Dating back to my days in seminary, I have been taught and used the water vapor canopy as a model, not as explicit biblical teaching, to explain some aspects of life in the antediluvian world. One of the key issues relates to where did enough water in the earth’s atmosphere come from so that it could rain for forty days and forty nights producing such a global flood that the highest mountains were covered with 20 to 23 feet of water (Gen 7:19-20 [show]Genesis 7:19-20 [19]And the waters prevailed so mightily on the earth that all the high mountains under the whole heaven were covered. [20]The waters prevailed above the mountains, covering them fifteen cubits(1) deep. (ESV) Footnotes 1. [7:20] A 'cubit' was about 18 inches or 45 centimeters
). To state this issue another way, where did all the water come from in the Noachian Deluge when God opened “the windows of heaven” in Genesis 7:11 [show]Genesis 7:11 [11]In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, on the seventeenth day of the month, on that day all the fountains of the great deep burst forth, and the windows of the heavens were opened. (ESV)
? The water vapor canopy provides an explanation as to how so much precipitation was in the earth’s atmosphere. But this model also has some inherent difficulties. I was faced with some of these difficulties while writing part one of my framework critique. In doing my research for this article, I did some ancillary reading that raised some additional questions about the viability of the vapor canopy. This issue was brought before me again on my recent white water rafting trip as we had some further discussions about this model. For example, if a vapor canopy has more than 20 inches of water, the greenhouse effect on the earth’s surface would be so great that life would not be sustainable. However, if the vapor canopy only has 20 inches of water, then its value for storing water for the Noachian Deluge seems to be negated. Though the vapor canopy is only a model that explains the environment in the antediluvian world, the issue relates to whether this is the best model. To read an introductory article that lays out some of the issues and presents some problems for the vapor canopy, read
Noah’s Flood - Where did the water come from?” For a more detailed article, read John Woodmorappe’s “Hypercanes: Rainfall Generators During the Flood.”

“Let’s Go Boatin’” still rings in my ear; and I can still vividly remember the first time I heard Tom Vail’s call when we launched our trip from Lee’s Ferry in the Marble Canyon on June 23rd (pictured above, the Vermilion Cliffs are in front of us). Though it has been over a week since I have returned from our 8-day/7-night white water rafting trip on Colorado River, Tom’s typical call to get on the boats is permanently etched in my mind. In a rough analogous way to Pavlov’s dog, Tom’s call moved us to “salivate” for boarding our boats to begin another informative aspect of our white water rafting trip down 187 miles of the Colorado River, starting at Lee’s Ferry in Marble Canyon and concluding at Whitmore Wash in the Grand Canyon. While I could write many posts about this valuable trip, I plan to highlight some key items from our trip in this post and a few subsequent posts.

Canyon Ministries in cooperation with Answers in Genesis, through the gracious gifts of donors, gave scholarship to 23 College and Seminary professors. Since the aim of this trip was to influence professors, it was described as the “2008 Grand Canyon Christian Scholars’ Trip.” More specifically, the purpose of the trip was to influence College and Seminary professors, who seemingly had more post-graduate degrees than Carter has liver pills, that the geological evidence in the Grand Canyon is best explained as a result of the universal flood in Noah’s lifetime. Besides the 23 professors, 5 additional scholars came on the trip to provide biblical and geological discussions. The following is a picture of our august body after the trip.

The following picture is of the team of five instructors who gave us a biblical and geological education on this trip. Pictured from left to right are David Coppedge (NASA’s team lead system administrator for the Cassini-Huygens mission to Saturn at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena), Bill Barrick (Old Testament Professor at The Master’s Seminary), Andrew Snelling (Geologist par excellence, Director of Research with AIG-US), Tom Vail (director of Canyon Ministries; my impression from some river rafters is that Tom is something of a legend among river rafter), and Terry Mortenson (lecturer & researcher with AIG). All of these men are experts in their fields.

