There are many Christians Evangelicals that are hoping for the rapture in order to escape the coming Tribulation. Those hopes may be based on false assumptions. This great article explains what I have come to believe over many years of study on the subject.
The Bible Stands
The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever. (Isaiah 40:8)
Recently a well-known pastor was interviewed by a well-known news commentator concerning the History Channel’s mini-series entitled the The Bible. The commentator, who claims to be a Christian, began his interview with the presupposition that the Bible is all allegorical. His first question betrayed his bias: “Adam and Eve: Did they literally live in the Garden of Eden and usurp the evolutionary process?” The exchange continued on a pretty even keel from then on with the pastor responding to the commentator’s every incredulous questions. Finally the commentator challenged the compatibility of the Bible with science. The pastor responded with, “I think you’re wrong on this one. The Bible does not contradict true science. It may contradict passing fads of scientific theory that are always evolving.” The pastor could have been more straightforward with the commentator and plainly said, “No, you are wrong on this one,” and gone on to make his case. The truth that pastor made clear was that the opinions of science are always changing with every new discovery, but God and His Word never changes, so, it is either always fully reliable, or it us wholly unreliable. It is either all true or not true at all.
So the pastor continued to make his point: “For example, it used to be thought that the cosmos always existed. But then we had Sir Fred Hoyle, who named the named the Big Bang Theory, that said, ‘Guess what, the universe had a beginning 13.7 billion years ago.’” At this point the pastor had not yet fully capitulated. He was simply pointing out that scientific theories are fickle, but what he unwittingly did was give credence to the unproved “scientific” Big Bang Theory. This was reflected in the commentator’s subsequent question: “Do you believe that the universe started 13.7 billion years ago?” Now the pastor was in a tight spot. He had already opened the door to the possibility of the Big Bang, so now he had to wiggle out of it the best way he could. He responded, “I think it very well could have. One of the things fundamentalist Christians mess up on is they try to say the earth is 6000 years old. The Bible never makes that claim anywhere.” So now, before a national audience, he made the theories of man superior to the Bible, he threw fundamentalist Christians “under the bus,” and he made a false (or at least uniformed) claim about the Bible.
Of course the Bible makes no claim about the age of the earth! However, when one makes a careful study of the genealogies in the book of Genesis, one can easily determine that the time from Adam to Noah was about 1600 years. Some who doubt the veracity of Scripture will attempt to interject “gaps” in the genealogies so that the time span could be much greater, but this is unfounded when one takes Scripture for what is plainly stated. Others attempt to introduce long ages, billions of years even, between the first two verses of Genesis, but this, again, is unfounded. Or else they will attempt to make the “days” of creation be long ages, and this too has no basis in truth especially when a “day” (Hebrew: yom) is clearly defined as “evening and morning” – clearly a 24-hour day. So with a little bit of study and the use of some very simple mathematics, we can conclude, according to Scripture, that the earth is approximately 6000 years old. By yielding on this point, the pastor lost credibility for himself and for the Bible, and ultimately he lost the debate. The commentator reaffirmed his assertion that the Bible was all allegory and given that the pastor had basically conceded on the Genesis record there was really nothing more the pastor could say to convince him otherwise.
Anyone who truly believes that “All scripture is given by inspiration of God” (2 Timothy 3:16) and that “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but [God’s] words shall not pass away” (Matthew 24:35) cannot afford to compromise on Scripture even in the tiniest point. Jesus said, “For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled” (Matthew 5:18). If this is so, then all of Scripture is true and accurate, and according to the biblical record, the earth is about 6000 years old. The atheists/evolutionists do not yield in the least on their contrived Big Bang Theory, so why should Christians compromise on the truth of Scripture?
