One of the things that I remember growing up and going to school was the teaching of evolutionary theory.  We were taught that there were different races of people and some were just better than others.  Fortunately for me, the humanistic philosophy of evolution taught in schools never became racism.  I never really thought much about people being of other races, and I treated them all the same. When my parents were working, a Japanese couple on the Air Force base we lived on took care of me as if I was one of their own.  I’m told they loved me very much.
 
     In high school I was chosen to be my school’s representative at a weeklong cultural diversity camp called “Anytown Arizona”.  At the student union in college, I lunched every day with Asians, Blacks and people from the Middle East.  I ignored “racial divisions” as best I could.  Sometime after my college years I had a deal with a neighborhood friend from my elementary years that if neither of us were married by a certain age we would get married.  Her black skin didn’t hinder me from strongly caring for her.  But there was still a very ugly world out there whose history came directly out of the “scientific” notions of Charles Darwin. 

     According to the book, Darwin’s Plantation, “Biological arguments for racism may have been common before 1850 but they increased by orders of magnitude following the acceptance of evolutionary theory.”[1]  Darwin did more than anybody to give people an excuse for racism based upon physical differences through his books “On the Origin of Species and The Descent of Man.[2]  Because he “proved” that humans descended from apes it was natural for scientists to theorize that some races had descended further than others.[3]  In his opinion, some races (i.e. the white ones) had left the others far behind.  Particularly pygmy people, according to evolutionary thought, had hardly matured at all.[4]

      Of course, we know sin is the ultimate cause of racism. But Darwin’s theories gave people scientific “proof” that some people were just inferior to others.  Darwinian scientists have been trying to place some races closer to apes and others higher on the evolutionary scale since its inception.  The justifications are formed solely on outward appearance, even though modern genetics have clearly proven our slight differences are no deeper than our skin color.

     Humanistic ideas are most dangerous when put into practice.  The concepts of evolution were put into a social framework by Friedrich Nietzsche, who strongly believed in the “science” and the concept of a “master race.”[5] Sound familiar?  Well, it should.  Adolf Hitler was an ardent evolutionist, as were Stalin and Mao.  Sir Arthur Keith, one of the twentieth centuries premier evolutionary anthropologist’s, said, “The German Fuhrer…has consciously sought to make the practice of Germany conform to the theory of evolution.”[6]  I won’t go into great detail of Hitler’s genocide against the Jews, Gypsies and others who he saw as inferior.  He was just following Darwin’s so called “science” of evolution and putting it into practice for his own gain.  While Darwin saw darker skinned people as inferior, Hitler expanded the concept to other Europeans.  Evil knows no bounds and will use any intellectual concept of man to further its agenda of serving the “god of this world.”

     One of the great, but lesser known, atrocities of Darwin’s time was the genocide of the Aborigines who were “studied” with the desire of finding the “missing link” between apes and humans.[7]  As a side note, there has never been a verified “missing link” anywhere along the evolutionary tree.  Skeletal remains of perhaps ten-thousand Aborigines were sent to British museums as evolutionary “scientists” engaged in a feeding frenzy of study.  The Smithsonian Institute in America holds over fifteen-thousand remains.   Unfortunately, grave robbing did not satisfy these evolutionists.  Edward Ramsay, who was curator of the Australian Museum beginning in 1874, not only put out a pamphlet on grave robbing but also described how “…to plug bullet wounds from freshly killed ‘specimens’”. Ken Ham further describes in his book Darwin’s Plantation that at Ramsay’s request a scientist sent him the skulls of the last two members of the Bungee Blacks tribe that he had shot. [8]

     Unfortunately, there are many more horrible examples of evolutionary racism in action.  Ota Benga, a Pygmy from Africa, was put on display at the 1904 St. Louis World’s fair after his family was slaughtered. [9]   This despite evidence that pygmies were actually very intelligent and monotheistic.  Those facts, among others, didn’t suit the evolutionary dogma.  Racism continued strongly in practice with groups like the Ku Klux Klan and policies like “Separate but Equal.”  It continues now in the hearts and minds of individuals because no law can convince them that “… all men are created equal, that they are all endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights…”

     So, why didn’t I go down the path of racism since I was a person who really enjoyed science and was taught evolution? I would have to say it had a lot to do with my parents, who were Christians, Jesus who is my Savior, and His word.  God’s word contains no reference or support for racism.  What it says is exactly the opposite, “…there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all…”.  Romans 10:12

