Thursday, September 19, 2019

Birds, Navigation using Quantum Entanglement, and the Glory of God



I just finished reading the book Foresight by Marcos Eberlin. In his book he gives numerous examples of features of life which are both wonderous and complex. He argues (correctly, imho) that these features of life required foresight to create them. This in turn points to them having been made by a great, Intelligent Designer.

One of the examples Eberlin discusses is relatively new research on bird migration. It has long been known that some birds possess an amazing ability to travel long distances, in some cases over open ocean with no landmarks, with a high level of navigational precision. It has also been known for some time that somehow birds are able to sense and use the earth’s magnetic fields to help them navigate.

Whatever method the birds are using to detect magnetic fields must include some type of sensing mechanism, the ability to transmit signals from the sensing mechanism to the bird’s brain, and then the brain must have a complex system for interpreting these signals so that the bird can use them to navigate. Any system like this is amazingly complex and points to the great wisdom of our Creator. It is exceedingly difficult to imagine how such a system could evolve because the sensor without the signal transmission system and a section of the brain designed to process and interpret the signals would be worthless. Likewise, a complex brain program able to interpret signals and use them to navigate would be useless without a system to produce those signals and transmit them to the brain. Such systems are irreducibly complex (a term introduced by Michael Behe) and thus require foresight from an Intelligent Designer to create.

Scientists still are not sure how bird navigation systems work, but recent research is pointing to a possibility that may indicate that their amazing navigation systems are even more advanced than anyone would have dreamed even a few decades ago. It appears likely that the bird’s magnetic sensing system may be using quantum entanglement!

For a more detailed explanation of how birds may be using quantum entanglement to navigate, you’ll want to either purchase and read Eberlin’s book (recommended!) or read this article on the PBS Nova website: A Bird’s Eye View of Quantum Entanglement. I’ll come back to both the PBS article and Eberlin’s books momentarily, but first I’ll offer my own brief, non-expert attempt at explaining what quantum entanglement may have to do with bird navigation (feel free to skip the next paragraph if you are not interested in my attempted explanation which unfortunately manages to be both too technical and too vague at the same time).

Quantum entanglement happens when two electrons are paired in an orbit. If they are then separated, they can temporarily remain entangled, meaning that whatever happens to one affects the other. One way they can be separated is if the atom they are in absorbs a photon of light. The separated, but entangled, electrons can then somehow (this part is really a bit cloudy to me) potentially sense minute differences in magnetic fields. This in turn might cause the molecule they are in to produce electro-chemical signals which could be transmitted to the brain. In order for all this to work, the electrons have to stay in an entangled state long enough. Scientists think they have identified a protein called Cry4 in bird’s eyes where this is happening. What’s surprising is that this protein appears to be capable of maintaining the electrons in an entangled state longer than physicists have been able to do in experiments even when the physicists are using temperatures close to absolute zero. Since the protein is located in the bird’s eyes it is possible that the birds are somehow, in some way, “seeing” the earth’s magnetic field. That’s mind blowing!

Back to the big picture and the glory of God!

The Nova article I mention above does a lot better job explaining what is happening than I can do. While overall the article is well-written and interesting, it stumbles in two ways in which Eberlin’s book does not stumble.

In the second paragraph of her Nova article, Katherine Wu writes:

“But some researchers say they have a good working theory—and it shows that avian evolution has tapped into quantum mechanics.”

This mention of evolution is gratuitous. It appears to be nothing more than an obligatory bow to the false religion of naturalism (a belief system that says nature is all there is and that all important truth is found by assuming only natural causes are at work in our world). Wu provides zero evidence or even speculative ideas as to how blind evolutionary forces could have produced a navigation system in birds that uses quantum entanglement. There is good reason to believe that producing even a single protein (like Cry4) is beyond the resources of a blind process like evolution. But as mentioned above, Cry4 would be useless for navigating if it were not part of an entire set of stunningly complex systems all working together to produce beneficial navigation for the bird. Eberlin, on the other hand, is right to see any bird navigation system, and especially a super-advanced one using quantum entanglement, as evidence for a great Designer whom we worship as God.




