PropheZine #93
April 15, 2000
Bob Lally Publisher
Mimi Nila Senior Editor
Lori Eldridge Asst. Editor
Bob Ippolito Asst. Editor

To Subscribe, Unsubscribe or Change email addresses see notice at the bottom
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ARTICLES

(Creation Science Evangelism).....The Universe Is Not "Billions" of Years Old
(Creation Science Evangelism).....Questions and Answers

BIBLE STUDY

Ken Onweller........ Mirror, Mirror In My Heart

EASTER MESSAGE:

John Terry....About The Cross & Crucifixion - A Medical Analysis


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Hi!

Last issue we published some information concerning "New Movements".  The
research was not complete and the article stated such. We should not have
published the article until all of the information had been researched and
available.

The conference in Orlando went very well except for some outlandish and
unscriptural frenzy making by Morris Cerullo. On Friday night he worked the
crowd into a frenzy and most of the speakers and many of the paying
attendees left.  During the convocation Hal Lindsey read scripture and
rebuked what happened the night before.  At least one person spoke up and
I'm glad it was Mr. Hal Lindsey.

In speaking with Dr. Joe Vieira, conference coordinator, it turns out that
Mr. Cerullo told the Conference organizers he would speak on a topic from
Revelation and failed to do so.  They were as shocked as anyone else.
Personally, I can't take this garbage anymore.  If this happens next year I
will personally get up on stage and stop this nonsense.  Unfortunately, I
was in the hotel when this was occurring.

I would suggest buying the audio and/or video tapes of the conference.
Great information and teachings.  Order Conference Tapes by calling
1-800-366-1463

Well, that's it for now.  Enjoy this issue.

Bob Lally
PropheZine
bob@prophezine.com

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|   From http://www.drdino.com (Creation Science Evangelism)
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|   The Universe Is Not "Billions" of Years Old
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The general theory of evolution is based on several faulty assumptions.  (Note: It is important to understand by this statement that we are not disputing simple variations that some call "microevolution," whose micro-changes are often observed but never lead to a fundamentally different kind of plant or animal.)  The following assumptions of evolutionary theory are easy to prove false:

1. the universe is billions of years old, 

2. life spontaneously arose from nonliving minerals, 

3. mutations create or improve a species, 

4. natural selection has creative power. 

In this section we will deal with the first of these assumptions. The others will be dealt with elsewhere. If, in fact, it could be demonstrated that the universe is not billions of years old, all other arguments about evolution become meaningless and unnecessary.

In children’s fairy tales, we are told: frog + magic spell (usually a kiss) = prince

In modern "science" textbooks we are told: frog + time = prince

The same basic fairy tale (evolution) is being promoted in textbooks today, but the new magic potion cited is time. When the theory of evolution is discussed, time is the panacea for all the thousands of problems that arise. 

In nearly all discussions and debates about evolution that I have held at universities and colleges, I ask the evolutionists how certain things could have evolved by chance. Their answer is nearly always "Given enough time..." Time is the evolutionists’ god. Time is able to accomplish anything the evolutionists can propose. Time can easily turn a frog into a prince. Time can create matter from nothing and life from matter. According to evolutionists, time can create order from chaos.

But let’s remove time from the above equation. There would be the following three results: 

1. Evolution becomes obviously impossible. 

2. Evolutionists will scream like a baby whose pacifier has been pulled out because they know that if time is removed, their religion (evolution is religion, not science) is silly. 

3. Creation becomes the only reasonable alternative explanation for the existence of this complex universe.

Let’s imagine we are exploring an old gold mine, and we find a Casio Databank watch half buried in the mud on the floor of the mine. Suppose also that the correct time and date are displayed on the watch and it is still running smoothly. Then imagine that I tell you the watch has been there for over one thousand years.

"That’s impossible!" you say. "That watch could not have been there for a thousand years, and I can prove it!"

"How can you prove I’m wrong?" I say. 

"Well, for one thing, this mine was just dug 150 years ago," you say.

"Okay," I admit, "you’re right about the thousand years being too much, but the watch has been here for 150 years at least!"

"No!" you say. "Casio didn’t make the Databank watch until twelve years ago."

"All right," I say. "The watch was dropped here twelve years ago then."

"Impossible!" you say. "The batteries only last five years on that watch, and it’s still running. That proves it has been here less than five years."

While we still can’t prove exactly when the watch was left there, you have logically limited the date to five years at the most. You have effectively proven that my initial statement about the watch being 1000 years old is wrong. The larger numbers prove nothing in this debate. Even if I were to radiometric-date the mud or the plastic in the watch to try to prove that it is thousands of years old, my data would be meaningless. The same logic can be applied to finding the age of the earth. If several factors limit the age of the earth to a few thousand years, the earth cannot be older than a few thousand years! Even if a few indicators seem to show a greater age for the earth, it takes only ONE fact to prove the earth is young. 

The Bible teaches that: God created the universe approximately 6000 years ago, ex nihilo (out of nothing) in six literal, twenty-four hour days. Then, approximately 4400 years ago, the earth was destroyed by a worldwide Flood. This devastating, year-long Flood was responsible for the sediment layers being deposited (the water was going and returning, Gen. 8:3-5). As the mountains rose and the ocean basins sank after the Flood (Psalm 104:5-8, Gen. 8:1), the waters rushed off the rising mountains into the new ocean basins. This rapid-erosion through still-soft, unprotected sediments formed the topography we still see today, in places like the Grand Canyon. The uniformitarian assumption—that today’s slow erosion rates that take place through solid rock are the same as has always been—is faulty logic, and ignores catastrophes like the Flood. (2 Pet. 3:3-8 says that the scoffers are "willingly ignorant" of the Flood.)

