Navy helicopter crash;
Robert Gates' new memoir;
Gov. Chris Christie email scandal;
Conjoined whale twins in Mexico.

The previous articles describe the difference between America in the 1940s and America today. The America that exists today simply could not do what it did 70 years ago. What's missing today? The answer is God's blessing. This is the answer that secular libertarians and unregenerate political conservatives don't understand. Though America was not a godly nation in the 1940s when measured by the perfect standards of God's Word, she was a nation that loved Israel, and she was a nation filled with churches that were much more faithful to God's Word than they are today, and she was a nation of people that were much more God-fearing than they are today. The unchurched generally believed in God and feared Him and respected the Bible and respected churches and pastors, which was the salty influence of God's people. Even Hollywood was bound by a moral code. The military chaplaincy program was robust and nearly universally respected. What was true in my mom's Baptist church in Florida during the war, was true across the land. The church was open every day and every day people knelt before God and confessed their sins and begged His help. American's victory in WWII was not a foregone conclusion. Had Hitler developed the atomic bomb first, he would doubtless have used it first on Russia and then on America, and it could have been America surrendering rather than the Axis Powers. 

America's root problems are spiritual, and the only real solution is spiritual. The only thing that will help America out of her terrible plight is a true revival, and there could be revival. Though the time on God's prophetic calendar is late, there is no reason to believe that genuine revivals can no longer occur. But revival in America or Canada or England or other lands with anything like a biblical heritage will happen only on the basis of 2 Chronicles 7:14. "If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land" (2 Chron. 7:14). This is a promise for Israel, but it has application to the church age. See Romans 15:4 and 1 Corinthians 10:11. 

Nothing like a revival and lasting change will happen through Moral Majority programs or Tea Parties or Chick Fill-A Days or Duck Dynasty support campaigns. As these have been tried repeatedly and enthusiastically over the past few decades, the moral depravity has only increased and the power of the forces for right and liberty has only decreased, because these are carnal weapons that only deal with symptoms and cannot affect the foundational spiritual issues. These are bandaids on cancer. They can win socio-political skirmishes but not spiritual wars. Keeping Duck Dynasty on the air is not a sign of moral victory at a fundamental level; it is a sign of the power of the almighty dollar. At the very same time that A&E was being pressured into keeping Duck Dynasty's Phil Robertson on the air by an outpouring of support via social networking and "new media" sites, federal judges were ruling against biblical marriage in Utah and Ohio and the Supreme Court ruled against biblical marriage laws in New Mexico. Which of these events will have the most far-reaching and lasting consequences? The heart of the tree is being eaten away even as the watchers are rejoicing at keeping a few leaves alive. 

Revival could happen if individual Christians and individual churches repent before God at a deep level, repent of their adulterous love for this God-hating world, repent of their lukewarmness, and beseech His help. If even 100 Bible-believing churches took 2 Chronicles 7:14 seriously, who knows what would happen? If they started a weekly prayer meeting specifically for revival, specifically to beseech God's help for the nation, if they called for fasting and prayer, and if the members of those churches would spend time seeking God's face in a persistent manner, who knows how far the forces of evil could be driven back? God has never needed a majority. Gideon's brave and vigilant few are enough. 

The very fact that it is unlikely that even 100 Bible-believing churches would call for such prayer meetings, and that the majority of the members would not attend such meetings even if the pastors exhorted them to do so, is evidence that what I am saying is true about the root problem being the churches themselves. Even the best, for the most part, are lukewarm, settled down and comfortable in the world, not pilgrims but dwellers, mighty for pot luck and parties but weak for spiritual warfare. 

(Friday Church News Notes, January 3, 2014, www.wayoflife.org [email protected], 866-295-4143)

Job 26:7
“He stretcheth out the north over the empty place, and hangeth the earth upon nothing.”

The Earth floats in space, attached to nothing, surrounded by a thin layer of air. What science has only just learned, the Bible has taught for thousands of years! While some ancient peoples pictured the world as flat or resting upon giant turtles, God told the Jews, in Job 26:7, that He hangs the Earth on nothing.

