Showing posts with label Apollo. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Apollo. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Epilogue
This concludes the book “Science the Bible and Life on Other Planets” shared here on this blog. I am going to take a break from blogging for a few months while I work on other projects. Please take a look every once in a while at airdriesda.org for a series of video Bible studies that explore these topics further. For now though, I hope your worldview has been affected in a positive way. I also hope that the next time you look up the stars; you’ll have a greater appreciation for the Lord, all He’s done to save you and that you’ll want to live in such a way that the whole universe can praise Him.
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Part 6 – World history and the plan of salvation unfold
The plan of redemption had a yet broader and deeper purpose than the salvation of man. It was not for this alone that Christ came to the earth; it was not merely that the inhabitants of this little world might regard the law of God as it should be regarded; but it was to vindicate the character of God before the universe. To this result of His great sacrifice--its influence upon the intelligences of other worlds, as well as upon man--the Saviour looked forward when just before His crucifixion He said: "Now is the judgment of this world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out. And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all unto Me." John 12:31, 32. The act of Christ in dying for the salvation of man would not only make heaven accessible to men, but before all the universe it would justify God and His Son in their dealing with the rebellion of Satan. It would establish the perpetuity of the law of God and would reveal the nature and the results of sin.
If the race had ceased to fall when Adam was driven from Eden, we should now be in a far more elevated condition physically, mentally, and morally. But while men deplore the fall of Adam, which has resulted in such unutterable woe, they disobey the express injunctions of God, as did Adam, although they have his example to warn them from doing as he did in violating the law of Jehovah. Would that man had stopped falling with Adam. But there has been a succession of falls each greater than the last, in every species of crime. God did not create a race of beings so devoid of health, beauty, and moral power as now exists in the world. Disease of every kind has been fearfully increasing upon the race. This has not been by God's especial providence, but directly contrary to His will. It has come by man's disregard of the very means which God has ordained to shield him from the terrible evils existing
In Eden Satan used the serpent as his instrument. Today he makes use of the members of the human family, striving by means of every species of cunning and deception to hedge up the path of righteousness cast up for the ransomed of the Lord to walk in. God does not consult our opinions or preferences. He knows what human beings do not know,--the future results of every movement, and therefore our eyes should be directed to Him, and not to the worldly advantages presented by Satan. Satan tells us that if we give heed to him, we shall reach great heights of knowledge. Ye shall be as gods, he said to Eve, if you eat of the tree forbidden by God. The test given to Adam and Eve was very light, but they could not bear it. They disobeyed God, and this transgression opened the floodgates of woe on our world
We can do nothing of ourselves. It is only by relying on Christ for all our strength that we can overcome, and do His will on earth. We must have the same simple, childlike trust in Him that He had in His Father. Christ said, "Without Me ye can do nothing." John 15:5.
It is Satan's constant effort to misrepresent the character of God, the nature of sin, and the real issues at stake in the great controversy. His sophistry lessens the obligation of the divine law and gives men license to sin. At the same time he causes them to cherish false conceptions of God so that they regard Him with fear and hate rather than with love. The cruelty inherent in his own character is attributed to the Creator; it is embodied in systems of religion and expressed in modes of worship. Thus the minds of men are blinded, and Satan secures them as his agents to war against God. By perverted conceptions of the divine attributes, heathen nations were led to believe human sacrifices necessary to secure the favor of Deity; and horrible cruelties have been perpetrated under the various forms of idolatry.
Age after age, the curiosity of men has led them to seek for the tree of knowledge; and often they think they are plucking fruit most essential, when, like Solomon's research, they find it altogether vanity and nothingness in comparison with that science of true holiness which will open to them the gates of the city of God. The human ambition has been seeking for that kind of knowledge that will bring to them glory and self-exaltation and supremacy.
The same spirit that prompted rebellion in heaven still inspires rebellion on earth. Satan has continued with men the same policy which he pursued with the angels. His spirit now reigns in the children of disobedience. Like him they seek to break down the restraints of the law of God and promise men liberty through transgression of its precepts. Reproof of sin still arouses the spirit of hatred and resistance. When God's messages of warning are brought home to the conscience, Satan leads men to justify themselves and to seek the sympathy of others in their course of sin. Instead of correcting their errors, they excite indignation against the reprover, as if he were the sole cause of difficulty. From the days of righteous Abel to our own time such is the spirit which has been displayed toward those who dare to condemn sin.
The Saviour's coming was foretold in Eden. When Adam and Eve first heard the promise, they looked for its speedy fulfillment. They joyfully welcomed their first-born son, hoping that he might be the Deliverer. But the fulfillment of the promise tarried. Those who first received it died without the sight. From the days of Enoch the promise was repeated through patriarchs and prophets, keeping alive the hope of His appearing, and yet He came not. The prophecy of Daniel revealed the time of His advent, but not all rightly interpreted the message. Century after century passed away; the voices of the prophets ceased. The hand of the oppressor was heavy upon Israel, and many were ready to exclaim, "The days are prolonged, and every vision faileth." Ezek. 12:22.
