Ray Comfort's Blog, page 43

The Thrill of the Bungee Jump

Comfort Food
Read the Bible in a year: Genesis 25-26, Psalm 31, Matthew 16

I watched a video clip of a bungee jumper recently, whose cord looped around his neck. He was more than likely already dead when his friends were calling for him to take the noose off his neck and to lift his knees. This came hard on the heels of a shallow-thinking woman who jumped off a bridge in South Africa. When the cord broke, the company lamented that they had had 150,000 jumps without incident. I would think one was about due. I hope more people watch the clips of cords snapping, and that more will check out the statistics of how many people die when jumping from high places (base-jumping and sky-diving). It may put some sense into them. If you're a Christian and you are tempted to jump, instead of catering to your thrill-seeking ego, think of someone else other than yourself. Think of those who love you and those for whom you are responsible. This injudicious world doesn't know any better. You should. Think of the more than 150,000 people who die every 24 hours, and if you want a thrill, get up on a soapbox and tell dying sinners how to find everlasting life. That will kill your ego.

Dessert
Copying Whale Fins
The humpback whale's flippers have inspired the development of WhalePower turbine blades, providing agility in the water. Their bumps, called tubercles, allow many applications in turbines, irrigation pumps, ventilation fans and hydroelectric turbines. Smooth surface fins are less effective than the humpback's bumpy fins. The bumps provide 32% less drag and an increase of 8% in their lift through air or water. Wind power can become 20% more efficient with such blades.

"Nothing teaches us about the preciousness of the Creator as much as when we learn the emptiness of everything else." ― Charles H. Spurgeon

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Wearing A Cross

Comfort Food
Read the Bible in a year: Genesis 25, Psalm 30, Matthew 15
A friend and I went open air preaching recently at a localcollege (we have special permission not only to preach, but to film for our TVprogram--from the school's Chief of Police). While my friend Tony waspreaching, someone politely introduced himself and asked, "Do you think Jesuswould have done this?" I said, "He did. Haven't you read the gospels?"He was quick to say, "No He didn't! He just drew people to Himself." Isaid, "Okay, Tony will be finished in a moment, so you can get up on thesoapbox and show us how you do it. We will sit at your feet and learn." Heresponded, "Oh, I don't do it that way. I just wear a cross." I asked, "Do you speakto people about the reality of Hell, and how they need a Savior?" He said thathe didn't, so I told him that I liked the way Tony did it, better than the waythat he didn't do it.  It was no surprise to find that he hadn't read hisBible for three weeks, and it was easy to understand why he believed as he did. If I was ignorant of the Holy Scripture and if I didn't care about peoplegoing to Hell, I would probably confine my evangelism to wearing a cross. Butinstead I must carry one.
DessertCopying Grass"During the 50s and 60s, the Ford Foundation was studyingways to improve the physical fitness of young people. At the same time, theChemstrand Company, a subsidiary of Monsanto Industries, were developing newsynthetic fibers for use as tough carpeting.  Chemstrand was encouraged totry to make the perfect urban sports surface for schools by the FordFoundation. From 1962 to 1966, Chemstrand worked on creating new sportssurfaces. The surfaces were tested for foot traction and cushioning, weatherdrainage, flammability and wear resistance.  In 1964, the CreativeProducts Group installed a synthetic turf called Chemgrass at the Moses BrownSchool in Providence Rhode Island. This was the first large-scale installationof a synthetic turf." (Source)
"Have you no wish for others to besaved? Then you're not saved yourself, be sure of that!" ― Charles H. Spurgeon

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The Buzz about Huz and Luz

ComfortFood
Readthe Bible in a year: Genesis 22-23, Psalms 26-29, Matthew 14
You may have heard thesong, "Father Abraham had Many Sons," but did you know that he also had manynephews?  Two of them were named "Huz" and "Buz" (see Genesis 22:21). Huz and Buz aren't mentioned anywhere else in Scripture, so it seems theydidn't do much that was noteworthy. Then again, they may have discovered theland of Uz (see Job 1:1) and named it after themselves.  Partly. They may have also named the land of Luz.  Luz was a small town inCanaan.  The name means to "turn aside," and is used in a negativesense.  It can either mean turning aside from wisdom (see Proverbs 3:21,4:21) or it can mean being a "twisted" person (see Proverbs 3:32,14:2), as was Jacob until God straightened him out.  I guess Jacob wasn'ttoo impressed with the name Luz, because after having his famous ladder dreamhe renamed it "Bethel" (Genesis 28:19).  But despite its unromantic name,Luz lived on. Many years later, after a battle, a collaborator from the enemywas given his freedom, and he founded a town which he called Luz (see Judges1:26).   DessertCopyingthe Retina"The retinal cells inour eyes recognize and interpret light, then send this information to othercells to which they are connected. All these visual processes have inspired anew model for computers…One research team, led by Carver Mead of the CaliforniaInstitute of Technology, is looking into the secrets that allow the retina tocarry out all these processes so easily….Despite all these efforts, however,it's proved to be impossible to imitate the retinal network's circuitry,because of the vast number of individual cells in the living retina and theconnections between them. Design engineers, therefore, are now trying tounderstand how the retina's neural network operates and are designing simplercircuits which, ideally, can perform similar functions." 
(Source)"God helps those who cannot help themselves." ―Charles H. Spurgeon



