In a brazen attack upon the U.S. Constitution’s guarantee of freedom of religion and freedom of speech, Colorado has become America’s 18th state to ban “gay conversion therapy.” It was signed into law by Gov. Jared Polis, the first openly homosexual governor in America’s history. This is another example of how that “homosexual rights” trump and thus destroy the freedoms guaranteed by the United States Constitution. The fact that these laws are not being quickly overturned by the judicial branch is evidence that the judges in question are unethical activists who are not upholding the Constitution they have sworn to uphold.

(Friday Church News Notes, June 7, 2019, www.wayoflife.org fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143)

​1 Corinthians 15:47
“The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven.”

A large proportion of Paul’s teaching seems to be predicated on the literal truth of the early chapters of Genesis.

In Romans 5, Paul draws a parallel between Adam and Jesus. He writes: “As by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned” (Romans 5:12). Romans 5 makes clear that Jesus came to destroy sin and death, showing that both of these came into the world through Adam. The link made is so strong that it is clear that the fact of Adam’s existence is being assumed by Paul.

Peter Enns of BioLogos admits that Paul assumed the historicity of Adam. He says that he would expect nothing less of Paul, who was an ancient man writing to ancient people. He even goes on to say that it is okay that Paul got this wrong.

Paul returned to this same theme in 1 Corinthians 15:47, stating that “the first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven.” And in 1 Timothy 2:13, he states that both Adam and Eve were created by God.

There is a serious theological problem if the Apostle Paul could have been mistaken about the historicity of Adam when he was writing his scriptural epistles under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Paul could not have got this wrong because to believe that undermines all the rest of his teaching.

creationmoments.com/sermons/did-paul-get-it-wrong

“Ex-homosexual and ex-transgender men and women from around the country descended upon the Nation’s Capital this weekend for the Second Annual ‘Freedom March’ where they proclaimed the freedom they’ve found in abandoning homosexual and transgender practices. ‘Look at this! This is Amazing! They say we don’t exist!’ declared author and documentary producer M.J. Nixon, a march co-founder, as many gathered for a group picture. About 200 participated this year—a threefold increase over last year. Former transwoman Jeffrey McCall kicked off the rally on the grounds of the Washington Monument, explaining that nobody here was forced to change. ‘It was the power of the Holy Spirit and the grace of Jesus Christ that fell on all of us.’ One testimony after another from the racially diverse group of mostly millennials spoke about their personal conversion to Jesus and the freedom they have found from lives dominated by active homosexuality or gender dysphoria. A second Pulse Nightclub survivor [the mass shooting in Orlando, Florida, three years ago], Luis Ruiz, said that like many of the people participating in the March the reason why he was there is ultimately because he had a ‘mother and a father that never compromised the Gospel. They prayed and prayed and believed not in my situation, but in my destiny, my identity found in Christ Jesus.’ ‘It wasn’t a gay to straight thing,’ said Ruiz, ‘It was a lost to saved thing. We were all born into sin, baby. Even though I might be tempted every day, I choose Jesus. He’s the only man in my life. I chose Him over him.’”

“200 ex-LGBT,” LifeSiteNews.com, May 28, 2019

Psalm 104:5
“Who laid the foundations of the earth, that it should not be removed for ever.”

I was in my mid teens. I had got on the train, ready for a journey to London. I had thought I had checked that I was on the right train and that I was sitting in a seat facing forward, waiting for the train to go. Suddenly, the train started moving backwards. It was going the wrong way! I must have got on the wrong train. I jumped up, ready to leave the train – but then I realized the train was not moving. The train on the track next to mine had moved forward, and I thought my train was moving backward.

Movement is relative. It is very common for all of us to use figures of speech which appear to refer to other objects moving while we stay still. Looking back from a ship leaving port, we might say that the city and the houses are receding. They are not. We are moving.

