ED ROSS
From Ed Ross' Timbrel & Dance Weekly Publication
The Bible, Creation, and Science
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Genesis 1:1
And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day. Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. Genesis 1:31-2:1
By the word of the LORD were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth. Psalm 33:6
The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows his handiwork. Day unto day utters speech, and night unto night shows knowledge. There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard. Psalm 19:1-3
The fact of creation by Divine fiat is fundamental to all Biblical understanding. The nature and purpose of man, the entrance of sin into the human race and its consequences, and the promise of redemption through a promised Seed are foundational to the Gospel, and these all rest upon the veracity of the Biblical account of creation. Tamper with the inspired record, and despite claims to the contrary, the Gospel itself begins to unravel. It is inexcusable that so many “masters in Zion” have allowed the deceptions of humanistic evolutionary theories to become embedded in the Cannons of Christ. Forsaking the infallible authority of the inspired Word, they have become intimidated by the pseudo-wisdom of this world, and embarrassed by the foolishness of God (1 Cor 1:25); and so they have gone scrambling to come up with clever schemes to press God’s Word into the mold of corrupted earthen vessels. Professing themselves wise, they have become fools (Rom 1:22).
How ironic that it is the knowledge of the direct creation by God of all that exists that forms the solid foundation of modern science. Thereby man could observe nature with a presuppositional certainty that he will find intelligent order and design at every juncture. The scientific method that emerged demands that all hypotheses, having been built upon the observations of natural order, must then be proved by replication of the expected results. The integrity of science rests upon a persistent, objective effort to disprove a hypothesis; and only after withstanding the rigorous assault of the facts can the hypothesis be accepted.
The advent of evolution soon turned the scientific method on its ear. Once one became mentally convinced (individually or collectively) of the validity (or value) of a particular theory, he then sets out to find “supporting evidence.” Like bad theologians, the process becomes much more one of eisegesis than exegesis. The particular theory (e.g. Man-caused Global Warming) becomes much too useful and important to let any facts get in the way. The scientific conviction of aggressively and objectively trying to disprove a theory in order to validate it is lost.
And so the imaginations of men’s own hearts are declared to be indisputable fact; and soon they are integrated into every discipline of education. Today, no subject is taught in our public schools without a heavy dose of indoctrination in socio-politically-correct “science” - a favorite tool of elitist social engineers.
The child of God is really without excuse. If he has been taught of God (John 6:45), and Christ has been revealed to his heart by the Holy Spirit, then in short order the Spirit will lead into a conviction of the infallibility and authority of the inspired Bible. Receiving truth from the Bible, several points of perspective will inform his thoughts whenever science seems to contradict the Bible.
1. The Bible declares plainly that God created all things directly (in six days). This is consistently validated throughout the scriptures. “Gap” theories, “Day-Age” theories, theistic evolution, and the like, are all blatant attempts to “reconcile” God’s Word with the theories of men. The reverse of this ought to be the norm.
2. In light of the teaching of the Bible, the absurdity of the case should be evident: Fallen man with sin-corrupted perception observes a sin-twisted creation and with sin-darkened intellect makes conclusions which he declares to be scientific fact, and then demands that God’s Word either conforms, or be declared false.
3. The fundamental truths of the Gospel itself cannot be validated scientifically in any sense at all. Where do we find scientific evidence for God becoming a man by virgin birth; for sin being atoned for by death on a cross; for the physical resurrection of the body after death; for a man ascending bodily into heaven, and so on? If we are to be consistent, how could we possibly reject the creation account, for which there is actually a great deal of scientific evidence, and then, at the same time, accept the primary elements of the Gospel, for which there is no scientific evidence at all? The Gospel stands alone upon the veracity of the witness of the Spirit and the Word of God. Truly the just shall live by faith (Hab 2:4).