Crediting evolution rather than intelligent design is the first way in which the Nova article stumbles. The second is closely related. Wu ends her article the same way that Eberlin ends his book: with a quote from a physicist. Both quotes point to the unavoidable sense of awe and wonder which new scientific discoveries often bring. But at this point the quotes diverge.

Wu quotes quantum scientist Erik Gauger as saying: “nature is an ingenious architect.”

That quote makes me sad. Nature is not an intelligent being that can do anything “ingenious.” Architects are intelligent beings. They plan. They have foresight. Nature does not plan or have foresight. Attributing the great works of God to His creation robs Him of the worship He deserves. The Apostle Paul pointed out how suppressing the knowledge of God which can be seen  through the world He created leads down a dark path for humanity:

CSB Romans 1:18 For God's wrath is revealed from heaven against all godlessness and unrighteousness of people who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth,
 19 since what can be known about God is evident among them, because God has shown it to them.
 20 For his invisible attributes, that is, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen since the creation of the world, being understood through what he has made. As a result, people are without excuse.
 21 For though they knew God, they did not glorify him as God or show gratitude. Instead, their thinking became worthless, and their senseless hearts were darkened.

Thankfully not all people, and not all scientists, have chosen to bow to the dominant materialist view of the universe. There are some who, like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, refuse to bow. Marcos Eberlin is one of these courageous people. He is himself a highly accomplished scientist “having published close to 1,000 scientific articles” (from the back cover of Foresight). Marcos closes his book, Foresight, by quoting from J. J. Thomson. Thomson was a Nobel laureate in physics who discovered and described the electron. Thomson wrote these words regarding the ever-expanding horizons of scientific discovery:

. . . we do not see the horizon; in the distance tower still higher peaks, which will yield to those who ascend them still wider prospects, and deepen the feeling, the truth of which is emphasized by every advance in science, that “Great are the Works of the Lord” (J. J. Tomson, as quoted by Eberlin in Foresight, pg. 147. I put Tomson’s quote from Psalm 111:2 in bold).

Tomson was right about each new scientific discovery opening doors to further discovery. His own discovery of the electron and some of its basic properties paved the way for great advances in chemistry and physics. These in turn led to the recent research which shows that birds may be using quantum entangled electrons as part of a super-complex set of integrated systems that allow them to navigate. But Tomson was not merely right about scientific discoveries leading to more discoveries. He was also right about the feeling that such discoveries should stir and the effect they should have. They should lead to the worship of our great Creator.

To God be the glory (for bird navigation systems and everything else)!


For Further Reading and Study

I enjoyed Marcos’s book Foresight, which led to this blog post. His book has many examples of aspects of our world and especially living things which required foresight to create. While I recommend Foresight, if you are relatively new to the topic of the scientific evidence for God seen in nature as explained by the intelligent design movement, I would recommend reading a couple of other books before Foresight. Although the following two books are a little bit older, they are very well written, tightly reasoned, and provide a great foundation for understanding intelligent design evidence and arguments:

Darwin’s Black Box by Michael Behe

Signature in the Cell by Stephen Meyers

Both Meyers and Behe have written other books that are also excellent. I give a big picture overview of the cumulative argument in Behe’s three books here:


I have written other blog posts related to this topic. Specifically, I’ve written posts about how the following show evidence of design and give glory to God:






And here are a few devotional blog posts inspired by the natural world God created:





Hebrews 13:16 And do not forget to do good and to share with others . . .

Monday, September 16, 2019

Why aren’t there more miracles today? Should we seek more signs and wonders?



Many people, both Christians and skeptics, ask why we don’t see more miracles today.

Throughout the Bible we read about signs and wonders. In the ministry of Jesus and the apostles signs and wonders occurred frequently. Why don’t we see the same thing happening today? Should we expect more signs and wonders? Should we seek them?

In this post I’m using the word “miracle” interchangeably with the phrase “signs and wonders.” Let me explain what I mean by “signs and wonders”. I am talking about God working miracles which are obviously supernatural so that even a skeptic, if they personally experience or observe one of these, will be moved to admit that something supernatural has happened. They might not admit that it was God, and they might not accept Jesus as Lord and Savior, but they will be forced to admit that there has been a miracle. This happened in the book of Acts. In chapter 3, a lame man is healed in the name of Jesus.  In chapter 4 the religious leaders have arrested Peter and John and are questioning them. They cannot deny a miracle has happened:

Acts 4:13 When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.
 14 But since they could see the man who had been healed standing there with them, there was nothing they could say.
 15 So they ordered them to withdraw from the Sanhedrin and then conferred together.
 16 "What are we going to do with these men?" they asked. "Everyone living in Jerusalem knows they have performed a notable sign, and we cannot deny it.
 17 But to stop this thing from spreading any further among the people, we must warn them to speak no longer to anyone in this name."

