Ken Ham's Blog, page 368

The Importance of Public Lectures

During my time away in Australia, I have asked certain staff to supply me with reports on their ministry outreaches. One of our most active speakers (and researchers) is Dr. Terry Mortenson, whose PhD is in the history of science (as it relates to the field of geology). He is often on the road giving talks on biblical apologetics, and now that we have a large auditorium next to our Creation Museum, he can regularly be heard by our museum guests.

Here is what Dr. Mortenson recently shared with me about the importance of doing live lectures around the world in addition to all the Sunday speaking we do in churches. We live in an age when so many people are more inclined to stay home and be on their computers, watch videos, and engage in social media. These live AiG presentations provide excellent opportunities for personal interaction with the attendees after the talks are given in a way that social media and other means of communication just can’t accomplish. Here is what Terry shared with me about his live presentations, including those at the museum:

Dr. Mortenson giving a lecture inside our Legacy Hall.

Part of my job as an AiG speaker is to give ten to fifteen 60-minute lectures per month in the Creation Museum for any of our guests who want to listen. Many times I speak on “Creation vs. Evolution: Why It Matters.” On other occasions I will speak on “Ape-men, Adam and the Gospel” or “Millions of Wears: Where Did the Idea Come From?” or some other topic.

At the beginning of each lecture, I ask how many in the audience are in the museum for the very first time. In each instance, most or nearly all of the hands go up, which is encouraging to see. We want to bring new people into the ministry.

After each presentation, I usually stay in one of our two bookstores to be available for questions, comments, or book signings. Whether at the museum or in churches and other venues where I speak, I meet a lot of interesting people, both young and old.

Often it is Christians who want to tell me how much my lectures—or perhaps the museum, some seminar by one of the AiG speakers, or our books and DVDs—have helped them to grasp the foundational truth of the book of Genesis. So many people tell me what a blessing the ministry has been to them and they encourage me to keep going.

Other Christians ask questions about such things as radiometric dating, dinosaurs, what’s wrong with the gap theory, why do so many Christians leaders not believe Genesis, etc. Sometimes it’s because they really want to know the answer. Other times it is because they have accepted evolution or the millions of years and they are raising objections to what I taught or what the museum presents.

Some people ask how they can get this kind of teaching in their church, and I point them to our web page where they can request an AiG speaker. Some ask how they can influence their pastor on this issue and I recommend this DVD, and Coming to Grips with Genesis and this little booklet.

Some people share their grief at the way a Christian college or seminary led them or their child astray because of the professors’ acceptance of evolution and/or millions of years. And I grieve with them. [See our list of Bible institutes, colleges, universities, and seminaries which affirm AiG’s statement of faith.]

Occasionally, non-believers come to me to raise objections. I’ve had a number of intense but friendly conversations with atheists, many of them lasting 30 minutes or more.

In each case I do the best I can to answer them and then point them to the best book or DVD to answer their questions in greater depth.

The Creation Museum has so many different ways for people to encounter the truth of God’s Word, whether they are Christians who agree with us and need to be strengthened, or Christians who disagree with us who need to be gently challenged, or non-believers who need to hear the truth explained and see it visualized and defended in a scientifically informed way—and to hear the gospel.

If you haven’t ever visited the museum, make plans to do so in the next 12 months. And encourage your Christian and non-Christian friends to do the same. It just may change their lives, too!

‑ Dr. Terry Mortenson

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,

Ken

Who Decides Gender Roles?

Earlier this year I wrote a blog post about how schools in Massachusetts are beginning to change the rules to allow students to determine their own gender identity and to use locker rooms and restrooms accordingly. Those changes signaled, I believe, what is going to become the norm in the U.S.

Well, a week ago California became the first state to pass a state law requiring public schools to cater to so-called transgender students. According to an article in the Washington Post, the law requires schools to accept students’ own claims about their gender:

Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown announced that he had signed AB1266, which also will allow transgender students to choose whether they want to play boys’ or girls’ sports. The new law gives students the right “to participate in sex-segregated programs, activities and facilities” based on their self-perception and regardless of their birth gender. [emphasis added]

Now, many secular academics today make the claim that gender is purely a social construct and that people can determine their own gender. (For more on this, see Steve Golden’s article, “Are Gender Roles a Social Construct?”) But such an anti-biblical philosophy, I believe, will lead to a host of problems, especially in school settings.

