The Scroll-CTF Articles

April 2026 Printed Newsletter

Sun, 19 Apr 2026 21:04:09 GMT

Father Abraham

Sun, 19 Apr 2026 20:55:49 GMT

In Genesis 12 the Lord calls Abraham (Abram) to be the father of a great nation. This all happened to Abraham at 75 years old. Some might say that is too late in life to start something new, especially a calling of that magnitude. Yet that was not the overwhelming part to me; that would come in verse 7 when the Lord said the land would be his offspring’s. Wait, what?! The Lord had a plan and His Providence would guide Abraham, even when Abraham did not have offspring and did not wait on the Lord. I have to wonder how I would have reacted to such a call and covenant.

As we know from Psalms, the Lord guides and sustains all by His Providence for His name sake, which we are focusing on this year. But does Providence act on our timing? When God called Abraham, he had no children. Yet the promise given was that his offspring would be a great nation in a land saved for them. What we know now is that Abraham wouldn’t have his son Isaac until he was 100 years old, a full 25 years after the covenant was made. Most of the time we expect the Lord’s hand working in our life to be immediate, but that is not always the case. In some cases it might take years to experience the Providence coming to fruition. Remember Genesis 21:2 states Isaac’s birth was at the “appointed time.” This understanding should give us peace as we rely on Providence and, at times, are called to patience.

Providence was again on display for us to understand that even in obedient sacrifice He will be glorified, as Abraham was asked to sacrifice his son, Isaac, who was inherently tied to the covenant of the Lord. Abraham was faithful in all aspects, even when most of us might say “no way” to that sacrifice to the Lord. Yet at the right time, through faithfulness in Abraham’s obedience, there was Providence providing behind him in the ram. Our faithful obedience sometimes feels like a tough ask from the Lord, but rest assured He is there, ready to lift up His name through us.

Providence continued through time, 100 years later, after Isaac had his sons, Jacob and Esau. Then Jacob was blessed by the Lord with 12 sons, one of which was Joseph, who was sold to Egypt by his brothers. You probably recall all the ups and downs of Joseph’s life, yet he was faithful to the Lord throughout them all. Remember, there was a covenant at stake. The Lord, through His Providence, made sure he had Joseph where He needed him to save the great nation of Israel from famine. This Providence secured the covenant line to continue to Christ.

Many times throughout history Providence has guided and protected His covenant, and now you and I can be blessed with inclusion in His great nation through Christ. If it had not been so, then we literally have no assurance of our salvation. Praise be to our Lord Jesus Christ that His Providence is faithful for all eternity, so we may know peace and have confidence in the promised destiny. Our ministry here at CTF has always emphasized the importance of Genesis 12, Abraham’s covenant. We share there is no difference in importance of Genesis 1-11 over chapter 12 and through the entirety of the Bible. The whole Bible is inspired to be trustworthy and to show His Providence throughout history for His name’s sake and also for our salvation. Blessings.

A Miraculous Shield part 1

Sun, 19 Apr 2026 20:54:21 GMT

EACH OF THESE ARTICLES ARE EXCERPTS FROM

AMERICA’S EPIC ADVENTURE ^TM - CTF'S NEWEST VBS CURRICULUM

From Lesson 2: The Protected , Be strong and courageous – Joshua 1:9

A Miraculous Shield part 1

After Plymouth colony became successful, tens of thousands of people moved to the American colonies. In 1625, with only Plymouth and Jamestown, there were 1,980 people. 150 years later there would be 2.4 million!

Everything was great as people were living in freedom, but things in the 1750's would begin the process of forever changing the world.

75,000 French traders and soldiers began travelling up and down the rivers of the western frontier. They became good friends with Native Americans, who did not like how fast British colonies were growing. The French built forts along the four main rivers: the Ohio, St. Lawrence, Allegheny, and Mississippi rivers.

This made several Englishmen nervous who owned property or were fur traders in the west. This included the governor of Virginia (Robert Dinwiddie) and George Washington’s older brothers (Lawrence and Augustine, though Lawrence would die before these events happened).

A Special Mission

In October of 1753, Governor Dinwiddie sent 21-year-old Major George Washington and an Indian agent named Christopher Gist on an 11-week round trip to meet with the French forces in northwestern Pennsylvania. They travelled through snow, storms, dense forests, mountains, and freezing rivers, and were even shot at on one occasion by natives. They risked their lives just for the French general to send back with them a letter saying they would not withdraw from the lands claimed by the British. Both the French and the British would now prepare for war.

Another Important Mission

The following May (1754) George was sent out with Virginia forces to cut a road through the woods that would be used to capture Fort Duquesne (pronounced Doo-cain). It was at a very important place where two rivers (the Allegheny and Monongahela) came together to make the Ohio River. Today it is the city of Pittsburgh.

About 60 miles away from that fort, Indian scouts alerted Washington to nearby French troops. He ordered the immediate construction of Fort Necessity in a large open area called the Great Meadows, which turned out to be a glorified wooden fence with a storehouse in the middle. George would find out that it was just a scouting party, so he led a group of Virginians and Indians to confront them. They easily surprised and defeated them. But after the French had surrendered, the chieftain (called the “Half King”) killed the French commander!

When the French found out, they were very upset and sent soldiers to attack Washington, led by the murdered commander’s brother. The French and Indian force of 600-700 attacked Washington’s forces of nearly 400 on July 3, 1754 at about 11:00 am. The battled continued until 8:00 pm. A heavy rain had flooded the trenches Washington’s men had dug, so they had to fire over the fort’s walls, mostly shooting over the enemy’s heads. The Indians, though had climbed up into trees and were shooting down into the fort.

Washington finally accepted terms of surrender that evening, and the entire regiment was allowed to return home to Virginia the next day. It would be the only surrender ever in George Washington’s military career. He and his men received a public thanks by the Virginia government upon their return.

But the French now controlled the West, plundering any English traders who might journey out there. Once news of all this reached England and France, things quickly began to spiral out of control into a war so big it would be fought all around the world!

The English sent their forces to America, and the French sent theirs. Britain’s ally Prussia joined them. France’s allies Austria and Russia joined them. The world ended up seeing its first ever global war, which lasted 7 years. It is now called the Seven Years War but was known in America as the French and Indian War. What would soon transpire would make George Washington a common and legendary name throughout the colonies.

March 2026 Printed Newsletter

Thu, 19 Mar 2026 17:21:19 GMT

A Miraculous Storm-part 2

Thu, 19 Mar 2026 17:18:15 GMT

EACH OF THESE ARTICLES ARE EXCERPTS FROM

AMERICA’S EPIC ADVENTURE ^TM - CTF'S NEWEST VBS CURRICULUM

From Lesson 1: The Pilgrims, Walking by Faith in the Lord – Proverbs 3:5-6

The New World

The pilgrims set sail from Holland on the Speedwell . The ship, however, developed leaks. They had to squeeze together with other passengers from England on board the Mayflower . A total of 102 passengers with 30 or so crew left Plymouth, England on September 6, 1620, headed for America. The trip was challenging to say the least. It seemed to storm the whole trip. They were stuck below deck for two months with bad food, tainted water, no bathrooms, and only one set of clothes – the set you were wearing. Yet, they thought it was worth it to be able to worship God and live according to the Bible.

Land was sighted on November 9th! They all ran up on deck and began to praise God for bringing them to the New World. They celebrated for so long that Captain Jones had to force them below deck so he could continue operating the ship. They had arrived at Cape Cod, north of where they were supposed to settle. They attempted for a few days to sail south, but strong winter storms and winds kept them from making any progress.

They floated into the Provincetown Harbor of Cape Cod on Saturday, November 11, 1620. With the next day being Sunday, they stayed on board to worship together instead of unloading, despite two months of being cramped up in the Mayflower ! That’s how important the Lord’s Day was to them! Then on Monday, November 13, 1620, the pilgrims set foot in the New World. They settled on a location on December 21st and began home construction on December 23rd. The winter was harsh with freezing temperatures, disease, and lack of shelter. Of the 102 passengers, only 53 would survive to the following November. They remarkably didn’t give up and stayed when the Mayflower went back to England on April 5th! They believed God would take care of them if they were faithful to Him.

Just a few weeks before the Mayflower left, a man named Samoset walked into their village. He had learned English from being captured and released by English fishermen in present-day Maine. His friend Squanto had been captured in 1605 and returned home for good in 1619 (Squanto crossed the Atlantic 6 times in his life). When Squanto heard of this new group, he went to meet them. His people had been wiped out by a plague while he was in captivity. He was so pleased to see people living on his tribe’s land that he stayed with them. He attended their worship services and listened to them read the Bible and pray. He was amazed at their “brotherly love.”

The colonists became so fond of him that when he was captured by a rival tribe, Miles Standish led a group to rescue him, which, after Squanto did some negotiating, would lead to another 50 years of peace. Following his safe return, Governor Bradford showed him the story of Joseph taken to Egypt and how he too had been captured, but God worked it out for His good. Squanto and Bradford became close friends, and Squanto became a Christian.

Through all those storms, God had led the pilgrims to the one place in the whole continent where (1) the natives were happy for someone else to live there, (2) the land had already been somewhat prepared for them, and (3) there was a native who spoke fluent English who could show them everything they needed to know to survive and prosper. The pilgrims were right – God did take care of them!

The colonists established good relations with the natives through the love of Jesus. In return, the natives worked side-by-side with the pilgrims. After the harvest of 1621, they all got together (90 Indians and 53 colonists, most likely in October) for a three-day celebration.

Living by the Bible

Problems came with the arrival of the Fortune in November of 1621. New colonists came with new rules from England. The rules said that no one could own their own land, they had to rotate from one piece to the next as they planted and harvested, and then they had to bring all the food into one place and give everyone the same amount. It did not matter if you worked really hard or had been lazy and did nothing, everyone got the same amount of food. Many who did not follow the Bible did not work hard. This meant there was not nearly as much food as there had been, and it was soon realized that there would not be enough to last the winter.

Governor Bradford said the answer was in the Bible. He, just like John Smith 15 years earlier, operated by the Scriptural teaching of 2 Thessalonians 3:10, “… that if any would not work, neither should he eat ” and 1 Timothy 5:8, which says that if you do not provide for your own family, you have denied the faith like someone who does not believe in God! Therefore, because of what the Bible says, Bradford and the council declared that if you did not work, then you would not receive any food. Guess what everyone who had been lazy began to do? WORK!

A LOT more crops were planted in 1623, and everything was going well, until a really bad drought from May to June looked like it would kill all their crops. The colony came together for an entire day of fasting and prayer. That night, Governor Bradford wrote, “…it began to overcast, and shortly after to rain, with such sweet and gentle showers, as gave them cause of rejoicing, & blessing God. It came, without either wind, or thunder, or any violence, and by degrees in abundance, as the earth was thoroughly wet and soaked. Which did so apparently revive & quicken the decayed corn & other fruits, as was wonderful to see, and made the Indians astonished to behold… For which mercy (in time convenient) they also set apart a day of thanksgiving.”

And that’s how this nation was founded – upon God’s Word, with full faith and dependence on Him, giving Him all the praise and honor, including a special day of Thanksgiving unto God.

Looking Back

Thu, 19 Mar 2026 17:01:12 GMT

There are moments in life that we experience the Lord’s Providence, which is the continual guiding and caring of us for His purposes. We may go though trials and suffering now to refine our faith in preparation for eternity. Other times we may see it for the here and now, with the aligning of plans for His purpose in our life, maybe with the opening or closing of a door. Many times we see Providence only in hindsight, looking back on life and seeing His hand working, molding and inspiring us for His plans and to His glory.

I can see the Lord’s Providence at many times over the course of my life. Early in my grade school years I developed a love for building models I was recently reminded, along with my father, that we built a train set together in our basement. Following that, I began to build model cars and airplanes. I now know that love of building, tinkering and problem solving was Providence preparing me for this ministry. The Lord taught me early on how to stay focused and pay attention to detail. What I thought was only a hobby at the time is now something I must use on a regular basis in things such as fossil restoration, building crates, trailer and vehicle maintenance for our mobile museum.

Later in high school, while active in church, the Lord called me to serve our children’s church ministry. I began to help teach others about Jesus. It seemed insignificant at the time. I remember helping in lesson times and the puppet ministry. I even was cast as “Pastor Rufus” in one of our ongoing puppet skits. My opportunities to share Christ and be an example to those younger than I was tremendous. Again through His Providence, the Lord was guiding me and calling me to ministry. He developed in me the love of teaching His Word to others, priceless to me today.

Then in college Providence brought Theresa and I together. The Lord knew exactly who I needed to be my bride for life. She is strong in my weakness and more Christ-like than anyone I know. She is the perfect helpmate and partner for me in ministry as well, which has so far been 34 years, to be exact. Many times the Lord has used her discernment to direct me through a situation that I did not see correctly. I am thankful every day for Providence that brought us together in life and eternal work.

As I look back on my life, there are more Providential moments than I have space to write. Most of those times have directly guided me to this specific ministry and my call to preach and teach His Word. Looking back on life and identifying those moments of Providence from the Lord is humbling and awe-inspiring. Please take a moment to remember your own moments when Providence has been evident in your life. This ministry is about identifying Providence from the beginning. His plan from the start is us spending eternity in His presence. Our sin messed some things up, but not His plan. He always has and always will know exactly how to guide and care for us so that we bring Him the glory, now and eternally. There is not a month that goes by that we here at CTF don’t praise the Lord for His Providence through you, our supporters and sustainers. Join with me in thanks for His Providence each day, guiding as only our Creator and Savior could do. Psalms 31:3-5 Blessings.

January 2026 Printed Newsletter

Sat, 24 Jan 2026 04:39:10 GMT

Providence

Fri, 23 Jan 2026 16:03:26 GMT

As we begin a new year, it brings new potential and a figurative “clean slate”. Yet at all times it is always good to remember that the Lord never changes and neither does His purposes. His desire is that all come to Him for salvation. As it is not all will seek their Creator, yet He is always at work around us guiding life through the present sinful, cursed world. His purposes are always to bring glory to himself as our Great Almighty Lord God. This divine guiding, moving, and protecting of His Spirit in the affairs of life is called Providence , our theme for the year here at Creation Truth.

His Providence has always been at work since the beginning, guiding for the purpose he has designed us for. Over the course of history, we as people have missed it or chosen not to follow it. Providence of the Lord is what guided His people out of Egypt to the Promised Land. Even while suffering judgment for their sin in the desert, there was Providence , providing for their needs with daily manna and encouraging them on to the Promised Land.

At just the right time, Providence bestowed to us a Savior, Jesus Christ. Never would we have planned or made provision for the Savior of the world in the manner He came to earth. All of His work while in the flesh was done to point us to Him and His Glory. Providence was fulfilled on the cross for all eternity with the way for all to find the Lord and salvation, to be guided out of death and overcome the trial of this life through His death, burial and resurrection.

Providence , 250 years ago, guided our country’s forefathers to seek a land to freely worship their Creator and Savior, with freedom from tyranny and a pursuit of liberty for all. Even though not all were followers of the Lord, it was still more than evident that they knew His Providence had a protecting hand on us. Only by His great Providence did we become a country, for the Lord knew we would become a beacon of that freedom and, ultimately, the only true freedom that comes from Christ. Through many trials and failures in history we have sinned before our Lord, and we must continually repent and seek Him for forgiveness. His Providence has allowed our nation of people from many tongues and tribes to melt together. We have been, and I pray continue to be, the largest Christian nation in the world, proclaiming who He is before all else.

This year, as we focus on His Providence , may you seek Him and be reminded of all the times He has guided, protected and blessed you for His name. David wrote in Psalm 31:3-5 of the Lord’s Providence : “For You are my high rock and my fortress; For Your name's sake You will lead me and guide me. You will bring me out of the net which they have secretly laid for me, For You are my strength. Into Your hand I commit my spirit; You have ransomed me, O Yahweh, God of truth.”(LSB) We at Creation Truth Foundation look forward to another year of opportunities to serve, champion, and exalt His Name. May you be guided, protected and blessed through Providence this year.

A Miraculous Storm-part 1

Fri, 23 Jan 2026 01:50:46 GMT

EACH OF THESE ARTICLES ARE EXCERPTS FROM

AMERICA’S EPIC ADVENTURE ^TM - CTF'S NEWEST VBS CURRICULUM

From Lesson 1: The Pilgrims, Walking by Faith in the Lord – Proverbs 3:5-6

Jamestown

On May 14, 1607, after a rough and scary 5-month journey, 104 men started the colony of Jamestown, Virginia. To get people to join this daring adventure, they were told that part of its mission was to tell people in the New World about Jesus. Even the charter (the paper from the king that said they could start a colony) said they were to tell the Native Americans about Jesus; 104 men signed up! The problem was only one of them, Robert Hunt, was a minister, and he was the only one who regularly tried to tell others about Jesus. The rest of the colonists did not care about that. All they wanted to do was discover gold.

In fact, they never spent any time planting or tending crops or digging wells for water. By the end of the first year, they had humbled themselves to not just buying, but begging and stealing corn from the natives. And the only thing they ever found was pyrite – fool’s gold!

To help fix things, on September 10, 1608, John Smith was named the president of the colony’s council. He immediately demanded discipline and work by ALL the colonists. He had a well dug, crops planted, and declared that 2 Thessalonians 3:10 was to be strictly enforced, “…that if any would not work, neither should he eat.”

Captain Smith also tried to work with the Native Americans. Back in December of 1607, he was captured while out looking for food and brought to chief Powhatan. Smith feared for his life, but wrote that he was saved when the 11-year-old Pocahontas threw herself across him “at the minute of my execution, she hazarded the beating out of her own brains to save mine; and not only that, but so prevailed with her father, that I was safely conducted to Jamestown.”

The encounter allowed John Smith to build good relations with the Natives, often relying upon them for food supplies to save the colony. Many, though, did not like the new working conditions, even though things had started to turn around. They even had a corn harvest! But then in the fall of 1609, a mysterious gunpowder explosion in the canoe in which Smith was sleeping left him badly injured. He sailed for England that October, never to return to Jamestown.

With the mosquitoes, malaria, tainted water, misplaced priorities, self-serving relations with the natives, and no work ethic, 2/3 of the settlers died. This would be the continuing story of Jamestown for many years as they regularly did not obey God and served only themselves.

The Pilgrims

At the same time Jamestown was beginning in 1607, back in England the government had begun raiding homes in the town of Scrooby in Nottinghamshire, imprisoning those who would not adhere to the Church of England. A group of separatists led by William Brewster and other religious men were gathering to worship God according to their understanding of the Bible and not by the demands of King James.

It was illegal to leave the country, yet the separatists attempted to do so in the spring of 1608, bound for Holland. They decided to split up to draw less attention to themselves. The women and children journeyed down river to the coast; the men went overland. They would board a Dutch ship when they all arrived. The women and children arrived early, saw no one was there, got seasick, and went back up the river so not to draw attention at the port. But then the tide went out and their boats got stuck in the mud!

The men arrived the next morning, also saw no one was there, but went ahead and started preparing for their trip. All of a sudden, a great company of officials arrived to arrest them. The Dutch captain weighed anchor and began to take off! The men who were still on land ran and hid. The men on the ship begged the captain to go back because they did not know where their families were!

The captain finally decided to turn around when, just as he did, a fearful storm rose up against them. The ship was driven off course to the coast of Norway. For 14 days the storm raged! They often could see neither sun, moon, nor stars. The captain believed God was punishing him for not returning the men to their families. However, if the storm had not suddenly risen against them and kept them from returning, there may not have been an America as we know it today.

When the authorities arrived and found only the women and children who had made it to the coast, they felt awkward about arresting them. After some questioning, they were allowed to go freely. The families eventually found another ship and joined the men in Holland. If the storm had not stopped the men and they had returned, they very well may have been arrested and perhaps kept from ever leaving – the pilgrims may have never made it to America.

They all finally made it safely to the Netherlands (between France and Germany on the North Sea coast; the area they lived in was called Holland). However, King James eventually sent out an international manhunt for them! After several years, they would decide to take a great risk and move to the New World to establish a colony where they could worship and live in freedom.

End of Year 2025 Printed Newsletter

Thu, 18 Dec 2025 21:29:11 GMT

History & Destiny Joined

Thu, 18 Dec 2025 20:13:36 GMT

Here we are again, just a few days before Christmas. It seems the old adage, “The older you get the faster time flies,” is so true. There is not a year that passes when we look back and think, “Wow, this year took forever!” History is passing by and we look forward to the new year as we continue to focus on our eternal destiny. Our theme this year has been, HISTORY & DESTINY. Christmas is a great time to reflect on these two realities.

Everyone has “Christmas history”, as I term it - those moments from past Christmases that are remembered year after year. Maybe it’s a great family gathering or Christmas activity that has become a beloved tradition. All of those moments are formed by previous years’ experiences. Sometimes this season can be tough, as we may have that memory of a loved one that has passed or other difficulties that we may be facing. Christmas history is always impactful, be it good or bad. This makes me reflect on the first Christmas. For Mary and Joseph, there was no previous history like that moment, per se. Yet, the history of the prior four thousand years had been preparing for the manger, the moment in history that our Savior would be born and begin Christmas history for all of us. Whether it is acknowledged or not, without Jesus’ birth in history, none of this season happens.

Each and every Christmas our desire is to make those “Christmas history” memories for our family. Our desire is to impact the future of our family, our destiny. Often our efforts fall short or are interrupted by things out of our control. In those moments, so much stress can come from our efforts not going as planned. Sometimes it ends up ruining the whole season, especially if our focus has not been on the simple fact that He was born to bring peace, not stress. Let us not forget that it didn’t start the way Mary and Joseph had planned, with no room in the inn. But the Lord provided a place for them to rest and deliver the baby. Immanuel, God with us, is the bell ringing for all eternity that started that first Christmas. Our eternal destiny hinges on whether we acknowledge who He is everyday, not just in this season. Yet, this season is most assuredly a great time to emphasize His gift of life for all eternity.

Our Creator became as one of His image bearers in that stable under imperfect conditions. He joined HISTORY and DESTINY that moment in time. The years of history that prepared the world for the child born that first Christmas would give us hope for all eternity. Jesus is the marker for all history. Because of that moment in time, our life can have peace for eternity through Him. May we all focus on the culmination of HISTORY & DESTINY during our family Christmas celebrations this year. Our history is written but our destiny is hope in Jesus Christ, our Creator and Savior. Blessings this season to you and your family from all of us here at Creation Truth Foundation!

Merry Christmas and many blessings to you and your families!

November 2025 Printed Newsletter

Fri, 21 Nov 2025 17:14:35 GMT

The Reformation and America’s Founding

Fri, 21 Nov 2025 17:09:35 GMT

As many saw corruption not only in the abuse of parishioners, but also in church authority and doctrine, many started to speak out for reform. Martin Luther published his 95 Theses in 1517, and thanks to Johannes Guttenberg’s printing press, was able to print many short treatises on Biblical matters. His publications are thought to amount to ⅕ of all works printed in Germany in the first third of the 1500s. Economic historian Dr. Jared Rubin published in 2014 that “the mere presence of a printing press prior to 1500 increased the probability that a city would become Protestant in 1530 by 52.1 percentage points.” ¹

Over in England, King Henry VIII desired to annul his marriage to his first of 6 wives, Catherine of Aragon. Pope Clement VII wouldn’t grant it, so King Henry established the Church of England, with him as the Supreme Head. After his and his son Edward’s deaths, his daughter from Catherine named Mary was able to take over. She reinstated the Catholic faith, although she was quite vengeful, burning at the stake more than 280 dissenters in her 5-year reign, giving her the label “Bloody Mary.” During this time, many Reformers fled to Geneva where they published in 1560 the Geneva Bible.

After Mary’s death, her half-sister Elizabeth became queen and restored the Church of England. After her nearly 45-year reign, her cousin James I became king upon her death. He would commence the 1604 revision of the Book of Common Prayer and the Authorized Version of the Bible, published in 1611, known today as the King James Bible.

Understandably, with all this political activity, things may not have always been on the up and up in the Church of England. Consequently, there were many reform efforts that sprung up, such as the Anabaptists, Baptists, Barrowists, Behmenists, Brownists, Diggers, Enthusiasts, Familists, Fifth Monarchists, Grindletonians, Levellers, Muggletonians, Puritans, Philadelphians, Quakers, Ranters, Sabbatarians, Seekers, and Socinians, to name a few.

Robert Browne was an Anglican priest who was influenced by some Puritan theologians. He eventually rejected the idea of purifying the Church of England, and helped start a separatist church in 1581. In 1592, the Seditious Sectaries Act was passed specifically outlawing Brownists and other separatists, including imprisonment. Still, more continued to be influenced. So, in 1604, Archbishop Bancroft launched his campaign of suspending or firing some 380 Puritan and Separatist ministers, many of whom started new separatist churches, such as ministers Richard Clyfton and John Robinson in 1606. The postmaster and manager of the archbishop’s Manor House in Scrooby, William Brewster, had been impressed by Clyfton’s preaching and invited the separatists to meet in the house.

Brewster eventually resigned his position, being fined for his absences at the king’s church. As the congregation grew, one enthusiastic 16-year old William Bradford began attending. An orphan since age 7, he had heard Clyfton preach at age 12. Now he was a member of this house church that grew to some 50 members, making it difficult to avoid the authorities. Bradford wrote, “But after these things they could not long continue in any peaceable condition, but were hunted & persecuted on every side… For some were taken & clapt up in prison, others had their houses beset & watched night and day, & hardly escaped their hands; and the most were fain to fly & leave their houses & habitations, and the means of their livelihood.” ²

The First Thanksgiving at Plymouth by Jennie Augusta Brownscombe, 1914

And so they would. They made the decision to venture off into unfamiliar and unknown places in pursuit of religious freedom, that they might raise their families in the ways of the Lord. Because of their dedication to His Word, these pilgrims survived with His grace and numerous miraculous interventions, had special days of Thanksgiving unto Him, and helped lay the Biblical foundation upon which the United States would be built, an incalculable blessing we enjoy to this very day.

1 Rubin, Jared (2014). "Printing and Protestants: An Empirical Test of the Role of Printing in the Reformation". Review of Economics and Statistics . 96 (2): 270–286.

2 Bradford, William. Bradford’s History “Of Plimoth Plantation.” : from the original manuscript. Wright & Potter Printing Co., Boston, 1898: chapter 1, last paragraph, <https://www.gutenberg.org/files/24950/24950-h/24950-h.htm>.

Thanksgiving Blessings!

Fri, 21 Nov 2025 16:08:28 GMT

This year we have focused on History & Destiny. As we ready ourselves for Thanksgiving, I am reminded of the history of the season and of the future to come. It is always great to celebrate this time of year and reflect back. There is so much to be thankful for, but the providence and provision of the Lord is foremost.

His enduring guidance never gets old as He takes us to churches and people that need the message He has given us. This year has taken us to many places we have been to before, letting us reconnect with old friends. At the same time the Lord has opened new doors where people have been excited to hear and see Genesis in a new light with new emphasis. What a blessing to make new friends and meet co-laborers for the Gospel! God has given us connections with young and old alike, enabling the Kingdom work to continue and flourish for His praise. We are so thankful.

Another year has passed and the Lord continues to provide all we need to continue this mission, including His provision of a new truck when we needed one. Yes, we still need help to pay it off, but just to be in a position to handle all that comes with purchasing a new truck is something for which we give great thanks to the Lord. To have what we need month in and month out, even when our program schedule was thin, has been a blessing worthy of great thanks.

Two mornings in November we had the opportunity to teach a group of adults that many in the world forget about - those with special needs. It was a blast to talk with them about dinosaurs and, with several attendees, Biblical history. The Lord allowed us to help a blind young woman to “see” dinosaurs for her first time. All we needed to do was take her hand and let her trace the fossils with her touch. It was a truly exceptional moment to teach someone for her first time that dinosaurs are part of the Lord’s creation. We are so thankful to have been a tool in His providence and provision for those who were able to come.

Our continuing mission is supported by each and every one of you who pray for us. The power of prayer is very real and we see its manifestation so often in this ministry. The financial support from family, friends and the body of Christ, His Church, carry us each and every year. We once again enter this season with extraordinary thankfulness for our Lord and for you. Thanksgiving Blessings!

September/October 2025 Printed Newsletter

Thu, 02 Oct 2025 21:45:59 GMT

Flooded Marine Reptile

Thu, 02 Oct 2025 20:06:34 GMT

The Flood during Noah’s day was a devastating judgement against the sin and wickedness of the time. Most people focus on what the Lord did as He saved the eight people and animals on the Ark. Yet while they were being saved, the Flood destroyed the earth and left behind some remarkable things. Geology around the globe shows water burial of plants and animals. Many of the animal remains show signs of drowning and then burial. One particular reptile that shows this is the Ichthyosaurus. From what we can understand, water was her home for everything in life, even giving birth to live young. This well designed creature may even help us trust the Word of God when it comes to the history of the Flood.

In our Mobile Museum of Earth History we exhibit a research replica of an ichthyosaur called Stenopterygius quadriscissus . She is from Holzmaden, Germany and is one example of hundreds that have been found in the area. The reason we can so confidently state this fossil is a “her,” when we rarely know for sure about fossil animals, is because she is pregnant. She has three babies present with her remains: one under her tail, one in or near the birth canal, and one still inside. Our fossil is in situ, which means the fossil remains in the rock matrix it was buried in. So, the presence of momma and babies are how they were buried and not articulated in some manner after excavation. This is important to show the rapid, watery burial that must have taken place to lock this scene in the fossil record.

The Flood trapped organisms all over the world in different life positions. Sometimes the fossils left behind have shown eating, hunting, sleeping, swimming, nesting, or drowning. When it comes to ichthyosaurs around the planet, there is a significant number of females that seem to be pregnant. They have been found in the fossil record on at least four continents. A fair assumption would be that Ichthyosaurs had a certain time of year they mated and gave birth to young, much like sea turtles today that nest from late spring to late fall depending on the region around the world. So it should come as no surprise that we find pregnant ichthyosaurs all around the world as the Flood lasted an entire year. It would have buried the females that were pregnant near their location of habitat.

Evolutionists maintain that ichthyosaurs lived tens to hundreds of million years ago and each of the mothers found in the fossil record just died while giving birth. This is difficult to support in a millions magnitude time scale. That would mean every time a disaster happened, millions of years apart, the right conditions existed to quickly bury ichthyosaurs that just so happened to be pregnant. It just might take some “faith” to trust that “miracle” would happen over and over again through eons of time. Or you can have faith that the Word of God’s history is correct with a judgement of man’s sin bringing global devastation through the Flood during Noah’s 600th year of life. The Word of God is trustworthy, with even the fossil record showing us glimpses of historical evidence in support of our faith. I’m so thankful we don’t need blind faith to trust our salvation! Blessings.

Our God Whom We Serve Is Able

Thu, 02 Oct 2025 20:01:57 GMT

¹⁴ Nebuchadnezzar spoke, saying to them, “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the gold image which I have set up? ¹⁵ …if you do not worship, you shall be cast immediately into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. And who is the god who will deliver you from my hands?”

¹⁶ Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. ¹⁷ If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. ¹⁸ But if He does not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.”

Daniel 3:14-18

In the 6th century BC, three young men stood up for their faith in the one true God, for which someone attempted to kill them. Today, in the 21st century AD, one young man was gunned down for his faith in the one true God. And sadly, Charlie Kirk is not the only one. According to The Esther Project, martyrdom for the cause of Christ is commonplace around the world ( theestherproject.com/statistics ). On average:

322 Christians are killed monthly.
214 churches or Christian properties are destroyed monthly.
772 forms of violence (beatings, kidnappings, etc.) against Christians are committed monthly.
100,000 to 160,000 Christians are killed annually in the 21st century.
1.093 million Christians were martyred between 2000 and 2010.
And more than 70 million Christians are believed to have been martyred since the 1st century, with more than half killed in the 20th century alone under communist and fascist governments.

And how should Christians respond? Peter wrote, “ if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but glorify God in this name ” (I Peter 4:16). Jesus took this a step further; He told us, “ …love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you ” (Matthew 5:44). Now, as Shawn Grant, minister at Kissimmee Christian Church, FL, preached on the Sunday following the assassination, th at may not be what you want to hear right now, but that is what Jesus has told us we must do. Why? So the world will see the difference Jesus makes!

The night of and the days after the assassination, businesses did not have to board up their stores. Police and soldiers did not have to be deployed. There were no riots, no property damages, no police spat upon – only tears, prayers, and a witness to the world that Jesus is the answer. So noticeable is this to the world, there were more international press requests for the Charlie Kirk memorial service than are requested for Super Bowls. Within seven days of his death, Kirk’s ministry Turning Point USA had received over 54,000 campus chapter requests. And most importantly, scores of videos of young people considering or even deciding to give their lives to Jesus have been posted to social media platforms.

Because of his unique place in history, most of us may not be able to have the scale of impact Charlie Kirk’s life and death are having. But that doesn’t matter. The question we all must ask is: Am I having an impact on anyone for Jesus? If not, then what are we doing? Just going to church services so we feel good about ourselves? Going through the motions so we feel like we’re good parents?

Are you having an impact for the Kingdom of God? Can any and all people with whom you come into contact tell that Christ is your King, reigning on the throne of your heart?

Is it always easy? NO. Could it even be dangerous? YES. That doesn’t mean you have to pack up your family and take them to the most dangerous mission fields. Jesus just asks of you to be faithful, to DAILY walk with Him, with the resulting consequence that people see you walking with Jesus!

Jesus said in Matthew 5:9, “ Blessed are the peacemakers ”. Unfortunately, just as there are many who love fresh baked bread, but don’t put forth the effort to make bread, there are far too many Christians who love peace, but don’t put forth the effort to be a peacemaker. It is imperative that we regularly check the alignment of our worldview so that it is Biblical and o ur eyes are fixed on Jesus (Hebrews 12:2) as we “press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:14). We can do so, even in the face of the most menacing opposition, because, as those three young men in Daniel 3 so confidently declared, “ our God whom we serve is able” to do great things, including in your life and mine. H e is “able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us ” (Ephesians 3:20). Therefore, as the bearers of Christ’s name, we shine forth His light, remembering, as Taya Smith sings:

There is another in the fire standing next to me…
And should I ever need reminding
What power sets me free
There is a grave that holds no body
And now that power lives in me.

July-August 2025 Printed Newsletter

Wed, 06 Aug 2025 21:31:38 GMT

NEW VBS FOR 2026 - Celebrating America 250

Wed, 06 Aug 2025 21:29:35 GMT

NEW VBS FOR 2026

Celebrating America 250

God needed not the United States to carry out His will; He simply blessed those who strove to abide by His Word. In celebration of this faithfulness and the United States of America’s 250th birthday, we are blessed to offer our new Vacation Bible School program: America’s Epic Adventure: The Miracle of Liberty.

For years there has been a tenacious effort to demean and discredit America’s founding. Where once the attack was to say America did not have a Christian heritage, today’s attack boldly declares America’s founding was Bible-based and is, therefore, the root cause of the nation’s problems. That founding, they argue, must be delegitimized, erased, and replaced with a new secular foundation.

Meanwhile, something even greater is based on the Bible – the Church of Jesus Christ! Hence, the same attack against America’s founding also declares the Church must be delegitimized and removed from any influence upon the culture. Consequently, it is imperative the Church today understand that the attack upon America’s founding is inherently an attack upon the Church. Does your congregation know how to respond?

We invite you to welcome us in for either our new VBS or our program Our American Founding to explore how many sought freedom to worship and serve the Creator God and to train their children in the ways of the Lord. From Pilgrims to Presidents, we will examine the times when people succeeded and when they failed in abiding by God’s Word and how the Lord blessed in the establishment of this country. As President George Washington stated in his first inaugural address, “No People can be bound to acknowledge and adore the invisible hand, which conducts the Affairs of men more than the People of the United States. Every step, by which they have advanced to the character of an independent nation, seems to have been distinguished by some token of providential agency.”

Summer 2025

ctf@creationtruth.com (Matt Miles) — Wed, 06 Aug 2025 21:29:31 GMT

Summer of 2025 is two-thirds finished. We have taught at 7 different camp weeks along with 6 VBSes. Ryan and I have had a busy summer for the Kingdom. Our travels have stretched from Ohio to Colorado and all points in between. We have taught in churches and connected with many supporters and friends. This summer, as usual, ministry has taken us away from family for periods, but there has been great returns for the sacrifice - more than fifteen souls have been added to God’s eternal Kingdom and even more seeds planted with life-changing fruit produced, from the young to old.

Again and again we encounter students that are fired up with a passion for knowledge of the Word of God. As these students have found answers to questions or faith-challenging issues, they are better equipped to share their faith. This summer we have had the opportunity to reconnect with many students whom we taught at a younger age. Now they are in their teens or heading to college. Their testimonies of strengthened faith because of the mission God has called us to is more than rewarding.

It never gets old to meet grandparents, or even great-grandparents, during VBS that have lived their lives as followers of Christ yet have never seen the impact of Genesis to the Gospel. Just yesterday this happened with a grandmother who was overjoyed and appreciative of our teaching and message. Knowing more about dinosaurs Biblically allows for them to have new lines of communication with their cherished grandkids. Our ability to give these great warriors of the faith answers that can impact their families for eternity is priceless to us.

Please continue to lift us up in prayer as our summer is not over yet. As always, know that your support is making an impact for the Kingdom that we are eternally grateful for. If you are thinking about having us come next summer, don’t hesitate to contact us as summers fill quicker than the rest of the year. Summer has and will continue to be a crazy busy time for Kingdom work. Blessings.

June 2025 Printed Newsletter

Wed, 18 Jun 2025 20:47:10 GMT

Moses & History (part 3)

ryan@creationtruth.com (Ryan Cox) — Wed, 18 Jun 2025 20:44:40 GMT

Moses & History (part 3)

For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope .
Romans 15:4

In part 2, we continued answering a student’s questions about what was being taught in her college class regarding Moses and the Bible’s history. She informed us that the “professor has mentioned several times that those pieces of the Bible may not be historically accurate, but are just told to depict a characteristic of God.” We barely scratched the surface of the voluminous evidence regarding the Bible’s accuracy and reliable transmission, confirming its inspiration. Now we turn to the most attacked of God’s inspired scribes.

MOSAIC AUTHORSHIP

Regarding Moses’ authorship of the Torah, it was never seriously questioned until the 18 ^th century during the Enlightenment. Here is a brief history:

1656 – Dutch Jew Baruch de Spinoza was expelled from the congregation of Amsterdam for insisting Moses did not compose the Torah.

1753 - French professor of medicine Jean Astruc (1684-1766) anonymously published a book stating Moses is rightfully called the author, as Moses compiled the current book of Genesis from multiple documents. Astruc believed there had been two different authors for Creation (ch. 1 & 2), as well as 2 to 4 composers of the other Genesis narratives, mostly because of the use of either Yahweh or Elohim .
This would be the basis of what would later become the Documentary Hypothesis as used by critics of Mosaic authorship, though Astruc supported Moses as the author through what would become the Toledoth/Wiseman hypothesis.

1800s – through the works of Hermann Hupfeld (1796-1866, German), Karl Heinrich Graf (1815-1869, German), Wilhelm Vatke (1806-1882, German), Julius Wllhausen (1844-1918, German), and Édouard Guillaume Eugène Reuss (1804-1891, French) came the Documentary Hypothesis, referred to as JEDP.

JEDP (Documentary Hypothesis) teaches four sources for the Torah, all of which came centuries after Moses. This serves to discredit Moses and the Torah’s history.
J – Jehovistic documents: composed around 900-850 B.C., these author(s) used the name Jehovah ( YHWH ) in their texts.
E – Elohimic documents: composed around 750-700 B.C., these author(s) used the name Elohim in their texts.
D – Deuteronomic documents: composed possibly around the time of King Josiah’s reforms c. 621 B.C., these author(s) composed Deuteronomy.
P – Priestly documents: priests added to and compiled the complete Torah during the Babylonian exile after 586 B.C.

1970s – the Documentary Hypothesis was actually discredited in the 1970s by John Van Seters (1935-, Canadian), Hans Heinrich Schmid (1937-2014, Swiss), and Rolf Rendtorff (1925-2014, German).
However, they had no cohesive replacement for the Documentary Hypothesis, only that it was bad scholarship. Here’s why:
In Genesis:
YHWH is used 164 times in chapters 2-22, 24-32, 38-39, 49.
Elohim is used 219 times in chapters 1-9, 17, 19-28, 30-33, 35, 39-46, 50.
The usage of these names overlap chapters and toledoths.
Thus, the usage of these two names does not prove anything, yet it is the crux argument for the skeptics!

As Dr. Peter J. Gentry, professor of Old Testament Interpretation at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, states, “Many scholars today are just unaware of the latest advances in research... and all of these things uphold the claims of the text and show that the criteria used to establish the Documentary Hypothesis is completely false.” Hence, Jesus and the entirety of the Bible are validated in their unified testimony that Moses was the inspired author of the Torah.

Dr. G. Thomas Sharp Library

ctf@creationtruth.com (Matt Miles) — Wed, 18 Jun 2025 20:44:18 GMT

Over the course of time a person can accumulate many things. Most of the stuff we collect is meaningless to most everyone else, but when a person collects books, they can be treasured for a lifetime and even beyond. In this age of digital media, physical books seem to be less important to many people. Digital books are searchable, and copy/paste functions make it easy to use those great quotes. Yet, there is still something great about a physical book, things you can’t get digitally: the turning of pages, the feel of it in your hand, and the “book” smell.

For our founder Dr. Sharp, physical books could never be replaced by digital. While my collection of books is growing each year, it is dwarfed by Dr. Sharp’s collection. Over the years he collected thousands of titles for research and enjoyment. Through the course of his ministry he had to sell his book collection a couple of different times to support his family, only to start collecting again when he was able to do so. When Doc passed his office full of packed bookshelves to me and said he would clear the shelves, I laughed out loud at the prospect of having loads of empty bookshelves. So I urged him to instead leave his books for my, and anyone else’s, use. Little did I understand that the four bookcases in my office were only a fraction of his entire collection.

A couple of years back when Doc moved from his house, it was decided that his book collection would be stored at the office. Our thought was to establish a library, yet none of us had time to plan, organize and catalog all 79 boxes of books. They sat piled in his office until last year when my daughter Megan joined our ministry. She has a love of books, both reading and writing. So we offered her the task of cataloging and establishing Doc’s library. Can you picture me, a bbq lover, being offered a table full of succulent smoked offerings - brisket, sausage, ribs, pulled pork, chicken, turkey and all sides? Yep, that was Megan’s response to the library. For over four months she cataloged and organized the entire collection.

The Dr. G. Thomas Sharp Library was completed earlier this year in his old office space, with overflow into my office. The entire 2700+ volume agglomeration is digitally cataloged for searching and locating. As you might expect, there is an extensive collection of creation and evolution subject matter, yet the library is full of many different categories. It very much reflects Doc’s love of gaining knowledge and research. An extensive commentary collection and multiple Biblical reference sections are invaluable to our ministry. There is even a whole bookcase housing books that are over 100 years old.

Our desire was not to just house books but to also make a place of honor and inspiration. One wall exhibits Doc’s many diplomas, and throughout the library we have placed personal memorabilia of the mission trips he took over the years. Come, grab a book, relax in the sitting area and allow Doc’s handwritten notes from the margins or post-it notes bring a smile to your face. For those who may be more ambitious, Doc's office chair resides at the credenza for anyone to sit and be inspired to study. This is a place to honor Doc’s life and love for books. We at CTF have already utilized this great resource for further study, and we are so thankful to Diane and their family for donating these books for continued Kingdom growth. Blessings.

May 2025 Printed Newsletter

Fri, 23 May 2025 20:04:15 GMT

Ordered Space

ctf@creationtruth.com (Matt Miles) — Thu, 22 May 2025 21:45:23 GMT

As many of you may know, I appreciate space. Not space around me, although the older I get the more I appreciate that as well. The things in the heavens fascinate me and have for a large chunk of my life. I love working with our telescopes, allowing people to see for themselves objects that the Lord made on the 4th day of history. When I was younger I followed our Space Shuttle program, and over the years I have had the opportunity to see a couple of those shuttles around the country. Now it is great to see all the renewed interest in exploring the heavenly creation. I know most of it is for evolutionary reasons, yet over and over again something is discovered that points to the trustworthiness of God’s Word. After all, we are to study His creation as Genesis 1:28 states.

On a recent trip to El Paso, it occurred to me that Blue Origin’s launch facility is in west Texas somewhere. After some quick searching I realized we were within an hour and half of it, and there was a rescheduled launch window during the time of our meeting. So, with some persuading of my colleagues, we arose early one morning to make the launch. We made it with just minutes to spare. It was spectacular! The whole launch to just beyond the Karman Line (space boundary, 62 miles/100km) and return of the rocket and capsule is about ten minutes total. While Blue Origin is best known for its New Shepherd rocket that carries paying customers to space and back with the biggest windows ever in a capsule, this NS-29 launch was purely experimental with a payload of instruments to measure simulated lunar gravity. Even though it was not a Saturn V, Space Shuttle, Starship or Falcon launch, it was great to hear and feel a launch for the first time, from blast off to the sonic boom return. It has piqued my desire to see a bigger launch now.

As I began to reflect on what I experienced, the Lord reminded me of His design. Earth, our home planet, is so well designed for life. There is literally nowhere in all the universe like it. Yet He gave us the ability to discover creation beyond it. The only reason we can launch rockets and do space exploration is because He set it up in an orderly way. Physics works because He established it to work in a predictable fashion. As much as we may never understand everything in the universe from our position here, it works on an ordered reality that is reinforced by God’s Word. This is what drove Sir Isaac Newton in his understanding of physics. He wrote, “The motions which the planets now have could not spring from any natural cause alone but were by an intelligent Agent.” Evolutionists may come up with theories about the origin of things in the heavens, but over and over again they are being shown through experimentation and observation to be wrong. The Lord set the order of everything in the beginning and sustains it by His Word (Hebrews 1:3).

So as you look to the heavens tonight, gaze into the depths of space and observe the different facets the Lord placed up there for our eyes (Genesis 1:17). Peer through a telescope at the lesser light of the moon with marvel and anticipation of further human study in the coming years. Check out the amazing observations being made by the James Webb telescope from deep in space. All of these place a perspective of how awesome our Creator is and how much we depend on Him. Our design becomes more and more obvious with every discovery, yet in our universe we appear so minuscule and fragile. Thanks be to God that His infinite focus has, is and always will be here on us! Blessings.

Moses & History (part 2)

ryan@creationtruth.com (Ryan Cox) — Thu, 22 May 2025 21:45:19 GMT

Moses & History (part 2)

For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope .
Romans 15:4

In part 1, we began answering a student’s questions regarding what was being taught in her college class about Moses and the Bible’s history. She informed us that the “professor has mentioned several times that those pieces of the Bible may not be historically accurate, but are just told to depict a characteristic of God.” We addressed the most serious implications of this in Part 1; it would mean Jesus and the entire New Testament were in serious error when they referred to Moses and the Pentateuch as legitimate history. The Old and New Testaments are both predicated on the fact that Genesis through Deuteronomy are perfectly inspired and divinely recorded history.

HISTORICITY

Regarding the historical accuracy of the Old Testament, having done my undergraduate and graduate work in history, I can tell you with full assurance that there is nothing like it in antiquity. No other literary source has the record of transmission from generation to generation, nor the authenticity of manuscripts, nor the confirmation of historical details like the Old Testament. The ONLY ancient literature that rivals it in those categories is the New Testament.

Record of Transmission

On the CTF Genesis Timeline below (available at creationtruth.com/store ), you will see the overlap of the Genesis patriarchs. This is important regarding the passing of family records from one generation to the next. Throughout Genesis, one will find the phrase, “This is the book of the generations of…” The Hebrew word for these records is toledoth ; it is used 13 times. This means Genesis is a compilation of 13 divinely inspired family records. I personally believe the first one (Genesis 1:1-2:4a) is God’s record/toledoth, probably given to Moses sometime at Mt. Sinai (Exodus 20:8-11). Moses then compiled these inspired and divinely preserved records into one book – Genesis.

How faithful was the transmission of those records to Moses? Look at the overlap of the lifespans of the Genesis patriarchs. The records up to Noah would have to be preserved through the Flood. Noah could have known 6 ancestors who personally knew Adam, providing incredible confirmation of the family record. Then, to get them and the history that followed to Abraham, everyone from Noah’s son Shem to Abraham’s dad Terah could have known Noah . Additionally, everyone from Arpachshad through Isaac (10 generations) could have known Shem, who lived through the Flood! Or consider it this way: from Adam to Lamech is one direct connection, then Shem (who knew Lamech) to Isaac is just the second link in faithfully passing along the Genesis record! There is no record of antiquity like this!

From Isaac, the record passed to Jacob, who then passed it to his sons for preservation. To get to Moses, we then go from Jacob’s son Levi, to his son Kohath, to his son Amram, to his son Moses. Kohath would’ve known Jacob, and Jacob would have known Abraham, so we can cut out two more in the direct links. Therefore, we can have the Genesis record of over 2,500 years of history faithfully (and divinely) passed down to Moses by the inspired eyewitnesses in just 7 links:

Adam → Lamech → Shem → Isaac → Jacob → Kohath → Amram → Moses

In the scheme of history, that is an incredibly short gap from Adam to Moses, which only strengthens the reliability of the Genesis account, Mosaic authorship, and the inspiration of the Scriptures.

Accuracy / Authenticity

One of the weakest arguments against the Genesis record is that there are somehow gaps in the genealogies. Those making the argument can never point to where the gap is or who is missing. Rather, the Bible confirms the Genesis genealogies in I Chronicles 1:1-24 and Luke 3:33-38. In fact, the Bible specifically tells us in Jude 14 that there are no gaps ; the genealogies are complete, “It was also about these that Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied” .

Rather, the Genesis genealogies and the lifespans recorded within them demand a historical, not a mythical, origin. How else can one explain the exponential decay curve in the lifespans? Who, when composing these “legends,” would think up an exponential decay curve? The entire notion is preposterous and not worthy of serious academic debate.

Regarding the preservation of manuscripts and their faithful transmission, please consult our articles “Divinely Dependable” and “Why These Books?” on our website:
https://www.creationtruth.com/divinely-dependable
https://www.creationtruth.com/why-these-books

Archeological Confirmation

April 2025 Printed Newsletter

Thu, 17 Apr 2025 21:16:34 GMT

Moses & History (part 1)

ryan@creationtruth.com (Ryan Cox) — Thu, 17 Apr 2025 21:00:47 GMT

Moses & History (part 1)

For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope .
Romans 15:4

We recently received an email from a student who heard us teach at a camp and is now attending college. The camper wrote:

We have been talking about Genesis and the birth of Moses, and my professor has mentioned several times that those pieces of the Bible may not be historically accurate, but are just told to depict a characteristic of God. I know you mentioned that the Bible is one of the most historically accurate books we have, and that is not lining up with this new content I am being told. Do you view the story of creation and for example the birth of Moses to be completely written as it happened or not? I am very confused how we believe the Bible is infallible while still believing content like that is not true, but more of a literary element. I know this is a deep question and you are very busy, but if you get a chance and could give me some guidance I would greatly appreciate it.

The following is part 1 of our response:

The first thing that comes to mind is Jesus’ words in John 5:46, “For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me.” In that chapter, Jesus confirms the Jewish belief that Moses, by inspiration of the Holy Spirit, composed the Torah/Pentateuch. Moses is mentioned by name 79 times in the New Testament as a real person in real history who truly wrote Genesis–Deuteronomy.

Regarding Jesus, here is what He said about Moses’ authorship:

Matthew 8:4, Mark 1:44, Luke 5:14 – Jesus said Moses wrote the Torah, specifically the leprosy laws in Leviticus 14.
Matthew 19:7-8 & Mark 10:3-5 – Jesus confirmed that Moses wrote the Torah, specifically marriage laws in Deuteronomy 24.
Matthew 22:24-32, Mark 12:19-27, Luke 20:28-38 – Jesus confirmed that Moses wrote the Torah, as He specifically declared the writings of Moses are “Scripture” (Matt. 22:29 & Mark 12:24). He also confirmed Moses recorded the inheritance laws in Deuteronomy 25 and quoted Exodus 3:6 as real history and Scripture written by Moses.
Mark 7:10 – Jesus specifically said Moses wrote down in the Torah the Ten Commandments as well as the passages of Exodus 21 and Leviticus 20.
John 3:14 – Jesus confirmed the historicity of Numbers 21, including Moses and the bronze serpent.
John 6:31-32 – Jesus confirmed the historicity of Exodus 16, including Moses and the provision of manna.
John 7:19-24 – Jesus confirmed that Moses wrote the entire Torah (verse 19) and specifically the Sabbath and circumcision laws.

Jesus’ statement in Matthew 22:29 and Mark 12:24 that Moses' five books are Scripture is highly significant. The Greek word for "Scripture" ( graphé ) is used 51 times, including II Timothy 3:16, which says, “ All Scripture is God-breathed” . The New Testament is adamant that the Old Testament, in particularly the first 5 books, are directly inspired by God. They were regarded by Jesus, the Apostles, and all Jewish people of that time as genuine, factual history.

Here is what I never hear professors who deny the historicity of Genesis, Exodus, etc., address: Was Jesus wrong when He taught that Genesis through Exodus is real history? If so, what does that do to His credibility and deity?

In Matthew 19:4-5, Jesus specifically quoted Genesis 1:27, 2:24, and 5:2 as real history; Jesus taught the Creation account was real history. He referred to Abel (Matthew 23:35) as the first prophet, a real person in history, confirming the historicity of Genesis 4. In Matthew 24:37-39 and Luke 17:26-27, Jesus confirmed the historicity of Noah and the global flood (Genesis 6-9). And in Luke 17:28-32, Jesus confirmed the historicity of Lot and Sodom & Gomorrah, including his wife turning into salt (Genesis 19).

Jesus made it very clear that everything in Genesis is real history. For someone to deny that is to say Jesus was wrong or that someone knows more than Jesus. The rest of the inspired New Testament authors all agree with Jesus with numerous references to Genesis, Exodus, etc. as real history with real people.

Ministry Updates

ctf@creationtruth.com (Matt Miles) — Thu, 17 Apr 2025 20:14:12 GMT

Ministry Updates

After expanding our Mobile Museum of Earth History at the end of last year, we realized the need for better work space and protection for it. In Lexington, OK our warehouse facility was long overdue for an update. So, the two projects became one and the same as we focused on improving our tools of ministry. Many of you gave extra during our Year-End Campaign to help us accomplish this need. This month we highlight the blessing of warehouse updates.

First, the warehouse building was constructed many years ago with metal halide light fixtures. They have served us well over the years, yet have their own drawbacks. The lights are bright once they warm up, which takes several minutes. Once they achieve full brightness, they consume an immense amount of power. If any of you have ever used these type of lights you know that, once shut off, they are notorious for not coming back on until they cool extensively. This all makes them less than user friendly. Our first update was to install four new LED fixtures. They are better than we expected, with more light for almost half the power consumed. The most exciting part of this update is the instant-on that LED lights bring to our work environment.

Second, the warehouse has only had one 10’x12’ roll-up garage door. It has been sufficient for years as we back in our trucks or trailers. The downside is, with just under a foot on either side of our trailers, it is always a tight squeeze. As we evaluated our space, a decision was made to add another door for another bay of use. So, we installed a new opening with a 12’x12’ door, and then expanded our original opening to a new 12’x12’ door to match the other. We also updated the door openers with new ones that actually open from our trucks - it is the little blessings that really excite us. Now with two bays and wider doors it is substantially easier to stow trucks and trailers for storage or work.

Third, since we added and widened our garage bays, new concrete was needed to aid in the entry and exit of the warehouse. So, we had two new sections of concrete pad added. Again, those little blessings that aid our work we find so comforting.

Many people may see these things as extra to what our mission is, yet to us they are allowing us to accomplish our mission more effectively. For the first time in ministry history, our trucks and trailers will be protected under a roof when home. The protection from the outside environment will lengthen the life of those resources. Our ability to work on fossils, trucks and trailers has increased with better lighting and more efficient use of space. So, all of this adds up to better use of ministry tools for the Kingdom.

Expanding Our Reach

For the week of April 6th, Ryan and I were on the road preaching and teaching simultaneously with both expanded collections of the Mobile MOEH (see photos below), marking the first time we have done this. We are able to reach more people for the Gospel now using the largest traveling fossil museum in the United States. None of this is possible without you, our faithful supporters. Please know that the Lord is using your financial and prayer support in new and exciting ways as we press forward showing the Truth of God’s Word. Blessings.

February/March 2025 Printed Newsletter

Thu, 06 Mar 2025 20:39:52 GMT

The Life & Legacy of Dr. G. Thomas Sharp, Jr.

Wed, 05 Mar 2025 22:15:12 GMT

The Life and Legacy of Dr. G. Thomas Sharp, Jr.

In the late 1960s, George Thomas Sharp, Jr., who was serving at the time as a pastor and educator in Alabama, came face to face with staggering domestic problems in the lives of his students and church members. These problems compelled him to begin a search for causes, answers, and solutions to these challenges and attacks upon the Kingdom of God. This multi-decade endeavor culminated in the formation of Creation Truth Foundation, Inc.

Born on July 30, 1942 to George, Sr. and Ruth Sharp in Columbus, IN, George Jr. and his brother Greg were raised in a faithful home, through which a generational faith was imparted. On December 14, 1963, George married the love of his life, Diane. They would eventually have four children, ten grandchildren, and five great-grandchildren to date.

The following years of teaching and ministry saw the Sharps come to an understanding that something extremely formidable existed deep within the culture, corrupting everything it touched. It appeared to them that the conservative evangelical community was helpless before its onslaught. Through multiple surveys and endless research, it was discovered that Bible-believing families throughout the United States were suffering the loss of 60–70% of their sons and daughters to secular thinking by the time they reached 15 years of age. Moreover, it was observed that the Christian father, the vital link in the family, intended in God’s divine design to provide headship, identity and purpose, was vanishing from his God-ordained place of leadership in both the family and the local church. In short, it became obvious that a primary target, if not the number one of Satan’s war with God, was the family – the quintessential key to everything else in society.

From 1975 to 1987, further research was undertaken while still engaging in ministry and education. In the 1980s, the Sharps moved from Alabama, helped get a school started in Syracuse, NY, taught in a Christian school in Noble, OK, then taught at Noble High School, preached for a year in Memphis, TN, and returned to teach at Bridge Creek High School in Blanchard, OK. All along the way, many steps of faith were taken to support the family. At one point, Doc sold his personal library to a church, he and his sons mowed lawns all summer to make ends meet, and Diane worked at the tag agency (for 13 years).

In the midst of this, while teaching during the week and preaching on the weekends, Doc attended classes at Oklahoma University and graduated with his masters in education in August of 1987. The very next month, he graduated from South Florida Bible College and Theological Seminary with his PhD; he had been taking correspondence courses with them while attending classes at OU, while teaching classes at school!

His doctoral thesis, the culmination of his 12 years of study, would be published in book form: Science According to Moses . The years of study convicted Doc that Darwinian evolutionism had overthrown, in the name of “science”, the dominance of the Bible (Creation in particular) as the foundation of America’s worldview. Thus, by giving apparent "scientific" sanction to a mindset governed by situational ethics, the many ramifications of Darwinism have permeated every aspect of society. Therefore, the Bible-believing public needs awakened to the reality of true Biblical faith. Basic to this renewal is a return to all realities of Biblical Creation. If the God of sacred Scripture is our Creator, then He, and He alone, can be our Savior. Hence, the imperative for a return to the foundation (Genesis 1-12) of not only Biblical truth, but also the Gospel, became overwhelmingly apparent. Accordingly, after much prayer and counseling from numerous Christian leaders and parents, and with the help of longtime mentor Edward J. Kelly, Creation Truth Foundation was incorporated back in Alabama on August 9, 1989.

In Oklahoma, the administration at Bridge Creek was very generous, allowing Doc to take off several days throughout the school year to preach and teach. However, a change in administration rescinded the generous leeway previously afforded to him. Therefore, in great faith, Doc went full-time with CTF in 1994. Not long after, Doc collaborated with Joe Taylor, who operated a fossil museum in Crosbyton, TX, to set up fossils for an event in which Doc would teach. From this came the idea of taking fossils to other places to see if doors would be opened to share Doc’s message and maybe bring in those who might never come hear a guest speaker, but might come see fossils and then stay to listen to the presentation. The trial runs were a great success, and Doc and his son Thomas began the process of acquiring fossils for the ministry. In 1998, the Mobile Museum of Earth History began touring the nation.

It should be noted that the Sharp family made many significant sacrifices for the ministry. But Diane would have you know, though she sometimes might have worried where the money would come from for the $8,000 fossil payments, Doc always slept soundly, never worrying about the Lord’s provision. And through the faithfulness of God and His people, the Lord always provided with so many generous friends of the family and ministry. Diane in conversation and Thomas at Doc's memorial listed name after name after name of those who so richly blessed them and the ministry.

In addition to all this, Doc helped publish books, videos, the Truth In Science school curriculum, led countless field trips, started museums in Eureka Springs and Dallas, and established in 2005 the Institute of Biblical Worldview Studies, which has graduated well over 100 students from its two-year Cadre program. Most of these graduates are defending God’s Word in their churches, especially in the Creation/Evolution debate. And beyond all this, Doc somehow found time to preach and teach abroad, including Russia, Mexico, Romania, Guatemala, Canada, the Philippines, and Haiti. It would be impossible to chronicle all of his endeavors that have touched thousands upon thousands around the globe.

In January of 2018, Dr. Sharp officially retired from Creation Truth Foundation. After decades of full-time teaching, preaching, and traveling, Doc and Diane would spend the next 7 years simply enjoying life together, traveling to see friends and family, all the while still edifying and encouraging so many of the faith. On February 12, 2025, Dr. George Thomas Sharp, Jr. entered into his eternal rest.

His master said unto him,
“Well done, good and faithful servant.”
~ Matthew 25:23 ~

Click Here to View Dr. Sharp's Memorial Service

Statement on the Passing of Dr. G. Thomas Sharp

Wed, 12 Feb 2025 18:45:32 GMT

Statement on the passing of Dr. G. Thomas Sharp

From the Sharp family:

On a gray winter’s day, an old lion has been gathered to his people.

Dr. G. Thomas Sharp, beloved husband, father, grandfather, friend, and ministry leader, has gone home to be with the Lord. “Doc,” as he was known universally, passed away at 3:23 a.m., Wednesday, February 12.

Since the 1960's, Dr. Sharp dedicated his life to understanding and penetrating key problems facing the modern Christian society. His groundbreaking work in “worldview,” informed by his deep insights into Scripture, established the critical importance of properly understanding the origins accounts, as well as their links to eschatology. In fact, Doc was one of the few national ministry leaders that insisted on a “whole Bible” approach to apologetics. Twenty years ago, he began to form a unique approach that blended Genesis with Revelation; in this way he continued the original emphasis fashioned by his great friend, Dr. Henry M. Morris, founder of the Institute for Creation Research. Doc liked to say, “We have done the work of rightly dividing Genesis 1-11; now we must shore-up the importance of Genesis 12-50 for the people!”

He earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Purdue University, a Master of Science at the University of Oklahoma, and an Ph.D. from the South Florida Bible College and Seminary with an emphasis in the philosophy of religion and science.

As a result of the efforts in his research and having been a science educator since 1964, Doc founded Creation Truth Foundation, Inc. in 1989. For decades, he spoke internationally at churches, schools, universities and conventions, and eventually amassed one of the largest travelling collections of dinosaur fossils in the nation – the Mobile Museum of Earth History. Doc and his beloved wife Diane are the parents of four children, grandparents to ten, and great-grandparents to five. He and Diane have lived in Oklahoma for many years.

Doc was also founder of the Institute for Biblical Worldview Studies (IBWS), in Noble, Oklahoma and co-founder and Director of the Museum of Earth History in Dallas, TX on the campus of Christ for The Nations International. Doc served as the Editor-In-Chief for the Truth In Science curriculum, a Bible based science curriculum.

His legacy will continue on, as he earned a reputation as a compassionate man who also was uncompromising in his biblical convictions. He was fearless in the pulpit, a trait that is rare in modern Evangelicalism.

Funeral arrangements are pending.

January 2025 Printed Newsletter

Thu, 30 Jan 2025 19:17:12 GMT

New MOEH Addition, part 3

Thu, 30 Jan 2025 19:11:40 GMT

New MOEH Fossil, part 3

We are blessed and excited to have on the road another impressive full skeleton of a large marine reptile. Martinectes was a species of short-necked plesiosaurs in the Polycotylidae family, whose kind was created on the 5 ^th Day of history. These marine reptiles are believed to have had impressive speeds and maneuverability due to their large, powerful flippers. Each flipper has five digits (fingers) with hyperphalangism, meaning they have a large number of phalanges (up to 18 bones) per digit. Their conical, interlocking teeth support the idea that their diet consisted primarily of fish and other soft bodied marine creatures.

Fossils of this created kind have been found in marine sediments in Australia, Canada, Eastern Europe, Japan, Morocco, New Zealand, South America, and the United States. The global result of rapidly buried creatures in marine sediments can best be explained by a global cause – the global flood recorded in Genesis.

CTF’s Martinectes fossil represents two of the largest specimens ever discovered. Excavated in 1976, the skull (specimen KUVP 40001) was collected from the Pierre Shale at the Wallace Ranch in Fall River County, SD. The body (specimen KUVP 40002) was collected four miles away in the Pierre Shale at the Johnson Ranch in Niobrara County, WY. The fossils were later prepared at the labs of the University of Kansas and the Rocky Mountain Dinosaur Resource Center in a three-year collaborative effort. The specimens were originally identified as Trinacromerum bonneri in 1977, were reclassified as Dolichorhynchops bonneri in 1996, and then reclassified again as Martinectes bonneri in 2023 due to its much larger size and slight anatomical differences with all other Dolichorhynchops specimens. A 2017 study suggested that the body to which the skull belonged (KUVP 40001) may have reached 23 feet in length.

The genus name Martinectes is in honor of University of Kansas paleontologist Larry Martin (1943-2013). Though an evolutionist, Martin was a vocal opponent to the idea of dinosaurs evolving into birds. The species name bonneri is in honor of Marion Bonner (1911-1992), who spent 60 years collecting fossils in western Kansas. Again, we are blessed to have such an incredible specimen of aquatic engineering to display for the glory of our Creator God.

What Was Written in the Past

ryan@creationtruth.com (Ryan Cox) — Thu, 30 Jan 2025 19:11:38 GMT

What Was Written in the Past

Most people who know me know my love of history. My undergraduate and graduate education is in history. For seven years I was a public school social studies teacher. When I went into full-time ministry, I often wrote or spoke on history subjects. And after joining Creation Truth Foundation, I was encouraged to develop our program Our American Founding , which I’ve conducted in numerous churches in several states. However, everywhere I go, including when conducting dinosaur programs, I tell everyone which is my most favorite history book – THE BIBLE!

From purely academic, critical/textual, and historiographical analyses, there is no book like the Book. No other book has been more faithfully transmitted through history and be proven to be so historically accurate. There has never been a single discovery from any field of study to disprove a single fact recorded in Scripture; every detail connected to archeological, historical, and scientific discoveries has been confirmed.

This should not be surprising for Christians. When Jesus spoke with Nicodemus in John 3, He based the authenticity of spiritual truths on the physical/observable truths in the perfect record of His Word (verse 12). Paul declared in Romans 15:4, “ For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope. ”

Hence, God has commanded (it’s not a suggestion) that fathers and grandfathers pass on to their children and grandchildren their history and what all God has done. Psalm 78:4-7 tells us, “ ⁴ We will not conceal them from their children, but we will tell the generation to come the praises of the Lord, and His power and His wondrous works that He has done. ⁵ For He established a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a law in Israel, which He commanded our fathers that they were to teach them to their children , ⁶ so that the generation to come would know, the children yet to be born, that they would arise and tell them to their children, ⁷ so that they would put their confidence in God and not forget the works of God , but comply with His commandments. ”

May we all be about the Kingdom work of passing on “ what was written in the past ” to the next generation and all generations to come so they will know “ His wondrous works that He has done ” that they “ might have hope ” and there will be generational faithfulness to the glory of God.

HISTORY & DESTINY

ctf@creationtruth.com (Matt Miles) — Thu, 30 Jan 2025 19:11:35 GMT

Another year in history is completed with a new year before us. Do you remember when you did something dumb in the past? Or maybe remember someone else (wink, wink) doing something dumb? If only we had thought a little more about the situation or outcome first. Those moments make up our history. Even if we would like to forget them, we may never. In a way, they shape our destiny.

History is always there, ready to remind us of the past, good and bad. All of us probably remember those moments in our history where we messed up, failed, and/or even sinned. Just because we don’t like our history at times doesn’t mean it didn’t happen. All of us might like to erase certain moments of our past, especially those embarrassing or shameful ones. For some, dumb decisions made today will never be forgotten thanks to the internet. There will be a video or photo out there until Jesus returns. Those moments are important to who we are today, whether we like them or not. Most of us have learned from those bad “lessons” so they don’t happen again in the future. Today, it seems many want to rewrite history by erasing mistakes, wrongs, and sins - make it seem like they never happened, ever. Is that good for our destiny though?

In the Word of God, since the beginning we see failures and sins recorded over and over again. Very quickly after perfect creation, we messed it up. Did the Lord destroy creation and start all over? No, He showed His plan for our destiny. Notice the Lord didn’t erase it from our past but recorded it for us to know ourselves and Him better. To those that would prefer to never remember mistakes and sin, I say they remind us of a better destiny. Throughout Scripture we see the Lord’s chosen fall . Yet when they repent, their destiny changes as they experience grace.

History is all about learning from mistakes, failures, and sins to right the ship of our lives through our Creator and Savior Jesus Christ. We must understand our sin and repent from it for our destiny to achieve hope. When all we desire to do is forget our sin and failures, they will most likely raise up again. Sin must be covered (atoned for, forgiven) to be conquered or it becomes a nagging shame, not a lesson learned. When the lesson is learned, we see those moments in history as a reminder of a forgiving Lord that shows grace for our eternal destiny.

This year at CTF our focus is HISTORY & DESTINY. In Romans 15:4 the apostle Paul writes: “For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.” As a studier of different translations, the NIV seems to translate the verse better to me in light of our ministry here at CTF. This year, as every year, our focus is the reliable history of Genesis and its connection to the Gospel, educating us of the sin that has been covered to give hope for eternity, not to forget our sinful nature but to conquer it through Him. I pray this year HISTORY will impact DESTINY with more hope than ever before. Blessings.

End of Year 2024 Printed Newsletter

Tue, 17 Dec 2024 21:44:40 GMT

Spoken To Us This Christmas

ctf@creationtruth.com (Matt Miles) — Tue, 17 Dec 2024 21:21:43 GMT

This year we have focused on how the Lord has SPOKEN TO US through Christ. Now we are in the midst of celebrating when the Son of God came to earth, and we must never forget that it had been SPOKEN TO US back in Isaiah’s day: "Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel” (Isaiah 7:14). “God with us” did not start with Christ’s birth; His desire to be with us started at Creation.

Since the beginning, being with us has been His focus. We are His most prized possession in all of creation. His heart to spend all of eternity with us was broken in the Garden with sin, yet it brought no dismay because He has always had the plan. Through the course of history, we can see His plan being worked out even though sin continues. His redemptive plan has not changed or been derailed; it has only progressed, moving us closer and closer to eternity with Him, our Creator and Savior.

Two thousand years ago, His desire to be with us compelled Him to put on flesh and be laid in a manger. Immanuel came and fulfilled the plan that has been from the beginning. We, therefore, feel compelled to bring Him glory, especially this time of year as we celebrate His wonderful gift of His Son. Let us not get caught up in all of the Christmas celebration without focusing on the reason for our celebrations. Our Savior was “gifted” to us for our salvation. Praise be to God!

As we celebrate His gift to us, we are also celebrating His provision for another year of service to the Kingdom. What a year we at CTF have had, as you can see from our stats below. Your prayers and support continue this work in an impactful way year after year. Our desire is to never stop until we are celebrating face to face with Him in Glory. Till then, we continue to seek ways in which we can further increase our efforts for His Kingdom.

At the end of each year, we ask for help with a project that kicks off our new year. This year is no exception - we are raising some extra funds to make our Lexington, OK facility more functional. With the Mobile MOEH expansion completed this year, we need to be able to keep our trucks and trailers better protected from the elements when not on the road, as well as allow more room for working on them in a climate-controlled environment. Our 2025 project is to open a new bay and expand the current one in our warehouse, installing a new garage door and replacing the old worn out one to free up useable space. Our year-end goal for this project is $20,000. So as you pray about supporting our ministry in this very tangible way, remember that the ministry tools this gift will protect and secure are used in a mighty way. We can’t count the times this year that the Mobile MOEH has opened a door or heart to hear the Gospel and save a life for eternity. So, thank you for all the support this year. We praise the Lord for you! Merry Christmas and many blessings to you and your families.

October/November 2024 Printed Newsletter

Fri, 22 Nov 2024 22:32:56 GMT

Abundantly Thankful

ctf@creationtruth.com (Matt Miles) — Fri, 22 Nov 2024 21:17:09 GMT

As we approach Thanksgiving, my heart is full of thanks, not only personally but even more so in service to the Lord through Creation Truth Foundation. Over the course of this year, we have added to our productiveness by moving forward with the expansion of our Mobile Museum of Earth History (MOEH). This adds to a great staff, which is another thing for which we are thankful. And of course we are incredibly thankful for you, all of our supporters, who have been as faithful this year as any previous year, with an abundance of extra gifts to push us forward in ministry.

As you may know, Doc and Diane launched this ministry out of their garage over 35 years ago with a staff of family members. We are all exceedingly thankful for that call and mission to teach the importance of the Bible’s history so we can trust our promised eternal hope. I am more than thankful for our staff as they serve the Lord day in and day out, never complaining no matter what the task may be that is needing done. Every one of them has a servant’s heart for the Lord and ministry. Bob, our Vice President, has faithfully served for more than 23 years. I am so thankful for his spirit of diligence over the years to Doc and now to all of us. He’s always ready to share a witty comment that is needed for a laugh as well. We would not be who we are without him, and we are thankful to his family who has sacrificed days and weeks at a time for him to go and do ministry on the road.

Ryan and Amanda have been nothing more than a God-send since their addition in 2018. Ryan’s ability to preach the Word, sharing the truth of Genesis as well as the importance of history, is priceless. His genuine graciousness and love of people is unmatched as he brings them to the Truth. Our effectiveness for the Kingdom over the last several years is a direct result of Ryan’s passion for ministry. His wife, Amanda, is no exception. She too is gracious and humble in her quiet spirit. How she focuses on eight children and still has time to keep track of our books and resources is amazing. And I must mention the ongoing gift of hospitality that she bestows during every Cadre meeting as she provides wonderful meals that sustain us in our studies (many with her made-from-scratch cooking skills, I might add).

Megan, our new office assistant, joined us this spring. Her desire to serve has been evident from the beginning as she is always ready to do whatever is needed. From keeping our office clean and tidy to answering phones, receiving and making shipments, shrink-wrapping bundles of resources, being a road crew member, MOEH expansion assistant and seamstress as needed, to whatever else anyone needs done at a drop of a hat, she is willing and ready. Her defining task as she came aboard was to create the Sharp Library. Taking all of Doc’s books that have been collected over the many years of ministry and organizing them in a fashion for use was more than daunting to all of us, but Megan jumped right in. It was a labor of love to categorize and digitally catalog the books as she physically shelved all 2600+ volumes in Doc’s old office. Now CTF has a library that will be useful for years to come as a legacy to our Founder. She makes this father very proud doing “full-time” ministry in a part-time position.

Last but not least, Theresa quietly goes about her job of keeping track of our finances. She is not only the right person for the task from a skills perspective, but even more so from a discerning spirt of stewardship and faithfulness. Tackling the task of wrangling us for our monthly expense reports is a job she does not relish but knows we need to do to be faithful in our service. She is always an encourager to me, as I have experienced the lean years of our ministry, and that is always on my mind as I desire us to continue the mission which the Lord blessed Doc with years ago. Theresa continues to do the necessary job that Diane did for years in this ministry, and she encourages us with the faithfulness of the Lord through our supporters. We take our stewardship of resources very seriously, to be faithful to the Lord and you. Theresa is the God-given right person for the task, and the bonus is that I have experienced her faithful heart for ministry our entire 32 years of marriage. I am blessed and thankful beyond words.

I am so thankful for all the Lord has done this year. As Paul encouraged those in 2 Corinthians 9:6-15 to give for the Gospel effort, he also gave thanks for those that had fulfilled that call of the Lord. I now give thanks to the Lord on for you and your support of this ministry. None of what we have accomplished this year would have been even remotely possible without your faithfulness. The CTF team is so thankful for the opportunity to continue impacting lives for the Lord. “Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!”

New MOEH Addition, part 2

ryan@creationtruth.com (Ryan Cox) — Fri, 22 Nov 2024 21:12:41 GMT

Pteranodon longiceps

Scientific name: Pteranodon longiceps

Discovery: Mike Triebold, 1995

Location: Lane County, KS

Wingspan: 24 ft

Weight: 40-50 lbs

Skull: 8 ft

The Pteranodon in our traveling collection is a genus of pterosaurs (flying reptiles), whose created kind was made by the Lord on Day 5 of Creation. Often confused with Pterodactylus (usually called pterodactyls), certain Pteranodon species could grow to be amongst the largest flying reptiles. Fossils specimens have been found in Alabama, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, and Wyoming.

These creatures were not dinosaurs; dinosaurs walked upright on their legs due to the hole in their hips (fully perforated acetabulum). Pterosaurs do not have that hole, nor use their legs for their primary mode of transportation. Rather, they are beautifully engineered (by their Creator) for flight. At the “wrist” (carpal joint between the metacarpal and radius), there is a specially designed bone called the pteroid. Based on the evidence, it is believed a membrane-like forewing attached to this bone and the shoulder. This flap could have functioned like the slats on the front of airplane wings.

Additionally, the wings have an excellent aspect ratio of length to width (wingspan to chord) of 9:1. The albatross has a similar ratio of 8:1, providing for great soaring capabilities. Over half of the wing is actually a finger (fourth metacarpal, i.e. ring finger).

The Pteranodon fossil in the CTF collection is based on a mostly complete specimen with an 11-foot wingspan. It was meticulously enlarged to match the largest specimen (based on a just few bones), which is believed to have had a 24-foot wingspan. This was done while maintaining the skeletal accuracy of the 11-foot specimen. We are very blessed to have this impressive specimen of aerial engineering to display for the glory of our awesome Creator.

September 2024 Printed Newsletter

Wed, 25 Sep 2024 19:44:08 GMT

New MOEH Addition, part 1

ryan@creationtruth.com (Ryan Cox) — Mon, 23 Sep 2024 15:03:37 GMT

Wooly Mammoth

Scientific name: Mammuthus primigenius

Common name: Wooly Mammoth

Male shoulder height: 8.8 to 11.5 ft

Male weight: 4.3 to 9.0 tons

CTF skull: 7 ft long x 4 ft wide x 4 ft tall, discovered near Fairbanks Creek in Alaska, prepared by Joe Taylor

We are blessed to have available a piece that once travelled with Dr. Sharp and was prepared by a dear friend of his, Joe Taylor. This fossil has already been to a church, VBS, and church camp, where the theme for the week of camp was the Ice Age. We also displayed several of our other Ice Age fossils.

Wooly mammoths comprise one of the ten identified species of the genus Mammuthus . They are believed to have been well adapted for colder climates due to the discovery of long guard hairs and a shorter undercoat. While close to the same size as today’s African elephants, mammoths had smaller ears and shorter tails. They had four teeth (molars) that would be replaced up to six times in their life. Based on extracted stomach contents, their diet seems to have been mostly grasses, sagebrush, yarrow, and mums.

Mammoth specimens have been discovered throughout northern Asia and North America. Though once believed by some to have been flash-frozen, the presence of loess (wind-blown silt) in lungs and surrounding sediment (“yedomas” and muck) indicates they were killed and sometimes buried by dust storms as the Ice Age began to end. Several million mammoths are estimated to be buried throughout Siberia, Beringia, and Alaska. Others, such as those unearthed at Waco Mammoth National Monument in Texas, were buried by rapid flooding due to Ice Age melt.

A 2018 genetic study ¹ found Wooly Mammoths once interbred with present-day African forest elephants, as well as Columbian mammoths. This caused evolutionists to rewrite their mythology as the science once again did not support their faith, but instead supported the Biblical record of created kinds.

We praise the Lord for these incredible specimens that declare the glory of our God!

1. Palkopoulou, et al. “A comprehensive genomic history of extinct and living elephants.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 26 February 2018 < https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5856550/ >.

Mobile MOEH Expansion Update

ctf@creationtruth.com (Matt Miles) — Thu, 19 Sep 2024 19:10:13 GMT

This summer we have been busy advancing our mission. Not only have we traveled many miles in our efforts, but we have almost completed our Mobile Museum of Earth History expansion. Back at the beginning of the year when we announced the expansion, there was uncertainty around the time frame of completion since we knew the amount of design and fabrication that was needed for this task. Then an event that was scheduled for the end of summer with the full collection was upgraded to the “mega” expanded collection. This put a deadline on our expansion that focused us and applied a bit of pressure.

With many hours of head scratching, planning, design and sweat, we slowly brought the expansion together. When we were unsure about new stands needed for our 24-foot wide Pteranodon , the Lord provided. Michael and Amy Harris (supporters from Willow Hill, IL) donated disc blades, while Aaron Lawrence (minister at Barnsdall Christian Church, OK) fabricated the blades into bases and made rods and hooks to hold the fossil. The stands are such a blessing and exactly what we needed to exhibit one of the Lord’s creations. The Lord has continually provided what we've needed from supplies to funds.

I am happy to announce we made it to that event in Mountain View, MO with all of our new expansion pieces. We are not quite done with all facets, but enough is completed to travel and setup everything in our collection. We even threw in the Mammoth skull that is still on the “To Be Determined” list for which collection it will be included. Our event in Missouri was great for the Kingdom. The response to the whole Museum of Earth History was fabulous. For the first time we are able, when need be, to fill an entire gymnasium. It was outstanding to see the reactions of adults and students alike to the museum in their church building.

By no means are the fossils necessary for the Gospel message, but they open doors to some people who may never seek of heavenly things. These tools are continuing to be, as Doc use to call them, “God’s Gospel Lizards.” We are so grateful for the mission that was given to Dr. Sharp 35 years ago to teach the history of Genesis and show the inclusion of all creatures, including dinosaurs, in time. We are able to support the Good News of the Gospel and the reality of eternity, revealing that dinosaurs do not militate against Biblical history, as many in the church may believe.

We are so thankful to all of you who over the years helped us to acquire all the pieces of our Museum of Earth History. Today we strive to continue that message and mission, now bigger than ever. Being able to multiply the impact of the museum in two places at the same time, Ryan and I are thrilled and ready to be used in an even greater way as we divide and conquer for the Lord’s Kingdom. We are now booking both collections together or separate, so if it has been a few years since we shared this message in your church, there is no better time than now to invite us back. Please keep us in your prayers as we move forward in our calling, that new and old doors will be opened to His message.

Please enjoy these pictures from the first ever Mega Rig event, held at Mountain View Christian Church, MO.

June/July 2024 Printed Newsletter

Mon, 08 Jul 2024 21:01:48 GMT

Fossil Research Update

Fri, 05 Jul 2024 15:34:03 GMT

Fossil Research Update

“ I will enlarge no more on the evidence, but submit it to you.—Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passions, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence ”

~ John Adams: December 4, 1770 ¹

As Creation Truth Foundation celebrates 35 years of ministry, we remain committed to our mission statement laid forth by Dr. G. Thomas Sharp to “train disciples to trust the Bible’s history for its accuracy so they will trust its promise for their destiny.” We have been charged to defend the perfect accuracy of the Biblical record, divinely revealed by our Creator God.² To this end, we research and share the latest results and evidences from the many disciplines of study (paleontology, geology, biology, genetics, biochemistry, archeology, history, etc.). As expected, real observable, testable, repeatable, falsifiable science ALWAYS confirms the Word of God, and such was the case with recent laboratory observations conducted by CTF staff.

Vertebrates (animals with backbones) contain several types of collagen, with the most prevalent being Type I, comprising over 90% of organic bone matrix and 80% of total proteins in bones.³ Upon death, collagen, as with all organic compounds, begins to decay away. Scientists admit that collagen and other protein molecules decay at fast rates and cannot last more than 4 million years.⁴⁻⁵ Y e t, it is frequently and consistently found in dinosaur fossils, even in “eight dinosaur bones from the Cretaceous period, none of which are exceptionally preserved.”⁶ How is there such an abundance of original biomaterial in fossils that are supposed to be tens or hundreds of millions of years old in an evolutionary worldview, when the biomaterials cannot last that long according to their research?

To make matters worse for evolutionists, the calculated decay rate of peptides (short protein segments), such as those found in collagen locked in bone, indicate they should be completely gone in less than 30,000 years if kept in optimum cool and dry conditions; otherwise, it will all be gone sooner!⁷⁻⁸ Additionally, Dr. Thomas has published with other scientists two peer-reviewed articles in secular journals demonstrating an even faster rate of collagen decay!⁹⁻¹⁰

If the evolutionary mythos was true, there should not be any original biomaterial in any dinosaur or other fossils believed to be millions of years old; it is scientifically impossible according to observational science. Rather, if the Biblical record is true of Creation 6,000 years ago and the Global Flood 4,300 years ago (in which billions of animals would have been buried and fossilized all over the planet), then it is scientifically possible that original biomaterial might be present according to observational science.

On March 22, 2024, Matt Miles, Ryan Cox, and Ryan’s 13-year-old son Justus were joined by Dr. Thomas and lab technicians Julie Hastings and Clayton Turner to test the Edmontosaurus fossil at the Dinosaur Discovery Lab in the Creation Evidence Museum of Glen Rose, TX .¹¹ It was such a special occasion as Dr. and Mrs. Sharp also made the trip to join us for the momentous day.

The previous day was spent by Matt, Ryan, and Justus familiarizing and practicing the lab procedures for extracting and examining a fossil specimen. Then on Friday, Dr. Thomas assisted as (1.) Matt drilled into the fossil for extraction, (2.) Matt, Ryan, and Justus prepared the microscope slides, and (3.) everyone, including Dr. Sharp, examined the specimens through a microscope using polarized light microscopy. This procedure permits certain wavelengths of light to pass through a filter and the sample. By rotating the sample (called cross-polarizing), it permits other wavelengths to pass through if there is material in the sample that is birefringent. In a bone sample, collagen is birefringent, meaning it will refract the filtered light waves, changing colors when rotating the sample. If collagen is not present, the sample will not change colors.

The CTF samples from our Edmontosaurus fossil changed from gold to a teal color, meaning original collagenous material is present in the fossil! It is, therefore, thousands not millions of years old! Also, clearly defined dark spots (called lacunae) with little tentacles (called dendritic processes) indicated the presence of numerous bone cells called osteocytes.

VIDEO: Edmontosaurus specimen #20210330, sample 2 - Cross Polarization Microscopy: change from gold to teal indicates presence of collagen

Human bones contain roughly 42 billion osteocytes. The calculated half-life of their decay upon death is 25 years.¹² When one does the math, after 1,000 years there should not be any detectable osteocytes under present-day conditions. For fossils created and preserved by the conditions of the Flood, it is possible to see evidence of osteocytes still present after 4,300 years, but not after millions of years. The lab techs noted they had never seen that many highly defined lacunae (where osteocytes are found) in a fossil sample!

Today, the fossil, slides, and microscope pictures and videos are being displayed and presented at almost every CTF event. Matt and Ryan are able to share with audiences across the country this incredible, scientifically observable evidence acquired in a laboratory under the supervision of a PhD paleobiochemist that declares dinosaur fossils are thousands instead of millions of years old, confirming the Bible’s history! Whatever may be the wishes, inclinations, or dictates of the passions of evolutionists, “they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence,” as John Adams reminded the court.

Rather, “facts are stubborn things,” and for 35 years it has been, still is, and always shall be the solid conviction and bold proclamation of Creation Truth Foundation that “ Thy Word is truth ” (John 17:17).

Special thanks to Dr. Carl Baugh, Julie Hastings, and Clayton Turner of the Dinosaur Discovery Lab at the Creation Evidence Museum for the use of their time and facilities and to Dr. Brian Thomas for taking the time to join and guide us in a day of discovery, through which God continues to be glorified.

“Adams’ Argument for the Defense: 3–4 December 1770,” Founders Online , National Archives, <https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Adams/05-03-02-0001-0004-0016>.
II Timothy 3:16, “ All Scripture is God-breathed …”
Morten Karsdal, Biochemistry of Collagens, Laminins and Elastin: Structure, Function and Biomarkers , 2 ^ⁿᵈ ed., Academic Press: London, 2019, p. 1.
N. Rybczynski. et al., “Mid-Pliocene warm-period deposits in the High Arctic yield insight into camel evolution”, Nature Communications 4 (1550), 2013, <https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms2516>.
M. Schweitzer, et al., “A role for iron and oxygen chemistry in preserving soft tissues, cells and molecules from deep time”, Proceedings of the Royal Society B 281 (20132741), 2014, < https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2013.2741 >.
S. Bertazzo, et al., “Fibres and cellular structures preserved in 75-million–year-old dinosaur specimens”, Nature Communications 6 (7352), 2015, <https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms8352>.
B. Thomas, “How Long Can Cartilage Last?”, Institute for Creation Research, 29 October 2010, <https://www.icr.org/article/how-long-can-cartilage-last/>.
J. Berg, et al., Biochemistry , 8 ^ᵗʰ ed., W.H. Freeman and Co., New York: 2015, p. 253.
B. Thomas and S. Taylor, “Proteomes of the Past: The Pursuit of Proteins in Paleontology”, Expert Review of Proteomics 16 (11-12), 2019: 881-895.
B. Thomas, et al., “Attenuated Total Reflection Fourier Transform Infrared (ATR FT-IR) Spectroscopy Sensitivity to the Thermal Decay of Bone Collagen”, Applied Spectroscopy 77 (1), January 2023: 53-61.
www.creationevidence.org
L. Bonewald, “The Role of the Osteocyte in Bone and Nonbone Disease”, Endocrinology and Metabolism Clinics of North America 46 (1), March 2017:1-18, < https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecl.2016.09.003 >.

April/May 2024 Printed Newsletter

Wed, 08 May 2024 15:33:48 GMT

Eclipse 2024

Wed, 08 May 2024 14:29:04 GMT

Eclipse 2024

On the fourth day of history, God established a covenantally-controlled governance of which we witness each and every day, confirming the dependability of His eternal Word. The steadfastness of His covenant can even be occasionally beheld through wondrous displays of His definitive and miraculous engineering. Such was the case with the April 8 ^th eclipse.

When God said, “Let there be light” on Day 1, there was light. There was enough light brought forth from God’s glory and eternal power ^[1] to energize and operate the entire cosmos for however long He has decreed. Hence, the Hebrew word for “light” on Day 1 (Genesis 1:3-5) is owr . It means “source light”, declaring the true source of light and life is our Creator God. ^[2] It was this light He separated on the first day, setting our planet into its rotation, establishing the 24-hour day-night cycle. It was this light by which He sustained the newly created plant life on Day 3. And it was this light He took and created something very special on Day 4.

On Day 4 of the first week ever, God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens” , and God made the greater light for our daytime, the lesser light for our nighttime, and all other phenomena filling the cosmos (Genesis 1:14-18). The Hebrew word used on Day 4 for light is ma’owr, which means holder or container of light. God used a small drop of His glory and created our perfect Sun. He also created the moon and every cosmic creation we can behold through a telescope.

So precise is His engineering of the universe, He directly tied Jesus and His Kingdom to the covenant He made with day and night. " ² This is what the LORD says, He who made the earth, the LORD who formed it and established it – the LORD is His name… ²⁰ ‘If you can break My covenant with the day and My covenant with the night, so that day and night no longer come at their appointed time, ²¹ then My covenant with David My servant may also be broken so that he will no longer have a descendant to reign on his throne'" (Jeremiah 33:2, 20-21). That covenant was established on Day 1 in Genesis 1:4-5, ^[3] and we behold God’s faithfulness at sunrise and sunset every single day.

Occasionally we are also blessed to witness further testimony to the awesome works of our God. The Sun’s diameter is 400 times larger than the Moon’s diameter. The Sun is also 400 times farther away from Earth. Therefore, because of these precise sizes and distances, the Moon appears to be nearly the same size in the sky as the Sun, meaning it can perfectly block out the Sun’s light when it passes directly between the Sun and Earth. The result is called a solar eclipse. ^[4] To our knowledge, these perfectly designed variables that have been perfectly engineered and implemented are found only in this one place in the entire universe.

It is possible that in the perfect creation, Earth was perfectly straight/vertical on its rotational axis and both the Earth and Moon revolved perfectly flat on the ecliptic plane (the orbital path around the Sun). If so, then Earth would experience a solar eclipse every 30 days at each new moon. Put another way, every month would begin with a solar eclipse at the equator. However, Earth is not perfectly vertical on its axis (currently 23.44° to the ecliptic plane), and the Moon is not perfectly aligned with Earth anymore (5.145° to the ecliptic plane). According to Dr. John Baumgardner (Ph.D. in geophysics from UCLA) and his Catastrophic Plate Tectonics model, the impact of the Flood altered the orbital planes to their present state. ^[5] As a consequence, Earth now experiences total solar eclipses about every 18 months.

On October 14, 2023 in Phoenix, AZ at an event hosted by the Institute for Creation Research, the CTF team recorded an annular eclipse with one of the ministry telescopes. In an annular eclipse, the Moon is at its apogee (farthest distance) of around 252,000 miles away. At this distance, it appears too small to block out the entire Sun, so totality is not achieved.

But on April 8, 2024, totality was achieved for those in parts of North America to behold. CTF sent teams to two different locations: 1. Cody McDaniel family’s home in southeastern Oklahoma and 2. Mark McDaniel family's home in southern Illinois. For millions of people, God’s marvelous, miraculous engineering was visible.

Our Illinois team was treated to the best conditions. Amanda Cox (CTF Book & Resource Manager) was able to capture the stepped image you see below.

The Oklahoma team dealt with clouds on and off all day. They were able to capture before and after eclipse photos as well as video. Please enjoy a few shots that also captured sunspots from Bob Dugas (CTF Vice President). Unfortunately, a minute before totality clouds moved in and obscured their view until the final 4 seconds, and they were unable to document totality from their location.

We need to thank our more than gracious hosts, Cody & Melissa McDaniel for welcoming us into your home on very short notice (actually only hours). Your hospitality was overwhelming and an extreme blessing. Also gracious thanks goes out to Mark & Rhonda McDaniel as hospitality is often expected from family but never taken for granted. It is always a blessing to experience the Lord through our brothers and sisters in this great family. Please join us in thanking the Lord for these hosts that are truly His servants with all they have, openly sharing with those that have need. And to all of our supporters, Thank You for making it possible for our team to be able to capture these wonderful aspects of creation and to share with others the Lord’s awesome handiwork!

[1] Romans 1:20; see also Luke 9:32 & Acts 7:55.

[2] Job 33:30 & Psalm 56:13.

[3] This one of many reasons why the days of Genesis 1 are 24-hour, covenantally-controlled days. See also:

“ What a Day ” by Matt Miles and “ Does ‘Day’ mean ‘Day’? ” by Ryan Cox on The Scroll at creationtruth.com/thescroll

[4] Unlocking Eclipses , by the Institute for Creation Research, 2023, p. 27, available at creationtruth.com/store

[5] Dr. John Baumgardner, “Catastrophic Plate Tectonics”, April 7, 2012, beginning at 48:54 in the video, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jbagD5bOsoo&list=PLAdKzOzCc6WI2hzzrmlc5xMLTlXoDLfg4&index=2

See also: https://www.socalsem.edu/noahs-flood-the-key-to-correct-interpretation-of-earth-history/.

March 2024 Printed Newsletter

Fri, 22 Mar 2024 15:54:15 GMT

Museum Of Earth History Expansion

Thu, 21 Mar 2024 21:56:14 GMT

Museum Of Earth History Expansion

MOEH Expansion Goal: $80,000

Update

Around three decades ago, Dr. G. Thomas Sharp had a revelation regarding teaching dinosaurs and their connection with God’s Word – bring a real, legitimate dinosaur fossil museum to the local church. Instead of building a museum that presented a Biblical worldview to which people must travel, bring the museum to the community! Let it be an outreach for the local church and an encouragement to God’s people to stand firmly on God’s Word! The only problem: how do you do that?!?!

Through the invaluable help of family, friends, and faithful supporters, the idea became a reality, and the message of Dr. Sharp and Creation Truth Foundation began to spread across the country, accompanied by the mobile Museum of Earth History (MOEH). Dr. Sharp would often refer to the dinosaur fossils as “God’s Gospel lizards” because they served to open doors to people who might never have entered a church building but might come to see dinosaurs, at which time they would hear not only interesting facts about dinosaurs and the Bible, but the Gospel message of Jesus Christ. And that mission continues today.

As Creation Truth Foundation presses on through its 35th year, the ministry continues to grow. The requests for programs have done nothing but increase, meaning there has been and still is a need to conduct multiple programs at one time. This is accomplished with multiple speakers, but there is one problem – we can only have fossils in one place.

It has been our desire for years to be able to have dinosaur programs with fossils in two different locations at the same time. Because of how quickly the schedule fills up, having two fossil trailers would allow churches to schedule us sooner instead of having to wait one or more years. Additionally, if the fossils are on one side of the country but a church would like to have us on the other side of the country, we would not have to delay multiple weeks for the fossils to return home and be sent out again. Rather, a separate trailer with fossils could go ahead and take off. Thus, the ministry has been praying for some time for the addition of a second trailer with fossils to become reality.

By the gracious provision of our Lord and His people, and just in time for CTF to celebrate its 35th anniversary, 2024 is the year this prayer becomes reality!

Starting with our 2023 end-of-year goal of $20,000 for a new trailer, God’s people have gotten us off to a tremendous start! $41,265 was raised, a trailer meeting our needs to transport fossils has been ordered, and it is in production as we write this.

Secondly, the fossils to put in the new trailer have been brought to our warehouse, where we have been working to construct and modify their travel crates. This is the most time-consuming and difficult part of the MOEH Expansion Project. Each crate must be customized for the specific fossils it will transport. This requires a great deal of planning, fabricating, and modifying to get things just right so the fossils will not only fit, but also be protected during transportation. There are no blueprints for such an endeavor, and as our ministry president Matt Miles is fond of saying, “This is something they don’t teach you in Bible college.”

However, one crate has not only been completed, but a new large marine fossil made its first trip to the ICR Discovery Center for their Dinosaur Week! [see below]

Thirdly, now we need a ¾-ton truck to pull the new trailer (i.e., 250 or 2500 truck). The extra $18,000 received for the end-of-year goal is being used for the crate constructions, and whatever is left over will go toward the purchase of a truck. Including the truck, the total projected cost to complete the MOEH Expansion Project is $80,000, of which $41,265 has been received.

As always, we covet your prayers not only for this endeavor, but for the effectiveness of the Gospel-centered message CTF is taking across the country. Please pray for the safety of our travels, for hearts to be impacted, and for lives to be saved and changed to the glory of our Creator and the furtherance of His Kingdom.

Our newest exhibit for our mobile museum Dolichorhynchops bonneri on display last week at the ICR Discovery Center in Dallas, TX.

January/February 2024 Printed Newsletter

Fri, 02 Feb 2024 22:49:32 GMT

SPOKEN TO US

ctf@creationtruth.com (Matt Miles) — Fri, 02 Feb 2024 22:12:44 GMT

Last year we focused on being SHAKEN by the Lord from any and all aspects of our walk that we take for granted. This year our focus comes from the realization that He has SPOKEN TO US, as we find in Hebrews 1:2, our theme verse for 2024. The author of Hebrews begins this great book about the Savior’s fulfillment of Old Testament history by connecting it to His creator-ship.

At the outset of Hebrews, we are told that the Lord has spoken prior to the time of Christ. Through the prophets, He spoke to the forefathers of the Hebrews author in different ways. Those “forefathers” being spoken of are also yours as you read this, if you are a Christ-follower. If it were not for the reality in the Old Testament, then none of us would know the grace that impacts our lives. The Lord spoke through those “fathers” of old to prepare the way for all of us.

As the author continues into verse 2, we hear a shift directly to you and me. “In these last days” we long for interaction like our “fathers” experienced. How often do we seek an experience with the Lord as those in scripture experienced, longing for personal connection with the Lord who seems, at times, far off? These continue to be the last days spoken of in Hebrews; it was not only the days of the first or second century church. The Lord has SPOKEN TO US through His Son, Jesus Christ, as much today as He did so many years ago. Christ is the owner of all things, no matter the time, for He is the one through whom the entire universe was created. His supremacy is ultimate and authoritative for all time.

Since all the above is true, we can know that Jesus has the power for salvation. He and He only provided purification of sins because He is the only one worthy to do so by virtue of His perfect life. This understanding is so vitally tied to His authorship of life and redemptive purpose from the beginning. We can never separate the two, as some advocate today with a misrepresentation of Genesis. For if we don’t acknowledge Christ’s direct activity at the beginning, we are missing the groundwork for His physical death, burial and resurrection. If there was no sin in perfection, there would be no physical death; because there was sin in perfection, there is physical death – this is the purpose for Christ. We need a Savior for our sin and death problem. Christ is that for us, with all the Father’s Glory and Majesty.

And to think, as we follow Him each day, He speaks to us. His Word is the same today, as it has been and will be at any point in time, SPOKEN TO US in these last days so we may know our salvation and His enduring power for all eternity. Let us start the new year hearing His voice. Blessings.

Flights of Fantasy

ryan@creationtruth.com (Ryan Cox) — Thu, 18 Jan 2024 17:26:28 GMT

Flights of Fantasy

I n desperate search of anything remotely close to an evolutionary “missing link”, evolutionary publications continue to publish the mythos that dinosaurs evolved into birds. The unbelievable tenets of this belief and the complete absence of evidence are laid out in our previous 3-part series entitled “ Believing in Feather Tales ”, available on the ministry website. ¹ More recently, an article popped up by Discover Magazine entitled “Did All Dinosaurs Have Feathers?” ² I clicked the link to see if anything new was presented. On the contrary, I was almost surprised at how old the arguments and presented evidence were, arguments that have long since been debunked.

The article claims that “Dinosaurs closely related to birds were feathered.” ³ What are the specimens put forth to support this claim? Five examples are given: Sinosauropteryx , Archaeopteryx , Microraptor , Velociraptor , and Yutyrannus . Here’s what’s actually been discovered about these top 5 specimens that supposedly support dino-to-bird evolution.

Sinosauropteryx – In January of 2023, Nature published an article celebrating the 25 ^th anniversary of the supposed first discovered dinosaur with feathers. ⁴ Sadly for the evolutionists, everything about this specimen supports the conclusion it is a dinosaur, not a bird, nor a dino-to-bird transition. According to other evolutionary scientists who have examined the fossil in detail, it has all the traits of cold-bloodedness, including a reptilian respiratory system. ⁵ And, the alleged feathers turned out to be decayed collagen fibers of skin; they are clearly under the preserved skin impression. ⁶ Conclusion: Sinosauropteryx is most assuredly a dinosaur with no feathers.
Archaeopteryx – This one has been around for so long (1861), there is little left to say about it, except that it is a bird. The Discover article mostly admitted that, saying, “Often considered the first bird…” The only thing the article could claim that made it somewhat like a dinosaur is that it had teeth and claws. First, a bird with claws doesn’t make it a dinosaur; it makes it a bird with claws, such as the Hoatzin found in South America. ⁷ Neither do teeth make a bird a dinosaur, nor a piranha a dinosaur or a cat or anything else with teeth. This is why it has been accepted for decades that Archaeopteryx was simply a bird. ⁸
Microraptor – If only flying birds molt their primary feathers sequentially, as described by Current Biology in 2020, ⁹ then a fossil of a bird ( Microraptor ) with sequentially molting feathers ¹ ⁰ should lead to the conclusion that it is a bird and not a dinosaur, correct? Not for Discover , which says, “ Microraptor was a small, feathered dinosaur”. What can be said to people who refuse to acknowledge reality? All we can do is pray for their hearts to be softened and minds opened to the Gospel.
Velociraptor – Discover claims in the article, “ Velociraptor had feathers covering its body.” How many fossils of this dinosaur have actually been found with feathers “covering its body”? Zero. The only “evidence” to support their claim are microscopic bumps found on one arm bone (ulna), that are supposed to be the attachment points for feathers. This has been debunked even by evolutionary scientists ¹¹ and can be read about in Part 3 of our “ Believing in Feather Tales ” series. ¹²
Yutyrannus – Discover states in the article, “It was one of the largest known feathered dinosaurs”. What was actually discovered? As Nature described, “filamentous integumentary [skin] structures.” ¹³ That would be decayed skin resulting from its burial during the Flood, just like what was found with the Sinosauropteryx . Here is the deception as explained by paleontologist Dr. Gabriela Haynes, “Filamentous structures could be called feathers or feather-like only if the new evolutionary definition for feathers (a redefinition based on evolutionary assumptions) is applied. In this view, a filamentous structure is one of the first stages of supposed ‘feather evolution,’ and therefore such a structure can be called a feather”. ¹⁴

When describing a parrot fossil discovered in dinosaur layers, scientists in an article for Nature concluded, “living bird lineages… coexisted with other dinosaurs… at least duck, chicken and ratite bird relatives were coextant [living with dinosaurs]”. ¹ ⁵ Numerous bird fossils have been discovered with dinosaur fossils, even bird remains in dinosaur stomachs! ¹ ⁶ How can a bird be the evolutionary descendant from a dinosaur when it is found in its evolutionary ancestor’s stomach? As Dr. Sharp would say, “I’m glad I don’t have to explain that.” How much simpler, scientific, and reasonable it is to believe the Creator and His Word.

1. https://www.creationtruth.com/believing-in-feather-tales-part1-1

2. Riley Black, “Did All Dinosaurs Have Feathers?”, Discover Magazine , published 26 September 2023, accessed 17 January 2024, < https://preview.discovermagazine.com/planet-earth/did-all-dinosaurs-have-feathers >.

3. Ibid.

4. Kevin Padian, “25th anniversary of first feathered-dinosaur finds”, Nature 613 : 251-252, 2023.

5. Ann Gibbons, “Lung fossils suggest dinos breathed in cold blood”, Science 278 : 1229-1230, 1997.

6. Lingham-Soliar, et. al., “A new Chinese specimen indicates that ‘protofeathers’ in the Early Cretaceous theropod dinosaur Sinosauropteryx are degraded collagen fibres”, Proc. Biol. Sci. 274 : 1823-1829, 2007.

7. Perrins, et al., Birds: Their Life, Their Ways, Their World , Readers Digest: Pleasantville, NY, 6th ed., 1986, p. 277.

8. Dr. Gabriela Haynes, “The Debate over Classification of Archaeopteryx as a Bird”, Answers Research Journal 15 : 285-300, 2022.

9. Kiat, et al., “Sequential Molt in a Feathered Dinosaur and Implications for Early Paravian Ecology and Locomotion”, Current Biology 30 (18): 1-6, 2020.

10. Dr. Brian Thomas, “New Evidence Hurts Feathered Dinosaur Theory”, Institute for Creation Research, 09 September 2020, accessed 17 January 2024, < https://www.icr.org/article/new-evidence-hurts-feathered-dinosaur-theory >.

11. Dr. Darren Naish, “Concavenator: an incredible allosaurid with a weird sail (or hump)… and proto feathers”, scienceblogs.com, 9 September 2010, accessed 08 October 2022, < http://scienceblogs.com/tetrapodzoology/2010/09/09/concavenator-incredible-allosauroid/ >.

12. https://www.creationtruth.com/believing-in-feather-tales-part-3

13. Xu, et al., “A gigantic feathered dinosaur from the Lower Cretaceous of China”, Nature 484 : 92-95, 2012.

14. Dr. Gabriela Haynes, “Dinosaurs in Birds’ Clothing?”, Answers in Depth , 29 June 2022, accessed 18 January 2024, < https://answersingenesis.org/dinosaurs/dinosaurs-in-birds-clothing/ >.

15. Clarke, et al., “Definitive fossil evidence for the extant avian radiation in the Cretaceous”, Nature 433 : 305-308, 2005.

16. Xing, et al., “Abdominal Contents from Two Large Early Cretaceous Compsognathids (Dinosauria: Theropoda) Demonstrate Feeding on Confuciusornithids and Dromaeosaurids”, PLoS ONE 7 (8): 1-11, 2012.

End-of-Year 2023 Printed Newsletter

Wed, 20 Dec 2023 16:56:52 GMT

End-of-Year 2023

ctf@creationtruth.com (Matt Miles) — Wed, 20 Dec 2023 16:50:03 GMT

As 2023 comes to a close, we at CTF are extremely blessed. The Lord continues to open doors for us to speak the Truth boldly and to observe false worldviews be torn down. Throughout the year we have focused on Acts 4 where the believers spoke boldly, being filled with the Spirit, and were SHAKEN. This Christmas let’s take a look at another moment in history when the Lord’s SHAKEN proclaimed Him boldly.

Mary, in Luke 1, is SHAKEN by the proclamation of her pregnancy while still a virgin. Can you imagine a more life-altering revelation? For her to be betrothed to Joseph and now pregnant with the Messiah would absolutely be overwhelming, enough that most of us would probably go hide in a hole rather than proclaim the Lord’s magnificence. Yet later in the chapter, that is exactly what Mary does, proclaiming boldly, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior” (1:46-47) . This season may the Lord also shake us out of our usual Christmas busyness to proclaim Him boldly.

Let’s also take a moment to remember His blessings of the year. We all have been blessed in some manner or another this past year. Let us rejoice together! Maybe some of you are struggling through tragedy. May the Prince of Peace continue to show His hand of mercy and grace. We must all share His peace with others who need it more now than ever before. Through good and bad, the Lord is faithful!

Here at CTF we have seen the faithfulness of the Lord with another year of growth with more new churches and opportunities to share the message He has given us. Please don’t miss this in the year-end stats as they reflect His blessings. Your faithfulness in prayer on behalf of this ministry has been evident over and over again. Be it during our programs, safety over the many miles traveled, or during untimely vehicle breakdowns, His provision through prayers are not overlooked. In addition, the Lord’s continued financial faithfulness this year has allowed us to accomplish several things we have been unable to do in previous years, so we also praise the Lord greatly for your faithfulness in this area. As usual, the end of the year brings another opportunity for special giving. We have need of a new trailer, and we would be honored and very thankful if you would consider supporting our end-of-year giving campaign for it. As always, any gifts to CTF are tax deductible.

We are looking forward to all the Lord has planned for us in 2024. Keep your eyes peeled for news of expansion plans of our Mobile Museum of Earth History fossil collection. May the Lord bless you and your family during this Christmas season!

November/December 2023 Printed Newsletter

Tue, 05 Dec 2023 23:09:45 GMT

Another Evolutionary "Revision"

ryan@creationtruth.com (Ryan Cox) — Tue, 05 Dec 2023 22:32:18 GMT

Another Evolutionary "Revision"

As has often been reported throughout this ministry’s history, evolutionists regularly have to revise their mythology because of new discoveries or scientific breakthroughs. Conversely, no new discovery or scientific breakthrough has ever required a revision but rather confirmation of God’s flawless record – the Bible. Case in point, the evolutionary tale of mammals has just received another revision.

The standard mythos states that “…the end of the Cretaceous brought the eradication of dinosaurs on land and of large swimming reptiles in marine environments.”¹ Indeed, as a matter of faith, most evolutionists believe only those creatures went extinct from their apocalypse 66 million years ago while all other creatures survived [Figure 1].² As the University of California, Berkley admits, “There has been no settlement to the issue so far, and no clear one is foreseeable… The main problem… is the issue of the selectivity of the mass extinction… some organisms were wiped out, while others were unaffected.”³ Their asteroid sure was a picky one, killing only dinosaurs and large marine reptiles.

However, this allows in their story for the rise of mammals. As Encyclopedia Britannica explains:

"The Cenozoic witnessed a rapid diversification of life-forms in the ecological niches left vacant by this great terminal Cretaceous extinction (or K–T extinction). In particular, mammals, which had existed for more than 100 million years before the advent of the Cenozoic Era, experienced substantial evolutionary radiation." ⁴

Until then, mammals had remained quite small and limited in their evolutionary development for over 100 million years.⁵ But once those pesky dinosaurs were gone, mammals exploded in size, covering the planet!

But wouldn’t you know it, a new discovery published by Scientific Reports in July messed up that whole story. As the authors stated, “Mesozoic mammals are commonly depicted as having lived in the shadows of their larger dinosaurian contemporaries… It was not until after the end-Cretaceous extinction of the non-avian⁶ dinosaurs that mammals grew to large body sizes and regularly preyed on the available avifauna.”⁷ Unfortunately for the evolutionary faithful, this too must now be revised:

“Here we report a new fossil find… showing a gobiconodontid mammal ⁸ and psittacosaurid dinosaur ⁹ locked in mortal combat [Figure 2] …this new fossil convincingly demonstrates that mammals could pose a threat even to near fully-grown dinosaurs.” ¹⁰

The fact is the fossil record never needs a revision for the evolutionary story because the fossil record is a refutation of the evolutionary story. Discovery after discovery forces another modification or alteration by the evolution apologists, yet the historical record laid out in God’s Word, including the global flood and resulting fossil record, remains perfect, never needing any revisions. True science ALWAYS confirms “Thy Word is truth” (John 17:17).