The expertise that these five men brought to the trip was invaluable. Since “let’s go boatin’” is permanently etched in my mind, I thought it appropriate to use this as a title for this series of posts. Here is a picture of Tom leading the way down the Colorado River.

Though I cannot forget Tom giving candid directions laced with humor, articulating geological insight about the canyon on a raft, climbing the canyon like a seasoned mountain goat, testifying how God in his sovereign grace saved him, and instructing how Noah’s flood provides the best explanation for the rock formations in the Grand Canyon, what I remember most vividly is “Let’s Go Boatin’” (for some other blogs describing aspects of our trip, click here for Bill Barrick’s blog, here and here for Del Tackett’s). With my next few posts, I will share with your a few of the thrills of white water rafting, geological data and theological observations.

Early tomorrow morning I leave for an 8-Day/7-Night white water rafting trip covering 190 miles of Colorado River. This trip is organized by Answers in Genesis and Canyon Ministries. In cooperation with AIG, Canyon Ministries launched in 2008 a program called the “Christian Scholar’ Trip.” Scholarships have been provided for 24 professors and theologians from seminaries and Bible colleges from around the world.

On June 21 I will fly to Las Vegas and will have dinner with a number of men going on the trip. On the following morning, we will leave for the Marble Canyon. The following day, June 23, we will meet our river crew at the Old Marble Canyon Lodge. They will then take us to our river launch point. The river portion of our trip ends early in the morning on June 29 at Whitemore Wash. From there we are given a scenic 8-minute helicopter ride to the Bar Ten Ranch. At this ranch, we will be able to freshen up for our flight back to Las Vegas. From Vegas, I will then return in the afternoon to Detroit.