The spokesman for the author of the California law said that the fears parents and students have who disagree with the new California law—which likely includes many Christians—are “overblown.” Apparently, many California lawmakers are more concerned about being “at the forefront of leadership on transgender rights” than they are about what God’s Word has to say about gender—or about the safety and privacy concerns of parents and students involved in California schools.

Really, what laws like this come down to is a rejection of the biblical distinction between males and females. Of course, we at Answers in Genesis acknowledge that this is a complex issue, but Scripture is clear that in the beginning, God created mankind as male and female (Genesis 1:27). There is nothing in Scripture to indicate that God created some as anatomically male but who identify as female or vice versa. (We do recognize that, because of sin’s effects on the world, there are physical variations and aberrations that do cause legitimate difficulty for a very small number of people, such as hermaphroditism. For more on this, read Dr. Elizabeth Mitchell’s feedback article on hermaphroditism.)

Like I’ve said before, as Christians, we should affirm our children’s God-given genders and cultivate godly masculinity and femininity in them, rather than encouraging them to abandon the gender God gave them in the womb:

For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb. I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous are Your works, and that my soul knows very well. (Psalm 139:13–14)

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,

Ken

Steve Golden assisted in the writing of this blog.

“The Ecology Book”—Another Great Resource for Families!

Our online bookstore is carrying a brand new, biblically based resource for teaching children about God’s creation. The Ecology Book by Tom Hennigan and Jean Lightner is a great addition to the Wonders of Creation curriculum series available in our webstore.

This series is great for homeschooling families—and it can be used for 5th–11th grade! Here is how The Ecology Book  was described to me: “In the new Ecology Book, your students will be given a fuller understanding of biblical stewardship and how to practice it. What’s more, as your students work through The Ecology Book, they’ll develop wonder at all the incredible ecological systems in creation.”

The Ecology Book is designed so that students read sections and complete activities according to their grade levels. They learn important words and concepts related to ecology, and they study ecological issues and environmental concerns today—all from the biblical perspective!

The most important part of this series is that students are shown how creation declares the glory of God. The authors teach an understanding of the world as designed by God, not as a series of random evolutionary accidents. Your students will learn in The Ecology Book that the world is a wondrous system of organisms created to support one another.

If you want your children to learn about the world from the perspective of biblical creation, from authors who take God at His Word, I encourage you to check out The Ecology Book and the rest of the Wonders of Creation series at AnswersBookstore.com.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,

Ken

More Misrepresentations

Yesterday I wrote about a very positive review of the Creation Museum, and also about people (Christian and non-Christian) who deliberately misrepresent the Creation Museum in their attempts to undermine its Bible-upholding teachings.

Misrepresentations of our ministry are not just limited to the Creation Museum. Here’s an incredible charge related to the “Answers” radio program I host. Someone listened to one of my programs and claimed that I had admitted that science proves evolution! But what did I really say on the program? Did I admit that science has proved evolution? Well, here is my script—judge for yourself:

Many of us would love to have the final proof that evolution is a lie—the right scientific evidence that will silence those opposed to biblical creation forever, right? Well, no.

You see, Romans chapter 1 tells us that God has revealed Himself to man in nature, so there’s no excuse for denying the witness of creation. In fact, we have solid proof in our hands that evolution is a lie: the Bible.

We can’t depend solely on our reasoning ability to convince skeptics. We present the evidence—and do the best we can—to convince people of the truth of God by always pointing them to the Bible. After all, “faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God.”

Are you trusting in Jesus Christ for your faith?

You see, we can’t depend “solely” on our reasoning ability to convince skeptics. Did you notice the word “solely”? Yet, based on the script above, this critic claims that I have “admitted” there is no scientific evidence to support creation! Actually, as I say time and time again, science confirms the Bible. And the creation itself is—as the verse I quoted in the script (Romans 1:20) declares—a witness or evidence of creation. Observational science is a friend of the creationists, as our staff would agree, several of whom hold earned academic doctorates.