Berggren, William A. “Cenozoic Era”, Encyclopedia Britannica . 20 October 2023. < https://www.britannica.com/science/Cenozoic-Era >.
Alpha, Tau R., et al. “Chicxulub impact event”. U.S. Geological Survey: Menlo Park, CA. 7 July 1997, p. 7. < https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/atoms/files/Chicxulub%20impact%20event.pdf >.
Smith, Dave. “What Killed The Dinosaurs?”. DinoBuzz. updated: 28 September 2005. < https://ucmp.berkeley.edu/diapsids/extinctheory.html >.
Berggren, William A. “Cenozoic Era”, Encyclopedia Britannica. 20 October 2023. < https://www.britannica.com/science/Cenozoic-Era >.
Cummings, Mike. “Fossils reveal mammals mingled in Age of Dinosaurs”, YaleNews . 2 November 2020. < https://news.yale.edu/2020/11/02/fossils-reveal-mammals-mingled-age-dinosaurs >.
The latest teaching declares certain dinosaurs turned warm-blooded, grew feathers, survived the asteroid, and then turned into birds. To read how sad this attempt is to find just one of their “missing links”, consult our article series “Believing in Feather Tales”: < https://www.creationtruth.com/believing-in-feather-tales-part1-1 >.
Han, G., et al. “An extraordinary fossil captures the struggle for existence during the Mesozoic". Scientific Reports 13, 11221. 18 July 2023. < https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-023-37545-8#citeas >.
Badger-like mammal the size of a large dog.
Similar to a Triceratops, but with no horns.
Ibid.

My Bible

ctf@creationtruth.com (Matt Miles) — Tue, 05 Dec 2023 22:31:46 GMT

The written Word of God is absolute and authoritative on all subjects it touches. It is God-breathed for life by His inspiration and different from any other book. My Bible is the most prized and important book I own. I am an old-school written Word carrier. There’s something about reading from and teaching out of a paged, written text that impacts me more. The text may be the same on a device, but it feels different on a physical page.

Over the years I have exhausted many Bibles while preaching and teaching. I may only be able to use a Bible for about 6 years before they deteriorate beyond usefulness. Either the binding goes away or the cover dissolves from being held, folded, rolled, packed, and unpacked. This use is vital to my walk and ministry with the Lord. Using the same written text for years helps me familiarize myself where passages are located, if I can’t remember chapter and verse. It becomes the place where I note important details and underline impactful verses the Lord teaches me. My Bible has become part of me; weathered, worn, used, a little soiled, comfortable, trusted, inspiring, and dependable.

My present Bible, as many of you know, has been on it’s last leg for a year or two. I have had suggestions from many to rebind it or just replace it. Over the last few years I have searched for a replacement of same size and type set, but to no avail. My particular Bible went out of print several years back. So, I keep on using my trusted “friend”. I can hardly think about parting with it for the time it would take to rebind it. It totally scares me to send it away out of my presence and trust another to take care of it. The Lord would have to put my spirit at ease.

Enter into the picture a good friend from Missouri. A few months ago, while preaching at his church, we went out to dinner. Afterwards, his daughter had asked we stop by the restaurant she works to say hello. As Providence would have it, there is a vinyl record and used book store off the restaurant. Neither my wife nor friend would ever pass up the opportunity of used books. As usual, my friend found several books to buy. One looked strangely familiar in it’s original box - a Bible. I asked to see it. To my surprise it was the same one I have been looking for all these years. I immediately felt like I needed this Bible and was willing to pay whatever to my friend who had found it. Then he simply said it was mine, a gift. I believe my wife had shared the state of my own Bible and the search to replace it. What a glorious gift!

Now begins the arduous task of transferring all my notes and inspirations. That seems far easier than parting with my old “friend”. Who knows, I may be able to get my old Bible rebound after all since the Lord has provided a replacement. The Word of the Lord is always to be treasured above all else. I pray your Bible is as important, impactful, and used as mine has been to me. Take a moment and thank the Lord for His Word in your life!

September 2023 Printed Newsletter

Sun, 01 Oct 2023 02:54:04 GMT

Happy Columbus Day

Fri, 15 Sep 2023 23:12:36 GMT

Happy Columbus Day!

From the age of 10, he spent much of his life at sea. He was a fearless explorer, persuasive entrepreneur, and a dependable ally. Above all, he was passionate about Scripture and the cause of Christ; his name means “bearer of Christ”. Might that be the reason he is demeaned and criminalized in many circles today?

Cristoffa Corombo (Genoese), better known as Christopher Columbus (English), ¹ was born in 1451, the oldest of 5 children. He married Filipa Moniz Perestrelo in 1479, and they had one child named Diego. ² Raised in the home of a wool weaver who also owned a cheese stand, Christopher became a messenger and ship’s boy at age 14. He then began business apprenticeships for some wealthy families when he was 22, all of which led to extensive sailing. When he was 25 and on his first trip into the Atlantic, the five Genoese ³ ships came under attack by French privateers. Columbus’ ship eventually burned, resulting in a 6-mile swim to shore. The very next year, one of his trips took him all the way to Iceland. ⁴

Despite his active business schedule, Columbus was a prolific reader of history, geography, and astronomy; he also learned Latin, Castilian, and Portuguese. ⁵ In 1484 at the age of 33, he and his brother Bartolomeo presented to Portuguese King John II their detailed plan called “Enterprise to the Indies”. Since the Muslim conquests in the Middle East had shut off the Silk Road and the key port of Constantinople, a new trade route to the East had been sought. The endeavor to sail around the world, though, was denied at the advice of the king’s experts. ⁶ Columbus made another pitch to the king in 1488. He was denied again partly due to Portuguese mariner Bartolomeu Dias returning home from sailing around the southern tip of Africa. This appeared to everyone to be the best way to reach the East instead of a risky exploration across the Atlantic. ⁷

Columbus took his plan in 1486 to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain. They, too, on the advise of their experts rejected Columbus’ plan. His brother went on to England to see if Henry VII was interested. Columbus even sought support from France. Finally, after Ferdinand and Isabella’s forces had expelled the last Muslim forces from Spain, they turned their attention to exploration and expansion, and granted Columbus’ request on April 17, 1492. ⁸

The story as portrayed by modern academia, media, and culture goes something like this:

Columbus seeks fame and fortune by sailing around the world, proving Earth is round.
Columbus discovers America and begins his conquest, enslaving people, stealing their gold, and taking them captive back to Europe.
Eventually, European powers conquer North and South America, wiping out indigenous civilizations and enslaving others, all because of Christopher Columbus.
Any and all monuments to the reprehensible Columbus should be destroyed.

Thankfully, these accusations are far from reality.

At the age of 41, Columbus set out on August 3, 1492 from Spain with three ships ( Niña, Pinta, Santa Maria ). He was NOT seeking to prove the world is round. In fact, it is a common myth that people in his day believed Earth was flat.

The oldest surviving antique globe, called the Erdaphel (German for “earth apple”), dates to 1491, before Columbus’ trip. ⁹ Crates of Mallus, Stoic philosopher from Cilicia, is believed to have made a globe of Earth around 150 B.C. ¹⁰ Additionally, Pythagoras (6 ^th century B.C.), Aristotle (4 ^th century B.C.), Eratosthenes (3 ^rd century B.C.), Ptolemy (2 ^nd century A.D.), and possibly the Phoenicians in the 6 ^th century B.C. and the Brahmans of India in the 4 ^th century B.C. all described Earth as spherical. ¹¹

Aristotle noted the different observable constellations depending on one’s location on a globe. He also emphasized how easy it is to see the curvature of Earth’s shadow during a lunar eclipse and mentioned estimations made by mathematicians as to Earth’s circumference. ¹² Greek astronomer and director of the Library of Alexandria, Eratosthenes would calculate Earth’s circumference ¹³ around 240 B.C. within -2.4% to +0.8% of today’s calculations. ¹⁴

In fact, the “discovery” of Earth’s spherical nature is a mystery to historians. It is a common understanding in antiquity, for which there is no explanation – as if humans have always known. Even in many if not most ancient depictions of Earth as flat, Earth is still drawn in a circular shape. In any case, it was a universal understanding in Columbus’ world that Earth is spherical.

What, then, gave rise to the legend of Columbus sailing to prove the Earth is round? The conflict thesis of the 19ᵗʰ century was developed by ill-designing men rewriting parts of history, seeking to justify the newly developed tenets of evolution. The thesis, developed by John Draper (1811-1882) and Andrew White (1832-1918), teaches that religion and, more particularly, Christianity had held back scientific progress during the “Dark Ages.” The thesis claims with the Enlightenment and science came progress and technologies as opposed to the superstitions of religion, such as a flat earth belief, which they claim was held by the church.

This is absolutely false, yet it did not stop Washington Irving (1783-1859) ¹⁵ from publishing in 1828, A History of the Life and Voyages of Christopher Columbus , in which Irving fabricated the notion that Columbus’ voyages were to show the superstitious flat-earthers of his day that the Earth was round. The book even went so far as to make up disputes between Columbus and religious authorities as well as fears from the ship’s crew. The accusations were fraudulent and fanciful, but they supported the current narrative and continue to support the evolutionary worldview’s intrusion into the realm of history as well as science.

The same is true for many of the accusations regarding Columbus being a greedy, racist, imperialistic conqueror. The man was very devout in his faith, which makes him an even greater target for the enemies of truth. Did some atrocities happen amongst the ships and crews during the voyages? Yes. But what are the untold aspects of Columbus’ efforts?

For example, in attempting to portray Columbus as an imperialist seeking slaves, History.com quotes him as writing of the natives, “They would make fine servants… With fifty men we could subjugate them all and make them do whatever we want.” ¹⁶ We found it suspect they provided no reference. Turns out, this is not what Columbus wrote. Rather, he penned in 1492: ¹⁷

Thursday, 11 October… As I saw that they were very friendly to us, and perceived that they could be much more easily converted to our holy faith by gentle means than by force, I presented them with some red caps, and strings of beads to wear upon the neck, and many other trifles of small value, wherewith they were much delighted, and became wonderfully attached to us.. It appears to me, that the people are ingenious, and would be good servants [subjects to the crown as everyone else in the kingdom] and I am of opinion that they would very readily become Christians, as they appear to have no religion. They very quickly learn such words as are spoken to them. If it please our Lord, I intend at my return to carry home six of them to your Highnesses, that they may learn our language.

Sunday, 14 October… I do not, however, see the necessity of fortifying the place… I could conquer the whole of them with fifty men, and govern them as I pleased.

As one quickly realizes when reading Columbus’ actual words, he admired the natives, thinking they would be a great people to welcome into the Spanish empire, hoping they would all become Christians. He even tells the king and queen that there is no need to build any fortifications because of how kind and peaceful they are.

The atrocities took place after he left by the men he placed in charge. When he returned and attempted to right the wrongs, the men arrested Columbus and sent him back to Spain with bogus charges. He would be found not guilty and was allowed to continue his voyages.

We could continue for many more pages correcting the many false accusations brought against Columbus by today’s revisionists promoting their evolutionary worldviews. [See below for further resources.] For now, we pray you heed the warning that made up stories taught as fact long enough to an uneducated or apathetic population will result in evolutionized people. Be countercultural; investigate the claims; seek the facts; ask tough questions; and do not exchange the truth of God for the lie (Romans 1:25).

Cristoforo Colombo (Italian), Cristóbal Colón (Spanish), Christophorus Columbus (Latin)
https://www.geni.com/people/Christopher-Columbus/6000000000432836404
Of the Republic of Genoa, comprised of northwestern Italy and Mediterranean islands.
Tirado, Thomas C., Ph.D. “Christopher Columbus”, Encarta Encyclopedia, 2000, <file:///C:/Users/ryanw/Downloads/Tirado-Christopher-Columbus.pdf>.
Morgan, Edmund S. “Columbus’ Confusion About the New World”, Smithsonian Magazine , October 2009, <https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/columbus-confusion-about-the-new-world-140132422/>.
Morison, Samuel E. Admiral of the Ocean Sea: A Life of Christopher Columbus . Little, Brown and Company. 1991, pp. 68-70: The king’s experts believed that Columbus’ estimated distance was only a quarter of the actual distance.
Dyson, John. Columbus: For Gold, God and Glory . Madison Press Books. 1991, pp. 84-5.
Tirado, Encarta . If he were to succeed, Columbus would be granted the rank of Admiral of the Ocean Sea and Viceroy and Governor of all new lands claimed for Spain.
Lewe, Oliver. “The Behaim Globe in Nuremberg”, Bavaria-online , 12 December 2019, <https://bayern-online.de/nuernberg/erleben/wissenswertes/der-behaim-globus/>.
Editors, “Crates of Mallus”, Encyclopedia Britannica , <https://www.britannica.com/biography/Crates-of-Mallus>.
Faulkner, Danny R., PhD, Falling Flat , Masterbooks, 2019, pp. 17-29.
Aristotle, On the Heavens (De Caelo) , 350 B.C., 297b25-298a20, <https://archive.org/details/decaeloleofric00arisuoft/mode/1up>.
Around June 21, c. 240 B.C. at noon, Eratosthenes measured the sun’s shadow angle in Alexandria, Egypt. At the same time in Syene, Egypt on the Tropic of Cancer, the sun is directly overhead with no shadow. The distance between Alexandria and Syene is exactly 1/50 of a sphere circumference when the shadow angle is 7.2°. <https://imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov/features/cosmic/earth_info.html>.
Russo, Lucio, The Forgotten Revolution: How Science Was Born in 300 BC and Why It Had to Be Reborn , Berlin: Springer, 2004, pp. 273-277.
Author of “Rip Van Winkle” (1819) and “The Legend of Sleep Hollow” (1820).
History.com editors, “Christopher Columbus”, 11 August 2023, <https://www.history.com/topics/exploration/christopher-columbus#the-first-voyage>.
Medieval Sourcebook: Christopher Columbus: Extracts from Journal. Fordham University History Department, 28 August 2023, <https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/source/columbus1.asp>.

July/August 2023 Printed Newsletter

Thu, 10 Aug 2023 20:52:53 GMT

TARGETing Children

ryan@creationtruth.com (Ryan Cox) — Thu, 10 Aug 2023 20:49:32 GMT

TARGETing Children

With this news came a broad range of reactions, one of which was the refusal of conservative families to shop at Target (1) for fear of sexual predators and (2) to stand for what is morally and Biblically right. Indeed, each of the CTF families ceased shopping at Target after this announcement. Were/are families warranted in their fears of what might happen to their loved ones?

The WOMAN Means Something campaign released a study in January of 2018 to see what happened following Target’s new bathroom policy. They found a significant increase in “voyeurism-related offenses”.[2] The report showed that 94.5% of victims were female, 100% of the perpetrators were males, and children were the victims in 34% of the offenses.[3] ]
[1]

Consequently, Target saw their sales fall from $73.785 million (2015) to $69.495 million (2016); net earnings also fell from $3.321 million (2015) to $2.669 million (2016), a 19.6% drop.[4] It wouldn’t be until 2018 that sales would recover to 2015 levels[5] and not until 2019 that net earnings would recover to 2015 levels.[6] [

This is why the Lord our God has COMMANDED Godly parents to teach their children the ways of the Lord, PERSONALLY. Just taking them to Sunday services or sending them to a youth group doesn’t cut it. If a Christian parent is not personally imparting the faith to his or her child(ren), then he or she is in open defiance of the Lord.

⁵ For He established a testimony in Jacob, And appointed a law in Israel, Which He commanded our fathers That they were to teach them to their children , ⁶ So that the generation to come would know , the children yet to be born, That they would arise and tell them to their children, ⁷ So that they would put their confidence in God And not forget the works of God, But comply with His commandments, ⁸ And not be like their fathers, A stubborn and rebellious generation, A generation that did not prepare its heart And whose spirit was not faithful to God.

~ Psalm 78:5-6 ~

This is also why we are promoting our new program entitled Divine Identity , in which we expose what is actually going on in the current cultural revolution, in particularly regarding gender identity. Please contact us if you would like to have this program in your church, and please pray that the Lord will work through it to provide life-changing results for the glory and growth of His Kingdom.

Target, “Continuing to Stand for Inclusivity”, A Bullseye View, 19 April 2019, <https://corporate.target.com/article/2016/04/target-stands-inclusivity>.
As in “upskirt” (2.3x increase) or “peeping Tom” (2.9x increase).
Dirks, Paul. “Gender-Inclusion Policies and Sexual Violence: A Longitudinal Analysis of Media Reports at Target Stores”. WOMAN Means Something. 29 January 2018. <womanmeanssomething.com/targetstudy>.
Target 2016 Annual Report, <https://corporate.target.com/_media/TargetCorp/annualreports/2016/pdfs/Target-2016-Annual-Report.pdf>.
Target 2018 Annual Report, <https://corporate.target.com/annual-reports/2018/financials/financial-highlights>.
Target 2019 Annual Report, <https://corporate.target.com/annual-reports/2019/financials/financial-highlights>.
Target, “Sustainability & ESG”, A Bullseye View, <https://corporate.target.com/sustainability-ESG>.
Parks, Kristine. “Target customers shocked after company features pride items by Satanist partner: Devil is ‘hope’ and ‘love’”. Fox News . 24 May 2023. <https://www.foxnews.com/media/target-customers-shocked-company-features-gay-pride-items-satanist-partner-devil-hope-love>.
Target, “Target Statement on 2023 Pride Collection”, 24 May 2023, <https://corporate.target.com/press/releases/2023/05/Target-Statement-on-2023-Pride-Collection>.
The only thing I could find was one endcap in grocery with “pride”-themed champaign.
Flood, Brian and Suzanne O’Halloran. “Target market cap losses hit $15.7 billion, shares approach 52-week low amid woke backlash”. Fox Business . 12 June 2023. <https://www.foxbusiness.com/media/target-market-cap-losses-hit-15-7-billion-share-near-52-week-low-amid-woke-backlash>.
WARNING : Graphic Content - Rolfe, Brooke. “‘Welcome to Sex’ children’s book causes chaos on retailers’ shelves”. New York Post . 18 July 2023. <https://nypost.com/2023/07/18/anger-intensifies-over-welcome-to-sex-book-in-big-w-and-target/>.
WARNING : Graphic Content – Caporn, Dylan. “Yumi Stynes defends kids’ book Welcome to Sex after Big W, Target ban while sales skyrocket online”. The West Australian . 20 July 2023. < https://www.perthnow.com.au/entertainment/books/yumi-stynes-defends-kids-book-welcome-to-sex-after-big-w-target-ban-while-sales-skyrocket-online-c-11337849 >.

Summer SHAKEN

ctf@creationtruth.com (Matt Miles) — Thu, 10 Aug 2023 20:48:48 GMT

I feel it appropriate to give a summer ministry update. We have traveled this summer over 15,000 miles with an approximate event attendance of 4800 people, and we have seen the Lord working on worldviews of the young and old alike. Not only have we been called on to do VBS and camps, as usual, but have also done D3 (Dinosaurs, Design and Destiny) events. It is rare that we do D3 events in the summer, as they are typically our “bread and butter” the rest of the calendar year. Through all of it, our mission has been accomplished in overwhelming fashion.

VBS has been our main focus this summer with a total of 7. It was very impactful to see three of these churches adopt a whole-church approach. Over the past few years we have challenged churches to do VBS for the family. With this approach, we teach the lesson to the students at the beginning. Then the students are dismissed to crafts, games, snacks or other activities while their parents and other adults have their lesson with the same topic studied more in depth. Our desire is that student and parent worldviews are impacted in the same evening, providing great opportunity for discussion on the way home. This has been received well by the churches who chose the “whole church” VBS. There have been numerous times this summer that parents or other attending adults have expressed thanks for teaching them as well. Regretfully, each night at the churches there were still some parents that would drop off their child and not stay, but return at the end of the night, as usual. This seems such a missed opportunity to drive home the Word of the Lord in those families. We are not going to pull back from this endeavor, and our desire is to make this a “normal” VBS strategy when we are invited to teach. We praise the Lord for those families SHAKEN for His Kingdom this summer.

The couple of D3 events seemed very out of place at first, since most summers are so focused on camp and VBS, but the Lord used these to reach new churches with our mission and message. Establishing the importance of Genesis in worldview development and the Biblical history is priority in these events, and experiencing the excitement of new congregations as their worldviews are impacted is such a praiseworthy thing. We know that the Lord will use these moments of challenge, conviction, and learning for His Glory.

Some of our fossils were also seen by more than 7000 over the course of several days during a VBS that Answers in Genesis put on at a church in the heart of Dallas. They approached us way too late to make the opportunity work, yet our summer schedule actually freed up for one week. The Lord worked it out for His purpose and the fossils were used as part of the whole event, blessing many with the opportunity to see dinosaurs for the first time in a church and through Biblical glasses.

From young to old, we have seen worldviews and lives impacted for eternity. Some people have been SHAKEN with a new understanding of the importance of Scripture in their lives. Others have been saved as a response to the Gospel that is clearly seen through the lens of Genesis. We lift our praises to the Lord Almighty for the open doors, hearts and minds this ministry has the opportunity to impact. Thank you for all the support, it is affecting eternal destinies! Blessings.

June 2023 Printed Newsletter

Fri, 16 Jun 2023 20:14:06 GMT

Campers SHAKEN

ctf@creationtruth.com (Matt Miles) — Tue, 13 Jun 2023 20:27:52 GMT

Genesis Week Camp has become one of my favorite weeks in the summer. Ten years ago the camp was started by Ryan Cox, my now colleague. It is a unique church camp in Illinois since it is the only place we teach year after year. Over the course of 3 years, Genesis Week covers Creation, Flood, and Babel so students that attend every year from middle through high school get these worldview foundations twice. The Lord has provided an avenue for us to impact young lives now and for generations to come. This year I was reminded of the importance of this camp, the first of the summer season.

This year’s camp maintenance director is a former Genesis Week camper. It was great to catch up and see what the Lord has been doing in his life. He is now married to a fellow Genesis Week camper from years back and has two children. (This is a gentle reminder from the Lord we are not getting any younger.) He directly equated the strength of his faith to the study and worldview development each summer at Genesis Week. I was able to meet his wife and children over lunch one day. She expressed similar sentiment for the two years of Genesis Week she attended, stating, “They were my favorite weeks of camp ever.”

One evening at campfire, a camper got up and expressed the Lord has called him to full-time preaching and teaching of the Word. He relayed to his fellow campers that the Lord, through Genesis Week, had greatly impacted and equipped him for ministry. I don’t know how many of you have the opportunity to impact young lives for the Kingdom, but please don’t pass on those opportunities. He went on to express that during his first summer my teaching had been most impactful. There are moments in life that are more than humbling, yet most rewarding at the same time – this was one of them.

Another camper approached me and stated her desire to be a “creation scientist”. She asked how to be one. We talked through a whole game time about different avenues and possibilities. I expressed to her the need for more to step up and be called to science. She shared that for the entire past year she has carried everywhere the books she bought last year at Genesis Week so she could give Biblical answers to friends and family members on foundational issues from Genesis. I pray that the Lord continues to use her in a mighty way, as I observed her influence on fellow campers all week with positive results.

This year, Genesis Week impacted 102 camper lives, along with all the adult staff. The Lord saved 6 students that realized He is the only door to salvation, and He called 5 students to vocational ministry. Ryan and I are deeply impacted year after year with the opportunity to pour Christ’s foundation into students’ lives for eternity. We thank the Lord for your support that makes this Kingdom work possible and encourage you to be SHAKEN to service, if you are not already. The Lord is coming, and there are many lost that need His direction. Blessings!

Part 5: Shaken by Prayer

ryan@creationtruth.com (Ryan Cox) — Tue, 13 Jun 2023 19:35:36 GMT

Part 5: Shaken by Prayer

Having been threatened by the authorities for speaking (and healing) in Jesus’ name, yet released on account of public pressure, the apostles seek out their Christian brothers and sisters.

“ When they had been released, they went to their own companions and reported all that the chief priests and the elders had said to them ” (Acts 4:23).

Going back to Acts 2 and the birthday of the Church, we see Christians devoted to the Word of God, fellowship, the Lord’s Supper/Lord’s Day, and prayer (2:42). Chapter 4 shows us why such devotion is essential; immediately upon their release, the apostles sought the fellowship of the Church. When tough times happen, when we need encouragement, when we need to rejoice over what the Lord has done, we are to get with or be there for our brothers and sisters in Christ.

And what then did they do once they were together? “ And when they heard this, they lifted their voices to God with one accord ” (Acts 4:24). They prayed! Another one of those four things to which the Church was dedicated is prevalent in this entire event. It starts with Peter and John going to the temple to pray in 3:1, and it ends with the momentous prayer service of 4:24-31. You want your church to be shaken, ask if your church family is always starting and ending with prayer (and I’m not talking about the opening and closing prayers of church services). Ask if your church family is devoted to the things to which the Church should be devoted (Acts 2:42). And ask if your prayers are like the prayer of Acts 4.

²⁴ “ O Lord, it is You who MADE THE HEAVEN AND THE EARTH AND THE SEA, AND ALL THAT IS IN THEM , ²⁵ who by the Holy Spirit, through the mouth of our father David Your servant, said, ‘ ' W HY DID THE NATIONS RAGE, AND THE PEOPLES DEVISE FUTILE THINGS? ²⁶ T HE KINGS OF THE EARTH TOOK THEIR STAND, AND THE RULERS WERE GATHERED TOGETHER AGAINST THE L ORD AND AGAINST H IS C HRIST ' ” (Acts 4:24-26).

They began by quoting Scripture (Exodus 20:11 & Psalm 146:6), giving praise and glory to God. The model prayer by Jesus started with similar adoration: “ Our Father who art in Heaven, hallowed be Your name ” (Matthew 6:9). Then they quote more Scripture with Psalm 2:1-2, since it was applicable to their situation. When you pray and ask God about something, do you have a verse of Scripture you can put your finger on and say, “Lord, Your Word shows me that You have done this and said You would do this for those who trust in You. If it be Your will, would you please, by the power of Jesus, the One powerful enough to conquer death, do this now for me?” Might that change what we pray for and how we pray about it? Look now at how they take the Scriptures and the circumstances in which they find themselves, and ask for God’s help.

“ ²⁹ And now, Lord, take note of their threats, and grant that Your bond-servants may speak Your Word with great boldness , ³⁰ while You extend Your hand to heal, and signs and wonders take place through the name of Your holy servant Jesus ” (Acts 4:29-30).

They don’t ask God to take away the threats!!!!

Rather, they ask Him to give them strength and courage to keep proclaiming the Word so that He might do amazing things through them in order to bring people to Jesus! That’s what they pray for! Does that sound like the prayers in your life, your family, your church?

The word for “boldness” or “confidence” (depending on your translation) is the Greek word parrésia . The HELPS Greek Word-studies defines it as, “confidence (bold resolve), leaving a witness that something deserves to be remembered.” [1] When we speak with people about Jesus or do something for people in Jesus’ name, we are to do so in a way that will cause people to never forget the One in whose name we spoke or acted. A food bank or clothing house or any other service is great IF it is done in Jesus’ name – if the people hear Jesus’ name and the Good News of Jesus when being served by His people. Otherwise, what good are we doing? The Gospel is far more important than any need of this life (Matthew 6:19-21, Acts 21:13). Are we living lives that are causing people to think about Jesus?

Are we even praying for that? If we were, EVERY DAY, what then do you think might happen in your life, your family, your church? I can tell you what would happen!

“ And when they had prayed, the place where they had gathered together was shaken , and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the Word of God with boldness ” (Acts 4:31).

[1] https://biblehub.com/greek/3954.htm

May 2023 Printed Newsletter

Wed, 17 May 2023 20:41:24 GMT

Worldview Matters

ctf@creationtruth.com (Matt Miles) — Mon, 15 May 2023 19:33:25 GMT

After an evening message on a recent trip, I was approached by a father with his two children in a packed foyer of the church. Usually I might field a couple of questions from the children about our dinosaur fossils. He introduced himself and kids then passed some encouraging words my way for that evening’s message and our mission. Then he professed being a public school science teacher. At that moment the conversation can go many different directions, as I have experienced over the last 17 years.

This teacher and father began sharing his testimony of the Lord seeking him as he walked away during his high school years. Growing up in the church, he never had his science questions answered with a Biblical worldview. He saw a hypocritical faith being expressed one way on Sunday with only lip-service the remainder of the time. This drove his faith to agnosticism because to him the Bible did not have answers that adults could apply to the world today. So I asked him how the Lord impacted him to bring him where he is today. In college the Lord gave him a strong Christian roommate that impacted his life with genuine faith. After being invited to a campus Bible study group, he found the Lord is the answer. He began to study the Bible for himself the first time in his faith. In the area of origins, however, he still held to a traditional evolutionary worldview, until one night when surfing on youtube he watched a video about a scientist that was a young earth creationist. “It brought up some compelling points,” he said as he was relaying this experience to me. Then he was led to a Ken Ham (Answers in Genesis, President) video about his book Already Gone . The next thing he did was read that book and realized it was describing his worldview development growing up in the church and walking away from his faith. After that, he began studying and developing a Biblical worldview on origins and beyond.

The challenge at present for this teacher is presenting truth in the classroom. I asked how the Lord is using him in that mission field. He expressed the scenario of having an evolutionary concept come up and simply sharing with his students that not everyone agrees on that concept. His students then ask him for more explanation, where he shares that a very trustworthy source supports another option. His students continue to seek answers by asking him if the Bible is the other source. By the students bringing it up and asking questions, he is able to share the Bible’s truth and accompanying science as support for reality. I was so blessed by what the Lord is doing through this man as a father and teacher.

Our mission is to go where the Lord takes us and share the historical truth of the Word to encourage the faith of those present. It is always rewarding to know we are impacting lives for the Gospel. On this one night though, the Lord impacted my faith by the journey of this man as he seeks the Truth. I was so encouraged to see the importance of Genesis and the life answers it holds to be actively changing lives. The Lord continually works through His Word and you to save lives, families and others we may never see this side of eternity. Blessings.

Part 4: Shaken to Obey

ryan@creationtruth.com (Ryan Cox) — Mon, 15 May 2023 19:32:37 GMT

Part 4: Shaken to Obey

“ And seeing the man who had been healed standing with them, they had nothing to say in reply ” (Acts 4:14).

When people see the evidence of being with Jesus, there is nothing, no accusation they can truly bring against us. But that doesn’t mean they won’t scheme against us. The Sanhedrin “ confer with one another ” (v. 15) on how to deal with the spreading news, which threatened their status, concluding, “ so that it will not spread any further among the people, let us warn them to speak no longer to any man in this name ” (v. 17). Thus they summoned the apostles and ordered them “ not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus ” (v. 18).

What are we to do when the government orders us not to speak in Jesus’ name? What are we to do when authorities tell us to shut our doors, do not hold services, or close your church for the safety of others? Yes, Christians are to be obedient to the governing authorities (Romans 13:1). However, obedience to God is paramount (Exodus 19:5, I Samuel 15:22, Jeremiah 7:23, Romans 6:17, II Corinthians 10:5, Philippians 2:12, etc.). How then are we to respond when governing authorities order us not to speak of or assemble for or obey God? The same way the disciples of Jesus did, whose example is recorded in Scripture for us to see and learn.

“ ¹⁸ And when they had summoned them, they commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. ¹⁹ But Peter and John answered and said to them, ‘Whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you rather than to God, you be the judge; ²⁰ for we cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard’ ” (Acts 4:18-20).

How could they give this answer? Because they had been shaken by the presence of their Savior. He had washed their feet, eaten the Passover with them, and told them, “ If you love Me, you will keep My commandments ” (John 14:15). And then they watched Him be arrested, tortured, and killed for the sins of the world. But just when they thought everything was lost, they beheld Him standing in their presence, risen from the dead! They were so shaken they were willing to do whatever it took to fulfill His command of sharing the Good News with all the world (Matthew 28:18-20).

Are we so shaken? When it comes to submitting to the voice of men or the voice of God, which will we choose? It should not matter what the Supreme Court says about marriage, what a policy maker says about life, what a counselor says about gender, or what a governor says about the assembly of the Lord’s Church, we should choose to obey and proclaim the One who created all things and has the authority to judge the living and the dead (II Timothy 4:1). Is that always easy? Certainly not.

“ ²¹ When they had threatened them further, they let them go (finding no basis on which to punish them) on account of the people, because they were all glorifying God for what had happened ” (Acts 4:21).

It seems that if we are serving the community as the people of God should be, the public might side with us and even sway the government. Sadly, what used to be ministries of the Church have now been turned over to the social services of the government, resulting in less and less cultural influence. It still proves true, though, that the more involved churches are in serving the community, the more impact for the Lord they might have.

However, we must be ready to still serve, love, and share the Gospel even if the culture and government are against us. The apostles were willing to do that because of how much Jesus had changed their lives. Today, people are persecuted for their faith all around the world. Even in America, society seems to be more and more hostile to Christianity. We must start resolving in our minds now that we will be ready to stand firm when “ threatened ”.

In recent years, many have bowed to the governing authorities in so many ways because they do not want their lifestyle affected or they do not want to be the target of social or government reactions. Some are genuinely afraid of what the culture or the government might do to them.

It is easy to say what we should do, but it is a whole different matter to be in the situation and know what we would do. Yet, if we want to see revival in the land, if we want our children to be faithful and saved, if we truly love Jesus and are shaken by what He has done for us, then we will embrace His words: “ These things I have spoken to you so that in Me you may have peace. In this world you will have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world ” (John 16:33).

Therefore, “ ¹⁴ If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory, and of God, rests upon you… ¹⁶ but if anyone suffers as a Christian, he is not to be ashamed, but to glorify God in this name. ¹⁷ For it is time for judgement to begin with the household of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the Gospel of God?... ¹⁹ Therefore, those who suffer according to the will of God are to entrust their souls to a faithful Creator in doing what is right ” (I Peter 4:14-19).

April 2023 Printed Newsletter

Tue, 18 Apr 2023 18:44:17 GMT

Part 3: Shaken By Being With Jesus

ryan@creationtruth.com (Ryan Cox) — Thu, 13 Apr 2023 21:08:50 GMT

After hearing the Gospel message and seeing it confirmed by the miraculous healing of the lame man, thousands in Acts 3-4 sought the Lord and became Christians. As is often the case, however, opposing forces attempted to silence the apostles.

“ ¹ As they were speaking to the people, the priests and the captain of the temple guard and the Sadducees came up to them, ² being greatly disturbed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead. ³ And they laid hands on them and put them in jail until the next day ” (Acts 4:1-3).

Notice only the Sadducees are mentioned. Why were they so upset, even more so than the Pharisees? While the Pharisees believed in general resurrection, the Sadducees did not; their worldview would not entertain the “ infallible proofs ” of Christ’s resurrection.

The next day at their trial, Peter responded to the accusations, saying, “ Rulers and elders of the people, ⁹ if we are on trial today for a benefit done to a sick man, as to how this man has been made well, ¹⁰ l et it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel, that in the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead— by Him this man stands here before you in good health… ¹² And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved ” (Acts 4:8-12).

AMEN! But how offensive to all the rest of the world. Why? Because the Bible is saying that if you do not believe in Jesus and His Word, you will not go to Heaven. Tough words, but true words. Therefore, if we truly love people, what will we do – TELL THEM THE TRUTH!

“ Now as they observed the confidence of Peter and John and understood that they were uneducated and untrained men, they were amazed, and began to recognize them as having been with Jesus ” (Acts 4:13).

This really shook them up. The conduct, words, attitudes, etc. of the apostles were such that there was no mistaking they had been with Jesus! This is one of the most profound statements of Scripture, and here’s why. I have heard it said to preachers, speakers, and teachers comments like, “Wow, you really know the Bible. I could never have the knowledge you have”, and so on and so on. Such comments may be meant as complimentary, but they should not be the greatest feeling of one’s life. Reason being, such comments are too often the excuse of the one giving the complement for not studying the Bible for him or herself. It is also far too often the excuse for not sharing Jesus with others. To stay in their comfort zone, many use the excuse of “not knowing the Bible well enough” for not sharing their faith. Yet, Jesus never demanded a Bible college degree for evangelism! NONE of the 12 had a 4-year theology or preaching degree: “ they were uneducated and untrained men ” (Acts 4:13). They had simply “ been with Jesus ”!!!

Have you? Do you know Jesus? That’s all you have to share with someone! If you cannot, then you need to ask yourself if you know Jesus? How did you become a Christian? Tell people that! If you can’t, then you need to ask yourself if you are one.

And for anyone who has ever received complements regarding their Scriptural knowledge, that’s wonderful and nothing of which to be ashamed. More importantly, though, can anyone tell that you’ve been with Jesus. This is not to belittle Scriptural knowledge. Far from it! Biblical literacy, knowledge of God’s Word is vital – it is how we walk the path of God (Psalm 119:109, 105); it is how we come to know Jesus (John 1:1-13, Hebrews 1:1-2)!

Hence, the answer to the question, “Do you know Jesus or the Bible?”, should be a resounding, “Yes!” If you know God’s Word, then you should know Jesus, which should have “ shaken ” you. Hopefully and prayerfully, the world will be able to see you and me and know that we have “ been with Jesus .” And that may just be what opens the doors of their hearts to be shaken by the Spirit and Truth.

No More Veil

ctf@creationtruth.com (Matt Miles) — Thu, 13 Apr 2023 21:06:11 GMT

As we just celebrated our Savior’s resurrection, I was reminded of a vitally important aspect of the death, burial and resurrection - the veil in the Temple that separated the Holy of Holies was torn in two. This allows us to have the personal relationship with our Savior today.

In the garden, Adam’s sin separated them from their Creator, and an angel with flaming sword was placed between them and the place of perfection in the Lord’s presence. Later, when the Lord had personal contact with people in the Temple, it was only for the High Priest once a year. Nobody else ever had the opportunity to be in His presence because of our sinful state. Even the High Priest, if you remember, couldn’t have any unaccounted for sin or not follow exactly all the procedures God commanded, for risk of being struck down while in the Holy of Holies. The separation was spiritual and also physical in the form of a veil of massive size. The High Priest had to work his way through the massive amount of material to come into the Lord’s presence. There was no accidental or unintentional encounters with the Most High. That separation continued until Jesus’ sacrifice said, “It is finished.”

At the moment Jesus, our Creator and Savior, died, our sin separation was reconciled. The mighty veil was torn from top to bottom. The presence of the Lord would forever be with those that call on His name. The separation that started in the garden does not have to exist now. We have the ability to have a personal relationship with our Creator once again. No more need of a high priest to speak to the Lord on our behalf. God hears, moves and shakes us by His Spirit, in relationship with each of us. In eternity, with our corrupted flesh gone, our physical relationship will be restored. Praise be to God for the Resurrection! Genesis from the beginning set the stage for why Jesus needed to do what we acknowledge only He could do for us. No more veil or separation, only relationship that impacts our life for eternity. Blessings.

Cranial Kinesis

Mon, 10 Apr 2023 15:51:40 GMT

Avian vs Dinosaurian Cranial Kinesis

Evolutionary apologists have believed and taught until very recently that the modern avian trait of palatine kinesis (movable or mobile beak) is a post-Cretaceous development following the K-Pg mass extinction event. During the transition from “non-avian” to “avian” in the evolutionary tale of dinosaur-to-bird evolution, the dinosaurian trait of a fixed palate was lost, giving rise to palatal mobility (mobile beak) by acquiring the trait of a pterygoid/palatine joint. Extant birds with this trait are classified in the infraclass of Neognaths. In contrast, most large, flightless birds (e.g., ratites) retain a much more rigid jaw that does not allow for palatal kinesis due to the fusing of the pterygoid and palatine joint, which prohibits medial articulation. These birds are classified in the infraclass of Paleognaths. The evolutionary belief is these birds either never lost this inherited dinosaurian trait, or at some point reverted back to it.

As explained by ScienceDaily:

For more than a century, it had been assumed that the mechanism enabling a mobile beak evolved after the extinction of the dinosaurs… Each of the roughly 11,000 species of birds on Earth today is classified into one of two over-arching groups, based on the arrangement of their palate bones… The two groups were originally classified by Thomas Huxley, the British biologist known as ‘Darwin’s Bulldog’ for his vocal support of Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution. In 1867, he divided all living birds into either the ‘ancient’ [Paleognaths] or ‘modern’ [Neognaths] jaw groups. Huxley’s assumption was that the ‘ancient’ jaw configuration was the original condition for modern birds, with the ‘modern’ jaw arising later. ¹

What, precisely, was the scientific support for this belief?

"This assumption has been taken as a given ever since," said Dr. Daniel Field from Cambridge's Department of Earth Sciences, the paper's senior author. "The main reason this assumption has lasted is that we haven't had any well-preserved fossil bird palates from the period when modern birds originated." ²

The absence of evidence was their evidence!

Unfortunately for this belief’s adherents, the analysis of a bird specimen named Janavis finalidens by the University of Cambridge and the Natuurhistorisch Museum Maastricht has completely dismantled this evolutionary teaching. As their paper states:

Neognaths exhibit unfused palate bones and generally kinetic skulls, whereas palaeognaths possess comparatively rigid skulls with the pterygoid and palatine fused into a single element, a condition long considered ancestral for crown birds (Neornithes). However, fossil evidence of palatal remains from taxa close to the origin of Neornithes is scarce, hindering strong inferences regarding the ancestral condition of the neornithine palate. Here we report a new taxon of toothed Late Cretaceous ornithurine bearing a pterygoid that is remarkably similar to those of the extant neognath clade Galloanserae (waterfowl + landfowl)… We recovered Janavis as the first-known well-represented member of Ichthyornithes other than Ichthyornis , clearly substantiating the persistence of the clade into the latest Cretaceous. Janavis confirms the presence of an anatomically neognathous palate in at least some Mesozoic non-crown ornithurines… Our results, combined with recent evidence on the ichthyornithine palatine, overturn longstanding assumptions about the ancestral crown bird palate, and should prompt reevaluation of the purported galloanseran affinities of several bizarre early Cenozoic groups such as the ‘pseudotoothed birds’ (Pelagornithidae). ³

No known dinosaur skull has been identified with palatine kinesis. They all have a fixed, rigid palate. Other varieties of cranial kinesis have been suggested, such as streptostyly, which is simply movement along the jaw hinge of the quadrate in such dinosaurs as Carnotaurus and Allosaurus , as well as metakinesis where a possible amount of movement could take place between the dermatocranium (skull roof) and the chondrocranium (braincase) in dinosaurs such as Dromaeosaurus . ⁴

Additionally, hadrosaurid ornithopods have been shown to have skulls with pleurokinesis – multiple jointing providing multiple points of movement, resulting in a “near-vertical posterodorsal power stroke during feeding; near-vertical jaw opening; and propalinal movements in near anterior and near posterior directions.” ⁵

Previously, the intramandibular joint between the dentary and postdentary bones of theropod dinosaurs was believed to provide kinesis similar to that of snakes. It is now believed the joint served more to absorb stress, working with the prearticular bone at the rear of the jaw to keep the joint rigid. ⁶

The significant conclusion gained from these studies is the observational reality that palatine kinesis is strictly a non-dinosaurian trait. Based on all available data, the presence of such a trait in a fossil would most certainly eliminate a dinosaurian identification. Additionally, the most recent discovery of palatine kinesis in a Cretaceous rock layer has caused significant problems for the established narrative of avian evolution, demanding, once again, a rewriting of the evolutionary mythos by evolutionary apologists. Conversely, the Biblical creationist model of created kinds is unremittingly supported by observational science.
[1]

University of Cambridge. "Fossil overturns more than a century of knowledge about the origin of modern birds." ScienceDaily, 30 November 2022. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/11/221130114507.htm>.
Ibid.
Benito, J., Kuo, P.C., Widrig, K.E. et al. 2022. Cretaceous ornithurine supports a neognathous crown bird ancestor. Nature , 612:7938, DOI: 10.1038/s41586-022-05445-y, p. 100.
Holiday, C.M. and Witmer, L.M. 2008. Cranial kinesis in dinosaurs: intracranial joints, protractor muscles, and their significance for cranial evolution and function in diapsids. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology , 28:4, 1073-88, DOI: 10.1671/0272-4634-28.4.1073 .
Williams, V.S., Barrett, P.M. et. al. 2009. Quantitative analysis of dental microwear in hadrosaurid dinosaurs, and the implications for hypotheses of jaw mechanics and feeding. PNAS , 106:27, DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0812631106, p. 11194.
Fortner, J., Wilken, A. et. al. 2021. The role of the intramandibular joint, symphyseal tissues, and wrapping muscles on theropod dinosaur mandibular function. The FASEB Journal , 35:S1, DOI: 10.1096/fasebj.2021.35.S1.03068.

March 2023 Printed Newsletter

Tue, 21 Mar 2023 19:28:03 GMT

Shaken: Part 2 – Infallible Proofs

ryan@creationtruth.com (Ryan Cox) — Tue, 21 Mar 2023 19:11:52 GMT

Peter preached in Acts 3 the resurrected Messiah and salvation through Him. What was the result? “But many of those who heard the Word [Greek logos] believed; and the number of the men came to be about five thousand” (Acts 4:4). Their message was convincing. Why? Because of the infallible proofs!

I have often said I can provide better, more reliable evidence in support of the historical account of the Gospels and of Jesus’ life than I can of Julius Caesar. This is not to draw into doubt the existence of Caesar, but rather to illustrate the incredible dependability and accuracy of the Bible.

For Caesar, there are his personal works and the works of Roman historians. For his personal records, there are around 12 manuscripts, the copy closest to the time of actual writing dating to some 900 years after authorship. For the Roman historians, there are a handful to 20 manuscripts depending on the author, the closest copies dating some 500 to over 1,000 years after authorship, with the historians themselves living 100 or more years after Caesar.¹ And Caesar is not the only one; this is how it is for much of ancient history.² Indeed, one of my history professors was convinced that Confucius never existed.³

In stark contrast, the reliability of the New Testament text is overwhelming, with thousands of ancient manuscripts, translations, and quotations, with some dating to within decades of authorship, the authors themselves being the actual eyewitnesses!⁴ Additionally, so many extra-Biblical accounts of Jesus have survived that even secular sources often admit there was a real, historical Jesus.⁵

But more than all that, there seems to be one proof, one event that surpasses all – something that changed the world, inspiring people to endure torture and unimaginable death for the sake of Truth: “…He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the Kingdom of God” (Acts 1:3).

For 40 days after His resurrection, Jesus appeared to, fellowshipped with, and taught many disciples. Luke records that they were convinced by “many infallible proofs” . The Greek word tekmérion appears only this one time in all the New Testament, being translated as “infallible” or “convincing proofs”. It is not an ordinary sign or piece of evidence, but one that is “sure, fixed, certain, indisputable, unmistakable, irrefutable”.⁶

Seeing a dead man now standing, speaking, and eating with you would most certainly be an infallible proof, and the number of people who were blessed with that opportunity during those 40 days would be anywhere from 475 to 620 people!⁷ After Jesus’ ascension, over 5,000 people in Acts 2-4 quickly became believers, and that’s just counting the men! After all, they could personally go to the tomb and see that it was empty even after being guarded and sealed (Matthew 27:66)! In fact, the news of not just Jesus but of other people rising from the dead⁸ would lead to government action by the Romans, resulting in capital punishment for grave-robbing and even moving “sepulcher-sealing stones”, as recorded in an edict by a Caesar (most likely Claudius).⁹

As we will see next time, having been with Jesus, seeing the resurrected Messiah with their own eyes, Peter and John “cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard” (Acts 4:20). So if you're ever thinking about the proofs for the Bible and your faith, remember, “God raised up His Servant for you… and sent Him to bless you” (Acts 3:26).

Darrell Bock, “Sources for Caesar and Jesus Compared: Examining the Manuscript Evidence”, The Gospel Coalition , 11 June 2015, < https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article /bugs-features-and-atheism/ > , accessed 1/31/23.
Jona Lendering, ed., “Gaius Julius Caesar: Writings”, Livius.org , 14 March 2019, < https://www.livius.org/articles/person/caesar/caesar-11/ > , accessed 1/31/23.
_____, “Gaius Julius Caesar: Sources”, Livius.org, 21 April 2020, < https://www.livius.org/articles/person/caesar/caesar-12/ > , accessed 1/31/23.
Matt Slick, “Manuscript evidence for superior New Testament reliability”, Christian Apologetics and Research Ministry , 6 December 2008, < https://carm.org/about-the-bible/manuscript-evidence-for-superior-new-testament-reliability/ > , accessed 1/31/23.
Abhishikth Aleti, “The Historical Authenticity of Jesus and the Early Church”, Medium , 27 December 2018, < https://medium.com/nutsandboltsofbible/historicity-of-jesus-2660ef595673 > , accessed 1/31/23.
Eric Meisfjord (not my professor), “Confucius May Never Have Actually Existed. Here’s Why”, Static Media , 8 July 2020, < https://www.grunge.com/224624/confucius-may-never-have-actually-existed-heres-why/ > , accessed 1/31/23.
James Bishop (also not my professor), “Jesus Vs Confucius: Historical Evidence Comparison”, Reasons for Jesus , 11 August 2019, < https://reasonsforjesus.com/jesus-vs-confucius-historical-evidence-comparison/ > , accessed 1/31/23.
See our article “Divinely Dependable” at https://www.creationtruth.com/divinely-dependable
See also: Sean McDowell, “What is the Most Recent Manuscript Count for the New Testament?”, SeanMcDowell.org , 13 March 2018, < https://seanmcdowell.org/blog/what-is-the-most-recent-manuscript-count-for-the-new-testament > , accessed 1/31/23.
Christopher Klein, “The Bible Says Jesus Was Real. What Other Proof Exists?”, A&E Television Networks , 24 March 2021, < https://www.history.com/news/was-jesus-real-historical-evidence > , accessed 1/31/23.
“Sources for the historicity of Jesus”, Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia , 28 January 2023, < https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sources_for_the_historicity_of_Jesus > , accessed 1/31/23.
See also: Lawrence Mykytiuk, “Did Jesus Exist? Searching for Evidence Beyond the Bible”, Biblical Archaeology Society , 25 December 2022, < https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/people-cultures-in-the-bible/jesus-historical-jesus/did-jesus-exist/ > , accessed 1/31/23.
Strong's Concordance 5039. tekmérion < https://biblehub.com/greek/5039.htm >, accessed 1/31/23.
If those specifically listed were part of the 500 of I Cor. 15:6, it would be 475. If they are not included, it would be 525. If the 120 of Acts 1:15 are not part of the 500, it would be 620.
Jeffrey Kranz, “Everyone who rose from the dead in the Bible”, OverviewBible , 2007, < https://overviewbible.com/bible-resurrections/ > , accessed 2/9/23.
Tim Chaffey, “Nazareth Inscription Study Debunks Evidence for Christ’s Resurrection?”, Answers in Genesis , 30 April 2020, < https://answersingenesis.org/jesus/nazareth-inscription-study-debunks-evidence-for-christs-resurrection/ > , accessed 2/9/23. Part of the edict reads, “But if anyone legally charges that another person has destroyed, or has in any manner extracted those who have been buried, or has moved with wicked intent those who have been buried to other places, committing a crime against them, or has moved sepulcher-sealing stones, against such a person, I order that a judicial tribunal be created”.

Order Not Chaos

ctf@creationtruth.com (Matt Miles) — Tue, 21 Mar 2023 18:50:25 GMT

In the first few seconds of time, the Lord began establishing space and matter. As that matter came into existence, it was incomplete and formless. Yet the Lord had a plan of perfection and order in all things. His plan was never chaos, as some suggest the first moments of creation might have been. Neither was there ruin as the Lord was preparing the “good” creation. In an instant, matter went from formless to order at every atomic level, known & unknown to us today, during the Spirit’s moving with the addition of light.

We see the Lord’s power & glory manifested in creation from the time He said, “Let there be light.” The power for holding all matter together is found nowhere else. As a matter of fact, the strong force that holds the nucleus of the atom together is still a scientific mystery, to a degree. It is more than feasible for a believer to understand it as the Lord’s powerful hand. He is sustaining life and has been from the very beginning, just as the apostle Paul wrote in Colossians 1:17.

When life feels out of control, we have the Lord’s testimony of His creation. Those that support a big bang model or old earth history undermine the origin of the Lord’s purpose for life. They place order much later in time and only allow for natural processes bringing that order. This worldview allows doubt as to when the Lord is active and in control of all things, or even worse that the Lord uses chaos within His perfect creation of everything. This is simply oxymoronic. The first day of creation shows the Lord’s purpose and assures us of His control.

The Lord has a plan or will for your life that began at creation. That will is a perfect one that ends with eternal life with Him, a relationship planned for in the first moments of creation as the Spirit began moving over the matter. All of creation was SHAKEN with purpose for you, His image-bearer’s existence. Our security and comfort in times of chaos is the Lord Jesus Christ who has shown us His plan from the first moments of creation and continues into eternity. Blessings.

January 2023 Printed Newsletter

Wed, 18 Jan 2023 21:43:14 GMT

Shaken: Part 1 – Prayer-Powered Results

Fri, 13 Jan 2023 22:04:34 GMT

The incredible events of Pentecost were now over. There had not only been the birthday of the Church, but an explosive birthday, with thousands coming to the Lord! They are meeting every Lord’s Day in the temple courts, as that was the only place that could hold the assembly. Everyone is getting plugged into home groups in the midst of daily fellowship taking place. There is constant work to be done, extensive responsibilities for the apostles to shoulder, and how does the third chapter of Acts open?

“Now Peter and John were going up to the temple at the ninth hour, the hour of prayer” (Acts 3:1).

Seriously?!?! With all they have to do, they leave all their duties and responsibilities, take precious time in which a lot of work could be done, and walk all the way to the temple to have an appointed time of daily prayer?!?! Why? Because they knew that was the most important thing for them to do EVERY day – talk with God.

How do you think everything else will turn out during their day?
How do you think results are going to happen?
How do you think God is going to get involved and bless, bless, bless?
How do you think it would affect your life if you were doing that EVERY DAY?

No, seriously, think about that for a moment. If you were to have an appointed, designated time of prayer EVERY single day, what do you think that would do to you?
Give you some peace?
Give you some clarity, purpose, direction for your life?
What do you think that would do with how good of a husband you are? How good of a wife you are? How good
of a father, mother, sibling, friend, coworker, member of the Lord’s Church you are?

For Peter and John, a miracle takes place. A 40+ year old man who had been lame since birth, was now able to walk. Miracles of this manner were performed to give authority to the spoken word as they did not yet have the Bible, and as “ all the people ran together to them at the portico named Solomon’s, completely astonished ” (vs. 11), Peter sees this, realizing the opportunity God has afforded him.

He says, “ ¹² Men of Israel, why are you amazed at this, or why are you staring at us, as though by our own power or godliness we made him walk? ¹³ The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified His servant Jesus, the one whom you handed over… ¹⁵ but put to death the Author of life, whom God raised from the dead, a fact to which we are witnesses… ¹⁹ Therefore repent and return, so that your sins may be wiped away… ²⁶ God raised up His Servant for you first, and sent Him to bless you by turning every one of you from your wicked ways” (Acts 3:12-26).

Peter preached Jesus – Jesus is the sole focus of his preaching. Why? Because he was one of hundreds of witnesses who had seen the risen Lord! The world had tried to kill Jesus, but death can never defeat the Author of life; He will always triumph, and Peter had seen his victorious Savior face-to-face!

Having seen the Lord, Peter and John had devoted themselves to His Kingdom, experienced tremendous results, and yet they still turned to the power of prayer in order to take their next and every following steps, and prayer-powered results happened!

As we begin studying the events of Acts 3-4, we will see the story begins and ends with prayer that shook the Church and the world. Might we be so SHAKEN in 2023.

SHAKEN

ctf@creationtruth.com (Matt Miles) — Fri, 13 Jan 2023 21:48:35 GMT

Here we are, at the beginning of the year, anticipating what the Lord has in store for us. The calendar for 2023 promises to be yet another outstanding year for us to proclaim the Lord’s Word during the many events already booked. Looking back, it has been so exciting to witness the last two years of work through this ministry. As one being on the inside, I would call moments “humbling” or “awe inspiring” as we have witnessed His hand at work in many lives. Stepping into this new year we are ready for more, and our theme is to be SHAKEN by Him.

We are expecting Christ to move in and through us in this ministry, SHAKEN by the Holy Spirit to speak the Word of God boldly as we see in Acts 4:31. When His followers in Acts prayed to the Lord in response to His protection and provision for Peter and John, they were SHAKEN. It sure appears like a physical shaking, but I believe as the Holy Spirit was involved, it was also more.

Being SHAKEN can be a physical, mental and emotional thing. I believe the Lord would love to shake us physically out of our “slumber” of the everyday, the mundane life actions that are routine and we think don’t have anything to do with Him. SHAKEN by the very life giver with the understanding that every action results in Kingdom work, be it for or against. Second, mentally we are to be SHAKEN this year. Our worldview is to be Christ’s, and we all have areas that need to be His that aren’t yet. Only our Creator, through His Spirit, can shake those worldviews back into line as He intends. Third, emotionally many of us have been placed in bondage over the last couple of years with the fear of circumstances beyond our control. That needs to be SHAKEN and released to the one who controls all. Only by seeking the Sovereign Lord in our life will we see the hope that is to come and not the bondage of today.

To be SHAKEN begins with acknowledging Him as the one who “made the heaven and the earth and the sea, and everything in them,” just as those followers prayed in Acts 4. Our understanding must begin with the right foundation in His Word. Then He will shake us in a way you would shake one who needs to be brought out of unconsciousness to life. The result will be boldly proclaiming His Word as truth, knowing we have been SHAKEN for a greater purpose. Blessings.

December 2022 Printed Newsletter

Sun, 18 Dec 2022 03:24:25 GMT

Merry Christmas 2022

ctf@creationtruth.com (Matt Miles) — Thu, 15 Dec 2022 20:13:33 GMT

This year we have focused on SEEING THE UNSEEN, 2 Corinthians 4:18. As I wrote last month, the troubles currently in the world don’t make us happy but we should still focus on being thankful for the Lord’s overwhelming blessings. Those are the eternal blessings we have been shown as a reminder of our hope. Let’s not forget this important concept during the Christmas season.

Imagine Joseph and Mary’s situation as she became pregnant. Joseph had to trust the Lord even though the yet unseen child was not how he had planned his future. Mary understood and accepted her role of giving birth to the Christ child. Even so, I can’t imagine her life being stress-free following the proclamation. They both relied on the Lord to show them moments of blessing in the midst of uncertainty. Zechariah and Elizabeth come to mind as a specific example of the Lord’s blessing and encouragement for them during that time.

Then they saw the unseen as the Magi showed up on their doorstep. However, the blessing of their infant son was soon overshadowed by a proclamation of death to all male children under two in the region of Bethlehem. Think of the distress they must have experienced when a law was passed that might affect their family and livelihood, though once again the Lord’s plan for our eternal salvation would not be thwarted. The recent visit from the Magi surely gave hope in despair when they needed it.

This Christmas look for the eternal in the midst of the temporary. The birth of Christ was and is the exact peace, joy and hope we need right now. The eternal plan began before creation and will be completed at the Son’s second coming. What an opportunity we have this Christmas to SEE the UNSEEN through the celebration of the Son’s birth - a celebration of peace, joy, hope and life. This is a great time to remember your salvation, Amen!

Your support of this ministry over the year has allowed us to SEE the UNSEEN more times than we can count. It is through your prayers and financial support that we are able to continue this vital Kingdom work year after year. Thank You! On behalf of all the Creation Truth Foundation staff, we wish you and your families a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

We look forward to be SHAKEN by the Lord next year!

November 2022 Printed Newsletter

Mon, 21 Nov 2022 23:44:18 GMT

Not Happy, but Thankful

ctf@creationtruth.com (Matt Miles) — Mon, 21 Nov 2022 23:21:49 GMT

This is the time of year we focus on thankfulness. We look forward to time spent with family, yet many of us may not be happy at the moment with the state of things: election results, health, inflation/the economy, etc. Even so, all of the problems that are causing our unhappiness should not impact our thankfulness of and to the Lord.

Remember, if we look to the history in Genesis there was an account that gives us hope this year. During that time the entire world was in chaos and shambles. Out of the violence and wickedness comes a beacon of righteousness, Noah. As the world was doomed to irreversible judgement, Noah sought the Lord for a way to save his family (Hebrews 11:7). When given instructions by the Lord to build the ark, he faithfully accomplished the task of the atonement cover for his family and all the animals the Lord brought to him. In the midst of the evil and judgement, I can’t imagine Noah was a happy man. Not for a moment should we accept that his salvation automatically equated to happiness. Yet, the situation did not affect Noah’s thankfulness. He was a thankful man for the Lord’s cover and control. Noah was obedient, and the Lord knew Noah’s heart was a thankful one. We see this in all the clean animals (Gen. 7:2) the Lord brought to the ark.

As the judgement of the flood came to an end, Noah and all with him left the ark. He showed his thankfulness by sacrificing some of the clean animals and birds. The Lord had made provision for Noah’s thankfulness before the flood by bringing the extra animals. He may not have been happy with the situation that he found himself in, but Noah knew why and to whom he should be thankful. This Thanksgiving, while we think there may be few things to make us happy about life, we still have much to be thankful for in our lives, similar to Noah. The Lord is more than worthy of our thanks! Blessings.

A Narrative of “Marvellous Truth”

Mon, 21 Nov 2022 23:21:46 GMT

A Narrative of “Marvellous Truth”

And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed. And this taxing was first made when Quirinius was governor of Syria. And all went to be taxed, ever one into his own city. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem… to be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child. And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger… His name was called Jesus
Luke 2:1-7, 21

William M. Ramsay (1851-1939) was a renown Scottish archaeologist. By the end of his life, he had been knighted for his distinguished scholarship, granted three honorary fellowships from Oxford colleges, awarded nine honorary doctorates from British and North American universities, and inducted as an honorary member into nearly every archaeological and historical research association. What allowed him to attain such a level of achievement? His willingness to follow evidence and truth to wherever they might lead.

At the beginning of his studies, he was skeptical of any allusions to historical and geographical accuracy regarding the Bible, educated in the belief that it was filled with errors. Despite this indoctrination, he wrote, “It did not lie then in my line of life to investigate the subject minutely; but more recently I found myself often brought in contact with the book of Acts as an authority for the topography, antiquities, and society of Asia Minor. It was gradually borne in upon me that in various details the narrative showed marvellous truth.”¹ ⁽"ᵐᵃʳᵛᵉˡˡᵒᵘˢ" ⁻ ᴿᵃᵐˢᵃʸ'ˢ ˢᵖᵉˡˡᶦⁿᵍ⁾

The Scriptures led him to fantastic archaeological discoveries that ultimately convinced him of the Bible’s divine inspiration, becoming one of the greatest defenders of the inerrancy of Scripture. Yet, the opponents of God still seek to find any possible mistake in the incredible history recorded by Luke, believing they have found such mistakes in Luke 2.

They claim Luke is in great error (and therefore the Bible is not the inspired Word of God) as there was no empire-wide tax at the time of Jesus’ birth and Quirinius was not governor until several years later. Are their claims true? The Bible says in II Timothy 3:16 that every word of the Bible is directly from the mouth of God, and Jesus said in Matthew 5:18 that the Bible is trustworthy down to the punctuation marks (every jot and tittle). However, Jesus never asked us to have blind faith, but to search and study, for He knows we will find the Bible to be the inerrant, inspired Word of God.²

In dealing with Luke 2, here is what we find regarding Luke’s accuracy:

The critics are right in that there was not an empire-wide tax. It was a census or registration, which is what Luke says.
The word used in Luke 2:1-3 is apographé – a registration or enrollment³
Hence, most modern translations now read “census”, “register”, or “enroll”.
The empire-wide census/registration/enrollment has been preserved in history.
It was an empire-wide registration of everyone’s oath of allegiance as part of the celebration when the Senate granted Augustus the title of Pater Patriae (“Father of the Fatherland”) for his 25th anniversary as emperor.⁴
The oath demanded of the province of Paphlagonia has been preserved: “I swear by Jupiter, earth, sun, by all the gods and goddesses, and by Augustus himself, that I will be loyal to Caesar Augustus and to his children and descendants all my life in word, in deed, and in thought…”⁵
Jewish historian Josephus recorded an incident regarding Caesar’s decree: “For there was a certain sect of men that were Jews… These are those that are called the sect of the Pharisees: who are in a capacity of greatly opposing Kings. A cunning sect they were; and soon elevated to a pitch of open fighting, and doing mischief. Accordingly when all the people of the Jews gave assurance of their good will to Caesar, and to the King’s government; these very men did not swear: being above six thousand. And when the King imposed a fine upon them, Pheroras’s wife paid their fine for them.”⁶
There are several competing arguments for Luke’s accuracy regarding Quirinius’s governorship.
Luke is filling a gap in recorded governorships of Syria.⁷
The decree and enrollment were at the time of Jesus’ birth, but the ensuing tax took place 7 or 8 years later when Quirinius was governor.⁸
Quirinius oversaw the census at Jesus’s birth, but wasn’t actually governor yet, like saying President George Washington fought in the Revolutionary War, even though he didn’t become President until after the war.⁹
Quirinius was granted a military governorship over Syria while fighting the Hasmonadensians at the same time Saturninus was governor, marking two governorships for Quirinius, the first being at the time of Jesus’ birth.¹⁰
Quirinius was the procurator while Varus was governor at the time of Jesus’ birth, making him closely connected to the office he would one day assume.¹¹
The proper translation of Luke 2:2 should read, “This census took place before the time when Quirinius was governor of Syria.” The Greek word translated “first” (prótos) can be translated “before”, as in John 1:15, 30.¹²

There are numerous, solid answers to the skeptics’ attacks. Luke, in all his history, has been validated. The Word of God, as always, stands true! Thus, Sir William Ramsay concluded, “The strange situation in which He was born was caused by an order of Augustus, a world-wide order expressing a vast force that moves through many centuries of history and always makes for slavery. The worse side of Imperial policy, as embodied in that order, drove Mary from Nazareth to Bethlehem. And what was the result? Only the fulfilment of the ancient truth and prophecy that in Bethlehem, the humble village which was the centre of old Hebrew tradition, there must be born, when the fulness of the time was come, the King of the Jews and the Saviour of the world.” ¹³

Ramsay, William M. St. Paul the Traveller and the Roman Citizen . G.P. Putnam’s Sons, NY: 1898, p. 8.
John 3:12, see also Proverbs 30:5, John 5:39, Acts 17:11, Romans 15:4, II Timothy 2:15, II Peter 1:21
Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance and Thayer’s Greek Lexicon #582 and #583.
Imperator Caesar Augustus, The Deeds of Divine Augustus , A.D. 14, #35.
Paulus Orosius, Historiae Adversus Paganos , A.D. 416-417, VI:22 & VII:2-3.
“pater patriae”, Encyclopedia Britannica , britannica.com, accessed 11/16/22.
Lewis, Naphtali and Meyer Reinhold. Roman Civilization, Vol. 2: The Empire . Harper & Row, NY: 1966, pp. 34-5.
Josephus, Titus Flavius. Antiquities of the Jews . A.D. 93-94, XVII.2.4.
Commentators Charles John Ellicott and B.W. Johnson’s position.
Commentators Joseph Benson, Robert Jamieson, Andrew Fausset, and David Brown’s position.
Commentators Albert Barnes and John Gill’s position.
Sir William Ramsay’s and commentators J.W. McGarvey, Philip Pendleton, and Paul T. Butler’s position.
Commentator R.C. Foster’s position.
Commentators Harold Hoehner, N.T. Wright, F.F. Bruce, Ben Witherington, and I. Howard Marshall’s position.
Ramsay, Sir W.M. The Bearing of Recent Discovery on the Trustworthiness of the New Testament . Hodder and Stoughton, NY: 1915, p. vi.

September/October 2022 Printed Newsletter

Sat, 08 Oct 2022 15:03:22 GMT

Believing in Feather Tales, part 3

Sat, 08 Oct 2022 14:55:16 GMT

Believing in Feather Tales, part 3

Last time in “Believing in Feather Tales”, the idea of dinosaurs being warm-blooded for the simple sake of them being related to birds found zero support in the fossil record.¹ This, however, has not deterred the feathered-dino proponents. Rather, they place all their faith in the belief that some dinosaurs had feathers, making them the evolutionary ancestors of modern birds.

Have there ever been any feathered dinosaurs discovered in the fossil record? NO. Despite this fact, we at Creation Truth Foundation encounter young people at pretty much every event who have been taught and now believe that dinosaurs had feathers, are related to birds, and the Biblical record of Genesis 1 is not true because of the belief in feathered dinosaurs.

Once such example was a young man at a VBS in Barnsdall, OK. He shared how he had learned of Nanuqsaurus , which was supposedly covered with a double layer of down to keep it warm in Alaska. I invited him to look with me as to what was actually discovered. Together we found that all the paleontologists had discovered were 3 pieces of a skull, and guess how many of them had any feathers or down – zero.² The young man had been told a lie, plain and simple. In fact, the sad reality is that many of the portrayed dinosaurs in media and museums are based on a single fossil, yet entire species are named from one bone for the sake of a paleontologist’s popularity.³

In 2016, a 3.6 cm piece of amber with a feathered tail was once trumpeted as a feathered dinosaur tail, but it has since been peer-reviewed and rarely if ever presented as evidence.⁴

In 2007, media outlets exploded with news that feather quill knobs had been discovered on a Velociraptor arm bone. Quill knobs (ulnar papillae) are strong anchor points on the ulna for the attachment of pennaceous flight feathers. Thus, quill knobs are found ONLY on the arms of FLYING birds. Two major problems arose with the announcement of the Velociraptor arm bumps as quill knobs:

1. The supposed quill knobs were on the outside of the arm, not on the end of the arm, which is how it is on all living birds with quill knobs.
2. Since quill knobs are found ONLY on FLYING birds, do paleontologists now believe Velociraptors could fly?

For the first problem, it is simply ignored. For the second problem, the feather believers say that Velociraptor inherited the quill knobs from an ancestor that used to fly, meaning Velociraptor was a flightless bird with quill knobs.⁵ Really?!?! For one, why have there never been any other flightless birds found with quill knobs? But secondly, how does this prove that birds are descendants of feathered dinosaurs?!?! This argument is the exact opposite of what they are trying to prove! Rather, many evolutionary and creation scientists believe the supposed knobs were points of tendon attachments, seen even on mammal bones. ⁶

Fossil specimens with preserved collagen (which cannot last millions of years, showing dinosaurs to have lived and died only thousands of years ago) have been revealed by several scientists to be integumentary fibers, not feathers, formed when the dinosaur was buried and began decomposing before the mud solidified and the animal was fossilized (during the Flood).⁷ In fact, if one is going to believe the preserved collagen remains are feathers, then one has to also believe that the collagen remains of lizards, turtles, snakes, crocodiles, dolphins, and mammoths are also feathers. ⁸

Additionally, the feather faithful are dealt a severe blow when it is understood that actual bird fossils are found deeper in rock layers than their supposed dinosaurian ancestors! For example, while Velociraptor ’s evolutionary dates are around 70-74 million years ago (upper Cretaceous), the bird Anchiornis ’s evolutionary dates are around 160 million years ago (upper Jurassic) and the bird Protoavis ’s dates are around 210 million years ago (upper Triassic).⁹ How then are theropod dinosaurs (like Velociraptor ) supposed to be the evolutionary ancestors to birds when birds with full flight capability are found buried in rock layers BELOW dinosaurs?

The science continues to declare that God’s Word is true, including Genesis 1 and its affirmative account that winged creatures were created by the Lord on the 5th day of history and dinosaurs were part of the land creatures created on day 6.

As Jesus said in John 17:17, “ Thy Word is truth .”

Another part of dinosaur anatomy that refutes endothermy (warm-bloodedness) are the supratemporal fenestrae (holes) on the tops of their heads. These fenestrae have been shown to regulate reptiles’ temperatures due to their ectothermy (cold-bloodedness). See: The Anatomical Record July 1, 2019 article “The Frontoparietal Fossa and Dorsotemporal Fenestra of Archosaurs and Their Significance for interpretations of Vascular and Muscular Anatomy in Dinosaurs”, <https://doi.org/10.1002/ar.24218>.
Anthony R. Fiorillo and Ronald S. Tykoski, “A Diminutive New Tyrannosaur from the Top of the World”, PLoS One , 12 March 2014; 9(3): e912887, <10.1371/journal.pone.0091287>.
0.0025% of the fossil record is comprised of vertebrates with more than one bone. See: Dr. Andrew A. Snelling, “Where Are All the Human Fossils?”, Creation 14, no 1 (Dec. 1991): 28-33.
Dr. Frank Sherwin, “Another Feathered Dinosaur Tale”, 10 September 2016, <https://www.icr.org/article/another-feathered-dinosaur-tale>.
Calvin Smith, “Feathered forerunner or flight of fancy?”, 14 January 2017, < https://creation.com/feathered-forerunner-or-flight-of-fancy>.
“…ulnar papillar reduction or absence in large-bodied derived dromaeosaurids reflects loss of aerodynamic capabilities from the clade’s ancestral members.” – Alan Turner, et. al., “Feather Quill Knobs in the Dinosaur Velociraptor ”, Science , 21 Sep. 2007, Vol. 317, No. 5845, p. 1721.
“…animals sometimes have weird, irregularly spaced tubercles arranged in lines on various of their bones, typically located on intermuscular lines (they presumably represent partially ossified attachment sites for tendinous sheets or similar structures): I’ve seen them on mammal bones and on a theropod tibia…”. - Dr. Darren Naish, “ Concavenator : an incredible allosaurid with a weird sail (or hump)… and proto feathers”, scienceblogs.com, 9 September 2010, <http://scienceblogs.com/tetrapodzoology/2010/09/09/concavenator-incredible-allosauroid/>.
See also: Foth & Rauhut, The Evolution of Feathers (Springer, 2020).
Feduccia, Lingham-Soliar, & Hinchliffe (2005), “Do Feathered Dinosaurs Exist?”, Journal of Morphology 266(2):125-166.
Dr. Alan Feduccia, Romancing the Birds and Dinosaurs, Brown Walker Press, Irvine, CA, 2020, pp. 182-7.
Fossil Wiki and Natural History Museum in London

Glory from the Webb

Sat, 08 Oct 2022 13:21:04 GMT

I can think of no greater example of SEEING the UNSEEN than having the ability to see further into the heavens. The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is the world’s newest tool to observe the heavens, albeit created to show evidence of the Big Bang in what they hoped would be an overwhelming way. As you may know, it was launched December 25, 2021 and went online revealing its first images July 11th. From the very first image, we see the Lord’s heavens declared in a new and glorious way. Those images also show greater detail than ever before, including that of distant objects.

The now famous Deep Field image from Hubble was the first area imaged by the JWST. The galaxies revealed are in much greater detail than in previous images. JWST not only takes beautiful shots, but they are acquired at a much faster rate than Hubble. What used to take Hubble days or weeks to capture now takes only hours for the JWST. As with any secular group, all research is and will be filtered through an evolutionary worldview first and then is often followed by shock, perplexed minds and more questions than answers. This is true again as from the first image on, the observations and data are causing distress in some that the evolution story of the early universe might be wrong. Allison Kirkpatrick, an astronomer from the University of Kansas, states in a July 27th Nature article, "Right now I find myself lying awake at three in the morning and wondering if everything I’ve done is wrong. ”¹ This does not mean she, or any other Big Bang disciples, are giving up their faith in a naturalistic origin of the universe. Many evolutionists are upset that the first reports make it sound as though they are giving up on the Big Bang. They have been adamant that those reports have painted a false picture. Even so, it is obvious there is some concern by the Big Bang disciples over visual data that they cannot easily explain.

As I have anticipated for the last several months, the JWST has the potential to turn the Big Bang on its head. I have no doubt it will continue to support the special creation of our universe a few thousand years ago, with no need for our worldview to be in jeopardy. Stay strong in your faith as the evidence always points to the majesty of our Creator. Blessings.

1. Witze, A. (2022). Four revelations from the Webb Telescope About Distant Galaxies. Nature , 608(7921), 18–19. https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-022-02056-5

July 2022 Printed Newsletter

Fri, 22 Jul 2022 18:37:09 GMT

Believing in Feather Tales, part 2

Fri, 22 Jul 2022 18:28:52 GMT

Believing in Feather Tales, part 2

Previously in “Believing in Feather Tales”, we examined the history of evolutionists attempting to persuade the public that certain dinosaurs evolved into modern-day birds. What is most revealing is their inability to convince some of their fellow evolutionists. It seems that even though media, museums, and movies are increasing their promotion of feathered dinosaurs, there are more and more evolutionary scientists who are rejecting it. For further information on this matter, consult Romancing the Birds and Dinosaurs by evolutionary scientist Dr. Alan Feduccia.¹

From the scientific realm, several problems arise. For one, dinosaurs are considered to be reptiles (cold-blooded, scaly animals), vastly different from birds (warm-blooded, feathery animals). To combat this glaring problem, evolutionists redefine reptiles. Reflecting the popular notions of the day, Wikipedia states under the article “Reptile”: “…crocodilians are more closely related to birds than they are to other living reptiles… modern cladistic classification systems include birds within Reptilia”.² Apparently when one sees a crocodile, one is not to think “lizard” but rather “penguin” because it’s more like a feathered-bird in water than a scaly-reptile on land (a facepalm would be appropriate here). Reciprocally, the Wikipedia article “Bird” states: “Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves… Birds are feathered theropod dinosaurs and constitute the only known living dinosaurs… birds are considered reptiles in the modern cladistic sense”.³

O, what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive!⁴
Marmion, XVII : 533-4

Look at the mess in which evolutionists have entangled themselves in desperate hopes of legitimizing their beliefs. In order to say birds are living dinosaurs, they classify living birds as “avian dinosaurs” and classify extinct dinosaurs as “non-avian dinosaurs.” Have you ever read anywhere else in biology or zoology an animal classified by what it is not? Saying “non-avian dinosaurs” is like saying “non-mammalian salamanders” or “non-reptilian cows.” This is just sad.

Additionally, because birds are warm-blooded, in their minds dinosaurs must also have been warm-blooded. If true, they would be the only reptiles to be so, which would cause a host of problems. For one, because of increased metabolism caused by warm-bloodedness, the bigger a dinosaur got, the more food it would require. African elephants weigh 8,000 to 16,000 pounds, eating 300 to 600 pounds of food per day.⁵ If the sauropod Dreadnoughtus was warm-blooded and required the same portions as an elephant, then the 108,000-pound dinosaur would need over 4,000 pounds of food per day. To solve this problem, evolutionists say some dinosaurs were cold-blooded (the ones needing too much food) while others were warm-blooded (the ones they need to turn into birds).

Secondly, their anatomy does not support warm-bloodedness. 99% of warm-blooded creatures (mammals, birds, and even humans) have respiratory turbinates in their noses. They serve to warm, humidify, and filter air; they also prevent dehydration due to internal temperatures heating up the air within the lungs. Reptiles do not have respiratory turbinates because they are cold-blooded. Guess what has never been found in any dinosaurs – respiratory turbinates! They had olfactory turbinates that greatly increased their sense of smell, but no respiratory turbinates as required for warm-bloodedness.⁶ Rather, soft-tissue discoveries in dinosaurs (which should not be there if they are millions of years old) have revealed anatomy the exact opposite of birds with a diaphragm-assisted, lung ventilation system similar to modern crocodiles, meaning “the crocodilian-style lung system and the lack of respiratory turbinates indicate that these dinosaurs routinely maintained ectotherm-like [cold-blooded] resting metabolic rates.”⁷

It may be true that dinosaurs were more active than reptiles today, but this may have been the case for all reptiles before the Flood. Research suggests that the pre-Flood world would have been warm and tropical with greater oxygen and CO2 levels, ideal for reptiles to thrive with much greater activity.⁸ Feathers would have greatly hindered dinosaurs, over-heating them in such environments. So, were there ever any dinosaurs with feathers? Have dinosaur fossils been found with feathers as we so often hear?

To be continued…

1. Feduccia, Alan. Romancing the Birds and Dinosaurs: Forays in Postmodern Paleontology . Brown Walker Press, 2020.
2. “Reptile”, Wikipedia the Free Encyclopedia , ed. 5 July 2022, Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., accessed 8 July 2022, <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reptile>.
3. “Bird”, Wikipedia the Free Encyclopedia , ed. 8 July 2022, Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., accessed 8 July 2022, <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bird>.
4. Scott, Sir Walter. Marmion: A Tale of Flodden Field . Archibald Constable, Edinburgh, 1808.
5. “Facts about Elephants”, 14 September 2019, Elephant-World, accessed 8 July 2022, <https://www.elephant-world.com/facts-about-elephants/>.
6. Hillenius, Willem J. “Dinosaur Physiology: Were Dinosaurs Warm-blooded?”, College of Charleston , SC, January 2006, doi: 10.1038/npg.els.0003323.
Ruben, J.A., T.D. Jones, N.R. Geist, et al. (1996) Bioessays 20:852-9.
7. Clarey, Dr. Tim. Dinosaurs: Marvels of God’s Design . Master Books. Green Forest, AR. 2018, p. 123.
8. Brussel, Vrije U. “Dinosaurs lived in greenhouse climate with hot summers”, 10 June 2021, Phys.org, accessed 8 July 2022, <https://phys.org/news/2021-06-dinosaurs-greenhouse-climate-hot-summers.html>.
Clarey, Tim, Brian Thomas. Guide to Dinosaurs . Institute for Creation Research, Dallas, 2019, pp. 16-7.

Cosmic Compromise

ctf@creationtruth.com (Matt Miles) — Fri, 22 Jul 2022 18:28:13 GMT

The amazing and beautiful account of creation in Genesis 1 answers the questions of origins. Details written about each of the first six days demonstrate order, design and purpose. There is an ongoing desire by many to not allow the simple reading of the text to trump all other documents on the subject of origins. One such compromise position comes from Wheaton College Old Testament professor, John Walton.

Walton believes our understanding of Genesis 1 should be one of “functional origins”, not material origins. He argues that we must read Genesis in light of other ancient Near East literature and continually reminds readers to reference it for insights to how God’s people would have understood Him. When read in this manner with this comparison, Genesis poetically reveals how God moves into His “cosmic temple,” the universe, emphasizing how God interacts with His creation as opposed to how He actually created it.

To say the least, this interpretation does not answer why the rest of scripture refers to Genesis 1 as a historical record and not a poetic allegory about what might have happened. Or why there is no reference anywhere in God’s Word that we should refer to other outside texts for more insight into what He needs us to know about Him. Walton’s interpretation smacks of Documentary Hypothesis underpinnings that question the very inerrancy of scripture and push its origin off to the influence of other cultures. It places a greater significance on outside sources that supposedly preceded the Scriptural texts for our understanding of God’s Word rather than on the author Himself. These are always compromising positions that we should be extremely cautious entertaining.

Our desire and focus here at CTF will always be to show the trustworthiness of Scripture on its own, breathed out by the Author and Perfecter of our faith. Yes, we use outside resources at times to help us support what the text is teaching us, but those outside sources will never trump the Word of God. That the Bible is the great influencer of all , rather than it being affected by others, is of foundational importance in worldview development. If we cannot trust what the Lord gave to us in His revelation, then how do we know which of His promises are trustworthy? It’s all or nothing to me. We accept the Word of God as it is written, or we don’t. No other literature in the world was written with the same inspiration as the Bible, and much of it has been written in an attempt to explain the origins of the world without our Creator and Savior, Jesus Christ.

May/June 2022 Printed Newsletter

Thu, 02 Jun 2022 20:46:12 GMT

Believing in Feather Tales, part 1

Thu, 02 Jun 2022 18:13:55 GMT

Believing in Feather Tales, part 1

A feather tale has been told for several decades, but has now reached the silver screen in the final installment of the Jurassic Park / Jurassic World series. The preview for upcoming feathered attractions was released in 1861 with the discovery and promotion of the London Specimen of Archaeopteryx , an extinct bird. Thomas Huxley and others jumped at the opportunity to declare a “missing link” between birds and reptiles, supporting Charles Darwin’s recently published On the Origin of Species (1859). Though it has since been refuted and removed from evolutionary repertoires as a missing link, Huxley got the narrative going of birds being the evolutionary descendants of certain dinosaurs.

The grand premiere came in the 1970s through the influence of Yale professor and paleontologist Dr. John Ostrom. He developed his ideas of dinosaurs being warm-blooded and evolving into birds in the 1960s and taught them to his doctoral student Robert Bakker, who would go on to publish the controversial and very influential “Dinosaur Renaissance” paper in the April 1975 issue of Scientific American . Theirs and the efforts of others greatly popularized the dino-to-bird evolution narrative in the paleontological community.

However, the blockbuster event that most affected the culture was the 1993 release of Jurassic Park . The fictional character Dr. Alan Grant shares in the movie his theory of dinosaurs evolving into birds. His character was based upon renowned paleontologist Jack Horner, who revealed in the behind-the-scenes features his desire to eliminate the reptilian stereotype of dinosaurs, encouraging people to see them instead as birds. Both Horner and Bakker served as advisors to Jurassic Park .

And finally, in 2022, to their and many others’ elation, the grand conclusion to the 6-movie saga, Jurassic World Dominion , displays the culmination of their efforts with the franchise premiere of a fully-feathered dinosaur named Pyroraptor . Tragically, throughout our travels we have seen more and more young people come to believe that dinosaurs were feathered, warm-blooded relatives of birds, convincing them that evolution is true and the Bible is false. THIS IS WHY WE DO WHAT WE DO , travelling the country with our dinosaur fossil collection. Yes, it is cumbersome and time-consuming to haul in and set up dinosaurs, but it is absolutely worth it to have the opportunity to refute the dino-to-bird nonsense and share the incredible, undeniable reliability and accuracy of God’s Word. Our prayer in doing so is the ultimate reason – salvation found in Jesus Christ!

The scientific evidence for the dino-to-bird feather tale is severely lacking. As with many blockbusters, there are sequels, and we shall follow that pattern with this study. Exploring the evidence for feathers, warm or cold-bloodedness, and other anatomical comparisons, we will see how the historical record of God’s Word has and always will stand firm.

Children are Precious

ctf@creationtruth.com (Matt Miles) — Thu, 02 Jun 2022 18:07:08 GMT

At this time of year most of us are impacted by some sort of graduation. Our children are so precious to us, and we understand the gift they are from the Lord. They have been created for a purpose with His plan. Yet in the world around us, we see heartbreak after heartbreak of children being hurt through kidnapping, abuse, manipulation, and even death. This heartbreak is amplified because we know the innocence of a child and the potential available for each of them. Our Creator’s image is emblazoned in each of us in the womb as Psalm 139 proclaims, whether we acknowledge it or not.

In the wake of another school shooting where innocent lives were taken, we are in great heartbreak for those children and their families. Each moment the news recounts stats and backgrounds of those killed adds another pain. There will be fingers pointed here and there as to the cause. Each and every time this tragedy happens, there is only one thing to blame - our lost and sinful world. Rightfully, there should be outrage over lives taken. Let us never be so calloused to the evil in sin that we become okay with it.

We have an ongoing daily massacre of children that a lot of people don’t give a second thought about, ever. The continued death of aborted children should evoke the same heartbreak and outrage, but it doesn’t seem to. Many professing Christians somehow justify this innocent bloodshed as a woman’s reasonable and responsible choice for her health. Yet in many states when an unborn child is killed, outside of an abortion, the one responsible is written up on manslaughter or murder charges. Why the dichotomy? We are heartbroken and outraged with a demand for justice of the aborted innocent as well. I have been praying in earnest for Roe v. Wade to be overturned, not because it will end abortion or the evil/sin involved, but that people will fight for the innocent life that we understand is stamped with our Creator’s image. At the forefront of the battle should always be those that understand Whose image every single person is made through and sustained by, Jesus Christ.

Evil is active, and there has never been a moment in history without it since the Garden. We may feel like things are good most of the time, yet under that good is the potential for evil. Only Jesus is the answer! No, sin doesn’t cease with Jesus in the picture, but restoration, repentance, forgiveness, and reconciliation happen instead of death. SEEING THE UNSEEN hope of eternity is what drives those of us who are sold out to our Savior. This love and eternal purpose gives us optimism for our children, knowing that this dark world is not all there is. In the midst of heartbreak and sorrow over innocent lives taken, proclaim where the light is. Keep fighting for eternity and not just the here and now. Blessings.

A Word of Thanksgiving

Thu, 02 Jun 2022 18:06:20 GMT

     I am considering the scripture in Philippians 1:3-6, "I thank my God upon every remembrance of you. Always in every prayer of mine for you all making requests with joy, For your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now; Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ".

     I want to express my thankfulness to the Creation Truth Foundation staff because they have faithfully and effectively continued to carry the torch for CTF since my retirement. Matt and Theresa Miles, Bob and Michelle Dugas, and Ryan and Amanda Cox have been exceptionally faithful! And Diane and I are very appreciative of this fact! They assumed the leadership of CTF and have punctually supported us financially and spiritually since my retirement.

     We also want to thank all the CTF donors that have faithfully supported this ministry for over thirty years. We could not have taken this journey without our wonderful partners (thank you so very much!). I felt like it was time to let everyone know how thankful we are that the work of Creation Truth is in good and faithful hands.

     Wow! Where did the time go? But thirty years goes by in a heartbeat when you are enjoying your work, and the CTF Staff has greatly facilitated this transition in a splendid fashion! In a word, they have made a potentially serious and difficult transition very easy! PTL!

     Just a word of thanksgiving to all of the many CTF Partners that have been so incredibly faithful. As Paul told the church in Philippi, my memory of your many calls, letters, and instances of financial help over the years are phenomenal. I am reminded of the old hymn that I have sung many times that says, “When I think of the goodness of Jesus, and what he has done for me, my soul cries out, ‘Hallelujah!’” To God is the glory!

     I have declined having triple bypass surgery at this time, but I am feeling good. Seeing that I will be 80 in July, we are going to trust God because we are in good hands. You will be in my prayers often.

Yours in Christ,

G. Thomas Sharp

Nothing Woke Under the Sun

Wed, 20 Apr 2022 21:10:51 GMT

Nothing Woke Under the Sun

What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.
Ecclesiastes 1:9

Woke: “aware of and actively attentive” – Merriam-Webster.com

Woke: “having or marked by an active awareness” – Dictionary.com

Many in the culture feel that they’ve been awakened (i.e., “woke”) to an awareness of new truths that will change the world. Unfortunately for their feelings of great revelation, nothing of their newfound insights is anything new under the sun.

For instance, the term “woke” is nothing new. It can be traced back to a 1938 song by folk singer Huddie Ledbetter. It was then somewhat popularized by a 1962 New York Times Magazine article “If You’re Woke You Dig It” by novelist William Kelley. Around the turn of the century, the term applied to being aware of potential infidelity, and now exists in the vernacular with its current connotations.

In Nov. 1791, the Assembly gave the remaining clergy 8 days to comply or face conspiracy charges. King Louis vetoed the decree. In April 1792 as French armies were attacking Austrian and Prussian forces, the Assembly again threatened the clergy to swear an oath or be deported. King Louis again vetoed their decree. In August, the Assembly voted to “temporarily relieve the king”. The French First Republic replaced the monarchy in September, and King Louis was placed on trial. On Jan. 17, 1793, the Assembly condemned Louis to death for “conspiracy against public liberty and general safety”, and executed him on Jan. 21. The Committee of Public Safety became the reigning power, which led to the “Reign of Terror”, seeking the elimination of counterrevolutionaries, resulting in over 16,600 executions by July 1794. Again, all of this was done for “public safety”.

While CTF does not condone Catholic church polity nor hold to several of Catholicism’s tenets (especially its acceptance of evolution),² we do want to sound the alarm for Christians throughout the world, including America. Cultures, governments, etc. can quickly turn on us. For a frightening example, consider the treatment of minister Artur Pawlowski in Canada.³

Therefore, have you resolved in your heart, in your family, in your church to “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you” (Deut. 31:6)?

1. Henry Samuel, “Exclusive: Notre-Dame interior faces woke ‘Disney’ revamp”, The Telegraph , 26 November 2021, <https://www.telegraph.co.u/worldnews/2021/11/26/notre-dame-

risks-becoming-woke-disneyland-controversial-renovation/>, accessed 14 April 2022.

2. Consult: <https://www.catholicbridge.com/catholic/catholic-creationism.php> or <https://catholicexchange.com/brief-exploration-catholic-position-evolution/>

3. DailyMail.com , “Pastor jailed for speaking to Canadian Freedom Convoy says he was kept in cage, made to sleep on a concrete floor, deprived of his Bible and repeatedly strip-

searched”, 10 April 2022, <https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10704959/Pastor-jailed-speaking-Canadian-Freedom- Convoy-says-sleep-concrete-floor.html>.

DailyWire.com , “Canadian Pastor Who Faces 4-Year Jail Sentence For ‘Inciting’ Church Warns Americans: ‘The Enemy Is Not Hiding Anymore’”, 23 August 2021,

<https://www.dailywire.com/news/canadian-pastor-who-faces-4-year-jail-sentence-for-inciting-church-warns-americans-the-enemy-is-not-hiding-anymore>, accessed 14 April

2022.

UNSEEN Battle

Wed, 20 Apr 2022 21:04:57 GMT

Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. - Ephesians 6:11

Spiritual warfare wages all around us for our souls. We see clear evidence of the battle in obvious ways: violent crimes, pornography, tyrannical dictatorships, terrorism, and abortion, to name a few. Yet if we pay attention and look closer, just under the obvious is the subtle: evolutionary belief, devaluing of marriage, identity confusion, and wokeism. As subtle as many attacks may be, they are most dangerous because they are slowly “snuck” into our daily lives on fronts that we are not expecting and may not be fortified against, or on fronts where we have been lulled into complacency with reasonable sounding arguments that are not Biblical.

One such example might be the subtle attack on our children’s education. Over the last 20+ years there has been a subtle erosion of parents’ rights - God ordained rights. A parental awakening might be on the horizon as the subtle becomes less so before our very eyes. For example, in the state of Massachusetts private schools must have public school board approval to exist. I don’t know the history of that requirement, yet I assume it was established with good intentions, as most liberty-stripping requirements are. Late last year, a church in that state, Vida Real Church, had desired to open a new Christian school. Their desire, as with most Christian schools, was to help parents educate their children in a Biblical manner and worldview. The Somerville Public School Committee, who was over them, denied their application on the grounds it “does not meet the criteria” for approval. Evidently the school’s Biblical beliefs on sexuality and evolution were a couple of points that failed to meet their criteria. One committee member even allegedly stated on denying the application because of these beliefs was the “morally right thing to do.” So, a church made up of like-minded parents whose desire is to educate their children in a godly manner were denied that right by the state. The last I checked, there is still a standing and often proclaimed separation of church and state, especially when it comes to education. But once again that separation has been taken to mean the church can’t influence the state and not the other way around. We must wake up and take a closer look at what and who is educating our children.

The spiritual battle that has been waging unseen for many years should concern us. We must open our eyes and ears to all that is going on around us in this “Christian nation”. The proverbial frog that is being boiled is us, God-fearing Bible believers. We must seek the Lord for open eyes to every battle that has eternal consequences, so we may SEE THE UNSEEN. Thankfully, to God be the glory, many states are beginning to wake up over these various subtle attacks and are countering them. It is up to us Truth Believers, through the power and wisdom of Jesus Christ, to continue to expose the sneak attacks of the Enemy as we protect our families and His Church. Blessings.

April 2022 Printed Newsletter

Wed, 20 Apr 2022 20:50:13 GMT

March 2022 Printed Newsletter

Tue, 22 Mar 2022 22:48:05 GMT

Our American Duty

Tue, 22 Mar 2022 21:00:54 GMT

Our American Duty

It has been relayed to me that it was wrong/sinful when the American colonies declared independence from Great Britain, violating Romans 13 in the act of rebellion against the king. The volumes composed relating and analyzing the events surrounding the American Revolution could fill multiple libraries, and I feel as though I have hardly read one shelf of them. However, I can tell you that having studied and taught on the Revolution since 2005, everything I have learned from both secular and Christian historians has done nothing but convince me that the above sentiment of the Revolution is a faulty understanding of the fight for freedom.

One must understand that the growing sentiment of colonists throughout the 17th and 18th centuries was one of proud, yet independent Englishmen. They had great pride in their British citizenship, belonging to one of the largest global empires the world had seen. They were also quite proud of the seemingly independent, self-sustaining accomplishments of their colonies. As proud British citizens, they championed their English heritage and unquestionably unique standing in the world as theirs was a history of overcoming tyranny and guaranteeing rights.

Here is the special, unique circumstance in which America found itself at its founding:
1. It was a government of, by, and for the people based on God’s Law – incredible!
2. The citizens are charged by the ones who developed and established the government that if the government ever wavers from its proper function and authority and infringes upon the God-given, Constitutionally-protected rights of the citizenry, then it is our solemn duty to refuse and reject such government and replace it with those who will adhere to God’s Word and the Constitution [preferably through peaceful elections].

That is the entire purpose of the Constitution – to protect the people from the government! If it doesn’t do that, we are charged by our founding document, passed unanimously by our founding fathers, to NOT comply, but to resist and replace. It says, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. – That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed , – That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it , and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness… But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty , to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security .”³

There have always been those who oppose liberty, preferring an elite, ruling class with lower classes subservient and dependent upon them. It is the DUTY of every American citizen to stop and prevent the government’s abuse of people and any efforts to infringe upon their rights. We are to take care of our fellow citizens, even if they look or believe differently from us (Luke 10:25-37).

And it is, has always been, and ever shall be CHRISTIANS who stand up for this, not those who are Christians in name only, but those who are Bible-based, founded solidly on the Word of God, who fight this treatment of their fellow brother and sister of humanity in the name of the King of kings – Jesus Christ our Lord.⁴

1. Pages 1-11: <https://archive.org/details/wsb1f2_images>.

2. For further reading on ministers’ influence on the Revolution, consult chapters 5-8 of The American Story , available at creationtruth.com/store

3. Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776: <https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/declaration-transcript>.

4. Consult preacher Peter Powers’s sermon, Jesus Christ the True King and Head of Government , presented to the General Assembly of Vermont, March 17, 1778: <https://quod.lib.umich.edu/e/evans/N12679.0001.001/1:1?rgn=div1;view=toc>.

Saved by the Creator

ctf@creationtruth.com (Matt Miles) — Fri, 18 Mar 2022 19:54:14 GMT

“Genesis 1:26 saved my life.”

That statement got my attention. Never before after teaching on the importance of a Biblical Worldview had those words been uttered to me. When the gentleman walked up, he seemed familiar to me, that I might have met him before. He proceeded to share his struggles over the years following coming home from war. We have all heard of struggles that our veterans often return home with, but it is not a common topic in my circle of influence.

As this man related all the struggles that even included contemplation of suicide, he looked at me and recounted that at the last low moment the Lord spoke to him. For him it was an audible voice that shared several things. But one of the things he heard that day was Genesis 1:26. For him, hearing his Creator share that he was created was life-changing. To the praise of our Lord and Savior, this man has turned things around. His life and family are better than before.

I share this to say, on my way home from the program I remembered why he had looked familiar to me. Years ago when I was at this church there had been a very emotional and disheveled man that approached me and asked for prayer. I am almost 100% certain that he was the man I had just met with a praise for his Creator. If my memory serves me correctly, the accounts were the same, but now with praise-worthy grace and deliverance. By no means do I believe that I was the only one to send prayers up on behalf of this man in his time of need, but it was very impactful to know the outcome of an offered prayer and listening ear.

There have been innumerable times in this ministry that we have the opportunity to pray with someone and never hear an outcome. To experience the impactful nature of the Lord’s creatorship firsthand and seeing the hope that truth bestowed in a man’s life is more than just praiseworthy, but an awe-inspiring moment to SEE THE UNSEEN. The Lord reinforced in me that day CTF’s calling and message is life-changing. Thank you for your prayers and support of this ministry as we continue to share truth and hope.

Blessings.

January/February Printed Newsletter

Thu, 17 Feb 2022 22:51:19 GMT

NEW FOSSIL – Behemoth Coprolite!

ryan@creationtruth.com (Ryan Cox) — Mon, 14 Feb 2022 20:39:24 GMT

NEW FOSSIL – Behemoth Coprolite!

1. For a detailed analysis of comparing Job 40’s details of behemoth with sauropod anatomy, consult Genesis Apologetics’s article at https://genesisapologetics.com/faqs/behemoth-a-sauropod-dinosaur/#_edn11

2. Prasad, et. al. “Dinosaur Coprolites and the Early Evolution of Grasses and Grazers”, Science , Vol. 310, No. 5751, 18 November 2005, pp. 1177-1180.

The Gift of His Word

Mon, 14 Feb 2022 17:52:54 GMT

     If the reader has not had the privilege to read after Dr. E.W. Bullinger, they must as soon as it is convenient! They should get a copy of his commentary on Hebrews, his work on The Two Natures in the Child of God , or one of his other volumes (they are all priceless) and spend a profitable afternoon bathing in his ineffable wisdom.

     Bullinger begins chapter one in The Two Natures by quoting John 3:6, “That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit” , and immediately follows with this challenge: he tells us that there is an abundance of negative remarks said today about the ultimate authority of the New Testament, a reflection of the modern conflict between evolutionary and biblical worldviews.

     I say to you that the critical attacks of the evolutionists are an exercise in futility. After all, Jesus Christ is the Creator of all things, He is eternal, immutable and the epitome of truth, and because He is, He is above their perceived errors! Anything Jesus did or said was perfect and above any legitimate criticism. This is true, principally because Jesus is the incarnate God and Creator of the universe.

     Men say these things, not because they desire a closer walk with the Lord Jesus, but because they wish to lower the authority of the teaching of the Apostle Paul (and other Biblical authors), and to effectively rid theology of these influences! As for a vis-á-vis confrontation with Jesus, or Paul, or Peter, they will have none of it! From this exposure they turned their back and showed incredible disinterest. This same attitude was expressed in John 6:65-66, “And He said, ‘…that no man can come to Me, except it were given unto him of My Father.’ From that time many of His disciples went back, and walked no more with Him.”

     Jesus made it incredibly clear that no man could come to Him unless it is given to them by the Father! The Apostle Peter acknowledged this clarity within the battle of the two natures when Jesus asked them in John 6:67-69, “‘Will you also go away?’ Then Simon Peter answered Him, ‘Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life . And we believe and are sure that you are that Christ, the Son of the living God.’”

G. Thomas Sharp

Start Seeing the Unseen

ctf@creationtruth.com (Matt Miles) — Mon, 14 Feb 2022 17:09:23 GMT

2022 - SEEING the UNSEEN

In years past, the start of the year was not only new and exciting but usually slow, from a ministry standpoint. This year has been anything but slow from the beginning. The Lord has us off and running, teaching His Word out and in. It is very encouraging to see the direction we are moving for the year as we focus on SEEING the UNSEEN.

We have already had two trips going out to preach and teach, starting our year off with people having their lives changed through His Word. The theme of SEEING the UNSEEN is strongly resonating in this seemingly hopeless world. As we allow the Lord to impact our lives, our focus shifts to Him, His will and knowing He is in control, and then hope follows close behind in assurance of our eternal promises.

Our Sharp Institute for Biblical Worldview Studies Cadre program is off to a great start as well this year. We have a new class, the 19th Cadre, with an almost full roster. Once again we are seeing great desire to study the Word from these men and women who are ready to share what they learn with those around them. The 18th Cadre, which started last year, just completed their 3rd meeting. We are greatly encouraged by their continued hunger and enthusiasm for truth. Their Biblical knowledge and impact where they live is being seen with each passing meeting. They are a true blessing to our ministry. We at CTF are SEEING the UNSEEN through His work in their lives as well.

We have also been blessed with the ability to accomplish several “punch-list” items through an overwhelming 2021Year-end Giving Campaign. Our goal of $10,000 to be matched was smashed, and we ended up with gifts totaling $24,935. Our desire to do much needed maintenance on our trucks, trailers, and office is being accomplished much sooner than anticipated, praise the Lord! We also were able to replace our badly aging conference room chairs so we no longer have to be concerned about the chairs “shedding” on whoever may sit in them or busting if you lean the wrong direction. There are a few other “wants” that just might be moved to the “accomplished” stack this year because of this great blessing. The Lord is always so faithful through all of you that continue to support this ministry. Thank you!

So, as you can SEE, we are off to an outstanding start in 2022. As so many of you are UNSEEN by us on a regular basis, please know that you are SEEN through the blessings the Lord bestows on us. Please continue to lift us up in prayer this year for His favor and mission. 2 Corinthians 4:18 is clear on where each one of us should be focused. We are driven to help people SEE the UNSEEN work of our Creator and Savior, Jesus Christ. Blessings!

December 2021 Printed Newsletter

Mon, 13 Dec 2021 22:26:51 GMT

Looking To The Lamb

ctf@creationtruth.com (Matt Miles) — Thu, 09 Dec 2021 20:29:51 GMT

The shepherds were going about their routine, daily life when in a moment everything changed. That first Christmas night, while they were LOOKING UP in terrified awe, the angel shared “good news of great joy”. Those shepherds would find a baby lying in a manger, but it wouldn’t be just any baby - it was Christ the Lord! Then, while continuing to LOOK UP, a great company of angels praised God by giving Him the highest glory and expressing peace to all people, whom He favors above all. The shepherds’ response was to go seek out the Lord Jesus Christ.

Christ the Lord was born as a helpless human baby, just as His very image-bearers are. While that is what we are getting ready to celebrate, so many other things draw our attention at this time of year. But in reality, the challenge given all year long to keep LOOKING UP at Jesus is more important than ever. As the world around us is still in strife and hopelessness, we have been given the best news of all - our Creator favored us enough to come and save us in the midst of the mess. Don’t allow the enemy to steal that salvation and hope from a world that needs it as much now as ever before. Over and over again this year we had the opportunity to share that very message all over this great country. We praise our Lord for the increase this year, especially when at the beginning it looked uncertain.

Our time before His return is shortened each and every second of passing time. We look forward to being in His presence at any moment with those heavenly hosts from that first Christmas night, praising our Creator and Savior in glorious accord: “Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God Almighty.” All of these things are unseen for now, just as the Christ was to those shepherds until that night.

In 2022 our challenge is to focus on the UNSEEN hope and assurance of eternity. The apostle Paul reminds us of this truth in 2 Corinthians 4:18. He also reminds us that the “seen” despair, fear, and troubles are temporary. Keep looking at the UNSEEN this Christmas season and into the new year. Blessings!

“while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.” - 2 Corinthians 4:18

Thankfulness to God

Mon, 22 Nov 2021 16:23:36 GMT

Thankfulness to God taken from Nov. 3, 2016 post

During Thanksgiving week, I began contemplating areas of my life and experience for which I am deeply thankful to God. I have identified dominant spheres in my life that fall into this category, and I want to share them with you, and especially thank God for them.

First and foremost, and the one reality without which, I could never hope to please God, is the continuous presence, the power and potential of the crimson stream of holy blood that Christ vicariously spilled at the cross. It speaks better things than the blood of Abel! It paid the horrible price for my salvation. It provides a sacred influence that colors all my fleshly attempts to serve the Lord Jesus Christ. It sustains me when I am without strength or resolve to remain engaged or to finish a formidable task. It undergirds all my frail efforts to achieve holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord.

These divine intrusions have poignantly formed a particular edge in my point of view. And it is because of these seasoned realities that I love to bask in the effulgent glow reflected from many of the old hymns. Songs like “There’s Power in the Blood,” or “I See a Crimson Stream of Blood,” or “There is a Fountain Filled with Blood,” and there are others, all of them causing me pause and a time of sacred rejoicing in the sacrificial provision that our Lord made for us all. None of this is available on “Black Friday”; it cannot be bought or sold!

The next most significant reality in my life is the comfort and spiritual counsel that I receive from my sweet wife, Diane. In fact, in a couple weeks we will celebrate 53 years of marriage [58 yrs in 2021!]. WOW, that sounds like a long time (and I guess it is), but it has all passed as a vapor in the night! Nevertheless, I thank God for this very special and dedicated woman, who was chosen by the Lord and given the task to come along side of me, and to face with me the challenges of life because of this unique ministry. She is my most faithful, determined, and dearest friend. In this prioritized list of exceptional people, I must thank God for my children—all grown, with families of their own—but they have been, and still are, frequent causes of thanksgiving. These four offspring are comprised of a daughter and three sons (and now grandchildren & great-grandchildren); most all are faithful disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Finally, I am thankful for the excitement and difficulty posed by the past years of ministry. It was during this time (from August 1989 until now) that God gave to me the penetrating and tearful invitation to develop the CTF ministry. I am overwhelmingly thankful to the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ for His faithful enablement…and I thank all our faithful partners for their prayer and finance (Isaiah 40:28-31).

Moved by Mount St. Helens

ctf@creationtruth.com (Matt Miles) — Wed, 27 Oct 2021 19:20:16 GMT

It has long been argued in evolutionary circles, as well as in old earth creation, that geological timeframe is measured in millions and billions of years through gradual processes we observe today, also known as uniformitarianism. But then something happened in1980, and the evolutionary understanding began to shift from uniformitarianism to catastrophism. For years Dr. Sharp has taught about the 1980 Mount St. Helens’ eruption and the impact it has had on the geological timeframe. Personally, one of the more impactful presentations in my life was Doc’s “Thousand Years in a Day.”

Bob and I finally had the opportunity to experience Mount St. Helens for ourselves. A few weeks ago, while in Vancouver, WA, we had a couple of days to venture north and east to the famous mountain. All I can say to begin with is WOW! All these years of learning, teaching, and presenting about the eruption events fractionally prepared me for the area, but it did nothing for the magnitude of it all. Mount St. Helens is a large mountain, as many have described, but it is very hard to convey properly. Being there is an awe-inspiring experience, especially when teamed with the knowledge of the 1980 event. There are still remnants of the forest that was laid down for miles in a matter of seconds. There are still large log mats in Spirit Lake, over 40 years later. Everywhere I looked the evidence is there from the eruptions.

But still, if there were no signs or visitors’ center, one might not understand how recently the area had been impacted. There are many areas where trees have recovered or been seeded. A great amount of wildlife inhabit the area around the mountain. It is quite a beautiful place to visit and spend a couple of days hiking and exploring.

2 Peter 3:3-9 kept resonating in my mind, “But they deliberately forget…the world of that time was deluged and destroyed.” Mount St. Helens is such a powerful reminder, yet minuscule in scope, of the globally devastating judgement against sin during the Flood. The Flood was the most devastating disaster that we could ever comprehend. The earth still shows evidence of it, but many are blind to it. The Lord also reminded me over and over again those days on the mountain that He is faithful to those who are faithful to Him today, just as He was to Noah. There is salvation for those who honor the all-powerful Lord that holds fire in reserve for the final judgement against sin. As I kept looking up at the mountain top with the large section that is no longer present on Mount St. Helens, all I could do was respond by LOOKING UP and praising Him for His faithful Word and eternal salvation. Blessings.

October/November 2021 Printed Newsletter

Wed, 27 Oct 2021 16:46:54 GMT

Parasites in Paradise

ryan@creationtruth.com (Ryan Cox) — Tue, 26 Oct 2021 04:31:38 GMT

Parasites in Paradise

“If there was no physical death or bloodshed before Adam and Eve sinned, then what did carnivorous animals eat?

What did mosquitoes drink? How do you explain parasites?”

These are some of the questions we come across, most often not from evolutionists, but from Christians trying to answer basic questions about the pre-Fall world. Now, as Dr. Sharp would teach, we can never fully understand perfection this side of the Fall. However, there are good, science-based answers for such questions.

Carnivorous Animals

It has been well established that all animals can or could at one time survive on a plant-based diet. Today we see dogs eat grass when they are sick. Fossils reveal that some ancient crocodiles were herbivores. ¹ And then there is Little Tyke: a female African lion that 75 years ago refused all meat, including milk containing blood droplets. Living on a vegetarian diet, she grew up to be, according to one zoo curator, the best of her species he had ever viewed. ² So, yes, it is an observable reality that all animals could have survived on plant-based diets before the Fall when there was no pain, suffering, bloodshed, or death.

Mosquitoes

When we address the subject of mosquitoes in the Garden of Eden, most do not realize that today there are nearly 3,600 species. They ALL feed on nectar, honeydew, and other plant juices. None of the males in any species suck blood. It is only females in some species that ever feed on blood, and the only reason for their bloodsucking is the acquisition of protein and iron for egg production. ³ Yet , even that is not always necessary. Some females can produce eggs through autogenous reproduction, which is without any bloodsucking. ⁴ Therefore, based on observational data, it is a reasonable assumption that in perfection, mosquitoes survived on nectar, as they do today, and females produced eggs through autogenous reproduction. There was no need for bloodsucking before the Fall.

