x THE FAITHFUL READER obey Christ.” (2 Corinthians 10:5 ESV). Such biblical texts have implications for understanding the possible tension in how biblical knowledge interacts with some aspects of general (“secular”) knowledge or religious knowledge drawn from other sources. Biblical knowledge and general knowledge often do find complementarity. But some aspects of “knowledge” or enquiry are not compatible with biblical revelation. Paul puts this incompatibility in terms of a spiritual conflict. Theories or research in the “hard sciences” that adopt as a starting point non-theistic ideas will inevitably conflict with biblical teaching. In the social (“soft”) sciences, certain understandings about human nature cannot coincide with the biblical description of humans. In the areas of the humanities and theological disciplines, drawing authoritatively on non-biblical sources has led many throughout history to adopt views that are heterodox by the church’s standards and/or do not provide proper deference to the biblical canon. The warfare analogy depicted by Paul, however, does not mean that all things found in the sphere of secular (general) knowledge conflict with biblical revelation. Christian academics strive to discern what aspects of their chosen field need to be rejected, what aspects can be revised, and which ones can be affirmed. As far as different fields of knowledge discover true things, the affinity with Scripture can be straightforward. Arthur Holmes describes this phenomenon: “The Christian regards the biblical revelation as the final rule of faith and conduct, but he does not think of it as an exhaustive source of all truth… and in the final analysis there will be no conflict between the truth taught in Scripture and truth available from other sources.”1 Worldview and Integration A worldview that amplifies the place of the biblical text as revelation in worldview construction prompts biblical integration into all fields of 1 Arthur F. Holmes, The Idea of a Christian College, revised edition (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1987), 18. Holmes’ view is extended (and probably improved) in the following quotation from George Guthrie who seems recognize some distinction in the concepts of “revelation” which would prioritize Scripture’s description of God’s character and purpose and “truth” which would include revealed truths but not be limited to this form of truth.
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