HOW WILL THEY KNOW?
Romans 10:14
“How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?”
Recently, I took a group of 6th Grade children and their teachers around the Hummocks’ Trail as part of their homeschool co-op’s fieldtrip to the area near the Mount St. Helen volcano. It was a hot sunny day. The slopes of many of the hummocks were covered in wild strawberries. The heady scent was strong and delicious in the air!
So, I stopped the group and told them that I was thinking of a Beatles’ song. “What Beatles song am I thinking about?”, I asked. “Look around you and see if you can see the title of a Beatles’ song.
They looked around for a bit. Then one boy put up his hand. “Excuse me,” he said. “Is it Yellow Submarine?”
Of course, his answer caused amusement. However, this boy was nowhere near old enough to remember either the song he mentioned or Strawberry Fields Forever. He had enough of a level of information to know that the Beatles had indeed sung Yellow Submarine but not sufficient knowledge to know his mistake.
In the same way, we cannot expect those we are witnessing to, to understand everything we say immediately. The Bible tells us that we need to tell other people about Him! That would be a worthy project indeed, completely in line with Romans 10:14.
Lord God, we are aware that there are so many people around who do not know You. Help us to be effective and bold witnesses for You wherever we are.
Ref: Ham, K. (2007) How can I use this information to witness, in Ham, K. (2007) New Answers Book 1, (Master Books), chapter 10. Image: Adobe stock photos, licensed to author.
Romans 10:14
“How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?”
Recently, I took a group of 6th Grade children and their teachers around the Hummocks’ Trail as part of their homeschool co-op’s fieldtrip to the area near the Mount St. Helen volcano. It was a hot sunny day. The slopes of many of the hummocks were covered in wild strawberries. The heady scent was strong and delicious in the air!
So, I stopped the group and told them that I was thinking of a Beatles’ song. “What Beatles song am I thinking about?”, I asked. “Look around you and see if you can see the title of a Beatles’ song.
They looked around for a bit. Then one boy put up his hand. “Excuse me,” he said. “Is it Yellow Submarine?”
Of course, his answer caused amusement. However, this boy was nowhere near old enough to remember either the song he mentioned or Strawberry Fields Forever. He had enough of a level of information to know that the Beatles had indeed sung Yellow Submarine but not sufficient knowledge to know his mistake.
In the same way, we cannot expect those we are witnessing to, to understand everything we say immediately. The Bible tells us that we need to tell other people about Him! That would be a worthy project indeed, completely in line with Romans 10:14.
Lord God, we are aware that there are so many people around who do not know You. Help us to be effective and bold witnesses for You wherever we are.
Ref: Ham, K. (2007) How can I use this information to witness, in Ham, K. (2007) New Answers Book 1, (Master Books), chapter 10. Image: Adobe stock photos, licensed to author.
GROWING INFORMATION
Job 19:23
“Oh that my words were now written! oh that they were printed in a book!”
Evolutionists assume that evolution happens by increases in genetic information. This, they claim, happens by mutations making more information. We should analyze how this might happen.
It has often been said that the creation of information in organisms would be like having an explosion in a print factory producing a dictionary. However, the evolutionist argues that this is an unfair analogy because evolution is supposed to happen one step at a time, not by explosions. So how would a single step work?
One well-known evolutionist in England appeared on a children’s program with a bag of Scrabble letters to show how it would work. He got children to take a letter tile each from the bag. Eventually, three consecutive children drew C-A-T. “Aha!” he exclaimed. “We have a word – cat. Information has come about by chance.”
However, the letters CAT only spell a word in English. In French, the same word would have to be CHAT. The word CAT does not exist in French. So CAT only contains information if you already have the language ability to read it and understand it.
Similarly, DNA information has to be “read” by RNA molecules. So this information does not happen by chance. Even if new information were possible, it would only work if an organism had a pre-existing method of decoding that information. Information does not come from nowhere. It always comes from somewhere – or rather, Someone.
Thank You, Lord, that You knit me together in my mother’s womb. Everything I have is from You. Amen.
Ref: Gitt, W., In the Beginning was Information, (Master Books). Image: Adobe Stock Images, licensed to author.
Job 19:23
“Oh that my words were now written! oh that they were printed in a book!”
Evolutionists assume that evolution happens by increases in genetic information. This, they claim, happens by mutations making more information. We should analyze how this might happen.
It has often been said that the creation of information in organisms would be like having an explosion in a print factory producing a dictionary. However, the evolutionist argues that this is an unfair analogy because evolution is supposed to happen one step at a time, not by explosions. So how would a single step work?