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Fiery Trials

Comfort Food
Read the Bible in a year: Genesis 20-21, Psalms 23-25, Matthew 13

God doesn't always come running when I have trials. He sometimes leaves me in them. Christians go through the same trials as the world does. We get wet when it rains and we bruise when we fall. We get common colds and even cancer, and we die, just like everyone else. Sometimes we go through "fiery" trials. The first eleven disciples were murdered. That's pretty fiery. They didn't get a deliverance miracle. So why would anyone in his right mind want to become a Christian? There one good reason: Everlasting life is the free gift that God offers to all who repent and trust in Jesus. Unsaved people can often find happiness in this world. Many become rich, popular and successful. They can even survive their own fiery trials. But they can't find deliverance from the power of the grave, outside of Jesus Christ. Only He has destroyed death and can give immortality to all who trust in Him, and it's for that reason I'm a Christian.

Dessert: Copying Lizard Feet.
"Gecko Tape is a material covered with nanoscopic (very small) hair, copying the design on the feet of gecko and lizards. This tape could allow someone to walk up walls and across ceilings, thanks to the millions of very small hairs that provide a very powerful adhesive effect. Some uses of Gecko Tape now include underwater and space station uses."[1]

"If sinners be damned, at least let them leap to Hell over our dead bodies. And if they perish, let them perish with our arms wrapped about their knees, imploring them to stay. If Hell must be filled, let it be filled in the teeth of our exertions, and let not one go unwarned and unprayed for." ― Charles H. Spurgeon

[1] http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn3785-gecko-tape-will-stick-you-to-ceiling.html 

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Ugly Dogs

Comfort Food
Read the Bible in a year: Genesis 19, Psalm 22, Matthew 12

If you've ever Googled "ugly dogs" and clicked on "Images" you've probably wondered how anyone could love these animals. But they are often loved by their owners because their love is blind. When my kids were born I thought each one was the most beautiful baby in the world. When I looked back at their baby pictures a year or so later, I realized how blind my love was. Such is the case with humanity. Each of us is pretty ugly, and yet God loves us. This is because His love isn't drawn out by what He sees, but by what He is: "God is Love."Hollywood marriages are usually based on what couples see. Mr. Handsome marries Miss Gorgeous because he sees that she is a beautiful rose. But when time causes her peddles to fall off, all he gets are thorns. His attitude reveals what a shallow and ugly dog he really is, and once again, much to no-one's surprise, there is another really ugly Hollywood divorce.

Dessert
Copying the Suckers on the Octopus.
"The working face of the suction cup has a curved surface. When the center of the suction cup is pressed against a flat, non-porous surface, the volume of the space between the suction cup and the flat surface is reduced, which causes the fluid between the cup and the surface to be expelled past the rim of the circular cup. When the user ceases to apply physical pressure to the center of the outside of the cup, the elastic substance of which the cup is made tends to resume its original, curved shape.…The modern suction cup was patented in 1882, and is based on the biological suckers on octopus arms."[1]

"It is not how much we have, but how much we enjoy, that makes happiness" ― Charles H. Spurgeon

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suction_cup
For Evangelism Resources, please visit LivingWaters.com.
For Evangelism Resources, please visit LivingWaters.com.

Be Perfect

Comfort Food
Read the Bible in a year: Genesis 17-18, Psalm 19-21, Matthew 11


In today's reading we see that God appeared to Abraham and told him to be "perfect." While many profess to be morally good, few are so deluded that they claim to be perfect. I know this to be true because I often ask people who think that they are good, if they are perfect in thought, word, and in deed. We all know that nobody's perfect. But that was God's requirement for Abraham (see Genesis 17:1). So what was Abraham's response? He fell on his face. That's a gesture of humility…body-language. He was throwing himself at the mercy of the Judge. Jesus said to be perfect (see Matthew 5:48). I don't think that it means to be "mature," as some say that it does, because He added, "As your Father in Heaven is perfect." God isn't morally mature. That would mean that He was once less than mature. I think that it rather means that we are to be morally perfect because we are going to be judged by the perfect Law of liberty (see James 2:12). We should take note of Abraham, and fall on our faces, and trust alone in the mercy of the Judge, and then warn everyone "that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus."


Dessert: Copying the Eye. Don't Even Think About it.
An artificial eye was originally called a "glass" eye, but science has come a long way since those days. Nowadays artificial eyes sure look good; however, they don't look good, at all. The replacement for the eye that God made may fill a cavity of the eye socket, but it's just cosmetic. You can't see through it. Years ago, if you lost an eye, before eyes were available, you would have had to simply wear a patch, but nowadays they can attach the new blind eye to muscles in the socket to provide eye movement. Today, most eyes that are man-made are made of plastic, and instead of lasting a life-time like the eyes that God supplies, its average life is about 10 years.


