"I will fetch my knowledge from afar;
I will ascribe righteousness to my Maker" (Job 36:3).
"But you, Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book until the time of the end; many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase" (Daniel 12:4; emphasis added).
The popular belief of our time is that the wild technological advancements of our modern time are a clear display of evolution in action. Allmusic.com even has a misleading t.v. commercial that gives a synopsis of the alleged evolution of music. According to the commercial, music evolved from Gregorian chants into songs with instrumental accompaniment.
What the commercial ignores is that musical instruments, including complex stringed instruments, percussion, and woodwind instruments were in use in the most ancient times. David, second king of ancient Israel was a talented harpist, a thousand years before Christ was born in Bethlehem (1 Samuel 16:14-23). And there are many exhortations in the Scriptures to play musical instruments as an act of worship (Psalm 33:2-3, Psalm 150). And musical instruments of all kinds were in use throughout ancient history (1 Samuel 10:5-6, Daniel 3:4-5,7-25, Matthew 9:23-24, Matthew 11:15-19).
Recently I had a conversation with someone about wine consumption in ancient Rome. This person pointed out that back then, wine had a lower alcohol content, which is true. It was roughly the same as the alcohol content of the average beer today. But the person went on to assert that the ancient Romans did not understand fermentation, but that they understood "buzz". That part is untrue.
Advancements in the technology of fermentation have been made. But the ancients were not oblivious. One of Jesus' parables revolves around the fermentation process. To illustrate the complete newness of the covenant that He would bring about, Jesus pointed out that no one puts new (unfermented) wine into old wine-skins, because the old wine-skins would burst and the wine would be wasted. The ancient peoples, dating back to the beginning, knew about the fermentation process. They were skilled in it.
Job is believed to be the oldest book in the Bible; having been written before Moses wrote Genesis-Deuteronomy. The man, Job, may have lived contemporaneously with Abraham. In Job chapter 28, Job gives a speech that describes in detail the work of miners, mining deep in the earth for precious stones and valuable metals. He is using it as a metaphor for the more important search for wisdom.
The ancient Egyptians, Babylonians, Greeks, and Romans all achieved amazing technological feats and evinced vast treasures of knowledge in such fields as mathematics, astronomy, engineering, and architecture. There are even trace evidence of more advanced civilizations in the forgotten past. Those who reject the Genesis account of early world history speculate that these trace evidence of advanced technology might have been left by ancient aliens, before humans evolved from lower animals.
Creationists like myself, however, are not baffled by the thought that God made humans in His own image. Humans have always been intelligent creatures. Moses tells us that the pre-Flood era saw advancements in agriculture, the making of musical instruments, and metal working (Genesis 4:20-22). Trace evidence of advanced ancient technology may be the remains of civilizations that existed before the Genesis Flood.
Furthermore, the awesome technological advancements of our modern time are not a display of evolution either. Instead, such forward strides are a fulfillment of biblical prophecy. God told the prophet Daniel that in the last days, "knowledge shall increase". And that is exactly what we see happening.
It is the arrogance of every generation to think itself better than all previous generations. The evolutionary myth appeals to this generational arrogance. As the Scriptures say elsewhere: "Knowledge puffs up, but love edifies" (1 Corinthians 8:1). The only cure is love. We are created in the image of God (Genesis 1:26-27). And that means more than just that we are intelligent, as He is; but God is love (1 John 4:8). He created us to be capable not only of intelligence; but more importantly, capable of love; toward God who is love, and toward each other who are made in the image of God who is love (Matthew 22:37-40).
Showing posts with label Prophet. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Prophet. Show all posts
Thursday, August 15, 2013
Thursday, July 11, 2013
The Triune God
The word "Trinity" never appears anywhere in the Old or New Testament. However, the concept is there; beginning right in the very first chapter of the Bible. On the sixth day of Creation, God says "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness" (Genesis 1:26, emphasis added).
It is clear that by "Us" and "Our", God is referring to Himself alone, and not to Himself and the angels. It is clear because in verse 27 the text continues, "So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created them; male and female He created them".
So right from the start, we read of God referring to Himself in plural form; even though the Scriptures very clearly teaches that there is only one God (Deuteronomy 6:4, Isaiah 45:5, 1 Timothy 2:5).
God speaks the same way at the Tower of Babel, saying "Come, let Us go down there and confuse their language, that they may not understand one another's speech" (Genesis 11:7, emphasis added).
