Saturday, February 16, 2013
The Case for a Creator (Chapter 10 of 10)
Here is the final Chapter in the Case for a Creator video Series. Thank you for devoting 5 minutes a day to these videos. Stay tuned for my post where I will review these videos further.
Tuesday, February 12, 2013
The Case for a Creator (Chapter 9 of 10)
Day 9 of the Case for a Creator Videos. You are almost done! Only one more day to go. Enjoy!
The Case for a Creator (Chapter 8 of 10)
Thank you for continuing on with The Case for a Creator videos! Here is day 8.
Sunday, February 10, 2013
The Case for a Creator (Chapter 7 of 10)
Day 7 of the Take the 10 day challenge! Thank you for continuing on with The Case for a Creator videos.
Saturday, February 9, 2013
The Case for a Creator (Chapter 6 of 10)
Here is Day 6 of The Case for a Creator. Thank you for devoting 5 minutes a day to watching these videos.
Friday, February 8, 2013
The Case for a Creator (Chapter 5 of 10)
Thank you for continuing of with The Case for a Creator. Enjoy!
Thursday, February 7, 2013
The Case for a Creator (Chapter 4 of 10)
Thank you for moving on to Day 4 of The Case for a Creator.
The Case for a Creator (Chapter 3 of 10)
Thank you for moving on to day 3 of The Case for a Creator!
Wednesday, February 6, 2013
The Case for a Creator (Chapter 2 of 10)
Thank you for taking the ten day challenge and moving on to day 2 of The Case for a Creator videos!
Tuesday, February 5, 2013
Ten day challenge!
I've decided to take a detour from examining the Bible, to share with you a series of videos from Lee Strobel. If you missed my last post which introduces Lee and where he shares his abbreviated testimony, I highly recommend you watch that first! I feel led to share this series of 10 short videos (less than 5 minutes each) over the next 10 days because I feel this is an area that affects our spirituality SO STRONGLY. That is the debate over evolution vs creationism.
My son is studying evolution this week in Biology and I have to say I'm so glad! Although our family firmly believes that God created the earth and every living thing on it, I think it is so important to know about what Darwin had to say as well. As I said before, I am a researcher. I encourage my children to be researchers as well. To simply believe something because it is what your biology book tells you to believe or because it is the predominant worldly view is once again having blind faith. For that matter I don't want my children to believe in creationism just because it is what I tell them to believe! They need to examine all the evidence for themselves. Therefore, in addition to studying evolution in his biology book I'm also having my son watch these videos as well. I challenge you to join my son over the next 10 days and watch these videos too!
I'm confident that after you do, you will realize that evolution is simply not possible. Lee Strobel does a much better job than I could ever do of explaining why creationism is truth....and here's the thing; once you believe it too, it literally will change your mind set when it comes to spiritual matters. Because if creationism is the truth...then there HAS to be a God that created the world and everything and everyone in it. Additionally a lot of what is discussed in these videos ties right in to my last post regarding examining the proof of science in the Bible. It's just another piece of the "spiritual puzzle".
If you are already a believer in creationism I also challenge you to watch these videos as it will increase your faith and give you powerful information to share with others.
So with that being said, I pray that you will take the 10 day challenge. Less than 5 minutes a day for the next 10 days to watch these series of videos on The Case for a Creator hosted by Lee Strobel. It just might change your mind.
Sunday, February 3, 2013
Lee Strobel's Testimony
As I continue to examine spirituality in my blog, I will be occasionally sharing short video clips from Lee Strobel. Mr. Strobel is a former investigative journalist with the Chicago Tribune. A former atheist, he went on a quest to disprove Christianity. After over a year and 9 months of research he found that he could not disprove it and became a believer.
Mr. Strobel has written many books including "The Case for Christ", "The Case for Creation", and many more. In this short 2-3 minute video Mr. Strobel shares a portion of his testimony.
Saturday, February 2, 2013
Examining the Bible: The Proof of Science
Although the Bible is not a science book, it is scientifically accurate. Some scientists would not agree that the Bible is correct--but none can prove the Bible wrong. And there are many, many scientists who acknowledge that the Bible IS scientifically correct. As I said in an earlier post, the majority of people who attempt to disprove the Bible simply can not, therefore they become believers.