     Tragically, some people with racist philosophy have tried to use scripture to support their arguments.  Genesis 4:3-8 is misinterpreted to be the curse of Ham, which some have used to justify slavery, and we will address this in a separate blog.  Instead, the Bible talks about “nations, peoples and languages” in scriptures like Revelation 7:9 and Genesis 10:5 showing us that God created many different people groups.  Modern science shows there is little difference between any two people genetically, perhaps 0.1 percent.  Only a fraction of that percentage deals with racial differences.[10]  Of course, God created language divisions, Genesis 11:9, at the “Tower of Babel”.  But the intent wasn’t to discriminate but instead to get people to obey his command to “fill the earth” in Genesis 9:1.
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     The Bible’s intent is born out in the New Testament in the book of Acts which says, “And He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings”[11].  The language of the Bible is one of love, hope and promise for all people.  The only real division in the Bible is between those who know Him and those who don’t.  Let’s live as a people not divided, but united, through the one blood of Christ.

[1] Ham, Ken and Ware, Charles A.  Darwin’s Plantation.  Master Books.  2007, p. 91. 
[2] Ibid, pp. 90-91.
[3] Ibid, p. 91.
[4] Ibid, pp. 16-21.
[5] Morris, Dr. Henry M.  “Evolution and Modern Racism.”  www.icr.org/article/evolution-modern-racism.  Accessed January 21, 2019.
[6] Morris, Dr. Henry M.  “Evolution and Modern Racism.”  www.icr.org/article/evolution-modern-racism.  Accessed January 21, 2019.
[7] Ham, op. cit. p.  91.
[8] Ibid, pp. 24-25. 
[9] Ibid, pp. 16-21.
[10] Ham, Ken.  “There’s Only One Race.”  www.answersingenesis.org/media/audio/answers-with-ken-ham/volume-129/only-one-race.  Accessed January 21, 2019.
[11] The New King James Version. (1982). (Acts 17:26). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

     One of my favorite things to do while I eat lunch is to play Classic Words on my Kindle.  It’s a game that resembles Scrabble, and it allows me to test my vocabulary prowess.  Today while I was playing, I formed a three-letter word, yom.  This Hebrew word was accepted by the computer, and it told me the definition of the submission was “day.” 
     When my husband, Dave, was first studying Biblical Creation I would often pepper him with questions.  One of which was, “How are you sure the days in the timeline of the beginning of the world aren’t long?”  I wasn’t convinced that God’s six days of work, outlined in Genesis, didn’t happen over lengthy periods of time.
     The tiny word yom was a cornerstone in the case.   In most of its uses in the Old Testament it means a literal, twenty-four-hour day; and when it doesn’t the context makes it clear. [1] In Genesis 1:5-2:2, the word yom is used in conjunction with a number (day one, day two, etc.). [2] In all these instances where yom and a number are used (four hundred and ten times in the Old Testament), the word means an ordinary day, a literal twenty-four-hour period.  [3]
     Another place in the Old Testament where the word yom is used is in Exodus 20:9-10.  “Six  days  you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day in a sabbath of the LORD your God.”  God is speaking directly to Moses in this passage.  As Terry Mortenson says, “If God meant that the Jews were to work six days because He created over six long periods of time, He could have used one of three indefinite Hebrew time words.  He chose the only word that means a literal day.”[4]
     For most of Christian history the literal six-day creation account was not questioned.  Some even wondered why the days would have to have been twenty-four hours.  This seemed too long!  Christians in Martin Luther’s time thought that God could have created everything instantly.[5]  Luther’s response was to stand behind the authority of scripture and not support creative notions of what God “could have done” but instead validate what God did.  Luther said:
“When Moses writes that God created heaven and earth and whatever is in them in six days, then let this period continue to have been six days, and do not venture to devise any comment according to which six days were one day. But if you cannot understand how this could have been done in six days, then grant the Holy Spirit the honor of being more learned than you are. For you are to deal with Scripture in such a way that you bear in mind that God Himself says what is written. But since God is speaking, it is not fitting for you wantonly to turn His Word in the direction you wish to go.” [6]
     The change in mindset to long periods of time was driven by hostility to the Christian religion and by extra-biblical influences (influences outside of the Bible) in the nineteenth century.[7] 
     When I heard the explanation of that tiny Hebrew word, I was convicted that yom meant a literal twenty-four-hour day, and that it could be trusted to mean God created all that we see and know in six literal days. The Genealogies in Genesis 5 and 11 give detailed chronological information that also confirms an approximately 6,000-year-old universe.[8] 
​     If you believe God is all-powerful and able to do things that are incomprehensible to our human minds, speaking the world into existence in a short period of time is only another miracle on His list of many.
 ________________________________________________________________________
[1] Mortenson, Terry.  (2006).  Why Shouldn’t Christians Accept Millions of Years.   In Ham, K. (ed).  The New Answers Book 1.  [pg. 26].  Green Forest: Masterbooks.
[2] Mortenson, Terry.  (2006). Why Shouldn’t Christians Accept Millions of Years.  In Ham, K (ed).  The New Answers Book 1.  [pg. 26] Green Forest: Master Books. 
[3] “Does Genesis Chapter 1 Mean Literal 24-hour days?” GotQuestions.Org. 
[4] Mortenson, Terry.  (2006) Why Shouldn’t Christians Accept Millions of Years.  In Ham, K (ed).  The New Answers Book 1. [pg. 27].  Green Forest: Master Books.
[5] Johnson, James J.S. “Luther The Reformation and Taking Creation Seriously.” Icr.org.  Sept. 29th, 2017. ICR.org/article/luther-reformation-taking-creation
[6] “Luther on the days of creation.”  Creation.com.  https://creation.com/luther-on-creation-days.
[7] Ham, Ken.  (2006).  Could God Really Have Created Everything in Six Days...  In Ham, K. (ed).  The New Answers Book 1.  [90].  Green Forest: Master Books.
[8] Mortenson, Terry.  (2006).  Why Shouldn’t Christians Accept Millions of Years.  In Ham, K (ed).  The New Answers Book 1.  [pg. 26].  Green Forest: Master Books.