In the first chapter of Genesis we are told that God created a “firmament.” The word translated “firmament” in these verses comes from a Hebrew root word that refers to the process of making a statue. When making a statue, the ancient craftsman would first make a wooden form of the statue, then take gold, a very soft and easily worked metal, and begin to pound thin sheets of it onto the wooden form until the wood was completely covered by a thin, form-fitted layer of gold.

Until recent times, when the Earth was first viewed from space, the Hebrew word translated “firmament” puzzled many people. Then it became clear. The Earth, literally hanging on nothing in space, was surrounded by a thin, form-fitted layer – that is, of course, our atmosphere!

The Bible tells the truth in all the subjects it mentions. But no matter how long science studies, it cannot learn about God’s love to us in Jesus Christ. This is revealed to us only by the Bible!

Creation Moments, Inc., P.O. Box 839, Foley, MN 56329 www.creationmoments.com

The Polar Vortex descends on the Eastern U.S.;
Olympian Lindsey Vonn pulls out of Sochi Olympics;
Senate unexpectedly passes jobless benefits;
Dennis Rodman trains North Korean basketball players.

Second day U.S. freezing temperatures,
Jahi McMath is relocated,
Janet Yellen is the first woman leader of the federal reserve,
Florida state wins the BNC championships.

The previous article notes President Obama's failure in building a web site to administer his health care program, but at the same time he has done a lot, such as the following: He killed the space shuttle program while spending billions to support Russia's space program. He weakened the military by reducing the budget precipitously in the face of a global war on terror and China's rising military might, promoting homosexual and feminist rights over military readiness, and requiring even the Special Forces to operate under the most onerous rules of engagement. He weakened the military and intelligence agencies by refusing to identify America's enemy as fundamental Islam and tied the hands of the CIA and military with nearly childish rules of interrogation. He has strengthened Israel's most adamant enemies while pressuring Israel to give up a large part of her land which would greatly weaken her ability to defend herself. He has strengthened all of America's enemies by a gross lack of wisdom and leadership ability and by the appointment of people to positions of authority at the highest levels of government who are equally unqualified to lead. He has greatly injured the rule of law by the appointment of a law breaker to head up the justice department. He has increased the racial divide in America by his racist thinking and policies. He vastly increased the government's surveillance of its citizens. He brought the entire U.S. medical industry under government control. He has promoted the destruction of biblical marriage more enthusiastically than any president in U.S. history. He has brought the country to the edge of bankruptcy with more red ink than all of his predecessors combined. He has come closer than any predecessor to turning the chair in the Oval Office into a throne. But we must also remember that Obama did not elect himself. He was twice elected by a majority of the American people and is widely supported by American elites, and many of the aforementioned things did not start on his watch. Ultimately the problem is not President Obama, and let us not forget to pray for him and his family (1 Timothy 2:1-4). The problem is America.

(Friday Church News Notes, January 3, 2014, www.wayoflife.org [email protected], 866-295-4143)

Matthew 10:16
“Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.”

Some animals use quite a bag of tricks to make their living or protect themselves. The puff adder is one example of a “wise serpent.” The puff adder is harmless, and if you try to grab him he will coil himself up so that you will have to reach past his head. Then he puffs his head up just like a cobra. No one wants to grab a cobra! If you try again, he will realize that this plan isn’t working, so he’ll go to plan “B” – he’ll strike at your leg, pretending to bite but won’t bite, but he hopes you’ll run off. If you persist, the puff adder goes to plan “C” – writhing on the ground as if he is in terrible pain. Finally, he turns over on his back, tongue hanging out of his mouth as if he were dead. Even if you pick him up and handle him, he will continue to pretend he is “dead” unless you put him back onto the ground on his stomach. If you do that, he’ll flip over and return to his original “dead” position.

Jesus warned Christians not to be foolish, but rather to be wise like the serpent, yet harmless as doves. He has given the puff adder wisdom, but just think how much more wisdom He wants to give us if only we will allow Him.

Notes: Joanne E. DeJonge, Bats & Bugs & Snakes & Slugs (Baker Book House), pp. 66-67.
Photo: Courtesy of Dawson. North American eastern hognose snake is also known as a puff adder. This should not be confused with venomous African vipers which are also called puff adders. Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.5 Generic license.
Creation Moments, Inc., P.O. Box 839, Foley, MN 56329 www.creationmoments.com

Temperatures plunge across US;
Jet Blue cancels flights on East coast;
Supreme Court holds same-sex marriage in Utah;
DC's National Zoo unveils its newest furry addition.

