Ken Ham's Blog, page 419

See the Grand Canyon from a Creationist Perspective—Don't Miss This Unique Opportunity!

To follow up my blog post on Tuesday where I discussed two travel websites, I wanted to suggest to you an incredible travel destination: a raft trip through the Grand Canyon, a great testimony to the Flood of Noah's time. For information on how you can receive some excellent teaching on what the Bible says about Noah's Flood, and how the Grand Canyon is a wonderful monument to the accuracy of the biblical account—plus receive uplifting Bible teaching and devotionals from my brother Steve Ham—visit this web page and learn about this raft trip on August 30–September 2.

Since my brother Steve is taking his teenage son David on the trip as something of a "father-son outing," maybe there are some of you—as the school year is starting—who would consider taking your son on such a trip. I have been on one of these Grand Canyon raft journeys, and I'll tell you that it really helps me better understand the importance of using the Grand Canyon as a testimony to what the Bible teaches in Genesis chapters 6–9. The raft trip made my talks on the Flood more effective. Once you have actually been on one of these trips and seen the massive sedimentary layers, you will be perplexed as to how people can believe in millions of years for these layers to form! What a great witness this can be to you and your children and friends.

Here is the testimonial of a ministry friend in New York who traveled cross-country with his son to join us on one of these memorable Canyon adventures:

My son Kyle and I had the privilege of rafting through the Grand Canyon with Canyon Ministries and Answers In Genesis.  The Lord used this opportunity to bless us in several key ways:

- We saw (and often touched) so much evidence of the global Flood and its devastating effects.  This has broadened and deepened our appreciation and understanding of this crucial period of biblical history.

- Through Tom Vail we learned the Biblically rooted scientific explanations for the physical evidence found in the Grand Canyon.

- From Steve Ham we heard several devotionals that challenged us to stand firm on the authority of God's Word and the hope of the gospel.

- We enjoyed quality time together with both Tom and Steve (and Steve's wife Trish).  They all were very accessible and genuinely interested in getting to know us and in sharing themselves with us as well.

- We had great fellowship and fun with fellow believers from around the country.

I could go on and on describing the charter plane flight over the canyon, the helicopter ride to the Canyon floor, the white-water rafting, the beauty of the Grand Canyon, the excellent meals, the breathtaking night skies, etc.  But I'll end with my son Kyle's parting statement at the end of the trip:  "Dad, we have to come back again, but next time we take an even longer trip!"

– Rob S., Long Island, NY

Take a look at the Grand Canyon raft trips page for more information.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying.

Ken

Great Responsibility

At the Creation Museum and out in the field speaking in churches and conferences, our speakers often meet kids who say they look on AiG speakers as their heroes (or sometimes as their "film stars" if people have seen their AiG videos). Just this past weekend, a young lady told me how much she looks up to Dr. Georgia Purdom, and she did a paper on her for a school assignment. Well, I would rather these kids look up to Christians who stand authoritatively on God's Word than to pagan film stars or other famous secular people. But being such a role model for these young people does bring great responsibility. I often try to remind them that we all have feet of clay, and most of all, each of the speakers at AiG wants them to look up to God as their "hero" in that sense. If by our witness we can get these kids to look more to God and His Word, then that is thrilling for us.

Here is a real-life example to remind us of the great responsibility we have in the positions God has placed us in at AiG. A mother wrote the following to me:

Our family met you last year at the CHAP convention located in Harrisburg, PA in May 2011. My older boys, Christopher and Christian, were extremely excited to hear your talks and have the opportunity to meet you. They sat in the front row of your talks and were able to talk with you afterwards and have you sign their Bibles. They love having missionaries sign their Bibles when they visit our church.

I spoke with you while walking to your booth and explained how some children have sports heroes, others Hollywood heroes, etc. and that I was more than thankful that my children look to men such as yourself as being their "hero" or "role model."

