INTRODUCTION
1. Please open your bible to Isaiah 40:12.
2. Katherine Noble, a staff writer for the Daily Texan Austin, Texas Paper wrote Tuesday, March 9, 2010
UTSA atheist group receives widespread attention for its ‘smut’ exchange.
The fourth annual “Smut for Smut” event, hosted by the Atheist Agenda March 1-3, offered free pornography magazines like Playboy and Penthouse
to students ages 18 and older in exchange for their Bibles, Qurans, Torahs and other religious literature. [I was mistaken in my reading of their report last week, I was under the impression that the pornography was of a milder form than Playboy and Penthouse.]
The event drew international feedback, including press from Australia, New Zealand and Spain, according to the organization’s Twitter account.
Most media reported on the resulting UTSA student protests. San Antonio College’s newspaper, The Ranger, reported that Atheist Agenda President Carlos Morales had to change his phone number at the end of the week to avoid the influx of hate calls.
“The campus response was astounding,” said “Joe,” an Atheist Agenda officer, in an e-mail sent from the organization’s address.
“Obviously, it had a lot of negative response from the religious side,” he said, “but we had some religious people sitting with us because they believed in our freedom to do what we were doing, which was pretty awesome.”
This year, “Smut for Smut” received about 23 copies of religious texts. Because not everyone wanted a magazine, they handed out a few less in return.
3. Are you ashamed of the 23 who turned in the 23 copies of religious texts? Wouldn’t it be much more encouraging if no one would have put the bible and bible related material on the level of “pornographic smut”?
4. In this lesson we will discuss two scientific truths that prove that the bible is from God and that also prove that the bible is more important and superior to all other books.
DISCUSSION
I. FIRST, TURN TO ISAIAH 40:12. ISAIAH 40:12 TEACHES THE SCIENTIFIC TRUTH THAT TO COMBINE CHEMICAL SUBSTANCE TOGETHER, SUBSTANCES MUST BE MEASURED IN EXACT PROPORTION.
1. Let’s read Isaiah 40:12, “Who has measured the waters in the hollow of His hand,
Measured heaven with a span And calculated the dust of the earth in a measure?
Weighed the mountains in scales And the hills in a balance?”
2. Modern science has proved that the quantity of water on Earth is just enough for our needs.
(1) If the sea became three meters deeper, the water would absorb all the carbon dioxide and nitrogen, and no creature could live any longer.
(2) Isaiah 40:12 (written approximately 2800 years ago) ask the question: "Who has measured the waters in the hollow of His hand..."
(3) We are told that God has measured the waters and set a proper amount of water on the Earth.
3. Modern true science also has proved that God has carefully measured and weighed the ingredients of every substance that He has created.
(1) What is remarkable about this scientific information is that substances will only chemically bond if they are in exact and correct proportions.
(2) Actually, it was more of a recent discovery when chemists accepted this truth, i.e. that all substances must be exact in proportion to combine.
(3) And yet, God alluded to this through the prophet Isaiah some 700 years before Christ walked the face of this earth in His public ministry!
4. Isaiah 40:12 provides another scientific proof that God is the author of the bible and that the bible, instead of being a book of “smut” is a book superior to all other books!
II. SECOND, TURN TO JOB 36:26-28. THIS PASSAGE REVEALED THE SCIENTIFIC ACCURACY ABOUT THE CYCLE OF WATER ABOUT 2600 YEARS BEFORE MAN UNDERSTOOD THE SCIENTIFIC TRUTH ABOUT THE CYCLE OF WATER.
1. Thirty years before Christ, a Roman Engineer named Marcus Vitruvius began to make known, to mankind in general, the scientific information about the cycle of water.
(1) Technically, the cycle of water is referred to by modern scientist by the term Hydrologic Water Cycle.
(2) Hydro, is a term referring to water. Logic is referring to the logical process of the water cycle.
2. As we get ready to read Job 36:26-28 it is important to notice that the greatness and eternity of God is illustrated by the water cycle process.
(1) Let’s read Job36:27&28, “26 “ Behold, God is great, and we do not know Him;
Nor can the number of His years be discovered.27 For He draws up drops of water, Which distill as rain from the mist, 28 Which the clouds drop down And pour abundantly on man.”
(2) God draws particles of water and they form a cloud, and then when God chooses to do so the water in the clouds will be sent down in the form of rain and for the benefit of man.
(3) So that we might appreciate and look in awe at God’s great work relating to His scientific water cycle, let’s discuss the processes involved in God’s water cycle in more detail.
