In 10 short words, God’s word quickly silences all doubters, and forever puts out of business godless evolution.
Let’s assume for a moment shall we, that IF there is a Creator, He would be well aware of man’s petty objections, and nip in the bud any and all gripes as to Who and what started this thing we know as life, and actually put men at ease in their minds, lest they be lost as fog for a lifetime.
God is good like this. He knows, and like a mirror shows our face, He reveals quickly and quietly our deepest yearnings, as men spend a lifetime of asking for ‘proof.’
Ha! So once more assume that IF there is a Creator, He knows more than you. Wrap your brain around that and accept the possibility. Draw a 6″ circle on paper and mark a pencil dot the size of EVERYTHING you know. Should be a whole lot of white space eh?
So within that blank space lies the possibility that my premise up top, is correct. In addition, the equal possibility exists that not only is Genesis actual, factual, reliable, and true, but that everything else that follows is true as well.
To reiterate, there is no other source material that answers so specifically man’s deepest yearnings to know from whence he is. Genesis 1.1 is most settling, and it challenges the honesty of men. Not a good idea to cite the Creator as a liar.
Subsequently, to further prove the veracity of 1.1, what follows regarding botany, astronomy, biology, geography, history, avow even more that common sense is a most valuable asset, and that only the most recalcitrant of hearts would suggest otherwise.
Lots of blank space around your small dot there. ‘In the beginning God.’ Why then must you look to ‘science’ to affirm what it cannot, while you focus on your myopic pencil point of knowledge? Mankind has been extremely pretentious and overly exaggerated with artificial knowledge and atheism for thousands of years, and it is no surprise that AI has been so front and center today. The denial of Genesis 1.1 as fact is like a disease that has plagued the stubborn since spoiled brats were in diapers.
To be fair, the modern christian wears intentional horse blinders as to the magnificence of Genesis and only wants to hear of the ‘salvation story,’ as if God’s word has nothing to say regarding cosmology and ‘science.’ ‘Scripture is silent’ they say, regarding assumptions that we hold, and I say ‘no,’ scripture is not silent, we just have not looked closely enough.
There is equal majesty as to the truth of the work ethic of the ant as shown in Proverbs, as there is in the fact that Jesus wept, that darkness was upon the face of the deep, as there is in the truth of the wheels within the wheels. Scripture contains ALL that pertains to life and godliness, and we do ourselves a disservice by ignoring the multi-tiered layers of Genesis.
We see the regulation of temperature, the maintenance of the seasons, the importance of water, the impressiveness of light, the sovereignty of man over animals, the biology of male and female, the distinction between man and woman, are all quite impressive as these things under assault today, are laid out in lavender in the monarch of books, Genesis.
In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth, sets the table regarding space, time, and matter, and proves that it is God, and not man, who knows what science is completely. Consider again that blank paper and that small dot. We are not that smart as we pretend.
The Lions Den 
“In the Beginning… God created…” all there IS, Was and ever Will Be. If one day Science “tells us” that they’ve “discovered” (poor substitute for Revelation) that the Universe (all there is) didn’t begin in a “Big Bang”, but rather was just one of Many “uni-verses” that have begun and ended into the “eternal” past and will continue into the never-ending future… We will know that they All, without exception, were Created by a God who “was and is and is to come”. Beyond what we know or can discover by natural or material means… God is and He is the ONLY Creator /sustainer of All Things.
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It’s a master stroke isn’t it, that the very FIRST verse of a book is by far, heads and shoulders above all other pieces of literature.
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Of course, it would help if you could demonstrate that Yahweh exists first.
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5 sighs.
Gen. 1.1 is just for you. It answers your concerns far better than I could.
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The Creator/Sustainer God of all there is… shows His existence everyday by the effects of His existence and actions in our reality. With every day we wake up, every breath we take we participate in His Provision and Supply. Even to those who don’t believe or refuse to accept where that supply comes from. Ark, in a way… you are part of that “demonstration”, though you deny it.
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And that’s your evidence is it?
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You are evidence, ark.
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🤦♂️your theological drivel is like water off a duck’s back.
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If it’s Drivel, why do you seem to endlessly gravitate (pun intended, John:) ) to blogs and posts like this? Seems it would be a waste of your time. Perhaps God has more of a foothold in your life and heart and mind than you realize.
