One of the many ways that rap or hip hop music has eroded the moral fiber of society is its blasphemy. Kanye West, who claims to be a Christian, appeared as a thorn-crowned Jesus on the cover of Rolling Stone in 2006. His 2013 album was titled Yeezus, which is a play on West’s nickname Yeezy and the name Jesus. The cover art depicts West being crowned king by angels. In the song “I Am a God,” he raps, “I just talked to Jesus, and he said, ‘What up, Yeezus?” The Book of Zeezus: A Bible for the Modern Day is a version of the book of Genesis that replaces every mention of God with the rapper’s name. Jay-Z mocks Jehovah God as “Hova” and calls himself “Jay-Hova.” In the song “Amen,” Meek Mills mockingly thanks God for all sorts of immoral things and likens the church to fornication. Lil B has an alter ego called “Based God.” In “I’m the Devil,” he sings, “I’m Satan, I make deals and death wishes/ I hate Based God, want to put him on the guest list.” Lil B is depicted crucified on a cross on the cover of his Angels Exodus album. In “Sandwiches,” Tyler the Creator (Tyler Okonma) curses the church and sings, “You told me God has the answer/ When I ask him for ----, I get no answer, so God is the cancer.” In another song, he says that the devil is his father. On “Live at the Barbeque,” Main Source sings, “When I was twelve/ I went to hell for snuffing Jesus.” On “Deadly Combination (Remix),” Tupac Shakur(2Pac) and Notorious B.I.G. cursed Jehovah and sang about raping and killing Mary. Tupac also appeared on a cross on the cover of his Makaveli album. (Tupac was shot to death in 1996 at age 25, and Notorious B.I.G. was shot to death in 1997 at age 24.) The blasphemous rap song “Deadly Combination” appeared on Big L’salbum The Big Picture. Big L sang about raping Christ in “Danger Zone.” Another Big L album was titled Return of the Devil’s Son. (Big L was shot to death in 1999 at age 23.) On “Pearly Gates,” 50 Cent sang about going to the pearly gates and having “a beef” with the “Boss Man” and beating “his only Son.” In spite of their blasphemy, these rappers have been highly acclaimed and their records have sold by the millions.

(Friday Church News Notes, May 8, 2015, www.wayoflife.org, fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143)

1 Timothy 4:7
"But refuse profane and old wives' fables, and exercise thyself rather unto godliness."

Are you superstitious? A Harris poll conducted early in 2014 found that: 21 percent of Americans believe that knocking on wood prevents bad luck; 20 percent wouldn't dream of walking under a ladder; 14 percent believe it's unlucky to open an umbrella indoors; and 12 percent think the number 13 is unlucky. In fact, 14 percent of Americans said they believe Friday the 13th is an unlucky day.

Why are people superstitious? For the most part, superstition is caused by fear of bad luck and insecurity in the future, writes Benjamin Radford, Live Science Bad Science columnist. But as you're about to hear, superstitions are not just foolish, they can be quite dangerous.

In May, a man fainted while driving through a tunnel near Portland, Oregon. This caused a head-on collision that sent four people to the hospital. The driver said he had lost consciousness while holding his breath. According to CarMax, the auto sales giant, "Holding your breath while driving though a tunnel is [America's] favorite driving superstition."

Christians, don't be superstitious. You have nothing to gain by being superstitious. Some people would even say that superstition is just another word for idolatry. As believers, we should not put our faith in objects like rabbits' feet or in manmade rituals like holding our breath in a tunnel. We should put our faith only in the one true God who is sovereign over all His creation.

