September 16, 2015
Mark 10:13-16
(All scripture is from the New King James Version unless otherwise indicated.)
Jesus told us in Mark 10:13 through 16 we need Childlike Faith to enter the kingdom:
Then they brought young children to Him, that He might touch them; and
the disciples rebuked those who brought them. But when Jesus saw it, He
was greatly displeased and said to them, “Let the little children come to Me,
and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of God. Assuredly, I say
to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by
no means enter it.” And He took them up in His arms, put His hands on
them, and blessed them.
But in Childlike Faith! – I, I made this statement:
Childlike Faith is not just a leap from a height, knowing your daddy will
catch you. That, in a sense, has to be part of it. It is a ‘leap’ to believe God
will ‘catch’ you….You have to ‘leap’ into the biblical belief that human
beings are all sinners…but redeemed by the Son of God…,” including you!
However, some would say – or imply, including Albert Einstein (see Childlike Faith! – I) – that reason must be left outside the gate of faith because faith stands against reason and logic. For instance, science has ‘proved’ that the earth is billions of years old. According to G. Brent Dalrymple, research geologist at Menlo Park, California, and author of several scientific books – after citing multiple geologic data, wrote “…these data clearly prove that the Earth’s history extends backward from the present to at least 3.8 billion years into the past.” (http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/dalrymple/ scientific_age_earth.html). And over these approximately four billion years the earth has cooled twisted, shuddered, been hit by space debris of various sizes and impacts, perhaps even changed rotation axis. Mountains were pushed up valley sank, seas, rivers and lakes were formed – and this happened more than once. The climates have changed, from tropical to temperate to ice age and back. All this, science says, has left the geological features the earth presents today.
The Bible gives us another picture – another interpretation of the geologic data. As far as the age of the earth, I am not now going to present the arguments for a young earth. But let’s look at what Genesis 7:11, 12 and 19 says:
In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, the seven-
teenth day of the month, on that day all the fountains of the great deep
were broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened. And the rain
was on the earth forty days and forty nights….And the waters prevailed
exceedingly on the earth, and all the high hills under the whole heaven,
were covered.
We have to go back to the creation account in Genesis 1, and look at verses 2, 7 and 8:
And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face
of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters
….God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the
firmament from the waters which were above the firmament….And God
called the firmament Heaven.
According to the biblical record, heaven – the first of three heavens, according to ancient Jewish thinking, and the realm of the atmosphere – divided water upon the earth from a vast expanse of water above, probably in the form of water vapor. Also in Genesis 2:5 and 6 it is recorded that, “…the LORD God had not cause it to rain upon the earth…but a mist went up from the earth and watered the whole face of the ground.” According to biblical scientists, this points to a shroud of water vapor that enclosed and protected the earth much like the glass in a greenhouse protects its plants growing within. Such an atmospheric layer of water vapor would also filter out ultraviolet light from the sun – a major aging factor for man.
According to Genesis 7:11, the first geologic event of the flood was not rain from the sky, but “…all the fountains of the great deep…” breaking up – volcanic activity!
On his website, “Real Science,” Steven Goddard – a blogger with a BS in geology from Arizona State University and a Master’s degree in electrical engineering from Rice University – writes:
70% of the earth’s surface is covered with water. Where did that water come
from? It is generally believed that most of it outgased from the interior of the
earth during the first 700 million years of the earth’s existence….The only
plausible origin of the oceans is from the interior of the earth….water vapor
is consistently the most common volcanic gas, normally comprising more than
60% of total emissions….steam pressure is the primary driver of explosive
volcanic eruptions.
So massive world-wide volcanic activity started the Great Flood of Genesis 7 and 8, spewing tremendous amounts of water from the interior of the earth! But something else spewed forth – and that’s for discussion in Childlike Faith! – IV!