Search for the true mount Sinai

Here is some archeological evidence for the reality of Mount Sinai and its' supernatural happenings recorded in the Bible , which then means the reality of the Bible, which then means the reality of God.

If true, it is also evidence about the exodus of the Hebrews (Israel).
Check out this video on youtube about two men on their search for Mount Sinai. One is a christian and the other is not (it sounds like).

This is another great video and definately food for thought!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A08_oRBAVPA
(5 parts)

Enjoy!

P.S. The picture is not of the mountain :) It is a picture from Israel that I took...in fact most of the pictures on my blog are from my trip to Israel.

Covenants of the Bible

Here is a fascinating talk from David Pawson on the convenants of the Bible. Thanks to some cool person putting it up recently on youtube.


In it he also talks about many things:

-The goodness of God,
-The Jews,
-Even gives a few brief evidences for the existance of God and testimonies.
-Ultimately it is a good description of why we are here as people and an overview of God's plan throughout history.

Remember to check him up on everything he says with the Bible. I will try to do the same.
David Pawson is typically against the grain of some popular thinking. He is known for his stand on the Bible as the Word of God and for his no compromise on what it teaches. He has said in the past that Greek thinking has damaged the church and that we need to come back to the Bible and have an untainted Hebrew view of God. Note also that he does not like to use Bible verses because he is frustrated with how people throw little texts around which are taken out of context. so he talks about chapters rather or books of the Bible. So if you want to find it you have to do some reading and gain an understanding for yourself...quite challenging and exciting :) LOL

On the whole I agree with him although for myself I will seek to understand some particular issues.

He seems to have a way of explaining very well and helping people to understand. He is easy to listen to.

The talk goes for a bit over 2 hours, but for those who are seeking, it is a well worth two hours of thinking. I pray that every person able to view this will one day have the excitement, experience and knowledge that they find in accepting Jesus Christ as their Messiah and Saviour, finding the source of all nature...God.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PQCB7mPLDqo&feature=related
(There are 15 parts)

Enjoy!

DB

Bible problems

I have been increasingly impressed about how the more I study the Bible the more I see answers to so called "problems".

Especially in regard to the goodness of God in the Old Tesament.

I am coming more to understand that if you want to find problems in the Bible you will find them. But if you care to think twice about it and do study and grasp a better understanding of God then you find answers. It is a personal choice.

In science you repeatedly test substances. Why not come to the Bible with the same attitude. If there is an answer to a problem then why ignore the answer.

For example in one of the gospels it says that two thieves beside Jesus mocked Him.
Another gospel says that one of the two repented and got saved.

Immediatly this looks like a contradiction but when you think about it it is not. One gospel is just telling a part of the story that one man mocked at one stage but then decided differently and asked to be saved.

For me this is more not less evidence that the Bible is the real truth. If it were just a made up story by a group of evil controling men then if I were them I would have made it appear to agree more. But in fact it appears to have been written by different people with different styles and emphasize different points.
The Bible is an honest book. When it comes to accounts of its' heroes, it tells about their faults. Like Noah, was found to be the only one righteous in the era before the Flood yet after the fantastic story about his faith...he ends up drunk and naked in his bed and humiliated.
It doesn't seem like a story made up. It reads like reality.

I don't mean to sound like I have all the answers because I don't. I just want to say I am more and more amazed at the content of this Book...God's Word...the Bible.

I don't mean to worship the man but David Pawson I highly recommend listening to. I have been going through some of his commentaries on the Bible and found that he talks about everything...even many of the Bible "problems". Just about everytime he points out something I didn't see regarding a "problem" and makes it perfectly understandable.

In Psalms the Bible says to mark the blameless man so I will, though no one is perfect :)
David Pawson started out as keen Christian before he went to a Bible College. He said that he was taught to cut and paste the Bible and that you could not believe all of it. He said this nearly damaged his faith in the Bible but not in God.
He continued in faith rearding the Bible, I would now say he is one of the greatest Bible teachers of our time.

God inspired the Bible

Here is an interesting scientific talk regarding the twelve stones in the New Jerusalem of the Bible,
It is given by David Pawson:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kXfCdcNRN60
(6 minutes)

Another piece of evidence that the Bible is inspired by God and not simply written by man.

Check it out!