Notes: "Breath-Holding Superstition May Have Caused Car Crash", LiveScience, B. Radford, 6-5-14.
Photo: Courtesy of Rene Schwietzke. Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.
Creation Moments, Inc., P.O. Box 839, Foley, MN 56329 www.creationmoments.com

“In a letter published by The Federalist, addressed to the gay community, Heather Barwick, a former gay marriage activist, wrote: ‘I’m writing to you because I’m letting myself out of the closet: I don’t support gay marriage. But it might not be for the reasons that you think. It’s not because you’re gay. I love you, so much. It’s because of the nature of the same-sex relationship itself. Growing up, and even into my 20s, I supported and advocated for gay marriage. It’s only with some time and distance from my childhood that I’m able to reflect on my experiences and recognize the long-term consequences that same-sex parenting had on me. And it’s only now, as I watch my children loving and being loved by their father each day, that I can see the beauty and wisdom in traditional marriage and parenting.’ For her troubles, Barwick predictably received a hate-filled backlash...”

“Charles Moore: Gay Rights Sharia Has Silenced Common Sense,” Breitbart.com, Mar. 22, 2015

Luke 9:58
"And Jesus said unto him, Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head."

Parents, wouldn't it be nice if you didn't have to deal with dirty diapers during the early years of your child's life? And think of the money you would save! Too bad your little angel isn't more like a little robin.

Some birds, including the familiar robin, have it all figured out. You see, just seconds after a young robin has eaten, he eliminates waste into what can best be described as a white disposable diaper. All the parents have to do is pick it up and fly off with it, leaving the nest neat and clean.

This disposable diaper is called the fecal sac. It is made of thick, strong mucus that the parent can pick up and dispose of without puncturing it with its sharp beak. Robins will usually drop the sac twenty to fifty yards away before returning to the nest with another meal for its chicks. Once the young robin has matured enough to leave its nest, it no longer produces the fecal sac. Instead, its droppings are disposed of most often on your car's windshield.

Now, just imagine what a robin's nest would look like if their Creator hadn't come up with this ingenious plan. Without this disposable diaper, the nest would quickly become unsuitable for life. So the next time you find an abandoned robin's nest, take a peek inside. The only reason it's so clean is because God provided the robin with a disposable diaper service!

Notes: "Disposable Diapers for Birds: The Scoop on Poop", Journey North.
Photo: © 2014, Steve Creek. Used with permission.
Creation Moments, Inc., P.O. Box 839, Foley, MN 56329 www.creationmoments.com

“Children of gay parents are speaking out as the Supreme Court considers the legalization of same-sex marriage in Tennessee, Michigan, Ohio, and Kentucky. Charisma News reports two daughters of women filed a ‘friend of the court’ brief stating that their childhood living situation caused them harm. Heather Barwick and Katy Faust wrote, ‘While we love and cherish our mothers, we feel it’s imperative that we bring to the court’s attention the impact that redefining marriage will have on children like us. We oppose gay marriage on the grounds that it violates children’s rights and cannot provide children with the most foundational building blocks for child development--a mother and father living with and loving them.’ Brandi Walton, who was also raised in a homosexual household, wrote a column published in The Federalist, that gay marriage harms children. ‘I knew from a young age that living with two women was not natural,’ Walton wrote, in the piece called ‘The Kids Are Not Alright.’ ‘I could especially see it in the homes of my friends who had a mom and a dad. I spent as much time with those friends as I possibly could. I yearned for the affection that my friends received from their dads. I wanted to know what it was like to be held and cherished by a man, what it was like to live with one from day to day.’

”Christian Headlines, Apr. 30, 2015

Ecclesiastes 2:11
"Then I looked on all the works that my hands had wrought, and on the labour that I had laboured to do: and, behold, all was vanity and vexation of spirit, and there was no profit under the sun."

If you're concerned about maintaining your privacy in a world that is bent on snooping into every aspect of your life, you may not like what scientists are working on now. Researchers at MIT, Microsoft, and Adobe have developed a computer algorithm that is able to reconstruct an audio signal by analyzing the small vibrations of objects depicted in video. In other words, your potato chip bag is recording your words.

According to ScienceNews, the researchers were able to recover intelligible speech from the vibrations of a potato-chip bag that they filmed through soundproof glass from fifteen feet away. They were also able to extract audio signals from videos of aluminum foil and the surface of a glass of water. In fact, they could even recreate sounds that were filmed on the leaves of a potted plant.