My husband, Chris, and our oldest son, Christopher, were able to attend the Apologetics Mega Conference last year and loved every minute of it! Christopher came home with many other "heroes" added to his list after that conference. Christopher has also attended Worldview Academy for the past two years and has a list of "heroes" from their organization as well!

All this being said, I pray that it is encouraging to you to know that at the beginning of 2012, Christopher along with our Teen Pastor, have started an apologetics group at our church. They meet every other Sunday evening and have been working through the Answers Book for Teens. The teens have been very responsive to the book and participate well in the conversations.

We will be bringing a group of teens and other families from our church to the Creation Museum! Christopher is so excited that people are, "Asking intelligent questions and getting intelligent answers that most members of the Church at large will never hear."

We know that you get a lot of criticism from the media and even other Christian leaders, so we wanted to send you an encouraging story for a change. Our family is so thankful that God has called you and your colleagues to do such amazing work for Him with the AIG ministry!

What an encouragement to learn of how these young men were impacted. And how thrilling it is to see how they are using AiG resources to reach others their age.

Well, the Christopher mentioned above sent me an email as a follow up to the above letter from his mother.

Our trip to the museum was the perfect way to end the first semester of our church's apologetics group. Up until this point, we had been going through The Answers Book for Teens every other Sunday night at our church. Not all of the group could come, for various reasons, but a large amount of the group did come. I believe everyone who came learned quite a few new defenses from what was written on the signs throughout the museum. After we got back from the museum, we had a discussion about what we had learned, and almost everyone contributed to the discussion.

In fact, as I was having a conversation with two of the members later, one of them told me that for the week leading up to the trip, he had been having doubts about the Bible and some of the other apologetics topics, and when he went to the museum, all his doubts and questions were quelled. He repeatedly told me how happy he was about that and what a blessing the museum was to him, saying he wanted to go out and give answers to others as well. He also bought The Answers Book 1, and is extremely enjoying it.

So in conclusion, our teen apologetics group was extremely blessed by the Creation Museum, and will probably return next year. We will also be continuing the group through the summer and however long God wills after that. I truly believe that at least more than one third (Already Gone) of the teens in our apologetics group will stay in church and impact the culture, and that is the goal we pursue.

– Christopher

Wow! Look what can be done to reach so many lives just from one young man being impacted by AiG and the Creation Museum. This is what keeps me going—knowing how the Lord is touching the hearts of people through the AiG and Creation Museum ministry.

Thanks, Christopher. You have greatly encouraged all of us here at AiG.

Here is a photo of Christopher and Christian with me.

And if you want to impact others with the message of the Creation Museum, get them to view this fantastic short video, and encourage them to visit the Creation Museum and bring their family and friends.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,

Ken

Aussie "Ambassadors"

A father and son who attend the Australian church of Pastor Josh Williamson (who toured our Creation Museum a few years ago) paid us a visit last week. Here is a photo of Peter and Andrew Hatte with Mark Looy and me in my office.

The son, Andrew, is in medical school, and the father works for the Salvation Army. They live near Australia's capital of Canberra.

Here is another photo—taken of the Hattes with Mark Looy—in front of the museum's "green screen."

They wrote Mark afterwards—just as they were heading for New York City and a helicopter tour of Manhattan:

Hey Mark……just want to thank you guys again for making us feel so welcome and taking time out to let us know more about the great ministry you're involved in at the museum…. We are keen to let others know about your work there……we appreciate the work you are doing in a very undisciplined culture…… We do know that God will continue to richly bless your work there.

Just thinking last night how good it would be to arrange some Christian tours from Australia…..!!!

Please pass on our thanks to Ken also!

Bless you mate……

I enjoy meeting people from my homeland. I made sure we gave the Hattes copies of our Answers magazine and other materials so they can be ambassadors for AiG in Australia. We've seen a number of Aussie visitors at the Creation Museum over the years, and we look forward to seeing many more.

