"It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, But the glory of kings is to search out a matter. (Prov 25:2)"This little proverb suggests that God has hidden all kinds of philosophical and scientific truths in his created order to be probed, studied, tested, and researched by mankind in the context of respect for God as the creator and us as the creature.
I read a book by Harry Blaimres called, "The Christian Mind: How Should a Christian Think?" The following paragraphs struck me at the beginning.
"… There is no longer a Christian mind. There is still, of course, a Christian ethic, a Christian practice, and a Christian spirituality. As a moral being, the modern Christian subscribes to a code other than that of the non-Christian. As a member of the Church, he undertakes obligations and observations ignored by the non-Christian. As a spiritual being, in prayer and meditation, he strives to cultivate a dimension of life unexplored by the non-Christian. But as a thinking being, the modern Christian has succumbed to secularization. He accepts religion - its morality, its worship, its spiritual culture; but he rejects the religious view of life, the view which sets all earthly issues within the context of the eternal, the view which relates all human problems -- social, political, cultural -- to the doctrinal foundations of the Christian Faith,…" (3-4).
"…to secularize a community, not by officially denying its religion, but by so departmentalizing it that it is deprived of any overt influence upon the community's conscious purpose and activities. Christianity is emasculated of its intellectual relevance. It remains a vehicle of spirituality and moral guidance at the individual level perhaps; at the communal level it is little more than an expression of sentimentalized togetherness" (16).
This was published in 1963 which makes it almost prophetic! I found it interesting that "secular" is a relatively new word in the English vocabulary. This suggests that believers did not originally divide their lives up into secular and sacred. The 24th Psalm reminds us that the earth is the Lord's and everything in it. 1 Cor 6:19 reminds us that we ourselves are a temple of the Holy Spirit. This means that the various disciplines, whether it be medicine or philosophy, are not secular. They strive to probe and discover various truths, and all truth is God's truth.
However, secularists divide so-called "scientific truth" as objective, secular truth, and "religious truth" as subjective, sacred truth. Many Christians unwittingly buy into this scheme and leave natural truth to unbelievers to pontificate on.
However, Christians have the mind of Christ (1 Cor 2:16), who is the creator and sustainer of the universe (Col 1:16-17). Christians ought to be the best, most creative and innovative thinkers, scientists, researchers, governors, and philosophers in the world! Discoveries that we use to give honor to God and serve the good of others are truly a reflection of God's character.
This should be a challenge for Christians to pursue personal growth that includes both the devotional and intellectual type. Both are of God, and both can bring glory to God.