Deep freeze hits US;
Aspen plane crash;
Iraq's Prime Minister tells Fallujah residents to drive out al-Qaida;
Rodman in North Korea.

Genesis 1:31
“And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.”

Many of us can remember how, in biology class, we had to learn how different animals reproduce. Some give birth to live young while others lay eggs. But the thrip does it both ways! The thrip is a gnat-like bug that lives within decaying leaves and helps to break them down. The thrip has another surprise: it reproduces twice a year. The first time in the season, the female thrip lays eggs and all the thrips that hatch are females. But during a later mating period, the female thrip gives birth to living young who are all males and immediately ready to begin the typical life of a thrip. Researchers continue to study the thrip to find out how this strange birth-pattern can be of benefit.

But see what the researchers are really saying. They assume that this unusual arrangement benefits the thrip because they see no evidence of thrips struggling to survive. It is argued that those not fitted for the unusual birth-pattern died out long ago and only the fittest survived. However, this is really a hollow argument based upon circular reasoning and assumptions. Wouldn't it be more straightforward to simply admit that the birth-pattern arrangement for the thrip is a good one and shows clear evidence of design? The problem is that to admit this would admit to a Designer and eventually the Creator.

Notes: “Researcher finds bug that lays eggs and gives live birth.” Star Tribune, Monday, April 3, 1989.
Photo: Courtesy of OpenCage. Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.5 Generic license.
Creation Moments, Inc., P.O. Box 839, Foley, MN 56329 www.creationmoments.com

"During the 3 1/2 years of World War II that started with the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor in December 1941 and ended with the surrender of Germany and Japan in 1945, the United States produced 22 aircraft carriers, 8 battleships, 48 cruisers, 349 destroyers, 420 destroyer escorts, 203 submarines, 34 million tons of merchant ships, 100,000 fighter aircraft, 98,000 bombers, 24,000 transport aircraft, 58,000 training aircraft, 93,000 tanks, 257,000 artillery pieces, 105,000 mortars, 3,000,000 machine guns, and 2,500,000 military trucks. We put 16.1 million men in uniform in the various armed services, invaded Africa, invaded Sicily and Italy, won the battle for the Atlantic, planned and executed D-Day, marched across the Pacific and Europe, developed the atomic bomb and ultimately conquered Japan and Germany. It's worth noting, that during the almost exact amount of time, the Obama administration couldn't build a functioning web site."

(Atlas Shrugged, Dec. 23, 2013)

"Polar vortex" to bring bone-chilling weather to much of the U.S.;
Kerry says Mideast peace talks, "very positive";
Pope to travel to Holy Land;
Amazing ice display.

In a continuing onslaught of end-time apostasy and rebellion toward God's holy laws, as prophesied in Psalm 2, courts in Canada and Italy have come out in support of prostitution and pedophilia. In Canada, the Supreme Court struck down the nation's anti-prostitution laws. The unanimous decision found that the laws "violated the guarantee to life, liberty and security of the person" ("Canada's Anti-Prostitution Laws," Huffington Post, Dec. 20, 2013). In a news conference, a Vancouver "sex worker" responded to the decision, saying, "I'm shocked and pleased that our sex laws will [no longer] cause us harm." Meanwhile, in Italy the nation's highest court overturned the conviction of a 60-year-old man for having sex with an 11-year-old girl. The man is a social services worker whose dalliance was with a girl "from a poor family who had known and trusted" him. In 2011, he was convicted to five years in prison, but he will now have a new trial after the Italian Supreme Court determined that the conviction did not take into account "the consensus, the existence of an amorous relationship, the absence of physical force, the girl's feelings of love" ("Court Overturns Pedophile Conviction," 7 News, Australia, Dec. 31, 2013). This type of ruling was predictable in light of the growing acceptance of homosexuality as natural and acceptable. If a sexual relationship between two men or two women can be legitimized because "the relationship is consensual" and outside parties cannot regulate "love," then who is to say that it is wrong for a man to "love" a child? Jesus is coming, but in His great mercy He is still giving the people of the nations an opportunity to repent and be saved. "The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance" (2 Peter 3:9).

