Biblical Creation and Evangelism

Although other cultures have harvest festivals and days of thanks, but Thanksgiving Day has distinctly Christian origins. Canada has Thanksgiving on the second Monday of October, and there are similarities as well as differences between the two. Due to ungrateful hearts and secularization, many Americans have mainly forgotten the reason for this holiday. Visions of feasting, football, and naps followed by a frantic day of shopping on Friday by the financially blessed tend to crowd its origin from our thoughts. We need to examine our history and priorities. Unsplash / Kiy Turk Many people know about the 1621 observance in Plymouth, Massachusetts. It did not establish an annual day of thanks. In fact, there were other times when it was occasioned and the date was not established until President Franklin D. Roosevelt moved it to its present time slot in 1939. Retailers wanted more shopping days before Christmas, but at least FDR remembered that Thanksgiving Day was set up to give honor t

For a very long time, people accepted the genealogies in Genesis as accurate chronologies: chronogenealogies. After Christians began ceding science to secularists with the advent of deep time and Darwinism, excuses were found to deny their accuracy. There are many problems with this, including casting doubt on God's preservation of Scripture, his care for us, trusting Jesus, and a tacit denial of the truth of God's Word from the beginning. People have lost sight of the purposes of the genealogies. Unsplash / Priscilla Du Preez On a somewhat side note, someone was hawking his book about leaving atheism and coming to Christ. Since he is in the flaming liberal United Methodist denomination (in which I was raised and my father was a pastor for fifty years), I suspect he has some serious theology problems. His reaction to my comment says a great deal: It's unfortunate that you think only those who follow your unorthodox, recently cult derived interpretation of the Bible can clai

This is a title I never thought I would use. A recent post on Twitter asked what you would say to a stranger on the street, but that is not usually the best approach. When it comes to apologetics, Christians and creationists who are informed on their subjects use analogies and other things as springboards. Indeed, I have referred to Stargate SG-1 , and used Star Trek:TNG  as inspirations for creation articles. Augustine probably never made a pickle analogy (apologies to  Pietro Perugino ) Sometimes when watching a show, I will remark to my wife about how something we are seeing was designed by our Creator. In conversations, people like to have something in common or relatable. The discussion can move into more important subjects. I was surprised that a kosher dill pickle can be used to make four points about creation and in evangelism. Food, even dill pickles, can provide relevant insights for creation apologetics. Since November 14th is National Pickle Day, this is a good time to cons

by Cowboy Bob Sorensen  Some of us have been trying mighty hard to encourage folks to use the minds the good Lord gave us, but it gets mighty frustrating sometimes. Perhaps everyone believes a news report, rumor, or something else immediately, without checking on it, sometime or other. Ofttimes, there is an emotional element involved that contributes to confirmation bias  or prejudice. I have seen many times that atheists believe something against Christians, no matter how absurd, because of their bigotry. We expect that. But when Christians believe and spread stupid things, it is embarrassing. Pixabay /  Mark Hultgren Some of y'all may have noticed that I've written on similar subjects before, such as young Albert Einstein putting an atheist teacher in his place (just a story with no substantiation). Recently, I saw on an atheist troll Page on Fazebook (they share posts of Christians and creationists for the purpose of mockery) that a Christian Page has shared the story of the

by Cowboy Bob Sorensen  In Part 1 , we looked at how paranormal activities are on the increase, and much of it appears to be documented in videos. While many on YouTube say they are for entertainment, many are treated as if they were factual. There are many reasons to reject them. The reasons include suspicious presentations, video qualities, and circumstances. Also involved are mistakes and faulty reasoning on the part of the presenters as well as those who comment. Today, we will look at reasons to take some of them seriously. More importantly, we'll look at the spirit behind them. Modified from an image by Pete Linforth [ 42 ] on Pixabay Reasons to Consider the Videos It must be terribly frustrating and disheartening to have an experience and catch it on video (decent cameras on smartphones and elsewhere are  so  common), then have people poke holes in it. Although a passel of allegedly supernatural videos are fake, what is a sincere person to do? They  know  what they experienc

by Cowboy Bob Sorensen Since this article is long, it is also available as a PDF to view or download here . There have been numerous reports of supernatural activities throughout most of recorded history, but most have been laughed off. Many can be dismissed as the result of hysteria, imagination, mental illness, hoaxes, double exposures in old photographs, and more. Nobody believes in ghosts or other spirits today because we are rational people, right? Not hardly! Interest in the paranormal has been on the rise, and even some professing atheists express belief [ 1 ]. With modern recording techniques, videos are plentiful. Unsplash / Zachary Kandolph [ 2 ] (modified) People have said that TikTok itself is demonic because there are so many spooky videos recorded with it. I disagree. Smartphones and apps are ubiquitous, and apparently that one is easy to use. What we are seeing is not a demonic app, but a reflection of the increase in supernatural activity on Earth. I have spent a great

