Notes compiled from my BSF group
GOD IS THE CREATOR OF ALL
Genesis 1
- God created the heavens and the earth.
- God allowed there to be light and defined day and night.
- God created the sky.
- God created land and water.
- God allowed the land to produce vegetation.
- God made the sun and the moon that govern the day and the night.
- God allowed the water to be filled with living creatures and allowed birds to fly in the sky.
- God allowed the land to have living creatures.
- God made mankind in His image, in His likeness. Mankind is to rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground (Genesis 1:26).
- God gave mankind every see-bearing plant in the world. That is to be our food. God gave mankind all the beasts of the earth and birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground. All these living things, God gave to us as food.
God spoke and it was. That is, everything we see and feel today, God spoke these things into existence, including us!
God made all the above, and it was very good (Genesis 1:31).
Zondervan NIV footnote:
* That it was good (Genesis 1:4, 1:10, 1:12, 1:18, 1:21, 1:25, 1:31).
* 1:4 Everything God created is good (see vv.10, 12, 18, 21, 25); in fact, the conclusion declares it to be "very good" (v. 31). The creation, as fashioned and ordered by God, had no lingering traces of disorder and no dark and threatening forces arrayed against God or people. Even darkness and the deep were given benevolent functions in a world fashioned to bless and sustain life (see Ps 104:19-26; 127:2).
Jeremiah 10:12
God created the heavens and the earth (Genesis 1:1). Acts 17:24–25 God created man (Genesis 1:27).
Romans 1:18–20
The earth was formless (Genesis 1:2), but God created all that we see (Genesis 1:31).
Romans 1:18–20
"The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse."
This is a very important phrase. Paul is telling us here that God has made it plain to us. Made what plain to us? Knowledge about God, knowledge about the Truth. God has made knowledge of Him and His invisible qualities—
His eternal power and divine nature—readily for us to know since the creation of the world.
This is why Paul said that we are without excuse. Christians or non-Christians, WE ARE ALL WITHOUT EXCUSE!
This means, when we stand in front of God on Judgment Day, we cannot excuse ourselves and say, “But, we didn’t know about you, God!” Because Paul has made it very clear here that God will say, “No, child, I have made knowledge of Me since the beginning of time. You knew about Me. You knew the Truth. But because you allowed your wickedness to rule your desires, you chose to suppress the Truth that I have made plain for everyone to see.”
Take warning. Seek the Truth, because God has made it plain for all to see. And if we choose to not see it, we have only ourselves to blame.
HOW DID ALL THIS REALLY BEGIN?
The BSF question asks, "How does this message compare with your belief about the earth's origin?"
My belief about anything is not important. What is the Truth—That is what’s important.
I can believe that I can fly, but the truth is, I cannot. So, what would happen if I jump off a skyscraper? I would die.
What’s my point? It does not matter what I believe if I do not have the truth. Blindly believing without having the truth leads us to death.
In regards to Earth’s origin, scientists have a lot of theories. Many believe the Big Bang Theory explains it all. They believe we are here today because we evolved from a pile of goo that through millions of years became monkeys and eventually us.
What these scientists don’t stress nearly as much is that these theories are just that: THEORIES. Theories are NOT facts. Theories are what scientists call "intelligent guesses." Yes, these "guesses" are based on experimental data and circumstantial evidence. But, at the end of the day, guesses are guesses. There is no definitive proof. They THINK this is what’s really happening, but they can’t prove it at all. I therefore find it funny that on the one hand, these scientists are so quick to disregard God--"There is no proof," they say! Yet, on the other hand, they are more than ready to embrace the lack of proof that we came from goo.
Scientists also don’t tell the public that these theories are flawed. There are problems with the theories in that do not match up. That is, even though these theories make sense, they do not make perfect sense. They do not explain everything. There are holes in their theories.
So, let me clearly state my stance. I am a PhD scientist by training. I am trained in the fields of cancer biology, immunology, and pharmacology. Given my experience in running scientific experiments, I find it critical to reach conclusions KNOWING the LIMITS of the models we use.