But like the stars in the vast circuit of their appointed path, God's purposes know no haste and no delay. Through the symbols of the great darkness and the smoking furnace, God had revealed to Abraham the bondage of Israel in Egypt, and had declared that the time of their sojourning should be four hundred years. "Afterward," He said, "shall they come out with great substance." Gen. 15:14. Against that word, all the power of Pharaoh's proud empire battled in vain. On "the self-same day" appointed in the divine promise, "it came to pass, that all the hosts of the Lord went out from the land of Egypt." Ex. 12:41. So in heaven's council the hour for the coming of Christ had been determined. When the great clock of time pointed to that hour, Jesus was born in Bethlehem.
If the race had ceased to fall when Adam was driven from Eden, we should now be in a far more elevated condition physically, mentally, and morally. But while men deplore the fall of Adam, which has resulted in such unutterable woe, they disobey the express injunctions of God, as did Adam, although they have his example to warn them from doing as he did in violating the law of Jehovah. Would that man had stopped falling with Adam. But there has been a succession of falls each greater than the last, in every species of crime. God did not create a race of beings so devoid of health, beauty, and moral power as now exists in the world. Disease of every kind has been fearfully increasing upon the race. This has not been by God's especial providence, but directly contrary to His will. It has come by man's disregard of the very means which God has ordained to shield him from the terrible evils existing
In Eden Satan used the serpent as his instrument. Today he makes use of the members of the human family, striving by means of every species of cunning and deception to hedge up the path of righteousness cast up for the ransomed of the Lord to walk in. God does not consult our opinions or preferences. He knows what human beings do not know,--the future results of every movement, and therefore our eyes should be directed to Him, and not to the worldly advantages presented by Satan. Satan tells us that if we give heed to him, we shall reach great heights of knowledge. Ye shall be as gods, he said to Eve, if you eat of the tree forbidden by God. The test given to Adam and Eve was very light, but they could not bear it. They disobeyed God, and this transgression opened the floodgates of woe on our world
We can do nothing of ourselves. It is only by relying on Christ for all our strength that we can overcome, and do His will on earth. We must have the same simple, childlike trust in Him that He had in His Father. Christ said, "Without Me ye can do nothing." John 15:5.
It is Satan's constant effort to misrepresent the character of God, the nature of sin, and the real issues at stake in the great controversy. His sophistry lessens the obligation of the divine law and gives men license to sin. At the same time he causes them to cherish false conceptions of God so that they regard Him with fear and hate rather than with love. The cruelty inherent in his own character is attributed to the Creator; it is embodied in systems of religion and expressed in modes of worship. Thus the minds of men are blinded, and Satan secures them as his agents to war against God. By perverted conceptions of the divine attributes, heathen nations were led to believe human sacrifices necessary to secure the favor of Deity; and horrible cruelties have been perpetrated under the various forms of idolatry.
Age after age, the curiosity of men has led them to seek for the tree of knowledge; and often they think they are plucking fruit most essential, when, like Solomon's research, they find it altogether vanity and nothingness in comparison with that science of true holiness which will open to them the gates of the city of God. The human ambition has been seeking for that kind of knowledge that will bring to them glory and self-exaltation and supremacy.
The same spirit that prompted rebellion in heaven still inspires rebellion on earth. Satan has continued with men the same policy which he pursued with the angels. His spirit now reigns in the children of disobedience. Like him they seek to break down the restraints of the law of God and promise men liberty through transgression of its precepts. Reproof of sin still arouses the spirit of hatred and resistance. When God's messages of warning are brought home to the conscience, Satan leads men to justify themselves and to seek the sympathy of others in their course of sin. Instead of correcting their errors, they excite indignation against the reprover, as if he were the sole cause of difficulty. From the days of righteous Abel to our own time such is the spirit which has been displayed toward those who dare to condemn sin.
The Saviour's coming was foretold in Eden. When Adam and Eve first heard the promise, they looked for its speedy fulfillment. They joyfully welcomed their first-born son, hoping that he might be the Deliverer. But the fulfillment of the promise tarried. Those who first received it died without the sight. From the days of Enoch the promise was repeated through patriarchs and prophets, keeping alive the hope of His appearing, and yet He came not. The prophecy of Daniel revealed the time of His advent, but not all rightly interpreted the message. Century after century passed away; the voices of the prophets ceased. The hand of the oppressor was heavy upon Israel, and many were ready to exclaim, "The days are prolonged, and every vision faileth." Ezek. 12:22.
But like the stars in the vast circuit of their appointed path, God's purposes know no haste and no delay. Through the symbols of the great darkness and the smoking furnace, God had revealed to Abraham the bondage of Israel in Egypt, and had declared that the time of their sojourning should be four hundred years. "Afterward," He said, "shall they come out with great substance." Gen. 15:14. Against that word, all the power of Pharaoh's proud empire battled in vain. On "the self-same day" appointed in the divine promise, "it came to pass, that all the hosts of the Lord went out from the land of Egypt." Ex. 12:41. So in heaven's council the hour for the coming of Christ had been determined. When the great clock of time pointed to that hour, Jesus was born in Bethlehem.
