Strong Church Does God Speak To Us Today? “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 complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work”—2 Timothy 3:16-17 Does God Speak to Us Today?—The Inspired Word of God If there really is a God, wouldn’t it be easier if He just made Himself known? Think of how many fewer arguments there would be if Jehovah God spoke directly to man. It would end the quarrel regarding His existence forever. Or would it? Straying away from God has been an ongoing reality since the days of Adam and Eve. Consider for a moment that Adam and Eve were in a covenant relationship with God, having watched Him walk through the mist of the garden and yet they disobeyed. God spoke directly to Abraham, making a covenant with him and promising to multiply his seed. But still Abraham and Sarah questioned His ability to give them a child in their old age. The Israelites watched the Red Sea parting before their eyes and feasted every day on quail and manna, and yet they turned away in rebellion. During the period of the judges and kings, God revealed Himself through prophets and yet many turned away, choosing instead to worship false gods such as Baal. Many individuals who clamor to hear the Almighty Creator have lost sight of the fact that He does speak to us today—and thankfully, unlike those men of faith in the past, we have His complete Word. God, through His infinite wisdom, has laid before all men His inspired Word. Whether we take the time to listen and obey is another story. Just as a frog does not realize incremental changes in temperature as he sits in a pot of water, Christians, too, have remained complacent—only to suddenly realize that the water is boiling all around us. The attack on God and His Word is coming from many different directions and many different groups. But they all have one thing in common. They want, more than anything in the world, to excise God (and all references to Him) from our society. In discussing the agenda of abolishing God, geneticist Richard Lewontin noted: “Our willingness to accept scientific claims against common sense is the key to an understanding of the real struggle between science and the supernatural. We take the side of science in spite of the patent absurdity of some of its constructs, in spite of its failure to fulfill many of its extravagant promises of health and life, in spite of the tolerance of the scientific community for unsubstantiated just-so stories, because we have a prior commitment, a commitment to naturalism…. We are forced to our adherence to materialism… no matter how counter-intuitive, no matter how mystifying to the uninitiated. Moreover, that materialism is absolute, for we cannot allow a Divine Foot in the door.” (1997, “Billions and Billions of Demons,” The New York Review, January 9, 1997, p 31, emp. in orig. except for last two sentences.). That mantra—that we cannot allow a Divine Foot in the door—is being stridently echoed in the halls of academia and among the news media. Atheists have “taken aim” at God, religion, the supernatural, and the Gospel message and intend to “shoot to kill.” Consider, for example, this statement from Kai Nielsen, humanist philosopher and former editor of The Humanist magazine. In cultures such as ours, religion is very often an alien form of life to intellectuals. Living as we do in a post-enlightenment era, it is difficult for us to take religion seriously. The very concept seems fantastic to us.... That people in our age can believe that they have had a personal encounter with God, that they could believe that they have experienced conversion through a “mystical experience of God” so that they are born again in the Holy Spirit, is something that attests to human irrationality and a lack of sense of reality (1977, p. 46). The message is clear. Those people who accept God, His Son, His Word, and His salvation are “out of touch with reality,” “irrational,” and “unreasonable.” There is no misunderstanding what the new humanistic/atheistic message is, what it teaches, or what it hopes to accomplish. The Humanist Manifesto II is quite specific on a number of important points. Consider, for example, their comments on religion: We believe, however, that traditional or dogmatic or authoritarian religions that place revelation, God, ritual, or creed above human needs and experience do a disservice to the human species. Any account of nature should pass the tests of scientific evidence; in our judgment, the dogmas and myths of traditional religions do not do so.... We find insufficient evidence for belief in the existence of a supernatural; it is either meaningless or irrelevant to the question of the survival and fulfillment of the human race.... Promises of salvation or fear of eternal damnation are both illusory and harmful. They distract humans from present concerns, from self-actualization, and from rectifying social injustices. Modern science discredits such historic concepts as the “ghost in the machine” and the “separable soul.” Rather, science affirms that the human species is an emergence from natural evolutionary forces. As far as we know, the total personality is a function of the biological organism transacting in a social and cultural context. There is no credible evidence that life survives the death of the body (1973, pp. 15- 17). The message is unmistakable: Religion is useless, and we should be tolerant of everything. In fact, the only sin that we can commit, given society’s current mindset, is the sin of intolerance. So, how do we know