In the Beginning God Created the Heavens and the Earth


The opening phrase of the Bible states, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” I thought of that verse recently when a brochure was placed on my desk Thursday. “Creation Fair 2010” the brochure was titled.

I commend the Akron Fossils and Science Center (www.akronfossils.com) for hosting this fair. Designed to offer evidence for intelligent design and creation rather than accidental occurrence of life, the brochure makes the fair look very inviting. .

In the past decade or so there have been serious issues raised by scientists themselves regarding the Darwinian theory of life, usually called “evolution.” The heart of the controversy is that the empirical evidence and the materialist philosophy are at odds with one another. That is, the evidence from science does not support the philosophy that life just happened and that matter is all there is. Or, as Carl Sagan put it, “The cosmos is all there is, ever was, or ever will be.” The evidence points to an Intelligent Designer, a Supreme Engineer, God. The philosophy of current Darwinian theory is that “all living things are the accidental products of a purposeless universe.”

Ironically, on Monday of last week I was visiting at Caesar Creek State Park in Ohio (south of Columbus, off Interstate 71). This state park possesses a treasure trove of fossils – so many that you are welcome to take them home with you, provided each fossil fits in the palm of your hand. I took two. The evidence for a world submerged in water is overwhelming. The only way to explain away a worldwide flood is to say that this portion of Ohio was under water millions or billions of years ago. How the life forms were pressed into rock or sludge and preserved as fossils rather than dying and rotting in water or being eaten by scavengers is not addressed. Of course, a great flood with the water violently moving and eventually vigorously receding provides an excellent explanation. But that might invite God into the study. No longer would it be science. Why not?

It is not considered science due to an underlying philosophy, not due to the evidence.

Just one last thought – and that poses another problem, incidentally. If matter is all that exists, what is mind? What is thinking? Is there such a thing as information? Am I conscious or am I dreaming? Is there reality or are all delusional? What is truth or are there many truths, perhaps no truth? What is reason?
Anyway, there is in evolutionary philosophy an idea called “reductionism”. This is the idea that everything, including everyone’s mind, can be reduced to a simple, material base. From this very simple, single molecule (or particle, or cell – depending on who is speaking), all life has emerged – people, animals, birds, trees, plants. In his best-selling book Darwin’s Black Box, Michael Behe – a molecular biologist – explains that even a basic molecule is irreducibly complex. This very complexity calls for an explanation. The only explanation that fits the evidence is, of course, an Intelligent Designer. Behe permits the reader to know that the interaction of proteins and enzymes, indeed the entire molecular structure, is mind-boggling. His description of the molecular structure for vision is in itself enough to convince an unbiased observer that this can not be reduced to one simple particle. It is simply impossible. Molecular mechanisms are intricately designed.

I think I’ll go to Creation Fair 2010. I am interested in learning more of how…

“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.”

The Time for Renewal is Now


At one time in our land, churches would hold “renewal meetings”. Some churches referred to them as “revival meetings.” Usually extending over a period of three to five days, most often a guest speaker would present a fresh challenge to those gathered nightly. The regular attendees of the church were implored to bring guests, and all would be encouraged to renew their basic Christian beliefs and commitment to Christ.

It is time for renewal again – individually, corporately as church bodies, and nationally.

I see in the news -March 25, 2010- where Osama bin Laden has again released an audio tape. This one, rather short in length, warns of further attacks against The United States if any of the Guantanamo terrorists are found guilty and executed. There is a little more to it than that, but that is the essence of it.

The last twenty-five years has seen increasing numbers of Islamist attacks against Western countries, and persons of Jewish and Christian faiths. It was convenient at first, due to slack security, to attack individuals and the consulates of nations abroad. Then the attacks moved to suicide bombers at Marine barracks in Beirut and in the open waters of the Persian Gulf. There were several attempts at killing and creating terror that fortuitously were uncovered by the authorities and stopped. Then in 2001, the attack on the World Trade Center brought the desire for conquest from militant Islam into the open. Suddenly the American people understood that these were not separate acts of violence perpetrated by unconnected persons, but a coordinated effort by sophisticated Islamist terrorists bent on destroying the Western culture.

This latest threat should be taken seriously as the terrorists are constantly developing new plans and acquiring new weapons. We now know, for example, that Al-Qaeda terrorists are training in Iran. Presumably with the Iranian military and government’s full knowledge and cooperation.

