What Kind of God do You Want to Be?

The disoriented author is not a computer gamer. I used to enjoy playing Zork or Ultima back in the day and I have spent some time flying the F-16 sim Falcon. Wait a minute, I do remember lunchtime Doom matches at a previous employer's shop. I discovered that since I was the only player without sound, I was at a distinct disadvantage. I wondered how the other guys always seemed to be able to find and kill me so quickly.

This week in Newsweek, I saw a review of a video game. The review had the provocative pull quote:

What kind of god do you want to be?

It turns out that in the game the player decides how life evolves. The idea behind the quote is of course that if you are the creator — you are God.

I have watched with interest the Creation/Evolution and Evolution/Intelligent Design debates but the truth of the review is a poignant one. If there is a creator he/she/it is god. Creation is a fundamental part of Christianity. If God did not create the world as the Bible declares than the Bible is suspect. John 1:1-3 describes the Creation:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.   The same was in the beginning with God.  All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.

In Christianity, if God is not Creator then He is not God. Thus to Christians, the question of origins is essential. This is why Christians are willing to circle the wagons around Creation Science and more recently Intelligent Design.

Likewise, if you are an evolutionist, then life must have evolved. The evolutionary world view depends on an evolutionary foundation. If the foundation were pulled away, the structure would crumble. Scientists have invested their careers in this foundation so they are certainly willing to circle the wagons around evolution.

It is therefore no surprise that the conflict is coming to a head in our schools.

I firmly believe in Creation but for me personally the jury is still out on Intelligent Design. Intelligent Design is the theory that the intricacy of design in the Universe implies a Designer and by implication the Designer is God.

I did not come to believe in Creation by experiments done in the lab (or even by mathematical proof). I believe in Creation because I accept the natural revelation that there is a god. I accept the revelation of the Holy Spirit in my life. Thus on the basis of the Bible, which I know to be authoritative, I  believe in Creation. What I am still not sure of is how that translates into the classroom.