what God tolerates? (Find out in the next article 1/29/14) by: Brad Harrub __________ Brad Harrub is a co-founder of Focus Press and editor for Think magazine. He holds a Ph.D. in Anatomy and Neurobiology from the University of Tennessee. January 27, 2014 wp.me/p2OVE3-Ax strongchurch.org/does-god-speak-to-us-today/ Strong Church The Bible’s Just a Good Book Right? Some vehemently oppose its teachings and routinely pull verses out of context to paint a wretched picture of religion. Others are willing to concede it has some historical significance and will at least give it a bit of credibility from a historical perspective. The large majority would even go the next step and describe it as a “good book” containing “good principles.” But is that enough? The Bible claims to be inspired. [Consider the following passages: Acts 10:36; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; John 17:17; 8:32.] It can’t be considered a “good book” and yet lie about being inspired. How many individuals are willing to cast aside the label of just a “good book” and take that final step of defending the Bible as the Word of God? Whether individuals are standing around the office cooler, door knocking in foreign lands, or debating devout atheists on television, the validity of the Bible will ultimately come up. If you really stop and consider it for a moment, everything (and I do mean everything) hinges on this one topic. If the Bible is not real, then how can one know of his/her salvation? If the Bible is not the Word of God, then there can be no absolutes. How do we know how to worship or how to conduct ourselves? If the Bible is not inspired, then people are allowed to pick and choose whatever suits them as they pursue the pleasures of this life—in essence they can enjoy a “buffet attitude” towards religion. If the Bible is not God’s method of communicating with mankind, then where does that leave the plan of redemption and the New Testament description of salvation? Consider the dilemma: The majority of people would much rather paint the world “gray” and be allowed the flexibility of their own judgment rather than to humble themselves and be obedient servants to Him. Thus, they embrace the idea of the Bible being just a good book—an attitude that allows them to do as they please. Whereas if the book is God’s Word, then suddenly it is no longer a question of an individual’s likes or dislikes, but rather everything revolves around the Author of that book—God. Man is no longer able to do what is right is his own eyes, but rather he must acknowledge that Almighty God has bestowed upon mankind divine edicts that we are to follow—or pay the consequences. So, the question becomes: How do we teach the lost that the Bible is more than just a good book? Critics and skeptics love to belittle anyone who views the Bible as the literal Word of God. They are quick to ridicule those who quote Scripture when asked questions about science or nature. They love to spotlight films calling the authenticity of the Bible into question—such as the current debate about the alleged ossuary of Jesus. Add to this that the majority of the world would like to simply live in a “gray” world where they get to discern right from wrong using situation ethics. So how do we effectively teach that God has established clear black and white boundaries? We Must Establish the Bible Is Inspired Before we can teach people about God and the Gospel, we must be able to demonstrate to them the authenticity and accuracy of the Bible. It is one thing to say, “It’s in the Bible.” It’s a totally different thing to say those words, having already established that the Bible is inspired, and thus is the only book to which we should heed in obedience. So what do we tell them? How do we move from simply stating opinions to convincing them to accept the Truth? What are some tools the average person can utilize in order to teach our friends, family, and neighbors about the accuracy of God’s Word? There are many methods of demonstrating the inspiration of the Bible. For instance: Unity of the Bible—Unlike modern allegedly inspired books, this one was written by more than 40 authors over a period of 1,600 years, and yet the authors maintain a consistent theme. (Just as a way of comparison, The Book of Mormon was penned by one man in a short period of time.) Miracles of the Bible—Unlike modern-day alleged miracles, these were truly signs that pointed to the existence of a Creator. The word miracle has been so overused (and misused) that we no longer consider what it was like to raise someone from the dead or walk on water. The story is told of a Pentecostal congregation who was going to raise someone from the dead. They took out a full-page newspaper ad and invited the community. At the designated hour, they allowed individuals to walk by the casket and view this “dead” man. Everything went well right up to the point in which a member of the Church took out his pocket knife and stabbed it into the thigh of the dead man—who then came to life very quickly. Biblical miracles are not like this. Prophecy of the Bible—Have you ever considered the statistical odds of one man—Jesus Christ—fulfilling every single Messianic prophecy? To be born in the right city is one thing. But to be born of the right family lineage, under the right conditions, and fulfilling every single prophecy is another. In order for a prophecy to be valid, it must meet certain criteria. First, it must be a specific, detailed statement—not something that is vague or general in nature. Second, there