But in America there seems to be little concern. We take for granted the efforts by our nation and the peace-loving nations of the world to subdue and eliminate this terrorist threat. We assume safety. However, we must not ignore the very real danger posed by these people. These terrorists know that they could never defeat Western soldiers in traditional battle – so they have devised violent guerrilla tactics to deliver death to American people.

They also know that the West has left its Christian moorings and is adrift morally and spiritually. They believe that Americans will eventually succumb to jihad ferocity, saying “Enough!” and raising the crescent moon and star of Islam over Washington, DC. Why shouldn’t they believe this? They understand that America is in a spiritual vacuum. America is in need of renewal.

It is time for us to recall and relive the words spoken by the LORD to Solomon: “If my people, who are called by My name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14).
It is time for each of us bow before the powerful Presence, pray and seek the face of Jesus, our Lord.

This renewed vitality will provide courage in our souls.
This renewed morality will invite healing to our land.
This renewed love will invite our enemies to Christ.

The time for renewal is now.

Avoid This Malignant Influence


Pornography has a malignant influence.

Last week I received information from a counseling center in northeast Ohio, advising that a support group for sexual addiction is now available. In particular, the information mentioned the number of persons who increasingly are ensnared in the trap of pornography. Please don’t misunderstand. I appreciate that the counseling center is willing to tackle this social menace. And I feel compassion for those ensnared. It is the proliferation of pornography and the recklessness of those who produce it that troubles me.

Pornography as a problem has increased with the advent of the internet. But don’t be fooled – this problem, which the Bible calls “fornication” (“pornea” and “graphos” in Greek, from which we get the word “pornography” – fornication writings, literally), has been around a long time. The first instance we have of such prurience mentioned in the Bible is Genesis 9:22-25. Noah, not realizing this change that the flood had brought upon earth (the now reduced time required for fermentation), becomes drunk and is lying naked. His youngest son, Ham, finds great interest in this – probably becoming aroused. Upon learning of Ham’s twisted interest in visual sexual stimulation, Noah announces a curse upon Ham’s youngest child, Canaan. This means that Ham’s sordid attitude, his homo-eroticism, would influence his entire family. Much later, under Joshua’s leadership, the LORD commands the Hebrews to eliminate Canaanite culture. The entire civilization established by Canaan and his descendants was rife with pornographic images, vile orgiastic religion and sexually transmitted disease. The whole culture was influenced and contaminated by what began as Ham’s indulgence in pornography.

I heard Billy Graham say once, “If God doesn’t bring judgment upon America, He will owe an apology to Sodom and Gomorrah.” Mr. Graham was referring to the obsession with sex that characterizes American society. Is it no wonder our enemies refer to this land as “the Great Satan”? No doubt they are shocked by the raw sensuality of our pornographic society.

It is bad enough that individuals are made into imaginary sexual beings through photographic enhancement or that they are viewed as toys, playthings for the viewer. This is exploitation, and it is wrong. Another tragic aspect of all this is the disconnection that pornography makes between sex and marriage. This disconnection is undermining the strongest cord that provides a secure society, the stability of the family. Pornography viewing can lead to sexual fantasizing and then to active engagement of the fantasy. A woman I know who has had multiple adulterous relationships bragged, “I like sex.” Well sure, most people do! But we must learn to exercise this gift from God wisely and discriminately. God’s gift to us of sex needs to be confined to marriage. Otherwise, sexual addiction lurks in one’s future. Pornography does not support the stability of the family. Quite the opposite is true. It promotes the idea of sexual engagement anywhere, anytime and with anyone. Many sex addicts will admit that their problem began with viewing pornography. This addiction and the others that frequently follow contribute to the instability and breakdown of the family. As the family dissolves, so does the nation. Decadence becomes the norm.

But let’s be hopeful. After all, the “good news” is that Jesus is alive and He saves. He can deliver a person from any vice or addiction. Avoid visiting bookstores that sell lurid books and magazines. Procure filtering software for your home computer (check out www.filterreview.com). Replace a bad habit like viewing pornography by taking up an exercise regimen or reading a good book. .

We all need to be reminded occasionally how very powerful God has made the mind. We also need to be engaged in seeing that it is transformed, Romans 12:2. Trust the scripture to do its work in transforming your mind.

Sexual addictions are devouring more people every day. They often begin with pornography.

Avoid this malignant influence.

Under God


I read this past week where the federal appeals court in San Francisco has ruled that the phrase “under God” in the Pledge of Allegiance is Constitutional.