Pseudo-science has not yielded one benefit for mankind. It is strictly for the purpose of stroking the egos of men, fomenting their socio-political agendas, and diverting men’s minds from any personal accountability to the Creator. True science rests upon truth, and is not at odds with the Bible. Applied science has blessed the world (in the common grace of God) with untold “miraculous” inventions, inconceivable by previous generations. When I was born there were no electronic radios, color TVs (or TV dinners!); no personal computers, or the internet; there were no spacecraft or communications satellites; no transatlantic telephone cables or cell phones; no microwave ovens; home air-conditioning was extremely rare; there were no commercial jet airliners... All these, and millions more inventions and technologies, were the fruit of true science in my lifetime. On the other hand, not one advancement or benefit has been produced by evolution or other pseudo sciences. Yet we are repeatedly told that if we reject evolution, or allow the teaching of “creation,” our society will be thrust back into the superstitious dark ages, and it will be the death of modern science. What rubbish!
There is a place for theoretical science in our quest to understand the glories of God’s creation, and in the development of new frontiers of science and technology. But the sound platform of the scientific method must not be sacrificed at the altar of subjective social agendas, or anti-God biases.
As Christians, we must remain steadfast in the conviction that, if man’s theories directly contradict the Word of God, one does not have to be a multi-degreed scientific brain to know that the theory is flawed. Certainly, we must first make sure we actually know what the Bible teaches. Flat-earthers once tried to hang their perspective on the Bible, but in truth, the Bible teaches no such thing. Some critics try to use the common poetic expressions or idioms of speech found in the Bible to prove it “unscientific” (e.g. Heaven is up; the corners of the earth; the pillars of the earth, etc.). Such attacks only prove the ignorance of these critics. Let God be true and every man a liar (Rom 3:4). -ejr3
________________________
Sorrow into Dancing
O Lord, my God, I cry out to you in the night,
When darkness bids your face is hid from me.
How long O Lord until I see the morning light?
And beneath your wings my heart shall sing of thee.
Weeping may last through the night time;
But with the dawning there comes joy;
You lift me up with everlasting arms:
You turn my sorrow into dancing...
My soul athirst cries in a dry and barren land,
My spirit fails as life assails my soul.
Do not be silent, Lord, uphold by thy hand,
And beneath your smile your glory I’ll behold.
You bring me beauty for ashes;
Garments of praise for my tears.
You pour the oil of joy upon my head:
You turn my sorrow into dancing.
-ejr3
________________________
Christian Patriot’s Quote of the Week
Henry M. Muhlenberg, 1711-1787
Patriarch of the Lutheran Church in America .
“I heard a fine example today, namely that his Excellency, General Washington rode around among his army yesterday, and admonished each and every one to fear God, to put away wickedness that has set in and become so general, and to practice Christian virtues.
“From all appearances General Washington does not belong to the so-called world of society: for he respects God’s Word, believes in the atonement through Christ, and bears himself in humility and gentleness.
“Therefore, the Lord God has also singularly ...preserved him from harm in the midst of countless perils… and has held him in His hand as a chosen vessel.
Wm. Federer, America’s God & Country- p459.
-td&w
________________________
Walking with Jesus... a devotional minute.
Which Way, Lord?
And he said unto them, When I sent you without purse, and scrip, and shoes, lacked ye any thing? And they said, Nothing. Then said he unto them, But now, he that hath a purse, let him take it, and likewise his scrip: and he that hath no sword, let him sell his garment, and buy one. Luke 6:35
Serving Christ demands continual communing with Him, and being led by His Spirit. It is His prerogative alone where and how he sends forth His servants. When Jesus first sent out the disciples with no provisions, they well could have balked at the lack of responsible preparation for their needs “on the field.” Then, having seen God’s providential (and sometimes miraculous) care of them, they might now consider practical preparation as a sinful “lack of faith.” The reality is, only Jesus knows what is appropriate according to His will at any given time. Sometimes adversity is a demand for perseverance in faithfulness; at other times God dries up the brook to move us on (1Kings 17:1-9). Only the voice of the Shepherd can direct us. It is not in man who walks to direct his steps (Jer 10:23). One thing is sure: The saint on auto-pilot always goes south. -ejr3
________________________
The Timbrel & Dance Weekly
July 13, 2010
Vol. 1 No. 9
The Timbrel & Dance Weekly is published by
Pastor Ed Ross, Springwood Chapel,
2360 Springwood Road, York, Pennsylvania 17402.
Phone: 717-741-3616
Email: pastored[at]springwoodchapel.com
Visit us at SpringwoodChapel.com
Also available at ChristMyCovenant.com
Unaltered non-commercial republication of any content permitted.