Parasites

A parasite is one organism living on or in anther organism. They can range anywhere from animals (lice, etc.) to fungi (ringworm, etc.) to plants (mistletoe, etc.) or single-celled protozoans (malaria, etc.). Let’s take nematodes (roundworms) as an example. Estimates as to the number of species within the phylum of Nematoda range anywhere from 25,000 to 1 million. Of those, only about 35 occur as parasites in humans. ⁵ They feed on the insides of algae and bacteria while decomposing organic matter, which allows for soil fertilization. Hence, they can be found underground, in oceans, and even on mountains. One cubic meter of dirt can contain over 1 million of them, laying an estimated 200,000 eggs at one time. They are a vibrant, essential part of life on Earth. ⁶

At some point in history when there was a scarcity of resources, they learned to feed upon insects that had previously transported them unharmed. The insects, like blackflies, transported them to humans, and they eventually adapted to infect people. But because of how few species do this, even evolutionists do not believe they were originally parasitic. ⁷

Heart Condition

This, sadly, does not keep some from using parasites as a “reason” for rejecting our Creator God. Sir David Attenborough of the BBC responded in an interview, “There are creation legends everywhere; every society has one, all over the world. But they can’t all be true. If you want to decide what the truth is, how are you going to do it? As far as I’m concerned, you look for the evidence in the rocks and in the creatures around you… The evidence is for evolution.” ⁸

What concrete evidence did he find? “…I tend to think instead of a parasitic worm that is boring through the eye of a boy sitting on the bank of a river in West Africa, that’s going to make him blind… Are you telling me that the God you believe in, who you say is an all-merciful God, who cares for each one of us individually, are you saying that God created this worm that can live in no other way than in an innocent child’s eyeball? Because that doesn’t seem to coincide with a God who’s full of mercy.” ⁹

As is evident in his response, it was not a matter of scientific observation that led to his rejection of God, but rather a matter of his heart. This is a clear example, as the Apostle Paul said, of “ professing to be wise, they became fools ” (Romans 1:22).

“ ¹⁷ So this I say, and affirm together with the Lord, that you walk no longer just as the Gentiles also walk, in the futility of their mind , ¹⁸ being darkened in their understanding , excluded from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them , because of the hardness of their heart … ²¹ … truth is in Jesus , ²² that, in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self… ²⁴ and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth .” (Ephesians 4:17-24)

Endnotes

1. Tim Collins, “Ancient crocodiles were not fierce meat-eaters but survived on a diet of PLANTS, study finds”, UK Daily Mail , 27 June 2019, < https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-7188337/Ancient-crocodiles-survived-diet-PLANTS-200-million-years-ago-study-finds.html >.

2. David Catchpoole, “The lion that wouldn’t eat meat”, Creation 22 (2): 22-23, March 2000, < https://creation.com/the-lion-that-wouldnt-eat-meat >.

3. "Mosquito”, Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia , Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., ed. 23 October 2021, < https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mosquito#Feeding_by_adults >.

4. K. Sawabe & A. Moribayashi, “Lipid Utilization for Ovarian Development in an Autogenous Mosquito”, Journal of Medical Entomology , Vol. 37, Iss. 5, 1 September 2000, pp. 726-31.

5. Anderson, Roy C. Nematode Parasites of Vertebrates: Their Development and Transmission . CABI, 2000, p. 1.

6. Scott Arledge, “Can a Merciful God Great Parasites?”, Acts & Facts 50(8), 2000, < https://www.icr.org/article/can-a-merciful-god-create-parasites/ >.

7. Christoph Dieterich & Ralf Sommer, “How to become a parasite – lessons from the genomes of nematodes”, Trends in Genetics , Vol. 25, Iss. 5, May 2009, pp. 203-9.

8. "Wild, wild life”, The Sydney Morning Herald , 25 March 2003, < https://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/tv-and-radio/wild-wild-life-20030325-gdghkj.html >.

9. Ibid.

September 2021 Printed Newsletter

Fri, 24 Sep 2021 21:23:52 GMT

War of Worldviews

ryan@creationtruth.com (Ryan Cox) — Fri, 24 Sep 2021 18:23:34 GMT

War of Worldviews

For over a year and a half, it has been the topic of the majority of discussions. It has been debated, argued, attacked, and defended. It has caused rifts in families and with friends. It has been at the heart of political elections. As you have personally experienced over and over again, there is a great divide over whether or not America should be in Afghanistan.

It has… wait… it hasn’t been a major topic over the last year? It wasn’t what you discussed at the Thanksgiving dinner table last November? You mean it wasn’t a major concern for the vast majority of Americans? Then why has it been such an issue as of late?

The reason, as with most issues, comes down to the war of worldviews. Creation Truth Foundation exists for the sole purpose of sharing and promoting a Biblical worldview. We constantly engage in the battle between the two combatants: Biblical Worldview vs. Non-biblical Worldview.

The events in Afghanistan are a clear example of the battle. It began 20 years ago when the non-biblical worldview of the Al-Qaeda terrorists attacked the United States, a country founded on a Biblical worldview. The United States retaliated with successful military action in Afghanistan. This resulted in an American and Allied presence in the country, which also led to the promulgation of a Biblical worldview. Missionaries had much greater protection and security through which they could share the Gospel, and thousands responded! Men and women were allowed to live in freedom, engage in elections, receive an education, pursue careers, and share their Christian faith.

There were still continued threats, but progress was consistently gained. Thanks to the incredible efforts of our men and women in uniform, after hitting a peak of 496 US fatalities in 2010, that number fell each year to a low of 9 fatalities in 2016. This was achieved at the same time the number of deployed forces went from 99,800 in 2011¹ to 2,500 by January 2021² (not counting Allied forces). After June of 2014, no month saw double digit fatalities until August 2021 when remaining American forces were withdrawing.

In a matter of months, America removed all protections for the Afghan people, and the Taliban seized control. The world witnessed people frantically scrambling to Kabul airport, clinging to planes and falling to their death, parents desperately trying to lift children over walls into the security of American forces, and Taliban soldiers seizing abandoned US military equipment, conducting door-to-door executions, kidnapping young girls, and systematically killing Christians.

But even in the midst of ensuing chaos from such un-biblical worldviews, across the world thousands of people influenced by a Biblical worldview have taken action. To attempt the rescue of thousands of Afghan and United States citizens left behind in Afghanistan, scores of people have given tens of millions of dollars to or worked in extremely dangerous efforts to save lives. Such groups and efforts would be Mighty Oaks Foundation, The Nazarene Fund, Human First Coalition, DeliverFund, Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service, Project Dynamo, Save Our Allies, Team America, Commercial Task Force, Pineapple Express, and others.³

Why, though, would the US government allow such tragedy to occur after 20 years? These grievous actions are in accordance with the non-biblical worldviews enacted by those currently in power. The apparent disregard for Afghan lives coincides with the disregard for the lives of babies still in their womb of their mothers. It coincides with the willingness to work hand-in-hand with China while simultaneously admitting they are committing genocide of the Uyghur people in Xinjiang province.⁴

Meanwhile, the non-biblical worldview is so pervasive in the federal government, that when a state passes a law to prohibit the murder of babies with beating hearts, the federal government pledges, “…the Office of the White House Counsel to launch a whole-of-government effort to respond to this decision, looking specifically to the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Justice to see what steps the Federal Government can take to ensure that women in Texas have access to safe and legal abortions”.⁵

“ But your eyes and your heart are intent only upon your own dishonest gain, and on shedding innocent blood and on practicing oppression and extortion ” (Jeremiah 22:17).

In defending and sharing Biblical worldview, Dr. Sharp has challenged the staff of Creation Truth Foundation to be Jeremiahs in our day. In Jeremiah 22, God instructed Jeremiah to confront the government and those who served and supported it, saying:

³ Thus says the LORD, “Do justice and righteousness, and deliver the one who has been robbed from the power of his oppressor. Also do not mistreat or do violence to the stranger, the orphan, or the widow; and do not shed innocent blood in this place… ⁵ But if you will not obey these words, I swear by Myself,” declares the LORD, “that this house will become a desolation .” (Jer. 22:3,5)

Therefore, we call on those in government and the medical community who have supported abortion to repent of the sin of shedding innocent blood. “ Keep far from a false charge, and do not kill the innocent or the righteous, for I will not acquit the guilty ” (Exodus 23:7).

We call on those who have ever voted for or supported a government official or candidate who supports abortion, including the excuse that other issues were more important, to repent of empowering people to commit the sin of shedding innocent blood. “ Cursed is he who accepts a bribe to strike down an innocent person ” (Deuteronomy 27:25).

When one understands the Biblical worldview of life⁶ and the Biblically-based foundation of America,⁷ every Christian in the United States should be emboldened and impassioned to remove this sin from the land.

“ So you shall remove the guilt of innocent blood from your midst, when you do what is right in the eyes of the LORD ” (Deut. 2:19).

“ So innocent blood will not be shed in the midst of your land ” (Deut. 19:10).

O may all who come behind us find us faithful in our day, repenting of our sin, offering love, grace and forgiveness to those who have sinned and repented, and cleansing our nation from the blood on its hands.

End Notes:

1. Congressional Research Service, “Department of Defense Contractor and Troop Levels in Afghanistan and Iraq: 2007-2020”, Feb. 22, 2021, p. 7, <https://sgp.fas. org/crs/ natsec/R44116.pdf>.

2. US Dept of Defense Release, “Statement by Acting Defense Secretary Christopher Miller on Force Levels in Afghanistan”, Jan. 15, 2021, <https://www.defense.gov/ Newsroom/Releases/Release/Article/2473337/statement-by-acting-defense-secretary-christopher-miller-on-force-levels-in-afg/>.

3. National Review , “Outraged by Horror at Kabul Airport, Civilian Rescue Groups Offer Lifeline to Those Left in Afghanistan”, Sept. 21, 2021, <https://www.nationalreview. com/news/outraged-by-horrific-kabul-airport-images-these-u-s-vets-offered-a-lifeline-to-desperate-afghans/?utm_source=recirc-desktop&utm_medium=blog-post&utm_ campaign=river&utm_content=top-bar-latest&utm_term=fifth>.

4. Washington Examiner , “Pelosi: Put aside China’s genocide, we need to work together on ‘overriding issue’ of climate change", Sept. 16, 2021, <https://www. washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/pelosi-put-aside-chinas-genocide-we-need-to-work-together-on-the-overriding-issue-of-climate-change>.

National Review , “Pelosi: U.S. Must Work with China on ‘Overriding’ Climate Issue Despite Uyghur ‘Genocide’”, Sept. 16, 2021, <https://www.nationalreview.com/news/ pelosi-u-s-must-work-with-china-on-overriding-climate-issue-despite-uyghur-genocide/>.

Microsoft Network , “John Kerry dismisses Biden admin’s lack of focus on Uyghur genocide In China: Life ‘full of tough choices’”, Sept. 22, 2021, <https://www.msn.com/en- us/news/politics/john-kerry-dismisses-biden-admins-lack-of-focus-on-the-uyghur-genocide-in-china-life-full-of-tough-choices/ar-AAOIoJx>.

5. The White House Briefing Room, “Statement by President Joe Biden on Supreme Court Ruling on Texas Law SB8”, Sept. 2, 2021, <https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing- room/statements-releases/2021/09/02/statement-by-president-joe-biden-on-supreme-court-ruling-on-texas-law-sb8/>.

6. Consult articles “When Life Truly Begins” and the 3-part “America’s Molech Worship” recently posted at creationtruth.com/thescroll

7. Consult The American Story available at creationtruth.com/store

When Life Truly Begins

ryan@creationtruth.com (Ryan Cox) — Fri, 24 Sep 2021 17:59:07 GMT

When Life Truly Begins

Ecclesiastes 11:5, “ Just as you do not know the path of the wind and how bones are formed in the womb of the pregnant woman, so you do not know the activity of God who makes all things .”

In this passage, the Hebrew word maw-lay’ is translated “pregnant” (“with child” in other versions). The word means, “full, fullness, fully” (Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance). We learn from this that the womb of a mother is filled with child.

As soon as fertilization takes place, a baby’s genetic make-up is complete (“Fetal Development”, clevelandclinic.org). From that moment on, a mother is fully with child. It is not a tissue mass, but a human being made in the image of God, filling his or her mother’s womb.

16 times the Old Testament scriptures use haw-reh’ to refer to a pregnant mother; it means “conceive, with child” (Strong’s). Again, the Word of God is clear that a pregnant woman is “with child”, not “with bio-tissue”.

One such passage is Exodus 21:22. In the very first chapter after God gives the Ten Commandments, the Lord says, “ ²² If men struggle with each other and strike a woman with child so that she gives birth prematurely… ²³ if there is any further injury, then you shall appoint as a penalty life for life ”. The Creator God Himself declared that if someone caused the death of a child in the womb, it was just as much murder as killing a child outside of the womb.

It must also be noted that in verse 22, the word yeh’-led is used to refer to the “fruit” or child. The word is used 89 times in God’s Word and denotes children both in the womb and out.

To God, it matters not the child’s location (whether in a womb or not); the child is a precious human made in His image.

In the New Testament, the Greek word brephos is used 8 times and translated “child, baby, or infant”. It is used in reference to Jesus both in Mary’s womb (Luke 1:41) and outside Mary’s womb (Luke 2:12). The idea that a baby isn’t a living child entitled to protection of the law until it is outside of the womb breathing on its own is completely obliterated by this word referring to one who has the breath of life both in the womb and out.

However, we have not yet answered the question as to when life truly begins. Most often we hear the argument that is most scientific – life begins at conception. This, though, is not necessarily scriptural. The Scriptures teach that life does NOT begin at conception, but BEFORE.

Ecclesiastes 11:5 says, “ you do not know the activity of God who makes all things. ” And God states in Jeremiah 1:5, “ B efore I formed you in the womb I knew you ”.

Life does not begin at conception – life begins in the mind of God our Creator! And since we “ do not know the activity of God who makes all things ”, we cannot be so presumptuous to think we know when God (who is outside of time) determined in His eternal plan for life to create each and every one of His image bearers.

Humanity, therefore, has no right, let alone authority, to take the life of another human outside of the purview of the Creator’s authority and His eternal law found in His Book – the Bible.

For more information about the abortion issue, consult the 3-part series entitled “America’s Molech Worship” recently posted at www.creationtruth.com/thescroll

America's Molech Worship, part 3: Equipped to Defend

ryan@creationtruth.com (Ryan Cox) — Fri, 24 Sep 2021 17:45:19 GMT

America's Molech Worship, part 3: Equipped to Defend

Abortion Statistics as reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC),¹ Guttmacher Institute,² and Operation Rescue Abortion Clinics Survey:³

Abortions in 1970: 193,491 (52 per 1,000 live births, 530 per day) .
Abortions in 1973 (year of Roe v Wade ): 615,831 (196 per 1,000 live births, 1,687 per day) .
Abortions in 1990 (peak year): 1,429,247 (345 per 1,000 live births, 3,916 per day) .
Abortions in 2018 (most recent data): 619,591 (189 per 1,000 live births, 1,698 per day) .
Women between the ages of 20 to 29 accounted for 57.7% of abortions in 2018, ages 30 to 39 accounted for 29.8%, and ages 15 to 19 accounted for 8.7%.
92.2% of abortions take place between 1 to 13 weeks of pregnancy, 6.9% take place between weeks 14 to 20, and 0.9% take place between weeks 21 to 40.
18% of all US pregnancies end in abortion, as of 2018.
By age 45, one third of women in America will have had at least one abortion.
Between 1990 and 2008, abortions declined by 2% each year.
From 2008 to 2018, abortions declined 24.9%.
The CDC numbers are somewhat misleading as they do not have abortion data for California, Maryland, New Hampshire, and Wyoming.
State that performed the least number of abortions in 2018: South Dakota with 382.
State that performed the most abortions in 2017: California with 132,680.
Of the 1,587 abortion facilities in the U.S. in 2017, 419 were in California.
The U.S. has gone from 2,176 surgical abortion facilities in 1991 to 255 in 2020: an 88% drop.
Another 46 abortion facilities closed in 2020.
Medication abortion clinics have risen from 131 in 2009 to 248 in 2020.
Many surgical clinics have closed and reopened as medication clinics to avoid regulations and licensing requirements.
As of 2020, 69 locations operate telemedicine abortion programs.
87% of U.S. counties in 2017 did not have an abortion provider.
60% of California’s counties in 2017 did have an abortion provider.
Average wait time for an abortion is 8.4 days.
Average abortion costs range from $621 for a surgical abortion to $598 for a medication abortion.
85.2% of women who obtain an abortion are not married.
59.3% of women who obtain an abortion have one or more children.
40.1% of women who obtain an abortion have already had one or more abortions.
Less than 1% of all abortions are because of rape or incest.

But here is one more statistic for you to ponder: would it surprise you to know that 36% of women who obtain an abortion attend church services at least once a month? According to Care Net and LifeWay Research’s 2015 national survey, 36% of women (over 1 in 3) who have obtained an abortion were attending church services once a month or more when they received their abortion. 20% of them (1 in 5) were attending church services weekly!⁴

In a survey conducted in 2015 by the American Culture & Faith Institute, 22 social and political issues were identified as important to conservative and moderate Christians, about which they would desire their preacher to preach or provide more information. Of the 22 issues, 94% of respondents ranked abortion as “very” or “extremely” important for the congregation to receive Biblical teaching. That landed the topic of abortion at #1 of the 22 issues.⁵

That’s what the people in churches want, but only 59% of “theologically conservative” preachers said they preached on abortion. In fact, when asked to prioritize their sense of importance for 20 current issues, 79% deemed religious freedom as “critical”, 67% deemed the national debt as “critical”, and 62% deemed abortion as “critical”. Same-sex marriage came in at only 56% of “theologically conservative” preachers deeming it as a “critical” issue.⁶

In fact, only 50% of church members could recall their preacher teaching on abortion, and only 46% of members could recall their preacher teaching on same-sex marriage (82% want their preacher to preach about sexual issues).⁷

This is another example of the evolutionizing of churches and growing rejection of the historicity, accuracy, and authority of Scripture.

THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST NEEDS TO BE INFORMED AND ACTIVE

To assist with this in regard to abortion, the materials by John Michener⁸ and the Oklahomans United for Life are highly recommended.⁹ Here is a brief synopsis of their witnessing techniques:

Adjusting the Moral Compass

If someone is arguing that a woman should be able to have an abortion because she is too poor:

Agree that some women are poor and it would be hard for them to raise a child.
Pretend there is a toddler beside you and ask, “If say a two-year-old’s mother was too poor to raise him, would it be okay for her to kill him?”
If they say “no”, kindly keep asking “why not” until they respond with a principle that it is wrong to kill an innocent human being.
Kindly respond to their moral answer, “Ah, then the issue isn’t poverty, but whether or not we can kill innocent human beings. If the unborn are human beings, then shouldn’t we protect them just like we protect two-year-olds?”

Defending Our Humanity

When someone is arguing that an unborn baby is not a living human being, one can use the “Ten-Second Pro-Life Apologist”:

Is it living?

It is eating (metabolizing food), growing (cellular reproduction), and responding (reacts to stimuli and environment).

Is it human?

It has human parents and human DNA.

Is it an individual?

All of its parts (the entire genome) is developing (not constructed one part at a time).

Conclusion, “Then if the unborn are growing, eating, and responding, they must be alive. If they have human parents and DNA, they must be human. So don’t you think that living humans, or human beings like you and me, are valuable and should be protected?”

Defending Human Rights & Value

Question: “Do you believe that everyone should have the same basic rights, such as life and freedom? Should we be treated equally under the law? Yet there are so many differences between us: men and women, big and small, etc. We are all so different from one another yet there is something that is the same or equal about all of us that demands we should be treated equally. What is the same about all of us?”

Answer: “We are all unique, individual human beings.”

If someone gives any explanation about born human beings having rights and unborn humans not having rights, ask if that explanation for equal rights applies to adults, infants, the handicap, to animals, etc., and then ask why a human being living inside a womb or outside a womb makes a difference as to whether he or she has equal rights and protection of the law.

Defending Bodily Rights

Bodily rights arguments usually involve the slogan “my body, my choice” and include the arguments of a “sovereign zone” and a “right to refuse”.

Sovereign Zone argument: a woman has an absolute right to do whatever she wants with her body.

Clarify by asking: “Do you mean the unborn is a literal part of the woman’s body, like an arm or kidney?”
Challenge the Sovereign Zone: “If you believe pregnant women have a right to do anything with their bodies, do you think it should be legal for them to use hard drugs that will cause severe birth defects?”
If they answer “no” ask: “If it is wrong for women to take drugs that will lead to deformations of a baby when it is their body and they have a right to do what they want, then why is it not wrong for women to take drugs that will lead to the death of a baby?”¹⁰

Right to Refuse argument: a woman is no more obligated to donate the use of her body to sustain a fetus than she is obligated to donate one of her kidneys to help a stranger.

Clarify by asking: “Are you saying the decision to donate a kidney and choosing to continue a pregnancy are equivalent? Can you see any differences between the two?”
Differences between the two:

temporary (pregnancy) vs indefinite (kidney gone forever)
stranger (didn’t choose his condition) vs parent (usually made decisions that led to pregnancy)
unnaturally “hooked up” to patient vs natural connection to child
unhooking from patient vs dismembering child
ending treatment vs killing
not responsible vs responsible, etc.

Focusing on Responsibility: “Why is it wrong for parents to ignore their child’s well-being (DCFS will take the child) but not wrong for a mother to end her child’s life (abortion)? If men can be held liable for child support, even if they no longer want the responsibility, should women be held to the same standard? If men are expected to support a child for 18 years after birth, shouldn’t women be expected to support that same child for 9 months before birth?”¹¹

The members of our churches need to be armed with the Truth of God’s Word and the means of defending it. They also need to know that the Church is a place of love and help, including those who find themselves pregnant and have contemplated abortion. Every congregation should be ready to love and help that individual who is going through enormous amounts of pressure, stress, and fear. Would Jesus not offer His arms of love and support, making it all the more possible to welcome that precious mother and child into His Church?

We obviously do not condone sex or pregnancy out of wedlock (Hebrews 13:4), but we most certainly do not withhold the love of Christ from anyone either (Romans 12:9-16, Colossians 3:12-14, I John 4:7-11). How then would any of us be saved if the love of Jesus and His sacrifice for our sins had not been shown to us?

May we all be about the ministry of saving lives, both physical and spiritual.

End notes:

1. https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/69/ss/ss6907a1.htm

2. https://www.guttmacher.org/fact-sheet/state-facts-about-abortion-california

3. http://www.operationrescue.org/about-abortion/abortions-in-america/

4. http://lifewayresearch.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Care-Net-Final-Presentation-Report-Revised.pdf

5. https://wallbuilders.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2017/02/WhatChristiansWantPastorstoPreachAbout.pdf

6. Ibid.

7. Ibid.

8. Search for John Michener at: www.catapes.com

9. https://www.oklahomansunitedforlife.org/

10. For more information on the Sovereign Zone argument, look up Timothy Brahm and “Autumn in the Sovereign Zone”, http://blog.equalrightsinstitute.com/autumn-in-the-sovereign-zone-why-its-my-body-i-can-do-what-i-want-wont-do/

11. For more information on the Right to Refuse argument, look up Steve Wagner and “De Facto Guardian and Abortion”, http://doc.jfaweb.org/Training/DeFactoGuardian-v03.pdf

America's Molech Worship, part 2: A Legalized Crime

ryan@creationtruth.com (Ryan Cox) — Wed, 22 Sep 2021 22:14:28 GMT

America's Molech Worship, part 2: A Legalized Crime

“I find nothing in the language or history of the Constitution to support the Court’s judgment…in my view, its judgment is an improvident and extravagant exercise of the power of judicial review that the Constitution extends to this Court. The Court apparently values the convenience of the pregnant mother more than the continued existence and development of the life or potential life that she carries…I can in no event join the Court’s judgment because I find no constitutional warrant for imposing such an order of priorities on the people and the legislatures of the States…I cannot accept the Court’s exercise of its clear power of choice by interposing a constitutional barrier to state efforts to protect human life and by investing mothers and doctors with the constitutionally protected right to exterminate it.”¹ ~ Justice Byron White

“To reach its result, the Court necessarily has had to find within the scope of the Fourteenth Amendment a right that was apparently completely unknown to the drafters of the Amendment. As early as 1821, the first state law dealing directly with abortion was enacted by the Connecticut Legislature. By the time of the adoption of the Fourteenth Amendment in 1868, there were at least 36 laws enacted by state or territorial legislatures limiting abortion…There apparently was no question concerning the validity of this provision or of any of the other state statutes when the Fourteenth Amendment was adopted. The only conclusion possible from this history is that the drafters did not intend to have the Fourteenth Amendment withdraw from the States the power to legislate with respect to this matter.”² ~ Justice William Rehnquist

Justices Byron White and William Rehnquist were the only two Supreme Court justices to vote against the legalization of abortion in the 1973 Roe v. Wade and Doe v. Bolton decisions. Their dissents, as partially quoted above, contained several reasons why the Supreme Court’s ruling in favor of abortion was unconstitutional.

It is clearly a matter left to the states to decide, not the federal government (10th Amendment of U.S. Constitution).
The Court violated the separation of powers as it wrote new legislation breaking pregnancy into three distinct terms and then deciding what is allowed in each of those terms (Article I, Section 1 of U.S. Constitution).
The Court was only allowed to rule on the individual case, not on behalf of all pregnant women. The Court was kept in the dark as to the particular situations of “Roe” and “Doe” since they never appeared before the Court to bring their suits ( Moose Lodge v. Irvis , 407 U.S. 163; Sierra Club v. Morton , 405 U.S. 727).
Because it was a “hypothetical lawsuit” with the plaintiffs remaining anonymous, the Court violated its practice of never formulating a rule of Constitutional law broader than is required by the precise facts to which it is to be applied ( Liverpool, New York & Philadelphia S.S. Co. v. Commissioners of Emigration , 113 U.S. 33, 39).
Since neither “Roe” nor “Doe” claimed to have any mental or physical health concerns with their pregnancies, there was no legal basis to make the claim on behalf of any other pregnant women that abortions may be necessary for the mental or physical health of a mother. For that to be done, a pregnant lady would have had to file suit claiming she needed an abortion for the sake of her mental or physical health. Therefore, “Roe” and “Doe” did not have “standing” to assert the rights of other pregnant women ( United States v. Vuitch , 402 U.S. 62).
Even if the Texas law was found to be misapplied in the case of Roe, it was to be declared unconstitutional as applied to the specific case, not to be completely struck down along with all other states’ laws ( Yick Wo v. Hopkins , 118 U.S. 356; Street v. New York , 394 U.S. 576).
The Court’s appeal to the 4th Amendment for a “right of privacy” in this case is baseless. The law protects individuals from unwarranted search and seizures in the privacy of one’s home. The Texas law in question was the forbiddance of licensed doctors in Texas to kill unborn babies. It was not a law forbidding consenting adults to engage in consensual sexual behavior, as is often argued. It was a law forbidding medical procedures that harm a non-consenting child. The 4th Amendment, therefore, does not apply (Rehnquist’s dissent in Roe v. Wade ).
The Due Process Clause of the 14th Amendment applies to a state’s valid objectives in a law ( Williamson v. Lee Optical Co. , 348 U.S. 483, 491). If the suit brought before the Court was about a state law forbidding a mother from having an abortion when her physical life is in danger, then the Court could decide if the state was violating the mother’s 14th Amendment rights. However, since the case was about a mother who simply wanted to have her baby killed while in the first trimester when her life was not in jeopardy, the baby’s 14th Amendment rights were therefore violated by the Court’s ruling. Consequently, the Court completely ignored the important matter of the “compelling state interest”.
The Court completely dismissed the Equal Protection Clause, as all individuals, whether in a womb or not, have the legally protected right to life (14th Amendment of U.S. Constitution).
The 14th Amendment specifically does not contain a woman’s right to abortion as 36 state or territorial abortion laws were already in place up to 47 years when the 14th Amendment was drafted, proposed, and passed by these states. They all clearly passed it knowing it did not apply to abortion. It was never even argued that it could possibly pertain to abortion until 100 years later!
Because the States had outlawed abortion for so long and were still doing so, the declared “right” to an abortion was clearly not “so rooted in the traditions and conscience of our people as to be ranked as fundamental” ( Snyder v. Massachusetts , 291 U.S. 97, 105). As a result, the 9th Amendment’s protection of unenumerated (non-listed) rights does not apply. The Supreme Court even stated as much, choosing instead to try and use the 14th Amendment to defend their decision to legalize abortion and rule against the will of the American people.

Just so no one thinks it is an exaggeration to state how poorly determined and unconstitutional the Court’s ruling was, shortly after the ruling was released, Professor John Hart Ely wrote in The Yale Law Journal , “What is frightening about Roe is that this super-protected right is not inferable from the language of the Constitution, the framers’ thinking respecting the specific problem in issue, any general value derivable from the provisions they included, or the nation’s governmental structure.”³

Professor Laurence Tribe wrote in the Harvard Law Review , “One of the most curious things about Roe is that, behind its own verbal smokescreen, the substantive judgment on which it rests is nowhere to be found.”⁴ ⁵

Even Justice Harry Blackmun’s (one of the 7 justices who voted in favor of Roe ) personal law clerk Edward Lazarus (who is very liberal and pro-abortion) wrote in 2002, “As a matter of constitutional interpretation and judicial method, Roe borders on the indefensible. I say this as someone utterly committed to the right to choose…The problem, I believe, is that it has little connection to the Constitutional right it purportedly interpreted. A constitutional right to privacy broad enough to include abortion has no meaningful foundation in constitutional text, history, or precedent…when Democratic senators oppose a judicial appointment because of the nominee’s opposition to Roe …they practically require that a judicial nominee sign on to logic that is, at best, questionable, and at worst, disingenuous and results-oriented…The standard critique of liberal judges trumpets their willingness to substitute personal preference for legal analysis – and Roe is universally featured as Exhibit A.”⁶

And there it is: the legalization of abortion is not founded on the Constitution, judicial precedent, or the will of the people, but rather the personal preferences of 7 immoral men who wanted to “justify” sin by making it “legal.” Henceforth, abortion has been a legalized crime against humanity and the very image of God.

Is there hope for this atrocity that plagues our nation? With Jesus, there is always hope!

End notes:

1. Justice Byron White dissenting opinion in Doe v. Bolton , http://www.usccb.org/_cs_upload/8556_1.pdf

2. Justice William Rehnquist dissenting opinion in Roe v. Wade , https://www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/text/410/113#writing-USSC_CR_0410_0113_ZD

3. John Hart Ely, “The Wages of Crying Wolf: A Comment on Roe v. Wade ”, The Yale Law Journal, 1973, http://digitalcommons.law.yale.edu/cgi/ viewcontent.cgi?article=5116&context=fss_papers

4. Lawrence H. Tribe, “The Supreme Court 1972 Term, Forward: Toward a Model of Roles in the Due Process of Life and Law”, Harvard Law Review, 1973, http://www.jstor.org/stable/1339866?origin=crossref&seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents

5. http://www.nationalrighttolifenews.org/news/2016/01/abortion-defenders-explain-why-roe-v-wade-was-a-terrible-legal-decision-5/#.WLSsK28rJxA

6. Edward Lazarus, “The Lingering Problems with Roe v. Wade ”, http://supreme.findlaw.com/legal-commentary/the-lingering-problems-with-roe-v-wade-and-why-the-recent-senate-hearings-on-michael-mcconnells-nomination-only-underlined-them.html

America’s Molech Worship, part 1: Establishment of a Religion

ryan@creationtruth.com (Ryan Cox) — Wed, 22 Sep 2021 21:58:30 GMT

America’s Molech Worship, part 1: Establishment of a Religion

Leviticus 18:21, “ You shall not give any of your offspring to offer them to Molech, nor shall you profane the name of your God; I am the I Am .”

Leviticus 20:2, “ Any man from the sons of Israel or from the aliens sojourning in Israel who gives any of his offspring to Molech, shall surely be put to death; the people of the land shall stone him with stones. ”

Jeremiah 32:35, “ They built the high places of Baal that are in the valley of Ben-hinnom to cause their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire to Molech, which I had not commanded them nor had it entered My mind that they should do this abomination, to cause Judah to sin .”

Offering one’s child as a sacrifice in the name of idolatry was considered sinful, profaning the name of God, and worthy of the death penalty.

Why? Because the killing of children is a direct assault on the image and person of God. As humanity is created in the image of God (Genesis 1:26-27, 5:1-2; James 3:9), any abuse of that image is regarded as a personal attack on God Himself (Genesis 9:6). The acceptance of such a practice in a culture is the direct result of the evolutionizing of that culture and the rejection of Genesis and the Bible as historical and authoritative.

The attack on God’s image includes children, for see how beautifully and reverently the Scriptures describe human life:

“ ¹³ For You formed my inward parts; You wove me in my mother’s womb. ¹⁴ I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; wonderful are Your works, and my soul knows it very well. ¹⁵ My frame was not hidden from You when I was made in secret, and skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth; ¹⁶ Your eyes have seen my unformed substance; and in Your book were all written the days that were ordained for me, when as yet there was not one of them. ” (Psalm 139:13-16)

These profound statements about life are ALL while the child is still in the womb ! And yet, over four decades ago the Supreme Court of the United States decided to bring our nation into compliance with Molech worship – the sacrificing of children through abortion in the name of choice (idolatry), convenience (idolatry), and career (also idolatry). Those three C’s all place something, namely the individual, above God and serve oneself instead of the Creator.

However, this was not always the case in America.

When the thirteen states won their independence from Great Britain, they applied English common law in regards to abortion. James Wilson, a Pennsylvania delegate to the Constitutional Convention, stated in his 1790 Of the Natural Rights of Individuals , “With consistency, beautiful and undeviating, human life, from its commencement to its close, is protected by the common law. In the contemplation of the law, life begins when the infant is first able to stir in the womb. By the law, life is protected not only from immediate destruction, but from every degree of actual violence”.¹

The importance of this viewpoint by one of the framers of the Constitution is vital to our current legal system for two reasons.

1.) Under the laws of the United States, human life should be protected, even while still in the mother’s womb! Some opponents claim that Wilson’s statement says life doesn’t begin until around 15 to 20 weeks, which therefore makes the decision of when life begins arbitrary and a matter of opinion. That is a perversion of Wilson’s statements. In his day, the soonest a mother knew for sure she was pregnant was when she could feel the baby move. What Wilson was therefore saying is that as soon as we know a lady is pregnant, that life is protected by law. Today, through modern technology we can know even sooner as our ability to detect and protect life is only increasing.

2.) As a framer of the Constitution, Wilson’s statements reverberate through the American legal system as he declares the right to life, even while in the womb, is Constitutionally protected based on common law. The Constitution of the United States established a federal system of government in which the common and state laws of the land are maintained to the point they do not conflict with federal law (Article VI of the Constitution). Does that mean the federal government can change those common and state laws and decide when life begins and is protected? NO! The 9th and 10th Amendments to the Constitution specifically declare that those decisions are to be left to the people and their state governments. But even if a state decided to legalize abortion, the 14th Amendment to the Constitution declares in Section 1, “…nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.” Therefore, the only legal means by which an abortion can be carried out is if the baby has committed a crime worthy of the state’s death penalty and was found guilty in a jury trial (the baby’s 5th, 6th, and 7th Amendment rights).

This is important because of the gross abuse of power and disregard of the Constitution by the Supreme Court in the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision.

In 1821, Connecticut became the first state with a statute criminalizing abortion. Throughout the 1820s, more states either codified or expanded English common law to protect the lives of the unborn. By 1900, every state in the US had abortion legislation.

In 1973, only 4 states (New York, Washington, Alaska, Hawaii) had legalized abortion upon request.

The Supreme Court, however, changed everything.

In June of 1969, Norma McCorvey found that she was pregnant with her third child. Upon the urging of her “friends”, she attempted to obtain a legal abortion by falsely claiming she had been raped. When she could not produce a police report supporting her claim, she attempted to obtain an illegal abortion. This failed as the facility to which she had planned to go was shut down by police.

McCorvey eventually gave birth to a beautiful baby girl who was then adopted. However, while she was still pregnant, attorneys Linda Coffee and Sarah Weddington believed they had the perfect subject for a lawsuit. In 1970, they filed suit in the US District Court for the Northern District of Texas on behalf of their client, alias Jane Roe. Dallas County District Attorney Henry Wade represented the State of Texas in the case.

On June 17th, the three-judge panel unanimously declared Texas’s abortion laws unconstitutional. The case was appealed to the Supreme Court as was another case, Doe v. Bolton , in which Georgia’s abortion laws were challenged.

In both cases, the women being represented (Norma McCorvey in Roe and Sandra Cano in Doe ) were lied to and deceived by their lawyers. In an affidavit filed on June 11, 2003, McCorvey stated, “For their part, my lawyers lied to me about the nature of abortion. Weddington convinced me, ‘It’s just a piece of tissue. You just missed your period.’”² She also claimed that she signed the initial affidavit without reading it and “was never invited into court. I never testified. I was never present before any court on any level, and I was never at any hearing on my case…I found out about the decision from the newspaper, just like the rest of the country.”³

On January 22, 1973 the court ruled in a 7-2 decision in favor of Roe and Doe, declaring that the States cannot prohibit later terminations of pregnancy when the life or health of a woman is in danger. However, the meaning of a mother’s “health” has very wide parameters. As stated in Doe , “We agree…that the medical judgment may be exercised in the light of all factors – physical, emotional, psychological, familial, and the woman’s age – relevant to the wellbeing of the patient. All these factors may relate to health.”⁴

Therefore, according to the court, if a mother feels she will have emotional issues from the pregnancy, she is legally allowed to have the baby killed while in her womb. Is there any way our nation can be pardoned for such wickedness?

“ Roam to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem, and look now and take note, and seek in her open squares. If you can find a man, if there is one who does justice, who seeks truth, then I will pardon her .” ~ Jeremiah 5:1

End notes:

1. http://teachingamericanhistory.org/library/document/of-the-natural-rights-of-individuals/

2. Affidavit of Norma McCorvey (June 11, 2003), in McCorvey v. Hill (U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Dallas Division, Civil Action No. 3-3690-B and No. 3-3691-C. http://www.endroe.org/roebio.aspx#_ftn6

3. Ibid.

4. 410 U.S. 179 Doe v. Bolton (No. 70-40), Jan. 22, 1973. https://www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/text/410/179

Faithfulness Remanent

ctf@creationtruth.com (Matt Miles) — Wed, 22 Sep 2021 17:32:09 GMT

Faithfulness through Global Flood Remanent

Last week on a trip to northwest Wyoming, I had an experience that highlighted the faithfulness of the Lord. While there we got to visit Yellowstone. The National Park system has many wonderful places to experience the great diversity of the Lord’s creation and very few rival the magnitude of Yellowstone. It is a place that testifies to His faithfulness in a grand way.

Like many other parks, Yellowstone, our first National Park, is a place of beauty. Rocky Mountain NP, Yosemite NP and Grand Canyon NP are all beautiful in different ways, yet Yellowstone is so much more diverse than those others. It has the mountain vistas, canyons and wildlife galore, along with something the others don’t have - geothermal activity. As I toured the park from one side to the other, it was very evident that the earth is still quite active just below the surface. This activity is a result of the Global Flood from Genesis, regardless of what the numerous signs throughout the park say as they try to educate its visitors. The evidence is overwhelming, from the pure flood rock strata hundreds to thousands of feet thick next to mud volcanoes spewing their toxic sludge from the depths. Your senses are bombarded on a constant basis with reminders of the past judgment of the flood and God’s faithfulness to Noah through it.

One of the more memorable places is the famous geyser “Old Faithful”. Out of an earthen vent comes a jet of boiling sulfur-rich water tens of feet into the air. To the delight of the crowd gathered, it erupts on a semi-regular basis. Old Faithful used to be very faithful, almost like clockwork. Now, it is more “mostly faithful”, with a window of 10-15 minutes either direction of its estimated eruption time. The geyser’s faithfulness seems to have lessened over the years, unlike our Lord's.

This wonderful place impacted me with a truth - the Lord is always faithful no matter how it seems at the time. Sometimes it seems He is not faithful because it’s not on our timing or to our expectations. Other times there may be destructive things around us that we go through and He shows His faithfulness through all situations. Yellowstone is a place to remind us that the judgement of the past is real and His faithfulness to those that worship and honor Him is as true as it gets. Even when uncertainty looms over our heads, we are reminded that He will be faithful in the coming judgment the same as in the past. Continue to be faithful and keep LOOKING UP!

July/August 2021 Printed Newsletter

Wed, 04 Aug 2021 23:00:48 GMT

What are the Odds: Improbable or Impossible?

Mon, 02 Aug 2021 23:28:04 GMT

What are the Odds: Improbable or Impossible?

At a CTF event, I was asked if the improbability of evolution was the same as the impossibility of evolution. The point was made that an atheistic evolutionist could argue that just because evolution is highly improbable, that does not mean it is impossible. “After all,” the evolutionist could say, “we are here.”

Yes, naturalistic evolution is highly improbable, but can it be deemed impossible?

After examining some literature on probability, it appears there is somewhat of an agreement as to when impossibility is reached:

It has been estimated that there are somewhere around 10⁸⁰ electrons/particles/atoms in the universe. [1] That would be all the possible material with which to work in all the cosmos.
Suppose that each of those particles can engage in 10¹² (1 trillion) interactions with other particles every second.
The current evolutionary belief of the universe’s age is 13.77 billion years. Let’s more than double that and give all the particles 30 billion years (10¹⁸ seconds) to engage in 1 trillion interactions every second.
Therefore, if we calculate the odds of any possibility of something happening through every particle engaging in 1 trillion interactions every second for 30 billion years, the odds are: 10⁸⁰ x 10¹² x 10¹⁸ = 10¹¹⁰ odds/possibility. [2]

Any odds higher than 10¹¹⁰ would be deemed impossible. In fact, many would consider anything over 10⁵⁰ to be in the realm of impossibility. [3] For perspective, the number 10⁵⁰ would be the same as the number of people it would take to stand shoulder to shoulder and fill our solar system from the Sun to Pluto. [4]

Cambridge astronomy professor Sir Fred Hoyle (not a Christian) wrote, “Now imagine 10⁵⁰ blind persons each with a scrambled Rubik cube and try to conceive of the chance of them all simultaneously arriving at the solved form. You then have the chance of arriving by random shuffling of just one of the many biopolymers on which life depends. The notion that not only the biopolymers but the operating program of a living cell could be arrived at by chance in a primordial soup here on Earth is evidently nonsense of a high order.” [5]

Dr. Marcel Golay (mathematician and physicist) calculated the odds of a “simple” replicating protein arising from random chance circumstances to be 10⁴⁵⁰. [6]

Dr. Frank Salisbury (plant physiologist) calculated the odds of a typical DNA chain arising from random chance circumstances to be 10⁶⁰⁰. [7]

The average “simplest” protein is 400 links of amino acids. [8] The hypothetical minimum for a functional cell is 400 proteins. [9] Including all of that, all the energy producing mechanisms, and the coding of DNA in genes through the operation of m RNA and t RNA to form a protein, the odds of everything coming together at once to form a living, functional cell by random chance are 10⁵⁷ ⁸⁰⁰. [10]

What each of these secular scientists has shown us is the absurdity of naturalistic evolution due to the necessity of all components at the exact same time to make something work. How could any one component evolve and become functional without all the others evolving at the exact same time so that they could all function and operate in such a complex way? None of them can function and operate without the other – the whole system is irreducibly complex. Take out one component, the whole thing ceases to function.

To illustrate, the result of randomly shuffling a deck of cards means nothing; it is just a pile of cards in a random, nonsensical order. However, the shuffling of a deck resulting in every card separated into the four suits with each suit perfectly arranged in order of Ace through King would demand rejection of the idea that it had happened by random chance over billions of years of shuffling. Rather, it must have been organized into a sensical pattern by an intelligent source. Not to mention, this doesn’t even address the production of the cards, or the equipment needed to produce the cards, or the components of the equipment needed to produce the cards, or the elements needed to form the components needed to build the equipment to produce the cards that are then intelligently arranged in a sensical manner.

Edmund J. Ambrose, author of many evolutionary biology books, wrote, “When we come to examine the simplest known organism capable of independent existence, the situation becomes even more fantastic. In the DNA chain of the chromosome of the bacterium E. coli , a favourite organism used by molecular biologists, the helix consists of 3-4 million base pairs. These are all arranged in a sequence that is ’meaningful’ in the sense that it gives rise to enzyme molecules which fit the various metabolites and products used by the cell. This unique sequence represents a choice of one out of 10² ⁰⁰⁰ ⁰⁰⁰ alternative ways of arranging the bases! We are compelled to conclude that the origin of the first life was a unique event, which cannot be discussed in terms of probability.” [11]

Yale biophysics professor Harold Morowitz calculated the odds of one complete bacterium of E. coli spontaneously forming on its own at anytime in history to be less than 10¹⁰⁰ ⁰⁰⁰ ⁰⁰⁰ ⁰⁰⁰. [12]

Yes, not only is naturalistic evolution improbable, it is impossible . Thus, we understand that “ the universe has been created by the word of God so that what is seen has not been made out of things that are visible ” (Hebrews 11:3) , but rather “ All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being ” (John 1:3) .

1. John C. Villanueva, “How Many Atoms Are There in the Universe?”, Universe Today , 30 July 2009, <https://www.universetoday.com/36302/atoms-in-the-universe/>, accessed 23 June 2021.

Jay Bennett, “How Many Particles Are in the Observable Universe?”, Popular Mechanics , 11 July 2017, <https://www.popularmechanics.com/space/a27259/how-many-particles-are-in-the-entire-universe/>, accessed 23 June 2021.

2. Henry M. Morris, Ph.D., “Probability and Order Versus Evolution”, Acts & Facts 8 (7), 1979, <https://www.icr.org/article/probability-order-versus-evolution/>, accessed 23 June 2021.

3. Ibid.

4. Russell Grigg, “Could monkeys type the 23rd Psalm?”, <https://creation.com/could-monkeys-type-the-23rd-psalm>, accessed 21 June 2021.

5. Sir Fred Hoyle, “The Big Bang in Astronomy”, New Scientist 92 (1280):527, 19 Nov 1981.

6. Marcel J.E. Golay, Ph.D., “Reflections of a Communications Engineer”, Analytical Chemistry , V. 33, June 1961, p. 23.

7. Frank B. Salisbury, Ph.D., “Doubts about the Modern Synthetic Theory of Evolution”, American Biology Teacher , Sept. 1971, p. 336.

8. D.A. Bradbury, “Reply to Landau and Landau”, Creation/Evolution 13 (2):49, 1993. Note: this is a secular, pro-evolution publication.

9. Don Batten, Ph.D., “Cheating with chance”, <https://creation.com/cheating-with-chance>, accessed 21 June 2021.

See also: Jonathan Sarfati, Ph.D., “How Simple Can Life Be?”, 15 March 2021, <https://creation.com/how-simple-can-life-be>, accessed 21 June 2021.

10. D.A. Bradbury, “Reply to Landau and Landau”.

11. E.J. Ambrose, The Nature and Origin of the Biological World , Prentice Hall, Europe, 1982, p. 135.

12. Harold J. Morowitz, Energy Flow in Biology , Academic Press, NY, 1968, p. 67.

Binding Mr. & Mrs.

Mon, 02 Aug 2021 23:12:29 GMT

Over the course of the last several weeks, I have attended, participated or officiated in three weddings. Each ceremony was unique in venue and decor, but the foundation through each wedding was the Lord. It was exciting to see in each couple love for their spouse and the Lord. As each couple committed for life to each other, they acknowledged the Lord’s divine binding of marriage.

Each couple understood the origin of the marriage relationship is found in Genesis 2. It was created by God, between one man and one woman, on the sixth day of history. When forming man from the dust of the earth, it was the Lord’s desire that we not be alone. The man was in need of a helper, but not because of a weakness or distressful need. Rather this helper, woman, was to complete the man. There was equality in the Lord’s sight between the man and woman in image-bearing and importance, yet each with different roles and responsibilities in the marriage family.

Today this very important Biblical fact is under attack. It is often conveyed that marriage can be with whomever we desire, male or female. Many states already have or are in the process of defining marriage to include homosexual couples, so to allow “legal marriage” for them with all the rights and benefits therein. These states may think they have the power to define marriage, but in reality the Lord is the only one who binds in marriage. Otherwise marriage becomes, quite simply, a man-made relationship for self-interest. Without the understanding that it is not our license, rings, vows or kiss that bind us in marriage but rather it is the Lord, we are just entering into a contract with limitations and expirations. The true blessing and fulfillment in marriage comes from the Lord binding a couple together for life, and it is why “man cannot not separate them”. It is truly a divine union that has its origins in Genesis.

To all of our supporters and readers with many decades of marriage, please share often with the younger generation all the Lord is teaching you daily about each other and Him. Blessings to you and your families! May the Lord continue to bind you together closer day after day as you seek Him while LOOKING UP.

Attacking America’s Founding = Attacking the Church

Thu, 10 Jun 2021 21:40:29 GMT

Daniel Webster, Fryeburg Academy address: July 4, 1802 [1]

Repeatedly, the founding fathers made it clear that America’s foundation was a Bible-based foundation, and it will fall if that foundation is removed or destroyed. For example, President John Adams wrote to the Massachusetts Militia, “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious People. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other”. [2]

The Biblical foundation was so solid because it encompassed the entirety of the Bible: the Law, the Gospel, and even a literal understanding of its history, including Genesis. Notice how Daniel Webster stated there has only been roughly 6,000 years of history. That conclusion can only be reached through a literal understanding of Genesis and Biblical history.

Indeed, the erosion of American morality and liberty has directly coincided with the erosion of Biblical adherence and acceptance of evolutionary dogma (i.e. Social Darwinism). The history and state of the Union can be summarized as such:

1. Divine, Miraculous Founding of America

a. BIBLICAL FOUNDATION

b. BLESSED & PROSPEROUS NATION

2. Acceptance of Alternative Origins

a. EVOLUTION

3. Acceptance of Alternative Morals

a. SOCIAL DARWINISM

4. Attacks on American’s Founding

a. BIBLICAL FOUNDATION ATTACKED

5. Discrediting and Marginalizing the Church

a. BIBLICAL INFLUENCE REMOVED

b. DESCENT INTO IMMORALITY, CORRUPTION, CRIME, CHAOS, TOTALITARIAN CONTROL

Because America and the Church have the same foundation (God’s Word, Eph. 2:20), an attack on America’s founding = an attack on the Church’s founding. Hence, the Gospel of Jesus Christ is rendered meaningless and even vile to those indoctrinated with revisionist history. Those in the Church of Jesus Christ need to realize what is happening and understand that, though they are vitally important, elections will never save America. Revival through the power of the Gospel is the only means to salvation for the individual and the United States.

Thus it falls, once again, upon the pulpits of America to inform the parents in the pews of the Biblical truths of salvation, liberty, and Bible-based government. The parents then pass this on to the next generation who will continue to stand up for these principles. This, in fact, is how the United States was birthed – by the preaching of Biblical principles upon which the founding fathers acted (study the Black Robe Regiment). [3]

“We hold these truths to be self-evident,” the founders unanimously declared, “that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

1. The Illustrated Fryeburg Webster Memorial , A.F. & C.W. Lewis: Fryeburg, ME, 1882, pp. 13-14.
2. From John Adams to Massachusetts Militia, 11 October 1798”, Founders Online, National Archives, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Adams/99-02-02-3102.
3. https://nationalblackroberegiment.com/history-of-the-black-robe-regiment/#
4. The Correspondence and Public Papers of John Jay, Vol. IV. Henry P. Johnston, ed., G.P. Putnam’s Sons, NY, 1890, pp. 493-498.

June 2021 Printed Newsletter

Thu, 10 Jun 2021 20:46:45 GMT

Exchange Rate

Thu, 10 Jun 2021 19:55:59 GMT

Have you ever regretted a purchase? Exchanging one item for another has become very important as we purchase more and more online. Online purchasing comes with the inherent risk that you may not get what you paid for. Maybe you bought an item to replace another but then you realize the original is better. This scenario has happened to most of us. It is also the premise behind Romans 1:25, “who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.”

We often have exchanged what we have known to be true for a lie. At the time it seemed like we were going to be better off. The new thing is “better”, it fills my needs more completely. As an example, we have a generation of students and young adults being fooled into thinking that our main problem is social and racial injustice, and if they don’t agree, they are part of the problem. A small minority of humanists have usurped power over them with a lie. This lie has a foundation in “the lie”, as Satan’s plan is to draw people away from the Truth. If the Truth can be exchanged for the lie, then it becomes easier to manipulate and gain control of a person. Subsequently, “truth” is rewritten to whatever is desired to accomplish an evil agenda, culminating in the giving of a life in worship of self and the agenda.

The Truth sets free while the lie enslaves and condemns. If we would view ourselves as Jesus does, it would be evident that we are all broken. There is none of us good in and of ourselves. We are in desperate need of the Truth to complete us for all eternity. Only when we realize we have all been created in the Truth’s image will we see what we have exchanged for the lie. As I release my will for His, my spirit is renewed by the very One that made it. Then, and only then, will we see sin as sin with the need for reconciliation, loving our neighbor with a desire that they come to the Truth. Only when sin is replaced with a repentant heart will we have freedom to live the life planned by our Creator.

We must keep looking up to our Creator who is the only One deserving of our worship and devotion. Man-made ideas, agendas and programs will only lead to divisive lives focused on “serving the creature rather than the Creator.”

Blessings to all of you who lift this ministry up in your prayers as we continue LOOKING UP and lead others to do the same!

The Fantastically Fun and Frustrating Fossil Record

Fri, 23 Apr 2021 21:23:35 GMT

     Throughout the past school year, Matt Miles and I have been blessed to teach science class every couple of weeks for a Christian school in Oklahoma. Recently, we covered earth sciences with applications from the Global Flood (Genesis 6-9). As Matt taught about earthquakes, volcanoes, rocks, and minerals, he shared how the Flood laid down massive amounts of sediment around the world. Large deposits and formations of sedimentary rock span entire continents and could only have been deposited by the Global Flood. (1)

     This session set up what I would cover in the following lesson – FOSSILS! Needless to say, the students and I thoroughly enjoyed studying the different types of fossils (petrified, preserved, carbonized, molded or cast, & trace fossils), all of which CTF was able to provide several examples for the students to hold or examine. This brought us to what has been discovered in the fossil record.

     The fossil record is the cumulative knowledge of documented fossils. Excellent examples would be the data collected and provided by the Paleobiology Database and the Neotoma Paleoecology Database. These resources show the locations of documented fossil discoveries that have been submitted by contributors. The fossils span the globe with new discoveries constantly being added to these databases.

     Now, as we taught the students, for a plant or animal to turn into a fossil, there needs to be (1) lots of mud brought by (2) lots of water (3) very quickly. If the specimen is not buried quickly in the sediment, it will be scavenged or decay.

     Hmmm. Let’s see now: we have fossils found around the entire world on every continent, and they all had to be buried very quickly with lots of mud and water. Is there any explanation as to how every part of the planet at some point must have been covered by mud and water to produce fossils?    The Global Flood.

     Not only does the fossil record testify of the Global Flood, it does great disservice to the myth of biological evolution.

Each and every animal or plant that appears in the fossil record is fully formed, showing no signs of any evolutionary processes. (2,3)
Once something appears, it remains it stasis – it never shows any evolutionary change. (4)
Numerous animals, plants, etc. in the fossil record believed to be millions of years old in the evolutionary scheme are found alive today having gone through no evolutionary change (i.e., coelacanths, gar fish, bowfin fish, tuatara, etc.). (5)
Animals are routinely found out of evolutionary order (i.e., mammals and birds found with dinosaurs). (6,7)
Fossils are frequently found in marine sediments (8) and/or buried with marine fossils (i.e., T. rex fossils buried with 5 species of shark and 14 species of fish in eastern Montana). (9)
The continued discovery of preserved biomaterial in fossils consistently invalidates any possibility of millions of years as the materials could only have survived for thousands of years at best. (10)

When it is realized that the fossil record is (1) over 95% marine organisms, (11) (2) covers the whole planet, and (3) was created by the rapid deposition of sediment laid down by water and mud flows, the historic account of the Global Flood becomes all the more supported while the fairy tale of evolution becomes all the more discredited.

Dr. Mark Ridley, professor of zoology and evolutionary biology at Oxford University and whose doctoral advisor was Richard Dawkins, admitted in New Scientist, “In any case, no real evolutionist, whether gradualist or punctuationist, uses the fossil record as evidence in favor of the theory of evolution as opposed to special creation”. (12)

Though the fossil record may be extremely frustrating and detrimental to the tenets of evolution, it is a consistent and faithful witness to Creation and the divine judgement of the great Global Flood.

(1)Tim Clarey, Ph.D. 2020. Carved in Stone: Geologic Evidence of the Worldwide Flood . ICR: Dallas, TX, pp. 378-399.
(2)E.V. Koonin. 2007. “The Biological Big Bang model for the major transitions in evolution”, Biology Direct , 2:21.
(3)S.J. Gould. 1977. “Evolution’s Erratic Pace”, Natural History , 86 (6).
(4)Ibid.
(5)John Morris, Ph.D. & Frank Sherwin. 2010. The Fossil Record . ICR: Dallas, TX, 6th printing 2020, pp. 113-4.
(6)National Science Foundation. 2014. “Scientists discover fossil of bizarre groundhog-like mammal on Madagascar: Newly discovered fossil alters thinking on evolution of early mammals”. Nov. 5, 2014 News Release, <https://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=133092>
(7)Dr. Carl Werner. “What Museums Aren’t Showing You”, Real Science Radio , updated list maintained by Bob Enyart, <https://kgov.com/434-mammal-species-in-dinosaur-layers#mammals-ate-dinosaurs>
(8)Tim Clarey, Ph.D. 2017. “Dinosaur Fossils Found in Marine Rocks… Again”, 25 May 2017, <https://www.icr.org/article/dinosaur-fossils-found-marine-rocksagain>
(9)Tim Clarey, Ph.D. 2015. “Dinosaurs in Marine Sediments: A Worldwide Phenomenon”, Acts & Facts . 44 (6).
(10)Brian Thomas, Ph.D. & Bob Enyart. List of Biomaterial Fossil Papers (maintained), <https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/u/1/d/1eXtKzjWP2B1FMDVrsJ_992ITFK8H3LXfPFNM1ll-Yiw/htmlview>
(11)Andrew A. Snelling, Ph.D. “Where Are All the Human Fossils?’, Creation14 , no 1 (Dec. 1990): 28-33.
(12)Mark Ridley Ph.D. "Who Doubts Evolution?", New Scientist , Vol. 90; June 25, 1981, p. 831.

April/May 2021 Printed Newsletter

Fri, 23 Apr 2021 21:21:35 GMT

The Foundational Basis of Genesis

Fri, 23 Apr 2021 21:09:49 GMT

     I have read again The Genesis Record , chapter 1 (Dr. Henry M. Morris, 2006). This was the “umpteenth” time for me to read this remarkable volume that was prepared by the modern father of Biblical creationism. And yes, it is written that well, and by the man that was without a doubt the father of the 20th century revival of Biblical creationism (in fact every Christian needs to read this book!). If I am ever again the headmaster of a Christian school, this book would be a graduation requirement.

     Dr. Morris plainly tells us that the Book of Genesis is probably the most important book ever written (p.17), because if the Bible is ever printed without the Book of Genesis as its foundational basis, the balance of the Scripture would be bereft of meaning and purpose! This one book alone adequately deals with the origin of the universe, its order and complexity, the solar system, atmosphere and hydrosphere, life, man, marriage, evil, language, government, culture, the nations, religion, and Israel and its people.

     It is significant that one of the first twelve chapters of Genesis is either quoted or referred to in the majority of the New Testament. Jesus continuously referenced Genesis, including specific reference to each of the first seven chapters. It is of vital importance that the reader understand that in all instances where NT writers referred to Genesis not one time did they infer or say Genesis was myth or allegory (p.22).
Dr. Nelson Glueck (gl-OO’-eh-k), a leading archaeologist during the latter half of the 20th century, wrote, “As a matter of record…it may be stated categorically that no archaeological discovery has ever controverted {disputed} a Biblical reference. Scores of archaeological findings have been made which confirm in clear outline or exact detail historical statements in the Bible" ( Rivers in the Desert , NY, 1959, p. 31).

     If a person chooses to disbelieve the Bible for whatever reason, no one can with academic certainty say that the Bible is inconsistent in its message, even though it was written by 40 or more writers, over a space of 1500 years; no one can say the Bible does not accurately treat all scientific data about which it speaks; no one can allege the history of the Bible is inaccurate; no one can say that Jesus Christ is not the center and circumference of its content; and no one can legitimately be offended at its ultimate message.

     There is a Savior who was virgin born. His name is the above every name that has ever been name! He lived in a sinful world without sinning. He was the revelation God in the flesh. His ultimate objective was ratifying the covenant in His own blood - blood that speaks better things than the blood of Abel. He prayed more than any man prayed, and He loved unto the end of His fleshly life. But He arose on the third day and lead captivity captive! He stands open-armed with this invitation:

“If any man thirsts let him come unto to Me and drink.” John 7:37

Bighorn Surprise

ctf@creationtruth.com (Matt Miles) — Fri, 23 Apr 2021 15:11:28 GMT

On a recent trip to the great state of Montana, we experienced the Lord working in people’s lives. In the midst of being blessed by great hospitality and open arms from our brothers and sisters in Christ, Bob and I were far from home to accomplish a task. The Lord used us to reinforce faith in Him and His Word in mighty ways. We saw strongholds, from big to small, of evolutionary worldviews broken down and filled with the Truth instead. The freeing was visible on many faces, with a renewed excitement for the Lord’s Word and study.

While in Montana we also had the opportunity to observe wildlife we don’t experience often here in Oklahoma. For Bob, a bighorn sheep was on the list. So, one afternoon we were shown a herd of these majestic sheep - not on the side of a mountain, not on a mighty cliff face, not at high altitude after a strenuous hike… but in the chain-link fenced backyard of a subdivision house. Not exactly where we expected to see them, to say the least. Evidently, this is a common occurrence during this time of year as they forage the greening grass and flowering plants in yards. This was not the most impactful site for me that afternoon, though.

As the herd peacefully grazed in this nice suburban backyard, they didn’t seem to notice or care about us on the street. Traffic came and went, slowing to observe this seemingly odd site. The sheep didn’t even seem to be concerned by the home owner working around the front yard and vehicles. Then, in a flash, the herd’s posture changed to alarm. We observed all their bighorn-adorned heads pop up and clearly observe an impending threat. In almost one fluid motion they began to move away from the house and flew over the fence. To my shock, a small white dog came running around the house, obviously upset by the sheep in its yard. ( Take another look at the picture ) This dog was barely taller than their ankles and could be silenced by a couple of swift kicks of a hoof, or better yet, a nice thump of a head and horn from these mighty animals. Yet, this small, high-stung vocal attacker fooled the sheep into fear and intimidation. I could only watch in total shock as the sheep didn’t stand their ground and fight but instead gave up their “green pasture” to this unworthy adversary.

O, what a truth was expressed that afternoon for each of us. During these days our adversary, Satan, is putting up a lot of bluster and intimidation. Like those sheep, many times we let that cause fear and we run from what the Lord has blessed us with. We are fooled into thinking that he (Satan) actually has more power than he does, maybe even mightier than the One who lives within us. I was reminded of 1 Peter 5:8-11 where we are reminded that in the face of suffering we are to stand firm knowing we are not alone. In the face of increasing persecution from the evil one and his minions, I urge you to stand firm. Continue LOOKING UP to the One who gives us strength and freedom from all adversaries!

March 2021 Printed Newsletter

Fri, 19 Mar 2021 21:27:58 GMT

Uncanceled Eugenics

Fri, 19 Mar 2021 21:01:26 GMT

February 24, 2021 marked the 150th anniversary of Charles Darwin’s The Descent of Man . This book served somewhat as a sequel to his 1859 On the Origin of Species. In the first work, Darwin did not deal with human evolution in much detail. Now that his publication of evolutionary thoughts had gained notoriety, he attempted to tackle human evolution in the 1871 book.

In his evolutionary worldview of humanity, Darwin wrote, “At the present day civilised nations are everywhere supplanting barbarous nations, excepting where the climate opposes a deadly barrier; and they succeed mainly, though not exclusively, through their arts, which are the products of the intellect.” (1)

     Expounding upon his thoughts of civilized and barbarous peoples, he continued, “In a tribe thus rendered more numerous there would always be a rather better chance of the birth of other superior and inventive members. If such men left children to inherit their mental superiority, the chance of the birth of still more ingenious members would be somewhat better, and in a very small tribe decidedly better. Even if they left no children, the tribe would still include their blood-relations; and it has been ascertained by agriculturists that by preserving and breeding from the family of an animal… the desired character has been obtained.” (2)

     Darwin concluded, “At some future period… the civilized races of man will almost certainly exterminate and replace the savage races throughout the world. At the same time the anthropomorphous apes [i.e. less evolved people]… will no doubt be exterminated. The break between man and his nearest allies will then be wider, for it will intervene between man in a more civilised state, as we may hope, even than the Caucasian, and some ape as low as a baboon, instead of as now between the negro or Australian and the gorilla.” (3)

     Darwin clearly believed that peoples of Africa and Australia are less evolved (hardly any different than gorillas) and such peoples will one day be exterminated. His works were then used by men like Herbert Spencer, Francis Galton, Ernst Haeckel, Charles Davenport and many others to promote eugenics-based teachings and policies. In the early 1900s, 32 states in the USA enacted eugenics programs. Some 60,000 to 70,000 individuals were forcibly sterilized from 1907 through the 1960s. (4) In Germany, millions were killed in the eugenics-driven holocaust.

     One would think there would be a deafening cry for Darwin and his works to be canceled in the current political climate. The problem is, most supporters of the “cancel culture” are of an evolutionary worldview; they support today’s means of eugenics.

     The vast majority of women having abortions are considered to be “low income” (75%). (5) Minority women are disproportionally having abortions (6.3% of “white” women vs 21.2% of “black” women). (6) It is believed by some that these statistics represent purposeful targeting of low-income and minority communities. (7) Indeed, the late Supreme Court Justice and abortion activist Ruth Bader Ginsburg said in 2009, “Frankly I had thought that at the time Roe was decided, there was concern about population growth and particularly growth in populations that we don’t want to have too many of.” (8)

     And now in today’s technological era, there is the ever-growing genetic manipulation of babies that is raising deep moral questions. (9) In the words of embryologist Magdalena Zernicka-Goetz of Cambridge, “We are entering a new era, one where we can manipulate the cellular units of life as skillfully as a potter works clay.” (10)

     The importance of Biblical worldview cannot be overstated. It must be taught in homes and churches. World history has witnessed the devastating, deadly effects of evolutionary-based worldviews. If we are to prevent these things in the 21st century, we must make Biblical worldview training an essential part of life.

Creation Truth Foundation exists to assist families, individuals, and churches in worldview development. Thank you so very much for your faithful prayers and support.

(1) Charles Darwin. The Descent of Man and Selection in Relation to Sex . Published by John Murray, 1871. 1st edition, p. 161.

(2) Ibid., p. 162.

(3) Ibid., pp. 168-9.

(4) Edwin Black, War Against the Weak: Eugenics and America’s Campaign to Create a Master Race . Dialog Press, 2012, p. xvi. See also “The Supreme Court Ruling that led to 70,000 Forced Sterilizations”, Fresh Air , 24 March 2017, <https://www.npr.org/2017/03/24/521360544/the-supreme-court-ruling-that-led-to-70-000-forced-sterilizations>

(5) Jerman J, Jones RK and Onda T, “Characteristics of U.S. Abortion Patients in 2014 and Changes Since 2008”, New York: Guttmacher Institute, 2016, <https://www.guttmacher.org/infographic/2016/abortion-patients-are-disproportionately-poor-and-low-income#>

(6) CDC Abortion Surveillance – United States, 2018, published 9/27/2020, <https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/69/ss/ss6907a1.htm#T5_down>

(7) Steven Ertelt, “79% of Planned Parenthood Abortion Clinics Target Blacks, Hispanics”, LifeNews.com , 16 October 2012, <https://www.lifenews.com/2012/10/16/79-of-planned-parenthood-abortion-clinics-target-blacks-hispanics/>

(8) Interview with New York Times Magazine reporter Emily Bazelon, quoted by The Federalist and National Review
< https://thefederalist.com/2014/09/24/ruth-bader-ginsburg-really-wants-poor-people-to-stop-having-babies/>
< https://www.nationalreview.com/2009/07/ruth-bader-ginsburg-and-question-eugenics-jonah-goldberg/>

(9) See for example: <https://www.cbsnews.com/news/crispr-jennifer-doudna-walter-isaacson-the-code-breaker/>
< https://www.geneticsandsociety.org/article/designer-babies-arent-futuristic-theyre-already-here>
< https://www.geneticsandsociety.org/biopolitical-times/designer-babies-all-you-ever-wanted-know-and-more-kicks-webinar-series-genetics>

(10) Kate Womersley, “The Beautiful Science of Embryology”, Prospect Magazine , 3 March 2021, <https://www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/magazine/the-beautiful-science-of-embryology>

Who We Really Are

Fri, 19 Mar 2021 20:15:06 GMT

The origin’s debate (better known as the Creation/Evolution debate) has been a heated discussion in our society (and the world for that matter). For some time now it has become a major cause for the secular basis in our belief systems, eventhough first origins cannot be proved scientifically. If, for example, science can prove plants, animals and life arose spontaneously and that continuous transition between simple, one-celled animals, did in fact give rise to multiple-celled animals, the question then becomes: how did this come about?

Did they arise spontaneously? Are they related in any way? Is there some kind of primordial force in the earth that convulsed or engaged matter to produce this phenomenon? Did matter arise or develop spontaneously from nothing, or from something? If the answer is from “nothing,” then we have no clue about the source of our origin. But if the answer is from "something", then what was that something?

If we came from nothing, then all our social and religious structures and forms are of human origin and have no basis in reality; they simply serve the here and now! But if there is reason to believe, and there is, that space, humankind and the earth are the result of a creative act of a holy God through the power of His Word, then we have a serious responsibility to bow before Him, obey Him and worshipfully serve Him.

Thus, it becomes immediately evident that the Creation/Evolution struggle is not just another meaningless debate of academic gobbledygook (that is, meaningless ideas concocted from simple men), but is indeed eternal! This is the bottom line in the Creation/Evolution debate; it is not about philosophy or even science, it is about who we really are!

If I am simply a container of atoms that exists because of natural reactions only, then I am no different than any inanimate object having no ultimate eternal potential. But if I am a creature made in the image of the omnipotent God, if He created me especially for His service and worship, then I have a task much greater and more important than world leader—president, king or emperor!

Our goal must be:

But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves also are found sinners, is therefore Christ the minister of sin? God forbid. For if I build again the things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor. For through the law I am dead to the law, that I might live unto God. I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ lives in me: and the life that I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave Himself for me. (Gal 2:17-20)

A Job Reminder

Fri, 19 Mar 2021 20:06:46 GMT

When reading the 38th chapter of Job recently, I was reminded that the Lord speaks to Job “out of the whirlwind”. Job, in the midst of the storm and chaos of his life, heard the Lord answering – His voice was not after the storm or during a lull. When Job needed to hear His reassuring voice the most is exactly when the Lord verbally reminded him who is in control. It is through creation that Job is reassured of his valued place in the Lord’s will.

Standing out to me, of course, is Job being reminded that he has nothing to do with the heavenly objects in verses 31-33. The constellations of Pleiades, Orion, Ursa major and minor are given as examples of the Lord’s governance. Job could never affirmatively answer the Lord’s questions about controlling the stars of Pleiades or Orion in their form, nor could he direct them to move and appear at the correct time in the sky. Pay close attention to the details of celestial movement and “ordinances” that we might say today are laws of motion. These verses speak volumes to the sovereignty and power of the Creator.

We are reminded, just as Job was, any night we gaze into the heavens that the Lord’s governance is still in control. Even in the midst of the chaos at present, HE IS STILL OVER ALL, speaking to each of us that desire and need His guidance and comfort during these stormy times. Keep looking up. Blessings to all of you as we celebrate our Creator’s salvation gift in a few weeks.The body content of your post goes here. To edit this text, click on it and delete this default text and start typing your own or paste your own from a different source.

Scientific Materialism

Thu, 11 Feb 2021 16:25:00 GMT

The wise author of the Ecclesiastes tells us that “Of making many books there is no end” (Ecclesiastes 12:12). I seriously pondered this fact as I contemplated the content of the Science According to Moses trilogy. The most significant reality was the glaring fact that many capable authors had already dealt with this subject in cogent style. Nevertheless, after many consultations with my peers, and several phone calls to Dr. Henry M. Morris, I was convinced that the Lord had indeed given me something significant enough to share in a published format.

The negative fallout caused by the overwhelming coverage of the evolutionary intrusion into every area of the Western culture is mind-boggling. And I suppose a great impetus that shoved through much of my indecision was due to the multiplied dozens of references referring to the “supposed” scientific credibility that appeared in favor of this naturalistic cause for the earth, animal life and men.

Moreover, Dr. A. E. Wilder-Smith, a dedicated believer, who earned three doctorates in science, explained this serious condition as follows:

Here is the problem, while the apparent scientific support for the doctrine of evolution has all but vanished, the impact from all this “scientific” stuff has left a dangerous residue in our “so-called” Judeo-Christian culture. Founded on scientific materialism and supported by Darwinian evolutionism, this mindset has become our cultural worldview, and as such, it dominates the mindset of most westerners -including Americans in particular!

How Long, O Lord?

Mon, 08 Feb 2021 16:59:00 GMT

“ ² How long, O Lord, will I call for help, and You will not hear? I cry out to You, ‘Violence!’ Yet You do not save. ³ Why do You make me see iniquity, and cause me to look on wickedness? Yes, destruction and violence are before me; strife exists and contention arises. ⁴ Therefore the law is ignored and justice is never upheld. For the wicked surround the righteous; therefore justice comes out perverted. ” Habakkuk 1:2-4

In the midst of a global pandemic, shutdowns, job losses, cities set ablaze, first responders and innocent citizens attacked or killed, fraudulent elections, unconstitutional acts, the silencing and cancelling of opposition, public promotions of immorality and debauchery, and the public support and protection of slaying innocents (abortion), we may feel as hopeless as the prophet Habakkuk.

Indeed, our situation in America seems to mirror the words of the prophet’s cry. Has the Lord abandoned us? Has He turned a blind eye to the sin and ruin? Have we reached a point of no return, of no longer worthy of our nation being saved and preserved? Is there anything we can do or look forward to?

Heed the words of the Lord spoken to Habakkuk!

“ ^1:5 Look among the nations! Observe! Be astonished! Wonder! Because I am doing something in your days – you would not believe if you were told… ^2:20 But the Lord is in His holy temple. Let all the earth be silent before Him. ”

First, we must have unshakable faith that the God of the universe has not been dethroned; He is still in command! We trust His unfathomable wisdom when we do not understand. We are comforted by His unending grace and mercy.

Then, we are encouraged to stand and continue the Kingdom work through the love of Christ.

“ ^1:4 Behold, as for the proud one, His soul is not right within him; but the righteous will live by his faith… ^3:2 Lord, I have heard the report about You and I fear. O Lord, revive Your work in the midst of the years, in the midst of the years make it known .”

So we shall live by faith. We will pray for revival. We will engage in His work. We will forever love our neighbors, even those who oppose Him. We will serve with humility and share the love of our Savior and the hope of the Gospel. We will not let the trifles of man nor the powers of darkness intimidate us into inaction nor provoke us unto malice. For we are “ not ashamed of the Gospel, for it is the power of God unto salvation ” (Romans 1:16).

We will let the Spirit lead, the Sword of truth pierce, and the Gospel message convert as we faithfully serve all our days as He, and He alone, is worthy to be praised.

“ ^3:18-19 Yet I will exult in the Lord, I will rejoice in the God of my salvation. The Lord God is my strength. ”

Looking Up

Tue, 02 Feb 2021 16:00:00 GMT

What is your focus centered on during these dark days? Is your hope in a governmental party? Is a vaccine your salvation? Does your sustenance rise and fall with the stock market? Or, do you continue to look up for your eternal destiny?

Our focus this year at CTF is to exhort you to keep LOOKING UP, as the author of Hebrews tells us in the second verse of the twelfth chapter. Fixing our eyes on Jesus is our utmost priority. With everything going on around us, we can be easily distracted. Yet our focus is to stay on Christ, because he is the Author and Perfecter of our faith.

His authorship obviously began at creation, and this qualifies Him like none other to be our prime focus in these days. We need the only One who has been here since the beginning, the One on whom all rests, the only One who is absolute and almighty, the only One in ultimate authority! All of this may seem quite trite, but if we are real with ourselves, nothing else can sustain. We could try to look else where, but all other avenues lack His authority as Author to guide us through life.

He is also our Perfecter – the one who perfected this life like no one else could in all of history. Sin has come into the world and marred it. We have blemished the perfection of creation. Our relationship with the Author has been damaged and we have no way to restore it under our own power. The world is in chaos and we keep trying to fix it, but even with our best efforts life continues to spiral out of our control. We are in desperate need of the Perfecter to restore our relationship and life like only He is able. He holds the keys to life because He, as the author of Hebrews relates, endured the cross with great joy in the midst of shame and chaos, so that we may be perfected from our sin and death that we encounter, sometimes it seems daily.

Our sustenance, salvation, comfort, rest, and hope can only be perfected through the Author of life and conqueror of death. Let us continue in 2021 to keep LOOKING UP at Him, Jesus Christ, and nowhere else. And before you know it, things might start looking up, or at the least our comfort level in the midst of the chaos will begin looking up . Blessings in this year 2021!

January/February 2021 Printed Newsletter

Sun, 31 Jan 2021 22:34:13 GMT

Merry Christmas – Stay Focused

Fri, 11 Dec 2020 20:28:00 GMT

This year has not gone like most of us had planned. 2020 will go down as a tough year for all of us in one way or another. Through navigating the COVID pandemic, political tension, and racial divides, we have seemingly experienced a year far from our control. However, the Lord remains in control and we praise Him as we end this volatile year. This Christmas, it is time to refocus on the important things that we can control – ourselves and our objects of worship.

Some 2,000 years ago the Magi found themselves traveling to a foreign land in search of a newly born King. Most likely they had not planned for nor were they expecting this experience in their lifetime. They began their journey following a prophecy and a star. Their focus was on worshiping the King of the Jews, little knowing that their direction, as they headed home, would change because of a homicidal maniac’s desire for power and control. The distress and fear that must have been present during this time might not have been much different than ours. The Magi stayed focused by controlling one thing they could – keeping their eyes on their object of worship. And sure enough, the evil plans were thwarted, the True King was exalted, and He reigns on high today.

Just as the Magi did, we too should stay focused on the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, Jesus Christ. Even in turmoil that is out of our control, we can control our response with fervent worship of the Author and Finisher of our faith. Our challenge to you as we enter 2021 is Hebrews 12:2 as it reminds us to keep LOOKING UP to the One in control. Merry Christmas and may the Lord bless you abundantly in the coming year for His Glory!

“Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.” – Hebrews 12:2

Thankful Destiny

Fri, 13 Nov 2020 22:37:00 GMT

What legacy are you leaving for your family? Here at CTF we are passionate about making sure dads, moms, grandpas and grandmas have the resources they need to leave a Biblical legacy in their families. In Deuteronomy chapter 4 God’s people are reminded to pass on to their family all the Lord has done. It may be more vital now than ever before to talk about history with our families.

During the next couple of months our families will be gathering to celebrate Thanksgiving and Christmas. These are great opportunities to remind them of the TRUE meanings behind our holiday celebrations. We have Thanksgiving because the Pilgrims were driven here to start new lives with freedom to worship our Savior. And Christmas is such a special opportunity to share our Savior’s birth with the world and the plan He has had since the beginning for the salvation of those who believe. The TRUE history of these celebrations must continue to be reinforced, especially since the opposing worldview strikes at their historical reality whenever possible with misinformation and wrong “narratives”. With the secularization of the holidays comes not only the loss of the TRUE history, but also the loss of TRUTH about our destiny.

Our motto at Creation Truth is “training disciples to trust the Bible’s history for its accuracy, so they will trust its promise for their destiny.” We are all about TRUE history, both Biblical & extra-Biblical where we see God’s hand in the affairs of men, making the most of every opportunity we have to teach it. Thank you again for standing with us in our mission – it would not be possible without supporters like you! As you are probably aware, Giving Tuesday is coming up December 1st, and we would be thankful if you would seek the Lord another time on our behalf as the end of the year nears. Our monthly needs are greater than our monthly support, and finances can get tight without opportunities to preach and teach. The months coming up are traditionally difficult for us since we do not travel much over December and January. Any extra gift this year would be such a blessing to help further our mission heading into next year. Blessings to all, as we remember and are thankful for the Lord’s provision, just as the Pilgrims were when they came to this “new world” and expressed great thankfulness as they worshiped freely.

Part 3: 400 Years of Bible-Based Liberty

Thu, 12 Nov 2020 21:34:00 GMT

Problems for Plymouth colony came with the surprise arrival of the Fortune in November of 1621. 37 settlers arrived, including separatists like the pilgrims and settlers from the Merchant Adventurers. The contract from the Merchant Adventurers stated that no individual could own a plot of land for the first seven years. Rather, each year the land plots were rotated amongst the families. All produce and goods would then be distributed evenly amongst all colonists.

From the very beginning socialism (referred to as communalism by Bradford) was trying to infiltrate America. It was soon realized that there would not be enough food to last the winter.

Governor Bradford said the answer was in the Bible as they chose to operate by the Scriptural teaching of 2 Thessalonians 3:10, “… that if any would not work, neither should he eat ” and 1 Timothy 5:8, “ But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel. ”

Governor Bradford wrote, “So they began to think how they might raise as much corn as they could, and obtain a better crop than they had done, that they might not still thus languish in misery. At length, after much debate of things, the Governor (with the advise of the chiefest amongst them) gave way that they should set corn every man for his own particular, and in that regard trust to themselves; in all other things to go on in the general way as before. And so assigned to every family a parcel of land, according to the proportion of their number for that end, only for present use, and ranged all boys & youth under some family. This had very good success; for it made all hands very industrious, so as much more corn was planted then otherwise would have been”.

The free-market/capitalism approach saw incredible success. Contrasting this to the communal system, Bradford wrote, “For this community (so far as it was) was found to breed much confusion & discontent, and retard much employment that would have been to their benefit and comfort. For the young-men that were most able and fit for labor & service did repine that they should spend their time & strength to work for other men’s wives and children, without any recompence”.

Once they had rid themselves of this “commune” system where all produce and supplies were brought to the communal store and distributed evenly, despite how much or how little one had worked, the colony flourished through a free-enterprise system. They would go on to establish new settlements, become a launching point and training center for new colonies, and all the while remain steadfast upon the Word of God. Brandford wrote, “From these extremities the Lord in his goodness kept these his people, and in their great wants preserved both their lives and health; let his name have the praise.”

It was then in 1623 that everything was looking great, when from the third week of May to the middle of July there was no rain and the corn began to wither. The colony came together for a day of fasting and prayer. Bradford noted that there was not a cloud in the sky all day.

But that night, after their full day of prayer and fasting, “…it began to overcast, and shortly after to rain, with such sweet and gentle showers, as gave them cause of rejoicing, & blessing God. It came, without either wind, or thunder, or any violence, and by degrees in that abundance, as that the earth was thoroughly wet and soaked therewith. Which did so apparently revive & quicken the decayed corn & other fruits, as was wonderful to see, and made the Indians astonished to behold; and afterwards the Lord sent them such seasonable showers, with interchange of faire warm weather, as, through his blessing, caused a fruitful & liberal harvest, to their no small comfort and rejoicing. For which mercy they also set apart a day of thanksgiving.”

And that’s how this nation was founded – upon God’s Word with full faith in and dependence upon Him, giving Him all the praise and honor, including a special day of Thanksgiving unto God.

The American founding is one of absolute devotion to God and His Word, the pursuit of religious freedom, adherence to Christian principles and morals, equality for all people, the rejection of socialism, the overwhelming success of capitalism, and divine intervention in the establishment of this nation.

We understand then that one may advocate political change in a free country, but that anything contrary to the values of religious freedom, capitalism and hard work, and Christian principles is by definition not American.

We often pray for revival in America to turn back to God and to her Godly roots – her American founding. But understand that it does not start in the state house or even the church house.

I suggest it will not start until the fathers of Christian homes stand up and say we will live by traditional American values, which are Biblical, Godly values. They are values that teach the next generation that hard work is a virtue, that solemn devotion to God, the Lord’s Day, and to His Word are vital, and Christian morals are never to be compromised. They are values that cherish Christ and serving Him above all.

Will there ever be revival in the land? Only if there is revival in our homes.

Part 2: 400 Years of Christ-Centered Liberty

Fri, 23 Oct 2020 20:24:00 GMT

After two long months across the Atlantic, land was sighted by the pilgrims on November 9, 1620. They ran up on deck and began to praise God for bringing them to the New World. They celebrated so long that Captain Jones had to force them below deck so he could continue ship operations.

They had arrived at Cape Cod, north of where their charter permitted settlement. They attempted for several days to sail south to their original destination, but strong winds and storms kept them from making any progress.

Believing the Lord was pushing them in a different direction, they floated into the Provincetown Harbor of Cape Cod on Saturday, November 11th. Since this land was out of their patent’s jurisdiction, the pilgrims seized the opportunity to draft a new charter called the Mayflower Compact. It provided a social contract between them and the tradesmen/adventurers so they would have agreed upon terms as how to peaceably live together.

The Compact stated: “ IN THE NAME OF GOD, AMEN . We, whose names are underwritten, the Loyal Subjects of our dread Sovereign Lord King James , by the Grace of God, of Great Britain, France, and Ireland , King, Defender of the Faith , &c. Having undertaken for the Glory of God, and Advancement of the Christian Faith, and the Honour of our King and Country, a Voyage to plant the first Colony in the northern Parts of Virginia ; Do by these Presents, solemnly and mutually, in the Presence of God and one another, covenant and combine ourselves together into a civil Body Politick, for our better Ordering and Preservation, and Furtherance of the Ends aforesaid: And by Virtue hereof do enact, constitute, and frame, such just and equal Laws, Ordinances, Acts, Constitutions, and Officers, from time to time, as shall be thought most meet and convenient for the general Good of the Colony; unto which we promise all due Submission and Obedience. IN WITNESS whereof we have hereunto subscribed our names at Cape-Cod the eleventh of November, in the Reign of our Sovereign Lord King James , of England, France, and Ireland , the eighteenth, and of Scotland the fifty-fourth, Anno Domini ; 1620.”

With the next day being Sunday, they stayed aboard instead of disembarking in order to observe the Lord’s Day, despite 2 months of being cramped on the Mayflower. Then on Monday, November 13, 1620, the pilgrims set foot in the New World. They explored the land and eventually on December 16th went on to Plymouth Harbor (named by John Smith in 1614), where they settled on a location on December 21st. Winter weather, however, kept them from starting home construction until the 23rd.

The winter was harsh with freezing temperatures, disease, and lack of shelter. Of the 130 or so original passengers, only 53 would survive to the following November. Of the 18 women, 13 died, including William Bradford’s wife. Thankfully, as the colonists understood, God had not forsaken them.

On March 16, 1621, a man named Samoset walked into the village. He learned English when captured and released by English fishermen in present-day Maine. His friend Squanto was captured in 1605 and returned home for good in 1619 (Squanto crossed the Atlantic 6 times in his life). When Squanto heard of the colonists, he went with Samoset and Chief Massasoit to greet them.

His people had been wiped out by a plague while he was in captivity. He was so pleased to see people inhabiting his tribe’s land that he petitioned to stay with them. He attended their worship services and listened to them read the Bible, pray, and express their “brotherly love” to one another.

The colonists became so fond of him that when he was captured by a rival tribe, Miles Standish led a group to rescue him. Following his safe return, Governor Bradford showed him the Biblical account of Joseph’s capture and time in Egypt, but how God worked it out for Joseph’s good. Squanto and Bradford became close friends, and Squanto became a Christian.

The colonists established good relations with the Natives through the love of Christ. In return, the Natives worked side-by-side with the pilgrims, giving them extra provisions and helpful tips regarding their new surroundings. After the harvest of 1621, they gathered together (most likely in October: 90 Indians and 53 colonists) for a celebration. It was somewhat intimidating as the 90 Indians were all warrior men, outnumbering the able-bodied men of the colony 3 to 1. They, however, brought enough venison for them to eat 3 days together!

A lasting legacy of the pilgrims is the Christ-honoring actions comprising our American founding. Without a Christ-centered focus, the foundation erodes away, leading to the fall of the American nation. An election cannot save us, but the Savior can.

Christ’s Absolute Deity

Fri, 23 Oct 2020 20:02:00 GMT

The Biblical presentation of God in Christ (His omnipresence), observed specifically through many expressions of Christ’s absolute Deity that are especially found in the Gospel of John, which also addresses His eternal essence, is underscored in John 3:11-12:

Verily, verily, I say unto you, “We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and you do not receive our witness. If I have told you of earthly things, and you do not believe, how shall you believe, if I tell you of heavenly things?”

I have used this passage many times during the ministry of CTF referring to the eternality of the Creator, the Lord Jesus Christ! The bottom line on the occasion mentioned here is the presentation to Nicodemus, a ruler in the Temple, concerning Christ’s ultimate deity!

Is Jesus God in the flesh? Or is He simply an impostor? When the Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy (I Timothy 3:16) that “God was manifested in the flesh… seen of angels…” etc., what did he mean? Was he irrefutably saying that Jesus was God, the Son? Was he somehow identifying Christ’s birth with the fulfillment of Isaiah 7:14… that the LORD Himself shall give us a sign; in that a virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, who must be called Immanuel (God with us!)?

We immediately respond that it must have been “God” the Son that was manifest in the flesh. But Apostle Paul also tells in
1 Corinthians 8:6 that there is but one God, the Father, and one Lord Jesus Christ!

Is it the generally accepted teaching of Scriptures that Christ was the Father’s redemptive offering for the sins of the world? Yes! Moreover, God was in Christ (the incarnation) for the primary purpose of reconciling by His shed blood the world (including you and me) to Himself. Paul wrote to the Church in Galatia (4:4-6) that God sent forth His son born of a woman, born under the Law, to redeem them that were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.

To God is the glory, for by Him “we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace.” (Ephesians 1:7)

No Martian Destiny

Thu, 15 Oct 2020 16:47:00 GMT

Over the next several months I will FOCUS on our destiny. This month an astronomical event has reminded me of the reality that some people look to the heavens for their destiny, not unlike the Egyptians during Moses’ time (Deut. 4:19).

On October 13 Mars was at opposition to Earth. What does that mean? The earth was directly between the two, with the sun and Mars directly opposite in either direction from it. This event happens roughly every 2 years and is the closest that Mars comes to us. This is an important event, especially as we are looking to put people on Mars, as it is important to the timing of getting them there. As you probably know, there are many that are looking to settle Mars in the coming years. However, it is not for pure exploration they are striving to get men on Mars. The overwhelming reason is that they are looking for a place off earth that will sustain life. The thinking is that it is perhaps the origin for life here on earth at the beginning of evolutionary time, as well as a place to escape to when this planet is no longer habitable. You must remember that the evolutionary crowd believes we will kill our planet at some future point and we need a back-up plan, at this point Mars.

There are numerous reasons that Mars will not be a good back-up plan, but the best is that we do not need a back-up plan for earth. All we need is THE PLAN for our destiny. The plan has already been finished and is just waiting for eternal destiny. Jesus is all the plan we ever need for this life and for eternity. Some may find that statement too religious or narrow, yet it is neither. Jesus’ plan has been present since before the creation of time, and it has nothing to do with religion but everything to do with eternal relationship. And I do not know how much more inclusive you could be than all of His creation given the invitation for the eternal destiny. It does not rely on societal status, financial means, ethnicity, religious dogma or work completion. Our eternal destiny rides with the finishing work of Jesus Christ’s death, burial and resurrection. I am so thankful for that promise of my destiny and that we have no need to look anywhere else.

Blessings to all who faithfully support this ministry as we continue to share this eternal promise in the light of the historically accurate Word of God.

Addendum to The Jefferson Lies

Fri, 09 Oct 2020 22:23:00 GMT

PREFACE

Author David Barton provides in his 2016 edition of The Jefferson Lies one of the most exceptional refutations of modern revisionism regarding the life and faith of Thomas Jefferson. Each chapter is nearly saturated with primary source documentation repudiating each of the revisionist lies. Chapter 7, however, would be the notable exception.

Chapter 7 is entitled, “Lie #7: Thomas Jefferson Was an Atheist and Anti-Christian”. The chapter disproves the accusation of Jefferson having atheistic or anti-Christian sentiments. The author begins with Jefferson’s defense of all Christian groups to practice their faith (pp. 208-10). In those defenses, Jefferson acknowledged Jesus as “our Savior”, the New Testament “writers were inspired”, and the church doctrines “necessary to salvation.”

The author continues by showing Jefferson’s spiritual journey of growing up Anglican, dealing with the tragic loss of his wife Martha, working with interdenominational ministers during the Great Awakening of 1730-1770, and then the influential factors of the Charlottesville, VA area and of the Second Great Awakening beginning around 1800 (pp. 211-19). It is in this period the author turns his attention toward what came to be known as the Restoration Movement.

It appears at this point Mr. Barton forsakes good scholarship by relying too heavily on secondary sources. Additionally, he expresses a peculiar distaste and antagonism toward these particular Christians of the early 19 ^th century. Mr. Barton curiously states, “Ironically, in seeking to revive a so-called earlier and purer version of Christianity, it actually introduced doctrinal heresy” (p. 220). He also comments, “But in their fervor to restore primitive Christianity and return to what they deemed to be the bible’s simplicity, they rejected many of Christendom’s historic creeds, including the doctrine of the Trinity” (p. 221). The author spends 14 pages (220-33) arguing that this movement led Jefferson to be “the most unorthodox of his life” (p. 224).

This discourse struck me as shocking for a man such excellent scholarship, partly due to my own research regarding the matter. My senior research project [1] in pursuit of my history degree was the history of the Restoration Movement, with special emphasis on the movement’s history in my home state of Illinois. Never in the months of research did I come across anything even closely resembling the accusations made in Mr. Barton’s book. This motivated me to examine Mr. Barton’s work more closely, upon which it appeared to me that he relied much more upon secondary sources in this particular matter rather than primary sources.

This addendum attempts to correct the misconceptions and false accusations regarding the Restoration Movement through the use of primary sources alone.

ACCUSATION #1

“Ironically, in seeking to revive a so-called earlier and purer version of Christianity, it actually introduced doctrinal heresy” (p. 220).

ANSWER #1

The citation for this serious charge is a book written about Thomas Jefferson in 2015 (endnote 37, p. 340). It provides no evidence or primary sources to validate the charge.

ACCUSATION #2

“This movement became known as Christian Primitivism, or the Restoration Movement, and it had developed around four primary leaders” (p. 220).

ANSWER #2

The four leaders listed by David Barton on page 220 are Barton Stone (1772-1844), Thomas Campbell (1763-1854), Alexander Campbell (1788-1866), Elias Smith (1769-1846), and James O’Kelly (1735-1826). Why the author claimed four leaders and then listed five names is certainly a mystery. Additionally, this claim leaves out many other prominent leaders and does not fully express the organic, spontaneous nature of the movement.

Other prominent men of the movement would be Rice Haggard (1767-1819), Abner Jones (1772-1841), John Mulkey (1773-1844), “Racoon” John Smith (1784-1868), John Wright (1785-1851), Christian Dasher (1789-1866), and Walter Scott (1796-1861).

These men represent organic movements that started in Vermont, North Carolina, New Hampshire, Indiana, Massachusetts, Kentucky, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Virginia, all independent of and uncoordinated with each other.

These men also represent a variety of backgrounds: Presbyterian, Methodist, Baptist, Anglican, Congregationalist, etc. It is, therefore, a dishonest inference that there were a few select men who began teaching strange, new doctrines that somehow led thousands of people into a heretical movement. They all came from Protestant denominations who on their own began to realize there was too much division, too much sectarianism, and not enough unity in the cause of Christ. They, therefore, sought to find unity on simply the Word of God and it alone.

Accusation #3

“But in their fervor to restore primitive Christianity and return to what they deemed to be the Bible’s simplicity, they rejected many of Christendom’s historic creeds, including the doctrine of the Trinity. As bluntly explained by the Reverend Barton Stone, ‘The word Trinity is not found in the Bible’; they therefore considered it a false doctrine of men, not of God. Of the four major leaders, only O’Kelly openly embraced Trinitarianism” (p. 221).

Answer #3

The refusal to pledge allegiance to a man-made creed (i.e. Apostles’ Creed, Nicene Creed, etc.) does not mean rejection of the doctrine included in that creed. Thus, it is a false premise and borderline slanderous to say that everyone except James O’Kelly rejected Biblical doctrines because they rejected adherence to creeds as a test of fellowship.

Barton Stone

The quote of Barton Stone is an accurate statement: the word “trinity” appears nowhere in Scripture. To point out this fact is not an automatic rejection of the concept or doctrine. Yet, this is David Barton’s method of attack. He states on page 232, “Restorationists and Christian Primitivists thought that if a term was not in the Bible, then it should not be in Christianity. This is why the Reverend Stone had said that the doctrine of the trinity should be rejected.”

The only source cited by the author regarding his claim and Stone’s comment is a 1995 issue of Christian History Magazine – NOT a primary source (endnote 41, p. 340).

When perusing the primary sources, we find many interesting thoughts and statements from Barton Stone. For one, he decried the antagonistic and divisive mentalities of what was called “partyism” (i.e. denominationalism). He stated in his publication The Christian Messenger , “We have long seen and lamented the evils which naturally grow in the prolific soil of partyism… A preacher, professing to be specially called of God and sent to preach the gospel to every creature, ascends the pulpit… gives vent to his boiling, angry passions against an unoffending unassuming people called Christians , calling them… deceivers – hypocrites – blasphemers – who have committed the sin against the Holy Spirit, by denying that he is God supreme and the third person in Trinity… When we meet with a member of such a party, we feel no spirit for religious conversation with him; because it is immediately suggested to us, he views me a hypocrite, a deceiver, a bad man… And is this the demon of partyism, fostered by the professed followers of the Lamb of God? What more foreign from the Spirit of God?” (Vol. 2, No. 6, April 1828, “The Evils of Partyism”).

In a response to a letter from Alexander Campbell, Stone clearly identified Campbell as trinitarian, writing, “They have said that you asserted, you did not believe the Holy Spirit was a person… Hence they concluded, you were not a Trinitarian. I am confident they must have affixed a meaning to your language you did not intend; for you plainly tell us in this friendly letter, that the bible teaches us something concerning three beings … We, from this, must conclude that the Holy Spirit is as much a person as the Father or the Word is; and therefore infer you must have been misunderstood” (Vol. 2, No. 1, Nov 1827, “Reply”).

Stone went on to say to Campbell, “You express your fears lest the name christian , will become as much a sectarian name as any other, because of certain opinions received by them, called Arian, Unitarian, &c… We do not believe that our opinions are either Arian, or Unitarian… I confide this observation to us in the West. The Christians in the East, we are sorry to say, have admitted the name Unitarian . This has caused much sorrow to some of us in the West… I have no doubt that they admitted the term without due consideration of the consequence, and that they will retract it on mature reflection” (ibid.).

Stone was opposed to the Unitarian position as well as the Trinitarian position. This may seem contradictory, but it was consistent in his effort to eliminate divisive names and labels in the pursuit of unity. That said, it is a fact that Stone was adamant that he was not trinitarian in his beliefs in the traditional understanding (see The Christian Messenger , Vol. IV, No. 8, July 1830).

What was his position if it was neither Trinitarian nor Unitarian? “We think that all Christians believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, the only begotten Son of God… who was sent by the Father to be the Savior of the world – who took flesh and blood such as children had, a body which God had prepared for him by the power of the Holy Ghost in the womb of the Virgin Mary – who was born of her and tabernacled among us – whom God anointed with the Holy Ghost… in whom dwelt all the fulness of the Godhead bodily, because it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell – that he died for our sins according to the scriptures, that he was buried and rose again from the dead the third day, and was received up into glory, the glory he had with the Father before the world was – who sat down at the right hand of God, and ever liveth to make intercession for us – who will come again to judge the world in righteousness, and assign to all men their eternal portions. In this faith, all Christians can surely agree; for this must be confessed to be the doctrine of God, and surely none will deny this to be sufficient for salvation” (“Objections to Christian Union Calmly Considered”, The Christian Messenger , Vol. 1, No. 2, Dec. 1826).

Yet David Barton claims Stone was one who “introduced doctrinal heresy” (p. 220). Stone’s views of the “trinity” or “Godhead” and of the deity of Christ would be considered heretical to both Trinitarians [as he denied the deity of Christ, believing He was only the Son of God and not God] and Unitarians [as he accepted the divinity of Christ, contrary to Unitarian doctrine]. Stone’s consistent point whenever discussing it was to find a path toward unity that did not compromise the saving message of Jesus Christ. If previous to his death (1826) Jefferson had read any of Barton Stone’s works, which is questionable, they would certainly not have led him into unorthodoxy.

Thomas Campbell

David Barton states that Thomas Campbell “held many of the same beliefs as Stone” (p. 220). This is true. The problem is he fails to list which beliefs were the same and which were different. This is very deceptive as the inference made is that Campbell shared Stone’s views of the Trinity when in fact Campbell detailed a very different belief than Stone’s.

In the 1816 Minutes of the Redstone Baptist Association , Thomas Campbell authors the circular letter to be sent to all the churches. The topic was the Trinity.

Within his dissertation, he wrote, “To us, then, who hold the Christian faith, there is but one God the Father, of whom are all things and we to him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things and we by him; and one Spirit who worketh all things… And these three are one; even the one Jehovah Alehim, who claims all religious worship and obedience as his proper due… the infinitely holy, just and jealous God… Yet seeing the Scriptures manifestly declare that the one Jehovah exists in three distinct intelligent agents, each of which is the one Jehovah so existing” (p. 10).

Perhaps Mr. Barton did not believe this was trinitarian enough because Campbell did not specifically use the word “trinity” in the letter. Campbell also stated, “It appears to be a query with some who profess to hold this doctrine, whether it be correct to use the term person when speaking of the above distinct characters in the divine essence. As to this, let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind” (p. 10).

Perhaps, again, this allowed for Mr. Barton too much individual interpretive liberty regarding trinitarian doctrine. The Redstone Baptist Association in Brooks County, VA thought not and sent it to all their member churches.

Mr. Barton then makes the shocking statement on page 221 that “Thomas Campbell took no position”. What is one to conclude from such an erroneous statement? Was Barton’s research that shoddy or is this a clear falsehood? It may simply be an over-reliance on secondary sources.

Alexander Campbell

To allude that Alexander Campbell was guilty of the same heresy (pp. 221, 237) borders on absurdity. As noted above, Stone claimed in 1827 that it was a foolish notion to consider Campbell anti-trinitarian. Campbell actually made his thoughts well known in his publication The Christian Baptist :

“[T]here was no topic in common estimation so awfully sacred as that of the doctrine of ‘the Trinity,’ and if a man did not speak in a very fixed and set phrase on this subject, he endangered his whole christian reputation and his own usefulness” (“To Timothy”, The Christian Baptist , Vol. IV, No. 10, 1827).

Notice how Campbell begins by acknowledging the virulent intolerance of some sects to even have a discussion on the matter. Nevertheless, Campbell put his thoughts on paper for all to read:

“In the first place I object to the Calvinistic doctrine of the Trinity… I wish to give him [Jesus] more glory than the Calvinists give him. They are as far below his real glory, in my judgment, as the Arians are in their judgment. But in the second place, I have an insuperable objection to the Arain and Calvinistic phraseology… because it confounds things human and divine, and gives new ideas to bible terms unthought of by the inspired writers… Of these terms expressive of relations, the most suitable must be, and most unquestionably was, selected… The Holy Spirit selected the name Word, and therefore we may safely assert that this is the best, if not the only term, in the whole vocabulary of human speech at all adapted to express that relation which existed ‘in the beginning,’ or before time… A word is a sign or representative of a thought or an idea, and is the idea in an audible or visible form. It is the exact image of that invisible thought… All men think or form ideas by means of words or images; so that no man can think without words or symbols of some sort. Hence it follows that the word and the idea which it represents, are co-etaneous, or of the same age or antiquity. It is true the word may not be uttered or born for years or ages after the idea exists, but still the word is just as old as the idea. The idea and the word are nevertheless distinct from each other, though the relation between them is the nearest known on earth. An idea cannot exist without a word, nor a word without an idea… It is a relation of the most sublime order; and no doubt the reason why the name Word is adopted by the apostle in this sentence was because of its superior ability to represent to us the divine relation existing between God and the Saviour… As a word is an exact image of an idea, so is ‘The Word’ an exact image of the invisible God. As a word cannot exist without an idea, nor can idea without a word, so god never was without ‘The Word,’ nor ‘The Word’ without God; or as a word is of equal age, or co-etaneous with its idea, so ‘The Word’ and god are co-eternal. And as an idea does not create its world, nor a word its idea; so God did not create ‘The Word,’ nor the ‘Word’ God… As God was always with ‘The Word,’ so when ‘The Word’ becomes flesh, he is Emanuel, God with us. As God was never manifest but by ‘The Word,’ so the heavens and the earth, and all things were created by ‘The Word.’ And as ‘The Word’ ever was the effulgence or representation of the invisible God, so he will ever be known and adored as ‘The Word of God’… These views place us on a lofty eminence whence we look down upon the Calvinistic ideas… From eternity was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was, I say, from eternity with God. By him all things were made, and he became flesh and dwelt among us. He became a child born and a son of man. As such he is called Emanuel, Jesus, Messiah, Son of God, Only Begotten of the Father” (ibid.).

David Barton calls these views of Alexander Campbell “convoluted” (p. 223).

Elias Smith

In his booklet Age of Enquiry , Elias Smith wrote in 1825 of “our Lord Jesus the everlasting Father” ( Age of Enquiry , 1825, p. 4). He goes on to quote II Corinthians 4:6 and state, “The light which they [the Apostles] received was the knowledge of his [God’s] glory in the face of Jesus Christ. This shews that though a man may have some knowledge of God’s glory in his works, yet they cannot have a knowledge of the glory of his grace unless it is revealed to him by the Spirit which glorifies Christ. Had the Apostles preached any other glory, short of the glory of God in Christ, their hearers would have thought that they had either forgotten their errand, or changed their sentiments” (ibid., p. 33).

Smith continued, “Christ is Lord, and ministers must be servants; they must pay such respect to Christ’s commands as to engage their brethren to obey Christ through their own example” (ibid., p. 38).

Smith delved into Universalism for a while (the belief that every individual is eventually saved), but eventually abdicated. He was, however, identified as a Unitarian by Simon Clough in his 1827 An Account of the Christian Denomination in the United States . Only six men are listed by name in this history, in which the author declares all to be Unitarians: R. Foster, Elias Smith, Rev. Mr. Millard, Rev. Barton W. Stone, Rev. Mr. Potter (all p. 5), and Rev. Mr. Badger (p. 9). As noted earlier, Barton Stone disavowed being a Unitarian.

Notice, though, who is not mentioned: Abner Jones, James O’Kelly, Thomas Campbell, Alexander Campbell, Rice Haggard, John Mulkey, and “Racoon” John Smith.

Instead, Clough mentions these six men and enthusiastically writes, “We are Evangelical Unitarians in preaching and applying the Unitarian doctrine… It is this mode of preaching and applying the Unitarian doctrine which has crowned our labors with such a rich harvest… it is this which constitutes us the pride and glory of Unitarianism” (pp. 8-9).

There is one important detail Clough relays in his history that must be noted: “As it respects doctrine, it is granted, when the Christian denomination first began to organize societies, there was a great diversity of sentiments and opinions among us… At first we were all nominally Trinitarians, having been educated in that doctrine” (p. 6). This is significant regarding the religious influences upon Thomas Jefferson.

James O’Kelly

David Barton claims on page 221, “Of the four major leaders, only O’Kelly openly embraced Trinitarianism”. It has already been clearly revealed from their own writings that this is blatantly false regarding Thomas and Alexander Campbell. Again, we hope this is simply an over-reliance upon secondary instead of primary sources.

Before this comment, though, Mr. Barton writes, “As bluntly explained by the Reverend Barton Stone, ‘The word Trinity is not found in the Bible’; they therefore considered it a false doctrine of men” (p. 221). The irony of Mr. Barton’s statement is that his supposed lone Trinitarian, James O’Kelly, said the exact same thing regarding the word “trinity”: “The word trinity is not found in the scripture, but we read of three that bear record, and we need some word to convey our meaning, as we use many proper words not found in holy writ” ( The Divine Oracles Consulted , 1820, p. 39).

In complete refutation of Mr. Barton’s point, O’Kelly showed that it was possible to acknowledge the fact that the word “trinity” is nowhere in the Bible and yet still believe the concept of the three in one Godhead.

Mr. Barton, however, goes on to incorrectly claim that O’Kelly “was in the definite minority” (p. 221).

ACCUSATION #4

“Sadly, the Restoration and Christian Primitive Movement was the dominant religious force in Charlottesville in Jefferson’s later years, and he openly embraced and promoted the same views held by so many of the professing Christians and ministers in his own community… the result was that Jefferson’s writings throughout this later time are by far the most unorthodox of his life. They routinely reflect the major tenets of Christian Primitivism and Restorationism and use almost the exact tenor and words as those of the Restoration ministers surrounding him” (pp. 223-4).

ANSWER #4

David Barton lays forth his argument that Thomas Jefferson abandoned orthodox Christianity late in life in favor of Unitarian beliefs because of the influence of the preachers in his home area, who were Unitarians. He then blames the Restoration Movement for bringing these heretical influences to the Charlottesville, VA area (p. 220) as he believes the preachers of the movement were predominantly unitarian.

It has already been shown that the claim of the Restoration Movement preachers being predominantly Unitarian is false. Rather, as the Unitarian movement began to grow, Restoration Movement preachers did what they could to preach against it and distinguish themselves from it.

For instance, Alexander Campbell knew that some Unitarians in the northeast were using only the name “Christian” by which to identify themselves. Campbell wrote, “If our friends who assume this good name, never had gone into a crusade in favor of opinions, nor had views of the Deity [unitarian]… we should have rejoiced that the name Christian did not now designate a sect , instead of the body of Christ” ( Millennial Harbinger , 1830, p. 373).

Therefore, to make sure they were not identified with the Unitarians, Campbell suggested they identify themselves as the “disciples of Christ.”

Mr. Barton references the 2015 book Doubting Thomas? The Religious Life and Legacy of Thomas Jefferson (p. 220, endnote 37). It argues that when Elias Smith attended a meeting in Caroline County, VA on October 4, 1811, he became the spokesperson for the combined movements that would become known as the Christian Connection. He brought along his unitarian beliefs and then traveled up and down Virginia spreading his heresies, which converted Jefferson.

Problem is that this is once again contrary to the primary sources. According to Smith’s paper Herald of Gospel Liberty , they did meet in Caroline County, VA on October 4th, and the only major topic that posed an issue to unity was their positions on baptism (October 25, 1811, p. 331).

Why is this significant? Because as Simon Clough noted in his 1827 history, at this time when they were first unifying, “we were all nominally Trinitarians” ( Account of the Christian Denomination , p. 6). It is, therefore, extremely unlikely that Smith promoted Unitarian doctrine as he preached throughout Virginia. And even if he did, there are no records of Thomas Jefferson ever hearing him.

Yet it is Elias Smith and the Restoration Movement preachers Mr. Barton blames for Thomas Jefferson’s conversion and expression of unitarian beliefs by 1813, even though Mr. Barton claims James O’Kelly, the supposedly lone trinitarian, is the only one of these preachers that was Jefferson’s friend (pp. 218, 233). So how could Restoration Movement preachers convert Jefferson to unitarian beliefs when his only Restoration Movement friend was trinitarian?

Thomas Jefferson’s first expression of Unitarianism comes in his August 22, 1813 letter to John Adams, in which he writes, “I remember to have heard D ^r Priestley say that if all England would candidly examine themselves, & confess, they would find that Unitarianism was really the religion of all… it is too late in the day for men of sincerity to pretend they believe in the Platonic mysticisms that three are one, & one is three; & yet the one is not three, and the three are not one”.

Jefferson shared with Adams the specific materials that had influenced him. The Dr. Priestley referenced by Jefferson was Joseph Priestley. He became an adamant Unitarian in England and published a book in 1782 entitled A History of the Corruptions of Christianity . Jefferson had corresponded with Priestley for advise in establishing a university. Priestley died, however, 15 years before Jefferson founded the University of Virginia.

Thus Jefferson noted to Adams in the 1813 letter, “but I have read his Corruptions of Christianity, & Early opinions of Jesus, over and over again; and I rest on them, and on Middleton’s writings, especially his letters from Rome, and to Waterland, as the basis of my own faith.”

The second book referenced by Jefferson was Priestley’s 1786 A History of Early Opinions concerning Jesus Christ, compiled from Original Writers, proving that the Christian Church was at first Unitarian . The Middleton referenced by Jefferson was English clergyman Conyers Middleton (1683-1750). He was a prolific and controversial writer of many subjects.

Therefore, according to Thomas Jefferson himself, the works of Joseph Priestley held great sway upon him, whereas neither Elias Smith nor anything associated with the Restoration Movement are ever mentioned.

CONCLUSION

I have met and conversed with Mr. David Barton and found him to be an exceptional historian and man of faith. I do not question his sincerity nor his dedication to the preservation of American history. I also do not question his integrity. I do, however, question his conclusions in this particular matter regarding Thomas Jefferson and the Restoration Movement. I am curious as to his motives for such an ardent attack and, unfortunately, misleading information regarding the Restoration Movement and its leaders.

That said, I still fully endorse Mr. Barton’s ministry Wallbuilders, their remarkable resources, and recommend this book, The Jefferson Lies , for your consideration.

[1] Cox, Ryan. “History of the Restoration Movement in Illinois”, Southern Illinois University of Edwardsville, Fall 2004.

