Will the future resemble the past?
“Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell me, if you understand. Who marked off its dimensions? Surely you know! Who stretched a measuring line across it? On what were its footings set, or who laid its cornerstone- while the morning stars sang together, and all the angels shouted for joy? (Job 38:4-7)
The process of Inductive reasoning begins by making a specific observation, from that observation we can begin to recognize a pattern, from that pattern we can draw conclusions about future observations. We seem to have reason to believe that the future will resemble the past, because past futures have come to resemble past pasts. So… we have experiences of past futures but not of future futures. How can we be assured that future futures will resemble past futures? Or does one have to take it on blind faith that somehow an unguided, unconsciously constructed universe will for some reason continue to maintain its naturalistic and supernatural properties? For example, in the past we have observed that iron is magnetic. From this observation we can conclude that iron will continue to be magnetic in the future. But wait… this is to assume that the future will behave like the past.
The 18th century Scottish skeptic philosopher Hume was the first to come across this dilemma as illustrated in ‘An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding.’ This problem with induction is reiterated 164 years later in ‘Problems of Philosophy’ written by a man named Bertrand Russel. The leaders of the ‘New Atheists Movement’ such as the late Christopher Hitchens, Sam Harris, Daniel Dennett, and Richard Dawkins all follow and profess the works and teachings of Bertrand Russel and are all still incapable of solving the problem with inductive reasoning from the Atheistic worldview.
We understand that the eternal God has control over the universe and has made it uniformly. Theists get to claim a basis for believing why the material and spiritual laws that hold the universe together will be the same tomorrow as they were yesterday and today. The Laws of logic and the laws of thermodynamics will work tomorrow just as they have today because God has designed the laws which hold the universe together in an unchanging, uniformed manner. “You laid the earth on its foundations so that it may never be moved.” (Psalm 104:5) Whereas in an unguided universe that came into existence strictly through a series of cosmic accidents, it is impossible to claim that natural and supernatural laws are unchanging. If you are under the assumption that we live in an unguided universe, I highly suggest that you start holding onto something that’s anchored to the ground. Now make sure you don’t let go, because there is no reason to believe that in the next 5 seconds gravity will continue to hold you down. Unless… that is you live with a blind faith that the universe will continue to maintain its natural properties.
Science is the process in which we attempt to discover truths about the natural world. Science is a methodology for it is dependent on the uniformity of nature. If nature were constantly changing, the scientific method would be impossible. From the theistic worldview we can observe a miracle that goes against the grain of the uniformity of the natural world which God has set upon creation and label it as an anomaly. “We have a philosophical basis, something that satisfies the preconditions of intelligibility to appeal to uniformity, to make miracles look odd.” (Pastor Jeff Durbin. Apologia Church. YouTube debate. White & Durbin vs. Clark & Ellis) Whereas in the atheistic worldview, miracles are a common occurrence. Every time the sun rises, every moment iron continues to be magnetic, and every time 2+2 continues to result in 4 should be an awe inspiring, jaw dropping occurrence for the atheist! What are the odds that in this unplanned, unguided, cosmic accident of a universe that these qualities remain true and consistent day in and day out? “The most incomprehensible thing about the universe is that it is comprehensible.” (Albert Einstein)
“For by him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether they are thrones, or dominions, or principles, or powers. All things were created by and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. (Colossians 1:16-17)