But we are not free to have dominion in any way that
pleases us. We are obligated to rule in a way that pleases God.
That means exercising dominion according to the demands
of the first and second great commandments. At this point,
I’ll emphasize the second: “Thou shalt love thy neighbour
as thyself ” (Matt 22:39). Everything we do should be done
out of a heart of love—particularly, love for our fellow man.
This includes how we pursue science. We are to look for
ways to maximize the usefulness of our world but not in
ways that harm others or foolishly deplete resources. We
are to exercise dominion in a way that leads to human
flourishing.
Here’s how this thinking could have helped the student
who studied dog behavior. His Bible application could have
gone something like this: “The Bible teaches that we are to
rule over the earth (Gen 1:28). It also teaches that we are
to love others and do our best to help them (Matt 22:39). I
think my study could help me do both. Through my exper-
iment, I learned that if you feed your dog certain kinds of
dog food and if you play with your dog a certain number
of minutes every day, your dog will likely be healthy, live
longer, and be happy. I’ve already shared some of what I’ve
learned with my friends, and it’s making a difference. Life is
better when you understand dog behavior.”
HOW DOES MY TOPIC SHOW GOD’S GLORY?
“The glory of God” is a phrase the Bible uses to refer to the
different ways that God is great and good. God is glorious—
uniquely so—because His greatness infinitely exceeds that
of anyone else in this world and because His goodness (His
love, His patience, His justice, etc.) is far more marvelous
than we could ever understand.
The Bible teaches that everything in this world exists, ulti-
mately, to show the glory of God (cf. Rom 11:36). If that’s
so, then surely science fair projects somehow declare the
glory of God, and for many projects, the most natural way
to connect them to biblical teaching is to demonstrate that
they help us see God’s greatness and goodness.
So, a great Bible application may start like this: “The Bible
teaches that everything in this world exists to show us the
glory of God (Rom 11:36). As I worked on my project, I was
reminded again and again that God is great. For example,
when I ...” And the paragraph could go on from there.
HOW DOES MY TOPIC CHALLENGE MODERN,
UNBELIEVING SCIENCE?
A very important verse for Christians to understand—espe-
cially today—is Hebrews 11:3: “Through faith we under-
stand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so
that things which are seen were not made of things which do
appear.” Or to say it more simply, “By faith we understand
the world.”
Modern, secular science takes the opposite view. It claims
that faith (especially faith in the Bible) keeps people from
understanding the world. The only way to understand our
world is through the use of the scientific method—without
any reference to religious faith. And what happens when
you approach science in that way? You end up concluding
that humans are descendants of apes, the earth is 4.5 billion
years old, and the universe is more than 13 billion years old.
But Christians know you cannot understand God’s world
unless you look at it through the lens of God’s Word, and
at least some science fair projects should address this issue.
Erosion is a good example. Suppose a student were to
explore how different levels of water pressure create differ-
ent kinds of erosional structures. Maybe he puts sand in a
large, broad tub and tilts it at an angle. On the uphill side,
he lets water from a hose pour through the sand. Sometimes
he sends a little water through over a long period of time.
Sometimes he sends a lot of water through over a much
shorter time. What he learns is that a little water over a long
time cuts a channel that is narrow at the top, but a lot of
water over a short time cuts a channel that is wide at the top.
He concludes that you can infer the kind of water event that
formed a structure by noting the present characteristics of
that structure.
Here’s how the Bible application could wrap up the proj-
ect: “The Bible teaches that the Flood formed mountains
and canyons with a lot of water over a short period of time.
But modern science teaches these were formed with a little
water over a long time. However, when we look at things like
the Grand Canyon, we see something that is very wide at the
top. It looks like something formed with a lot of water over
a short period. Through this, I learned that my faith in the
Bible does not keep me from understanding the world—it
helps me understand the world.” That’s a science fair project
worth remembering.
CONCLUSION
I should say something about names at this point. It may be
that the title “Bible Application” isn’t very helpful. I think
it suggests that this part of the project is supposed to be an
afterthought—something we work on only after the real-
ly important stuff is done. A better title may be “Thinking
Biblically About [My Topic]” or “[My Topic] from a Biblical
Worldview.” These titles will encourage students to connect
the topic to the big ideas of Scripture. And, hopefully, we
won’t have any vomiting dogs. ■
Dr. Bryan Smith has worked in Christian education for over twenty years. He has been a
classroom teacher as well as a textbook author. Currently, he serves at BJU Press as the Bible
Integration Senior Manager. In this position, he assists authors and teachers in the work
of integrating faith and learning in the classroom. Bryan holds a Ph.D. in Old Testament
Interpretation. He and his wife, Becky, have six children.
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