The Created Earth

Thu, 01 Oct 2020 20:51:00 GMT

Within the top five points of Biblical dogma we can find the solution for 100 percent of man’s difficulties! Simply stated these points concern origins, mankind, redemption, the sin of Adam and the fall of man, and finally the fact that Jesus Christ provided the requirement for our repentance, redemption and restoration—and if you are a born again believer, you have received the down payment of this miraculous provision.

As we observe the universe in its enormity and spectacular magnificence, we are left speechless to provide an adequate explanation for its origin. Its fathomless size, design and efficiency leave us breathless in wonder and amazement. But it is the Earth that I want to address in this article.

There is a plethora of human models that have been offered to explain the existence of this mindboggling masterpiece that we call the earth. But they all fall terribly short of identifying and satisfying the intelligent nature of the organizational dynamics that have been invested in the earth!

Dr. Henry M. Morris (1918-2006) constantly reminded us during his stay here that if we see significant evidence for intelligence, we need to look for the One from which this masterful intelligence originated.

It is generally known that the Earth could not create itself! Moreover, the gradual development of complexity from simple to complex simply cannot stand as a viable solution for the origin of the Earth unless there is an informational source to guide this process. So, what was the source of this information?

It could not have been matter because matter is non-intelligence. Neither could it have been space; it is vacuous and directionless. If, therefore, it was not space or mass, who was the designer of the Earth?

Whatever your answer is at this point, it requires faith. And the holy Scripture tells us that without faith it is impossible to please God…to believe that something exists that is far bigger and intelligent and powerful than ourselves.

Genesis 1 supplies the answer to this dilemma as far as I am concerned. It says, “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth!” The Apostle John tells that this great God was the eternal Logos—the great Creator of the heavens and the earth! What a God we serve!

Part 1: 400 Years of God-Given Liberty

Thu, 01 Oct 2020 20:44:00 GMT

At the same time Jamestown was beginning in 1607, Archbishop Tobias Matthew began raiding the homes of Scrooby in Nottinghamshire, England. They had the charge to imprison those who would not adhere to the Church of England.

Led by William Brewster, John Robinson, and Richard Clyfton, a group of Christian separatists were gathering together to worship the Lord according to their own understanding of Scripture and not the dictates of King James.

It was illegal to leave the country, yet the separatists attempted to do so in 1607, bound for Holland. Unfortunately, the captain of the ship betrayed them. The men were arrested, but treated leniently according to William Bradford.

They made another attempt the following year in 1608. This time they decided to split into multiple ships. Just as the ship containing the men got underway, news quickly reached everyone that the authorities were on their way. The captain got the ship moving as fast as he could to the horror of the passengers who were desperately concerned about their families still ashore. Not to mention, all the goods and supplies were with the women and children.

They implored the captain to turn around and return to their families. However, a fearful storm rose up against them. The ship was driven off course to the coast of Norway. For 14 days the storm raged. For many days they could see neither sun, moon, nor stars. The captain believed God was punishing him for not returning the men to their families.

Providentially, if the storm had not suddenly risen against them and kept them from returning, there may not have been an America as we know it today.

When the authorities arrived and found only the women and children, they felt awkward about arresting them, so they were allowed to go freely, making their way to Holland. If the storm had stopped the men and they returned, they would have been arrested and perhaps kept from ever leaving, including their eventual trip to the New World.

Instead, they made it to Amsterdam, from which they moved after a year to Leyden.

From there William Brewster, along with Thomas Brewer, Edward Winslow, and others, began working a printing press that sent many publications back to England, criticizing the King’s religion and calling everyone back to the teachings of the Bible. In response, King James sent out an international manhunt for these men.

The fear of arrest was compounded by the separatists’ concern of their children learning the Dutch customs and language and losing their English heritage after 12 years of residency.

The separatists thus decided on a new means to freedom. They acquired a land patent from the Virginia Company and financing from the Merchant Adventurers, who in return would seek a profit from the colony. This company would send along some of its own men, including Miles Standish (military leader) and Christopher Martin (governor of the colony).

They set sail on the Speedwell . The Speedwell was actually purchased by the cumulative efforts of the pilgrims. William Brewster had invited others from England to join their crusade. Those travelers hired a ship named the Mayflower . Before they set out across the Atlantic, the Speedwell developed leaks. The Puritans from Holland had no homes to which they could return as they had sold everything to make the trip. Therefore, those traveling from England returned home to wait for another time while everyone else boarded the Mayflower .

A total of 102 passengers with 30 or so crew departed Plymouth, England on September 6, 1620, headed for the Hudson River bay in what is today New York. It was cramped quarters and extremely intimidating, but they had already seen the Providential hand of the Lord at work in their lives, and they would soon see it again.

Identity is Vital

Wed, 30 Sep 2020 02:33:00 GMT

On a recent trip to a children’s ranch in Montana, I had the opportunity to pour into some students’ lives. It again became evident to me the importance of securing our identity with Christ. Establishing our identity as a child of God from an early age is so important, which leads me to the role of parents in a child’s life.

In Deuteronomy 4:9-10, the Word of God sends a great warning to His people not to forget what He had done for them. He goes on to impress the idea of teaching His history to their children and then to their children. The history He is speaking of is not just the delivery from bondage in Egypt, but also is who they are in Him (their identity). When this happens, the text says they will revere the Lord as long as they live.

Parents’ God-given role is to teach their children all that the Lord has done in their lives, reminding their children who created them and for what purpose. This must be done from an early age, lest we not develop a Biblical worldview of our identity during our formative years. Leaving our children to figure it out on their own or from a dysfunctional, at best, educational system will lead to an identity crisis in their lives. When a child’s identity is not grounded on the Word of God early in life from God-honoring parents, they are left with more humanistic identities or, dare I say, evolutionary identities.

Starting in the last few years, we are seeing our youth and young adults reaping an identity crisis that, by and large, is from a parental failure. Not that their parents did not love them or care for them (even if that may have been the case in some instances), but the failure has come in the form of a few generations of people that do not love, honor or revere their Creator and Savior Jesus Christ. As each successive generation gets further and further away from their true identity in the Lord, the worse society and the world becomes to live in. When the God-given roles of parents are not reinforced and are replaced with non-Biblical affirmation, we are in trouble. We see it time and time again in the Word of God, and we are living it out again now.

Back to those students in Montana – the Lord has established such a great place for them to experience Godly love. Those students have the opportunity to see, hear and live with “parents” that are instilling in them a Biblical identity of who they are and will be as they devote their lives to the Lord. I count it an honor to have had a moment to impact those lives with the truth of who they are, as Image-bearers of their Creator, with a life full of hope and purpose.

Blessings to all of you who support this ministry month in and month out. Know that we are impacting generations for Him with His Truth.

Faith-Based Origins

Wed, 26 Aug 2020 20:53:00 GMT

Probably, the greatest step of wisdom in the field of physical and chemical science is the first appearance of atomic based elements in a unique order. This order was organized into a highly usable arrangement known as the periodic table of elements proposed in 1869 by Dmitri Medeleev. This arrangement reflects each element with its own chemical symbol, name and atomic number that shows the number of protons in the nucleus of each element.

Dr. Henry M. Morris explains this wonder as follows: “It is remarkable that the relatively small number of basic elements—the dust of the earth—can unite into such a very large number of molecules, compounds, and mixtures, comprising all the different types of substances and materials in the world, living and nonliving.” The Biblical Basis for Modern Science , Henry Morris, p. 218.

However, a great deal of my defense for the Biblical view of young earth creation must deal with a non-scientific view of both creation and evolution. The Biblical predictability of the origin’s method is easily understood as an act of the supernatural Creator—but this again is an extension of Biblical faith and not a testable postulate!

We either assume that God used the infallible authority of His Word alone to speak the space/mass/time universe into existence just six thousand years ago, or we must postulate (by faith alone) from some natural model that has been adopted by a body of evolutionists from which assertions are made about the origin of the universe! This demands that we fill in the unknowable blanks in the origin’s process with “legitimate” scientifically sound steps that can produce the present universe with all its sophistication, variety and design—design, by the way, that did not have a designer (and this is the bane of the naturalistic point of view)!

Therefore, from the beginning of space/time, whether in the opinion of creationists or evolutionists, one of these models was chosen as a means of understanding the unobserved past. There had to be certain general postulates accepted by faith established (made up) from which to reason and manage the data to explain one’s view of the universe.

It must be stressed that since first origins happened in the unobserved past, and since science depends on accurate observations from which we determine our testing process, what we believe about it (and this is true for both creation and evolution) can only be assumed and accepted by faith ALONE!

G. Thomas Sharp

American Exceptionalism

Wed, 26 Aug 2020 20:47:00 GMT

Every political candidate trumpets his or her unbeatable plan for American prominence. However, for all the promises made, how many of America’s current and would-be leaders know the reasons for America’s past greatness and the true path for its return? Well, here it is:

Psalm 33:12, “Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD.”

Proverbs 14:34, “Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people.”

Deuteronomy 28:1, 13-15, “ ¹ Now it shall be, if you diligently obey the LORD your God, being careful to do all His commandments which I command you today, the LORD your God will set you high above all the nations of the earth… ¹³ The LORD will make you the head and not the tail, and you only will be above, and you will not be underneath, if you listen to the commandments of the LORD your God, which I charge you today, to observe them carefully, ¹⁴ and do not turn aside from any of the words which I command you today, to the right or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them. ¹⁵ But it shall come about, if you do not obey the LORD your God, to observe to do all His commandments and His statutes with which I charge you today, that all these curses will come upon you and overtake you…

When America abided by the instruction of the Lord, she prospered. Hence her creation and even governing documents were guided by Godly wisdom and founded upon Biblical principles. This is what is meant by “American Exceptionalism.” America is not exceptional because of a superior people comprising her citizenry. She is exceptional because of her founding.

No other country in all of history was founded for the simple cause of liberty as was America.

This is why the basic principles of American democracy so wonderfully reflect Biblical principles:

These four quotes regarding the basic principles of American democracy are taken straight out of chapter 1 of the government textbook from which I used to teach. Isn’t it amazing how perfectly aligned they are with Biblical principles?

Coincidence? Not by a long shot. Sadly, though, the Biblical influence upon our founding is left out of modern curricula.

This is why we are adding several new resources to our bookstore to counter the effort to erase America’s history. This is also why we now offer Our American Founding program.

If you would like to book this new program, contact us today!

National Identity

Thu, 20 Aug 2020 21:18:00 GMT

Our nation is embroiled in a battle for its identity. We were founded on the precepts that all men are created equal, just as the Word of God states in Acts 17:26. This is because the Word of God was a foundational book to the founders. Sure, not all of our founders accepted the Bible as you and I understand it, as God’s holy inspired words, but they at the least revered it to be trustworthy about who we are as a people and where we find our origin. Sadly, it seems today our society is squandering that truth away and replacing it with injustice and lawlessness.

There has been a concerted effort over the last 50-60 years to tear our nation’s identity away from the Bible and the Lord’s authority. As we seek to balance a nation grossly divided, maybe now as much as we did during the Civil War era, our return to the truth of God’s Word is imperative. Without identifying God’s Word as more than an archaic book of nice stories with a few moral exhortations, we sacrifice the foundation of our nation’s identity. Our founders knew that we are made in God’s image. This identifying truth is plainly spelled out in Genesis and then echoed through the entire Bible. But, if we individually identify as just another in a long line of animals trying to survive with no overarching moral compass at our foundation, then each of us will continue to do what we think is best for survival, in the process destroying ourselves as well as others because we don’t recognize the fact that we are all image-bearers. This evolutionary worldview must stop as it has no foundation of truth; there are no divinely inspired words behind it, only the lie. That lie is from Satan himself and it continually challenges God’s Word as being the Truth over all others.

The Lord’s authority was foundational in our nation’s beginning. Our founding fathers regarded it from, at the least, a providential guiding, to a full-fledged understanding of His sovereignty over all. As the Word of God is trashed and disregarded, so also is the truth of His authority in our nation, authority also founded in Genesis when He created everything. Taking away His Word and authority from our nation leaves behind a vacuum that will suck up all of our solid foundations. Then we are left to our own ideas of what freedom or any semblance of control should be. The sad reality about a vacuum is that it sucks up everything without discrimination, moral or not. So for 50-60 years we have said in our nation and our public school systems that God has no authority over all because He did not create all. Do you hear the vacuum sucking? In comes anarchy, communism, tyranny, socialism, marxism and any other “ism” to fill the void. We must realize Who has true authority, for our own sake and our nation’s. The Lord’s authority is present whether we acknowledge it or not, but His authority is the one true balance we desperately need acknowledged at present.

I implore you to check your worldview in light of the present identity crisis our nation is suffering from. If we do not seek our Lord Jesus Christ’s Word and authority at this time for our nation, then I am afraid of the outcome that is rising. It may not have any bearing on my eternal security, but it will directly impact our ability to worship and evangelize freely as we were designed. Rest assured that this ministry will continue to proclaim His Word as absolute and His authority as sovereign over all. Please join with us in prayer for our nation’s identity to return to it’s foundation – freedom, liberty and justice for all. Blessings.

No Greater Choice

Tue, 21 Jul 2020 18:52:00 GMT

The author of the book of Hebrews seems to be overtly concerned about what appears to be an eminent threat of Jewish members of the first century Church on the verge of returning to Judaism, thusly, abandoning Christianity. The legitimacy of their decision to follow Jesus Christ is mirrored in the first three verses of this epistle (Chapter 1, verses 1-3):

“God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spoke in times past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by His Son, whom He hath appointed heir of all things, by whom He also made the worlds; who being the brightness of His glory, and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power…”

This attempt to stop the New Covenant Church cold in its tracks was obviously an extravagant ploy of the devil at a time when the church was infantile and ignorant. But the Lord Jesus Christ was not about to allow such a puny disavowell of the saving power of His blood to stand!

The Apostle declared that this sacrifice was based on the power and authority of the great Creator God who had by Himself purged the sins of the world and is presently positioned at the right hand of God (Hebrews 1:3).

It was the angel of the Lord that announced to Joseph that he should boldly and without fear take Mary to be his wife because the holy life in her womb was conceived, not illegitimately, not naturally, not by human means, but miraculously, by the power of God. It was a divinely intended act of God (Matthew 1:20). And furthermore, this holy child was the fulfillment of hundreds, even thousands of years of prophecy. It was the divine connection of God’s saving intentions for His people from before the foundation of the world that His name must be called Jesus, which being interpreted is Jehovah Savior.

“But while [Joseph] thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shall call His name Jesus: for He shall save His people from their sins.” (Matthew 1: 20-21)

TRUE Identity

Wed, 15 Jul 2020 15:00:00 GMT

In the 2020 theme of FOCUSED we have looked at our TRUE Origin and Purpose. For the next several months we are going to FOCUS on our TRUE Identity. Who are we? How do we view ourselves? This topic affects everything around us, from relationships to how or what we worship.

There is an idea out there, maybe you have heard it, that says people are good. This idea often includes a belief that it is our environment that is evil and we are just trying to survive. Any bad in people comes from this struggle and our environment’s (or society’s) influences on us. This is, as you have already guessed, very evolutionary. A worldview like this leads to the question, “How does a loving God allow horrible things to happen to good people?” This idea does not take into account our Biblical identity.

The Bible is very clear that we are not good (Rom. 3:12). Our desire is to be good, but our sinful nature says otherwise. When Adam and Eve were first created on the sixth day in history, that was the last time people were labeled “good” by the Lord. In the perfection of creation, our human identity was His image. With that perfect image came perfect union with our Creator, until we sinned and lost that “good” standing in and with the creation and our Creator.

To this day we try and fix that standing and our identity by seeking and doing good. Yet our attempts, as great as they are at times, always fall short of His standard. By His grace alone we have a Savior, whose image we bear, who takes our sin and gives us our true identity. Our identity can only be found in the face of our Creator and Savior Jesus Christ. When we come to the realization that He is the only One truly “good”, then we have a standard and moral compass. Without understanding our identity is found in Jesus alone, we go through life with a false sense of identity that is easily swayed by other great sounding worldviews. Our TRUE identity is only found in His grace, mercy, holiness, righteousness and goodness .

The Answer is Jesus

Thu, 18 Jun 2020 19:59:00 GMT

In Proverbs 30:4-6, we meet a man called A’gur (āghūr), but little is known about him. Strong says that he was a man received among the sages. In other words, he had acceptance among the educated elite in the land. Solomon tells us that he was the son of Jakeh (ja’keh), but here again little to nothing is known of him either. Nevertheless, Agur left a volume of understanding that guides us to this day. In verse four he asked six rhetorical questions that are answered in the balance of Scripture.

Who has ascended up to heaven is answered in John 3:13 (Jesus). Paul told the Corinthians that God was in Christ reconciling the world unto Himself (2 Corinthians 5:19). The principal truth of the NT is that God robbed Himself with flesh in order that He could provide, once and for all, the sacrificial atonement or covering for the sins of mankind (John 3:16). It is the blood of Jesus that speaks better things than Able, and without the shedding of that blood we would all, to this very day, remain if our sins.

Agur asked who gathered the wind in His fists? At the conclusion of the great Flood, Genesis says that God made a great wind pass over the earth (Genesis 8:2), and the fountains of the great deep, and the windows of heaven were stopped, and the rain was restrained. The blowing of the wind is a fruitful study! But in short, remember that wind is a common allegory for the Spirit of the LORD. Who hath bound the waters in a garment? Please note that the writer of Genesis said that the waters of the Flood “stopped,” and that God promised that He would never again flood the world with water (Genesis 9:11).

Then Agur asked, “Who has established the ends of the earth?” The Hebrew word translated “ends” is eh’fes , and means end or boundary or termination and has a numerical reality or definition. This is another indication that things earthly are seriously limited to space/time. While there are eternal entities in space/time, they are hidden or indistinct or veiled; that is, they are waiting for the JHVH to declare and position their liberty. Among other things, this word refers to things or conditions that are limited, in short, this is a reference to space/time reality. His name is announced by the Angel, “You shall call His name Jesus.” Jesus told the Father that He came to manifest His name to the men which were given to Him (John 17:6). And Agur concludes with the fact that the Word of the LORD is final and total! Thy Word, O LORD, is forever and ever!

Two Trees

Fri, 12 Jun 2020 22:00:00 GMT

What was special about these two trees and their bearing on humanity’s relationship with the Creator?

The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil

In Genesis 2:16-17, God explained to Adam the consequence associated with the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. It was a real tree with real fruit that if eaten would bring death. Adam and Eve, therefore, had a choice to either obey God’s decree of abstaining or reject God and partake.

From the beginning, Adam and Eve had a conjectural knowledge of good and evil associated with this tree, but not an experiential knowledge. They had experienced only good and nothing evil. But once they ate of it, they had experiential knowledge of evil for they had sinned.

We then understand the purpose of this tree to be one that gave them enlightenment as to their place in Creation. They were not mindless automatons programed to worship the Creator. They were beautifully and perfectly created with free will. They had a choice; they were willing participants of God’s love!!! God did not and never will force His love upon someone. Every person gets to be a consensual recipient of His immeasurable love! Our worship, therefore, is a genuine, loving worship. Our relationship with God is a genuine, loving relationship that contains the greatest fulfillment one can ever experience. It is the fulfillment and purpose for which we were created – communion with our loving Creator.

By not partaking of the tree, Adam and Eve demonstrated their love for God, placing Him above all in their lives. By partaking of the tree, they demonstrated their selfishness and idolatry, placing themselves above God.

The consequences of rejecting God and choosing themselves were devastating. The entire creation was cursed (Genesis 3:17, Romans 8:22). Death, disease, destruction, pain and suffering entered and defiled the perfect creation (Romans 5:12, 1 Corinthians 15:21).

Adam and Eve had been warned of the penalty of death. God had said, “ for in the day that you eat from it, dying you shall die ” (Genesis 2:17). The Hebrew for “ dying you shall die ” is mō-wt tā-mūt (מ֥וֹת תָּמֽוּת׃). It means that in the very day they ate of the forbidden fruit, they would begin to physically die and eventually return to the dust of the ground (Genesis 3:19). Even worse, they were spiritually dead – separated from God. However, He did not abandon them. He provided a blood sacrifice and covering for them (Genesis 3:21).

The Death Penalty

Romans 5:12 and 1 Corinthians 15:21 clearly state that there was no death before sin. Was this only spiritual death, or does this also include physical death?

First, at the end of the creation week, God pronounces all that He had created “ very good ” (Genesis 1:31). This cannot mean there was death, disease, pain, suffering, or carnivorous activity, for otherwise we would serve a moral monster as our Creator. When examining the entire creation account of Genesis 1 & 2 (consult our harmony at /a-harmony-of-genesis-1-2/ ), we see that the last thing God says to all creation is that every living creature is to eat only vegetation (Genesis 1:30). Carnivory was forbidden as death was not permitted in a perfect creation. It is after this decree that God pronounces the entire creation “ very good ” (1:31).

Second, Adam and Eve are told that the penalty for eating of the forbidden tree would be death. That death penalty would begin the very day of their sin as they would be spiritually dead/separated from God (Ephesians 2:1), but they would also begin to physically die (see above). This is repeated to Adam in Genesis 3:19. The Tree of Life’s purpose, therefore, cannot be to keep Adam and Eve from dying pre-sin. They are warned that they will die if they eat the forbidden fruit, but they are never warned they will die if they do not eat of the Tree of Life. Therefore, since the warning of physical death comes only with the forbidden tree, we can conclude that they would have physically lived forever in the perfect creation for however long the Lord willed, as long as they continued in obedience to His decree.

The Tree of Life

The question of the Tree of Life’s purpose comes about when dealing with death before sin. It is the default position of theistic evolutionists that the death penalty of Genesis 2:17 is spiritual death only. This is required in their theology as death is the mechanism for evolutionary advancement. Therefore, God made Creation with death, pain, suffering, and survival of the fittest for the transmutation of species.

This, of course, has no Scriptural or scientific support. Yet, these evolutionists argue that the Tree of Life is the proof of physical death before sin. If Adam and Eve did not eat of that tree, they would have grown old and physically died, just as God designed. The animals did indeed die as divine evolution advanced life, so they claim.

To me, the notion that God would create an existence in which perfection includes death, disease, pain, and suffering makes God a moral, insidious monster of a creator. How could He look at Creation and declare it “ very good ” (Genesis 1:31) if it contained physical death?

Why would He command that all animal life and people eat only vegetation (Genesis 1:30) if it was not for the forbidding of carnivory in order to prevent death in a perfect world?

Here are some questions regarding this issue and the Tree of Life:

The only way to reconcile all of this is the conclusion that there was no physical death before sin as God created a perfect universe in which no animal and no human would ever die as long as holiness and perfection were maintained. That conclusion then requires that the Tree of Life was not the sustainer of physical life pre-Fall as physical life was not in danger of death and, therefore, needed no sustaining. It must have served some other purpose in the Garden. Also, its function in the Garden could have been different or changed after the Fall. The job of the cherubim pre-Fall was certainly different from their job post-Fall (Genesis 3:24).

By not eating the forbidden fruit and by eating of the Tree of Life, Adam and Eve showed their love for God and would continue to physically live as long as the Lord willed.

By eating the forbidden fruit, they sinned and physically died. They fell from grace and were no longer allowed to declare their love of God by partaking of the Tree of Life. This makes partaking of the Tree of Life a form of worship.

Thoughts of Commentators

Renowned 19 ^th century commentator Alfred Edersheim wrote, “…there was also the ‘tree of life’ in the garden, probably as a symbol and pledge of a higher life, which we should have inherited if our first parents had continued obedient to God” ( The Bible History: Old Testament , Vol. 1, 1949, p. 20).

19 ^th century Irish and Scottish commentators Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown expressed that the Tree of Life was, “so called from its symbolic character as a sign and seal of immortal life. Its prominent position where it must have been an object of daily observation and interest, was admirably fitted to keep man habitually in mind of God and futurity” ( A Commentary, Critical and Explanatory, on the Old and New Testaments , Vol. 1, 1878, p. 18).

17 ^th century English theologian Matthew Poole believed the Tree of Life was so called “…symbolically, and sacramentally, because it was a sign and seal of that life which man had received from God, and of his continual enjoyment of it upon condition of his obedience” ( Annotations on the Holy Bible , 1683-5, https://biblehub.com/commentaries/poole/genesis/2.htm ).

This would maintain the thought that before the Fall, Adam and Eve did not eat of the Tree of Life so that they would live forever, but rather they ate of the Tree in worship because they would live forever. This is similar to the Lord’s Supper – we do not partake of it so that we will live forever, but rather we partake in worship of the One who has saved us to live forever with Him.

20 ^th century American commentator H.C. Leupold wrote, “The church has always understood in reference to these trees that, in the nature of the case, eating of the fruit of one tree cannot impart life, just as little as partaking of the fruit of another cannot impart a sense of moral distinctions… Since the New Testament, by the analogy of the sacraments, presents so adequate a parallel and so satisfactory an explanation, criticism has gone sadly astray by drawing upon the analogy of magic from heathen sources” ( Exposition of Genesis , Vol. 1, 1942, pp. 120-1).

Leupold makes the point that to believe that the fruit of the Tree of Life was the source of immortality before the Fall or to believe that the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil was the source of understanding morality is the same as believing ancient mysticisms of pagan religions. This does not, however, negate the historical truth that these were physical trees with physical fruit, both of which had spiritual consequences and physical realities when eaten. Consequently, though it is symbolic, partaking of the Lord’s Supper has serious consequences if one partakes in an unworthy manner (1 Corinthians 11:29).

Other scholars have made the claim of a deluded theology in believing the Tree of Life imparted immortality. They argue that such a reality would invalidate the divine penalty for sin. Did Adam and Eve have to really be kept from the Tree of Life because its fruit would nullify the penalty for sin – death? They argue that this is bordering on ancient mysticisms of special concoctions for immortality.

Poole argued for the reason of God’s banishment of and forbiddance of Adam and Eve to eat of the tree being that they would not “…thereby profane that sacrament of eternal life, and fondly persuade himself that he shall live for ever” ( Annotations , 1683-5, https://biblehub.com/commentaries/poole/genesis/3.htm ).

18 ^th century English theologian John Gill echoed this sentiment, “…live for ever; not that it was possible, by eating of the fruit of the tree of life, his natural life could be continued for ever, contrary to the sentence of death pronounced upon him; or so as to elude that sentence, and by it eternal life be procured and obtained; but he was hindered from eating of it, lest he should flatter himself, that by so doing he should live for ever” ( Exposition of the Old Testament , 1748-63, https://www.sacred-texts.com/bib/cmt/gill/gen003.htm ).

Early 19 ^th century English commentator Joseph Benson continued this thought, writing, “Care must be taken, and man must be banished hence, lest he take of the tree of life, as he took of the tree of knowledge, and thereby profane that sacrament of eternal life, and persuade himself that he shall live for ever” ( Holy Bible, containing the Old and New Testaments …with Notes, Critical, Explanatory, and Practical, 2 ^nd ed., 1811-8, https://biblehub.com/commentaries/benson/genesis/3.htm ).

Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown concurred, “This tree being a pledge of that immortal life with which obedience should be rewarded, man lost, on his fall, all claim to this tree; and therefore, that he might not eat of it or delude himself with the idea that eating of it would restore what he had forfeited, the Lord sent him forth from the garden” ( Commentary, Vol. 1, 1878, p. 20).

Despite these arguments from several scholars over several centuries, I am not convinced of the argument that the effects of the Tree of Life post-Fall were merely perceptional and not physical. At this time, I believe the Hebrew supports the traditional translation and understanding that if they would have eaten of the Tree of Life after the Fall, they may have indeed avoided physical death because of its divine nature.

Conclusions

In all of these thoughts and arguments, it remains the clear, distinct teaching of Scripture that the only reason anyone or anything dies is because of the detrimental consequence of sin. Russel Grigg composed an article in 2009 for Creation Ministries International after the passing of his wife, to whom he was married 47 years. He wrote:

“I can now say that, for someone who had not intimately witnessed death before, nothing prepared me for the realization that the person who a few moments previously had been a living, loving, sharing, interacting wife, mother and grandmother, was now a lifeless corpse. From this point of view, death is a terrible, terrible thing… This tells me three things about the holiness and love of God.

We who know Christ as Saviour and Lord shall all meet again when we see Jesus face to face.”
( https://creation.com/is-death-a-good-thing-or-a-bad-thing )

In His grace (receiving that which we have not earned), the Lord allowed Adam and Eve to praise Him for their lives by partaking of the Tree of Life. When they fell from grace, the Lord in His mercy (not receiving that which we deserve) allowed the death process to begin so that they would not live forever in a fallen world. They were instead clothed with life and atoned for by innocent blood (Genesis 3:21) so that they might again partake of the Tree of Life in eternity (Revelation 2:7).

May we likewise be covered in life and atoned for by the innocent blood of the Lamb (1 Peter 1:18-19, Galatians 3:27), worshiping Him through the partaking of the Lord’s Supper in a worthy manner (1 Corinthians 11:23-29) until the day we, too, are able to partake of the Tree of Life.

Purposeful Light

Thu, 11 Jun 2020 21:35:00 GMT

We are in the midst of a dark time in our nation and around the world. The pandemic has caused a crisis the likes of which we have not seen in many decades. Our nation is in a battle for its very soul as we confront very difficult issues, aka sin. It seems as though the darkness is all around us and winning. I personally don’t see this as the darkest of times, unless we fail to see the light. I believe there is only one Light that will dispel and drive this darkness away, Jesus Christ, and we must be FOCUSED on the purpose of this Light.

“Let there be light.” In Genesis 1, on that first day when physical light was created, it had a purpose. When it was revealed, it was separated from darkness. Light is what defines darkness, as darkness is the absence of light. We also see in Scripture that, by His power and glory, the Lord is the Light, and the light shows what the darkness cannot – truth. The Light is truth and righteousness, the absolute standard by which all is referenced. The Lord defines light by His very eternal existence. The same is true in our lives; without light there is no defining line of law from lawlessness. All we measure around us in this world should be in view of His Light.

As we are surrounded by darkness we must appeal to the Light. He is the only source of goodness and healing. Any ideas, opinions, solutions and legislations apart from the Light may contain some truth (as also many of Satan’s deceptions do), but they cannot be emblazoned with truth. The purpose of the initial light of creation has not changed and will never change. We, however, are a fickle creation that changes often with our selfish desires that are dark or, at best, faint representations of light. We must seek the Light and not our own desires that, as righteous as we may feel or think they are, leave too much room for darkness. I am reminded of 1 John 1:5-10 where it speaks to this truth and reminds us of the Light’s purpose in our lives, to have fellowship with one another and be cleansed from our sins. “This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin….” When we reside in the Light of Life, our standing with the Lord is impacted in a way that in turn directly impacts our relationships with our fellow man. Blessings to you as we strive for the eternal Light in the midst of finite darkness.

A Harmony of Genesis 1 & 2

Thu, 11 Jun 2020 20:48:00 GMT

Day 1

^1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. ^1:2 The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters. ^1:3 Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. ^1:4 God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness. ^1:5 God called the light day, and the darkness He called night. And there was evening and there was morning, one day.

Day 2

^1:6 Then God said, “Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.” ^1:7 God made the expanse, and separated the waters which were below the expanse from the waters which were above the expanse; and it was so. ^1:8 God called the expanse heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, a second day.

Day 3

^1:9 Then God said, “Let the waters below the heavens be gathered into one place, and let the dry land appear”; and it was so. ^1:10 God called the dry land earth, and the gathering of the waters He called seas; and God saw that it was good. ^1:11 Then God said, “Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees on the earth bearing fruit after their kind with seed in them”; and it was so. ^1:12 The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit with seed in them, after their kind; and God saw that it was good. ^1:13 There was evening and there was morning, a third day.

Day 4

^1:14 Then God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night, and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years; ^1:15 and let them be for lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth”; and it was so. ^1:16 God made the two great lights, the greater light to govern the day, and the lesser light to govern the night; He made the stars also. ^1:17 God placed them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth, ^1:18 and to govern the day and the night, and to separate the light from the darkness; and God saw that it was good. ^1:19 There was evening and there was morning, a fourth day.

Day 5

^1:20 Then God said, “Let the waters teem with swarms of living creatures, and let flying creatures fly above the earth in the open expanse of the heavens.” ^1:21 God created the great sea dragons and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarmed after their kind, and every winged flying creature after its kind; and God saw that it was good. ^1:22 God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let flying creatures multiply on the earth.” ^1:23 There was evening and there was morning, a fifth day.

Day 6

^1:24 Then God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures after their kind: behemah and creeping thing and every living thing of the earth after its kind”; and it was so. ^1:25 God made every living thing of the earth after its kind, and the behemah after its kind, and everything that creeps on the ground after its kind; and God saw that it was good.

^2:4 In the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens, ^2:5 no field plant was yet in the earth, and no field herb had yet sprouted, for the LORD God had not sent rain upon the earth, and there was no man to cultivate the ground, ^2:6 but a mist used to rise from the earth and water the whole surface of the ground.

^1:26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the flying creatures of the sky and over the behemah and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” ^2:7 Then the LORD God formed the man from dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living being. ^1:27 And God created the man in His own image, in the image of God He created him. ^2:8 The LORD God planted a garden toward the east, in Eden; and there He placed the man whom He had formed.

^2:9 Out of the ground the LORD God had caused to grow every tree that is pleasing to the sight and good for food; the Tree of Life also in the midst of the garden, and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.

^2:10 Now a river flowed out of Eden to water the garden; and from there it divided and became four rivers. ^2:11 The name of the first is Pishon; it flows around the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold. ^2:12 The gold of that land is good; the bdellium and the onyx stone are there. ^2:13 The name of the second river is Gihon; it flows around the whole land of Cush. ^2:14 The name of the third river is Tigris; it flows east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.

^2:15 Then the LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to cultivate it and keep it. ^2:16 The LORD God commanded the man, saying, “From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; ^2:17 but from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it, dying you shall die.”

^2:18 Then the LORD God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him.” ^2:19 Out of the ground the LORD God had formed every living creature of the field and every flying creature of the sky, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them; and whatever the man called a living creature, that was its name. ^2:20 The man gave names to all the behemah, and to the flying creatures of the sky, and to every living thing of the field, but for Adam there was not found a suitable helper. ^2:21 So the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept; then He took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh at that place. ^2:22 The LORD God fashioned the rib which He had taken from the man into a woman and brought her to the man. ^2:23 The man said,

“This is now bone of my bones,
And flesh of my flesh;
She shall be called woman,
Because she was taken out of man.”

^1:27 Male and female He created them. ^1:28 God blessed them; and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the flying creatures of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” ^2:24 For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh. ^2:25 And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed.

^1:29 Then God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree which has fruit yielding seed; it shall be food for you; ^1:30 and to every living thing of the earth and to every flying creature of the sky and to every thing that creeps on the earth which has life, I have given every green plant for food”; and it was so. ^1:31 God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

Day 7

^2:1 Thus the heavens and the earth were completed, and all their hosts. ^2:2 And God ended on the seventh day His work which He had done, and He ceased on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. ^2:3 Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He ceased from all His work which God had created and made.

^2:4 This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created.

Mature Faith

Mon, 18 May 2020 15:51:00 GMT

Devoid of God’s grace, the human will inevitably produces envy, malice, war; but the perfect will of the Lord always produces love, joy, and peace (2 Peter 1:3-8). Obedience to God and the subsequent manifestation of His will should, therefore, be the primary goal of all Bible believers!

In August, 1890, the ineffable Charles Haddon Spurgeon, often called the prince of preachers, presented a remarkable sermon to the congregation of Metropolitan Tabernacle in London from the Scripture passage Hebrews 11:8: “ By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went .” Spurgeon said that the spiritual significance of this passage is observed in the fact that Abraham obeyed by faith (an action Abraham would often duplicate).

Spurgeon further declared that obedience to God’s Word would tend to manifest “love among men, justice to all classes and peace in every land, and that the human will, devoid from God’s grace, only brings envy, malice and war!” Thus, believers should naturally seek obedience to God!

I find that many professing Christians, even though they are reasonably faithful in their church attendance, are terribly lacking in their Biblical knowledge and manifest a glaring Scriptural immaturity! And since 2 plus 2 always equals 4 (which can easily be an effective analogy for the fact that faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of the Lord), it is only reasonable to assume that many professing believers are inept in their faith because they are also inept in their Biblical knowledge, and when we stand before God, ignorance will not be an acceptable excuse!

Eternal Purpose

Thu, 14 May 2020 15:03:00 GMT

There are some people, even Christians, out there that question the importance and/or purpose of a ministry like Creation Truth. They usually look at our Mobile Museum of Earth History fossil exhibit and say, “So what?” or something along the lines of “Dinosaurs don’t really matter when it comes to salvation.” It is important to remember that the purpose of this ministry is not solely tied to dinosaurs or science. Yes, we deal with both of those issues, but our purpose runs much deeper to the spiritual authority that Jesus Christ holds for eternal salvation.

Creation is the single most important moment in the salvation process. Some people would begin arguing with that statement in favor of the Cross or Resurrection. While both of those events are absolutely essential to salvation, they are not the most important. Without the creation of everything by the Lord Jesus Christ, there is simply no authority for Him to save us. He has authority over all because He made it all. Because He is our Creator first, He can save us for all eternity by giving His life on the cross. Through the resurrection we understand His conquering over death with life, and thus giving it to us. He tells us in His infallible Word of how He created it all and shows His identity as Cause, Maker, and Sustainer. Without that, we would be bound hopeless in our sinful death.

Our mission and purpose at Creation Truth Foundation is to show unequivocally that in the beginning the Word of God started His plan and purpose for us, as recorded in the pages of Genesis. The historical record must be right from the beginning or the rest of the Bible becomes just “good” teaching stories with no redemptive value. But if the historical record of Genesis is correct as written, then and only then is our eternal salvation sure with all the hope we desperately need at this moment in time. Our purpose and importance at CTF is to continue to battle the skepticism that is running rampant in the church today. Please consider lifting us in your prayers over the next several months as the Covid crisis has significantly impacted our ability to be in the place we are called to be, the local church. We will begin traveling as soon as the invitation is extended for us to come. We are ready to go and encourage the faithful to trust the entirety of the Bible because of who our Creator says He is in Genesis. Blessings.

2020 Focused: TIME

Thu, 14 May 2020 05:36:00 GMT

When talking with someone about the age of Earth or the universe, our ministry’s president may ask, “What in the Bible says they are billions of years old?” It is an excellent question because it reveals one’s starting place, one’s foundation. Either you are starting from and your foundation is the Word of God or it is not.

Inevitably, everyone must admit that there is NOTHING in the Bible that remotely suggests that the universe is billions of years old. [1] ^{,

[2]} Not surprisingly (since we know the Bible is inerrant), the sciences confirm the Biblical account.

The regular discovery of soft tissue in dinosaurs and other ancient specimens continues to thwart the concept of billions of years. The list of peer-reviewed journal articles on surviving endogenous biological material continues to grow. [3] These materials cannot survive a million years, let alone tens or hundreds of millions of years as required by the doctrines of evolution.

The discovery of carbon-14 in every tested dinosaur fossil utterly destroys the possibility of them living millions of years ago. After 50,000 to 100,000 years, there should be no detectable carbon-14. And yet, it is found every time a specimen is tested! [4] ^{,

[5]

,

[6]} In fact, there has yet to be a specimen of anything once living that has been tested and found to have no carbon-14, [7] meaning the Earth and all that is in it cannot be millions or billions of years old.

Current levels of erosion show that Earth’s continents would erode completely away in just 50 million years. [8] Realizing this old-earth predicament and the conclusion that the continents can only be thousands of years old (as the Bible shows), evolutionists are desperate for an explanation: “[A]t present rates of erosion, continents 2.5 km thick could have been eroded 42 times during the assumed 3500 Ma age for the continents… There is little question that there is some difficulty in reconciling present erosion rates with standard geochronology.” [9] We should not be surprised when “standard” geochronology based on evolutionary faith conflicts with empirical science; true science never contradicts the Bible.

Therefore, we must be crystal clear in the realization and teaching of this issue: the debated age of the universe has nothing to do with science, but everything to do with faith. Which faith do you have: a Biblical faith or a non-Biblical faith? Either you have a Biblical worldview or a non-Biblical worldview.

Dr. Sharp (CTF Founder) has always taught, “Darwinian Naturalism needs time and lots of it! This is the bottom line in the war between good and evil! …So, I believe that the entire struggle between Supernaturalism and Naturalism boils down to what we believe about Time, Age of the Universe, Earth and Man. All other of the mutually exclusive ramifications of the debate are explained here!!” [10]

He’s not the only one who realizes the gravity of this war. A vicar of the Church of England and avid evolutionist Michael Roberts claimed, “[I]f the earth is more than 50,000 years old Biblical literalism is a dead duck… If I can persuade someone that the earth is at least a million years old I consider the war to be won.” [11]

This is the spiritual war in which we battle. Either God did create a perfect universe and sin corrupted it, bringing death, disease, pain, and suffering, or the universe occurred naturally, creating itself with death, disease, pain, and suffering as part of the natural processes of life.

For the first, we need salvation through Jesus Christ. For the alternative, there is no Creator and no condemnation from which we must be saved. [12]

Eternity weighs in the balance. Will you be a Kingdom warrior armed with the sword of Truth?

[For more information, go to www.creationtruth.com/wordpress and enter “radiometric dating” in the search bar for our latest articles and research]

[1] Cox, R., “Christ’s Credibility”, 22 March 2018, /christs-credibility/

[2] Cox, R., “A Thousand Times, No”, 20 April 2020, /a-thousand-times-no-2/

[3] Thomas, B. Ph.D. and Bob Enyart, “List of Biomaterial Fossil Papers”, accessed 13 May 2020, https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1eXtKzjWP2B1FMDVrsJ_992ITFK8H3LXfPFNM1ll-Yiw/edit#gid=0

[4] Fischer, J.M. “Dinosaur bones have been dated by radiocarbon”, 2012-2014, https://www.newgeology.us/Dinosaur%20bones%20dated%20by%20Carbon-14.pdf

[5] Thomas, B. Ph.D., “Carbon-14 Found in Dinosaur Fossils”, 6 July 2015, https://www.icr.org/article/carbon-14-found-dinosaur-fossils

[6] Thomas, B. Ph.D., “Carbon-Dating Fossils”, 31 July 2015, https://www.icr.org/article/carbon-dating-fossils

[7] Thomas, B. Ph.D., Ancient and Fossil Bone Collagen Remnants , ICR, Dallas, TX, Oct. 2019, p. 116. https://creationtruth.com/store/home/608-ancient-and-fossil-bone-collagen-remnants.html?search_query=thomas&results=13

[8] Portenga, E. W. and R. R. Bierman. 2011. “Understanding Earth’s eroding surface with ¹⁰ Be.” GSA Today . 21 (8): 4-10. https://www.geosociety.org/gsatoday/archive/21/8/article/i1052-5173-21-8-4.htm

[9] Roth, A. A. 1986. ”Some Questions about Geochronology”. Origins . 13 (2): 64-85. https://www.grisda.org/origins-13064

[10] Sharp, G. T. Ph.D., “Philosophical Naturalism and the Age of the Universe”, IBWS cadre notes, slides 40-1.

[11] Roberts, M., Vicar in the Blackburn Diocese (Anglican, UK), “Creationism on the Rocks: A Geological Look at Creationism”, 2003 web article, https://michaelroberts4004.wordpress.com/2014/11/23/british-creationism-as-a-problem-in-2002/

[12] Romans 8:1, “ Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus .”

Radiometric Dating: How Men Aged the Earth

Sat, 09 May 2020 17:46:00 GMT

The War

How it Happened

The History

1669 – Nicolas Steno (1638-1686, Danish anatomist) establishes the principles of stratigraphy (the study of the layering and positions of rock strata).

1722-1732 – Benoît de Mailet (1656-1738, French diplomat) estimates Earth to be 2.4 billion years old. He believed the planet was once completely covered by water, which was receding into a vortex at a rate of 3 inches per century.

1748 – David Hume (1711-1776, Scottish philosopher) publishes An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding , in which he states, “all inferences from experience suppose.. that the future will resemble the past.” This gives rise to the philosophy of uniformitarianism – interpreting past events by current processes.

1756 – Johann Lehmann (1719-1767, German mineralogist) labels three distinct rock layers while studying mining practices in Prussia. They are 1) Primary layer of crystalline rocks, 2) Secondary layer of fossiliferous rocks, and 3) Final layer of recent sediments.

1778 – Comte de Buffon (1707-1788, French mathematician) estimates Earth to be 75,000 years old in his book The Eras of the Nature .

1788 – James Hutton (1726-1797, Scottish farmer and chemical manufacturer) popularizes the philosophy of uniformitarianism in his work Theory of the Earth , in which he states that “from what has actually been, we have data for concluding with regard to that which is to happen thereafter.”

1812 – Georges Cuvier (1769-1832, French zoologist) proposes the concept of Progressive Creationism in Essay on the Theory of Earth . He maintains that geology shows at least four regional or nearly global floods over untold ages, the most recent being 5,000 years ago. After each catastrophe, God created new forms of life. This is why we see different animal fossils throughout rock layers.

1814 – Thomas Chalmers (1780-1847, Scottish minister) proposes the concept of gap creationism, known today as Gap Theory. It holds that Genesis 1:1 records the first creation and Genesis 1:2-31 records a second or re-creation. In between the two is a period of however many years anyone wants to insert to make the universe as old as one wants.

1815 – William “Strata” Smith (1769-1839, English surveyor) publishes his first geologic map. He had traveled throughout England as a surveyor, examining canals, road and railway cuttings, mines, and quarries. He noted similar looking strata with corresponding fossils. Smith becomes known as the “Father of English Geology”.

1830-1833 – Charles Lyell (1797-1875, Scottish lawyer) publishes his 3-volume set entitled Principles of Geology: being an attempt to explain the former changes of the Earth’s surface, by reference to causes now in operation . In it, he restates Hume and Hutton’s philosophies of uniformitarianism.
* June 14, 1830 – Charles Lyell composes a letter to George Poulett Scrope (English geologist, 1797-1876) discussing his strategy of getting churches to accept old ages of the Earth through his argumentative tactics as a lawyer for the purpose of rejecting the Bible’s history. He states, “I am sure you may get into Q.R. [ Quarterly Review ] what will free the science from Moses , for if treated seriously, the [church] party are quire prepared for it… They see at last the mischief and scandal brought on them by Mosaic systems …” (Bailey, E. British men of science: Charles Lyell . Nelson and Sons, Ltd. London. 1962. pp. 77-8, emphasis added).
* May 4, 1832 – Charles Lyell lectures at King’s College in London, saying, “…the physical part of Geological inquiry ought to be conducted as if the Scriptures were not in existence ” (Rudwick, Martin. “Charles Lyell Speaks in the Lecture Theatre”. The British Journal for the History of Science 9 (2):147-155, 1976, emphasis added).
* 1975 – Stephen Jay Gould (1941-2002, Harvard evolutionary biologist) writes, “Charles Lyell was a lawyer by profession… [and he] relied upon two bits of cunning to establish his uniformitarian views as the only true geology. First, he set up a straw man to demolish… In fact, the catastrophists were much more empirically minded than Lyell . The geologic record does seem to require catastrophes : rocks are fractured and contorted; whole faunas are wiped out. To circumvent this literal appearance , Lyell imposed his imagination upon the evidence ” (Gould, S.J., Catastrophes and steady state earth, Natural History , 84 (2):15–18, 1975, emphasis added).

1841 – John Phillips (1800-1874, English geologist), estimates Earth to be 96 million years old. He had traveled all over England with his uncle, William “Strata” Smith, and later became a geology professor at King’s College. He publishes in 1841 the first global geologic time scale, based entirely from his and his uncle’s surveys of England. The map uses fossils in layers as identifiers of strata, popularizing the terms Paleozoic and Mesozoic.

1856 – Hermann von Helmholtz (1821-1894, German physicist) uses observations of “heat death” in the universe to determine the maximum amount of time for the universe to reach thermodynamic equilibrium (all the energy to be used up). He then calculates that the Earth can be no more than 22 million years old.

1859 – Charles Darwin (1809-1882, English naturalist) publishes On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life . He postulates that Earth must be 300 million years old in order to have enough time for his scheme of evolution.
* January 31, 1869 – Darwin writes to James Croll (1821-1890, Scottish scientist researching the Ice Age), “Not withstanding your excellent remarks on the work which can be effected within a million years, I am greatly troubled at the short duration of the world according to sir William Thomson for I require for my theoretical views a very long period before the Cambrian formation ” (accessed 2/23/18, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/DCP-LETT-6585.xml).

1892 – Simon Newcomb (1835-1909, Canadian astronomer) calculates Earth to be 18 million years old based on the gravitational contraction of the Sun.

1893 – Clarence King (1842-1901, American geologist), while serving as the first director of the US Geological Survey, estimates Earth to be 24 million years old.

1893 – Charles Walcott (1850-1927, American paleontologist), while serving as Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, estimates Earth to be 55 million years old, based on his study of sedimentation.

1895 – John Perry (1850-1920, Irish engineer) estimates Earth to be 2 to 3 billion years old.

1896 – Antoine Henri Becquerel (1852-1908, French physicist) discovers uranium emits invisible rays, making him the first to discover radioactivity.

1897 – William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin (1824-1907, Scots-Irish physicist & engineer) estimates Earth to be 20 to 40 million years old. He then claims that this time frame makes Darwinian evolution impossible.

1898 – Pierre (1859-1906) and Marie Curie (1867-1934, French physicists & chemists) discover the radioactivity of thorium and coin the term “radioactivity”. They go on to receive the 1903 Nobel Prize in Physics.

1898 – George Darwin (1845-1912, English astronomer & Charles Darwin’s son) calculates Earth to be 56 million years old based on his understanding of the Earth/Moon system. This severely undercuts the amount of time his father needed for his scheme of evolution.

1899 – John Joly (1857-1933, Irish physicist) calculates Earth to be 89 million years old based on oceanic sodium accumulation.

1907 – Bertram Borden Boltwood (1870-1927, American radiochemist) takes measurements that indicate that lead is the final product of uranium decay. He attempts to calculate the age of Earth by postulating a decay rate. He obtained results of 400 million to 2.2 billion years old.

1907 – Ernst Rutherford, 1st Baron Rutherford of Nelson (1871-1937, British physicist) discovers the half-life principle of radioactive elements. He becomes known as the “Father of Physics”.

1909 – John Joly revives his estimate of Earth’s age to 150 million years old.

1913 – John Joly revises his estimate of Earth’s age to at least 400 million years old based on radium decay rates.

1917 – Oxford University publishes a revised version of the Scofield Reference Bible, in which the reference notes in Genesis 1 interpret the passage through the lenses of the Gap Theory. This gains the Gap Theory considerable notoriety to the point that in 1954, Baptist theologian Bernard Ramm (1916-1992) writes, “The gap theory has become the standard interpretation throughout hyper-orthodoxy, appearing in an endless stream of books, booklets, Bible studies, and periodical articles. In fact, it has become so sacrosanct with some that to question it is equivalent to tampering with Sacred Scripture or to manifest modernistic leanings” (Ramm, B. The Christian View of Science and Scripture . Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. 1954, p. 135).

1921 – Henry Russell (1877-1957, American astronomer) calculates a maximum chemical age of 8 billion years for Earth’s crust, based on estimates of its total uranium and lead content. He co-developed the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram in 1910.

1927 – Arthur Holmes (180-1965, British geologist) presents an age of Earth ranging from 1.6 to 3.0 billion years in his The Age of the Earth: An Introduction to Geological Ideas . His work is mostly ignored as he bases his conclusions on radiometric dating. By this time, the study of radioactivity and accurately measuring radioactive decay had been abandoned as too complicated and unreliable.

1931 – The National Research Council of the US National Academy of Sciences declares radiometric dating to be the most reliable means of dating rocks. How was this conclusion reached?
Arthur Holmes was appointed a committee member as he was one of the only people in the entire country trained in radiometric dating. He wrote most of the final report, which just happened to claim that radioactive dating was the only reliable means of dating geologic time scales (exactly what his rejected book claimed). There were accusations of bias, but were beaten back by the Academy, making radiometric dating the primary means of dating rock samples.

1956 – Clair Patterson (1922-1995, American geochemist) calculates Earth’s age to be 4.55 ± 0.07 billion years old. His calculations are based on lead-lead isotope dating of meteorites. Why?
Wikipedia notes: “ Most geological samples from Earth are unable to give a direct date of the formation of Earth from the solar nebula because Earth has undergone differentiation into the core, mantle, and crust, and this has then undergone a long history of mixing and unmixing of these sample reservoirs by plate tectonics, weathering and hydrothermal circulation. All of these processes may adversely affect isotopic dating mechanisms because the sample cannot always be assumed to have remained as a closed system … which will skew the resulting isotopic date … Some meteorites are furthermore considered to represent the primitive material from which the accreting solar disk was formed. Some have behaved as closed systems (for some isotopic systems) soon after the solar disk and the planets formed. To date, these assumptions are supported by much scientific observation and repeated isotopic dates, and it is certainly a more robust hypothesis than that which assumes a terrestrial rock has retained its original composition” (accessed 2/21/18, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Age_of_the_Earth, emphasis added).
* Therefore, meteorites must be used as all rock samples yield unreliable dates, which has been noted since the 1920s!
* How then are radiometric dates of meteorites independently confirmed?

Rocks Date the Fossils & Fossils Date the Rocks

The Dating of Rock Layers Came BEFORE Radiometric Dating

Conclusion

SOURCES for The History:

Chambers, John and Jacqueline Mitton. From Dust to Life: The Origin and Evolution of Our Solar System . Princeton University Press. May 2017, pp. 57-64.

Encyclopedia Britannica . “Geochronology”. accessed 2/22/18. https://www.britannica.com/science/geochronology#ref586344

God, Creation, Science and Evolution…

Mon, 20 Apr 2020 17:11:00 GMT

The definition of the above terms, depending, of course, upon who defined them (if, indeed, they can be properly defined), can be nothing more than an extension someone’s individual worldview or belief system regarding these terms.

It is this fact that has caused the definition of these terms to produce a continuing enigma in modern science and a mutual irreconcilability between Biblical Creation and naturalistic Evolution! This is especially true in state schools! And it continually causes a perplexing conflict in science delivery.

Ultimately, the conflict boils down to the personal meaning provided by biased teachers and professors! And since there are more science educators influenced by evolution (naturalism) than by creation (supernaturalism), and because both views are based in faith, not science (and other motives), it is difficult, if not impossible, to present a duel view of origins in any academic setting. Really, both views should be properly presented, leaving the student to make up his or her own mind.

What makes this dilemma even more challenging is that neither view is scientific or reproducible in a laboratory! Therefore, in a public setting, the presentation of one view with greater emphasis than the other, or the presentation of only one view, while ignoring the other, becomes a desperate church/state issue. Since neither view can be proved conclusively in the laboratory, because of the strong worldview potential, they must both be presented neutrally or neither should be presented at all! Because Genesis 1 and the Big Bang are mutually exclusive and are wholistic worldviews, they should both be presented, because very few, if any, high school students and just a few college students have the sophistication to understand the bias of the creation/evolution models.

The bottom line of this controversy is that both creation and evolution are faith based, and neither model is demonstratable in the laboratory! The writer of Hebrews says this rather plainly, “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen… Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear” (Hb. 11: 1,3). The conclusion of these models is: If God is the great Creator of all things, He is God and must be worshipped! But if all things evolved by chance, then there is no God, and man can worship what he will!

God Bless, Doc

A Thousand Times, No

Mon, 20 Apr 2020 17:06:00 GMT

It is almost comical to ask if God could create the cosmos in such a short time span as recorded in Genesis 1. It would be more appropriate to ask, “In spreading His creative work over six 24-hour days, why did God take so long?” The answer is in God’s establishment of the human economy.

There is no cosmological explanation for a 7-day week. A day is based on Earth’s rotation, a month on the lunar cycle, and a year on Earth’s revolution around the Sun. The best secular explanation for a 7-day week is a quarter of the lunar cycle, but this answer is wanting.

Throughout time, civilizations attempted 5-day, ^[1] 6-day, ^[2] 8-day, ^[3] 9-day, ^[4] 10-day, ^[5] and 13-day ^[6] weeks. Amazingly, though, most of them eventually returned to a 7-day week. Again, the only explanation is this is the created human economy given to us by our Creator in the first week of history.

The only reason for any Christian attempting an alternate explanation is an effort to delegitimize the historical narrative of Genesis 1. In an attempt to make the creation days figurative instead of literal for the purpose of inserting evolution’s required billions of years, an appeal is often made to II Peter 3:8, which says, “ But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day .”

This one passage is used as an excuse to say the days of Genesis 1 represent eons of time. Not surprisingly, the natural reading of this passage never comes close to achieving such an understanding. One must be purposely seeking a billions-of-years agenda to find such a meaning.

This sad undertaking lends itself to absurdity. The argument is that the word “day” in Genesis 1 is not 24 hours, but an extensively long period of time, culminating in an allegorical week that actually represents a cosmic history of 13.797 ± 0.023 billion years. ^[7] If, as the argument maintains, “day” represents a long period of time and II Peter 3:8 is the passage that explains this, then Peter would actually be saying, “ with the Lord a long period of time is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as a long period of time .”

Oh, the ensuing foolishness when one attempts to infuse man-made excuses with Biblical Truth (Romans 1:22).

The context, as established in verses 3-4, is preparation for combating the arguments of scoffers in the last days. One of those arguments, according to verse 4, is uniformitarianism – a commonly used argument of evolutionists. Note then what Peter establishes as facts in verses 5-6, “ ⁵ For this they willfully forget: that by the Word of God the heavens existed long ago and the earth was formed out of water and by water, ⁶ by which the world that then existed perished, being flooded by water. ”

In a powerful lesson for us today, Peter emphatically defends the Christian faith by going back to the beginning – by establishing the Genesis record as historical fact!

Peter unequivocally and unapologetically defends Genesis 1-9 as factual history in I Peter 3:5-6, 20-21 and II Peter 2:5-9, 3:5-6.

Therefore, knowing Peter holds steadfastly to the historicity of Genesis, consider verses 8-9 in context, “ ⁸ But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. ⁹ The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance .” He adds in verse 15, “ and regard the patience of our Lord as salvation ”.

The context has nothing to do with cracking the interpretive code of Genesis 1, but everything to do with illustrating God’s patience and longsuffering to save people!

In fact, there is a reason Peter specifically uses “ a thousand years ”. One thousand was the largest number for which there was a Roman numeral (Roman numeral M). ^[8] Today, the largest named number is centillion (1 with 303 zeroes). ^[9] If Peter were to compose his letter today, he might write, “ with the Lord one day is as a centillion years, and a centillion years as one day .”

Peter wrote precisely what the Lord inspired as a message of encouragement. It is a message that despite the horrors, pains, and sufferings of this world, the Lord has not given up on us! He has not yet ended this existence because He has not yet quit in the Kingdom mission of saving lives.

Regarding II Peter 3:8, the late Dr. John C. Whitcomb elegantly stated, “Note carefully that the verse does not say that God’s days last thousands of years, but that ‘one day is with the Lord as a thousand years.’ In other words, God is completely above the limitations of time in the sense that he can accomplish in one literal day what nature or man could not accomplish in thousands of years, if ever. …the verse reveals how much God can accomplish in a 24-hour day, and thus sheds much light upon the events of Creation Week.” ^[10] Amen.

For the longsuffering patience of our Lord, we praise His holy name.

^[1] Iceland, Indonesia, Korea

^[2] Akan (Ghana)

^[3] ancient Rome, Celtic nations

^[4] Baltic nations, Wales

^[5] China, Egypt, France (1793-1802)

^[6] Aztecs, Maya

^[7] Evolutionary conclusion in the Planck Collaboration.“ Planck 2018 results. VI. Cosmological parameters”. Astronomy & Astrophysics , 16 July 2018. Tables 1 & 2, pp. 14-5. Accessed 2/10/2020, https://www.cosmos.esa.int/documents/387566/387653/Planck_2018_results_L06.pdf/38659860-210c-ffac-3921-e5eac3ae4101

^[8] Roman Numerals 500-1000 Chart, accessed 2/10/2020, https://www.romannumerals.org/chart-500-1000

^[9] Merriam-Webster Table of Numbers, Denominations above One Million, accessed 2/10/2020, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/number#table

^[10] J.C. Whitcomb, Jr., Th.D. “The Science of Historical Geology”, Westminster Theological Journal 36:1 (Fall 1973), p. 68.

Blood’s Purpose

Sat, 11 Apr 2020 00:35:00 GMT

Our theme for the year 2020 is FOCUSED, and up until now I have focused on our origin. Now I want to transition to the subject of purpose, specifically some of the purpose for and behind creation. The Lord built purpose into the creation. Take, for example, blood. It’s a fluid substance that carries with it life. Now that is what I call purpose!

From a very basic understanding, blood consists of cells and plasma. Yet it is so much more than just fluid made of mostly water. It carries life-giving oxygen to tissue throughout the body. Blood also distributes nutrients, hormones, and those important white blood cells with their immunological purpose. This fluid also carries away damaging waste that is detrimental to our bodies, and it “knows” which is which through precise chemical components. Blood is an amazingly designed component within the Hebraic term “chay nephesh” (living) creatures.

There is no conceivable evolutionary origin that postulates the purpose and design behind blood. The evolutionary worldview may try to theorize and explain (though not well, mind you) the chemical components needed for blood to exist, but it does not touch the overwhelming purpose within it. Purpose comes from God’s intentional creation, and I offer one overwhelming purpose for this miraculous fluid – redemption .

Throughout scripture, blood is understood as the very life-holding substance. It doesn’t take a long search of history to realize we have known this outside of the Bible’s record as well. When the Lord created blood in chay nephesh creatures, it had designed physiological purpose to provide the properties of animated life, but it culminated with an even greater purpose planned for man. Our Creator’s blood was sacrificed for our eternal life. We not only have the same life substance as other chay nephesh creatures, but He planned “in Him before the creation of the world” that His blood would be spilled for you and me in atonement for sin. I can not think of a more grand purpose for this red, life-giving blood for His created image bearers.

Let us never forget the Lord Jesus Christ’s purpose for blood, especially His eternal purpose. Rejoice with me over redemption through our Creator’s blood with the resurrection to life eternal! Blessings.

2020 Focused: Marriage

Fri, 20 Mar 2020 16:28:00 GMT

“40 to 50 percent of married couples in the United States divorce.” ~ American Psychological Association [1]

“Why are divorce rates higher in religiously conservative ‘red’ states?” ~ Council on Contemporary Families [2]

“Conservative Christians Divorce More Than Other Groups” ~ The Huffington Post [3]

“[C]ommunities with large concentrations of conservative Protestants actually produce higher divorce rates than others.” ~ American Journal of Sociology [4]

My wife and I celebrate 10 years of marriage this March. We are so glad we never let any of these types of reports influence us, except to reaffirm our commitment to our marital covenant.

The reason none of these reports should influence anyone is because they are all a LIE!

The world, and maybe even the church, has told couples for years that they have a 50/50 chance of staying married, if they want to risk it.

How encouraging.

Time after time after time, young people have been told these terrible, discouraging things about marriage, and all along they have been nothing but falsehoods.

A few years ago, researchers Shaunti Feldhahn and Tally Whitehead published the results of years of study in a book entitled The Good News About Marriage: Debunking Discouraging Myths About Marriage and Divorce . (shaunti.com/tb-books/good-news-marriage/)

Providing detailed research with numerous studies and sources, here are some of their conclusions: [5]

Sadly, though, our culture has done such a good job attacking marriage that now 74% of “first unions” are those who are “living together” out of wedlock (it was 58% in the 1990s). [6] It should be noted that 85% of couples living together eventually get married by age 46, usually because of child custody, tax benefits, etc. The end result, however, does not excuse the sin (Hebrews 13:4).

The point, though, is that there is incredibly good news with which to encourage couples who are contemplating marriage! The church should be about promoting the wonders and benefits of marriage! After all, it was designed and established by God Himself (Gen. 2:18-25, Matthew 19:4-6).

[1] http://www.apa.org/topics/divorce/

[2] https://contemporaryfamilies.org/impact-of-conservative-protestantism-on-regional-divorce-rates/

[3] http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/24/conservative-christian-divorce_n_813137.html

[4] https://ifstudies.org/blog/findings-on-red-and-blue-divorce-are-not-exactly-black-and-white/

[5] Shaunti Feldhahn with Tally Whitehead, The Good News About Marriage , Multnomah Books, 2014, pp. 130-133.

[6] Ibid., pp. 139-140.

Spirit of Elijah

Fri, 20 Mar 2020 16:26:00 GMT

The prophet Elijah is mentioned over 50 times in Scripture. Have you ever wondered why? Moreover, the prophet Malachi records the Lord’s prophecy, “Behold, I will send Elijah the prophet before the great and terrible day of the LORD” (Malachi 4:5).

I presently do not believe there is any Scriptural support that would justify the idea that Elijah is going to return to the earth bodily before the second coming of Jesus Christ (unless it may be at the time of the second coming?).

So, this must be referring to the coming of the Spirit of Elijah. Because it does, we must take a serious look at Matthew 11:7-14, John 1:21 and Luke 1:17 (the reader should read carefully the first two of these references, but for this article Luke 1:17 will suffice):

And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.

It seems to me that when the Scripture talks about the Spirit of Elijah, it must be referring to the work of the Holy Spirit in Elijah fashion or style. Plainly, the work of the Holy Spirit with Elijah characteristics or fashion. Thus, the Scripture seems to be affirming that in the day of the Lord there will be an Elijah outpouring of the Holy Spirit, and this spiritual inundation will be reminiscent of Acts 2. Therefore, it seems the last-days figure of the church is reflected in Elijah’s life and ministry.

In the first place we must note the meaning of the name Elijah: Eli (“my God”) and Jah (“is Jehovah”) means My God is Jehovah!! To be effective in days like this, we must personally, intently know our God and we must speak to Him on a regular basis! This quality is demonstrated in Elijah even though in one episode of his life he was afraid of Jezebel.

But in the cave of his hiding (1 Kings 19), God spoke to him inquisitively (of course, He knew the answer): “Why are you here, Elijah?” So, I ask the readers, “Why are you here?” Do you know for certain why you have life? It is so easy to get lost in a crowd of friends! It is so easy to get lost in church activity! We say we are doing the work of the Lord…are we really?

God bless all the readers of this article.

Sustainer’s Breath

Mon, 16 Mar 2020 20:58:00 GMT

Take a deep breath…let’s focus on Genesis 1 where the Lord breathed life into existence by His Word. Life was first given from the power, love and grace of the Lord. Our lives today still rely on the same power, love and grace to sustain our existence, whether we acknowledge this reality or not. In the midst of the current climate with the “COVID-19 pandemic”, where is your faith and trust?

Is your faith in the government? Are they doing what they should be doing for you? Is your trust in financial planning? Are your finances unwavering at all times? These volatile times are testing where and in whom we place our faith and trust. We here at CTF urge you to place your faith and trust in only one person, Jesus Christ. This is not just a trite comment, but rather from the full recognition of His authority over all as our Creator. “In whose hand is the life of every living thing, And the breath of all mankind?” – Job 12:10. He is our solid Rock that will not be moved in the midst of chaos, no matter where the chaos stems. We must focus on our Sustainer always, but these times make that truth even more real.

We will continue to share the powerful message the Lord has given to us, and it is our desire that all know His sustaining hand. Our ministry’s call and desire is to travel and share His Word, and we will continue our mission as long as we are able. However, in the current climate of “social distancing” and because of circumstances beyond our control, it has begun to get tough to do so. Please remember us and your missionaries over the next several months. Your support is vital, and we seek your prayers during this time as our schedule is being impacted by this situation. We seek the Lord, as always, for our sustenance and He continues to provide through and by you. We praise the Lord for this and recognize He is our hope.

Blessings!

Blurred Darwinian

Mon, 24 Feb 2020 21:44:00 GMT

Each year during the month of February, many celebrate Charles Darwin’s birthday. Celebrated right along with his birthday is his writing On the Origin of Species , the seminal work for the proliferation of the evolutionary worldview. While this might be expected from non-Biblical people, there is an alarming addition to those revelers. In the last 15 years or so, clergy have joined this great evolutionary deception right in the church.

In 2005, The Clergy Letter Project ¹ began an effort to show science and faith are compatible. The letter supports “the theory of evolution is a foundational scientific truth” and anyone that rejects it is scientifically ignorant. It continues with claims of affirming our children to understand knowledge and truth insight through evolution. To my shock and horror, the number of clergy who have signed their name to this letter as of Feb. 20, 2020 has reached 15,634. Many have held Evolution Weekends at their churches as well.

The origin debate is not as black and white between science and religion. These waters are muddled quite a bit by “Bible believers” that support the atheistic religion of evolution as science. Please don’t miss understand me and think I am against science. I find great compatibility between science and the Bible. When we begin with the Bible first, then look at the creation around us, we observe the great support it has to the Biblical record without any evolution needed. Please take a moment to pray for your church leaders that they may seek the Lord daily in His Word and stay FOCUSED on the truth of creation as it is written with historical accuracy and scientific evidence in support of its ORIGIN. I pray your church will continue to stand on His Word first and man’s worldview last. Blessings.

A Thousand Times, No

Mon, 10 Feb 2020 22:33:00 GMT

It is almost comical to ask if God could create the cosmos in such a short time span as recorded in Genesis 1. It would be more appropriate to ask, “In spreading His creative work over six 24-hour days, why did God take so long to create the cosmos?” The answer is in God’s establishment of the human economy.

There is no cosmological explanation for a 7-day week. A day is based on Earth’s rotation, a month on the lunar cycle, and a year on Earth’s revolution around the Sun. The best secular explanation for a week is a quarter of the lunar cycle, but this answer is wanting. In truth, a week has no basis except for God’s establishment of a 7-day cycle in the first week of history.

Throughout time, civilizations attempted 5-day, [1] 6-day, [2] 8-day, [3] 9-day, [4] 10-day, [5] and 13-day [6] weeks. Amazingly, though, most of them eventually returned to a 7-day week. Again, the only explanation is the created human economy given to us by our Creator.

This one passage is used to say the days of Genesis 1 represent eons of time instead of six literal days. Not surprisingly, the natural reading of this passage never comes close to achieving such an understanding. One must be purposely seeking a billions-of-years agenda to find such a meaning.

This sad undertaking lends itself to absurdity. The argument is that the word “day” in Genesis 1 is not 24 hours, but an extensively long period of time, culminating in an allegorical week that actually represents a cosmic history of 13.797 ± 0.023 billion years. [7] If, as the argument maintains, “day” represents a long period of time and II Peter 3:8 is the passage that explains this, then Peter would actually be saying, “ with the Lord a long period of time is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as a long period of time .”

Oh, the ensuing foolishness when one attempts to infuse man-made excuses with Biblical Truth (Romans 1:22).

The apostle Peter establishes the context of this passage in verses 3-4, “ ³ knowing this first: that scoffers will come in the last days, walking according to their own lusts, ⁴ and saying, ‘Where is the promise of His coming ?’”

The context is preparation for combating the arguments of scoffers in the last days. One of those arguments, according to verse 4, is uniformitarianism – a commonly used argument of evolutionists. Note then what Peter establishes as facts in verses 5-6, “ ⁵ For this they willfully forget: that by the Word of God the heavens existed long ago and the earth was formed out of water and by water, ⁶ by which the world that then existed perished, being flooded by water. ”

In a powerful lesson for us today, Peter emphatically defends the Christian faith by going back to the beginning – by establishing the Genesis record as historical fact!

Peter unequivocally and unapologetically defends Genesis 1-9 as factual history. He would be appalled at the notion that they are allegorical stories. Peter defends the Genesis record in I Peter 3:5-6, 20-21 and II Peter 2:5-9, 3:5-6.

The context has nothing to do with cracking the interpretive code of Genesis 1, but everything to do with illustrating God’s patience and longsuffering to save people!

In fact, there is a reason Peter specifically uses “ a thousand years ” and not another number. One thousand was the largest number for which there was a Roman numeral; it was the largest named number (Roman numeral M). [8] Today, the largest named number we have is centillion (1 with 303 zeroes). [9] If Peter were to compose his letter today, he might write, “ with the Lord one day is as a centillion years, and a centillion years as one day .”

For the longsuffering patience of our Lord, we praise His holy name.

[1] Iceland, Indonesia, Korea

[2] Akan (Ghana)

[3] ancient Rome, Celtic nations

[4] Baltic nations, Wales

[5] China, Egypt, France (1793-1802)

[6] Aztecs, Maya

[7] Evolutionary conclusion in the Planck Collaboration.“ Planck 2018 results. VI. Cosmological parameters”. Astronomy & Astrophysics , 16 July 2018. Tables 1 & 2, pp. 14-5. Accessed 2/10/2020, https://www.cosmos.esa.int/documents/387566/387653/Planck_2018_results_L06.pdf/38659860-210c-ffac-3921-e5eac3ae4101

[8] Roman Numerals 500-1000 Chart, accessed 2/10/2020, https://www.romannumerals.org/chart-500-1000

[9] Merriam-Webster Table of Numbers, Denominations above One Million, accessed 2/10/2020, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/number#table

[10] J.C. Whitcomb, Jr., Th.D. “The Science of Historical Geology”, Westminster Theological Journal 36:1 (Fall 1973), p. 68.

2020 FOCUSED on The Word, Part 2

Sat, 08 Feb 2020 00:52:00 GMT

Every word of the Bible is true, accurate, and inspired, which is why Jesus said in John 10:35, “the Scripture cannot be broken.” You can’t just take part of it and cast some aside; it’s an all or nothing deal.

But let’s one up it. Let’s take this to a level of awareness that transcends human/worldly reasoning and understanding that makes a difference in hearts and minds.

John 1:1-3 says, “ In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being .”

Who or What is this Word? In John 1, the Greek word translated as “ Word ” is just full of meaning. It is the word logos.

In Greek literature, Socrates and Plato used this word logos not as a part of speech, but as the very thoughts of the gods that somehow made it down to man. The Stoics took logos to mean that it wasn’t just the gods’ thoughts, but that the thoughts and words of the gods took actual physical form in space and time (similar to Genesis 1; God spoke and, *BAM*, it was so).

Philo, a Hebrew scholar who was very Hellenized (of Greek culture), taught in the years before Jesus that the logos of the Old Testament was that which connected God to the world. It’s what allowed man to hear and understand God. It was the spoken word of God that became reality for us.

The Apostle John infuses these two concepts into this word to try the best he can under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit to tell us about this supernatural Word that was before the creation of the world. In fact, in verse 1 the word “was” is in the Greek imperfect tense. That means this Word was, still is, and always will be. This Word is eternal! It was with God, meaning it was co-existent yet distinct with God, and yet the Word was God. Again, it was, is, and always will be God. God Himself!

However, in the Jehovah Witness Bible (called the New World Translation) they insert an “a” to say this Word was just “a god” of some kind. That is not found in one single manuscript of John’s Gospel ever discovered.

To emphasize the Word’s true identity even more, verse 3 says, “All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.”

Additionally, if you look at verses 2 and 3, what do you discover? Yes, this Word was the agent of creation in Genesis 1, but the Word is also a HE ! You might be thinking, “Yeah, God’s a ‘He.’ So what?” In verse two, He and God are both mentioned and are yet one and the same.

Verse 4 says that in Him, this Word, is life. You could not breathe nor exist today if it were not for this Word. But even more so, verse 4 says that this life is the “Light of men.” Psalm 119:105 states, “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” That means this Word as the Light tells man what is moral, what is true, what is righteous, and what is holy. Therefore, the life that is through Him is also eternal.

He was, is, and always will be, and we follow Him because He made us and has offered us eternal life.

Skip down to verse 14 of John 1, “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.” This Word became a man!

So Who was this Word that, even though He is God the Creator and the Life and Light of man, He would leave that position, empty Himself (Philippians 2:7), and become like one of us? Granted, He would still be God; you just can’t quit that day job. But He would take on the form of one of us, full of its pains, aches and troubles, and come be with us so that we could know Him better than we could ever imagine.

John 1:16-17 proclaims, “For of His fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace. For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ.”

It’s Jesus! Do you know Him?

After reading what God has told us about Him through John, don’t you think you ought to get to know Him? He’s made quite an effort for you to do so. In fact, if you go back and read it again, who is really the focus of the text?

It’s YOU! It’s ME! It’s EVERYONE!

Despite how awesome, great, and magnificent He is, He took time to make you and me, and then humbled Himself to become one of us that He might save us!

When you realize how badly He wants to know you, have you, save you, and be with you for all eternity, don’t you think that might change how you and I live? Don’t you think that might change what we as the Church do for Him?

If we got to know Jesus, if we were to fall in love with Him once again, if you were to get to know who He really is, what He’s really like, and He became a part of your life like no other companion could ever be, what do you think life would be like?

Don’t you think we’d have the best marriages, the best families?

Don’t you think we’d be the most loving, serving, caring, giving, and charitable people our communities ever met?

Don’t you think we’d be a truly praying church, as we would so badly want to talk with our Heavenly Father?

Don’t you think we would stand upon the Word no matter what would ever happen to us?

Don’t you think God would be well pleased with us?

When we finally see the Word, we finally see Jesus. The everlasting impact of seeing Jesus, of Jesus coming into focus in your life, is indescribable in its life-changing effect.

That is when you will have John 20:20 focus – “After He said this, He showed them His hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord. ”

Why Not Fix It?

Sat, 08 Feb 2020 00:14:00 GMT

The extra Cainan of Luke 3:36

Genesis 10:22-24, “ The sons of Shem were Elam and Asshur and Arpachshad and Lud and Aram… ²⁴ Arpachshad became the father of Shelah; and Shelah became the father of Eber .”

Genesis 11:10-14, “ … Shem was one hundred years old, and became the father of Arpachshad… ¹² Arpachshad lived thirty-five years, and became the father of Shelah… ¹⁴ Shelah lived thirty years, and became the father of Eber ”.

I Chronicles 1:18, “ Arpachshad became the father of Shelah and Shelah became the father of Eber .”

I Chronicles 1:24-25, “ Shem, Arpachshad, Shelah, ²⁵ Eber… ”.

Luke 3:35-36, “ … the son of Eber, the son of Shelah, ³⁶ the son of Cainan , the son of Arpachshad, the son of Shem, the son of Noah, the son of Lamech ”.

Is this a Problem?

Luke 3 contains a person in Shem’s genealogy found nowhere else in Scripture. Luke 3:36 states that Arpachshad’s son was Cainan, not Shelah (also spelled Sala) and that this Cainan (also spelled Kenan) was the father of Shelah, not Arpachshad (also spelled Arphaxad). The Old Testament genealogies never make any mention of this Cainan.

What does this mean? Is this a contradiction? Is this one of those mythical gaps old-earth believers have always hoped for to defend their rejection of the Biblical timeline of 6,000 years?

After studying this at length by examining multiple theories and some of the ancient manuscripts, I have come to the conclusion that it is a simple copyist error that was compounded by the passage of time and further manuscript reproduction.

The basis for this conclusion is the testimony regarding these three passages currently found in the available historical witnesses.

Old Testament Records

Regarding the Old Testament genealogies:

Josephus is believed to have relied upon the Greek translation of the Old Testament, called the Septuagint. He specifically states, “Sala was the son of Arphaxad: and his son was Heber; from whom they originally called the Jews Hebrews.” [4]

There is no evidence from the Old Testament records that Arpachshad ever had a son named Cainan. However, amongst those who are adamant defenders of their favorite Bible version and defend the inclusion of Cainan in Luke 3:36, one rebuttal I found stated:

Another Bible version apologist echoed the same basic defense:

One potential problem for these defenses is the multiple occasions of multiple named sons throughout the Genesis genealogies. In Genesis 10, for example, Japheth has 7 sons listed, Ham has 4, Shem has 5, Cush has 6, and Mizraim has 7 sons listed. Arpachshad simply has 1 son listed.

Genesis 11:13 does say that Arpachshad had other sons and daughters. If Cainan is one of those sons, why would the Lord not have listed him somewhere in the Old Testament knowing that by not doing so it would lead to great controversy over Luke 3:36? It cannot be because only those of the Messianic line are listed. Arpachshad’s grandson Eber has 2 sons listed in Genesis 10:25, and his great-grandson Jocktan has 13 sons listed in Genesis 10:26-29! They were not all part of Jesus’ lineage.

And that’s the other thing regarding Arpachshad’s genealogy – in every single ancient translation and version of Genesis 10 & 11 and I Chronicles 1 (the Masoretic Text, Samaritan Pentateuch, Jewish Targumim, and presumably the Septuagint of the 1 ^st – 4 ^th centuries A.D.), Shelah is ALWAYS listed as the son of Arpachshad and not the son of a man named Cainan.

This means our attention must be turned towards the Luke text as the Genesis and I Chronicles texts appear to be soundly established with reliable genealogies.

What did Luke actually write?

Why does Luke list a genealogy in Luke 3:36 inconsistent with all other records? Two options present themselves: 1.) Luke purposefully listed his genealogy as recorded with a Cainan previously unknown and contradictory to Genesis and I Chronicles or 2.) the current reading of Luke 3:36 with the extra Cainan is not true to Luke’s original record. [7]

To resolve which option is most plausible, we must consult the ancient manuscripts of Luke’s Gospel. Those supporting the current reading point to Codex Vaticanus (A.D. 300-325), Codex Sinaiticus (A.D. 330-360), and Codex Alexandrinus (A.D. 400-440) amongst many others as all having the current reading of Luke 3:36. These ancient manuscripts appear to support the first option that Luke originally included the extra Cainan in his Gospel.

Could all these manuscripts be the result of a copyist error predating them?

It is certainly possible. Take a look at how the Greek texts read and how easily it would be to make this particular mistake.

TOΥΣAΡOΥΧTOΥΡAΓAΥTOΥΦAΛEΓTOΥEBEΡTOΥΣAΛA TOΥΚAINAN
TOΥAΡΦAΞAΔTOΥΣHMTOΥNΩETOΥΛAMEΧ
TOΥMAΘOΥΣAΛATOΥENΩΧTOΥIAΡEΔTOΥMAΛEΛEHΛ TOΥΚAINAN
TOΥENΩΣTOΥΣHΘTOΥAΛAMTOΥΘEOΥ [8]

Both times, the “son of Cainan” phrase appears at the end of a line of text. It is easy to see how a copyist could accidently look down and tack the phrase on the end of a line twice in the midst of so many names. Is it possible the original looked like this?

TOΥΣAΡOΥΧTOΥΡAΓAΥTOΥΦAΛEΓTOΥEBEΡTOΥΣAΛA
TOΥAΡΦAΞAΔTOΥΣHMTOΥNΩETOΥΛAMEΧ
TOΥMAΘOΥΣAΛATOΥENΩΧTOΥIAΡEΔTOΥMAΛEΛEHΛ TOΥΚAINAN
TOΥENΩΣTOΥΣHΘTOΥAΛAMTOΥΘEOΥ [8]

It is certainly possible, but the possibility of such an error does not confirm such an error. To do so, a manuscript predating these other manuscripts would need to be found that does not include the extra Cainan.

The Bodmer Papyri was discovered in Egypt in 1952. It contained 22 papyri dating to A.D. 200. [9] Large portions of the Gospel of Luke are amongst the pieces of papyri. A few fragments contain passages from Luke 3. [10] According to some scholars, the fragment containing Luke 3:34-35 indicates that the extra Cainan found in later manuscripts is not included. [11] This is possible evidence that Luke did not originally include this Cainan in his record.

Codex Bezae is a manuscript of the four Gospels and Acts written in both Greek and Latin. It dates to the A.D. 400s. It, too, does not include the extra Cainan. [12] Thus we possibly have two ancient manuscripts of Luke that agree with the Old Testament records.

Early Church Writings

Additionally, early church leaders also excluded the extra Cainan and agree with Genesis and I Chronicles. Sextus Julius Africanus, a 3 ^rd century A.D. Christian historian, composed his 5 volume Chronographiai around A.D. 221. Using the Septuagint version of his day, [13] he wrote, “And after the flood, Sem begat Arphaxad. Arphaxad, when 135 years old, begets Sala in the year 2397. Sala, when 130 years old, begets Heber in the year 2527.” [14]

Likewise, Christian theologian and historian Eusebius of Caesarea composed his 2 volume Chronicon around A.D. 325. He stated, “Arphaxad was the father of Shelah, who was the father of Eber”. [15] Eusebius proceeded to list the differences between the recorded ages of the Septuagint, Samaritan, and Hebrew versions of the Old Testament chronologies. In all three, Eusebius recorded them as saying, “Arphaxad fathered Shelah… Shelah fathered Eber”. [14]

This is of great significance as Josephus, Africanus, and Eusebius testify that the copies of the Septuagint from the 1 ^st through 4 ^th centuries A.D. did not include the extra Cainan. To argue otherwise is very difficult considering the oldest Septuagint copy of Genesis 10 and 11 is found in the Codex Alexandrinus dating to the mid-5 ^th century A.D. [16]

Conclusion

It has been shown above how a copyist error may have happened with Luke 3:36. [17] But even if this did occur, it was not a universal mistake in the 5 ^th century A.D., as indicated by the Codex Bezae manuscript. According to the lack of the extra Cainan in both the Bodmer Papyri (A.D. 200) and Africanus’s chronology (A.D. 220) and its inclusion in the Codex Vaticanus (A.D. 300-325), it appears the origin of the mistake can be traced to the 3 ^rd century A.D.

Therefore, it would not be unreasonable to simply fix it. It is used by some to claim the Bible is inconsistent and cannot be trusted. This is ludicrous as the simple copying mistake of ONE NAME validates the reliability of the Bible as the mistake can be plausibly confirmed and fixed. This is remarkable for such an ancient text!

It is used by others to validate a dubious belief that the genealogies of the Bible are incomplete and untrustworthy and, therefore, allow for the insertion of millions of years of history. This nonsensical idea is preposterous as there are no contradictory records of any kind to confirm such an irrational proposition.

The most likely reason we may never see Luke 3:36 corrected is devout allegiance to Bible versions. When Biblica released its 2011 update of the New International Version, it could have very easily corrected Luke 3:36 to reflect Luke’s original record. They, however, did not.

Rather than placing our allegiance to a particular Bible version, let us be simply committed to the perfect, inerrant Word of God. It alone presents to the world the love of God and the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which is “ the power of God unto salvation ” (Romans 1:16).

[1] Genesis 10 & 11, Samaritan Pentateuch translated into English, accessed 2/5/2020, https://www.stepbible.org/?q=version=SPE|reference=Gen.10 & https://www.stepbible.org/?q=version=SPE|reference=Gen.11

[2] Genesis 10 & 11, Targum Pseudo-Jonathan translated into English, accessed 2/5/2020, http://targum.info/pj/pjgen6-11.htm

[3] Genesis 10 & 11, Targum Onkelos translated into English, accessed 2/5/2020, http://targum.info/pj/pjgen6-11.htm

[4] Antiquities of the Jews , I:6:4, translated in English, accessed 2/5/2020, https://penelope.uchicago.edu/josephus/ant-1.html

[5] Will Kinney, “Luke 3:36 Who was Cainan?”, accessed 2/5/2020, https://brandplucked.webs.com/luke336cainanlxx.htm

[6] “Should Cainan be in the genealogy in Luke 3:36?”, accessed 2/5/2020, http://www.kjvtoday.com/home/should-cainan-be-in-the-genealogy-in-luke-336

[7] A third option I have seen mentioned once is that Luke accurately referenced the pseudepigraphal work Jubilees 8:1-5. It states that Arpachshad took a wife named Rasu’eja and had a son named Kainam. Kainam married Melka and had Shelah, who then had Eber ( http://www.pseudepigrapha.com/jubilees/8.htm ). If it stated that Arpachshad had Shelah, but Shelah was raised by Kainam, it may then be plausible as Shelah would still be Arpachshad’s son and Eber his grandson. The Book of Jubilees, however, contradicts not only the Old Testament, but also its contemporaries: Josephus and the Septuagint.

[8] Jonathan Sarfati, Ph.D., F.M., “Cainan”, accessed 2/5/2020, https://creation.com/cainan-can-you-explain-the-difference-between-luke-336-and-genesis-1112

[9] Neha Patil, editor, “Bodmer Papyri”, 21 June 2018, accessed 2/6/2020, https://alchetron.com/Bodmer-Papyri

[10] Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana digital library, Bodmer Papyri, accessd 2/6/2020, https://digi.vatlib.it/view/MSS_Pap.Hanna.1(Mater.Verbi)

[11] Jonathan Sarfati, Ph.D., F.M., “What about Cainan?”, Journal of Creation 18(2):41-43, 2004, https://creation.com/images/pdfs/tj/j18_2/j18_2_41-43.pdf

[12] University of Cambridge Digital Library, Codex Bezae, accessed 2/7/2020, https://cudl.lib.cam.ac.uk/view/MS-NN-00002-00041/373

[13] The ages of the Patriarchs in the Septuagint differ from the ages in Hebrew manuscripts.

[14] A. Cleveland Coxe, D.D., Fathers of the Third Century , Vol. IV, p. 131, http://oll-resources.s3.amazonaws.com/titles/1973/1333.06_Bk.pdf

[15] Robert Bedrosian, Eusebius’ Chronicle , “The Hebrew Chronicle”, translated from Classical Armenian, accessed 2/7/2020, https://web.archive.org/web/20120214082545/http://rbedrosian.com/euseb7.htm

[16] “Septuagint manuscripts”, Wikipedia , updated 16 December 2019, accessed 2/7/2020, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Septuagint_manuscripts

[17] Another possibility is a purposeful insertion of the extra Cainan by a copyist who believed the Book of Jubilees.

Exceptionality of Israel

Mon, 27 Jan 2020 19:10:00 GMT

I was recently reading the book of Amos, which contains a prophetic statement concerning the Jews and the land of Israel that is presented in Amos 9:14-15. Though I have read this passage numerous times, it took on a special significance during this reading that I heretofore had never noticed!

We need to refresh our memory about these verses before I go on with the article: “And I will bring the captivity of {i.e. I will release from captivity, Amp. Ver.} my people Israel, and they shall build the waste cities, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and drink the wine thereof; and they shall make gardens and eat the fruit of them. And I will plant them upon their land, and they shall no more be pulled up out of their land which I have given them, says the LORD thy God.” (Amos 9:14-15)

The personal pronoun “I” is meaningfully used in these two verses three times, so that there can be no confusion concerning who it is that is making these declarations. The last five words of the passage settles any unnecessary confusion about His identity: “says the LORD thy God.” In fact, the word “LORD” in all caps is repeated 15 times in Jeremiah chapter 30, and this chapter has only 24 verses. This repetition plainly emphasizes that this divine actor is no one other than the Great Jehovah God, the Creator and Sustainer of all things!

He says that He will again bring His people Israel to their land, so they can rebuild its cities, farms and lifestyle that was enjoyed during their rich past. Moreover, He makes it unambiguously clear that they will never again be “pulled out of their land.” And I personally believe that this transition began in the latter part of the 19th century and continues now and will not terminate until it is totally complete!

Of Scriptural importance to this aspect of Israelite prophecy are such passages as Deuteronomy 30:1-6, Ezekiel 36:28 and Jeremiah 30:1-24. I also found it interesting that the land mass of modern Israel is approximately 1/19,700th of the total land mass of the earth; by comparison the USA has a land mass about 3.8 million square miles, which means the USA is 473 times larger than Israel. Additionally, Israel is 5.2 times the size of Rhode Island and 1.5 times larger than Connecticut, about 8.3% smaller than New Jersey and 24.3% smaller than Massachusetts, etc.

So, what’s the point? There are several casual observations: 1. Israel has overcome overwhelming difficulties, wars and constant bombings, yet she is incredibly successful in all matters of life. Israel has a significantly large air force; in many points of comparison her air force is second only to the USA. 2. She has a thriving economy based in agriculture and science, in the top 5 to 10 of world leaders. 3. She has a significant number of Nobel prize winners. 4. She houses the location of the birth of the Savior, as well as His return; and she provided the people to which He came, from which He is racially associated. 5. To only Israel is the great Creator called the “God of Israel” . Never have you read that God is the God of America, or of Canada, or of England, etc, 6. She is responsible for the authorship of the holy Scripture, and the location of the descending of the Holy Spirit. These descriptions can go on and on, but my page is full…These divine endowments, holy accomplishments and eternal purposes, all provide a level of exceptionality that makes Israel (including her God, her history, her people and her land and her future) incredibly superb – the people of God!

2020 Focused on The Word, Part 1

Fri, 24 Jan 2020 18:17:00 GMT

II Timothy 3:14-15, “ You, however, continue in the things you have learned and become convinced of, knowing from whom you have learned them, and that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith, which is in Christ Jesus .”

Wow! Would you say there is great importance in knowing God’s Word? It is that which provides the knowledge of salvation! It teaches us about Christ Jesus! It introduces the Creator to His creation and allows us to know Him! And without a properly focused worldview (i.e., one focused through the lenses of Scripture) we will not live by faith as we will not be convicted of its truth (Romans 1:17).

In the passage quoted above, Paul calls the Bible the “ sacred writings ”. Here’s why; verse 16 says, “ All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness ”.

The Greek word for “ God-breathed ”, some translations say “ inspired ”, is the word theopneustos . It’s comprised of two root words: theos , meaning “God”, and pneo , meaning “breathe hard” or “blow” ( Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance ).

What does this mean? It means God did not breathe His words into the writings of the Bible nor mix His inspired words in with the words of the authors. It means that ALL of the Bible was breathed out from God’s own mouth. The words are literally God’s breath, just like our words are from our breath.

So if you ever hear someone say, “I just wish God would speak to me” or “I wish I could hear God say something to me”, try not to look at them too bamboozled. It’s right there – the Bible!

Additionally, the word for “ all ” ( pasa ) in “ all Scripture ” literally means “all, every, the whole” ( Strong’s ). Proverbs 8:8 says, “ All the words of my mouth are just; none of them is crooked or perverse .”

Every word of it is true, accurate, and inspired, which is why Jesus said in John 10:35, “ the Scripture cannot be broken .” One cannot take part of it and cast aside the rest; Jesus says it’s an all or nothing deal.

Why?

John 20:20 gives us the 2020 focus we should have, “ After He said this, He showed them His hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord. ”

The entire Bible reveals the Creator God who tells us our TRUE Origin, Purpose, Identity, and Destiny.

The entire Bible reveals His unwavering love willing to save us from our sins.

The entire Bible reveals the Creator made flesh in Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as the perfect atoning sacrifice.

The entire Bible reveals the victory over death through the resurrection of our Lord.

Hence, Christians are commanded to share this Good News and to “ go 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).

When we became disciples of Jesus Christ, we are overjoyed with Biblically-based, 2020 focus that causes us to be overjoyed when we see the Lord!

Hence, Peter said, “ Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life ” (John 6:68).

2020 FOCUSED

Thu, 23 Jan 2020 16:03:00 GMT

In 2020 our theme for the year is FOCUSED. We are FOCUSED here at CTF on TRUE Origin, TRUE Purpose, TRUE Identity and TRUE Destiny. So, I challenge you to be focused on the truth in 2020.

The Darwinian evolution explanation that tries to support origin of life issues is on increasingly unstable ground. The observable reality found in true science is that there is no evidence explaining the origin of life from a pure evolutionary worldview. It is becoming more and more clear that the consensus “science” being used by evolutionists continues to fail them. The mounting amounts of data against evolution is unveiling that evolution is a religious worldview and not science. This recently was echoed by Dr. David Gelernter, Yale computer scientist and recent evolution ship-jumper. Dr. Gelernter argues that science is on design’s side while evolution is religiously driven: “…Darwinism is no longer just a scientific theory but the basis of a worldview, and an emergency replacement religion for the many troubled souls who need one.” ¹ While Dr. Gelernter is on the intelligent design side of the aisle, he unequivocally has left the Darwinists because of observable scientific evidence.

The TRUE Origin of life comes from life, the eternal life giver, Jesus Christ. As the I.D. scientists continue to observe design factors and evidence, we will continue to identify that designer as the Lord. Our desire is to not leave this issue ambiguous so there is no room for a non-Biblical designer to be labeled. Our origin has been plainly given in the record of Genesis, and we know that it will continue to be supported by scientific research. Here at CTF we are 2020 FOCUSED on the TRUE Origin of life, Jesus Christ. This is not about a religious theory but about a relationship with our Creator and Savior.

Why These Books?

Thu, 16 Jan 2020 16:57:00 GMT

For many years, Matt Miles and myself have conducted a week of church camp called Genesis Week. Recently, a former camper now in college emailed with questions regarding the Ethiopian Bible and the canon of Scripture after hearing about them in a college class. The following is our response.

Your questions about the Ethiopian Bible, the Book of Enoch, and the legitimacy of the books of the Bible are excellent questions that should always be studied and answered. It all boils down to, “How do we know that the books of the Bible are legitimate (meaning inspired by God) and no others are?”

If I may, I shall first answer this in general and then specifically with the Ethiopian Bible and Book of Enoch.

The Books that are Included

The list of books included in each testament are referred to as “canon”. Canon simply means authoritative, authentic, or inspired. Those that are not included are non-canonical, meaning they didn’t pass the requirements for inclusion. Thus there is the Old Testament canon and the New Testament canon.

The Old Testament books are easy to confirm. All one has to do is look back in history and see which books the Jews have always accepted as inspired from God.

We have in our Bibles today 39 books. All 39 have been considered inspired / canonical since before Jesus’ time!

For example, 1 ^st century A.D. Jewish historian Josephus wrote,

(Flavius Josephus, Against Apion , Vol. 1, in Josephus, Complete Works, Grand Rapids, Kregel, 1960, p. 8.)

Wait a minute! Josephus says there are only 22, not 39!

That’s because of how the books were grouped:

5 Torah: Genesis

Exodus

Leviticus

Numbers

Deuteronomy (5 books)

8 Prophets: Joshua

Judges (with Ruth)

Samuel (1 & 2)

Kings (1 & 2)

Isaiah

Jeremiah (with Lamentations)

Ezekiel

Minor Prophets (Hosea,

Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah,

Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk,

Zephaniah, Haggai,

Zechariah, Malachi) (23 books)

9 Writings: Psalms

Proverbs

Song of Solomon

Ecclesiastes

Esther

Daniel

Job

Ezra (with Nehemiah)

Chronicles (1 & 2) (11 books)

22 books (39 books)

Today, the Jewish / Hebrew Bible ( Tanakh ) contains 24 books as Lamentations and Ruth are now listed separately.

But as you can see, the Old Testament books have been confirmed for thousands of years.

In like manner, the 27 books of the New Testament have been confirmed for nearly 2,000 years.

When churches and individuals began putting together lists of which books were safe / inspired for people to read and believe, each book had to meet 4 criteria.

If it did not meet all 4 criteria, it was not included.

Now here’s the great thing about this. For the first 3 to 4 centuries, there were people all over the place putting these lists together! It was not one centralized effort by a controlling group! This means we have a collective witness of early Christians independently confirming for us the true, authentic, inspired books of the Bible!

It is important to note, that not every one of them had all of them at first as it took a while for the books to circulate and for everyone to get a chance to read them. Persecutions greatly contributed to this.

However, we rarely have one saying a book is inspired while another says it isn’t. For example, we don’t have one Christian one place saying Matthew is an inspired book and should be in the Bible while in another place we have someone saying it isn’t inspired and should not be included.

Here is how early we have records of people quoting from or referring to the New Testament books as inspired / as Scripture.

Matthew by Clement of Rome (A.D. 95-97), Polycarp (A.D. 110-130)

Mark by Polycarp (A.D. 110-130), Hermas (A.D. 115-140)

Luke by Polycarp (A.D. 110-130), Irenaeus (A.D. 130-202)

John by Clement of Rome (A.D. 95-97), Polycarp (A.D. 110-130)

Acts by Polycarp (A.D. 110-130), Hermas (A.D. 115-140)

Romans by Clement of Rome (A.D. 95-97), Polycarp (A.D. 110-130)

I Corinthians by Clement of Rome (A.D. 95-97), Polycarp (A.D. 110-130)

II Corinthians by Polycarp (A.D. 110-130), Hermas (A.D. 115-140)

Galatians by Polycarp (A.D. 110-130), Irenaeus (A.D. 130-202)

Ephesians by Clement of Rome (A.D. 95-97), Ignatius (A.D. 110)

Philippians by Ignatius (A.D. 110), Polycarp (A.D. 110-130)

Colossians by Ignatius (A.D. 110), Polycarp (A.D. 110-130)

I Thessalonians by Ignatius (A.D. 110), Polycarp (A.D. 110-130)

II Thessalonians by Ignatius (A.D. 110), Polycarp (A.D. 110-130)

I Timothy by Clement of Rome (A.D. 95-97), Polycarp (A.D. 110-130)

II Timothy by Hermas (A.D. 115-140), Irenaeus (A.D. 130-202)

Titus by Irenaeus (A.D. 130-202), Clement of Alexandria (A.D. 150-215)

Philemon by Clement of Rome (A.D. 95-97), Origen (A.D. 185-234)

Hebrews by Hermas (A.D. 115-140), Irenaeus (A.D. 130-202)

James by Hermas (A.D. 115-140), Origen (A.D. 185-234)

I Peter by Polycarp (A.D. 110-130), Hermas (A.D. 115-140)

II Peter by Origen (A.D. 185-234), Cyril of Jerusalem (A.D. 313-386)

I John by Polycarp (A.D. 110-130), Hermas (A.D. 115-140)

II John by Polycarp (A.D. 110-130), Irenaeus (A.D. 130-202)

III John by Muratorian canon (A.D. 170), Old Latin translation (A.D. 200)

Jude by Irenaeus (A.D. 130-202), Clement of Alexandria (A.D. 150-215)

Revelation by Hermas (A.D. 115-140), Papias (A.D. 130-140)

(inclusive list found at https://carm.org/new-testament-canon-chart – A General Introduction to the Bible, revised and expanded , by Norman Geisler and William E. Nix, 1986, p. 294, with data updated based on more recent research)

These are just a few of the people of whom could be referenced (the Epistle of Barnabas is an even earlier source of A.D. 70-130, but the author is unknown). But as can be seen, ALL 27 books had been recognized at some point by the year A.D. 170. That’s nearly within 100 years of when the New Testament books were written, most of them much sooner than that (50 years or less)!

By the time of Irenaeus’s writings (A.D. 130-202), he had all but 4 books in his list, and Origen (A.D. 185-234) possibly has all of them! ALL 27 were in full acceptance in the A.D. 300s. This is absolutely remarkable and shows how reliable our New Testament is.

Regarding other books some attempt to group with the New Testament, there are two main categories: spurious and heretical.

The spurious books are ones that early Christians may have had and read, but they were never considered inspired or Scripture. They were not worth dying for. These would include:

Then there are the heretical books, ones that were completely rejected as fake and not to be trusted. These would include:

Additionally, there is a group of books included in Roman Catholic Bibles, commonly referred to as the Apocrypha (means “hidden away”). These would include:

Others sometimes included in other lists would be:

These books were composed anywhere from 300 B.C. to A.D. 100. They were first included in a canon by the Roman Catholic Church in A.D. 382, and then solidified in the Canon of Trent in 1546.

Additionally, there are those called the Pseudepigrapha (means “false name”). They are considered even less reliable than the Apocrypha, composed from 300 B.C. to A.D. 300. They would include:

Again, none of these were ever included by either ancient Jews or early Christians. Neither Josephus (A.D. 37-100) nor Philo of Alexandria (20 B.C. – A.D. 40) nor any other Jewish religious leader, historian, or philosopher of that time considered them inspired or Scripture.

They would have been known of in New Testament times, but none of them are ever referenced to or quoted as Scripture. The closest one can get is in Jude 9, a possible reference to the Assumption of Moses . But the book itself is not referenced, let alone quoted as Scripture. Some material in any of these books may be accurate, but that does not make them inspired, just as a history book might be accurate but not inspired of God.

Bible scholar F.F. Bruce stated it well:

(F. F. Bruce, The New Testament Documents: Are They Reliable? , Grand Rapids, Eerdmans, 1960, p. 27.)

Ethiopian Bible

The first thing to clarify with the Ethiopian Bible is that there are at least two groups to note: 1.) Ethiopian Jews (also known as Beta Jews) and 2.) the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church. Both share the same version of the Old Testament. There is also the Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church that has the same version as it is a split from the Ethiopian church.

That being said, according to the Ethiopian church’s own website ( https://www.ethiopianorthodox.org/english/canonical/books.html ), they have 81 total books (46 Old Test., 35 New Test.). The claim that “when they took the books to England, England sorted through the books they wanted and didn’t want and that’s why we have only 66 books” isn’t quite accurate for either English Bibles or Ethiopian Bibles. The Ethiopians still have the same books as before, and the English Bibles have the same number that’s been used for nearly 2,000 years.

In 1773, Scottish traveler James Bruce brought 3 copies of the compilation of Ethiopian books back to Europe. So, nothing changed for either side, except European missionaries probably trying to get the Ethiopians to get rid of some of their books.

Their additional books included in the Old Testament are:

Their additional books included in the New Testament are:

Based on what we’ve previously learned, these books have either already been shown throughout history to not be inspired / canonical / Scripture or this is the only place they have ever been found. If for some of these books this is the only place they’ve ever been found, then why did the Lord hide them from the rest of the world for so long? Why did He provide only the original 66 books to the rest of the world?

Book of Enoch

First, when addressing the Book of Enoch, one must first ask, “Which one?” There are actually three different books of Enoch. New World Encyclopedia notes, “Most commonly, the phrase ‘Book of Enoch’ refers to 1 Enoch , which is wholly extant only in the Ethiopic language. There are two other books named ‘Enoch’: 2 Enoch (surviving only in Old Slavonic, c. first century; Eng. trans. by Richard H. Charles (1896); and 3 Enoch (surviving in Hebrew, c. fifth-sixth century. The numbering of these texts has been applied by scholars to distinguish the texts from one another” ( https://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Book_of_Enoch ).

So there is an Ethiopian book of Enoch, a Slovic book of Enoch, and a Hebrew book of Enoch (and this Hebrew version is not considered the original). The guess is that the original book of Enoch was written somewhere between 300 to 100 B.C. If that is the case, then, as stated before, ALL Jewish witnesses from that time declare that it is not inspired / canonical / Scripture. The same goes for all of the Christian witnesses as well.

Conclusion

After years of studying this, it seems very evident to me that the 66 books of our modern Bibles are the inspired Scriptures given to us by God. Not only that, the incredible reliability of these books (also called textual criticism) is unlike anything else in history. The evidence that what we have today is practically identical to the original writings is absolutely overwhelming! No other book in history has been preserved as well as the Bible! For more on that, check out my article on our website entitled “Divinely Dependable” ( https://www.creationtruth.com/divinely-dependable ).

The Christian Sanctuary

Wed, 08 Jan 2020 15:56:00 GMT

Recently I read an article by longtime preacher and teacher Philip L. Young. It was thought provoking as it challenges one to properly assess and handle the specific words of scripture in reverence of God’s Word. I called and asked him permission to republish it here, for which he graciously approved.

Frequently Christians are heard to speak of the beauty, cost, or furnishings of the “sanctuary” of their church building. May we suggest that such usage is fit only for darker times, when superstition governed men’s minds of scripture. Let us be direct and see in what sense the word is used in the Bible.

It is found in the Old Testament 96 times. Of these it is once used in a poetic way to refer to Judah as God’s habitation (Psalm 114:2). Twice it refers to God Himself as the sanctifying protection of His people (Isa. 8:14 and Ezek. 11:16). Every other time it refers directly to the Tabernacle of Moses or the Temple in Jerusalem. The word appears in the New Testament only four times, all in the book of Hebrews (8:2, 9:1,2, 13:11), and each of these times the exclusive application is to the earthly house in which God’s Spirit dwelt ! Note we have used the past tense.

In giving the command to build that house, God said, “ Let them make me a sanctuary; that I MAY DWELL AMONG THEM ” (Ex. 25:8). And again, “ There I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat ” (Ex. 25:22). Let those who think to call a church-house a sanctuary produce one passage of scripture that even suggests that God dwells in a meeting-house today in the same way that He dwelt in the Holy Place under the old covenant. On the contrary, Luke writes, “ God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that He is Lord of heaven and earth, DWELLETH NOT IN TEMPLES MADE WITH HANDS ” (Acts 17:24). Stephen, in his defense before the Jews said almost the same, and indeed the whole tenor of the New Testament writings agrees.

The Christian sanctuary, therefore, is radically different from the Jewish sanctuary. Those who would mingle or confuse the two are actually casting a shadow over some of the clearest teachings of the new covenant system. Jesus Christ, who promised to be with us always , is our High Priest! Our alter of prayer is wherever we are when we feel the need or occasion for talking with God! Our place of sacrifice was at the Cross of Calvary – our Lamb was Jesus Himself – our laver is any chosen body of water sufficient for the immersing of penitent believers into Christ. Our sacred pulpit can be a table or a stump, just so men and women there-around assembled to learn of Christ. Assemble these all together in a building if you wish, but do not misname it. It is no more sanctuary than the cottage where a prayer band assembles, or a school-house used for an evangelistic meeting, or a convention of God’s people in a barn. God now swells IN REDEEMED SAINTS who sanctify any gather place. THE PEOPLE AND NOT THE PLACE DETERMINE WHETHER GOD IS THERE.

In point of fact, God does not now abide in any building, even when the saints are assembled there. He abides in the saints themselves, temples not made with hands. So can we, with God’s approval, now give a building a solemn regard, a sacred atmosphere, a sense of awe, AS A BUILDING, without some consequences?

NO, WE MAY NOT! To give things sanctity is to invite superstition. The world would never have had to endure the spectacle of seeing men bow down before and genuflect to a carved crucifix if at some time in the dark ages after the Apostolic period someone had not given sanctity to a wooden cross!

I once visited the huge St. Louis Catholic cathedral. A young priest who showed us through the building, led us to the steps of the High Altar, but would allow us to go no further. For, said he, the part behind this railing is dedicated as the SANCTUARY and the unordained cannot go there except by special dispensation. The he pointed out the place under the crucifix where the “Spirit of God dwells.”

If what he had said were true, then he rightly named the place, for this is what a sanctuary is. But, of course, what he said is not true. God does not live in a house that men build, but rather in the temple of Christian hearts. The Apostle Paul writes: “ Know ye not, that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? …the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are ” (I Cor. 3:16, 17).

God making His abode in a unique sense in a building of human construction was true only during the OLD COVENANT times, but we live under the terms of an entirely NEW COVENANT. Why otherwise did Jesus tell the Samaritan woman at the well that the time was coming when men would no longer worship God on Mt. Zion in Jerusalem? When He spoke these words, the Holy Place was still holy and men still had to journey to Zion to be assured they were near God. But if Jesus’ words were true, then the time came when this was not so.

That time is now. No longer in a building, no longer at a certain mountain, or in a certain valley or city. Now we may call upon Him for He is near. He dwells within us in the SANCTUARY OF THE HEART and there is no other.

It is suggested that one of Webster’s definitions for “sanctuary” is “the room in which general worship services are held; a place of worship” and that this is the sense in which many people use the term. We grant that this is true, but IS IT RIGHT? Is it right to use a biblical word in an unbiblical sense? We think not. Dictionaries give current usage, not correct original definitions.

Neither can the modern thought of a sanctuary be made to match the biblical thought of the dwelling place of God. For God does not dwell in places, but in people! Not in houses, but in hearts! To suggest otherwise is to walk backwards into Old Testament concepts, rather than forward into New Testament truths.

Let us approach the question another way. If a church-house is a sanctuary, in what way is it better than any other building? If you say it is better because God lives in it, then you deny the scriptures. On the other hand, if you say it is not any better, you indict yourself if you call it a sanctuary, for that holy term is reserved for the actual dwelling place of the Lord, in Bible usage.

Ah, but some are saying, “we just think it is good to call the church building the House of God, to be entered into reverently, to be worshiped in, to pray in, to baptize in, to marry in, to bury in, and so-forth in”. Would those who think so kindly tell us how then the early church existed without them for 250 years? In that time when the gospel was the purest, when religion was the least corrupted, and the church most successful, they did not have them ! We do not contend that we cannot have meeting places and still be faithful, but we do question how, if the building be what the “sanctuary” advocates claim it is, how the early church succeeded without them?

So, brethren, we are brought to the only right conclusion. The CHURCH-HOUSE is exactly that, only that, and nothing more. It is the shell to which the “body” comes, for stated meetings. It is the house in which the “living stones” assemble.

Therefore, whatever is out of order for Christians anywhere is out of order in the church-house or auditorium. But contrariwise, whatever is orderly and decent for Christians elsewhere is orderly and decent in the church-house as well. Is it not foolish sentiment to say that as a body or corporately the church may do thus and so in the basement or at a rented hall or in a home but it dare not desecrate the sanctity of the auditorium for the same thus and so?

Where the brethren assemble in the name of Christ, there the church is. Of course occasions differ – sometimes we are playing, sometimes we are studying, sometimes we are attending to the appointed institutions of public worship – the occasion itself should dictate the decorum of the hour, not the superstitious misunderstanding of the biblical doctrine of sanctity.

Nothing is more obnoxious than the lack of reverence and decorum when the church assembles for worship. BUT THE REVERENCE IS NOT BECAUSE OF THE PLACE BUT BECAUSE OF THE PURPOSE OF THE GATHERING – AND THE PERSON OF THE LORD IS PRESENT WITH US!!!

The seemly conduct of children and adults is important to public praise. Let there be a happy conversation and greetings among the people as they assemble, but when the hour of worship arrives as signaled by the leader, let a new mood settle over you. A mood which encourages the power of the Holy Spirit as He works through the message of the music and the prayers and the preaching. Let that propriety that governs our actions at any time in a public gathering govern us at the church building before and after the conducting of the service, but let real joy and awe govern us when the assembly is worshipping God.

