July 9, 2014

From Gary... Anything is possible!!!



https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=1157166247334
If you do nothing else today- WATCH THIS VIDEO!!!  I consider this one of the most amazing things I have EVER SEEN!!! I can only imagine what was going through the mind of that pilot as he realized he may be dead in a very short while.  How we intellectually deal with death says a lot about how we are living our life.  For those who are Christians, the following will be a familiar passage...
Matthew, Chapter 28 (NASB)
Mat 28:1  Now after the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to look at the grave.
Mat 28:2  And behold, a severe earthquake had occurred, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled away the stone and sat upon it.
Mat 28:3  And his appearance was like lightning, and his clothing as white as snow.
Mat 28:4  The guards shook for fear of him and became like dead men.
Mat 28:5  The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid; for I know that you are looking for Jesus who has been crucified.
Mat 28:6  "He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said. Come, see the place where He was lying.
Mat 28:7  "Go quickly and tell His disciples that He has risen from the dead; and behold, He is going ahead of you into Galilee, there you will see Him; behold, I have told you."
Mat 28:8  And they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy and ran to report it to His disciples.
Mat 28:9  And behold, Jesus met them and greeted them. And they came up and took hold of His feet and worshiped Him.
Mat 28:10  Then Jesus *said to them, "Do not be afraid; go and take word to My brethren to leave for Galilee, and there they will see Me."
Jesus was crucified, dead and buried.  As far as the world was concerned, it was all over.  Christians know better!!!  Because Jesus lives, the fear of death no longer has a grip on us.  We have hope because we know that something better is in store for us. So, like the pilot in the video, let us make the most of our lives and who knows... anything is possible!!!!