Striking evidence of divine inspiration is found in the fact that many principles of modern science were recorded as facts of nature in the Bible long before scientists confirmed them experimentally. Below I will list statements that are consistent with known scientific facts. Many of them were listed in the Bible hundreds or even thousands of years before being recorded elsewhere. Man has taken many centuries to discover many things the Bible stated thousands of years ago. Where did the writers of the Bible get their information--if not from God?
Statements Consistent with Paleontology
*Dinosaurs are referred to in several books in the Bible. The book of Job describes two dinosaurs. One is described in chapter 40 starting at verse 15, and the other in chapter 41 starting at verse 1. I think you will agree that 1 1/2 chapters about dinosaurs is a lot-since most people do not even realize that they are mentioned in the Bible! In fact I will be discussing dinosaurs in more detail in a future post.
Statements Consistent with Astronomy
The Bible frequently refers to the great number of stars in the heavens. Here are two examples.
Genesis 22:17
"Blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies."
Jeremiah 33:22
"As the host of heaven cannot be numbered, nor the sand of the sea measured, so will I multiply the descendants of David My servant and Levites who minister to Me."
Even today, scientists admit they do not know how many stars there are. Only about 3,000 can be seen with the naked eye. However estimates reveal that there are so many stars that they simply can not be numbered.
*The Bible also says that each star is unique.
1 Corinthians 15:41
There is one glory of the sun, another glory of the moon, and another glory of the star; for one star differs from another star in glory.
All stars look alike to the naked eye. Even when seen though a telescope, they seem to be just points of light. However, analysis of their light spectra reveals that each is unique and different from all others.
*The Bible describes the precision of movement in the universe.
Jeremiah 31:35,36
Thus says the LORD,
Who gives the sun for a light by day,
The ordinances of the moon and the stars for a light by night,
Who disturbs the sea,
And its waves roar
(The LORD of hosts is His name):
"If those ordinances depart
From before Me, says the LORD,
Then the seed of Israel shall also cease
From being a nation before Me forever."
*The Bible describes the suspension of the Earth in space.
Job 26:7
He stretches out the north over empty space;
He hangs the earth on nothing
Statements Consistent with Meteorology
*The Bible describes the circulation of the atmosphere.
Ecclesiastes 1:6
The wind goes toward the south,
And turns around to the north;
The wind whirls about continually,
And cones again on its circuit.
*The Bible includes some principles of fluid dynamics.
Job 28:25
To establish a weight for the wind,
And apportion the waters by measure.
The fact that air has weight was proven scientifically only about 300 years ago. The relative weights of air and water are needed for the efficient functioning of the world's hydrological cycle, which in turn sustains life on the earth.
Statements Consistent With Biology
*The book of Leviticus (written prior to 1400 BC) describes the value of blood.
Leviticus 17:11
"For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood that makes atonement for the soul."
The blood carries water and nourishment to every cell, maintains the body's temperature, and removes the waste material of the body's cells. The blood also carries oxygen from the lungs throughout the body. In 1616, William Harvey discovered that blood circulation is the key factor in physical life-confirming what the Bible revealed 3,000 years earlier.
*The Bible describes biogenesis (the development of living organisms from other living organisms) and the stability of each kind of living organism.
Genesis 1:21
So God created great sea creatures and every living thing that moves, with which the waters abounded, according to their kind, and every winged bird according to it's kind. And God saw that it was good.
Genesis 1:25
And God made the beast of the earth according to its kind, cattle according to its kind, and everything that creeps on the earth according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.
The phrase "according to its kind" occurs repeatedly, stressing the reproductive integrity of each kind of animal and plant. Today we know this occurs because all of these reproductive systems are programmed by their genetic codes.
Statement Consistent with Anthropology
*We have cave paintings and other evidence that people inhabited caves. The Bible also describes cave men.
Job 30:5,6
They were driven out from among men,
They shouted at them as at a thief,
They had to live in the clefts of the valleys,
In caves of the earth and the rocks.
Note that these were not "ape-men", but descendants of those who scattered from Babel. They were driven from the commune by those tribes who competed successfully for the more desirable regions of the earth.
Other statements to examine are:
Statements Consistent with Hydrology: The Bible includes reasonably complete descriptions of the hydrological cycle, condensation with electrical discharges and precipitation. Psalm 135:7 and Jeremiah 10:33. In these verses you can see several phases of the hydrological cycle-the worldwide processes of evaporation, translation aloft by atmospheric circulation.