Let us determine to leave Bible words in their places, not rend them from their settings nor mold them to our modern meanings, nor use them to describe our latest fads and fancies. Bible words have Bible meanings which should be respected and taught. God meant what He said. And He still does.

A correct speech will go a long way toward correct concepts and standards. We must learn the language of true Israel and not the dialect of Ashdod. Nor should we mix them to our ultimate confusion and ignorance. Let the words of our mouths and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in His sight who is our Lord, our strength, and our Redeemer.

Philip L. Young

[Phil Young was a longtime preacher and teacher. He earned a master’s degree in church history from Lincoln Bible Institute and taught church history and archaeology for 7 years at St. Louis Christian College. Over 50 years, he led 16 trips to the lands of the Bible. On Sunday, Dec. 8, 2019, Phil completed 70 years, 8 ½ months of preaching as he passed away the following Friday, two days after I asked him permission to republish his article.]

Year-end Blessing

Mon, 09 Dec 2019 18:21:00 GMT

Greetings from all the CTF team, and our deepest heartfelt Christmas blessing to you and your family! May the Lord show you the reality of His birth in a most impactful manner this Christmas season. The gift given some 2000 years ago – our Creator coming to earth as a baby for the purpose of bearing our sin so we may have life – remains more transformational than anything ever, before or since. May we never forget the importance of this season!

With the holiday season comes the completion of our 30th successful year of ministry at Creation Truth Foundation, and the Lord has blessed us abundantly through the year. The number of new venues into which we were invited this year was a great encouragement, especially as we continue to see that there are still some churches that hold to preaching and teaching the Truth of God’s Word. The number of lives impacted for the Gospel through teaching Genesis is another great encouragement. Receiving emails, letters and texts from some of the people that the Lord has saved through our ministry work makes the many miles and hours worthwhile.

Each year worldly, pagan and evolutionary influences gain momentum, even in the church. Our message is one that some churches will never embrace as it continues to show that so-called science (evolutionary/naturalistic) is not science at all, but rather an evolutionary philosophy at best. Ephesians 5:15-16 reminds us where we are instructed to be wise in these evil days, making the most of every opportunity. There is great science being done that continually supports the historical testimony of Genesis, as well as the rest of Scripture. True empirical science never has issues with the truth of God’s Word, and this we boldly proclaim.

Your support this year has been foundational to getting our message out to all who will hear. Each and every dollar given has made an impact on our team and those we minister to across this nation and in other countries. You may never know or understand how important that gift has been to the Kingdom, but we will endeavor to press forward maximizing those gifts. 2020 is shaping up to be another impactful year as God drives our mission where He needs us most.

To start the new year off successfully we need your help now, at the end of 2019. Year-end gifts are essential to build a foundation for 2020. Our current monthly support level doesn’t cover all of the bills and ministry expenses, so we rely on our program love offerings each month to cover the difference. December, January and February are lean months for our traveling and teaching, so our finances take on a large deficit. Year-end gifts will help us meet all our expenses as we head into 2020. Please help us during this season as we look forward to and prepare for the many exciting endeavors to come this next year.

Thank you again and may God bless you during this Christmas season!

Christmas in Focus

Mon, 09 Dec 2019 17:22:00 GMT

The Biblical focus on Jesus Christ is not on His birth. Naturally, it is important and everything from prophecies and angelic announcements to Mary & Joseph, to Simeon’s Holy Spirit inspired prophecy of the identity of the Messiah, to angelic choirs singing praise at His birth, declares that the arrival of Jesus into the world was a fantastic event!

Still, the focus isn’t there. The real focus is some thirty years later, at an execution scene. There was no tender moment at that place to cause us to sigh and wonder. Instead, the air was ripe with evil. Man’s disdain for his God ruled the day as the Son of God was discarded in hatred. The baby of the manger was murdered, charged like a common criminal. For a brief moment, it appeared that the great promises of God would all be lost.

But there is a reason why that death scene is the focus. Birth brought God’s Son into the world and gave Him a body of flesh. Birth is what brought into being a Man, a Man with a body, and a body designed from before creation itself to die as a sacrifice. The reason His passion is the focus is because of what was done when the baby who lay in the manger became a man who could give Himself as a sacrifice for sin.

It was the blood of His death that cleansed the sin-stained souls who put Him on the cross. It was the agony of death that reflected the true nature of sin and its consequences. This was a man born to die, and that’s the point. The Christmas Story is magnificent. But even more magnificent is that He died to take away my sins. That wasn’t done in the manger. It was done on the cross. However, an old rugged cross will never have the appeal of an old rugged manger. My plea is that you simply remember why He was born. It is in the purpose of His life that you will find a permanent reason to rejoice. There was born in the city of David, a child who was, and is, and always will be the Savior, Christ the Lord!

Bill Cox
[Bill Cox has been a preacher of the Word for 40 years, currently ministering in Bridgeport, IL. He is the father of CTF speaker Ryan Cox.]

Breathe

Fri, 01 Nov 2019 15:22:00 GMT

The Lord God is all about giving life where there is no life. We first see this in Genesis 2 when our Creator “breathed” life into His image-bearer’s nostrils. Even just moments before that life-giving breath, man was nothing more than dust of the earth – mere matter. Evolution argues that matter can bring forth life, yet matter without divine breath is, at best, atoms without completeness.

In Ezekiel 37, we are shown that the Lord’s breath brings life to dry bones – dry bones of those that bear His name, lost and without hope until the life-giving breath radically transforms those bones to new life for His purpose. Dead bones that echoed nothing but a curse have life by His inspiration and filling.

Lastly, in 2 Timothy 3 we are told that Scripture (God’s Word) is “breathed” by Him. It is life-giving as well, with the Lord’s breath bringing righteousness and inspiration to His followers’ lives. This breath is an ongoing, life-equipping sustenance that lets our lives reflect the image of the Living Word. It causes our minds to have drive for accomplishing His will.

The Life-Giver did not just initially breathe life into matter, but He also made the way for it to be redeemed when it was lost back to the dust. The life-filled Word refines us to completeness and shows us purpose since the beginning. Are you soaking up this life-giving breath daily by His Spirit through the Word? Breathe deeply and renew your dry and dusty bones with an intentional life. Blessings.

A Young Earth

Fri, 27 Sep 2019 20:37:00 GMT

In this article I would like to consider a common question concerning the Genesis account of creation that announces the earth was made on the first day of the first week of time—that was just six thousand years ago! And since the great Creator was none other than Jesus Christ, of course, He would embrace the fact that the earth was young. I have repeatedly been asked, “What difference does it make how old the earth is, as long as we believe that the God of the Bible created the universe and everything in it?”

In the first place, either the Bible is the Word of God or it isn’t. If it is, in fact, inspired from cover to cover, then the days of creation are obviously 24 hours in length, and the Creation Week must have happened a few thousand years ago—there is no getting around that fact for believers in creation ex-nihilo (i.e., creation just six thousand years ago).

It is noteworthy that Evolutionary biologist, Dr. Douglas Fuytuma of Stony Brook University, said, “Creation and evolution, between them, exhaust the possible explanations for the origin of living things. Organisms either appeared on the earth fully developed or they did not. If they did not, they must have developed from some preexisting species by some process of modification. If they did appear in a fully developed state, they must have indeed been created by some omnipotent intelligence, for no natural process could possibly form inanimate molecules into elephants or redwoods trees in one step.” (Douglas J. Fuytuma, Science on Trial: The Case for Evolution , 1982, p. 197.)

Apostle Paul made it exceedingly plain in 2 Timothy 3:16 that all Scripture is given by the inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine (teaching), etc. Moreover, Solomon emphasizes the fact that, “Every word of God is pure; He is a shield unto them that put their trust in Him. {Moreover, we are told} add thou not unto His words, lest He reprove thee, and thou be found a liar.” (Proverbs 30:5-6)

A genuine Bible believer knows that scriptural revelation is recorded in 66 books of the Old and New Testament, and regardless that certain “scholars” attempt to add time to this Holy Book, the Bible plainly tells us that from Genesis 1 until the second coming of Jesus, we are dealing with six to seven thousand years!

Jesus knew that the earth was young (Mark 10:6 and Matthew 19:4), because He created it and everything that was in it, on it, under it and above it, just a few thousand years ago! Please note that both passages tell us that: “… from the beginning” … “God made them male and female.” (Mark 10:6; Matthew 19:6) And since the word “Genesis” means beginning, or at the first, it refers to course beginning of space/time (Genesis 1-12), and mankind was created “ex nihilo” (i.e., out of nothing but His Word [logos]). God created the heavens and the earth and everything in them in six, twenty-four hour days in the first week of time, and this completely agrees with the Genesis record! It’s a young world after all!

G. Thomas Sharp

Multi-What?

Fri, 27 Sep 2019 15:50:00 GMT

While reading an article about alternative origin views without the big bang, a truth was again reinforced in my worldview – with the Lord there is understanding, and without Him there is great deception. In the article, a multiverse proposal is being rebirthed for an eternal universe with no beginning. The deception is strong as ungodly men try to explain the origin of all things without the Lord.

The idea of a multiverse is that if a quantum fluctuation happens in a universe, it might spark a new universe that separates from the original. It is proposed that this has been going on infinitely, and may even be going on as we speak right now. Other universes may exist right now parallel with ours. Those that support these ideas do mention that any one universe may be finite in age. I find that interesting since everything else about the idea seems infinite, however age is not. This is truly a powerful deception embraced by many highly intelligent people that look for any other reason for our existence rather than a Creator.

“We know that we are of God, and that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one. And we know that the Son of God has come, and has given us understanding so that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life.” – 1 John 5:19-20

This deception of the multiverse idea is from the evil one; it is a stale mixture of regurgitated lies to keep people from the truth. BUT, we know the true God because of His creative purpose and power. Our Creator has given us understanding to see through the lies and share the truth with all who will listen. With acceptance of the Truth comes eternal life in our Lord Jesus Christ. Praise be to God!

Creation Truth Foundation

Thu, 29 Aug 2019 18:54:00 GMT

Rejoicing today because Creation Truth Foundation has been in operation for 30 years…hard to imagine the brevity of life! Wow! And when I consider this it causes a litany of associated memories, because this has been for me a significant trip! Many faces and names come to mind, but none more significant than Dr. Edward J. Kelley, pastor of a great church in Birmingham, AL—the place where CTF was birthed in 1989!

When the Lord originally put this vision in my heart (about 1987), I was flying back to Oklahoma City from the Southeast (please forgive me, for I am sure that I have rehearsed this story to you before). Nevertheless, when I had just finished conducting the revival meeting, the Lord began showing me the need for a teaching ministry that emphasized the foundational nature of the Genesis creation on the balance of the Scripture! I thought … if I emphasize “Creation,” then it would be good to use the word “Creation” in the name of the ministry. And since creation is basic to all Biblical truth, then “Truth” should be included in the name also. And since this is foundational to all other Biblical truth, then the word “Foundation” should be included in the name of the ministry as well.

Remember, I am flying back to Oklahoma City, and somewhere in the air about 30,000 feet up, I audibly said, in a low tone of voice, “ Creation Truth Foundation ,” and this vision exploded in my heart, and tears flowed down my cheeks!

We started the CTF ministry in our home and worked from there for about 13 years. Those were precious days, occasionally stressful for Diane because we eventually occupied most of the downstairs of our home. When our office staff reached five full-time workers, I began seeking the Lord for some relief! Ha! We stepped out in faith and purchased an old office building in downtown Noble. We were able to renovate this century old building in six months or so and moved into our present office facility in 1994—for which we praise the Lord, especially my wife, Diane.

We have grown much over the years and God has given us wonderful young, mature men to carry on with this ministry (Matt, Bob and Ryan, and their spouses and families)—for which I praise God every day. We have been able through the help of a donor to purchase over one million dollars of dinosaurs, not counting the trucks and trailers, telescopes, computers, to facilitate the mobile nature of this ministry (plus an office building in Noble, OK) … We have taken the dinosaurs over a hundred thousand miles and set them up in churches, schools, warehouses, shopping centers and miscellaneous buildings all over this country. And, in the last ten years or so, the Lord has enabled us to be debt free, all the while meeting the needs of the CTF payroll in a timely fashion— to God is the Glory!

It has been a tremendous blessing to witness God’s marvelous provision through the years. We could not have done it without the many faithful people who have given sacrificially to CTF. To God be the Glory. So, I wish I could personally hug your neck and tell you with my own voice, “Thank-You!” Nevertheless, rejoice with us as we celebrate His overwhelming provision for these past 30 years. Please receive mine and my wife’s sincere love and appreciation, Isaiah 40:28-31.

Sincerely, Doc & Diane

18 of 30 Years

Tue, 20 Aug 2019 20:15:00 GMT

In January 2001, the Lord changed my life at the National Youth Leaders’ Convention in Joplin, MO. When I walked in the auditorium and saw CTF’s Mobile Museum of Earth History (MMOEH) on stage, it was impactful, to say the least! After that afternoon’s session, my worldview was forever changed about dinosaurs and the Bible. Dr. Sharp laid out the Biblical understanding of dinosaurs so well (as many of you have seen and heard before) that I was utterly dumbfounded and angered that I had never learned this important historical reality. Upon getting over the initial shock of the truth, I proceeded to attend every workshop available that Doc was teaching during the week. The Lord began to bring all the pieces of my prior foggy knowledge into order with greater clarity. It was then that a passion was ignited to share the truth of this ministry whenever possible.

Over the course of the next five years, the two churches that I worked with each had CTF in with the MMOEH. Through Dr. Sharp, the Lord impacted countless lives with His Truth of creation, history, the flood, family, and of course, dinosaurs. It was not only my fellow church members being impacted; I was slowly being groomed by the Lord myself. Little did I know at the time that He was heading me toward ministry with CTF. But in the fall of 2005 He placed that call on my life, and in January 2006, almost exactly five years after CTF’s mission touched my heart and mind, I joined this important ministry.

Sitting here now, 18 years later, recalling those monumental moments in my walk with Christ, both personally and ministerially, is still so moving. Prior to 2001 this ministry and mission was not even a flickering light in my awareness, and now it is the brilliant light that illuminates the path of my life. Christ’s overwhelming truth, given to us in the historical record of the Bible, is influential in every area of life now and into eternity. After 13 years with this ministry, that truth is continually reinforced with each opportunity I have to share His Word.

To those who have been with CTF since the beginning 30 years ago, thank you so much! It was your support the Lord used to touch my life. That support laid a foundation that has now been used countless times to share His Truth into people’s lives. It is my desire and passion that we at CTF continue what the Lord began in Dr. Sharp, now and into the future. Blessings to all of you who continue to support this ministry, both prayerfully and financially. We need your faithfulness to continue our mission. As I am proof of, we never know whose life will be touched through this ministry and what the results of that may be. Your gifts help us proclaim His Word, knowing that His promise is true and it will not come back void. Blessings to you all!

Divinely Dependable

Mon, 22 Jul 2019 18:49:00 GMT

At a recent CTF event, an attendee had questions about the reliability of the Bible. The questions were not scientific or historical, but rather concerned dependability. As has been wondered by many, including faithful Christians: How accurate is the Bible? How do we know that after so many years, no one has tampered with the Biblical text?

These are great questions and worthy of our inquiry. We should desire to know the reliability of our Bibles and whether or not we can depend upon them to accurately relay to us the Word of God.

The answer to these questions is unequivocally YES! We can trust our Bibles. The majority of English versions do a good job at reliably translating the Biblical manuscripts. Some may be more accurate than others, and there are certainly some that are not accurate translations but are paraphrases derived from the composers’ perspectives. A word of caution should be given regarding the paraphrases as they are an interpretation, not a translation.

Someone, however, might ask, “But with so many versions, how can I check to know if the Word of God is being accurately and appropriately translated?”

That is the amazing result of the science of textual criticism! Textual criticism is the process of examining the thousands of ancient manuscripts to make sure we have an accurate understanding of the original, divinely inspired manuscripts.

Regarding the Old Testament, some of the older manuscripts are the Masoretic Text (Hebrew, 800s A.D.), Codex Alexandrinus (Greek, 400s A.D.), the Latin Vulgate (Latin, 405 A.D.), Codex Vaticanus (Greek, 300s A.D.), and Codex Sinaiticus (Greek, 300s A.D.). These, however, are separated from the original manuscripts by several centuries. How are we to tell if they are accurate?

The discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls in 1946 and later answered that very question. Included in the 981 manuscripts (to date) were 225 Old Testament manuscripts dating far earlier than most others. For instance, the “Great Isaiah Scroll” (1QIsa ^a ) dates to possibly as far back as 356 B.C. ¹ This places the manuscript within nearly 300 years of authorship! This is remarkable for a book of the Bible written over two and half millennia ago!

But what is even more remarkable is how these Old Testament manuscripts affirmed the accurate transmission of the text over thousands of years. Dr. Gleason Archer, Jr. stated in A Survey of Old Testament Introduction that it “proved to be word for word identical with our standard Hebrew Bible in more than 95 percent of the text. The 5 percent of variation consisted chiefly of obvious slips of the pen and variations in spelling.” ²

Regarding the New Testament, the data is overwhelming. Based on the databases of The Center for the Study of New Testament Manuscripts and the Leuven Database, there are 5,856 Greek manuscripts, many of them dating from the second and third centuries A.D. ³ This puts some of them within decades or a century of the original authorship. It is estimated that through these manuscripts, the internal consistency of the New Testament today is around 99.5% textually pure. ⁴

But that’s not all! There are also 19,284+ ancient translations by which to verify the texts. ⁵ And, in addition to the manuscripts, there are countless quotations from the early church leaders, with many dating to just decades or a century from the original New Testament autographs. From just 7 early church leaders, one can count 36,289 New Testament quotations. ⁶

By not preserving the original manuscripts but instead preserving tens of thousands of ancient copies, the Lord displays His wisdom in making sure we have the resources that confirm the text has not been tampered with. If there was only the one original, then whoever possessed it could corrupt it, and we might not ever know the difference!

In contrast, it is speculated that there have been 20 versions of the Quran when its adherents claim it to be unaltered. ⁷ It is also speculated that the Book of Mormon has undergone 3,913 changes. ⁸ The “explanation” by Mormon apologists is that all the publishers and typesetters are to blame for the changes. ⁹

With so many ancient sources through which to cross-reference, there is no doubt as to the accurate transmission of the Biblical text. We can trust our Bibles to accurately convey the Word of God. It is divinely dependable! Question is, to whom will we share it?

¹ Joseph A. Fitzmyer. A Guide to the Dead Sea Scrolls and Related Literature . William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2008, pp. 14-15.
² Dr. Gleason Archer, Jr. A Survey of Old Testament Introduction . Moody Publishing, 1996, p. 25.
³ Sean McDowell, Ph.D. “What is the Most Recent Manuscript Count for the New Testament?” 13 March 2018, https://seanmcdowell.org/blog/what-is-the-most-recent-manuscript-count-for-the-new-testament , accessed 16 July 2019.
⁴ Matt Slick. “Manuscript evidence for superior New Testament reliability”. Christian Apologetics & Research Ministry. 10 December 2008, https://carm.org/manuscript-evidence , accessed 16 July 2019.
⁵ http://www.biblestudymanuals.net/bible2.htm , accessed 16 July 2019.
⁶ “Are the New Testament Gospel Documents Reliable?” http://www.gospelclearinghouse.com/wordpress/the-new-testament-revised/13 , accessed 16 July 2019.
⁷ “The 20 Versions of the Qur’an today”. http://www.bible.ca/islam/islam-quran-changed-20-versions.htm , accessed 16 July 2019.
⁸ http://www.utlm.org/onlinebooks/3913intro.htm and http://www.bible.ca/mor-1830-changes.htm , accessed 16 July 2019.
⁹ George Horton. “Understanding Textual Changes in the Book of Mormon”. December 1983, https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/ensign/1983/12/understanding-textual-changes-in-the-book-of-mormon?lang=eng , accessed 16 July 2019.

The Light and the Glory

Mon, 22 Jul 2019 18:34:00 GMT

As many of you know, I am intrigued with history, and especially pilgrim-era American history. In fact, that’s my favorite area of historical study as I have many books in that area of study. But to explain why I recently picked up an old history book and reread it as though I had never seen it before—only God can help me understand that. Nevertheless, just last week I was perusing the titles of some of these books and became attracted to The Light and the Glory by Peter Marshall and David Manuel, published by Fleming H. Revell Company, 1977.

I had first read this book in the early 1980s, referred to it occasionally, and quoted from it, but never had its message or genre (or any other history book for that matter) hold me so spellbound as did this recent reading! Just so you will know, when I first read a book of this warp and woof, I mark it up thoroughly. I wrote in the margins, defined words in the spaces between the lines, underscored whole sentences, highlighted in yellow, red and orange, made comments at the end of each chapter, etc. – it was so disfigured that I could hardly read it! Nevertheless, its exciting details came through with startling impact! If you have never read this book, or if it’s been several years since you last read it, you would do yourself a great favor to read it again (it only takes a few hours), because its message remains pungent, vital and exciting to any patriotic, godly American! What I discovered was that even though the words were, of course, the same as they were before, my personal maturation opened possibilities in my cognitive understanding that were not available when I first read this book.

So, what I want to succinctly pursue in the balance of this article are some of the more meaningful ideas featured in this book. Probably, uppermost to Marshall and Manuel, is an idea that liberals most often disparage regularly today: that God intended America to be exceptional among the nations of the world, and she is! The Pilgrims believed, almost to the man, that they were called by God to be a “light to lighten the Gentiles” (Luke2:32).

They looked at this transatlantic journey, which was by itself a life changing experience, not as a mere escape from the rigors of King James, but as an opportunity to investigate an amazing land and mysterious people group, and to worship their God according to the dictates of their own hearts and understanding of Scripture … and all within the safety of this distant cloister. Moreover, the Pilgrims saw themselves as founder of a new Israel! Their chief purpose was the establishment of a city set on a hill, and that they did!

The Pilgrims believed that God had sent them to the new world with all the spiritual and mental resources necessary to establish a functioning covenant, by which they could peacefully work out any differences that might arise among them. And at the same time they would establish a spiritual covenant (church) and a civil body politic (government), for the proper ordering and management of their intended goals and purposes, under God. Amen!

G. Thomas Sharp

Summer Update

Mon, 22 Jul 2019 18:29:00 GMT

As Paul exhorted those in the Philippian church, I now exhort all of you who support this ministry with your offerings: “…a sweet-smelling aroma, an acceptable sacrifice, well pleasing to God” (Phil. 4:18b). Over the course of this year, the Lord has faithfully sustained this ministry month after month. As the number of programs this spring have been down so have been our finances. We are a mission ministry with the task to take the truth of God’s Word to embolden disciples’ faith in their Lord Jesus Christ. Each month we must trust the Lord to sustain us. Your gifts have truly blessed us at the right time; thank you.

One of the many blessings over the last several months was the funds to purchase our truck for the medium rig of dinosaurs. The 2015 Ram has helped us accomplish several trips that would not have been feasible with the old Yukon. The ability to load our telescope and equipment in the back and set off for camps and VBS programs this summer has been priceless. It has ferried us through 10 states and to Canada since joining our stable. We look forward to many more miles and hope that it brings us to you one of these days, if it has not yet done so. Thank you to everyone that gave so that this valuable ministry tool would be debt free.

Once again, I know that the Lord is the one who sustains us to continue our mission through you, our faithful supporters, just as I know He rewards the faithful when sacrifice is made for the Kingdom. “And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:19).

Blessings, and continue to have a profitable summer for the Kingdom.

Brick vs Stone

Fri, 24 May 2019 20:22:00 GMT

Genesis 9:1-17 records what is commonly referred to as the Rainbow Covenant. The Lord promises to never again flood the entire planet. He also commands at the very beginning, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth” (v. 1). This command to the families of the ark is the same command given to Adam and Eve when He said to them upon their creation, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth” (Gen. 1:28).

The Lord has revealed His purpose and plan for humanity. However, there have always been those who have scorned and rebelled against the Lord. Noah’s great-grandson became the greatest leader of rebellion in his day.

Nimrod is described in Genesis 10:8-11. The Targum (Aramaic version/paraphrase of the Old Testament, c. 1st century B.C.) records this passage as saying, “He was mighty in hunting and in sin before the Lord; for he was a hunter of the sons of men in their languages. And he said to them, ‘Leave the judgements of Shem, and adhere to the judgements of Nimrod.’ On this account it is said, ‘As Nimrod the mighty, mighty in hunting and in sin before the Lord” ( Targum Pseudo-Jonathan , J.W. Etheridge, first published 1862, targum.info).

I imagine him as a very charismatic and persuasive leader, for Genesis 11:1 says, “Now the whole earth used the same language and the same words.” Using the “same words” means they were saying the same thing – they were in agreement.

Nimrod led the people to the plains of Shinar where he gave them a new purpose, “Come, let us make bricks and burn them thoroughly… Come, let us build for ourselves a city, and a tower… let us make for ourselves a name, otherwise we will be scattered abroad” (Gen. 11:3-4).

Nimrod openly manifested the working and spirit of enmity. He was a global insurrectionist, forming a confederacy against the Lord. He developed a false religion in his insatiable pursuit of narcissistic ambitions.

When studying these passages, an interesting dichotomy arises between Nimrod’s means of worship and God’s means. In Nimrod’s self-adulation, they made bricks. Contrast this with proper Old Testament sacrifices unto God.

“23 You shall not make other gods besides Me; gods of silver or gods of gold… 25 If you make an altar of stone for Me, you shall not build it of cut stones, for if you wield your tool on it, you will profane it.” (Exodus 20:23, 25)

In the clash of brick vs stone, profane worship is worship by one’s own means, achievements, and “creations.” Pure worship is of the one, true Creator by His means and His commands.

In Genesis 11, those who rejected the Creator constructed their building, for which they needed mortar to hold it together (v. 3). Those who accept the Creator’s free gift of salvation by His means and His commands have His Spirit wash them clean by the blood of Christ as He comes to inhabit temples not made by hands, but ones made in His image (Acts 17:24; I Cor. 6:11, 19-20; 12:13).

“17 He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. 18 He is also head of the body, the Church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything.” (Col. 1:17-18)

Is your life built upon the self-carved blocks of vanity or upon the venerated solid Rock of Ages?

Absolute Devotion

Fri, 24 May 2019 20:15:00 GMT

Luke quoted Jesus in Luke 14:26-27 and presents an essential and challenging fact in the process. He starkly tells us that if any man comes to Jesus and professes to be His disciple and devoted follower, and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters, even his own life that he is lying to God, himself and all that hear him! I admit that on first reading this prohibition seems extremely harsh and tremendously challenging, but it must be understood that genuine discipleship and worship requires absolute devotion and obedience that allows nothing slipshod or casual associated with his relationship and devotion to Jesus.

It is eye-opening that the Greek word translated “hate” is miseo (pronounced mă·sā´ō) and has a rather broad range of meaning. In Matthew 10:22, 24:10; Luke 6:22, etc., it essentially means to hate, or to exhibit animosity toward someone or something. In Romans 7:15, the meaning is an adverse feeling toward or for evil. Another connotation is seen in Matthew 6:24 that indicates the acceptance of one thing and the rejection of another, (and obviously, all of the above meanings will ultimately yield this effect).

However, the use of this word in Luke 14 is extremely forceful, and actually “by comparison,” infers that as an act of worship we must love Jesus more than anything or anyone else. Jesus is saying, in effect, that if we love our mother, father, wife and children more than Him, we are idolaters and cannot be His disciple (and this needs further commentary that present space will not permit). Nevertheless, this austere devotion and obedience is a commonly held position believed by all obedient believers!

Moreover, this is the underlying intent of the first four commandment listed in Exodus 20:3-8! No other gods, no graven image, not taking the name of the LORD in vain and keeping the sabbath holy, ultimately, is a means meant to protect the ultimate worship of Jehovah God! The commonly held notion that we must make Jesus a part of our lives or that we must include Him in our actions and thoughts is a travesty in the highest sense of the word. He must be our reason, our goal and our primary objective! This explains why Biblical creation, especially now, is so important because it explains why evolution in any form is so desperately evil! Any so-called “scientific” form of evolution is a terribly potent religious form promoting a mesmerizing idolatry, and it does so with a vengeance!

The prophet Isaiah explains the rationale for this statement. In Isaiah 40:8 he explains, “I am the LORD: that is my Name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images.” Giving credit to any philosophy that explains origins by rejecting the intelligence, sovereignty, authority and creatorship of Jesus Christ must be the exceeding sinfulness of sin!

“Babeling”

Thu, 23 May 2019 19:28:00 GMT

In case you have never noticed, communication is hard at times. On a recent trip to Canada, I was reminded of this in several different ways. I am one of the many Americans for whom English is my primary and only language. Through the entire trip, I could not keep my mind off the judgement at the tower of Babel. If it were not for that judgement against Noah’s descendants after the flood, we would all most likely speak the same language, and it most likely would not be English. Our language is one of the craziest out there – can I get an amen?

Communication breakdown number one for me in Canada was dealing with measurements. Most of that country adheres to the metric scale. I do not have a good frame of reference for metric measurements, and communicating in them is almost impossible. The whole trip, as I was teaching, I would give the measurements for dinosaurs, distances, and the like in standard American scale. It hit me in the middle of one of my messages that my audience may not have a clue the size I was referencing, as I had not understood any of my Google Maps guidance in kilometers while driving earlier that day. Our understanding of a weight and measures “language” is engrained in us to a point that we usually don’t have to think about the reference being given to us. Yet, when put in a position where that engrained “language” is not used, our brain begins searching for a reference point to convert. The entire time I was in Canada, my brain was trying to convert metric items into what I could understand. I was reminded that language is really important in helping to understand everything around us.

People had one language and frame of reference for everything at the Tower of Babel. As the Bible states, their abilities would make nothing they planned impossible to accomplish. The ease with which they could communicate ideas, desires, and vision was effortless, it seems. As most of you know, their desires were not to worship or honor the Creator but rather to elevate themselves. Dare I say, we are still dealing with this problem today, but with a language barrier. When the Lord confused our languages with the supernatural creation of many different ones, our lives became exponentially harder. It was not just communication by speech that was affected, but also every other means of communication: written, measurements, customs, and spiritual understanding. All avenues that we communicate through today were affected adversely at that tower.

Today we experience the effects of that moment some 4,000 years ago when we have a failure to communicate with someone. I look forward to the day in eternity when I will understand everyone again, sharing the wonderful grace of our Savior with those that for now I may not understand but with whom I will worship in His glory forever with one speech, understanding each other with no conversion or interpretation needed. For now we can be reminded of that day to come as we have opportunity to celebrate with others in the Church around the world, even with language barriers. Oh how much greater it will be when we assemble before His throne in one voice! Please continue to lift your voices in great anticipation for our coming King.

We at CTF will continue to share the vital truths from Genesis until that return. Our message is one that touches on important historical events that impact our lives daily that many of us never think about. Thank you to those of you that partner with us monthly in prayerful and financial support. It has been such a blessing in our time of need! To those of you that read this article and perhaps have only thought about supporting us monthly, may I urge you that we need your support right now. Help us continue to preach and teach the Truth. Blessings to all believers in every language!

Remember Now Your Creator

Tue, 23 Apr 2019 20:34:00 GMT

Both the history of religion and science, especially since 1870, exhibit the ease at which evolutionism encroached the sacred halls of Biblical faith. Never was so much mumbo-jumbo impinged upon so many unsuspecting people with so little evidence. The fact of the matter is that naturalistic origins have never been proven; it was just asserted carte blanche , and with great excitement and fervor! But proof or no proof, this world of make-believe rapidly was ingratiated into the secular university domain, and since then has taken the culture by storm…and our one nation under God has ceased to exist!

The rabid disbelief fostered by naturalism, it seems to me, is foundational to the rise of antichrist. One thing is for sure, godless evolutionism certainly has antichrist tendencies, and has for sure influenced a significant Biblical decline in the West!

The positive secular response to naturalism reminds me of a statement I once heard Dr. Gary Parker make. He was discussing the vehemence and bluster of evolutionists in their attempt to prove how something (as the first life form) can arise from nothing, and he remarked that many origin arguments are won simply because their proponents shout the loudest…more on this later!

The late Dr. Henry M. Morris, father of the 20 ^th century revival of Biblical Creationism, exhibited in his famous book, The Long War Against God (p. 22), the glaring nature of evolutionists by quoting Dr. Stanley Beck, entomologist at the University of Wisconsin:

Twentieth century biology rests on the foundation of evolutionary concepts … The evolutionary basis is also apparent in peripheral independent fields such as chemistry, geology, physics and astronomy. No central scientific concept is more firmly established in our thinking, our methods, and our interpretations, than that of evolution. (Stanley D. Beck, Bioscience 32, Oct. 1982, p. 732)

But what is far more perilous is the development of a significantly weakened and evolutionized Christian evangel. Hundreds of Christian disciples (if not thousands) have been schooled in “so-called” accredited science programs immersed in godless evolutionism, and as a result have become protagonists for some form of evolutionized explanation of Creation. It seems as if we have forgotten the wisdom of Solomon, “Remember now your Creator in the days of your youth…fear God and keep His commandments.” (Ecclesiastes 12:1,13)

G. Thomas Sharp

4.54 Ga?

Thu, 18 Apr 2019 16:40:00 GMT

How old is the earth? This question seems to be straight forward, but your worldview impacts how you answer it. An evolutionary worldview states the earth is 4.54 giga-annum (billion years old). On the other hand, the Biblical record indicates it is roughly 6,000 years old. These two dates are, as you can see, diametrically opposed to each other. However, only one can be correct. Let’s look at this conundrum.

The traditional evolutionary date for the earth is 4.54 Ga and is basically derived from presuppositional ages for each layer of rock. The supposed ages of the rocks give a date range for the fossils in each layer, and then the fossils are used as a cross-reference to determine the age of the layers. Yes, that is a circular pattern for the age of the geological column (rock layers). Most people who ride on this dating belief will refer to radiometric dating as the end-all method to affirm said dates. Yet, as has been observed numerous times, this dating method is fraught with problems and potential errors. Thus the entire evolutionary dating system is worldview (belief) driven and not empirically scientific.

On the other hand, the Bible indicates an age of about 6,000 years old. Based on the genealogies and history in the Genesis text, we can arrive at this reasonably accurate age. The immediate opposition to this age comes from the appearance of the fossil record. Each of us have a worldview of how old we think the fossil record appears. However, none of the fossils have tags to state how old they are and thus how old the earth is. Genesis 7-8 records a judgement against sin that affected the earth globally during the flood. This flood event would have impacted every square inch of our planet and, based on the text, would have been very geologic. In reading the account, we understand large scale volcanism, earthquaking, and of course hydrological devastation would have been involved. This event can and does explain the layers of rock around the world on every continent with the presence of now dead life (fossils), and without the need for long periods of time.

The earth’s history or appearance of old age must be viewed in light of Genesis’ record. Then and only then will we have a sufficient foundation to start an empirical study of the rock record, not of great ages but of a great judgement that stands as a testimony for a future judgement.

Blessings to you and your family as you seek the Lord through His Word. When we start there, the world around us will testify to the truth in the Bible. Then the promises from the Word about our eternal destiny will empower our faith with hope. Thank the Lord Jesus Christ today for the record of earth history contained in both the Bible and the earth!

Floods of Promise

Fri, 22 Mar 2019 18:30:00 GMT

Then God spoke to Noah and to his sons with him, saying, “Now behold, I Myself do establish My covenant with you, and with your descendants after you; and with every living creature that is with you, the birds, the cattle, and every beast of the earth with you; of all that comes out of the ark, even every beast of the earth. I establish My covenant with you; and all flesh shall never again be cut off by the water of the flood, neither shall there again be a flood to destroy the earth.” ~ Genesis 9:8-11

Often it is asked of us if we think the great flood of Genesis was a global or local flood. Truth be told, it does not matter what any of us at Creation Truth Foundation “think” or postulate. The Word of God is explicit in the scope of the Flood.

Both the Old and New Testaments clearly state that the Flood was a global catastrophe of judgement. However, the most important testimony to the Flood’s scope comes from our Lord.

Jesus said in Luke 17:27, “they were eating, they were drinking, they were marrying, they were being given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all .” Was Jesus wrong or misinformed by believing in a global flood? That is what the local flood proponents must conclude.

Not only would this make Him look like a deranged lunatic for claiming to be the all-knowing God while not knowing the Flood was merely local, but it would also make the Lord God a wicked and malicious liar. In Genesis 8:21-9:17, He made an “everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth” (9:16) that He would never again allow a flood of this kind to kill any person or animal. If He meant a global flood, He has kept His everlasting covenant. If the events of Genesis were a local flood, then God has with heinous intentions regularly broken His covenant for 4,300 years.

Why would anyone want to believe in, let alone serve, a God like that? This is why many do not. Instead, every flood we see today is a reminder that God has kept His promise and can therefore be relied upon to keep ALL His promises – a comforting reminder during times of hardship.

To all our brothers and sisters who have been dealing with the recent flooding, we offer our love, support, and prayers.

“For this is like the days of Noah to Me, when I swore that the waters of Noah would not flood the earth again; so I have sworn that I will not be angry with you nor will I rebuke you. For the mountains may be removed and the hills may shake, but My lovingkindness will not be removed from you, and My covenant of peace will not be shaken,” says the LORD who has compassion on you. ~ Isaiah 54:9-10

Unfounded Assertions Regarding The Apostle Paul

Fri, 22 Mar 2019 18:01:00 GMT

The passages in First Timothy 1:15, First Corinthians 15:9, and Ephesians 3:8 appear to show the beginnings of spiritual declension in the thinking and attitude of the apostle Paul…at least on first glance! For context the reader should know that First Corinthians was written about A.D. 51, Ephesians about A.D. 60 or 61 and First Timothy about A.D. 63. This provides historical setting that can by tortured manipulation provide a basis for asserting this demeaning idea about Paul. Of course, this is not the case, and for anyone to make these unfounded assertions simply shows a mindboggling ignorance of the Holy Scripture. However, because it is argued by some liberal theologians, it demands a response.

First Corinthians 15:9 says: “For I am the least of the apostles, and am not worthy to be called an apostle…” In Ephesians 3:8 Paul staggers us when he announces that he is least of all saints—and he knew a lot of people called “saints.” But when we read in his First Timothy 1:15 that he confesses to be the chief of sinners, we lose our breath temporarily. For anyone to make these unfounded assertions simply shows a mindboggling ignorance of scriptural knowledge. Any consistent Bible student knows immediately that these verses are statements of Paul’s continued growth in Christ, explained as death to self (at this juncture the reader should read Second Corinthians 11 and take note to what Paul calls “my folly”).

In analyzing the life of the apostle Paul, we become aware that he was greatly influenced by Gamaliel, a rabbi and a Pharisee scholar of the school of Hillel, who, it is believed by many scholars is one of the reasons for Paul’s ability to analyze, illustrate, and allegorize so well (notwithstanding the unction and enablement of the Holy Spirit), as is demonstrated in his speaking and writing. And Gamaliel’s utterance in Acts 5:38-39 is one of the finest examples of godly wisdom in the whole of the New Testament:
And I say unto you: Refrain from these men and let them alone: for if this counsel or work be of men, it will come to nothing: but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them; lest haply you be found to be fighting against God. (Acts 5:38-39, KJV)

Obviously, Gamaliel was a believer in the almighty God. He not only manifested an OT Biblical tradition, he believed in the God of the Old Testament. He also exemplified godly caution, regardless of his status as a scholar of the OT Law, for there was the possibility that this “new” message was from God. It is for sure that he did not want to be found fighting against his Creator. But he failed to ascertain that the wheel in the middle of the wheel had rolled into his presence. He did not discern that the water of life had indeed flowed down from heaven and was available to refresh his own soul. He missed the fact that the man Jesus was Very God … To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself … (2 Cor. 5:19)! He was the fulfillment of Abraham’s prophecy that God would provide Himself a burnt offering. That God had indeed robed Himself in human flesh and was there to ratify the truth and saving power of new covenant. Isaiah (40:28-31) cried across the ages, “Hast thou not known, hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, faints not, neither is weary, and there is no searching of understanding…But they that wait on the LORD shall renew their strength…”

Our Need is Met

Tue, 19 Mar 2019 21:13:00 GMT

Our need has been met, Praise the Lord! As you know, since the end of last year we have been in need of a newer truck to haul our smaller rig of dinosaurs. We started this campaign in November and this month the Lord provided just the right truck. It has been an overwhelming weight lifted from us to know that, going forward, we have a newer truck with many years of service ahead of it. The truck is a 2015 Ram 1500 with only 18,000 miles. It even came equipped with a topper shell ready to protect our telescope for camp/VBS season. The support for this that came in above and beyond our monthly needs is truly amazing. It is paid in full, along with tags, taxes, title, and insurance increase. We may even have enough to cover a few outfitting necessities to help the truck meet our specific needs. The Lord is so good!

We had some reservations about starting a campaign going into our “slim” months. Each and every month we are encouraged to accomplish our mission of teaching disciples to trust the Biblical history founded in Genesis and in return trust the promises for our eternal destiny. This encouragement comes through our supporters in prayer and financial gifts. As most of you know, our monthly financial support only takes care of a portion of our needs. Our preaching and teaching engagements help us continue our mission in more ways than one. In the months that we do not have invitations to preach or teach, our finances are impacted negatively. We have had several of those months this year, but through the generosity of those the Lord has touched to send special gifts, we are sustained.

The Lord is our sustainer and provider. He has done this through you, our great supporters: family members, friends, churches, brothers and sisters in Christ. That financial support comes in all sizes of gifts but is always just what we need. With the Lord, our mission will continue and this year is shaping up to be another great one for the Kingdom. We are traveling to many new churches and will reach even more people with the message of Truth. If you have thought about having one of us come to your church because it has been a while since we’ve been there, please call. We actually still have several open dates we would love to fill. Blessings to all and again thank you for your faithful support!

Creative Design: God’s Creative Signature

Fri, 22 Feb 2019 22:59:00 GMT

O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments, and His ways past finding out! For who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who hath been His counsellor? Or who hath first given to Him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again? For of Him, and through Him, and to Him, are all things: to whom be glory forever. Amen. – Romans 11:33-36, KJV

The uniqueness and wonder of life shrouded is breathtaking as it is by nature’s ineffable mysteries, and it has baffled man for time immemorial. The full complement of earth’s priceless features are essential to our existence, but their existence is unexplainable without a Creator!

For example, the enzyme/substrate receptor site is among these wonders. The automatic interface between enzymes and their unique receptor sites, is, to say the least, extremely mindboggling. And it must be kept in mind that without their existence life is impossible! It is these obvious relationships, too many and too complex to be explained by blind chance and accident, that has caused many to believe in an organized, highly intelligent transcendence.

It was the prophet Isaiah that confirmed this idea when He told us that God’s thoughts “…are not our thoughts, neither are our ways His ways … For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.” (Isaiah 55:8-9) And without the fact of Creation, evangelistic gospel preaching has no foundation or justification because it was the Creator God that satisfied the price of our redemption. He came to die!

This explains Apostle Paul’s remarks to the people at Mars’ hill: “For as I passed by, and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Whom therefore you ignorantly worship, Him declare I unto you. God that made the world and all things therein, seeing He is Lord of heaven and earth, dwells not in temples made with hands; Neither is worshiped with men’s hands, as though He needed anything, seeing He gives to all life and breath and all things; and has made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on the face of the earth, has determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation …And the times of this ignorance God winked at: but now commands all men everywhere to repent: because He has appointed a day in which He will judge the world…” (Acts17:23-31)

We Need Covering

Wed, 20 Feb 2019 20:03:00 GMT

“The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife, and clothed them.” – Genesis 3:21

Our sin brought death to the creation. Today our world echoes with the reverberations of the curse. In the garden, Adam and Eve were lost in their sin and hopelessly cursed to death. Until the Lord stepped in and showed grace to Adam and Eve, they were destined to be separated from Him. They had a need that only the Lord could take care of in their life. Their desire was to have communion with their Creator, but their sin exposed the darkness of their flesh. The only way for them to be presentable before the Lord was to have their sin covered. The Lord took care of that atonement by the death of some innocent animals for their skins. This very foreshadowing of the cross, with the shedding of innocent blood for sin, is breathtaking.

Our world today is as evil as ever and full of sin. Nothing has changed in our nature for over 6000 years, as our sin today is no different than Adam and Eve’s. We believe at times, as Adam and Eve did, that our sin can be fixed by our own actions. However, there is absolutely nothing we can do about it – outside of accepting the ransom paid for our sin at the cross. Our desire to have communion with our Creator is a designed attribute that began in the garden, just as our redemption and atonement did. One blessing we have today is the ability to worship our Creator with others in the church who also have the covering. No longer is there blood sacrifice needed for atonement in worship. Jesus Christ redeemed us once for all. Praise and Glory to my Redeemer and Atonement!

This message is not just for the Easter season, it is one that we proclaim every time we at CTF are asked to preach or teach. The connections between Genesis and the Gospel are our calling. Thank you for your support month after month that encourages us through the knowledge that there are redeemed brothers and sisters that still see the importance of His atoning Word.

Haiti Mission Trip

Wed, 30 Jan 2019 17:09:00 GMT

My wife and I, with six other members of our mission’s team (composed of medical personnel, mechanic and general construction personnel, and a small secondary/college instructional team) just returned from our fifth annual mission’s trip to Gonaives, Haiti. But for you to grasp a little of the nature of this endeavor, you must understand that Haiti is a third world, extremely poor nation, originally settled by the French. At their independence they chose to incorporate voodoo (demonic black magic) into their society—a tragic, depreciating fact that we continually face to this day.

Nevertheless, Haiti, located in the Caribbean about 140 miles south/southeast of Miami, Florida, and just 50 miles due east of Cuba, contains a growing Christian influence (caused by much prayer, preaching, sacrifice, and hard work), and it is significantly impacting the darkness among the people.

The island space on which Haiti is located is called Hispaniola and is shared with the Dominican Republic, a Spanish settled nation. In fact, the Dominican occupies at least 60% to 70% of the available space of Hispaniola (and there is enormous square mileage lost due to the incompatibility of a severe mountainous topography).

About six years ago while attending a preacher’s clinic in southeast Oklahoma, I was privileged to meet the founder/pastor of this great work, Salonique Adolphe. Brother Salonique (Sal for short) and his tremendous and beneficial wife (Gine), both native Haitians in their late forties, have labored extensively to establish four K-13 ^th day schools with a total student population of 1,200 in the communities of Gonaives, White Mountain, Marmalade and Highland. Everywhere they have raised up a Bible believing church, they have built a school; an incredibly effective evangelistic program!

I covet your prayers for this labor of love! Diane and I plan to return this year (probably in September or October) to continue the training. There are 40 to 50 young men between the ages of 25 to 45 that are engaged in our training sessions. We conduct seminary level Bible teaching classes every day from 3:00 to 6:00 five to six days each week. To God is the Glory! Thank-you for your prayer and support. I remain yours in the thrill of serving Jesus!

Comfortable vs Convictional

Wed, 30 Jan 2019 17:04:00 GMT

Terry Carter, president of Summit Theological Seminary and cherished teacher of Biblical truth, recently wrote an article entitled “Seeker Sensitive”. I found it most appropriate for the times in which we live as more and more churches are forfeiting Truth for “bodies, buildings, and budgets”, as Doc would say. As a result, churches have become comfortable and not convictional. I asked president Carter if I could share his article with our readers, and he gladly obliged.

“Today, everybody is talking about being ‘seeker sensitive’. That usually means that you are concerned about how non-Christians will perceive your worship service. Every effort is made to impress them and make them feel comfortable.

“This is all done in hopes that they will return and eventually become members. There are books and articles about how to be more ‘seeker sensitive’. Seminars are held on the topic. You can even buy books of sermons for seekers.

“It’s not a bad thing to be seeker sensitive as long as you are not seeker driven. It’s good to be concerned about how unbelievers feel about your services. The problem is, that many are more concerned about how unbelievers like their service than they are about how God likes it. They would rather impress non-Christians than the Lord.

“God is also concerned about the unbeliever’s reaction to our services. However, His perspective is somewhat different from what you read in many of the popular books.

“You can see God’s perspective on this issue in I Corinthians 14:23-25, ^’23 If therefore the whole church be come together into one place, and all speak in tongues, and there come in [those that are] unlearned, or unbelievers, will they not say that ye are mad? ²⁴ But if all prophesy, and there come in one that believeth not, or [one] unlearned, he is convinced of all, he is judged of all: ²⁵ And thus are the secrets of his heart made manifest; and so falling down on [his] face he will worship God, and report that God is in you of a truth .’

“The word for ‘convinced’ in verse 24 means ‘to convict or refute’. It is the same word used in John 16:8, ‘ And when He is come, He will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment ’. It has the idea of exposing and correcting a fault. That is not exactly something that makes a person comfortable.

“But look at the results of bringing someone to conviction. They worship God and declare that God is among you.

“Are we really concerned about the souls of the unbelievers, or are we more interested in attracting them to our nice little social club? To convert, you must first convict. That’s what the Holy Spirit does to the world, John 16:8-11.

“Is the Spirit working in our services?”

Carter, Terry. “Seeker Sensitive”. The Gospel Unashamed . Vol. 31, No. 4, October 2018. Summit Theological Seminary. Peru, IN. pp. 5-6.

Death of Death

Wed, 30 Jan 2019 15:40:00 GMT

“Why is creation ministry so important?” “We should focus on the Gospel instead of Genesis.” These are but a couple of the questions and comments we receive every once in a while. There are some that have the opinion that Genesis is secondary to other aspects of Scripture. Yet, as you know from the years of ministry spent carrying out our calling here at CTF, we understand the importance that Genesis has to the Gospel and for life. If we don’t understand Genesis correctly, then we may have issues with Matthew, Mark, Luke or John.

The crux of the issue is always sin and death. When we deal with time from a Biblical chronology vs. an evolutionary timeframe, the inevitable is asked, “Why are you so demanding on a young time scale?” Our reply is, “How long has death been here, and why?” Sometimes the response is a puzzled look and silence. Has death been present on earth as the mechanism of advancement, weeding out the less fit and weaker while allowing the more fit to survive and thus progress to higher life forms through evolutionary history? Or was death placed as a curse to sin at the beginning? A person’s worldview on death is pivotal to his salvation. We find often that most of us have never connected those dots, yet they are vital for our salvation in Christ.

Romans 5:12 states that “…just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned…”. And in 1 Corinthians 15:21-22 we find, “For since by a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive.”

Jesus Christ came and paid our ransom with His blood. His death was mandatory for our salvation, because it is the wage for our sin (Rom. 6:23). If death has no connection to sin, then the cross is utter rubbish. Evolution should have no place in a Christian’s worldview on the basis that it degrades to useless the very work of salvation. Our Creator paid the price for sin (death), ransoming us and by His blood imparting life to those that acknowledge the need for it.

This ministry is entering our 30th year, and we’re ready to drive this point home more than ever in a world that is blinded in sin and drowning in death. Even in the church some continue to hold onto worldviews that are contrary to the Gospel and Genesis. Please continue to lift us up in prayer, that our message is clear and bold on behalf of our Creator and Savior Jesus Christ’s work of salvation. As always, this ministry would not be able to operate without your support in this battle. Thank you for joining us in sharing the Gospel thru Genesis.

The Triumphal Entry

Wed, 12 Dec 2018 20:49:00 GMT

“ They brought the colt to Jesus and put their coats on it; and He sat on it. And many spread their coats in the road, and others spread leafy branches which they had cut from the fields. Those who went in front and those who followed were shouting: ‘Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord ; Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David; Hosanna in the highest!’ ” ~Mark 11:7-10

This event in Jesus’ life is regularly referred to as “The Triumphal Entry”. It is considered as such because Jesus is treated as a triumphant king, He is beginning what’s called the “Passion Week”, and the week culminates in the greatest triumph – the victory over death through Christ’s resurrection.

Following this line of thought, Jesus had another “triumphal entry”.

“ So also we, while we were children, were held in bondage under the elemental things of the world. But when the fullness of the time came, God sent for His Son, born of a woman,born under the Law, so that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons. ” ~Galatians 4:3-5

The birth of Christ is certainly a “triumphal entry”. The Creator Himself who had touched the dust of the ground on the 6 ^th day of history and made man in His image now came to Earth to become the dust for the redemption of mankind. Shepherds came to praise and spread the news of the Lamb of God. Wise men journeyed from afar to pay honor to the King of Kings. Angels sang forth the glorious news that the Savior had been born. Once again, this was a “triumphal entry” for the Lord and for humanity as through the life of the One of divine birth, redemption and adoption would be made available to all who will accept it.

However, there was one more “triumphal entry” in Jesus’ life.

“ But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things to come, He entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation; and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, He entered the Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption… For Christ did not enter a holy place made with hands, a mere copy of the true one, but into Heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us. ” ~Hebrews 9:11-12,24

He did it! He lived the perfect, sinless life required for the atoning blood sacrifice necessary for the redemption of mankind. He went through the scourging, endured the cross, gave His all for us, and then triumphed through His glorious resurrection! He ascended into Heaven where He presented His perfect sacrifice as the means of sanctification, through which we can enter the very presence of our Creator God to be with Him forevermore.

The only question is, has He triumphantly entered Your life to reign as your saving King on the throne of your heart?

“ Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba!Father!’ Therefore you are no longer a slave, but a son; and if a son, then an heir through God .” ~Galatians 4:6-7

Uncorroborated Charges Corroborated

Thu, 25 Oct 2018 14:49:00 GMT

Would six hearings and ten declarations by a judge be enough to find a man innocent of the charges? History records that depending on the strength of the mob, the weight of the evidence may not matter.

In the first hearing, the man was questioned about his close friends, with whom he spent his time travelling and working. The man, who had a very clean record with an exemplary career of helping people, said that all their activities had been clearly seen by countless witnesses. They had never attempted to hide anything. The man was then attacked for his temperament in addressing the official, though he had acted properly in accordance with the law.

In the second hearing, the ruling committee had several statements brought forth by multiple “witnesses”, though none of their claims could be corroborated, with many found to be false or inconsistent with one another. The man calmly and clearly stated the facts, which enraged the officials even more. They denigrated and humiliated the man.

In the third hearing, the man was brought before the entire assembly. They once again brought the same charges. They declared him guilty on all accounts and demanded punishment in accordance with the law.

In the fourth hearing, the people leading the charge against this man said the evidence was inconsequential; the seriousness of the charges was all that mattered. The senior official declared that the man was innocent. This enraged the mob and its leaders. They began to make all kinds of accusations. Upon hearing all of this, the senior official called for another investigation and sent the matter to another government official.

In this hearing (#5), nothing really happened. The official found the man not guilty and sent his findings back to the senior official.

In the sixth and final hearing, the senior official chastised the ruling committee members for their lack of evidence and uncorroborated charges against the man. In total, the senior official declared ten times that the man was innocent!

It was at this point that the mob’s leaders came unhinged, and the truth behind their hatred came out.

“We have a law, and by that law He ought to die because He made Himself out to be the Son of God” (John 19:7).

At that moment, all of the uncorroborated charges fell by the wayside as the one, true, corroborated charge came to the forefront. Of all their accusations, this was the one and only charge that was absolutely true. The Man had made Himself out to be the Son of God.

In fact, He had corroborated the charge by His miracles, teachings, love, and compassion.

Consequently, He was sentenced to and died the most excruciating death, all because of the one true charge. However, for this Man, He endured the shame and punishment willingly and joyfully for the sake of all mankind (Hebrews 12:2).

In response to His love, mercy, and grace, do we live lives that corroborate the charge that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God?

Before we answer that, we must remember that the Scriptures show repeatedly that it is not just a matter of claiming so or of attending church services – it is a matter of obedience and action.

“4 The one who says, ‘I have come to know Him,’ and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him; 5 but whoever keeps His Word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected. By this we know that we are in Him: 6 the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked” (I John 2:4-6).

Are we daily corroborating the Son of God in our lives?

“9 If we receive the testimony of men, the testimony of God is greater; for the testimony of God is this, that He has testified concerning His Son. 10 The one who believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself; the one who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has given concerning His Son. 11 And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. 12 He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life” (I John 5:9-12).

Do our lives reflect the testimony of the world or the testimony of Jesus?

The Fairness of the LORD

Thu, 25 Oct 2018 14:43:00 GMT

While reading the Bible this week, my eyes fell on a curious, but enlightening passage, found in 1 Samuel 30:21-24 that reflects the fairness and even-handedness of the LORD:

“Now David came to the two hundred men that had been so weary that they could not follow David, whom they also had made to stay at the Brook Besor. So, they went out to meet David and to meet the people who were with him. And when David came near the people, he greeted them. Then all the wicked and worthless men who were with David answered and said, ‘Because they did not go with us, we will not give them any spoil that we have recovered, except for every man’s wife and children, that they may lead them away and depart.’ But David said, ‘My brethren you shall not do so with what the LORD has given us, who preserved us and delivered into our hand the troop that came against us. For who will listen to you in this matter? But as his part is who goes down into battle, so shall his part be who stays by the supplies {KJV says, “who tarries with the stuff?} ; they shall share alike.”

This passage reminded me of the irreproachable, even-handedness of the Lord Jesus; a principle that is taught in the parable of the laborers in Matthew 20:1-16. Simply put, the Lord rewards the eleventh-hour workers in the same manner as those that began early in the day.

An additional Biblical practice is seen in the behavior of the Apostle Paul when he uplifted the Corinthians with praise because they had remembered him “ in all things and kept the traditions that he delivered to them .” (1 Cor. 11:1)

I want to take this opportunity to acknowledge the faithful service and personal support that has been lovingly given to me and my wife Diane over the seventeen or so years that Bob Dugas, the CTF Operational Manager, and Vice president of CTF.

Thanks a million, Bob! Your service has been exemplary, and your friendship a rich blessing; you are a stalwart disciple of the Lord’s vineyard, and a painstaking assistant to me and my wife (as well as all of the workers in this ministry). I pray God’s riches blessing on you, your wife Michelle, and your children, and that He reward them for your hours of two-mile service to the CTF ministry.

Good vs. Evil

Tue, 23 Oct 2018 18:18:00 GMT

In our culture today there seems to be a marginalization of evil. We are seeing groups, activities, behaviors, institutions and people that are increasingly evil, yet continue to be supported as “good.” This worldview of “good vs. evil” is less black and white than it used to be as Christian values become less influential in our culture.

This is obvious in our culture in several areas. There’s the accepted homosexual movement and its many different manifestations. The commonality of divorce and lack of committed marriages is also a great sign of evil, especially since the family is the Lord’s first location to establish the salvation message. Then there’s the ongoing evil of abortion where we continually murder unborn children made in His image, and many declare this a basic human “right.”

The not so obvious front of this battle of good vs. evil is found in even more places, especially in entertainment. The perception that villains are not really bad or evil in movies or on popular television shows is becoming more prevalent. Nobody can be “all bad” – there is good in everybody, we’re told. Even beyond that, our culture is glamorizing evil characters and calling the good ones “boring.” There are now superheroes that are extremely offensive in word and deed being elevated as role models to young children.

This battle of good vs. evil all started in Genesis 3, and it’s there we first see who is allowed to be in charge of evil – Satan. We see from the start that Satan is all about taking us out, removing us from relationship with the Lord and destroying our life. He shows his true nature as the one who steals, kills and destroys (Jn. 10:10). Attacking the Lord’s Word and authority is how this evil front is waged. If Satan can deceive us into thinking that God’s Word is ambiguous, contradictory, errant, deceptive, not clear, or even malicious, then evil has taken root in our worldview. With this evil established, we will naturally not look to the Lord’s authority on our life. Instead, we will look to ourselves for what the standard should be. We will set our standards on what we feel are good or evil. If we deny God’s absolute authority, and refuse to define our Creator God as pure good vs. Satan who is pure evil, then we are left with no option but to justify evil by arbitrary standards.

Genesis is the first place the sides are identified, establishing the battleground for good vs. evil. The ministry that we are driven to accomplish here at Creation Truth understands this battleground. We are waging the war with full knowledge of the stakes that were laid down at the very beginning. If a believer misses the historical establishment of good vs. evil, then we might be deceived into thinking we can define them for ourselves. But this is much bigger than us and we will continue to battle to show who is good, Jesus Christ alone. Blessings to all who know His name and continue to support this ministry.

Love and Marriage

Wed, 19 Sep 2018 20:33:00 GMT

My wife and I have now celebrated 26 years of marriage. In pondering the definition of our marriage, is it just a legally binding union/contract and a societally recognized partnership, or a God-ordained and designed union that He has instituted? I whole-heartedly understand it to be definition #2 since that is how the Lord has described it in His Word since the beginning.

My wife and I were designed male and female, and this is the starting foundation of any marriage. In Genesis 2 we read of the man’s placement in the Garden. He is initially placed there without a helpmate (wife) and the Lord asks him to name the animals. Is this an odd request? I do not believe so if He is establishing a simple pattern. In observing and naming all the animals, the man would have noticed that everything was mated to a pair, male and female. Yet there was no one like him in all the animal kingdom he had just observed. God then made woman from a portion of man’s side while he slept. The Lord designed a female which the male needed as his helpmate. So, the Lord designated male and female as the starting point. If there were other acceptable foundations for marriage, we should see it here at the beginning of history.

When the man sees woman for the first time, he acknowledges the God-designed union that takes place in marriage. “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called ‘woman,’ because she was taken out of man.” The Lord made and placed them together. He did not leave it up to the man to find the woman; she was designed for his needs and he for her needs. They were placed together as one flesh, not two, by the Lord; this was not of their own volition, or the work of a mother and father. They set a precedent for all marriages to come in history.

The Lord is the one who ordains marriage between a man and woman for life.That’s it, there is nothing else when it comes to the definition of marriage. It is a spiritually important union for the establishment of the family. Both man and woman should acknowledge their Creator as binding them together and thus start a family where godly offspring will be raised. Then those godly offspring will also know the importance placed on marriage by the Lord, as taught by their father and mother’s example.

Theresa and I were married over 26 years ago. We exchanged rings, vows and a kiss, and then signed a marriage license, none of which actually made us married. Those are the outward (and legal) signs that we have to show for the union God designed for us when He placed us together as one for life. I love my wife because she is exactly who I needed for this life, which the Lord knew when He bound us together in marriage. That bond is stronger than any problems, trials, disappointments, failures or any other thing in life that may try to destroy what the Lord bound.

Within the ministry of Creation Truth Foundation we will continue to boldly teach, preach and show this truth of the God-ordained union of the family. Blessings to you all!

Questions on the Road: “Could God Have Used Evolution?”

Fri, 07 Sep 2018 22:52:00 GMT

Short Answer: NO!

Long Answer: Yes, if…

1. …He deceived us in Genesis 1.
If God used billions of years of stellar, chemical, and biological evolution, then He purposefully deceived us in Genesis 1 by using Hebrew historical narrative instead of poetic language when describing the 6 days of creation.

This also means he lied by saying He created every living thing according to its “kind”. The deliberate use of the word “kind” (Hebrew word min ) prohibits the inclusion of transmuting species in the creative act. Each biological kind must reproduce within its kind. Not surprisingly, the evolution from one kind to a different kind has never been observed in either living organisms or fossils.

Additionally, if He did use evolutionary processes as taught today, the order of creation is drastically different than naturalistic models. Why would God say He did it in a particular order when He actually did it in another? How then can we trust anything He says?

2. …He lied to Moses in Exodus 20.
In Exodus 20:8-11, God commanded that the Israelites observe a 7-day week, resting on the 7th day. Why a 7-day week? Because the very first week of history was 7 days. He created the universe in 6 literal days (Ex. 20:11) and then ceased creating (rested) on the 7th day. If God used an evolutionary scheme, then He lied to Moses and the Israelites, and we have no basis for a 7-day week.

3. …He broke His covenant in Jeremiah 33.
In Jeremiah 33, God provides another Messianic prophecy. The assuredness of Christ was of such a degree that God equates it with His day/night covenant established on the first day of history in Genesis 1:3-5. Thus God says in Jeremiah 33:20-21 that if we can break His covenant with the Genesis 1 established day so that it is not a regular day/night cycle, then Jesus is not the Messiah and reigning descendant of David. Therefore, if the days of Genesis 1 are not actual covenantally-governed 24-hour days (as required by an evolutionary model), then Jesus is not our King.

4. …Jesus lied or was misinformed in Matthew 19 / Mark 10.
When Jesus was asked a legal question about marriage, He responded by referencing and quoting Genesis 1 & 2. He clearly states that men and women were made by God at the beginning of history. This means Jesus believed the Genesis account of creation. If an evolutionary model is true, then homo sapiens have been around the last 350,000 years of the 13.8 billion years of cosmic history. If so, mankind has been around for the last 0.003% of history, not since the beginning as Jesus said. Therefore, an evolutionary model would make Jesus either a liar or a believer in fables and myths, either of which makes Him a lunatic for claiming to be the Creator God.

5. …Paul lied or was misinformed in Romans and 1 Corinthians.
Paul wrote in Romans 6:23 that “ the wages of sin is death” . He wrote in Romans 5:12 that “ through one man (Adam, v. 14) sin entered into the world, and death through sin ”. He repeats this in 1 Corinthians 15:21-22. If an evolutionary model is true, then there were millions of years of death, disease, and destruction long before sin. How then could such a world be cursed (Gen. 3) with pain, suffering, and death when mankind sinned? Why then would Jesus need to die a physical death and physically rise from the dead for the purpose of salvation? Why would God create such a world and call it “ good ” (Genesis 1)?
In any event, if an evolutionary model is true, then Paul’s words are in great error, meaning they cannot be the inspired Word given to us by the Creator God.

What is crystal clear from Scripture is the fact that both the Bible and an evolutionary model cannot be true. Either the testimony of the Lord given directly from Him to us in the Bible is true, or the musings of men, amongst which there is no 100% agreement, is true.

Therefore, “ choose you this day whom you will serve… as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD ” (Joshua 24:15).

August Article

Fri, 07 Sep 2018 22:45:00 GMT

Sometime ago (about 50 or so years ago), I read the well-written, heart-driven book, The Making of a Man of God , authored by the British born, Dr. Alan Redpath (1907-1989). Dr. Redpath, an outstanding preacher in his own right, herein examines salient aspects in the life to king David, and in one of the chapters, he discusses the signs, the behavior and the attitude of “ How the Mighty are Fallen .” A must read for anyone seeking a closer walk with their God.

Second Samuel 11 is the Scriptural guide for this chapter and through it Redpath’s pens a passionate, heart rending commentary that continues to impact my thinking to this very day. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in a spiritual challenge, especially if you sense yourself drifting from Biblical conviction, disengaged from intercessory prayer and generally lackadaisical in your relationship with Jesus Christ.

The chapter opens by informing the reader that it was the time when kings normally go forth to battle, but David was content for some devious reason, for which we will soon discover, to remain in Jerusalem, and to send Joab, the commander of the army, in his place. The important point is that David stayed home when he should have been at war with the enemies of God and Israel! That was certainly one of his primary tasks!

And then, one evening, finding himself sleepless, he met “the traveler!” (2 Samuel 12:4) But who this mysterious “ traveler ?” Let’s go back into chapter 11 and notice that David, due to his insomnia, “ …arose from his bed, and walked upon the roof of his house: and from the roof he saw a gorgeously beautiful woman washing herself …and the KJV says, “… the woman was very beautiful to look upon .” Here it is, between verse 2 and 3, David thinks to himself, “ I wonder who she is? ”

David knows that the kings of Israel are not to add horses, or wives, or silver and gold to themselves. (Deuteronomy 17:14-20) But the “traveler” says, “No, it’s okay, you can ask her name!” Remember, David should have been in battle with his army! He sought her name, and because he did there were three continuous tragedies that befell Israel. But who is this traveler? It’s the continual working of our mind. Paul warns us to only allow thoughts that are good, honest, just, pure, lovely and of good report. (Philippians 4:8)

G. Thomas Sharp

Questions on the Road: “Is Genesis 1 Poetic?”

Tue, 31 Jul 2018 17:38:00 GMT

Something you may or may not have heard is the claim that Genesis 1 is Hebrew poetry. I have heard several people from various backgrounds and persuasions make the simple statement that, “Genesis 1 is poetic.” Now the intentions of some may be harmless, but it is an often-cited response by those attempting to claim that Genesis 1 should not be read as history.

The resulting consequence is the open interpretation of Genesis 1 in accordance with any and all worldviews. It does not need to be taken as factual history; it can be God’s colorful description of how He used evolution and billions of years to bring about life and the universe.

Those who attempt to defend the poetry position may use the argument of “Hebrew parallelism”, which may look something like this:

Day 1 : God “separates” light and dark → Day 4 : God “fills” the light with the sun and the dark with the moon

Day 2 : God “separates” the waters → Day 5 : God “fills” the upper waters with birds and the lower waters with fish

Day 3 : God “separates” the land from the water → Day 6 : God “fills” the land with animals and people

Day 7 : God rests → Uh … no parallel

You may already see some major problems with this, especially if you understand what God actually did on each day.

Extensive scholarship has conclusively decided that Genesis 1 is NOT a poetic passage.

Dr. Edward Young, who studied at Stanford, Leipzig, and Dropsy and taught Old Testament at Westminster Theological Seminary, wrote:

Genesis one is not poetry or saga or myth, but straightforward, trustworthy history, and, inasmuch as it is a divine revelation, accurately records those matters of which it speaks. That Genesis one is historical may be seen from these considerations. (1) It sustains an intimate relationship with the remainder of the book. The remainder of the book (i.e., The Generations) presupposes the Creation Account, and the Creation Account prepares for what follows. The two portions of Genesis are integral parts of the book and complement one another. (2) The characteristics of Hebrew poetry are lacking. There are poetic accounts of the creation and these form a striking contrast to Genesis one. (3) The New Testament regards certain events mentioned in Genesis one as actually having taken place. We may safely allow the New Testament to be our interpreter of this mighty first chapter of the Bible. ( Studies in Genesis One , Baker, Grand Rapids, 1975, p. 105)

Dr. Stephen Boyd, who studied at Hebrew Union College, taught at The Master’s College, and now teaches at Calvary University, authored the tenth chapter of Thousands…Not Billions (Master Books, Portland, 2005, pp. 157-170), in which he demonstrated the grammatical differences between Hebraic poetry and Hebraic narrative.

For example, narrative/historical passages in Hebrew use more preterite verbs; poetic passages use more perfect and imperfect verbs. Exodus 14 is the narrative/historical record of the Red Sea crossing, while Exodus 15 is the poetic/musical record of the crossing. The historical passage uses 55% preterite verbs while the poetic passage uses 95% perfect and imperfect verbs.

Genesis 1 uses 60% preterite verbs and only 10% perfect and imperfect verbs, meaning the passage is one of the most historical/narrative passages in all the Old Testament!

In my discussions with Dr. James Smith, who also studied at Hebrew Union College and taught at Cincinnati Bible Seminary and Florida Christian College, he emphasized the importance of the waw -consecutive in Genesis 1. The Hebrew word waw (pronounced “vav”) means “and”. When it is in the waw -consecutive, it means “immediately thereafter”. Dr. Smith pointed out that it is in all 31 verses, which is why each day begins with “And” or “Then”, depending on your translation. This means the events of Genesis 1 all occurred “immediately thereafter” in the manner described. There cannot be any gaps of any kind between the days of Genesis 1; each day came “immediately thereafter” the other days. This also makes Genesis 1 narrative/historical and not poetic.

So the next time you hear someone state that Genesis 1 is poetic, hopefully he or she is open to the truth and are willing to hear you lovingly explain the trustworthiness of the perfect record of history found only in God’s Word.

Biblical Creation Is Foundational To The Absolute Deity Of Jesus Christ

Tue, 31 Jul 2018 17:38:00 GMT

I am repeatedly asked why I founded Creation Truth Foundation, and more importantly, why Biblical Creation is so foundational to the absolute deity of Jesus Christ and all Biblical truth? Answers to these two concerns are significant, and they are interconnected. I will only succinctly respond to the second of these inquiries, because it is, by far, the most important.

Because of the gravity associated with Biblical creation, a principal Biblical truth, a brief presentation here is in order (regular readers of this newsletter will recognize the frequency with which I defend this subject, because it is the primary truth upon which all other Biblical truth rests).

Jesus constantly alluded to this reality during His redemptive sojourn here on earth; and none of His treatments were more significant than His response to the Pharisees in Matthew 19:4-5 and Mark 10:6-8. Because Talmudic interference was continually impinging upon the clarity of the Old Testament concerning the coming Messiah, Jesus was continuously correcting the misunderstanding and misapplication of the Pharisees concerning His Deity and earthly mission.

In these passages, Christ is pinpointing the eternal consequence and import of man’s origin taking place “ from the beginning of the creation ,” and not millions of years after the creative process had begun. For a literal Bible believer, the creation of man and woman took place no more than six days (24-hour days) after the voice of God called into existence the space, mass, time continuum in Genesis 1:1, and nothing in Scripture is clearer than Christ’s Messianic intent …“ He came to save His people from their sins. ” (Matthew 1:21)

The point for this article is that God created man and woman (Adam and Eve) at the beginning of the creation. Man did not develop from some unknown primitive ancestor or some missing link between modern apes and humans. Man has always been man, and his origin was divinely commenced at the decreeing of God’s Word: “ By the Word of the LORD were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of His mouth…He spoke, and it was done… ” (Psalms 33:6-9)

Neither is our salvation a spur of the moment activity! It occupied the Creator’s ultimate attention! The Apostle Paul tells us in Ephesians 1:4 that we were chosen in Him before the foundation of the world, and I admit that this is a great mystery. But we are talking about the great Creator God! And Paul tells us that God is unchangeable, and His sovereignty is unambiguously certain! Note his comments in Romans 9:17-24, “For the scripture said to Pharaoh, ‘ For this very purpose I raised you up, to demonstrate My power in you … So then God has mercy on whom He has mercy, and He hardens whom He desires … does not the potter have a right over the clay, to make from the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for common use … And He did so to make known the riches of His glory upon the vessels of mercy, which He prepared beforehand for glory … whom He called not from among the Jews only, but from the Gentiles. ’ …” (NKJV) So it is, like it or not, the great Creator God does exactly what He has planned to do, and before time started He planned to create man in His own image, and then in time to save all them He called! (Isaiah 46:9-11)

Historical Origin of Man

Thu, 19 Jul 2018 20:31:00 GMT

Man’s origin is one that has been debated and theorized for centuries. There have been numerous ideas to explain our existence, from Biblical creation to alien genetic engineering and everything in between. How and where we came from is not a scientifically observable reality since it occurred only once in the past. We have no way to replicate that origin, and even if we thought we could, we would have no assurance that what we might come up with was right since we cannot compare the two. Thus, the creation account in the Bible is not scientifically provable (scientific method) any more than the evolutionary worldview on the origin of human beings is. Our origin is driven only by worldview with science giving us support towards that worldview.

As I stated in last month’s newsletter, evolution says that we share a common ancestor with all other primates. Other than inference and worldview, there is no scientifically observable evidence to seal the deal on this idea of origin for human beings. Genetically (aka scientific evidence) we have been traced back to one woman and one man, called in scientific circles Mitochondria Eve and Y-chromosomal Adam. Yet this evidence and more does not stop some “Christian scholars” from advocating there was no historical Adam and Eve. “Evolution makes it pretty clear that in nature, and in the moral experience of human beings, there never was any such paradise to be lost,” John Schneider says. “So Christians, I think, have a challenge, have a job on their hands to reformulate some of their tradition about human beginnings.” John taught theology at Calvin College until recently, and he is not alone in his thinking. Groups like BioLogos Foundation argue heavily that evolutionary “science” and faith should be reconciled.

The Biblical account of our origin states that we were created in God’s image, male and female (Gen. 1:27). Following the fall and curse of sin in Genesis 3, we are told that we have all come from Eve. When studying through the remainder of the first few chapters in Genesis, we understand that following another judgement of sin (the flood) we repopulated the earth from eight people, or maybe more precisely 3 reproducing pair in Noah’s sons and wives. Then, with the dispensation of the world’s population at Babel because of language, we can simply explain the diversity of humans. Take all of that away, without us being miraculously created in His image and with death prior to sin, and it leaves us with no basis for the redeeming cross. Romans 5:12 states sin came through one man and “death through sin.” Also we see in 1 Corinthians 15:21-22, “death came through a man” but we can be alive only through a man, Christ. The very salvation message of Jesus Christ’s death, burial and resurrection makes no sense without our perfectly created origin as the Bible literally teaches in the Genesis account.

We are saved by our Creator and Savior’s redeeming blood shed to atone for our sin. This is the message CTF continues to take into churches, schools, and camps. Please continue to lift us up in prayer, as our enemy would love to silence us from teaching the Truth. Blessings.

Questions on the Road: Does “Day” Mean “Day”?

Wed, 27 Jun 2018 20:08:00 GMT

When we have the blessing to travel for the ministry, we try very hard to make time for questions. Inevitably, one of the questions that is still frequently asked is, “Does the word ‘day’ in Genesis 1 really mean a day? Was it really 24 hours?’”

This has been so well researched for decades through the highest levels of scholarship that it is almost unfathomable that Christians would still need to ask this question. Now don’t get me wrong; we are always more than happy to answer it. That’s why we at CTF have a passion for this ministry as we are blessed to be a Biblically-based resource for churches and individuals. However, it saddens us that this has not been answered from the church pulpits or Bible studies.

So in case you were wondering, or if you would like a quick access resource, here are the facts about the word “day” in Genesis 1.

If the word means a 24-hour day/night cycle, then it means God literally created the universe in six 24-hour days around 6,000 years ago. If the word means eons of time, then it gives credence to the idea of billions of years of stellar, chemical, and biological evolution.
The Hebrew word for “day” is yôm. It has 5 meanings in the Old Testament:

1. 24-hour day/night cycle
2. Daylight
3. General concept of time (an “age”)
4. A specific point of time (Abraham’s day)
5. A period of about a year
[ “Kinds” of Life . Leonard Coppes. Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament. Vol. 1. pp. 370-1]

How are we to know what is meant by the word in Genesis 1? By examining its use throughout all the rest of Scripture. And since it is used 2,291 times in the Old Testament (1,446 in singular form, 845 in plural form), we should be able to properly conclusively determine its meaning in Genesis 1.

When we then turn to Genesis 1, what do we find?

Vs 5 – “And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.”
Vs 8 – “And there was evening and there was morning, the second day.”
Vs 13 – “And there was evening and there was morning, the third day.”
Vs 19 – “And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day.”
Vs 23 – “And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day.”
Vs 31 – “And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.”

Not just one, but two indicators (numbered days & “evening and morning”) clearly explain that each day of the creation week was a 24-hour day.

“But how can that be when the sun wasn’t created until the fourth day?” The earth was spinning (vs 2), there was a light source (vs 3), and considering the testimony of all the other days, there was nothing different about the lengths of any one day from the other. In fact, the text explains how at the very beginning of creation God established the covenantal/unbreakable length of the day.

“3 Then God said, ‘Let there be light’; and there was light. 4 God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light day, and the darkness He called night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.”

As we can easily see, there is no other possibility as to the length of the days in Genesis 1. Besides, why would God deceive us in the very opening lines of His Book as to how long it took Him to create everything?

He hasn’t. He told us exactly how He did it so that He could build upon that foundation additional promises and truths of which we can have no doubt, such as the promise of our Savior Jesus.

Jeremiah 33:17, 20-21, “17 For thus says the Lord, ‘David shall never lack a man to sit on the throne of the house of Israel… 20 “Thus says the Lord, ‘If you can break My covenant for the day and My covenant for the night, so that day and night will not be at their appointed time, 21 then My covenant may also be broken with David My servant so that he will not have a son to reign on his throne’”.

And when we get right down to it, that is exactly what the scheme of evolution attempts to do – break our confidence in the Scriptures beginning with Genesis 1 so that we will not believe what they proclaim about Jesus.

O, that we would not compromise the integrity of God in accurately relating to us the truth of His Word just so we can attempt to win approval and acceptance by the world and its demonic wisdom of naturalism, humanism, evolutionism, and billions of years (James 3:15).

June Article

Wed, 27 Jun 2018 20:02:00 GMT

I once heard the penetrating English satirist and journalist, Malcolm Muggeridge, make the following remarks concerning the advanced nature of decadence in English speaking world. He said, “When we consider world history, we see empires rising and falling, we observe revolution, counter-revolution, we see wealth amassed and wealth lost, and are reminded that Shakespeare once said that the great ones rise and fall with the ebb and flow of the moon.” (Essay, by Muggeridge, Gone with the Wind)

Looking in historical retrospect, the British/American story reveals that English speaking peoples from Great Britain and the United States of America dominated nearly 25 percent of the world during the first half of the 20th century and believed that the God that made them strong could made them even stronger yet. Obviously, this attitude was not produced totally in Biblical reality, but by our own hegemonic notions.

Within the last 80 years or so, we witnessed a demonic Austrian attempt the establishment of a Reich that he declared would last a thousand years and looked with incredulity upon an Italian joker that bragged that he would begin and terminate the calendar around his own rise to power. Muggeridge said, this all happened in lifetime, but is now all “… gone, gone with the wind!”

I visited the country of Russia eight different times during the 1990s, preparing to speak at the International Conference of Science, Philosophy and Religion (for the Eastern Bloc nations), the place where a steely-eyed, crazed, Georgian bandit, during the 1920s to the mid-1950s, named Joseph Stalin, alleged that he was wiser than Solomon and more humane than Marcus Aurelius attempted to take over the Russian nation, but the problem was that he ignored God. I observed the United States of America, during her post-World War II glory, and as a result became the wealthiest nation of the world, with the greatest military ever, only to abandon her founding philosophy and be humiliated in the 1960s’ Vietnam debacle. All in one lifetime, but now … gone, gone with the Wind!

And I am afraid that the handwriting is already on the wall, because we too have forgotten our Creator and His Word! America is without a doubt the greatest nation of the modern era, but it was our Biblical faith and Godliness that made us great—and we have abandoned those moorings! And as a ship without a rudder or a sail, we are afloat, tossed about by every human opinion and philosophy, can “America really be great again” if she forgets God and ignores His Word?

G. Thomas Sharp

“Kinds of Life”

Tue, 19 Jun 2018 20:28:00 GMT

When one begins to study all created things, an overwhelming truth becomes evident – life is quite diverse and intricately designed. In the evolutionary worldview, all life has evolved from common ancestry. We are told by this evolutionary so-called “science” that from the first organic molecules through multiple transitional forms the vast diversity of life evolved to present systems. The proponents of this worldview tout “overwhelming evidence” pointing to common ancestry from observing differences within speciation. As just one example, the similarities and differences between chimps, gorillas, and orangutans “prove” the whole of evolution; the entire process of going from worms to eagles and so forth is often balanced precariously on just the observed similarities within species. There are many problems with this worldview. This first and most important problems that it is not what the Lord Jesus Christ told us He did during the creation process of Genesis 1.

The Lord gave us a record in Genesis 1 of how He made all living systems. On day 3 He made all systems of botany, forming all plant life by their kinds, complete and fully mature. “Kinds” is a biological and genetic statement that is fully observable today. This term is not only applied on day 3, but also to day 5 and 6 life. The detail in scripture stating that trees had fruit with seed in it immediately destroys a possibility for that plant to evolve into another kind of plant outside of their created kind. If you plant an apple seed, you will get an apple tree with no possibility of cherries or oranges or any other kind of plant life from it. Now there is diversity within a created kind, as seen in the example of apples. There is a vast array of apples around the world, yet they are a single created reproducible kind – apples.

On day 5 the Lord begins creating the animal kingdom. He starts with all living creatures that live in the water and all winged fowl. These creatures are each created by their kind and ready to do what each of them were designed to do. On the next day, six, He creates those living creatures that dwell on the land, also by their kinds. These animals range from mammals to dinosaurs, all of them reproducing after their kinds, again with varieties within those kinds controlled by designed genetics.

Following those of the animal kingdom on day 6, the Lord then created man, a male and female, in His image. Humans were created with similar characteristics as some in the animal kingdom, but I would argue this seems to show a common Designer rather than common ancestry. Since we and the animal kingdom were designed to live within the environment of the Earth, we should expect similarities that equip us for that. An evolutionary worldview would argue these similarities are evidence of common ancestry, yet we have never observed any “kind” of creature reproduce anything other than their kind. This reinforces the Biblical worldview founded in Genesis and frames all observed scientific evidence.

Blessings to you and your family for the continued support of this ministry as we preach and teach these truths in the face of an evolutionary tide. This tide is attacking our families and churches to give into materialism and, ultimately, atheistic worldviews. We will not give in or up on the call of the Lord to the Truth that is absolute and unchanging.

Global Warming Strikes Again

Mon, 28 May 2018 04:05:00 GMT

On April 18th, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported, “Cardinals-Cubs game postponed with more cold, snow expected at Wrigley”. For cadre member Justin Briney of the great Ravenwood church (MO), this was good news as it meant one less loss for the Cubs.

For many others, particularly the “global warming” crowd, this was just another in a burgeoning mountain of data that disproves the fabricated narrative of man-made global warming. But don’t worry about them; they’re not giving up yet.

Take for example this headline from an AFP story: “Alaskan snow more than doubles due to global warming” (12/19/17, www.news24.com). The study’s co-author, Eric Osterberg of Dartmouth College, was quoted as saying, “We were shocked when we first saw how much snowfall has increased… Scientists keep discovering that on a regional basis, climate change is full of surprises.”

None of this is surprising to Bible-believers. Due to the global impact of the Flood, we expect great variances in weather throughout the centuries as the Earth continues to recover from that global judgement. This is why we were not surprised when a 2014 NASA study and a report by the Arctic Climate Research at the University of Illinois both showed the Antarctic ice sheet growing at billions of tons of ice per year. Quite comically, The [UK] Daily Mail had to report, “Global warming computer models confounded as Antarctic sea ice hits new record high” (7/5/14, www.dailymail.co.uk).

We were not puzzled when the AFP reported in 2014, “NASA Scientists Puzzled by Global Cooling on Land and Sea”. Josh Willis of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory claimed that despite the data, their belief in global warming was not being challenged in any way, “We’re just trying to understand the nitty-gritty details” (10/6/14, www.newsmax.com).

In 2016, Nature had to admit that the 15-year “hiatus” in global warming was indeed true (2/24/16, www.nature.com). For over a decade, alarmists had claimed that global warming was causing drastic snowfall reductions in California, Oregon, and Washington. Valerie Trouet of the University of Arizona claimed, “We should be prepared for this type of snow drought to occur much more frequently because of rising temperatures.” Porter Fox of the New York Times declared in 2014 that those states were facing “the end of snow.”

Well… last winter, California’s Sierra Nevada Mountains saw its seventh-deepest snow since 1950 and biggest since 2011, Oregon saw “historic snow depths” that smashed 20-year records, and Director Todd Myers of the Center for the Environment reported “no sign of warming” in Washington state as “Snowpack levels have been above average in eight of the last ten years” (4/29/17, www.theblaze.com).

And yet, they still continue their charge. When there were two days of nice weather this February (20-21) with some record highs along the east coast, the global warming apologists were out in strength. “Summer-like temps in February, extreme rainfall, a snow drought. This is happening more often – and in line with what scientists warn to expect with climate change” (2/21/18, insideclimatenews.org). However, as we have all witnessed, this winter (Nov. 2017 – Apr. 2018) brought with it record low temps in CO, IA, IL, IN, MI, MN, NC, NY, OH, SD, VA, and WI. Even Mexico, Texas, Louisiana, Georgia, and Florida experienced snowfall, including some record levels. Philadelphia declared a snow emergency in March, and Wisconsin received 23 inches to 33 inches of snow in April!

Hence the practice of the perpetrators of this hoax is to say snow and record lows are a result of “weather” while the standard warm temperatures of summer are a result of “global warming.” Additionally, because of the nearly two decades of no warming, they’ve changed their vernacular from “global warming” to “climate change”.

The entire dogma of “climate change” is based upon computer models, not actual data. The models are based upon inputted variables selected by these advocates, which is the exact same process used in radiometric dating! Arbitrary variables are hand-picked to acquire desired dates in support of evolutionary timescales.

Last December, Earth Systems and Environment published that records in the National Oceanography Centre in Liverpool, England were tampered with to show accelerated rises in sea levels, when they are in fact stable. Last July, the Bureau of Meteorology in Australia underwent a review after it was caught tampering with climate numbers by erasing certain low temperatures. In February of 2015, The [UK] Telegraph revealed that climate data from three weather stations in South America had altered 60 years’ worth of records to make the 1950s appear colder and the 2000s warmer. In 2012, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) was caught manipulating data to make American temperatures show a warming trend since the 1930s instead of a cooling trend. Once exposed by The [UK] Telegraph and RealScience.com, NOAA reinstated the correct data. There was also the infamous “Climategate” scandal of 2009.

Again, the same exact thing is often done by perpetrators of the evolution and billions of years hoaxes. Many if not most of their dramatic claims have been withdrawn once peer reviewed by actual science. We should, therefore, never fear these people, nor doubt the authenticity of Genesis and the accuracy of Scripture. His Word stands true!

May we passionately know the Lord and His Word that we might “continue in the faith firmly established and steadfast, and not moved away from the hope of the Gospel that you have heard, which was proclaimed in all creation under heaven” (Colossians 1:23).

May Article

Mon, 28 May 2018 04:02:00 GMT

A paramount reason that all Biblical faith must be established on a Genesis-based, historical Creation event is because this is the only manner and foundation by which a valid sanction can be provided to the existence of an everlasting, omnipotent Creator whose Word is true and who has the power to establish an eternal plan of salvation for all peoples of the world. This requires a God who can call those things that are not as though they were, who can speak into existence a three-dimensional universe by His Word alone, who can declare the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done… (Isa. 46:10-11), and upon which, the impenetrable mystery of His Godhead is permanently founded.

All miracles, all prophecies, all promises of sacred Scripture are vouchsafed in the fact that Jesus is the God of all creation, and that because He is, His Word is forever true, a world without end! The Apostle Peter, in response to the queries regarding the healing of the lamb man (Acts 3 & 4), made this unmistakably clear by saying:

“Let it be known unto to you all, and to all the people of Israel, by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, by Him this man stands before you whole. This is the stone which was rejected by you builders, which has become the chief cornerstone. Neither is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:10-12, NKJV)

It is without debate that the greatest miracle God has ever performed is His condescension from the heavenlies to dwell in a fleshly body that He might become the only sacrifice for sins that God would accept. While it is remarkable that God created out of nothing, that he materialized His word into the space/mass universe, His most significant miracle was when He robed Himself in flesh and tolerated the brutality of wicked men that His children could taste the fruit of redemption. Paul said it this way:

“Without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached among the gentiles, believed on in the world, received up in glory.” (1 Timothy 3:16)

G. Thomas Sharp

What a Day

Sat, 19 May 2018 20:25:00 GMT

For most of us, the thought of the sun setting tonight or rising tomorrow morning is taken for granted. Our days and nights click off like clockwork without any input from us. When did this cycle begin in history? This question is asked often of me, especially in connection with the days of creation in Genesis 1. When we simply read the account in Genesis 1, the days are days like we understand them. Yet many people want to apply other opinions and worldviews to those days, for instance that one day in Genesis 1 is a 1000 years or that each day was an undetermined amount of time. This topic came up at a recent homeschool convention I attended when I was approached by a man that wanted to place the earth being created somewhere in time before day 1. There was much confusion in our discussion, mainly on my side, as to how we have time before day 1. Needless to say, he left flustered with my seemingly straight forward answer of “No, it was day 1 like the Bible says.” The only way one can see those first six days of history differently is by bringing in outside worldviews to the text.

First, we use context to help us interpret scripture. In the case of the word “day” in Genesis 1, there are identifiers that help us understand that those days are days. The identifier of the number one appears in the text on the first day. Everywhere else in the rest of the Old Testament when a number is attached to a day, it refers to it as we understand a day, as 24 hours. The other identifier attached to day 1 of history is “evening and morning” . Again, everywhere else in all of God’s Word when the words morning or evening are used in conjunction with the word day, it always references a 24-hour day. All of these identifiers are used on each of the first six days of history, so it is simple to say that contextually they are days.

Second, if we refer to other passages in scripture, they support the days of Genesis 1 occurring as normally understood days. Take for example Exodus 20:11; it states that the Lord made everything in “six days.” This passage was written by the Lord’s hand on stone as a portion of the ten commandments. If He stated that he took six days to create everything, why should we argue against Him?

Third, our day/night cycle is a covenantally controlled portion of time. In Jeremiah 33:19-21 the Lord tells Jeremiah to inform the people of a covenant. The covenant states that day and night are set for appointed times by the Lord. If this covenant of the day and night could be broken, then the covenant of Jesus Christ sitting on David’s throne would also be broken. This is not just a little discussion over whether a day is a day to the Lord. If day 1 of creation was not when this covenant was established (and there is no other scripture as to when the covenant was established), then we would be held accountable to a covenant that was never established. That is simply not the way the Lord God that I worship as my Creator and Savior operates. He is One of order and covenants that can be counted on by His authority and faithfulness.

This topic of the days in Genesis 1 is only an issue if and when someone believes “science”, aka evolutionary worldview, demands them to be anything other than what the plain text says they are. If we question those days, then it can be a slippery slope to identify with confidence any other days in scripture. Did it rain 40 days and nights, or 40,000 years during the flood? Jesus was in the tomb for 3 days, or some undetermined amount of time before He arose? This is a vital issue that touches the very heart of Scripture and whether we can trust what it says about history. If we can’t trust its history, then our faith in eternity will also be shaky. This is exactly what Satan wants us to believe – that our Creator has no authority over history or eternity. Don’t be fooled. Trust the Word of God because its history tells an account of life, everlasting.

“Why Would God…?”

Wed, 25 Apr 2018 22:02:00 GMT

I recently read a post supporting an evolutionary worldview because they could not believe in a God who would allow rape and child abuse.

This struck me as a profound deficiency of reason as the blogger by default of the post took the position that there is no solid foundation for ethics or morality. Their worldview is one that makes rape or abuse immoral only if we can get enough public support to deem them as such.

In direct contrast, a Biblical worldview holds to a loving, righteous, and perfectly moral and holy God who decries rape and abuse to the extent He has instituted governments for the purpose of executing judgement. His holy vengeance for such crimes even demands the death penalty! (Deut. 22:25)

The Law was revolutionary in that it protected the innocent and deemed all people of the greatest value and dignity because of the simple fact that they are precious creations of the Lord God.

An evolutionary worldview considers humanity a chemical/biological accident of random chance mutations. Morality and the value of an individual is completely up to public opinion polls. Hence CBS News’s 2017 report of Iceland killing nearly 100% of babies diagnosed with Down syndrome. (cbsnews.com/news/down-syndrome-iceland/)

How do you answer questions about pain and suffering? If you know the Book, then you know the answers. The key is God’s opening letter to us – the book of Genesis. It answers those questions through the accurate, historical account of Creation and Adam & Eve.

Here we see the greatest truth ever revealed – the desire of the Creator to have a relationship with His creation. But the definition of a relationship is a mutual involvement, dependence, and affinity for each other. It works both ways. If one controls the other’s decisions or takes away the ability to choose, then you do not have a relationship – you have a tyrant, a despot. The relationship is also devoid of love.

None of us want a relationship like that, for how does someone know you love them? You show it (i.e. you choose to). God created Adam & Eve with perfect minds and bodies, gave them a perfect place in which to live, and then said they could do anything they wanted; just go enjoy! That’s how God showed them His love. Out of appreciation, they in return wanted to show God their love. He made it so simple! They could eat of any tree in all the world, but if they wanted to show their love for Him, they would refrain from eating of just one tree.

Consequently, anytime someone has a choice, they can make a bad choice. The worst thing is the consequences may affect people other than yourself. This is why God instituted government, the Church, and family. The Church and family are to teach morality; the government is to bring judgement upon the violators.

If becoming a Christian meant an end to pain, suffering, and hardship, why then would people choose Christ? Out of love for the Creator and His gift of the Savior? No way. Becoming a Christian would simply be the premium on their non-suffering insurance. There is no love or relationship there.

Praise God for His sovereignty!
Praise Him that while we still choose to reject Him, He still offers Christ to restore our relationship! (Romans 5:8)
Praise Him that we DO NOT get what we deserve, but instead receive grace and eternal life! (Rom. 5:1-11)
Praise Him for comforting and strengthening us through hardships! (II Cor. 1:3-7)
Praise Him for working everything out for good (Rom. 8) and for the great rewards of an eternal relationship in Heaven! (Matt. 5:10-12)

Intelligence of Man

Wed, 25 Apr 2018 21:59:00 GMT

It plainly teaches in Genesis that man was made in the image of God, and that he was to have governing dominion over all the animals and the land of the earth. This would have, of course, demanded that must have been created with incredible intelligence. And this high-level intelligence must have left observable remnants in the world.

Moreover, if man rebelliously congregated in Babel sometime after the Genesis Flood (somewhat less than 4500 years ago), and God plainly told him to multiply and fill the earth, but he defiantly built a tower high into the heavens to establish his own religious system and deity, again, there must be some traceable evidence showing recognizable interrelatedness remaining in the world.

Of course, this is one of the reasons for evolutionary perpetuity—the billions of years tends to dissuade or discourage any legitimate research! In fact, evolutionary chronology is all about confounding, mystifying and bewildering…it is so far out of the reach of mortal man that most say, in effect, “whatever?”

Evolutionary predictions produce insoluble dead ends and unexpected anomalies, because it predicts man to be a product of animal evolution that had beginnings dominated by squeaks, grunts and growls from ignorant cave dwellers. Man, according to evolutionists, has only been man for about 200,000 years (wow, that’s a long time?). But when we examine this supposed historic record, we find many great surprises. Looking as far back as we can we see can historically conceive into man’s past, we observe unbelievable towers being built, man constructed empires being established, human language being spoken, cognizance of God through religion expressions, etc. It makes one consider the reality that the Bible speaks of all this.

Whether we look at the civilization associated with Seth (3874 B.C) that began animal husbandry and agriculture, or the sophistication of Jubal and Tubal-Cain that witnessed the beginning of music and metallurgy, or the rise of the Babylonian Empire, the Egyptians, the Greeks, the Chinese and the incredible forms associated with India, the building of the pyramids, the formation of the Egyptian alphabet, the Code of Hammurabi, Moses and the rise of Israel, etc., we unmistakably see the intelligent of man that could have only come from the Creator God of holy Scripture. To God is the Glory! (Psalms 8:3-9)

History Begins

Thu, 19 Apr 2018 20:21:00 GMT

History – a word that usually brings an eye roll or sigh, accompanied by a flash back to a class that you struggled through in school. Our worldview of history is greatly impacted by our experience in or with history. Our history teacher’s passion for history or our family’s emphasis on history can shape our worldview of past events. Those of you that had passionate, exciting history teachers who made history come alive and apply to your lives had a much different experience than I did growing up. For those like me, history is often seen as just dates and events that seem very disconnected from present reality. This worldview then can impact our view of Biblical history with questions such as: When does it begin in time? How accurate is it to “actual” history? Are Biblical accounts real-life events? Do I need to learn Biblical history to live a Christian life?

Throughout Scripture the Lord reminds us that we are to remember accounts in history. We find one of those times recorded in Deuteronomy 4:9-10 when Moses is instructed by the Lord to not forget what He had done for His people. His people were not only to never forget, but also to teach those things to their “children and to their children after them.” This is direct instruction to pass on historical events that shape our lives, and even more than that, the acknowledgement of the Lord’s direct influence in history, present and past. Passing them on to our children and beyond is the best way to assure we don’t forget past sins or Providence. History is not always pretty, but we should not forget those moments or events either. It seems in the last few years there has been a concerted effort to blot out portions of our American history that don’t agree with a person’s particular worldview. (I digress, that topic is for another article.) The Bible records even the sins in the history of His people. Biblical history is vital to our walk today; it shows us the plan the Lord has had since the beginning for our lives and time.

So, where does history begin in the Bible? The short answer is Genesis 1:1, “In the beginning…” The word for beginning is re’shiyth (rā·shēth’), which has several meanings ranging from the first in place, in time or in order and rank. In the context it is clearly referring to the first moments of time as the Lord created, or began, it. As time began ticking, the Lord set its expression in a manner that would impact the rest of creation. Time was set apart within eternity, controlled only by Him, and will exist for as long as He has set it to endure. In the perfection of creation, time and eternity were more interconnected or open. When sin entered the world, the relationship between time and eternity became more disconnected or opaque.

So often when we view history, it is divided into compartments that fit our worldview. We may have a compartment for ancient “prehistoric” time, one for ancient civilizations, one for Biblical history and one for modern history. Many times, this worldview comes from the way history has been taught to us or from what we have experienced through documentaries, books, movies, and museums – in other words, through other people’s worldviews. We, as believers, should always start our worldview of history with God’s Word, starting time and history in Genesis 1:1. All other “compartments” of history must be measured against the truth of the Scriptures. This places “prehistoric” times outside of reality, since history began in Genesis 1; biblically, there is no such thing as “before history”. All ancient civilizations’ history can be found within the Biblical framework of Genesis 11, with the separation of all people by language as the start of them. When we apply Biblical history as the cornerstone instead of the exception, all of history lines up and we see a clearer picture of the Lord’s plan throughout time.

If the beginning of Genesis is not actual history or placed in real time, then we lose focus of reality. We will lose definition for sin and death. When Genesis 1-3 is not seen as history but as an allegorical story, then we lose the focus of the Cross. If death was here on earth long before Adam & Eve’s sin, then the Cross is meaningless. History starting at the beginning is very important to our walk with Christ within eternity. These are things we should not forget and teach to our children, as they have eternal ramifications. Blessings to all of you and may the Lord guide your worldview through the history of His Word.

Christ’s Credibility

Thu, 22 Mar 2018 16:06:00 GMT

In Jeremiah 2:26-27, God says through His prophet, “26 As a thief is shamed when he is discovered, so the house of Israel is shamed; they, their kings, their princes and their priests and their prophets, 27 who say to a tree, ‘You are my father,’ and to a stone, ‘You gave me birth.’ For they have turned their back to Me, and not their face; but in the time of their trouble they will say, ‘Arise and save us.’”

The “priests and prophets” of our day [church leadership] who hold to any of the religious doctrines of evolution (including naturalism, transmutation of species, or millions of years) should be “shamed” for their rejection of God’s Word, for in doing so they attack the very deity of Jesus.
In Matthew 19:4-5, Jesus asks, “4 Have you not read that He who created them from the beginning MADE THEM MALE AND FEMALE, 5 and said ‘FOR THIS REASON A MAN SHALL LEAVE HIS FATHER AND MOTHER AND BE JOINED TO HIS WIFE, AND THE TWO SHALL BECOME ONE FLESH?’”

Here Jesus quotes Genesis 1:27 and 2:24 (also in Mark 10). He states as a fact that God made them male and female at “the beginning”. The beginning of what? Human evolution millions of years ago? That’s not what He said. Jesus confirms unequivocally a day six creation of the first man and woman, thereby annulling any possibility of a universe billions of years old.
Jesus also speaks of a literal, historical Abel in Luke 11:50-51, as well as a literal, historical Noah and global flood in Matthew 24:38-39.

In just three quotes, Jesus confirms the historical truths of Genesis 1-9. To deny Genesis as literal history is to not only deny Christ’s credibility, but the very deity of Jesus! It also denies the inspiration of the New Testament as Genesis 1-11 are referenced over 100 times! For example, Adam is mentioned by name 9 times, Eve 2 times, Cain 3 times, Abel 4 times, Seth 1 time, Enoch 3 times, Noah 8 times, and the Flood 4 times.

If Genesis is allegorical and not true, then the New Testament must also be allegorical and not true. After all, this was Charles Darwin’s conclusion.

Darwin wrote in his autobiography, “I had gradually come, by this time to see that the Old Testament, from its manifestly fake history of the world…was no more to be trusted than the sacred books of the Hindus, or the beliefs of any barbarian.” He therefore concluded, “I can indeed hardly see how anyone ought to wish Christianity to be true, for it is so plain the language of the text [New Testament] seems to show that the men who do not believe…will be everlastingly punished” (Autobiography, NY 1969 ed. p. 87).

Rather than follow the wisdom of men, may we and the leaders of our churches heed the words of our Creator, “But the LORD is the true God; He is the living God and the everlasting King…It is He who made the earth by His power, who established the world by His wisdom” (Jeremiah 10:10,12).

Genesis 1:1 is Mandatory to the Rest of the Bible

Thu, 22 Mar 2018 16:02:00 GMT

In the creation/evolution debate, we must be aware that neither side can demonstrate their position in a pure scientific manner, and because this is the true nature of the dispute, the only evidence that either side can offer is circumstantial. I have said this in other articles but because of the misunderstanding of many on both sides of this debate, I feel it must be repeated.

It would be wonderful if either disputant (creationist or evolutionist) could take us into a laboratory and demonstrate their point of view before our eyes. However, this is beyond the purview of scientific processes. The reason both sides of this ideological war strongly embrace their belief system is because every other aspect of the faith depends on the accuracy of their view of origins (this idea needs further expansion).

In the first place, for the Bible believer Genesis 1:1, i.e., (“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”) is mandatory to the rest of the Bible. Without this passage, the Bible has no foundation, the Gospel has no chance, eternity in Heaven is just a cruel joke. The Psalmist told us a long time ago that if the foundations are destroyed the righteous are in an unspeakable dilemma.

Why is this true? Because the authority and power to create the universe, with everything in it, requires all power in Heaven and earth—an idea that baffles science to this very day. The ability to call those things which are not as though they are (Romans 4:17), and the wisdom to frame the worlds by the force of your word, so that all things, from the microscopic to the macroscopic, are instantly produced on the earth, above the earth and under the earth, is far beyond anything understood by the scientific community past, present or future (Hebrews 11:3).

A second fact that requires this to be true, and one that is immeasurably more important that anything in the physical universe, is the miraculous nature of the redemption of the human soul. Biblically speaking, Jesus had to be the Creator for Him to legitimately be the Savior! The only one in time or eternity that could effectuate the reconciliation of man to God was God Himself! It required the shedding of blood, and any old blood would never do! Not the blood of bulls and goats, not my blood or yours—it had to be special blood to satisfy the divine requisite of a holy God…blood that speaks better things that the blood of Abel. (Hebrews 12:24)

What can wash away my sins? Nothing but the blood of Jesus!

Light Without Excuse

Mon, 19 Mar 2018 20:18:00 GMT

Last month we had examined the verse from Romans 1:20 which states two invisible qualities of our Lord are clearly seen from things created at the beginning. I wrote of our existence having been created and modeled after our Creator’s divine nature. This month let’s examine the other quality, eternal power, shown to us so, as the Apostle Paul states, “men are without excuse.”

On day one of history, following the creation of our existence of space, mass and time, the Lord created “light.” When we were young, many of us pictured the greatest light we know, the Sun, as this created light of day 1. Yet close examination of the text reveals that assumption to be incorrect. The Sun was not created until day 4 as the “greater light.” So, if this light is not the Sun, then we must look to the Word of God for clues of interpretation.

This light is the first light, or power, shown in creation. It is a dividing entity with distinction from darkness. Within creation, our understanding of energy, power or light is just such an entity. Light is a powerful element which impacts our daily lives, many times without recognition. Our understanding of light is shown in the electromagnetic spectrum by it’s many measurable wavelengths. On one end of the spectrum are the longer light waves, waves used daily as we listen to our favorite radio station. Next come those light waves that help us communicate on our cell phones and cook our food – microwaves. A tad shorter light wave is used to operate our remote devices, no longer with the aid of our children’s legs. Since all of our televisions have remote controls utilizing light waves created on day 1, there is no need to have our kids run across the room and manually turn a dial. Can I get an “Amen”?! Then there is a portion of the light spectrum that our eyes utilize every waking moment – visual light. These light waves range in length from longer red to shorter violet and include every other wavelength in between, making all the visual colors we see. The light waves just shorter than our vision’s ability to see, known as UV light, impact our daily lives as well in the effect we feel in heat and the burning of our skin by the sun. Shorter still, other light waves created on day 1 have been discovered and mastered in MRI examination machines. These light waves are short enough to pass through certain matter and return an image that we use to diagnose cancer and other ailments. The shortest light waves created (that we understand now) give us power and, quite possibly, deter another world war – gamma light waves. When we hear “gamma waves”, we often think first of the Hulk, yet in reality we utilize them daily in our power grid and nuclear powered military (submarines, carriers, warheads, etc.).

The Lord created “light” on day 1, and I see Romans 1 connecting His eternal power to this element. Throughout scripture the Lord is described as light or in connection with light. Satan, in contradistinction, “disguises” himself as an “angel of light”, attempting to be what he IS NOT. It becomes clearly seen that day 1 light is a manifestation of the Lord’s eternal power and Glory. When He spoke light into existence, He made a distinction between light and dark that only He controls and governs. In eternity we will see this power and Glory in perfection again as John records in Revelation 22:5, “ …They need no lamp nor light of the sun, for the Lord God gives them light… ”. I believe Day 1 light was very much His eternal power touching every aspect of existence and providing a building block for many things still to be created in the following days of that first week. The Lord’s light is eternal and right, with a promise to place that power within each believer. We are not of the dark, but of the light.

We here at CTF praise the Lord for His mighty eternal power that we can clearly see from things He made at the beginning. As we travel proclaiming these truths, it is forever exhilarating to see God’s Word come alive in new ways to a believer for the first time in their life. A pastor recently expressed to me the impact the truth I’ve shared in this article has had on his life. He has been in ministry many years and had never made those connections concerning light. This ministry is filling a vital role in sharing the Lord’s Word in a culture that deeply needs His Light. Thank you for your faithful support each and every month.

Contend For The Faith!

Wed, 21 Feb 2018 22:10:00 GMT

In II Kings 11 and II Chronicles 22, we read of the daring rescue of Joash from the murderous plot of Athaliah to kill all of David’s descendants, effectively ending the Messianic lineage. Joash is then raised by Jehosheba and her husband Jehoiada. As the high priest, Jehoiada trained Joash in the ways of the Lord. In the following chapters, Joash is named king of Judah at age 6, and he begins a restoration of the temple as he attempts to bring God’s people back to a faithful walk with Him.

Tragically, after Jehoiada died, “ the officials of Judah came and bowed down to the king, and the king listened to them ” (II Chron. 24:17). These men brought their worldly wisdom to King Joash, who chose to accept it over the Word of God. Dire consequences soon followed. “ They abandoned the house of the LORD, the God of their fathers, and served the Asherim and the idols ” (II Chron. 24:18).

When one begins to trade the wisdom of God for the wisdom of man, it may not be long until there is a tragic loss of a precious soul. This is why Dr. Sharp founded Creation Truth Foundation in 1989. Seeing the disturbing trend of nearly 3 in 4 Christian young people leaving the faith, Dr. Sharp sought to minister in a way that would reestablish in the hearts and minds of Christians the essential foundations of the faith.

Taking to heart Jude 3, CTF’s mission is to show forth the infallible accuracy and trustworthiness of the Bible. Jude 3 states, “ Beloved, although I was very eager to write to you about our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you, exhorting you to earnestly contend for the faith which was once for all delivered unto the saints .”

In the Greek, it says to earnestly contend for the “ once for all having been delivered to the saints faith .” This faith is “once for all” ( hapax ), meaning it is final, universal, definite, and without any additional revelation to come. No other “faith” will be given. It has been “delivered” ( paradotheisē ), meaning personally handed over or given to be safely kept, managed, and used.

THAT faith is THE faith we are to “earnestly contend for” ( e pagōnizesthai ), that is to exert oneself as an athlete to the point of agony in the effort to win the contest. With such intense effort are we as Christians to defend the whole Word of God. As Dr. Sharp wrote, “The idea is that God gave Christians…a final deposit of truth to be defended, to be cherished, and not to be abused.”

Unlike Joash, we need to defend against the wisdom of the world that teaches a false doctrine of origins with billions of years of evolution, defaming the Creator God and His Word. Rather, as Paul exhorted Timothy, “ guard the deposit entrusted to you, avoiding irreverent chatter and the opposing arguments of so-called ‘knowledge,’ which some have professed and thus gone astray from the faith. Grace be with you all ” (I Tim. 6:21).

Naturalistic “Clock”

Wed, 21 Feb 2018 22:04:00 GMT

Since the fall of 1989 (the founding of CTF), the parameters of the Creation/Evolution debate has changed somewhat or at least the emphasis has transitioned. Rather than emphasizing the entire disparity between the disputants in this conflict, (and please understand the entire scope of the debate is still hotly contested, nothing even remotely associated with Biblical history can be allowed in a secular discussion about origins—and thus its alleviation from state education), so that today the focus is on the age of the universe (especially the earth), and whether there was a global flood approximately 4,358 years ago as recorded in Genesis 7 and 8.

The reason for this change in emphasis is simply due to the fact that evolutionists believe that these particular issues are easier for them to prove, and thus gives them a leg up in their attempt to reduce Biblical history to ancient Jewish myth.

However in the last 50 to 75 years or so there has entered into this dispute a naturalistic “tour de force” with the ultimate motive to completely slam the door on any further creationist resistance. This so-called evolutionary “goliath” was advanced in an attempt at the development of an exclusionary reality that would quickly alleviate all Biblical rejection of “evolutionary deep time,” which is the bottom line purpose for radiometric dating in the first place. So I want to spend a few minutes on this topic and ask one salient question concerning the ultimate radiometric mechanism that is popularly known as Carbon 14 dating: Is there a dependable naturalistic “clock” that can tell real time?