Nobody can say that we don’t present scientific evidence. Most of all, though, we point people to the Bible. And we do believe in using reason, as one of our museum exhibits explains:

Interestingly, even one of our most vocal opponents—who is an atheist—pointed out the misrepresentations made about this radio program. Dr. PZ Myers of Minnesota, who does not like me at all and hates God, has recognized that many of his fellow secularists have misquoted me and have taken my comments out of context. He wrote on his blog a few days ago that secular bloggers have completely misread my radio statements: “What he [i.e., me] actually said is familiar creationist dogma, and comes nowhere near their interpretation. . . . It doesn’t say what they think it says. Notice the ‘solely’; creationists will claim that they are using their reason, even when they aren’t.” Later in his blog, Myers takes a shot at me, but in this rare instance, PZ’s blog has come to my defense! (I am reluctant to link to PZ’s blog because of some vile content and profanity, but some people will want to check out the “defense” for themselves at freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula.)

If you care to, you can read some of our critic’s misrepresentations—including the one where I supposedly believe that “science proves evolution”—and then compare them to the radio script above.

I have also read a different blog post in which the teachings of another of our radio programs has been taken out of context. But think about it: if you have no absolute authority in your life and you believe that we live in in a purposeless and meaningless world, I guess you can believe it’s OK to make up things.

Well, I am thankful that skeptics are listening to the radio program. And I hope they are all going to our website and are discovering more about the Bible’s reliability—more than they can learn from just listening to a short radio spot.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,

Ken

What a Contrast!

For whatever reason, many anti-Creation Museum reviews have been popping up on the web in recent weeks. As you know, you can’t always believe what you read on the Internet—although with our website, we try to make sure it’s as accurate (scientifically and scripturally) as possible. (Of course, we all have feet of clay, and we can make mistakes.)

Tremendous Praise

With my blog post today, I am highlighting a museum review written by a person whose family was tremendously blessed by their experience here. In her review, Tanya wrote that she was aware that there was much controversy surrounding the Creation Museum being built. Here are some of her thoughts as she looked back on her family’s experiences at the museum:

I wondered why on earth the construction of one museum was stirring up so much trouble . . . I couldn’t understand what was so horrible and so threatening about ONE museum that would offer a differing viewpoint . . .

I’ve come to understand better how much of the secular scientific community has absolutely no tolerance for differing viewpoints . . . but now that I’ve also visited the museum for myself, I think I see more clearly why so many are enraged by its existence.

Because it is good. REALLY good. In fact, I’ve never visited a museum that was more beautifully designed or more state-of-the-art . . . it is awfully hard to take it so lightly when it’s so unbelievably well-done . . .

I was awestruck by the beautiful displays and interactive exhibits. . . .

Later we strolled through the botanical gardens . . . . I was thoroughly impressed . . . . I think I could have spent the entire day just wandering through them.

Tanya closed with this observation:

The museum is not merely creation-centered, but gospel-centered; aimed at not only offering evidence in support of the Genesis account, but in sharing the salvation message of Jesus Christ. I’m sure it’s something that makes evolutionary scientists very uncomfortable; this blending of science and faith. . . .

It was so refreshing to finally be able to walk through a science museum with our children and not have to offer constant disclaimers for the things we saw and heard. There is remarkable evidence for a young earth, a worldwide flood, and intelligent design . . . .

Museums promoting faith in evolution are a dime a dozen. What a pleasure to finally visit one promoting faith in something far greater!

Yes, that’s what we’re all about—Presenting the gospel message!

Unfounded Criticism

Now, contrast this positive museum review with what is being said by others about the Creation Museum from both secularists and Christians who don’t accept Genesis as history.

One atheist, a former theology student, wrote a recent review about his visit to our museum. I wrote about this atheist last week. He came to the museum and told a staff member that he didn’t have the money in his budget to enter, so one of our staff members was nice enough to give him a complimentary pass. He then wrote a very nasty, mocking review of a museum that he was allowed to tour through our generosity.

