The Case for a Creator - Lee Strobel [162]
Taken together, I concluded that this expert testimony constitutes compelling evidence that Jesus Christ was who he claimed to be—the one and only Son of God. For details that support this summary, as well as other evidence, please refer to The Case for Christ.
DELIBERATIONS:
QUESTIONS FOR
REFLECTION OR
GROUP STUDY
CHAPTER ONE: WHITE-COATED SCIENTISTS VERSUS BLACK-ROBED PREACHERS
1. Have you ever met someone who was as hostile toward Christianity as the author was? What are the various factors that might have been driving that person’s skepticism? Is there any part of the author’s attitude that you can personally relate to? How so?
2. What’s your current viewpoint concerning Christianity? How would you rank its credibility on a scale of one to ten, with one being “none” and ten being “absolute”? Specifically, what are your opinions based on? Have your attitudes changed over the years? If so, how? What prompted those changes?
3. Do you believe that Christianity is being eclipsed or enhanced by modern science? Why? On what do you base your assessment?
4. William Provine, professor of history and biological sciences at Cornell University, listed five implications if Darwinism is true: there’s no evidence for God; there’s no life after death; there’s no absolute foundation for right and wrong; there’s no ultimate meaning for life; and people don’t really have free will. Why do you think he’s right or wrong? Which one of these implications concerns you the most and why?
CHAPTER TWO: THE IMAGES OF EVOLUTION
1. Can you recall when you first were exposed to Darwin’s theory of evolution? What was the setting? What was your reaction at the time? Have your attitudes toward Darwinism changed since then? Why or why not? To what degree do you consider yourself to be open-minded on the issue?
2. Were any of the “images of evolution” described in the chapter instrumental in shaping your opinions? How so?
3. The author said that his belief in Darwinism was pivotal in his decision to become an atheist. In what way has your opinion about evolution affected your spiritual outlook?
4. How do you respond to Harvard geneticist Richard Lewontin’s opinion that science should be seen as “the only begetter of truth”? Is that a scientific or a philosophical statement? How much confidence do you put in science? What do you believe are the limits of science? What ways are there to know about something apart from the scientific method?
5. What preconceptions or prejudices might inhibit your investigation of the scientific evidence for a Creator? What can you do to set them aside and keep an open mind? What do you hope this investigation of the case for a Creator will personally accomplish for you?
CHAPTER THREE: DOUBTS ABOUT DARWINISM
1. On a scale of one to ten, with one representing “total disbelief” and ten representing “complete agreement,” what was your personal opinion about Darwinism before you read the interview with Jonathan Wells? Why did you choose that number? Did the number change after reading Wells’s critique of evolutionary theory? How so?
2. Which one of biologist Jonathan Wells’s disclosures was the most surprising to you? Why?
3. Consider each of the various icons of evolution that Wells discussed. As you evaluate each one, discuss whether you now think it provides viable support for Darwinism. What makes you reach that conclusion? If you were a juror and the icons were presented to you as evidence for the truth of Darwinism, would you say you have a reasonable doubt? Why or why not?
4. In Wells’s opinion, the evidence for Darwinism “is not only grossly inadequate, it’s systematically distorted,” and that in twenty or thirty years “people will look back in amazement and say, ‘How could anyone have believed this?’ ” In your opinion, what