Listed below are some of the factors from various branches of science that limit the age of the universe (including earth) to within the last few thousand years. Though it cannot be scientifically proven exactly when the universe was created, its age can be shown to not be billions of years old. Each of the following evidences of a young earth is described in great detail in the books referenced below. Source number and page number are given for the following statements (at the bottom of this page): 

Evidence from Space

The shrinking sun limits the earth-sun relationship to less than "billions of years." The sun is losing both mass and diameter. Changing the mass would upset the fine gravitational balance that keeps the earth at just the right distance for life to survive. (1, p. 169; 2, p. 30; 4, pp. 56-63; 5, p. 26; 6, p. 43;) 

The ½ inch layer of cosmic dust on the moon indicates the moon has not been accumulating dust for billions of years. (2, p. 26; 3, p. 22; 4, p. 15; 6, p. 35; 7; 9, p. 25) *Insufficient evidence to be positive (almost all estimates before the lunar landing anticipated great quantities of dust.)

"I get a picture therefore, of the first spaceship, picking out a nice, level place for landing purposes, coming in slowly downward tail-first, and sinking majestically out of sight." -- Isaac Asimov, Science Digest, January, 1959, p 36

Lyttleton felt that the X-rays and UV light striking exposed moon rocks "could, during the age of the moon be sufficient to form a layer over it several miles deep." -- Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society of London, vol. 115, pp. 585-604

The existence of short-period comets indicates the universe is less than billions of years old. (2, p. 31; 3, p. 27; 4, p. 35; 6, p. 37; 7)

Fossil meteorites are very rare in layers other than the top layers of the earth. This indicates that the layers were not exposed for millions of years as is currently being taught in school textbooks. (4, p. 26) 

The moon is receding a few inches each year. Billions of years ago the moon would have been so close that the tides would have been much higher, eroding away the continents. (3, p. 25; 6, p. 43; 7)

The moon contains considerable quantities of U-236 and Th-230, both short-lived isotopes that would have been long gone if the moon were billions of years old. (8, p. 177; see also 4, p. 51, for information on rock "flow") 

The existence of great quantities of space dust, which by the Pointing-Robertson effect would have been vacuumed out of our solar system in a few thousand years, indicates the solar system is young. (3, p. 29; 6, p.44) 

At the rate many star clusters are expanding, they could not have been traveling for billions of years. (3, p. 29; 4, pp. 30 and 59; 6, p. 44) 

Saturn’s rings are still unstable, indicating they are not billions of years old. (4, p. 45) 

Jupiter and Saturn are cooling off rather rapidly. They are losing heat twice as fast as they gain it from the sun. They cannot be billions of years old. (5, p. 26; 4, p. 43; Jupiter’s moon, Io, is losing matter to Jupiter. It cannot be billions of years old. (4, p. 3) 

Among other factors to consider is that all the ancient astronomers from 2000 years ago recorded that Sirius was a red star—today it is a white dwarf star. Since today’s textbooks in astronomy state that one hundred thousand years are required for a star to "evolve" from a red giant to a white dwarf, obviously this view needs to be restudied.

Evidence from Earth

The decaying magnetic field limits earth’s age to less than billions. (1, p. 157; 2, p. 27; 3, p. 20; 5, p. 23; 6, p. 42; 9, p. 25; 10, p. 38) 

The volume of lava on earth divided by its rate of efflux gives a number of only a few million years, not billions. I believe that during the Flood, while "the fountains of the deep were broken up," most of the earth’s lava was deposited rapidly. (1, p. 156) 

Dividing the amount of various minerals in the ocean by their influx rate indicates only a few thousand years of accumulation. (1, p. 153; 5, p. 24; 6, p. 42) 

The amount of Helium 4 in the atmosphere, divided by the formation rate on earth, gives only 175,000 years. (God may have created the earth with some helium which would reduce the age more.) (1, p. 151; 6, p. 42; 9, p. 25) 

The erosion rate of the continents is such that they would erode to sea level in less than 14,000,000 years, destroying all old fossils. (2, p. 31; 6, p 38; American Science Vol 56 p 356-374) 

Topsoil formation rates indicate only a few thousand years of formation. (6, p. 38) 

Niagara Falls’ erosion rate (four to five feet per year) indicates an age of less than 10,000 years. Don’t forget Noah’s Flood could have eroded half of the seven-mile-long Niagara River gorge in a few hours as the flood waters raced through the soft sediments.) (6, p. 39; 7) 

The rock encasing oil deposits could not withstand the pressure for more than a few thousand years. (2, p. 32; 3, p. 24; 5, p. 24; 6, p. 37; 7) 

The size of the Mississippi River delta, divided by the rate mud is being deposited, gives an age of less than 30,000 years. (The Flood in Noah’s day could have washed out 80% of the mud there in a few hours or days, so 4400 years is a reasonable age for the delta.) (3, p. 23; 6, p. 38; 7) 

The slowing spin of the earth limits its age to less than the "billions of years" called for by the theory of evolution. (3, p. 25; 7) 

A relatively small amount of sediment is now on the ocean floor, indicating only a few thousand years of accumulation. This embarrassing fact is one of the reasons why the continental drift theory is vehemently defended by those who worship evolution. (1, p. 155; 6, p. 28; 7) 

The largest stalactites and flowstone formations in the world could have easily formed in about 4400 years. (5, p. 27; 6, p. 39; 7) 

The Sahara desert is expanding. It easily could have been formed in a few thousand years. See any earth science textbook. 

The oceans are getting saltier. If they were billions of years old, they would be much saltier than they are now. (7; 9, p. 26; 10, p. 37)

Ice cores at the south pole and Greenland have a maximum depth of 10-14,000 feet. The aircraft that crash-landed in Greenland in 1942 and excavated in 1990 were under 263 feet of ice after only 48 years. This indicates all of the ice could have accumulated in 4400 years. (7)

Evidence from Biology

The current population of earth (5.5 billion souls) could easily be generated from eight people (survivors of the Flood) in less than 4000 years. (1, p. 167; 3, p. 27; 6, p. 41; 7) 

The oldest living coral reef is less than 4200 years old. (6, p. 39; 7) 

The oldest living tree in the world is about 4300 years old. (6, p. 40; 7) 

Another factor to consider: The genetic load in man is increasing. Geneticists have cataloged nearly 1300 genetic disorders in the human race. It is certainly reasonable to believe that the human race was created perfect from the hand of the Creator but has been going downhill as a result of our disobedience to the laws established by the Creator and the increased radiation from the sun. The Bible teaches that we live in a sin-cursed world as a result of Adam’s sin. 