One of our supporters read his negative museum review and responded with a couple of posts. The atheist had made a number of troubling comments, including the false assertion that our ministry had been given money from the Commonwealth of Kentucky. The atheist, for example, wrote that “it doesn’t hurt that they were given state funds.” Well, our AiG supporter challenged that wrong claim with a posting in the site’s comment section:

I can state without being contradicted that you are absolutely wrong to say that the organization has been “given state funds.” It has not. No tax money has been used by the group, and it won’t even be used to build its future Ark Encounter. What is the whole truth? The finished Ark Encounter may get a rebate from the state on the sales tax that will be collected from visitors at the finished Ark park—if there is strong attendance and if tourists bring lots of dollars into the state.

Contrary to what you said, no funds will be used from the state’s budget (and thus be taken away from programs like schools, social programs, etc.) to help build or operate the Ark Encounter. The revenue generated for the state through the sales tax the state will keep, the payroll taxes and property taxes collected from the thousands of people who will be hired at the Ark over the years, etc. will be huge. There will be a net gain for the state treasury with the Ark being built in the state. Revenue will also come to the state from the sales taxes collected from the hotels, restaurants, etc. that will pop up in response to tourists visiting the Ark.

Sadly, this lie about receiving money from the state budget to build the Ark keeps circulating.

Also in the comments section of this atheist’s blog, a Christian—who does not support us—wrote:

I understand from other articles that the Creation Museum is having difficulties financially and trying to come up with a long-term marketing strategy to draw return visitors to displays and explanations that will likely never change with any increased information. I wasn’t aware that things had come to the place where one $29 admission fee was so crucial.

Now, the whole point of my blog post last week was to point out how atheists can cheat. It was not over the fact that we lost an admission fee—from just one person out of perhaps the 1,000 visitors who were here the day the atheist visited. Also, the museum is not struggling financially at all. Each year, we have far exceeded our attendance and revenue projections when we set them before the museum opened six years ago. Museums that struggle don’t open new exhibits, as we have done this year.

It’s sad that a person who calls himself a Christian would misrepresent our museum in such a way, and is so trusting of secular sources that claim that the museum is struggling. I don’t really want to even bring up these accusations, but they are all over the Internet that it has gotten to the point that we have to counter these false assertions.

In the same comment section of the atheist blog, a museum critic stated that with Christians visiting the museum and paying admission, we are stealing their money! This person’s reasoning was this: “By taking their money, isn’t he [i.e., me] stealing money that should go to their church?” Bizarre. This is an economic fallacy and assumes that we are coercing people to attend our museum. Of course, people who pay to go to the Creation Museum don’t see themselves as victims of any theft or coercion! This again shows how irrational and illogical some people can be in their opposition to biblical truths.

Then we have those secularists who gloat about a lightning strike near the Creation Museum that could have been a tragedy and take the opportunity to blaspheme God and mock the museum. For example, read the excerpt below from an atheist blog where he shows a kind of gloating, depraved way of thinking—often displayed by people who shake their fists at God (even though they claim not to believe in Him). While the atheist expresses some sympathy for the man who was involved with the incident, look at what the mocking atheist blogger dwells on. It starts with his headline, referencing a local news article:

God Must Be Sending a Message: Creation Museum Visitor Struck by Lightning

The headline pretty much says it all, doesn’t it?

Contrary to initial news reports which were reflected in the blogger’s post, the person slightly injured was actually not a visitor to the museum but an employee of the company that operates the zip lines on the museum campus. In addition, he was not struck by a lightning bolt: he was standing on the ground and the jolt he received came from the energy of a nearby lightning strike that came down a zip line.

For what happened at the Creation Museum on Wednesday, and to praise God that the zip line worker is fine, read our brief article on the AiG website.

In tomorrow’s blog post I’ll write about another of the many misrepresentations made by people in their efforts to denigrate the Creation Museum, Ark Encounter, and Answers in Genesis ministry.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,

Ken

Mourning the Loss of a Dear Friend and Colleague

Our hearts go out to the family of a great servant of the Lord, Graham Scott, who passed away on Monday. Graham was the former head of our sister ministry in the United Kingdom, AiG–UK/Europe. Frankly, there would be no AiG in the UK if it were not for his tremendous sacrifice and dedication for the creation-gospel message. Within hours of Graham’s death, I wrote to his widow, Anthea, and among other things recalled, “I will never forget the many times spent with you and Graham over many years.”

