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Biblically Speaking Magazine
Today Upholding: The Gospels The Bible The Christian Faith Into the 21st. Century ISSUE 2 , December 1996 Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him. . Matthew 2:1-2
By Karl Thompson MSc. And More Importantly a Biblical Christian Mankind is obsessed with the question of whether life exists in outer space and how life began. Although modern scientists have no conclusive evidence for the origin of life on earth or indeed elsewhere mankind, and particularly western man, have taken a kind of democratic leap of blind faith that life has evolved through a process of chemical evolution. They have taken that leap by jumping off the cliff of uncertainty into an abyss of one of two main theories: 1) the theory of panspermia - an idea that spores landed on earth and started life while taking a vacation from some other part of space and; 2) the theory of chemical evolution claiming that life developed through a series of spontaneous chemical reactions in an highly hydrogenised atmosphere and in the oceans at the dawn of earth's history. This theory presupposes an incredible age for the earth being several billion years old. This is presumably supported by the doctrine that if you give things enough time just about anything may happen! Long ago mankind asked these questions (and by long I mean several thousand years ago). We can be certain that they asked these questions given that the conclusive evidence of written documentation only goes back a short way over a few millennia. The Bible tells us that Moses the author of the book of Genesis was learned in all the wisdom and arts of the ancient Egyptians - we know they had some common sense because we are still trying to figure out how they built the pyramids. However, Moses did not give an Egyptian interpretation for the origin of life. His account of the origin of the universe and life is singularly remarkable. Where did Moses get such a unique account of life origins from ? The Bible tells us that Moses spoke with God in a special way on Mount Sinai (also called Horeb), on at least two occasions. On the first occasion when he witnessed a supernatural event of vegetation on fire without being destroyed. On another occasion he communicated with God about laws of morality - the Ten Commandments which the Bible tells us is the schoolmaster to bring us to Jesus Christ. While it is not clear whether there were any witnesses, save the sheep he was caring for, on the event of the burning bush, there were lots of witnesses on the event of the receipt of the Commandments. There were also lots of witnesses when he supernaturally called in the plagues and parted the Red Sea with a piece of stick. Given Moses's remarkable life and the events reported from such a life only a deliberate sceptic would dare suggest that when he wrote under similar Divine and supernatural inspiration, 'In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth' that he was simply talking out of the top of his hat. Furthermore, the laws embodied in the Ten Commandments, reiterate the fact that in six days God created the heavens and the earth and the sea and all that in them is. These commandments are to varying degrees recognised by practically all sane societies as essential for the survival of man's ever decreasing vestige of morality and social order. It is not unnatural or surprising that man continues his quest for the secret of origins and life in outer space. What is more noteworthy is why he has this thirst to know. It doesn't matter whether a piece of rock form outer space contains a small residue of bacteria even were we to jump onto the massive assumption that the piece of rock was from outer space, planet or mineral and it did in fact have little blobs of jelly floating around in it. The reason why it doesn't matter is because it will not retrieve man from his moral chaos or make him any better off than he is now. On the contrary, it might make him worse off financially and spiritually. Knowing man he will spend another x billion units of currency for y further years chasing another piece of jelly infested rock through outer space. At the same time, he will deliberately ignore his key purpose and destiny to glorify God, as well as the many poor people on his own planet who could use some of that 'dosh' to improve their living conditions. Man without understanding.. says the Bible,.... is like the beast that perish. The fool says in his heart there is no God. Some scientists tell us that space exploration will help us to understand the origin of life. They claimed this for example when they sent up the Hubble telescope before whoops..., it had to be repaired for sending back wobbly fuzzy pictures of blobs in space. The pictures from Hubble have got a lot clearer but man is still groping in darkness at the real meaning and purpose of his existence and indeed the origin of life. Not a single failed marriage or relationship has been mended, the anger lurking in men's hearts still rages ferociously; brother oppresses brother; nations still plan war and make war; the poor are even more exploited; man's lust for flesh, pride and power burns upwards into space like a stinking pile of putrid flesh. Some say we need more time to investigate and explore. The suggestion here is that man will certainly improve like a developing computer program that gets all its bugs ironed out through a process of re-coding, implementation and testing but the man months required for this could be everlasting. The problem is we have not got everlasting to get it right even if we could. Both we and our planet are living on ever decreasing time. Death will get us even before our planet burns out; or some other sinner will get us as crime increases in our streets; or we will get us by our very own life styles; or inevitably the old ageing process will get us even if nothing else gets us. We need more technology say some, yet every time man develops a piece of technology it gets turned into a problem more so than a solution. Yes there have been some benefits from man's technology, in the fields of medicine and elsewhere but the benefits are invariably outweighed by the ill-use made of the technology. Obvious examples include the industrialisation of society through machinery, the motor vehicle and the information technology revolution - a stage we are still going through. Firstly, the industrial revolution led to breakdown of extended family relationships particularly in western societies and elsewhere. It led to increased exploitation of workers as well as increased pollution. Secondly the motor car was meant to help us get from A-B more quickly and efficiently but it increased road accidents, became a status symbol, made people bankrupt paying for it, introduced compulsory insurance, road tax and car sales cowboys. It also increased pollution and has helped to trigger in some parts of London and elsewhere- in densely populated cities in the world - lung and