There are those who hold that the Earth is fixed and that the Sun and planets orbit the Earth with a complex system of interlocking spirals. Such geocentrists claim that their view is in accord with Scripture. It is not. Psalm 104:5 states that the Earth shall never be moved; it is not referring to an Earth which is stationary in space. Rather, the Hebrew word mot refers to being shaken. The Earth will not be shaken off course. Geocentric models do not explain why the planets move as they do. The Copernican model does – and is entirely consistent with the Bible’s teaching.

creationmoments.com/sermons/does-the-earth-move

On Sunday morning, June 2, U.S. President Donald Trump made an unscheduled visit to the McClean Bible Church in Vienna, Virginia. Franklin Graham had called for a special day of prayer for the President on that day, saying, “If his enemies are allowed to destroy him, and pull down the presidency, it will hurt our entire nation.” Trump had tweeted about this multiple times. The church learned of the visit at the end of the morning service when they were told that the President was stopping by for prayer (“Pastor explains sudden decision to pray for Trump,” USA Today, June 3, 2019). The President removed his hat and stood respectfully onstage with his head bowed while Pastor David Platt prayed as follows: “Oh God, we praise you as the one universal King over all. You are our leader and our Lord and we worship you. There’s one God and one Savior and it’s you, and your name is Jesus and we exalt you, Jesus. And we know we need your mercy, we need your grace, we need your help, we need your wisdom in our country. And so we stand right now on behalf of our president and we pray for your grace and your mercy and your wisdom upon him. God, we pray that he would know how much you love him, so much that you sent Jesus to die for his sins, our sins. So we pray that he would look to you and he would trust in you, he would lean on you, that he would govern and make decisions in ways that are good for justice and good for righteousness and good for equity--every good path. Lord we pray, we pray that you would give him all of the grace that he needs to govern in ways that we just saw in 1 Timothy 2 that lead to peaceful and quiet lives, godly and dignified in every way. God, we pray for your blessing in that way upon his family. We pray that you give him strength, we pray that you give him clarity, wisdom, wisdom. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Fools despise wisdom and instruction. Please, oh God, give him wisdom and help him to lead our country. Alongside other leaders we pray today for leaders in Congress pray for leaders in courts, we pray for leaders in national and state levels” (“Trump Surprises Evangelical Church with Visit,” Christian Headlines, June 3, 2019). It was a prayer with glaring omissions (e.g., no mention of Christ’s blood atonement; no confession of sin; no mention of repentance), in a very cool, rock & roll, “let’s not judge” SBC church, and it is sad that the President spent most of his Sunday morning on the golf course. But we are glad that the President desires prayer, and we do believe in praying for him. While we don’t join hands with “live after their own lusts” rock & rollers (2 Ti. 4:3-4) and ecumenists and “tongues” speakers, because God forbids us to do so, we do pray without ceasing for our president and our government leaders in obedience to 1 Timothy 2, and we believe God for the answer even in dark times.

(Friday Church News Notes, June 7, 2019, www.wayoflife.org, fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143)

Psalm 111:2
“The works of the LORD are great, sought out of all them that have pleasure therein”.

The saying goes that “A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” However, just because something is called a rose does not mean that it would smell as sweet as a rose.

Likewise, not everything that goes by the name of science is actually science even if it is a view held by the so-called scientific establishment.

It is convenient for us to refer to two different types of science. Observational Science is based on what we see here and now. It involves the observations and measurements that we make in experiment and in field work. It is repeatable; that is to say, if the same experiment is done under the same conditions, it will give the same result, and, if it does not, it clearly needs to be checked.

Historical science concerns alleged one-time events that happened in the past. These events are not repeatable or reproducible. The conditions will not occur again. Historical science is not susceptible to scientific analysis.