We NEVER have the full picture, because we use MODELS. For example, just because a drug works in a mouse does NOT mean that it will work in a human. We can at best deduce what MIGHT happen, but we have no guarantee that just because the drug cures the mouse, it will cure the human. This is why the first phase of a clinical trial is to establish safety. It is not to assess efficacy of the potential drug. It is to see if it would kill humans.
My point? Scientists start making grandiose conclusions when they make those conclusions WITHOUT telling people about the limits of their models. They allow the people to run wild with their imagination based on the info they selectively share.
If you are of the mindset, "You think God exists? Yeah? Well, prove it to me."
Well, that's not how I would begin the conversation, but I would turn the question around and ask, "And you think we all came from goo. Can you prove that?"
What am I trying to achieve? I'm trying to get us to THINK. On the surface, both answers appear to be no. But THINK about it. We have scientific proof to say with confidence that no one can prove that we all came from goo. Do we have scientific proof that we cannot prove that God exists?
If you are confused, you're in a good place. Don't just believe mass media. If you care about the Truth, then you have to search for it yourself. You cannot base your
understanding of the Truth based on what other people say.
Theories are intelligent guesses. Theories are NOT the Truth.
And so, we all have a choice. Believe whatever we want, or, seek the Truth.
Why do we so readily believe flawed scientific findings and yet do not believe things documented in the Bible, even though these events have been substantiated by history, shown to be fulfilled PERFECTLY?
Be logical. Think. Do not let our emotions blind us from the Truth.
WHAT IS TIME?
Genesis 1
Psalm 8
Psalm 90
Exodus 20:11
2 Peter 3:8
This is advanced teaching. Some scholars say each day could be 1000 years (Psalm 90:4; 2 Peter 3:8). Some scholars believe each day is 24 hours (Exodus 20:11).
The truth is, WE DO NOT KNOW. This is one of God’s mysteries that we have to ask Him when we see Him.
Scientists use carbon dating to date the Earth to be 4.54 billion years old. THIS IS A THEORY! Why? Because
scientists ASSUME that carbon dating is accurate out to billions of years. Well, it's not. Carbon dating is only accurate out to hundreds of years.
However, it's the best dating method we have. And so, Earth is 4.54 billions years old. This is what the community hears all the time. What they don't hear is the rest of that statement: based on the ASSUMPTION that carbon dating is accurate out to hundreds of years. If that assumption is WRONG, then Earth may not be 4.54 billions years old.
So, those people who believe Earth is 4.54 billion years old, I want to ask, “How do you really know?” You are using a flawed method to measure billions of years, and yet, you believe the results of this faulty method?
Again. THINK. Do not readily believe in theories. Understand the assumptions behind every scientific statement. There is ALWAYS an assumption.
Genesis 1:1
God created the heavens and the earth.
Zondervan NIV footnote:
* 1:1 the heavens and the earth. "All things" (Isa 44:24). That God created everything is also taught in Ecc 11:5; Jer 10:16; Jn 1:3; Col 1:16; Heb 1:2. The positive, life-oriented teaching of v. 1 is beautifully summarized in Isa 45:18.
CHRIST AND HIS CREATION
John 1:1–3
Through Christ all creation were created.
"Sons of God"
We are not sons of God. Sons of God refer to those who were created directly by God. For example, Adam was a Son of God. Satan was a Son of God. They were both made by God. We, however, are sons of MAN, because we were born of Adam and Eve. And because we were born of man who have fallen, who believed the lies Satan told them, we, too, are of fallen nature. We, too, are proud people, like Satan, who believe that we can be better than God, that we can live awesomely without God.
However, if we receive Jesus into our heart, we become sons of God through Jesus. We exchange our sin nature, our pride with the righteousness of Jesus.
Colossians 1:15–19
Christ is the Higgs boson, the invisible force the holds everything together.
Understand that “firstborn” does not mean God made Jesus. God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit are 3 persons in one. They have always been together since the beginning. However, Jesus is the “firstborn over all creation.” What does that mean? Jesus made EVERYTHING. Without Him, nothing was made. He rules over all things. He holds all things together. God’s fullness dwell in Jesus, and through Jesus, God reconciled the world to Him. Paul is saying here that through Jesus, all the wrong that has been caused by sin are all corrected through Jesus.