British Visitor Makes Trek to the Museum

For many years, I have read books produced by the Banner of Truth publishers out of the UK. I particularly have enjoyed reading the fine theological works of the late Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, pastor of Westminster Chapel in London. The first managing director of Banner of Truth, dating back to the 1950s, was a guest at the Creation Museum last week—Pastor Errol Hulse. While attending London Bible College in the 1950s, Pastor Hulse attended Westminster Chapel and was taught by Dr. Lloyd-Jones.

Pastor Hulse was about to leave the museum when I heard—as I was arriving at the Cincinnati Airport—that he was in the building, so I quickly headed to AiG and was glad to spend a few minutes with him before he made his way to Dayton/Beavercreek, Ohio, to speak at King's Chapel (a local supportive church of the museum). Here is a picture taken of  me with Pastor Hulse and Pastor Brad Garrison of King's Chapel.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,

Ken

Australia-Founded Travel Organization and Our Cincinnati Area

Because my homeland is Australia, I was intrigued by a connection between a large travel group—with dozens of travel guidebooks and a major website—and Cincinnati, as the Creation Museum is located in the Greater Cincinnati area.

First, though, you may recall from a blog post I wrote last month that AiG supporters—using social media—made the Creation Museum the number one travel attraction in America that "every kid should see," according to an online poll at BudgetTravel.com.

Even though it was not a scientific survey, this was remarkable considering that we did not organize any kind of a blitz to get out the vote. We reported on the poll (only after atheists had mounted a campaign to crash it), and our supporters did the rest!

Now that the website has received the nominations and the tallies, editors will be determining the finalists for "The 15 places kids should see before 15."

We will keep you posted so that you can see if our museum (voted #1) made the top 15 according to the magazine's website. Interestingly, when going to the article at this link, scroll down to the Creation Museum and then click on the word "comments"—as you do so, notice how many comments the Creation Museum received versus the other top 5 nominees. There was a total of 2,932 comments made for all the attractions, and see what astounding percentage the museum had at this link.

Note: After I had written this blog post and as it was being prepped for publishing, we learned that the museum was not in the final list of the top 15 attractions for the "definitive family vacation." So I guess our museum, even with the highest number of votes, apparently did not meet the magazine's "fun and educational" standard and also lacked "thematic diversity" to make the top 15. And it does not, apparently, "represent the best that our nation has to offer our children" (the words in quotes come from the standards that the selection committee was to use). However, a few evolutionary museums did make the list.

Now, back to Australia. We have noted that the website (especially designed for younger travelers—with a bit of an edge and doses of secular humanist views) of the popular Lonely Planet travel books (based in Australia) has picked our Cincinnati area as one of the "top 10 U.S. travel destinations for 2012." Lonely Planet describes Cincinnati as the "pretty city on the Ohio River" and a city that has "transformed itself in the last decade into a worthy weekend getaway." See this web page.

As you read this short listing of U.S. travel destinations, you will see why, 18 years ago, we chose this area for the new AiG ministry—and eventually a Creation Museum. This region has not only turned out to be a good place for us to raise our families and build a ministry, but were you aware that almost two thirds of the U.S. population can drive to our Creation Museum in one day (up to 650 miles)? Within 350 miles of us are cities like Chicago, St. Louis, Cleveland, Louisville, Detroit, and Pittsburgh. Within 650 miles of us are cities like New York City, Washington DC, Philadelphia, Atlanta, Memphis, Kansas City, etc.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,

Ken

Huge Impact on Children

To give you a real feel of the kinds of testimonies I hear out in the field, I asked a mother if I could videotape what she told me. I receive many testimonies like this, for which we praise the Lord.

I would encourage you to watch this short video clip below:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Here are some photographs taken yesterday at Shades Mountain Baptist Church, Vestavia Hills, Alabama (near Birmingham):

Senior Pastor (Danny With) and me

Dr. Gary Parker teaching the college age students

Main auditorium during the morning service where I spoke

Great enthusiasm for the resources

Missing Chapel

I wanted to draw your attention to two Christian leaders our ministry has gotten to know. First, there is Pastor Larry Lilly, who leads Berean Baptist Church in Terre Haute, Indiana and who is the author of Outrageous Forgiveness in 30 Days. I was not here in the office last week when he gave a chapel presentation to our staff on the topic of biblical forgiveness, but I got some excellent feedback. A couple of our staff members are already going through his book on what the Bible teaches about forgiveness. Pastor Lilly's website is larrylilly.com.