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Ha. Ark wouldn’t waste his time with the weak, but the powerful.
No can do.
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For similar reasons you gravitate towards blogs and posts like this.
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No. I don’t think so, I’m a Christian. This is a Christian blog. With christian iseas and topics. You are not. You have an obvious dislike and hatred for Christianity. There is no reason you should be continually and repeatedly drawn to comment and “spew” YOUR ‘drivel’ here. At all. So I ask again… why do you?
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I imagined it was for enjoyment. I enjoy reading the nonsense Christians like you write and I imagine you enjoy the companionship of fellow Indoctrinated Christians reassuring each other regarding their faith in the absence of evidence and critical thinking.
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No ark, I don’t think you come here from Amusement either. That would be a bit masochistic for someone so bent against Christianity. I think you love being an ahole and bullying people format they love. Face it, you love to bully and attack people you disagree with. If you really find this “fun” and simple amusement, you have serious mental and personality problems.
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Again, I enjoy learning about the history of your religion and yes it is amusing especially when indoctrinated fundamentalists like you refuse to exercise critical thinking, reject evidence and then have an emotional temper tantrum every time someone questions your belief in the Lake Tiberius Pedestrian.
Perhaps if you learned to respond in an adult fashion and ceased to be disingenious you wouldn’t always find yourself subject to ridicule.
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Ark, you have serious problems. Stick with cakes and pictures of your garden. I promise not to “amuse” myself by returning the ‘favor’ you have done here. You think you’re being clever and comical in your attacks on both Christianity and Christians for believing, but it’s you my friend who are displaying the childishness here. Cheers
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You think believing one is a sinner who can only be
saved via the worship of a human sacrifice is not the epitome of childishness?
When you consider the damage your religion has done and the damage it continues to do you should be careful when levelling any criticism.
And as you reject what I have to say, then I recommend you interact with these who gwv deconverted. That way you will hear from those who have been on both sides of the fence.
In fact you should pop over to the Clergyproject.com to hear from former professional clergy and theologians who were once in the same boat as you are currently in.
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Doug, ever the evangelist for godlessness and “deconversion”. You’ve found your religion. Good for you. Now bugger off
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See? As I said, when you can’t deal with evidence and criticism you have an emotional tantrum and resort to trying to drag atheism down to your level of indoctrination.
Why are you unwilling to confront the reason why you converted?
And why do you flat out reject the evidence that refutes the ‘faith’ you consider crucial so you don”t spend eternity in Hell?
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LOL. you definitely have me al wrong. I don’t believe in order to escape “hell”. I have believed to gain Heaven where Christ and my God are. If someone believes JUST to not be ‘punished’, i would catagorize that with 2 corinthians 7 where Paul talks about ‘false repentance’. Fear of consequences rarely produces true love for God or lasting repentance in a life lived for Jesus. anymore than “sorry i got caught” means “sorry i did that”. No doug. Not afraid of “hell” and never was. it’s not why i believed nor is it my Motivation now. I love Christ. He is my Life and my very Breath.
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and Doug… make no mistake. You are an evangelist. this isn’t “amusement’ for you. this is your “Mission” and you prosecute it with more zeal, fervor and commitment than any LDS or JW that i ever crossed paths with in my 25yrs of ministry and 41yrs as a christian. LOL
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Ark, why can’t you accept the fact that there are many people who have not experienced your ‘trauma ‘ idea, like myself, who needed no excuse, who came to understand that scripture is in fact, the word of the living God, that its purpose is stronger than iron, its contents unimpeachable, and there is no greater truth on earth.
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I am always open to evidence.
This has been my position from the beginning and after all this time you should know this, CS.
You are more than welcome to present the evidence which convinced you to become a Christian.
In fact, I don’t think you have ever posted details of your testimony, have you?
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Doug, what evidence would be sufficient? How would you “demonstrate” the existence of a God beyond physicality or Natural means of detection? I’d imagine if that were possible, He wouldn’t be a “god” at all, just some super being, also limited to and limited by Creation itself.
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The only way we have to “demonstrate” His existence, His Presence is the Effects He leaves behind. We are ALL demonstrations of His Presence and Existence. Even you.
