Friday, June 6, 2014

There's Something About Noah

Science is funny to me because it is based on an assumption that sometimes forces wrong conclusions. The foundation of modern science is an assumption that all events have natural causes and can be explained by physical laws and properties.

Although this assumption has been at the core of many advances in understanding and has defeated lazy science and superstition in advanced societies, it fails when in fact there IS a supernatural force at work. When we're talking about really big events like creation or the flood, there are some important gaps that science just cannot close.

Noah and Other Really Old Men

Look at the story of Noah in the book of Genesis. Before the flood came upon the earth man's lifespans were much greater - Noah's father lived to 777 years of age and his grandfather Methuselah was the granddaddy of them all at 969 years of age. Even Noah himself (literally the granddaddy of them all) lived three hundred fifty years after the flood, making him one of the oldest characters in the Bible. After the flood lifespans began to rapidly decrease until they reached roughly what they are today. You can see that in the diagram below. God seems to have placed a limit on lifespans of 120 years, as foretold in Genesis 6:3:

Then the Lord said, "My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, because he also is flesh; nevertheless his days shall be one hundred and twenty years."
Genesis 6:3 NASB

Many years ago I remember reading an article in a national news magazine in which they revealed that archaeologists had discovered a remarkably modern-looking human skeleton that dated back to times when all other human skeletons looked much more ape-like. These ancient humans had thicker bones and larger skulls. The scientists were puzzled that a smaller boned modern man could be discovered in that time frame. This only makes sense if you consider that it was the rare person before the flood who died earlier than 100 years of age, maybe due to an accident or murder. This odd modern-looking skeleton from that era could have been such an early casualty. If you consider that God made changes in mankind after the flood to shorten their lives, the larger skulls and bones of ancient humans who may have had more than 900 years of bone growth makes more sense.

Another thing to consider if you are interested in science and anthropology: assuming there were people who actually lived nearly a thousand years, that would allow much more variety in skeletal development over such a long period of time. Humans go through periodic genetic mutations as they age - 900 years or more would allow many more genetic mutations and this could explain the wide variety of hominid fossils found in roughly the same time periods. We need more scientists who are willing to consider the Bible when formulating theories about the early stages of life on earth. (Reference: http://www.theguardian.com/science/2013/oct/17/skull-homo-erectus-human-evolution)

Noah and the End Times

Recently I learned that some scientists now believe they may be able to extend the life expectancy of humans to many times the current limits using embryonic or placental stem cells which would be stored and re-injected later in life when the original stem cells start to die. This leads me to wonder, it seems that God has placed a limit on the lifespan of mankind - if man is on the brink of breaking this barrier, would God intervene again as he did at the tower of Babel when he confused and scattered mankind?

Perhaps this tinkering with the foundation of life, especially if it involves embryonic stem cells from aborted human babies, is what will ultimately release the wrath of God and culminate in the return of Christ. In that case I have a new understanding of this verse:

For the coming of the Son of Man will be just like the days of Noah.
Matthew 24:37 NASB

People who live really long lives can become really evil. That's what happened then and I expect that's what would happen again.


Noah and Abraham

Speaking of Noah's lifespan, I just realized that long lives mean that people would be around to see many more generations. This might astonish you - Noah was still alive during the first 58 years of Abraham's life. I don't know if Abram (as he was then called) ever met Noah, but if he did that would help explain where he got his great faith in God. Noah's son Shem (who was 100 years old when he entered the ark) stayed around even longer, living until after the children of Israel were born. Methuselah could have known Adam for a few hundred years, and Noah probably knew Methuselah for five hundred years. I can imagine Noah talking to Methuselah - Grandpa Methuselah tell me about Adam and the Garden of Eden again! Tell me about when God took your daddy to heaven in a chariot of fire! I imagine Methuselah had a great influence on Noah. Methuselah was a preacher's kid; his father Enoch was probably the most amazing preacher of all time, warning about the second coming of Christ before anyone even knew there was going to be a nation of Israel or a Messiah to save them. Perhaps for Noah's sake God delayed the flood until Methuselah died.

One final thought: genealogies are not a problem if most of your ancestors for the last thousand years are still alive. It doesn't have to be based on word of mouth passed from generation to generation; if you have doubts just go straight to the source and ask. We tend to just forget about people after the Bible drops them off, but many of these characters went on for hundreds of years after the last Bible story about them. Here's a little visual aid...


Patriarch Timeline - Click to enlarge

Friday, February 28, 2014

Aaron's God

Shortly after Moses led the nation of Israel out of Egypt, Moses and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and 70 elders went up on Mt. Sinai and to see God. He was standing on pavement that had an appearance like clear blue sapphire (Ex. 24:9). These men had a close encounter with the eternal God, yet God withheld His consuming fire and allowed these men to eat and drink and return to their camp in the wilderness.

