Math and God:
- God created all things, and because He did, math exists.
- God spoke all things into existence, and math is a part of that speech.
- Behind God’s speech is God’s mind. Math came from that mind, and therefore math reveals that mind.
- Math is reasonable because God is reasonable.
- Math transcends all cultures because God transcends all cultures.
- God is intelligent, and math demonstrates the vastness of that intelligence.
- God is sovereign, ruling over the entire universe. Math is one means by which His rule is implemented.
- God is glorified [“magnified,” or “made bigger in our sight”] through math.
Math and creation:
- Math, being a part of creation, does not exist independently of God It is “held together” or “sustained” continuously through time by Him, and is dependent upon Him for its continuing existence.
- Math, like every other aspect of creation, belongs to God.
- Math, as every other part of creation, is subject to God’s authority.
- Math is constantly speaking to us of the fact that we live in a created, intelligently governed world.
Math and mankind:
- Mankind needs math as a tool for fulfilling God’s First Commission of Genesis 1:26-28.
- The ability to use math for problem solving is a remarkable gift to mankind from God. Any person who uses math to solve a problem or to create something is exercising a marvelous gift from God.
- Math is a constant reminder that mankind is created in the likeness and image of God, capable of abstract reasoning and creative invention.
- Math is able to instill patience, persistence and character in humans.
- Math, when seen for what it really is, can radically affect a person’s attitude toward God, and thus it is able to promote spiritual growth. Seeing the glory of God in math changes people.
- Mankind is able to creatively and intelligently label and name the mathematical language God put in place. This naming process is a part of what it means to rule over the earth, and such labeling continues to go on.
- Mankind must live in harmony with math, or pain may result.
Math and moral order:
- Math can be used for good or evil, as it is applied in the fields of science, technology, economics, sociology, etc.
- Math is a demonstration of the existence of objective truths. Things that are truly “right” and “wrong” do exist in the created, ordered universe, and math reminds us of this fact.
- Math demonstrates the law of non-contradions: ‘two answers which are mutually exclusive cannot both be true at the same time in the same sense.’
Math and purpose:
- Math equips us to fulfill the First Commission of Genesis 1:26-28.
- Math enables us to bring order to disorder, to invent, and to shape things into new things. When we do this in a way that honors the Lord, we glorify Him and bring benefit to ourselves and others.
- Math helps us to fulfill the Great Commission of Matthew 28:18-20, through such math-enabled inventions as the radio, TV, computers, Internet, modes of transportation, and inventions yet to be made using yet-to-be-discovered math.
- Math enables us to glorify God by doing the “good works which He has ordained” [Ephesians 2:10] more effectively. [Consider the fields of medicine, agriculture, economics, etc.]
Christian Overman and Don Johnson © 2003 Making the connections: Workshop participant guide. The Biblical Worldview Institute, 815 21st Street SE, Puyallup, WA 98372, www.biblicalworldviewinstitute.org