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“Doug, what evidence would be sufficient?”
I’m sure your god would know, but let’s start with the evidence that convinced you, shall we?
Over to you…
Please present the evidence that convinced you to become a Christian.
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I guess my answer would be… I had an older lady on my paper route explain from John chapter 1 and chapter 3 my need for a saviour and that Jesus was the son of God who had provided a way to return to the Father that loves us all “so much”. It was more about His Love and His initiating the relationship that had been broken. His redeeming Grace. I didn’t understand it all at first, but later as a young man in my early 20s, it “clicked” and God made Himself real in my heart and mind and soul. I was/am His and He is mine. He is my Life, my Hope and my Salvation. My very Being and Breath.
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So you were ‘ripe’ for plucking, as it were.
You had emotional teen issues and succumbed.
I did ask for evidence, but sadly your response is completely devoid of it.
However, once again you have demonstrated that emotion/ trauma is at the root of all conversions.
Perhaps if you made a genuine effort to
A) discover why there is NO evidence for the foundational claims of your faith and,
B) tackle head on the emotional issues that led you to convert in the first place.
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Ark- B answered your quest honestly.
You could at least say Tkx.
Evidence is tricky though eh? The wind has no odor, you can’t see it, but good gravy, there is plenty of evidence. Gods word is identical in the evidence.
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Barabas gave an account</em] of his conversion.
I specifically asked for evidence that convinced him.
He gave no evidence.
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I was honest and transparent with you. How about You? What’s your story? How did you get to the position you’re in now? We’re you Christian at one point and someone or some church hurt you? How did you get so hateful towards Christianity and Christians? Open up and tell us all.
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I never said you were not honest
I asked for the evidence that convinced you.
You merely recounted the episode that led you to convert; a tale laden with emotional undertones, maybe even coupled with induced feelings of guilt, or fear?
But nothing in your tale contained anything about evidence.
I have recounted ‘my story’ numerous times, but here goes once more….
I was never more than a cultural Christian. Was fed the usual stuff as a kid but fortunately I never succumbed to the indoctrination you seen to suffer from.
I never really gave religion a second thought until I wrote a fantasy novel that included a character who was a parody of Moses
I needed some background to flesh out my character and discovered he was nothing but a mythological hero figure.
This fascinated me so I read the bible and did more research and eventually I ended up reading blogs and internet stuff until I came across Evangelicals and soon after a site about Young Earth Creationism, which I initially thought was a joke.
I was blown away when I realised what I was reading was written by people who rejected evolution and actually believed such garbage as humans and dinosaurs co-existing!
Sorry, but there was no ‘hurt’ or abuse from the church.
I used to enjoy Church Parade as a boy scout – I used to play the bugle – and was married in a Catholic Cathedral. The Priest, Father Peter Dougherty , who conducted the ceremony was a decent enough sort.
So, again, religion never impacted me at all and certainly not the nonsense you subscribe to.
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So… With the cultural Christian experience and the relatively innocuous relationship with christianity/christians… why did you turn so hateful and bitter?
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Hateful and bitter? No.
Hate is a waste of time.
Disgusted, would probably be closer to how I feel about Christianity, ( all religion ) and disgust toward certain types of Christian, especially those who indoctrinate kids.
And the history of your religion is simply heinous.
I am also fascinated that in this day and age people are still so gullible and credulous to such asinine garbage.
You are born a sinner, need salvation via the blood of a human sacrifice and if you reject him you will go to Hell.
Seriously?
This becomes even more apparent when one reads the deconversion testimonies of former Christians, many of whom express their resentment at being duped by those they trusted and are sometimes rejected and vilified by the very communities they were once part of.
Some I have read and interacted with have expressed a deep sense of shame for indoctrinating their own children.
One lady I read still receives counselling.
There is even a recognised medical term- RTS, Religious Trauma Syndrome.
Perhaps you might begin to understand my anathema towards such a barbaric belief?