In the first place, Jesus tells us in Mark 10:4 and Matthew 19:4 that “ from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female ” signifying that man was created as a man, not an ape, from the beginning. Ken Ham says that this passage only makes sense with the creation week being just thousands of years ago. (Ham, The Answers Book , p. 75) I agree!

Drs. Henry Morris and Gary Parker wrote in their book, What is Creation Science? , 17 ^th printing 1999, p. 14, that “…the radiocarbon method is now known to be so unreliable that many archaeologists have abandoned it altogether.” In fact Professor Robert E. Lee wrote in the Anthropological Journal of Canada , 1981, p. 9, “The troubles of the radiocarbon dating method are undeniably deep and serious…It should be no surprise, then, that fully half of the dates are rejected. The wonder is, surely, that the remaining half come to be accepted.” Furthermore, evolutionist, William Stanfield said, “It is obvious that radiometric techniques may not be the absolute dating methods that they are claimed to be. Age estimates on a given geological stratum by different radiometric methods are often quite different (sometimes by hundreds of millions of years.) There is no long-term radiological clock” (William Stanfield, The Science of Evolution , NY: Macmillian, 1977, p. 84). The only eye-witness to the creation of the universe was the Creator Himself and He told us of its historical time, if we will believe Him!

Existence from Divine Nature

Mon, 19 Feb 2018 21:15:00 GMT

Our existence is one that many people have spent their lives researching, trying to answer the questions of where did we come from, who we are, why are we here, and where are we going. When we boil it all down to our physical existence, we are left with basic elements: space, mass, time and energy. Those with an evolutionary worldview will argue that these elements have always been here since the Big Bang or, at the very least, present in the singularity that started it all. Yet there is not one shred of evidence for that to be the case outside of their belief or, dare I say, faith . Once again, when exploring our origin, we can and should look to the first-hand account in Genesis that has clues about our existence from the beginning.

We should expect the observable reality to show support for the Genesis account. Genesis 1:1 states that “In the beginning” God created from nothing both the “heavens and the earth”. This verse has been memorized by a large number of believers, many from an early age, but we rarely really examine it for everything the Lord is telling us. In the first verse of His Word, I believe He is telling us more than He is “just” our Creator – He is establishing the elements of our existence. Three words in the first verse of all of scripture very much describe the basic elements of our existence. “Beginning” is the word for first time, or the start of time. “Heavens” is the word for air or space. “Earth” is the word for elements or matter. The most basic elements is what the Lord began with first. Should we expect anything different? Some may say “those elements were exactly what the Big Bang starts with”, yet in the BB model they are present all by themselves without cause. Spontaneous generation, of which this is a form, has been scientifically shown over and over again to be false. On the other hand, here the Lord clearly states He “created” them as our first cause.

Why is this discussion so important? Because the Lord reveals a truth about the first day of creation through the apostle Paul in Romans 1:20. Paul writes that God’s invisible attributes, or qualities, are clearly seen through what He made in the beginning. Those two qualities that we clearly see are His divine nature, or Godhead, and His eternal power. One might wonder how these “invisible” qualities are “clearly seen” as it looks a little oxymoronic at first glance. But, if we look back to the beginning in Genesis 1 on the first day of history, it is clearly seen. He created our basic elements of existence patterned after His nature: Father, Son and Spirit. When He created time, it was a first in eternity, a creation which is only understood through our Eternal Father. He is the I Am, who was and is and is to come with no beginning and no end. Only He can hold time or govern it. He, and only He, knows when time will cease and only eternity remains. Then, when He created matter it had all the right elements for His existence as the Son in the flesh. Jesus Christ is fully God and fully man, or matter. He made matter knowing from the beginning that the end of His sacrificial body of matter would be on the cross to pay the wage of sin, death. Yet, He physically rose from the dead to give the precious gift of life. The third part of His initial creation, space, is clearly distinct from time and matter, yet is connected to and impacted by both. When we are saved, the Spirit fills our inmost space that was designed to be filled only by Him. He is our Counselor and Comforter who has made a home in our emptiness of matter and flesh.

The most unique and awesome aspect of all of this is that we only worship one God, not three. This aspect is one of many that separates Christianity from other religions around the world. The Word of God is so very clear on this point, as much as we sometimes have a difficult time understanding how three are one. This last aspect is also reflected in day 1 creation as we exist in a uni verse made of space, mass, and time – one made of three. They work together so seamlessly that we almost never see each distinctive element. It is impossible to separate them or even understand one without the others. They are only understood together as they work in a continuum. The basic elements of existence mirror their Creator so we may clearly see His divine nature and be without excuse to worship Him.

Thank you so much for allowing me to share the Word of God today. In all things we must seek to know the Creator first, as He is our Savior. We at CTF have been called to the task of training believers so that they will not forget those important aspects that were written in the Word of God for us to know our Creator. We appreciate, more than we can express in words, your prayerful and monthly support of this ministry. Your prayers on a regular basis is one of our greatest needs. Blessings to all of you.

But You Did Not Learn Christ In This Way

Thu, 01 Feb 2018 22:55:00 GMT

II Corinthians 4:4 says, “in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the Gospel of the glory of Christ”.

The world celebrates when it blocks out the light of the Gospel of the glory of Christ by the blinding of minds with their religious dogma. Meanwhile, as Matt wrote in his article, in some churches the light of the Gospel is dimmed as the perfectly recorded historical accounts of the Bible are perceived or even treated as fairy tales.

An article written last July by Tom Krattenmaker of Yale Divinity School for the USA Today says, “It’s endlessly frustrating to secular and religious liberals, but the creationist view has held strong sway in this country… Over recent decades, percentages in the upper 40s have taken the creationist position; the figure stood at 46 percent in Gallup’s 2012 survey [now 39%]… As the new poll reveals, the biggest factor in the shift is a jump in the number of Christians who are reconciling faith and evolution… Not surprising, the percentage of Americans taking the strict evolution view — no divine role — has grown significantly since the 1980s, from 9 percent to 19 percent in the latest Gallup survey.”

NOTICE WHAT THE ULTIMATE RESULT IS!!! The article is about celebrating how more and more Christians are turning to evolution and the wisdom of unbelieving men instead of Genesis/the Bible for their answers, and says that’s a good thing. But then the author couldn’t help himself but state how the growing number of atheists is also growing at the same time! Coincidence?!?!?! NO! Why? Because James 3:15 says, “This wisdom is not that which comes down from above, but is earthly [not from God], natural [evolutionary naturalism], demonic [the primary author of evolutionary wisdom is Satan].”

Paul says in Ephesians 4:20, “But you did not learn Christ in this way” . You cannot learn about Christ in the ways and teachings of the world. They are diametrically and fundamentally opposites of and opposed to each other. One cannot walk in both the wisdom of the world and of Christ, for Jesus said in Matthew 12:30 and Luke 11:23, “He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me scatters.”

Paul further wrote in Ephesians 4:21-24, “truth is in Jesus, that, in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit, and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.”

The choice is for each and every one of us to make is to either follow God or follow man. Creation Truth Foundation takes its stand upon the truth of Jesus Christ and His Word, training disciples to trust the Bible’s history for its accuracy so they will trust its promise for their destiny.

II Corinthians 4:1-2, “Therefore, since we have this ministry, as we received mercy, we do not lose heart, but we have renounced the things hidden because of shame, not walking in craftiness or adulterating the Word of God, but by the manifestation of truth commending ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God.”

Nothing New Under the Sun

Thu, 01 Feb 2018 22:42:00 GMT

Man’s achievements and accomplishments may be exciting, innovative and interesting, but Solomon makes it clear that, “The thing that hath been, is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is nothing new under the Sun.” (Eccl. 1:9)

This declaration provides explanation for a number of apparent mysteries in space/time, but none is greater or more significant than the comments of Satan in the Garden. Remember he temptingly questioned Eve, “… did God actually say, You shall not eat of every tree in the garden? ’ (moreover, he euphemized) … “You shall not surely die.” (Genesis 3:1b, 4b; ESV)

Well, of course, God told Adam that they could eat of the all the fruit of the Garden, except from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil… But He added to this one unmistakably important caveat, “… in the day you eat of it (this tree), you will surely die.” (Genesis 2:16-17) Interestingly, the margin says, “dying you will die!”

The Creator has given man the ability to invent, discover, construct, educate, etc., but He did not allocate to him a provision or the ability to eradicate his sinfulness, and to regain his peace and fellowship with God except in, by, and through the “blood of Jesus Christ” , ( “…that speaks better things than the blood of Abel …” Hebrews 12:24) because, Paul explains, “… without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sins.” (Hebrews 9:22) This fact is no better illustrated than God’s action in recovering Adam and Eve’s fallen state, by sacrificing animals and using their skins as a covering for their “nakedness!”

Quite possibly my favorite hymn says this:

“What can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood of Jesus, What can make me whole again? Nothing but the blood of Jesus. Oh, precious is the flow that makes me white as snow, no other fount I know, nothing but the blood of Jesus!”

G. Thomas Sharp

No Fairy Tales

Fri, 19 Jan 2018 21:06:00 GMT

Once upon a time in a far away land lived… Those words signal our worldview that a fairy tale is about to begin. No matter how old you are, we have all learned from an early age that “once upon a time” starts a journey through fictional lands, experiences, and characters. Sometimes there is some semblance of reality that teaches a moral or favorable character trait. These fairy tales are not historical but rather come from a place in the author’s imagination.

While shopping at a Christian bookstore recently, my wife texted me a picture of a Bible for sale. To my utter shock I observed the picture you see here. It seems to me that the publishers have just destroyed credibility for the Bible in the child’s worldview as historically accurate or real. At the very least, the publisher has just placed the Words of God on an even playing field with other works of literature. Either one of those possibilities are very dangerous in training your children to trust the Lord as the source of Truth.

Please take special note of the tag line at the bottom of the front cover. “The Bible is not a fairy tale. Every great story happened once upon a time.” Again, I appeal to the obvious problem with the main title. If you have to tell us that it is not a fairy tale, then why start our minds down that road from the beginning? Would it be acceptable for us to title the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, “Abracadabra, Open Sesame”? ABSOLUTELY NOT! Why? Because in our worldview those words are attached to magic illusions and not reality. One would most likely have to place a tagline that says, “The resurrection is not an illusion. But every great disappearance follows those words.” If those words were connected to the resurrection, it should bring outrage. At least I pray that it would, especially in those of us that know our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and the power through the glorious resurrection. It is by that power that we have life over death, for ETERNITY. Praise be our Savior alone!

Many of those that do not know the truth view the Bible as a fairy tale already. Please take to heart the following quote from a blogger on ExChristian.net: “These stories are all scientifically impossible and are so far fetched that only ignorant, primitive desert tribesmen, uneducated children, and the thoroughly brainwashed could take them seriously…Clearly the Bible is merely a collection of fairy tales and should be catalogued and shelved with the fiction section of the library.” 1 As much as this is not the sentiment of most unbelievers, it is representative of all atheists. Notice the appeal to “science” as a measuring stick for fairy tale or not. This is exactly how the Bible was portrayed during a lecture by well-known atheist Richard Dawkins at the University of Oklahoma a few years ago. The event sponsored by the campus atheist club packed the field house with attendees from college students to families with small children. Everyone was “treated” to a night of Bible- and Christianity-bashing, as if it were all a deluded fairy tale.

Here at CTF we revere the Bible for what it is – the very Word of God. Each and every time the Lord provides us an opportunity to preach or teach, we strive to reinforce the reality that the Word of God is accurate and not a story or fairy tale. We will always stand on the Bible and drive home the importance that if Genesis is not properly read, then worldviews will be impacted incorrectly for the rest of scripture. As always, please keep us in yours prayers.

1 Sage, W. (2009, March 09). The Fairytale Bible [Web log post]. Retrieved January 18, 2018, from http://articles.exchristian.net/2009/03/fairytale-bible.html

Thankful

Sun, 19 Nov 2017 21:02:00 GMT

We give thanks as more than a once-a-year remembrance, but here we are at the season once again where it is celebrated as a holiday. As I begin reflecting back, I am the first to admit great thanks for much in my family and ministry. Theresa and I began this year celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary, and we look forward to many more with the Lord’s continued provision. I am so thankful for her devotion to the Lord and the truly great helpmate she has been to me over all the years of life and ministry. The Lord blessed me with a special woman 25 years ago. He also blessed me through the devotion of my parents as they celebrated 50 years of marriage this month. I am so thankful for this in these times when marriages are under attack in so many ways. The faithfulness and commitment they have shown each other is becoming harder to find each year, it seems.

For the call to ministry which the Lord put on my life many years ago I am thankful. It is overwhelming at times when I consider the lives impacted this year through the many avenues this ministry functions. From students at camp this summer who connected for the first time the Truth of God’s Word about His creator-ship to their Savior, to the grandmothers and grandfathers that weep for their lost children and grandchildren they so desperately want to hear this ministry’s message, to the believer that has come back to Christ and struggles with the literal reading of the historical record of Genesis but is thankful for our “intellectually reasonable” teachings that are challenging his worldview – for these people and many more I give thanks to the Lord, and for the opportunity and responsibility to teach the Word of God to which I am called.

And for the many supporters, present and past, I am also very thankful. Without the Lord’s provision through you we cannot deliver this message. Without you giving financial support to this ministry month after month and year after year, we don’t reach those students, mothers, fathers, grandparents, believers and unbelievers with the Truth. I urge you to give thanks with me for all of these opportunities. Looking forward to next year, we are not slowing down or letting up in our call. Summer is already mostly booked, with spring and fall coming together with opportunities to go to some new places that have not heard our message. We praise the Lord and give thanks ahead for next year.

And now, would you consider your part in our Kingdom work? We are short financially on our monthly need going into next year, so we need you to prayerfully consider how the Lord would use you. If in prayer, please pray for us unceasingly. If you are led to join with us financially (or change your support amount), there are a couple of new ways to give: auto monthly debit/credit card transactions or PayPal account giving. So whether you are already a regular supporter, past supporter, or a new supporter, we are thankful for your prayers and gifts each and every month.

“Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name. But do not forget to do good and to share, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.” Hebrews 13:15-16

Be thankful this season, not only with our lips but also in deed and gifts. To Him we give all we have, since He gave all for us. Thank you, Lord Jesus Christ!

Encouraged, Even Without Annual Banquet

Thu, 19 Oct 2017 19:57:00 GMT

Here we are, approaching November already, and many of you may be wondering about our Annual CTF Banquet. Originally, we began the banquet as a time for us to gather our supporters for an evening and love on them. It also was a time for us to share all the Lord had done through the year in this ministry. In the last few years, only a handful of you were able to make it to the banquets. This meant the majority of our support base missed the blessing of encouragement we so deeply desired to share with you. It is imperative that we show our supporters how much we appreciate the gifts to our ministry and ultimately to the Lord’s work through us. So this year, with the budget extremely tight, we chose to share our year in ministry a different way. Dr. Sharp and I are making a year-end video that each of you, our supporters, may view at your own convenience. It will allow Doc and I to express our deep thanks and vision for the coming years with every supporter, not just those able to make it to a banquet. We still desire the one-on-one time with our supporters that the banquet made possible, so we would love to schedule a meal together if you’d like; please just contact us. Please know we are always striving to be the best stewards of your precious gifts, whether that be a dollar or more. The Lord has given us another very profitable year for the Kingdom as we battle the onslaught of pagan worldviews. Here at CTF, the profit is not based in dollars and cents but in lives impacted for eternity by His Word. As you will see in our coming video, the Lord is driving us forward in this battle with no end in sight, but with the Hope of His Glory!

Total Eclipse…Total Design

Tue, 19 Sep 2017 19:52:00 GMT

Last month, the country was enamored with the rare total solar eclipse. The event was commercialized to the hilt with the sale of glasses, t-shirts, and anything else you could think of to sell. The political arena was also not immune to taking advantage of the opportunity in equating the prediction of an eclipse as proof for climate change predictions. Even the flat-earthers used it to put forth an argument that the solar eclipse somehow put the nail in the coffin for us round-earthers. People everywhere seemed to use it to further their causes. I have had this event on the calendar for quite a few years with great anticipation of viewing my first total solar eclipse. My eagerness for this event was to see my Creator’s power and Glory on display through His magnificent creation.

Just over 6000 years ago, the Lord created the greater light and the lesser light on the fourth day of history. He had already separated light from dark and established our day/night cycle on day 1 by His Glory. Then on day 4 the greater light was made to govern the light portion of a day for as long as the earth endures. The lesser light was made to give light during the night portion of a day. Beginning the day the sun and moon were made, there started a purposeful dance through the heavens allowing the occasional alignment from our point of view that makes the eclipse. From Earth, the moon and the sun appear to be the same size because of the precise design involved with size and distances of these great objects. The greater light’s size at 872,000 miles across at a distance of 93 million miles from Earth gives us the sun’s apparent size in the sky. The lesser light’s size of 2,100 miles across at a distance of 250,000 miles from Earth gives us the moon’s apparent size in the sky. Then, because of our orbit around the sun and the moon’s orbit around us, we experience wonderful total solar eclipses like the one on August 21.

Bob and I traveled to Nebo, KY for clear weather and good viewing of the eclipse. The Lord blessed us with about one minute and forty-five seconds of totality. Any words that I could write would do no justice to the event. I had planned on recording the sun’s corona with our ministry’s telescope and camera. However, with no way to practice the event ahead of time, it proved more difficult than anticipated. Bob was able to capture the still shots you see in this newsletter. Our take-away from the event was the tangible experience of seeing that the Lord’s creation shows His amazing power and glory through things He made in the beginning, just as Paul stated in Romans 1:20.

I am so thankful for the tools we have that give us the opportunity to go to churches and share the many aspects of Day 4 in history. Icing on the cake is for me be to be able to set up our telescope to see many objects live in color on a screen for all to see. If you have not yet had the opportunity to share in this, you can call Bob at the office and get on our schedule.

God Bless.

Praise for a Ministry Tool

Sat, 19 Aug 2017 19:49:00 GMT

This month, I am highlighting an important tool in our ministry for which we are extremely grateful. As many of you know and remember, back in March our 2008 Ford F-550’s engine failed. This was our primary hauling machine for our Mobile Museum of Earth History. It was a great blow to our ministry in more ways than one. Our mission is to share the truth of God’s Word with an emphasis on Genesis and the accuracy of that historical record. Dinosaurs play a huge role in our worldview of history and, without a truck to haul our museum from place to place, our mission of impacting lives with the Truth took a hit. We sought the Lord to provide us a newer truck that would allow us to continue our mission with little to no down time, unable to see how this was going to be possible as our ministry has been sustained month to month and paycheck to paycheck for most of the year. The Lord was faithful once again, providing a truck (2015 Ford F-350) for a really fair price that fit all of our needs. It was used, but only slightly, with 18,000 miles and more bells and whistles than were needed and, I mention again, for less money than most others with only standard features. Our physical need had been met; then we turned to the financial side of the need. All glory to God, more than three quarters of the truck was paid off in the first month. Since May we have been paying off the remainder of the balance as we have been able. As I write this article, our remaining need is only $2000. This ministry tool has been serving us above and beyond, without issue and better than we had expected, for more than four months now. Please help us finish paying off this truck in the next month with a special gift. With the Lord’s help, we expect this truck to serve us many years to come in taking our mission forward and breaking down the strongholds of “prehistoric” history in people’s worldviews. Our praises for His faithfulness are overwhelming as we see His hand work in our lives and in those we minister to week after week.

Camp Still Impacting Lives

Wed, 19 Jul 2017 19:46:00 GMT

June is usually camp season for us here at CTF and this year was no different. We ended May with Genesis Week at Oil Belt Christian Service Camp in Flora, IL. This was our fourth year to partner with this camp and guide junior and senior high youth in their worldview development through Genesis. Having completed our 3 year rotation last summer, this year we started over again with Genesis 1. It has been great to see the growth in many of the campers that have been with us since the beginning of this outstanding camp. We study a little more than other camps and have the opportunity to do a field trip each year. This year we went to the St. Louis Zoo and studied created “kinds” of creatures. Our work through this camp is impacting lives of future generations as we are able to drive a Biblical worldview home summer after summer.

CTF was also the mission for the entire month of camp at Flaming Spirit Christian Camp in Oregon, MO. Each week we had the opportunity to teach Biblical worldview to campers. I was unable to attend all of the weeks, but the Lord provided great friends of the ministry to fill in when I was absent. Ryan Cox (11 ^th Cadre) and his family went to Sr. High week in my stead. It was Ryan and I who started Genesis Week in Illinois, so I knew this camp was in good hands. Not only does Ryan understand the importance of our ministry, but he has a great handle on the material we are called to preach and teach. I received outstanding reports from faculty and students alike about how well he (and his family) represented CTF in their presence and teaching times. I am personally very grateful to Ryan and Amanda for their passion and heart for this ministry. Rich Atkins (9 ^th Cadre) and Jim Brown (7 ^th Cadre) filled in at Junior week of camp with great response from campers and faculty as well. These men also understand the importance of our ministry and were able to drive that point home to the campers, impacting their worldviews. I attended the remaining four camps and took on the task of helping campers understand that the Bible’s history is accurate. The theme for all camps was “Suit Up” with the armor of God, which begins with the Belt of Truth. Helping the campers see that Genesis is truth helps them understand the importance of the first piece of armor the Lord provides.

It was a great camp season with numerous students’ worldviews impacted for the Gospel by studying Genesis. There were over 35 campers that gave their lives to Christ, with many sharing the importance of our studies in seeing the truth in the Bible beginning in Genesis. I praise the Lord each month for the faithful supporters of this ministry who continue to send us prayer and financial support. That support is not going to waste as we utilize it to impact lives for Christ. Thank you.

Know Our Mission

Mon, 19 Jun 2017 19:40:00 GMT

Recently I received an email from a follower in Great Britain advising us on what we should be teaching and preaching. It is always interesting to me when we get emails like these with...

A Diploma Doesn’t Mean Done

Fri, 19 May 2017 19:35:00 GMT

As graduation season is upon us, we celebrate those close to us that have reached a milestone in their lives. They have completed all requirements to accept the diploma or degree they have worked so hard for over the last few years. The study was intense at times, with moments of doubt, possibly wondering if they could do it. It’s such a great moment when all the work has paid off and the congratulations are passed out for a job well done. However, this does not mean they are completely done learning, but only ready for the next journey in life.

This is similar to the battle for your worldview. The Lord calls each of us to renew our mind with His (Romans 12:2). This is a process that may take some time and hard work. To actually receive a Biblical worldview, it takes great study of His Word in an effort to replace our worldview with His. It will be harder at times when truths from the Word fly in the face of present culture or “scientific” thought. There will be moments of doubt when Satan tries his best to draw you away from the Truth. He will try to discourage you through slick sounding arguments and seemingly obvious evidence that the Bible is not telling the truth. Yet, when one’s worldview foundation is established on His Word with great work and devotion, a moment will come when it will pay off, when that foundation stands in the midst of a great battle for truth – in a battle that might lead a weaker foundation to crumble and fall away.

I would continue to argue that an ongoing study of Genesis is just the hard work needed to establish that firm foundation that will not crumble. As a degree or diploma does not mean you have learned all that there is to know, so it’s true of a Biblical worldview and its completion. This is a life-long accomplishment with the Word of God guiding and directing your worldview daily. This battle will never cease until He returns, so our study, devotion and desire to grow more like the One who has saved us shall never cease either.

“Science” Blindness

Wed, 19 Apr 2017 19:30:00 GMT

Spring of 2017 has been very profitable for the Kingdom. As I have traveled to Texas, Kansas, and Iowa, the Lord has used the message of Truth from His Word to impact lives, along with our Mobile Museum of Earth History, set up for all to observe His mighty creative power through some truly great creatures. All the miles are worth it when someone expresses that our ministry has impacted their view of Scripture and history. Often youth get answers to their questions about dinosaurs in light of Biblical history, but we also have those grandma and grandpas that share a great gratitude to finally have answers for questions they have had since they were young. To have them see a new light and the power of Scripture and, in turn, excitement for their Savior because of our ministry is deeply encouraging.

Every so often we come across someone that is more deeply ensconced in evolutionary science and has a hard time getting past their belief. They are professing believers, yet they hold to a belief in evolutionary processes or, at the least, the long time frame. Their intellect and knowledge of “science” impacts them to a point that hinders an open heart and mind to Truth. Most of these people, when asked for specifics in science that prove it can’t possibly have happened the way the Lord told us He created it, will give very well-meaning science answers. The majority of answers have data behind them, but they are being interpreted through the lens of an evolutionary worldview. The struggle for me is when you know someone has this worldview and will not even be open to a differing worldview. When they are parents of youth who are developing a worldview and their thoughts are skewed about Biblical truth, it is very discouraging. This was the case on a recent trip – they were present for the message Sunday morning, yet never came back the rest of the week. My struggle is to hear of this family and know they are seeking truth from science, yet they will not allow the Lord to share truth in their lives from His Word. I pray continually that the Lord will use me to reach those people that truly are seeking truth. When we start with the Truth of God’s Word and then do science, the answers always match up. We do not have to be afraid of science (observe, test, repeat, and falsify); the Lord has used many Bible-believing creationists to reveal many of His mighty works of creation.

This battle for worldview will continue until He returns. I am continually encouraged by those that come to hear His message of Truth and are changed because of it, but I also pray for those that will not hear this message and continue to be blinded by evolutionary science as if it were true.

Christ, the One & Only

Sun, 19 Mar 2017 19:22:00 GMT

Recently while I was eating with a pastor, a young lady came up to us and we began conversing about this and that. Upon some inquiry she claimed to be a Christian, yet she doesn’t go to church. Pastor asked her why and she explained in her view that God is bigger than a certain church. She felt so many churches try to get you into their box and that God is bigger than one church denomination. Actually, she alluded to the fact that all religions probably worship the same God. Sadly, she is not alone in this sentiment. We come across this view of the church and God quite often in our travels. The problem is that she sees God as non-reachable, non-interested, and playing with humanity just for fun with no ultimate purpose or authority. She most likely has not studied the Bible from the beginning to the end. Her worldview, like most with this worldview, is that God had no divine purpose for His creation beyond making it and letting it run through life. I did not get a chance to ask her if she was wonderfully designed or not. Without the knowledge of God as Creator and executor of His will through Jesus Christ as the only way to salvation, then all other ideas are on the table for discussion. But since Christ is our Creator, He holds a much different position in the scheme of things than most people believe. He is central to all, with authority to give salvation or to judge the wicked for their sin. When we don’t place Christ in His rightful position, then we can believe He is just another religious leader that should be considered along with all others. This worldview is horribly depressing as it leads one to hell. We see in today’s world this “let’s all get along because we serve the same God” idea. It is not working out well since all other religions are man-made with no ultimate authority. Either Christ is all or He is nothing. The Creator can be no more and no less than everything. This is why building a foundation on Christ as your Creator is so vitally important. It is how you understand He is the only one with the plan and the purpose for your salvation as well.

The Bible as Genuine History

Thu, 16 Mar 2017 16:57:00 GMT

The highly contested nature of Genesis, i.e., whether or not it is an absolute historical record, or it is a simple allegory, myth or just some collection of campfire stories told by ancient shepherds or nomads? Nevertheless, the nature of Genesis has been the content of secular and theological debate and discussion for centuries. This debate overflows the total aura and message of the Bible and demands an answer. Of course, the enemies of an inerrant, inspired Biblical record and the absolute authority an almighty, omniscient Creator have always been opposed to Genesis as real history for obvious reasons, and they have to be for their godless position to be consequential at all.

If the record of Biblical origins is flawed in any manner, then the balance of Biblical narrative is flawed as well, and our faith and our preaching is in vain. This includes the prophecies of Jesus Christ, His redemptive work on the cross and the promise of His second coming, among many, many other salient issues that comprise our faith. The fact of the matter is that the most important book of the Bible is Genesis, the most important chapter of the Bible is Genesis 1 and the most important verse of the Bible is Genesis 1:1—everything else is based on the reality that this is genuine history.

In our contest with historical naturalism today (evolutionism), we must be able to defend the legitimate authority of the Genesis account of origins in all areas. And as a reminder, I have learned that the primary topics at issue today are the age of the universe and the verifiable record of a worldwide flood event about 4359 years ago. Our primary methods of documentation for either of these events is either through the use of human calculations that are terribly inept falling into the biased category of biased human opinion, or through the record provided in Genesis—the Word of God! Ken Ham has said repeatedly that we must either trust the words of fallible man who were not there in the beginning and are only using their worldview to predict their account of origins, or the Word of the Creator God who was there in the beginning, did the work of creation Himself, and gave eye witness accounting to Moses for us to read.

The Apostle Paul reminds us that our weapons in this debate are not carnal but are mighty through God for the pulling down of strongholds, and evolutionary naturalism is definitely a formidable stronghold. That we are to cast down any imaginative philosophy that opposes the knowledge of God, and thereby bring every thought that would influence our worldview into the captivity of the mind of Christ. It is only from this foundation that we can accomplish anything redemptive in our work for Jesus Christ!

I remain yours in the thrill of serving Jesus.
GTS (Isaiah 40:28-31)

Authority: Who Do I Listen To?

Wed, 22 Feb 2017 21:14:00 GMT

Divine Authority

Wed, 22 Feb 2017 21:13:00 GMT

The Lord has empowered us here at CTF with a powerful message about His divine authority. This message is one that is fundamental to our Christian life that helps us understand Christ as our Savior. In the media, school systems, books, and even many churches, evolution continues to undermine this message of our origin. The evolutionary process of man having common ancestry with other primates and ultimately all mammals, no matter if it is thought of as godless or God-driven, is unsubstantiated in all scientific rigors. Yet, this idea has been established as fact in the minds of many people in some form or fashion. Whether it appears as traditional Darwinian evolution or merely as immense amounts of time outside of the Biblical timeframe, it is evolution, plain and simple. We here at CTF have been given a call to combat this thinking with a message of hope, truth and authority.

Several years ago as Doc began our Cadre classes for church leadership, lay leadership and others, his desire was to multiply this God-given message further than our ministry. Gratefully, I write today as one of the first Cadre members the Lord used to take this message out. Since our first meetings in 2005, we have educated over 80 individuals who are sharing the accuracy of the Biblical account in churches, work places, other countries, schools, and homes. These brothers and sisters have been entrusted with a powerful message that others need to hear. So, we are beginning a new section in our newsletter called Cadre Column. Here our readers will have the opportunity to read articles written by Cadre members. These articles will show the battle from a different vantage point than we at CTF see it, day in and day out. These brothers and sisters are in the trenches everyday and that brings a different perspective of the battle than we have. My prayer is that the Lord will use their articles to show the power of a Biblical worldview. Please enjoy the articles and lift these great warriors up in prayer each month.

Blessings.

Continuing in His Word

Wed, 22 Feb 2017 21:04:00 GMT

The essential nature of the Word of the Lord that provides redemption and effective Christian life is far beyond our comprehension by many orders of magnitude. While the miraculous aspect of the Bible can be to some degree humanly observed, it can never be fully understood, dissected or substituted, without the revelatory influence of the Holy Ghost. Jesus often spoke of people having eyes that could not see, and ears that could not hear; and on a particular occasion Jesus explained to His disciples in Luke 9 that they should be careful to let His words sink down into their ears—but they still did not understand what He meant, and many church goers today do not either.

I observe this phenomenon, or shortsightedness, all the time in churches that I visit. And I am convinced that the same life giving synthesis or effect, unique to God alone, that was attendant during the creation of space, time and mass – a supernatural effect over which man has no control – is a divine entity that cannot be feigned or replaced by any human religious system or technique. But it is necessary for the Word of the Lord to communicate or disseminate its life giving qualities to people as they read it or hear it. It is at this point that religion devoid of His purpose and unction can no more quicken this eternal necessity in human listeners, than can a man by taking thought add a single cubit to his stature.

This is the reality that we learn from the divine acceptance of Abel’s offering in Genesis 4, and is a common fact of God’s dealing with man throughout the Scripture. God has a standard that He will honor, an approach that He will accept, and an attitude that He will receive… and He will not violate this standard! So all of the church growth theories, revival engagement efforts, and megachurch processes, fall to the ground empty and non-effective to add one human soul to the Kingdom, because the Scripture says, “except the Lord build the house they labor in vain.” Moreover, it is the Lord, and only the Lord, that can add to His church. Man can guide, teach, preach, play pretty music, use all sorts of influential gadgets (and all these behaviors and tools has some legitimacy I guess), but only the blood of Jesus has the power to remit sins! This is both a sovereign fact and action! The fact that the Creator God inculcated His divine mind into human language convention, by moving His men, the prophets and apostles, to record His ideas into a book is, without question, an unspeakably wondrous thing!

Jesus, furthermore, said that if we continue in His word, we will be His disciples indeed, because our continuance to read, study and obey His word will permit us to know the truth, and it is His truth that produces the Biblical worldview that will set us free. (John 8:31-32) It is this behavior of “continuing” that is the difference between the nominal “churchanity” and authentic Christianity. The Greek word here translated “truth” is ä·lā′thā·ä, meaning to open or unseal and speaks of a freedom to live free from the slavery of sin. A freedom (intellectually, morally and spiritually) that is only attainable…through the light of His Word (A. T. Robertson, Word Pictures in the NT, Vol. 5, pp.148-149). God bless you for your continued prayer and financial support to the ministry of Creation Truth Foundation…Thanks a million! (Isaiah 40:28-31)

Sincerely, GTS

Worship Our Creator and Savior

Thu, 12 Jan 2017 21:21:00 GMT

A new year is here, one with both promise and uncertainty. With a new year we begin to see things different. Sometimes we ready ourselves to try new activities or vow to avoid perils from last year. This thinking brings to mind a time in the Scripture that I believe was similar, yet on a much grander scale. Noah and his family had just went through the year of all years. They had spent over a year on the ark being covered by the Lord. All the while, losing family members they loved, being uprooted from there surroundings, not certain what the future held, and only having one Hope. Can you imagine for a moment the feelings Noah’s family would have had in those final days before the door opened? I am sure there was anxiousness to get off the vessel, but at the same moment anxiety of the unknown awaiting them outside. Some of their questioning thoughts might be, “What would creation look like or would it even be recognizable? Where will we live? How much will there be to eat? Is this disaster going to happen again? Where do we even start?” Wow, that is not far off of how some feel at this time of year. Even if you are settled and ready for a new year, there are probably some in your family or church that are not. The very same questions often enter our thoughts for a new year. We must remember what Noah and his family did first – worship their Savior. They offered a sacrifice of thanksgiving and redemption. Then the Lord looked on that act of worship a made a covenant with them. Please remember the Lord is a covenant keeper. With this new year there are promises of prosperity being thrown around with a new President. There is anxiety by many that do not like the new President. Please heed this warning…if we fail to worship our Creator and Savior Jesus Christ first, we will miss a covenant He has made with us. This life is not about presidents, other elected officials, our jobs, homes, cars, or even family…first. It is, and always should be, about Jesus Christ who desires to covenant with His image-bearing creation. As we place our focus on Him in this new year, let us not get distracted by other things, but know our hope and peace can only be found in Him the same as it was in the days of Noah.

Blessings.

Deviation from the Bible

Thu, 12 Jan 2017 21:18:00 GMT

     This article is especially for those who are faithful to read the CTF newsletter. During the Christmas break (after all the company had left!) I had an occasion to contemplate the coming New Year, our new president, the immediate future of the Family and the church, etc. — all through Biblical lenses.

     Predicated on the fact that God gave the dominion of this present world to Satan at the fall of Adam, isolated from any other stimulus, this by itself should help Bible students to understand much of the present frustration in society and politics that is contrary to God’s plan (Gen. 33:15). There are three key historical events that I think make up a vast amount of this distortion with which we are perpetually distracted and deceived.

     The first of these is multifaceted and would need more space than I have here. But suffice it to say that an extant philosophical residue remains to this day from this 2nd through 4th century Greco-Roman perversion that even the Reformation did not thoroughly purge. The Apostle John, in effect, was not yet cold in his grave, and by the middle to late second century church fathers, especially those from Alexandria who were advocating all sorts of written creeds to better “define what Christians believe.” This is how Christianity Today explains it anyway, July 30, 2008. Really (?) what, pray tell me, was the Bible for?

     Nevertheless, among these deviations was the contention and one that has been used to justify the writing of most of the early creeds themselves (often mentioned by the writers of the Nicaean Creed). Ii is the idea that dogma must been accomplished in a developmental and progressive manner (that the Word of God is not sufficient). This simply means that the first century, apostolic writings were in some way primitive and inchoate, and needing further enlightenment by these “holy” fathers of the late second, third and fourth centuries. This is blatantly preposterous! And it ignores the plane and definitive statement of the Apostle Paul to Timothy, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.” (2 Timothy 3:16-17) In this category among the many perversions that remain to this day are perverted beliefs concerning the state of the dead, embracing a plurality of objective worship, the institution of infant baptism, the rejection of the multiplicity leadership in the local church, etc.

     A second deviation concerns the historicity of the first twelve chapters of Genesis, which is used in an attempt to legitimize atheism. And this is sadly evident in the professing church community today because of the many church attenders that believe in one of the concessionary doctrines for Genesis 1. From that platform has homosexuality, abortion, pornography, gay/lesbian marriage, multiculturalism, and other deviate ideas arisen.

     The third of these terrible aberrations is the rise, or maybe I should say, the emergence of a postmodern notion called the “emergent church.” The tragic reality about this form of religion is that it is too diverse to be defined. It thrives in new age environments, it embraces aspects of evolutionism, it ignores scriptural terminology like holiness, the fall of man, his need of a Savior, the second coming of Christ, etc. In short it is a religious system that is without truth; originating in the carnal mind, and it must be avoided at all costs. My prayer is that you have a blessed New Year.

In Him, G. Thomas Sharp (Isaiah 40:28-31)

Institute of Biblical Worldview Studies Cadre Program

Thu, 03 Nov 2016 20:27:00 GMT

Each year during the month of November, we are to reflect on the things for which we are thankful. This month I am so very thankful for this ministry that the Lord called me to over 10 years ago. One very important avenue He used in that calling was our Institute of Biblical Worldview Studies Cadre program. I was one of the first to be involved with this now 11-year-old program. Doc had received a calling to teach and replicate himself (in his knowledge of Genesis) in the local church beyond our traditional traveling ministry, so he began inviting pastors and church leaders to come study in depth the importance of Genesis. The Cadre program has changed over the course of time, yet the driving force behind it will never change – training people to teach and understand the worldview foundation established in those first 12 chapters. At our annual banquet this year, we graduated the 12th Cadre with 9 members. We now have 91 members of our Cadre alumni that are preaching and teaching the material that we have entrusted to them. The group does not only include pastors and church staff; we have instructed firefighters, lawyers, truck drivers, accountants, school teachers, entrepreneurs, moms, sons, and daughters. They have come from far and wide, including twelve different states and Canada. One of the most overwhelming aspects of this ministry is knowing that these Cadre members are using their Biblical worldview training wherever the Lord is placing them. Sometimes that is not in a church setting but instead is in a small group, office study, homeschool, parenting, fostering children, public school, or in cyberspace. Some of these Cadre members have very successful blogs and carry out the battle for truth on the front lines with the “intellectual discussion” types. The Lord has equipped us at CTF to further the Kingdom’s knowledge of Him by reinforcing the battle line against Satan’s evolutionary worldview lies. This Cadre program is one aspect of, if not our most important, ministry. Please keep this part of our ministry in your prayers as we send out new, well-equipped warriors for the Truth.

Thankfulness to God

Thu, 03 Nov 2016 20:24:00 GMT

     During Thanksgiving week, I began contemplating areas of my life and experience for which I am deeply thankful to God. I have identified at least five dominant spheres in my life that fall into this category, and I want to share them with you, and especially thank God for them.

     First and foremost, and the one reality without which, I could never hope to please God, is the continuous presence, the power and potential of the crimson stream of holy blood that Christ vicariously spilled at cross. It speaks better things than the blood of Abel! It paid the horrible price for my salvation. It provides a sacred influence that colors all my fleshly attempts to serve the Lord Jesus Christ. It sustains me when I am without strength or resolve to remain engaged or to finish a formidable task. It undergirds all my frail efforts to achieve holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord.

      These divine intrusions have poignantly formed a particular edge in my point of view. And it is because of these seasoned realities that I love to bask in the effulgent glow reflected from many of the old hymns. Songs like “There’s Power in the Blood,” or “I See a Crimson Stream of Blood,” or “There is a Fountain Filled with Blood,” and there are others, all of them cause me pause, and a time of sacred rejoicing in the sacrificial provision that our Lord made for us all. None of this is available on “Black Friday,” it cannot be bought or sold!

     The next most significant reality in my life is the comfort and spiritual counsel that I receive from my sweet wife, Diane. In fact, in a couple weeks we will celebrate 53 years of marriage. WOW, that sounds like a long time (and I guess it is), but it has all passed as a vapor in the night! Nevertheless, I thank God for this very special and dedicated woman, who was chosen by the Lord and given the task to come along side of me, and to face with me the challenges of life because of this unique ministry. She is my most faithful, determined and dearest friend. In this prioritized list of exceptional people, I must thank God for my children—all grown, with families of their own—but they have been, and still are, frequent causes of thanksgiving. These four offspring are comprised of a daughter and three sons (and now ten grandchildren), most all are faithful disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ.

     Finally, I am thankful for the excitement and difficulty posed by the past 27 years of ministry. It was during this time (from August 1989 until now) that God gave to me the penetrating and tearful invitation to develop CTF ministry. It seemed at first that the Scriptural purview of CTF was terribly narrow (being essentially composed of the only first 11 chapters of Genesis). But with time and exposure, our focus broadened, and we saw the need to add Genesis 12 to our base, so that today CTF has become a significant regional Biblical worldview provider for thousands of professing Christians in ten states, and other parts of the nation and world. I am overwhelmingly thankful to the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ for His faithful enablement…and I thank all our faithful partners for their prayer and finance (Isaiah 40:28-31).

Portable Astronomy Lab

Sat, 22 Oct 2016 20:32:00 GMT

Fight of Faith

Sat, 22 Oct 2016 20:30:00 GMT

     The Apostle Paul makes it extremely clear that the major aspect of our “fight of faith” is seeded in our mind. Remember, to the Philippians, he said, “Finally, brethren, whatever things are true…are noble…are just…are pure…lovely…are of good report, if there be any virtue, if there is anything praiseworthy—think on these things.” (Philippians 4:8; emphasis added)

     And to the Corinthians, he said, “I intend to be bold against some who think that I walk according to the flesh. For though we walk {or live} in the flesh we do not war according to the flesh…” {“war” is strä·too′ō, and refers to both internal and external conflict accruing from service to God}. Paul continues, “For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but are mighty {dü·nä·tös,′ meaning capable or powerful} through God for pulling {or tearing} down strongholds, casting down imaginations {thoughts or arguments} and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.” (2 Corinthians 10:3-5; emphasis added)

     And finally, we must consider Ephesians 6:12. Paul is here explaining the need for the believer to put on all the armor of God. Now I know that we must not overrate our demonic opponent, but neither must we miscalculate his influence—after all Satan and his minions are the promoters of evil in the world. Apostle Paul underscores the significance of this evil by calling Satan the “god of this world.” (2 Corinthians 4:4)

     In Ephesians 6:12, we are emphatically told that “we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.”(Ephesians 6:12; emphasis added) Dr. Joseph H. Thayer tells us that this word wrestle is translated from the Greek word pä′lā, and indicates that one combatant is in a life and death struggle, attempting to throw another combatant down and hold him helplessly against the ground by his neck. While this kind of attack may, or may not, be eternally serious (it certainly can be), one thing is for sure, it will incapacitate, or hinder the one thrown, and hindrance or frustration is the devil’s chief ploy against the will and work of God.

     This article came to me while reading the prophecy of Haggai. And in Haggai, as in many other Scriptures we see multiple examples of enmity impacting the lives of people. Good and evil are always present. In Haggai and Ezra, you will remember that Zerubbabel was appointed leader of the Jews in Babylon for the purpose of restoring the Temple. He began this task, and it went along rather well for two years or so, but the changing of kings, combined with the secular interests of the returning Jews from captivity, caused a total curtailment of the labor on the Temple. This hiatus lasted sixteen years before they returned to this task. However, the unique thing about the book of Haggai is that the people of Judah actually listened to the man of God. (Haggai 1:8) *Important: In the next 30 days Americas face the most momentous decision in our history (it will seriously affect our Federal Supreme Court). Thanks for your prayer and support.

      FYI: Hurricane Matthew posed a serious threat to Gonaives, Haiti…the site of the churches and schools that Dr. Sharp (and his wife, Diane) has committed to and have visited several times over the past three or four years. The missionary, Salonique Adolphe, his wife, Gine, and their family, contacted the Sharp’s via skype just a few hours before the storm arrived to the far west of the island, and they stayed in touch through the entire disaster (incredible!). (continued on back)

     We began praying against the storm immediately, and praised God as we witnessed the heart of Matthew continually move westwardly, so that when the eye-wall passed Gonaives (situated about 90 miles North of Port-au-Prince), it was 140 to 160 nautical miles west of the city approaching Cuba. The churches and schools had some minor wind and rain, but not the 130 mph winds, and the 25 to 40 inches of rain that was originally predicted. While there were near a thousand Haitians that lost their live in this storm, no one from the mission was in that group. Praise the Lord!

     The residual problem is that the storm did destroy much of the island’s agriculture that will cause the food prices to escalate two to three times above normal. This is a great problem also… Please pray about this! Thank–you for your prayers.

Chinese Flood

Thu, 22 Sep 2016 21:02:00 GMT

Well, a new study out of China shows evidence that supports a flood some 4000 years ago. Don’t get too excited yet, as I did when the first headlines hit the airwaves. At first, it sounds as though the Flood of Noah has been shown to be actual history again with the evidence from China. It does in part, but what the study actually supports better is the historicity of Babel and the Table of Nations following the Flood. The Chinese researchers set out to establish that the Xia dynasty was younger than previously thought. The historical event that ties this dynasty to reality is a flood event in Chinese history. A large excavation of rock deposits and remains in a cave dwelling show evidence of a flood on the Yellow River in the Jishi Gorge. As the researchers radiocarbon dated many of the samples, it supported a younger date of 1920 BC for the flood. On other samples, however, the radiocarbon dating also supported the Biblical timeline for a Noahacian Flood 2350 BC. While the rocks with earlier dates were not focused on in this study, these dates also support the dispersion by languages around 2250 BC. There is enough time between Babel (based on being about 100 years after the 2350 BC flood shown in the rocks) and the 1920 BC flood for people to have left and established a civilization in China. We expect that an Ice Age that followed the global flood in the Bible would have been approaching peak within 75 years of the Chinese flood. This would have led to great local floods during Ice Age transition years. So, the Xia dynasty and Jishi flood supports the Biblical history of Babel. Again be encouraged that Biblical history is legitimate with ever-increasing observational evidence. If you would like to check out the study, seek out the August 2016 issue of Science magazine. Stand for the Truth and don’t let supposed historical “problems” originated by evolutionists about pagan civilizations create doubt of Biblical history.

Genesis and Revelation – Bookends For All Biblical Ideas

Wed, 21 Sep 2016 20:58:00 GMT

During our recent morning devotions, my wife and I have read the book of Revelation, enjoyed it immensely, but because it contains many things mysterious and esoteric, we have decided to read it again. This second time, we will to read it in conjunction with the comments of Drs. Morris and MacArthur that are included in their respective study Bibles. Most of my personal Bible study over the past 30 or so years has been mainly occupied with, or about, the book of Genesis (and the topics introduced in Genesis). And while it is sad to admit this, I just haven’t spent much time with the apocalypse. But because Revelation 1:3 tells that it is blessed to read and to hear to words of this prophecy, we are going to look at it afresh.

I have often said that Genesis and Revelation form natural bookends for all Biblical ideas— historical, theological and eschatological. But it just dawned on me in a rather special way—one of those “aha” moments referred to in Psa. 1:1 (and please understand I know that Jesus declared Himself to be the alpha and the omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the ending), but it became overwhelming obvious to me that these declarations are more than mere references to His deity—because He is, indeed, the Great Creator and the Ultimate Consummator of all things in the earth, above the earth and under the earth, for time and eternity (2 Peter 3:3-13).

We are witnessing unprecedented, as I have said many times, a formidable decline in every department affecting the United States of America—family, church and country. Whether or not this decline has Kingdom changing ramifications, I am not going to say (I believe it does), but it certainly bodes poorly for the future of this country, and may very well be a signal for something more spectacular. Nevertheless, my recent reading of the Revelation, served me notice concerning some very encouraging statements of truth. It is these that I want to share with you.

In the first place, the word “revelation” means an uncovering or unveiling. God is revealing to the churches in Asia Minor, and to all of us who participate in the “blessing” of chapter 1:3 that Jesus is sovereignly in charge of the world, no one else (19:6), that He is Almighty (1:8), omnipotent, no one mightier, that right and truth will triumph (12:11), He alone is the way, the truth and the life, and that sin and iniquity will be eternally judged (18:1-21).

Moreover, Jesus is assuring believers that when He returns to the Earth, it will not be in the form of a defenseless lamb, but in the form of the Lion of the Tribe of Judah. We got a small glimpse of this indomitable nature of His deity in John 2:13-17. His second return will also incorporate a reward that He alone can prepare and has the right to give to those who have been called, chosen and faithful (17:14). He will renovate the universe—make it like Eden, and He will cast the devil, the false prophet and the beast into the bottomless pit forever and ever. I don’t know about you, but I am getting homesick for that great Beulah land. Amen, even so come Lord Jesus.

Thank you so very much for your faithful prayer support, and your financial gifts; CTF has been working to proclaim the truth about the great God, and our Savior for 27 years. Your kindness has been such a blessing.

Biblical Creation vs. Naturalistic Evolution

Tue, 30 Aug 2016 21:03:00 GMT

      CTF has ministered over the last 27 years in many states of our nation and in many countries outside our borders, to many different church persuasions, and to many different educational venues. The one valuable lesson that I have learned from this vast experience and exposure is that the primary point of conflict between Biblical Creation and naturalistic evolution resides in two salient differences: (1.) the age of the universe, or the literal, historical legitimacy of Genesis 1; and (2.) the historical reality that a worldwide deluge occurred about 4400 years ago, or a divinely sent global judgment against sin. All other aspects of this debate are moot, and are simply an outgrowth from these two main points.

     Built into this desperate and age-long conflict (and, by the way, the word “conflict” is just another way to express the true nature of Genesis 3:15 “enmity”), are several maximizing demonic ingredients, such things as the delusion of multiculturalism, the enigmatic and continual interference caused by historical and scientific revisionism, the predominance of a mind-controlling, indoctrinating, state funded and obligatory educational system—all giving rise to a formidable declension of Biblical authority in the culture. All of this is the fruit of naturalistic evolutionism, which is antichrist in purpose!

     It is not about science (and never has been), but science has been prostituted over the past 150 years to vindicate and qualify a deliberate anti-Biblical worldview for the primary purpose of defeating the intent of the Biblical God. And the most influential and effective method Satan saw at his disposal was to obliterate the authority of the Bible by attacking the Genesis record.

     Remember, what UNESCO Director, Julian Huxley (the grandson of Thomas H. Huxley, also called Darwin’s bulldog), said: “The first point to make about Darwin’s theory is that it is no longer a theory, but a fact… Darwinism removed the whole idea of God as the creator of organisms from the sphere of rational discussion…I think we can dismiss entirely all ideas of a supernatural overriding mind being responsible for the evolutionary process.” (Huxley, Issues in Evolution, edited by Sol Tax, 1960)

So to remove supernaturalism from the discussion, the devil first attacked Biblical chronology, and this seems so reasonable because evolutionary arguments from starlight and the earth’s stratigraphical record, just to name two of the seemingly irrefutable naturalistic positions, appear to demolish the Biblical position.

And then he moved on to the Biblical flood. The observed multiple layers of strata on the surface of the earth gave rise to a notion called the “geological column” (even though there is no place on the earth’s surface where this so-called column can be observed complete). This is probably the most used of evolution’s so-called proofs. Among them is the idea that the evolutionary transition of life can be traced bottom-to-top throughout the entire column (which totally disregards the genetic code), and this glaring assumption shows up everywhere in the modern culture (and there are many other ramifications to this argument, as well). But the interpretation of the rock record to be hundreds of millions of years old provides a suitable smoke screen in which are hid multiple beguiling elements of evolution.

The most common is the idea that dinosaurs lived and died millions of years before man, about 64 million years ago to be exact, spilling the blood of air-breathing life, which of course, is a blatant contradiction of Romans 5:12. Thanks for your continued prayer and support.

Ice Age Movie Facts?

Mon, 25 Jul 2016 21:13:00 GMT

Popular media is a powerful force on general audiences. But we all see that it does not always portray the truth accurately; especially not in matters of biblical importance. People often ask where the Ice Age fits into the biblical science timeline of history. That’s an important question, like many other timeline questions we get. The newest installment of the “Ice Age” cartoon movies now addresses the meteor impact theory for the extinction of the dinosaurs. Despite their dogmatic endorsement of the evo-atheist humanist concepts, these movies do get at least one thumbs up from us creationists — for portraying dinosaurs and mammals living together at the same time (a fact that I’m sure most evolution-believers hate). But what about the Ice Age, and the meteor impact, and the dinosaur extinctions? How do they all relate to one another in the biblical worldview scientific time frame?

Evolutionist timeframes allow for many epochs of ice age. The biblical creation timeframe allows for only one (in the five centuries following the Flood). One evo-theory even provides for a total global glacier – even to the equator! – called the “snowball earth” theory. So, some evo’s might consider one of these ice ages to be at least a trigger to the dino-extinctions (seen by the rarity of any dino fossils in the sedimentary rock layers above the Triassic). Among the dozens of dino-extinction theories, only one has survived extinction in the evo scientific community – the Impact Theory – that an asteroid about four miles wide hit the earth about 65 million years ago and damaged the environment so globally that all of the dinosaurian era reptiles became immediately extinct. It doesn’t explain why all of the other reptiles (and mammals) living at that time went on through that time just fine. But the world’s paleontologists all “voted” on this about eight years ago. And so “that settles it” – an asteroid did it! This theory is presented as the proven truth, in this most recent “Ice Age” film. But is it the truth? And how can we know?

The Bible certainly agrees with the idea that a celestial body falling to the earth could wreak a terrible destruction (as with the future “star” Wormwood falling in Revelation). However, the closest thing to this happening in the past, might only be the thought of as having been some player in the events during the Flood of Noah. It is certain that our solar system did at one time endure a great bombardment of asteroids. We can see evidence of this on our earth’s surface, and much more so on the surfaces of the other rocky planets Mercury, Venus, Mars and even our own moon Luna. Biblical worldview science plus secular science even agree that the Mars Flood (though we disagree on the timeframe of it) was most likely caused by an asteroid impact!

So maybe it’s not so tough to believe that an asteroid caused the Flood of Noah. But it is not consistent with good science nor with good biblical worldview, to say that an asteroid is to blame for the dino extinctions. ‘Just sayin’ … so you’ll know what to believe as truth … and what to just enjoy as an entertaining cartoon experience!

Yours in the Truth. Dr. Jackson

Languages and the Tower of Babel

Mon, 25 Jul 2016 21:10:00 GMT

As I wrote last month while preparing for a camp about post-flood events, the Lord has brought me many new materials to study. The Tower of Babel (Gen. 11) ushered in a time period of great change because of the curse of confused languages. I believe most of us know the account where it’s recorded that all people were making a name for themselves and accomplishing anything they set their minds to. The Lord confused their single language into many languages with no details as to how many there were from that point forward in history. Yet when one takes this simple account of history and makes predictions for a language study, we would assume that all languages today should be traced back to a few. This is exactly what a linguistic study in 2012 revealed, as well as identifying a profound insight we see in the animal kingdom. “You could take a gorilla or chimpanzee from its troop and plop it down anywhere these species are found, and it would know how to communicate. You could repeat this with donkeys, crickets or goldfish and get the same outcome,” Mark Pagel says in a New Scientist [1] evolutionarily-driven article. So, the animal kingdom’s communication reveals what we would expect to find if they were all created by their kind as the Bible specifically states. This shows a distinct difference in us, and leads to another question the author struggles with: if language is for communication and survival in an evolutionary sense, then why do we have so many languages? Pagel then offers up the Tower of Babel as one famous Old Testament story that addresses the question of many human languages, complete with his worldview bias. “The myth leads to the amusing irony that our separate languages exist to prevent us from communicating. The surprise is that this might not be far from the truth…” It is so shocking to those that choose not to take the Bible as a legitimate historical document when it explains the very data of that study. Thank the Lord for His Word that explains why it is so hard to communicate today. According to Acts 17:27, He cursed our languages and made nations so we would seek Him. In today’s seemingly daily information/communication confusion this still rings true. Seek Him.

[1] Pagel, Mark. “ War of Words: The Language Paradox Explained . ” New Scientist , Web. 5 Dec 2012

“Lest We Drift Away”

Mon, 25 Jul 2016 21:07:00 GMT

In the brief space of this Newsletter, I will not be able to fully express all of the reasons, and provide all the points, for the disquietude that I have in my own heart concerning America’s future, but I will, at least, help the reader to see some of the antagonisms facing Bible believing Americans.

Not too long ago (June 2014), Dr. John MacArthur indicated his concern for America’s abandonment of the Scripture in a guest article written for the Christian Post newsletter:

“A recent Gallup poll found that only 28 percent of Americans believe that the Bible is the Word of God and should be taken literally…yet nearly 50 percent believe that the Bible is the inspired Word of God while insisting that not all of its content be taken literally, but rather as metaphors and allegories that allow for interpretation …Allowing for interpretation seems to be key for our postmodern, pluralistic society, as 58 percent – representing the majority of self-identifying Christians in America accept that the Bible is the “actual Word of God” but insist, “multiple interpretations are possible”… Clearly, the prevailing belief in our culture is that while the Bible may be the inspired Word of God, it doesn’t mean what it says. It’s only authoritative as long as the reader is the final arbiter of what it actually means. Debates on Scripture ultimately all come back to the issue of authority, but the majority of professing Christians in America have rejected the objective authority of the inerrant Word of God and have replaced it with the authority of self .” (emphasis added)

Last Sunday I spoke from Hebrews 2:1-4: “ Therefore, we must give the more earnest heed to the things we have heard, lest we drift away .” (NKJV) KJV says, “… let them slip .” The only prevention or antidote for “drifting or spiritual slippage” is faith in, and obedience to, the Holy Scripture. And because families, schools, churches and governments have cast off the Bible as non-essential; chosen to expurgate from normal procedure; shunt it to the back-room; the past several generations of Americans have escaped the attitude forming, behavior adjusting, heart mending influence of the Word of God. In the last few years 70% or more of high school graduates have had no formal Bible training. This is terribly obvious!

As a result every facet of our society is drifting! Churches are drifting from the authority of Scripture; therefore they never present non-politically correct doctrine as absolute truth. Families are drifting from Biblical role models for raising children; therefore they justify why they never attend church or read the Bible to their children. Politicians are drifting from the clear Biblical instructions for effective government; therefore their motive for election is always selfish. Our court system is drifting from the Biblically stated purpose for civil authority; therefore the court never pushes back against the evils that are destroying us, such as claiming that reading the Bible in school is unconstitutional, while normalizing abortion and homosexuality, etc. We save the whales and kill our children! How tragically ironic!

Drifting always leads to irresponsibility, disrespect and fleshly indulgence, which engenders prayerlessness, Biblical ignorance and selfishness. Are you drifting? Do you read your Bible daily? Do you explicitly obey it? Do you pray daily? What will it take to awaken us form this terrible stupor? Oh, God, in your wrath, please remember mercy!

More Monkey Business

Mon, 27 Jun 2016 21:21:00 GMT

I recently spoke at a high school youth camp. One young lady who was baptized that week later emailed me two questions, even after the seven sessions that I had with the campers. Because these are such very common and also very good questions, I thought I’d answer them here in the newsletter also. They are “How can evolutionists believe that evolution could go backwards for a million years after the Lucy fossil?” and “How can evolutionists believe we came from monkeys since there are still monkeys today?”

Teachers, professors and science documentaries almost always present evolution as a process that sort of “has got something in mind” or that it is “going someplace with this.” Of course, what the theory really says is that evolution has no direction at all, except for “survival of the fittest.” Of course we know evolution is not true, and it is really “sketchy” science at its best. So the real leaders in evolution try to keep the theory away from problem questions like these. They teach things like, “the evolution story has no direction, even when it looks like it does.”

Harvard evolutionist Stephen J. Gould explained this in his famous “left wall” analogy. He said it was like a drunk stumbling down the street and there’s a wall on his left. It might seem he’s got some direction in mind because he keeps turning right. Gould likened this to the evolution story of creating more complex life forms from the simple bacteria. There’s just no place else to go but up, if you start with bacteria. So he says evolution wasn’t “trying” to make more complex forms. It’s just that no matter what changes might occur, it will only just look like evolution is trying to make things better. That’s the theory in the leaders’ heads. But it is not the cleaned-up version you’ll get in the textbooks and the classrooms of our schools. Don’t take me wrong. Evolution is not true. But if it was, it would have no direction — like Gould said. So this all means, by their own rules then, evolution could just go backwards any time it happens to merely by chance. I know this isn’t very efficient when you try to imagine a process that’s supposed to be able to turn worms into eagles. But there it is.

As for why there are still monkeys, if we came from them … the standard evo-answer is simple. Only some of the monkeys turned into humans. The rest of them simply just stayed monkeys and only turned into different-looking monkeys and didn’t go on to turn into us. Simple? Yeah. But I’d rather bet on the moon being made of cheese.

Keep thinking. Dr. Jackson

Life Perspective

Mon, 27 Jun 2016 21:15:00 GMT

A major aspect of the CTF mission, and one for which we spend a great deal of our waking hours, is the promotion and development of Biblical worldview to believing families and ministers. I am convinced that for Christian life to be effective there are two requirements—first and foremost, is regeneration (i.e., being truly born again and dying to self) and, second is the guiding influence of a Biblically literal reality about our origin, purpose, identity and destiny.

Because the Bible, without apology, declares itself to be truth, not about truth, not containing truth, but the totality of all that is true about realty, it must therefore be the primary source from which we think about all issues of life and death. This is why Apostle Paul told the Philippians that they must let the same “mind” (Gk. > fro·ně′ō > direction or thinking) that was in Christ be in them (Phil. 2:5). A Biblical worldview, then, demands that our thoughts, our conclusions, our assumptions, our ideas, our interpretations and our manner of life must be founded on the Bible.

In short, worldview is what the Germans called weltanschauung , or life perspective. It is that innate presupposition that has been formed in us. It can either be good or it can be bad depending on its ultimate source. Alvin Toffler, in his startling book Future Shock opined that, “Every person carries in his head a mental model of the world…This “mental model” is like a giant filing cabinet. It contains a slot for every item of information coming to us.” (NY: Bantam, 1971, p. 158)

But the question that must be answered is where does an appropriate “mental model” originate—(“appropriate” meaning God honoring)? Toffler doesn’t provide this important bit of information, but the fact is everyone has a worldview, or a governing belief system, but they can be as different as day and night. So, are we born with a governing paradigm already in place? Is it developed by life experiences or the educational processes? What is the source for a guiding worldview? Why are there differing interpretations about the same reality, or why do different people observe the same phenomenon and see it and explain it differently?

I was once told a parable about a robin and a buzzard that flew across an open field. Once on the other side they were asked what they saw. The robin said that he saw a running brook bubbling over brightly covered rocks, beside a field covered with an emerald carpet all tacked down with daffodils and daises. The buzzard said that he saw a decaying rabbit under the crag of a dead tree. In each case the interpretation was determined by each bird’s view of the field. We see and understand the world as our worldview interprets it. Some see life as a remarkable fact of the evolutionary process, and others see life as a miracle of the ineffable Creator God.

Well, it seems obvious to me that one’s worldview is an aggregation or a synthesis of their relationship with either God or themselves. The interpretation of the world and human origins is obviously determined by our worldview (our belief system). Thus we either see the world around us as a unique work of the Creator God that demands our obedience to that God, or we interpret the world as a self-producing, self-contained object of naturalism, leaving us all alone.

Thanks for your continued prayer and financial support! I am yours, as ever.

Sincerely,

G. Thomas Sharp

Apologizing for Apologetics?

Thu, 26 May 2016 21:26:00 GMT

A lot of people not comfortable with the conflicts within and without the Church about the creation versus evolution issue will just say, “Oh come on and just get over it. The Genesis story just isn’t worth the fight. It’s a secondary doctrine. As long as they let us keep Jesus dying for our sins, then we’re okay.” Well, the people outside the Christian community know better. Our enemies of the faith know well how vital the concept of the Original Sin being a true and historical event is to the entirety of the Gospel.

Famed atheist evangelists as far back at Thomas Huxley, Aldous Huxley and H.G. Wells knew that the removal of Genesis would be lethal to our faith in the accounts of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Modern day atheists like Richard Dawkins also know of its importance. And they all put this point much the same way, both succinctly and powerfully.

It always goes with a logic flow something like this: If Adam and Eve weren’t real people in real history, then there was no forbidden fruit and the story of mankind selling out the salvation of all humans to ever live, in the future from that point on … then people wouldn’t really be born into sin, and so they wouldn’t need a Savior. And if all that was true, then Jesus’ sacrificial vicarious death on the Cross would – well, it just wouldn’t have been needed. Atheists know this … would violate the Prayer in Gethsemane. Jesus asked of God, “If there be any other way, then let this cup pass from me.” It didn’t pass from Him. So there wasn’t any other way.

Richard Dawkins pointed out how absurd it would be for Christians to take Jesus seriously while not taking Adam & Eve seriously. “Oh, but of course the story of Adam and Eve was only ever symbolic, wasn’t it? Symbolic? So Jesus had himself tortured and executed for a symbolic sin by a non-existent individual? Nobody not brought up in the faith could reach any verdict other than barking mad!” And I must quite agree with Dr. Dawkins on this point. What point would there have been to the Cross and the supposed need for an incorruptible One to take on corruption for us, if we weren’t already born into that corruption from very start of our own lives and also from nearly the start for the life of our entire human race? There’d be no point. And that’s why selling out Genesis is just as much “selling your birthright for a mess of pottage” as is selling out the New Testament historical accounts.

Keep thinking, DrJ

The Earth Was Divided

Thu, 26 May 2016 21:24:00 GMT

Chapter 10 describes that during Peleg’s day “the earth was divided” with no more information. Some have argued this is when the physical division of the continents occurred in history. I don’t think that is the case from a Hebraic and geological point of view. The Hebrew does not bear out the need for this passage to be physical earth division. It just as easily and contextually bears out the dispersion of all people by language around the globe. From a purely geological position, if the earth being divided into the seven continents we observe today had occurred during Peleg’s time, then we have big problems. One of those problems would include the need for another worldwide flood, monumental disaster and carnage. This stance simply is not supported in the Scriptures, as it would break the rainbow covenant the Lord made following the Flood. So we see that Chapter 11 shares the details of our earth’s division during Peleg’s time with the account of Babel. Noah’s descendants were not following the Lord’s post-flood command to fill the earth. Instead, their desire was to make a name themselves. It seems once again they chose to rebel rather than obey. So, I leave you with this – chapters 10 and 11 hold valuable truths that should cause us to stop and reflect on our own lives. Are there areas in my life that I am making a name for myself in disobedience of the One who calls me to share His name in the world?

Multiculturalism in the Church

Thu, 26 May 2016 14:54:00 GMT

A few years back, Josh McDowell was asked his opinion about the state of the Church in North America (c. 1970). He responded, among other things, that the church has been bombarded with influences of multiculturalism more than ever. Specifically, he mentioned three of the primary fruits of this dastardly modern influence; tolerance, diversity and inclusion. Then, he underscored the significance of the cause for these effects… that most in the church are, by and large, so Biblically ignorant until they cannot express definitively, with conviction, what they believe and why they believe it! He underscored the viral aspect of the ongoing dumbing down process caused by the evolutionization of America.

Multiculturalism is the co-existence and absolute equality of diverse cultures and peoples, including all racial, religious, language groups within any given country, thus rejecting that a superior way of life exists. However, in its modern form, it completely excoriates the “melting pot” concept of national assimilation, and asserts a suffocating equality that permits all language groups to continue to speak their native tongue, maintain their cultural norms and practices, and live in a separate borough or district that simply extends their native behaviors and habits into the land of America.

Multiculturalism is, in its present politicized posture (which always abandons the clear interpretation of the U. S. Constitution), a product of pragmatic relativism that is supported by an extreme evolutionism—a fact that will ultimately annihilate all the freedoms of the Bill of Rights! Moreover, deviate moral and non-Biblical spiritual behaviors are always produced when Biblical principal is sacrificed on the altar of human arrogance and selfishness.

In America, the progressive elite has softened the implications of this scourge with a series of terms that, when pressed to their ultimate intent, are always undermining and seditious—such things as: diversity, tolerance, egalitarianism, inclusion, absolute individualism and “unequal” racial equality, a revulsion of America’s common culture and core values, the total abandonment of Judeo/Christian principles as the guideline for American life and practice, unrestricted human rights, etc.—these are among the most foreboding enemies standing against our family, our faith and our Republic.

Thanks for your continued prayer and financial support! I am yours, as ever.

Sincerely,

G. Thomas Sharp

The Earth Was Divided

Mon, 02 May 2016 15:17:00 GMT

Summer is upon us and I am preparing to hit the road with a full schedule of camps and VBS programs. I have recently been studying the post-Flood time period. Several interesting and important facts come to light when working through the text of Genesis 10-11. First, chapter 10 holds a great detail of history with genealogies of Noah’s descendants. It gives us a good overview of a select few of his grandsons, like Peleg. Second, chapter 11 begins with details from part of the time overviewed in chapter 10. This is often the case – one chapter lays out an overview and the next holds details for a specific point in the previous chapter. Babel is the detailed narrative connecting back to Peleg in chapter 10.

Aurora Borealis from the International Space Station

Fri, 01 Apr 2016 21:59:00 GMT

“On this Easter morning, I was treated with a spectacular view of the power and beauty in the Creator’s work.”
— Jeff Williams (@Astro_Jeff) March 27, 2016

With the accompanying photo of aurora borealis, this was the tweet from astronaut Colonel Jeff Williams on board the International Space Station. This tweet received many responses like: “What creator?”; “What a filthy and outrageous thing for a scientist to say.”; “How disappointing. I used to admire you. Unfollow.”, as well as a few others. Many of you may not know that Colonel Williams is a Bible believing creationist as well as an astronaut. When not in space he spends personal time teaching about creation, which he’s seen from a different point of view, with an understanding of our young earth. It is to be expected that he would be blasted by many atheists and evolutionists that never see God at work. Colonel Williams is in a scientific field that clearly shows God’s Glory and handiwork, as the psalmist writes in the nineteenth chapter. There were far more positive responses than negative ones for his tweet. It is another reminder that we live in a time when people want to hear nothing about our Creator and Savior. Colonel Williams is in this battle day in and day out, yet he chooses to take a stand for the Word of God over the outcries of atheistic evolutionists. Please remember Colonel Williams in your prayer times for the next four and a half months while he orbits earth 250 miles up. I encourage you to download the NASA app, as I have, so notifications may be set on your phone that tell you when the ISS visibly passes over your location. I have found this to be an effective way of remembering to pray as I run outside and see the ISS pass over. Please pray that Colonel Williams will continue to be a light for our Creator.

My People Perish

Fri, 01 Apr 2016 21:53:00 GMT

The Bible does say, “without a vision, the people perish,” a verse we often hear and for good reason. But it also says, “ My people perish for lack of knowledge.”

I was speaking to the elder Sunday School class at my church this past week, just on the basic information about dinosaurs in scripture. We creation science educators tend to forget how sparse is the exposure to even the simplest of topics to cover in our area – even in our own fellowships. So, here are a few helps from the Bible and from other sources.

In the Bible, you can find the word “dragon” with your concordance and look up a wealth of knowledge, though the Hebrew word “tanniyn” can just mean “large monster-like creatures,” and indeed is translated as “great whales” in Genesis 1. You can find specific types of dragons mentioned as the “behemoth” in Job 40 and the “leviathan” in Job 41. These are examples of the giant walking sauropod “long-neck” dinosaurs and of the giant swimming reptiles. Both of these are thought to be extinct today, along with the pterodactyla reptiles (“flying serpents of the air”) mentioned in Isaiah (especially Isa 30:6).

The best primer book on dinosaurs would be Dr. G. Thomas Sharp’s book, “Rocks, Fossils, and Dinosaurs.” The best short set of overall lessons for an 6-week course for Bible Study or Sunday School would be “A Primer on Biblical Worldview” by Dr. Sharp and Michelle Holland (a middle school science teacher). The best overall book written on the middle school reading level was by a youth pastor named Patrick Marks, “Someone’s Making a Monkey Out of You!” (only the first edition has errors in it – the new editions are fine). Unfortunately, we don’t carry this book. It is available at other online stores. On the high school reading level is Dr. Gary Parker’s book, “Creation: Facts of Life.” And on the college level would be Dr. David A. DeWitt’s little book, “Unraveling the Origins Controversy.” All of these are short, age-appropriate readers, easy to understand and inexpensive to buy.

If anyone wants to go on a little further in their knowledge or skills, there are many fine books by reputable creation authors. If you want more info on astronomy and the Creation model alternative to the Big Bang, “Starlight and Time,” by Dr. D. Russell Humphreys is good. And for better debate and logic skills, UCLA law professor Phillip Johnson’s book, “Defeating Darwinism by Opening Minds” is just a can’t-put-it-down intro to that.

Please visit our website www.creationtruth.com or call our offices at 888-57TRUTH (578-7884) (Mon-Fri, 9am-5pm CST). I hope this helps. God bless you and – keep thinking! DrJ

Spiritual Darkness in America

Fri, 01 Apr 2016 21:47:00 GMT

Jesus warned His listeners in Matthew 24:37-39 that the nonchalance and spiritual darkness of the Antediluvian Age would repeat itself just prior to His second coming (and this is why Biblical study of the Flood of Noah is so very important today). The antediluvian people had become so desensitized by their self-interests and fleshly attractions until they were blinded to the many indications of coming judgment. Indeed, they were blind, and blind to the fact that they were blind—and that is hopelessly tragic!

This is just an observation, but I think it will reveal to those of you who have your ear on the ground just exactly what I am talking about. I was viewing the evening news this past week and was inundated with the following information (all in a span of about 15 minutes): an apparent murder of a young lady who was left in a shallow grave, the increased need for additional American help in the resistance against Isis, 22 inches of rain falls in in one day in the Houston, TX, accompanied by serious flooding in the downtown area, continued daily earthquakes in northcentral Oklahoma, a 7.8 earthquake in Ecuador, hundreds killed, followed by several aftershocks measuring above 6 pt. on the Richter scale, continued terrorism and isolation of Israel—and it goes on and on and on! Question: is all of this just a part of the normal climate of life?

The believing community in America is now facing what is probably the most momentous and potentially dangerous Presidential election in our 240 year history, which is reflected by America’s present unredeemed youth—most of which are labeled “millennials,” and who, for the most part, are in unparalleled favor of total socialism as the American way of life going forward. So it appears we are always just a generation away from complete atheism.

I am reminded of a series of quotes that I read some time ago that were recorded in David Barton’s book, “ Original Intent ” (I may have used these quotes a couple years ago, if I did please forgive me for the repetition). Nevertheless, then Governor of North Carolina, Samuel Johnston (1788), during their ratification of the U.S. Constitution, said:

In this same vein, Richard Spaight, a signer of the U. S. Constitution, said:

Finally, James Iredell, U. S. Supreme Court Justice (appointed by George Washington), said:

May God have mercy on us all! G. Thomas Sharp

Let the Older Teach the Younger

Tue, 01 Mar 2016 22:42:00 GMT

We often speak in churches about ministry of the older to the younger in the midst. But to even say these words seems trite, considering their importance. What do we really charge Believers with when we say the words? We mean these Paul-and-Timothy relationships; and not just between the men in the congregations. The Bible gets even more specific with instructions that the older women should teach the younger.

“I don’t know, Dr. Jackson – kids are so cocky these days. They probably think I have nothing to offer them.” That sounds like something “you know who” would say – doesn’t it? I once heard a pastor point out to the obvious that “non-Christians watch Christians.” Just look at all of the attention any errant Christian gets in the media, to the reproach of the Kingdom before the world. But our pastor also said “Christians watch Christians.” We do. You have no idea what young eyes and hearts are fixed upon you at any moment. You can lead by example. You don’t have to say a word. But there is also another way. You could talk to them.

At one church I got to talking with a few of the teenage boys at the pot luck. They pointed over to an older man in the congregation saying, “Yeah Mr. ___ is so cool. He’s the man!” When I later told the elder what they said, he was surprised. “Well, I didn’t know they felt that way about me.” Think of the old country song, “She Don’t Know She’s Beautiful.” And –you– don’t know what young eyes, elder saint, are looking on you with a great longing; wishing you would tell them the truths that you know; truths that can only be learnt by a walking and an abiding in Him over the decades of experience in service that you have – which they don’t.

It’s true, not all of the young are so teachable. But many are! Today I’m meeting for coffee with a shining young man of God. His gifts and calling are given in a tribute of sacrifice to the Lord God and to His Kingdom. I love this young fella. He’s so my brother. I see my Jesus in him – so strongly! He asked – me. Why. Because he knows I wouldn’t say no to him. Many of our wonderful young saints – both guys and girls – are just watching and waiting for the elder saint of the same gender who knows the way ahead for them, whom they can count on to at least “give’em the time of day.” Will you? Will I? Pray to the Lord of the Harvest for this next generation of the Church. Have the courage to step out when He points you in the direction of a young person He knows will be open to your mentorship. And be the leaders to the children of the millennium in the Church. You won’t be sorry that you did.

Keep praying. Keep thinking,

DrJ

Biogenesis

Tue, 01 Mar 2016 22:39:00 GMT

Biogenesis is the observation that living things only produce other living things. That is in direct contrast to abiogenesis that states life has arisen naturally from non-life or non-living matter. One of these two are observational and the other purely faith-driven. Evolution demands abiogenesis to be a reality (at least once) or there is no life. Yet in all of creation we only see biogenesis, just as God told us when He created all living systems on days 3, 5 & 6 of the creation week. Some may try to argue that they were formed from matter of the earth, and rightfully so, yet that doesn’t negate that it was through Christ they were formed – Christ the very life. So throughout those first days of history we see life from life only. In Genesis 3 when we deserved immediate death, a life was given for our atonement and life. Again life to life. As we celebrate our Savior’s great gift of eternal life by the shedding of His blood, let us not be remiss that, yes, He shed His blood and died. But He did not just give His life to pay our ransom, He also resurrected to life. With the resurrection to life, overcoming death, He gives life to us for eternity. Again, it is only life that produces life. Here is yet another principle that God has shown us through His creation that illustrates the spiritual as well: nowhere in all of creation or the Bible do we observe abiogenesis, we only observe biogenesis. This resurrection season do not forget this one thing, only life can produce life. Glory to God, our Savior Jesus Christ, for life.

Lack of Interest in the Authority of Scripture

Tue, 01 Mar 2016 22:34:00 GMT

I don’t know if you have noticed or not, but there doesn’t appear to be many people, even professing Christians, that are painstakingly interested in the authority of Scripture. This is extremely dangerous. It is not by accident that the Holy Scriptures have endured several millennia! Obviously, the words of the Bible are inspired and providentially protected! They are, and only they are, the Words of the great Creator God. So, I am convinced that this is the reason why I am so disturbed about the rise of Islam in all corners of the world.

I began a serious study into the origin and history of Islam, its human founder, “Muhammad” and its three primary books: the Qur’an, the multiple volumes of hadith and the Sunnah. Sometime in mid-June I plan to present classes on the following topics: 1. Christianity and Islam, 2. Jesus and Muhammad, 3. The Bible and the Qur’an. If your church would desire to entertain a seminar on these topics, please call the CTF office (405-872-9856) and schedule a time with Bob.

I am doing this for several reasons (some of which I will mention here), namely, that Islam now sports a cadre of followers numbering well over 1.2 billion and is now the fastest growing religion in the world. World domination is their stated objective and is the primary goal of their recent striving in Western Europe and the U.S. (jihad means “striving”). Moreover, Islamic proponents have no qualms in using of the sword in their evangelical persuasion. And further, a weakened Biblical appraisal and faith among quasi believers is an optimal environment for penetration by their convincing evangelists.

A simple comparison of Jesus and Muhammad will quickly reveal the stark differences between the two founders: (1). Jesus is the Son of God, the resurrected Savior and great Creator of the universe, while in Islam Jesus is a mere man, not the incarnate God, who died for our sins, whose blood is redemptively potent for all that believe on Him. (2). Jesus demonstrated true redemptive love by telling and then showing us that no greater love is available in the world than the giving of one’s life for his friends—and He did just that, and He rose from the grave on the third day after His crucifixion. Allah is a deity among the pre-Islamic ancient pantheon of 360 other deities whose images resided in the Kaaba in the city of Mecca before Muhammad was born. (3). Jesus is coming again to catch His waiting bride away to a city He has prepared for them, while the Islamic Jesus is supposed to show up at the end of the age, but his purpose for coming is to destroy all resisters of Islam, especially the Jews, then he will get married and have four or so children and die… really?

I find there is great ignorance in the professing church about this great oppressive, demonic influence that is rising up out of the sea and coming onto the earth. Therefore, I highly recommend to your church the possibility of having a series of studies about these things.

I remain yours in the mighty Name of Jesus, our God and Savior…

G. Thomas Sharp

Death Once For All

Mon, 01 Feb 2016 22:32:00 GMT

During some study I was recently doing on Genesis 3, the Lord pounded me with a truth that I knew but needed refreshing. The statement “death once for all” rang in my head as I read 3:19 and 3:21 with the first blood shed for atonement. As the first to sin, Adam was the first to feel the curse of death, but we all have death lurking because of our sin, as we are reminded by the Apostle Paul in his letter to the Romans. So Adam died once, as we all will, because of the curse of sin. We here at CTF are in a constant battle for the hearts and minds of believers to see the power of the Gospel through the historical foundation in Genesis. There seems to be an increasing number of people that believe that Genesis could allow for millions or billions of years. This is just not true and a lie from Satan himself to destroy the power of the Cross. Death came for all as a result of sin, not with the struggle of life to evolve and become fitter. We must never forget that sin brought death as a curse, not a tool for higher intellect. Paul wrote again in Romans these powerful words, “For [the death] that He died, He died to sin once for all; but [the life] that He lives, He lives to God.” Death once for all. Jesus takes the penalty for my sin – death – and produces life for Him. Again I say, death before sin is not an option in the Word of God. There was a life given that takes all sin and death, the product of the curse, and turns it upside down for eternity. This is only true if Genesis is literally true and Adam was the first to sin, bringing death once for all. Praise be our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ for conquering once and for all the death that curses us.

The Watchman on the Wall

Mon, 01 Feb 2016 22:28:00 GMT

“But if the watchman see the sword come, and blow not the trumpet, and the people be not warned; if the sword come, and take any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at the watchman’s hand.” Ezekiel 33:2b-6

We creation science speakers, debaters, and educators within the Church at large have a special mission. I’m not going to say that it is the only mission of the Church, nor even the most important one. We just keep hold of that which is the most foundational to our faith and to our Book of the faith, the Holy Word of God. Yep. The things we fight for to protect and preserve were once thought just second nature to the belief structure of all Bible-believing Christians. But that assumption lost all force long decades ago. It is not a forgone conclusion any longer that Genesis is real history and that it is scientifically valid. So, the Church needs our help.

They don’t need much from us – just a little encouragement here and there that the faith once delivered to the saints is … well, still true. The Wednesday night leader of our men’s group at church recently pointed out that truth – doesn’t change. Even if our trust and/or belief in it does.

Genesis is true. The Bible is true. We may trust it. We have other kinds of encouragers within the Church, besides the creationists. We have many “watchmen on the wall” that are to keep a lookout for whatever untruths may try to breach the walls of the household of faith and make captives once again of those who have been set free.

It’s an ugly business watching out for the wolves and the spirits of doubt that they carry. But, yes, somebody’s gotta do it. But if we are faithful, and if we offer up to the Church the encouragement and confirmation of the veracity of the Scriptures that we bear within ourselves … well then, the miracles can begin to happen again. The discouraged get re-encouraged. The weak become strong. All because of the Truth of this Word. Yep. That’s all it is.

We have no glory – the watchmen of all of the Biblical doctrines of the Church. But He does. He has all of the glory. His people just need to see a glimpse and they’ll know. He is God. He is Creator. He is Savior. Those of us all along the bulwarks of the walls of this City, must all be doing our jobs in this time of darkness and of warfare. The Father of Lies is hoping that “if possible, even the elect may be deceived.” Don’t lose heart in making the stand that you are called to make for the Kingdom. You won’t regret it in the end. May God grant you good success as you man your stations on the walls of the Mighty Fortress of the Church. Amen.

Keep thinking and praying.

Dr. Jackson

Based in Faith

Mon, 01 Feb 2016 22:21:00 GMT

The two most advertised complaints and misunderstandings about Biblical creation concerns Biblical chronology (the Biblically stated age of the earth—just a few thousand years, about six thousand years) and the Genesis Flood (the worldwide catastrophic event of Genesis 6). Yes, that’s right, it is the Biblical view of time (or the age of things), and the colossal nature of the Flood that causes the most concern, criticism and ridicule from the unbelieving, Bible rejecting community, and even some from within the believing camp register askance about these two important Biblical facts. That’s a scary fact!

So what’s the problem here? First of all, secular thought has no time or place for Biblical history. “Secularism” and its twin brother “rationalism” have, they believe, completely destroyed all remnants of Biblical faith. There is no justification in our overwhelming “scientific” environment for a universe that’s just a few thousand years in age. To the secularist this is simply ludicrous! And that there could have been a legitimate mountain covering Flood just 4,300 years ago is out of the question. So much for the Bible!

But let’s think for a moment…is there an observable difference in the assumptions of Creation and the assumptions of evolution? No, not really…both are based in the faith of their advocates. Neither of these philosophical models is capable of demonstration, or scientific modelling. Both are beliefs that believers know to be true, while neither have been capable of eye-witness, laboratory-style proof!

To me, it is just as unexplainably mindboggling to consider the idea that a universal explosion occurred caused by some infinitesimally small particle (smaller than an electron), which ultimately gave rise to all the stars, planets, gases and people of the universe—all without cause or intelligence. Wow, that’s a thought! Both require faith, either in an omnipotent, omniscient God, or some kind of chance mechanism that operates blindly and randomly.

As for me and my house, we will believe in the mighty God of sacred Scripture. Because I’ve witnessed His merciful grace in attendance of the fevered brow, I have observed the toxic swelling reduce in a moment of time at the mentioning of His name. I have seen the delivering power of His name in the presence of tormenting, heckling demons. I am convinced that He said what He meant to say, and that He accomplished all the things He said He did. That His Word is true, that the shedding of His precious blood did in fact accomplish total reconciliation for those who come to Him, and those who come to Him are those to whom He called to His side before the foundation of the world.

My life verse is Isaiah 40:28-31 is appropriate here: “ Have you not known, have you not heard, that the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, faints not, neither is He weary. There is no searching of His understanding. He gives power to the faint, to them that have no might He increases strength. Even youth shall faint and be weary, and young men shall utterly fall, but they that wait upon the LORD renew their strength: they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run and not be weary; and they shall walk and not faint .” Oh, Lord, teach us to wait on You!

Thanks a million for your continued prayer and financial support for this ministry.

I am ever yours in the thrill of serving Jesus,

GTS

The Human Body and Climate Change

Wed, 27 Jan 2016 22:54:00 GMT

So God created man in His own image;
in the image of God He created him;
male and female He created them.
Genesis 1:27

“While the earth remains,
Seedtime and harvest,
Cold and heat,
Winter and summer,
And day and night
Shall not cease.”
Genesis 8:22

Many of you may not see a connection between these two verses, yet they should both be considered in light of an article ^{^[1]} that has crossed my desk. Without a doubt we are designed and created in His image. We were also designed and created to live on this planet, Earth. It was given to us to study, understand, and conserve. There are many people in the world that are convinced that the world is not cyclical in its climate change, but rather it is happening because of human pressure. Since the Flood our planet has been, and will continue to, cycle it’s climate, either through God-designed components within our ecosystem and/or through outside pressures of our designed sun. However, there is a professor from New York University, S. Matthew Liao, that believes we should re-engineer us, humans, to address climate change.

The Iceman Cometh

Wed, 27 Jan 2016 22:43:00 GMT

Well, it’s been years now since scientists have been studying the remains of a Copper Age man who froze to death in the peaks of the Alps between Switzerland and Italy. Appropriately, he was given the name “Iceman” and much interest was given to him in the early 90’s. Now, new analyses of Heliobacter pylori germs (which are known to cause pyloric ulcers) found in his stomach have thrown into doubt one of the evolutionists’ most cherished theories about human evolution, called the “Out of Africa” theory (versus the “mult-regional” theory on the origin of Homo sapiens). You may see the whole story for yourself at the link:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3389011/Bacteria-tzi-iceman-turn-Africa-theory-head-5-300-year-old-germs-suggest-one-mass-migration-Europe.html

The article title simply states, “Bacteria found in Otzi the iceman could turn the Out of Africa theory on its head: 5,300 year-old germs suggest there was more than one mass migration into Europe.” Great pictures and video can be found with the article.

Wow. This is significant, since most Darwinists have come to canonize the idea that humans first evolved in Africa and then spread out to all the rest of the world. The problem with this particular strain of the germ is this. It doesn’t bear the genetic markers of the African strain of the bacterium. It looks more like the Asian strain! So what then? Did we really “evolve” in Asia and then carry this germ with us into the European population?

“Never fear” cry the evo-pundits. This only means to them that “the story” is way more complicated than they had previously thought. ‘Sound familiar? It seems almost every new scientific discovery leads to a train-wreck effect on the nice-and-tidy evo party line! The story went that we carried the African strain out with us when we migrated to Europe, picking up the Asian strain and then combining them in to the modern version that afflicts European stomachs today. So they are rightly wondering why there was no sign of any African germ DNA in a man who “just must” have been descended from Africa. Well, skirting the main issue, they have just merely decreed that “the merge” must have just happened after Iceman lived (which was probably not the 5300 years ago they claim, but more like 4000 years ago or later, not long after the Biblical dispersion from the Tower of Babel).

For now, let the evolutionists ponder this newest of many deep crevasses in their broken, failing theory. Meanwhile, we may let the creationists take heart in the new evidence that people did not all migrate “out of Africa,” but more likely out of the Middle East. Yeah. Just like the Good Book says.

You keep thinking. DrJ

Haiti Trip

Wed, 27 Jan 2016 22:30:00 GMT

Just returned from our annual trip to Gonaives, Haiti, located about 90 miles north of Port-au-Prince and am happy to report that Living Water Christian Mission, the onsite ministry there with which we work, is growing and is blessed of the Lord. Our team—led by Pastor Cody McDaniel, accompanied by team members: Mrs. Debbie McDaniel (teacher), Mrs. Debra Fairless (APN), Diane and I (CTF), Miss Kylee Witt (RN), Mr. Ashley Butler (minister) and daughter (student), painted, plumbed, preached and taught for 10 days sunup to sundown. The resident director of missions: Pastor and Mrs. Salonique Adolph, native Haitians, were very pleased and happy for our visit and work.

My task for the past three years has been to train the ministerial students in Creation apologetics and Biblical Worldview (consistently about 20 young men between the ages of 25 and 40 years). To date we have covered verse-by-verse Genesis 1:1 through Genesis 7:24 (about 60 class hours of instruction).

The three greatest needs of the Haitian people are: Jesus, education, and economic management skills-in that order. The task is spiritually overwhelming because the Haitian people opened their country a long time ago to satanic control and manipulation through voodoo spirituality, animism, witchcraft and all sorts of demonism. This, I believe produced, or help to produce, the deplorable level of poverty, which is accompanied by the obvious social and domestic despair seen everywhere.

Nevertheless, the Blood of Jesus, His Gospel, the authority of His Word, anointed by His Holy Spirit, all in the presence of Holy angels, is attaining many victories there—Praise the Lord! Pastor Adolph has only been involved in this work 12 years (since he was 30), but during this time has built four churches (and is planning a fifth), a medical clinic, with an on-site MD, a day school, two functioning farms for raising all sorts of vegetables for the children in the school.

Just to give you an idea of the effectiveness of this ministry, the past Sunday, January 10, the home church had an attendance of 906. There are 600 or more children in the day school, and the average combined Sunday attendance for all four churches is about 1,600. The medical clinic is open daily. This Sunday, after a brief sermon by one of the visiting Americans, four women came forward for special prayer: one wanted to be delivered from the terrible darkness in her life and home, one needed her marriage strengthened and her children saved, one wanted to be set free from the bondage she felt in her mind, and the other wanted to know more about Jesus. I am sharing this anecdote with you for only one reason that you can realize the desperate need in this country, and understand that many of the people will respond to the Gospel if given the chance.

The spiritual hunger among the remnant is mindboggling. For example, the students of the Bible college want me to come every four months to teach them instead of once a year, and I am considering this because their hunger for Biblical truth is so great (and I have more time now than I used to have), and the hour is growing late— but I must be sure this decision is the Lord’s will. Moreover, I would need some of you to take this up as a spiritual and financial goal, and tell me of your intention in the next couple weeks or so because each trip would take an additional $2,500 of support, and I would need exceeding prayer cover for each trip and for the time in the country.

God bless you all for you continued prayer and support. I remain yours in the thrill of serving Jesus…so until next month, I pray God’s best for you and your family. Isaiah 40:28-31

GTS

The Holy Days

Sun, 27 Dec 2015 22:26:00 GMT

It has always been pretty much understood that the origin of the short name “holiday” really refers to “holy day.” We’re now in the “holy day season” which includes Thanksgiving (now including the antithetical “Black Friday”), St. Nicholaus Day, Christmas and the New Year. But what are we celebrating, and what is holy about any of these to us individually?

It is so very scriptural for us to “praise him for his mighty acts,” and so any gratefulness, giving of thanks, or celebrating of Him is certainly for all purposes appropriate. We thank him for all that he has done and has given to us. Of course “Jesus is the reason for the season” is still true about Christmas (no matter how “offensive” some ornery Grinch types will protest). We thank God for sending his Son to redeem us. ‘Ever wonder what Adam & Eve thanked God for … before the Fall?

Originally, the first humans never had done anything wrong, and so did not need to be redeemed. True, this state likely lasted only a number of days (weeks at most). But, for that brief time there’d have been no need of thanks for the redemption nor for any forgiveness from the hand of God. So what did they worship him for? You got it. They worshipped him for being their Creator and Maker! All throughout the Bible, there are references to His mighty works, most of which apply to the His works during the acts of the Creation Week.

The Bible says Adam and God walked together “in the cool of the evening.” I wonder what they talked about. I’d like to think they talked as friends, like Jesus said he did with His disciples, and like God spoke with Abraham and Moses – but still, it must have been something more during that unmarred fellowship.

In Genesis, “evening” means the whole night. As a biologist, I often wonder how much did Adam really need to sleep. I am guessing it was more after the Fall than before, but that is up for grabs. Who can know it now? So how long did these nighttime worship services last? What were they like? One day we’ll know. Meanwhile, let’s praise him from this side of the veil for everything. Not only for his acts and gifts since the Fall and the Cross, but also not forgetting to praise him for his first gift to us. He created us. We are the crown of Creation, made in his image! Humanity is special! Let’s get this one right from the start, then move onto all the rest. But, never forgetting who he has always been to us – the Creator. Amen. Happy Holidays!

Yours in the Master and Maker,
Dr. Jackson

End of the Year Letter

Sun, 27 Dec 2015 21:29:00 GMT

In Psalms 39:4, David pensively rehearses his life, considers his own mortality, asked the LORD to help him measure his days and to understand his own frailty. This seems strange, but is a legitimate activity and not morbid at all. It is healthy that we reminisce the days of our life, and rehearse the many times that without God’s interposition, we were but clay in the enemy’s hands.

While sitting here at my computer pecking away in an attempt to author an article for December Newsletter, all of a sudden the above application received enlightenment and purpose. It suddenly became apparent to me that I was captured by the gospel in 1951, at age 9, 64 years ago (not too long after WWII), a time that was peaceful in America (at least, it seemed so) but, tragically, and more to the point, the moral, physical and political environment of our founding era is in jeopardy.

I am overwhelmed that the normal climate of life today is filled with myriad distractions, humanly planned obsolescence, governmentally contrived regulations producing nocuous stalemates of all sorts, international obfuscation (including our continued rejection of Israel), unpreceded religious disorder in many churches, and into this melee the television provides what is called “news,” consisting of 20-somethings “babbling” unendingly about things they do not understand. The insanity is deafening!

So, as we approach this December 25 ^th , what are believers to do in this environment? First, we must remember that Jesus Christ did not come into the world to die for America; He did not die for the Republicans or the Democrats; He did not shed His sacred blood for any political system. He died only to save His people from their sins (Isaiah 53:1-5, Matthew 1:21)!

Secondly, we must continue to honorably celebrate His birth by publically reading the Gospel account of His birth, His life, His death, His burial and His resurrection, with very little Santa Claus, Xmas, or Season Greetings—but an abundance of friendship, fellowship and worship—praising His matchless name by passing a hardy “Merry Christmas” to those with whom we come in contact.

Thirdly, we must renew our efforts to pray and study His Word. We must set a special time in the New Year for fasting and prayer—seeking His face, repenting for our nation’s sins, and doubling down on our personal righteousness (remembering that the only person that we can really change is ourselves).

Fourthly, we must seriously pray that pastors will declare truth as never before, and that we are infused with a holy boldness to effectively witness Biblical truth, not insincere confrontation, but a genuine witness to the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ!

Thanks for your continued prayer and support for this ministry. Have a warm celebration of His first coming, and be aware that He is coming again…real soon (I think).

GTS

Debate Report

Fri, 27 Nov 2015 21:27:00 GMT

Well, I’ve gotten comments like, “You beat him.” and “You mopped the floor with him.” That last one from one of his former students who was almost turned old-earth by him in his classroom of ridiculing Christianity … sigh. It was indeed a clown show of Dr. Recker desperately straining to keep the debate from ever entering the realm of science. He shocked us all in a debate entitled “ Do Fossils Confirm Human Evolution? ” by starting off saying that he was not going to talk about science but about philosophy instead. And that set the tone. He kept trying to blur the issue the whole time, saying if you believe in change you believe in evolution and that’s all there is to it. I kept trying to get it all back to science and to the fossils and to the evidence and away from opinions and theories and … stories! Man, could he reel out the stories! He just told the evolution story in short form and in different words over and over again … always with a just-so mentality and a because-I-say-so and a everybody-thinks-so attitude. The audience saw through that. Dr. Recker also refused to be videotaped even though the atheist club greatly desired it. In the end he had them turn off the camera and the recording mics every time he spoke. What does that tell you???? Glory to the God of Truth. Amen. It is sad that he is allowed to teach at a state-tax funded institution. He is neither a good thinker nor a good teacher. He lays back on the laurels of others and appeals to their authority and calls that kind of “evidence” to be “overwhelming proof” that evolution is true. I didn’t know whether to cry or to laugh at him. He was not the saddest evolutionist that I have ever debated. But he was the lame-est. And I have debated many. It was very sad. He was not sharp in the slightest, and had to rely on verbal tricks in his efforts to survive the night. My message to him is “everybody saw.” God bless. May the God of glory be with you all this day.

In Jesus’ Name, DrJ

Truth and Light

Fri, 27 Nov 2015 21:25:00 GMT

Light resides in our heart in the midst of a dark world (2 Cor. 4:6). We here at Creation Truth will proclaim that Truth and Light as long as we have breath. I am convinced our ministry is one of the most important ministries in the dark world today. We are proclaiming the light of the Truth. If God’s Word is not true in Genesis, then it’s not true in John either. If the history in Genesis is not actual history, then neither is the promise for our destiny. These truths are vital to our walk and salvation. Many are being blinded by the darkness – the darkness of evolutionary science that is driven by atheistic, humanistic, and deceitful men; the darkness of old earth theology that drives a wedge between a man’s heart and the light of Truth.

There are several ways we need your support. First, we need your prayer support as the days get darker until we see His Light come in fullness again. Second, financially we need to raise an extra $8,000-$10,000 per month to meet all ministry needs. Along with the monthly financial need, we would like for you to consider a year-end gift. These special gifts are one way we make it through the winter months when there are less opportunities to teach. Third, we have a need for some couples or teams that would be willing to cook for our Institute for Biblical Worldview Studies Cadre program. Four times a year we bring in Cadre members to our facilities to train and teach Biblical worldview. During those meetings we provide all of their meals, so we need cooks. Fourth, we need to be invited back to many of your churches. For some of our newsletter recipients, it has been many years since we have come and ministered alongside your church. There are also some of you that I have never had the opportunity to meet, so I need to come and share our message that the Lord has imparted to me as well. So, now is a great time to come alongside of us and get involved as we spread the Light of our Glorious Creator and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Religious Busyness

Fri, 27 Nov 2015 21:20:00 GMT

The dialogue between Mary and Martha in Luke’s gospel (10:38-42) identifies a potential concern that I now have, and have had for a number of years. Most of you will remember the oft-used cliché from 20 or so years ago, that “We must be more concerned about the Lord of the work, than the work of the Lord.” Religious busy-ness can often give birth to a deep and abiding paralysis…caused by taking your eye off of the “main thing”! I recall a preacher that announced that his topic for the morning sermon would be, “We must be careful to keep the main thing, the main thing.”

Luke pays special attention to this terrible potential in the exchange between Jesus and Martha. I am most interested in Christ’s response, “ Martha, Martha, you are careful and troubled about many things. But one thing is needful, and Mary has chosen that good part …” (10:41-42) Henry Thayer says the word “careful,” means to be anxious, and the word “troubled,” means disturbed—Hmmm…anxious and disturbed!

As I travel in ministry, I witness a formidable disquietude in the countenance of the majority of church members. People are more concerned about sickness, school activities, personal problems and responsibilities, church problems, geo-political challenges such as terrorism, business and financial burdens, etc., etc. But the fact remains that any or all of these concerns, while serious, are not the main thing! Our text has underscored the “main thing.” My relationship with Jesus Christ is the main thing!

Note: “ Now it came to pass, as they (Jesus and some of His disciples) went, that they entered into a certain village: … Martha received Him into her house… Mary… sat at Jesus’ feet and heard His word. But Martha was cumbered about with much serving … and said, Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Bid her therefore that she help me.” But Jesus told Martha that only one thing was needful, i.e., setting at His feet and hearing His word. My and your relationship with Jesus is far more important than anything we do or plan for our family, or the church. It is true that the family and our local church are second and third in Biblical priority, but they are not first and never will be. Lord help us! Thanks for your continued prayer for, and support to, this ministry. (All scripture quotations are based in the King James Version.)

Sincerely,

G. Thomas Sharp

A Shifting Foundation

Sun, 04 Oct 2015 21:04:00 GMT

It is historically certain that most of American’s founders maintained a clear Biblical perspective about life’s ultimate purpose, i.e., to honor God and His Word, and they carefully guided the development of government to reinforce and encourage this ideal. Their efforts were not perfect, but their efforts reasonably maintained our Republic for more than 200 years.

The first significant chink in this armor came in 1870 when evolutionist Charles Elliot became the president of Harvard. He transitioned the classical and scriptural base in Harvard’s curriculum for one that was more in tune with the goals and philosophy of the Enlightenment.

At the time of the War Between the States (1860-1864), there were a few more than a hundred colleges and universities in the U.S., and they were either for the training of the clergy and/or were administered by the clergy. But by the death of Queen Victoria (1901), Princeton University, the last of these universities, fell under the administrative savvy of non-clerical oversight. This signaled the beginning of a total secular control in higher education in America.

A more noticeable change came in 1925. This was caused from one of the many pegs that has been driven in the heart of Biblical Christianity and Judeo/Christian during the 20th century in America. The place was Dayton, TN, and the milieu was the debate between William Jennings Bryan and Clarence Darrow (an influential ACLU attorney) that took place during the Scopes’ Monkey Trial—which was a contest concerning the Constitutionality of the Butler Act. The Butler Act was a law in Tennessee that forbade the teaching of evolution in the public schools of Tennessee. Even though Bryan won the legal battle, he lost the public relations contest, and as the result evolution has taken an ever greater posture in the education of America’s children ever since.

It wasn’t long after the Scope’s trial until John Dewey (certainly by the 1930s), a social progressive, that was heavily invested in Darwinism, took the leadership of the America’s state schools. So, what’s the point? After the Bible was effectively removed as the primary premise for American thought, especially for our origin, our reason for being, our identity and our destiny, and was replaced by Darwinism, everything established on that foundation began to shift. So that by the 1960s it wasn’t a stretch to think that America’s school children must be protected from the so-called “myths” of the Bible.
Thanks so very much for your continued prayer and financial support for this ministry.

G. Thomas Sharp
Psalms 139:14

An Island State of Mind

Mon, 07 Sep 2015 21:00:00 GMT

Creation Truth Foundation has many close ministry co-laboring organizations, with whom we work on many occasions. One of these is Dr. Carl Baugh’s Creation Evidence Museum in Glen Rose, TX. Our founder and president, Dr. G. Thomas Sharp, has often led expeditions of large groups of college students from Christ for the Nations International in Dallas, TX down to the Paluxy River to see the dinosaur and human fossilized footprints side by side in the rock of the riverbed. Last month, I had the honor of going to the island nation of Fiji with Dr. Baugh, and ministering of the creation science message to many students in church schools, on the local radio stations (both Christian and also broadcasting out of the local University of the South Pacific campus), and at the Civic Center in the capital city of Suva and there also in the Sports Arena. There was a large group of speakers and ministers on this expedition. And the Christian people of Fiji were gladdened in their hearts! Let me share a little of why this mission was (and is) important.

Being in Fiji was not like a vacation. My feet never touched the beach. This was a working trip (ha)! But one thing we all saw and heard, everywhere that we went, was just how much Fiji was like the USA – only 50 years ago. Today, in the public school system of the entire nation, teachers can both read the Bible and have prayers with their students! Having had a brutal and pagan past over 100 years ago, once the missionaries came Fiji quickly converted to being largely a Christian nation. Yes, the culture and ethnics are very different from the US. But the status of the Body of Christ in this set of islands in the south Pacific near New Zealand, Australia, and Indonesia … is quite good and strong as it was in the US during the 1950’s. But that will not last.

Fijian culture is on the brink of the same slippery slope that US culture and the US church faced back right about the time that prayer and the Bible were taken out of our public schools. And we all know what happened after that. The Fijian Christians are in a state of fervor for the Gospel and the Word. But they are not invulnerable to the same Deceiver who crept in and dealt a stab to the Christian worldview once held by the US as a nation and as a culture. The Fijians are painfully aware of this precipice. And they are on their knees for their children, their leaders, and their nation.

There are amazing small Christian schools providing a truly high quality of education to many young people on the island. I was impressed. And still, as mentioned, Christian teachers may still minister freely to their students in the public schools as well. But that time may be coming to close.

Friends, with only minimal efforts on our part to help, this compromising spirit can be thrust back into the darkness from whence it came. Fiji – ironically – could be the last of the truly great Christian oases left in the world at the end when the darkness closes in on the rest of the earth. True, the Antichrist will rule as prophecy states, during the Tribulation period. But if there is one hold-out culture of Christians that do endure up to the very end (perhaps until the Rapture itself) … wouldn’t that just be a wonderful thing? And it was wonderful for me, to be a part of that God-driven effort last month. There are plans to return earlier in the next summer, when the public schools are still in session. Please pray for that trip. Please consider supporting it financially, as travel that far is expensive. I am learning Fijian as best I can for the return visit.

God bless you all!
Dr. Jackson

The Last Days

Mon, 07 Sep 2015 20:57:00 GMT

The prophet Joel says (2:27) that “ It shall come to pass afterward that I will pour out My Spirit upon all flesh …” — but, “after what?” Luke records the words of the Apostle Peter preached on the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2:17, in which, I think, Peter answers this question. He says that Joel’s “ afterward ” most likely refers to a time he calls the “ last days ” (Acts 2:17). Thus the word “ afterward ” must point to the time after the Messianic visitation to the Jews during the second temple period, to what the Bible calls the “ times of the Gentiles ” (Luke 21:24, Romans 11:25).

By now, you may be asking, “What are you trying to say?” Well, Luke states that during this “ last days ” period, there will be significant signs in the earth and the heavens particularly for those that love and look for Christ’s appearing (Acts 2:19-20). It is very meaningful to this topic that during the Creation Week Moses identified the lights in the heavens to be the regulators of day and night, and to be specially determined for “ signs, seasons, days and years” (Genesis 1:14). The “ days ” and “ years ” mentioned here are pretty much what they are today. However, the Hebrew word “ sign ” ( ōth ), means signal, indication or warning, and the word “ seasons ,” Hebrew mō·ād′, refers to appointed times such as Jewish ceremonial feasts, holy days, God appointed gatherings, etc., and not, as many suppose, to spring, summer, fall or winter.

During total lunar eclipses, the sun, moon and earth appear extremely unique. The sun is obscured by the earth and appears extremely darkened or diminished, with only a small margin of light appearing around its exposed edge. The moon appears red (like blood), which is due to the muted light reflected from the sun. It is interesting that researcher Barry Satterfield says that when a full lunar eclipse occurs, and it falls on Jewish holy days such as Passover or Tabernacles, these particular eclipses are often referred to as “blood moons,” principally, Satterfield thinks, because of the blood-spilling, sacrificial nature of these Jewish holy days.

By the end of this month, we will have witnessed the completion of the fourth tetrad since 1493. The probability of this happening by mere coincidence boggles the mind. But the probability is much greater when there are four lunar eclipses in a year and they all also occur in close proximity to Jewish holy days. During the tetrad of 2014-2015 (the word tetrad is the name NASA assigned to four total eclipses in one year), the first one occurred on April 15, 2014, which was also the beginning of Passover. The second occurred the day before Tabernacles, October 8. The third was on April 4, 2015, which also began at the beginning of Passover. The last in this tetrad is scheduled to take place on September 28, which is the day before the week of Sukkot (Tabernacles).

This scenario requires serious thought, even prayer, to determine whether or not these eclipses are mere coincidences, simply a matter of naturalistic science, or a divine sign in the heavens. I point you to the words of Jesus…He admonished us to be ready (Matthew 24: 44)!

Thanks for all your prayer and support for this ministry…God bless!

G. Thomas Sharp

On the Nature of Things

Sat, 01 Aug 2015 19:44:00 GMT

Like so much of our 21st century civilization, science itself has also grown extremely shallow roots, allowing the older deeper roots to atrophy and to die off at the ends. Gone are the days of the philosopher scientist or even the entrepreneur inventor bringing something of new use the others in his world, if even for a tidy profit. No, in our world today, science has become a set of bullies playing “king of the hill” and trying desperately to keep on top by pushing others down. Gone is the nobility. Gone is the respectability. Gone is the dignity and the trustworthiness. Science has become almost completely like politics. Sad.

As a result, you can’t trust scientists. Oh yes, you can read science books from 60 years ago and be pretty sure that everything that you find will be written in the time-honored search for the truth. But even there, you will have to winnow out the early forces of political correctness and the influence of the devil’s atheist brigade that was even then elbowing out the gentler philosophies associated with the age old quest for the truth. Now, science has completely become nothing more than a gang war full of pseudo-intellectuals afraid that someone will lead the world to find out the truth about – them – which is that “the emperor has no clothes.”

Would that we could return or, at the very least, make an appeal for the return to nothing less or more than honesty in the science world of today. How happy that would make me! But no, the situation as it stands calls for nothing less than a return in kind to the open hostility of the status quo response to any who remain aligned to the “search for the truth” espoused by Nobel laureate Dr. Linus Pauling and countless other true scientists of the past. (“No More War!” 1958, Dodd Mead, NY, p209.)

This is why the creation science education ministry is important. It is an important apologetic for the Church in our time. Do not mistake the meaning of this word, for it sounds perhaps too much like we are sorry for giving the evolution-believers and the atheists a hard time. We are not. An apology is a reconciling. And we creation ministers are (not unlike balancing a messy checkbook) merely trying to bring into justification the record – to keep it straight. Evolution is not a science. It never was and never can be. “Evolution is a religion. This was true of evolution in the beginning and it is still true of evolution today.” (Michael Ruse, evolutionary philosopher at Florida State U, in the National Post newspaper, 5/13/200)

Keep thinking, DrJ

Radiocarbon Dates For Fossils

Sat, 01 Aug 2015 19:09:00 GMT

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jeff-schweitzer/earth-20-bad-news-for-god_b_7861528.html

So What’s the Difference?

Wed, 01 Jul 2015 19:07:00 GMT

Forty years ago, Fritz Ridenour wrote a little book by the same title as above. It was a guide to the key differences in the world religions that one was bound to encounter in the walk and witness as a Christian. Nowadays, perhaps we need another such book to tell the differences between denominations or perhaps even between the factions within them. Better yet, we should have a guide to identifying the sources of errors versus sources of truth in the church of the world today. Oh wait. That guide is the Bible.

Essential to Christianity must be the virgin birth and the resurrection. But what good are these, unless original sin is also an historical fact? If there was no Adam, and he did not sell out our race, then why did Jesus have to die? If there are “many ways to God” or “ways to Heaven,” then why did Jesus say that He was the only way? Or is the biblical record of the words of Jesus false?