I have been looking forward to this trip for over a year (plans were being made in the spring of 2007). Since my areas of interest on Biblical Creationism focuses primarily on Genesis 1-2 [show]Genesis 1-2 The Creation of the World [1:1]In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. [2]The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. [3]And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. [4]And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness. [5]God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day. [6]And God said, "Let there be an expanse(1) in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters." [7]And God made(2) the expanse and separated the waters that were under the expanse from the waters that were above the expanse. And it was so. [8]And God called the expanse Heaven.(3) And there was evening and there was morning, the second day. [9]And God said, "Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear." And it was so. [10]God called the dry land Earth,(4) and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas. And God saw that it was good. [11]And God said, "Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants(5) yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth." And it was so. [12]The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their own kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. [13]And there was evening and there was morning, the third day. [14]And God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons,(6) and for days and years, [15]and let them be lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth." And it was so. [16]And God made the two great lights--the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night--and the stars. [17]And God set them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth, [18]to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. [19]And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day. [20]And God said, "Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds(7) fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens." [21]So God created the great sea creatures and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarm, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. [22]And God blessed them, saying, "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth." [23]And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day. [24]And God said, "Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds--livestock and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to their kinds." And it was so. [25]And God made the beasts of the earth according to their kinds and the livestock according to their kinds, and everything that creeps on the ground according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. [26]Then God said, "Let us make man(8) in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth." [27]So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. [28]And God blessed them. And God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth." [29]And God said, "Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. [30]And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food." And it was so. [31]And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day. The Seventh Day, God Rests [2:1]Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. [2]And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. [3]So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation. The Creation of Man and Woman [4]These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens. [5]When no bush of the field(9) was yet in the land(10) and no small plant of the field had yet sprung up--for the LORD God had not caused it to rain on the land, and there was no man to work the ground, [6]and a mist(11) was going up from the land and was watering the whole face of the ground-- [7]then the LORD God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature. [8]And the LORD God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there he put the man whom he had formed. [9]And out of the ground the LORD God made to spring up every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. [10]A river flowed out of Eden to water the garden, and there it divided and became four rivers. [11]The name of the first is the Pishon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold. [12]And the gold of that land is good; bdellium and onyx stone are there. [13]The name of the second river is the Gihon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Cush. [14]And the name of the third river is the Tigris, which flows east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates. [15]The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. [16]And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, "You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, [17]but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat(12) of it you shall surely die." [18]Then the LORD God said, "It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for(13) him." [19]Now out of the ground the LORD God had formed(14) every beast of the field and every bird of the heavens and brought them to the man to see what he would call them. And whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name. [20]The man gave names to all livestock and to the birds of the heavens and to every beast of the field. But for Adam(15) there was not found a helper fit for him. [21]So the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. [22]And the rib that the LORD God had taken from the man he made(16) into a woman and brought her to the man. [23]Then the man said, "This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man."(17) [24]Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. [25]And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed. (ESV) Footnotes 1. [1:6] Or 'a canopy'; also verses 7, 8, 14, 15, 17, 20 2. [1:7] Or 'fashioned'; also verse 16 3. [1:8] Or 'Sky'; also verses 9, 14, 15, 17, 20, 26, 28, 30; 2:1 4. [1:10] Or 'Land'; also verses 11, 12, 22, 24, 25, 26, 28, 30; 2:1 5. [1:11] Or 'small plants'; also verses 12, 29 6. [1:14] Or 'appointed times' 7. [1:20] Or 'flying things'; see Leviticus 11:19-20 8. [1:26] The Hebrew word for 'man' ('adam') is the generic term for mankind and becomes the proper name 'Adam' 9. [2:5] Or 'open country' 10. [2:5] Or 'earth'; also verse 6 11. [2:6] Or 'spring' 12. [2:17] Or 'when you eat' 13. [2:18] Or 'corresponding to'; also verse 20 14. [2:19] Or 'And out of the ground the LORD God formed' 15. [2:20] Or 'the man' 16. [2:22] Hebrew 'built' 17. [2:23] The Hebrew words for 'woman' ('ishshah') and 'man' ('ish') sound alike
, there are facets of flood geology as it relates to the Grand Canyon where my knowledge needs to expand. This trip will be interesting for at least two reasons. First, the “Christian Scholars’ Trip focuses on educating both old earth and young earth creationists about how the geological details of the Grand Canyon concatenate with a literal interpretation of the Genesis Flood. Since I am a young earth creationist and have gone through some educational material on this subject, beginning in the early 1970s with Whitcomb and Morris’ The Genesis Flood, I look forward to detailed explanations, along with physical evidence from the Grand Canyon, showing how it relates to the biblical material. By the nature of this being a mixed group, this should allow for intriguing Q & A sessions.

Second, Tom Vail, the President of Canyon Ministries, has an interesting background. Tom left the corporate world in the early 1980s to become a canyon river tour guide through the Grand Canyon. He has also worked as a part-time guide for the Grand Canyon National Park Service and is a past-elected member of the board of directors for Grand Canyon River Guides. Until 1994 when he came to Christ, Tom guided tours through the Grand Canyon teaching an evolutionary model for the formation of the Grand Canyon. After his conversion, he developed a biblical creationist worldview that provided a superior explanation for the formation of the Grand Canyon. In 2003, he published Grand Canyon, a Different View.

Needless to say, because of his biblical explanation of the Grand Canyon, this book has created some stir among his opponents. Tom’s background and expertise should make this an excellent trip. To read more about him, click here. When I return from the trip, I plan to post on my website a few pictures with commentary.

What makes man distinct from animals? To state the question another way, what is the basis for human dignity? According to the worldview of secular humanism with its Darwinian foundation, there is no ultimate reason for a distinction between mankind and animals. The various criteria used (such as, ability to use tools, emotions, morality, personality and language) are now eliminated, according to Christine Kenneally’s “So You Think Humans Are Unique?” (May 24-30, 2008 issues of the New Scientist). According to this worldview, though people are more sophisticated than animals, there is no fundamental distinction. However, the Christian worldview is antithetical to the secularist’s worldview and ties human dignity to Adam and Eve having been created in the imago Dei, “the image of God.”