Who Wrote the Book of Genesis? 

When I was in 4-H many years ago, I did a genealogy project where I traced my ancestral history and made a family tree.  Although I could only go back about four generations, it was a good research activity.   More recently, my mother in law gave our family the gift of tracing our roots, and I found out through a DNA testing company that I was more Danish than I thought, and less German than I had assumed.  It’s fascinating to discover pieces of information about my personal pedigree, but even more intriguing is the wonderment of the lineage of humankind.
 
All people need to know where they came from.  It’s natural to wonder about our history.  How did we get here?  Who were our ancestors?  History taught in elementary school doesn’t go back far enough to cover these details.  However, the Bible gives us a narrative about how humans were formed, and how we dispersed over the planet.  When I open my New International Version Bible on the first page, before each book, the author is listed on the side.  My NIV Bible states Moses is the author, not only of Genesis, but also the next four books as well.  Together, these five books are also known as the Pentateuch or the books of the law.  Bible studies and reading plans will often refer to the collection by these names.   But, how do we know Moses wrote Genesis?
   
 First, the Old Testament attributes authorship to Moses.   We can read in the Old Testament fourteen times where Moses is directed by God to write down things being spoken to Him.  Let’s look at Exodus 17:14a, “Then the LORD said to Moses, “Write this on a scroll as something to be remembered and make sure Joshua hears it.”  Another scripture from Exodus states, “Moses then wrote down everything the Lord had said.” (Exodus 24:4a).  Other places Moses is given authorship are found in Exodus 34:27; Numbers 33:1-2; Deuteronomy 31:9-11; Joshua 1:8; 8:31-32; 1Kings 2:3; 2 Kings 14:6; 21:8; Ezra 6:18; Nehemiah 13:1; Daniel 9:11-13; and Malachi 4:4. [1]  How does this prove Moses wrote Genesis?  It can be inferred that Moses was given direct revelation from God on what to write throughout the first five books of the Bible.
   
 Second, the New Testament gives Moses credit.  We find fourteen references in the New Testament that refer to the Law of Moses, clearly stating that in the mind of the Jewish people the authorship was not in question, but rather presupposed as Moses.  When Jesus says in Mark 12:26, “Have you not read in the book of Moses, in the account of the bush, how God said to him, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’” He is not questioning whether or not Moses wrote the book, but rather using it as a reference.  If Moses was not the inspired journalist wouldn’t Jesus have corrected the matter?  Instead, He affirms it.  Other New Testament scripture references can be found in Matthew 8:4; Luke 16:29; Luke 24:27; Luke 24:44; John 5:46; John 7:22; Acts 3:22; Acts 15:1; Acts 28:23; Romans 10:5; Romans 10:19; 1 Corinthians 9:9; and 2 Corinthians 3:15. [2]
 
 Third, Moses had a royal, Egyptian upbringing.  The privileges afforded to him growing up under the Pharaoh would have included a royal education.  In Acts 7:22 it states that “Moses was educated in all the wisdom of the Egyptians and was powerful in speech and action.”   He was an eyewitness to the events that occurred in Exodus to Deuteronomy, which include references to Egyptian gods, people, places, cultural factors, and idioms. [3]  He was qualified to write these historical books.
 