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Though we have discussed it quite a bit from several angles in the first few chapters of this blog, there is great significance to the changes made in our world since the mid 1800’s. This also has a lot to do with what Jesus is doing now. You see the very first time anyone came to understand the significance of Daniel 8:14 and the cleansing of the Sanctuary was in the early 1800’s. This sparked a great religious revival as a movement rose up believing the cleansing was a sign of the end of the world. The book “Daniel and the Revelation” by Uriah Smith, a man who was there, puts it this way on page 386:
The great religious awakening in the early part of the nineteenth century which resulted from a study of the prophecies, culminated in this advent movement. Men from all denominations were convinced that the coming of Christ was near. As they came out of the various churches, they left sectarian names and feelings behind, and every heart beat in unison as all joined to give the alarm to the churches and to the world, and pointed to the coming of the Son of man as the believer's true hope. Selfishness and covetousness were laid aside, and a spirit of consecration and sacrifice was cherished. The Spirit of God was with every true believer, and his praise upon every tongue. Those who were not in that movement cannot fully realize how great was the searching of heart, the consecration to God, the peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, and the pure, fervent love for one another which true believers enjoyed.
From The Great Controversy by Ellen White, page 611 “The advent movement of 1840-44 was a glorious manifestation of the power of God; the first angel's message was carried to every missionary station in the world, and in some countries there was the greatest religious interest which has been witnessed in any land since the Reformation of the sixteenth century”.
This revival came about as a result of what’s known in history as “The Second Great Awakening”. After Napoleon took the Pope prisoner in 1798 the political power of the Catholic Church was broken, though persecution had already been waning for decades. This combined with the failure of the French Revolution gave great confidence to Protestant Bible scholars. The Bible was no longer illegal for the common man to possess and people began studying it more earnestly as the various Bible societies spread God’s word.
This ‘Advent’ movement keyed in on Daniel 8:14 and the cleansing of the Sanctuary as we have discussed above. Daniel and the Revelation, page 635 elaborates further.
As early as 1831, William Miller, of Low Hampton, New York, by an earnest and consistent study of the prophecies, was led to the conclusion that the gospel age was near its close. He placed the termination, which he thought would occur at the end of the prophetic periods, about the year 1843. This date was afterward extended to the autumn of 1844. … When he began to promulgate his views, they met with general favor, and were followed by great religious awakenings in different parts of the land.
Soon a multitude of colaborers gathered around his standard, among whom may be mentioned such men as F. G. Brown, Charles Fitch, Josiah Litch, J. V. Himes, and others, who were then eminent for piety, and men of influence in the religious world. The period marked by the years 1840-1844 was one of intense activity and great progress in this work.
Now remember this happened when 1844 was still in the future. Their critical mistake came from the fact that they didn’t really know what the Sanctuary was and assumed its cleansing meant the end of the world when Jesus will return and cleanse the earth. As Uriah Smith discussed there was more than a year of approximate guesses that came and went from 1843 to 1844. The last possible day fro Jesus to return was October 22, 1844. (I’ll explain how they arrived at these dates in the next chapter.) When He didn’t come the event was written up in history as “The Great Disappointment”.
Why did revival go wrong? They were injecting their own opinions into the Bible rather than letting God’s word speak for itself. However the Lord knew this would happen. The cleansing reference of verse 14 is preceded by Daniel 8:13 “Then I heard a holy one speaking; and another holy one said to that certain one who was speaking, ‘How long will the vision be, concerning the daily sacrifices and the transgression of desolation, the giving of both the sanctuary and the host to be trampled under foot?’” Daniel 8:13 has two saints talking. It’s the second saint who is asking the first the question the question of when? The first saint answers the second only on that question of when. The second saint is left to learn the meaning through further study later. Though the first movement fell apart, those who were willing to hang on after being so broken and disappointed were given many great rewards. God worked in several ways to raise up a new movement. As this happened, those who studied their Bibles saying in their hearts ‘where did we go wrong?’ found many other important truths missing from the theology of the mainstream church of the day. These people found out the very truths we have discussed here among others.
They are now known as the Seventh-day Adventists. ‘Adventist’ from the understanding that Jesus will soon return to end this world and begin a new one and ‘Seventh-day’ from the Bible fact that the original Sabbath has never been changed in God’s eyes. Sunday is not the true Sabbath, but we’ll leave that discussion for another day.
Jesus gave us the truth when He came to earth the first time. Indeed as John 14:6 says, He is the “way, truth and the life”. The early church began with the benefit of that truth but soon fell away from it over the course of a few centuries. Then God worked again to bring His people out of the Dark Ages. First there was Martin Luther, the man we all owe our freedom to today. Then wave after wave of Reformers came along from the Baptists to Wesley and the Methodists, each one adding a piece as they were lead to study the Bible. Ultimately though, the 14th century mindset still had its influence.
