Christian Response to Modern Medicine, Science and Technology Notes, Quizzes & Revision

Christian Living Today — Christian Response to Modern Medicine, Science and Technology

Age group: 15 years • Subject: Christian Religious Education • Context: Kenya

Learning aims

• Understand how technology helps spread the Gospel.
• Explain Christian views on euthanasia and the right to life.
• Consider Christian attitudes to cosmetic plastic surgery.
• Identify Bible examples of creativity and learn from Daniel and Solomon.
• Recognise God as the source of human creativity and inventions.

1. Technology and spreading the Gospel 📱✝️

Technology gives churches and Christians in Kenya new ways to share the Good News:

• Radio and TV: reach people in rural areas where there may be no church nearby.
• Social media, WhatsApp and YouTube: make sermons, Bible studies and testimonies available to young people and families.
• Live streams and podcasts: allow daily devotion, prayer groups and Bible teaching at home.
• Mobile health (mHealth) and SMS: Christian groups can share health messages alongside spiritual care.

Benefits: wider reach, quick communication, help in emergencies. Challenges: misinformation, the need for careful teaching, and protecting privacy.

2. Christian views on euthanasia and caring for the sick 🕊️

Euthanasia means deliberately ending a person's life to relieve pain. Christians usually distinguish between:

• Active euthanasia (intentionally causing death) — generally rejected because life is a gift from God and only God has authority over giving and taking life.
• Palliative care and pain relief — supported, because loving care and relief from suffering show compassion.

Bible ideas used in the Christian response: respect for life, compassion for the suffering, and calling for careful medical and spiritual support. Christians in Kenya can promote better palliative care, pastoral support and counselling rather than intentionally ending life.

3. Defending the right to life — biblical basis ✝️

Important Bible truths about life:

• Humans are made in God’s image (Genesis 1:27) — life has value.
• God knits each person in the womb (Psalm 139:13–16) — life is known and valued by God.
• God is sovereign over life (many Old and New Testament passages show God’s authority).

Because life is a gift, Christians speak up for the vulnerable (babies, the elderly, the sick) and support laws and services that protect life while also caring for human dignity.

4. Cosmetic plastic surgery — what Christians should think about 💉🔍

Cosmetic surgery changes a person’s appearance. Christian responses depend on motive and outcome:

• Allowed when it restores health or repairs injury (e.g., after accidents) — this can be good stewardship of health.
• Questionable when used only to chase vanity, social pressure, or unhealthy standards promoted online.
• Always consider risks, medical advice and whether the choice honors God and respects the body as “God’s temple” (1 Corinthians 6:19–20).

In Kenya, young people should be aware of social media pressures and discuss big decisions with parents, church leaders and qualified doctors.

5. Creative skills found in the Bible 🎨⚒️

The Bible celebrates many skills and creativity that Christians can learn from:

• Bezalel and Oholiab — craftsmen filled by God’s Spirit to build the tabernacle (Exodus 31:1–6). Example: art, carpentry, design.
• David — musician and poet (Psalm writer).
• Luke — a physician and skilled writer (shows medicine and writing as good skills).
• Builders and artisans who worked on the temple and city projects (showing trade and craftsmanship are valued).

Creative skills include music, carpentry, medicine, teaching, technology design, and many crafts. Christians should use these gifts to serve God and help their communities.

6. Lessons from Daniel and King Solomon 📚👑

What young Christians can learn:

• Daniel: discipline, strong faith under pressure, using God-given skills to serve in a foreign government. He showed wisdom, prayer and integrity.
• Solomon: asked for wisdom from God, used it to rule and build (including the temple). But he also shows the danger of ignoring God’s ways — wisdom must be combined with obedience.

Application for Kenyan youth: study diligently, develop talents (science, medicine, technology, arts), remain faithful and use skills to serve God and community rather than only seeking fame or wealth.

7. God as the source of creativity and inventions ✨

Scripture shows that God gives gifts and skills to people so they may work and create:

• God filled craftsmen with skill (Exodus 31:2–5).
• Everything good comes from God; people are stewards of knowledge and inventions.

Christians should celebrate useful inventions (medicine, vaccines, phones) as gifts to serve others, while remaining wise and ethical about how they are used.

Practical Christian guidance (short)

• Use technology to share hope: join or start online Bible groups, share helpful Christian content, and support church broadcasts.
• Be compassionate: support sufferers with prayer and practical help; promote palliative care.
• Think biblically about body changes: ask about motives, health, and what honours God.
• Develop your skills: learn science, medicine, technology or arts to serve others in Kenya.
• Be discerning: verify medical information, respect privacy and be careful with what you share online.

Reflection questions for class or personal study

1. How can your church or youth group in your town use phones, radio or social media to help people know Jesus?
2. What would you say to someone asking about euthanasia? How can Christians show love and hope to the terminally ill?
3. Which creative skill would you like to learn, and how could you use it to serve others in Kenya?
4. When is changing your appearance acceptable, and when should you be cautious?

Key Bible verses to remember: Genesis 1:27; Psalm 139:13–16; Exodus 31:1–6; 1 Corinthians 6:19–20. (Read and discuss these with your teacher or youth leader.)