Alexei Efros, an associate professor of computer science at the University of California, Berkeley, could hardly contain his excitement: "We're scientists," he said, "and sometimes we watch these movies, like James Bond, and we think, this is totally out of some Hollywood thriller. You know that the killer has admitted his guilt because there's surveillance footage of his potato chip bag vibrating."

Creation Moments can't help but be impressed by the ingenuity of scientists who develop surprising new technologies. After all, man's ingenuity points to the awesome genius of God – the One who created man in the first place!

Notes: "Extracting audio from visual information: Algorithm recovers speech from vibrations of a potato-chip bag filmed through soundproof glass", ScienceDaily, 8-4-14. Source: Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Photo credit: Christine Daniloff/MIT.
Creation Moments, Inc., P.O. Box 839, Foley, MN 56329 www.creationmoments.com

“A new survey reveals that 52 percent of Dutch euthanasia doctors would kill their dementia patients. Euthanasia in the Netherlands is alive and well, as the deadly practice has quickly spread into the medical field, with more than half of Dutch physicians specializing in euthanasia indicating that they would consider approving the fatal injection for their demented patients. With a population of just under 17 million--less than California, Texas, Florida or New York--the Netherlands has what many consider an alarmingly high number of Support Consultation Euthanasia Network Netherlands (SCEN) doctors. Approximately 82 percent of all SCEN physicians in the Netherlands--or 54--participated in the survey, which was divulged at an academic symposium taking place at Amsterdam’s VUmc Free University last week, ensuring that its results provide an accurate representation of the predominant mindset behind the nation’s medical system. SCEN doctors are an increasing breed in the Netherlands with a very tactical purpose. ‘SCEN doctors … can be called upon by family doctors who face a euthanasia request and who need help with the procedure, specialized and independent advice as to whether their patient should “benefit” according to the requirements for “careful” euthanasia, or a second opinion as prescribed by the Dutch euthanasia law,’ LifeSiteNews reports. However, the so-called ‘careful’ measures are reportedly only applied once patients’ lives are already claimed by the lethal procedure.”

“Majority of Dutch Docs,” OneNewsNow, May 1, 2015

“The owners of an Oregon bakery learned Friday that there is a severe price to pay for following their Christian faith. A judge for the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries (BOLI) recommended a lesbian couple should receive $135,000 in damages for their emotional suffering after Sweet Cakes by Melissa refused to make them a wedding cake.  As a result--Aaron and Melissa Klein could lose everything they own--including their home. The Oregonian reports the recommended penalty is not final and could be raised or lowered by State Labor Commissioner Brad Avakian. The controversy started in 2013 when Aaron Klein declined to provide a cake for a lesbian wedding. Later that year, the women filed a complaint against Klein and his wife, Melissa. ... Within hours of the ruling, the Family Research Council facilitated the establishment of a GoFundMe account to help the Kleins raise the money they need. In less than eight hours, more than $100,000 was raised. However, late Friday GoFundMe pulled the plug--sending this message to would-be donors: ‘After careful review by our team, we have found the Support Sweet Cakes By Melissa campaign to be in violation of our Terms and Conditions,’ the message read. ‘The money raised thus far will still be made available for withdrawal.’ ... Samaritan's Purse, a Christian ministry run by Franklin Graham, has stepped up and offered to raise funds for the embattled Christian couple at its web site.