Graham and Anthea Scott

In the 1980s, I was visiting the UK at least once a year on speaking tours, along with my friend and mentor, the late Prof. John Rendle-Short. “Prof” was born in the UK but had been living in Australia. He was honored by Queen Elizabeth for his research into a form of autism. Prof and I shared a burden to reach the UK, and we realized that there needed to be a permanent presence there rather than someone travelling to the UK and holding occasional speaking tours. Prof met Graham Scott, who eventually helped us start what has now become AiG–UK/Europe. At great sacrifice, Graham and his family opened the UK office in their small rented home in Woodcroft. It was very much the “pioneering days” of AiG–UK, and it had humble beginnings.

It was an important office to establish, for many of UK’s church leaders had accepted the idea of millions of years into the Bible. This unlocked a door of compromise to question the Bible’s authority in other matters. It started in the early 1800s, and Darwin’s later ideas opened this compromise door further. The combination of millions of years and evolution contributed to the collapse of Christianity across the UK. Now there are relatively few Bible-believing churches left in a land that was once full of good churches and great Christian leaders.

Mike Zovath, one of the founders of Answers in Genesis–U.S. and a former board member of AiG–UK, recalled his dealings with Graham, who retired from full-time ministry at AiG in 1999 (and he continued to assist AiG–UK in the two years that followed):

During our first trip to the UK, Graham was fond of telling us stories about his time aboard ships working as second officer, and his time with Operation Mobilization ships in particular.

He was also an amazing historian with a penchant for British history. Through Graham’s “lessons,” Ken and I were kept well informed about the history of a particular street corner or parking lot where we’d find ourselves virtually anywhere in the UK. I know where almost every head was lopped off by an executioner throughout London thanks to his stories. And sadly, he knew where every bomb blew up in Northern Ireland during the so-called Troubles. He also knew just about every street and back alley in every town in the country. His ability to get us to the right block and the right door for our next speaking meeting was incredible. Like Ken has already said, the UK ministry would not exist without Graham’s willingness to operate on the smell of an oily rag, his tireless, sacrificial work, and his passion for the gospel of our Lord Jesus.

AiG–US remains committed to assisting our sister ministry in Darwin’s homeland. In fact, our next U.S. newsletter, Answers Update (which is being printed right now) features the following article:

UK, Here We Come . . . Again

We have been so pleased to see how the UK ministry of Answers in Genesis has been growing. Based in Leicester (central England), AiG–UK is seeing increased speaking engagements from UK and European churches that are seeking solid biblical answers about Genesis. The attendees leave with Bible-upholding books, Answers magazines, and DVDs; and we see God’s continued blessings through their distribution.

Over the next twelve months, AiG–U.S. will be flying a number of speakers “across the pond” to hold some conferences in the UK. Steve Ham, Ken Ham, and Bodie Hodge will be touring various areas of the UK.

Later this year, we will be announcing information about a major UK Creation Conference for 2014.

In a country where there is an increasing antagonism against biblical truth, the UK needs the apologetics teaching of ministries like Answers in Genesis more than ever to give support to churches in “Darwin’s homeland.”

Please pray for the board, staff, and speakers of AiG–UK—for their strength to continue being forthright in preaching biblical authority and the gospel in the midst of heavy public criticism.

Meanwhile, AiG–U.S. is praising God for the Bible-believing Christians in the UK who are bold for the sake of Christ and His Word.

My brother Steve, AiG’s outreach director who is also responsible for organizational outreach in other countries, returned Monday from a speaking tour in the UK, and also met with the staff of AiG–UK. Graham passed away just as Steve was flying back. Steve and I will continue to build on Graham’s wonderful legacy.