Also last week, we had a special chapel session with my friend Tim Laughlin who spoke. Tim and his wife Kathy are U.S. missionaries to the Republic of Ireland (sent by ABWE). I happened to be flying back from Wyoming when Tim spoke to the staff and missed seeing him, but I wanted to share his website with you so that you can pray for—and perhaps financially support—this man who left a successful business career to preach the gospel across the ocean. See www.livingontheline.org.

Here is a photo of Tim at last Thursday's chapel:

Sadly, one of the drawbacks of being on the road so much (in addition to it being very tiring) is missing friends of AiG who drop by to minister to us. We hope our museum and staff ministered to them.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,

Ken

You Can Tell It Is Spring

Lots of visitors coming to the Creation Museum (over 1,500 yesterday):

The spectacular Creation Museum gardens are bursting into bloom:

Expansion

As part of our expansion at the Creation Museum, construction of a coffee shop outside Noah's Café is underway. It's called Noah's Coffee, and it should be open in two weeks:

In Alabama

Dr. Gary Parker and I are in Alabama for a creation conference at Shades Mountain Baptist Church, near Birmingham. For more information, see the event page.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,

Ken

A Most Unique Bible College

This past week my wife and I traveled to Jackson Hole, Wyoming, where I spoke to the students at a small but a most unique Bible college. Jackson Hole Bible College uses the facilities of Rocky Mountain Lodge Christian Camp. It gives students opportunities that I don't believe are available anywhere else.

The Bible college was founded by Pastor Don Landis (he is also the founding chairman of the AiG Board of Directors). Students not only study the Bible in a one-year program, but they are also taught general Bible apologetics and creation apologetics, as well practical creation apologetics as students do field trips to such places as nearby Yellowstone, plus Mount St. Helens, Grand Canyon, Fossil Butte, and many other unique places. Also, because the Bible college currently limits the number of students to 35, they have the wonderful opportunity of interacting personally with many of the visiting professors and specialist teachers. Many of the leading creation speakers and researchers in the country contribute to teaching programs at the college.

Because of the location of this unique college, those of us who participate in the teaching program also have the opportunity to visit Yellowstone National Park and many other areas—for research and recreation.

For the series of lectures I prepared for the students, the public was also invited, and we were thrilled at the number of people who joined with the students for this time.

Here is a photograph of the founder of the Bible college , Pastor Don Landis, with his wife Bev.

This is a photograph of most of the students at Jackson Hole Bible College this year at one of my sessions.

This is the side of the bus the students travel in for their creation field trips.

The Bible College (at a Christian camp facility) is near the foot of the Teton Mountains—a beautiful location.

You can also view this short video, in which Don Landis gives an overview of the facility.

Click here to view the embedded video.

You can find out more about Jackson Hole Bible College at www.jhbc.edu.

Mally and I love to go to Jackson Hole—it is our favorite place to visit in the USA. For those of you who have been to Jackson, you may remember these Elk antlers in the town square.

Here are some more photographs taken during our recent visit to Wyoming.

We praise the Lord for pastors like Don Landis who stand on the authority of the Word of God beginning with Genesis.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,

Ken

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Click here to view the embedded video.

Dig Dinosaurs with Buddy

You can experience a unique adventure for the family—digging dinosaurs with Buddy Davis! Those who have been on previous digs give rave reviews of this wonderful opportunity.

The Creation Museum partners with the Foundation Advancing Creation Truth and director Otis Kline to offer exciting Dinosaur Digs with Buddy Davis. This adventure takes place in eastern Montana. There are still places available for these upcoming trips.

August 13–17 (register)
September 10–14 (register)

The program begins on Monday afternoon and continues through Friday evening.