(4) In Job 36:27a, God’s drawing up “drops” would refer to the sun’s heat causing the water to evaporate and ascend into the sky and form into clouds. These “drops” are small particles that come from multiple sources of water scattered across the earth and the sea.
1) Amos 9:6b teaches that one source for water particles to be drawn from is the sea: “Who calls for the waters of the sea, And pours them out on the face of the earth— The LORD is His name.”
2) The sun’s heat also lifts the particles of moisture from beautifully clear and pure water sources. The sun’s heat also lifts the particles of moisture from grimy and polluted water sources, such as around dairy barns, feed lots for cattle and hogs and chickens. In some of these water sources animals have died and their bodies remained for decaying.
3) Some of the polluted sources that water particles come from are from the oil and gas fields where that there is a mixture of oil, salt water and poisonous chemicals.
4) Other polluted sources that water particles come from are from the ditches and boggy place that are infested by mosquitoes and disease carrying creatures.
(5) In Job 36:27b, God’s distilling as rain from the mist or from water particles refers to the distilling or purifying process in God’s water cycle.
1) Scientist and chemists, with all their distilling and purifying capabilities can not produce water purer than rain water, that comes from God.
2) We can not drink water from the sea because it is too salty. We can not drink water from the polluted sources that we have mentioned, for fear it would kill us.
3) And yet God lifts water particles from the salty sea and from the polluted and disease infested water sources and filters all the impurities out of them before He sends it back to man in the form of rain!
4) Indeed, indeed our God is great. God is the origin of the bible and His word should be respected and honored by all. God provides man with pure and holy teaching.
(6) In Job 36:28, reference to the clouds teaches man that the water particles that are drawn up into sky are bound up in the clouds as in a huge piece of cloth.
1) No doubt the purifying and distilling process continues as those water particles bound up in the clouds pass through the atmosphere.
2) When God does choose to drop the water particles down in the form of rain it is completely pure and harmless. Our God is amazing!
3) The rain comes to man sweet and fresh and not one bit brackish or salty or impure.
4) If the rain reaches man in an impure form it would be because man has sent something up into the sky impure and contaminated the rain while it is falling to the earth.
(7) In Job 36:28b, the statement “and pour abundantly on man” refers to the opening up of the clouds that hang in the sky.
1) Oftentimes there is an overabundant amount of rain and then on other occasions there are small amounts of rain.
2) Our amazing and wonderful God is in charge of the weather. We should regularly and faithfully pray to God about the weather and all other things, but as in all other things we must close our prayers with, “not my will, but thy will be done”.
CONCLUSION
1. Turn to 1 Corinthians 6:9-11.
2. Hopefully, in the future each time we look up into the sky and see clouds we will think of all that God has done to bring those clouds into existence.
3. Hopefully, clouds and rain and the water cycle that God uses to distill and purify all types of polluted and contaminated water will remind you that the bible teaches that God can cleanse you of all sinful contamination that might be upon you.
5. If you are not a Christian God will purify you as you express belief, repentance, confession and obey the command of baptism.
6. Let’s read 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, “9 Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, 10 nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.
(1) Here, Paul lists many spiritually immoral and corrupt individuals that, without the mercy of God and their obedience to God’s purifying process have no opportunity at all of going to heaven. Lifestyles such as Paul list here are representative of the “smutty lifestyles”.
(2) Earlier, as we talked about the water particles coming from the salty sea, contaminated water sources near animal feed lots, from out in the oil and gas fields and the mosquito infested waters – all these could symbolize the sinful and smutty things that Paul list in 1 Cor. 6:9&10.
(3) Now let’s read 1 Cor. 6:11, “And such were some of you. But you were washed [this refers to God’s purifying process – the obeying of the command of baptism – the final step in the plan of salvation that relates to the removing of all of our past sins.]
Continuing to read verse 11, “but you were sanctified [set apart from whatever would have earlier tainted you and then the forgiven one being set apart to live for God],
but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God.” [God’s purifying process for your soul makes you, just as if you had not sinned – your past is completely forgiven].
7. Do you need to become a Christian? Do you, as a Christian need prayers, to God, for forgiveness or strength? Please come as we stand and sing.
Acknowledgements for helping stay accurate with scripture interpretation and in the development of this lesson go to: 1. Bob Winton CD Commentary on Genesis and Job. 464 Ridgewood Drive Manchester, Tennessee 37355. If interested in CD covering many O. T. & N.T. books call (866) 753-8456. 2. John Gill from commentaries on Genesis and Job from studylight.org 3. Ethan Cole |Christian Post Reporter from San Antonio, Texas. 4. Science and the Bible by Mark Aites.