must be enough time between the prophetic statement and its fulfillment so that there is no chance whatsoever of the prophet having the ability to influence the outcome. Third, the prophecy must be stated in clear, understandable terms. Fourth, the prophecy must not have historical overtones. In other words, true prophecy should not be based on past (or current) societal or economic conditions. Fifth, a clear, understandable, exact prophecy must have a clear, understandable, exact fulfillment. It is not enough to suggest that a certain event came true with a “high degree of probability.” The fulfillment must be unmistakable and must match the prophecy in every detail. Factual Accuracy of the Bible—Without a doubt the Bible claims inspiration. This being the case, it should be that anytime facts are given in the Bible they should withstand scrutiny. For instance, countries or cities referenced should be checkable—and should correspond to the geographical location given in the Bible. Without fail, every time the Bible mentions something that is “checkable,” the Bible is always correct. One of the best examples is the conversion of Sir William Ramsey. Ramsey was an archaeologist who set out to disprove the validity of God’s Word. He decided to use Luke’s recorded events in an effort to disprove the factual accuracy of the Bible. However, every time he turned over his spade, he was confronted with the historical accuracy of Luke’s account. Every city he uncovered matched precisely to the information given hundreds of years earlier by Luke. [Quote “We account the Scriptures of God to be the most sublime philosophy. I find more sure marks of authenticity in the Bible than in any profane history whatsoever” Sir Isaac Newton, as quoted in Henry H. Morris, Men of Science-Men of God (El Cajon, CA: Master Books, A Division of Creation Life Publishers, Inc., 1988).] CHECK BACK TOMORROW FOR THE SCIENTIFIC FOREKNOWLEDGE OF THE BIBLE by: Brad Harrub __________ Brad Harrub is a co-founder of Focus Press and editor for Think magazine. He holds a Ph.D. in Anatomy and Neurobiology from the University of Tennessee. January 29, 2014 wp.me/p2OVE3-A strongchurch.org/the-bibles-just-a-good-book-right/ Strong Church The Science Behind the Bible One of the best tools that demonstrates the inspiration of the Bible is the scientific accuracy found within God’s Word. While space will not permit a full review of every incidence of scientific foreknowledge contained in the Bible, the following examples provide strong evidence for the inspiration of God’s Word. Press upon those you study with that these statements were written thousands of years ago, long before man was able to truly discern the validity of these Scriptures. The only way these scientific accuracies could have found their way into God’s Word is via inspiration. Medicine Numbers 19:16-18 gives a recipe for antibacterial soap. Most know that making lye soap involves ashes from the fat of an animal, but God also specifies the delivery mechanism—the hyssop plant—which we know today has antifungal properties. These instructions were given to cleanse a person and their possessions after touching a dead person—long before we knew about bacteria and viruses. Leviticus 17:15 teaches that an animal that has died naturally—an animal in which bacteria are already growing unchecked by the body’s immune system—is not to be eaten. We know that today it is against local, state, and federal public health procedures to take an animal that has died naturally to a slaughterhouse. What if the animal had died from rabies, anthrax, brucellosis-- yet how did the Israelites know this? Leviticus 11 gives restrictions regarding safe foods. Verse 7 specifically points out that the Israelites were not to eat pork. We know today that these scavengers often ingest parasites such as Trichinella spiralis, the organism that causes trichinosis. Deuteronomy 23:12-14 instructed the Israelites to bury human waste. Today we know this is good hygiene. However, during the Middle Ages many Europeans threw human waste into back alleys, which allowed micro-organisms to flourish. Those microorganisms infected fleas, which would travel into individual homes on rats, allowing the fleas to then bite and infect millions of people. The Black Plague resulted from this carelessness and killed more that 13 million people. In Genesis 17:12 God commanded Abraham to circumcise newborn males on the eighth day. But why not day 2 or day 12? After centuries of experiments on blood-clotting, we have learned that blood clotting is dependent on three factors: platelets, prothrombin, and Vitamin K. We know today after years of scientific study that it is on the eighth day that blood-clotting factors (such as prothrombin) are present in their highest amounts. Yet we have this information recorded literally thousands of years earlier. Physics In Genesis 2:1 Moses described God’s creative activities using the past definite tense for the verb “finished,” indicating an action done in the past, never to occur again. This is exactly what the First Law of Thermodynamics states—that neither matter nor energy can be created or destroyed. We know this to be true today, and yet the Bible had recorded it years earlier. In at least three places in the Bible (Hebrews 1:11; Isaiah 51:6; Psalm 102:26), the indication is given that the earth, like a garment, is wearing out. This is exactly what the Second Law of Thermodynamics states—that as time progresses, entropy (or disorder) increases. Where does this leave the Big