Pray for his widow, Anthea, and their daughter Philippa—and for the growth of Answers in Genesis–UK/Europe, which Graham dearly wanted.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,

Ken

The Passing of a Wonderful Servant of God

I have some sad news to share: My long-time friend and colleague, Graham Scott, who headed up our sister group in the United Kingdom for many years, passed away yesterday. He was a very dedicated servant of God who worked tirelessly and sacrificially to proclaim the creation-gospel message throughout the UK and the rest of Europe. I will have more to say about this dear brother tomorrow on my blog.

Graham leaves behind his wife Anthea and daughter Philippa—please pray for them. Below is a 2012 photo of Graham and Anthea:

The Next Bible Bee

While I’m in Australia, I’ve asked members of our staff to provide some updates of what they are working on at AiG. The rest of today’s blog is a guest post by Roger Patterson, a member of our Educational Resources team.

For the fifth year, families across the country have been gathering during the summer to participate in the National Bible Bee. Through a 12-week inductive study of the book of 1 John, my family has learned much about the love God has for us as adopted children, abiding in Christ, and walking in a manner worthy of being a child of God.

Along with the study, many Bible passages are used as cross references to develop the ideas more fully, and show how Scripture, in all its richness, interprets itself. The families also work together to memorize some of these cross references and several passages from 1 John. The whole program is a wonderful way to get the family to study God’s Word together and grow in the faith.

All of this work comes with the reward of having God’s Word hidden in their hearts, a better understanding of how to study the Bible using many different tools, and a more solid foundation for their faith in Jesus as the Savior of the world.

But there is another reward. On August 24, local chapters of the Bible Bee will come together for contests. The students, in three different age divisions, will take a test on their knowledge of the Bible, including the material studied from 1 John, and, before the judges, recite the passages they have memorized. Having been a judge at the national contest, I can tell you that it is a true blessing to hear the words of Scripture coming from the hearts and mouths of these young students, knowing those truths will be with them for the rest of their lives.

In November, the top 100 students in each age division from across the country will gather in Sevierville, Tennessee to celebrate God’s Word and have wonderful fellowship with Christians from across the country. Once again, AiG will be at the national contest to show its support for this wonderful ministry, and my family will be there (hopefully as participants) to volunteer our service to this great endeavor.

The National Bible Bee is a truly wonderful way to “stand our ground and rescue our kids” (the AiG ministry theme for this year)—rescued from the corruption of the world. I hope you will consider spending the summer of next year discipling your family through this program.

We would ask that you pray for the local contests that will be taking place this Saturday, August 24, and that God would use the ministry of the National Bible Bee to draw many hearts to Himself.

You can find out more about the National Bible Bee at their website, BibleBee.org.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,

Ken

At the Creation Museum: Super Zip Lines and a Conference for Pastors

We have so many invigorating experiences at the Creation Museum! From zip lines to teaching conferences, we are grateful for the place the Lord has given us to bring the pages of the Bible to life.

Three Generations Try Out the Super Zip Lines

I have a great family reunion idea for adventurous families. It came from a family that visited the Creation Museum last week and rode our large zip line course.

On Thursday, we opened our long-awaited Aerial Challenge Course and Super Zip lines on our beautiful grounds!  Well, within a day of the new additions to our “Biggest and Best Zip Course in the Midwest,” three generations of the Rupp family from Archbold, Ohio, took advantage of the “Super Zip” adventure. The course is so large now that it took them four hours to complete!

Here are photos of their adventure:

First, they zipped across the lake on our racing lines that run along the Creation Museum. Then they went down through the ravine, crisscrossing on zip lines and sky bridges through the tree tops. They completed their adventure by zipping over to our adjacent property and climbed the tall tower to ride our premier zip line, which runs 1,700 feet. Finally, a few shorter zip lines brought them back to the museum.

Find out more about this exceptional course—with 25 lines and several sky bridges—at creationmuseum.org/ziplines/.

Pastors by the Hundreds Coming to the Creation Museum

Our “Answers for Pastors” conference is less than two months away, October 8–10. Right here in our beautiful Legacy Hall at the Creation Museum, “Answers for Pastors” features a fantastic line-up of speakers to encourage and equip pastors (and any Christian leader) to be better leaders of their flocks. Special sessions will also be held for their wives.