The great religious awakening in the early part of the nineteenth century which resulted from a study of the prophecies, culminated in this advent movement. Men from all denominations were convinced that the coming of Christ was near. As they came out of the various churches, they left sectarian names and feelings behind, and every heart beat in unison as all joined to give the alarm to the churches and to the world, and pointed to the coming of the Son of man as the believer's true hope. Selfishness and covetousness were laid aside, and a spirit of consecration and sacrifice was cherished. The Spirit of God was with every true believer, and his praise upon every tongue. Those who were not in that movement cannot fully realize how great was the searching of heart, the consecration to God, the peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, and the pure, fervent love for one another which true believers enjoyed.
From The Great Controversy by Ellen White, page 611 “The advent movement of 1840-44 was a glorious manifestation of the power of God; the first angel's message was carried to every missionary station in the world, and in some countries there was the greatest religious interest which has been witnessed in any land since the Reformation of the sixteenth century”.
This revival came about as a result of what’s known in history as “The Second Great Awakening”. After Napoleon took the Pope prisoner in 1798 the political power of the Catholic Church was broken, though persecution had already been waning for decades. This combined with the failure of the French Revolution gave great confidence to Protestant Bible scholars. The Bible was no longer illegal for the common man to possess and people began studying it more earnestly as the various Bible societies spread God’s word.
This ‘Advent’ movement keyed in on Daniel 8:14 and the cleansing of the Sanctuary as we have discussed above. Daniel and the Revelation, page 635 elaborates further.
As early as 1831, William Miller, of Low Hampton, New York, by an earnest and consistent study of the prophecies, was led to the conclusion that the gospel age was near its close. He placed the termination, which he thought would occur at the end of the prophetic periods, about the year 1843. This date was afterward extended to the autumn of 1844. … When he began to promulgate his views, they met with general favor, and were followed by great religious awakenings in different parts of the land.
Soon a multitude of colaborers gathered around his standard, among whom may be mentioned such men as F. G. Brown, Charles Fitch, Josiah Litch, J. V. Himes, and others, who were then eminent for piety, and men of influence in the religious world. The period marked by the years 1840-1844 was one of intense activity and great progress in this work.
Now remember this happened when 1844 was still in the future. Their critical mistake came from the fact that they didn’t really know what the Sanctuary was and assumed its cleansing meant the end of the world when Jesus will return and cleanse the earth. As Uriah Smith discussed there was more than a year of approximate guesses that came and went from 1843 to 1844. The last possible day fro Jesus to return was October 22, 1844. (I’ll explain how they arrived at these dates in the next chapter.) When He didn’t come the event was written up in history as “The Great Disappointment”.
Why did revival go wrong? They were injecting their own opinions into the Bible rather than letting God’s word speak for itself. However the Lord knew this would happen. The cleansing reference of verse 14 is preceded by Daniel 8:13 “Then I heard a holy one speaking; and another holy one said to that certain one who was speaking, ‘How long will the vision be, concerning the daily sacrifices and the transgression of desolation, the giving of both the sanctuary and the host to be trampled under foot?’” Daniel 8:13 has two saints talking. It’s the second saint who is asking the first the question the question of when? The first saint answers the second only on that question of when. The second saint is left to learn the meaning through further study later. Though the first movement fell apart, those who were willing to hang on after being so broken and disappointed were given many great rewards. God worked in several ways to raise up a new movement. As this happened, those who studied their Bibles saying in their hearts ‘where did we go wrong?’ found many other important truths missing from the theology of the mainstream church of the day. These people found out the very truths we have discussed here among others.
They are now known as the Seventh-day Adventists. ‘Adventist’ from the understanding that Jesus will soon return to end this world and begin a new one and ‘Seventh-day’ from the Bible fact that the original Sabbath has never been changed in God’s eyes. Sunday is not the true Sabbath, but we’ll leave that discussion for another day.
Jesus gave us the truth when He came to earth the first time. Indeed as John 14:6 says, He is the “way, truth and the life”. The early church began with the benefit of that truth but soon fell away from it over the course of a few centuries. Then God worked again to bring His people out of the Dark Ages. First there was Martin Luther, the man we all owe our freedom to today. Then wave after wave of Reformers came along from the Baptists to Wesley and the Methodists, each one adding a piece as they were lead to study the Bible. Ultimately though, the 14th century mindset still had its influence.
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Job Learns What We All Must Final Post
THOUGH WE MAY THINK DIFFERENTLY, HE SHOWS THAT WE REALLY CAN DO NOTHING
Job 40:6-10 Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said: “Now prepare yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer Me: “Would you indeed annul My judgment? Would you condemn Me that you may be justified? Have you an arm like God? Or can you thunder with a voice like His? Then adorn yourself with majesty and splendor, and array yourself with glory and beauty.
