Author Archives: admin

Tenets of Scientific Creationism

Principles of Scientific Creationism

6049973495_b97aec7ee6_b

  • The physical universe of space, time, matter, and energy has not always existed, but was supernaturally created by a transcendent personal Creator who alone has existed from eternity.
  • The phenomenon of biological life did not develop by natural processes from inanimate systems, but was specially and supernaturally created by the Creator.
  • Each of the major kinds of plants and animals were created functionally, complete from the beginning, and did not evolve from some other kind of organism. Changes in basic kinds since their first creation are limited to ‘horizontal’ changes (variations) within the kinds, or ‘downward’ changes (e.g., harmful mutations, extinctions  etc…)
  • The first human beings did not evolve from an animal ancestry, but were specially created in fully human form from the start. Furthermore, the ‘spiritual’ nature of man (self-image, moral consciousness, abstract reasoning, language, will, religious nature, etc..) is itself a supernaturally created entity distinct from mere biological life.
  • The record of the earth’s history, as preserved in the earth’s crust, especially in the rocks and fossil deposits, is primarily a record of catastrophic intensities of natural processes, operating largely within uniform natural laws, rather than one of gradualism and relatively uniform process rates. There are many scientific evidences for a relatively recent creation of the earth and the universe, in addition to strong scientific evidence that most of the earth’s fossiliferous sedimentary rocks were formed in an even more recent global hydraulic cataclysm.
  • Processes today operate primarily within fixed natural laws and relatively uniform process rates, but since these were themselves originally created and are daily maintained by their Creator, there is always the possibility of miraculous intervention in these laws or processes by their Creator. Evidences for such intervention should be scrutinized critically, however, because there must be clear and adequate reason for any such action on the part of the Creator.
  • The universe and life have somehow been impaired since the completion of creation, so that imperfections in structure, disease, ageing, extinctions, and other such phenomena are the result of ‘negative’ changes in properties and processes occurring in an originally-perfect created order.
  • Since the universe and its primary components were created perfect for their purposes in the beginning by a competent and volitional Creator, and since the Creator does remain active in this now-decaying creation, there do exist ultimate purposes and meanings in the universe. Teleological considerations, therefore, are appropriate in scientific studies whenever they are consistent with the actual data of observation. Furthermore, it is reasonable to assume that the creation presently awaits the consummation of the Creator’s purpose.
  • Although people are finite and scientific data concerning origins are always circumstantial and incomplete, the human mind (if open to possibility of creation) is able to explore the manifestations of that Creator rationally, scientifically, and teleologically.

 

 

Sources:

www.icr.org

Caring for the Great Economy

Caring for the Great Economy

In a fast moving world where the deteriorating environment is becoming more and more of a concern, we must make a conscious choice to care for the Great Economy that our God lovingly created.

 

How Should We Understand Creation?

• As God’s Sole Property
According to the bible, God unreservedly owns everything that is and everything that we have. Psalm 24:1 states that;
“The earth is the LORD’s and all that is in it, the world, and those who live in it…”
As humans with a sense of self-entitlement, we often forget that we do not own the world or any part of it. If we are to understand ourselves as humans, rooted in the creation story, then we need to understand that exclusive human ownership of creation is false. We are given the resources of nature to use wisely and responsibly, but not to bring ruin or waste upon them. We have no biblical authority to harm or destroy anything on the earth.

• As Something to be Cared For
In Genesis 1:28, humanity was told to:
“…fill the earth and subdue it.”
This authority given to us is of responsible stewardship over what God found to be ‘good’. God created for his pleasure and continues to find worth and beauty in it despite its corruption by humans. This means that we, as humans, have a responsibility to ensure the ongoing protection and security of the earth as God’s creation.

• As Important to God
It is important for us, as Christians to understand that Christ’s gift of salvation was made possible only through God’s inherent love for the entire created order. Quoting John 3:16 as a verse intended for people alone is a misleading attempt to separate the love that God has for humans, with the love that he has for the whole cosmos.
We must understand that the created order is one indivisible unit in God’s eyes – nature, humanity and animal life are all the creation to which God feels deeply bonded. Our anthropocentric view of creation has led us to believe that we have complete dominion over the earth to the point of absolutism. This belief opens the way to exploitation of our natural resources and abuse of God’s creation.

 

The Great Economy

• What is the Great Economy?
In his lecture, ‘Christianity and the Survival of Creation’, Wendell Berry (a prominent environmental activist) discusses the idea that the created order should be viewed as the ‘Great Economy’ from which all economies are born. This theory argues that the earth and all of creation is the source from which everything that we have, and everything that we are stems. In other words, we are completely reliant on the earth for everything, and for this reason, must care for our environment like we do our cash, because it is valuable and essential. The Great Economy provides resources that allow us to eat, sleep, work, build, trade and live godly lives.
What this idea seeks to do is create a vision of responsible stewardship and guardianship of the Kingdom of God as a whole – to ensure that we understand dominion in a way that is responsibly, and conscientiously concerned for the environment as God’s creative masterpiece. We must understand that to focus on material items and material life at the expense of the environment is false economy – it denies creation as the source of all wealth and material.