Much later, when God first appeared in a vision to the prophet Isaiah, He asked "Whom shall I send, and who shall go for Us?" (Isaiah 6:8, emphasis added).
And the Psalmist, David wrote "The LORD said to my Lord, 'Sit at my right hand, until I make Your enemies Your footstool.'" (Psalm 110:1).
Jesus referenced this passage when He asked "How is it that the scribes say that the Christ is the Son of David? For David himself said by the Holy Spirit: 'The LORD said to My Lord, Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool. Therefore David himself calls Him 'Lord', how is He then his Son?" (Mark 12:35).
Jesus was challenging His listeners to understand that He, the Messiah, is more than just the Son of David. He is the Son of God.
Jesus is sometimes referred to as both the Root and the Branch of Jesse. Jesse was the name of David's father. This title, given to Jesus, is based on a couple of verses in the 11th chapter of the Book of the Prophet Isaiah.
Isaiah 11:10 says "And in that day there shall be a Root of Jesse, who shall stand as a banner to the people; for the Gentiles shall seek Him, and His resting place shall be glorious". Isaiah 11:1 says "There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots" (also see Revelation 22:16).
As the song from the O.C. Supertones' first album says "Jesus came from Jesse, but Jesse came from Jesus." Jesus is both the Root and the Branch of Jesse. This is a Christological concept. And Christology is, of course, tied in with the doctrine of the Trinity. Jesus in not only the Son of Man through David's line. He is also the Son of God from whom David's line originated.
And whereas the Old Testament gives compelling hints of the Trinitarian doctrine, the New Testament abounds with it. Take just for example the Great Commission, given by Jesus as He sent out His apostles before He ascended to the Father. He said "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit" (Matthew 28:19; also see Matthew 3:16-17, John 1:1, John 1:14).
God is love (1 John 4:8). And love has existed between the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit from eternity past. As C.S. Lewis pointed out in Mere Christianity; what we mean by saying "God is love" is "that the living, dynamic activity of love has been going on in God forever and has created everything else" (book 4, chapter 4, paragraph 5).
It is clear that by "Us" and "Our", God is referring to Himself alone, and not to Himself and the angels. It is clear because in verse 27 the text continues, "So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created them; male and female He created them".
So right from the start, we read of God referring to Himself in plural form; even though the Scriptures very clearly teaches that there is only one God (Deuteronomy 6:4, Isaiah 45:5, 1 Timothy 2:5).
God speaks the same way at the Tower of Babel, saying "Come, let Us go down there and confuse their language, that they may not understand one another's speech" (Genesis 11:7, emphasis added).
Much later, when God first appeared in a vision to the prophet Isaiah, He asked "Whom shall I send, and who shall go for Us?" (Isaiah 6:8, emphasis added).
And the Psalmist, David wrote "The LORD said to my Lord, 'Sit at my right hand, until I make Your enemies Your footstool.'" (Psalm 110:1).
Jesus referenced this passage when He asked "How is it that the scribes say that the Christ is the Son of David? For David himself said by the Holy Spirit: 'The LORD said to My Lord, Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool. Therefore David himself calls Him 'Lord', how is He then his Son?" (Mark 12:35).
Jesus was challenging His listeners to understand that He, the Messiah, is more than just the Son of David. He is the Son of God.
Jesus is sometimes referred to as both the Root and the Branch of Jesse. Jesse was the name of David's father. This title, given to Jesus, is based on a couple of verses in the 11th chapter of the Book of the Prophet Isaiah.
Isaiah 11:10 says "And in that day there shall be a Root of Jesse, who shall stand as a banner to the people; for the Gentiles shall seek Him, and His resting place shall be glorious". Isaiah 11:1 says "There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots" (also see Revelation 22:16).
As the song from the O.C. Supertones' first album says "Jesus came from Jesse, but Jesse came from Jesus." Jesus is both the Root and the Branch of Jesse. This is a Christological concept. And Christology is, of course, tied in with the doctrine of the Trinity. Jesus in not only the Son of Man through David's line. He is also the Son of God from whom David's line originated.
And whereas the Old Testament gives compelling hints of the Trinitarian doctrine, the New Testament abounds with it. Take just for example the Great Commission, given by Jesus as He sent out His apostles before He ascended to the Father. He said "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit" (Matthew 28:19; also see Matthew 3:16-17, John 1:1, John 1:14).