Clear solutions of lead(II) nitrate and sodium iodide will, when mixed, give a yellow solid precipitate of lead(II) iodide. We would not expect to do this experiment on another day and get a purple gas. It is a repeatable experiment. However, the alleged reaction – when inorganic molecules were supposed to have reacted to form a living cell as the first stage of evolution – is not observational science. It is perfectly biblical, therefore, for us to criticize such evolutionary ideas as being outside of science.

creationmoments.com/sermons/biblical-science

Psalm 146:6
“Which made heaven, and earth, the sea, and all that therein is: which keepeth truth for ever….”

Most people have seen the beautiful colors of reef fish. However, all those bright colors would be expected to make them attractive to predators.

Researchers have learned that while we appreciate all the bright colors, when we see fish as other fish see them, most of these fish are perfectly camouflaged. Almost fifty percent of the fish so far studied can see ultraviolet light. Further, fish such as the damselfish, have markings that can only be seen in the ultraviolet range. Researchers studying the effect of water depth on light color and the pigments in various fish’s eyes have concluded that fish cannot see, for example, the subtleties of all the shade of yellows around them. What appears to us as a bright yellow trumpet fish is seen by fish eyes to be the same color as a coral reef ten feet away. What appears to us as a bright yellow and blue striped angel fish appears to fish eyes several feet away like the reef itself. Several species of cleaner fish sport a similar shade of blue even though they may not be related. Perhaps this color is a code to other species that need cleaning.

God has here designed a color scheme that brings delight to the eye, and yet offers his creatures protection so that they can continue from generation to generation.

creationmoments.com/sermons/bright-camouflage-3

Isaiah 40:8
“The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever.”

A flower called the dead-horse arum has a problem. The individual flowers are able to receive pollen for only one day. To make matters worse, its male parts are not mature that day. The next day, the male parts of the flower produce pollen, but the female parts of the flower have shriveled up and cannot receive it.

The dead-horse arum, which grows on islands in the Mediterranean, has a unique solution to this problem. When it’s ready to pollinate, the flower begins to generate heat and scent. The scent smells like rotting flesh, which attracts blow-flies. The flies, looking for a place to lay their eggs, crawl into a pocket around the base of the flower stalk. There, the blow-flies are trapped by spines and filaments. If these flies had previously visited another dead-horse arum, they transfer the pollen they picked up there to the female parts of the plant. The next day, when the male parts of the flower are producing pollen, the flies, now coated with this pollen, are released to pollinate another arum.

​The complex dependence of the arum on the blow-flies – with its custom-designed features to lure and hold the flies just long enough to ensure pollination – had to come into existence all at the same time and in perfected form, making it a testimony to the genius of our Creator.

​https://creationmoments.com/sermons/the-dead-horse-arum-3/

Genesis 1:27
“So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.”
​
One commonly heralded claim to the evolution of man from the animal kingdom is the statement that humans and chimpanzees are more than 98 percent genetically identical. Many people think this claim has been proven, but it has always been an assumption made by believers in evolution.
Now geneticists have begun to examine this claim. Researchers recently completed the first detailed map of one chimpanzee chromosome. That alone should tell us that the claim of genetic similarity between humans and chimps has never been proven. They then compared this with the corresponding human chromosome. In a detailed examination they found 68,000 small differences in the DNA between the two genes. An analysis of the 231 genes of this chromosome showed that 83 percent of them would make proteins that differed from one another. They noted that if this pattern held for all the comparisons between human and chimpanzee genes, they would expect thousands of differences. In other words, rather than humans and chimps being more than 98 percent genetically identical, so far they have proven to be 83 percent genetically different!
There are, of course, more differences between humans and chimps than genetics. Humans were created in God’s image and therefore are morally responsible to God. And most importantly, humans have been redeemed by God’s Son, Jesus Christ, on the cross of Calvary.