• Looking Toward Heaven
Christians can, at times, have a mind-set that is so thoroughly immersed in eschatological hope and Christ’s imminent return that we end up living, not in the ‘now’, but in the ‘not yet’. The bible’s teaching in John 15:19 teaches us that we are ‘in the world’ but not ‘of the world’ – this can lead to a misunderstanding about our role in creation and the way in which we are to care for it.
We are one part of creation, and as such, we must never look to the future at the expense of God’s whole creative work, or deny or depreciate it in any way. If we are too focused on future events, it can be easy to be careless with our resources, or diminish the value of the Great Economy by regarding it as something temporary. We must remember that without the Great Economy, we would not be able to live the life that God intended for us.

• What Must We Do?
It is not acceptable for us as humans, made in the image of God, to withdraw from God’s primary love – creation – and deny our environmental responsibilities. The bible makes no secret of the sanctity with which the world was made, and the reverence that God felt, and continues to feel when he views his work. Creation is not in any sense, independent of God. God continues to engage with creation and respects it. Participating in the repairing and care for the world is an active engagement with the love that God is, and is a way of showing our respect for what we receive from the Great Economy. Let’s not forget that God’s redemptive plans include a renewal of the world that we currently live on. God cares deeply for the world as his divine creation.
To effectively honor our creative God we must learn to set our hearts to heaven and our minds to his Great Economy.

 

We can honor God this Creation Day by signing the petition to establish Creation Day as an official holiday. Sign here.

Identity

Identity

(character vs. personality)

Statistics show that suicide is the second leading cause of death in ages 10 to 24 and the third leading cause for ages 12 to 18.  Addiction is another cause of juvenile delinquency and incarceration.  These age brackets are experiencing identity crisis due to lack of self esteem and sense of belonging altogether along with keeping up in academics.  Adolescence is the climax of our zealousness for approval, we are in thirst for recognition.  Aside from DNA we are identified as to the product of how much love and affirmation we receive from our family. The character and personality we develop as a result of our upbringing.

The difference between character and personality is that character is the inner foundation, which involves our core values, whereas personality is simply the outward manifestation of our emotions affecting our behavior and preferences. When these two are in conflict or if the character is not built on a strong foundation, we become vulnerable to making unwise decisions. We let emotions define the peace that our soul yearns for. Sadly, emotions are unstable as it only sees with our natural senses, which is temporal while the soul thirsts for eternity. Emotions do not have the ability to discern eternity and the purpose of man.

Man being a composite of three distinct components, which is the body, soul, and spirit, deep calls out to pursue the ultimate source of abundant supply of love and affirmation. The Word says we have a greater being inside of us that ought to be feared by evil who will try to snatch us away from the noble path God has determined for us.

For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.
Psalm 139:13-14

God being our Creator has the abundant supply of love and we have direct access to Him through Jesus Christ. He has the blueprint of our purpose in life. When we come to Him as we are, all He sees is our potential not our predicament. He sees our purpose not our deficiency. He sees our victory not our failures.  When He called us to be, it was part of His plan to create within us a strong character that is far more reliable than emotional indicators.  Even the prophets in the Bible were not fit and popular before God called them to service.  Some of them even wondered why God chose them while the real question is “Who do you belong to?”

“For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
When Christ, who is our life, is revealed,
then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.
” Colossians 3:3-4

Just as Christ’s identity was only revealed to those whom the Father has chosen, only God has the full image of our design. Only He can draw that purpose out of us. Only if we look in His eyes will we see the glory that we have been given through the sacrifice of the One who found us worth dying for. We become the person in the eyes of who we look through and if we redirect our focus on the truth, it shall manifest.

“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith.
For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame,
and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”
Hebrews 12:2

Nature and You

Nature and You

In a hectic world where everybody is running a race, has anyone ever genuinely thought of what role our nature plays in these areas where our environment continuously wastes away for thoughtless projects?

The Word of God says that a man who trusts in the Creator is like a tree planted by the river – always fruitful regardless of season.  Who wouldn’t wish for abundance?  Did you ever wonder why God compared man with a tree that knows no drought? Like the tree’s roots that knows no thirst our Creator wants us to place ourselves in the position where our resources never run dry.

We need to understand that our natural resources were not created after us, they were created before us, so that by the time we are brought into life, they are able to sustain us.

Looking deep into the scriptures, in the beginning we do not work to cultivate our environment to feed us. God has created everything to serve us in submission to Him.  Only when man disregarded God’s favor upon him did the world turn upside down.  Man was enticed by the bait of an alien who has not proven any concern for him and forgot all about the One who has the power to give what he asks for.  As a consequence, God cursed the ground and through painful toil man eats from it and from animals which have became hostile. We have lost our authority over God’s creation as a result of our nullifying of God’s care for us.

When Christ Jesus came, He brought restoration to the original plan of God. He gave us His only Son to put our faith on and believe that in every man’s labor he has regained authority to speak and declare fruitfulness over the work of his hands.

We invite you to celebrate God’s restoration with us and become a part of this advancement. We bring awareness about God’s creation in relation to our existence.

You are God’s creation so come take the journey with us and follow our blogs!  We would gladly appreciate your responses!