Ken Ham's Blog, page 457

More Sad Compromise in the Church

As a result of various blog and Facebook items I have written recently concerning compromise of God's Word (particularly in Genesis) in the church, a person in the Nazarene denomination was alarmed at the quotes I gave from two professors at Nazarene universities (Peter Falk and Karl Giberson—see previous blogs).

This person then wrote the following email to the head office of the Nazarene Church (by the way, the person who wrote gave us their blessing to make these emails public):

Being a member of the Church of the Nazarene I know of our beliefs of the six day creation as stated in the Book of Genesis. What I do not understand is why the church permits professors from their universities to teach against church doctrine as evolution is how man was created and the six day creation never occurred From what I have read, a Professor Darrell Falk of the Point Loma Nazarene University is also the President of a very liberal evolution and Bible undermining .organization, and is curious why does the church even permit this type of educator with his beliefs that are clearly contradictory to the church's?

The response from the church office was as follows:

Thank you for your email of concern sent recently to the Global Ministry Center, Church of the Nazarene. Please pardon the delay in responding to your inquiry. We concluded the 2011 International Board of Education and General Board meeting last week.

I trust that you have corresponded with the presidents of the Nazarene schools with your concern. If not, I encourage you to do so in the spirit of Matthew 18.

The Manual statement on Creation 903.9 states, "The Church of the Nazarene believes in the biblical account of creation ("In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth…"—Genesis 1:1). We oppose any godless interpretation of the origin of the universe and of humankind (Hebrews 11:3).

It is our strong belief that each faculty member embraces the Church of the Nazarene Articles of Faith, Core Values and Covenant of Christian Character and Conduct statements. When faculty members are found to be at variance with the affirmations of the denomination, appropriate action is taken following Board of Trustee approved institutional handbooks and bylaws documents.

During my 18 years as president of Mount Vernon Nazarene University, I had numerous conversations with our science faculty members who loved the Lord with all their heart, soul and mind, and were devout Christian leaders in their homes, local churches and at the university. Some embraced the "young life" theory of creation while others had deeply held beliefs that embraced the "older life" theory of creation. However, all of these faculty members embraced wholeheartedly the Manual statement and were faithful to teach within the parameters of the Manual.

Being concerned at this response, the enquirer asked more specific questions. (By the way, increasingly we have to get very specific with our questions if we really want to discern what a Christian college, denomination, etc. really believes concerning such matters).

Thank-you for the reply. Please forgive me for wanting an exact view of our church regarding what is stated in the manual regarding what is stated in the Book of Genesis. I would very much like to know does the statement in the manual mean the Nazarene Church stands on a belief in: 1. six literal twenty four hours of creation 2. A young (around 6000 years old) earth 3. That God did not use evolution, and a Christian cannot consistent hold to such positions as Theistic Evolution etc 4. That the Flood of Noah's Day was a global (not local) event The reason I am asking is that I have been getting conflicting stories on what the Nazarene Church stands on this issue, and I would really like to know.

Now the response (from the General Secretary's Office) begins to get more specific, and now we do start to get the real details of where the heads of the denomination see the stand of their church on Genesis:

Thank you for your additional questions. The Church of the Nazarene has a position that is both informed by Scripture and at the same time faithful to personal convictions prompted by the Holy Spirit. We do not, however, hold position statements based on the criteria you listed in your email. First, the term for "day" used in Genesis is of indeterminate length. There is no way beyond a personal conviction to support belief in a literal 24-day.

Second, there is also no way from Scripture alone to date the age of the earth apart from imposing interpretative theories upon the Scripture. Hence, we do not have a position statement in this regard.

Third, we agree that any theory regarding the origins of the earth or humankind that leaves out God is untenable. However, we do not know how God creates. To exclude any methodology goes beyond our MANUAL statements.

Finally, Christians are divided with regard to whether the flood described in the Old Testament was localized to the region where humans existed at that time, or if it was a global flood. The Church of the Nazarene leaves room for personal conviction.

It is important to understand that the Church of the Nazarene values personal conscience in matters of personal conviction. While some may be interested in establishing litmus tests, we have from the days of founder Phineas Bresee emphasized the statement: "In essentials, unity. In non-essentials, liberty. In all things, charity."

Sadly, this sort of compromise (or even much worse) is rife in church denominations, Christian colleges and seminaries, etc. across the nation (and around the world).

Our new book Already Compromised (which will be available May 1) is going to shock the Christian world concerning compromise in Christian colleges.

Yes, there is a culture war happening in our nation, but there is a much greater battle that needs to be fought—a battle to call the church back to an uncompromising position on the authority of the Word of God.

