Why do I teach Young Earth Creationism? Because the just shall live by faith and faith means action.
The simple answer? Because I love God and love people and I see a need. Many times I have stated categorically that you do not have to be a Young Earth Creationist to be saved. Salvation is all about believing in Jesus Christ and accepting His gift of salvation. Some people are not willing to humble themselves and admit that they are sinners and have a need to deal with the sin and have a relationship with God. It is hard to have a worldview that makes sense of the world without God. In fact, it is hard to explain the very existence of the world without God. So I take it upon myself to give evidence to the world that supports creation by God and reveals the lack of actual evidence for Darwinism.
John 3:16
English Standard Version (ESV)
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
I have now posted hundreds of articles debunking long ages, transitional forms, uniformitarianism, spontaneous generation and other such Darwinist nonsense. I have also presented evidence for the Bible genealogies being supported by other historical documents, the Flood, design and irreducible complexity in organisms, statistical proofs, evidence for dinosaurs and man living at the same time, that information only comes from intelligence, that Darwinists have banded together to promote lies, censor information and keep believers out of secular scientific organizations and academia...among other things. Pretty much anything Darwinists say I have presented evidence to disprove and they have never been able to answer the fundamental questions I have presented. I stand on years of blogging but I am not going to stop!
Evidence for the Delk Track and against Darwinism...one of the hundreds of posts I have made here. There is so much evidence against Darwinism that the sheer force of evidence is beginning to cause scientists to quit putting "Darwin boilerplate" into their scientific papers and simply presenting their evidence. Slowly now the Darwin myth is being shrugged off, without comment, left in the background. Oh, the next decade is going to be FUN to watch!!!
Beyond that, the logical mind eventually sees the dichotomy between the Genesis account of both creation and original sin and a belief in evolution and long ages. If God simply presented an analogy rather than a history in the Book of Genesis, then there is neither a need or a reason for Jesus Christ to be born as a man, live as the Son of God and die as the Second Adam, the Lamb of God and finally rise again as King and Lord of All. No true Genesis account, no way a Christ amounts to anything much but a nice story about a good man who was unjustly slain. In fact, we have to go farther and say that if Jesus was not Lord, then He was either a liar or a lunatic. He claimed to be the Son of God and identified Himself with the phrase "Jahweh" aka I Am which was the name God gave to Moses and a phrase no believing Jew would dare utter. He said that "I and my Father are One." He accepted worship. He also was able to heal the blind and lame and sick, raise the dead and cast demons out of the possessed. How could a lunatic or a liar have such powers and never do one thing wrong for an entire life?
If even one death of even one animal took place before Adam and Eve sinned, then God was lying in Genesis and Jesus was lying and the entire Bible falls apart. This is why Old Earth Creationists are not thinking clearly. To accept death before the Garden of Eden negates the Fall and therefore takes away New Covenant. Atheists are glad to see OEC organizations form. They rejoice to see BioLogos add members and publish documents. They know that compromise on Genesis leads to the entire Bible being cast aside. It cannot be any other way if a thinking person carries the idea through to the logical conclusion. If you want a mythical faith, I cannot stop you from adhering to it, but I do hope you do not allow an error lead you astray.
I do not get paid to blog. In fact, I have turned down paying jobs writing in order to have time to blog on things I consider important. For instance, I was offered a paid position blogging on the Cincinnati Reds. I can right now tell you the lineup, defensive alignment and basic stats for the 1965 Reds, let alone the championship 1975 and 1976 Reds. I studied the lineups of the championship teams of 1919, 1939 and 1940 (well, in 1939 they only won the pennant and then lost the world series). I went to see the 1961 pennant winning Reds when I was a child. I know the players from over fifty years before I was born. I love that team! Of course I would love to write a blog on them! But I would have to give up doing this...I already have a day job. I could not take on that writing gig and have time to do this. So actually writing Radaractive costs me money. Cue the trolls suggesting I quit trying. I may never quit until the day I die? Until God tells me to stop, I will blog and primarily on Young Earth Creation and ID versus Darwinism. I know I am right.
A hard thing happened today. A family we care about suffered a loss. This is one reason I posted that youtube video. I hope if they see it, the sentiment will encourage them. The just shall live by faith. We walk by faith and not by sight. Christianity is both a reasonable and a logical faith, but no one becomes a Christian by the power of his mind or the compilation of large amounts of good works. All the good works in the world do not overpower the sins we all commit. Only the Blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from sins. The shame of the cross is too much for some to bear and the humility required to admit you are not sufficient to save yourself stops some. Selfishness sends people to Hell every day. We send ourselves to Hell if we choose to deny Christ. Pretty clear, huh?