One well-known evolutionist in England appeared on a children’s program with a bag of Scrabble letters to show how it would work. He got children to take a letter tile each from the bag. Eventually, three consecutive children drew C-A-T. “Aha!” he exclaimed. “We have a word – cat. Information has come about by chance.”
However, the letters CAT only spell a word in English. In French, the same word would have to be CHAT. The word CAT does not exist in French. So CAT only contains information if you already have the language ability to read it and understand it.
Similarly, DNA information has to be “read” by RNA molecules. So this information does not happen by chance. Even if new information were possible, it would only work if an organism had a pre-existing method of decoding that information. Information does not come from nowhere. It always comes from somewhere – or rather, Someone.
Thank You, Lord, that You knit me together in my mother’s womb. Everything I have is from You. Amen.
Ref: Gitt, W., In the Beginning was Information, (Master Books). Image: Adobe Stock Images, licensed to author.
TRINITY CURRICULUM MODEL
Matthew 10:24
�The disciple is not above his master, nor the servant above his lord.�
As Christians, and especially as Christian parents, many of us have negative comments to make about what happens in school science lessons. In so many areas, it is often easier to criticize and break down than to build up something new. Many years ago, I came across a fascinating yet simple curriculum model idea that would be of considerable help in many Christian education situations.
In their book, Fighting the Secular Giants, Stephen Thomas and David Freeman outline their ideas for a so-called Trinity Curriculum Model. The three-part framework sees the Father as the source of all things, Jesus as the means of demonstrating God�s love to the world, and the Spirit as the fulfillment. Thomas and Freeman are wise enough to state that this is not an analogy of the Trinity because analogies of the Trinity always fall short of the full Trinitarian doctrine.
For example, suppose we are teaching children about the water cycle. The source concept is that God is the provider of all the water needed for creation. The water cycle therefore reveals God�s wise provision. The means would be the usual experiments about the water cycle, boiling water, condensing the steam, building charts, diagrams, and maps of the process. The fulfillment will be to see how much each student has learned about the process, especially that they have understood what this tells us about God.
It seems to me that even a so-called �neutral� topic like the water cycle actually has profound theological implications that need to be explained to students in order to complete their understanding.
Thank You, Lord, for Your wise provision for us. Whenever we are in teaching situations, help us to show our students that everything they learn, if properly learned, can help them know more about You. Amen.
Ref: Thomas, S. and Freeman, D. (1996), Fighting the Secular Giants, (Oxford Community Churches), pp. 99-122. Image: Adobe Stock photos, licensed to author.
Matthew 10:24
�The disciple is not above his master, nor the servant above his lord.�
As Christians, and especially as Christian parents, many of us have negative comments to make about what happens in school science lessons. In so many areas, it is often easier to criticize and break down than to build up something new. Many years ago, I came across a fascinating yet simple curriculum model idea that would be of considerable help in many Christian education situations.
In their book, Fighting the Secular Giants, Stephen Thomas and David Freeman outline their ideas for a so-called Trinity Curriculum Model. The three-part framework sees the Father as the source of all things, Jesus as the means of demonstrating God�s love to the world, and the Spirit as the fulfillment. Thomas and Freeman are wise enough to state that this is not an analogy of the Trinity because analogies of the Trinity always fall short of the full Trinitarian doctrine.
For example, suppose we are teaching children about the water cycle. The source concept is that God is the provider of all the water needed for creation. The water cycle therefore reveals God�s wise provision. The means would be the usual experiments about the water cycle, boiling water, condensing the steam, building charts, diagrams, and maps of the process. The fulfillment will be to see how much each student has learned about the process, especially that they have understood what this tells us about God.
It seems to me that even a so-called �neutral� topic like the water cycle actually has profound theological implications that need to be explained to students in order to complete their understanding.
Thank You, Lord, for Your wise provision for us. Whenever we are in teaching situations, help us to show our students that everything they learn, if properly learned, can help them know more about You. Amen.
Ref: Thomas, S. and Freeman, D. (1996), Fighting the Secular Giants, (Oxford Community Churches), pp. 99-122. Image: Adobe Stock photos, licensed to author.
ABEL SAVED BY FAITH
Hebrews 11:6
"But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him."
We have talked before about Cain and Abel, and we have seen how Cain�s offering was rejected because it was his attempt to get right with God by his own power. We have also seen how Abel�s offering was acceptable because it was the necessary blood sacrifice to atone for sin.
But why was Abel to make such an offering? What was in him that made him more worthy than Cain? The truth is that there was nothing inherently righteous about Abel, in and of himself. Like Cain, he was a child of original sin. Like Cain, he inherited his father�s sin. So what prompted Abel to make the better offering?