While in a very real sense every newborn baby, every sunrise, and every person who is saved is a wonderful miracle from God, these types of miracles are not what I mean by “signs and wonders”. I say this not because these types of miracles are less real or less important, but because many people (wrongly) find it easy to deny that these things are caused by God or any supernatural force.

Expectations




Different Christians have different beliefs and expectations regarding miracles today. Cessationists are Christians who believe that some of the spiritual gifts, which are often called the sign gifts, ceased around the time the apostles died. Cessationists tend to think that we should expect God to work relatively few miracles today. Not all cessationists have the same expectation. Many cessationists believe that God still occasionally heals supernaturally in response to prayer. Charismatics tend to expect miracles to occur more often. Again, I’m painting with a broad brush, and not all charismatics have the same level of expectation for signs and wonders. Charismatics do believe that the sign gifts are still functioning today, including gifts of healings and working miracles. While genuine speaking in tongues is also a sign, because it is so easy to fake (I’m not saying all charismatics are faking it, just that some people could) I do not count it as a miracle in the sense I’m using the word in this blog post. Many Christians are neither charismatic nor cessationist. Like me, they are in between. But I’m not in between because I haven’t thought about it. I’ve thought about it quite a bit and while I don’t know exactly how often we should expect God to work miracles today, I think there are good biblical reasons to expect Him to still work miracles, but not as many as He worked through the apostles.

Why I don’t think we should expect an apostolic level of miracles today

One of the reasons for signs and wonders (not the only reason!) was to provide evidence that Jesus really was the Son of God and that His apostles really did receive divine revelation and were authorized to teach and explain the new gospel message.




Concerning Jesus, we read:


ESV Acts 2:22 "Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know—

Concerning the Apostles, we read:

ESV 2 Corinthians 12:12 The signs of a true apostle were performed among you with utmost patience, with signs and wonders and mighty works.

A major factor (perhaps THE major factor) in the early church recognizing which writings should be included in the New Testament was apostolic authority. The books of the New Testament were either written by an apostle or by someone who was working closely with an apostle who approved of their writing. But why did the early church have confidence that the apostles really were receiving new revelation from God and that their writings were, in fact, the Word of God? One major reason was that God worked many signs and wonders through the Apostles. These signs and wonders were not the only important factor, but they were certainly important.

None of us today are called to write new books of the Bible, so it is not surprising that we see less signs and wonders today than we see in the ministry of the apostles. This is also consistent with the fact that Moses also was empowered to work many signs and wonders and he also wrote books of the Bible.


BUT, the Bible still leads us to expect some miracles today

Jesus and the Apostles were not the only ones God used to work signs and wonders in the New Testament. Authenticating these men was not the only purpose that signs and wonders served.

Since the New Testament does not include a lot of information about the lives and ministries of people other than Jesus and the Apostles, we really don’t know how commonly God worked signs and wonders through others. But we do have some examples. Stephen was chosen by the church to help oversee the distribution of food to widows (Acts 6:1-5). He was not an apostle. But God worked signs and wonders through Stephen:

ESV Acts 6:8 And Stephen, full of grace and power, was doing great wonders and signs among the people.

There was an apostle named Philip, but it was another man named Philip who was chosen along with Stephen and who was also an evangelist through whom God worked miraculous signs:

NIV Acts 8:5-7 Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Messiah there.  When the crowds heard Philip and saw the signs he performed, they all paid close attention to what he said.  For with shrieks, impure spirits came out of many, and many who were paralyzed or lame were healed.

It appears that the reason God worked signs and wonders through ordinary people like Stephen and Philip was to help them spread the gospel. I can’t find any verse in the Bible which gives a reason why God would not provide the same type of help to us today. Paul writes to the church in Galatia in a way that implies that God was continuing to work miracles among them:

NIV Galatians 3:5 So again I ask, does God give you his Spirit and work miracles among you by the works of the law, or by your believing what you heard?