We opened this chapter with 1 Timothy 6:16 which tells us God dwells in “unapproachable light”. Self-glorification is the principle behind the fashion industry where only those who have the latest are considered to be of any value. When people wear shiny pieces of metal or colored stones that reflect light (jewelry) they are trying to create a light of their own to dwell in. It’s also the reason people pierce themselves and get tattoos. They’re not satisfied with what God gave them and think they’re improving upon their appearance when really it’s a form of mutilation. The whole idea of “he who dies with the most toys wins” is another attempt at self-glorification. Any form of elitism, whether through business, education or culture is an attempt to say “I’m better than you” and therefore keeps with the principles of self-glorification the Lord balks at here. It’s possible to be a corporate Vice-President and still be humble, if you don’t think you’re worth more as a person because you’re not a garbage collector.
Job 40:11-13 deals with this idea a little further: “Disperse the rage of your wrath; Look on everyone who is proud, and humble him. Look on everyone who is proud, and bring him low; Tread down the wicked in their place. Hide them in the dust together, Bind their faces in hidden darkness.”
There are many ways humans attempt to deal with pride. Every attempt to defeat another person, whether it’s in something small like cutting someone off in traffic or something grand like a great war, all have one thing in common. Each is an attempt to bring down others. The thing that humans can’t understand unless they have surrendered their hearts to Jesus is that you don’t bring down pride with more pride. That doesn’t help. In a war the side that wins may have had God’s blessing, but no one has ever won a war without casualties. That’s because war is also a punishment for a nation’s sins.
Job 40:14 contains the most important words in the Lord’s challenge to Job: “Then I will also confess to you That your own right hand can save you.”
Here’s the way the first great king of western civilization, Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, put it in Daniel 4:34-37, “And at the end of the time I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and my understanding returned to me; and I blessed the Most High and praised and honored Him who lives forever: For His dominion is an everlasting dominion, And His kingdom is from generation to generation. All the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing; He does according to His will in the army of heaven And among the inhabitants of the earth. No one can restrain His hand Or say to Him, ‘What have You done?’ At the same time my reason returned to me, and for the glory of my kingdom, my honor and splendor returned to me. My counselors and nobles resorted to me, I was restored to my kingdom, and excellent majesty was added to me. Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, all of whose works are truth, and His ways justice. And those who walk in pride He is able to put down.”
This king actually wrote most of Daniel chapter 4. He was full of pride and took the credit for his achievements himself, so the Lord gave him seven years of insanity to teach him his real place in life. These words are the summary of the lesson he learned.
DO ANY OF US REALLY KNOW THE TRUE ANSWERS TO THESE QUESTIONS? LIKE NEBUCHADNEZZAR, JOB LEARNS WHAT WE ALL MUST!
Job 42:1-6 “Then Job answered the LORD and said: ‘I know that You can do everything, And that no purpose of Yours can be withheld from You. You asked, ‘”Who is this who hides counsel without knowledge?”’ ‘Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand, Things too wonderful for me, which I did not know. Listen, please, and let me speak;’ ‘You said, “I will question you, and you shall answer Me.”’ ‘I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, But now my eye sees You. Therefore I abhor myself, And repent in dust and ashes.’”
There’s no other way to say it, we need God. We’re not as smart as we may think we are. Even though life has gotten much easier with technology, technology itself will not create a heaven on earth for us. Marvin Moore wrote in “The Coming Great Calamity”, page 11 “This secular, scientific mindset has dominated Western culture during my lifetime and the lifetime of my parents and grandparents. Most people would probably feel comfortable with the idea that it reached its peak during the middle of the twentieth century with the exploding of the atomic bomb over Japan in 1945 and the Apollo moon landing in 1969.”
After between 100 and 150 years of trying to create a heaven on earth through our own endeavours, the culmination of this was in those two great achievements. As discussed in chapter one, humanity thinks it can embrace the ultimate power of destruction and take its place in the universe back again. What’s fascinating is that many of the grandchildren of those who were adults at the time of the moon landing don’t even believe it really happened. There is also a great deal of significance to that fact. We’ll look at the issue next.
Job 40:6-10 Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said: “Now prepare yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer Me: “Would you indeed annul My judgment? Would you condemn Me that you may be justified? Have you an arm like God? Or can you thunder with a voice like His? Then adorn yourself with majesty and splendor, and array yourself with glory and beauty.
We opened this chapter with 1 Timothy 6:16 which tells us God dwells in “unapproachable light”. Self-glorification is the principle behind the fashion industry where only those who have the latest are considered to be of any value. When people wear shiny pieces of metal or colored stones that reflect light (jewelry) they are trying to create a light of their own to dwell in. It’s also the reason people pierce themselves and get tattoos. They’re not satisfied with what God gave them and think they’re improving upon their appearance when really it’s a form of mutilation. The whole idea of “he who dies with the most toys wins” is another attempt at self-glorification. Any form of elitism, whether through business, education or culture is an attempt to say “I’m better than you” and therefore keeps with the principles of self-glorification the Lord balks at here. It’s possible to be a corporate Vice-President and still be humble, if you don’t think you’re worth more as a person because you’re not a garbage collector.