”Todd Starnes, “Bakers Face $135,000 Fine,” Fox News, Apr. 26, 2015

I have been told by various preachers that Pastor Paul Chappell has said that using Hillsong’s music four years ago was an accident. I am puzzled by that, because the following clip is of Lancaster Baptist Church, Lancaster, California, performing the Hillsong piece “Cornerstone” in April 2014 for their Easter special. The next clip is Hillsong performing the “real thing” as it was written to be performed in a contemporary setting. Hillsong is one of the most radical charismatic, ecumenical outfits, and they know how to put on a contemporary worship service like few others. Lancaster needs to stop playing around with this stuff and really get into it. If you are going to go with contemporary worship, you should go “whole hog. In January this year, Mark Rasmussen, Jr., performed “Lord, I Need You” by the Roman Catholic contemporary musician Matt Maher and posted it to YouTube. Rasmussen is the son of the Vice President of West Coast Baptist College and has long had a prominent role in the Lancaster Baptist Church choir. Mark represents many young people at Lancaster/West Coast who are going beyond the boundaries that Pastor Chappell has allowed in the church services. This is inevitable. Matt Maher prays to Mary, trusts in her intercession, and believes that the consecrated wafer of the Catholic mass is Jesus. Calling himself a musical missionary, he has the objective of creating unity between Catholics and Protestants. I would ask this: Is Maher singing about the same “Lord” as the Bible-believing Christian? If a young independent Baptist wants to sing about his dependence on the Lord, which is a commendable thing, why would he choose “Lord, I Need You” by a contemporary Roman Catholic bridge builder rather than something like the traditional hymn “I Need Thee Every Hour”? Too many Bible-believing Baptists are following their emotions and their vanity and their crowd and their pragmatism (e.g., build bigger churches, sell more books, don’t offend the popular leaders, keep the focus on soul winning, don’t cause division, etc.) rather than the Spirit of Truth. 

(Friday Church News Notes, May 8, 2015, www.wayoflife.org, fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143)

Hebrews 1:3
"Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;"

Have you ever gone outside on a bright, sunny day and been almost blinded by the light? Then imagine what it must be like for penguins to go about their lives with the intense glare of polar sunlight reflecting off a snowy or watery landscape.

Penguins, of course, can't slip on a pair of sunglasses, but they don't need to. These marvelous birds have an external eye fluid that filters out blue and ultraviolet wavelengths from the solar spectrum. This gives them clear vision while protecting their eyes from harm. As you might have guessed, eagles, falcons, hawks and other birds of prey also have this fluid.

Inspired by these birds, scientists have been able to develop an orange-colored dye and filter that duplicates the penguin's retinal fluid. The orange dye has been used to produce orange-tinted sunglasses which provide improved vision in bright sunlight and on foggy days.

According to Donald DeYoung's book Discovery of Design, many welders now use orange-colored masks that are safer and more transparent than the old-style dark masks that made it difficult for them to see. There is also the hope that orange-tinted glasses may someday help patients suffering from visual loss due to cataracts or macular degeneration.

When engineers and designers look at nature to design new products and product improvements, they are looking at intelligent designs, not the products of chance and billions of years. The "sunglasses" worn by penguins were designed by their Creator!

Notes: "Penguin Eye – Sunglasses", Discovery of Design, DeYoung & Hobbs, pp. 112-113, Master Books, 2nd Printing, 2012.
Photo: Courtesy of Flip619. 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

1 Samuel 12:24
"Only fear the LORD, and serve him in truth with all your heart: for consider how great things he hath done for you."

How far will scientists and museums go to get people to believe in the theory of evolution? As scientist Carl Werner reveals in his book and on his webpage Evolution: The Grand Experiment, they will readily fabricate fake fossils and pass them off as real.

Dr. Werner said at his website, "Whales with four legs, walking on land, are currently considered one of the best fossil proofs of evolution." But after interviewing the two scientists who reconstructed the fossils of the three famous walking whales, Rodhocetus, Pakicetus and Ambulocetus, he concluded that the scientists created false models of these skeletons and skulls and passed them off as real to the biggest and most respected museums in the world.

In a Generations Radio interview, he said, "If you go to the largest museums in the world right now, there's fabricated fossil after fabricated fossil, where they've attached whale body parts to walking animals and said, 'Oh, look, we have walking whales.' These are on display currently, and I have interviewed the scientists who put the whale body parts onto four-legged animals, and they admitted to it."