God is love (1 John 4:8). And love has existed between the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit from eternity past. As C.S. Lewis pointed out in Mere Christianity; what we mean by saying "God is love" is "that the living, dynamic activity of love has been going on in God forever and has created everything else" (book 4, chapter 4, paragraph 5).
Saturday, May 11, 2013
More Than an Ancient Text
As humans, I think we all like to put things into human terms. I know that I do. And so I find it appealing to think of the origins debate as a conflict between Darwin and Moses.
But though the discussion may be framed in such a way, it is important to remember that it is more than just a matter of Moses vs. Darwin. It is a conflict between the word of God and the word of men.
Moses was a man. And Genesis was written by Moses. But Moses was a prophet of God, and he wrote down what God spoke to him (Numbers 12:5-8, John 5:46, 2 Timothy 3:16, 2 Peter 1:21).
An old friend of mine used to refer to the Bible as "an ancient text", as if to lessen its authority. And theistic evolutionist, Peter Enns has made the statement that "an ancient text give us ancient science, not modern".
But these speak wrongly about God's word. God's word is not antiquated, nor is it static. God's word is living and vibrant. It is more than just an ancient text. It keeps on being true (Psalm 119, John 17:17, Hebrews 4:12-13).
There can be no greater authority on science and origins than the One who created the universe and all that exists (Genesis 1:1, John 1:1-3, Colossians 1:16-17).
Some try to reinterpret what God clearly tells us about our origins. But the only reason for such theories as the day/age, or the gap theory is to attempt to harmonize God's word with the word of men.
And those men who first developed the doctrines of deep time, and evolutionism (Jean-Baptiste Lamarck, Erasmus Darwin, Charles Darwin, Charles Lyell and others), were attempting to explain the universe, and life without God.
These individuals interpreted the data under the assumption that Genesis is not true, and that no supernatural/Divine hand was or is involved. Thus, evolutionism is rooted in a rejection of belief in God.
Once a person acknowledges the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; it becomes wholly, completely, entirely unnecessary to accept evolutionism.
God created the heavens and the earth. And He did it in six literal, 24 hour days, just as He has says that He did. This is a certainty because there was no death before sin entered the world by on person (Romans 5:12, 1 Corinthians 15:21-26).
Material written by trained scientists, who affirm biblical creation, can be read at the following sites:
www.answersingenesis.org
www.icr.org
http://creation.com/
But though the discussion may be framed in such a way, it is important to remember that it is more than just a matter of Moses vs. Darwin. It is a conflict between the word of God and the word of men.
Moses was a man. And Genesis was written by Moses. But Moses was a prophet of God, and he wrote down what God spoke to him (Numbers 12:5-8, John 5:46, 2 Timothy 3:16, 2 Peter 1:21).
An old friend of mine used to refer to the Bible as "an ancient text", as if to lessen its authority. And theistic evolutionist, Peter Enns has made the statement that "an ancient text give us ancient science, not modern".
But these speak wrongly about God's word. God's word is not antiquated, nor is it static. God's word is living and vibrant. It is more than just an ancient text. It keeps on being true (Psalm 119, John 17:17, Hebrews 4:12-13).
There can be no greater authority on science and origins than the One who created the universe and all that exists (Genesis 1:1, John 1:1-3, Colossians 1:16-17).
Some try to reinterpret what God clearly tells us about our origins. But the only reason for such theories as the day/age, or the gap theory is to attempt to harmonize God's word with the word of men.
And those men who first developed the doctrines of deep time, and evolutionism (Jean-Baptiste Lamarck, Erasmus Darwin, Charles Darwin, Charles Lyell and others), were attempting to explain the universe, and life without God.
These individuals interpreted the data under the assumption that Genesis is not true, and that no supernatural/Divine hand was or is involved. Thus, evolutionism is rooted in a rejection of belief in God.
Once a person acknowledges the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; it becomes wholly, completely, entirely unnecessary to accept evolutionism.
God created the heavens and the earth. And He did it in six literal, 24 hour days, just as He has says that He did. This is a certainty because there was no death before sin entered the world by on person (Romans 5:12, 1 Corinthians 15:21-26).
Material written by trained scientists, who affirm biblical creation, can be read at the following sites:
www.answersingenesis.org
www.icr.org
http://creation.com/
Tuesday, April 2, 2013
Forgiveness vs. Reconciliation
As Jesus was dying on the cross, He prayed:
He was praying for everyone involved in His trial and crucifixion. And so it only makes sense that He was praying for all sinners.