Job 40:11-13 deals with this idea a little further: “Disperse the rage of your wrath; Look on everyone who is proud, and humble him. Look on everyone who is proud, and bring him low; Tread down the wicked in their place. Hide them in the dust together, Bind their faces in hidden darkness.”
There are many ways humans attempt to deal with pride. Every attempt to defeat another person, whether it’s in something small like cutting someone off in traffic or something grand like a great war, all have one thing in common. Each is an attempt to bring down others. The thing that humans can’t understand unless they have surrendered their hearts to Jesus is that you don’t bring down pride with more pride. That doesn’t help. In a war the side that wins may have had God’s blessing, but no one has ever won a war without casualties. That’s because war is also a punishment for a nation’s sins.
Job 40:14 contains the most important words in the Lord’s challenge to Job: “Then I will also confess to you That your own right hand can save you.”
Here’s the way the first great king of western civilization, Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, put it in Daniel 4:34-37, “And at the end of the time I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and my understanding returned to me; and I blessed the Most High and praised and honored Him who lives forever: For His dominion is an everlasting dominion, And His kingdom is from generation to generation. All the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing; He does according to His will in the army of heaven And among the inhabitants of the earth. No one can restrain His hand Or say to Him, ‘What have You done?’ At the same time my reason returned to me, and for the glory of my kingdom, my honor and splendor returned to me. My counselors and nobles resorted to me, I was restored to my kingdom, and excellent majesty was added to me. Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, all of whose works are truth, and His ways justice. And those who walk in pride He is able to put down.”
This king actually wrote most of Daniel chapter 4. He was full of pride and took the credit for his achievements himself, so the Lord gave him seven years of insanity to teach him his real place in life. These words are the summary of the lesson he learned.
DO ANY OF US REALLY KNOW THE TRUE ANSWERS TO THESE QUESTIONS? LIKE NEBUCHADNEZZAR, JOB LEARNS WHAT WE ALL MUST!
Job 42:1-6 “Then Job answered the LORD and said: ‘I know that You can do everything, And that no purpose of Yours can be withheld from You. You asked, ‘”Who is this who hides counsel without knowledge?”’ ‘Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand, Things too wonderful for me, which I did not know. Listen, please, and let me speak;’ ‘You said, “I will question you, and you shall answer Me.”’ ‘I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, But now my eye sees You. Therefore I abhor myself, And repent in dust and ashes.’”
There’s no other way to say it, we need God. We’re not as smart as we may think we are. Even though life has gotten much easier with technology, technology itself will not create a heaven on earth for us. Marvin Moore wrote in “The Coming Great Calamity”, page 11 “This secular, scientific mindset has dominated Western culture during my lifetime and the lifetime of my parents and grandparents. Most people would probably feel comfortable with the idea that it reached its peak during the middle of the twentieth century with the exploding of the atomic bomb over Japan in 1945 and the Apollo moon landing in 1969.”
After between 100 and 150 years of trying to create a heaven on earth through our own endeavours, the culmination of this was in those two great achievements. As discussed in chapter one, humanity thinks it can embrace the ultimate power of destruction and take its place in the universe back again. What’s fascinating is that many of the grandchildren of those who were adults at the time of the moon landing don’t even believe it really happened. There is also a great deal of significance to that fact. We’ll look at the issue next.
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Science Fiction and the Meaning of Our Modern Age Post One
Welcome to "SCIENCE, THE BIBLE AND LIFE ON OTHER PLANETS" the contents of a book examining issues between faith and our modern values. Each chapter will be divided into 3 or 4 posts of about a page and a half each. May all who read this be challenged to think in new ways and experience personal growth because of it.
Sincerely, Les Miller "Mr. Les"
The blog will be divided into 10 chapters, each one sub-divided into 3 or 4 posts, about a page and a half each. The contents are as follows:
TRANSLUCITE
SCIENCE FICTION AND THE MEANING OF OUR MODERN AGE
BIBLE PROOF THERE’S LIFE ON OTHER PLANETS
JOB LEARNED WHAT WE ALL MUST
OF COURSE THEY LANDED ON THE MOON
WHY HAVEN’T THEY GONE BACK?
THE (NOT SO) SECRET KEYS THAT UNLOCK THE REAL TRUTH
JOHN 3:16 IN DEPTH
MR. SPIELBERG HAVE I GOT A SCRIPT FOR YOU
EPILOGUE “THE TRUTH IS OUT THERE
SCIENCE FICTION AND THE MEANING OF OUR MODERN AGE
For centuries Western civilization operated under a worldview thought to be Christian and Bible based. That is with the earth as pretty much the only physical place, a mysterious world above called Heaven, and another below called Hell. You went to one or the other as a ghost as soon as you died. There were of course five other planets and the constellations that could be seen with the naked eye, but very little was know about them. They and the sun itself were said to revolve around the earth in perfect circles. As society developed and our knowledge base expanded in the last 500 years, we have a very firm grasp on many scientific truths and now know we are a small part of a vast universe. Astronomers have actually identified about 300 planets that revolve around other stars. However not one person gazing into the night sky has ever reported seeing a ghost or an angel anywhere in outer space. Is all this somehow incompatible with the Bible?