From Gary... Bible Reading July 9





Bible Reading  
July 9

The World English Bible


July 9
2 Kings 13-15

2Ki 13:1 In the three and twentieth year of Joash the son of Ahaziah, king of Judah, Jehoahaz the son of Jehu began to reign over Israel in Samaria, and reigned seventeen years.
2Ki 13:2 He did that which was evil in the sight of Yahweh, and followed the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, with which he made Israel to sin; he didn't depart from it.
2Ki 13:3 The anger of Yahweh was kindled against Israel, and he delivered them into the hand of Hazael king of Syria, and into the hand of Benhadad the son of Hazael, continually.
2Ki 13:4 Jehoahaz begged Yahweh, and Yahweh listened to him; for he saw the oppression of Israel, how that the king of Syria oppressed them.
2Ki 13:5 (Yahweh gave Israel a savior, so that they went out from under the hand of the Syrians; and the children of Israel lived in their tents as before.
2Ki 13:6 Nevertheless they didn't depart from the sins of the house of Jeroboam, with which he made Israel to sin, but walked therein: and there remained the Asherah also in Samaria.)
2Ki 13:7 For he didn't leave to Jehoahaz of the people save fifty horsemen, and ten chariots, and ten thousand footmen; for the king of Syria destroyed them, and made them like the dust in threshing.
2Ki 13:8 Now the rest of the acts of Jehoahaz, and all that he did, and his might, aren't they written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?
2Ki 13:9 Jehoahaz slept with his fathers; and they buried him in Samaria: and Joash his son reigned in his place.
2Ki 13:10 In the thirty-seventh year of Joash king of Judah began Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz to reign over Israel in Samaria, and reigned sixteen years.
2Ki 13:11 He did that which was evil in the sight of Yahweh; he didn't depart from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, with which he made Israel to sin; but he walked therein.
2Ki 13:12 Now the rest of the acts of Joash, and all that he did, and his might with which he fought against Amaziah king of Judah, aren't they written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?
2Ki 13:13 Joash slept with his fathers; and Jeroboam sat on his throne: and Joash was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel.
2Ki 13:14 Now Elisha was fallen sick of his sickness of which he died: and Joash the king of Israel came down to him, and wept over him, and said, My father, my father, the chariots of Israel and its horsemen!
2Ki 13:15 Elisha said to him, Take bow and arrows; and he took to him bow and arrows.
2Ki 13:16 He said to the king of Israel, Put your hand on the bow; and he put his hand on it. Elisha laid his hands on the king's hands.
2Ki 13:17 He said, Open the window eastward; and he opened it. Then Elisha said, Shoot; and he shot. He said, Yahweh's arrow of victory, even the arrow of victory over Syria; for you shall strike the Syrians in Aphek, until you have consumed them.
2Ki 13:18 He said, Take the arrows; and he took them. He said to the king of Israel, Smite on the ground; and he struck thrice, and stayed.
2Ki 13:19 The man of God was angry with him, and said, You should have struck five or six times: then you would have struck Syria until you had consumed it, whereas now you shall strike Syria just three times.
2Ki 13:20 Elisha died, and they buried him. Now the bands of the Moabites invaded the land at the coming in of the year.
2Ki 13:21 It happened, as they were burying a man, that behold, they spied a band; and they cast the man into the tomb of Elisha: and as soon as the man touched the bones of Elisha, he revived, and stood up on his feet.
2Ki 13:22 Hazael king of Syria oppressed Israel all the days of Jehoahaz.
2Ki 13:23 But Yahweh was gracious to them, and had compassion on them, and had respect to them, because of his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and would not destroy them, neither cast he them from his presence as yet.
2Ki 13:24 Hazael king of Syria died; and Benhadad his son reigned in his place.
2Ki 13:25 Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz took again out of the hand of Benhadad the son of Hazael the cities which he had taken out of the hand of Jehoahaz his father by war. Three times did Joash strike him, and recovered the cities of Israel.
2Ki 14:1 In the second year of Joash son of Joahaz king of Israel began Amaziah the son of Joash king of Judah to reign.
2Ki 14:2 He was twenty-five years old when he began to reign; and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem: and his mother's name was Jehoaddin of Jerusalem.
2Ki 14:3 He did that which was right in the eyes of Yahweh, yet not like David his father: he did according to all that Joash his father had done.
2Ki 14:4 However the high places were not taken away: the people still sacrificed and burnt incense in the high places.
2Ki 14:5 It happened, as soon as the kingdom was established in his hand, that he killed his servants who had slain the king his father:
2Ki 14:6 but the children of the murderers he didn't put to death; according to that which is written in the book of the law of Moses, as Yahweh commanded, saying, The fathers shall not be put to death for the children, nor the children be put to death for the fathers; but every man shall die for his own sin.
2Ki 14:7 He killed of Edom in the Valley of Salt ten thousand, and took Sela by war, and called its name Joktheel, to this day.
2Ki 14:8 Then Amaziah sent messengers to Jehoash, the son of Jehoahaz son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying, Come, let us look one another in the face.