All of these are important questions, exactly because they define the tenets of the faith. But now, most churches and/or their members have rejected at least one of these essentials. Now is not the time for the Church to cave on the Gospel (which is the power of God unto salvation) when the world is burning and our race is dying. What race? Adam’s race. The human race. There is no other but this one. And it comes in all skin colors. (I’m not talking about a “rainbow.”)

All old-earth positions of compromise against a straightforward read of the Bible involve a denial of the doctrine of original sin. They include death as a part of the world but before sin came into the world. This goes exactly against the instruction of Jesus and the teaching of Paul. Time was, these heresies might have merited little more than a chuckle. Now they have become “bedrock” of many an anemic faith. Meaningless, powerless, and without the authority of God, these errors have robbed the church of her power (the Gospel) and many believers of their joy (yes, and even of their salvation!). I won’t mince words now, since the last battle has begun (just watch the news).

So, what do you do? “The Bible, the whole Bible, and nothing but the Bible, so help me God” is still a pretty good mighty fortress against this toxic tide. So stick with what has worked as effect against the devil and his lies for thousands of years before our time.

Keep thinking and keep reading, DrJ

The Bible and America’s Founding Era

Wed, 01 Jul 2015 18:42:00 GMT

During our Founding Era (1760-1805), the Bible had a most significant influence on the thinking of many of America’s founders. To illustrate this fact, I will cite a well-documented study conducted by two political science professors in the mid-1980s (see American Political Writing during the Founding Era, vols. 1 and 2, Dr. Charles Hyneman and Dr. Charles Lutz). It was their intent to understand the mind and thoughts of America’s Founders about a republican form of government, and, of course, this was the primary purpose that Founders wrote these documents in the first place.

To aid in the accomplishment of this gargantuan feat, Lutz and Hyneman set some parameters from which they would pursue their research. They identified the Founding Era as a period of U.S. History from 1760 to 1805, and they restricted their research to the writings and speeches of some 240 carefully selected men of this period. Their research soon produced approximately 15,000 items associated with these 240 men—from which they reduced the number to a more workable 916 items that they carefully examined (items such as pamphlets, newspaper articles, monographs, etc.), they also thoroughly read 2,200 books.

From the inexhaustible volume of data produced by this fact-finding, they discovered three thousand references to other sources, and it is especially telling that one particular source kept rising to the top—the source that our Founders most often mentioned in their writings and speeches was the Bible! In fact, the Bible provided a full third (34%) of our Founder’s quotes and affirmations, and the Book most cited was Deuteronomy. (If this is intriguing to you see authors John Eidsmoe and David Barton.)

This said, I must address the vast degree and shocking nature of the open departure and degradation to Biblical principle caused by the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision concerning their redefinition of marriage. We must remember that Thomas Jefferson, 2nd President of the U.S., often warned about the possibilities of a rogue judiciary. He said that the Constitution…is a mere thing of wax in the hands of the judiciary which they may twist and shape into any form they please. ( Memoir, Correspondence and Miscellanies (from the papers of Thomas Jefferson), Thomas Jefferson Randolph, editor, vol. iv, p. 317)

There are many such examples of this level of Biblical conviction in our early history, but consider this one: Updegraph v. The Commonwealth (1824), a Mr. Abner Updegraph declared publically that the Holy Scriptures were mere fable, contradictory and full of lies. An indictment of blasphemy was leveled against him, and the case was heard by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. The High Court overwhelming decided that Christianity, general Christianity, is, and always has been, a part of the common law, [and that] our wise legislature framed this great body of laws (the U.S. Constitution) for a Christian country and Christian people…and thus, it is irrefragably proved, that the laws and institutions of this state are built on the foundation of reverence for Christianity…that [no] man should have the right to publically vilify the religion of his neighbors and of the country; these two privileges are directly opposed. ( Updegraph v.The Commonwealth , Supreme Court Pennsylvania, 1824, pp. 402-407)

America’s original respect for God and His Word is in deep, permanent and growing decline, and complete reformation would require a hundred years at least (three to four generations). The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision affecting marriage is but an indication of the depth of our present depravity. God help us going forward! (Isa. 40:28-31)

Thanks for your continued prayer and financial support! I am yours, as ever.

Sincerely,

G. Thomas Sharp

June Summer Camps

Fri, 26 Jun 2015 19:35:00 GMT

During the month of June, I have attended two separate camps as the missionary for the week. It is always a privilege to go to camp and teach the Word of God. The camp themes were Unbroken for the first week and Reclaimed for the second. Both of these themes have a great deal to do with our Biblical worldview. Over the course of the week I took the opportunity to show that the history of the Bible is Unbroken and should be Reclaimed as actual history. Regardless of what the world says, the Bible’s history is intact and correct. I taught that the fossil record does not demand long ages, just the right conditions to form fossils. We also studied that we should Reclaim the dinosaurs. More and more evidence is coming to light in support of dinosaurs living more recent in history than previously thought or dreamed by many people. Recent finds of blood cells and other soft tissue from dinosaurs again shows the Word of God’s history is Unbroken from the creation to now. Another topic we tackled during camp is that we are only one race of people, the human race. We Reclaimed our created image of God away from an evolutionary struggle for a favored race among many, which still seems to be promoted by many in the world today. I tried to help students grasp that our ethnicity, not race, can easily be traced back Unbroken in history to Babel. It has been an amazing summer so far as we see students Reclaim the Bible as Unbroken history in their lives. It is awe inspiring to serve the One True God, Jesus Christ.

“You Don’t know the Half-Truth of It”

Fri, 26 Jun 2015 19:31:00 GMT

The clarion call of many ministries in the creation science education camp is also that of Creation Truth Foundation — “worldview matters.” It surely does. Errors in worldview have lately promoted the worst of the world’s lack of inhibitions as reflected in matters of STS (science-technology-society).

Worldview error is what causes the world to celebrate the “courage” of man in his 60’s who once achieved rock-star status as the male role model for American boys … now a “hero” as he decides to become a gelding. Insane. And, of course, by worldview error we mean any clear departure from the biblical worldview. One might think instant insanity might not be the result of departing from the authority of the Scriptures, but … just take one look around!

Worldview error has caused the world to celebrate the return to a century-ago debunked secular theory of the universe, which says that all matter and energy are eternal and had no beginning. Such is the latest new-and-improved version of the canonized Big Bang Theory of cosmology. Even as the science data forces them into more and more of a corner on this, their response is only to intensify their “atheistic apologetic” into high gear and “just try harder.”

As more distinctions blur in the definitions of “man” and “woman” and “marriage” and “family” it is no surprise to see science and politics trying desperately to legitimize these new and confused “definitions.” I remember Huey Lewis’ song “Whatever Happened to Old Fashioned Love” from the 80’s. Its prophecy has certainly come true.

And from whence cometh all this confusion? Much of our CTF staff were at a lecture by evo-atheist evangelist Richard Dawkins, at a nearby major university campus a few years back. The title of his lecture was “The Purpose of Purpose.” His conclusion (of course)? There is no purpose. Well then, what shall we say about that? “There is nothing new under the sun.” I guess we can’t be too surprised.

And it’s not even a new thing that our civilization should use “science” to “prove” that these extra-biblical worldview conclusions are valid. Just be on your guard. The “spirits of strong delusion” have surely been unleashed as predicted upon this current generation. What do we do? Remember our purpose. Remember our calling. We’re not perfect, but our Master is – and so is His Word. Hold fast. Stir up the gifts. The hour is late. The night is dark. Let His heavenly light shine forth in our human lives. Amen.

Keep thinking, DrJ

Jurassic Park-A Look Back

Fri, 26 Jun 2015 19:24:00 GMT

There have been many evolutionary encroachments into scientific legitimacy over the last hundred years or so. But a new high was reached in 1993 when Steven Spielberg directed and released the first “Jurassic Park” movie, costing a whopping 63 million dollars, with dazzling music and special effects that made you think dinosaurs were still alive. Of course, there have been sequels, and the saber-rattling it is not over because there is another of these faith-killing movies to be released this month (shouldn’t be, but it is).

There is no other topic as eye-catching, or thought-grabbing (especially fitted out in millions of dollars of Hollywood glitz and glamour), than stories about “prehistoric” dinosaurs. Hundreds of millions of dollars are spent annually to promote this masterful evolutionary icon through museums, zoos, television “documentaries,” textbooks, etc. Nothing grabs the attention of young children (especially boys between the ages of 3-12) like dinosaurs in all genres. They are mysterious, exciting and awe-inspiring, and more than this, in their secular garb, they are Bible defying. To underscore the spiritual significance of this so-called emphasis on “pre-history,” just the presence of a dinosaur skeleton standing in an empty hallway suggests naturalistic origins, millions of years of earth history, death before sin, missing links—the whole nine yards of evolutionary make believe—like nothing else.

Soon after the release of Jurassic Park, I was contacted by the Dallas affiliate of the USA Radio Network in 1994 and asked if I could present an exposé of this movie, because they said, “We have been contacted by many 'Christians' since the movie aired; they’re asking how much of this movie was based on legitimate science.” WOW! You’ve got to be kidding? Wish I was, but sadly, they were not kidding; they were serious! And this would be hilariously funny, if it wasn’t so very tragic.

The reality in all of this is since Darwin released his book, On the Origin of Species , there has been a gradual and consistent transition in the American culture from Judeo/Christian thinking to materialistic naturalism. And we probably crossed the line of no return in 1962-63 when we outlawed Bible reading and prayer for the students in state schools. When you tell American school children that Bible study and prayer offered in Jesus’ name are against the Constitution of the United States of America—the highest legal document of the land—you are in effect, asking the Creator God to leave your country. Nevertheless, the present evolutionary story about dinosaurs is just another attempt by the devil’s crowd to maintain their control over the American mind—and it is working! Dinosaurs are an enemy to the gospel of Jesus Christ for two reasons: (1). The use of dinosaurs to justify millions of years age, and (2). The evolutionary notion that dinosaurs caused death before Adam’s sin.

Let us help you! Call us at 405-872-9856 or visit us at www.creationtruth.com for more information about bringing one of CTF's excellent speakers to your church or school to talk about the Biblical view of these amazing creatures. This would be an outstanding back-to-school venture for your church or youth department. While the dinosaur subject is hot and fresh on the minds of your parents and youth, give us a call. We would be happy to help you turn the lights back on concerning the Biblical reality about dinosaurs.

Thanks for your continued prayer and financial support!

I am yours, as ever, G. Thomas Sharp

“Who’s the Ross?”

Wed, 22 Apr 2015 20:50:00 GMT

Recently, a young pastor of an influential church emailed me asking about scientist and professing Christian Dr. Hugh Ross. I was happy to oblige, as I had spoken at his church many times last year. There are many “winds of doctrine” both in religion and in science these days. The Bible warns that “spirits of strong delusion” will be turned loose upon the earth in the last days. That is certainly happening now. Who is Dr. Ross?

Ross is an astronomer who talks a lot about biology. Well, I’m a biologist who talks about astronomy, but at least I am a state-certified teacher of Earth Science, which includes astronomy. Ross is the author of the Progressive Creation theory. It says hundreds of millions of years ago, God created prehistoric creatures and then they began to go extinct. So, God began creating new and improved life forms to replace these that had failed. Eventually, He worked His way up to – you guessed it – us. Ross’ organization is called Reasons to Believe, and it has many chapters on college campuses all across the country. However, there are many reasons, both scientific and scriptural, not to believe Dr. Ross.

The first, and worst problem with Progressive Creation is death coming into the world before sin. The church in the early years A.D. gave this as one of the red flags to the detection of heresies. Paul taught that by one man sin came into the world and by sin came death. Therefore Jesus, the second Adam, had to bring redemption into the world for us all … which is why we celebrated Easter earlier this month.

Secondly, Ross serves to give Theistic Evolutionists an out for their missing-link problems. Since there were no half-steps between the species because God just created new ones from scratch, then there wouldn’t need to be any link fossils in the sedimentary rock beds on the earth.

Third, it’s just a compromise. Evolutionists and atheists do not respect this, but instead only mock us for having no stomach for a direct confrontation with what they consider “proven scientific facts” of Darwin’s theories. Ross’ works are most appealing to those in the church who are embarrassed by the Bible’s history of the creation found in the Book of Genesis. They are selling their birthright for a mess of pottage, I am afraid. And along with this theory, comes a full acceptance of the Big Bang model of the universe, which has been in serious doubt, especially recently.

In short, Ross is not the boss. And I don’t think that anyone should allow themselves to be taken in by his or any other of the compromise theories out on the market today. Sola scriptura, folks. Only the Scriptures. We’ll be on safe ground both theologically and scientifically only so long as we follow that age-old dictum.

Keep thinking. DrJ

AAAS Fears Freedom of Speech at MSU

Mon, 27 Oct 2014 15:31:00 GMT

the "Full Gospel"

Thu, 08 Aug 2013 19:43:00 GMT

Over the years, as people have asked literally thousands of questions during the Q&A sessions that we speakers from Creation Truth Foundation run into … we begin to see a pattern. Most questions can be answered from the Scriptures, in addition to from what modern science can tell us about the historicity of the Bible.

By this, what I’m trying to say is … many of the questions we get … are really just pleas for assurance in the face of the question “Is the Bible really true? … really, really, I mean.” The answer of course is “yes.” And our thinking here at CTF has become more and more clearly defined as “The Bible, the whole Bible, and nothing but the Bible, so help me God.” Amen to that!
When we speak to an atheist group, or if the crowd is otherwise populated largely by unbelievers … we are accustomed to our Biblical authority not carrying much weight with our audience. That’s to be expected. But when we speak in a totally “Christian” setting … and we have people in the audience who are doubting the Bible’s literal and face-value authority … we have a real contradiction in terms there. At least with the atheists — we know what they are believing and teaching! With the compromising believers … you really never are quite sure of just –what– you’re getting!

So stick to your Bible. We used to say “stick to your guns.” And that’s not too far from the truth in this case. I wonder if there –were– guns … in Paul’s day … if he would not have included a gun among the outfitting for a soldier, rather than a sword — representing the Word of God.

Hey, here in the mid-west (and also in the military) they have a saying — “Take good care of your gun, and it’ll take good care of you!” The Word is powerful and swift as any two-barreled shotgun — ha — and certainly as any two-edged sword. God bless, and “keep on thinking.”

DrJ
Source: New feed

Genetic History of the Human Kind

Sun, 14 Jul 2013 21:19:00 GMT

A comparison of the current standing of genetic research to the narratives from both the Biblical historical model and the Darwinian evolutionist model of human history.

Further research not only continued to affirm that the entire human race had only but one mother, but also that she did not walk the earth millions of years ago. Instead, the diversity of mitoDNA found in all human cells was so slight, that it could have developed over a mere 120,000 years instead. “We are finding that humans have very, very shallow genetic roots which go back very recently to one ancestor,” said Michael Hammer of University of Arizona. “That indicates that there was an origin in a specific location on the globe and then it spread out from there.” ( US News & World Report , 12/4/1995, cited by John Heffner) Before these discoveries, evolutionists had been arguing among themselves whether there was indeed only one point of origin for the human race. The two competing theories were called the “Out of Africa” theory and the “Multi-regional” theory. Many evolutionists felt that the supposed missing link fossils found in Asia, such as Homo erectus , were evidence that humans first arose in several different places at similar times. Many “multi” theorists still reject the data to this day, though the “Africa” theory has been had their majority vote throughout this controversy. Perhaps the “multi’s” just don’t like the idea of one “mother of all living,” sounding too much like the Bible. Then something most disturbing and shocking happened in 1998. A glitch was discovered in the central assumption of the “mitochondrial clock” mechanism. MitoDNA, it was found, could diversify about 20 times faster than had been previously assumed. A new date was recalculated for “mitochondrial Eve,” and it was even more removed from the date that they had originally been expecting by Darwinian assumptions. Eve was now dated at 6000 years old.

Another of the world’s most respected evolutionist-run journals reported the finding that male mitoDNA could indeed be donated to offspring of both sexes at the moment of conception. This meant that not all of the differences that we see in human mitoDNA is due to the maternal line, but that much was due to the invasion of the fertilized egg with sperm-cell mitochrondria. It was calculated that the frequency of such an event in the breeding history of humankind, would step up the diversification process by a factor of 20 times faster than had been originally thought. Instead of being only 120,000 years old, Eve was now finally pegged at 6000 years old.

“Regardless of the cause, evolutionists are most concerned about the effect of a faster mutation rate. For example, researchers have calculated that ‘mitochondrial Eve’–the woman whose mtDNA was ancestral to that in all living people–lived 100,000 to 200,000 years ago in Africa. Using the new clock, she would be a mere 6000 years old. No one think that’s the case.” (author Ann Gibbons, “Calibrating the Mitochondrial Clock,” the journal Science , 1/2/1998, p28, cited by John Heffner) The Science article (cited by Carl Wieland) quotes the original paper, saying “ evolutionary studies led them to expect about one mutation in 600 generations … they were ‘stunned’ to find 10 base-pair changes [in the mitoDNA sequences], which gave them a rate of one mutation every 40 generations” ( Nature Genetics , vol 15, 1997, p363-8) One must account for the Biblical history of the first eight generations of humans taking place over a long 1700 years, and only then tapering to the more rapid generations more typical of the life and times of human history. That done, Eve is confirmed as living only 6000 years ago; not 120,000 years; not 200,000 years; certainly not six or seven million years (where evolutionists current date our first split off from the ape lineages). Researchers who persisted in this knowledge after the reports were published, are routinely ignored by those in the scientific community who are of the Darwinian faith. “The most recent common ancestor would have lived in the very recent past … the MRCA of humans lived just a few thousand years ago.” (quote from the world’s most prestigious science journal Nature , in an article “Modeling the Recent Common Ancestry of all Living Humans,” vol 431, 9/30/2004, p562, cited by John Heffner)

Some might object to the notion that one human couple might give rise to all of the genetic diversity now found in the human race. But the origin of this one couple must be taken in account. Creationist anatomist David Menton urges us to remember that Eve was a direct creation of God. All baby girls after her, are born with all the egg cells in their ovaries that they will ever have for their entire lifetime. They get those eggs by meiotic division of their parents’ DNA during their own prenatal development. But where did Eve get her DNA? Where did Eve get the egg cells in her ovaries? Menton suggests that each of Eve’s 400,000 eggs could have had a set of alleles in the genes that were totally distinct and diverse from one another. The Bible does not say how many offspring that Adam and Eve had. Only three are named, and the rest are referenced only as “many sons and daughters.” How many? How many could the most healthy couple in history produce, in a fertile lifespan of perhaps more than half a millennium (500 years–Adam is recorded as living to the age of 930). Together, our first parents could have easily provided far more genetic diversity than even now the human race displays. Much of that diversity would have been lost when the human race was reduced once again down to only three breeding couples, who of course obtained their genetic inheritance in the same way as humans do today. This will be discussed later in this paper. Now we shall go to the genetic evidence for humanity’s first father, the man Adam.

Shortly after sleuthing down the genetic trail left behind in the human genome and finding the genetic Eve, researchers became interesting in doing the same for the genetic Adam. They had found the genetic “mother of all living;” now they wanted our original human father. What was needed was something as unique in male inheritance as the mitochondrial DNA what thought to be in female inheritance. The obvious was the Y-chromosome, found only in male humans. This would be trail to trace back to our first father. This was done, and the man was of course dubbed “Y-Chromosome Adam.”

“By analyzing DNA from people in all regions of the world, Well has concluded that all humans alive today are descended from a single man who lived in Africa around 60,000 – 90,000 years ago, a man also known as Y-chromosomal Adam.” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spencer_Wells) Evolutionist Spencer Wells is the go-to guru evolutionist for the genetic Adam. His National Geographic documentary aired on PBS presents the evidence from his research found also in his 2002 book, “The Journey of Man: A Genetic Odyssey.” The key here is that our genetic Adam was found to have a history only 3/4 as long as genetic Eve (90,000 years instead of 120,000 years). Although the 90,000 years does not fit the Biblical time line, the ratio of 3/4 does fit exactly.

MitoDNA is rarely distributed through the father, but almost always through the mother in each generation. The glitch that multiplied the speed of diversification in the mitoDNA was the discovery that males may contribute to that diversity, though it is a rare occurrence when they do so. Could there be a factor that might increase the rate of Y-chromosome diversity among males as well? It is already known that fertile women are capable of carrying (and thereby transmitting to their male offspring) a Y-chromosome. Actress Jamie Lee Curtis is the most famous example of a normal woman who is such a carrier. Whether a cause for such a 20-times-faster diversification rate will ever be found for the male Y, the fact still remains that the history of the Y-DNA is given as 3/4 the history of the mitoDNA estimated by the evolutionist. This ratio fits the human genetic history as paralleled in the Biblical history of humankind.

Think of the mitoDNA sample that was on the Ark. The three couples from which we are all descended, had three women all with three different genetic backgrounds. Combine that with the later rare contribution from the male mitoDNA, and you get a large diversity present of mitoDNA disembarking just over 4350 years ago. Now consider the Y-DNA diversity on the Ark. It is clear that only three Y-chromosomes led to all of the Y-DNA found in human males today, if the Biblical record is true. Were these three already diverse? No, they were identical. All three were transmitted from the same man’s genome–Noah’s himself, as these were all three his direct sons. One portion of the human Y has been found to be identical among all living males. It is a 729-long sequence that should have randomly changed a great deal in 90,000 years, but has remained the same since during the actual Biblical 4450-year period since diversification began in Noah’s offspring. (“Absence of polymorphism at the ZFY locus on the human Y chromosome, Science , vol 268, p1183-5, 1995. cited by Don Batten) According to the Biblically-based genetic history of humans then, 6000 years of female genetic diversity has been preserved from Eve, through the Flood, and on to today. But by that same history, only 4450 years-worth of male genetic diversity would show up in the world today. Don’t forget, Shem was 98 years old when he got on the Ark and had a son at 101. This works out cleanly as a 3/4 ratio to the female genetic diversity (and therefore, genetic history). Once again, the genetic history of mankind correlates better with the Biblical time line than with the Darwinian one, and may even fit more certainly if a female contribution to the male lineage can be established, as has already been found in the vice-versa case.

Also early in the study of the human genome, there was evidence of the entire human race been reduced to a tiny number about the time the Biblical reckoning of Noah’s Flood in Genesis. Before DNA sequencing was developed, blood serum protein analysis was used in doing genetic research. In the 1970’s, it was realized that such a “genetic bottleneck” at such a time period, was indicated by the human hemoglobin protein found in the bloodstreams of all living humans. (“Population size and protein variation in man, Genetical Research , vol 19, p73-89, 1972. cited by Don Batten.)

The research of Spencer Wells (mentioned above) and others, has verified many times over, that all living humans are descended from one of four–and only four–human gene pools. Think of this for a minute. Why not just one gene pool?–whether you believe in evolution or not. Think of the crew on Noah’s Ark. There was Noah and his family–that makes one gene pool. Then there were the three wives of the three sons, presumably from three additional gene pools–making a total of four. Once again, modern genetics has corroborated the Biblical account of the history of humankind–not the Darwinian version. But can three couples begin a population that reaches 7 billion within only 4350 years. Yes.

Mathematician John Heffner has calculated that given only an average family size of 2.5 children per generation, from the Flood until now, the world population would be estimated at 6.5 billion. If the first Homo sapiens came on the scene even 500,000 years ago ( Biology , AP/college textbook by Raven & Johnson, cited by Heffner) then that number could be potentially many trillions of times greater. Why is the human population not vastly greater than it is now, as the Darwinian model would predict? Why is the population right at the prediction of the Biblical model? Logic dictates, once again, that the Biblical account of the history of the human race is indeed the true and actual account. There simply is no reason to doubt the accuracy of the Biblical history of mankind. There is a plethora of scientific reasons from the field of genetic research, to merit the wholesale abandonment of the distorted Darwinian history along with its erroneously inflated time lines.

The Evo-origin of Life vs. Creation Truth

Thu, 14 Mar 2013 21:30:00 GMT

The Problem:

“Evolutionists gloss over this evo-foundation issue.”

Evo-Sith Lady of evolution Eugenie Scott is executive director of the National Center for Science Education, Inc – basically an anti-creationist hate-group (see their website if you don’t believe me, at www.ncseweb.org ). When John Gibson of FOX News (5/6/2005) asked her if evolution can answer how life got started, she replied, “No. But that’s not what evolution is all about. Evolution is the inference that living things had common ancestors. The origin of life is a completely separate problem … creationists like to confuse the two, because they look at the origin of life as the soft underbelly of evolution.” Eugenie’s got it wrong here, at least about me anyway. I do not see the origin of life as the “soft underbelly of evolution.” I see the whole evo-theory as just one big gigantic soft spot! But let’s look close at this in particular which she called a “soft underbelly” of evolution, shall we? This looking-close exercise, by the way, is the one thing that every evolutionist alive is terrified that anyone will do. But we’re going to peek deeply into the “science” of this anyway – whether they like it or not.

Most evolutionists complain the same as Dr. Scott, saying we’re “not being fair.” They object, “well, evolution doesn’t talk about how life got here – just how that first life evolved into everything after that!” Really. Then why does every textbook on evolution start the evo-story off with – you guessed it – the origin of life? I’ll tell you why. It’s because not only is the origin of life definitely part of the evo-story – it’s actually the foundation of the evo-story! It’s clearly the foundation because, it is clearly step one in the story! There is no other way to talk about it. It’s the necessary beginning of “Genesis according to Darwin.”

There is – always – a contradiction in evolutionary thinking, because there will always be a contradiction in any incorrect thinking if you take it far enough along the way down the road on which it first starts out. If their step one being missing is truly not a problem, then why is it such a top priority in so many of their heavily funded research programs, trying to find the answer to this problem? It is a problem for them, and every one of them knows it! It’s a problem because; there can never be any answer for it that doesn’t go directly against all of the known laws of science.

The Truth:

“The known laws of science forbid the evolution of life.”

In the first place, everybody knows that – apart from miracles – you just can’t get something out of nothing. Of course, the evo-story begins with no universe at all, and then – Big Bang – you get the whole cosmos from nothing. Nice story, but without a miracle-making God in the works someplace – you’ve got a problem. They have the same problem with the origin of life. They still expect us to keep looking at them like they are reasonable thinkers, while they are telling us that you can indeed get something out of nothing. By “nothing” here, I am talking about getting “life” from “non-life” – a scientific impossibility that was proved as such in an earlier century.

In a friendly disagreement with the vice-president of the Darwin Coalition, I pointed out to him that all evolutionists believe in “spontaneous generation.” He was immediately affronted, “We do not!” – “Oh yes, you do. You believe it happened at least once – don’t you?” He didn’t know what to say to that. I had him, because what I said was exactly true, according to their theory. Spontaneous generation was the idea that living things could come from non-living things. Francesco Redi and Louis Pasteur both helped to bury that idea into the graveyard of failed scientific theories, in 1668 and in 1864 respectively. Addressing the French Academy of Sciences, the world-renowned chemist Pasteur presented the findings of his experiments and rightly proclaimed, “Never will the doctrine of spontaneous generation recover from the mortal blow of this simple experiment. No, there is now no circumstance known in which it can be affirmed that microscopic beings came into the world without germs, without parents similar to themselves.” But this very thing is affirmed every day in thousands of science classrooms and in most every science textbook in print today. They do believe and affirm that “microscopic beings” – the first life on Earth, at least – did indeed “come into the world” without any parents. According to the evo-story, non-living molecules in the ocean just put themselves together into making the first “living” bacteria. This is what evolution says. This is an evo-story “fact.” In reality, this is a matter of not only faith and imagination, but faith and imagination against the proven principles of biology.

One popular high school biology book says this about Pasteur’s discovery: “From that time on, biogenesis, the idea that living organisms come only from other living organisms, became a cornerstone of biology.” (“Biology: the Dynamics of Life,” 2004 edition, McGraw-Hill, page 381) And yet somehow, the very same book (see page 467) justifies the teaching of evolution by saying, “clusters of organic molecules might have formed protocells that may have evolved into the first true cells.” Doesn’t this contradict “a cornerstone of biology”?! Or I am just imagining things? Check it out. In every evo-based biology textbook – somewhere – it will affirm Pasteur’s triumph of science over superstition, and then elsewhere on another page in the same book, it will teach you that something totally the opposite is true – that this superstition is really a scientific fact – a tactic the book evidently thinks is okay, just as long as it is “evolution” that we are talking about.

It appears that evolution has “diplomatic immunity” to the laws of science! And so, it is granted immunity to any critical scrutiny. How is that? John Beatty, evo-prof at University of British Columbia and activist in developing the “new and improved” theory of evolution (“Extended Evolutionary Synthesis” or EES – but that is another story) in a speech given at University of Oklahoma recently (3/10/2009) said this about the laws of nature: “If outcomes are chance, then maybe the laws are too. Once they say the laws evolved, we’ll realize those aren’t the laws. We might have moved beyond the laws of nature!” Does that make sense?! If a creationary scientist had made that statement – just think of how the evo’s would scream and laugh at him or her! “We might have moved beyond the laws of nature!” Indeed!

But this violation of a proven “cornerstone of biology” is “only the beginning of sorrows” for the evo-story of the origin of the first species. Every experiment they’ve tried, in their efforts to prove that life once came from non-life, requires that the Earth once had an atmosphere with no oxygen. That’s because any oxygen present would immediately destroy the “clusters of organic molecules” that would have been needed to make the first original living cells. Everybody knows that we all need to eat vegetables and fruits because they contain chemicals called “anti-oxidants,” which remove oxidizing agents from our body systems. The process of oxidation destroys biological molecules in living things, so this is an important point to remember. Free oxygen would destroy any proteins or nucleic acids floating loose in the ocean immediately after they’d formed. Okay, well maybe there was no oxygen? But wait … what else can destroy biological molecules? That’s right – ultraviolet rays. And what protects us from UV rays today? – The Ozone Layer. And what is that made of? – Oxygen! It doesn’t take a PhD to see now, that the evo-story falls on its face right at the beginning. If there was any oxygen in Earth’s ancient atmosphere and also if there was not – then evolution could not possibly have even gotten started! I’d call that a problem for evo-theory!

As I said, this is still only the beginning of evo-sorrows. Okay – let’s just pretend that non-living molecules could come together magically. Let’s just pretend they could also magically be protected from both the oxygen and from the UV rays, both at once. So then, evo’s can pretend there was an ocean just full of all the biological molecules necessary for life, like amino acids, fatty acids, nucleotides, and lots of other things. But, does that give you “instant life?” No. All of those things are in a bowl of breakfast cereal – and it doesn’t come to life instantly either! The problem at this point now is, how can the amino acids come together in just the right way to make the proteins? How do the fatty acid chains come together to make phospholipids for cell membranes? How can the nucleotides come together in just the right order to make the DNA molecules? Here’s a hint at how complicated the big molecules are that we’re talking about now. Just one of your cells has six billion nucleotides in the DNA – and all in just the right order. And your body has over 100 trillion cells in it! That’s a lot of stuff that has to be put together just right to make a body function! Plus, the DNA tells your cells how to make the proteins in your body – but the proteins all get together to assemble and do maintenance work – on the DNA! They need each other, to be manufactured and to be maintained. So, which came first?! This is another problem for the evo-story!

Can you see that this nightmare of the origin of life … just gets worse and worse for evo’s, the more you know about it? I sure can! And so can they. And this is just the start! Even if the first cells did “evolve” from non-life, then how did the bigger cells come about and also get organelles (things like a nucleus and chloroplasts) inside them? And how did big cells get together – all by themselves – to make big trees and people? So what do they do about all of these problems? They just say, “Given enough time, the impossible becomes possible, the possible becomes probable, and the probable becomes virtually certain. Time itself performs the miracles.” (George Wald, Nobel Prize-winning biology professor at Harvard, in “The Origin of Life,” an article in Scientific American, 8/1954, page 46) Oh please.

The Lie:

“It could eventually happen if you wait a long enough time?”

This is like saying that if you just wait long enough gravity will go backwards, Congress will give back your income tax, and pigs will fly. The obvious problem with this kind of thinking is that there are plenty of things that will not happen, just because you are willing to wait a long time – or even to imagine a long time provided for them to happen. I like the way creationary biochemist Dr. Duane T. Gish puts it: “Time cannot be not the hero. For the longer you wait, the more likely it becomes that you will eventually arrive at the most probable state. And the most probable state is always the random state!” The most probable state is not the complex and non-random DNA molecule. It is not even the simple nucleotides that are the building blocks of DNA. It is not even the organic molecules that the nucleotides are made of – the most random state is always the lowest-energy and less-complex state. That would be the inorganic (non-biological) molecules floating around in the ocean to begin with. So time would only un-do what the evolutionists are really wanting it to do.

As a matter of fact, the DNA today of all species of living things, is gradually wearing out right before our very eyes. Mutations are collecting in our once-perfect DNA like the way that years of dings, dents, and smudges can affect the look of your car until that “new car look” finally disappears from the way it looked from when you bought off the showroom floor. That’s what’s becoming of our DNA. Unlike the wonderfully creative process that evolutionists love to describe mutation as being – it really is more like the effect of a machine gun pelting a beautiful work of art! It’s not an improvement. Mutation is a destructive force. And the result is a destruction of the beauty, order, and symmetry that once characterized the genomes of all living things – leaving them in the genetic shambles in which we now find them. The Y-chromosome particularly (likely because of its smaller size) is the first full chromosome of genes that is predicted to fail completely “in the next 10,000 years” say the genetic scientists. That’s only the “blink of an eye” to an evo-believer. So why is it … that of all the billions of years the Y has been around – that it suddenly picks now (a small spot on the evolutionary time scale) to suddenly corrupt into uselessness? Don’t forget, the Y is really only 6000 years old on the creationary time scale – so it’s really not that far along yet and, when you compare 10,000 years to 6000, it’s not that relatively close to having its big breakdown yet. In fact, it should still last us the remaining generations until Jesus comes again, however many (or not any) generations tt may be that are left.

And if evolution is so wonderful, too – then why instead isn’t the Y chromosome and every other chromosome – just getting better and better every generation – huh? Why do we only actually see the destruction – the falling apart – of the genomes of all species. Where is all this gradual “evo-glorification” of all of the genomes as predicted by evo-theory, evo-thinking, and the evo faith? I mean seriously isn’t that what evolution is supposed to be doing? – making everything better and better, until all species and the human race will reach some kind of a Nirvana-like genetic perfection where all disease and deformity will be a matter for only the history books and no longer in the medical books? Is it true? Of course it’s not. Just take a look around. And why? Because evolution is just not demonstrably true at all – not even in the slightest sense – and certainly never in the grandest sense (or in the big-picture sense). And everybody can see this for themselves – as long as they are keeping their eyes open and have “an ear to hear.”

It’s not just “sort of” bad that evolution can’t explain how things got the way they are today – that the current state of life is genetically the opposite of what evolution would predict. It’s really so bad, that the even greater evo-problem of how things even got here in the first place is completely unsolvable by any means at their disposal, by any kind of logic or evidence or any use of the scientific method. That’s the evo-conundrum – that’s the evo-condemnation. Darwin is dead – so is his theory. They just don’t know it yet – or at least aren’t ready to admit it yet to the general public. If the evolution of life on this planet ever did start by itself, with the fixing up of simple compounds into more complex ones, and then on into the forms of living cells and then on to the larger animals and plants – then why is it these larger systems after all this time are only showing signs of decay and corruption, rather than the ongoing continuation of the grand “evolutionary process?” It becomes easy to see now, that not only can evolution not explain the present state of things – but it is even more woefully unable to explain the original state of living things … without there being a God, or “Prime Mover” as Aristotle referred to Him.

The Solution:

“Expose evolution of life as anti-science.”

So how do you deal with someone who cannot even acknowledge the known facts of science? How can you reason with someone who has become most certain – that things which cannot be proven to happen – in fact have been proven impossible to happen – really do happen … in spite of all evidence to the contrary? How did the Creator Himself deal with such questions and problems, when He walked and talked and debated the truth among human beings, as one of us on this Earth? In other words, “what did Jesus do?” He is ever our example. We should follow that example in our own dealings with the blasphemers, compromises, and the unbelievers.

How did Jesus deal with the all ill doctrines and unbelief He encountered during His years on Earth? First off, He never tried to bring the Pharisees over to His side. Nicodemus made the trip to come and see Jesus, not the other way around. “The common people heard Him gladly,” even if the religious big leaders didn’t. Jesus never argued with any of the Pharisees or the scribes or Sadducees in private. It was always in public – and there was always an audience of “the people” standing by as witnesses, as Jesus showed openly and plainly what were the flaws in the arguments of those who opposed His own words of truth and life. As a creationist friend of mine once wisely said to me, “We’re not here to convince the prosecuting attorney. We’re here to convince the jury!” And that’s so true. It’s the people who are standing by – the innocent ones – the ones who still might have a chance of being converted over to believing in the Truth Himself. Those are the ones that need to hear what you have to say about the origin of life on this planet. Those are the only ones who will really be listening to you when you talk to them anyway!

You may be tempted to think that Jesus won his public encounters with His opponents, just because He was smarter than them, or by virtue of being God. If that were the case, then He couldn’t have been setting an example for us to follow, since none of us could be God incarnate (though He does live in us by His Spirit) and neither are any of us as smart as Jesus was. “Greater works than these, shall ye do,” said Jesus to His disciples. If you think that you will win, by your superior knowledge of science – you could be unpleasantly surprised. Jesus didn’t use knowledge as much as He used wisdom. Many creationist supporters make that mistake. If this were an academic battle, then that knowledge would be enough and it would work. But this is a spiritual warfare – not really an intellectual battle. It is akin to the physical battles that the Children of Israel won in the old days, but by the sheer power and wisdom of their God. That is the secret to piercing the veil of unbelief and confusion of mankind’s so-called “wisdom” – the Spirit of the Living God. You can trust Him on that.

In every response, Jesus’ intention was clear. He went straight to the flaw in His opponent’s thinking – not just the flaws in their words, but the actual flaws behind the words. In the “tribute to Caesar” encounter, He was drawing attention to His opponents’ lack in understanding about the place of the authority of man versus the authority of God (which He also did in His question to them about the Baptism of John). With the woman caught in adultery, He showed up their lack of understanding in matters on the letter of the law versus the spirit of the law (as He also did when His disciples were criticized for gleaning wheat on the Sabbath and when He was criticized for healing on the Sabbath). So what is the flaw of understanding with our evolution-believing friends, when it comes to this question of “the origin of life?” And what is the flaw in many professing Bible-believers’ minds on the same subject?

In both cases, there is a “willingly ignorant” thing going on, very similar to what the Apostle was writing about when he described the Truth-doubters of his day in 2 Peter 3:5. Evo-believers and Bible-compromisers have never really looked very far into the specifics of the origin of life. They’ve just believed what others have told them – teachers, magazines, TV, and other media. They’ve never really thought about it deeply very much. They have just “trusted” that somebody certainly must have checked all this stuff out to be sure – certainly before they’d let it go on a TV special or in a science series. Yeah right. The popular media is for entertainment. If something gets viewers, they’ll run it. As the old saying goes, “that’s what sells newspapers!” There’s not much more of a quality check on television than there is on the internet (don’t tell me you believe all of the internet myths!). People who believe that evolutionary scientists have somehow solved all those problems that might be associated with the “origin of life” part of the theory are just putting their trust and their faith – you got it – in people. And you know how flawed and faulty people can be. And despite what you may have been led to believe – scientists are people, too. They can have ulterior motives, pride, arrogance, and they can be wrong, too. Scratch the surface just a little bit, on the knowledge of someone that you are trying to talk to about the origin of life on Earth by evolution, and you will find what they are packing – nothing. Their knowledge will be very shallow. And if it isn’t, then they’ll end up listening to you very carefully – either finally agreeing with you or finally storming away in a frustrated anger!

You may not know that much about science. Or, you may know a lot. This doesn’t matter as much as you might think. Remember that their theory is not true. So when you merely ask them “how” it works – they merely will not be able to answer you. And do not let them give you a “what happens” answer to your “how it happens” question! That’s what they’ll often try to do to save face and to camouflage their desperate situation. If they answer you with just more “information” on the details that they may have memorized about their theory, then wait them out and listen. Then you just go back to your original question about the original part of the theory that you had asked them about, and simply ask it again “yeah, but how?”

You may get a violent response on cornering them with the “how” question, since they only like to talk about the “what” question. But you keep at it. Do not back down or shrink away from your original problem with the evolutionary origin of life. Keep asking “how” it supposedly works. When you’ve asked “how” enough times in a row, they will be forced to admit that – yes, it’s a faith-based position that they hold. At that point, you can tell them that’s fine with you, and that you too understand about faith. But now there’s no justification for them to look down on you, simply because you do not choose to have the same faith-position that they do. Truth, reason, and logic are the great equalizers here. Science and the evidence are on our side. These things are not our enemies, but friends. Do not listen to the propaganda about Bible-belief being “anti-science.” That’s just not the way it is.

So, when it comes to this question of the origin of the first life forms on Earth, just remind them that science proved that life coming from non-life is not possible – and that it’s been proven by experiments and data, a very long time ago and that this truth has become a principle now known to be “a cornerstone of biology” according to the textbooks.

So how do you tell them what really happened? You just say what it says in the historical record found in the Bible. God worked a miracle. Hey, that’s not so hard to believe, when you hear the ways in which evo’s talk about how their theory must have worked. They use the very same word “miracle” a surprising number of times when explaining the “process” of the evolutionary origin of life! They’ll have to catch themselves, when they tell you we just need to have the faith that there was a “long enough time” until the “miracle” happened and life got started on Earth all by itself. Life could never start “all by itself.” It definitely does take a miracle. That, at least is one thing on which we are all in agreement! At least we creationists believe in miracles with a Miracle-maker. They believe in miracles, and yet deny the existence of any miracle-maker of any kind. Think about which belief system makes more logical sense to you – or to anybody.

Evolution "Mite" be a Lie !!

Thu, 30 Aug 2012 20:12:00 GMT

He’s only saying “ must have stayed on trees” … because evo-thinking says there — were no flowering plants (angiosperms) at “that time” in the evolution-story of life on Earth. But he also admits that insect scientists tell us … mites only live on angiosperms! Once again, observational science not only does not support evolution — it contradicts evolution!

These mites have remained recognizably the same — since God made them … 6016 years ago. That’s why — these “230 mill year-old” bugs … look just like the ones we have today. That’s a whole big lotta millions of years … for evolution to just be sittin’ on its hands … not doing a thing to those mites … while meanwhile it was busy changing the Morganucodon rat (210 mill yrs ago in the evo-story) into every single kind of mammal that lives today — people, dogs, cows, whales, bats — whew! What faith! (but not science!) DrJackson

Distances to the Stars?

Thu, 28 Jun 2012 17:53:00 GMT

However, parallax can only use a gigantic triangle to measure the distance of stars no farther than 4.5 light years away. Most are much further than that. The rest are figured using “stellar evolution” theory to predict the size and brightness of a star … then to look at how much smaller and dimmer it looks from here … to gauge how far away it must be. True, this is flawed. Seyfert-variable stars are used to gauge the distance of even stars in other galaxies. These and super-nova explosions are more reliable. But the distances really are as great as the textbooks say. The “main sequence” on the H-R Diagram, however (all put together from Big Bang Theory and Stellar Evolution Theory), is a non-proven yet taught-as-fact concept. I hope this helps . Say “hi” from all of us at Creation Truth Foundation to all of the brothers and sisters on the campus and at the church!

Sincerely yours, Dr Jackson

Q&A-Generation in the Book of Matthew

Tue, 26 Jun 2012 16:33:00 GMT

Hey DrJ, My dad was reading the book of Matthew and noticed that, even though Matthew says there were 14 generations between the captivity and Jesus, if you count them, he only lists 13....

The Truth — worth it?

Wed, 18 Jan 2012 13:52:00 GMT

How can somebody be a “half” Bible-believer or a “half” Christian? Well, what about those folks that claim not be be atheists nor God-believers … the so-called “agnostics?”

Everybody today seems to think that you shouldn’t get “too enthusiastic” about … well, anything. What rubbish! Jesus said to get enthusiastic totally about the Kingdom of Heaven. David was certainly an enthusiastic man … even when he was doing wrong! And God called him a man after His own heart. ‘Ever wonder why?
Even famous evo-atheist Sith Richard Dawkins … has mocked the half-Bible-believers. You see, atheists can smell a hypocrite a mile away. So could the Lord, when He was here in bodily form (and He –still– can) and He told’em all so, too, when the times were right for the tellin’!
Don’t be a half-Christian. Don’t be a half-Bible-believer. Hey, don’t be a half — anything!

“The Bible, the whole Bible, and nothing but the Bible … so help me God.”

I might also say it this way …

“The Savior, the whole Savior, and nothing but the Savior … so help me God.”

or I could go with the common courtroom phraseology … but still applying it to the One who said that He indeed is …

The Way, the Truth, and the Life.

“The Truth, the whole Truth, and nothing but the Truth … so help me God.” Amen

Dr J

Evidence That Darwin is Wrong-Audio Sermon

Sat, 05 Nov 2011 17:55:00 GMT

POINTS OF ORIGINS Audio Sermon “QC Creation Science Association” with Dr. Charles Jackson This message was given by DrJ at 1st Bapt of Silvis on a trip in 2011 to Iowa-IL. About an hour long, if you...

Age of the Earth?

Fri, 04 Nov 2011 14:26:00 GMT

POINTS OF ORIGINS with Dr. Jackson

How old is the earth and wouldn’t we know how old it is by the book Numbers in the Bible? Megan

Megan, that’s a great question. And the answer will split the churches right down the middle … even though –you– are right.

A quick do-the-math exercise going from the ages of the patriachs in Genesis … will give you Adam’s original birth date of 4004 BC, Noah’s Flood at 2348 BC, and the birth of Abraham at about 2056 BC. Yep, that means when you read the Bible and take it literally, dear sister. Earth has only been around for 6015 yrs. ‘Sound short? Not really. Nobody alive today can easily conceptualize 1000 yrs. The Flood explains the drastic changes in the earth’s landforms … not billions of years of river-activitiy. Amen.

God bless you, your brother, DrJ

Source: New feed

Were Dino’s Just Big Lizards?

Thu, 03 Nov 2011 21:21:00 GMT

Quick Question: Is there any validity to the argument that dinosaurs were just reptiles that were given time to grow into our dino friends? Pre flood life spans of humans were much longer and i’m guess the same is true of animals but do reptiles continue to grow as long as they live? Chris G

Chris,

Reptiles do continue to grow slowly as long as they live. But the dino’s were not just large; they were anatomically unique, and not as a result of extreme age. Dino’s were the only reptiles to ever live that had turbinates in their nasal passages, so they probably had a good sense of smell, much like most mammals do. Their legs also, bear the weight of their body, directly under the body. All non-extinct reptiles today, have their legs spread out to the sides. They also may have been less cold-blooded than the other members of Class Reptilia. All forms of Order Dinosauria were different from any other reptiles that ever lived. I hope this helps.

Your friend and brother, Dr Jackson

Why is Creationism Important to a Bible Believing Church?

Sun, 21 Aug 2011 20:33:00 GMT

Bible Text: 1 Peter 3:15

Top Ten FAQs

Sat, 09 Jul 2011 22:02:00 GMT

Below are the more technically detailed portions for the answers to the above questions:

1. Where did Cain get his wife?

Adam and Eve were created perfect. This would have included their DNA. After the Fall, many things about life and the universe began an immediate course of decline. Mutations began to happen in the DNA, and were inherited by each new generation. At first, the genes damaged by mutations in one parent would have been few enough to be compensated for in the genes from the other parent. Eventually, the same mutated genes would accumulate enough within a family line that two inbreeding parents might hand down the same bad gene to their child. This would not have been true in the first generation. The bad effects were not completely felt until the time of Moses. Abraham was in the 19th generation after Adam, and he married his half-sister Sarah. This pairing was genetically sound and spawned the Jewish nation, which still exists today. Joseph was the 22cd generation after Adam. 400 years after that, God tells Moses in Leviticus, to forbid the marrying of siblings. Today, it is taking a very high genetic risk to marry even a distant cousin. People must now marry outside of their extended families, and it is even better if they marry outside of their ancestral people group. So, contrary to the racist thinking of many today, so-called “mixed” marriages will produce children of the best genetic health possible.

2. Where did races come from?

It has now been found that there are more pronounced genetic differences –within– the “races” than there are –between– them. This proves genetically, that the entire concept of human “races” is completely imaginary, both Biblically and scientifically. The idea was created out of the fallen sinfulness of human thinking. The Bible and science both agree — there is only one “human race.”
The main skin pigment molecule is melanin. The more melanin, the darker the skin, and the more protected it is against the harmful rays of the sun. In high-sun areas, this prevents sun poisoning and skin cancer. This same dark pigmentation, however, in low-sun areas will be harmful, by blocking too much of the sunlight used by the the vitamin D production in the skin. Vitamin D deficiency can be as unhealthy for dark skin in Sweden, as skin caner is for light skin in Ethiopia. Only light skin can make enough vitamin D under such northern less-bright conditions. The difference is only in the amount of melanin. All human skin contains melanin, just in different concentrations.
Other facial, skin, and body features characteristic of the different people groups are easily explained by their magnification due to inbreeding within the same population for many generations. Genetic drift, the founder effect, and genetic bottlenecks are accentuate the formation of these survival-neutral characteristics.
Don’t forget that all human DNA that we have today, came from only three mated couples aboard Noah’s Ark, which had as their own ultimate source a single mated pair named Adam and Eve. Today, when we “mix bloodlines” we are not only increasing the chances of genetic health, but we are breeding back to the original appearance of humans from the time of Noah, and ultimately from the time of our first parents. This may explain why “racially mixed” individuals are in such high demand as models and movie stars — their looks are closer to the look of our ancestors, at an earlier stage in the generational effects of Adam’s sin on us all.
3. How do dinosaurs fit into the Bible?

Sir Richard Owen was the first curator of the Royal Museum in London, England. All his professional lifetime he opposed Charles Darwin and his theory of evolution. Owen was also a devout Christian man, the originator of the Hyracotherium fossil, and inventor of the word “dinosaur.”
Job 40 describes the behemoth as a long-neck sauropod. Job 41 describes the leviathan as an ocean-going tylosaur. Isaiah 30 gives a list of animals, naming the “flying serpent” among them. The Hebrew word “tanniyn” refers to and is often translated “monsters” or “whales” or “dragons.” The Chinese and British are the most famous legends of the dragons. Again, the ancient writings of these cultures describe dragons within lists of other animals that are accepted today today as “normal” and as having been seen by humans during their existence on Earth. Many other cultural icons and artifacts, in addition to some fossil footprints, have provided evidence that dinosaurs and humans once lived at the same time. Therefore, the evolution model has the history of the world all wrong.

4. How does the Ice Age fit into the Bible?

Most scientific models for the Flood of Noah involve the activity of undersea volcanoes along the worldwide 44,000 mile long mid-ocean ridge, which breaks the ocean surface at Iceland, Surtsey, the Canary Islands, and the Azore Islands. This could explain the year of catastrophic continental shifts at the time. It would also increase the temperature of the worldwide ocean. Warm seas and cool air would stir up evaporation patterns in Earth atmosphere into massive hurricane activity such as the world had not seen before nor since.
Evolutionary scientists coined the term “hypercane” describing each of the four gigantic hurricanes that raged above the oceans for centuries during atmospheric conditions like those following the Flood. Warm mild air temperatures would rule the seacoasts and the midlands worldwide, with torrential rains. In the uplands and in the higher latitudes nearer the poles, these rains would have fallen as blinding heavy snowfalls for the majority of the seasons. The pile-up of snow would compress into massive ice sheets and glaciers, that would press their way from each of the poles and downward from any high mountain areas. These conditions would have prevailed long enough for the ice to come as far south in North America, as Long Island, the Ohio River, and northern Kansas. Once this episode of favorable ice-conditions was over (approximately 300-500 years) the ice would have begun a rapid melt-down and receded pole-ward once again, and likewise back up into the mountaintops from whence they have originated. Today only Greenland and Antarctica are covered with ice sheets. Some inland mountains still have glaciers today, even at lower latitudes if they are high enough (like Mount Kilimanjaro on the equator). Japanese researchers have analyzed oxygen isotope ratios from the Greenland ice sheet and have concluded that once the Ice Age melt began, it only took 30 years for the ice to diminish to the coverage that we see today on the earth’s surface.
The historical record of the Bible makes no mention of the Ice Age, simply because the people and events recorded during that time period all were located in the area of today’s Middle East. If an Ice Age were to occur today, the people living in the modern Middle East would also have no knowledge of it (were it not for the worldwide weather reports on the media).

5. If Earth is only 6000 years old, then how can we see light from stars that should have taken longer than that to get here?

According to Genesis One, there was a time when all there was in the universe was Earth and “the waters above.” One promising cosmology that is both Biblical and scientific, explains that the waters would have severely depressed the fabric of space by their gravity throughout the entire universe. Earth’s tiny effect would have only been felt locally.

The gravitational warping of space by the waters at the edge of the universe, would slow down time drastically. The addition of the stars and their galaxies on the fourth day of the creation, would have gravity-depressed time to the point of a stand-still. The continual stretching of space by the Hand of the Creator, would ultimately hoist the edges of the universe up and out of the time-well first. Time would then make its comeback from the edges of the universe and gradually back toward the middle of space toward the location of Earth. When time re-began at Earth’s location, the outer galaxies had already experienced 15 billion years while waiting for us to re-start. On the fourth day of our world, light from the most distant objects in the universe would have had plenty of time to appear in Earth’s view of the night sky, without any violation of the known laws of nature, and without Earth being more than four days of age.

This stretching continues today. Big Bang theorist claim that “Dark Energy” is pushing the galaxies apart from each other. But really, they are just riding on the space that is stretching beneath them. This view of space-stretching is confirmed by an observation of our deep-space probes, called the “Pioneer Anomaly.” It is called a “discrepancy,” but is equal to the Hubble Constant for the “expansion” of the universe. Galaxies are not receding by the residual of the Big Bang explosion. They are merely attached to the stretching fabric of the space of our universe, by the Hand of God.

6. What about Global Warming?

Carbon emissions and other “greenhouse gas” emissions have no doubt been on the increase since the beginning of the human Industrial Age. Atmospheric measurements confirm this. Solar activity may enhance this. Worldwide average seasonal temperature increases may or may not be indicating an inevitable warming trend. Whether there is a global warming or not, is still not determined. But even the most dismal scientific forecasts are nowhere near the apocalyptic flailings of the liberal-controlled media. Liberal politicians are to be faulted for encouraging and manipulating the public fears of a “global meltdown.” But the Church is to be also chided for taking sides on an issue that has nothing to do with a Biblical Worldview or a non-Biblical one. Global Warming is simply a non-issue where Biblical science is concerned. It must be abandoned as an adopted doctrine of modern Christianity. It has no place at our table whatsoever, and is distracting Christian activists away from the truly more critical issues of the day.

7. Couldn’t God have made Adam and Earth both with “an appearance of age”?

Think of Adam as a new car on the showroom floor, “fully loaded” and ready for the road, but with zero mileage and no wear on the tires. Earth was created in much the same situation.

Could God have created Earth and Adam with “appearance of age”? Yes. Did He do so? There is no reason to believe that He did or would do so.

Could God have used the Big Bang as “His way” of creating the universe and used evolution as “His tool” for creating all species of life on Earth? Yes. Did He do so? There is no reasoning toward believing that He did so, nor that He ever would do such a thing. The Bible tells us so. Verifiable science speaks against such imaginings.

8. Who were “the sons of God” in Genesis 6?

If Noah were actually the last surviving “purebred” from the stock of Seth, uncorrupted by the genetics of “the daughters of men,” it would explain a lot. Noah was the last of the great humans to live to beyond 900 years old. His son Shem lived to be only 600, followed by three generations living only into the 400’s, followed by five more living only into the 200’s. Five generations later it was already rare for men to live past the age of 100, as it is today. Perhaps Noah was the only one on the Ark whose DNA had not been polluted by the corrupted “daughters of men.” Perhaps this is why he was the last to live past the age of 900, as may have been common to “the sons of God” among the pre-Flood human race.

9. How could there be days or time before God created the sun and Adam?

The argument that there could be no time before there was someone to experience it, is a pointless argument. God was there, and He says that some periods of time indeed did pass before the time at which He made Adam. It is like the old joke, “if a tree falls in the forest when no one is around to hear it, does it still make a sound?” The answer is yes, of course, it does.
As for day and night, all that is needed is a light source and a spinning Earth. When God “separated the light from the darkness,” it could have been that God was gathering the light that He had created into one place; into a point source. This would have left one side of the Earth in the light, while the other side would be in the dark on the shadow-side. There is no reason to believe there were not days before the sun. There was light before the sun. There was evening and morning before the sun. The Bible says so. Even the Big Bang theory says there was light before there were stars. Why can’t Christians believe it when the Bible says it?

10. Is the world going to end on December 21, 2012?

Much research has suggested that the Mayan calendar may only end at 2012 for the same reasons that the calendar you are using this month stops at the end of this “calendar year.” It was stopped at this point on purpose, with full intent of beginning a new calendar year directly following that “ending.”
Theories about a “nemesis planet” or “nemesis star” are not based in observational science, nor even in rational hypothetical science. They are based upon a superstitious misplace and misread trust in ancient science outside the Bible. Such things are by definition therefore placed outside of the Biblical worldview and therefore cannot be trusted.
Many will remember a similar alarm at the Y2K or “year 2000” prediction of doom. The Apocalypse will come when the Lord returns to set up His Kingdom, and to put all others under His feet. When it does come, it will not be a day of doom for the ones who have put their trust in Him. Amen.

Honesty Requires Rejecting Evolution

Wed, 22 Jun 2011 18:50:00 GMT

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/blackberry/p.html?id=876345 or http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jonathan-dudley/christian-faith-requires-_b_876345.html

The above link is to an article at Huffington Post entitled,
“Christian Faith Requires Accepting Evolution.” Say whaaat???

I’d really say that “Honesty Requires Rejecting Evolution.” By now, my readers know why. But where does that author get off saying all Christians gotta reject Creation and accept Evolution? Well, the dude gives his seven main reasons “why” in the article. Let’s list them and deal with the seven of them each one at a time.

The list is so simplistic, so juvenile … it is only a re-hash of the standard Darwinist blather but … let’s humor them and go through it … one by one … bit by bit … step by step … with all seven of them.

This is something an evolutionist — never — expects anyone to do with the words that he just “claims out” when he speaks. According to their mantra’s … it is just “not fair” for us to demand that they actually account for the words that they say. Never mind what they “think” is “not fair.” Let’s do it anyway.

Let’s look at each of the seven so-called reasons why Christians should accept evolution. Here they are below, with the rational and reasonable responses to each one.

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No amount of talk about “worldviews” and “presuppositions” can change a simple fact: creationism has failed to provide an alternative explanation for the vast majority of evidence explained by evolution.
We don’t really have the need to talk in terms of “worldviews” … except when we are talking to professing Bible-believers about their own consistency with their professed beliefs. It does no good to talk to anyone (professing Christian or not) about their “worldview” … unless they already profess to have a Biblical worldview when in reality it can be demonstrated that they do not.
But “presuppositions” is another matter of concern. All of evolution is indeed based upon worldview. But that worldview claims to be justifiable in pure-logic and objective terms — which it is not. All of evolution and atheism is based upon their accompanying presuppositions — which by definition are non-proven starting points in their arguments. Oh, they will refuse to use the term “presupposition.” So just tell them that you are referring to their professed “axioms.” You might better get through their fog bank of wiggle-words, if you’ll just go to this other word that also still means the same thing as “presupposition” for all practical purposes in this matter.
Let’s now check out, in detail, the seven great claims of the “failures” of the Creation Model.

[One:] It has failed to explain why birds still carry genes to make teeth, whales to make legs, and humans to make tails.

“Failure” one actually rests squarely upon … nothing … save the presuppositions of the three examples that the obviously uninformed and indoctrinated-only author tosses out as proof-positive that the Creation Model is a failure. He assumes that birds have the genes to make teeth. You may have heard the saying, “rare as hen’s teeth.” Actually, hen’s never do have teeth. What they may get, on rare occasions, is a rippling or wavy serrated edge on their beak. Birds do not have teeth. That’s because birds do not have a gene for the development of teeth. Evo’s will find a gene that doesn’t seem to do anything (the old disproven idea of “Junk DNA” genes) and see if it looks enough like a gene the –wished– it once was … and will try to pawn it off as the once-evolved “vestige” of an old trait from back in the day before some modern organism evolved from some previous-life organism in the “evolution story” of the history of life. In this case, they are trying to claim that birds evolved from reptiles, that feathers evolved from scales, that beaks evolved from teeth perhaps.

Well just because the gene no longer works, and just because the Darwin-inspired imaginations of the evo-atheist “think” they can see a resemblance to the gene for the development of teeth in –other– organisms … doesn’t mean it’s automatically so. There is a huge amount of inference here. There is a great lack of actual proof that such a claim has more than a zero amount of merit to it at all … oh … unless you –already believe– in evolution anyway. And then, in that case, this is the only way of looking at the genes that makes any sense at all … to your Darwinian-blinded way of thinking.

“I love humans — always seeing patterns where there aren’t any.” British sci-fi character Dr. Who.

Birds do not have teeth. Why do they say they have the genes for teeth. If they do, then why don’t any ever have any teeth today? Whales do not have legs. Why do they say whales have the genes for legs? If they do, then why don’t any ever have legs today? A few years ago a mutated dolphin had an extra set of fins. This prompted evolution-believers world-wide to announce that this was an old “leg gene” popping up in modern times, and offered it as “proof” that the ancestors of modern dolphins once walked upon the land. That would never stand up in court. It can never stand up to true genetic nor physiological scrutiny. The bones that float freely in the hindquarters of modern whales, are not the “vestiges” of legs of any kind at all. They are actually something else altogether. These bones are vital for the anchoring and stabilizing of the organs of sexual reproduction in both male and female whales. The genes for the developing of these bones … are not … genes for the development of legs. These bones are also where the muscles critical in the calving process (birthing of a baby whale by the mother) are anchored.

Do humans have tail genes? No. We have genes for our backbones, but never for a tail. Extremely rare medical cases are held up high by evo-believers, showing photographs of humans that are born with a “tail” … supposedly proving that we have the genes for tails handed down to us from our rat-ancestors like the missing-link fossil known as the Morganucodon oherli (found in Triassic rock only). Is it really a tail? No. A tail has a set of vertebrae (backbones) extending out from the spinal column and going all the way to the end of the tail. No human has ever been documented with such a structure. Nor has any gene for a tail ever been assuredly determined in any human DNA. So what is this structure, when it has occurred? Many people are familiar with the birth defect called “spina bifuda” or “open spine.” A deficiency of folic acid in the diet of an expectant mother, can be a cause of this deformation. The single serving of orange juice every day, provides enough folic acid to prevent this developmental mishap from occurring. One of the first scaffoldings that forms in an embryo, making way for the development for the layout of the rest of the body’s general structures, is the spinal cord and spinal column. Once laid down, it must be enfolded by the surrounding and developing tissues of the dorsal (back) region. Much like a zipper, this flesh grows, surrounds, and closes over the previously exposed structure of the backbone. If it fails to do so, then we have a permanent exposure of the underlying structure. But the enfolding can take another developmental wrong-turn other than this. It could just continue extending and enfolding that extension, until it goes beyond the coccyx (the end of the backbone) and then protrudes outward from the lower back in a fatty mass at the buttocks. This has the appearance of a tail. But it has no bones. It never could. It has no muscles to control such a “tail” structure. It is just an extra glob of tissue, not much unlike a large wart or a birthmark of some other kind. The record has been an extended enfolding of about a foot. Keep in mind, this is extremely rare. It is a development defect. There is no gene in the human genome that we “carry” that is a “tail gene.” This is merely the malfunction of the normal development that is encoded for in the real human genes for the formation of a backbone and its accompanying structures of function and support. It is not a tail. Humans do not “carry” a tail gene.

[Two:] It has failed to explain why the fossil record proposed by modern scientists can be used to make precise and accurate predictions about the location of transition fossils.

“Failure” two is backward reasoning, and has further flaws than that. Oh yes, evolution makes very precise predictions about the position in the evo-story of the history of life … where the “missing link” fossils are supposed to show up. Case in point — why do you think that these are still called missing link fossils? Hmm.
Evolution predicts … by its story of the history of life, and by its explanation for the formation of the fossil-bearing rock layers of the earth’s crust … the exact layers where the fossils having the exact expected missing-link structures … should be. But they are not there. Evolutionists try hard to make the square-peg fossils that they do find … to fit into the round-peg segments of their evo-story — but they can’t. This is because there is no real established missing-link fossil that has ever been found. Evolution does make very precise predictions. But not one of them has ever been accurate. The predictions have never come true.
There is a much longer and more detailed explanation of many of the specific failures of the presuppositions of evolutionary missing links on this blog site on a page called “Top Ten Missing Link Myths.” You may go there for fuller details on this important point.

[Three:] It has failed to explain why the fossil record demonstrates a precise order, with simple organisms in the deepest rocks and more complex ones toward the surface.

“Failure” three is also just not true. The order is not at all precise in any way. It is very generalized per layer … going from simple to complex structures. There are some very simple organisms … in the very top layers. There are some very simple organisms … living right now today. The Great Flood of Noah, recorded in the historical record of the Bible … completely explains this not-precise but very general order of simple organisms found in the deeper sediment rocks layers to more complex life forms found more toward the surface. Think about it. That’s the way it is today. At the bottom of our ocean (the deepest part of the earth’s zones where living things can exist today) we find only the simplest of all living organisms. Deep under the muds are only the bacteria. Further up in the muds, we find the worms and other simple burying life forms. Nearer the top of the mud we may find beds of living clams. On the surface are simple “primitive-looking” bottom-feeders like snails and crabs. Higher up in the water layer are the swimming fishes. Higher still, near the land-water boundaries, are the amphibious life forms. Higher up onto the land are the dry-land egg-laying life forms — the reptiles and the birds. Also, more intelligent and mobile, are the mammals, most of which are non-egg-laying live-bearing reproductive creatures.

If Noah’s Flood were to happen today — it would bury things in this order, in similar layers of rock, as this same order in the layers that we see that indeed were — laid down by the cataclysm of the Flood of the Bible. There is no “failure” on the part of the Creation Model to explain this “order.” Such an order is necessarily a prediction of the Flood of the Creation Model.

And one other important thing to note: the Flood of Noah would only have assembled organisms from simple to complex, from bottom layer to top layer … for the vertebrate sequence, the way that we see that it exists today — not for the invertebrate life forms (things without a backbone). Therefore, the rest of the living world — would not in any way reflect this simple-to-complex pattern in the rock layers. Guess what. The rock layers don’t reflect simple-to-complex in invertebrate forms. That is why the “evo-story” for all invertebrate forms from-water-to-land … is a total nightmare for the evo-researcher! This lack of pattern would affect the fossil records then of … all of the plant forms, all of the insect forms, and all of the mollusk forms. That is why the “evolution” of plants from water to land, insects from water to land, mollusks from water to land … are totally unsubstantiated by the facts of the evidence. Only the vertebrate sequence seems to hold any of the features that the evo’s have wanted, even though those features are still very scant. However, this is the only sequence — the vertebrate sequence — that the Flood would have assembled that way — anyway … whether evolution was true or not!

[Four:] It has failed to explain why today’s animals live in the same geographical area as fossils of similar species.

“Failure” four is a similarly trumped-up charge against the Creation Model. There is a general pattern of fossil species in the same geography as living species. But that makes perfect sense. Biomes are the latitude zones within which only specially designed creatures can live. Tropical plants and animals live today in the tropical latitudes, just as would be expected. Polar plants and animals — both fossil and living — also tend to match up to the polar latitudes in both cases only.
What the evo-article fails to mention are the exceptions to this rule. Dinosaurs were found on every continent. Dragon legends are found in every continent’s ancient human cultural traditions. Marsupials are not only found on Australia … opossums are marsupials and are found just about world-wide in the fossil record, too.

Fossils of camels and alligators have been found in Alaska. Why are these out of place? They are not there today. The climatic changes and the continental shifts predicted by the most common versions of the Flood Geologic Model today … insist that this would be the case … not contradicting such evidences!

[Five:] It has failed to explain why, if carnivorous dinosaurs lived at the same time as modern animals, we don’t find the fossils of modern animals in the stomachs of fossilized dinosaurs.

“Failure” five has a more-than-slight problem, too. Oh true, nobody has reported say, mammal bones in the stomachs of dino fossils. But — we do have proof of dino bones in the stomachs of mammal fossils! The dog fossil (about the size of living pit bull dogs) Repenomamus robustus was found in 2005 with baby dino bones in its stomach! (Nature, vol 433, Jan 13, 2005) So dino’s and mammals did live together, as per the evident proof … one way or the other!

[Six:] It has failed to explain the broken genes that litter the DNA of humans and apes but are functional in lower vertebrates.

“Failure” six is also based totally upon a presupposition that cannot be verified. These “broken genes” — what are they? They are strings of DNA that may seem not to have any function. Many of them may. It was once thought (by evolutionists) that 98% of our genes were “broken” and “functionless.” Now we know that this is simply not true. We just hadn’t discovered yet what those genes were really doing.

But are some of our genes broken? Yes, and that would be consistent with the pronounced effects of the Fall of Creation and the Curse of the Fall. Much of our biology has malfunctioned since then — otherwise we would not die, nor live such short life spans as we do these days.
Also, how do they know that any of the really broken genes, are the same ones that still do work in the lower life forms? If they are broken, don’t they look different now? Aren’t the DNA sequences changed around after millennia of random mutation position-shifting events? Sure. But if a gene “looks” like what they are looking for, and it serves their purpose to pronounce it “the same gene, but now in a higher organism” … then –presto– it must be the same.

The most famous of these is the so-called vitamin C gene in humans. Most other mammals can make their own vitamin C, because they have a gene that enables them to make the enzymes that can do this. Humans do not. Humans do have a gene that looks very much like the C gene. It may still be doing something that we don’t know about. Or, it may truly be a “broken” gene. If it is broken, it would have begun to change drastically with every new generation, and at random. So why does it still look anything like the C gene in dogs and mice? It could be that it just never changed after it broke. But that would be totally against everything we know about genetic drift, mutational processes, and natural selection (all real and provable processes, unlike evolution itself). It could be that it was a gene that looked very different from how it looks now. Or it could just be a broken gene that bears enough resemblance to the working C genes in mice … that evolutionists are willing to buy the idea that this is exactly what it once was.

I find this highly unlikely to be true, both for scientific reasons and for reasons of Biblical historical biology. Didn’t God tell Adam and Eve to eat fruits? The only mammals today that cannot makes their own vitamin C are the primates and the fruit bats. Both must eat a lot of fruits to be fully healthy (to get all of the vitamin C that they need). So must we humans — we all have heard of “the fruit group” in our dietary plans for the most healthy eating habits.

[Seven:] It has failed to explain how the genetic diversity we observe among humans could have arisen in a few thousand years from two biological ancestors.

“Failure” seven is the most ridiculous of the charges, really. In every human family, we can see demonstrated how some very great changes can occur, in only a few generations. Think of what could happen in the 600 generations since Adam and Eve once birthed the rest of the human race. Even the leaders in evolutionary thought have asserted, most “evolutionary diversity” would have to happen in very fast bursts of diversification. That is the whole point of the evo-theory of Punctuated Equilibrium. There is a page on this blog site that goes into great detail of how the genetic situation of mankind not only could — but must — have gotten into its present situation in only a matter of 6000 years, and not a time span of anything like 200,000 years … and certainly not anything like 2 million years! This page is entitled “ Genetic History of the Human Kind ” and contains much more detailed information on this important matter.

Source: New feed

June 2011 eNewsletter

Thu, 09 Jun 2011 15:42:00 GMT

I again greet you all in the mighty Name of Jesus Christ, for by Him, through Him and for Him were all things created—heaven, earth and sea—plus all things in them. And I again thank you for your continued faithfulness to this ministry—please don’t let these words become idle or mundane because without You CTF cannot accomplish her mission. God bless you.

Diane and I were recently blessed (May 10 through May 21) to be the guests of two dear Friends of the Foundation that have moved to Istanbul, Turkey. Our purpose for going there was first to visit, to fellowship and to enjoy time with these dear people, but also to take advantage of the location of the Seven Churches of Asia Minor and to visit these sites.

Of course, I was a little hesitant to go to Turkey because of all the fear mongering about this country, and, of course, after we arrived we found many people in deep spiritual dilemma, but not due to the national religion, because Turkey doesn’t have a national religion. In fact, since the founding of the Turkish Republic in 1923 and the Presidency and forward leadership of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the country of Turkey has become more and more secular and modern. There are Christian churches there! I did not know this.

Then, I became astonished by the fact that most all gentile church development mentioned in the book of Acts from chapter 13 to the end of the chapter, plus Paul’s epistles and even Peter’s, took place in Turkey. Notwithstanding the fact that the geographical location, and probably the prophetic location, of ancient places like Meshech, Tubal, and Togarmah are also in Turkey. Modern Turkey is the place of ancient Asia Minor, the of locations Cappadocia, Galatia, Bithynia, Pontus—to name a few. The cities of Colossae, Miletus, Lystra, Derbe, Tarsus, plus all of the cities of the churches in Revelation 2 and 3 and the Isles of Patmos and Samos are there (plus many, many more locations mentioned in Scripture).

Now, to put this in context, I have for some time had the desire (I believe “a godly desire”) to lead a trip to Israel with many of the “Friends of the Foundation.” Then I discovered that there are already many available tours to Israel, many of which are hosted by my own ministerial colleagues that made this desire a little anticlimactic. I was puzzled about this for a period of time, that is, until this recent trip to Turkey. Now, please understand, I still think a pilgrimage to Israel is a vital journey for all Christian believers because Judaism is the roots of our faith and Israel is the matrix of Christianity. (Romans 11:17-18)

In His Name,

Micro-Evolution and the Creation Truth

Sun, 15 May 2011 15:17:00 GMT

“MICRO-EVOLUTION AND THE CREATION TRUTH”

The Problem

“Micro-evolution is not mini- evolution.”

Most Bible-believers get confused when it comes to this “micro-evolution” versus “macro-evolution” thing. And the very worst obstacle to understanding the meaning of these words is – the very words themselves . They are misleading – at least the first one is. They are misleading because they are misused. That is the plain and simple truth of the matter. I will explain.

Evolutionists are fond of citing things that can happen without evolution being true, and then citing those very same things as “proofs” of evolution. This is self-deceptive at best, and outright deliberate lying at worst. They’ll say that since you look different from your grandparents – that’s proof of evolution . And who can deny there are over 200 breeds of dogs? – That’s evolution , they’ll say. And people are taller now than they were a century ago. Aha! – Evolution! If these observable things … were all they were asking us to believe – and that’s all there is to “evolution” – then I’d believe in evolution right now!

But that’s definitely not what they mean when they say the word “evolution.” Theory doesn’t really only say that humans have changed or that Collies and Dachshunds are cousins. It says that worms became bald eagles , that fish became dinosaurs, and that dinosaurs became chickens , and of course – that people were once monkeys ! The slick lie in everything they say about “micro-evolution” is this – “if you just stretch this thing out over hundreds of millions of years – then you can easily see how this makes all the rest of the theory of evolution true, too.” No. It doesn’t.

The processes that made you look different from your grandparents, that made the different breeds of dogs, that made people today taller – honestly have nothing to do at all with any of the processes that would be needed for salamanders to turn into people (which – yes – is a part of their theory)! We could pretend that these processes have gone on for millions, billions, or even trillions of years of time – and we’d still never get any kind of an upward movement of any species into the “evolution” of, or the “origin” of … any new, more complex, and better-functioning species.

The Truth

“Micro-evolution should be called micro-variation.”

The reason that even billions of years of “micro-evolution” cannot achieve the claims of evolutionary theory (namely, “the origins of the species”), is that “micro-evolution” is not “evolution” – no matter how much anybody tries to talk like it is. Micro-evolution really ought to be called “micro- variation .” That’s more like what is really happening here. And the word is more honest and not as misleading from the observable truth.

Remember that genes are made up of DNA and that they contain all the information for the growth and development of your particular human body, physically. Every generation that survives long enough to reproduce and to make a new generation, must give their DNA to their offspring before they die. You get half your DNA from genes in the chromosomes of your father. You get the other half from the chromosomes of your mother. Since your parents each have two versions of every gene they’ve got, it becomes a 50:50 chance which of the two genes you’ll get of Mom’s and which of the two you’ll get of Dad’s. After that, then you will also be born with two versions of every gene – one you got from your mom and one you got from your dad. Later then, when you have children of your own, your child will get one of your two versions of each gene, and one of your spouse’s two versions … which explains why your children will look a lot like a combination of both you and your spouse. We may say you look somewhat like your mother’s side of the family, or maybe somewhat more like your father’s side. So, sometimes we see that chance plays out more heavily on one side than the other. I’m sure you can think of examples of this amongst the people that you know and in your own family.

Try to think of the genes in all of your chromosomes like the cards in a full deck of playing cards. All of this mix n’ match going on with every new generation, results in a sort of a “shuffling the deck” of genes between generations each time before a new “hand” of genes is dealt out to the next “round of players” (the offspring). This every-generational re-shuffling is called “sexual recombination.” It is a mechanism for the species’ defense against the dangers of inbreeding from the damages that mutations have built up in the human genome over the past 6000 years. The re-shuffling explains why we look a little like our grandparents, but usually more like our parents. Families change a little with each new generation. But this is not evolution – not in the way the word is used by our anti-Biblical and atheistic colleagues in the evolutionary community!

Yes, we change. But, how is this accomplished? – By shuffling and re-shuffling the already-existing genes in the human population. For true evolution to do its work of taking bacteria “3 billion years ago,” and working with them and then making them into everything from giraffes to dinosaurs and people – you must have some kind of a mechanism in place that is capable of creating brand new genes! You can’t get that from just re-shuffling the genes that are already there! Bacteria do not have the genes for a human brain. Lizards do not have the genes to grow bird feathers. Fish do not have the genes for horse hooves. But each of these examples that I have given above, is a part of the evolutionary “story.” This whole thing is what they are talking about when they use the innocent-sounding word “evolution.”

Don’t believe it – when they tell you that evolution is the same process that got us poodles and boxers from wild dogs. Don’t you believe it – when they tell you that “evolution” is the same process that you got a different look from your grandparents. It is most definitely not the same thing. The processes that we can see – that are visible, observable and provable – are not the processes of the so-called “evolution” from molecules to man! The processes we can see every day, are not in any way what would be needed to change a salamander into a human being . No observable processes have ever been seen to produce new genes containing new genetic information coding new traits for the next generation of plants or animals – never.

Something slightly akin to this does happen however, in viruses, and even in some bacteria. Virus DNA mutates about a million times faster than other DNA. So, since mutations are supposed to be the driving force behind evolution, this means that viruses should be driven to “evolve” a million times faster than we do. Do they? Well, this does make them change genetically much faster than we do. But is it evolution? Stop here and think a minute. Evolutionists say viruses can evolve a million times faster than we can. And evolutionists say that viruses have been at it for over a billion years longer than we have (keep up with me now!). They believe viruses can “evolve” a million times faster than we can. Think. So then, after all this time of super-fast “evolution,” just what have the viruses become by the magic of evolution? They are still viruses. They have not “evolved” into anything else! Why not – if they’ve had all this time, and evolution is real?

The point of course is, that the processes we observe in the real world – whether given the Biblical time-frame of 6000 years or even the evolutionary time-frame of three billion years – obviously cannot create new species . Nobody’s ever seen them do so. It is therefore logical to assume that no one ever will. Viruses never got out of being viruses. Bacteria have never been able to become anything but bacteria – not in our observation – not in the real world – not in the world of science.

So, what the evolutionists are asking you to do, is to look at processes that we indeed know to be true, and then just take it on faith that these processes can somehow magically produce things that we have never seen them to produce while we were watching them. But evo-believers ask you to join them in believing it, anyway – because they told you so … because they told you so. Is that good enough for you? It’s not good enough for me. And no point can be proven by the one-word argument – “because.” I learned that in grade school .

The Lie

“Micro-evolution produces macro-evolution?”

Let’s go back to our analogy of the deck of playing cards. Take a deck of “Uno” cards. Shuffle them. Deal out a hand to the players for the next round of the game. Shuffle and deal – shuffle and deal – do it all you want! You’ll never deal out a hand with an “Old Maid” card in it – or a King of Hearts – or a “go to jail” card. That’s obvious – right? But this is exactly what evolution demands you to believe – that you can deal out new and different cards from the same old deck , that were never there before! But you can’t. It doesn’t work that way. It can never work that way. They’ll tell you “mutations can make the changes” of one kind of a card into another kind of a card. No they can’t. How could they? Do evo-believers ever tell us the “how?” No. That’s because they can’t . There is no “how.” There is no mechanism for this thing they say can happen – to happen! None has ever been verified. What is the process? No process has ever been demonstrated that is known to do all this that is needed by their theory. What principles of science are involved? None can be named. Can you observe this to happen? That answer too is “no.” Upward changes in species have never been observed. And even the sideways changes, have only been observed in bacteria or viruses, which are a thousand times simpler than even the one-celled organisms that you may have looked at under a microscope in high school biology class … like amoebas, or paramecia or euglena.

Not only are the evolutionists expecting you to believe in something that they themselves have never seen – they are asking you to believe in something which they themselves cannot even imagine the process by which it may happen! Yet – they expect you to believe it – that it “somehow” did happen. This doesn’t have just a “slim chance” of happening. It’s not a matter of “overcoming the odds .” There are no odds. It has a zero chance of happening! As far as the known laws of science in nature and in biology, in light of all of the observations we have made of living things in the history of the enterprise of science, there is not even any way to imagine how any truly novel DNA instructions in new genes could ever be created. New cards just cannot “appear” in the old original deck. New genes cannot just appear in an old original chromosome, to be dealt out to the next generation and to make them “more evolved” than their parents’ generation was. All of that part of evolutionary thinking – the main part – must forever remain under the heading of pure make-believe . Yet it is still presented as a “proven fact” in most all science textbooks, by teachers and professors, and on every science cable TV channel that you can name! This is bad science. This is bad logic. It is bad thinking. It’s – well, this is lying .

The Solution

“Expose macro-evolution as faith-based.”

So how do you deal with evo-believers who cannot even acknowledge the known facts of science? How can you reason with someone who has become most certain – that things which cannot be seen are really there, that processes without proof are really happening – in spite of all evidence to the contrary? How did the Creator Himself deal with such questions and problems, when he walked and talked and debated the truth among human beings, as one of us on this Earth? In other words, “what did Jesus do?”

So, we must begin by looking at how Jesus dealt with the ill doctrines and unbelievers of His days on Earth. First of all, he never tried to bring the Pharisees over to His side. Nicodemus came to Jesus, not the other way around. But “the common people heard Him gladly.” Jesus never argued with any of the Pharisees or the Scribes or Sadducees in private . It was always in public – and there was always an audience of “people” standing by as witnesses, as Jesus showed openly and plainly what were all of the flaws in the arguments of those who opposed His own words of life.

You may be tempted to think that Jesus won his public encounters with His opponents, because He was so much smarter than they were, or by virtue of being the Word of God made flesh. He didn’t. If that were the case, then He couldn’t have been setting an example for us to follow (since none of us are God incarnate, though He does live in us by His Spirit) and neither are any of us as smart as Jesus clearly was. “Greater works than these, shall ye do,” He said to His disciples. And that word comes down to us – to you and me in today’s world. What was Jesus really doing in His example of answering the naysayers of that day?

In every response, Jesus was going straight to the flaw in His opponent’s thinking – not just the flaws in their words, but the actual flaws behind those words. In the “giving tribute to Caesar” encounter, He drew the crowd’s attention to His opponents’ lack of understanding about the place for the authority of man versus the authority of God (which He also did in His question to them about the Baptism of John). With the woman caught in adultery, He showed up their lack of understanding in matters of “the letter of the law versus the spirit of the law” (as He also did when His disciples were criticized for gleaning wheat on the Sabbath, and His healings on the Sabbath).

So what is the flaw of understanding with our evolution-believing friends, when it comes to this question of “micro-evolution” versus “macro-evolution?” And what is, by the way, the flaw in many Bible-believers’ minds on the exact same subject? In both cases, it is the taking of something that we can see as being true and applying it as though it is some kind of proof that something which we cannot see is true. Now there is nothing wrong with this, on the surface. Actually, that’s what “faith” is (see Hebrews 11:1), and there’s nothing wrong with a person holding onto their faith. But, as the evo-believer will be most quick to tell you … they claim that their position does not depend on any faith of any kind. They will tell you that their position does not arise from any “presuppositions” or “presumptions” that bear any resemblance to “faith” in the slightest. This is not true. And this is what must be seen by the people, even if it can never be seen by those who are trapped in the clutches of the dark Darwinian deception themselves. Their position is based solely upon faith – and certainly not on any science, logic, data, or evidence viewed honestly.

They will say they are “slaves to the evidence” or that their position is “driven by the data only.” This is not the case. But how can you show up their lack of understanding in this matter? Be ready to be verbally abused when you do this. But their faith can be shown up for what it is, much in the same way that Jesus showed up the ill-conceived tenets of the doctrines of the Pharisees. Just ask a simple question. Ask “how?”

This is a question that they cannot answer. There are many questions for which they have been prompted with replies – but not this one. How? How did that happen? How do you know that’s true? How did they prove that? From what source are you getting this information? How do you know it is reliable, or do you just put that much trust in someone else’s integrity and/or authority? And now, do you really want to rattle their New-Age Post-modernistic cage? Then just ask them the question “why?” This is a question that even the framing of which creates an horror in the deepest pits of their souls. Do not ask the “why” question, unless you feel urged by the Spirit of God to probe deeper down inside them, all the way right down to where the source of their hurt resides – into their very soul. And God may give you that job – just be open to it.

You may not know much about science. Or, you may know a lot. That doesn’t really matter as much as you might think it does. Remember; their theory is not true. So when you merely ask them “how” it works – they merely will not be able to answer you. And do not let them give you the “what happens” answer to your “how it happens” question – and that’s what they’ll try to do – to save face and to camouflage their desperation. If they answer you with just more “information” on the details of their theory, then go back to your original question about the original part of the theory and ask again “yeah, but how?” You may get a violent response on cornering them with the “how” question, since they are only used to the “what” question, for which they have much love (because it gives them a chance to recite and burp back up what they have been taught) and for which they have many words . But keep to it. Do not back down. Do not let them pass over your question. Just keep asking “how” it supposedly works. If you get far enough before they freak out and storm away, you will get them to the point where (when you’ve asked “how” enough times in a row) they will be forced to admit that – yes , it is a faith-based position that they hold indeed. At that point, you can tell them you’re okay with that, and you too understand about faith. But now there’s no justification for them to look down on you, just because you do not choose to hold the same faith-position that they have chosen. Truth, reason, and logic are the great equalizers here. Science and the evidence are on our side. These things are not our enemies, but friends. Don’t listen to the propaganda about Bible-belief being “anti-science.” It’s just not so .

And when it comes to micro-evolution versus macro-evolution, just remind them that micro doesn’t lead to macro. It can’t. The processes that give the result which we attribute to “micro-evolution” are processes that do things other than what would be necessary to eventually produce the results which would be attributed to “macro-evolution.” There is a great wall between them. It’s like expecting to drink apple juice from a carton of orange juice – if you’ll just have the “patience to wait longer and longer enough” until the miracle happens. At least creationists believe in miracles with a Miracle-maker. Evo’s believe in miracles, and yet deny the existence of a miracle-maker of any kind. Think about which one makes more logical sense.

Q & A: 12,000 yr-old Human Artifacts?

Sat, 09 Apr 2011 15:35:00 GMT

Dr. J,
How do explain 12,000 year old fishing tackle?
http://www.grindtv.com/outdoor/blog/24870/scientists+amazing+california+discovery+includes+fishing+tackle+12000+years+old/
-Ryan

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/03/110303141540.htm
Ha … so Ryan, and how do they know that it’s 12K yrs old? Would that be Carbon-14? Or would it just be because of the sophistication of it or the layer in which it was found? My point is … I don’t have to explain 12k yr-old fishing tackle. They have to explain why they said that … ‘cuz it just ain’t so.

The Science Daily article says this was the “first time” that they’d found such artifacts in “stratification” sediments. This hints that they just assumed the age of the artifacts, by using the already-assumed age of the stratum of sediments in which they found them. They also seemed to have made age-estimates based upon the assumed time of the extinction of some duck bones they found in the same layer, and assumptions about the sophistication of the tools, and assumptions about their additional theories on the migrational patterns Ice-Age humans across the Berring Straits land/ice-bridge and their theories on the timing of the existence of the bridge. In short, Ryan, they have the sequence of events roughly right, just not the actual years right. They data is real. Their inferences are –well– as usually is the case … only what they wish for them to be.

Yours in the knowing — Keep thinking. DrJ

http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn20195-found-fine-american-fishing-tackle-12-millennia-old.html

Stir Up That Gift of God

Wed, 09 Mar 2011 16:30:00 GMT

I was reading this week from II Timothy, chapters 1 and 2, and noticed that Paul informed Timothy that he was convinced that the faith in him was first in his grandmother Lois and then his mother Eunice, and then he encouraged Timothy to “stir up that gift of God” that was in him. One translation says, “…keep blazing the gift of God.”

I think it is interesting that the word “stir” is derived from “ anazōpurein. ” This Greek word is made from three smaller words, pur (meaning fire), ana (meaning again) and zōpuron (meaning a live fire), and can be also be used for a pair of bellows used to excite live coals into a flame. So, it is that Paul is admonishing his son in the gospel to not permit the fire of Faith to go out, but to fan it into flames. Paul is, in effect, saying to Timothy that the size and effect of your fire is up you. It is your task to excite the embers of faith into an open blaze. This can explain why some men of smaller gifts make a bigger flame. It is because they fan the coals of their faith with greater effort.

To this end, I thank you for your exceedingly faithful remembrance of this ministry. Your monthly gifts of support are super important without which our work for the Lord at CTF would be reduced to small flameless coals. But you faithfully fan these coals by your prayer and giving, and stir them as a result. This causes them to explode into holy flames of burning truth into the hearts of the hearers of the CTF speakers. Glory be to God!!

G. Thomas Sharp

White Hole Cosmology Made Easy!

Sat, 15 Jan 2011 16:21:00 GMT

In the 1990’s Dr. D. Russell Humphreys came out with his theory on the origin of the universe. Dr. Humphreys is an award-winning physicist retired from the U.S. government installation at Sandia...

Top Ten Reasons Radiometric Dates are Wrong

Wed, 29 Sep 2010 21:58:00 GMT

1. Decay Rate

One of the many dogmatic beliefs taught by the evolutionists is “the decay rates of radioisotopes is constant.” This is plainly an assumption, but it has been elevated to nearly the status of a “law of science” by the supporters of the Evolution Model. It is just not true.

Many things have been shown to speed up the decay rates of radioactive unstable elements. The most extreme is high-energy heating, such as in the plasma state. At this temperature, unstable atoms will decay at even trillions of times their usual rate. Evolutionists believe that the whole universe was once in the plasma state. Our sun is currently in the plasma state – so is every bolt of lightning in our atmosphere.

Other effects have been noted in other changing conditions such as underground temperature, pressure, and magnetic field. In 2010, it was discovered that every 38 days in the solar cycle, Cesium atoms here on Earth decay faster – the effect is even greater during times solar flare activity. The evolutionists’ mantra of “constant decay rates” has now been proven – by science – to be nothing but an urban myth. It is not true. It cannot be offered in evidence for an Earth older than 6000 years.

2. Original Amount of Radioisotope

In radiometric dating techniques, it is necessary to know how much of the unstable element was in the rock sample to begin with. If testing reveals very little of the isotope present, this does not necessarily mean that the rock is very old. It could mean that there was not much of the isotope in the rock at the start. So, how can we be sure? – we can’t. Many assumption-methods have been devised by the evolutionists, to try to get an estimate on how much was there at the start. But all of these methods are based upon a guess of one sort or another.

What is being done here is a simple subtraction problem – “A minus B equals C.” Simple as it is, it still just cannot be done, unless you know for sure what “A” is.

3. Original Amount of Decay Product

The problem here is similar to the problem of original amount of the unstable “parent” isotope. Radiometric tests are often run on the basis how much of the decay product is found in the sample. Unstable radioactive elements all eventually change into stable non-radioactive things, like stable Lead metal, or stable Argon gas, etc …

If there is a high content of a known decay product in a rock sample, then evolutionist researchers are likely to assume that much of the stable element or that the entire amount of it actually did come from the unstable atom decaying, and not from just being there in the rock to begin with. It is clear than many rocks do already contain elements that are decay products, without having to get them from the decay of unstable elements within the rock.

4. Closed System Assumption

One of the most highly unlikely assumptions upon which all radiometric dating methods depend, is the “closed-system” assumption. What this belief requires, is that the rock sample has remained undisturbed by anything that could have affected its decay rate or parent isotope amount or daughter isotope amount – for billions of years. This is unlikely. As a matter of fact, it would be a sure bet that something did disturb the sample, if it sat there in the rock layers, waiting three billion years to be dug up by a modern-day researcher.

Earthquakes nearby, magma chambers getting too close, ground water leaking into the layer or out of the layer, chemical changes, dissolving of isotopes, or crystallization of incoming isotopes – are all examples of things that could easily happen to a rock sample underground, in only a matter of centuries, not necessarily millennia nor eons of time. Scientific measurements are not allowed to be based upon the hopes of being extremely lucky. Radiometric dates are therefore based upon extreme wishful thinking – something very far from the objectivity of true science.

5. Helium Diffusion

Most radioactive elements are alpha-emitters. This means that they release alpha particles, in the form of alpha radiation, as they go through the decay sequence and become the product element (like Uranium turning into Lead, for example). An alpha particle is made of two neutrons and two protons stuck together. This is the same thing as the nucleus of an atom of Helium gas. Many radioactive elements release Helium into the rocks where they are found.

Helium can soak through solid rock, but not very quickly. If the earth is 4.6 billion years old however, there would have been plenty of time for most of the helium from such a long history of radioactive decay to escape from the granite rock formations where alpha-emitting Uranium is found. If the earth is 6000 years old, there would not have been enough time for all that Helium to get out. How much Helium is still in the rocks? A lot – enough to set the age of the earth at only 5680 years. This is much closer to the Biblical time frame of 6000 years, than to evolutionists’ 4.6 billion.

6. Uranium-Lead

The specific assumption made here is that the original amount of Lead in the zircon crystal alongside the Uranium was the same as in the rock outside the crystal. Now, this is not a bad assumption. But there are others that may be made that are just as good. The truth is, Lead is chemically very similar to Uranium, being another of the heavy metals. Perhaps much of the Lead in the zircon was sequestered there in the same way that all of the Uranium was. Or perhaps there was no Lead at all in the zircon to begin with. Going on the basis of either of these assumptions, would give drastically different age calculations for the granitic rocks that contain the zircons. An assumption is still and assumption, and so should not be described to the public and to students as being a fact

7. Potassium-Argon

The problem here is similar to the problem with the Uranium-Lead dating method. How much Argon was in the rock to begin with? Radioactive Potassium-40 is found naturally in fresh lava and volcanic ash. It automatically decays into Argon-40. Large amounts of Argon found in ancient volcanic rock, will cause the evolutionist to assign a large age to that rock. But it has been well-documented that fresh lava and volcanic ash can already contain significant amounts of stable Argon, right when it exits the volcanic source. Clearly then, Argon content is no reliable way to determine the age of sample. The famous “Lucy” fossil, and many other so-called human “missing link” fossils have been dated by the Potassium-Argon method.

8. Carbon-14

There are many problems with the famous Carbon-14 method. The first thing to note is – no evolutionist uses Carbon dating for their samples anyway. Even if it did work the way they think it does, it would only be good for samples up to 110,000 years old – a mere blink of an eye to the evolution-story of life on our earth.

But Carbon-14 has many other problems, too. Since it is found in the Carbon Dioxide in our atmosphere, if the concentration of this gas has ever been different, it would throw off the Carbon dates. Ex Vice-president Al Gore won an Oscar for his docu-eco-drama “An Inconvenient Truth,” in which he proves to the world that Carbon Dioxide concentrations are changed every time a volcano erupts, and were drastically affected by the Ice Age. The same problem would be true if earth’s atmospheric pressure had ever been on the average, different than it is today.

One of the biggest problems is the equilibrium question. Atmospheric scientists agree, it would take between 30,000 and 90,000 years for Carbon-14 to reach equilibrium in our atmosphere. If the earth is only 6000 years old, as the Bible says, then there has only been time enough for a fraction of the equilibrium concentration to become established in the air which we breathe. If this is true, then Carbon-14 levels are still in the process of rising from the beginning of the earth’s history. This means that old bones have only small amounts of Carbon-14 because they are from an earlier time where the whole atmosphere had much less of the isotope than it does today, not because they are as old as the evolutionist would think they are. Being a matter of numbers, a calculated adjustment can be made to all Carbon dates. When this is done, the dates line up far better with the Biblical time scales than with the evolutionary ones.

Creation scientists have tested fossils, coal, and diamonds for traces of Carbon-14. It has been found in all of these, though evolutionary assumptions would say there should be none in any of them. Additionally, the amount of Carbon-14 found in all fossils in all rock layers, has been the same. This means that all of the fossilized life forms in world, must have died at the same time. The obvious answer is the Great Flood of Noah, found in the Book of Genesis, which the Bible sets at about 4350 years ago.

9. Rubidium-Strontium

The presence of additional isotopes of Strontium-86 and Strontium-87 can artificially inflate the radiometric date assigned to a rock sample, by as much as 70 million to even 3 billion years extra. This is in addition to the error inherent in the main assumptions of all radiometric dating methods from the starting point.

10. Method Disagreement

Usually only one of the radioisotope methods is used on a sample, since most of these tests are expensive and time-consuming to perform. But when more than one method is used on a single sample, the methods can often disagree, by large amounts of time. The question is which method to trust, in these cases – if any of them. The Bright Angel Shale formation of the Grand Canyon, is one of the many examples of this disagreement of methods.

The most curious thing is that when the methods do disagree, they do so in a consistent pattern of ratios between the standard isotope methods that are used. This is consistent with the creationist claim that the decay rates have all been different at some time in the past. For, if the Nuclear Force Factor had indeed been altered as a part of God’s judgment at the Fall of Man in Eden and again as a part of His second judgment on Man at the time of Noah’s Flood – this exact phenomenon would be observed among the radioactive isotopes found in the earth’s crust. It is not proof of the creationist hypothesis. But it is powerful evidence that all of the evolutionist assumptions about the decay rates and reliability of their current methods of radiometric dating – are actually incorrect. The problem is, most “science” documentaries, textbooks, and science teachers are telling the public that these methods have been long ago perfected and that they have been proven safely reliable as “clocks” for the earth’s unwritten times of pre-history.

Top Ten Reasons Darwin is Wrong

Thu, 09 Sep 2010 16:28:00 GMT

“The theory of evolution has no weaknesses.” Prof. Kenneth Miller, of Brown University, author of “Finding Darwin’s God”

www.salon.com/env/feature/2009/03/28/texas_evolution_case

1. Spontaneous Generation

“Never will the doctrine of spontaneous generation recover from the mortal blow of this simple experiment. No, there is now no circumstance known in which it can be affirmed that microscopic beings came into the world without germs, without parents similar to themselves.” Louis Pasteur , addressing the French Academy of Science in the 19 ^th century

“…the how part has everyone stumped. Nobody knows how lifeless chemicals organized themselves into the first living cell.” Paul Davies , quoted in article “Born Lucky” in New Scientist , 7/12/03, p32

“I think we have to admit that we’re looking through a glass darkly here . . . We don’t know how life started on this planet. We don’t know exactly when it started, we don’t know under what circumstances. It’s a mystery that we’re going to chip at from several different directions.” Andrew Knoll, Harvard paleobiologist, Fisher Professor of Natural History, Dept of Earth and Planetary Sciences, author of “ Life on a Young Planet: The First Three Billion Years of Life ,” interviewed 5/3/2004 on PBS NOVA

“The chemical steps that led to life on Earth remain a matter of intense speculation.” An article “Geochemical Influences of Life’s Origins and Evolution,” Elements , (vol 1, June 2005), p151

In order for Darwin to be right, then the most solid law of biology would have to not be right—the Law of Biogenesis—often called “the cornerstone of modern biology.”

2. Prokaryote to Eukaryote (said like “pro-care-ee-oat” and “you-care-ee-oat”)

“Gradual accumulation of mutations is never the way eukaryotes evolve … the Cambrian Explosion was caused by symbiosis—not mutation. All symbionts are new species.” Prof. Lynn Margulis , U of Mass-Amherst, in a lecture at U of Cincinnati, 3/1/07

This is a “missing link” that is second only to the origin of life, in the nightmares of the evolution-believers. How did bacteria turn into cells hundreds of times bigger than them, which have things inside them like the nucleus and other organelles? There is a giant total blank in the evolution story right here. Evolutionists will tell you and teach you that mutations did it all—but there is no way to even imagine how mutations could ever create new and original genetic information that would be needed to make the jump from bacteria to cells like amoebas, and then on to creatures made of many such cells, like fish, lizards, and people.

3. Cambrian Explosion (said like “came-bree-in” explosion)

“The fossil record had caused Darwin more grief than joy. Nothing distressed him more than the Cambrian explosion, the coincident appearance of almost all complex organic designs…” Stephen Jay Gould , in his book, The Panda’s Thumb (1980) p238-9

“As Darwin noted in the Origin of the Species , the abrupt emergence of arthropods in the fossil record during the Cambrian presents a problem for evolutionary biology.” American Scientist , May/June 1997, p244

The Creation Model says that all life forms were created during the same week. The Evolution Model says it took three and a half billion years. What do we find in the deepest layers that contain fossils?—just bacteria. What do we find in the deepest muds today?—just bacteria. What do we find in the fossils just above the bacteria? We find representatives from every one of the Phyla (said “fye-lah”; singular Phylum) of living things, even the vertebrates. The sudden boundary-line of so many living things, with no “missing links” leading up to them, only goes along with the Creation Model—and only goes against the Evolution Model. The data says Darwin is wrong.

4. Missing Links

“The number of intermediate varieties, which must have formerly existed on the earth, [must] be truly enormous. Why then is not every geological formation and every stratum full of such intermediate links? Geology assuredly does not reveal any such finely graded organic chain; and this, perhaps, is the most obvious and gravest objection which can be urged against my theory.” Charles Darwin , “Origin on the Species” (1859)

“ All paleontologists know that the fossil record contains precious little in the way of intermediate forms; transitions between major groups are characteristically abrupt . Gradualists usually extract themselves from this dilemma by invoking the extreme imperfection of the fossil record.” Stephen J. Gould , in article “The Return of Hopeful Monsters,” Natural History, (1977) 86(6): p22-30

“The evidence for the big transformations in evolution are not there in the fossil record. It’s difficult to explore a billion-year-old fossil record. Be patient!” William Provine , biology professor at Cornell University, The Washington Post , May 15, 2005, p D6

Everyone has heard the term “missing link” so many times that we tend to forget what it really says to us. Fossils that could show the evolution of any one original kind of life into any one new kind of life are—missing! Evolution requires these “missing link” fossils to be real, for the theory to have any proof from the fossils. All arguing aside—there really aren’t any that have ever been found. Darwin-followers have even quit trying to find the “missing links” for land plants and for all of the many kinds of insects.

5. Stasis of Living Things

“Stasis, or nonchange , of most fossil species during their lengthy geological lifespans was tacitly acknowledged by all paleontologists, but almost never studied explicitly because prevailing theory treated stasis as uninteresting nonevidence for nonevolution. …The overwhelming prevalence of stasis became an embarrassing feature of the fossil record , best left ignored as a manifestation of nothing (that is, nonevolution). ” Stephen J. Gould , “Cordelia’s Dilemma,” Natural History , 1993, p15
Evolution-believers don’t like to talk about this problem—so they usually don’t mention stasis. The Creation Model says that all of the kinds of living things should stay pretty much the same, up until the time when they might go extinct and then just disappear forever. The Evolution Model says that all kinds of living things should constantly be changing! That’s how worms turned into us, according to their theory. The ancient coelacanth fish (said like “see-luh-kanth”) is just one example. Its fins have small bones in them. So, evolutionists thought those might have evolved into fingers by the time the coelacanth evolved into us. Then we found coelacanths alive in the Indian Ocean—and they look exactly like their fossils do! Sad and disappointed, evolutionists picked another fish-cousin of the coelacanth, to be our great grandfather. They forgot to think about one problem though. Why and how could evolution take one fish and turn it into dinosaurs, birds, rats, elephants, seagulls, turtles, whales, horses, and hummingbirds, and leave the coelacanth totally the same all through this same period of time? There is no answer—except that Darwin is wrong. As a matter of fact, all life forms on the growing list of “living fossils” cause this same contradiction for an evolutionist. These “living fossils” have never changed —never “evolved” at all—since the beginning of the world. And they are not rare. They are “overwhelmingly prevalent” in the fossil record. They are the rule, not the exception.

6. Ancient Biomolecules

“I looked at this and I looked at this and I thought, this can’t be. Red blood cells don’t preserve.” Mary H. Schweitzer, in an article, “Dinosaur Shocker” By Helen Fields http://www.smithsonianmagazine.com/issues/2006/may/dinosaur.php smithsonianmagazine .com/issues/ 2006 /may/dinosaur.php

“I am quite aware that according to conventional wisdom and models of fossilization, these structures aren’t supposed to be there, but there they are, and I was pretty shocked.” Mary H. Schweitzer, evolutionary paleontologist at North Carolina State U, in Science , vol 307, no 5717, p1952-55, 3/25/ 2005 http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/sciencenow/3411/01.html

“… it was exactly like looking at a slice of modern bone. But of course I couldn’t believe it…the bones after all are 65 million years old. How could blood cells survive that long?” from article “Dino DNA: The Hunt and the Hype,” Science , July 9, 1993 , p60

“Ohio State University geologists isolated the oldest complex organic compounds found in a fossil. They found the compounds in 350-million-year-old fossils of sea creatures known as crinoids.” www.researchnews.osu.edu/archive/foscolor.htm 10/23/ 2006

Here is another big problem for Darwin-believers. Scientists have discovered preserved bits of the original flesh, blood, and bone of forms of life that the Evolution Model says went extinct—way too long ago for these things to still be around without having petrified into rock first. Such molecules have been verified in the remains of Neanderthal humans, mammoths, moa birds, dinosaurs (t-rex, triceratops, maiasaur), and even creatures that the Evolution Model says should be five times older than the dinosaurs! Biological molecules like collagen, hemoglobin, and color pigments, should have been rotted away by now if the fossils really are very much older than the time of Noah’s Flood (less than 4400 years ago). But they aren’t—they’re not millions of years old, and they’re not decayed into dust. That’s why they are still around to be discovered. Darwin is wrong about his whole time scale of things, which goes completely against the findings of science truth—and makes evolution a science-fantasy.

7. DNA fingerprinting for Adam & Eve

They “…looked at an international assortment of genes and picked up a trail of DNA that led them to a single (individual) woman from whom we are all descended .” “We are finding that humans have very, very shallow genetic roots which go back very recently to one ancestor.” Michael Hammer, University of Arizona, Newsweek , 1-11- 1988

“That indicates that there was an origin in a specific location on the globe and then it spread out from there .” U.S. News and World Report , 12-4- 1995

“Regardless of the cause, evolutionists are most concerned about the effect of a faster mutation rate. For example, researchers have calculated that ‘mitochondrial Eve’—the woman whose mtDNA was ancestral to that in all living people—lived 100,000 to 200,000 years ago in Africa. Using the new clock, she would be a mere 6000 years old . No one thinks that’s the case…” Ann Gibbons, “Calibrating the Mitochondrial Clock,” Science , Jan. 2, 1998 , page 28.

“By analyzing DNA from people in all regions of the world, Wells has concluded that all humans alive today are descended from a single man also known as Y-chromosomal Adam .” Wells wrote the book The Journey of Man: A Genetic Odyssey ( 2002 ). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spencer_Wells

Darwin said we would find millions of monkey fossils showing how they all gradually evolved into humans. That’s the Evolution Model. The Creation Model says the human race began with only two people (and hasn’t changed much since). The science of DNA has now proven—all humans come from one man and one woman. Is that really a surprise? Biblical Creation is right!

8. Four Human Gene Pools

The evolutionist book and documentary mentioned above in #7 by Darwin-believer Spencer Wells, also contains the finding that all humans come from only one of four distinct gene pools. The significance of this has slipped past the evolutionists. It has not slipped past the creationists. Think about our ancestors. There was one time in the history of mankind when everybody was killed—all except for just eight humans. These were Noah’s family—including his three sons and their wives. The Noah gene pool was on the Ark—plus the three extra family blood lines from the three wives. That makes four. DNA proves that the Biblical history of Noah’s Ark is right.

Not only human DNA, but also goat and sheep DNA—all living goats are descended from five ancient females. All sheep come from four ancestral ewes ( Science News , 10/14/06, p245). But didn’t Noah take “two of every kind” on the Ark? No—not all. He took more of the “clean” animals. If all goats came from just one female, it might make the Ark history seem to be in question. If all came from twenty goats, then it could actually prove that Noah’s Ark was just a fairy tale. But science truth verifies the claims of the Creation Model time and time again. So Bible-believers need not fear the newest scientific findings. Science truth is on our side! Science truth shows Darwin-believers are wrong. “They did not like to retain God in their knowledge .” Romans 1:28

9. Phylogerontology (said like “fye-loh-jaron-tah-loh-jee”)

The terms “geriatrics” or “gerontology” might sound familiar. They involve the study of old age. Phylogerontology is the study of the aging of family lines. In biology, this means the aging and the decaying of the DNA in any line of ancestors leading up to the living members of any kind of living thing existing today. The DNA of Adam & Eve was perfect. But since the Fall of Man in the Garden of Eden, decay has been happening. Not only did humans gradually begin to experience sickness and death, but the DNA of the entire human race soon began to become filled up with mutations—in the form of copy-mistakes in the DNA of every new generation. Since everyone has two versions of most of their chromosomes, we’ve all got a “spare” for most of our genes. So if one becomes non-functional because of the gradual buildup of mutations in the human genome, the other one can do the whole job alone. Since people in the same families will have more of the same mutations, it is not good to marry a close relative and have children with them. This is called “inbreeding.” Until there were large numbers of bad mutations in the genome, inbreeding would not have been so much of a medical problem. In early Bible times, inbreeding was not forbidden until the time of Moses. Before that, Abraham married his half-sister Sarah. All of Adam & Eve’s children married their brothers and sisters (or at least their nieces and nephews). It was not forbidden before Moses, and it would not have been medically dangerous yet, either. Now today, people cannot even marry their distant cousins without being in danger of expressing lethal mutations in their children. This would be true after only 600 generations. That’s how many there have been in the 6000 years since Adam & Eve. According to the Evolution Model, there has been 200,000 years of time for humans to buildup bad mutations in their DNA—and over three billion years of us evolving and mutating from bacteria before that! None of our DNA should still be able to work if that was true. The wear-and-tear from mutations would have ruined it all by this time—if Darwin was right.

10. Information in DNA

“Information is information, neither matter nor energy. Any materialism that fails to take account of this will not survive one day.” Norbert Weiner (1894-1964), MIT mathematician and the “Father of Modern Cybernetics”

“DNA is like a computer program, but far far more advanced than any software we’ve ever created.” Bill Gates, in the book “The Road Ahead” (Boulder: Blue Penguin, 1996), p228 http://www.arn.org/docs/dewolf/guidebook.htm

Most people have heard of DNA, and many know that it is a complex molecule found in our chromosomes, deep inside the nucleus of every cell in our bodies. It was a great breakthrough in science when we finally discovered the structure of the DNA molecule. It was an even greater breakthrough when we translated the code for the information storage system in DNA. These things are amazing. But there is something hundreds of times more impressive about the DNA molecules in the chromosomes of all living things—they contain information! The molecule and its code have been used to do a job “by someone”—to carry a message. That message contains instructions on how to make protein molecules and how to coordinate their manufacture throughout the life-stages of all of the living things known to man. It is against all of the known principles of information science that these instructions might have happened all by themselves, and by accident. That is impossible. That is illogical. This is perhaps the most scientifically important proof of all of the Top Ten that—Darwin is wrong.

The Top Ten “Missing Link” Myths of Human Evolution

Thu, 09 Sep 2010 16:01:00 GMT

“And God made the beast of the earth after his kind and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good. And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.” Genesis 1:25-26

It is clear from the Scripture, that God created all the Kinds of creatures separately from each other, that they could only reproduce after their Kind, and that things would stay that way from the beginning of life on earth until its end. Evolution says that all the families, classes, orders, and phyla of living things – all came from one original kind of a simple bacteria germ – that every living thing on earth came from this original archaeobacter by – not by reproducing after their own Kind, but by gradually crossing the genetic boundaries (by some unknown process) to create all of the Kinds from one original Kind. This is not only not Biblical – it’s also not scientific. It is sci-fi fantasy material at best.

In their eagerness to prove that people and monkeys came from the same Kind (which in turn came from a long series of mutants by which all of the phyla, classes, orders and families of living things were made) evolutionists have leapt repeatedly at thinly-veiled and desperate attempts to assemble a sequence of “missing links” to prove that humans and monkeys came from the same breeding stock millions of years ago. This “Top Ten” list is by no means complete, but it is up-to-date and includes the most recognizable and recent “link” offerings found in evolutionist textbooks, documentaries, and museum displays.