A man I admire named Harry was doing the preaching at church this morning and he did ask us to consider what had God done for us in the past week and what were we therefore doing? I knew right away that God had encouraged me, forgiven me and inspired me during the week. Encouraged me in many ways and much of it through studying the Bible with my wife. Forgiven me for failures in which I did not do all I felt I should do. Inspired me to teach both the full group and my small group at youth group in church. Also, I had been asked to start a new small group and be the leader thereof and, while I was at church, I knew God wanted me to do it and agreed to do so. As part of that process, I went to my friend and church elder Harry (who is in charge of the adult small groups) and volunteered and he agreed and we decided to exchange ideas to figure out what night and time to do it and what venue to use.
Harry's message today inspired me and convinced me to begin the small group one of the other elders had asked me to consider doing. It also caused me to review those things I do that are part of ministry. Jesus came to Jerusalem riding on a colt and the crowds cried out, "Hosanna" and He was welcomed as a King coming home. Jesus came to Jerusalem and found that moneychangers and sellers of doves and lambs for the Passover sacrifices were gouging the people and enriching the Jewish leaders, including Annanias and Caiaphas, men who would later illegally try Jesus in a secret trial and make sure He would be sentenced to death on the cross. There were Jews who wanted Jesus to become an earthly King, conquer the Romans and take over the world with the Jews as rulers with Him. There were Jews that wanted to kill Him for threatening their power and position which was upheld by the Romans. There were Jews who wanted to follow Him no matter what and they were having difficulty grasping what He, Jesus planned to do.
The Mount of Olives is marked by numerous olive groves
Late in the evening Jesus looked over from the Mount of Olives at the Temple courtyard. The Mount of Olives overlooks Jerusalem, with a deep valley in between, and at that time one could look down at the Temple, at the place where the Dome of the Rock is now. Earlier He had checked out the area from the ground view. By the way, the idea that Islam would put a mosque right where the Temple once stood is a slap in the face of Jews just like building a mosque on the site of 9/11 in New York would be a slap in the face to America. Could Jesus have called down 10,000 angels and wiped out every Roman on the planet? Of course. Could He have called them down to save Him from the cross? Yes. But Jesus came to be crucified on that cross, to become sin for us and be the sacrificial Lamb of God who is able to make the guilty innocent and cleanse us from our sins. He came to restore the relationship between God and man that Adam and Eve had thrown away when they disobeyed God in the Garden of Eden. He came to do the will of His Father, being constantly led by the Holy Spirit to do exactly what He was supposed to do. Jesus did no wrong but also did all the good He was led to do by God the Father by the leading of the Holy Spirit. We can be led by the Holy Spirit to do good and not do wrong and each moment of the day we can do just as Jesus did.
However, I am fallible and I do not do everything good that I should nor do I avoid every sin. Knowing this, I must review each aspect of my life from time to time and consider it. If you read in Mark chapter eleven, after Jesus rode into Jerusalem in triumph but before Jesus came down to Jerusalem to the Temple and before He chased out the moneychangers, Jesus stayed overnight in Bethany and in the morning He walked from there to Jerusalem, a walk of perhaps two miles. His disciples accompanied Him in this journey. Coming close to the city, Jesus saw a fig tree with leaves that indicated that the first fruits, the taqsh, would be found on it and He was hungry. But the tree did not have any taqsh fruit at all on it. Jesus cursed the tree for failure to yield fruit. Later after Jesus cleared the moneychangers out of the Temple and another day passed, the disciples saw that same fig tree and realized it had withered from the roots on up! I have posted the entire chapter (Mark 11) near the bottom of the post.
Jesus was not petulantly punishing a tree for failing to provide Him with a bit of food. Jesus had often ignored food to accomplish the will of His Father. He cursed the fig tree for appearing to be bearing fruit but actually having none, thus failing to fulfill its purpose and also not being what it was advertising itself to be. Fig trees in full leaf at that time of year would have had taqsh on them. This tree had nothing.
Jesus expects me to bear fruit. He wants me to be a Christian and not just wear the label, He wants me to therefore take action. I should tell others about Christ. I should live a moral lifestyle. I should maintain a relationship with my God. I should give money and time to ministry to help not just bring people to faith but also to help them grow to know Christ better and live more like Him. This is why I posted that youtube by Rich Mullins. You see, Martin Luther was a Catholic priest who studied the Word of God and, while reading in Habakkuk chapter 2 and verse 4 he saw this phrase, "...the just shall live by his faith."