"Nobody ever outgrows Scripture; the book widens and deepens with our years." ― Charles H. Spurgeon



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This World's Philosophy

Comfort Food

Read the Bible in a year: Genesis 9-10, Psalm 11-13, Matthew 7

After watching a very sharp friend cross swords with two secular guests on his TV program, my convictions deepened that we must be careful of the amount of time we expend trying to change minds when it comes to moral issues. We may get this world to concede on one or two issues, but there are many others to which they will cling for dear life. They are entrenched in what the Bible calls the "vain philosophy" of this world. This is a deep and dark ditch leading to death, over the sides of which they cannot see until they are lifted up by the grace of God. Our agenda therefore should be to see hearts changed through the power of the gospel. That is the axe which kills the root and sparks new life through the new birth. It is then that a new worldview will follow like the carriages behind a train--there is a new heart and a renewed mind, because the sinner is now a new creature in Christ (see 2 Corinthians 5:17).

Dessert

Copycats Copy Cats

You have no doubt seen reflectors on roads at night. If you have ever driven in the country where at times there are no street lights, you will no doubt see that they are a life-saver. They show you where the road goes because they, like cats eyes, reflect light from your car's headlights….Percy Shaw, from Boothtown, Halifax, West Yorkshire, England, was the inventor of cat's eyes. He realized that, when the tram-lines were removed in a close neighborhood, he was actually using their shiny steel to navigate. He named his invention cat's eyes, because, he got the inspiration from the eye shine reflecting from the eyes of a cat…. (From, Theft! The Stealing of God's Design—Master books—publishing date April 2012)

"Wisdom is the right use of knowledge. To know is not to be wise. Many men know a great deal, and are all the greater fools for it. There is no fool so great a fool as a knowing fool. But to know how to use knowledge is to have wisdom." ― Charles H. SpurgeonFor Evangelism Resources, please visit LivingWaters.com.

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The moderator is away until Sunday, and he's been without Internet access. Our apologies to those of you who have been commenting.For Evangelism Resources, please visit LivingWaters.com.

The Insanity of Mussolini

Comfort Food

Read the Bible in a year: Genesis 9-10, Psalm 11-13, Matthew 7

I watched a documentary recently on Mussolini, the Italian dictator who allied with Hitler in the Second World War and brought upon his country and those around him, untold misery and death. At one point, to impress Hitler he had his own son-in-law shot to death by firing squad. This was despite the pleadings of his own daughter. The event was recorded on film, and I was heartbroken to see the young man being dragged before his killers. It was clear that his knees were weak with fear to a point where he was unable to walk. Thus death drags terrified human beings to its firing-squad each day. How this should break our hearts—-to think that anyone would face that moment without the Savior is a horror beyond words, but to think of what awaits them on the other side of death should stir us to push aside of our fears and tell them that "Jesus Christ has abolished death and brought life and immortality to light, through the gospel."

Dessert

Copying Thorns to Make Barbed Wire



"Barbed wire continues the ancient and widespread practice of planting thorny hedges to confine livestock. Good evidence points to an origin as a copy of plant thorns, of the thorns of one plant in particular. Osage orange was used in the American mid-west as such a hedge during the 19th century, and the first barbed wire was developed, manufactured, and sold there. Michael Kelly, who received the first patent, in 1868, called his enterprise the Thorn Wire Hedge Company – drawing attention to the familiar antecedent must have saved a lot of explaining – and his version looked very much like plant thorns." (From, Theft! The Stealing of God's Design—Master books—publishing date April 2012)

"If you can't see His way past the tears, trust His heart." ― Charles H. SpurgeonFor Evangelism Resources, please visit LivingWaters.com.

Spotting a Liar

Comfort Food

Read the Bible in a year: Genesis 11-12, Psalm 14-16, Matthew 8

Whenever someone makes me a promise, I think of Psalm 15. I suspect that the promise is a tell-tale that they person is probably a liar, and I'm usually right. Both Jesus and James tell us that we shouldn't back up our word with an oath. This is because it reveals that our word isn't enough. When a Christian says he will do something, it doesn't need anything else to back it up. Psalm 15 says that a godly person will keep his word whatever the cost. The entire Psalm describes the godly character. He lives in honesty, practices righteousness, and it all begins in the heart. He doesn't gossip about or despise anyone, but honors those that fear the Lord. Neither is he greedy of gain. Those who do such things will never be moved...not even by death. They are preserved by God because He has done a work in their heart, and living the Psalm 15 life is evidence of salvation.

Dessert:Copying the Grub to Make the Chainsaw "The chain of the chain saw was invented in 1943 by Joseph Cox, who was a machinist working as a logger. At the time, despite the invention of various motorized saws, long (up to five meters), human-powered, cross-cut saws still dominated commercial logging. Cox examined the way the mandibles – the side-to-side jaws – of the grub of a timber-mining beetle cut tunnels through fresh wood. He then devised cutters, as in Figure 8, based on those mandibles..." (From, Theft! The Stealing of God's Design—Master books—publishing date April 2012)

"By perseverance the snail reached the ark." ― Charles H. SpurgeonFor Evangelism Resources, please visit LivingWaters.com.