(Friday Church News Notes, January 3, 2014, www.wayoflife.org [email protected], 866-295-4143)

Arctic air could drive Midwest temperatures to record lows;
Union workers at Boeing approve company deal;
Kerry engaging in shuttle diplomacy;
Barbara Bush out of the hospital.

A research vessel in the Antarctic has been in the international news since it became stuck on Christmas Eve in the midst of miles of ice. The MVAkademik Shokalskiy is carrying Australian scientists who are retracing the 1911-14 expedition of Douglas Mawson and looking for evidence of climate change. One of the scientists is Chris Tuney, Professor of Climate Change at the University of New South Wales, who has been prophesying the melting of the ice poles and the dramatic rise of the seas. One of the purposes of the expedition is "to determine the extent to which human activity and pollution has directly impacted on this remote region of Antarctica." The reality is that "global sea ice is actually above normal" and "both the North and South Pole are sporting massive ice caps" ("Nature Proves Al Gore Wrong Again," Watts Up With That, Dec. 16, 2013). On September 22, Antarctic ice levels reached a record high ("Media Flustered at News of Antarctica Not Melting," NewsBusters.org, Nov. 7, 2013). A Chinese icebreaker and an Australian icebreaker sent to the rescue have been unable to reach their target as of December 31. And we must remember that this is summer time in the Antarctic! This fascinating scenario reminds us that five years ago "Mr. Global Warming" himself, Al Gore, told a German television audience that "the entire north polar ice cap will disappear in five years" ("Al Gore, Soothsayer, "Washington Times, Dec. 16, 2013). I saw Al Gore in 2008 at the New Baptist Covenant conference in Atlanta, which I attended with media credentials. Al joined fellow Baptist greats Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton in the speaker's rostra. At the meeting, Gerald Durley said that Baptists need to get over their desire to convert everyone to faith in Christ, claiming that John 14:6 doesn't mean that Jesus is the only way to salvation, and comparing the various religions to a vegetable soup that is flavorful because of its diversity. Jimmy Carter has said that Mormons are Christians. Bill Clinton believes that God is at work "in mysterious ways" even in the voodoo religion (My Life by Bill Clinton). Distributed at the meeting were copies of an article by Tony Campolo's wife, Peggy, promoting the acceptance of homosexuality as natural and right. These are Al Gore's spiritual brethren. No wonder he is confused about the weather. (For a graphical report on the New Baptist Covenant Celebration see the free eBook section at www.wayoflife.org.)

(Friday Church News Notes, January 3, 2014, www.wayoflife.org, [email protected], 866-295-4143)

Residents dig out following deadly storm;
Bernanke sees economic growth in 2014;
Walker autopsy report highlights vehicle speed;
Australian rescue ship told to "stay in place" following Antarctic rescue.

Snow socks the east coast;
New healthcare problem;
Lawyers for hospital, brain dead teen to meet;
Kerry in Israel.

Jeremiah 2:26-27
“As the thief is ashamed when he is found, so is the house of Israel ashamed; they, their kings, their princes, and their priests and their prophets, saying to a stock, Thou art my father; and to a stone, Thou hast brought me forth…but in the time of their trouble they will say, Arise, and save us.”

Rocks, especially on high mountains, seem so solid and permanent by human standards that it is easy to believe that they have been there for millions of years. We can also be deceived into believing those evolutionary claims that rock formations represent millions or billions of years of Earth history.

Every year, hundreds of thousands of visitors to natural caves are told by the guides that the stalactites and stalagmites growing within the cave represent thousands to even millions of years of natural growth. Like many other evolutionary claims, this one is easy to disprove. Stalactites are said by evolutionists to require a century to grow one inch. Yet, foot-long stalactites have been found in coal mines in the lime-rich area of Newcastle, Australia. The mines in which these are found are less than 40 years old. Similar examples can be found even in some of the older subway tunnels right under our city streets!