On Friday, May 30, Al Mohler provides a critique of Kenneally’s article and answers the question what is the basis for human dignity. He effectively argues that any attempts to ground human dignity in the secular view of humanity is doomed for failure and that “the Christian worldview offers the only sustainable foundation for human dignity. The Christian truth claim, grounded in the Bible, claims that human dignity is ontological (based merely in the human being’s existence) rather than functional. According to this worldview, every single human being is equally created in the image of God. The other creatures are wondrous and each reveals the glory of God in its own way, but no other creature is created in the image of God. To be human is to be a bearer of God’s image. Thus, every single human being possesses full human dignity.” To get Dr. Mohler’s full response, continue reading “Are Humans Unique? — The Question Secular Science Can’t Answer.”

The above picture is of the right upper and lower wisdom teeth extracted by a dentist. According to Darwinian evolution, vestigial organs, such as wisdom teeth, are vestiges of our evolutionary past. However, is this necessarily true? Or, can they be biblically explained as a result of the Fall? “Vestigial organs,” begins David DeWitt, “are often used as evidence to argue in favor of Darwinian evolution. These organs are allegedly left over from our ancestors but are no longer useful or needed. Evolution proponents typically contend that such structures are best explained as remnants of evolutionary history. Supposedly, the best explanation for these non-functional traits is that they once served a purpose in our ancestor but now no longer do.” What are some of these non-functioning organs. And, what is a creationist’s explanation of vestigial organs? To find out the answers to these questions, read Dr. DeWitt’s “Setting the Record Straight on Vestigial Organs.”

As I read Roger Paull’s article, I thought to myself this type of thing should not be happening in the United States. How many people in the United States have their academic freedom denied because they do not believe in Darwinism. Another example of someone whose academic freedom was denied is Roger Paull. In the late 1990s he was expelled from substitute teaching in Arizona because he articulated his belief in Intelligent Design. In the place where we expect academic liberty, the government-funded school, academic freedom in the United States is being aggressively denied to those who do not adhere to Darwinism. Perhaps, Ben Stein should do a sequel to his documentary movie Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed. Are the shades of the American school to be thus polluted? I am afraid they are. To read Roger Paull’s story, go to Censoring intelligent design.

Though I have some level of concern about my stewardship of the environment as an outworking of the dominion mandate in Genesis 1 [show]Genesis 1 The Creation of the World [1:1]In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. [2]The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. [3]And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. [4]And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness. [5]God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day. [6]And God said, "Let there be an expanse(1) in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters." [7]And God made(2) the expanse and separated the waters that were under the expanse from the waters that were above the expanse. And it was so. [8]And God called the expanse Heaven.(3) And there was evening and there was morning, the second day. [9]And God said, "Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear." And it was so. [10]God called the dry land Earth,(4) and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas. And God saw that it was good. [11]And God said, "Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants(5) yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth." And it was so. [12]The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their own kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. [13]And there was evening and there was morning, the third day. [14]And God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons,(6) and for days and years, [15]and let them be lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth." And it was so. [16]And God made the two great lights--the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night--and the stars. [17]And God set them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth, [18]to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. [19]And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day. [20]And God said, "Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds(7) fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens." [21]So God created the great sea creatures and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarm, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. [22]And God blessed them, saying, "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth." [23]And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day. [24]And God said, "Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds--livestock and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to their kinds." And it was so. [25]And God made the beasts of the earth according to their kinds and the livestock according to their kinds, and everything that creeps on the ground according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. [26]Then God said, "Let us make man(8) in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth." [27]So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. [28]And God blessed them. And God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth." [29]And God said, "Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. [30]And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food." And it was so. [31]And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day. (ESV) Footnotes 1. [1:6] Or 'a canopy'; also verses 7, 8, 14, 15, 17, 20 2. [1:7] Or 'fashioned'; also verse 16 3. [1:8] Or 'Sky'; also verses 9, 14, 15, 17, 20, 26, 28, 30; 2:1 4. [1:10] Or 'Land'; also verses 11, 12, 22, 24, 25, 26, 28, 30; 2:1 5. [1:11] Or 'small plants'; also verses 12, 29 6. [1:14] Or 'appointed times' 7. [1:20] Or 'flying things'; see Leviticus 11:19-20 8. [1:26] The Hebrew word for 'man' ('adam') is the generic term for mankind and becomes the proper name 'Adam'
, I am convinced that the hurricane force of the current global warming frenzy is unbiblical. Some of our politicians and the news media have elevated global warming to a virtual apocalyptic nightmare that may have some drastic influences on our standard of living. Since all of life is in the hands of an absolutely sovereign God, the heavens and earth will not be destroyed until he choses (2 Pet 3:12 [show]2 Peter 3:12 [12]waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be set on fire and dissolved, and the heavenly bodies will melt as they burn! (ESV)
). However, until that time, let me suggest that we attempt to think biblically. For example, Genesis 8:22 [show]Genesis 8:22 [22]While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease." (ESV)
contains a divine promise: “While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease.”