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Yup. You’re an evangelist/missionary alright. What’s more.. for a cause that you yourself have never experienced. “White Knight” status confirmed. Sorry to bust your bubble, but I’ve never experienced anything like the “religious trauma syndrome” you talk about. Don’t know anyone personally who has. I’m sure there are somennout there for different reasons and experiences within the church, sociological cults operating as “christian” denoms or “churches”. But that ain’t the majority and it doesn’t reflect the true gospel or the character of Jesus. Without specifics, it’s just a whitewash blanket condemnation of Christianity and Christians without any honest details. And yes, you reflect hatred for Christianity and disgust for Christians. Somewhere down the line, you’ve turned into a hateful and bitter person. Yup, that’s you ark. May as well own it
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I explained my fascination and what prompted it.
RTS is a recognised psychological problem experienced by those who deconvert.
As you are currently a believer and still thoroughly indoctrinated how could you possibly experience RTS?
Please try to pay attention for goodness’ sake!
I could perhaps agree with your albeit unqualified diagnosis about me regarding hate and bitterness if I had at least been a practicing Christian or, like you, had suffered religious indoctrination.
But I was neither.
My disgust with Christianity is based on its history and the way it corrupts people… Like you for example.
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Corrupt? Moi? You don’t know me that well. Don’t presume.
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You believe worship of a first century human sacrifice crucial to your salvation ( from sin (sic) ) and your ticket to eternal life.
So, yes, you have been corrupted.
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For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith. – Romans 1:16-17 KJV
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See? You simply cannot resist parading your indoctrination as if it were a badge of honour rather than a demonstration of your lack of critical thinking skills and how these have been corrupted.
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There were two trees in the garden. We were meant to be supplied with Life in fellowship and relationship with the creator God. Sadly, Adam chose self sufficiency and hardship as he trusted the serpent more than his loving God. I’m just a guy who needed a savior, no honor in that. Badge or otherwise. But what I have in Jesus is the restoration of God’s original intention for us. Life.
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You were convinced you needed a saviour because you were emotionally vulnerable to the idea.
Fuelled by your own insecurity and ignorance, and possibly feelings of guilt you were ‘prime meat’ to be Indoctrinated.
Your capitulation is little different from those who adopt scientology as a worldview.
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Now who’s spewing gibberish. Lol
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Your conversion falls in line with almost every tale I have read. Granted, some of the tales differ in the details but the essence of every conversion is basically the same.
Consider Francis Collins.
You can provide no evidence to support your beliefs.
Everything you claim is based on feelings or what you have been convinced is the truth.
Critical thinking is set aside and faith trumps all.
That is the epitome of indoctrination and you are an exemplar.
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And… when you breathe Out, do you “know” you’ll be able to take the next breath In?
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See my reply to waking up.
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Ark, try this: when you go to sleep at night, do you expect to wake up in the morning?
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Yes.
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How do you know this?
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I don’t “know this”.
You asked if I expected to wake up.
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So, you admit. You don’t know. Would it be safe of me to assume.. You expect to wake up, to be able to breathe back In… because you have Faith that it will be the case?
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Not faith.Evidence.
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It wouldn’t be Evidence until After you’ve woken up or breathed In. You may Trust, based on past performance… but that Trust is Faith for unseen and Unexperienced events.
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Trust, then, but not faith.
I have no faith.
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Trust for future is Faith. Trust for something that we’ve done and experienced maybe thousands of times.. like turning the light switch and expecting the bulb to glow instead of ‘pop’.. doesn’t make the next time we do so, like breathe or wake up, absolutely definite. We could always not.. the bulb that glowed bright might not… the circuit may pop the breaker… the car that we expect to turn right might turn left in front of us. We are creatures of Faith. All of us
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Again, wrong.
I expect the light to come on because evidence demonstrates that providing the equipment is functioning correctly the light will work.
I acknowledge that from time to time it will break down. It is not designed to be an eternal mechanism.
There is no faith as you understand it in this regard and it is disingenious of you to associate your faith, which has no evidence whatsoever to support it, with the trust one puts in a light switch.
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What is Faith but Trust? The foundation may differ. The standard by which we measure something “trust-worthy” may change. But both Faith and Trust look to the future based on the past or the word of someone who we “trust” knows better than we do.
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Again, this is a disingenious approach.
Trust is based on evidence.
Faith as you understand it is not based on evidence.
To suggest otherwise is dishonest, and this is how you are behaving.
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Faith IS based on evidence.
Read Hebrews 13.