Dr. Werner predicts that someday the fossil fakes will be quietly removed from museums. But for now, these fakes will deceive those who go to museums and websites where they will learn about "whales with legs". This is yet another reason why those of us with the truth must not remain silent but must share the truth with all who will listen.

Notes: thegrandexperiment.com/whale-evolution.html. Press release dated 4-7-14. www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.asp?SID=513141026269. "Why Evolutionists Fake Evidence - Walking Whales - Another Fraud," Generations Radio, 5-13-14.
Illustration: © 2014 John Sibbick / The Trustees of the Natural History Museum, London. Used for educational purposes under U.S. fair use doctrine.
Creation Moments, Inc., P.O. Box 839, Foley, MN 56329 www.creationmoments.com

The rapidly growing “marriage squeeze” in China and India is due to a lack of brides, and the reason is the murder of millions upon millions of baby girls, either by abortion or infanticide. The squeeze in China is caused by the Communist state’s “one-child policy,” which has motivated parents to seek a boy as their only child. In India, the squeeze is largely caused by the Hindu culture’s preference for boys. Prenatal screening results in sex-selective abortions (even though it is technically illegal). There are 20 million more men than women in China, and 37 million more men than women in India (“The ‘marriage squeeze,’” Business Insider, Apr. 23, 2015). “If births rates were normal, China would have 66 million more girls born in 2010. For India, it would have been 43 million.” The problem is increasing dramatically. It is estimated that by 2050, India will have 130 single men for every 100 single women, and China will have 186 single men for every 100 single women.

(Friday Church News Notes, May 1, 2015, www.wayoflife.org, fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143)

Luke 12:6-7
"Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings, and not one of them is forgotten before God? But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not therefore: ye are of more value than many sparrows."

"That's evolution for you!" That's what Dr. Rick Fairhurst, malaria researcher at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said when talking about malaria parasites that are becoming resistant to drugs that had been effective at fighting the deadly disease.

The World Health Organization estimates there were 207 million cases of malaria worldwide in 2012, killing 627,000 people, most of them children under age five. Science News laments that there is no approved vaccine against the protozoan malaria parasite, which is spread by mosquitoes and causes fever, chills, convulsions and more severe symptoms.

The whole point of the article is that "the history of malaria treatment is peppered with drugs to which the parasite has become resistant." But as Creation Moments has pointed out many times in the past, drug-resistant bacteria didn't get that way through evolution. Drug-resistant bacteria represent a loss of information. It would be like saying that you have evolved resistance to tennis elbow because you lost both of your arms in a car accident.

To evolutionists, though, everything is an example of evolution. This is nothing but shoddy thinking resulting from what they already believe to be true. It is the same kind of bad thinking that led to the banning of DDT, a harmless pesticide that kills parasite-carrying mosquitoes. DDT could have prevented the deaths of millions. It is no less tragic when scientists say "That's evolution for you!" when it has absolutely nothing to do with evolution!

Notes: "Resistance to key malaria drug spreads", Science News,7-31-14.
Photo: Courtesy of Bjørn Christian Tørrissen. 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

Amy Grant, one of the most influential contemporary Christian musicians, has been on a downward spiritual journey since the dawn of her career. Today she is comfortable holding hands with everyone from Baptists to New Agers. On April 19, she joined the Dominican Sisters of Mary, Catholic Matt Maher, and others for a unity concert in Ypsilanti, Michigan. In January, she was one of the headliners for the “We Are United” concert promoting ecumenical unity. The “33 greatest CCM artists in history” who participated represented a who’s who of Contemporary Christian Music and illustrated the fact that nothing is building the one world “church” more effectively than contemporary musicians. “We Are United” participants included Steve Green, Michael W. Smith, Newsboys, Sandi Patti, Travis Cottrell (Beth Moore’s worship leader), Dallas Holm, Russ Taff, The Imperials, Don Francisco, Jaci Velasquez, Petra, 4Him, Point of Grace, Carman, and Nicole Mullen. “We Are United” was the brainchild of Stan Moser, one of the fathers of CCM, and board members of the Gospel Music Trust Fund, a major beneficiary of the concert, include Bill Gaither and National Quartet Convention President Les Beasley. The broad CCM unity tent not only includes Roman Catholics but also New Agers. Roma Downey played a prominent role in the “We Are United. Not only does she pray to Mary as Queen of Heaven, but she also has a graduate degree in Spiritual Psychology which is the practice of “knowing yourself as a Divine Being.” Roma Downey’s false gospel, false christ, and false spirit are welcome within the broad tent of CCM, and Bible-believing churches that play around with contemporary worship music are building bridges to this most dangerous world.