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Genesis 1:1
And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day. Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. Genesis 1:31-2:1
By the word of the LORD were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth. Psalm 33:6
The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows his handiwork. Day unto day utters speech, and night unto night shows knowledge. There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard. Psalm 19:1-3
The fact of creation by Divine fiat is fundamental to all Biblical understanding. The nature and purpose of man, the entrance of sin into the human race and its consequences, and the promise of redemption through a promised Seed are foundational to the Gospel, and these all rest upon the veracity of the Biblical account of creation. Tamper with the inspired record, and despite claims to the contrary, the Gospel itself begins to unravel. It is inexcusable that so many “masters in Zion” have allowed the deceptions of humanistic evolutionary theories to become embedded in the Cannons of Christ. Forsaking the infallible authority of the inspired Word, they have become intimidated by the pseudo-wisdom of this world, and embarrassed by the foolishness of God (1 Cor 1:25); and so they have gone scrambling to come up with clever schemes to press God’s Word into the mold of corrupted earthen vessels. Professing themselves wise, they have become fools (Rom 1:22).
How ironic that it is the knowledge of the direct creation by God of all that exists that forms the solid foundation of modern science. Thereby man could observe nature with a presuppositional certainty that he will find intelligent order and design at every juncture. The scientific method that emerged demands that all hypotheses, having been built upon the observations of natural order, must then be proved by replication of the expected results. The integrity of science rests upon a persistent, objective effort to disprove a hypothesis; and only after withstanding the rigorous assault of the facts can the hypothesis be accepted.
The advent of evolution soon turned the scientific method on its ear. Once one became mentally convinced (individually or collectively) of the validity (or value) of a particular theory, he then sets out to find “supporting evidence.” Like bad theologians, the process becomes much more one of eisegesis than exegesis. The particular theory (e.g. Man-caused Global Warming) becomes much too useful and important to let any facts get in the way. The scientific conviction of aggressively and objectively trying to disprove a theory in order to validate it is lost.
And so the imaginations of men’s own hearts are declared to be indisputable fact; and soon they are integrated into every discipline of education. Today, no subject is taught in our public schools without a heavy dose of indoctrination in socio-politically-correct “science” - a favorite tool of elitist social engineers.
The child of God is really without excuse. If he has been taught of God (John 6:45), and Christ has been revealed to his heart by the Holy Spirit, then in short order the Spirit will lead into a conviction of the infallibility and authority of the inspired Bible. Receiving truth from the Bible, several points of perspective will inform his thoughts whenever science seems to contradict the Bible.
1. The Bible declares plainly that God created all things directly (in six days). This is consistently validated throughout the scriptures. “Gap” theories, “Day-Age” theories, theistic evolution, and the like, are all blatant attempts to “reconcile” God’s Word with the theories of men. The reverse of this ought to be the norm.
2. In light of the teaching of the Bible, the absurdity of the case should be evident: Fallen man with sin-corrupted perception observes a sin-twisted creation and with sin-darkened intellect makes conclusions which he declares to be scientific fact, and then demands that God’s Word either conforms, or be declared false.
3. The fundamental truths of the Gospel itself cannot be validated scientifically in any sense at all. Where do we find scientific evidence for God becoming a man by virgin birth; for sin being atoned for by death on a cross; for the physical resurrection of the body after death; for a man ascending bodily into heaven, and so on? If we are to be consistent, how could we possibly reject the creation account, for which there is actually a great deal of scientific evidence, and then, at the same time, accept the primary elements of the Gospel, for which there is no scientific evidence at all? The Gospel stands alone upon the veracity of the witness of the Spirit and the Word of God. Truly the just shall live by faith (Hab 2:4).
Pseudo-science has not yielded one benefit for mankind. It is strictly for the purpose of stroking the egos of men, fomenting their socio-political agendas, and diverting men’s minds from any personal accountability to the Creator. True science rests upon truth, and is not at odds with the Bible. Applied science has blessed the world (in the common grace of God) with untold “miraculous” inventions, inconceivable by previous generations. When I was born there were no electronic radios, color TVs (or TV dinners!); no personal computers, or the internet; there were no spacecraft or communications satellites; no transatlantic telephone cables or cell phones; no microwave ovens; home air-conditioning was extremely rare; there were no commercial jet airliners... All these, and millions more inventions and technologies, were the fruit of true science in my lifetime. On the other hand, not one advancement or benefit has been produced by evolution or other pseudo sciences. Yet we are repeatedly told that if we reject evolution, or allow the teaching of “creation,” our society will be thrust back into the superstitious dark ages, and it will be the death of modern science. What rubbish!