Since I am somewhat cynical about global warming (for more on my cynicism about anthropogenic global warming, click here and here), I have been sardonically following this frenzy for some time and have noticed that the news media does not generally promote sources that work against the doomsday approach of the global warming activists like Al Gore. Here is an article that provides some caution that will hopefully take some of the force out of the hurricane of global warming.

On May 18, an article by S. Fred Singer was posted on the web about the misplaced and potentially costly results from the current Global Warming scare. Singer’s purpose “is to show that this concern is misplaced, that human activities are not influencing the global climate in a perceptible way, and that, in any case, very little can be done about global climate change. It is unstoppable; we should not even try to influence it. Climate will continue to change, as it always has in the past, both warming and cooling on different time scales and for different reasons, completely unrelated to any human action.” He further argues that modest warming has beneficial effects. Singer insightfully points out that “many climate scientists, including those working on the report of the UN-sponsored IPCC [Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change] have pointed out that the greenhouse computer models all show a global temperature increase. But the two dozen or so major GH models in the world all give different warming rates, depending on the assumptions that are fed into the model.”

It is disappointing that few have observed the obvious disparity between the computer-generated patterns and those that are observed “and drawn the obvious conclusion that current climate models cannot simulate properly the processes of the real atmosphere and that the anthropogenic effect on climate predicted by models are still too small to be noticeable.” To get the full impact of this article, continue reading Dr. Singer’s “The Global Warming Debate” (HT: John Hinderaker).

After my conversion in the late 1960s, I remember hearing Dr. R. C. Sproul speak on a number of occasions. Back in those days as a Freudian Psychology major in college, Sproul’s Calvinistic teaching was something of a theological electroshock therapy for my man-centered perspective on life. Since then, I have profitably read a number of Dr. Sproul’s books. For many years, I was under the impression that he was sympathetic to the framework hypothesis. However, my impression was corrected in 2001 when I read the July issue of Tabletalk, which focused on the subject of creation. In an article entitled “Galileo Redux,” Sproul stated that, after reading Douglas F. Kelly’s Creation and Change, he became convinced that God recently created the universe in the literal creation week described Genesis 1 [show]Genesis 1 The Creation of the World [1:1]In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. [2]The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. [3]And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. [4]And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness. [5]God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day. [6]And God said, "Let there be an expanse(1) in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters." [7]And God made(2) the expanse and separated the waters that were under the expanse from the waters that were above the expanse. And it was so. [8]And God called the expanse Heaven.(3) And there was evening and there was morning, the second day. [9]And God said, "Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear." And it was so. [10]God called the dry land Earth,(4) and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas. And God saw that it was good. [11]And God said, "Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants(5) yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth." And it was so. [12]The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their own kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. [13]And there was evening and there was morning, the third day. [14]And God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons,(6) and for days and years, [15]and let them be lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth." And it was so. [16]And God made the two great lights--the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night--and the stars. [17]And God set them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth, [18]to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. [19]And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day. [20]And God said, "Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds(7) fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens." [21]So God created the great sea creatures and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarm, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. [22]And God blessed them, saying, "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth." [23]And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day. [24]And God said, "Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds--livestock and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to their kinds." And it was so. [25]And God made the beasts of the earth according to their kinds and the livestock according to their kinds, and everything that creeps on the ground according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. [26]Then God said, "Let us make man(8) in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth." [27]So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. [28]And God blessed them. And God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth." [29]And God said, "Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. [30]And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food." And it was so. [31]And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day. (ESV) Footnotes 1. [1:6] Or 'a canopy'; also verses 7, 8, 14, 15, 17, 20 2. [1:7] Or 'fashioned'; also verse 16 3. [1:8] Or 'Sky'; also verses 9, 14, 15, 17, 20, 26, 28, 30; 2:1 4. [1:10] Or 'Land'; also verses 11, 12, 22, 24, 25, 26, 28, 30; 2:1 5. [1:11] Or 'small plants'; also verses 12, 29 6. [1:14] Or 'appointed times' 7. [1:20] Or 'flying things'; see Leviticus 11:19-20 8. [1:26] The Hebrew word for 'man' ('adam') is the generic term for mankind and becomes the proper name 'Adam'
.