(Friday Church News Notes, May 1, 2015, www.wayoflife.org, fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143)

Matthew 24:1-2
"And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple: and his disciples came to him for to shew him the buildings of the temple. And Jesus said unto them, See ye not all these things? verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down."

One of the most solemn days of the year for the Jewish people is not a biblical holy day. No, this national day of mourning – known as Tisha B'Av – is commemorated because of the catastrophes that happened to Israel throughout history on the ninth day of the month of Av.

According to rabbinic tradition, five disastrous events took place on the ninth of Av. We have time to mention just three. It was on the ninth day of Av in the year 587 BC that King Solomon's Temple was destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonians after a two-year siege. The people of Judah were then sent into Babylonian exile.

Nearly seven hundred years later – again on the ninth of Av – the Second Temple was destroyed by the Romans in the year 70 AD. This date also marks the beginning of the Jewish exile from the land of their fathers, an exile that continued for almost nineteen hundred years.

The third event we will mention today happened in the year 132 AD. It was on the ninth day of Av that the Romans crushed the Bar Kokhba revolt, killing more than 100,000 Jews and ending the Jewish hope of overthrowing Roman rule. Since many Jews believed Bar Kokhba to be the long-awaited Messiah, this was a tragedy of epic proportions.

Even more tragic is that so many Jews back then and today do not realize that the Messiah has already come … and is coming again! Tell every Jewish person you know that their Messiah is Jesus!

Notes: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tisha_B%27Av.
Photo: Excavated stones from the Western Wall of the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, knocked onto the street below by Roman battering rams on the ninth of Av, 70 AD.
Creation Moments, Inc., P.O. Box 839, Foley, MN 56329 www.creationmoments.com

Our new book The Bible and Islam answers the question, “What does the Bible say about Islam?” and the answer is that the Bible has a lot to say. In light of today’s news events, we do well to ask this question. Islam controls a large part of the world and is on a jihadic rampage that hasn't been seen in hundreds of years. Islam is in the process of doing what it failed to do earlier in its history, which is to conquer Europe. It is winning this objective by immigration, prolific breeding, and crafty politics, all made possible by the spiritual blindness, lack of wisdom, and pacifism of Europeans in general. The most “radical” form of jihad is supported by a large portion of the Islamic world. Modern jihadists have murdered tens of thousands, toppled two of the world’s largest buildings in the world’s most powerful nation, threatened presidents and prime ministers, and conquered territory amounting to millions of square miles. If it weren't for Bible prophecy, it would not be unreasonable to assume that Islam would eventually reach its perpetual objective of establishing a world caliphate. But this won’t happen. The Bible and Islam contains the history and doctrine of Islam, the goal of Islam, the three stages of jihad, the Koran’s doctrine of abrogation, Islam’s hatred of Christianity, Islam as a judgment on apostate Christianity and apostate Israel, Islam’s divisions and internecine hate (Sunni vs. Shiite, etc.), Islam’s preparation for the Antichrist, and Muslim nations in prophecy. The book explains what is happening in the Middle East, and where these events will ultimately lead. 80 pages. Available in print and free eBook editions from www.wayoflife.org.


(Friday Church News Notes, May 1, 2015, www.wayoflife.org, fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143)

Isaiah 1:18
"Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool."