We find the answer in Hebrews 11. �By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, through which he was commended as righteous, God commending him by accepting his gifts. And through his faith, though he died, he still speaks.� The key to the acceptance of Abel�s offering was that it was given �by faith�. Hebrews 11 also tells us that �without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.� Hebrews also talks about Noah receiving the righteousness that comes by faith. Abel also received the righteousness that comes by faith. For Abel, this was faith in a Messiah to come � the promised seed of the woman. That is why Abel �still speaks� to us, even though he died.
Help us, Father, to put our trust completely in You; to have the faith that we need, that saving faith, as we repent and put our trust in You.
Ref: Taylor, P.F. (2009), Cain and Abel: Worship and Sacrifice, (Toutle, WA: J6D Publications), pp. 36-39. Image: Ben Peter Scotton, commissioned by author for his use.
Hebrews 11:6
"But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him."
We have talked before about Cain and Abel, and we have seen how Cain�s offering was rejected because it was his attempt to get right with God by his own power. We have also seen how Abel�s offering was acceptable because it was the necessary blood sacrifice to atone for sin.
But why was Abel to make such an offering? What was in him that made him more worthy than Cain? The truth is that there was nothing inherently righteous about Abel, in and of himself. Like Cain, he was a child of original sin. Like Cain, he inherited his father�s sin. So what prompted Abel to make the better offering?
We find the answer in Hebrews 11. �By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, through which he was commended as righteous, God commending him by accepting his gifts. And through his faith, though he died, he still speaks.� The key to the acceptance of Abel�s offering was that it was given �by faith�. Hebrews 11 also tells us that �without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.� Hebrews also talks about Noah receiving the righteousness that comes by faith. Abel also received the righteousness that comes by faith. For Abel, this was faith in a Messiah to come � the promised seed of the woman. That is why Abel �still speaks� to us, even though he died.
Help us, Father, to put our trust completely in You; to have the faith that we need, that saving faith, as we repent and put our trust in You.
Ref: Taylor, P.F. (2009), Cain and Abel: Worship and Sacrifice, (Toutle, WA: J6D Publications), pp. 36-39. Image: Ben Peter Scotton, commissioned by author for his use.
JOLLY HOCKEY STICKS
Genesis 8:22
�While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.�
The world�s most infamous hockey stick was probably the graph produced for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in 1998. The purpose of the graph was to show how global temperatures had changed over time and what had caused these changes. Over the last millennium, the graph showed a steady but gentle increase in temperature until about 1900 when the graph showed a sharp increase. It is this graph which has been influential in the public perception of Anthropogenic Global Warming � the idea that the Earth is getting warmer and that this is the fault of human industrial activity.
It would certainly appear to be the case that the world has warmed up slightly since 1900. This should not really be a surprise. The mean temperature of the Earth has clearly fluctuated over time. For example, there is a phenomenon known as the Medieval Warm Period. This was a period in the Middle Ages when there seemed to be greater temperatures than today. Areas of Northern England, such as the environs of York, were able to support vineyards which they are not easily able to do today. This Medieval Warm Period should show up on the graph as a dome; yet, the graph shows a straight line over the last millennium, up to 1990. If the graph is so inaccurate for the period 1200 through 1600, how can it be trusted for the 20th Century? Indeed, many leading scientists have criticized all parts of the graph, suggesting that the data does not support this alarmist graph.
It is fortunate that the Bible reminds us that there will be no major changes to global climate until God brings the world to an end.
Thank You Lord, that while Earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease. Amen.
Genesis 8:22
�While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.�
The world�s most infamous hockey stick was probably the graph produced for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in 1998. The purpose of the graph was to show how global temperatures had changed over time and what had caused these changes. Over the last millennium, the graph showed a steady but gentle increase in temperature until about 1900 when the graph showed a sharp increase. It is this graph which has been influential in the public perception of Anthropogenic Global Warming � the idea that the Earth is getting warmer and that this is the fault of human industrial activity.
It would certainly appear to be the case that the world has warmed up slightly since 1900. This should not really be a surprise. The mean temperature of the Earth has clearly fluctuated over time. For example, there is a phenomenon known as the Medieval Warm Period. This was a period in the Middle Ages when there seemed to be greater temperatures than today. Areas of Northern England, such as the environs of York, were able to support vineyards which they are not easily able to do today. This Medieval Warm Period should show up on the graph as a dome; yet, the graph shows a straight line over the last millennium, up to 1990. If the graph is so inaccurate for the period 1200 through 1600, how can it be trusted for the 20th Century? Indeed, many leading scientists have criticized all parts of the graph, suggesting that the data does not support this alarmist graph.
It is fortunate that the Bible reminds us that there will be no major changes to global climate until God brings the world to an end.
Thank You Lord, that while Earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease. Amen.
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