Even when Jesus and the Apostles were the ones working the miracles, it seems like a major purpose for the miracles was helping others believe the gospel:

Now while he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Festival, many people saw the signs he was performing and believed in his name. (John 2:23 NIV)

This became known all over Joppa, and many people believed in the Lord. (Acts 9:42 NIV)

When the proconsul saw what had happened, he believed, for he was amazed at the teaching about the Lord. (Acts 13:12 NIV)

There are many other examples of miracles helping people to believe, including: Matthew 4:24-25; Matthew 20:34; Luke 5:9-11; John 1:50; John 4:53; John 6:2; John 7:31; John 10:37-38; John 11:45; Acts 4:4; Acts 5:12-14.

I don’t expect the same level of signs and wonders as occurred in the ministries of Jesus and His apostles. But I do feel the Bible gives us reasons to expect that God will graciously work signs and wonders today like He did through Stephen, Philip, and at the churches in Galatia for the purpose of helping people believe and strengthening the faith of some who already believe.

Now here’s the tough part.

My experience is less than my expectations (see the graphic at the top of this post)

I don’t know exactly how many and what kind of signs and wonders we should expect. But I know that when I read the Bible I feel stirred to expect more than what I’ve experienced.  I’ve never seen a sign and wonder miracle as amazing as many of the ones recorded in the Bible. I’ve experienced what might be called some “little signs and wonders”.  I call them “little” only compared to what we read about in the Bible. To me, they are a big deal! These were experiences which, to me, were very obviously supernatural. Here are some examples

* God spoke basically the same message to my wife and I when we were far apart because I was out to sea in the Navy.

* I’ve had some dreams that I’m convinced were supernatural dreams. In one, both the timing of the dream and its contents point strongly to it being a dream sent from God.

* A number of times I have seen people delivered from demonic oppression. Most of the time there was nothing I saw or heard that would count as a sign and wonder in the sense of being difficult for a skeptic to provide a non-supernatural explanation for what was seen. But on one occasion my wife and I were in a small group and we heard a demon speak from out of a person with a voice that we are convinced could not have naturally come from that person.

note: I give a few more details about the three stories above in a blog post here.

In addition to a handful of signs and wonders I have personally experienced, I have heard testimonies from other Christians. I don’t assume all these testimonies are true. However, in some cases I believe there is evidence that should  convince a reasonable person that God was at work.

* While living in a Muslim majority nation for fourteen years, I was blessed to meet quite a few people from Muslim backgrounds who had become Christians. Some of these became close friends whom I knew for years. Many of them reported a similar experience. At some point before becoming a Christian they had a supernatural dream in which they either saw Jesus or saw something that led them to believe in Jesus. These dear brothers and sisters faced a great risk of persecution when they became Christians. I don’t think they were all making up these dreams. Besides hearing such testimonies from multiple Muslim converts myself, many others have reported the same thing. The Gospel Coalition has a good, moving article on Muslims having dreams that led them to Jesus.

* Most reported miracles do not happen in a public setting with lots of witnesses. But occasionally one does. A good example is the miracle story told in the movie Breakthrough. It is a true story about a boy who fell through the ice on a lake. He was underwater for 15 minutes. Doctors tried valiantly to resuscitate him for about 45 minutes. They concluded he was dead and could not be resuscitated. His mom showed up and prayed a desperate prayer and her son’s heart started to beat again. Those present do not hesitate to proclaim that it was a true miracle. You can see a short article on how the movie compares to the true story (it is very accurate) here.

So, yes, I’ve experienced a few small (compared to those in the Bible) miracles directly and I have heard credible reports of others. I believe God is working miracles today. But these miracles don’t happen as frequently as I would like or as often as I would hope for. There are a lot of tough questions. I’ll share some thoughts about these honest questions next.

Tough questions, biblical insights, and pastoral advice

Why do we not see more miracles today? Here are a few reasons we might see less miracles than we would like:

1. Sometimes we may lack faith in God. On the one hand, it’s often wrong and cruel to accuse someone who is suffering from an illness or who has a loved one suffering from an illness of not having enough faith if they aren’t miraculously healed. On the other hand, sometimes a lack of faith does limit the miracles God works:

Mark 6: 4 Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown, among his relatives, and in his household."
 5 He was not able to do a miracle there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and healed them.
 6 And he was amazed at their unbelief. He was going around the villages teaching.