The pastor preached a solid sermon on Sunday. He preached on:
- The reliability of the Bible
- The exclusivity of the Gospel
- The sovereignty of God
All points meant to encourage Christians to trust God and His Word. So why compromise? Either God’s Word is true or it is not. It really is that simple. The words of the old hymn probably express best the attitude we ought to have toward the Word of God …
The Bible stands like a rock undaunted ’Mid the raging storms of time; Its pages burn with the truth eternal, (emphasis added) And they glow with a light sublime. Refrain: The Bible stands though the hills may tumble, It will firmly stand when the earth shall crumble; I will plant my feet on its firm foundation, For the Bible stands. The Bible stands like a mountain tow’ring Far above the works of men; (emphasis added) Its truth by none ever was refuted, And destroy it they never can. The Bible stands and it will forever, When the world has passed away; By inspiration it has been given, All its precepts I will obey. The Bible stands every test we give it, (emphasis added) For its Author is divine; By grace alone I expect to live it, And to prove and to make it mine. (“The Bible Stands” by Haldor Lillenas, 1917)
As Bible-believing Christians, there should never be room for compromise on Scripture.
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Filed under Apologetics, Atheism, Christianity, Creation, Current Events, Evolution, Gospel, Religion, Theology
The First Religious Martyr
Cain Murders Abel
And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him. (Genesis 4:8)
When Adam and Eve sinned in the garden, God took it upon Himself to slay at least two animals to cover their nakedness (Genesis 3:21). This served as an example of the sacrifice of innocent blood for the covering or “atonement” for sin. “And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission” (Hebrews 9:22). Apparently, the first family continued to offer animal sacrifices as instructed by God and as demonstrated by Abel’s offering. “And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering” (v. 4).
Cain, however, had his own idea about what to offer the Lord. “Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD” (v. 3). Perhaps he rationalized that his offering was worthy because, after all, it had cost him a lot of sweat and back-breaking labor. But this was not what the Lord required. “But unto Cain and to his offering [the LORD] had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell” (v. 5). Cain’s error was not unlike that of modern religions that attempt to please God by their own schemes and ignore the simple Gospel; “Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified” (Galatians 2:16). Still they persist in inventing their own rules.
“Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell” (v. 5) when he saw that his offering was unacceptable to God. In his anger, he lashed out at the representation of God’s righteousness, and he murdered his brother. Thus, Abel was martyred for his faith and his righteous acts. In nearly 6000 years, little has changed in that regard. Jesus warned, “And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved” (Matthew 10:22).
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Filed under Christianity, Gospel, Religion
Without Wax
Thou art the potter; I am the clay.
That ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offence til the day of Christ.
The world offers us a multiplicity of distractions to keep our focus off of what should be our first priority – “the kingdom of God, and his righteousness” (Matthew 6:33). In his salutation to the church at Philippi, Paul encourages the believers, and us, that our “love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment” (v. 9). “Knowledge” here is the Greek compound word epígnosis: epí means “on” or “over” or “on the basis of;” gnosis means “wisdom.” In other words, “wisdom” or “knowledge” that is from above. So, based on godly wisdom, we are to make all judgment. “Judgment” is the Greek noun aisthesis which means “insight, perception” or “discernment.” We are urged on the basis of godly wisdom to exercise discernment in approving, better yet “testing,” those things in our lives that are “excellent,” i.e., worthy of keeping.
The reason for this is that we may be sincere and without offence. “Sincere” translates the Greek compound word eilikrinés: heile, the sun’s rays; and krinés (from krínoo) meaning to judge. Together, it means to judge by the sun. This might make a little more sense when we consider that our word “sincere” comes from the compound Latin word sincera: sine (without) and cera (wax). It has been suggested that the origin of the word stems from artisans using wax to cover imperfections in their work. The unsuspecting buyer would then take the merchandise home only to have the sun reveal its imperfections. This, no doubt, would seriously offend the buyer.
In the same way, we are to judge our own lives on the basis of wisdom and discernment so that our witness will be “without wax” that would offend the one who receives our message. This we need do on a daily basis knowing that “the day of Christ” is at hand.
Filed under Apologetics, Christianity, Gospel, Religion
Midnight at the Museum
The Perot Museum of Nature and Science, Dallas, Texas.
Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools (Romans 1:22)
In December 2012, Dallas opened the doors to Perot Museum of Nature and Science dedicated to the “religion” of evolution. Recently a couple of friends and I ventured out to explore “the talk of the town.” The place was replete with technologically enhanced exhibits designed to “wow” patrons and to captivate the minds of young children. One such display, logistically placed at the beginning of the self-guided tour, depicted the origin of our universe. One young lad called out to his friends, “Hey! Come here! It’s the Big Bang! This is how it all started!” The display projected a video program from above onto a convex reflective surface below. The narrative began by discrediting the “creationist” view in lieu of “the facts” we now “know” about the origins of the universe.
That was just the beginning. Throughout the museum, evolution was presented as undeniable fact. One signboard encouraged the visitor to “Imagine you are a paleontologist…” and then stated that “Paleontologists solve fossil mish-mashes by referring to studies of anatomy and evolution.” The bias could not be more clearly stated; the starting place is “evolution” and the possibility of creation is not even up for discussion. A display of mammal fossils proclaims that “We mammals distinguish ourselves by our ability to grow hair and suckle our offspring. Most also give birth to live young” (emphasis added) This seemingly innocuous statement equates humans with animals, rather than a special and distinct creation of God.
Another exhibit traced the evolution of dinosaurs to birds. The placard read: “When did modern birds emerge? It is difficult to pinpoint. The transition from ‘pre-bird’ to bird took tens of millions of years with many steps along the way.” However, omitted from the narrative is the fact that no evidence exists in the fossil record to confirm such a claim; even so it is presented as indisputable fact. And according to the geology exhibit earth’s sedimentary rock layers “reveal the major events in the geologic history of a site … and the evolution of life on Earth.” The truth is that the sedimentary rock layers only reveal fully formed plants and animals with no transitional forms at all. In fact, the museum displayed many fossilized creatures that still exist today.
The biology section explained the importance of the cell. “All living things are made up of tiny, self-contained units called cells. Cells perform essential functions, such as taking in nutrients, converting energy, or enabling reproduction.” What is omitted from the message is how highly complex even the most simple cell is and the improbability of it having resulted from a random combination of inert matter. In tracing the history of evolution one sign recorded that “As new evidence and observations mounted, evolution became an accepted theory (emphasis added). Today, we continue to develop and test ideas about the way evolution works.” Several misrepresentations are found in this statement. First of all, there is no “evidence” for evolution. Secondly, no “observations” of evolution have been undeniably documented, and they certainly have not “mounted” because all such “observations” keep collapsing on themselves. Thirdly, one might conclude that the reason evolutionists “continue to develop and test ideas about the way evolution works,” is because it does not work, or, as they say out in West Texas, “they’re kicking a dead horse.”
The human evolution section displayed a replica of fossilized footprints discovered in Laetoli, Tanzania. These footprints showed “a well-developed arch and heel-to-toe imprint. This contrasts to our ape relatives which, when walking upright, place more pressure on the outside of the foot.” The footprints, at least to this observer, were clearly human; however, the artist’s conception of the creatures that made the prints looked like naked, lanate, ape-faced hominids. It is not difficult to see how they arrived at this conclusion, when one considers the evolutionist’s mindset. Supposedly, the volcanic ash in which the prints were made was 3.6 million years old. Modern humans, according to evolutionists, only evolved 100,000 years ago, so naturally the prints could not have been made by modern humans. The unanswered question, or the question that is not raised is, what if the volcanic ash is not that old?
In all, the field trip to the museum was an enjoyable experience, but as the saying goes, “it’s a nice place to visit, but I wouldn’t want to live there.” For a place that is supposedly enlightened by “science,” it reveals the darkness brought about by the denial of the Creator (Romans 1:28). The Institute for Creation Research addresses the topics covered here with a vast resource library of articles. Below are just of few that I would encourage you to consider.
Suggested Reading:
Big Bang Explanations Fall Flat
New Research Undermines Key Argument for Human Evolution
Stalling Over Transitional Forms
Bacteria Study Shoots Down ‘Simple Cell’ Assumptions
Filed under Atheism, Christianity, Creation, Current Events, Evolution, Religion
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