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Wrong!
You have no evidence otherwise you would simply present it and this discussion would be settled.
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In a court of law where facts and common sense rule the day, your case would be dismissed in a new york minute, as faith is THE operating system of humanity. Just because you do not like the word, does not make it untrue.
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Wrong.
Evidence is what counts and you have none.
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But the point is… You don’t “know” that the person won’t turn in front of You. And you don’t “know” you’re going to wake up in the morning. You trust.. You have Faith you will… But you don’t Know. Trust is Faith when we speak of future things we cannot know yet in the Now. You have Faith for these things, before you have evidence for them.
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Yes, I trust. Based on evidence.
You have NO evidence, hence you require faith.
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Not sure you’re understanding. You can’t have evidence that the light will come on.. until it actually comes on. You trust on past performance. That’s not evidence for will the light turn on when I flip the switch Now
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I understand perfectly, thank you
I expect the light to come on because I trust the electrician who installed it and/ or respect the guarantee the electrical appliance comes with. This trust is also based on the understanding and acceptance the light switch will at some point fail.
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If i had to have evidence for everything before i trusted.. id never leave my front door. Heck, id prob never open the door until i had evidence that it would open and not fall off it’s hinges and onto my head. We Trust… We have Faith.. We act on that. The evidence that our Trust was well founded comes after.. when it works as we Trusted it would.
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The trust you have gained is based on evidence, either from personal experience or from those who have passed this trust onto you – your parents for example. And evidence underpins this trust.
Your faith is based on your willingness to accept unfounded claims, primarily as a response to emotional / trauma issues often coupled with feelings of guiltand or fear .
Thus, to assuage such feelings you put faith in unsubstantiated claims about eternal life and the resurrection of a first century itinerant preacher.
Again, if you had any evidence to support your faith you would simply present it and this discussion would become moot.
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The greatest piece of evidence that people dance around……. is the absolute veracity of the written word of God. It tells of things no man can know, explains them, and reveals the source.
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I would like to know what is written in the Bible that man does not know. What scientific details are supported by the majority of scientists and considering God knows everything why are so many scientific details just simply magical events that appear regularly, and therefore were the God inspired writers making up their own stories or was scripture manipulated by others?
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Sure. Happy to help. Here’s a few:
1. The waters above and below written long before there were weather forecasters. The canopy of water above the earth- as well as 80% water below. NO ONE knew this.
2. The collapse of world monetary units, and the introduction of the cashless society, long before the printing of the dollar bill or the yen.
3. The drying up of the Euphrates river.
4. The sky as a molten looking glass.
5. The measurement of the heavens.
6. The measurements of earth.
7. The innate individualism of the human conscience which cannot be put under a microscope.
8. The 2 genders, so assaulted today.
9. The wind.
10. Fire and ice.
Just a few pieces of evidence proving God knows far more than the alleged ‘scientists’ who can’t get right a three day weather forecast. He knows the end from the beginning, and science is helpless before His truths.
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Just as a starter and I am surprised you didn’t know this CS. In evaluating any theory of Biblical interpretation, it is well to remember the principle that “where the Bible is specific, we must be specific, and where the Bible is vague, we must be vague.” Thus, the Bible does not mention a Canopy, neither prior to the Flood nor during the Millennium. (Science in Christian Perspective)
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Of course I know this. There are many alleged Christian pastors/teachers/ groups who are afraid of literalism when it demands they drop their bias.
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You also have Faith in what others tell you about reality, though you yourself have not experienced or worked out the evidence. The atom… genome… ancient history… dinosaurs… and a myriad of other things that you “take other peoples word for” because you Trust them, in their experience, education, their work.. or what they say is their work, experience and education. You trust.. have Faith in what they say. That is Faith as well. The foundation is different and may or may not be sound. But you Believe them. You have Faith, exercise your will and determine your future acts and Beliefs based on Faith in their Trust-worthiness. Faith, my friend. You got it
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Wrong I trust the evidence. Faith plays no part.
You have NO evidence for the religious beliefs you assert are true. Hence the need for faith which is a necessary outgrowth of the indoctrination you suffer from.
Your attempt to lump your faith with my trust is disingenious and speaks volumes to your dishonesty in this regard.
