Science and the Bible: Mutually Exclusive, or Complimentary?

Source:
http://www.christianpost.com/news/can-science-creationism-coexist-one-christian-author-says-yes-51315/
Update:
Just read this article as well:
http://townhall.com/columnists/frankturek/2009/01/14/big_bang_evidence_for_god/page/full/


If we consider the Bible, the very Word of God Himself, to be something which contradicts science, we are treading on gravely dangerous ground.  God's Word is Truth.  To attempt to say that it is limited, or misleading, or inaccurate in any sense is to undermine the entirety of Scripture.  If we do that, then we are basically saying we can't know that we can have salvation, and that we can't know about a personal relationship with a loving God.

In his new book, Seven Days that Divide the World, John Lennox presents a simple yet profound idea.  This is an idea which has been floated in various forms, and various phrasings over the centuries.  However, it is an idea we must at least consider, if not embrace.  The idea is that the Bible and science compliment one another, and do not contradict one another. 

For most of history, atheists have liked the idea of a universe which always existed.  This was because they understood that a universe which was created must have a creator.  Any being capable of creating the universe would fit nearly any human definition of deity.  To this end, atheists long held that the universe was eternal, and limitless in size.  In the last several decades things have changed.  The big bang theory came about as a result of scientific study.  This theory indicates that the universe has a beginning point.  Fundamentally, we know that everything which exists has a cause.  If nothing existed prior to the universe, what caused it to exist?  The only answer for that is one which atheists prefer to avoid.

This is one example of an instance where the Bible appeared to contradict science.  Man's limited understanding of this universe pointed toward a limitless universe, without cause.  Rather, science today has shown that there is a beginning to the universe, and as such a cause.  In actuality, despite the seeming contradiction, the Bible pointed toward the truth long before man was able to discover it for himself.

It is with that understanding, and that precedent, that we are able to confront the lies of those who would say that science is truth, and the Bible is fanciful.  Clearly, this Scripture is not a textbook or other resource for seeing scientific theory played out, or how to measure events to learn more about science.  Rather it is a book of truth, some of which is provable with science.

Science is unable, by it's very nature, to show us how the world was created.  It is a limited tool, in that regard, that it can only be used to verify testable data.  Some historical events can be examined using advanced mathematical concepts, and observable events in the universe today.  Other historical information, such as which plants grew first, or which animals first inhabited the skies, can not be determined with science.  This is something only history can teach us.  However, it is history which is unrecorded.  Therefore, today we have no way to know some of these answers.

Scripture gives us all the answers we need, and provides us with sufficient information and knowledge to live our lives.  It shows us that the universe, the galaxy, the solar system, this planet, and the life on it, including us humans, were all created by a loving God, in a fashion which was pleasing to Him,  When it was completed, He said it was good.  One day I hope to learn the methods God used during creation.  Man has a myriad of theories about it, ranging from individual, complete attention to detail, loving acts for each creation, to His creating a process which allowed life to give way to more advanced life.  While I know which I believe to be true, I am eager for the day when my Father and Creator can show me precisely how He did it.

Until then, I will study His Word, and know that it does not stand in contradiction with science, but rather compliments it, and often will give me clues which science is unable to answer today.