We need to remember that we are called to have faith in God, not faith in faith.

2. Experiencing the supernatural work of God can cause us to become prideful. I honestly think this is a major reason that there are less miracles than we want. Pride is so terrible and so damaging that it may often be better for God to withhold miracles than to give us miracles that tempt us to pride. How did God keep the apostles from becoming proud when He empowered them to work lots of miracles? It appears that God allowed them to suffer a lot and that kept them humble:

ESV 2 Corinthians 12:7 So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited.

3. Closely related to the reason mentioned above, it may be that God works more miracles in places where Christians experience more intense persecution. This may explain why so many Muslims are having miraculous dreams about Jesus. When a Muslim chooses to follow Jesus they risk expulsion from their families, loss of their jobs, physical harm, prison, and death. It makes sense to me that God would give them extra help and courage to believe in Jesus by giving them more miracles, including supernatural dreams. The Bible does seem to link suffering for the gospel and experiencing the power of God:

CSB17 Philippians 3:10 My goal is to know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings, being conformed to his death,

The same apostles who experienced so many miracles also suffered tremendously for the gospel and for the Name of Jesus.

I am very skeptical (like super, extremely skeptical) of pastors and evangelists who claim to work lots of miracles while getting rich and flying around in private jets. Their lives and ministries look nothing like the lives and ministries of the apostles. I suspect most (perhaps all) of them are charlatans and false prophets working false miracles.

5. This brings up another possible explanation of why we (referring to relatively wealthy Christians in nations like the US) may not see as many miracles as we could. Perhaps we are too focused on material things and wealth. Having extra money may be distracting us from the things of God. Consider these words from Peter and John:

ESV Acts 3:6 But Peter said, "I have no silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!"

6. Perhaps sometimes we don’t experience as many miracles as we could simply because we do not pray enough. After the apostles were ordered not to speak any more about Jesus, they held a prayer meeting. They prayed for courage to keep sharing the gospel. They also prayed that God would work more miracles, and He did!

ESV Acts 4:29 And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness,
 30 while you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus."


Here are a few more thoughts about miracles:

1. Seeing miracles doesn’t guarantee people will believe in Jesus. While Jesus was working many amazing public miracles, the Pharisees who knew about these miracles were plotting to kill him.

2. While this blog post has focused on the types of miracles that even an honest skeptic would see as pointing to supernatural causes, God works in many other powerful ways to speak to us and to win people to Christ. The Holy Spirit empowers the simple sharing of the gospel message. The love shown by a Christian friend can draw someone to Christ. Also, in a way nature is full of miracles. Elsewhere I have written posts about how the following provide strong evidence of a great, mighty, super-intelligent Creator:





3. We should not think that Christians who experience signs and wonders are more blessed than those who do not:

Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed." (John 20:29 NIV)

4. While miracles, signs, and wonders can be used by God to bring people to Christ and to strengthen the faith of those who already believe, we should not put too much emphasis on them. In the epistles of the New Testament there is far more emphasis on Christian character, getting rid of sin in our lives, loving others, forgiveness through faith in Christ, the grace of God, and the hope of the return of Christ and the resurrection, than there is on signs and wonders in this life.

Conclusion

God still works miracles today. There seems to be good reasons that He does not work as many signs and wonders now as He worked through the apostles. But that doesn’t mean we should be satisfied with the number of miracles we see. It is right to follow the example of the church in Acts and pray for both boldness to share the gospel and for miracles and healings to confirm God’s truth. If we experience more miracles, we should not expect this to make our lives more comfortable. In fact, an increase in signs and wonders may very likely be accompanied by an increase in suffering for the gospel, as it was with the apostles. It is not wrong to want more miracles and to seek them in Christ, but we must not get out of balance. We should focus on living for Jesus, getting rid of sin in our lives, using our gifts and resources to build up the church, worshipping God, and loving others.



Hebrews 13:16 And do not forget to do good and to share with others . . .



Other Bible Questions I’ve Tried to Address on My Blog:































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