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Trust and Faith are the same animal. Even the same greek word… pistus. Dont be pistus at me. Lol
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Words evolve.
Your attempt to link your interpretation of faith based on zero evidence with evidence-based trust is disingenious.
You are simply coming across as desperate and dishonest.
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Ok.. stop responding if you think it’s pointless and dishonest to continue… “are you not amused?!”. Lol
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Oh, I never said it was pointless.
But your continual intransigence merely further illustrates your dishonesty.
However, it is getting late so I will call it a night and you may have the last ( dishonest) word
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Not sure why you would discount also the evidence of a man’s conscience, which by the way , is revealed in my premise of the ‘circle test,’ and stamped upon your conscience as well.
You KNOW ‘in the beginning God…..’ but you choose to suppress it. Your choice. Not even a matter of heaven or hell. A man must understand basic math ere he can comprehend trig.
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Faith is not the reason we Trust or Rely on something or someone… it’s the very act of relying or trusting that someone or something. Everytime you drive your car, you are Trusting or exercising Faith in the roads, your car, the other drivers, sometimes even the weather. You are Trusting… exercising Faith.
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Good gravy ark. Everyone has faith in something. You have FAITH that the air pilot will get you across a country safely.
There is zero evidence that you do not operate on faith. Every person alive has faith.
Faith in God is wired into dna, this is why you persist.
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Yawn ..
It is trust based on evidence.
If you have evidence for your religious claims then we can also use the word trust.
Feel free to present evidence.
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My point is.. that we all operate on the basis of Faith for alot of things.
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Wrong. You operate on faith because you have no evidence to support your religious beliefs.
I operate on trust because I do have evidence.
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What evidence do you have every day, every different time you drive on the roads? You don’t know the skills, habits or patterns of those who drive right next to you or are coming towards you in the opposite direction. You “trust” without evidence… You operate by Faith.
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Ark goes into into his darkroom Bar, to develop photos having not seen………………… faith indeed that what is not seen will develop………………….
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Wrong. The evidence tells me that I must exercise caution and good judgment at all times when I drive.
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True.
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I think this written test is a good idea CS, however it requires more substance such as:
On paper can you write EVERYTHING you know that obviously makes your God the real God and why he is different from all the other gods that you reject as not real.
For example this very old religion:
Brahma is the Hindu god of creation. He was the original creator of the universe. Due to his elevated rank, Brahma rarely appears in the picturesque myths in which gods take on human form and character. Rather, he is generally presented more abstractly as the ideal of a great god.
In the beginning, Brahma created good and evil and light and dark from his own person. He also created the four types: gods, demons, ancestors and men, the first of whom was Manu. Brahma then made all the other living creatures upon the earth.
Has a familiar ring to it, don’t you think?
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Tkx Sklyd/
I think it’s fair- and in return your observation is equally fair. In that blank space lies all kinds of conjecture, doubt, assumptions, and of course, artificial knowledge.
Your Brahma is one of many as you know which tries to grab the spotlight as ‘one above all,’ but it breaks down like all others, when compared to what I allege up top- the very first of Genesis indicates space, time, and matter, things inconceivable before man learned to read.
There is no blank space to He who created the eye. I do think that if a person reads honestly Genesis chapter 1 unaided by opinions or preconceived bias, there just may be a more pleasant outcome.
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Good post, Colorstorm, good discussion.
I sometimes say the evidence of God is right on the other side of ourselves. He begins where we end. People have to find a tiny bit of intellectual humility and admit as you’ve pointed out that, “He knows more than you.” There is this whole universe going on outside of that little dot that contains all the, “things we know.”
I recently got to work with some young guys, good people, but somewhere in the conversation the idea came up about how we just don’t know everything. It was immediately challenged, “Oh yes we do, we know everything! Ask me anything. I can answer it.” I immediately burst out laughing. I forgot that such confidence, such arrogance exists. It does however, we all have a little bit of that “know it all” within us.
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‘Confidence?’ Ha! Right, sure. There is a good
confidence ‘ I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded…..’ then there is that idiocy which plaques the ignorant.
But for God’s sake, let’s at least give Him the courtesy of existing. Sheesh. It’s obvious after all.