There is a place for theoretical science in our quest to understand the glories of God’s creation, and in the development of new frontiers of science and technology. But the sound platform of the scientific method must not be sacrificed at the altar of subjective social agendas, or anti-God biases.
As Christians, we must remain steadfast in the conviction that, if man’s theories directly contradict the Word of God, one does not have to be a multi-degreed scientific brain to know that the theory is flawed. Certainly, we must first make sure we actually know what the Bible teaches. Flat-earthers once tried to hang their perspective on the Bible, but in truth, the Bible teaches no such thing. Some critics try to use the common poetic expressions or idioms of speech found in the Bible to prove it “unscientific” (e.g. Heaven is up; the corners of the earth; the pillars of the earth, etc.). Such attacks only prove the ignorance of these critics. Let God be true and every man a liar (Rom 3:4). -ejr3
________________________
Sorrow into Dancing
O Lord, my God, I cry out to you in the night,
When darkness bids your face is hid from me.
How long O Lord until I see the morning light?
And beneath your wings my heart shall sing of thee.
Weeping may last through the night time;
But with the dawning there comes joy;
You lift me up with everlasting arms:
You turn my sorrow into dancing...
My soul athirst cries in a dry and barren land,
My spirit fails as life assails my soul.
Do not be silent, Lord, uphold by thy hand,
And beneath your smile your glory I’ll behold.
You bring me beauty for ashes;
Garments of praise for my tears.
You pour the oil of joy upon my head:
You turn my sorrow into dancing.
-ejr3
________________________
Christian Patriot’s Quote of the Week
Henry M. Muhlenberg, 1711-1787
Patriarch of the Lutheran Church in America .
“I heard a fine example today, namely that his Excellency, General Washington rode around among his army yesterday, and admonished each and every one to fear God, to put away wickedness that has set in and become so general, and to practice Christian virtues.
“From all appearances General Washington does not belong to the so-called world of society: for he respects God’s Word, believes in the atonement through Christ, and bears himself in humility and gentleness.
“Therefore, the Lord God has also singularly ...preserved him from harm in the midst of countless perils… and has held him in His hand as a chosen vessel.
Wm. Federer, America’s God & Country- p459.
-td&w
________________________
Walking with Jesus... a devotional minute.
Which Way, Lord?
And he said unto them, When I sent you without purse, and scrip, and shoes, lacked ye any thing? And they said, Nothing. Then said he unto them, But now, he that hath a purse, let him take it, and likewise his scrip: and he that hath no sword, let him sell his garment, and buy one. Luke 6:35
Serving Christ demands continual communing with Him, and being led by His Spirit. It is His prerogative alone where and how he sends forth His servants. When Jesus first sent out the disciples with no provisions, they well could have balked at the lack of responsible preparation for their needs “on the field.” Then, having seen God’s providential (and sometimes miraculous) care of them, they might now consider practical preparation as a sinful “lack of faith.” The reality is, only Jesus knows what is appropriate according to His will at any given time. Sometimes adversity is a demand for perseverance in faithfulness; at other times God dries up the brook to move us on (1Kings 17:1-9). Only the voice of the Shepherd can direct us. It is not in man who walks to direct his steps (Jer 10:23). One thing is sure: The saint on auto-pilot always goes south. -ejr3
________________________
The Timbrel & Dance Weekly
July 13, 2010
Vol. 1 No. 9
The Timbrel & Dance Weekly is published by
Pastor Ed Ross, Springwood Chapel,
2360 Springwood Road, York, Pennsylvania 17402.
Phone: 717-741-3616
Email: pastored[at]springwoodchapel.com
Visit us at SpringwoodChapel.com
Also available at ChristMyCovenant.com
Unaltered non-commercial republication of any content permitted.