Dan

Old Earth Creationist Beliefs

I did some research into old earth Christian beliefs and I found it rather interesting.

There are three views that I know of:
1.Gap theory
2.Progressive creationism
3.Theistic evolution

I see any of these views as possible, they do not effect my belief in God. Although I remain an un-believer in evolution..that is macroevolution. I do not have a complete understanding of each of these views but I will learn.

Gap theory and Progressive creationism tend to be more strict in following the literal Genesis account of creation but theistic evolution possibly take Genesis a bit more figuratively.

The Gap theory is where there were two creations. The first was in verse 1 of Genesis 1 "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth". The second was from verse 2 onwards. In this gap a history is not exactly told and is omitted from the Genesis account. God destroyed the first creation and re-made the second. Gap theorists also have arguments from other areas of scripture. For a little more information check out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gap_Creationism.
Also the famous "Dake" commentary accepts the Gap theory.

The Progressive creationism is one I am more interested in. I am still looking into what it holds.
I recommend "Reasons to Believe" at http://www.reasons.org/. They are scientists who are of the "progressive creationism" view as far as I understand. This means they accept an old earth but reject macroevolution. They write several posts on evolution as a myth. Here are the links:

1.The theory of evolution is a myth:
http://www.reasons.org/evolution/macro-vs-micro-evolution/
evolution-mythology-part-1-5-theory-evolution-myth

2.Evolution is not a scientific theory:
http://www.reasons.org/evolution/macro-vs-micro-evolution/
evolution-mythology-part-2-5-evolution-not-scientific-theory

3.The myth of abiogenesis:
http://www.reasons.org/evolution/macro-vs-micro-evolution/
evolution-mythology-part-3-5-myth-abiogenesis

4.The myth of macro evolution:
http://www.reasons.org/evolution/macro-vs-micro-evolution/
evolution-mythology-part-4-5-myth-macroevolution

5.Conclusion:
http://www.reasons.org/evolution/macro-vs-micro-evolution/
evolution-mythology-part-5-5-conclusion

Also: This is what they think Genesis means in relation to old earth
thinking.
http://www.reasons.org/does-old-earth-creationism-contradict-
genesis-1

Hobbies

I heard a cool simple testimony today from David Pawson, it really is a caring way that God treats us. God even cares about the little things.
Praise God for the Brits! Many wonderful preachers have come from England.

-Pawson bought a railway train set and brought it home one day. He always liked trains right since he was a boy. He wondered whether it was right for him to have bought it. One day a lady came up to him and stated that as silly as it sounded she believed God told her to tell Pawson that God wants him to take up a hobby to relieve stress.
Pawson went away and prayed about it and said to God... if that word was really from You and You are speaking about my railway train then please send me a donation towards it today as a sign.
That lunch on the same day a business man whom he didn't know came up and said God had laid something on his heart that he could not get rid of. He gave him a check saying it was for his railway train set! LOL.

I thought it was funny :) Testimonies are all over the place. I hope to collect them up as I go along...ones that I can be sure of, as in making sure they are from as far as I know honest people and generally at most, first or second hand...not tenth hand. Mind you George Muller stories are fascinating! Check him out.

Ray Comfort gives free money!

Have you guys heard?

Surely you have. Anyway if you are an atheist and have commented (more than once) on Ray's blog you can get a free $25 voucher for a dinner out with your wife/friend at red Lobster. Go to his blog for more details.

Good on you Ray!

Reading through some replies to Ray's post on this topic. I find it interesting that people respond well to a $25 gift voucher and yet mock Someone giving His life for our lives. Hmmmmm

Yeshua deserves a clap...or even...our own lives.

Dan

My thoughts on evolution 2

Due to increased discussion on my first post on the topic of evolution it has been requested of me to produce some actual evidence against evolution.
I am no scientist but I happened upon a site with the following content found at: http://emporium.turnpike.net/C/cs/top.htm.
I am not sure of the author of the site but it is a good summary of some ideas I have come across over the years. The author gives the reference for his/her information below each point.

I agree with some of the authors thoughts especially regarding his/her "Irreducible Complexity" ideas.

Here is something for you guys to chew on... :) More food for thought.