creationmoments.com/sermons/genetic-monkey-business-3

Beth Moore’s contemplative prayer probably explains the “revelation” she describes in the previous report: that in 2016 her eyes were opened to see that men who refuse women preachers are sinfully proud. While it’s probably true that some men who are opposed to women preachers are proud, the rejection of women preachers and women church leaders is clearly taught in God’s Word and is therefore a doctrine of the Holy Spirit, the Bible’s Author. “Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection. But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence. For Adam was first formed, then Eve. And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression” (1 Timothy 2:11-14). In rejecting this doctrine and attributing it to sin, Moore is communing with devils. Moore, a Southern Baptist who is influential with a broad spectrum of evangelical women, is very much on the contemplative bandwagon. She joined Richard Foster, Dallas Willard, and other contemplatives on the Be Still DVD, which was published in April 2008 by Fox Home Entertainment. Lighthouse Trails issued the following discerning warning: “In the DVD, there are countless enticements, references and comments that clearly show its affinity with contemplative spirituality. For instance, Richard Foster says that anyone can practice contemplative prayer and become a ‘portable sanctuary’ for God. This panentheistic view of God is very typical for contemplatives. The underlying theme of the Be Still DVD is that we cannot truly know God or be intimate with Him without contemplative prayer and the state of silence that it produces. While the DVD is vague and lacking in actual instruction on word or phrase repetition (which lies at the heart of contemplative prayer), it is really quite misleading. What they don’t tell you in the DVD is that this state of stillness or silence is, for the most part, achieved through some method such as mantra-like meditation. THE PURPOSE OF THE DVD, IN ESSENCE, IS NOT TO INSTRUCT YOU IN CONTEMPLATIVE PRAYER BUT RATHER TO MAKE YOU AND YOUR FAMILY HUNGRY FOR IT. The DVD even promises that practicing the silence will heal your family problems. THIS PROJECT IS AN INFOMERCIAL FOR CONTEMPLATIVE PRACTICE, and because of the huge advertising campaign that Fox Home Entertainment has launched, contemplative prayer could be potentially introduced into millions of homes around the world. On the DVD Moore says, ‘if we are not still before Him [God], we will never truly know to the depths of the marrow of our bones that He is God. There’s got to be a stillness’” (“Beth Moore Gives Thumbs Up,” lighthousetrailsresearch.com). In her book When Godly People Do Ungodly Things (2002), Moore recommends contemplative Roman Catholics Brother Lawrence and Brennan Manning. Of Manning she says that his contribution to our generation “may be a gift without parallel” (p. 72) and calls Manning’s Ragamuffin Gospel “one of the most remarkable books” (p. 290). She does not warn her readers that Manning never gives a clear testimony of salvation or a clear gospel in his writings, that he attended Catholic Mass regularly, that he believed it is wrong for churches to require that homosexuals repent before they can be members, that he promoted the use of mantras to create a thoughtless state of silent meditation, that he spent six months in isolation in a cave and spends eight days each year in silent retreat under the direction of a Dominican nun, that he promoted the dangerous practice of visualization, that he quoted approvingly from New Agers such as Beatrice Bruteau (who says, “We have realized ourselves as the Self that says only I AM unlimited, absolute I AM”) and Matthew Fox (who says all religions lead to the same God), and that he believes in universal salvation, that everyone including Hitler will go to heaven. (For documentation see “A Biographical Catalog of Contemplative Mystics” in the book Contemplative Mysticism: A Powerful Ecumenical Glue, available from www.wayoflife.org.) Beth Moore is the blind leading the blind, and her vast popularity is clear evidence of the apostasy of the Southern Baptist Convention.

(Friday Church News Notes, May 31, 2019, www.wayoflife.org fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143)

James 2:19
“Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.”

Speaking, singing, writing and body language are all familiar ways of communicating. Science has now learned of another means of communication that has been going on all around us, yet we are not even aware of it.