The theme for this year’s conference is “Steadfast Shepherds—Unshakable Sheep.” As the leaders (shepherds) of local flocks, they need to be able to stand strong and steadfast on God’s Word. The Bible should be our rock—our foundation—so that we will be unshakable. When that is true of pastors and Christian leaders, they in turn can equip their people to be unshakable.

“Answers for Pastors” will help Christian leaders be better equipped to care for those in their congregations so they will have answers for today’s challenging questions. Think about some of the issues in our society: the sanctity of life, biblical marriage, evolution, and the inerrancy of Scripture. Their flocks need to know, understand, and be able to defend their faith with the Word of God.

I will be joined by speakers such as Dr. John Whitcomb (coauthor of the famous book The Genesis Flood), Dr. Stuart Scott, and Tim Challies, along with our Answers in Genesis speaking staff, as we challenge and encourage Christian leaders for today’s church. Ladies will also have special sessions from Dr. Georgia Purdom and Debbi Bryson.

Please email this blog post to your pastor and urge him to register today by going to answersforpastors.org. Tell him also that registration includes a ticket to the Creation Museum. He will save 40 percent on each additional registration from the same church, so that he can bring his wife and staff member(s) for three days of exciting messages, engaging worship, and access to great resources to protect and feed the flock like books, DVDs, curricula, magazines, and more.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,

Ken

Ray Comfort Endorses Answers Bible Curriculum

I have some exciting news to share with you. A good friend of AiG, Ray Comfort, founder and president of Living Waters ministries (and host of the hot-selling new DVD Evolution vs. God) has recently endorsed our new Sunday school program, Answers Bible Curriculum. Here’s what Ray said:

The Answers Bible Curriculum is phenomenal. It is so needed it these turbulent times. If you want your kids to be able to defend the faith with a godly confidence, you will love this superb resource.

I’m thrilled to hear that other Christian leaders see the value in Answers Bible Curriculum, and we’re grateful that Ray took the time to share that with us. Our staff has worked for thousands of hours developing, writing, and designing this high-quality Sunday school (and homeschool) family curriculum—all with the purpose of teaching children and adults that they can take God at His Word!

Ray and me at last month’s Answers Mega Conference in Tennessee

Answers Bible Curriculum is designed for the entire family to work through together. From kindergarten to adult, everyone will study the same things concurrently, just at different levels of understanding. Here is how we promote it: “Answers Bible Curriculum is a full-featured, chronological, three-year Sunday school program that’s also perfect for homeschool families. Its 156 lessons are synchronized across seven age groups from preschool to adults. Each group covers Genesis through Revelation and learns the same material, empowering exciting and easy discussion for the entire family!”

The ABC cover above represents one of seven age levels of a three-year Sunday school program that covers the entire Bible in chronological order.

Answers Bible Curriculum is designed to stem the tide of skepticism toward God’s Word that begins in grade school, in response to the startling findings of numerous studies (including the results published in my coauthored book, Already Gone) that two-thirds of young people will walk away from the church.

That skepticism is what turns to disbelief and causes over two-thirds of young people to abandon church by the time they graduate. No other Sunday school program so thoroughly equips believers to defend the truth of the Bible! And because all ages cover the same basic material at the same time, parents can easily discuss it with their children when they get home from Sunday school or as they go through it together as a homeschool family—and add insights from their own learning. Answers Bible Curriculum is fun and easy to use. I encourage you to use this curriculum to lay down a firm foundation for life!

To learn more about Answers Bible Curriculum, or to place an order, visit www.AnswersBibleCurriculum.com.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,

Ken

Dragons Everywhere!

Before I left for Australia, I was interviewed by a reporter with the well-trafficked website, the Christian Post—after Post editors had noticed that a major Associated Press story was circulating about new attractions at our Creation Museum, especially  the new “Dragon Legends” exhibition. The AP article was appearing on some major websites, from the ABC-TV site to the Washington Post’s, and the Christian Post wanted to go more in-depth about our museum’s view of dragons. The Christian Post piece about the “Dragon Legends” exhibit appeared earlier this week, and the reporter used many of the quotes I submitted. We were grateful for all the coverage.

