The debate over creation and the existence of God
Ξ September 24th, 2007 | → 0 Comments | ∇ My thoughts on... |
Does God exist? Was the universe created or did it somehow form all on its own?
Every debate over these two questions that I have ever witnessed has always left me scratching my head, wondering what on earth the “God doesn’t exist” and “Big bang” theorists base their beliefs upon. Regardless of which side of the debate you happen to be on, your beliefs must require at least some amount of ”faith in things unseen”. Allow me to explain, and I’ll begin with a look at the “faith” of those who believe that there is no God…
Non-believers hold fast to the notion that the Genesis account of creation is pure fiction. Instead, they believe that the universe and everything in it was created when a giant ball of matter exploded, flinging gases and bits and pieces of rocks and metals out into the void where they eventually coalesced due to gravitational attraction into stars, planets and galaxies.
They further believe that the earth just happened to end up by pure chance at exactly the right distance from one of those stars (our sun) to allow the “creation and evolution of life”. According to the prevailing theory, this process began with single-cell organisms forming from the various chemicals found in some “primordial soup”. These single-cell organisms eventually “evolved” into slightly more complex organisms - which eventually evolved into slightly more complex organisms… and this process allegedly occurred over millions of years until man finally evolved from the apes.
Now, let’s take a look at the problems with these theories…
First of all, if all of the matter that is currently found in the universe began as one giant ball of “stuff”, the density of that ball would have surely been so great that it would have been nothing but a gigantic “black hole”. As any 4th grade science student can tell you, a black hole is an object that is so massive that its gravity prevents anything and everything from escaping, including light - hence the name. Therefore, by definition, it would have been literally impossible for this massive object to explode and spew anything at all out into the void. With an object of that mass, there could have been no explosion strong enough to cause matter to break free of the strongest gravitational pull the universe has ever known.
But let’s assume for a moment that the “big bang” somehow ignored the law of gravity and happened anyway. It would still mean that the process of evolution would have to have started with the formation of that magical single-cell organism in the middle of that primordial soup. Never mind the fact that scientists have been trying to “create life” in a laboratory setting for decades now, and with absolutely no success. Regardless of the chemicals mixed, the temperatures used and the electric stimulation applied, with all of their knowledge and space-age equipment, not one single living organism has ever been created from scratch by human scientists. And yet they actually believe that the process happened by pure chance, all on its own? Now that’s one huge leap of faith!
But let’s assume for a moment that it did…
There is absolutely zero hard evidence that any organism has ever evolved into another species. All we have are fossil records which prove that millions of different species of animal life have existed in various places at various times since the world began, but in all the millennia of human existence no person has ever witnessed the evolution of even one species into another. And with thousands of years of observing millions of organisms, you would think that someone along the way would have witnessed such an apparently frequent occurrence.
Now let’s take a look at creation from the point of view of a believer…
The rest of us believe that an all-powerful being - God - created the universe and everything in it, and the process didn’t take millions of years as the scientists believe. In fact, it took a mere six days! How is that possible you say? Because all God had to do was speak, and something was created or altered to suit his desires. Hard to believe you say? Actually, if you think about it with an open mind, believing in a Creator requires much less of a leap of faith than not believing in one. The existence of a Creator explains everything that cannot be explained - or is simply impossible under the laws of physics and nature - without one.
After all, where did that gigantic ball of matter that forms the basis of the “big bang” theory come from in the first place? Had it always existed, and all of a sudden it decided to blow up? Was it “created”? The answer is neither. If you understand and believe in the laws of physics (and surely every good scientist must), if that big ball of matter ever existed it would still be there - and the universe as we know it wouldn’t.
On the other hand, by definition an all-powerful God can do anything He wishes, including create the laws of nature and physics - and then “break” them at His pleasure. Neither man nor nature itself holds the power to break those “laws”, therefore the creation of the universe happened just as described in Genesis. To believe otherwise would literally require one to believe in the impossible.
“In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” –Genesis 1:1
“Amazing Grace”
Ξ September 20th, 2007 | → 0 Comments | ∇ My thoughts on... |
If I had to pick the one gospel song that best describes the essence of our Christian faith, it would have to be “Amazing Grace“. I grew up hearing and singing this wonderful old hymn, and I still love it to this day. The soothing melody and humbling, reverent lyrics always seem to lift my spirits when I’m feeling down, and I often catch myself singing or humming them throughout the day.
Although it’s a relatively short song, “Amazing Grace” clearly and succinctly describes the tremendous love and tender mercy that our Heavenly Father has bestowed upon each and every one of us through the sacrifice of His only Son: our wonderful Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. There is no greater gift than the gift of salvation and no deeper love than that of our God for His children, and the lyrics to this wonderful old hymn describe that gift and love in a way that plants an image of true peace and serenity within a Christian’s heart.