Martin Luther was the spark that kindled the Reformation because he saw that the Church was oriented towards ceremony and works but FAITH is what God wants from His people and by FAITH we work and are led. Faith powers Christians to do what they do, or it should, but we have to remember to look to God for direction. What the Bible says will be the first and best guide for a Christian believer. I can give you all sorts of great evidence to support that faith, but if you do not have that faith you have nothing worth noting. This world will pass away. You will die. Not one thing you have will go with you. You will not even keep your body, it will be left behind, dead, and immediately it will begin to be broken down by microorganisms. A mortician will be required to preserve the body to some extent or your old body may be largely burnt up in a crematorium and some relative may keep a bunch of your ashes in a container on a shelf. But you will be gone...to be with God if you are a believer or to face an eternal Judge to answer for your failures. My hope is that some of you who are bound for Hell will come to faith in Christ and if I can be even a tiny part of that process this blog is well worth the time and effort!
I do not seek to build up "brownie points" with God. My reward is already assured, for I know that when my body ceases to function I will see my God face-to-face and be with Him forever! To share the wonders of God...how can anything be better? I cannot imagine how great the Creator God really is, I am a finite creature who cannot comprehend fully a Transcendent Omniscient Omnipresent Omnipotent Loving Awesome Brilliant Great Just Holy Magnificent God...but someday I will be with Him! It is enough.
Mark 11
The Triumphal Entry
1 Now when they drew near to Jerusalem, to Bethphage and Bethany, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples 2 and said to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately as you enter it you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever sat. Untie it and bring it. 3 If anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ say, ‘The Lord has need of it and will send it back here immediately.’” 4 And they went away and found a colt tied at a door outside in the street, and they untied it. 5 And some of those standing there said to them, “What are you doing, untying the colt?” 6 And they told them what Jesus had said, and they let them go. 7 And they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks on it, and he sat on it. 8 And many spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches that they had cut from the fields. 9 And those who went before and those who followed were shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! 10 Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest!” 11 And he entered Jerusalem and went into the temple. And when he had looked around at everything, as it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the twelve.
Jesus Curses the Fig Tree
12 On the following day, when they came from Bethany, he was hungry. 13 And seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see if he could find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. 14 And he said to it, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard it.Jesus Cleanses the Temple
15 And they came to Jerusalem. And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold and those who bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons. 16 And he would not allow anyone to carry anything through the temple. 17 And he was teaching them and saying to them, “Is it not written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations’? But you have made it a den of robbers.” 18 And the chief priests and the scribes heard it and were seeking a way to destroy him, for they feared him, because all the crowd was astonished at his teaching. 19 And when evening came they went out of the city.The Lesson from the Withered Fig Tree
20 As they passed by in the morning, they saw the fig tree withered away to its roots. 21 And Peter remembered and said to him, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree that you cursed has withered.” 22 And Jesus answered them, “Have faith in God. 23 Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him. 24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. 25 And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.”[d]The Authority of Jesus Challenged
27 And they came again to Jerusalem. And as he was walking in the temple, the chief priests and the scribes and the elders came to him, 28 and they said to him, “By what authority are you doing these things, or who gave you this authority to do them?” 29 Jesus said to them, “I will ask you one question; answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things. 30 Was the baptism of John from heaven or from man? Answer me.” 31 And they discussed it with one another, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’ 32 But shall we say, ‘From man’?”—they were afraid of the people, for they all held that John really was a prophet. 33 So they answered Jesus, “We do not know.” And Jesus said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.”~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Jesus knew how man thought. He never let the Jewish leaders (who cared only for themselves and their positions) to trap him by their questions but rather turned their questions around on them. When they illegally brought a woman taken in adultery (without the man) Jesus would not let them cause Him to condemn her. When they accused Him of breaking the law by healing on the Sabbath, He asked them if they would not pull an animal out of a pit on the Sabbath? When they asked Him if it was legal to pay taxes to Rome, He made them present the coin with the likeness of Caesar stamped on it and said, "Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's and unto God the things which are God's."
Psalm 19:1-3
English Standard Version (ESV)
Psalm 19
To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. 1 The heavens declare the glory of God,
and the sky above[a] proclaims his handiwork.
2 Day to day pours out speech,
and night to night reveals knowledge.
3 There is no speech, nor are there words,
whose voice is not heard.
and the sky above[a] proclaims his handiwork.
2 Day to day pours out speech,
and night to night reveals knowledge.
3 There is no speech, nor are there words,
whose voice is not heard.
Footnotes:
- Psalm 19:1 Hebrew the expanse; compare Genesis 1:6–8