If you are interested in a summary of R. C. Sproul’s interpretation of biblical creationism and how he became convinced that God recently created the heavens, the earth and all things therein in the space of six days, I highly recommend that you read Tas Walker’s “Famous Evangelical Apologist Changes His Mind.“

Yesterday, I was privileged to speak about “Two Contrasting Worldviews” at the Campus Bible Fellowship at Wayne State University. Inter-City Baptist Church in Allen Park, MI is the local church partner for Campus Bible Fellowship at WSU. CBFWSU was given charter recognition in February of 2005 by Campus Bible Fellowship (to read more, click here).

The following picture is from my conclusion contrasting a Biblical-Creation Worldview with that of an Evolutionary Worldview.

I gave a 30 to 35 minute presentation followed by a time for questions and answers. The men who met with us gave me their undivided attention. With my conclusion, I challenged the men to take up their cross and follow Christ. After my presentation, we had a Q & A session. Some very good questions were asked. The following picture is of the men during my lecture.

Since people from every tribe and nation are found in the university setting, this presents a great evangelistic outreach for Campus Bible Fellowship (see Rev. 5:9 [show]Revelation 5:9 [9]And they sang a new song, saying, "Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation,
). Some remained after our Q & A session and we gathered for one final picture.

Because our news media has a humanistic, evolutionary worldview, it is virtually impossible for the average American to see a healthy interview on television with anyone who supports a recent creation model of origins of the earth (the earth is thousands of years old and not billions). If you are objective, you would have to say that “Darwinian evolution (specifically, neo-Darwinism or the synthetic theory) has enjoyed elite status when it comes to the discussion of origins. As more is discovered about the basic components of life and how they interact, however, it has become increasingly clear that random genetic mistakes and natural selection could not possibly be biological mechanisms that over time would turn bacteria into people–i.e., simpler life forms into more complex life forms.”

Many scientists are caught up in an academia-politicio maze that does not objectively promote looking at those interactions with the basic components of life that would challenge them to think outside the evolutionary box. The truth of the matter is that an evolutionary view of origins is a system of belief and not objective science. “And like other systems of belief, it has its clerics (those invested as scientific authorities), its adherents (e.g., the education system and the media), its mission (to apply its ‘truth’ to every sphere of human endeavor through research in the fields of biology, geology, cosmology, psychology, etc.)–and, of course, its heretics. Enter the evangelists of evolution, troubleshooters who step in to defend the evolutionary community from ‘the ignorant, the stupid, or insane.’” This article will take a brief look at three prominent purveyors of the evolutionary creed.” To identify and find out more about these three purveyors of evolutionary doctrine, continue reading “Evolution’s Evangelists.”