Homeschoolers! Don't Miss All the Special Museum Offers This Weekend—Plus Special Homeschool Deal for Creation Museum Entrance

See my Facebook post for more information on these special offers.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,

Ken

2,500 More Kids Hear the Truth of Genesis

Yesterday in Mansfield, Ohio, at Crossroads Community Church, we were thrilled to see overflow crowds for our two school assemblies as part of our Answers in Genesis conference. So many young people, parents, and teachers came up to thank me for bringing the special messages to them.

In the sessions for kindergarten through grade six, I taught on the seven "ages" of dinosaurs (based on the Seven Cs of History we present inside the Creation Museum). For the teens (junior and senior high), I taught them how to the defend the faith against secular attacks in the areas of geology, biology, anthropology, etc.

Here are some photographs so you can share in the excitement at these programs:

K–6 session (homeschoolers, Christian school students, students who were taken out of public school for the morning, parents, and teachers)

Lining up to purchase resources

We give each child a dinosaur collector card.

Resources are always so popular.

One of the overflow rooms

I continue to praise the Lord for the opportunities He gives us to help train the coming generations to stand boldly and uncompromisingly on God's Word.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,

Ken

Compromise and Christian Colleges

On May 1, as a sequel to our very popular Already Gone book,  our publisher, Master Books, will be releasing Already Compromised, of which I am a coauthor.

The book Already Gone was based on research conducted into why two thirds of young people are leaving the church. The research was carried out by America's Research Group (ARG), headed by renowned and respected researcher, Britt Beemer.

Then ARG was commissioned to conduct a study into what is actually being taught at Christian colleges regarding the Bible's infallibility, inspiration, inerrancy, how they viewed the book of Genesis, etc.

The results are sadly quite shocking.

Here is a copy of the front and back covers of the book:

I will have a lot more to say about the results of this research as we get closer to the release date.

You can preorder the book so you can receive it as soon as it is available.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,

Ken

Great First Night at Mansfield, Ohio

The AiG conference in Mansfield (central Ohio) continues through Monday evening (see the event page for details). Here are some photos from Saturday:

The auditorium

Children's resources are popular

Our volunteers

Pastor Tim and I

The church lobby (they call it "The Town Square") was crowded after the service

Speaking to people after the Saturday evening service

Resource tables

Please pray for the rest of the conference Sunday and Monday. Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,

Ken

Teaching Teachers

Yesterday, before leaving for Mansfield, Ohio, where I will be speaking Saturday through Sunday (see event calendar), I spoke to teachers at a Lutheran Educators' Conference at the Duke Energy Convention Center in Cincinnati.

It was thrilling to hear testimonies from teachers who are already using AiG resources in their classrooms.  I had two teachers tell me how the 7 C's of history as taught by AiG have really helped students understand how everything fits together regarding the Bible's history.  The 7 C's is the basis of the Creation Museum—a walk through the Bible from Genesis to Revelation, summed up as:

CREATION

CORRUPTION

CATASTROPHE

CONFUSION

CHRIST

CROSS

CONSUMMATION

This concept has become so popular, that AiG is writing an entire Bible curriculum based on this.  The curriculum (by faith) should be ready for release by the Fall of 2012.  One of the items produced for that curriculum is available right now—the 7 C's banners—a large and a smaller version.

You can obtain these banners (or very large "posters") from the AiG online bookstore:

The small one is at www.AnswersinGenesis.org/store/00-5-058

The large one is at www.AnswersinGenesis.org/store/00-5-057

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,

Ken

Hear the Talks I Won't Be Giving in Cincinnati and Philadelphia

Most of you may be aware of the controversy surrounding AiG being expelled from two homeschool conferences.  One convention was in Cincinnati, OH, and the other was in Philadelphia/King of Prussia, PA.

Rather than dwell on that sad episode, I wanted to share some positive news. I will be speaking at a number of major homeschool conventions this year.  For people in Georgia and Pennsylvania, you can hear the talks I will not be giving in Cincinnati and Philadelphia!

Two are coming up in May. Go to the AiG events calendar to see the rest of my schedule so far this year.