Don’t forget – the Bible says God made only monkeys and men – no monkey-men. Evolution says that there most certainly were monkey-men.

1) “Toumai” (pronounced “too-migh”) meaning “child” in the local language

Sahelanthropus tchadensis (pronounced “sah-heh-lan-throw-pus chad-enz-sis”) means “Sahel man from Chad”

In 2002, National Geographic splashed this skull on their front cover as our first ancestor to break from the chimps in Africa 7 million years ago.

In 2004, UCal-Berkeley announced that is was in the same group with the known extinct ape Ardipithecus kaddaba .

In 2006, UMich-AnnArbor said that a four-year study proved the bones could not been ancestral to humans.

In 2007, evolution-based DNA analysis dated the human-chimp split at 6 million years ago, making Toumai a milllion years too early in the story.

2) “Orrorin” (pronounced “uh-roar-in”)

Orrorin tuginensis (“uh-roar-in too-kin-enz-sis”)

Originally, only a few skull fragments had been found, dated by evolutionists at 6 million years old. But upper leg bone pieces were computer enhanced in 2008 and generated a hip socket connection that was much more human-like than the famous “Lucy” fossil which had been dated at 3 million years later. This prompted many evolutionists to abandon Lucy as our human ancestor, since they placed great faith in the newer Orrorin fossil, and had been running into a great deal of trouble with the Lucy fossil anyway, as new bones showed her fingers and toes were better suited to swinging in the trees than chimpanzees today. Lucy’s 1974 discoverer, Donald Johansen said, “Lucy has been dethroned.”

The same 2004 Berkeley report that classed Toumai as an ape, also classed Orrorin in that same group.

3) “Ardi” (“Arr-dee”)

Ardipithecus ramidus (“arh-dih-pith-ih-kus ram-ih-dus”) meaning “ground ape root”

Dated at about 4 million years old, it is also classed in the same ape group as the Ardipithecus kadabba of the 2004 Berkeley news release.

First found in 1982, not much was made of it until a specimen was reassembled from crushed bones in 2009, by Tim White of UCal-Berkeley.

The bones were crushed and mixed in a bone-bed buried along with over 30 other ramidus skeletons, also crushed and mixed into the fossil bed along with over 50 skeletons of various birds and mammals.

The October 2009 issue of Science called “Ardi” our ancestor and listed long arguments of why the find was so significant to the story of human evolution. Team leader, Tim White however, “this is not that common ancestor, but it’s the closest we’ve ever been able to come.” In every case, primary sources will claim that the “missing link” fossil is close but that some factor clearly disqualifies their discovery from being the elusive “missing link.” Original reports are often ignored and the fossil goes on display in magazines, museums, and finally in the high school and college textbooks as — you guessed it — the “missing link.” Ardi had a thumb on her foot and could walk on all fours using her palms like the soles of her monkey-feet. At four feet tall and 110 pounds, she had a brain only one fifth the size of ours. Even chimpanzees and Lucy have brain-cases at one third the size of ours. Ardi wasn’t even very brainy for a monkey.

4) “Lucy” (named after the Beatles’ song “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds,” which refers to use of the drug LSD, not surprisingly)

Australopithecus afarensis (“aw-strahl-uh-pith-i-kus aff-ah-renz-sis”) meaning “southern ape of Afar (a region of Ethiopia)”

Found in 1974 by Donald Johansen, it was famous for being 40% complete – most “link” fossils have only a few pieces of skull, teeth, or other bones. Only the left hip was found, and it was exactly like a chimp, meaning Lucy could not be our first walking ancestor. All reconstructions showed Lucy’s hands and feet like a modern human, even though there were no bones to show this. Evolutionists based this on the completely human footprints found on the same level in a layer of volcanic ash 600 miles away. The knee cap was found over a mile away. Later finds showed the toes and fingers to be more curved than a chimp’s, unlike human straight toes and fingers. An infant fossil called “Dikkika” from a deeper layer evolutionists dated at 100,000 years older also had gorilla shoulder blades and a “divergent big toe” like a thumb on the foot.

At three and a half feet tall, 65 pounds, and a brain one third the size of ours, adult Lucy is a chimp. A supposedly male fossil two feet taller and popularized summer 2010 had much longer legs and was said by Owen Lovejoy of Kent State to be “an excellent runner,” will most likely be later determined to be a real human. But what will the evolutionists do about a human fossil found in the same layer with the Lucy fossil? This newer supposed afarensis has been named “Big Man,” but might really be from the Homo sapiens group that made those tracks in the ash at Laetoli.

5) Australopithecus africanus (“aw-strahl-uh-pith-i-kus af-ri-kan-uss”) or “southern ape of Africa”

The problem was that africanus had long arms and shorter legs than Lucy, making him even more like a monkey than she was, even though he comes a million years later in the evo-understanding of the rock layers. Evolution says Lucy’s Kind became us. So, why isn’t africanus further along the way to becoming a human? This fossil is exactly the opposite of what evolution predicted it should be. What’s the evo-answer to this? They say evolution just went backwards for a million years for some reason. Such thinking in science is called “inertial thinking,” meaning that new data will not change old ideas, no matter how it disproves them. Evolutionary thinking is inertial thinking.

6) “Handy Man” was the deepest “link” fossil found associated with stone tools.

Homo habilis (pronounced “hoh-moh hah-bill-iss”) referring to “same” and to “tools”

Found in Asia and many other places, habilis strongly challenged the “Out of Africa” evolutionary hypothesis in favor of the “Multi-regional” evo-theory of how, when, and where monkeys turned into people. Fossils are incomplete and the “tools” likely belong to modern man. In 2007, habilis fossils were potassium-argon ash dated as the same age as the 1.5 million year old Homo erectus monkey that it was supposed to have “evolved into” over the next one million years. Fred Spoor of University College of London said, “it’s like finding out that your grandmother and your great-grandmother were really sisters.” Clearly, there’s something wrong with this whole part of the evo-story.

7) “Upright Walking Man”

Homo erectus (“hoh-moh uh-rek-tuss”) referring to “same” and to “upright” (sometimes referred to as Homo ergaster )

One specimen, called “Turkana Boy” was found with a puncture in the skull, causing some evolutionists to say a bird of prey grabbed our youngster “ancestor” by the head, “proving” that once upon a time eagles hunted humans for food.

Erectus was reconstructed with a very human-like posture, even though this would have mostly likely been very uncomfortable and unnatural for the creature that had this skeleton. The biggest problem for evolutionists was the 2007 dating that set erectus living at the same time as habilis . This contradicts the evolutionist story. Another problem was that the male and female skulls were so different in size. Called “sexual dimorphism,” this degree of difference is never found in humans, but is commonly found in apes and other animals.

In 2007, DNA studies done by evolutionists indicated “Homo erectus is almost certainly not our ancestor, but a dead end.” Erectus is just another extinct monkey from the time of another extinct monkey called habilis .

8) Homo antecessor (“hoh-moh ant-iss-sess-er”) referring to “same” and to “before”

This little monkey has had so few bones found that it is still uncertain what it really might have looked like. As more bones are found, it might even turn out to be a human, but almost certainly is just another chimp fossil. Tools have been found associated with it near Gibraltar in Spain. This is the only “human missing link” fossil that hasn’t had enough bones discovered yet to totally prove whether it is a human or a monkey. So, it is the only “link” that has not yet been totally disqualified from being evidence for the evolution story. Watch for new developments on the antecessor fossils.

9) “Neanderthal Man”

Homo neanderthalensis (“hoh-moh nee-ann-der-thall-enz-sis”) referring to “same” and the Neander Valley in Germany (“tal” – German for “valley”)

Originally found in the 1800’s and taught as the missing link until the 1980’s, Neanders are now known to have been totally human—not monkey-men, as originally thought. Their brains were bigger than ours, they made musical instruments, did cave art, buried flowers with their dead (indicating thoughts of the afterlife), had makeup, made campfires, went on hunting trips, and liked colorful clothing. These are all human traits, placing Neanders on an entirely different level from all of the monkey fossils previously named. Evo-dated as extinct 40,000 years ago, now new evo-dates place artifacts as recently as 25,000 years old. A teen-age and a juvenile fossil have both been found with a mix of Neander and modern traits. 4% of all Europeans have been found to be carrying Neander DNA.

Neanders have now been re-classified as Homo sapiens neanderthalensis – just another tribe of humans.

10) “Cro-Magnon Man” and “Heidelberg Man”

New textbooks do not even mention Cro-Magnons or Heidelbergs, unless it is to say they are “archaic Homo sapiens ” – or in other words – us.

History of Founders Regarding Non-Chrisitians as Office Holders

Mon, 30 Aug 2010 18:14:00 GMT

It is intriguing that some of our Founders left some direction that has merit concerning the present Moslem/mosque affair in Manhattan at ground zero. Consider the comments of Justice Joseph Story, Governor Samuel Johnson and Justice James Iradell.

Note : (Justice Story was a member of the U.S. Supreme Court for 34 years, and authored 286 opinions 286. He, along with Chancellor James Kent (Chief Justice of the New York State Supreme Court) is known as the Father of American Jurisprudence. Justice Story wrote the majority opinion for the famous Holy Trinity vs. The United States case in 1892.)

In Justice Joseph Story’s legal wrote in his legal commentaries, that:

The real object of the First Amendment was not to countenance, much less advance, Mahometanism [his spelling], or Judaism, or infidelity, by prostrating Christianity; but to exclude all rivalry among Christians. (Joseph Story, Commentaries on the Constitution of the United States , Vol. III, p. 728, 1871 )

Justice Story’s comments highlights the fact that America’s Founders were careful not to violate the principle of religious freedom established in the First Amendment (the right of America’s citizens to the free expression of religious worship, and the forbidding of the Federal Government to establish a state sponsored religion), while at the same time maintaining that “CHRISTIANITY” was and is America’s common law that they are often vulnerable to present day progressive criticism and gross misapplication—this is especially true when in a revisionist mode non patriots plunder and manipulate the Constitution (as is the case concerning this particular circumstance).

When reading early American history—it seems at first glance that the Founders established a completely pluralistic society. But on a more careful examination you will find that this is not the case at all—at least, it was their clear intent and belief for the first 100 years of our nationhood that Christianity , not a particular sect, or denomination, with tithes, tenets and ordinances, but general Christianity—Biblical Christianity—was America’s common law.

This intent is reflected in Story’s commentary above. But here is the difficulty…even though the Founders believed that Christianity was the founding reality of the America n Republic, they did not resist or prohibit other religions from their right to worship here. Therefore, they knew that a time could come when the people of America may change and allow another religion, or that people of “NO” religion could become dominate in the culture.

Consider this. In the North Carolina ratification convention for the American Constitution—before the turn of the nineteenth century—Governor Samuel Johnson explained:

It is apprehended that Jews, Mahometans (his spelling), pagans, etc., may be elected to high office under the government of the United States. Those who are Mohometans, or any others who are not professors of Christian religion, can never be elected to the office of President or other high office, but in one of two cases. First, if the people of America lay aside the Christian religion altogether, it may happen. Should this unfortunately take place, the people will choose such men as [that] think as they do themselves. Another case is if any persons of such descriptions should, notwithstanding their religion, acquire the confidence and esteem of the people of America by their good conduct and practice of virtue, they may be chosen. (Jonathan Elliot, ed., The Debates in the Several Conventions on the Adoption of the Federal Constitution , Vol. IV, pp. 198-199, 1836)

Supreme Court Justice James Iredell, who was nominated to the High Court by George Washington, further explained:

But it is objected that the people of America may perhaps choose representatives who have no religion at all, and that pagans and Mahometans [his spelling] may be admitted into office…But it is never to be supposed that the people of America will trust their dearest rights to persons who have no religion at all, or a religion materially different from their own. (Ibid, p. 194)

The tragedy is that most do not understand that our Founders never believed this day would come. But it has!

Ft. Smith & Paris, AR Tea Party Speech

Thu, 15 Apr 2010 19:47:00 GMT

I’ve been watching the Tea Party Movement for some time now, and have even spoken at a couple of their rallies, in an attempt to ascertain what significant strains of emphasis would ultimately surface as their guiding agenda and purpose. It seems to me that I hear a constant clamor among Tea Party attendees for a return to historical conservatism—a conservatism in kind with our 1776 counterparts—a conservatism that is freely expressed in life, duty and faith—a conservatism that will again protect life, liberty and property, and a conservatism that will connect US inseparably to our Founding Era (1760-1805). It is to this end that I write this blog.

If, today, we only seek conservative practices without our Founder’s purpose and philosophy…if we only seek conservative policies without their effectual cause…if we simply seek a secular, political conservatism for the sake of our personal peace and affluence—then—we are terribly disingenuous…and we cannot TRULY say that we are the counterparts of the 1774 Boston Tea Party. We must not selfishly seek the effects of our Founder’s life and sacrifice and ignore their truthful passion and Biblical conviction which ultimately produced their practices and principles—AND GAVE BIRTH TO THE ONLY CONSTITUTIONAL REPUBLIC IN THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD THAT ENDURED 234 YEARS.

Are you aware that the Pilgrims of 1620—came to this new world with the hope that they might lay some foundation… for the propagating and advancing the gospel of the Kingdom Christ in…this remote part of the world ( William Bradford )…

And that the Puritans of 1630, who settled the Massachusetts Bay Colony, publically entered into a covenant with Christ…that they might become a city set on a hill ( John Winthrop ).

That the 1629 Charter for the establishment of Massachusetts declared that this people… be so religiously, peaceably and civilly governed [that] their good life and orderly conversation…win and incite the natives of [this] country to the knowledge and obedience of the only true God and Savior of mankind, and the Christian faith …

This was the fervency and passion that drove these early settlers through wind, hazard and peril…and provided their endurance and motive to establish a small beach-head in this new world…

Tragically, however, by the early 1700s the strong faith and practice of this first pilgrim generation was almost lost in the progress and ease afforded to their posterity…in just three or four generations, the noble and magnanimous deeds of their forefathers was effectively forgotten. Thus the strong Biblical resolve of our famous seventeenth century progenitors was lost, and a formidable spiritual darkness swept over the land…somewhat similar to our present plight…

And in the balances hung this greatest of all green places on planet earth…because the United States of America would have never been founded as it was Founded, except for the fervent and holy preaching of men like George Whitefield, Jonathan Edwards, Samuel Davies, Aaron Burr, Sr., Samuel Finley, etc. The Great Awakening of 1742 broke upon the Eastern shores of this country.

Lasting well into the 1760s, this greatest of all American revivals infused a steel resilience into the backbone of at least 2/3s of the Colonists, and inculcated an irresistible courage into their hearts and imbued a divine wisdom into their heads. The swelling common conversation concerning the grievances of King George—birthed in the Great Awakening and fertilized by the preaching of the New England ministers—ultimately gave birth to this incredible country. Their chief concerns were:

These, and other guidelines, epitomized the general mind of the majority of the colonists by 1776…and it was to this end that 56 Colonial leaders attached their names to a sacred document, often referred to as the Charter of the United States of America, to which they pledged their Lives , their Fortunes and their Sacred Honor : (Listen to their heart for a moment)

When in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Law of Nature and Nature’s God entitles them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation. [They continued] We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. That whenever any form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the people to alter or abolish it, and to institute a new government…

This is why, I reiterate, that if we only seek conservatism without the Founder’s passion and conviction, we are terribly disingenuous and selfish, that is, if we allege to be of their same warp and woof.

QUESTION: Why has 45% of the Evangelical vote the past several presidential elections favored economic preferences rather than moral convictions. Moreover, why is it, when asked for the primary motive for the Revolutionary War, the greatest response given today is— Taxation without Representation ? NOW—it is true that taxation without representation is a listed grievance in the Declaration of Independence, but it is 17 ^th in the Founder’s list of 27 grievances—it was a minor complaint, not a primary one.

But why do most Americans today offer that answer as the ultimate cause for the Revolutionary War? WHEN IN FACT,

These abuses were far more significant to the Founders than taxation without representation. I suggest that a possible answer to these questions rests in the general tenor of our revisionist, multicultural, social studies training over the last fifty to seventy-five years. The history textbook used in the latter half of the nineteenth century, The Story of Liberty , by Charles Kauffin, told students that: “If you do not see the divine hand working behind the scenes, history will be an incomprehensible enigma.”

The United States Constitution is presently enigmatic because since its writing there have been many diverting agendas contrary to its original intent proffered as exceptional and even overthrowing its clear intentions. If you will notice in the first thirty to forty years after the signing of the US Constitution, there was a constant theme among the national and state leaders concerning the religious and moral foundation to liberty and freedom. I want to site just a few:

George Washington said in his Farewell Address (1796):

Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensible supports…And let us with caution indulge the supposition that morality can be maintained without religion. Whatever may be conceded to the influence of fine educated minds…reason and experience both forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail, in exclusion of religious principle…

John Adams (1789):

We have no government armed with power capable of contending with human passions unbridled by morality and religion …Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate for the government of any other.

John Q. Adams :

The highest glory of the American Revolution was this: It connected, in one indissoluble bond, the principles of civil government with the principles of Christianity .

In the 1980s, two Political Scientists from the University of Houston, Donald Lutz and Charles Hyneman, set out to discover why the U.S. Constitution had lasted for such a long time; they wanted to determine, if possible, what Founders actually meant—what was their original intent? Well, since the Founders are all passed away, how would you approach this research? This is what Lutz and Hyneman did.

They reviewed about 15,000 different items, closely reading 2,200 books, pamphlets, newspaper articles, and monographs—all printed between 1760 and 1805. Eventually they reduced this enormous list to 916 items, from which they identified 3,154 references to additional sources. They discovered that the source most cited by the Founders was the Bible (34% of the citations). The individuals most cited by the Founders were not deists, but conservative legal thinkers (often Christians). Leading this list was Baron Montesquieu (8.3% of the citations). They broke their research down into decades and discovered that John Locke led in the most citations in the 1760s and 1770s, but Wm. Blackstone and Baron Montesquieu led in the 1780s and 1790s. The point is that during this period, the most cited reference by our Founders was the Bible and men who revered the Bible. So, I conclude that while you can superimpose a revisionist history upon America and her Founding Era that rejects God and His Word, you cannot legitimately separate America from her true Biblical history when appealing to original sources.

Let me close by quoting John Hancock in an occasion when he was commemorating the 1770 Boston Massacre:

Let us commit our righteous cause to the great LORD of the Universe, who loves righteousness and hates iniquity. And having secured the approbation of our hearts by faithful and unwearied discharge of our duty to our country, let us joyfully leave our concerns in the hands of Him who rises up and pulls down the empires and kingdoms of this world…

So let me repeat, if we only seek secular conservative practices and their affects without the Founder’s philosophy and conviction…if we only seek conservative policies without their effectual cause…if we simply seek a secular conservatism for the sake of our personal peace and affluence—then—we are terribly disingenuous…and we cannot TRULY say that we are the counterparts of the 1774 Boston Tea Party. We must not selfishly seek the effects of our Founders and ignore their truthful passion and Biblical conviction which ultimately produced their practices and principles—AND GAVE BIRTH TO THIS CONSTITUTIONAL REPUBLIC—one Nation under God!

G. Thomas Sharp

Kingdom versus Kingdom

Fri, 19 Jan 2007 23:18:00 GMT

From time immemorial there has been a strategic war fought between the forces of good and the forces of evil. It is fought over control of the minds of men and all systems of the earth are affected or involved in this process. This perpetual battle is known by several titles: some have called it light versus darkness, or good versus evil, or heaven versus hell, or more specifically, Kingdom versus kingdom.

This battle can be traced through the Bible from the very ﬁrst Book to our present day. Not to recognize the existence of this battle is to miss the true meaning and purpose of history, what I often call the God Factor!

Where do you stand in this battle? What is your concept of history? Do you believe that history is a product of evolutionary processes, and that time, even though it possesses billions of years, is ultimately terminal. That transition is inadvertently associated with evolutionary change agents, and because they are, they are never predictable!

This view of history says that time has no overriding superintendence – that it is quite arbitrary. As a result, it has no meaning or purpose. Thus the contents of history, while we can study it and know it, have outcomes that are purposeless and serendipitous. being only the story of man’s naturalistic origins and thus left to him to record and tell! It is ﬁckle, fatalistic and fanciful! The only thing for certain is change! Reality is only found in the here and now; assigning to life some importance, but all is expendable for the greater good, and when we die — that’s it, we’re simply dead!

Left to our own ingenuity, we can never perceive the bigger picture. This view of history can never put all the dots together. or make connections of events, personalities. or movements in time. Believing this view of history to be based in science. we often develop historical myopia, and because truth is constantly changing, we accept the revisions made in history. With no continuity or purpose, we become as dust in a fathomless cosmos. a fatalistic position epitomized by the late evolutionary scientist, Carl Sagan, who often said, “Man is lost in space without meaning or destiny.”

But if there is a God, the God of Scripture, who by deﬁnition is the ﬁrst and the last, the beginning and the end, the alpha and the omega, then, He is also eternal, sovereign and omnipotent! He is not bound by space and time, nor is He reactive to man. angels or demons. He is always proactive; always in plan A, He has no plan B! He was before time. He created time, and will be here when time is no more. Therefore, He, and He alone, is the author of history! Thus He knows the end from the beginning because He is omniscient! it is as the Apostle John said of Him, “The Lord God Omnipotent reigns!”

This view of history is directional, guided and purposeful. It is seamless! In school we study history in sections or periods, which is an accommodation to students and teachers, but real history has no seams or periods, it is continuous, connected, and consecutive. Therefore the rise and fall of Kings, Presidents, Nations and Empires are all in His hand, and history is going somewhere! It is not ambiguous, arbitrary or ambivalent, it is rather ordered, directed and purposeful.

The question has always been, “Does life have meaning?” lf history is fortuitous, then life is meaningless. but if history is prescribed by an overriding supernatural agency it has definite meaning! But it is not without conflict, and it is this conflict, its source, its nature and its outcomes that comprise the battle for good and evil, a battle that is unavoidable.

Blessings,

G. Thomas Sharp

Enmity: The Cause of the Battle

Thu, 07 Sep 2006 19:44:00 GMT

A Biblical fact found in Genesis 3:15 that explains the terrible rancor existing between the members of the Body of Christ and the many members of the non-believing community, is often overlooked. An important part of the curse included the far-reaching reality that the Creator God told Adam and Eve their disobedience had brought an age long, hostile rift or “enmity” between the Seed of the woman and the seed of the serpent. Most understand that this has significant reference to the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, but then do not consider the possibility of its application to the human disciples that make up the two opposing camps associated with the Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of Satan.

The word “enmity” means hostility, hatred, or enemy. Since the Genesis curse, this violent discordancy between the disciples of the Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of Satan has been present in every generation. It shows up in the murder of Abel, the first prophet. It shows up again in the pre-Flood condition called the “days of Noah.” It is repeatedly prevalent throughout the Old Testament history of Israel and Judea. It nowhere more pronounced than in the life of Christ, and He quickly identifies the foundational nature of the two sides in John 8:30-47.

In this passage Jesus is embroiled in an aggressive confrontation with a segment of the Pharisees near Jerusalem. Of course, in most instances, the Pharisees are typical of human contrived, reason driven religion devoid of truth and godliness, but nowhere in the New Testament is this more pronounced than in this example. True Christianity, at least in the ultimate sense, cannot be referred to as religion, not at all; it is the divine revelation that Jesus Christ is the Lamb of God and the Great Creator, all in One, and that His Word is absolute truth! The mind boggling statement of John Owen, said so long ago, that any institution of worship not ordained of God is not accepted by God is just another way to think about this same Biblical exclusivity.

I know that in our present evolutionarily drunk world this clear Biblical fact is expurgated as being bigoted, insensitive and out of touch. But then, those who feel this way have never seen His glory, experienced His forgiveness, or witnessed answered prayer, and tragically, never will!

Nevertheless, Jesus unambiguously told these religious zealots that they could not be the descendants of Abraham because they did not do the works of Abraham. Moreover, He told them that their father was the devil, and that his works they do. That the devil was a liar from the beginning, and no truth dwells in him, therefore, He told these Pharisees that it was not possible for them to believe His word. That is why, Jesus explained, they sought to kill Him. There is no better example of the vast hatred that exists between the two Kingdoms.

Furthermore, Jesus made it quite clear that the ones given to Him by the Father were “hated” by the world, because He was hated. (John 15:18; 17:14) Think it not strange that the world and its systems despise the redeemed, the Word of the Lord and its Author. This is what Dr. Henry M. Morris called the Long War Against God. It is a battle that will never cease until the Prince of Peace comes with healing in His wings.

This enmity surfaced again recently when the lesbian champion, Rosie O’Donnell, aired over the ABC program The View that “Radical Christianity is just as threatening as radical Islam in a country like America where we have separation of church and state.” Does she mean historic, orthodox Christianity? Is she referring to legitimate God fearing Christians who desire to raise their children in the dictates of the Holy Scripture? I’m sure she is! But, for the record, there is a vast disparity in Biblical legitimacy between these kinds of people and members of the Klu Klux Klan or the Jim Jones cult, etc., even though they all appeal to the Bible for their relevance.

In the first place, there was nothing more radical than the cross of Jesus Christ. Greater love has no man than this, than a man lay down His life for His friends. Moreover, genuine, orthodox, conservative Christians will not kill their enemies because they cannot convert them. True Biblical conversion is not a matter of human persuasion or management, but an act of God.

The rise of multiculturalism, pluralism, egalitarianism, political correctness, the myth of separation of church and state, and the promotion of an insufferable tolerance for all views are all facets of this same “enmity.” They are employed by the enemies of the cross for the primary purpose to dissuade people from His truth, to delude people against Biblical reality, to discredit the Bible as being irrelevant, and finally to disparage Jesus Christ as nothing more than a mere man!

All of these notions and the philosophy that birthed them are the deliberate workings of this age-long hatred of the Creator God, His Word and His people that was established in the curse. Thus we see the rise of evolutionism and the attempted equality of all religions that is fueled by the continuous revision of America’s true history. Revisionists don’t want anyone to know about the God and godliness of our Founding Fathers. Strengthening this, there is the wholesale and continuous portrayal of America as a greedy, ravenous, capitalist monster that must die, and the continuous training of America’s children as members of a global community rather than the sovereign United States of America. These are all the modern faces of enmity that we must engage if a place of legitimacy, sanctity and integrity is to be established in America today for the raising of godly sons and daughters.

I think the words of the late G. K. Chesterton, one of the most brilliant journalists in modern times, are applicable here. When someone was attempting to sell the idea that Christianity was tried and failed in its mission, he replied that in truth, “Christianity was investigated, found difficult and left untried.” There is a definite reason why it was left untried by the greater society, because one cannot truly follow the principles of the Kingdom of God without His indwelling Spirit!

Blessings,

G. Thomas Sharp

Gnosticism

Sun, 07 May 2006 19:17:00 GMT

It only takes a casual overview of the Scriptures to observe the presence of, and prediction for, a continual battle between good and evil, righteousness and unrighteousness and the Kingdom of God versus Kingdom of Darkness to be on the earth. Sometimes this conflict is subtle and camouflaged, but often, as now, it is presumptuous and overt.

The roots of this battle were planted in the earth when Satan fell from his original estate, beguiled Eve and man fell. At the time of the great curse, God underscored and indicated the continuous nature of this struggle by telling our first parents that He had placed “enmity” between the seed of the Woman and the seed of the Serpent. In short, this is just another way of saying those who follow the “way of Cain” and those who follow the “Way” of Christ. It is, therefore, due to the perennial presence of this “enmity” (hatred, or hostility) in the earth that this conflict exists, and will exist until the effects of the great curse are fulfilled in total restoration and righteousness at the return of our Lord Jesus Christ.

As a matter of fact, Jesus Himself interacted with, and predicted the continued presence of, this hateful “seed” during His redemptive sojourn here on earth (consider in this connection John 8:33-44 and Matthew 13:36-43). It should not be surprising that this perennial enemy of righteousness is personified in people from all walks of life, whether cultural, academic or political. The one thing they all have in common is they all despise Jesus Christ, His Deity, His Word, and His Body, and they always will, because they are, as Jesus said, “of their father, the devil!” (John 8:44)!

Tiktaalik: Fish or Reptile?

Don’t get too worried about this one, the peer review is not yet in, and I suspect, as so many other so-called “missing links” of the past, this one will also turn out to be what it most resembles presently – in this case, a lobed-finned fish. (Remember, Lucy’s fossil was exceedingly chimpanzee like, and that now seems to be just what the fossil represents, or maybe an orangutan, for all except its discoverer).

Tiktaalik appears, they say, to possess many skeletal structures similar to both fish and tetrapods (four-footed animals) associated with the animals front fins (the rear fins and tail have not been found). Many are comparing this fossil to Archaeopteryx, a bird-like fossil that was said for years to be a supposed “link” between reptiles and birds, because it had a bony tail, claws on its wings and teeth. But, for all intents and purposes, most scientists today simply consider it to be a bird with a few unique features.

It is exceptionally telling to me that the Tiktaalik fossil is very fish like; it definitely has fish gills and scales, and is considered by its discoverers to be a lobbed-finned fish similar to Coelacanth. One of its discoverers, biologist, Neil Shubin, said, it “blurs the boundary between fish and land animal both in terms of its anatomy and its way of life.” But so did the coelacanth – thought for years to be the link from fish to amphibians, until they were discovered to still be alive and well on planet earth, in other words they are still fish!

Whatever the animal turns out to be, it is a product of its own unique genetics, and not macroevolution caused by millions of mutations. The evolutionary presupposition of the discoverers will force them to believe they have found a fish that is intermediate in the process of becoming some other kind of four-footed animal (they are saying that its head is very crocodile like – that would be quite an evolutionary jump from fish to crocodile). In this connection, don’t forget the comment that Evolutionist Roger Lewin made in his book, Bone of Contention :

Preconceptions are rarely acknowledged, because this, after all would be “unscientific.” And yet preconceptions are an individual scientist’s guide to how to view the world with a degree of order that allows structured questions to be asked. The anonymous aphorism “ I wouldn’t have seen it if I hadn’t believed it ” is a continuing truth in science.” (Emphasis added, p.19)

The “Gospel” of Judas and The DaVinci Code

But the railing doesn’t stop here. Soon after the announcement of the Tiktaalik fossil discovery, National Geographic Society announced (April 2006) the discovery of a copy of a document called the “Gospel of Judas.” The actual document was a second century work, but the one found was a copy that some authorities think was actually transcribed in the fourth or fifth century. Alleged to have been written on papyrus by one of Christ’s twelve disciples, the present document was found in El Minya, Egypt sometime in the early 1970s. Since its discovery has been shrouded in intrigue only seen in a 007 movie. It is of further interest to me that NGS aired their global television special addressing the anti-Biblical significance of the so-called “Gospel of Judas” on April 9th, which was Palm Sunday – seems planned to me.

Throughout the month of April, it was commonly asserted by the secular media all over the world that this newly discovered document would change the way we think about Jesus Christ, Christianity and the four canonical Gospels – in other words, all Biblically based faith. Without a doubt, what they really intended was not that the document would impact the way we think, but rather would portray the Biblical truth in an overwhelmingly negative way through their liberal propaganda about the so-called “Gospel.”

In addition, already in this witches brew for the last three years, was Dan Brown’s “factual,” fiction story called The DaVinci Code (does this sound oxymoronic? It does to me). Nevertheless, all of the “FACTS” listed on the first page of Brown’s book have proven to be false. With many more than 40 million copies sold worldwide (an all time best seller), and with the emotional and visual support of the Ron Howard movie by the same name, there are literally hundreds of millions that have been forced to consider the potential anti-Biblical consequences of the story line.

What can we say about all of this? I am convinced that I must say something, because I have received more email and phone inquiries about these items than any other since CTF began. The most obvious concern I have about all of this is, “Why are so many people in America so motivated and so ready to believe information so thoroughly discredited”?

Facts about the Gospel of Judas and the DaVinci Code

All antiquities scholarship (whether Christian or secular) that I have read and consulted about “The Gospel of Judas” and “The DaVinci Code” agree and quickly inform you, that:

(1) “The Gospel of Judas” was not written by the real Judas. It was a Gnostic document written nearly 100 years after he died. The earliest date given for the authorship of this document is 130 AD, and the latest date is 180 AD. Judas Iscariot died the same time Jesus was crucified (about 35 AD). It is generally agreed upon by antiquities scholars that this document was written sometime before 180 AD, since Irenaeus identified it in his book, Against Heresies (mentioned below) in that same year.

(2) The “Gospel of Judas” is all about Judas and his justification, similar in emphasis as in all Gnostic “gospels,” whereas the canonical Gospels are about Jesus Christ and His Lordship.”

(3) The “Gospel of Judas” is among 21 other noncanonical gospels or books (also called apocryphal books) that have been identified as the work of Gnostic writers of the 2nd through the 4th century AD. Gnostic writings have some Christian emphasis, but are terribly saturated with Greek philosophy (compare Colossians 2:8). And while they are accepted today as valuable sources for historical data associated with the time-period in which they were written, they are not accepted as accurate sources for New Testament history, nor are they considered relevant as authentic sources of information concerning the life of Christ, His words, or His Apostles. Even in the NGS TV special, Dr. Craig Evans clearly said that, “it (the “Gospel of Judas”) doesn’t contain any authentic Jesus tradition.”

(4) In 180 AD, the French Bishop Irenaeus of Lyon, wrote an anti-Gnostic book, Against Heresies , in which he discussed the errors and dangers of Gnostic writings. Referring to the “Gospel of Judas,” he said that this so called “gospel” was written by a Gnostic proponent of the “Cainite” sect of Gnosticism, a group who worshiped the original Cain as a hero, among other despicable Biblical characters (including Judas). Irenaeus called the “Gospel of Judas” a “fictional history.”

(5) The DaVinci Code (and its assumptions) is based on material found in these apocryphal documents, all Gnostic, and no other, all being written between the 2nd and the 4th centuries AD, especially the so called “Gospel of Philip” and the “Gospel of Mary Magdalene” (the “Gospel of Philip” was found in Egypt near the location where the “Gospel of Judas” was found). For example, Brown’s plot to show the marriage of Jesus to Mary Magdalene is derived from the following passage taken from the so-called “Gospel of Philip:”

And the companion of the […] Mary Magdalene, […] her more than the disciples […] kissed her on her […]. The rest of […]. They said to him, “do you love her more than all of us.”

NOTE: The ellipses […] in the above quote show areas where pieces of the original papyrus are missing and lost from the “Gospel of Philip.” Brown took the liberty to fill in the blanks as he chose. But, it was, essentially, from this lone document that Brown supported his conclusion that Jesus was married to Mary, and had a child with her. Remember the “Gospel of Philip” is also Gnostic in origin.

(6) The supposed “facts” mentioned by Brown on page one of his book are neither Biblically supported nor historically verifiable. In other words, they are not facts. They are not true in any way; they are convenient manipulations sold as fact, used by Brown to provide intrigue and excitement in his novel – it worked! He’s now a multi-millionaire because so many dumbed-down Americans bought into his charismatic story telling.

(7) The most dangerous allegation from Brown’s book is the suggestion that first century church leadership conspired and successfully implemented a cover-up of the marriage of Jesus Christ to Mary Magdalene. However, since all of Brown’s supposed “facts” have been totally discredited, this allegation falls along with the rest. I think it is interesting that Roger Ebert’s web site review said, (rogerebert.com), that “Dan Brown’s book is utterly preposterous; Ron Howard’s movie is preposterously entertaining.”

What is Gnosticism?

It will be appropriate for us to briefly consider certain beliefs of these early Gnostic teachers, because there are signs indicating an attempt to resurrect this philosophy in the teachings and practices of the modern church.

Historically, Gnosticism was a religious movement, deeply influenced by Greek philosophy that surfaced in the latter part of the 1st century AD, and continued to be popular in some areas well into the 4th century AD (this range of years will vary a little depending on the historian you read). The word “Gnostic” is derived from the Greek word gnosis , meaning knowledge, and appears in 1 Timothy 6:20. Many New Testament commentators are convinced that Paul is warning Timothy about Gnostic teaching in this verse:

O Timothy! Guard what was committed to your trust, avoiding the profane and vain babblings and contradictions of what is falsely called knowledge (“science falsely so-called” –KJV) .

A primary agreement among Gnostics was that they possessed a “secret knowledge” about the origin of the universe and the origin and destiny of man that others didn’t have, and couldn’t have. It was only for the initiated. It was this special knowledge, or gnosis, that was essential to one’s salvation. Among the Christian Gnostics this special “gnosis” was soon interchangeable with Christianity itself. There wasn’t a united convention, or a general organization of Gnostic believers; they were divided into many divisions and sects, as well as many differing beliefs.

According to the teaching of Gnosticism, it wasn’t the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ that effected salvation, but this special “gnosis.” Gnostics believed that there were two divine beings; one was unknown and remote, a Supreme Being, and the other was evil and subordinate, called the Demiurge. It was this subordinate deity that created the world of material things; therefore, because our bodies were created by this subordinate deity, they were material, and being material, they were also evil.

Gnostics held to the Eastern-like notion that certain individuals possessed a “divine spark” within them, an inward potential that was held in the bondage of their evil, material body. It was through this special “gnosis” that their inward “spark,” or “the god or goodness within them” would be delivered from the bondage of their material flesh and be connected to the unknown Supreme Being. They further claimed that Jesus only temporarily possessed a material (human) body, that He was not, in fact, human in any way (thus they rejected the incarnation). They alleged that when He was finished with the human body He possessed, He simply left it. Therefore they rejected the work and reality of His cross, His shed blood and resurrection, and any practices or ordinances associated with them (such as, baptism and communion).

Probably, the greatest danger from the neo-Gnostic movement floating around some church groups today, is the continual emphasis on “revelations, mysticism, special knowledge” that come to the initiated from their inward “potential” or “mind.” This “special knowledge or power” is more to be sought after and followed than the clear teaching of the Word of the Lord, and that is the inherent danger.

According to Bousset:

These little Gnostic sects and groups all lived in the conviction that they possessed a secret and mysterious knowledge, in no way accessible to those outside, which was not to be proved or propagated, but believed in by the initiated, and anxiously guarded as a secret. This knowledge was not based on reflection or scientific inquiry or proof, but on revelation…In short, Gnosticism in all of its various sections, its form and its character, falls under the category of mystic religions, which were so characteristic of the religious life of decadent antiquity . In Gnosticism, as in the other mystic religions, we find…the same loose organization, the same kind of petty sectarianism and mystery-mongering. All alike boast a mystic revelation and a deeply veiled wisdom. (Emphasis added, ISBE, Vol. II, p. 1241)

Remember those who fight against Biblical reality are financially sustained in their work against the Bible and the Bible’s God by those who hate Him and His body! There is an oft-used cliché associated with tracking true motivation in political maneuvering that says, “Follow the money.” The same is true in the battle for truth versus evil! Not-for-profit funding is all about profiling, or aligning, the goal and mission of the donor with the mission statement and purpose of the recipient. Organizations are not funded unless they are in proper alignment with the ultimate purpose and philosophy of the contributor. Secular scientific groups, including National Geographic Society, will not be funded by Foundations or Corporations or individuals who are Biblically conservative (I hope not anyway), so don’t be surprised if their conclusions are diametrically opposed to Biblical truth and assessments, they must be – this is just another evidence that “enmity” is still in the world.

Summary

I want to revisit the question I asked earlier as I conclude this article. Why are American people so quick to accept such Biblically negative conclusions, based on such nonscientific data? I think this question has three answers, but more accurately a combination of these three answers.

First, and most important, there has never been a day in the history of this country that our general populace has been so completely ignorant of Biblical facts and reality, church members notwithstanding. We are living in a society of people that have very little knowledge of the Bible, its God, or its message. This spiritual dearth in our land makes us terribly vulnerable to all sorts of deceptive drivel. Added to this, the affective emphasis in our educational delivery has caused a terrible loss of our cognitive perception, so that we are more influenced by the way we feel about a matter, than whether or not it is true. It’s all about feelings! Not ideals and thoughts!

Secondly, this modern Biblical ignorance has a twin sibling called secularized, scientific dogma that has been just as detrimental to Biblical truth. Its danger is due to the fact that it comes all dressed up in scientific garb, but on closer examination, we see that the king is naked; he doesn’t have on any cloths! What appears to be science is nothing more than raw scientism – it is humanistic religion sold as if it is scientific in some way.

For the last five decades, Americans have been so totally bombarded by this pseudo-scientific dogma delivered by the secular scientific community and state educational establishment, until many feel they can no longer trust the Bible or its history. Millions have graduated from our colleges and universities, having been declared educated, but having been convinced that Genesis is a silly, ancient notion.

Moreover, we are often told that we must respect the separation of church and state relationship and that the Biblical God is welcome in only a few places in this country, while the truth is the secular crowd want Him completely out of the country. All public places have officially been declared off limits to God and His word, because, they insist, it is unconstitutional to pray and read the Bible in public places. Is it? Therefore, the Bible and the Bible’s God are no longer considered supreme or absolute in our nation. So, when something new is found or discovered, like Tiktaalik, or the “gospel” of Judas, or The DaVinci Code, that apparently supports this supposed Biblical inferiority, there are millions who are immediately ready to consider it, and to receive it as truth.

Thirdly, I further think that the church community has corrupted its own nest, by its own unrepented scandals, blatant inconsistencies, and domestic brokenness, which has been intensified by selfish, arrogant leadership being more motivated by market share than ministry share. The fact is that many ministries today are not about money, but about big money!

Couple this reality with the fact that a large percentage of Americans have learned their morality from modern television icons like Barney, Mr. Rogers and Sesame Street, who taught us to be nice, respectful and tolerant. And on the same television, we witnessed church scandals, religious leadership failures and other religious illegitimacy, so that many Americans have grown to think they can no longer trust God, the Bible or the church. What once was considered spiritually sound, that made this nation truly great, and that trained our forefathers, has been replaced by a purple dinosaur and a yellow bird.

Furthermore, all of this comes at a time when the greater social context in America is not friendly to religion or religious systems, especially conservative religion – it is placed on the fringe, said to be anti-cultural, to be antiprogressive, or to be weird; accordingly, anything that smacks of religion is no longer trusted, and this includes the Bible. Thus a great many Americans are not sure what they can trust, but it is certain, they think, they cannot trust organized religion, its icons or processes! So, they are looking for something they can trust…what shall we do?

Blessings,

G. Thomas Sharp

Worldview Perspectives-January 2006

Tue, 10 Jan 2006 22:18:00 GMT

It’s time now for me to “walk where angels fear to tread,” I’m going to address some worldview issues and their impact on the church. I just recently had an opportunity to look at a survey on church attendance in Britain and Ireland, and it was interesting from several viewpoints (which I may delve into on a more in-depth basis at a later date), but I was specifically interested in the estimated current church attendance (around 5%) and why those who no longer attended chose not to do so. Very briefly, the respondents indicated it was because the church had abandoned its primary purpose for existence: declaring the sinfulness of man and preparing the disciples to answer the great questions of Who am I, Why am I here, Where did I come from and Where am I going. So, as you read this next compilation of reports from across the nation, keep in mind what has happened in Britain and Ireland.

“The Mother in the ‘Medium” Diana McKeon Charkalis, special for USA Today, posted 11/20/2005, www.usatoday.com/life/television/news/2005-11-20-tv-moms-main_x.htm

When NBC’s Medium first aired last season, it was touted as a crime drama based on the experiences of a real-life psychic who helps out law enforcement in Phoenix. But show creator Glen Gordon Caron didn’t see it exactly in those terms. He was more interested in the complicated, often stressful life of a woman who sees dead people for a living, then goes home to her aerospace engineer husband and three kids.

“Clearly, the home is the focus. That was the reason for doing the show,” says Caron, who also created the 1980’s hit Moonlighting. “For me that was the meat of the thing. Family is a big part of who she is.”

“There have been working parents on television for decades, but there’s something more realistic that’s happening this season, even on shows like Desperate Housewives, which is meant to be a dark comedy,” says Andrea Barbalich, executive editor of Child magazine, which features a special section on balancing work and family in the November issue. TV’s emphasis on working moms is “reflecting the truth of what’s going on,” Huffman (Felicity Huffman of ABC’s Desperate Housewives) says. “They’re showing women in their entirety with their real trials and tribulations, not just, ‘Oh, honey, you forgot your lunchbox money.” Housewives writer Julia Sweeney, also known for her androgynous role of “Pat” on Saturday Night Live, says much of the material for
Huffman’s harried working mom springs from the writers’ lives. Sweeney and other writers are working moms.

(I will go onto the next article before commenting)

“Controversial TV Show about Episcopal Priest Draws Opposition,” Jason Davis, The Christian Post, Saturday Dec. 31, 2005,

www.christianpost.com/article/culture/1639/section/controversial.tv.show.about.episcopal.priest.draws.opposition/1htm

A television show that has yet to air and features an Episcopal priest as the main character is being opposed by one group, which says it objects to Hollywood’s focus on negative aspects of Christians and has called on supporters to contact the show’s sponsors to pull their advertising. The program, The Book of Daniel, portrays the lives of one Episcopal priest and his family. The network airing the program, NBC, describes the relationship between the priest and his family as loving, but challenging.

The actor portraying the priest, Aidan Quinn, addressed potential objections, saying they were misplaced. If ‘Daniel’ offends some Catholics, “I don’t really care that much,” he said, according to the Associated Press… “It’s a good thing Daniel started off so neurotic,” he said. “He wants to be an evolved, spiritual man who takes care of his family. He’s got miles to go before he sleeps.”

The AFA’s (American Family Association) depiction of the show’s characters included mentions of a drug-addicted Episcopal priest; his alcoholic wife; his son, a 23-year-old homosexual Republican; his daughter, a 16- year-old drug dealing daughter; a 16-year-old adopted son who is having sex with the bishop’s daughter; his lesbian secretary who is sleeping with his sister-in-law; and a very unconventional white-robed, bearded Jesus who talks to the priest.

In a press statement addressing the concerns about the show, NBC describes the family of the Reverend Daniel Webster, an unconventional Episcopalian minister; Peter, his 23-year-old son, who struggles with the loss of this twin brother; Grace, his 16-year-old daughter who doesn’t try to push her father’s buttons but succeeds at it nonetheless; Adam, his 16-year-old adopted Chinese son, a handsome and cocky high school jock with a wicked sense of humor; a loving wife with a fondness for mid-day martinis; and an actor portraying Jesus, whose frequent chats with Daniel serve to remind him of his strengths and weaknesses.

I spend a modicum of time perusing the many news websites and I have found more than one article praising the way in which Hollywood is becoming more family friendly. If the above TV programs are representative of just how friendly Hollywood is becoming, we are a lost cause.

I once heard a comment made in reference to how TV influences our lives that has stuck with me for several years; and it would appear that it is being justified ever increasingly as the years go by. Whoever this sage was, he indicated that TV exerts a subtle, yet irresistible pressure to conform to its ethics and morés.

So, how would this theory play out, if true? Let’s take a real brief historical look at TV programs. For Baby Boomers, this list will ring some bells: Bachelor Father, My Little Margie, Andy Griffith, Petticoat Junction, The Rifleman, Jeff’s Collie (The actual precursor to Lassie), The Big Valley, Fury, the Guns of Will Sonnet. Then for those of you who are a little younger, perhaps you can remember: The Courtship of Eddie’s Father, The Brady Bunch, The Dukes of Hazard, Sanford and Son, Laverne and Shirley, etc. Now, I’m not trying to take us all down Memory Lane, I have a purpose for listing these programs… have you seen it yet? Well, let’s cut to the chase: all of these programs showed ‘family” settings without a complete family. Not that they were dysfunctional in the sense that we have come to understand it today; they just didn’t have a father+mother+child nuclear family for some reason or the other. Most of the time, when we knew the “why, “it was because of a death. Nonetheless, each one of these programs made us feel “good” with a “broken“ family (in the case of the Andy Griffith show, we were extremely comfortable). Please don‘t misunderstand me: I am not saying that these programs were somehow evil in their portrayal of their respective families, and I understand that in the real world, there are situations that are not perfect. What I am saying is that over the course of the last fifty years, Christians (at least the ones who watch TV) have been slowly introduced to a break down in the conventional/Biblical family structure to the point that the non-typical family has become as common to and within us as the typical. Each decade the Hollywood depiction of the family has become increasingly more non-typical; the 1980’s saw a new “illustration” of the “typical family:” My Two Dads, and Three’s Company. While the first simply introduced the idea of two parents of the same sex (under what was supposed to be rather benign circumstances — one of the two men had fathered a child with this woman, but she didn‘t know which one. When she died, she left all her money to these two men… with the understanding that they would both raise the child), the later one introduced the first “threesome,” all within a “family” context, i.e. they experienced all the emotions, problems, etc. of a typical family. This type of slow infiltration of anti- Biblical relationships has benumbed us to the point of apathy. However, due to the recent blatant, in-your-face depravity that has “graced” our air-waves and silver screens, many in the Christian community have raised up and shouted “Stop!” Enough of this, combined with the threat of Congressional action, has convinced Hollywood to become more ‘family friendly.” But as I said at the beginning of the comment, it is not exactly what we had in mind. Rather they have taken it upon themselves to once again, define for us what a “normal“ family is.

Perhaps the greatest tragedy of the two programs mentioned in the above articles, especially the Daniel program, is that our attention is drawn to a “lightening rod” subject (that of attacking Christianity), while we are unconsciously indoctrinated with the “normalcy” of the family life being depicted. As I have indicated, this is but another example of the incremental and subtle infiltration of anti-Biblical mores into our nation‘s hearts and minds.

And now the lighter side.

Golf is a game invented by the same people who think music comes out of a bagpipe.

“If a woman has to choose between catching a fly ball and saving an infant’s life, she will choose to save the infant’s life without even considering if there are men on base.” – Dave Berry

Origins News Briefs-January 2006

Tue, 10 Jan 2006 22:13:00 GMT

“Gigantic Apes Coexisted with Early Humans, Study Finds,” Bjorn Carey, (07 November 2005), can be downloaded at www.livescience.com/animalworld/051107_giant_ape.html

“A gigantic ape standing 10 feet tall and weighing up to 1,200 pounds lived alongside humans for over a million years, according to a new study. . . While the idea of a giant ape piqued the interest of scientists — and bigfoot hunters — around the world, it was unclear how long ago this beast went extinct.

Now Jack Rink, a geochronologist at McMaster University in Ontario, has used a high-precision absolute-dating method to determine that this ape — the largest primate ever — roamed Southeast Asia for nearly a million years before the species died out 100,000 years ago during the Pleistocene period. By this time, humans had existed for a million years.

Since the original discovery, scientists have been able to piece together a description of Gigantopithecus (short for Gigantopithecus blackii) using just a handful of teeth and a set of jawbones. It may not be much, but the unusually large size of these teeth indicates they belong to one big ape.

Currently, scientists are debating over how Gigantopithecus got around — was it bipedal or did it use its arms to help it walk, like modern chimpanzees and orangutans? The only way to answer this is to collect more bones.

I didn’t feel this was an earth-shaking bit of information; rather I included it to show just how deceptive these articles can be. Let me say at the beginning, I believe that this find is probably legitimate. The Creation Model would predict that these large apes would have walked the earth at the same time as man. Furthermore, with verified fossil remains of other extremely large mammals, it is no surprise that we should find giant apes. It is when they begin to apply their evolutionary time frames so positively, that I feel the hair on the back of my neck begin to rise.

Conveniently, they have omitted just what the “high- precision absolute dating” method is, so there can be no formal challenge. However, it is common knowledge within both creation and evolution circles that most scientific dating methods do not allow for a cataclysmic, world-wide catastrophe anywhere in the earth ‘s past history, and that failure to do so will have tremendous impact on test results. However, this is not even considered; rather, it is “established” that this dating method cannot be assailed and therefore, these dates are the real deal. So, why is this “discovery ” such a great find? Because “I” said so!

“New View of Early Earth: A Habitable Place,” Robert Roy Britt (18 November 2005), can be downloaded at www.livescience.com/othernews/051118_early_earth.html

“There are a trio of longstanding views of what Earth might have looked like in its formative years: a moon-like desert, a fiery volcano hell, or a waterworld with no firm footing. All three may be wrong.

A…study reported in May…also suggesting that notions of a fiery, hellish planet back
then have been overblown. Here’s why it matters: A world with water and land and somewhat moderate temperatures and volcanic conditions would have been habitable. That does not mean here was life, but the conditions were in place.”

Did that title fool you? Yeah, it did me, too. I thought “at last, they are beginning to come around.” I should have known better. This is but another attempt to fit a square peg in a round hole… it just won‘t work. The article spends not a little bit of time trying to convince you that they have finally figured it out. At the end, it is still just “Star Trek” science.

“Group wants to see humans extinct,” United Press International — News Track (San Francisco, November 16, 2005), www.upi.com/NewsTrack?view.php?StoryID=20051116-040458-3167r

“Make no mistake about it, the Voluntary Human Extinction Movement isn’t anti-child, it’s more like anti-human. The VHE is dedicated to phasing out the human race in the interest of the health of the Earth, founder Les Knight told Wednesday’s San Francisco Chronicle.

With 16,000 people born per hour and a current global population of 6.5 billion, there are already more than enough people on the planet, Knight said. ‘Where humans live, not much else lives,’ Knight said. ‘It isn’t that we’re evil and want to kill everything — it’s just how we live.’

Knight, who had a vasectomy at age 25, emphasizes VHE likes kids and says many of its members are parents as well as children.”

I wonder where “planned natural selection “fits into the evolutionary scenario? Well, don ‘t laugh — I ‘just know” there has to be an evolutionary benefit to suicide.

“Archaeopteryx in the Headlines Again: New Specimen Reported,” Creation-Evolution Headlines, (12/02/2005), http://creationsarfaris.com/crev200512.htm . Originally appeared in Science magazine and can be downloaded at www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/310/5753/1483/DC1

“The best preserved fossil yet of Arc haeopteryx was announced in Science this week, the ninth in all. This one, described by Gerald Mayr of the Senckenberg Natural History Museum (Frankfurt, Germany), had a better-preserved foot than the others (all found in the Solnhofem Limestone beds of Bavaria) with indications it had a hyperextendable second toe somewhat similar to those on deinonychosaurs … National Geographic News is convinced this and the therapod-shaped skull settles the dispute about the relationship of birds to theropod dinosaurs.

Eric Stokstad, however, in a News Focus article in the same issue of Science, denied that there was anything radically different about this specimen. There’s another problem: Burkhard Pohl, an amateur collector and founder of the for-profit Wyoming Dinosaur Center where it will be housed (also co-author of the announcement in Science) is not forthcoming on this fossil’s pedigree:

The origins of the Archaeopteryx, however remain hazy. Pohi says he ‘found a donor’ to buy it from a private collector qfter the Senckenberg failed to raise enough money. (Mayr declines to reveal the asking price, but the Palaontologische Museum München paid DM 2 million — about $1.3 million — for a less spectacular specimen in 1999). The Archaeopteryx appears to be legal, because Bavaria allows the export of fossils. Pohi won ‘t say who legally owns it , but he says that it ‘guaranteed that it will stay in a public collection.’ (Emphasis added in all quotes.)

(The author of the article comments: “Once again, a cloud of doubt is raised around this icon of evolutionary ‘transitional forms.’ Fred Hoyle wrote a whole book about possible fraud surrounding the most famous feathered Archaeopteryx fossils [not all have feather impressions], and others have done the same over the years. Now, we have another, the best-looking of all, and we can’t be absolutely sure where it came from. Why can’t the best paleontologists go over to Bavaria and uncover a clear example of a feathered specimen in situ to end all doubt?)

This certainly is beginning to smell of Nebraska man, Piltdown man, Java man, etc.. These people really want to find that “missing link” (despite many diehards’ claims that they already have multitudes of transitional fossils).

A Lesson in Kingdom Life

Tue, 10 Jan 2006 21:48:00 GMT

One of the greatest mistakes American Christians commit, or maybe omit, regarding their relationship to the Holy Scriptures is their consistent failure to perceive the superlative intent immersed within its content – their failure to see the bottom line. We are all prone, because of our social conditioning, to primarily view the Bible merely as a space/time commentary regarding life on the earth in the here and now, which means we only see the humanity of the Scripture.

We read the Bible as we would read a self-help book, constantly perusing its stories of pathos, success, sin and victory in order to discover some method or process that will make us more successful, happy and fulfilled. And for good reason, because we are constantly being encouraged to use these stories as directives for our own personal good and prosperity, and I suppose there is some room for this application of the Scripture. But if that is all we see in the Bible, we miss its ultimate grandeur and majesty; we miss its primary message.

Not ascertaining the divine message of Scripture can happen in a number of ways, but most significant among them is our ignorant oversight of the inherent Kingdom intent for all divine revelation. Nothing in the sacred text was recorded casually or uneventfully. Everything in the Scripture is about God, His sovereignty and His glory, not about man and God’s desire to make him happy and rich.

Every jot and tittle of the sacred writ was sovereignly guarded and guided to disclose God’s Kingdom ideals. As a result, the Spirit of God directed the holy writers in such a way that guaranteed the faithful inculcation of His ultimate plan in all portions of the inspired text. In its history, its poetry, its prophecy, its parables, in the ministry of Christ, in the preaching of the Apostles, etc.; here a little, there a little, the Scriptures thoroughly exhibit God’s eternal plan for the earth.

Jesus Walks on the Water

There is a wonderfully unique experience in Christ’s earthly ministry that unveils a special aspect of this subject that I want to share with you. It can be read in a familiar account of Christ’s interaction with His apostles that is recorded in Matthew 14:22-32. Here, we see that Jesus told His disciples to cross the Sea of Galilee, and upon their departure He sent away the multitude and went, by Himself, to a mountain to pray and remained there until evening.

In the meantime, the Sea had become angry with besetting winds and waves, and the disciples were caught in this tempest. Jesus knew of their plight – that they had not yet reached the other side, but did not go to them until the fourth watch of the night, sometime between 3:00 and 6:00 am. Isn’t that interesting? Moreover, when He came to them, He was walking on the Sea.

As He neared the little boat, they saw Him and became fearful because they thought He was a ghost. He spoke to them calmly, “Be of good cheer.” And immediately Peter asked if he could come to Him on the water. Jesus answered, “Come.” So, without hesitating Peter climbed out of the boat and began walking toward Jesus on the water. But the crashing of the waves distracted him, and becoming fearful he began to sink. He cried out. “Lord, save me!” And Jesus took him by the hand, and they got into the boat together.

There are many meaningful applications to be discerned from this experience. Generally, and most often, we only see or hear about the obvious – the physical miracle that Peter walked on the water, and that is, I admit, an astounding reality. But there is a Kingdom application being taught here that is far more important.

It is deeply intriguing that John used the figure of “water” as a reference for peoples, nations and tongues (Revelation 17: 15). More intriguing still, is the fact that these “people” were making war against the Lord and His chosen ones. But Jesus and His followers overcame them! He again walked on the waters! Could it be that our Lord is demonstrating to His disciples the only way His Kingdom work can be accomplished today? That our labor for Him is being conducted in alien, formidable surroundings and that the only way it can be successfully completed is through Him, by Him and with Him; that true Kingdom victory today can never be achieved by the arm of the flesh; that if we, for one minute, take our eyes off Him, we will sink in the waters around us? I think so.

It seems obvious that Jesus deliberately sent his disciples into the wild, unpredictable convulsions of the Sea to teach them a vital Kingdom reality, that Kingdom work on the present earth will inevitably be conducted in hostile settings, and that their success or failure is totally proportional to their association with, and reliance on, Jesus Christ.

Jesus, perfectly knowing the thoughts and intents of the human heart, knew that Peter would seek permission to come to Him on the waters, and therefore, the Apostle to whom He would soon entrust the keys of the Kingdom, would be given an unforgettable lesson in Kingdom context. So, when Peter asked to come to Jesus on the waters, He instantly said, “Come!”

There are a few passages of Scripture about which I must remind you that, I think, throw immense light on this subject. In the first place, it is significant that Satan took Jesus up on a very high mountain, and showed Him all of the kingdoms of the world, and said to Him, “All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomsoever I wish. If you will worship before me, all will be yours.” (Luke 4:5-6 ).

As you know, Jesus rebuked Satan with his Word and overcame all of his temptations. But, it seems, there are several clear facts mentioned here that tell us something about our present battle. Apparently, at the fall of Adam, earthly dominion was given to the devil causing terrible spiritual darkness to settle upon the earth that ultimately caused the kingdoms of the earth to become terribly influenced by the devil. As a result, the battle between light and darkness (God’s kingdom versus the devil’s kingdom) has raged ever since, and will continue to rage in a violent context until Jesus returns. This reality is further explained by the fact that the great dragon, also called the serpent of old, even the Devil and Satan, was cast out of heaven to the earth at his rebellion, and John said, “… he deceives the whole world…” (Revelation 12:7-9).

It is of further import that in His Sermon on the Mount, Jesus indicated that a primary purpose for all prayer was that God’s will and kingdom come to the earth as it is in heaven. This tells us that the earth is presently out of balance with God’s kingdom principles. Moreover, Paul makes it very plain that the earth is held in the bondage of corruption, as are the bodies of men, even the redeemed, and will remain so until the revelation of the sons of God, when we receive the redemption of our bodies (Romans 8:20-23). At this time, sin and its true cause will be removed from the earth forever.

But for now, Kingdom labor is conducted in an alien environment, a fact clearly demonstrated by Jesus permitting Peter to come to Him on the water. In effect, all true Kingdom work accomplished today is achieved in the same difficult context. It is difficult not because it is impossible, but because it can only be accomplished in the power of the Holy Spirit (Zechariah 4:6).

It is just as impossible for a man to walk on water as it is for men, without divine enablement, to do Kingdom work in this present world. Because true Kingdom work, which Paul said is work made of gold, silver and precious stones (and not wood, hay and stubble), is the only work that will endure the fire of Christ’s bema seat judgment of believers (1 Corinthians 3:9-15).

Moreover, it can never be accomplished through the ingenuity and wisdom of man-made religion. Everything accomplished by religion will be burned in His presence. This is also true, because in our present earthly context the hostilities are too forbidding to accomplish true Kingdom work, requiring that we be co-laborers with Christ, and further, because no man will be allowed to receive glory for true Kingdom work. Only Him!

It can, therefore, truly be said that, we are, in fact, laboring on the water. If we take our eyes off Him for a single second, we immediately begin to sink. So, what does this mean? It means, today, that all real Kingdom successes can only be achieved by a community of “water walkers”-by people who have crawled down out of their boat and committed themselves to a humanly impossible context. Sinking or walking is directly due to our relationship to Him.

Blessings,

G. Thomas Sharp

Who Wrote Genesis?

Thu, 15 Dec 2005 22:59:00 GMT

Who Wrote Genesis?

Most of us, probably, have never given much thought to who, in fact, authored the book of Genesis, because, like me, you thought Moses was the accepted author. In fact, this was general knowledge, until 1753, when a French physician named Jean Astruc argued there were two different writers for Genesis one and two. He argued for this idea because there are two different names used for God in these chapters.

In time, this spawned an elaborate documentary on the origin of the Pentateuch by the German higher critic, Julius Welhausen (1844-1918), which, along with the spread and support of Darwinian evolution allowed every liberal theologian all over the world to deny the Mosaic authorship of the Pentateuch. His theory, commonly called the Documentary Hypothesis, provided an apparent academic foundation for the notion that the five books of Moses were authored by numerous writers whose stories were passed along through oral traditions.

However, it only requires a casual glance into the Old Testament text to unmistakably see that Moses is the author of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. No serious question here, because there are at least forty references throughout the Old Testament definitely connecting Moses as the author of these four books. ¹ But what about Genesis?

Since the Pentateuch is generally considered to be a unit of five books, it is interesting to see that out of the two hundred times Genesis is cited in the New Testament, Moses is never specifically mentioned as its author. ² However, in Luke 24:27 we find an interesting verse. Here, Luke is recording the account of two disciples returning to their home from Jerusalem after the resurrection of Jesus. As they walked along the road to their village of Emmaus, they intently discussed the report of Christ’s resurrection, and “ and Jesus Himself drew near, and went with them ” (Luke 24:15, KJV).

Because they didn’t recognize Him, Luke tells in verse 27 that Jesus “ beginning at Moses and all of the prophets, He expounded unto them in all of the Scriptures the things concerning Himself .” Question : (1) Where is the first Old Testament mention of Christ? It is in Genesis 3:15. (2) Is Genesis part of the Scripture? Of course it is. (3) Where did Luke say Jesus began His teaching? He began with the writings of Moses. (4) What, then, is the obvious conclusion to this verse? That either Moses is the author of Genesis, or that Genesis is not a part of the Scripture.

Just to be sure I checked in other standard versions of the New Testament to see if the translation read in the same manner, and it did. The New International Version says, “ And beginning with Moses and all of the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all of the Scriptures concerning himself .” The New American Standard Version says, “ And beginning with Moses and with all of the prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all of the Scriptures .” The New King James Version says, “ And beginning at Moses and all of the Prophets, He expounded to them in all of the Scriptures the things concerning Himself .” Lastly, the Revised Standard Version says, “ And beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them in all of the scriptures the things concerning himself .” It seems clear to me that as far as Jesus was concerned, Moses authored, or at least, edited and compiled the book of Genesis!

How, then, did Moses gather the information contained in the book of Genesis? There are three possible ways to determine how God directed Moses in the composition of the book of Genesis:

(1) Moses wrote and compiled the information that was passed on by oral tradition.

(2) He received the information by direct revelation.

(3) He wrote or compiled Genesis by using earlier written documents. ³

The first view seems quite unlikely since Moses was plainly told by God in Deuteronomy 31:19-22 that he should write down the song he was teaching the people so that they would not forget it. ⁴ God is saying, in effect, to safeguard the sanctity of the message, I want it written down for the people. Thus He is obviously showing that He has little faith in the oral transmission of His Word from generation to generation, due to the high probability that that information can be forgotten or degraded in some way. ⁵ The second view also seems unlikely because of the reoccurring historical requirements of the Genesis. ⁶ The third seems to be the most likely option, and this is due to current archaeological findings combined with the above mentioned historical markers. Nine times, in the Genesis text (King James Version), there is the reoccurring phrase, “… these are the generations of… ” The first mention of these phrases is in Genesis 2:4, and specifically involves the Hebrew word “ TOLeDOT ” (pronounced to-led-dote’), meaning, essentially, descent, family or history. ⁷

There is much debate regarding whether the word is used prescriptively, as an introduction of things to come, or postscriptively, as a summary of things and events just happened. I think the postscriptive use is obvious, thus presenting the conclusion of action just completed. That is not to say, however, that Genesis does not speak of the One who is to come mentioned in Gen. 3:15.

Consider this. In 1936, P. J. Wiseman wrote a book entitled, New Discoveries in Babylonia about Genesis , and he stated that there are internal clues in Genesis which show how it was written. ⁸ These clues come from the system of cuneiform writing encompassing many languages and dialects. Cuneiform writing was a pictographic system of writing, probably developed by the ancient Sumerians (cir. 3000 B.C.), that used wedge shaped characters. The Hebrew word for write means to “cut or dig” and accurately portrays the cuneiform writing style. ⁹ All the civilized countries east of the Mediterranean, including Egypt, and the Hittites, used this method of writing. Wisemen identified the “TOLeDOT” phrase in the ancient Mesopotamian writings of Persia, Babylonia and Assyria. These phrases are referred to as colophons, which are a scribal or signatural device placed at the conclusion of a literary work written on clay tablets (in other words a signature). ¹⁰

These colophons give the title or description of the passage, period, or occasion in which it was written and the name of the owner or writer of the tablet. ¹¹ For practical purposes, the use of these colophons remained almost unchanged for over three thousand years. They were found in the Ebla tablets of northwest Syria as early as 2700 B.C. and continued at least until the time of Alexander the Great in 333 B.C. ¹² We even see a form of colophons in articles today.

The colophon in Genesis 2:4, says: “ This is the history (toledoth) of the heavens and the earth, when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens .” We note, first of all, that no author is mentioned, as is recorded in all other of the “toledoth” passages. But, who could be the author of this record? Certainly no man could have witnessed this event, only the Creator! Some think this particular record was told to Adam by the LORD, and others believe this was revealed to Moses in response to his request to see the LORD’s glory in Exodus 33:18. ¹³ And God may have written it himself on clay tablets as He did the Ten Commandments, allowing Moses to act as editor of the text through divine inspiration. Thus his job would not only have been to edit and compile but also to update the names. ¹⁴

I would like to note that the Jewish scribes must have had a deep desire to maintain the original text due to the painstaking and systematic effort they took to make sure the words were written accurately. The Dead Sea Scrolls exemplify this, being over 95 percent accurate with the only differences being, a few style and spelling discrepancies. ¹⁵ This respect for God’s Word could only have been passed down from the patriarchs and Moses who did not change the old names in the text as he translated it but gave explanations talking about the new names of these places as seen in Genesis 23:2&19 & 35:19. ¹⁶ Genesis 23:2&19 shows us that since he had to explain where these places were, the Israelites were not yet in Canaan. ¹⁷

Joseph, in Egypt, probably wrote the remaining chapters, the use of cuneiform was known there also. He more than likely wrote on papyrus or leather since it is lacking the colophons, which only have to do with the use of the stone tablets. ¹⁸ So in order to understand Jesus as the Messiah we must accept Him as the Creator and I believe we have Moses to thank for this accurate compilation of the book of Genesis.

Reference:

1.) Annotations by Morris, Henry M., Defender’s Study Bible , World Publishing, Grand Rapids, MI, 1995. 2.
2.) Morris, 2.
3.) Lubenow, Marvin L., Bones of Contention: A Creationist Assessment of Human Fossils . Baker Books, Grand Rapids, MI, 1992. 213.
4.) Lubenow, 215.
5.) Lubenow, 214-215.
6.) Lubenow, 214.
7.) Lubenow, 216.
8.) Lubenow, 216.
9.) Lubenow, 214.
10.) Lubenow, 217.
11.) Lubenow, 217.
12.) Lubenow, 214 & 219.
13.) Lubenow, 219.
14.) Lubenow, 221.
15.) McDowell, Josh, and Bob Hostetler. Beyond Belief to Convictions . Tyndale House Publishing, Wheaton, IL. 2002. 172
16.) Lubenow, 221.
17.) Lubenow, 221.
18.) Lubenow, 220.

Worldview Perspectives-July 2005

Sun, 10 Jul 2005 21:31:00 GMT

Is Man an Animal’?

“Scientists to make ‘Stuart Little’ mouse with the brain of a human,” James Langton, New York, 06/03/2005; downloaded 3/16/2005 from www.telegraph.co.uk

“It will look like any ordinary mouse, but for America’s scientists a tiny animal threatens to ignite a profound ethical dilemma. In one of the most controversial scientific projects ever conceived, a group of university researchers in California’s Silicon Valley is preparing to create a mouse whose brain will be composed entirely of human cells.

“Part human, part animal; research raises concerns,” Paul Elias, Associated Press; downloaded 5/2/2005 from www.usatoday.com/tech/science/ethics/2005-04-30- chimera-research x.htm

“On a farm about six miles outside this gambling town, Jason Chamberlain looks over a flock of about 50 smelly sheep, many of them possessing partially human livers, hearts, brains and other organs. The University of Nevada-Reno researcher talks matter-of-factly about his plans to euthanize one of the pregnant sheep in a nearby lab. He can’t wait to examine the effects of the human cells he had injected into the fetus’ brain about two months ago. ‘It’s mice on a large scale,’ Chamberlain says with a shrug.”

One of the hottest topics of recent years has been genetic manipulation. It first began to draw attention when experiments were conducted using plants. Having broken the genetic code, scientists began to take certain advantageous genetic aspects of one plant and splicing them into plants that could use that advantage. Initially, there was a modicum of outcry, primarily from those of the “green” persuasion, expressing a deep concern for the long-term safety of such an action. And there were a few voices who said we had crossed the line (even though I can’t define that line, I understand what they meant), and had started down a slippery slope. In retrospect, they were obviously right.

Biblically, there was a barrier line instituted wherein it was stated that each living thing would reproduce “after its own kind.” While there has been much debate on the definition of “kind,” I don’t really think that mice and men would fit under that classification. This is a serious breach of our “caretaker” responsibilities before a Holy God.

I have often given thought to what the world was like, when the Creator Himself was prompted to “repent that He had made man” and destroyed the known world, with the exception of eight people. “As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man…”

Religion in America

“Charting the unchurched in America,” Cathy Lynn Grossman, USA Today, 03/07/2002; downloaded 03/07/2002 from www.usatoday.com

Americans almost all say religion matters, yet more people than ever are opting out. Not just out of the pews. Out from under a theological roof altogether.

People with no religion now account for 14% of the nation, up from 8% when the Graduate Center of the City University of New York, authors of the ARIS, conducted its first survey of religion in 1990. Today the range stretches from 3% with no religion in North Dakota to 25% in Washington state.

‘We haven’t gone to church since we were little children,’ she [Laura Terry of Whidbey Island, Washington] says. ‘Our kids go to (private) school, where they learn the philosophy of all religions, and I think that’s enough. They’re happiest when we’re out looking for adventure every weekend.’

‘On Easter, my son and I go camping,’ says Ralph Leitner of Seattle, as 10 year-old Peter conquers the REI pinnacle. Leitner, an Eagle Scout, teaches a catechism of nature. ‘You can’t help but be spiritual out there.’

Experts see people looking upward, inward, online and out-of-doors for the comfort, connection and inspiration they once sought in formal sanctuaries. Their ‘spirituality’ is unhemmed by ritual, Scripture, or theology. ‘People aren’t really saying, “I have no religion.” They are saying, “None of the above,” says University of Washington sociologist Rodney Stark, co-author of Acts of Faith:
Explaining the Human Side of Religion… ‘People who believe in God – and they do – who pray – and they do — are not secular, they are just unchurched, They’ve never been to church and, in many cases, their parents didn’t go either.’

Washington Cathedral … buzzes with ministries for every niche group and social need … ‘We are not organized religion, we’re disorganized religion. We like to say we’re “interdenominational,” since “non-denominational” sounds so “anti.” ‘We say we major on the majors and minor on the minors all other the things, like what age to baptize or how often to give communion and who gets communion, we say are the minor things we can all disagree on,’ says Skinner [Linda, Associate Pastor], skating past issues that once prompted wars.”

I debated with myself as to whether I wanted to treat each one of the articles in this section individually or collectively. Individually has won out.

Most everyone is familiar with the expression, “can’t see the forest for the trees.” Simply, the implication is that one cannot understand in totality the immediate situation because one is involved in it. I perceive this to be the case with the modern-day church, at least in America. I will be the first to admit that the past fifty to sixty years of Protestant church history has engendered some very undesirable characteristics (and those who know me have probably heard me pontificate on some of these). However, I believe the subtle infiltration of humanism into the common theology, via the scientific promotion of evolution, has given many in the church a “license” to cast off sound Biblical restraint in the name of stifling dogmatism. Utilizing a little poetic license, I deem the situation to be that as recorded in Judges 17:6 — “In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.”

Now, before anyone take offense, let me be quick to add that no one, and no set of denominational beliefs, are untouched by this. Rather, what we see is a distinctive self-centeredness in the modern day dogmas; specifically, we see the trends in religious observance as self-satisfying, rather than self-sacrificing. This unconscious behavior expresses itself in many different ways, but when the world begins to recognize this, we can no longer deny that it exists. We should, instead, begin falling on our faces before an All-Knowing, All-Powerful, Ever-Present, Holy Creator — recognizing our positions as creations.

“The Christian market aims for the young and happenin,” Cathy Lynn Grossman and Marco R. della Cava, USA Today; downloaded 06/24/2004 from www.usatodav.com/life/ lifestyle/2004-06-23-christian-side_x.htm

“Marketers are eyeing the 18-to-34 Christian crowd. Watch for:

Gifted, a Christian American Idol-style talent show coming in October to Trinity Broadcasting Network… eight finalists will be picked to croon God’s love ‘in a way that blends seamlessly into “pop” culture,’…

The Word on the Street, billed as ‘a vivid retelling of the Bible in modern British street talk’. . .The company is also running a nationwide faith-based writing contest asking 20-to-30 year-olds: ‘What’s in your head?’

Livin’ It, a DVD release distributed by evangelist Luis Palau featuring a raft of skateboarders and BMX cyclists who mix extreme sports with a Christian message. ‘Kids are not getting reached successfully by the normal crusade model,’ says the director, actor Stephen Baldwin, 37, a born-again Christian. ‘Why? Because we’re usually doing that cheesy Christian thing. We’re dorks’ we’ve got to change this.’

C28, hip Christian clothing, music and accessories shops, now in four upscale malls in Southern California… Founder Aurelio Barreto says many buyers are secular, but ‘most are serious Christians and sophisticated shoppers.”

Boy, you talk about an area where angels fear to tread. Wall-Street and Hollywood marketing techniques have become so well ensconced in the modern day church, that to suggest that it may not have a Biblical base will immediately draw charges such as “you’re still doing that cheesy Christian thing,” or even worse. Do not misunderstand me. There is a place for the understanding of human nature in the promotion of the Gospel; however, to use the fleshly draw of worldly passions is questionable at best (and should be utilized cautiously) and anathema, at worst. Besides, at what point do the Scriptures define that certain age groups should be targeted in the presentation of the Gospel? Feel free to answer that.

I began a series of quotes, purported to have been delivered by Bill Gates at a recent High School graduation. The first half was listed in the May-June newsletter, and below is the remainder. Enjoy!

Rule #7

Before you were born, your parents weren’t as boring as they are now. They got that way from paying your bills, cleaning your clothes and listening to you talk about how cool you thought they were. So before you save the rain forest from the parasites of your parent’s generation, try delousing the closet in your own room.

Rule #8

Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but life has NOT. In some schools they have abolished failing grades and they’ll give you as MANY TIMES as you want to get the right answer. This doesn’t bear the slightest resemblance to ANYTHING in real life.

Rule #9

Life is not divided into semesters. You don’t get summers off and very few employers are interested in helping you FIND YOURSELF. Do that on your own time.

Rule #10

Television is NOT real life. In real life, people actually have to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs.

Rule #11

Be nice to nerds. Chances are you’ll end up working for one.

Origins News Briefs-July 2005

Sun, 10 Jul 2005 21:26:00 GMT

“The Politics of Academic Scientists: Democrats Vastly Outnumber Republicans,” Creation-Evolution Headlines, 12-02-2004; downloaded 12/3/04 from www.creationsafaris.com/crevl204.htm

“A news item in Science entitled “Academia as a ‘One Party’ System” will probably attract the attention of conservative talk show hosts:

Universities in the United States are very keen on fostering “diversity” as long as it’s not ideological diversity , according to the National Association of Scholars (NAS), a conservative group of academics. Last year NAS surveyed members of scholarly societies in six fields in the social sciences, asking which political party they identified with. About 30% of the 5486 people polled responded; of these, 80% were Democrat . ‘… it appears that “lopsidedness has become more extreme over the past decades, and…unless we believe that current professors occasionally mature into Republicans, it will become even more extreme in the future.’ (emphasis added in all quotes)

“The ratios of Democrats to Republicans varied from 3 to 1 in Economics to 30 to 1 in Anthropology, with Political Science, History, Philosophy, and Sociology scaling in between.”

“Klein and Andrew [the authors of the above mentioned study] …have a working paper from their survey of Stanford and Berkeley. The Democratic-Republican (D:R) ratios for the hard sciences track those for the social sciences: Biology 21:0 (Berkeley) and 29:2 (Stanford); Chemistry 32:4 (Berkeley) and 10:5 (Stanford); Mathematics 23:6 (Berkeley) and 12:3 (Stanford); Neurology/Neurobiology 55:4 (Berkeley) and 13:2 (Stanford); Physics 28:2 (Berkeley) and 14:3 (Stanford).”

I will leave the reader to draw their own conclusions from this article.

“Fossils show dinosaur transformed into vegetarian,” Peter N. Sports, The Christian Science Monitor, downloaded from USA Today.com, 05/06/05, www.usatoday.com .

“…Grateful indeed. A team of paleontologists led by Kirkland [Dr. James Kirkland, Utah’s state paleontologist] announced Wednesday the discovery of a new dinosaur caught in the evolutionary act of shifting from a meat eater to a vegetarian.”

“We estimate that there are well over a million bones here, and 99% are from this animal,’ he [Dr. Kirkland] says. ‘This animal will be a hallmark dinosaur one day.

“In its heyday, Falcarius [Falcarius utahensis] measured 13 feet from beak to tail. It stood 4 ½ feet tall and boasted talons four inches long. To the uninitiated, it resembles its Velociraptor cousin in many ways. But on closer inspection, the creature is clearly demoting itself on the food chain, the researchers say. Its teeth are losing their meat-eating edge. Its pelvis is broadening to accommodate a digestive system large enough to handle a plant-based diet. Its neck is growing longer, its legs stubbier, and its head smaller. In all, Falcarius displays 20 features of plant-eating dinosaurs that it appears to have evolved independently from other herbivores, according to Lindsay Zanno of the University of Utah, who is working on the project.”

“Finding its ancestors clustered in the Utah desert will provide a goldmine of information,’ -she says. ‘This will allow us to conduct biological and population studies for a species that went extinct 125 million years ago.”

“How so many creatures came to be clustered in one place is a mystery.. .And why would a creature begin to slide down the food chain? …125 million years ago, Earth was undergoing an extended warming period and lacked ice caps …And plant forms were expanding from ferns and conifers to flowering plants. This explosion in plant life gave animals a ‘whole new set of fodder,’ he [Zanno] says. ‘Falcarius may have eased its way into an unfilled ecological niche that allowed its lineage to survive for some 50 million years.”

The presuppositions involved in this article are too numerous to address. “If I hadn’t believed it, I wouldn’t have seen it.”

“Human Populations are tightly interwoven,” Michael Hopkin, News @ Nature.com, 29 September 2004; downloaded 10/22/04 from www.nature.com/news/2004/ 040927/full/040927- 10.html

“The most recent common ancestor of all humanity lived just a few thousand years ago, according to a computer model of our family tree. Researchers have calculated that the mystery person, from whom everyone alive today is directly descended, probably lived around 1,500 BC in eastern Asia.

The figure of 1,500 BC might sound surprisingly recent. But, think how wide your own family tree would be if you extended it back that far… In fact, if it were not for the fact that the oceans helped to keep populations apart, the human race would have mingled even more freely, the researchers argue. ‘The most recent common ancestor for a randomly mating population would have lived in the very recent past,’ they write in this week’s Nature.

The fact that the person probably lived in Asia is down to its prime position along the most commonly used migration routes, Rohde (Douglas Rohde, MIT) suggests. ‘East Asia is at a crossroads,’ he says. ‘it’s close to the Bering Strait and the Pacific.’

Besides dating our most recent common ancestor, Rohde’s team also calculates that in 5,400 BC everyone alive was either an ancestor of all of humanity, or of nobody alive today.

Nonetheless, the results show that we are one big family, Rohde’s says.”

They are really getting close!

“Genetic Factors Influence Female Infidelity — Study,” London (Reuters; Nov. 24, 2004); downloaded 11/25/04 from www.reuters.com

“Genetic factors influence female infidelity and the number of partners women have, British scientists said on Wednesday.

They studied the responses of 1,600 pairs of identical and non-identical twins in a confidential survey to look at the impact of genes on behavior.

‘We found that around 40 percent of the influence on the number of partners and infidelity was due to genetic factors,’ Professor Tim Spector, director of the Twin Research Unit at St. Thomas’ Hospital in London, told a news conference. But he added that environment and upbringing also play a part in explaining the variation in infidelity between women.

The average age of the women was 50. A quarter were divorced. Women who had been faithful had about four partners [what?], compared to eight in the infidelity group.

The scientists suspect that many genes could be associated with behavior. They believe genes on chromosomes 3, 7 and 20 could be involved.

In a separate study in the journal, involving nearly 2,000 sets of female twins, Spector and his team said genes also played a role in common sleep disorders.”

Am I to understand that because there is evidence of genetic impact in sleep disorders, an organic disease, that this is the “proof” there must be a like connection with moral behavior? Only to an evolutionist.

“Fossil solidifies T. rex link to birds, Bones suggests female was about to lay avian-like eggs.” (Reuters, June 2, 2005), downloaded from www.msnbc .msn .comJidJ8O723 96 6/3/ 2005

“A Tyrannosaurus rex dinosaur that died 68 million years ago has provided some of the strongest evidence yet that birds are the closest-living relatives of dinosaurs, scientists said Thursday. Soft tissue found in the animal’s thighbone strongly suggests it was a female, and just about to lay eggs, the researchers report in Friday’s issue of Science.

The bone tissue is strongly similar to that made inside the bones of female birds — and no other living type of animal — when they are producing the hard shells of eggs just before they lay them, said Mary Higby Schweitzer of North Carolina State University in Raleigh.

This particular T. rex fossil made headlines in March when the same team of paleontologists reported it contained preserved soft tissue — the first ever found in a dinosaur bone.

Horner [Jack Homer of the Museum of the Rockies and Montana State University] said most experts are convinced the two-legged dinosaurs known as theropods were closely related to living birds. ‘This is another piece to the puzzle, and there are a lot of them,’ he said. ‘Anyone who would argue that birds and dinosaurs are not related — frankly, I’d put them in the Flat Earth Society.”

We told you this was coming! While I have not included the entire article (look it up and read it), you can see from my “condensed” version that they have done a great job in beginning to spin this find. Did you see how deftly and how subtly they deflected the real issue here: How did soft tissue exist for 68 million years? With all the hoopla surrounding the ID vs. Evolution debate, this “find” is a much-needed prop to bring back credibility to neo-Darwinism. Rest assured, you have not heard the last of this.

Is There Not A Cause?

Sun, 10 Jul 2005 21:22:00 GMT

While traveling to a recent speaking engagement, my thoughts suddenly became terribly inundated with waves of ambivalence (at one moment I had feelings of uncertainty, at another moment feelings of accomplishment). For a while, I didn’t know whether I should be proud of the recent CTF accomplishment or embarrassed that such a small organization should be brought to the surface of public awareness in this manner, especially in connection with the subject matter associated with the CTF message. Of course, as you have already guessed, this whole experience I am describing was primarily due to the high degree of international and national media coverage and public hoopla that has accompanied the opening of The Museum of Earth History in Eureka Springs. We never, for a moment, dreamed that such exposure would follow the construction of this small exhibit center, nor did we promote or encourage the various news organizations to consider writing an article about the Museum. But, they did, and still are! As a matter of fact, by the time you read this article we will have already filmed a session for ABC news at 6:00 with Peter Jennings.

As my mind continued to ponder this phenomenal stream of events, just as suddenly, there flooded into my thinking the words written by the Old Testament historian to illustrate David’s reaction to his brother’s misunderstanding of his motive for being at the battlefield in I Samuel 17:28-29. First Samuel’s narrative reads that Eliab, David’s oldest brother, angrily exclaimed, in effect, “Why in the world are you here, you silly boy? Don ‘t you know that you should be at home watching the sheep! Your pride and insolence has caused you to come here just to see the battle.”

As you know, Eliab’s assessment was absolutely wrong—nothing could have been further from the truth. Probably, because Eliab was himself fearful of the threats of the giant and didn’t want either his little brother or his father to know it, he was extremely annoyed at David’s presence. The fact is David had come to the battlefield because his father had sent him there to bring grain and bread to his brothers, and to bring word home of the status of his brothers. But instead of having a short and friendly visit with his brothers, he was intolerably alarmed by what he saw and heard.
As he approached the battle area, he heard the degrading words of this self-styled Philistine champion, Goliath of Gath, disrespectfully roaring insane expletives while slandering his holy God—the God of Israel. But, more than that, he was significantly moved when he observed that neither King Saul nor any portion of Israel’s army responded, including all three of his brothers who had joined with Saul to fight the Philistines. He suddenly became alarmed beyond his ability to contain himself when he noticed the terrible dark cloud of defeatism that had settled over everyone in Israel’s army. They were all “dismayed, dreadfully afraid and fled” from the “giant.” No one dared to move because they were all afraid to move. The scene was hopeless and great despair was mirrored from the faces of every man, even King Saul.
We’ve heard all of this before. The Scripture is replete with example after example of God’s people hesitating to respond to the threatenings of the enemy because they were either intimidated by the “giants in the land,” or because they believed “those that were against them were more than they that were for them.” But, at this moment in Israel’s history, awakening was about to break out, because a young man had walked up who couldn’t understand the insensibilities of the giant (and God will always have a man—there will always be a David). David was more influenced by the promise and power of his God, (with which he had become intimately familiar during many episodes with wild beasts while caring for his father’s sheep on the back side of the desert), than he was with all of the idle threats and intimidating tactics of this “giant.”
Is There Not A Cause

So, he immediately faced his older brother and kindly, but assertively, asked, “What have I done now?” He asked, in effect, “All I have done is ask a few questions about the conditions I am seeing.” After which, he exclaimed (according to KJV), “IS THERE NOTA CAUSE?” And so, as I was riding down the highway that morning on my way to speak in another church, the Word of God again boomed these same words—IS THERE NOT A CAUSE?

Just as instantly, my thoughts began framing the aspects of an irrefutable cause—a cause so great and so important that any hearing ear would grasp—a cause so essential that any David like heart would be motivated to response. Yes, there is a cause—a cause with at least three interlocking components—all important, but arranged as dominos! If the first one falls then all will fall, but without the tumbling of the first one, the others will remain resistant and aloof.

What is the nature of the cause? The Bible has become generally discredited as the Word of the LORD on the reported basis that it is no longer scientifically credible to explain the origin of the universe, the earth or man. Furthermore, because Christ’s creatorship has been so thoroughly repudiated due to the loss of the Genesis account of history, His redemptive work has also been relegated to nothing more than just another religious story among the world’s religious tales. Finally, with the Bible perceived to be merely another of the world’s religious books, and Jesus Christ viewed as only another of the world’s religious leaders, then the Biblical reclamation of America is impossible.

First, and foremost, then, among these causes is the return of the credibility and authority of the Holy Scripture. Second, is the identification of the Creatorship and Deity of Jesus Christ, and finally is the possibility of true revival and awakening to revisit America based on the reestablishment of the Bible as the Word of God and Christ as the Creator and owner of the universe. All of these realities have disappeared from the shores of this great country—all due to the discrediting of the Genesis record by evolutionism being presented as a scientific fact. I think it is interesting that Dr. Walter Martin, founder of the Christian Research Institute, said, in effect, just before his death, during a graduation speech, that:

A defective view of Genesis has given rise to a defective Bibliology [doctrine of the Bible], and this in turn has given rise to a defective Theology [doctrine of God], which has given rise to a defective Christology [doctrine of Christ], which has given rise to a defective pneumentology [doctrine of the Holy Spirit], which has produced [especially in America] a total immorality.

The accuracy of this statement is uncontestable!

Historical Background and Comparison

While the characters in this Davidic story are obviously different, the interrelationships and cause/effect parallels are astonishingly similar to conditions in America and the world today. King Saul can easily represent a phase in Israeli history of humanism and secularism, a parallel condition found in the United States today. Goliath epitomizes the voice of the social engineers bent on total annihilation of the Bible’s influence in the culture, and his intimidating size can be seen today represented by the so-called unassailability of science impacting this process. The vast extent of ignorance, fear and cowardice seen in the army of Israel incredibly parallels the present intimidation, inactivity and compromise of the present church community, which was caused by the academic elite who have almost to the person propagated the deception of evolution as the only scientific explanation for man’s origin.

However, in the midst of all this apostasy and defeat, God was still in charge in Israel, as He is today in this Country. Don’t you ever for a moment forget, no matter how dark and foreboding grows the sky, nevertheless, the “Lord God Omnipotent reigns!” God had a young man in training— someone who was learning Kingdom matters in a Kingdom manner. And without warning he suddenly walked upon the scene with the right stuff. He didn’t choose himself for this task, he was chosen and sent for another purpose, he thought, but when he arrived on the site, the divine nature of these circumstances called into action a unique knowledge of God which he learned in the wilderness.

It is necessary to observe that God perennially chooses to use the ‘foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, that no flesh should glory in His presence.” (1 Corinthians
1:27-29)

David was used to deliver Israel, not because he was perfect, but because he recognized the cause and did something about it.

David’s Five Smooth Stones

A careful study of the historical accounting of this circumstance in the books of Samuel and Chronicles indicate that Goliath had several brothers—it seems there were three at least (II Samuel 21:22). It is highly probable that one of David’s motives for picking up five stones was due to this fact. It is further true that the spiritual significance of a stone and the number five can represent a number of spiritual truths and conditions, but to me they represent the Lord, His Word, the ministry of angels, the CTF team and the CTF partners- our five smooth stones! Therefore, with this armament in place, the fact that the Lord has caused CTF to impact a portion of the American culture is God’s business. One fact is for sure, we understand the cause.

Moreover, the five stones is a testimony to the creativity and providence of God. By comparison, God has taken the CTF ministry with very little means—pennies versus millions of dollars—and has disturbed many in the naturalistic world. No wonder David later wrote,

My heart is steadfast, 0 God, my heart is steadfast; I will sing and give praise. Awake, my glory! Awake, lute and harp! I will awaken at dawn. I will praise You, 0 Lord, among the peoples; I will sing to You among the nations. For Your mercy reaches unto the heavens, and Your truth unto the clouds. Be exalted, 0 God, above the heavens; Let Your glory be above all the earth.
Psalms 57:7-11

Blessings,
G. Thomas Sharp

The Teaching of Evolution in America’s School

Fri, 04 Mar 2005 22:13:00 GMT

While I know I was supposed to write the second part of the article began last newsletter, I must, however, postpone the writing of this edition of that article until the May/June newsletter. I must respond to some critical issues, which I believe need my immediate attention, that I have heard mentioned from several sources; particularly (for this newsletter) from two separate newspaper articles over the course of the last month—so I apologize for the delay. Before I discuss the content of these two newspaper articles mentioned above, and to introduce the ideas that I believe to be important enough to have priority over our planned intent for this newsletter, I want to preface my comments with an opinion of my own. First, I strongly believe there is evidence that we are beginning to see the embryonic stages of a Biblical awakening in our country. This awakening is young and premature, and can easily be stillborn before reaching maturity, but the evidence is obvious that some deep changes are on the horizon.

Second, I sincerely believe the doctrine of evolution has entered extremely troubled waters in America, especially as an academic reality. Never in the past 100 years has Darwinism, in any of its forms, been as intellectually challenged as it is being challenged today at the university level. As a result, Darwinism, as an academic explanation for origins, is dying, and most probably, will be replaced in the next twenty to twenty-five years by some form of the intelligent design theory.

In the interim, I further believe, we will see and experience the affects associated with the death of a monstrous worldview that has greatly influenced American thought, at least since 1870. The impact of this influence caused the complete decline of the Bible as the guiding source for American thought by 1960. Thus when a worldview of this longevity and magnitude begins to lose significance and support, as Darwinism is experiencing, the debate will be filled with lots of huff and puff. This being true, in the future of our cultural processes this means that we can expect an abundance of discourse accompanied by turbulent and threatening gestures, innuendos and extenuations. After all, there are tens of thousands of men and women, if not more, who have doctoral level degrees in some form of evolution—think about the fall-out this will cause if evolution is totally discredited.

Incidentally, in this same connection, I was recently apprised of a discussion between one of our Friends of the Foundation, who, by the way, is the owner and CEO of a successful textbook wholesale and retail company, and the Vice President of Marketing and Sales for one of the largest, if not the largest, textbook company for public school textbooks in the United States. Our friend told this VP that his company was losing millions of dollars every year by not having materials available for the conservative segment of the American society. He told me the VP was terribly astonished, and asked, “What do you mean by this statement?”

Our CTF friend immediately responded, “What is there about the last election that you don’t understand?” He then continued, “There are millions of schoolage children whose beliefs are not being properly represented in the underlying belief system offered in the present textbooks you publish and, therefore, they will not use your materials.” And to the dismay of this VP, his advisers who were a part of the discussion agreed that this was a valid reality. Interesting!

Additionally, I thought it was conspicuous that the November, 2004, edition of the National Geographic, asked the question on the front cover, “ Was Darwin Wrong ?” The ensuing answer, which, of course agreed with the assumptions of Darwinism, and was the primary article of the magazine (they gave 47 pages to this article, which was over 30% of the entire magazine, pp. 4-51), nevertheless, did not provide anything new that hasn’t been in the debate for years. However, I thought it was noteworthy that on pages 4-6, the author said, in effect, that even though he believes there is overwhelming evidence for evolutionism, there remains a vast number of Americans who are not at all convinced that evolution’s explanation for origins is true. In this connection, he cited the results from five Gallup surveys dating from 1982 through 2001, and in all instances there has never been less than 44% of the polled citizenry of this country who did not agree that Darwin was wrong and the Bible was right in the explanation of origins! As a matter of fact, in 2001, 45% of the adults polled believed the Biblically literal view of origins, and 37% believed there was room for both God and Darwin in this explanation in some way, while only 12% believed strict atheistic, naturalistic view. In other words, 450 adults out of every one thousand believed the Bible’s explanation to be true, while at the same time totally rejecting Darwinism. Interesting, isn’t it! With these ideas in mind, let’s consider the ramifications of the newspaper articles to which I alluded earlier.

The Teaching of Evolution in America’s School

The first article about which I want to comment appeared in the New York Times, February 1, 2005. The article appeared in the section of the paper called, Science Times, and was entitled, “ Evolution Takes a Back Seat in U.S. Schools ,” pp. D1&D6. The story line in this article sites several evolutionary authorities, all of which are decrying the fact that many of America’s science teachers confess they simply do not teach evolution to their students because of the pressure of the parents and the other community leaders they refer to as “fundamentalists.”

Moreover, the article quoted Dr. Gerald Wheeler, the head of the National Science Teachers Association, who said that many members of this organization are able to “ fly under the radar ” of fundamentalism by introducing evolution as a controversial idea. But, he mournfully continued, that this is scientifically untrue. At this juncture, the article removed all doubt regarding their pro-evolutionary stance by asserting that, “ There is no credible scientific challenge to the idea that all living things evolved from common ancestors, that evolution on earth has been going on for billions of years and that evolution can be and has been tested and confirmed by methods of science .”

Here’s the point! It is this persistent babbling from the evolutionary protagonists in our country that causes the problem. It would be the same if the Bible believers of the country alleged the same claims for the Creationist view. You see, all of the argument revolves around the alleged scientific justification for the evolutionary view, with the creationist view being merely religious, which restricts creation from the public school context in the name of church/state Constitutionality. In this debate, we are not talking about science; we are talking about belief systems.

If evolution was as scientifically substantial as they allege, then the debate would have been forever ended a long time ago, but it isn’t, and never has been, and informed Bible believers know this! Therefore, they don’t want their children taught something declared to be a scientific fact that destroys the credibility of the Scripture in the minds of their children. The least that should be done in a government supported school is that all views of origins be presented for critical evaluation of the students. Any other format is blatant indoctrination and formidable censorship, which has been the modus operandi in government schools for decades. And the interesting fact that emerges from all of this is that after decades of evolutionary indoctrination, as shown above, there is still nearly half of the American population that believes the Biblical view, even in the face of years of training to the contrary.

Creationist Disclaimer Removed from Textbooks in Arkansas

The other article that I want to consider came from an Associated Press report concerning a Little Rock school district. Printed in the Texarkana Gazette, February, 11, 2005, p 7A, the article reported that under the threat of an ACLU lawsuit the Beebe School Board agreed to remove what the article called “ creationist stickers ” from textbooks. The stickers described evolution as a “ controversial theory that alone does not adequately explain the origins of life .”

The ACLU attorney associated in this case, Rita Sklar, said that, “ We commend the Beebe School District for avoiding a costly litigation…However, we are concerned that these stickers may well be present in textbooks around the state , as they are the latest attempt to undermine science …(emphasis added)” Here it is again, only this time in a legal context! In the first place, these stickers could never undermine genuine science, because naturalistic evolutionism is not genuine science. Science wouldn’t be undermined, even if, within the confines of a science class, we had an open discussion to consider naturalism and/or supernaturalism as a possible mechanism for origins—that is, real science! But it would allow students an open forum in which to think about questions like who we are, how we got here and why we are here, to be thought about from differing points of view. Because, it is without debate, whether one admits it or not, these are the real issues that are impacted in this discussion. Therefore, to contend that one of these belief systems is scientific and the other is only religious is to falsely elevate the alleged scientific system to a peerless academic level.

Then the article brings up First Amendment rights, and suggests that stickers like these are a violation of our Constitutional rights as set forth in this Amendment. This reminds me of a report written in the Philadelphia Inquirer by Brian Sullivan (January 2, 1981), in which he wrote that during the 147th meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science held in Toronto, the attendants “voted-in” evolution as a scientific law. Just because a majority of scientists who had gathered in a prestigious meeting agrees that the universe and life on the earth are the result of evolutionary processes doesn’t automatically provide unquestioned scientific sanction to their conclusion. This action simply means that the majority of the people attending this meeting have the same materialistic belief system about origin’s issues—nothing more. In the same manner, the ACLU has a liberal bias concerning origins issues, and as a result they can only contend that their point of view is the scientific view, which gives evolution a demanding preeminence in this debate. But, this is not the case for anyone who looks at the situation fairly, with a true understanding of the abilities and inabilities of the science.

Nevertheless, Sklar, in a classic bait and switch technique, said, at the end of the article that, “ Teaching about religion in history or social studies classes is proper, but masquerading a religious message as scientific is misleading and can lead to unnecessary divisiveness in a community .” Consider this for a moment—what did she really say? In the first place, the stickers were not contending that creation was scientific, and in the second place there are many scientists who plainly say that evolution is not scientific. In the words of L. Harrison Matthews, a biologist from Oxford, written in, of all places, the Introduction to a reprint of Darwin’s Origin of Species : “The fact of evolution is the backbone of biology, and biology is thus in the peculiar position of being a science founded on an unproved theory—is it then a science or a faith? Belief in the theory of evolution is thus exactly parallel to belief in special creation—both are concepts which believers know to be true but neither, up to the present, has been capable of proof.” (Charles Darwin, Origin of Species , Introduction by L. Harrison Matthews, F.R.S., J.M.Dent & Sons, London, 1971, p. xi) So, the battle rages, but the Word of God will prevail – it always does! It is a great day to be a Bible believing creationist! What must we believe? We must believe that the world was framed by the Word of God, and that he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them who diligently seek Him.

Blessings,

G. Thomas Sharp

God’s Timing: A Personal Journey

Mon, 24 Jan 2005 22:13:00 GMT

This article constitutes the first of two articles that will appear in the January/ February and March/April newsletters, respectively. Their importance in content requires a more thorough treatment than could be afforded in a single newsletter. It is my prayer that you will gain spiritual understanding in the process.

Probably, one of the most significant principles affecting the progress of Kingdom activities on the earth, especially in regard to the human participation factor, is our acknowledgement of, and response to, God’s timing, and not ours! This is best epitomized in the language of Solomon in the fourteen couplets of Ecclesiastes 3, and specifically, for our application, verses 1 and 11a: “ To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven…He has made everything beautiful in its time .” (Emphasis added) It seems this verse is saying that success in the work of the Lord can only be achieved in “its time,” or more appropriately, in His time! So, at the risk of sounding trite, timing is everything, and in Kingdom affairs, His timing is paramount!

Now before you get the idea that I am wandering off into the left field of irrelevance and running the risk of leaving you sitting lost in the dug-out without any inkling about the subject to which I am going to apply this line of thought, let me quickly tell you it is concerning CTF’s two-phase building of the Museum of Earth History in Eureka Springs. But, as is always the case in matters of this consequence, the $64,000.00 question is how are we to ascertain God’s timing in momentous matters such as this?

If we are not careful, direction about these kinds of decisions can easily be manipulated and contrived by the force of our will. But, for the sincere seeker of the Lord’s timing there are very discernable indicators in the Scripture that will always impart dependable guidance. Among these Biblical indicators are the divine directives found in Psalms 37:5; Proverbs 16:7; 18:16; and Acts 15:22, on which I painstakingly rely.

The following four areas deal with these directives, using the above mentioned references in their order of appearance: (1) The longevity of the vision, (2) Positive acknowledgement from the enemy, (3) Public recognition of God’s gifting, and (4) Unanimous agreement of our covering. In the first place, then…

The Longevity of the Vision

In Psalms 37:5, the inspired writer admonishes that we must “…commit our ways to the Lord, and trust in Him, and He will bring it to pass.” H. C. Leupold comments in his marvelous exegesis of Psalms, p. 301, that, “The original says, ‘Roll your way,’ the figure being: dislodge the burden from your shoulders and lay it on God, who has bidden you follow this course .” (Emphasis added)

In so many words, the psalmist is saying that God’s revealed intentions for our lives may require years of faithful pursuit before He can bring into fruition His purpose for our existence on this earth. Sometimes called the death of a vision, the Bible is replete with examples showing that God would often deeply inculcate into the heart of one of His youthful children a vision that required years of painful and necessary discipline to achieve. In most cases, the disciplinary process can be seen to be terrible misdirection, breakdown and failure—but either the steps of a good man are ordered of the Lord, or they are not!

However, it is this process as it is demonstrated in the lives of scores of Biblical characters, that constitutes a great deal of the Scripture’s content. And in each and every situation, it was the strength of the commitment born from the vision that provides the perseverance necessary for the man or woman to tolerate the discipline. Without these periods of testing, we would have never read about the spiritual successes of Abraham, Paul, Moses, Esther, or Timothy—to name just a few.

So it is the inspired writer Solomon who, having obviously experienced this same stringent training process himself, is now instructing us that we must, through the power of our commitment to the divine origin of the vision in us, trust God for its ultimate fulfillment. But this admonition, which includes difficult schooling, also comes with the promise that “He will bring it [the vision] to pass!”

It should now be plain to see that it takes an extended process of spiritual development, sometimes several decades, in the heart and life of a man or woman to appropriately prepare them to achieve a God-inspired vision (the length of this training is totally related to the spiritual sensitivity and the learning curve in the lives of the people involved in each instance—sometimes it takes more than one walk through the wilderness before we learn the intended lesson for the experience and we have to repeat the process).

But, let me reiterate, I am referring to a genuine God-directed vision, and not some fly-by-night, human contrived, speculative whim that is so often sold to the church as the “will of the Lord” every day or two. This kind of human contrived “direction” is never associated with the fruitful culmination of a long disciplinary process in which the lives of those holding the vision develop the Godly attitude, motivation and insight—all imperative—to handle the completion of a momentous vision. More importantly, a godly vision is entirely associated to God’s Kingdom restoration intention on the earth, and not the promotion of any particular human ministry—there is a big difference! There has never been the completion of a God-ordained vision on the earth, implemented by the hands of a man, without this God-directed training!

In this regard, the ministry of CTF has come through fifteen years of this refining heat produced by many disciplinary experiences (and we will experience more of the same), only sustained by the promise that the vision burned deeply within us was continually being developed and prepared (and in the process the vision has never changed). During this maturation process we are becoming increasingly aware that the Lord is in charge, and that He is the Mastermind of an overall plan for the restoration of His Kingdom on the earth, and that irrespective to any connection we may have in this process—all glory belongs to Him, and Him alone! Moreover, we realize that CTF is only a small part of a greater, worldwide team that is being divinely used to fill the earth with the “knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea” (Habakkuk 2:14), and our present participation in the building of The Museum of Earth History is a critical part of this process, as well as a vital part of our ultimate vision.

Positive Acknowledgement from the Enemy

Again I appeal to the wisdom of Solomon in Proverbs 16:7. In this verse he amazingly says that when a “man’s ways please the Lord; He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.” To understand the meaning of this verse, I found it necessary to consult other Scriptural thinkers. In this referral, I found wonderfully interesting the comments that were written by one Rev. W. Harris, in the Homiletical Commentary on the book of Proverbs , p. 466. He said, that, “…a good man’s main desire is to conform his ways to the will of God—he is in sympathy with the mind of God, and his life is the outcome of that sympathy.” To this idea I must add a thought about Solomon’s use of the adjective “good” (2:20, 12:2, etc.). What constitutes a “good” man? I am going to let Solomon answer this question for himself.

After several readings of the book of Proverbs, it becomes quite evident that Solomon places great stress on seeking knowledge, instruction and wisdom from, and about, the LORD. It seems he epitomizes this idea by saying that the “fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge” (Proverbs 1:7). And again in Proverbs 9: 10, he writes, that, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” Therefore, it seems, anyone involved in these pursuits is considered by Solomon to be “good.” Thus a man is good only as he seeks to know and apply the wisdom of God to his life. Goodness is, therefore, received or imputed from our association with the LORD, and not from any intrinsic goodness in ourselves. Borrowing from his thoughts in Ecclesiastes 12: 13, we begin to understand Solomon’s purpose for this idea. Here he says that those who “fear the LORD” will also obey Him and keep His commandments, which he says is the “whole duty of man.”

We see, then, that for a man’s ways to please the LORD, those “ways” must be defined by the knowledge and wisdom of the LORD, and as such, they will significantly seek to advance the ultimate, long-term plan of God: the recovery of the earth into the domain of the Creator God! It is about these kinds of people that Solomon said there would be times and occasions when their enemies would be peaceful with them.

Creation Truth Foundation has entered into such a season of acknowledgement—an acknowledgement from several media organizations normally considered liberal in philosophy and worldview. I don’t think the season will last very long; moreover, I am also questioning the true nature of the motive and the agenda of those from whom the acknowledgement came. But, it is nonetheless, a space of acceptance and promotion for Biblical values and concepts not normally a part of the present American society. Paul referred to a situation similar to this when he wrote to the church at Philippi, that,

Some preach Christ even from envy and strife, and some from good will: The former preach Christ from selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing to add affliction to my chains; but the latter out of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the gospel. What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is preached ; and in this I rejoice, yes, and will rejoice . (1:15-18)

I think it goes without saying that this recent recognition of The Museum of Earth History from the liberal media is partially the result of the recent Presidential election. Some may debate this, but it doesn’t take rocket science to see that an obvious mandate and an effectual open door to the ear and the heart of the American society was given to the Bible-believing Church, irrespective of the present liberal motive. We can either choose to strategically and perceptively walk through this door, and thus positively impact tens of thousands of people for Christ, or we can choose the ineffective procedures of the last two decades—the choice is ours! One fact is certain, it will be impossible to remain neutral in this matter.

This past December, just before Christmas, we received a call from the Boston office of National Public Radio (NPR). They had seen the article published in the special edition of the Economist , entitled, “ The World In 2005 ,” January/March, 2005, and wanted to interview me about the opening of The Museum of Earth History on January 5.

Well, in the first place, none of our CTF team could believe it simply because the Economist is one of the leading economic journals in the entire Western world. Moreover, no one from our team knew anything about the article, its origin or its purpose.

Of course, you guessed it; I quickly went to a prominent magazine vender in an attempt to find the magazine about which the NPR representative referred. But, to my dismay, I couldn’t find anything about the Museum in the December publication of the Economist, and at that point, I dismissed the whole affair as a terrible joke. However, I was not aware of the special edition of the magazine, and that same day my daughter-in-law found one in a Mall in Houston, TX, and immediately called me. She told me what to look for, and, long story short, I found the magazine.

On page 27 of this illustrious journal, the following article appeared, under the title Dinosaurs in the Ozarks :

Were dinosaurs in the Bible or not? The Museum of Earth History, which opens in April 2005 in the quirky hamlet of Eureka Springs, Arkansas, will attempt to address this question. The museum will be the only one in the United States where the Earth’s history is presented in a literal biblical way.

Funded in part by Oklahoma’s Creation Truth Foundation, the museum will display nine full-sized dinosaur-skeleton replicas and propose the creationist theory that a pair of dinosaurs was on Noah’s Ark. Most scientists contend that dinosaurs became extinct millions of years before man existed. Not the museum’s founders. They insist that the confusion lies in the translation of the Hebrew word meaning “great lizard.” That word is found throughout the Old Testament.

If a museum of this sort is to open, no better place for it to exists. Before Mel Gibson’s “The Passion of the Christ” became a blockbuster film, the annual Great Passion Play in this tiny Ozark hamlet, known for its new-age healing waters and arty citizens, attracted thousands of people from around the world. The two-hour outdoor drama, launched in 1968 to tell the story of Christ from crucifixion to ascension, is overlooked by a 67-foot ghostly white Christ of the Ozarks statue atop a mountain.

For the past few years, the Elna M. Smith Foundation [the governing body of the Great Passion Play] has created a virtual-reality Christian park, complete with a tram tour of the 50-acre New Holy Land, a 6,000 volume Bible museum, a sacred-arts center with ninth-century art and, oddly, a large section of the Berlin wall. The new museum [of Earth History] will draw an eager audience hungry for another slant on the bestselling book of all times . (Emphasis added), Suzi Parker, author

Is this an incredible article, or not? It is especially important to us because it was written and published without our participation or knowledge. We couldn’t have afforded the cost of this kind of publicity—a comparable article in this magazine would be at least $150,000.00. But, it didn’t end here.

The leading news agencies in Italy, Germany and Poland have also informed us that they read the Economist article and are going to publish articles in their various publications about the Museum’s opening and theme. As a matter of fact, the German organization is sending a special reporter to our office in May to interview me. Additionally, I am going to be interviewed two separate times in February by Dr. David Reagan over the DayStar Christian Television Network in Dallas, Texas.

The overwhelming feature in all of this is that when God’s timing arrives, and we’ve passed our spiritual tests, He will promote us to the place of vision-fulfillment, and cause even the secular community to peacefully promote its accomplishment. To God is the Glory!

Blessings!

G. Thomas Sharp, Ph.D.

To be continued in the March/April issue…

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