A vast range of creatures communicate through vibration. This vibratory communication goes on at frequencies beyond human hearing. Researchers have learned that a number of insects communicate with other members of their species on the same plant by quivering the plant. A tree hopper will call its friends with a specific type of vibration when it finds a good place to feed. The cape mole rat spends nearly its entire life underground. When a solitary male is ready to mate, he thumps against the side of his burrow and then listens for a female’s response. The female’s burrow may be nine feet away, but she’ll sense the vibration.

Golden moles are completely blind, but they hunt for live prey. Further, they live in a desert environment where there are only small stands of grass. They hunt by sensing ground vibrations generated when the wind blows through a stand of grass, where the next meal is likely to be found.

Communication is God’s gift. However, we want to be clear in our communication of our faith. To do that, our communication of our faith needs to center on Jesus Christ.

creationmoments.com/sermons/seismic-sayings-3

Galatians 4:19
“My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you….”

Does the mother’s body or the unborn baby’s body trigger the birth process? Those who advise that the baby will come when it’s ready may be correct.

Researchers studying mice have found that a protein called SP-A, which coats the inside of a newborn’s lungs, begins to rise in concentration in the amniotic fluid shortly before birth. Normally, the protein is used by the newborn to fend off lung infections. SP-A causes the release of the unborn child’s immune cells, called macrophages. These macrophages leave the amniotic fluid and go to the uterus. Once there, they produce inflammation that eventually causes the cervix to open and contractions to begin. It seems that this entire sequence of events that leads to a successful birth is controlled by the unborn infant’s own body. If the researchers’ findings with mice also apply to humans, many premature births might be prevented by manipulating levels of SP-A in the mother’s amniotic fluid.

Every step of this system must be in place and work if there is to be a next generation. This fact in itself argues against this carefully tuned system having evolved through trial and error. Rather, it is the gift of our loving God, Who also gave us the new birth into His kingdom by calling us through the Gospel of the forgiveness of sins in His Son, Jesus Christ.

creationmoments.com/sermons/baby-may-be-in-charge-of-his-own-birth-3

“Prominent Southern Baptist Bible teacher Beth Moore has ignited a firestorm on Twitter after challenging a theologian who singled her out in a blog post for encouraging women to preach. Owen Strachan, associate professor of Christian theology at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Kansas City, Missouri, said in the May 7 post he was surprised that both Moore and SBC President J. D. Greear support ‘a woman teaching and preaching to the corporate body.’ He followed that up on Twitter the next day, saying, ‘One thing we complementarians have massive agreement on: women do not preach on Sunday to the church. Doing so is functional egalitarianism. We will not capitulate here.’ Complementarians embrace the Scriptural view that the role of men and women is distinct and complements one another within the home and church. Moore responded to Strachan with a series of tweets. ‘Owen, I am going to say this with as much respect & as much self-restraint as I can possibly muster. I would be terrified to be a woman you’d approve of. And I would have wasted 40 years of my life encouraging women to come to know and love Jesus through the study of Scripture. I am compelled to my bones by the Holy Spirit—I don’t want to be but I am—to draw attention to the sexism & misogyny that is rampant in segments of the SBC, cloaked by piety & bearing the stench of hypocrisy.’ She wrote, ‘I had the eye opening experience of my life in 2016. A fog cleared for me that was the most disturbing, terrifying thing I’d ever seen. All these years I’d given the benefit of the doubt that these men were the way they were because they were trying to be obedient to Scripture. Then I realized it was not over Scripture at all. It was over sin. It was over power. It was over misogyny. Sexism. It was about arrogance. About protecting systems. It involved covering abuses & misuses of power. Shepherds guarding other shepherds instead of guarding the sheep.’ For Strachan and other complementarians, though, that path to serving is clearly defined in Scripture and is not negotiable. ‘For a woman to teach and preach to adult men is to defy God’s Word and God’s design,’ Strachan wrote in his blog post. ‘Elders must not allow such a sinful practice; to do so is to bring the church body into disobedience against God.’”

“Beth Moore Challenges Theologian,” ChristianHeadlines.com, May 14, 2019