Did Dr. Stephen Hawking die and go to hell? That is a question worthy of discussion.
This is a tough subject but let’s begin to answer the question about Dr. Hawking.
I. Dr. Stephen Hawking's Brief Resume
II. Charles Darwin: Master of Faith Based Science
III. Faith in Stone but not in Religious Parchments
IV. Science Shows Unscientific Faith
V. Some Leaps of Faith are True
VI. Deceptiveness of Measuring IQ
Dr. Stephen Hawking's Brief Resume
Dr. Stephen Hawking was a British scientist who contributed to the field of scientific endeavor. As many know, Dr. Hawking suffered from a debilitating disease. It caused him to lose motor function and confined him to a wheelchair.
As regular readers know, in a previous post I profiled Dr. Carl Sagan. I asked the same question about him: heaven or hell? The church should preach more sermon on hell!
There are some who will answer yes to whether both are in hell.
John MacArthur, a well-known Pastor, definitively stated that Pope John Paul II was in hell.
Pastor MacArthur may well be right. However, before I definitively answer such a question, it is important to understand a few things. First, there is an ongoing debate between Christian apologists and the scientific community.
One of my favorite Christian apologists is Dr. Ravi Zacharias. It is my belief that Dr. Zacharias was gifted from God, to perform this function. One of my favorite aspects of Dr. Zacharias’ ministry, is he answers questions from non-believers.
Charles Darwin: Master of Faith Based Science
Most of these unbelievers who question the authenticity of Scripture, have either read, or heard of Charles Darwin.
Charles Darwin was a 19th century scientist who wrote ‘The Origin of Species.’ Darwin came to conclusions which hundreds of millions, the world over, believe to be absolute truth.
For instance, he said that life, on Earth, was a result of a concept called Evolution. Evolution, reportedly taking hundreds of millions of years, stands in stark contrast to the biblical creation narrative.
Are science and Scripture mutually exclusive of one another? No! However, these veer in different directions when something beyond human comprehension is discovered.
Neil Tyson, scientist, and preacher of evolution, makes this point in the science series ‘Cosmos.’
I’ve watched Cosmos more times than I can count.
In one episode, Tyson gives full-throated support to evolution, and subtly mocks Scripture. Here is my struggle with Tyson’s purview: he uses limited human knowledge to describe an unlimited universe.
Some of the most difficult reading, in the English language, is Shakespeare. Asking a first grader to not only read it, but explain it, is an exercise in futility. Further, the concepts Shakespeare explores is anathema to a young child, and only guessed at by most high schoolers.
Scientists want you to believe, like a first grader, they comprehend a few words of Shakespeare, so have mastered the entire narrative! Yet out of the other side of their mouths, then say: “science doesn’t understand everything. We are open to being in error.”
Further, they accept certain ancient texts, while dismissing others with no clear explanation why. For instance, science gives credibility to the writings of an ancient Jewish writer named Josephus.
Josephus wrote in approximately AD 100, more than 65 years after the death of Jesus (about Jesus).
In the next breath, scientists like Tyson discredits the gospel writers, who recorded events closer to the time of Jesus. How can Josephus, having lived further away from Jesus’ life, be more credible than those who walked with Him?
Another example of this hypocrisy is Tyson presents the Library of Alexandria in a Cosmos episode. He praises its vast knowledge base, formerly located in ancient Egypt.
This library burned down in the ancient past. Yet, ancient biblical texts which survive, are treated as if they should not exist.
Faith in Stone but Not Religious Parchments
Perhaps I need to make it a bit simpler.
Even science admits that, historically, the Bible contains verifiable events.
However, those same scientists dispute other historical events in the Bible because they can’t find archaeological evidence they occurred.
The same scientists read hieroglyphics, on ancient buildings in Egypt, and teach them as historical truth. Are we to believe that because hieroglyphs are written in stone, they are academically more credible than surviving religious parchments?
Those who study ancient Egypt, readily admit Pharaohs misrepresent how they appear in stone art. Is it a stretch to believe most other depictions are fiction as well?
Even more scientifically outrageous, is they assign more credibility to the things that they can’t prove, in Egypt, rather than those they can biblically!
Why?
No matter what God does, they simply wouldn’t believe. Jesus said it best: “a wicked generation will seek after sign, and none will be given.”
Scientist Show Unscientific Faith
Stephen Hawking, Neil Tyson, and others, take huge leaps of faith and don’t realize it. The very thing they rail against (faith), is a cornerstone of their so-called ‘scientific method.’
The greatest of these leaps being the ‘Big Bang.’ Believing in something which cannot be proven is the very definition of faith.
Here is an example: dark matter. Dark matter is a hypothetical form of matter that is thought to make up 85% of the universe. Here is something else to consider: science can’t agree on how much of the Universe is ‘dark energy’.
Some say 70%, others higher, and still others lower. So, they can’t agree on the volume of something, they can’t prove exists. That’s science?