chest problems like asthma. In the future by the 2020's roads at least in Britain are likely to become so congested the experts tell us from their studies that it will probably be quicker to walk to work providing you also take with you safe breathing apparatus. Thirdly, the information technology age that we are now in is supposed to offer us inter alia, exciting new possibilities in communication and facilitate the globalization of markets. It will probably achieve much of that but again it has opened up avenues for the exploitation of those who least understand the technology, fearful issues of unemployment, privacy, security, theft and pornography, electronic racism - with still yet more to come. As we move into the electronic age, information technology could become the next stage of drug addiction - the virtual reality addiction in virtual space. At present we are not clear about the mental effects excessive technology will have on humans as they move more in the direction of cyberspace and into the virtual veins and aorta of the electronic heart of information superhighway. Technology is clearly not the answer. Suddenly - because it has been pretty sudden in the context of an amazingly long eternity - man has arrived to the top of the 20th century. He now looks at another millennium closely approaching across the chasm of time. Man looks into the 21st Century. What can he see ? Mankind must concede that this past millennium has brought him no moral progress - a point already made. He does not feel any closer to God, if anything he feels even further away from God. He may even feel that there is no God. He has no faith, no God and therefore if he thinks carefully he can have no real hope, save for a manufactured courage that shouts into the uncertainty of the future: 'I am the master of my own fate and answer to no one!' What does he know except that he is simply not a happy bunny at all. He may hope to cheer himself up with more things and look forward to learning more about himself but really in everything he learns will be the stench of his sin, his arrogance and pride. Soon like the prodigal son who went far away from his father into a distant land he will be eating more husks and swine feed and yet he will not return to his Father, his Saviour and God. His increase of knowledge as wise Solomon wrote, (in the book of Proverbs) will merely be the increase of his sorrow and of the making of his many books or web-pages there is no end. Indeed his knowledge seems to take him ever closer to the abyss of that real place called Hell. This place exists in man (his inner hell), outside him (his outer hell) and in outer space somewhere where man's mentor the Devil and his hosts awaits his soul with raging lust. Turn away from that place for the knowledge of it is hard to contemplate but to experience it, dear soul, is utter madness. So listen..... As we approach that time of year on earth when we again prepare for Christmas, what thoughts flood into our minds. I am 'gonna' have a jolly good Christmas whatever happens some are saying, some may dread the occasion of Christmas and the thought of interacting with other sinners whom they simply cannot stand in their own family. Some may dread the sentimental slushiness of just about everything to do with Christmas, some will religiously object to Christmas. Whatever happens it's safe to say that Christmas will bring out a reaction in most people; even the reserved British will respond in some way. Christmas is directly relevant to the question, Is there life in outer space ?. Looking back at the attitude of real scientists of two thousand years ago what do we find? We find that a group of astronomers are making particular note of a very bright star that has appeared in the East. The Star has become a point of excitement, spiritual and intellectual interest to these wise men. They have not seen this Star before and somehow they have arrived at the notion that it is a Star of significance, if only from the light it radiates in the Eastern skies. Like true scientists the wise men get together to compare notes. Interestingly, they all come to a rather similar conclusion about the Star. They have postulated with some degree of certainty that it must be followed. Obediently, they follow the Star and it takes them to Jerusalem but wait .. What is that they carry upon the backs of their beasts? Remarkably they are carrying gifts ..... for a Star ? They are carrying gifts for the Christ child that unlike so many scientists today they have actually come to worship. To worship - why to worship and not to investigate? Well it tells us that there was something vastly superior about those scientists. They clearly were not so narrow-minded in their investigations so that they excluded all things spiritual and Divine from their reckoning. Like true scientists they took account of the possibility that there was a God who could be known and worshipped and they brought gifts. But they knew even more than that. They knew that God had visited His people. They knew that the coming of the Christ child, Jesus was a remarkable supernatural event. They knew that the Christ child was here to rescue man from his inevitable destruction and moral degeneracy. They knew that God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, Jesus the Messiah, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. They knew that Christ would die in the place of sinners, the Just for the unjust, the Righteous for the wicked - so that the wicked could have hope and be saved from certain destruction and chaos. They knew that the Christ child would rise again from death and ascend back into outer space. And they knew that the Christ Child had power over the grave, held the keys of life and death and would again visit this doomed and death struck earth with powers and personalities from His heavenly Kingdom to be Judge of all. Finally, they knew that everyone must bow the knee to Him and confess that He, Christ is the true Lord of the Universe. Yes the wise men, the true scientists, knew that the Christ Child was the Son of God the only way by Whom all men everywhere in whatever condition or nation can be saved, rescued and forgiven from a life of guilt and pointlessness. The wise men brought gifts to worship the Child from another world - from outer space, from the domain of Heaven. Yes, Heaven. It exists in true outer space, outside time, in the realm of eternity. Christ came from a spiritual Kingdom. He said, 'My kingdom is not of this world'. The Bible says that those who are true believers are strangers and pilgrims on the earth travelling to an Heavenly country. Not a planet, not a star, not a comet but a place where there is no night for the Glorious God Who created all things is the Light of it. E-mail us at : karl@ketsvc.netkonect.co.uk Published by: Southview Publications P.O. Box 4124 London SE27 ONY England © 1996 Editor: Karl Thompson |
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There Is Nothing New Under The Sun