I thought it would be instructive for my blog readers to read all of the answers I provided the Christian Post, so that they have a better idea of how dragon legends can be connected to the Bible—and even to dinosaurs. I also hope that by reading this blog, you will be encouraged to visit our new “Dragon Legends” exhibition inside the portico of the Creation Museum. And if you have already been to the Creation Museum, the new dragon exhibit is one more reason for you to visit—plus see the other new displays which I also mentioned to the Christian Post.

Here is a link to the Christian Post article: www.christianpost.com/news/dragons-invade-creation-museum-in-future-exhibit-102115, and here are the full answers to their questions that I submitted:

Our new “Dragon Legends” exhibition opened Memorial Day weekend this year. It’s one of three new attractions that we unveiled on the 6th anniversary of the Creation Museum. The others were: a world-class insect display we call “Dr. Crawley’s Insectorium”;  we added 20-plus Bibles and Bible-related artifacts to the “Verbum Domini” collection—which is changed out every 6 months—that have been loaned to us by the owners of the Hobby Lobby chain of stores, who are building the Museum of the Bible in Washington, DC.

Dragons are of three types:  sea-dwelling dragons, flying creatures, and land dragons.

There are hundreds of dragon legends from around the globe, including those of sea monsters, flying creatures (that we believe could be some of the flying reptiles of the past), and land dragons. With land dragons, biblical creationists believe they resemble certain dinosaurs. Just as there are many legends of huge floods that can be found around the world, there are so many dragon legends that they simply can’t be ignored.  We highlight several of the dragon legends in a large new dragon exhibit inside our Creation Museum. The exhibition, with its spectacular artwork and sculpted items, summarizes many of the world’s dragon legends.  There are just so many of them, like the dragon mentioned in Beowulf,  the numerous accounts of St. George and the Dragon, and so on, that they can’t be dismissed as pseudo-scientific.

More important than those legends to support the historicity of dragons is what we can learn from the Bible, which I call the “true history book of the universe.” The Bible’s book of Job describes a real creature of the sea that it calls Leviathan. It appears to have been a sea monster, and we believe it fits the description of a dragon in the sea. Job also mentions a large creature called behemoth, a land animal that fits the description of something like a sauropod dinosaur.  Job 40:15–24 describes behemoth as very large, and that it had a thick tail resembling a massive cedar tree. It’s possible that some of the dragon legends could be referring to such creatures that the Bible mentions.

In addition to the dragon legends display inside the museum’s entrance, our new book Dragons: Legends & Lore of Dinosaurs deals with many of these legends. The book suggests that certain land dragons could very well have been what today we call dinosaurs.

For Christians who may be swayed by evolutionary ideas and believe that dinosaurs perished 65 million years ago and thus supposedly never lived with humans, we assert that the Bible’s account of origins is true regarding the creation of the land animals, including dinosaurs, on the same day as humans.  We suggest dragon legends should be examined in this light.  Because we believe the flood legends have a basis in the real historical event of Noah’s Flood as recorded in the Bible, so too are the many dragon legends—they have a basis in real encounters that people had with these animals.  Some of these dragons could have been dinosaurs.

There is other strong circumstantial evidence we can study today for dinosaurs having lived during the past few thousand years. Our science staff points out that a T. rex bone found in Montana had soft tissue and blood vessels preserved inside. That kind of preservation is not consistent with these bones being millions of years old, but is consistent with only a few thousand years.  Such soft-tissue preservation has been found to be more prevalent in fossil bones than scientists realized. We have many scientists on our faculty with earned doctorates, and they find such evidence to be compelling and not pseudo-scientific.

The “Dragon Legends” exhibit is drawing huge media interest. The AP has a story that is now circulating about our new displays, and we just received a call from a news anchor at the Fox News Channel about the displays.

More info can be found at: www.CreationMuseum.org

– Ken Ham

To plan your visit to the Creation Museum (right now is a great time to visit, as the summer crowds are going to be behind us soon), and also to discover more about the fantastic zip-line course we opened this summer (and the world class Insectorium), go to www.creationmuseum.org.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,

Ken