There are many today who live in the 21st century all week with its worldview of planets, science and modernism; but then go back to the 1400’s for an hour on Sunday morning (or whenever they open their Bibles) without even realizing it. No wonder massive numbers of their children gradually lost interest in spiritual things over the past few generations. How many millions today have rejected the Bible because of this? How many will tell you that Christianity does not pass the test of critical thinking? Critical thinking is not something Christians need to be afraid of. This is totally unnecessary.
You may have heard the story of Galileo versus the Catholic Church used as evidence to support today’s rejection of God and the Bible. I still remember my Junior High School science teacher telling the class Copernicus’ and Galileo’s story and then saying it was Isaac Newton who set modern science on its firm foundation afterward. What the teacher didn’t say was how Newton was able to do that. Newton lived in a Protestant country that valued knowledge and truth and that during his time persecution was waning within Christendom. I learned later as a Christian that Newton wrote more on theology than on science and that his insights on the timing of the judgement coincide well with what we’ll be looking at a little later in this book.
There were others in Galileo’s time that did not become as famous as he is now because they were not persecuted the same way he was. Johannes Kepler stands out as a prime example. He lived in Germany, which had been under the influence of Martin Luther for about 100 years. Kepler was the one who figured out that planets actually orbit in ellipses, not circles. Even Galileo himself had not accepted this.
“Galileo was famous in other fields besides astronomy … but he has come down in history particularly for two … events. When he used his telescope on the heavens, he made a number of classic observations. He observed the mountains and craters on the moon, and he remarked upon the four satellites, or ‘moons’ of Jupiter. It was, however, his discovery that the planet Venus has phases like the moon which was destined to strike the death-blow to the … belief that the earth was at the centre of all things. … Galileo’s second claim to a place in history derives from his championship of the heliocentric theory, against the bitter opposition of the Church” (“Astronomy for Beginners” by Henry S Brinton F.R.A.S., pages 19-22). “The age old idea that the earth was the centre of the universe was beginning to be shaken at last. … Strangely, at least to modern ears, the idea that the earth, which is God’s creation, should not be at the centre of all things, was offensive to the Church” (page 18).
What people have forgotten today is that the Dark Ages were a spiritual as well as an intellectual darkness. The truths of the Bible were just as much kept from the people as was science and art. The science of the Dark Ages did not come from God’s Word. If common people were able to read their Bibles, which the Catholic Church did not allow at the time, they would have seen that scientists like Galileo were not challenging truth at all.
It wasn’t until 1633 that Galileo was put on trial by the Church for the scientific conclusions in his book “Dialogue on the Great World Systems, Ptolemaic and Copernican”. However, he had other troubles beforehand. “Although his theories were correct, and he proved them by experiments and demonstrations, Galileo was dismissed from his position at the University of Pisa in 1591. He had aroused the suspicion of his colleagues by his constant attacks on the dearly held, but erroneous physical theories of Aristotle” (“Giants of Science”, pages 34 -35 emphasis supplied). There you have it; they got their science from Aristotle and not God’s word. And! He wasn’t just persecuted by the Church, but also by his peers, the same kind of people who now hail him as a great champion of truth. They just didn’t have the power of life and death in the form of the Inquisition. Human nature being the same then as it is today; most people took their leaders at their word and put their faith in long held traditions whether they were really true or not. Will we soon discover that indeed most today are doing the same thing; they believe what they believe because they were told to?
“In fall 1980, Pope John Paul II ordered a new look at evidence in Galileo's trial. In 1992 came acquittal. But the basic conflict between established religion and modern science is still being played out” (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/horizon/sept98/galileo.htm). “He was censured by the church and kept from teaching his views because his proofs were inadequate. The case was closed in his favor in 1992” (The “Rose Book of Bible Charts, Maps and Timelines”, page 43). Since the Church maintains the doctrine of papal infallibility, she could not admit any real fault. In all the years I’ve ever read anything on this subject, this was the first time I ever saw any quote that didn’t treat Galileo like a great hero. Where exactly his “inadequate” proofs were I do not know. What I do know is that there is quite a bit of what we call modern science that does come from the Bible.
Sincerely, Les Miller "Mr. Les"
The blog will be divided into 10 chapters, each one sub-divided into 3 or 4 posts, about a page and a half each. The contents are as follows:
TRANSLUCITE
SCIENCE FICTION AND THE MEANING OF OUR MODERN AGE
BIBLE PROOF THERE’S LIFE ON OTHER PLANETS
JOB LEARNED WHAT WE ALL MUST
OF COURSE THEY LANDED ON THE MOON
WHY HAVEN’T THEY GONE BACK?
