It should be noted that Darwin and Dawkins are using …

Comment on Beyond the Creation Story – Why the Controversy Matters by BobRyan.

It should be noted that Darwin and Dawkins are using human reason to accept by-faith belief in evolutionism that birds come from reptiles and even that ultimately birds come from plants.

But is it really being done in a vacuum? Is it really “alone”? Or is the devil also guiding them? Have they become darkened in their own mind having turned from light, truth, facts that are sure?

Still even in that darkened state that are able to use enough “reason” to agree with 3SG 90-91 that belief in evolutionism is totally inconsistent with acceptance of what the Bible says.

Who then would dare claim to be in an even more darkened state that they are – such that they would claim a T.E. fiction about marrying the Bible to evolutionism?

That is the big question for Adventists going down that road.

in Christ,

Bob

BobRyan Also Commented

Beyond the Creation Story – Why the Controversy Matters

Ken: Now when it comes to words about god(s), which words were in the beginning: the Enuma Elish, interesting written on seven tablets, or Genesis? That old lucky number keeps cropping up doesn’t it.

As someone pointed out to me recently – the FIRST questioon to be decided is “do you think rocks, gas some liguids and an energy source will eventually (over a long long long — did I say “long” already? — period of time) come up with “brain tissue” capable of sentient thought”.

Those who embrace “birds come from reptiles” fictions may be inclined to accept that extreme form of storytelling.

But let’s say for example that you are someone who is not able to suspend their disbelief to such an extreme extent and so you conclude that in fact God “created” life on earth.

Then as you point out above “which god”?

Having decided that “God did it” – which religion?

If you go down the path of “least risk” when it comes to the major religions of the world (Budhist, Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Jewish) then the Jewish account of the Gospels is your best start. Muslims, Hindus and Budhists will all affirm the ministry of Christ. So accepting the Christian text “as the minimal start” point is where any suddenly-theist individual might logically “start” their search. None of the major world religions view the gospel of Jesus as something to be rejected, even though it is a Jewish account, about a Jewish Messiah.

in Christ,

Bob


Beyond the Creation Story – Why the Controversy Matters
Well only God explains the 7 day week, the existence of a massively complex living planet in the midst of our otherwise dead-planet solar system, and of course Daniel’s miraculous prediction of world history for over 2000 years in Dan 2, 7, 8, 9 etc.

in Christ,

Bob


Beyond the Creation Story – Why the Controversy Matters
Certainly “40 days” is soon in the case of Jonah.

And as it turns out – in the 1890’s Ellen White stated that the “soon” of her earlier predictions had already passed and she even discusses the present situation not very unlike Israel wandering 40 years in the desert when first released from Egypt.

So by her own statements the much predicted “soon event” did not happen – and the same can be said for Jonah.

Which gets us to the “conditional prophecy” (Jer 18) aside comment.

How do you set aside the very detail that explains both the Jonah event and the wandering in the wilderness for 40 years?

in Christ,

Bob


Recent Comments by BobRyan

Academic Freedom Strikes Again!

george:
By definition, I don’t believe in miracles or apocryphal, anthropomorphic stories about same.Why aren’t scientists observing them today if they occur?

Circular argument. If they were naturally occurring we would expect scientists to see that they are still occurring today. If they are singular events caused by an intelligent being – that being would be under no obligation to “keep causing world wide floods” as if “to do it once you must continually do it”. Armstrong went to the moon.. shall we argue that unless he keeps going to the moon so each new generation can see it … then it did not happen?

Your argument is of the form “all eye witness evidence to some event in the past is no evidence at all unless that event keeps repeating itself so we too can witness it”. Seems less than compelling.

“Could it be that science is better able to detect hoaxes and false claims?” As a rule for dismissing every eye witness account in the past – it is less than compelling. (even when that event cannot be repeated)

Evolutionists “claim” that dust, rocks and gas (in sufficient quantity and over sufficient time and a lot of luck) self organized into rabbits via prokaryote-then-eukaryote-then-more-complexity. But such self-organization cannot be “observed” today.

(What is worse – such a sequence cannot even be intelligently manipulated to occur in the lab)

By your own argument then you should not believe in evolution.


