We saved our visit to Ken Hamm’s Creation Museum in Petersburg, Kentucky, for the last big event. We did this on purpose because all the National Parks push evolution and old earth theories. Most places we visited estimated the earth to be 500 billion years old and I am sure for most people that theory is not a problem because it wasn’t a problem for me for a long time in my life.
I’ve read the National Geographic and I’ve watched Nova and Nature on PBS. I’ve been to the Museum of Natural History in Washington, DC and the Field Museum in Chicago, IL. I've been to countless zoos and aquariums, I’ve read about dinosaurs and the different eras in which they were supposed to have lived, heck I’ve seen Jurassic Park at least 500 times (if that counts for anything). Still, I’ve always believed in God and believed that He created the world and everything in it; yet I’ve not always believed that He actually created it in the literal six days of creation as the Bible teaches. Don’t get me wrong, evolution has never been a factor for me. That is a foolish theory. But, for years I simply believed God created the world probably over a period of a long time. The Bible does say, “But do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day.” 2 Peter 3:8. But, contextually that verse is talking about God’s patients. God is patient enough and loves humanity enough to wait long periods of time to allow all to come to salvation. People close to me have said, “What does it matter how long God took to create the world as long as you believe He did?” At first it didn’t make a difference to me, but now it does and it has been a long spiritual lesson God has taught me personally.
Several years ago my children starting asking me questions and it was important for me to give them definitive answers. If I believe something, I should be able to tell someone, especially my children, why I believe it. Having taught my kids that the Bible is true and not a bunch of mythical stories as some believe, and that God’s word can be trusted, I began questioning myself on what I truly believed about taking God’s Word literally or figuratively. For example, the story of Jonah and the Whale. Do I tell my kids that this is a true and literal story? Did God actually punished Jonah by allowing him to be swallowed by a large fish (the Bible never says whale, we just assume)? Or is this an allegory? Did God empower David to kill the giant Goliath with a sling shot and a stone or is that an embellished story? Was Mary a virgin when she gave birth to Christ or was that just the story she told? Did Jesus die on the cross and cover our sins with his blood and then rise from the grave and conquer death or is that a religious story to make us feel bad about ourselves? By questioning Creation, I was also questioning the entire Bible. God is more than capable of creating the world in six days and by questioning this, I was lessening who God is and what He can do. I was allowing my mind to be conformed by man’s “knowledge” rather than allowing it to be transformed by God’s Holy Word. So I made a decision. I begin reading again and again for myself the Genesis account of creation. I didn’t just skim over it, I studied it, I included all the little words…it, and, but, the, etc. I thought about it, I prayed about it, I wrote about it, I taught about it, I covered it from every angle and through the Holy Spirit that lives within me, my conclusion came to be that the word “day” in the Genesis means a literal twenty-four hour period. Moses was inspired by God to write the first five books of the Bible and Moses knew what a day was. He experienced sun-rise and sun-set. He was raised and educated in a palace and was probably taught to worship the sun and moon. Calendars and time might not have been kept as we keep them, but Moses knew what a “day” was and by writing “day” I believe he meant a literal “day”. I believe the Bible was inspired by God and written for generations of men to read, not just an early generation; therefore making it reliable from the beginning of mankind to the end of mankind. The Jews studied the Torah which are the books written by Moses and believed the words. Just because our generation is more “educated” doesn’t mean we should believe less.
Now, what does all of this have to do with the Creation Museum? Well, everything! How refreshing it was to go to a museum that taught exactly what MDH, I and our kids believe. Big C and Little I both said how nice it was that we didn’t have to read about evolution one more time. The Creation Museum did this in a way that revel other museums. This was not a cheap production with felt board displays, but rather a modern technological version of His Creation without shoving it down your throat. It simply lets the Bible speak for Itself. They have created a beautiful planetarium that takes you on a Biblical account of the Universe. They have a 4-D theatre that answers the age old questions, “Why am I here? What is my purpose? Does anyone really care about me? Did God really create the world and all we know?” They also have a theatre showing “The Last Adam” which tells the story of God’s redemptive plan since the fall from the Garden of Eden. This, of course, was God’s son Jesus who died for all mankind. You can’t see or hear that story without being changed. Their dioramas were equal too or better than anything you’ve seen at Disney World and their botanical gardens (although we didn’t get to see them much because of the rain) were beautiful. It even had really nice places to eat that weren’t overpriced. We left feeling that it had been well worth our time and money and it also reconfirmed everything that we have seen on our trip. It talked about the formation of the Grand Canyon and Yellowstone and how our earth can be viewed as only a few thousand years old rather than billions. So……Go! Take a youth group, or a school group, or your family and support this ministry outreach. If you want more information on Ken Hamm and this museum go to http://www.answersingenesis.com/ You’ll not regret it.
