Biblical. Accurate. Certain. These three adjectives describe fundamental characteristics that define the work of the Institute for Creation Research. These terms do not speak to what we do or even to the specific mission that we believe the Lord Jesus has called us to implement. They do, however, carefully define how we set about our daily tasks…the inner commitments that both drive and limit what we ultimately research, teach, and communicate to others.

First in order, both by choice and by necessity, is the word "biblical." Being biblical is the overarching mindset that insures both accuracy and certainty in our work. The foundation of all truth lies upon and within that which the Creator has specifically revealed through the Scriptures.

Being biblical means that we do not doubt the written Word of God.

The writer of Hebrews tells us that belief in the creation is the first test of faith a human must face (11:3) and that without faith it is impossible to please God (11:6). And faith, Paul reminds us, comes by hearing the Word of God (Romans 10:17). Faith is a gift that God gives (Ephesians 2:8), channelled through the written words of God, and it enables us to "transform" and "renew" our minds so that we can "prove" the "good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God" (Romans 12:2).

Doubt is very subtle. It enters our thoughts when we lack knowledge, and can fester into open rebellion against reality. This is especially true if we attempt to accommodate a "double mind"…which will ultimately drive us to instability in all of our deliberations (James 1:8). That is why being biblical is our first and foremost characteristic.

ICR is committed to a strong view of Scripture, maintaining that "every word of God is pure" (Proverbs 30:5), that the "scripture cannot be broken" (John 10:35), and that all of the written text of the Bible is "God-breathed" and therefore without error (2 Timothy 3:16). Furthermore, we are confident that these "great and precious promises" are sufficient for "all things that pertain unto life and godliness" (2 Peter 1:3-4).

Being biblical means that we do not deny God’s capability.

The central argument that Satan made to Eve in the Garden was that she would not die…as God had said. Eve was left with several possible responses to that challenge. If Satan was right, God either could not or would not do as He promised. If Lucifer was challenging the Creator, then surely God was not as omnipotent as He said He was, and therefore Eve could (and did) embrace the opposite of what she had been privileged to know. Adam, on the other hand, with full knowledge of what was transpiring, chose to participate in the rebellion and defy the Creator.

The same situation exists today. God has provided evidence in the "things that are made," so made that even His "eternal power and Godhead" are clearly seen (Romans 1:20). Those who choose to deny and defy the "speech" and "knowledge" written in the universe (Psalm 19:1-3) are "without excuse."

In our work to know the Creator and make Him known, we willingly and joyfully embrace the "divine nature" so beautifully inscribed across the universe. We are not tempted to subject the creation of the universe to eons of death and chaos, because the clear words of the biblical text eliminate such a monstrous possibility. To make God the author of evolution in any developmental scheme is to deny the omnipotence and omniscience of the very Being upon whom we rest for our own salvation and eternal destiny. The words of God are eternal and "in him are yea, and in him amen" (2 Corinthians 1:20).

Being biblical means that we will not denigrate God’s character.

The secular, non-theistic worldview is in direct opposition to a Creator. It knows and acknowledges nothing of the need for eternal redemption. It speaks only of self-centered appeasement. Naturalism at its core is atheistic, and the thrust of evolutionary theory is to tell the "story" of our origins without God.

The main proponents of evolutionary naturalism and the associated sociological exponents of that philosophy are atheistic in theory if not in practice. Our culture has passed from "modern" to "post-modern" and with it have come the many variations of scientism that are unified in their opposition to the concept of a transcendent Creator God. The very idea of an omnipotent, omniscient Being is anathema to these naturalistic concepts of human existence.

A "god" who would use the cruel, inefficient, wasteful, death-dependent processes of the random, purposeless mechanisms of naturalistic evolution contrasts so radically with the God described in the pages of the Bible that one wonders how the two could ever be thought to be the same being, as some evangelical leaders are claiming today.

God’s holiness demands that the creation not distort anything about God…or about the creation itself. God could not create a lie; He could not make anything that would inexorably lead us to a wrong conclusion, nor could He create processes that would counter His own nature or that would lead us to conclude something untrue about Him.

Everything that we see revealed about God, both in the universe and in the Scriptures, shouts the message that God is a God of order, purpose, and will. There is no hint of randomness in God. God does not react to circumstances; He’s never caught off guard. He never has to correct Himself and change His mind about His reason for doing something. He does not alter His plan for eternity, nor does He get confused about His design, His pleasure, or His purpose.

Given all that God has done to convey who He is and what He wants us to know, how should we approach His Word? What method can we use that would bring us most carefully before His written Word?

Being biblical

While ICR remains a science organization and conducts research into the workings of creation, our research is driven to uncover evidence that will enable our understanding of what God has done and is doing in the universe.

Being biblical sends us first to the very words of God before we attempt to identify the key questions necessary for solid scientific research. Being biblical demands that our activities are founded on the revealed truth of Scripture, which provides the "box" within which we search for truth about the world around us.

Being biblical is rooted in God’s command in Genesis 1:28, shaping our conscious efforts to "subdue" and "rule" the creation in such a way that our worship is directed to the Creator and not to the creature.

* Dr. Morris is Chief Executive Officer of the Institute for Creation Research.

Cite this article: Morris III, H. 2011. Being Biblical. Acts & Facts. 40 (4): 4-5.