Evidence from History

The oldest known historical records are less than 6000 years old. (1, p. 160) 

Many ancient cultures have stories of an original creation in the recent past and a worldwide Flood. Nearly 300 of these Flood legends are now known. 

Biblical dates add up to about 6000 years.

The following Bible verses tell when "the beginning" was:

• In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. (Gen. 1:1)

• Moses because of the hardness of your hearts permitted you to put away your wives: but from the beginning it was not so. (Mt. 19:8) 

• But from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female. (Mk. 10:6) 

• In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God. (Jn. 1:1) 

• That which was from the beginning, which we have seen with our eyes and our hands have handled, of the Word of life. (1 Jn. 1:1) 

• He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. (1 Jn. 3:8)

• For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time. (Mt. 24:21) 

• Ye are of your father the devil.... He was a murderer from the beginning. (Jn. 8:44) 

• That the blood of all the prophets, which was shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation; from the blood of Abel. (Lk. 11:50, 51) 

• And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth. (Heb. 1:10) 

• For in six days the Lord made heaven and the earth, the sea, and all that in them is. (Ex. 20:11) 

• Since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation. (2 Pet. 3:4) 

• The works were finished from the foundation of the world. For God did rest the seventh day from all his works. (Heb. 4:3, 4) 

• For in those days shall be affliction, such as was not from the beginning of the creation which God created to this time. (Mk. 13:19) 

• Have ye not known? have ye not heard? hath it not been told you from the beginning? Have ye not understood from the foundations of the earth? (Is. 40:21) 

• Who hath wrought and done it, calling the generations from the beginning? I the Lord am he. (Is. 41:4) 

• Have ye not read, that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female? (Mt. 19:4) 

• For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made. (Ro.
1:20) 

Those who believe the earth is billions of years old will typically try to discredit one or two of these evidences and then mistakenly think that they have successfully proven the entire list wrong. This is not logical, of course. Each evidence stands independently: it only takes one to prove the earth is young. The burden of proof is on the evolutionists if they expect all taxpayers to fund the teaching of their religion in the school system. Many who believe in evolution are great at "straining at a gnat, and swallowing a camel" (Mt. 23:24). 

Evolutionists love to assume uniformitarian processes. Many of the preceding evidences follow the same logic evolutionists use all the time in dealing with carbon dating, strata formation, genetic drift, etc.

It is interesting to read the ramblings of nay-sayers like Scott, Matson, Babinski, etc. as they try to answer these  evidences for a young universe. See how many times they use words like: we believe, perhaps, could have, there is some reason to believe, etc. Evolutionists may need billions of years to make people believe a rock can turn into a rocket scientist, but that time just isn’t available.

Sources
1 Morris, Henry M. Scientific Creationism. El Cajon, Calif.:
Master Books, April 1985. 
2 McLean, G. S.; McLean, Larry; Oakland, Roger. The Bible Key
to Understanding the Early Earth. Oklahoma City, Okla.:
Southwest Radio Church, 1987. 
3 Huse, Scott M. The Collapse of Evolution. Grand Rapids,
Mich.: Baker Book House, 1983. 
4 Ackerman, Paul D. It’s a Young World After All. Grand Rapids,
Mich.: Baker Book House, 1986. 
5 Blick, Edward F. A Scientific Analysis of Genesis. Oklahoma
City, Okla.: Hearthstone Publ. Ltd., 1991. 
6 Petersen, Dennis R. Unlocking the Mysteries of Creation.
South Lake Tahoe, Calif.: Christian Equippers International, 1987. 
7 Hovind, Kent E. Creation Seminar, Parts 1-7 (most items
referenced onscreen—available from Creation Science
Evangelism, 29 Cummings Road, Pensacola, Fla. 32503). 
8 Wysong, R. L. The Creation-Evolution Controversy. Midland,
Mich.: Inquiry Press, 1976. 
9 Baker, Sylvia. Bone of Contention. Creation Science
Foundation Ltd., Sunnybank, Queensland 4109 Australia: 1990. 
10 Moore, John N. Questions and Answers on
Creation-Evolution. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Baker Book House,
1977.

11. Brown, Walt. In the Beginning--available from CSE ($17.50)

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|   From http://www.drdino.com (Creation Science Evangelism)
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|   Questions and Answers
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Q:    If the earth is only 6,000 years old, how do we see stars billions of  light years away?

A:    This is one of the most commonly asked questions and deserves an honest answer. Below is first a short answer then a more thorough answer. There are three things we need to consider when answering the starlight question. 

1. Scientists cannot measure distances beyond 100 light years accurately.  

2.  No one knows what light is nor that it always travels the same speed throughout all time, space and matter.

3.  The creation was finished or mature when God made it. Adam was full grown, the trees had fruit on them, the star light was visible, etc.

Let me elaborate on these 3 points. 

First, no one can measure star distance accurately. The farthest accurate distance man can measure is 20 light years (some textbooks say up to 100), not several billion light years. Man measures star distances using parallax trigonometry. By choosing two measurable observation points and making an imaginary triangle to a third point, and using simple trigonometry, man calculates the distance to the third point. The most distant observation points available are the positions of the earth in solar orbit six months apart, say June and December. 