Cheers,

Dan

1. Information

The instructions for how to build, operate, and repair living cells represent a vast amount of information (estimated at 12 billion bits). Information is a mental, non-material concept. It can never arise from a natural process and is always the result of an intelligence. Just as a newspaper story transcends the ink on the paper, life’s DNA itself (like the ink) is not the information, it is simply a physical representation or housing of the information (the story). Modifying the DNA via mutation can never produce new genetic information to drive upward evolution, just as spilling coffee on the newspaper, thereby modifying the distribution of the ink, will never improve the story. Key references: Genetic Entropy (Sanford), In the Beginning was Information (Gitt).

2. Formation of Life

Non-living chemicals cannot become alive on their own. The cell is a miniature factory with many active processes, not a simple blob of “protoplasm” as believed in Darwin’s day. Lightening striking a mud puddle or some “warm little pond” will never produce life. This is another view of the core issue of information as the simplest living cell requires a vast amount of information to be present. The “Law of Biogenesis” states that life comes only from prior life. Spontaneous generation has long been shown to be impossible (by Louis Pasteur in 1859). Numerous efforts to bring life from non-life (including the famous Miller-Urey experiment) have not succeeded. The probability of life forming from non-life has been likened to the probability of a tornado going through a junkyard and spontaneously assembling a working 747 airplane. The idea that life on earth may have been seeded from outer space just moves the problem elsewhere. Key reference: Why Abiogenesis is Impossible, Jerry Bergman, CRS Quarterly, Volume 36, March 2000

3. Design of Living Things

Design is apparent in the living world. Even Richard Dawkins in his anti-creation book The Blind Watchmaker admits “Biology is the study of complicated things that give the appearance of having been designed for a purpose.” The amazing defense mechanism of the Bombardier Beetle is a classic example of design in nature, seemingly impossible to explain as the result of accumulating small beneficial changes over time, because if the mechanism doesn’t work perfectly, “boom” – no more beetle! This is also another view of the core issue of information, as the design of living things is the result of processing the information in the DNA (following the blueprint) to produce a working organism. Key reference: The three-part video series Incredible Creatures that Defy Evolution describes many more examples like that of the Bombardier Beetle

4. Irreducible Complexity

The idea that “nothing works until everything works.” The classic example is a mousetrap, which is irreducibly complex in that if one of its several pieces is missing or not in the right place, it will not function as a mousetrap and no mice will be caught. The systems, features, and processes of life are irreducibly complex. What good is a circulatory system without a heart? An eye without a brain to interpret the signals? What good is a half-formed wing? Doesn’t matching male and female reproductive machinery need to exist at the same time, fully-functioning if any reproduction is to take place? Remember, natural selection has no foresight, and works to eliminate anything not providing an immediate benefit. Key reference: Darwin’s Black Box (Behe)

5. Second Law of Thermodynamics

The Second Law of Thermodynamics refers to the universal tendency for things, on their own, to “mix” with their surrounding environment over time, becoming less ordered and eventually reaching a steady-state. A glass of hot water becomes room temperature, buildings decay into rubble, and the stars will eventually burn out leading to the “heat death” of the universe. However, the evolutionary scenario proposes that over time things, on their own, became more ordered and structured. Somehow the energy of a “Big Bang” structured itself into stars, galaxies, planets, and living things, contrary to the Second Law. It is sometimes said that the energy of the Sun was enough to overcome this tendency and allow for the formation of life on earth. However, application of energy alone is not enough to overcome this tendency; the energy must be channeled by a machine. A human must repair a building to keep it from decaying. Likewise, it is the machinery of photosynthesis which harnesses the energy of the Sun, allowing life to exist, and photosynthesis is itself a complex chemical process. The maturing of an acorn into a tree, or a zygote (the first cell resulting from fertilization) into a mature human being does not violate the Second Law as these processes are guided by the information already present in the acorn or zygote. Key reference: The Second Law of Thermodynamics (answersingenesis.org)

6. Existence of the Universe

By definition, something must be eternal (as we have “something” today and something cannot come from “nothing”, so there was never a time when there was “nothing”). Either the universe itself is eternal, or something/someone outside of and greater than the universe is eternal. We know that the universe is not eternal, it had a beginning (as evidenced by its expansion). Therefore, God (the something/someone outside of the universe) must exist and must have created the universe. Einstein showed that space and time are related. If there is no space there is no time. Before the universe was created there was no space and therefore no concept of time. This is hard for us to understand as we are space-time creatures, but it allows for God to be an eternal being, completely consistent with scientific laws. The question “who created God” is therefore an improper/invalid question, as it is a time-based question (concerning the point in time at which God came into existence) but God exists outside of time as the un-caused first cause.