I suppose the ruling left some people swearing – and no doubt using God’s name in doing so. Which, if you really stop to think about it, makes you wonder: if there is no God, why use His name at all?

It doesn’t really matter whether it had been ruled constitutional or not, the fact remains that this nation is under God, as are all nations. It is just unfortunate that people do not take time to understand what that means.

Did you ever pause to consider what life would be like if there were no God? That is, if life happened by chance and random, cosmic accident?

Lee Strobel, in writing The Case for the Creator, presents the thoughts of William Provine. Provine is from Cornell University, where he has been on the faculty since 1969. A Ph.D from The University of Chicago, Provine’s area of expertise is in the history of evolution and genetics. I have heard Provine lecture and listened to these very words. Writes Strobel, “If Darwinism is true, then there are five inescapable conclusions:
• There’s no evidence for God
• There’s no life after death
• There’s no absolute foundation for right and wrong
• There’s no ultimate meaning for life
• People don’t really have free will”

Obviously, the five articles of faith for those who choose not to believe in God are diametrically opposed to what those who choose to believe in God embrace.

But in attempting to write with brevity and clarity, allow me to reply.

• The evidence for a God is abundant throughout nature, from the smallest cell to the galaxies – the symmetry and design of our world is unmistakable.
• People, both ancient and modern – and from all cultures, have ascribed to the belief in life after death since the beginning of time. Why would this knowledge be intuitive if not true? There are simply some issues outside the parameters of science, and this is one.
• From childhood people have a sense of fairness, decency, right and wrong. How can even a child cry out “it’s not fair” if there is no God given standard of right and wrong that provides a moral framework for the world?
• The soul of man craves for ultimate meaning and must have it for life to possess any rational basis. Otherwise, there is no such thing as sanity and there is no reason for anything.
• The fatalism of being trapped in making responses based on genetics and environment, means that a person has no more significance than a tree or an animal. Can this be, or does “mind” really count for something?

I am appreciative of the court’s ruling, but in a few days it will be largely forgotten. Long after it is forgotten however, the living God will still rule over the nations. Nations are all...

Under God.

Choose God and His Way

I am looking at two books. The one to my right is the Bible. The one I just laid down and to my left is The Cost of Discipleship by Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

Bonhoeffer, a Lutheran pastor, had been in the United States, studying at Union Theological Seminary, when Hitler was elected Chancellor of Germany. Though warned against returning and promised asylum in the United States, he returned to Germany anyway. His intuition and keen mind told him that the church was in for persecution, and he wanted to be a force for good and strength in the German church.

Eventually he was arrested and sent to a concentration camp. At first, he was permitted his books and papers. Gradually they were taken from him. Then, to ridicule him, all clothes except prison garb was taken from him. He had nothing but the clothes on his back left. One day he was brought before a couple of camp guards. He was ordered to remove his clothes, and stand before them nude. Bereft of his degrees, family, library, work and stripped of every shred of human dignity, Bonhoeffer stood there. Here was a man who had been acclaimed by Karl Barth as “a theological miracle.” He had led a Nazi resistance movement and had counseled the church to remain strong in its opposition to anti-Semitism and Hitler’s war policy. He had now been discovered to have been involved in a plot to assassinate Hitler – an allegation to which he confessed. Standing naked before his accusers, Bonhoeffer said, “You have taken my books, my church, my family and my clothes. You have taken everything from me it is possible for you to take. But there is one thing you can never take. That is my ability to choose how to treat you. And I choose to love you with the love of Christ.” Their choice was to hang him. Bonhoeffer’s choice was to love them.

Animals have instinct. Humans have choice. That is a large portion of what it means to be “made in the image of God.” Freedom of choice is something that we all possess.

We can return hatred with hatred – or with love.
We can return anger with anger – or with kindness.
We can return slander with slander – or with forgiveness.
We can choose to worship things – or choose to worship the one true and only God.

This was Joshua’s point when he gave his final charge to the Hebrews: “Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD” (Joshua 24:15).

Be sure your choices are those to honor the living God and, to the best of your ability, obey His will.

Choose God and His way.

Take These Steps to Conquer Debt

Last week the newspapers and internet news sites all warned about credit card rules changes. New laws passed by Congress last year, intended to protect credit card users, went into effect on February 22.

I believe that when used wisely, credit cards can be a helpful financial tool. I am impressed that far too many people do not understand with each swipe of a credit card, a loan is being taken out. And oh my goodness, what interest rates the borrower is paying for these loans!