This would be a base for our imaginary triangle of 186,000,000 miles or 16 light minutes. There are 525,948 minutes in a year. Even if the nearest star were only one light year away (and it isn’t), the angle at the third point measures .017°. In simpler terms, a triangle like this would be the same angle two surveyors would see if they were  standing sixteen inches apart and focusing on a third point 8.24 miles away. If they stayed 16 inches apart and focused on a dot 824 miles away, they would have the same angle as an astronomer measuring a point 100 light years away. A point 5 million years away is  impossible to figure with trigonometry. The stars may be that far away but modern man has no way of measuring those great distances. No one can state definitively the distance to the stars. The stars may indeed be billions of light years away, but man cannot measure those
distances.

Several other methods such as luminosity and red shift are employed to try to guess at greater distances but all such methods have serious problems and assumptions involved. For a more complex and slightly different answer to the star light question from a Christian perspective, see the book Starlight and Time by Russell Humphry available from www.icr.org.

Second, the speed of light may not be a constant. It does vary in different mediums (hence the rainbow effect of light going through a prism) and may vary in different places in space. The entire idea behind the black hole theory is that light can be attracted by gravity and be unable to escape the great pull of these imaginary black holes. No one knows what light is let alone that it’s velocity has been the same all through time and space. Since atomic clocks use the wavelength of the Cesium 133 atom as a standard of time, if the speed of light is decaying, the clock would be changing at the same rate and therefore not be noticed.

Third, the creation account states that God made light before He made the sun, moon, or stars. The rest of creation was mature, so starlight was probably mature at creation as well. I would ask the question, How old was Adam when God made him? Obviously he was zero years old. But how old did he look? He was a full-grown man. The trees were full-grown with fruit on them the first day they were made. The creation had to be that way, it would not work otherwise. Star’s and their light were made at the same time. The God that I worship is not limited by anything involving time, space or matter.

Finally, I would also like to point out that the evolutionists have no answer to the basic questions like; Where did the original matter space and energy come from for the stars? I suspect God built the universe so we would say "Wow!" When we see the stars we should be reminded of the glory of God not evolution. See Psalms 8.



Q:    Carbon 14 dating.  Does it really work?

A:    Let me first explain how carbon dating works and then show you the assumptions it is based on. Nothing on earth carbon dates in the millions of years, because the scope of carbon dating only extends a few thousand years. Willard Libby invented the carbon dating technique in the early 1950’s. He calculated the amount of carbon-14 in the atmosphere today (about .0000765%), and assumed there would be the same amount found in living plants or animals since the plants breathe CO2 and animals eat plants. Carbon 14 is the radio-active version of carbon. Radiation from the sun strikes the atmosphere of the earth all day long. This energy produces radioactive carbon 14. This radioactive carbon 14 slowly decays into normal, stable carbon 12. Extensive laboratory testing has shown that about half of the C-14 molecules will decay in 5730 years. After another 5730 years half of the remaining C-14 will decay leaving only ¼ of the original C-14. It goes from ½ to ¼ to 1/8, etc. In theory it would never totally disappear, but after about 5 half lives the difference is not measurable with any degree of accuracy. This is why most people say carbon dating is only good for objects less than 30,000 years old. 

Since sunlight causes the formation of C-14 in the atmosphere, and normal radioactive decay takes it out, there must be a point where the formation rate and the decay rate equalizes. This is called the point of equilibrium. Let me illustrate. If you were trying to fill a barrel with water but there were holes drilled up the side of the barrel, as you filled the barrel it would begin leaking out the holes. At some point you would be putting it in and it would be leaking out at the same rate. You will not be able to fill the barrel past this point of equilibrium. In the same way the C-14 is being formed and decaying out  simultaneously. A freshly created earth would require about 30,000 years for the amount of C-14 in the atmosphere to reach this point of equilibrium because it would leak out as it is being filled. Tests indicate that the earth has still not reached equilibrium. This would mean the earth is not yet 30,000 years old! This also means that plants and animals that lived in the past had less C-14 in them than do plants and animals today. Just this one fact totally upsets data obtained by C-14 dating.

The carbon in the atmosphere normally combines with oxygen to make carbon dioxide (CO2). Plants breathe CO2 and make it part of their tissue. Animals eat the plants and make it part of their tissues. When a plant or animal dies it stops taking in air and food so it should not be able to get any new C-14. The C-14 in the plant or animal will begin to decay back to normal C-12. The older an object is, the less carbon-14 it contains. One gram of carbon from living plant material causes a Geiger counter to click 16 times per minute as the C-14 decays. A sample that causes 8 clicks per minute would be 11,460 years old (the sample has gone through two half lives) and so on.

Although this technique looks good at first, carbon-14 dating rests on two simple assumptions. They are obviously assuming the amount of carbon-14 in the atmosphere has always been constant, and its’ rate of decay has always been constant. Neither of these assumptions is provable or reasonable. An illustration may help. Imagine you found a candle burning in a room. You could measure the present height of the candle (say, seven inches) and the rate of burn (say, an inch per hour). In order to find the length of time since the candle was lit we would be forced to make some assumptions. We would obviously have to assume that the candle has always burned at the same rate, and the initial height of the candle. The answer changes based on the assumptions. Similarly, scientists do not know that the carbon-14 decay rate has been constant. They do not know that the amount of carbon-14 in the atmosphere is constant. Present testing shows the amount of C-14 in the atmosphere has been increasing since it was first measured in the 1950’s. This may be tied in to the declining strength of the magnetic field. 

In addition to the above assumptions, dating methods are all subject to the geologic column date to verify their accuracy. If a date obtained by radiometric dating does not match the assumed age from the geologic column the radiometric date will be rejected. The so-called geologic column was developed in the early 1800’s over a century before there were any radiometric dating methods. Laboratories will not carbon date dinosaur bones (even frozen ones which could easily be carbon dated) because dinosaurs are supposed to have lived 70 million years ago according to the fictitious geologic column. An object’s supposed place on the geologic column determines the method used to date it. There are about 7 or 8 radioactive elements that are used today to try to date objects. Each one has a different half-life and a different range of ages it is supposed to be used for. No dating method cited by evolutionists is unbiased. For more information, see video tape #7 of the CSE video series on Creation, Evolution, and Dinosaurs; Bones of Contention by Marvin Lubenow, or Scientific Creationism by Henry Morris (all available from CSE).