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Since the bronze age people only knew about a small part of the planet any prediction of global currency and economic collapse would have been normal for their part of the world considering economics and collapses of governance have happened to cities and regions long before the Bible was written such as the Roman Empire of that era and of course applies to today, nothing new here CS
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Nothing new S, really?
So the ‘tattoo’ on your right hand or forehand, (you choose your preferred safety code…….’ spoken thousands of years ago, referencing the bar codes today, isn’t enough for you?
Ignore it or laugh, e wry word of God is pure and good, so unlike a world of liars.
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Joe Woodland invented the bar code, that collection of lines and numbers used to ring up your groceries every time you visit the supermarket. “It’s the mark of the beast!” wrote one regular Wired commenter in response to our Joe Woodland tribute. Revelation is the final book of the Bible’s New Testament, and among other things, it foretells an apocalypse in which a beast will rise from the earth, rain fire from the heavens, and lay his mark on all of humankind, a mark used to buy and sell. “He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast.
The number of 666 stamped on your hand or forehead is hardly a reference to a barcode CS. The superstitious ramblings from bronze age people are just that. Is that the best God can do to explain Joe Woodland’s barcode invention?
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Steve/
People invent things out of creativity and necessity. I never said it was a bar code. It does however follow that idea, and the point is, the ‘mark’ will be a private ID ( just like your password, etc) written loooong before the pencil was invented.
Like it or not, it is God’s world not yours, and He is well aware how men have ruined things with tech.
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The mark? Yes a tattoo is used to ID criminals and we are all logged into official and business databases and that is inevitable due to terrorism and crime. Man has not needed pencils, stone age people used tools to create pictures on cave walls. I agree to some point CS that high tech has not always been the best outcome for all humans, however higher tech through creativity and necessity as you say and is man’s natural attribute to progress. Supposedly your God made man this way so really you cannot complain. It also appears God has given the world to man to do whatever he likes with it.
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Steve, the greater point is that these things were written, when tech was in diapers. In other words, He who knows past present and future, told men, (that we may know His word is true) there would be a world wide collapse of economy- and that men would be forced to choose who they align with.
As a matter of fact, it was irrelevant if the scribes knew what is meant, as they were just called to be a faithful writer. But today, we have a better understanding, with chips, tats, scanners etc.
God is not surprised when men ignore His word. How many people do you actually know can you say: His word is good? ALWAYS.
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So true, scribes were just faithful writers who knew as much as the God they believed they were hearing inside their heads. You see CS the fact that today we have a better understanding today than God did then simply tells us that your God does not know everything or he could have explained todays world and beyond in some detail. I believe the writers had good imaginations, however they thought light and darkness were symbolic of good and evil due to being naturally superstitious just as men who lived in the caves in 10,000 BC.
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‘God does not know everything………………..’
Perhaos S, if you gave Him the courtesy of existing first, that Word which you assign to ‘stone age lunkheads’ just may have a much more pleasant disposition.
For instance, the ‘drying up’ of the Euphrates river, so accurately described and predicted, the regathering of the nation of Israel, so accurately described and predicted, the rise and fall of the kings in Daniel, so accurately described and predicted, the determination and procreation of man and beast, so accurately described and predicted in Genesis; need I say more?
Your idolatry of ‘science’ steve, which IB described so accurately as a tool, blinds your eyes and common sense.
That apple I spoke of that does not fall before its time, embarrasses people who say the moon does not ‘fall’ because of ‘scientifically proven blah blah blah,’ misses the boat entirely, because it is solely by God’s word that it shines and stays, no gravity needed.
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The controversies about those Biblical prophecies such as the Euphrates River drying up. Evidently it and many others such as the Nile is drying up due mostly to climate change and drought. Quite an average prediction in a water starved region when you consider the predictions made by Nostradamus, who had even predicted the death of Queen Elizabeth. There may be the end of the world as some bible prophecies say with global warming being the biggest danger along with armed conflict.
Science is a tool CS, for finding evidence, facts and the truth about our universe and everything within it. A process it mostly does very well.
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No controversy S-
Just a matter of fact. There would have been ZERO reason to foretell of an event which was irrelevant to they who were reading at the time.
This is what scripture heads and tails above all. It is never wrong. God is good like that.
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