Statements that describe the recirculation of water are found in Ecclesiastes 1:7 and Isaiah 55:10. Furthermore the Bible refers to the surprising amount of water that can be held as condensation in clouds in Job 26:28 and Job 37:11. Hydrothermal vents are described in two books of the Bible written before 1400BC-more than 3,000 years before their discovery by science.
Genesis 7:11
In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, on that day all the fountains of the great deep were broken up, and the window of heaven were opened.
Job 38:16
Have you entered the springs of the sea?
Or have you walked in search of the depths?
I will discuss the "Fountains of the great deep" and hydrothermal vents further in a future post about Creation Versus Evolution.
I literally could write another 5-6 pages on all of scientific evidence found in the Bible. However I will conclude by providing these additional principles of modern science which where recorded as facts of nature in the Bible long before scientists confirmed them experimentally.
*Roundness of the earth (Isaiah 40:22)
*Almost infinite extent of the sidereal universe (Isaiah 55:9)
*Law of conservation of mass and energy ( 11Peter 3:7)
*Law of increasing entropy (Psalm 102:25-27)
If you do not own a Bible you can easily pull up any of these Bible verses on one of the many free on line Bible sites.
At this point in my posts in which I have examined the Bible, we have covered the proof of prophecy and the proof of science. Stay tuned for my next post where I will discuss the unique historical accuracy of the scriptures and point out many archaeological confirmations.
Thank you for taking this journey with me as I examine the truths of the Bible. I hope that you are beginning to see what I saw 12 years ago when I began to research the truths of the Bible. It truly IS the inspired word of God and it has immeasurable value for your life. I hope you are realizing now that the contents of Scripture can
be verified, not only by the discoveries of modern science that I just discussed but additionally by the facts of history and archaeology which I will discuss in my next post.
Thank you for reading Living a Spirit Filled Life and may God bless you!
---------------------------------
References:
-The DEFENDER'S Study Bible, Word Publishing, Grand Rapids, Michigan (1995)
-The Number of Stars
-The hydrologic Cycle
-Submarine Volcanic Ecosystems (An article on hydrothermal vents)
-All Bible passages were taken from the New King James Version
Striking evidence of divine inspiration is found in the fact that many principles of modern science were recorded as facts of nature in the Bible long before scientists confirmed them experimentally. Below I will list statements that are consistent with known scientific facts. Many of them were listed in the Bible hundreds or even thousands of years before being recorded elsewhere. Man has taken many centuries to discover many things the Bible stated thousands of years ago. Where did the writers of the Bible get their information--if not from God?
Statements Consistent with Paleontology
*Dinosaurs are referred to in several books in the Bible. The book of Job describes two dinosaurs. One is described in chapter 40 starting at verse 15, and the other in chapter 41 starting at verse 1. I think you will agree that 1 1/2 chapters about dinosaurs is a lot-since most people do not even realize that they are mentioned in the Bible! In fact I will be discussing dinosaurs in more detail in a future post.
Statements Consistent with Astronomy
The Bible frequently refers to the great number of stars in the heavens. Here are two examples.
Genesis 22:17
"Blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies."
Jeremiah 33:22
"As the host of heaven cannot be numbered, nor the sand of the sea measured, so will I multiply the descendants of David My servant and Levites who minister to Me."
Even today, scientists admit they do not know how many stars there are. Only about 3,000 can be seen with the naked eye. However estimates reveal that there are so many stars that they simply can not be numbered.
*The Bible also says that each star is unique.
1 Corinthians 15:41
There is one glory of the sun, another glory of the moon, and another glory of the star; for one star differs from another star in glory.
All stars look alike to the naked eye. Even when seen though a telescope, they seem to be just points of light. However, analysis of their light spectra reveals that each is unique and different from all others.
*The Bible describes the precision of movement in the universe.
Jeremiah 31:35,36
Thus says the LORD,
Who gives the sun for a light by day,
The ordinances of the moon and the stars for a light by night,
Who disturbs the sea,
And its waves roar
(The LORD of hosts is His name):
"If those ordinances depart
From before Me, says the LORD,
Then the seed of Israel shall also cease
From being a nation before Me forever."
*The Bible describes the suspension of the Earth in space.
Job 26:7
He stretches out the north over empty space;
He hangs the earth on nothing
Statements Consistent with Meteorology
*The Bible describes the circulation of the atmosphere.