7. Fine-tuning of Earth for Life

Dozens of parameters are “just right” for life to exist on this planet. For example, if the Earth were just a little closer to the Sun it would be too hot and the ocean’s water would boil away, much further and it would be covered continually in ice. Earth’s circular orbit (to maintain a roughly constant temperature year-round), its rotation speed (to provide days and nights not too long or short), its tilt (to provide seasons), and the presence of the moon (to provide tides to cleanse the oceans) are just some of many other examples.

The presence of large amounts of water, with its amazing special properties, is also required. Water is a rare compound in that it is lighter in a solid state than in a liquid state. This allows ponds to freeze with the ice on the surface allowing the life beneath to survive. Otherwise bodies of water would freeze from the bottom up and become solid ice. Water is also the most universal “solvent” known, allowing for dissolving/mixing with the many different chemicals of life. In fact, our bodies are 75-85% comprised of water. Key reference: The Privileged Planet (Gonzalez/Richards)

8. Fine-tuning of Physics

The fine-tuning of the physical constants that control the physics of the universe - the settings of the basic forces (strong nuclear force constant, weak nuclear force constant, gravitational force constant, and electromagnetic force constant) are on a knife’s edge. A minor change in these or any of dozens of other universal parameters would make life impossible.

The “multiverse” idea that there may be many universes and ours “just happened” to have these proper values is outside of science and could never be proven. Even then we would have to ask “what was the cause of all these universes?”

Key reference: Hugh Ross lists about 100 parameters on the Reasons To Believe web site. See also Design and the Anthropic Principle

9. Abrupt Appearance in the Fossil Record

The oldest fossils for any creature are already fully-formed and don’t change much over time (“stasis”). The “Cambrian Explosion” in the “primordial strata” documents the geologically rapid appearance of most major groups of complex animals. There is no evidence of evolution from simpler forms. Birds are said to have evolved from reptiles but no fossil has ever been found having a “half-scale/half-wing”. A reptile breathes using an “in and out” lung (like humans have), but a bird has a “flow-through” lung suitable for moving through the air. Can you even imagine how such a transition of the lung could have taken place? Abrupt appearance and stasis are consistent with the biblical concept of creation “according to its kind”, and a world-wide flood that scoured the earth down to its basement rocks, depositing the “geologic column” and giving the appearance of a “Cambrian Explosion”. Smarter, more mobile creatures would escape the flood waters longer, becoming buried in higher-level strata, leading to a burial order progressing from “simpler” forms to more complex/higher-level forms, which people now wrongly interpret as an evolutionary progression. Key reference: Fossils Q&A (answersingenesis.org)

10. Human Consciousness

A person is a unity of body + mind/soul, the mind/soul being the immaterial part of you that is the real inner you. Chemicals alone cannot explain self-awareness, creativity, reasoning, emotions of love and hate, sensations of pleasure and pain, possessing and remembering experiences, and free will. Reason itself cannot be relied upon if it is based only on blind neurological events. Key reference: The Origin of the Brain and Mind, Brad Harrub and Bert Thompson, CRS Quarterly, Volume 41, June 2004

11. Human Language

Language separates man from the animals. No animal is capable of achieving anything like human speech, and all attempts to teach chimpanzees to talk have failed. Evolutionists have no explanation for the origin of human language. However, the Bible does. It says that the first man, Adam, was created able to speak. The Bible also explains why we have different human languages, as God had to "confuse" the common language being used in Babel after the flood, in order to force people to spread out around the world as He wanted. This was only a "surface" confusion though, as all languages express the same underlying basic ideas and concepts, enabling other languages to be learned and understood. Key reference: The Mystery of Human Language (Morris, icr.org)

12. Sexual Reproduction

Many creatures reproduce asexually. Why would animals abandon simpler asexual reproduction in favor of more costly and inefficient sexual reproduction? Sexual reproduction is a very complex process that is only useful if fully in place. For sexual reproduction to have evolved complimentary male and female sex organs, sperm and eggs, and all the associated machinery in tandem defies the imagination.