Colossians 2:3
In Christ, we receive wisdom and knowledge.
Colossians 2:9
Christ is the fullness of the Deity in human body.
Hebrews 1:3
Christ provided purification for our sins.
Jesus is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His being. Jesus is God. Jesus provided purification for the world. And when Jesus finished cleansing the world of Sin, He ruled over all with God the Father in Heaven.
Zondervan NIV footnote:
* John 1:1 In the beginning. A deliberate echo of Ge 1:1 to link God's action in behalf of the world through Jesus Christ (cf 3:16) with his first work, the creation of the world.
HOLY SPIRIT IS WIND, BREATH
Note: The Bible often uses “wind” or “breath” to describe the Holy Spirit.
Genesis 1:2
The Spirit of God (Holy Spirit) hovered over the waters.
Job 26:13
By His breath (Holy Spirit), the skies became fair.
Psalm 104:30
The Holy Spirit was sent to create all the creatures, to renew the ground.
Genesis 6:3
The Holy Spirit will not strive with humans forever, will not remain in man forever.
Ezekiel 36:26–27
This passage is addressing the Jews. Before Jesus, those who followed God did not always have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit like we do today. Hence, God was telling the Jews that because they were His people, He would send them His Spirit (Holy Spirit) to guide them to safety.
John 3:8
The Holy Spirit is everywhere.
John 7:38–39
This passage addresses the Jews again. Here, Jesus is talking about the day that the Holy Spirit will dwell in those who believe in Him. This is a concept that is new to the Jews, because this never happened before.
John 14:16–17
Jesus is teaching His disciples about the Holy Spirit, that one day, His disciples will receive the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Jesus is talking about His death. That with His death, He will be revealed to be God, and He will wash away all sin. And with His death, the Holy Spirit will be sent to His disciples, to guide them as Jesus returns to Heaven to rule with God.
John 16:7–8
The Holy Spirit will not come to dwell in every believer until Jesus returns to Heaven. God is always with us. Before Jesus, God communicated with His people through the tabernacle and sending the Holy Spirit. Then, Jesus came and dwelt physically with us. When Jesus defeated death and ascended into Heaven, He sent down the Holy Spirit to every believer, so that when we are with Jesus, Jesus is with us in Spirit!
Romans 8:9
When we belong to Christ, we are sealed by the Holy Spirit.
2 Corinthians 3:3
When we receive Christ, we receive also the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit then works inside us, helping us battle against our sin nature. If we continue to follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit, then we will become a testimony of Jesus, showing people how God’s people live in the Word of God.
2 Corinthians 3:6
Before Jesus, God’s people lived by the Law. However, the Law only condemns. It does not have the power to save. Jesus came and saved us. And when we place our faith in Jesus, we become alive with the Holy Spirit. We are not just children of the letter, a thing that is dead and has no power. We become children of God, who’s living Spirit dwells in us.
2 Corinthians 3:18
With the Holy Spirit inside of us, we begin to transform. We begin to live our lives by following Jesus. The key though, is that we continue to surrender ourselves to the Lord. If we claim we are Christians, and yet, we are unwilling to listen to the guidance of the Holy Spirit and still choose to live in sin, then we will not transform. God does not force us to accept Him. He will also not force us to heed His teaching! If we want it, then we ask for it. And if we ask for it, then we live by it. The choice is always ours to make!
Ephesians 1:13–14
When we receive Jesus, we are marked and sealed with the Holy Spirit.
Titus 3:5–6
Jesus saved us because of His mercy, because of His love. We did not deserve it. We could never do anything to deserve it. The Holy Spirit cleanses us and rebirths us, helping us die in our sin and be reborn in the righteous of God. When we receive Christ, our will is to become perfect, but our flesh fights us. Why? Because our flesh is still of the sin nature. The Holy Spirit therefore guides us through these personal battles, helping us conquer our sin nature. But again, the key is that we allow the Holy Spirit to do this work. One day, we will receive our new body, our eternal body, and our renewed soul will be with our eternal body. We will have peace and be fully restored, because we will be one with God, in both mind and body.
The Holy Spirit baptizes us, allowing the Spirit of God to pour into us, washing away our sin nature.
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