Attendees might want to spend the weekend before and/or after in some of the amazing places that are located within a day's drive of Glendive, Montana, such as Yellowstone National Park, Black Hills of S. Dakota, and Glacier National Park, to name a few.

Participants spend the majority of each day out in the field, arriving back at the hotel in time to wash the dirt off and put on clean clothes—and maybe even take a quick nap—before dinner and the evening program. During the 2010 digs, the team found dinosaur bones and teeth, turtle bones and shells, figs, petrified wood, and more. Everyone found something, including some souvenir fossils they were able to take home! There were also other adventures such as touring a new museum with many dinosaur skeletons (exhibited from a creationist perspective), visiting Makoshika State Park and "prospecting" for a new potential dig site on a huge ranch.

Buddy Davis, dinosaur sculptor for the museum, musician, and popular AiG speaker, assists with the digs and provides exciting programs in the evenings for everyone on the dig team. Buddy has been on many dinosaur excavations, including one on the North Slope of Alaska.

You can find out more information on our website.

D Is for Dinosaur Gets a Facelift

The popular children's book D Is for Dinosaur has been given a facelift since being first published around 15 years ago. Here is the illustration for the new cover.

A Is for Adam similarly received a facelift recently.

You can find out more about this very popular children's book on our online store.

I have heard more testimonies from children committing their lives to the Lord after reading A Is for Adam than from any other children's book that has had my involvement.

Keep watch for the new D Is for Dinosaur expected soon.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,

Ken

What's the Least You Can Believe?

Recently, a book titled What's the Least I can Believe and Still Be a Christian? was brought to my attention. After reading it, I wondered if I should write a book titled, What's the Most I can Believe and still not be a Christian?!

We are seeing a plethora of books and other resources permeating the church these days that advocate compromising God's Word in Genesis, on hell, "gay marriage," abortion, and salvation. I thought it would be important to bring this particular new book to your attention. I asked AiG researcher Steve Golden to write a report for me, which I have reprinted below.

I believe it's important to make the church as a whole aware of materials being written by professing Christians that compromise the authority of the Word of God. This latest publication seeks to help Christians reconcile Scripture in their own with Scripture controversial issues such as the idea of evolution, homosexual behavior, and salvation in other religions. The very title says a lot about the book's message! Written by a pastor, this book is another example of how even the church is at fault for the attack on the authority of God's Word.

Martin Thielen, the senior pastor of Brentwood United Methodist Church in Brentwood, Tennessee, has written a new book titled What's the Least I Can Believe and Still Be a Christian? Pastor Thielen says in the preface that he will list 10 things Christians do not need to believe (what he calls "closed-minded faith") and then 10 things Christians do need to believe, which he summarizes, "They need to believe in Jesus—his life, teachings, example, death, and resurrection." Pastor Thielen encourages churches to use his book for small group Bible studies, and indeed there are some churches doing just that. He's even made the study leader's guide available online.

Pastor Thielen hits on creationism early in his book, writing that while he respects creationists, creationism "has scientific problems. It denies virtually every branch of science" (p. 16). He continues, "Not only does this literalist approach have scientific problems; it also has biblical problems. Contrary to what this view teaches, the Bible is not a science book" (p. 16). Pastor Thielen's bottom line? "Theistic evolution is a perfectly acceptable Christian belief" (p. 18). He even states his own position: "Yes, I believe in creationism. And yes, I believe in evolution. I believe God created the world, but I believe God created through evolution" (p. 17).

While we at Answers in Genesis acknowledge that one's view on the origin of man is not a salvation issue, we do say that it is an authority issue. Believing in theistic evolution as a Christian means you reject the authority of God's Word, because the creation account in Genesis teaches a literal six-day creation (Genesis 1). Even the idea of "theistic evolution" is problematic, because evolutionary ideas were created to explain a world without God. If we approach Scripture  from the standpoint that it teaches absolute truth, then every branch of science must be interpreted in light of biblical teaching—not the other way around.