Ecclesiastes 1:6
The wind goes toward the south,
And turns around to the north;
The wind whirls about continually,
And cones again on its circuit.
*The Bible includes some principles of fluid dynamics.
Job 28:25
To establish a weight for the wind,
And apportion the waters by measure.
The fact that air has weight was proven scientifically only about 300 years ago. The relative weights of air and water are needed for the efficient functioning of the world's hydrological cycle, which in turn sustains life on the earth.
Statements Consistent With Biology
*The book of Leviticus (written prior to 1400 BC) describes the value of blood.
Leviticus 17:11
"For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood that makes atonement for the soul."
The blood carries water and nourishment to every cell, maintains the body's temperature, and removes the waste material of the body's cells. The blood also carries oxygen from the lungs throughout the body. In 1616, William Harvey discovered that blood circulation is the key factor in physical life-confirming what the Bible revealed 3,000 years earlier.
*The Bible describes biogenesis (the development of living organisms from other living organisms) and the stability of each kind of living organism.
Genesis 1:21
So God created great sea creatures and every living thing that moves, with which the waters abounded, according to their kind, and every winged bird according to it's kind. And God saw that it was good.
Genesis 1:25
And God made the beast of the earth according to its kind, cattle according to its kind, and everything that creeps on the earth according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.
The phrase "according to its kind" occurs repeatedly, stressing the reproductive integrity of each kind of animal and plant. Today we know this occurs because all of these reproductive systems are programmed by their genetic codes.
Statement Consistent with Anthropology
*We have cave paintings and other evidence that people inhabited caves. The Bible also describes cave men.
Job 30:5,6
They were driven out from among men,
They shouted at them as at a thief,
They had to live in the clefts of the valleys,
In caves of the earth and the rocks.
Note that these were not "ape-men", but descendants of those who scattered from Babel. They were driven from the commune by those tribes who competed successfully for the more desirable regions of the earth.
Other statements to examine are:
Statements Consistent with Hydrology: The Bible includes reasonably complete descriptions of the hydrological cycle, condensation with electrical discharges and precipitation. Psalm 135:7 and Jeremiah 10:33. In these verses you can see several phases of the hydrological cycle-the worldwide processes of evaporation, translation aloft by atmospheric circulation.
Statements that describe the recirculation of water are found in Ecclesiastes 1:7 and Isaiah 55:10. Furthermore the Bible refers to the surprising amount of water that can be held as condensation in clouds in Job 26:28 and Job 37:11. Hydrothermal vents are described in two books of the Bible written before 1400BC-more than 3,000 years before their discovery by science.
Genesis 7:11
In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, on that day all the fountains of the great deep were broken up, and the window of heaven were opened.
Job 38:16
Have you entered the springs of the sea?
Or have you walked in search of the depths?
I will discuss the "Fountains of the great deep" and hydrothermal vents further in a future post about Creation Versus Evolution.
I literally could write another 5-6 pages on all of scientific evidence found in the Bible. However I will conclude by providing these additional principles of modern science which where recorded as facts of nature in the Bible long before scientists confirmed them experimentally.
*Roundness of the earth (Isaiah 40:22)
*Almost infinite extent of the sidereal universe (Isaiah 55:9)
*Law of conservation of mass and energy ( 11Peter 3:7)
*Law of increasing entropy (Psalm 102:25-27)
If you do not own a Bible you can easily pull up any of these Bible verses on one of the many free on line Bible sites.
At this point in my posts in which I have examined the Bible, we have covered the proof of prophecy and the proof of science. Stay tuned for my next post where I will discuss the unique historical accuracy of the scriptures and point out many archaeological confirmations.
Thank you for taking this journey with me as I examine the truths of the Bible. I hope that you are beginning to see what I saw 12 years ago when I began to research the truths of the Bible. It truly IS the inspired word of God and it has immeasurable value for your life. I hope you are realizing now that the contents of Scripture can
be verified, not only by the discoveries of modern science that I just discussed but additionally by the facts of history and archaeology which I will discuss in my next post.
Thank you for reading Living a Spirit Filled Life and may God bless you!
---------------------------------
References:
-The DEFENDER'S Study Bible, Word Publishing, Grand Rapids, Michigan (1995)
-The Number of Stars
-The hydrologic Cycle
-Submarine Volcanic Ecosystems (An article on hydrothermal vents)
-All Bible passages were taken from the New King James Version
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