It looks like H.G. Wells' The Invisible Man has just come closer to becoming a reality. A group of Caltech researchers recently announced they have succeeded in making a mouse transparent. The researchers said that their new scientific technique – called Perfusion-assisted Agent Release in Situ, or PARS for short – will help scientists study organs and tissues in the lab, and could even help diagnose illnesses in humans.

So how did they pull this off? They did it by pumping a detergent through the dead mouse's tissues to remove the fat cells. Sure enough, this made the mouse transparent. However, it also caused the mouse to quickly decompose. To solve this problem, the researchers replaced the fatty lipids with a transparent gel to maintain the mouse's body structure. By pumping this cocktail of detergent and gel through the mouse's circulatory system, they were able to make the mouse's body transparent and ready for research.

According to The Washington Post, labs have already begun using the lipid-clearing technique on tissue from human biopsies. Using the technique for finding cancerous cells, said one researcher, is a no-brainer.

Truly, we live in an age when it seems as if science can solve any problem. But there's one big problem that science will never be able to solve – the problem of sin and death. Only Jesus can take a person's sin-stained heart and turn it white as snow. Only Jesus can make our sins vanish from God's sight!

Notes: "Why a see-through mouse is a big deal for scientists", The Washington Post, R. Feltman, 7-31-14.
"Single-Cell Phenotyping within Transparent Intact Tissue through Whole-Body Clearing," Cell, 5-6-14.
Photo: A comparison of optical transparency of mouse brains and major organs before and after PARS clearing. © 2014 Elsevier Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Used for educational purposes under U.S. fair use doctrine.
Creation Moments, Inc., P.O. Box 839, Foley, MN 56329 www.creationmoments.com

Nepal has become the preferred destination for Israeli homosexual couples who want to purchase the services of a surrogate mother. This made the news this week when Israel flew 26 couples and their babies out of Nepal after the recent earthquake. McClatchy News Service reports: “Although Tel Aviv is one of the gay capitals of the world, Israeli law doesn't allow same-sex couples to adopt or to have children via surrogates in their home country. So foreign surrogacy has boomed in Israel over the last decade, first in India--until it restricted the service to heterosexual couples--then in Nepal. Magdassi said surrogacy in Nepal could cost as little as a fifth of the price in America. ... Magdassi said about 40 children had been born through Lotus Surrogacy since she began operating in Nepal last year. Legal experts in Israel say about 100 children a year are born via surrogates to Israeli parents” (“Infants born to gay Israelis via surrogate moms are rescued in Nepal,” Miami Herald, Apr. 28, 2015). This reminds us that though Israel is back in her land, she remains in a spiritually dead condition.

(Friday Church News Notes, April 24, 2015, www.wayoflife.org, fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143)

Six days ago an earthquake measuring 7.8 struck with devastating effect in Nepal. The official death told has passed 5,000, but it could easily be three times that of more. Tens of thousands of homes were destroyed. Many of Nepal’s ancient temples collapsed into piles of broken brick and wooden kindling. The cost of rebuilding has been estimated at $5 billion, or one-fifth of Nepal’s total GDP. Nepal’s news media is calling this the Great Earthquake, but as terrible as it was, it is a “walk in the park” compared to what the Bible prophesies for the future. Daniel called it “a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time” (Daniel 12:1), and Jesus called it “great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be” (Matthew 24:21). Every Bible prophecy has come to pass precisely as prophesied, including the amazing prophesies that described every aspect of Jesus’ life, including the name of His very birthplace and the words He spoke on the cross. Nothing in this life is more certain than Bible prophecy. 

Jesus said the coming Tribulation will be greater than every trouble that this deeply troubled world has ever experienced. Greater than the most devastating earthquake. Greater than the rampages of any ancient tyrant. Greater than the modern world wars or the berserk ruinations of Stalin or Mao. Greater than every terrible plague and famine. Nepal’s earthquake is a mere foretaste of the coming Tribulation. 

Consider the loss of life. Jesus warned that the number of deaths in the Tribulation will be so far-reaching that “except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved” (Mat. 24:22). 