A few days later while Moses was still on the mountain, the people of Israel came and told Aaron to make a new god to go before them. Aaron did not hesitate or council them to turn back to the one true God, but immediately used his God-given gift to fashion a molten idol from their gold jewelry.

It's hard to believe somebody with great authority like Aaron could have a direct, personal encounter with God and then turn away to false gods so quickly. What happened to the "Angel of God" who was sent to lead them through the wilderness into the promised land? He did not leave them; they simply weren't following. You see, the people of Israel weren't really following Christ, they were following Moses. When Moses was gone, it became apparent that they didn't really have true faith.

I've had extended times in my life where I was only living to please Christians, instead of living to please Christ. It's pretty hard to tell the difference from the outside, but during this time I knew on the inside that I had become weak in faith. Like the children of Israel I spent years wandering around the wilderness following whoever I was with on that day of the week. I even encountered God directly at times, but my mind quickly wandered back to my wilderness, and my heart and spirit gradually grew cold.

Aaron didn't have a strong personal faith in God, and he allowed Israel to stray into idolatry, even making the very idol that brought God's wrath. Yet by God's mercy, Aaron remained the high priest and patriarch of the Levitical priesthood. Aaron and the rest of Israel were under the covenant of the law. Moses and his protege Joshua were under the covenant of grace. In a manner of speaking Aaron's god was Moses, who kept him under the bondage of the Torah law until the age of grace came to all men through Jesus Christ. With the exception of a few great men and women of faith, the entire nation of Israel was under this law of sin and death.

I think God sometimes allows godly men like Moses to be drawn away from their followers to separate those who are following God from those who are following men. It is times like these that test our faith and reveal whether it is built on an everlasting foundation. When I finally realized that I was following men and not God, I became desperate to find a deeper personal faith that could not be shaken. Praise God, I think I found it!

Saturday, February 15, 2014

Brush Strokes From Heaven

A friend of mine from college occasionally writes a prophetic message under the title "Brush Strokes from Heaven". I hope he doesn't mind if I borrow his title, but when I saw this sunset last night those were the words that came to mind.


Occasionally I like to watch the science channel when they talk about the universe. In the last decade or so since the Hubble telescope became operational, scientists have been able to identify thousands of planets in nearby solar systems. What they have learned should come as no surprise to Christians - our planet is unique, and as we discover more planets in space we come to a deeper appreciation of this unique gift that God has given us. God gave us both dominion and stewardship over this beautiful blue planet. I will look to heaven with gratefulness in my heart as long as my eternal father gives me breath!

Sunday, January 19, 2014

Refining Fire

Today I visited a church in Ingram, Texas with a good friend and brother-in-Christ. I was blessed because of what the pastor spoke about - seeking and seeing God's face.

He started with Exodus 33:20:

"But," he said, "you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live."

The pastor asked if that were true, why did Exodus 33:11 say "The LORD would speak to Moses face to face, as one would speak to a friend?"

I had been studying Exodus 24 just this past week where it says that the elders of Israel "saw the God of Israel; and under His feet there appeared to be a pavement of sapphire, as clear as the sky itself. Yet He did not stretch out His hand against the nobles of the sons of Israel; and they saw God, and they ate and drank."

As the pastor pointed out, why is the Bible full of admonitions to "seek God's face" if seeing God would bring death? His point was that the verse in Ex 33:11 only applied to that one time. But I saw a larger point.


I also studied the meaning of the word "fire" last week (at a friend's request). I found some interesting things about fire. Fire consumes the sacrifices laid on the altar before God. The Bible says God himself is a "consuming fire". In that same chapter of Exodus 24, "to the eyes of the sons of Israel the appearance of the glory of the LORD was like a consuming fire on the mountain top."

Moses and the elders of Israel passed through this consuming fire and returned alive. If this can be the case, why does the Bible say that no man can see God and live? Put another way, what dies in the presence of God?

The Greek word for fire is "PYR" or "PUR". This Greek root is found in English as "pyre" and "pyromania" for example. I believe it is also at the root of the word "purify", as when a refiner purifies metal in a fire.

If it's not obvious by now, being in the presence of God will destroy our flesh and energize our spirits. This is why we are admonished to seek God's face, to allow his intense glory to burn away the dross in our lives and expose the precious mettle of Jesus! Glory to the God of heaven whose burning majesty will consume his enemies! Jesus said "he who loses his life for my sake will find it." Paul said to "offer your bodies as a living sacrifice" to be consumed by the blaze of his glory on the altar of this earthly life. It is a terrible wonderful thing to come into God's presence: terrible if we come in the flesh, but wonderful to know that what separates us from God is dying there in His presence just the same. If we dwell in His presence, one day we will "shine brightly like the brightness of the expanse of heaven" when there is no more flesh to burn away.