I’ve read the National Geographic and I’ve watched Nova and Nature on PBS. I’ve been to the Museum of Natural History in Washington, DC and the Field Museum in Chicago, IL. I've been to countless zoos and aquariums, I’ve read about dinosaurs and the different eras in which they were supposed to have lived, heck I’ve seen Jurassic Park at least 500 times (if that counts for anything). Still, I’ve always believed in God and believed that He created the world and everything in it; yet I’ve not always believed that He actually created it in the literal six days of creation as the Bible teaches. Don’t get me wrong, evolution has never been a factor for me. That is a foolish theory. But, for years I simply believed God created the world probably over a period of a long time. The Bible does say, “But do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day.” 2 Peter 3:8. But, contextually that verse is talking about God’s patients. God is patient enough and loves humanity enough to wait long periods of time to allow all to come to salvation. People close to me have said, “What does it matter how long God took to create the world as long as you believe He did?” At first it didn’t make a difference to me, but now it does and it has been a long spiritual lesson God has taught me personally.
Several years ago my children starting asking me questions and it was important for me to give them definitive answers. If I believe something, I should be able to tell someone, especially my children, why I believe it. Having taught my kids that the Bible is true and not a bunch of mythical stories as some believe, and that God’s word can be trusted, I began questioning myself on what I truly believed about taking God’s Word literally or figuratively. For example, the story of Jonah and the Whale. Do I tell my kids that this is a true and literal story? Did God actually punished Jonah by allowing him to be swallowed by a large fish (the Bible never says whale, we just assume)? Or is this an allegory? Did God empower David to kill the giant Goliath with a sling shot and a stone or is that an embellished story? Was Mary a virgin when she gave birth to Christ or was that just the story she told? Did Jesus die on the cross and cover our sins with his blood and then rise from the grave and conquer death or is that a religious story to make us feel bad about ourselves? By questioning Creation, I was also questioning the entire Bible. God is more than capable of creating the world in six days and by questioning this, I was lessening who God is and what He can do. I was allowing my mind to be conformed by man’s “knowledge” rather than allowing it to be transformed by God’s Holy Word. So I made a decision. I begin reading again and again for myself the Genesis account of creation. I didn’t just skim over it, I studied it, I included all the little words…it, and, but, the, etc. I thought about it, I prayed about it, I wrote about it, I taught about it, I covered it from every angle and through the Holy Spirit that lives within me, my conclusion came to be that the word “day” in the Genesis means a literal twenty-four hour period. Moses was inspired by God to write the first five books of the Bible and Moses knew what a day was. He experienced sun-rise and sun-set. He was raised and educated in a palace and was probably taught to worship the sun and moon. Calendars and time might not have been kept as we keep them, but Moses knew what a “day” was and by writing “day” I believe he meant a literal “day”. I believe the Bible was inspired by God and written for generations of men to read, not just an early generation; therefore making it reliable from the beginning of mankind to the end of mankind. The Jews studied the Torah which are the books written by Moses and believed the words. Just because our generation is more “educated” doesn’t mean we should believe less.
Now, what does all of this have to do with the Creation Museum? Well, everything! How refreshing it was to go to a museum that taught exactly what MDH, I and our kids believe. Big C and Little I both said how nice it was that we didn’t have to read about evolution one more time. The Creation Museum did this in a way that revel other museums. This was not a cheap production with felt board displays, but rather a modern technological version of His Creation without shoving it down your throat. It simply lets the Bible speak for Itself. They have created a beautiful planetarium that takes you on a Biblical account of the Universe. They have a 4-D theatre that answers the age old questions, “Why am I here? What is my purpose? Does anyone really care about me? Did God really create the world and all we know?” They also have a theatre showing “The Last Adam” which tells the story of God’s redemptive plan since the fall from the Garden of Eden. This, of course, was God’s son Jesus who died for all mankind. You can’t see or hear that story without being changed. Their dioramas were equal too or better than anything you’ve seen at Disney World and their botanical gardens (although we didn’t get to see them much because of the rain) were beautiful. It even had really nice places to eat that weren’t overpriced. We left feeling that it had been well worth our time and money and it also reconfirmed everything that we have seen on our trip. It talked about the formation of the Grand Canyon and Yellowstone and how our earth can be viewed as only a few thousand years old rather than billions. So……Go! Take a youth group, or a school group, or your family and support this ministry outreach. If you want more information on Ken Hamm and this museum go to http://www.answersingenesis.com/ You’ll not regret it.
No comments:
Post a Comment