Consider the destruction of property. In the Tribulation, there will be destruction from the great wars and from other things described in the book of Revelation, but consider the destruction that will occur from just one of the judgments that will occur at that time. “And there fell upon men a great hail out of heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent...” (Rev. 16:21). A talent is more than 100 pounds. 

Consider the shaking. As terrible as it was, the shaking of Nepal’s recent quake was like a gentle rocking of a baby’s crib compared to the following: “And there were voices, and thunders, and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great. ... And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found” (Rev. 16:18, 20). I wonder what that one will measure on the Richter scale? 

Consider the destruction of idols. The media is bemoaning the destruction of “Nepal’s ancient heritage,” referring to her oldest Hindu temples. But God condemns idolatry in the strongest terms. The very first of the Ten Commandments says, “Thou shalt have no other gods before me. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth” (Exodus 20:3-4). In the coming Tribulation, every idolatrous temple and false religious system that is contrary to God’s Word will be destroyed. “And the loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be made low: and the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day. And the idols he shall utterly abolish” (Isaiah 2:17-18). 

Consider the humbling of man. When an earthquake hits, it is a very humbling event. Man is utterly powerless before such things. For a little time, strutting and self-sufficiency cease. It is usually a fleeting impression, though, and soon the survivors are back to normal, which is walking in the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life (1 John 2:16). In the coming Tribulation, prideful, God-rejecting men will be humbled and there will never again be a “back to normal.” The Tribulation is called “the day of the Lord,” because in that day the blessed Creator will be exalted to His rightful position as Lord of the earth. “Enter into the rock, and hide thee in the dust, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty. The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, and the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day. For the day of the LORD of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought low” (Isaiah 2:10-12). 

The Bible says that judgment is God’s “strange work,” because what He most delights in is salvation. He has done everything He can to provide salvation to mankind by sending His only begotten Son to suffer and die on the cross to atone for man’s sin. Jesus Christ rose from the dead after three days, and for 2,000 years the gospel of salvation has been proclaimed throughout the earth. The Bible has been translated into every major language (and most minor ones) and the gospel is available in every form of media known to man, from print to the Internet. There is no excuse for the fact that the vast majority of people the world over have ignored God’s most gracious offer of salvation and have continued their lives in impenitence and unbelief. Friend, time is short. “Earthquakes in divers places” is one of the signs that Jesus gave of the end times. Are you ready to face your Maker?

(Friday Church News Notes, April 24, 2015, www.wayoflife.org, fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143)

1 Peter 3:15
"But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:"

Creation Moments has aired a number of programs about theistic evolution. We have also written a number of articles, which you will find at our website, about this false and dangerous belief. We interact with theistic evolutionists almost every day and have found them to be almost identical to atheists in their exceedingly low view of the Bible.

Not long ago, a theistic evolutionist revealed once again how far they will go to defend evolution. During a debate with Discovery Institute's Dr. Stephen Meyer, theistic evolutionist Dr. Karl Giberson showed a photo of a human infant with a monkey-like tail. He did this to drive home his point that humans share a common descent from a tailed ancestor.

The only thing Dr. Giberson failed to mention was that he had found the photo at the website Cracked.com, an online humor website inspired by Mad magazine. When the source of the photo was revealed several days later, Dr. Giberson apologized, promising to never use the picture again. But like many "apologies" from evolutionists, this one fell a little flat. He protested: "No point was implied by the image beyond what is well established by other legitimate images. At no point did I imply that the image I showed was evidence."

Christians should never even think of being deceptive when sharing the truth of biblical creation. Yes, we may make a mistake. But when we do, a sincere apology might make all the difference in an unbeliever's life.

Notes: "Karl Giberson Apologizes for Photoshopped Image of Tailed Baby", Evolution News and Views, 7/17/14.
Photo: Used for educational purposes under U.S. fair use doctrine.
Creation Moments, Inc., P.O. Box 839, Foley, MN 56329 www.creationmoments.com