The question for some then arises: Why do we need trust in Jesus for salvation, since we are already forgiven? Why even think about our relationship with God, since He has already forgiven all sin?
This is actually not a very good question, because it shows the depravity of the one who asks it. But we all are sinners, and there is a very good answer in the Bible:
Jesus paid the penalty for all sin. God has forgiven you, me, everyone. But it takes two parties to reconcile a relationship.
God spoke through the prophet Isaiah saying:
So we see that His arms are open, but we still have to turn and be reconciled to Him. We must repent - turn away from sin. It was sin that severed our relationship with God in the first place. And it is God's forgiveness that makes it possible to turn away from sin and be reconciled to Him. As the Scripture says:
Why did sin sever our relationship with God? Because God is holy, righteous, immaculate. God and sin are diametrically opposed, so it is impossible to be living a life of sin and simultaneously be right with God. And God will never stop being holy. So we must stop being sinners. As He has said to His people:
The Christian life is a process of sanctification (becoming holy). We begin by admitting that we are sinners in need of being reconciled to God; trusting that Jesus died for our sin, and rose again. We make a personal decision to let God begin the process of making us holy, just as He is holy. As the Scriptures say:
We do not practice righteousness by our own power. Nor can we. Our sinful, fallen nature makes it impossible to become holy by our own effort. As the Son of God said:
By faith we must trust in Him so that His righteousness becomes our righteousness. Just as He wore our sin, having no sin of His own; we wear His righteousness, having none of our own. And by His working in us who trust in Him, we will become like Him. Our fallen nature will be restored to perfect, Christ-like holiness. As the Scripture says:
"Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do" (Luke 23:34).
He was praying for everyone involved in His trial and crucifixion. And so it only makes sense that He was praying for all sinners.
The question for some then arises: Why do we need trust in Jesus for salvation, since we are already forgiven? Why even think about our relationship with God, since He has already forgiven all sin?
This is actually not a very good question, because it shows the depravity of the one who asks it. But we all are sinners, and there is a very good answer in the Bible:
"Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ's behalf, be reconciled to God" (2nd Corinthians 5:20; emphasis added).
Jesus paid the penalty for all sin. God has forgiven you, me, everyone. But it takes two parties to reconcile a relationship.
God spoke through the prophet Isaiah saying:
"All day long I stretch out my arms to a rebellious people. But they follow their own evil paths, and their own crooked schemes" (Isaiah 65:2; New Living Translation).
So we see that His arms are open, but we still have to turn and be reconciled to Him. We must repent - turn away from sin. It was sin that severed our relationship with God in the first place. And it is God's forgiveness that makes it possible to turn away from sin and be reconciled to Him. As the Scripture says:
"In mercy and truth atonement is provided for iniquity; and by the fear of the LORD one departs from evil" (Proverbs 16:6, also see Psalm 130:3-4, and Romans 2:1-4).
Why did sin sever our relationship with God? Because God is holy, righteous, immaculate. God and sin are diametrically opposed, so it is impossible to be living a life of sin and simultaneously be right with God. And God will never stop being holy. So we must stop being sinners. As He has said to His people:
"Be holy, for I am holy" (1st Peter 1:16, Leviticus 11:45, 19:2, 20:7).
"Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect" (Matthew 5:48).
The Christian life is a process of sanctification (becoming holy). We begin by admitting that we are sinners in need of being reconciled to God; trusting that Jesus died for our sin, and rose again. We make a personal decision to let God begin the process of making us holy, just as He is holy. As the Scriptures say:
"If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone who practices righteousness is born of Him" (1st John 2:29).
"being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in [us] will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ" (Philippians 1:16, also see 2:13 and Isaiah 26:12).
We do not practice righteousness by our own power. Nor can we. Our sinful, fallen nature makes it impossible to become holy by our own effort. As the Son of God said:
"...for without me you can do nothing" (John 15:5).
By faith we must trust in Him so that His righteousness becomes our righteousness. Just as He wore our sin, having no sin of His own; we wear His righteousness, having none of our own. And by His working in us who trust in Him, we will become like Him. Our fallen nature will be restored to perfect, Christ-like holiness. As the Scripture says:
"...we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure" (1st John 3:2-3).
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)