A few quotes about radiometric dating:

"One part of the Vollosovitch mammoth carbon dated at 29,500 years and another part at 44,000. --Troy L. Pewe, Quaternary Stratigraphic Nomenclature in Unglaciated Central Alaska, Geological Survey Professional Paper 862 (U.S. Gov. printing office, 1975) p. 30. 

"One part of Dima [a baby frozen mammoth] was 40,000, another part was 26,000 and the "wood immediately around the carcass" was 9-10,000.  --Troy L. Pewe, Quaternary Stratigraphic Nomenclature in Unglaciated Central Alaska, Geological Survey Professional Paper 862 (U.S. Gov. printing office, 1975) p. 30 

"The lower leg of the Fairbanks Creek mammoth had a radiocarbon age of 15,380 RCY, while its skin and flesh were 21,300 RCY. --In the Beginning Walt Brown p. 124

The two Colorado Creek mammoths had radiocarbon ages of 22,850 670 and 16,150 230 years respectively." --In the Beginning Walt Brown p. 124

"A geologist at the Berkeley Geochronology Center, [Carl] Swisher uses the most advanced techniques to date human fossils. Last spring he was re-evaluating Homo erectus skulls found in Java in the 1930s by testing the sediment found with them. A hominid species assumed to be an ancestor of Homo sapiens, erectus was thought to have vanished some 250,000 years ago. But even though he used two different dating methods, Swisher kept making the same startling find: the bones were 53,000 years old at most and possibly no more than 27,000 years— a stretch of time contemporaneous with modern humans."  --Kaufman, Leslie, "Did a Third Human Species Live Among Us?" Newsweek (December 23, 1996), p. 52.

"Structure, metamorphism, sedimentary reworking, and other complications have to be considered. Radiometric dating would not have been feasible if the geologic column had not been erected first."  --O’Rourke, J. E., "Pragmatism versus Materialism in Stratigraphy," American Journal of Science, vol. 276 (January 1976), p. 54 


Q:    If there was really a world-wide flood where are all the bones of the humans that drowned? 

A:    I believe there are few human fossils for several reasons.

1.  God made the world full of plants and animals but only two people. 1600 years later to world was still full of plants and animals but still not full of people. There were not as many of them to be drowned.

2.  Men are smarter than animals (That is, some men), so he would figure out a way to avoid drowning until the last possible minute by making makeshift rafts or holding to floating logs and tend to be deposited on top rather than in the sediments. Therefore he would not fossilize. For example, millions of bison were slaughtered in the west a century ago, yet few, if any, fossilized. They were left on top to rot, bones and all. 

3.  Since so many researchers have the preconceived (and false) idea that man has been evolving from small and dumb to big and smart they may tend to not even recognize and properly identify bone fragments of humans that may have been huge by today’s standards. Their prejudice is that ancient man was smaller.

In spite of the above problems, Marvin Lubenow, an expert on fossil humans and author of Bones of Contention (available from CSE) says that about 4000 human fossil remains have been found.

The evolutionist has a serious problem with this same question. If man has really been here for millions of years there should be many thousands if not millions of fossils of their bones like we have of the animals. The "where are the bones?" question is really a question for the evolutionist to answer if he expects all the taxpayers to support his religion in the school system.



Q:    Who built the Great Pyramid, and why?

A:    No one knows for sure who built the Great Pyramid, but several theories have been proposed. Some think Adam and his sons built it before the flood. Some think Enoch built it. Others say Noah and his sons built it after the flood. It appears that some of its features indicate that it was intended to be a testimony to God. Adam did not have a Bible so God gave him the gospel story in the stars with the 88 constellations telling the entire gospel story and God’s plan for the ages. After the flood Noah still did not have a Bible so God gave him the gospel story in stone. 

---The Great Pyramid has no inscription to any Egyptian king.

---It is the earliest and largest of the 67 pyramids found in Egypt. The later pyramids are of lesser quality and are mere copies of the Great Pyramid.

---Inside, there is a broad way that leads to a pit and a narrow way that leads to the King’s Chamber. (Sounds like Matthew 7 to me.)

---The 153 steps of the narrow way match the 153 fishes gathered in John 21:11, which may be a reference to all nations of the earth gathering into the kingdom of God. (See John 21:11)

---The King’s Chamber is on the 50th row of the stones; 50 was the year of Jubilee. (See Leviticus. 25:11)

---Inside the King’s Chamber is a solid carved, empty red granite tomb thesame volume as the Ark of the Covenant.

---Although most have been torn off, the pyramid was originally covered with144,000 polished casing stones, the number of witnesses in Revelation 7.

---The stones were a perfect fit such that many of the seams could not beseen nor a paper put between them today, thousands of years later.

---The cornerstone at the top is missing, symbolic of Christ, the rejected chief cornerstone ( Daniel 2:45; Psalm 118:22; Matthew 21:42; Mk 10:12) The 5 sided cornerstone may represent the number of grace.

---The Great Pyramid is of such magnitude that it could not be built today.

---It is 90 times the volume of the Chicago Sears Tower.

---Napoleon said there was enough stone in the pyramid to build a 10 foot high brick wall all the way around France!

---Some stones near the top, 400 feet from the ground, weigh 70 tons! 

---The foundation covers so wide an area (over 13 acres) that it could not be built today as level as it is (less than 1/10 inch error in 13 acres).

---Every locomotive in the world harnessed to the Pyramid could not pull it

---The door is so well joined that it was undetectable from the outside for centuries. 

---The pyramid sits right on the longest latitude line and the longest longitude line with land above sea level thus making it in the center of the land mass of the world.

"In that day shall there be an altar to the LORD in the midst of the land of Egypt, and a pillar at the border thereof to the LORD." Is. 19:19. The pyramid is on the border when Egypt was divided into a northern and southern kingdom and in the midst when they united.