These point to one inescapable conclusion: scientists have never seen, nor measured dark matter, yet believe it exists. Some will push back with statements like: “we have observational evidence it exists.”
That is irrelevant according to their own ‘scientific method.’
If something is not ‘repeatable’ in a controlled experiment, it can never be fact! Observational evidence is simply not enough. These people have ‘undeclared faith’ (in science) yet refuse to use the word.
Therefore, dark matter/energy doesn’t exist because they cannot prove it exists.
Some Leaps of Faith are True
In fairness, some of their guesses have proven accurate. The greatest of these being the existence of Black Holes.
The distance between theory and a provable fact is wide, however. Let’s be clear: there is no way to prove God exists outside of observational evidence either.
Some of this evidence is ‘miracles.’
However, sometimes we Theists define things as a ‘miracle,’ that are simply results of previous miracles.
We have all herd church sermons about Moses and Pharaoh. In the days of Moses, God turned the Nile River into red blood. Everything in the river died except frogs. Frogs, unlike most other aquatic life, can hop out of the river, and still live.
The Bible describes frogs which over-ran Egypt as a miracle.
When any environment becomes unlivable, those who can ‘migrate’ do. Is migration, therefore, to be classified as a miracle? I believe what the Bible says!
However, I can see how scientific naturalists could easily challenge such things.
The Holy Bible defines faith as: “the substance of things hoped for; the evidence of things not seen.” A Pastor that I have much respect for, recently went on to be with the Lord.
He said something that many would take offense with but is true: “truthfully, we don’t know what’s on the other side.”
Where is this leading?
Science criticizes people of faith for believing something with only observational evidence while they do the same thing!
In the faith community, here is what Romans chapter 2 says about such behavior: “Oh thou man of God; you judge another and do the same thing? How shall you escape the damnation of God?”
Here is where science produces error and more specifically, Stephen Hawking. God has given us different gifts, to serve various purposes, and according to His will.
Deceptiveness of Measuring IQ
No one can dispute having the intelligence to pursue science, engineering, or math, is a gift from God. However, intelligence without wisdom is destructive.
Our society measures intelligence by a score called ‘IQ.’ The higher an IQ, the more value society places on your person. The lower an IQ, the less society values it holder.
What is intelligence, really?
A chemist has the intelligence to develop formulas and process which produces paint.
However, most of those same chemists haven’t the foggiest idea how to paint a masterpiece. An artist, however, with a different skill set, and a lower IQ, has gifting to do so
Who is more intelligent?
I’m not going to debate academic intelligence versus emotional intelligence. That avoids the bigger question. Finally, let’s answer the question with respect to, having died, where Stephen Hawking is spending eternity.
I shudder to think that a man who experienced so much suffering in life, through his debilitating disease, would spend eternity is greater suffering.
To think that Dr. Hawking went from being curled up in his wheelchair, not able to speak, to burning forever in hell, makes me heartbroken. However, if that is where Dr. Hawking is, he made the choice.
God didn’t give us intelligence to try and disprove His existence. Our brain power should produce the logical conclusion of ‘faith.’
Dr. Hawking proposed: ‘The Theory of Everything.’ This was made into a movie about his life and proposed the entire universe could be explained in a simple mathematical equation.
WOW!
As a Theist, I am rooting for this theory’s accuracy.
God is much simpler than we realize. As a Preacher, even the thought of a Theory of Everything is beautiful!
For faith readers, this may surprise you as well; perhaps Dr. Stephen Hawking is correct. The only way we can come to faith in Jesus, is through the presentation of God in the simplest manner.
We, as finite beings, are limited in knowledge, understanding, and a failing, mortal body.
The Theory of Everything may one day be proven accurate. However, God didn’t give Dr. Hawking, Carl Sagan, and even the more limited Neil Tyson, intelligence to question His existence.
True intelligence understand its finite limits. Many scientists use what God gave them, to prove He didn’t give it to them at all.
Let me explain.
Imagine giving someone a lighter. The reason you did was so they could create a campfire to keep warm. They light the campfire, warm themselves, and then attempt to burn your house down.
This is an accurate description of what scientists are attempting. God gave them intelligence to ‘light the fire’ of knowledge and instead, they try and burn His kingdom down.
Sadder yet, is Neil Tyson, unlike almost every other scientist of note, doesn’t have a PhD! Tyson does possess ‘honorary doctorates,’ however. He completed a Master’s, but simply couldn’t do the work required for a PhD in science.
Put more simply, Tyson is pretending to be more intelligent than he is, while calling you less intelligent than you are. WOW!
Imagine you, having gotten an ‘A’ in high school calculus, are called a mathematical idiot by someone who failed 9th grade Algebra.
He, however, has a gift superior to all others: ability to communicate.
Dr. Hawking’s, if he is in hell, isn’t there because he is a scientist. Nor because during his lifetime mocking God. If he is in HELL, it is because he never accepted God’s gift to forgive his sin, only found in Jesus Christ.
If you go to hell, it will be for the same reason. What will you do?
Header Image Courtesy of Pixabay ID 442746