One day we’ll all stand before the ultimate judge, Jesus Christ, who will look to see if our names are written in the “Book of Life”. If you know that your name will be found written there, you can sing “Amazing Grace” with a joyful heart and look forward to the day when “We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise, than when we’ve first begun“.
“No Child Left Behind”
Ξ September 18th, 2007 | → 0 Comments | ∇ My thoughts on... |
On a conceptual level, President Bush’s “No Child Left Behind” program is a wonderful idea, but in my opinion the way it is being implemented has turned it into an absolute disaster. A huge chunk of the school year is currently used for “teaching to the test”. In other words, the students are “spoon-fed” with the bare facts needed in order to pass their SOL’s. All other topics are typically forbidden because they “aren’t on the SOL”.
The academic success or failure of a child - in fact success and failure in life - depends on a lot more than simply memorizing basic facts. In order to truly learn and grow as a person, a kid must be taught how to think things through, solve problems and ask intelligent questions. Gifted students should be encouraged to learn at a faster pace than the rest of the class and not be “held back” by teachers who are virtually obligated by federal law to teach the entire class at the same level and pace: barely enough to pass the standardized SOL test.
And “No Child Left Behind” is just as bad for the slower learners in a classroom as it is for the gifted ones. All children learn at their own natural pace, and when the curriculum is set at a level where even the slowest learners can pass the SOL after weeks of repetitious study, they are never encouraged to “push themselves” in order to reach their maximum potential. As a result, we’re turning out graduates these days who can barely read or write and possess little or no ability to think through a problem and arrive at the best possible solution.
The classroom should be a place of exploration, an environment that encourages kids to mature and grow intellectually by stimulating their brains and imaginations, but under “No Child Left Behind” the classrooms of today are doing just the opposite. What President Bush had in mind was a way of helping all students succeed in school and in life, but its current implementation is resulting in the “dumbing down” of our kids. They and our country deserve a lot better.
Cool, Refreshing Rain
Ξ September 11th, 2007 | → 0 Comments | ∇ My thoughts on... |
It rained for much of the day here in southwestern Virginia, refreshing the landscape along with our souls after an August and early September with afternoon temperatures that hovered around 95 degrees each and every day. And adding insult to injury, 2007 has been one of the driest years on record thus far.
It seems that lots of folks just love to grumble about the weather, regardless of what it’s like on any given day. For example, I had to run out to the store a little while ago, and while I was there I overheard a lady complaining to another about how the “sorry rain” had “ruined her entire day”. My guess is that that same lady was complaining about the stifling heat just a couple of days ago.
I guess it’s just human nature to whine and complain at times, and I have to admit that I’m just as guilty of it as anyone else. But how anyone in my neck of the woods could view today’s refreshing rains as anything less than gifts from God is beyond me.
Hopefully the wetter (and cooler) weather will continue for a few days, giving the depleted water table a chance to get back to somewhere near normal and the grass a chance to turn green again. We’re already seeing signs of another less than spectacular autumn with many of the leaves turning brown and falling from the trees prematurely, but hopefully a little moisture can help turn that around. The hills and hollers of the middle Appalachians boast some of the most magnificent fall colors in all the world, and I would love to get some nice pictures come October.
Remember the old saying “Rain, rain, go away, come again another day!”? Well, with any luck this week will have a few of those “another days” in it!
“Laying Up Treasures”
Ξ September 1st, 2007 | → 1 Comments | ∇ My thoughts on... |
For many people life is all about accumulating stuff - that is, “laying up treasures”. They spend each and every day working and/or going deeper into debt in order to buy a bigger house, a more expensive car, a boat or some other much-desired worldly possession, all the while failing to realize that God has already given them the two most precious treasures they will ever attain: life itself and the gift of salvation.
Of course there are certain things that folks need in order to live a comfortable life here on earth, but a lot of the “things” we work so hard to pay for are actually little more than status symbols. For example, no one really needs a 25 million dollar house, a 50,000 acre “ranch” or an entire fleet of personal automobiles, but there are super-rich people who own them. And then you have the “middle class” with many of its members struggling just to make the minimum payments on their credit accounts while dreaming about getting their hands on the latest gadget simply because the neighbor down the street has one.
For all too many, life is a vicious cycle: Work long and hard to accrue more “things”, and then work longer and harder to “pay them off”. But it doesn’t have to be that way…
The wise among us realize that the treasures that matter the most cannot be bought or sold. When it comes right down to it, the only real treasures we have down here are our own lives, the lives and love of our family and friends, and of course the greatest treasure of all: the precious gift of salvation that our beloved Saviour Jesus Christ has made freely available to anyone who is willing to accept it. I believe we would all be much happier if we slowed down a bit and took the time to enjoy the treasures that God has already blessed us with.