Bang theory—a theory that requires order from a cosmic explosion? Oceanography Psalm 8:8 details that the seas have paths in them. Matthew Maury set out to chart the paths upon hearing this Scripture. There is a statue of Matthew Maury at the U.S. Naval Academy in appreciation for his discovering something that was already described in God’s Word. Ecclesiastes 1:7 tells us that all rivers run into the sea, yet the sea is not full. This statement, considered by itself, may not appear all that significant. Yet it was made long before satellite images were available to show the distributions of the rivers. Also, when we consider Ecclesiastes 11:3 and Amos 9:6, we realize that the Bible discusses the water cycle long before it was discovered in Europe. In Job 38:16 God mentioned to Job the springs or recesses (trenches) in the sea. Yet it wasn’t until the late 1800s that we possessed sufficient technology to discover these freshwater springs and deep trenches. Genesis 6:15 describes Noah being given specific directions regarding the dimensions of the ark. That same ratio of 30 to 5 to 3 has been used countless times by shipbuilders to make vessels seaworthy—in fact the U.S. built an entire fleet of boats with those exact proportions. One remaining ship, the U.S.S. Jeremiah O’Brien that was used in World War II, is currently docked in San Francisco, CA. Astronomy Isaiah 40:22 describes the circle of the earth—even though many ancient people, up through the days of Christopher Columbus, believed the earth was flat. Psalm 19:4-6 indicates the sun has an orbit—a fact that we did not learn until June 1, 1999. In Job 38:19 the Lord describes light traveling in a “way”—a fact discovered by Sir Isaac Newton in the seventeenth century. So how did the writer of Job know about this? In Job 38:24 God asks by what way is light parted? We know today that light can be parted. Sir Isaac Newton discovered this by passing sunlight through a prism and separating light into seven individual bands of color thousands of years after this verse was written (Remember ROY G. BIV?). Biology In Genesis 1:11, 12, 21, 24 Moses wrote that things reproduce “after their kind.” We know this to be true today. We have established the laws of genetics and heredity, which ensure that things do indeed reproduce “after their kind.” If a farmer plants tomato seeds, he knows full well that he will not be harvesting corn. We recognize this evident truth. But how did Moses know—long years before the science of genetics was discovered? Acts 17:25 describes God as the “giver of life.” For centuries men have been trying to “create life” through processes of spontaneous generation. The example most often used if the Miller/Urey experiment performed in the 1950s. Even though men like Spallanzani, Redi, Pasteur, and hundreds of others have proven time and again that spontaneous generation is impossible, evolutionists still keep on trying. But the fact still remains—man has never created living material from non-living material. Paul knew long ago that it was God who gives life. This fact has not changed! In 1 Corinthians 15:39 Paul also stated that there are four fleshes—those of men, beasts, birds, and fishes. Today, even evolutionists accept this fact of science. These fleshes are indeed different in their biochemical make-up. But how did Paul living in the first century A.D. know? Conclusion Not long ago, I had a conversation with someone who made the comment: “I just wish I could have been around when God spoke to men directly. Think about how powerful that would be to have been Moses or Abraham and heard from God directly.” Have we forgotten that the Bible is God’s Word? It is His way of speaking directly to us today. We have the complete Word of God. Consider your own personal approach to the Bible. Is it simply just a good book or is it God-breathed? On a scale of 1 to 10, how important a role does the Bible play in your everyday life? What would your coworkers’ or children’s response be if you spread a copy of the Bible, the Qu’ran, the Book of Mormon, the New World Translation, the works of Shakespeare, and the latest New York Times best seller on a table? How do we know that one of those books stands out above the rest? Can our children discern the difference between a “good book” and an inspired book, or have they bought into the notion that all religions are equal? Does it really make any difference at all whether you adhere to Biblical principles, good morals, or simply follow the dictates of your heart? Science textbooks are telling your children and grandchildren they have “proof,” “facts,” and “evidence.” It is high time we give our children and grandchildren the proof, facts, and evidence that God’s Word is more than just a good book. It is truly the only God-breathed book in existence, and it is filled with examples that support its accuracy and authenticity—examples that demonstrate the power and authority of Almighty God. The only question is will you heed what this inspired Book records? by: Brad Harrub Evidences Series: Does God Speak to Us Today? The Bibles Just a Good Book Right? The Science Behind the Bible Does Archaeology Disprove Scripture? How Did We Get Our Bible Text? __________ Brad Harrub is a co-founder of Focus Press and editor for Think magazine. He holds a Ph.D. in Anatomy and Neurobiology from the University of Tennessee. January 30, 2014 wp.me/p2OVE3-AG strongchurch.org/the-science-behind-the-bible/
Posted on: Thu, 30 Jan 2014 18:26:41 +0000
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