As many Bible-believing Christians know, there is a disdain for the authority of the Word of God. This is to be expected from unbelievers, as they are blinded to spiritual truth. Sadly, many professing Christians also downplay the importance of Scripture. As Christians, the Bible is the foundation of our thinking in every area — or should  be. It is true from the very first verse, and Genesis is the source of all major Christian doctrines . The Bible is the source of real knowledge and wisdom. Unsplash / Priscilla Du Preez Some owlhoots have a problem with the biblical authority and the source of wisdom, and they misrepresent biblical creationists for believing those things. Part of the difficulty comes from definitions. Connotations, really. In the eyes of God, atheists are fools (Psalm 14:1). The word fool, נָבָל ( nabal ), means a vile person, and is not necessarily that someone is stupid. However, the noetic effect of sin  means that sin infects all areas, including the thinking pr

It is common to take a stroll in a wooded area and encounter critters, which often scamper away. Others freeze in place as a defense, or possibly doing threat assessment. They usually want to get away from us. Animals have fear of us and of each other.  Our apartment is on the second floor of three. Lots of trees in the area. Squirrels show no fear in leaping up onto our porch, but when we go outside, they run off.  Wikimedia Commons /  Jineshpanchal  ( CC BY-SA 4.0 ) One was on the porch when a big hawk landed on the railing. That's never happened before. The rodent froze in terror and just laid there. The hawk just looked at it, probably not hungry at the moment. If we had gone to the sliding glass door, I lack belief either would have stayed put. Even domestic animals show fear of humans, including pets around strangers. Animals that have gone feral or never knew human contact are in touch with their inner wildness. It takes a mighty long time to make friends with a feral animal

Secularists often say science and faith are not compatible, which is usually accompanied by misrepresentations of faith and then ridicule. Professing atheists furiously defend minerals-to-microbiologist evolution, which is foundational to their religion. Theistic evolutionists promote atheistic interpretations of science philosophies above biblical truth. A major organization for TEs is BioLogos, which is famous for misrepresenting and belittling biblical creationists. Like cultists, they occasionally have elements of truth in what they say. This happened in their article on trusting scientific experts. Although the BioLogos article had grains of truth, it had serious errors from the start. There were also inconsistencies and contradictions. Biblical creationists do not advocate denial of science, but we do encourage discretion. Scientific "facts" change. (The proponents of "follow the science" cite the secular science industry where it has promoted biological impos

by Cowboy Bob Sorensen  First, a note for anyone who is curious. The usual format: introduction with some of my thoughts plus links for useful information, excerpts of featured articles, then links to keep reading. I put my name on it and call it an article when I have more to say. This one will be different. I will reference older articles, then add some thoughts that I hope will prove helpful. There is more following the excerpt and link. So, does anyone remember Ken Keathley? Medal image manufactured at Custom Medal Maker Several years ago, Ken Keathley renounced young earth creationism to accept an old earth view. Apparently, he was disappointed by people in the young earth community. No kidding? Taking Friendly Fire This is where I'm going to open up and get personal with both of my readers. Ken Keathley is not the only one who has been disappointed, and in addition, I've been deeply hurt by the young earth community. Things I have posted on social(ist) media have been &qu

The Bible has been restricted and even illegal in many countries , especially those controlled by atheists or Islamists. China and North Korea have state atheism, as did the former Soviet Union and other communist countries. Obtaining a Bible in many Mohammedan countries is done through covert means. Christian persecution is increasing in the West. There are several reasons for this, including apathetic professing Christians, trends in the world, and allowing ourselves to be kept in a box. Militant atheists are increasingly vitriolic in their efforts to legislate (and ridicule) Bible-believing Christians. Unsplash / James Coleman Romania is one of the places that was in the Soviet bloc, so naturally they pushed evolution and atheism. Richard Wurmbrand was an atheist, became a Christian and a pastor, then was heavily persecuted for his faith. In his 1967 book Tortured for Christ , he wrote: The cruelty of atheism is hard to believe. When a man has no faith in the reward of good or the

The article featured below makes a couple of points, both of which are important to Christians. Apologists and those who value rational thinking should take note of them. One is a common error in logic called appeal to authority . The other important point extends from the first: old Earth compromisers claim that Augustine and other church fathers were "on their side", and people just assume that they are being truthful. People who want the facts can check things out nowadays. Original image: St Augustine in his Study , Sandro Botticelli, 1490 Don't be disunderstanding me here, citing authorities in their areas is necessary. It becomes fallacious when there's an emotional component that is manipulative. Also, getting an opinion from someone who is unskilled in an area is a fallacy, such as quoting Clinton Richard Dawkins, an angry atheist, on matters of theology. Referring to him on zoology or animal behavior might be more accurate. Matt Slick of CARM says, "My