Academic Freedom Strikes Again!
@Sean Pitman:

Suppose you were at a crime scene … there is a tree limb on the ground and a bullet hole in the victim — “all natural causes”? or is one ‘not natural’? Those who say that nothing can be detected as “not naturally occurring in nature” – because all results, all observations make it appear that every result “naturally occurred without intelligent design” seem to be missing a very big part of “the obvious”.


Academic Freedom Strikes Again!

george:
Gentlemen,

What just God would allow an innocent child to be born guilty for the sins of a distant ancestor? …What if there was only One Commandment? Do Good. ‘Kant’ see a problem with that.

An atheist point of view is not often found here – but this is interesting.

1. God does not punish babies for what someone else did – but I suppose that is a reductionist option that is not so uncommon among atheists. The “details” of the subject you are commenting on – yet according to you “not reading” – is that humans are born with sinful natures. A “bent” toward evil. That is the first gap right out of the gate between atheism and God’s Word..

2. But still God supernaturally enables “free will” even in that bent scenario, the one that mankind lives in – ever since the free-will choice of the first humans on planet earth – was to cast their lot in with Satan and rebellion..(apparently they wanted to see what a wonderful result that poor choice would create). John 16 “the Holy Spirit convicts the world of sin and righteousness and judgment”. And of course “I will draw ALL mankind unto Me” John 12:32. (not “just Christians”). Thus supernatural agency promotes free will in a world that would otherwise be unrestrained in its bent to evil.

3.God says “The wages of sin is death” — so then your “complaint” is essentially “that you exist”. A just and loving God created planet Earth – no death or disease or suffering – a perfect paradise where mankind could live forever … and only one tiny restriction… yet Adam and Eve allowed themselves to be duped by Satan… tossing it all away. The “Just God” scenario could easily just have let them suffer the death sentence they chose. He did not do that… hence “you exist” – to then “complain about it”.

4. Of course you might also complain that Satan exists – and Satan might complain that “you exist”. There is no shortage on planet earth of avenues for complaint. But God steps in – offers salvation to mankind at infinite cost to himself – – and the “Few” of Matthew 7 eventually end up accepting that offer of eternal life. The rest seem to prefer the lake of fire option… sort of like Adam and Eve choosing disease and death over eternal life (without fully appreciating the massive fail in that short-sighted choice).

In any case – this thread is about the logic/reason that should be taken into account when a Christian owned and operated institution chooses to stay faithful to its Christian mission — rather then getting blown about by every wind of doctrine. Why let the alchemy of “wild guessing” be the ‘source of truth’ when we have the Bible?? We really have no excuse for that. As for science – we can be thankful that it has come as far along as it has – but no matter how far back you rewind the clock of our science history – we should always have chosen the Bible over wild guessing.


Newly Discovered Human Footprints Undermine Evolutionary Assumptions

Ervin Taylor:
Perhaps Dr. Pitman would enlighten his readers what on earth “the neo-Darwinian story of origins” might be. Darwin did not address origins.

Origins of what?? the first eukaryote??
Or “origins of mankind”??

Darwin himself claimed that his own false doctrine on origins was totally incompatible with Genesis and that because of this – Genesis must be tossed under a bus.

hint: Genesis is an account of “Origins” as we all know — even though “bacteria” and “amoeba” are terms that don’t show up in the text.

The point remains – Darwin was promoting his own religion on origins totally counter to the Bible doctrine on origins. He himself addresses this point of the two views.


Newly Discovered Human Footprints Undermine Evolutionary Assumptions

Ervin Taylor:
Here we go again.If the footprints upon close examination, are determined not to be from a hominim/hominid, I wonder if Educate Truth (sic) will announce that determination.Or if the date of the surface is determined to be much younger, will there be a notice placed on fundamentalist web-sites.If you believe the answer to these questions are yes, I have a big bridge that I would like to sell you for pennies on the dollar.

Here we go again … hope piled upon hope…no matter the “observations in nature” that disconfirm the classic evolutionary hypothesis

Reminds me of “What we still don’t know” by Martin Reese and Leonard Suskind