In dealing with homosexual behavior, Pastor Thielen takes a rather soft stance, writing the following:

The third major position concerning homosexuality, often found in the Christian center, can be summarized as welcoming but nonaffirming. This position is fully welcoming: all persons, including gays, are absolutely welcome into the church of Jesus Christ. However, this position is nonaffirming: it is not yet ready to affirm homosexual behavior. (p. 56)

Pastor Thielen goes on to say that his denomination, the United Methodist Church, takes this third position (p. 56). What's the problem here? The Bible is not ambiguous on the issue of homosexual behavior. It isn't that Christians are "not yet ready" to affirm homosexual behavior. Christians cannot affirm it if they are honoring the Bible as the final authority. Scripture is clear that homosexual behavior is sin. The following passages will help you understand this issue better: Genesis 2:18–25; Leviticus 18:22; Mark 10:6; Romans 1:26–27; 1 Corinthians 6:9–10; and 1 Timothy 1:9–10. I would also urge you to read Tim Chaffey's article about how the Bible deals with homosexual behavior.

If there is any doubt about Pastor Thielen's ambiguous position on homosexuality and his refusal to stand on biblical authority, the conclusion to the chapter cements it. "We're still talking about it and debating it. We're still studying it and praying about it. So maybe one day our position will change. But for now this is where most of us stand" (p. 58).

Pastor Thielen also broaches the issue of whether Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, and people of other religions have salvation, or if salvation is found in Christ alone (Acts 4:12). He writes the following of the Scriptures that claim salvation in Christ alone:

At first glance it seems clear cut: if people don't go through Jesus, they don't get to God. However, from the beginning of Christianity, followers of Christ have debated how to interpret passages like this, which seem so exclusive of non-Christian religions. Some Christians interpret these passages as absolute, literal, doctrinal truth. Others interpret these passages not as absolute dogma but as poetic and devotional in nature. (p. 39)

Pastor Thielen follows up this debate, writing, "Many conservative believers hold strongly to the view that all non-Christian religions are false, and people who practice them have no hope of salvation. Thankfully, a third option exists. … People who hold this believe people of other faiths are following God to the best of their knowledge" (p. 41). This third option is Pastor Thielen's position on salvation, and he summarizes it by writing that in the case of a non-Christian's eternal destiny, "God can be trusted to do what's right" (p. 43).

Creationism may not be a salvation issue, but faith in the Lord Jesus Christ absolutely is. Pastor Thielen challenges the very basis of the gospel message in his implication that those passages that teach salvation through Christ are merely "poetic." Our statement of faith at Answers in Genesis is unashamedly clear on the issue of salvation.

Salvation is a gift received by faith alone in Christ alone and expressed in the individual's repentance, recognition of the death of Christ as full payment for sin, and acceptance of the risen Christ as Savior, Lord, and God.

The Bible affirms that Christ is the only way to the Father (John 14:6). The Bible also affirms that those who believe in the Son have everlasting life, but those who do not believe in the Son shall not see life, and God's wrath abides on them (John 3:36). The Bible does not allow for a compromised third position here. Either Jesus is the only way, or He isn't. If people could be saved through other religions, then there would have been no reason for Jesus to die for our sins on the Cross.

Pastor Thielen's new book provides an excellent example of some of the various compromises people make when they allow man's ever-changing opinions to be the authority over God's Word.

The words of Jude echoed in my head after reading this report. "Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints." (Jude 1:3).

We need Christian men and women today who are prepared to be bold and unashamed of God's Word and the gospel, and be prepared to contend for the faith in this increasingly secularized culture and church!

Popular Radio Program Friday Morning

Once again I will be on the well-known "Rick and Bubba" radio show—Friday morning at 10:20am ET, 9:20am CT for about 20–25 minutes. These two fun guys (at least one of them has toured our Creation Museum) have a weekly audience of 1.2 million listeners and are heard on 70 stations (plus XM 166). Go to www.rickandbubba.com and notice the "Listen Live" tab at the top right.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,

Ken