Satan has been using the great pyramid as his symbol for the New World Order. On the back of a $1 bill you will see the pyramid with the all seeing eye (Lucifer) coming down to finish the pyramid. He thinks he will take over God’s kingdom, but Jesus will be the one to come to earth and rule and reign for 1000 years. See Rev. 20-22.
*******************
*******************
BIBLE STUDIES
*******************
*******************


|==========================================
| Mirror, Mirror In My Heart
| By: Ken Onweller
|
|
In my last article for PropheZine called "The Hope Of Glory"
(http://www.prophezine.com/search/database/Issue91/is91.3.html), I
demonstrated that the whole purpose for our christian walk is for God to
transform us into creatures of love.

"The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good
conscience and a sincere faith." (1 Tim 1:5)

But what exactly does it mean to love, and how can you know how well you are
doing? The 10 Commandments stand as a spiritual mirror to show us our sin
and the need for repentance. But what about love? Is there a spiritual
mirror by which we can gauge our effectiveness as vessels of God's love?

Yes, there is. This spiritual mirror is found in 1 Corinthians 13.

The purpose of this study is to examine the characteristics of God's love
and to use them as a gauge of our walk with Jesus Christ.

LOVE DEFINED

Love is quite simply defined in one chapter of the Bible. It is as follows:

"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is
not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered,
it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices
with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always
perseveres. Love never fails." (1 Cor 13:4-8a)

Substitute your name into the above passage for "love" and see how you
measure up. If you are anything like me you are doing ok in some areas but
are way off in others. The thing about God's love, however, is that it is
all or nothing. His love is perfect and will perfectly manifest all of these
traits.

LOVE IS PATIENT

To understand godly patience, let's look at a counter-example.

When Abraham was 75 years old, God promised that his offspring would become
a great nation (Gen 12:1-4). So he waited. And then he waited some more. Ten
years later he gave up waiting and decided to fulfill God's promise by
himself. He went in to his wife's servant, Hagar, and had Ishmael (Gen
16:15-16).

But in spite of this impatience, God still came through and blessed Abraham
when he was 100 years old. His wife, Sarah, gave birth to the promised son,
Isaac (Gen 21:5).

Today we see a tragic problem growing between the Arab nations (descendants
of Ishmael) and Israel (descendants of Isaac). Had Abraham waited patiently
as he should have we would not have the problems we have today in the Middle
East!!!

So what can we learn from all of this? It is better to give your impatience
to God and let him come through for you in his way and in his timing. We may
not understand it, but this is what God's love is about: waiting patiently
and not jumping the gun.

LOVE IS KIND

Kindness is to do something nice for another person without expecting
anything in return. Seems like a really simple thing, but how many times do
we attach strings? How many times do we do the exact opposite by being mean
to someone?

The love from God wants only to do good things for people. Even the most
wretched sinners are still afforded kindness by God:

"He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the
righteous and the unrighteous." (Matt 5:45)

"But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: while we were still
sinners, Christ died for us." (Rom 5:8)

LOVE DOES NOT ENVY

Envy is the same thing as covetry. And what is the result of this?

"You want something but don't get it. You kill and covet, but you cannot
have what you want. You quarrel and fight.." (James 4:2)

This same kind of envy is what caused Joseph's own brothers to sell him into
slavery (Acts 7:9) and caused the Jews to crucify their Messiah (Acts
17:5)!!!!

The only solution is to look at your life for what it is: a gift from God.
Everything about you was given by God for his purposes. Notice:

"...be content with what you have, because God has said, 'Never will I leave
you; never will I forsake you.'" (Heb 13:5)

Now see how Paul dealt with this very thing and emerged victorious:

"I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content
whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what
it is to have plenty. I have learned the SECRET OF BEING CONTENT in any and
every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in
want. I CAN DO EVERYTHING THROUGH HIM WHO GIVES ME STRENGTH." (Php 4:11-13)

LOVE DOES NOT BOAST

Do you like to be the center of attention? Do you want everyone to know just
how great you are? This elevating of yourself has a very stiff price,
unfortunately. You cannot be elevated without someone else being crushed.

Jesus said that we should, rather, be the opposite:

"For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself
will be exalted." (Luke 14:11)

Wouldn't it be better to look for ways to exalt other people and to give
them their day in the sun? Don't worry about your failed recognition. God
sees everything.

LOVE IS NOT PROUD

Pride is the very sin which caused Lucifer to fall and become Satan, the
Devil. When you think of yourself as more than you are, you become like a
big rooster strutting around. Sure, it sounds comical, but that's the
picture that comes to mind when I think of this.

Paul said that knowledge can lead to arrogance (1 Cor 8:1), and how true
this is. If you know more than someone else does that make you smarter and
them dumber? Not at all. No, it only means that God has given you
opportunities and abilities which he has not given to another.

Instead of using your talents for yourself, why not pray to God asking him
how to use these things for the good of others. Also ask him to show you
that you are no better than another.

"He mocks proud mockers but gives grace to the humble." (Prov 3:34)

LOVE IS NOT RUDE

Originally, I thought of this passage as pertaining to just being a jerk to
people. But the word for rude (emonew in Greek) is used in another passage
of the Bible as:

"If anyone thinks he is acting improperly toward the virgin he is engaged
to, and if she is getting along in years and he feels he ought to marry, he
should do as he wants. He is not sinning. They should get married." (1 Cor
7:36)

So how does this relate to being rude? Well, since the word [emonew] also
carries the meaning of sexual promiscuity, it becomes clear that the
rudeness of 1 Cor 13:5 also includes lewdness.

Now with that said, an entire can of worms is opened. If you participate in
dirty jokes, or activities which pervert the sexual union between man and
wife, you are not practicing love.

If you are doing things just to offend, sicken, or gross-out another you are
not practicing love.