Shakespeare, in Hamlet, gives the classic advice of “Neither a borrower nor a lender be.” The wise person will use credit cards prudently, paying them off in full each month if at all possible. Otherwise, real financial struggles are bound to ensue.

Another adage I have heard for most of my life, and that I have used frequently in sermons or counseling, is “These three things avoid: dirt, debt and the devil.” I’ll write about dirt and the devil another time. Today is the time to address the problem of debt.

Encouraged by government and advertising, debt is devouring America. I have my honest doubts about the survivability of our country because of its debt. Basic financial and Biblical principles are being violated. While I cannot do anything about the government’s appetite for debt, I can do something about my own. And you can take steps to get your own debt under control. Howard Dayton, cofounder of Crown Financial Ministries states, “Are you drowning in debt? The truth is, if you don’t control this area of your life, it will control you.” He then goes on to offer some action steps. I share them here and have added a step or two in the hope of making the plan clearer.

1. Complete a Debt List and a Financial Statement. On the Debt List, write down everything you owe, including credit card balances. These forms may be downloaded free at www.crown.org
2. Place this information into the Financial Statement as “Liabilities.”
3. Then list your Total Assets, including real estate values, cash, chattel, etc. Put this information into the Financial Statement as “Assets”. Be honest with yourself, and do not inflate estimated figures.
4. Look at the Financial Statement to see if there is anything you don’t need that can be sold to eliminate debt.
5. Track every penny you spend for the next 30 days. Take paper with you wherever you go and write down everything you spend. Each night review what you spent and record it in a notebook.
6. If married, both husband and wife need to track spending. Each night meet together to record and review what was spent. Begin these daily meetings by praying for God’s peace and for each other.
7. Eliminate credit card debt first. Pay off the smallest balance first, and when that is done, apply what you were paying on the smallest balance to the second smallest balance. REMEMBER: you must stop accumulating new credit card debt in order for this to work.
8. After paying off the credit cards, pay off consumer debts, like car loans. Then, begin making extra principal payments on your mortgage.
9. Finally, complete a Monthly Income and Expenses form. This is a spending plan that tells your money where you want it to go instead of you wondering where it went. This form, too, may be downloaded free.
10. Once a spending plan has been drawn up, maintain it weekly.

Take these steps to conquer debt!

Be a Hero

I finished reading AMERICAN IDOL this week. It is the story of Willie Mays, the baseball great. Willie was one of my favorites as I was growing up. I recall practicing the “basket catch” he made famous, thinking that someday I might be playing in the big leagues. Perhaps the basket catch is his trademark, but his hitting and base running is most memorable. He will always be one of the greats.

The book also reminded me of a very important aspect of life – especially for a boy, I think. That is the aspect of having a hero. A hero is someone to admire, respect and emulate. Willie Mays, and many other ball players – Al Kaline and Larry Doby come to mind, fit the role of hero for me. I never recall hearing or reading where my heroes were using drugs, toting handguns or anything other than playing ball and doing a doggone good job of it.

Heroes are made, not born. Today there seem to be too few of them. Modern day heroes are not necessarily sports figures that play well and play by the rules. Now that I have matured some, I understand that heroes are people who live for something or someone other than self. It is the mother who struggles to get up at night to nurse a sick child. It is the father who consistently and faithfully works at a job he may not particularly enjoy in order to provide for the family he loves. It is the teen athlete or scholar who refuses to experiment with drugs or cheat because he wants to excel fairly. It is the older, unmarried girl who refuses to engage in premarital sex because she wants to remain pure for marriage. It is the soldier in Iraq or Afghanistan who serves his country courageously. It is the pastor who works diligently to prepare fresh thoughts for a sermon, even though the congregation is small and rural. The list goes on, but I am sure you understand the point. These persons, and many others like them, are heroes. They put principle and others above self-interest.

Heroes are not perfect people. No one is perfect. The only perfect person to ever live was Jesus - and look what they did to Him! But it is Jesus who calls us to live for Him with these words, “He who finds his life shall lose it; and he who loses his life for My sake shall find it” (Matthew 10:39). With those words Jesus not only calls us to live for a higher principle, but to live for a higher person – Himself. Only by so doing will a person find the real meaning of life. To live for Christ is to be a hero.

Heroes make an impression. For some, statues are erected. For others, books are written and films made. For the follower of Christ, other lives are affected and positive change occurs. The world becomes a better place and the ranks of heaven are enlarged.

Be a hero!