind to God.
What will you do with what God has given you?
Where is Christ in the sum total of your life?
Grace & Peace,
Matt
Matthew Deneault Pastor at Christ Community Fellowship
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