The only solution is:

"...let your light [words and actions] shine before men, that they may see
your good deeds [not dirty jokes, nor obscene/crass behaviors] and praise
your Father in heaven." (Matt 5:16)

LOVE IS NOT SELF-SEEKING

"I'm looking out for #1," is absolutely NOT what this verse is talking
about. To put it another way, love would have you regarding yourself as #2.

Paul says in 1 Cor 10:24, "Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of
others."

He then goes on to explain why in vs 33, "For I am not seeking my own good
but the good of many, so THAT THEY MAY BE SAVED."

And this is what God's love is TRULY all about, brethren: seeing people
saved. God doesn't want anyone to go to hell, and you shouldn't either.
Jesus demonstrated the ultimate act of love when he hung on the cross. He
denied himself (refused to be self- seeking) so that you and I could spend
eternity with him rather than to sit in hell where we truly deserve to be.

I like the way it is worded in Php 2:

"Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the
interests of others. Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ
Jesus. . .but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he
humbled himself and became obedient to death--even death on a cross!" (vss.
4-5,7-8)

LOVE IS NOT EASILY ANGERED

Anger, itself, is a normal human emotion. But how we deal with it is what
matters. Jesus set the ultimate example of dealing with anger in love.
Throughout the Old Testament we saw his anger against Israel when they
failed to obey him. Twice during his human ministry he overturned the tables
of the money-changers. Finally, we see during the seven years preceding his
return (The Great Tribulation) his wrath being poured out on the entire
earth.

So what's the meaning behind this? In all of these cases, Jesus' wrath is
against those who reject him. It is against those who pervert righteousness.
It is against those who cause injustice. The list goes on.

Jesus says that to him alone belongs the right to avenge the wrongs of this
world. So the safest way to deal with anger is to confess it to him and then
ask him to do something about it.

Thus, as you let him have greater control over your life you should find
fewer and fewer incidents of anger burning in your belly and gnawing at your
mind urging you to do something you will later wish you had not.

LOVE KEEPS NO RECORD OF WRONGS

This is one of those verses that differs from the King James which reads,
"...thinketh no evil". However, when going to the Greek, I found that both
translations are actually correct!

Do you dwell on things that aren't godly? Do you look at the wrongs another
person commits and then mull them over? Do you look at someone and keep
coming back to something they did to you that was wrong? Do you look at
yourself and only see your failings and mistakes of the past continually
haunting you?

If you answered yes to any of the above, you are not practicing love.
Consider how God loves us.

"As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our
transgressions from us." (Psalm 103:11)

"Blessed are they whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.
Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord will never count against him." (Rom
4:7-8)

When you were saved, God knew every sin you had ever committed up until that
point and forgave you of them all, giving you a clean slate--a fresh start.
At least, that's how a lot of people view the born-again experience. But God
knows everything: past, present, AND FUTURE! When he saved you, he also knew
EVERY SIN YOU WOULD COMMIT AFTER SALVATION. And he still called you!!!!!

This is how great God's forgiveness is for you. Your sins are gone forever,
both those you committed in the past and those you will commit in the
future. This is what Romans 4:7-8 is talking about!

So keep this in mind when it comes to forgiving yourself or someone else.
God NEVER dwells on one's wrongs when he forgives someone. You shouldn't
either. Love never dwells on the mistakes of another.

LOVE DOES NOT DELIGHT IN EVIL

In my last article we saw that a requirement for letting God develop
righteous fruit in your life was to cast aside the filth. This verse
expresses the same idea. When you are loving as God loves, you find
absolutely no delight in the works of evil.

In fact, those ungodly pursuits will sicken and repulse you.

But none of us, myself included, loves as perfectly as we ought. There will
come that point when you will look around and realize that you've been in
the muck with the pigs for some time! The only thing to do is get away from
those pigs and take that Jesus bath!

LOVE REJOICES WITH THE TRUTH

Love is more than a preventative force keeping you from doing wrong. No, it
is also a very powerful force for good!

When you love, you will want to applaud and recognize everything that leads
to truth. You will find yourself sharing in the excitement of someone else
who has accepted Jesus as savior. You'll be jumping up and down with glee
when justice prevails.

LOVE ALWAYS PROTECTS

I'll be honest with you. This one was hard to figure out. There are so many
ways to interpret "protects." So, what did the Holy Spirit mean? In the
Greek the word is "stego" which means to protect in the sense of covering
over or hiding something.

So how can hiding something have to do with God's love?

"A gossip betrays a confidence, but a trustworthy man keeps a secret." (Pr
11:13)

Sometimes you'll find out something about someone. Or, you may be confided
in by someone you know. What do you do with this information? As you are
showing God's love you seek to conceal those things which will destroy
someone.

LOVE ALWAYS TRUSTS

Again, we find that we have to turn to the Greek to understand just what the
Holy Spirit is trying to say here about the meaning of love.

The word for trusts is "pisteuw" which means to have complete confidence in
someone to fulfill a promise. Now, does this pertain to how you deal with
people or in how you deal with God? I would have to think in this case that
it must be God because no human being is 100% trustworthy.

Looking at it in this light then, it sounds a lot like faith, doesn't it?

Do you love Jesus Christ enough to trust him to come through for you in
EVERYTHING? If not, your love is lacking. There are so many books out there
which cite scriptures to turn to for this problem or for that problem. Why
not look up some of those verses and take them before the Throne of God and
ask Jesus to come through? As you see him taking care of and guiding your
life, you will find your love for him increasing!

LOVE ALWAYS HOPES

Does it drive you just nuts that some people get away with murder? Do you
feel sick in the stomach when you see the success enjoyed by those who are
not Christian?

You aren't alone. David wondered the same thing.

"...till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final
destiny." (Psa 73:17)

This destiny is summarized later:

"If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown
into the lake of fire." (Rev 20:15)

Maybe the things of this world aren't so great after all?

No, our hope should NEVER be in our stuff. Our hope is in Jesus Christ. This
hope should be such a reality that we can literally taste it.

