So, am I missing something?
I get that Jesus was the greatest man who ever lived. wee count the years from the time he was born. he never wrote a book , or had any wealth, founded no great lasting dynasty.
Yet He has done more to change the world we live in than all the armies that ever marched, every fleet that ever sailed and every other ruler in history. Men such as Genghis Kahn, Napoleon Bonaparte, Julius Caesar and Karl Marx are insignificant, as compared to the impact that Jesus Christ had on the history of the world.
Yet Jesus Christ spent much time in discussing our relationship with God and our relationships with each other. He emphasised the forgiving nature of God, and the duty to love one's neighbour as oneself. He said very little about the Book of Genesis.
Yes, He lived in a culture where stories were told, not for a laugh, but to make a serious point. He himself told the best short stories ever, and though He never wrote them down himself, his followers were much impressed by the wisdom that he compressed into so few words.
To me, that wisdom - the principles in the Sermon on the Mount, the ideals and concepts expressed in the tales like the Good Samaritan, the Prodigal Son and the other great parables of the Gospels - that is what has stood the test of time.
So, why is it that many Christians like ken Ham insist on going back to tales written in the late bronze age and insisting on making the part of the gospel of salvation by Jesus Christ?
Lets be fair - I was brought up to believe that the Bible was literally true. including the account of the Flood and the bit about Adam and Eve. and yet I came to see that I had to ignore an awful lot of evidence, and switch off the reasoning parts of my brain to sincerely believe that all this was historically true.
It may be that God made the earth to 'give it the appearance of great age', and I cannot logically disprove that argument. Yet in stating that a Global Deluge occurred within a time frame that can be reckoned out by Biblical chronology, we are setting ourselves up to fail.
Victorian scientists who were creationists to a man had to admit that there was no evidence for a Flood , even before Darwin wrote his famous book. the Flood, if it occurred, should be more powerfully demonstrated by science than the Garden of Eden. And yet it isn't.
I am told that one 'flood geologist', on seeing no evidence when working in the field as an oil prospector, actually lost his faith altogether for a time. Fortunately, he is now a Christian , but not a Fundamentalist.
If anyone wants to examine the evidence for themselves, look here.
http://www.natcenscied.org/resources/articles/8619_issue_11_volume_4_number_1__3_12_2003.asp#Building%20the%20Ark
also here
http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/comdesc/
And that flood geologist I mentioned was Glenn Morton - his story here.
http://home.entouch.net/dmd/gstory.htm
Creationism is not a theory. It is not even a hypothesis. It does not lead to understanding or to the truth about our Lord Jesus Christ. As Christians, we are under no obligation to deny the evidence of modern science, nor to stop using the powers of reason that God gave us.
Yet He has done more to change the world we live in than all the armies that ever marched, every fleet that ever sailed and every other ruler in history. Men such as Genghis Kahn, Napoleon Bonaparte, Julius Caesar and Karl Marx are insignificant, as compared to the impact that Jesus Christ had on the history of the world.
Yet Jesus Christ spent much time in discussing our relationship with God and our relationships with each other. He emphasised the forgiving nature of God, and the duty to love one's neighbour as oneself. He said very little about the Book of Genesis.
Yes, He lived in a culture where stories were told, not for a laugh, but to make a serious point. He himself told the best short stories ever, and though He never wrote them down himself, his followers were much impressed by the wisdom that he compressed into so few words.
To me, that wisdom - the principles in the Sermon on the Mount, the ideals and concepts expressed in the tales like the Good Samaritan, the Prodigal Son and the other great parables of the Gospels - that is what has stood the test of time.
So, why is it that many Christians like ken Ham insist on going back to tales written in the late bronze age and insisting on making the part of the gospel of salvation by Jesus Christ?
Lets be fair - I was brought up to believe that the Bible was literally true. including the account of the Flood and the bit about Adam and Eve. and yet I came to see that I had to ignore an awful lot of evidence, and switch off the reasoning parts of my brain to sincerely believe that all this was historically true.
It may be that God made the earth to 'give it the appearance of great age', and I cannot logically disprove that argument. Yet in stating that a Global Deluge occurred within a time frame that can be reckoned out by Biblical chronology, we are setting ourselves up to fail.
Victorian scientists who were creationists to a man had to admit that there was no evidence for a Flood , even before Darwin wrote his famous book. the Flood, if it occurred, should be more powerfully demonstrated by science than the Garden of Eden. And yet it isn't.
I am told that one 'flood geologist', on seeing no evidence when working in the field as an oil prospector, actually lost his faith altogether for a time. Fortunately, he is now a Christian , but not a Fundamentalist.
If anyone wants to examine the evidence for themselves, look here.
http://www.natcenscied.org/resources/articles/8619_issue_11_volume_4_number_1__3_12_2003.asp#Building%20the%20Ark
also here
http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/comdesc/
And that flood geologist I mentioned was Glenn Morton - his story here.
http://home.entouch.net/dmd/gstory.htm
Creationism is not a theory. It is not even a hypothesis. It does not lead to understanding or to the truth about our Lord Jesus Christ. As Christians, we are under no obligation to deny the evidence of modern science, nor to stop using the powers of reason that God gave us.