Our Creator God warns us many times about looking to nature as our source of knowledge and truth. Unfortunately, when we think that nature itself is able to correct His Word, we are guilty of the same idolatry that atheistic evolutionists commit. Yet, our gracious Creator continually reminds us He is there, waiting to forgive us, for the sake of His Son, Jesus Christ, on our behalf.


Notes: John Mackay. “Fossil Bolts and Fossil Hats.” Creation Ex Nihilo, Vol. 8. Nov., p. 10.
Photo: Witch’s Finger stalagmite in Carlsbad Caverns.
Creation Moments, Inc., P.O. Box 839, Foley, MN 56329 www.creationmoments.com

Massive storm barrels down on Northeast;
Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu says Palestinian counterpart embraces terrorists;
US ship will destroy chemical weapons
Scientists off ice breaker.

First snowstorm of 2014;
Antarctica rescue underway;
Fugitive investment adviser caught;
Digital touching.

“‘For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ’ (John 1:17). The law was given; grace and truth came. The law was impersonal, pealed out from Mount Sinai amid scenes of terrifying grandeur, engraved on cold tablets of stone, mediated by angels, given to Moses. Grace and truth were wrapped up in warm, vibrant human flesh and brought into this world by Jesus (the man) Christ (the messiah). ‘He went about doing good’ was Peter's summary--as grand a statement as any to emphasize our Lord's grace. ‘Never man spake like this man’ said those sent once to arrest him--as great a statement as any to emphasize our Lord's truth. Not grace at the expense of truth, not truth at the expense of grace, but grace and truth in perfect proportion--demonstrated in the character, conduct, and conversation of the most balanced person who ever lived on earth. Out of hundreds of possible illustrations John selects a few and weaves his gospel around them: the night with Nicodemus, for example; the conversation with the woman at the well; his dealings with the woman taken in adultery and with her accusers. Thus, the law of Moses contained truth--sharp, demanding, penetrating--embodied in the Decalogue, expanded into some 613 edicts of the law. The law of Moses embodied grace. Human failure to keep the moral law necessitated the giving of the ceremonial law so that guilt could be covered until it could be cancelled at Calvary. But it was not until Jesus came that the truth and grace inherent in the law could be fully implemented in a peerless human life and thus be translated into a language all can understand.”

(John Phillip’s commentary on the Gospel of John)

Psalm 19: 9, l0b
“The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether...sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.”

Scientists have long recognized that bees are intelligent creatures. At the same time, they believe that this intelligence is the product of millions of years of natural selection. The extremely fast learning ability of the bee either puts in doubt the millions of years or shows the hand of the Creator.

Researchers at Princeton University decided to find out whether bees were smart enough to find their food source if it was moved. The researchers moved the prime food source 50 meters farther away from the hive. They found that it took the bees less than one minute to locate the moved source. Being precise scientists, they then moved the food source another 50 meters away. The bees still took less than a minute to find the food source. Two more moves, each a precise 50 meters, produced the same results.

However, the bees had also been studying the researchers. Before the researchers could finish moving the food source yet another 50 meters, they found that the bees had discovered the pattern and were already waiting at the new location!

God is our Creator, and He has cleverly left the evidence of His handiwork – His fingerprints, if you will – in the creation itself. For those who have eyes to see, this fills us with wonder and, yes, with love for the Creator God who first loved us.

Notes: 
OMNI, Vol. 6-9, June 84, p. 47.
Photo: Courtesy of Sajjad Fazel. Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.
Creation Moments, Inc., P.O. Box 839, Foley, MN 56329 www.creationmoments.com

Bill de Blasio is officially inaugurated as NYC's mayor,
Colorado kicks off its marijuana industry,
14 people injured in an explosion in Minneapolis,
Italians dive into the New Year.

New Year's Day 2014;
Supreme Court starts part of Health Care Law;
Putin visits bomb site;
Former First Lady Barbara Bush in hospital.

"The resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ meant that every sin had been successfully paid for. Not a single sin remained un-atoned. Had Jesus paid for all the sins of mankind except one, He would have still remained in death and be there today. His resurrection, therefore, is the proof that when Jesus cried, 'It is finished,' it was indeed finished, and His resurrection proved this to all of the world, to all generations, and now the only sin which can condemn a man today is refusal to accept as a free gift this finished salvation."


(M.R. DeHaan, M.D.)