Today was a cloudy day and with events such as they are in the Middle East
it caused me to speculate on the Rapture. How great and wonderful it will be
when we finally get to see Jesus face to face! If it took Jesus only 6 DAYS
to make the world, just imagine what he has done with New Jerusalem in the
past 2000 YEARS!!!!

"No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has
prepared for those who love him." (1 Cor 2:9)

LOVE ALWAYS PERSEVERES

"Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is
not disciplined by his father? If you are not disciplined (and everyone
undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true
sons." (Heb 12:6)

"Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood
the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those
who love him." (James 1:12)

Stuff will go wrong in your life. I had always believed that stuff happens
but Jesus is always there to help us through it. Although this is partially
correct, it misses the point. NOTHING happens by chance when you follow God
(Rom 8:28, Matt 10:29, Pro 16:33). So, in the midst of your difficulty you
have two possibilities: trial or discipline.

Be like Job who did not give up questioning God in the midst of his
difficulty until he received his answer (James 5:11, Job 42:1-6). If
everything has a purpose and is designed to prepare you for eternity, don't
you owe it to yourself to stick it out and see where God is leading you?

God loves you as a child and sometimes has to give you a spanking. But as
you love God you'll realize this and move forward, never giving up.

LOVE NEVER FAILS

"Fails" comes from the greek word, "pipto," and implies losing something or
going from one state to another. When you look at it this way you see that
God's love is something that you can never lose and something which never
changes.

You may have experienced the strongest of human relationships only to see
the love dwindle over time until the inevitable break-up. But with God this
ain't the case! His love never fails!

Nothing will change how much he loves you. Nothing.

"For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,
neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor
depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to SEPARATE US FROM
THE LOVE OF GOD that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Rom 8:38-39)

That's a pretty powerful love, isn't it? And this same love is given to us
to extend to other people. A love that doesn't wane over time. A love that
doesn't go away because another person does something wrong to us.

So again, when you find that you don't love in this fashion it is because
you are using imperfect, human love. It means that your relationship with
God is lacking. So, what do you do? Seek him with all of your heart, soul,
and mind. He'll show you what steps to take so that the love can start
flowing again.

SUMMARY

This love that we've been looking at, it seems almost unattainable at times.
I mean, as I look through its qualities it is painfully obvious where my own
shortcomings are. I wonder how I can ever change to be more loving. Well,
the funny thing is that the love is ALREADY THERE and HAS BEEN since YOU AND
I WERE BORN AGAIN! This is what the scripture says:

"God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has
given us." (Rom 5:5)

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love..." (Gal 5:22)

The problem we face is that we hinder the work of the Spirit in our lives
every time we insist on our own selfish desires, fail to put the filth out
of our lives, or try to work out salvation by our own power (without God).
My last article was all about this very thing.

So, how should you view the definition of love in 1 Cor 13? Perhaps you
should think of it as "Mirror, Mirror, In My Heart". When you don't measure
up it simply means you have drifted away from God and that it is time to go
back to him.

Ken Onweller
kender@ix.netcom.com


**********************
**********************
EASTER MESSAGE
**********************
**********************

==========================================================
|  About The Cross & Crucifixion - A Medical Analysis
|  By John Terry
|
|
A medical doctor provides a physical description:

The cross is placed on the ground and the exhausted man is quickly thrown
backwards with his shoulders against the wood. The legionnaire feels for the
depression at the front of the wrist. He drives a heavy, square  wrought
iron nail through the wrist deep into the wood. Quickly, he moves to the
other side and repeats the action, being careful not to pull the arms too
tightly, but to allow some flex and movement.

The cross is then lifted into place. The left foot is pressed backward
against the right foot, and with both feet extended, toes down, a nail is
driven through the arch of each, leaving the knees flexed.

The victim is now crucified. As he slowly sags down with more weight on the
nails in the wrists, excruciating fiery pain shoots along the fingers and up
the arms to explode in the brain - the nails in the wrists are putting
pressure on the median nerves. As he pushes himself upward to avoid this
stretching torment, he places the full weight on the nail through his feet.

Again he feels the searing agony of the nail tearing through the nerves
between the bones of his feet. As the arms fatigue, cramps sweep through his
muscles, knotting them deep relentless, throbbing pain. With these cramps
comes the inability to push himself upward to breathe.

Air can be drawn into the lungs but not exhaled. He fights to raise himself
in order to get even one small breath. Finally, carbon dioxide builds up in
the lungs and in the blood stream, and the cramps partially subsided.

Spasmodically, he is able to push himself upward to exhale and bring in
life-giving oxygen. Hours of limitless pain, cycles of twisting, joint
wrenching cramps, intermittent partial asphyxiation, searing pain as tissue
is torn from his lacerated back as he moves up and down against rough
timber.

Then another agony begins: a deep, crushing pain deep in the chest as the
pericardium slowly fills with serum and begins to compress the heart. It is
now almost over. The loss of tissue fluids has reached a critical level-the
compressed heart is struggling to pump heavy, thick, sluggish blood into the
tissues and the tortured lungs are making frantic effort to gasp in small
gulps of air. He can feel the chill of death creeping through his
tissues...Finally, he can allow his body to die... All this the Bible
records with the simple words, "and they crucified Him", (Mark 15:24).

What wondrous love is this? Many people don't know that pain and suffering
our Lord, Jesus Christ went through for us...because of the brutality,
crucifixion was given a sentence to only its worst offenders of the law.

Thieves, murderers, and rapists would be the types of creeps who got
crucified. Yet, here Jesus is being crucified between two hardened
criminals...What did Jesus do? Did he murder anyone? Did he steal anything?
The answer as we all know is NO!! Jesus did nothing to deserve this type of
death, yet he went willing to die, in between 2 thieves, so that we might be
saved. And there, in between the sinners, was our slain savior for our sins.

God Bless

John Terry, Editor
Prophezine News Bytes


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