THE (NOT SO) SECRET KEYS THAT UNLOCK THE REAL TRUTH
JOHN 3:16 IN DEPTH
MR. SPIELBERG HAVE I GOT A SCRIPT FOR YOU
EPILOGUE “THE TRUTH IS OUT THERE
SCIENCE FICTION AND THE MEANING OF OUR MODERN AGE
For centuries Western civilization operated under a worldview thought to be Christian and Bible based. That is with the earth as pretty much the only physical place, a mysterious world above called Heaven, and another below called Hell. You went to one or the other as a ghost as soon as you died. There were of course five other planets and the constellations that could be seen with the naked eye, but very little was know about them. They and the sun itself were said to revolve around the earth in perfect circles. As society developed and our knowledge base expanded in the last 500 years, we have a very firm grasp on many scientific truths and now know we are a small part of a vast universe. Astronomers have actually identified about 300 planets that revolve around other stars. However not one person gazing into the night sky has ever reported seeing a ghost or an angel anywhere in outer space. Is all this somehow incompatible with the Bible?
There are many today who live in the 21st century all week with its worldview of planets, science and modernism; but then go back to the 1400’s for an hour on Sunday morning (or whenever they open their Bibles) without even realizing it. No wonder massive numbers of their children gradually lost interest in spiritual things over the past few generations. How many millions today have rejected the Bible because of this? How many will tell you that Christianity does not pass the test of critical thinking? Critical thinking is not something Christians need to be afraid of. This is totally unnecessary.
You may have heard the story of Galileo versus the Catholic Church used as evidence to support today’s rejection of God and the Bible. I still remember my Junior High School science teacher telling the class Copernicus’ and Galileo’s story and then saying it was Isaac Newton who set modern science on its firm foundation afterward. What the teacher didn’t say was how Newton was able to do that. Newton lived in a Protestant country that valued knowledge and truth and that during his time persecution was waning within Christendom. I learned later as a Christian that Newton wrote more on theology than on science and that his insights on the timing of the judgement coincide well with what we’ll be looking at a little later in this book.
There were others in Galileo’s time that did not become as famous as he is now because they were not persecuted the same way he was. Johannes Kepler stands out as a prime example. He lived in Germany, which had been under the influence of Martin Luther for about 100 years. Kepler was the one who figured out that planets actually orbit in ellipses, not circles. Even Galileo himself had not accepted this.
“Galileo was famous in other fields besides astronomy … but he has come down in history particularly for two … events. When he used his telescope on the heavens, he made a number of classic observations. He observed the mountains and craters on the moon, and he remarked upon the four satellites, or ‘moons’ of Jupiter. It was, however, his discovery that the planet Venus has phases like the moon which was destined to strike the death-blow to the … belief that the earth was at the centre of all things. … Galileo’s second claim to a place in history derives from his championship of the heliocentric theory, against the bitter opposition of the Church” (“Astronomy for Beginners” by Henry S Brinton F.R.A.S., pages 19-22). “The age old idea that the earth was the centre of the universe was beginning to be shaken at last. … Strangely, at least to modern ears, the idea that the earth, which is God’s creation, should not be at the centre of all things, was offensive to the Church” (page 18).
What people have forgotten today is that the Dark Ages were a spiritual as well as an intellectual darkness. The truths of the Bible were just as much kept from the people as was science and art. The science of the Dark Ages did not come from God’s Word. If common people were able to read their Bibles, which the Catholic Church did not allow at the time, they would have seen that scientists like Galileo were not challenging truth at all.
It wasn’t until 1633 that Galileo was put on trial by the Church for the scientific conclusions in his book “Dialogue on the Great World Systems, Ptolemaic and Copernican”. However, he had other troubles beforehand. “Although his theories were correct, and he proved them by experiments and demonstrations, Galileo was dismissed from his position at the University of Pisa in 1591. He had aroused the suspicion of his colleagues by his constant attacks on the dearly held, but erroneous physical theories of Aristotle” (“Giants of Science”, pages 34 -35 emphasis supplied). There you have it; they got their science from Aristotle and not God’s word. And! He wasn’t just persecuted by the Church, but also by his peers, the same kind of people who now hail him as a great champion of truth. They just didn’t have the power of life and death in the form of the Inquisition. Human nature being the same then as it is today; most people took their leaders at their word and put their faith in long held traditions whether they were really true or not. Will we soon discover that indeed most today are doing the same thing; they believe what they believe because they were told to?
“In fall 1980, Pope John Paul II ordered a new look at evidence in Galileo's trial. In 1992 came acquittal. But the basic conflict between established religion and modern science is still being played out” (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/horizon/sept98/galileo.htm). “He was censured by the church and kept from teaching his views because his proofs were inadequate. The case was closed in his favor in 1992” (The “Rose Book of Bible Charts, Maps and Timelines”, page 43). Since the Church maintains the doctrine of papal infallibility, she could not admit any real fault. In all the years I’ve ever read anything on this subject, this was the first time I ever saw any quote that didn’t treat Galileo like a great hero. Where exactly his “inadequate” proofs were I do not know. What I do know is that there is quite a bit of what we call modern science that does come from the Bible.
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