Georgia

Atlanta  Georgia Home Educators Convention

Georgia International Convention Center in Atlanta, Georgia

May 6–7

Pennsylvania

For all of you who wish to attend a homeschool conference in Pennsylvania, I will be speaking at the CHAP conference (along with other popular speakers like Doug Philips):

Christian Homeschool Association of Pennsylvania Conference

Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania

May 13–14

Check out the AiG events calendar for all our speaking engagements this year.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,

Ken

Listen to This

Listen to this two minute audio clip where I quoted Peter Enns and commented on his beliefs at the homeschool convention in Greenville, SC, last week—you can appraise for yourself this section of my talk:

Homeschool Convention Audio Clip—Ken Ham

A Stirring Devotional

Yesterday morning at our AiG staff chapel, we were privileged to have as a guest speaker, Pastor Johnny Hunt of Georgia (his wife Janet accompanied him along with two grandchildren and some friends). He was the recent president of the Southern Baptists.

Pastor Hunt is the senior pastor of First Baptist Church Woodstock, Georgia. He has served as the senior pastor there since 1986. Under his leadership, the church has grown from 250 in Sunday school in 1986 to over 6,500 currently.

In 1996, he was elected the president of the pastors' conference of the Southern Baptist Convention. In 2008, he was elected the president of the Southern Baptist Convention and is the last outgoing president.

He is a native of North Carolina, received his education from Gardner-Webb College, and the Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. He has also received honorary doctorates from Immanuel Baptist Theological Seminary, Covington Theological Seminary, and Tennessee Temple University.

His devotional message was very stirring, and staff certainly were thrilled to have had the opportunity of hearing this great man of God with such a zeal for gospel—live in our theatre at the Creation Museum.

I want to share his devotion with you. You can listen to it below (around 25 minutes):

Pastor Johnny Hunt Devotional

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,

Ken

Is AiG Unloving?

We need to write an article one day dealing with how a Christian can be loving in the context of pointing out error. Some people have accused me recently of being "un-christian" and even " unloving" because of what I wrote on my Facebook and blogs about a person who was to be a speaker with me at the same homeschool convention (and was to be appearing at soon—that's an interesting story as you will eventually see in the article linked to below).

If I saw a child playing with something harmful (e.g., poison), but thought it would be unloving to stop the child from doing this and warn them, I would not be doing what a concerned Christian should. Likewise, the Lord uses all sorts of ways to help us learn lessons and to mature in the Christian faith, including chastening.

There are many dangers within the church, including those created by Christian leaders who detrimentally affect our children and their faith in the Lord and His Word. It would be very unloving of me not to warn parents about this situation.

Well, some of you already know that because I warned parents to be very discerning about a recent homeschool conference, which resulted in me being eliminated as a speaker from two more of these conferences.

Below is a link to an article that appeared on my Facebook and the www.answersingenesis.org website.

Some verses of Scripture I wanted to bring to your attention before you read this (and I also encourage you to go to my public Facebook site and read the numerous postings and comments):

"If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you." (John 15:18)

"Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven." (Matthew 5:10)

To do righteousness and justice Is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice. (Proverbs 21:3)

"Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves." (Matthew 7:15)

"Woe to you when all men speak well of you," (Luke 6:26)

Go to our recently posted web article for more information.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,

Ken

Ark Park News Article

Many of the articles written about the Ark Encounter project have been what I call "agenda-driven articles."  It is so refreshing to read an article written as a news item that actually reports on the facts of a story instead of being written by an agenda-driven reporter who has an axe to grind against AiG.

An article appeared on March 18 at Cincinnati.com that began with the following:

There has been much skepticism about the projected attendance numbers for the Ark Encounter themed attraction in Grant County.

Planners say that not only are they confident that projections of 1.6 million visitors in the first year will prove accurate, those numbers have greatly influenced how large the attraction will be and where it will be located.

"That number was a game changer for us," Mike Zovath, Senior Vice President/Special Projects for Answers in Genesis, said. "It was probably half a million or more above what we expected."

Ark Encounter LLC, a for-profit entity and Answers in Genesis, the nonprofit ministry that built the Creation Museum in Petersburg, will partner to build the $175 million Ark Encounter

As the Creation Museum was nearing completion in 2007, Answers in Genesis officials were already thinking about the Ark project.

The article also states the following:

The group contracted America's Research Group (ARG) in 2008 to conduct a feasibility study, to ensure there was an audience for the Ark and that the available land could accommodate the necessary attractions.

The initial estimates for the Creation Museum were significantly lower than a feasibility study later projected and revisions had to be made to that facility after construction had begun. The ARG estimate of 400,000 visitors for the Creation Museum's first year was dead on.

Encouraged by that projection, but wanting to err on the side of caution, Zovath said Answers in Genesis officials looked at financial feasibility reports for the Ark attraction beginning with 1 million visitors and going up to 2.2 million guests.

I would encourage you to read the entire article.

We continue to move ahead with the Ark Encounter project. Find out more and discover how you can be a part of this exciting venture at www.arkencounter.com.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,

Ken