 Fourth, he was a prophet.   He was regarded as an inspired teacher and proclaimer of the will of God. [4]  On the mountain of Sinai he was given the ten commandments to share with the Israelites (Exodus 20:2-17).  He foretold that Israel would become a wasteland (Deut. 29:23), and he proclaimed that the Jewish people would never be completely destroyed (Lev. 26:32-33). [5]  Because Moses was used by God to tell future events, could we also imagine that God used him to pen past events as well? 
 
When we study the history of human kind, God told Moses to write down that we were formed out of the dust of the earth.  A man and woman, not a young boy or girl, were created as the first humans, and given the names Adam and Eve.  God explained to Moses (perhaps directly and/or through written accounts) that Adam and Eve had children, and they had children.  Eventually God causes them to disperse over the globe taking with them their unique languages and DNA that would form specific people groups.  In closing, God spoke to Moses face to face as a man, as one speaks to a friend (Exodus 33:11).  God really had a deep, personal, intimate relationship with his child, Moses, and wanted to use him to tell His story.   Moses was called a friend of God.  He gave Moses the amazing replay of the history of the first humans, and we can trust his account. 

Who wrote Genesis?  Logic and sound biblical interpretation say that Moses wrote the Book of Genesis.
 
[1] Ken Ham and Bodie Hodge, How Do We Know the Bible is True: Volume 1 (Master Books, 2011), p.89
[2] Ken Ham and Bodie Hodge, How Do We Know the Bible is True: Volume 1 (Master Books, 2011), p.90-93
[3] Ken Ham and Bodie Hodge, How Do We Know the Bible is True: Volume 1 (Master Books, 2011), p.94
[4] Oxford Dictionary, prophet, Bing Translator
[5] Aboutbibleprophecy.com, Moses’ prophecies

The story goes like this… An atheist sues the government claiming that their faith has no holiday celebrating what they believe.  The judge says that is not the case because atheists have a holiday that is on the calendar every year.  Puzzled, the atheist’s lawyer asks for clarification.  The judge replies, April Fool’s day is the “Atheists national holiday”!  Why?  Psalms 32:1, “The fool says in his heart, there is no god.”  Easter, also on April 1st, 2018, rises above the lesser day of pranks like the best steak rises above cheap, garbage filled hot-dogs.

Easter burst on the world-scene magnifying God’s love and leading humanity back on a clear path to Him.  Whereas April Fool’s day is another historical trick whose actual origin is doubtful.  Like atheism itself, grounded in evolutionary faith, interesting stories abound around the day but not much foundational truth.

One story has “All Fools Day” going back to 1582 when the French changed from the Julian calendar to the Gregorian.  The New Year began sometime during the last week of March and people who failed to make the switch to January 1st earned the jeers and jokes of the well-informed.   Another story says that the day replaces, Hilaria, a Roman celebration for spring and the end of winter.  The celebration boasted both get-ups and gags.  Weather fans suggest that it has something to do with the capricious weather during that time of the year which often fools us with snow overnight and fifty-one degrees by the end of the day! 

Like the evolutionary thinking, none of this is verified, and comes from the creative mind of man.  Regardless, the contrast of choices in worldviews this year couldn’t be clearer while at the time being immensely symbolic and relevant for our lives today.  Celebrate the most documented, studied, verified and life-changing event in history and faith, the death and resurrection of Jesus or join the fools.  The great evangelist and creationist Henry Morris said, “Indeed a wise person will ‘hearken’ unto good counsel and thus someday ‘inherit glory’.”

Easter is the celebration of a prophecy fulfilled, i.e. trusted and verified.  Its foundation is Genesis which tells us the need for a Savior, and is the bedrock of the gospel message.  That’s why creation and the cross go hand in glove.  Unfortunately, many who call themselves Christians have one foot in both worldviews.  Many “Christians” have been taught secular worldviews that use humanistic religion taught as science.  They don’t realize that the same peddlers of millions of evolutionary years also say humanism is not compatible with the gospel!
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Easter is the day to stop being a fool and kneel at the foot of the cross.  I say kneel because we need to acknowledge Him as Lord and repent of our sins.  No matter who you are, what you’ve done or believed in the past, Jesus is there to meet you.  As the Bible says, “Seek the Lord while he may be found; call upon him while he is near”. (Isaiah 55:6)