2Ki 14:9 Jehoash the king of Israel sent to Amaziah king of Judah, saying, The thistle that was in Lebanon sent to the cedar that was in Lebanon, saying, Give your daughter to my son as wife: and there passed by a wild animal that was in Lebanon, and trod down the thistle.
2Ki 14:10 You have indeed struck Edom, and your heart has lifted you up: glory of it, and abide at home; for why should you meddle to your hurt, that you should fall, even you, and Judah with you?
2Ki 14:11 But Amaziah would not hear. So Jehoash king of Israel went up; and he and Amaziah king of Judah looked one another in the face at Beth Shemesh, which belongs to Judah.
2Ki 14:12 Judah was defeated by Israel; and they fled every man to his tent.
2Ki 14:13 Jehoash king of Israel took Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Jehoash the son of Ahaziah, at Beth Shemesh, and came to Jerusalem, and broke down the wall of Jerusalem from the gate of Ephraim to the corner gate, four hundred cubits.
2Ki 14:14 He took all the gold and silver, and all the vessels that were found in the house of Yahweh, and in the treasures of the king's house, the hostages also, and returned to Samaria.
2Ki 14:15 Now the rest of the acts of Jehoash which he did, and his might, and how he fought with Amaziah king of Judah, aren't they written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?
2Ki 14:16 Jehoash slept with his fathers, and was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel; and Jeroboam his son reigned in his place.
2Ki 14:17 Amaziah the son of Joash king of Judah lived after the death of Jehoash son of Jehoahaz king of Israel fifteen years.
2Ki 14:18 Now the rest of the acts of Amaziah, aren't they written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
2Ki 14:19 They made a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem; and he fled to Lachish: but they sent after him to Lachish, and killed him there.
2Ki 14:20 They brought him on horses; and he was buried at Jerusalem with his fathers in the city of David.
2Ki 14:21 All the people of Judah took Azariah, who was sixteen years old, and made him king in the room of his father Amaziah.
2Ki 14:22 He built Elath, and restored it to Judah, after that the king slept with his fathers.
2Ki 14:23 In the fifteenth year of Amaziah the son of Joash king of Judah Jeroboam the son of Joash king of Israel began to reign in Samaria, and reigned forty-one years.
2Ki 14:24 He did that which was evil in the sight of Yahweh: he didn't depart from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, with which he made Israel to sin.
2Ki 14:25 He restored the border of Israel from the entrance of Hamath to the sea of the Arabah, according to the word of Yahweh, the God of Israel, which he spoke by his servant Jonah the son of Amittai, the prophet, who was of Gath Hepher.
2Ki 14:26 For Yahweh saw the affliction of Israel, that it was very bitter; for there was none shut up nor left at large, neither was there any helper for Israel.
2Ki 14:27 Yahweh didn't say that he would blot out the name of Israel from under the sky; but he saved them by the hand of Jeroboam the son of Joash.
2Ki 14:28 Now the rest of the acts of Jeroboam, and all that he did, and his might, how he warred, and how he recovered Damascus, and Hamath, which had belonged to Judah, for Israel, aren't they written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?
2Ki 14:29 Jeroboam slept with his fathers, even with the kings of Israel; and Zechariah his son reigned in his place.
2Ki 15:1 In the twenty-seventh year of Jeroboam king of Israel began Azariah son of Amaziah king of Judah to reign.
2Ki 15:2 Sixteen years old was he when he began to reign; and he reigned fifty-two years in Jerusalem: and his mother's name was Jecoliah of Jerusalem.
2Ki 15:3 He did that which was right in the eyes of Yahweh, according to all that his father Amaziah had done.
2Ki 15:4 However the high places were not taken away: the people still sacrificed and burnt incense in the high places.
2Ki 15:5 Yahweh struck the king, so that he was a leper to the day of his death, and lived in a separate house. Jotham the king's son was over the household, judging the people of the land.
2Ki 15:6 Now the rest of the acts of Azariah, and all that he did, aren't they written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
2Ki 15:7 Azariah slept with his fathers; and they buried him with his fathers in the city of David: and Jotham his son reigned in his place.
2Ki 15:8 In the thirty-eighth year of Azariah king of Judah did Zechariah the son of Jeroboam reign over Israel in Samaria six months.
2Ki 15:9 He did that which was evil in the sight of Yahweh, as his fathers had done: he didn't depart from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, with which he made Israel to sin.
2Ki 15:10 Shallum the son of Jabesh conspired against him, and struck him before the people, and killed him, and reigned in his place.
2Ki 15:11 Now the rest of the acts of Zechariah, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.
2Ki 15:12 This was the word of Yahweh which he spoke to Jehu, saying, Your sons to the fourth generation shall sit on the throne of Israel. So it came to pass.
2Ki 15:13 Shallum the son of Jabesh began to reign in the nine and thirtieth year of Uzziah king of Judah; and he reigned the space of a month in Samaria.
2Ki 15:14 Menahem the son of Gadi went up from Tirzah, and came to Samaria, and struck Shallum the son of Jabesh in Samaria, and killed him, and reigned in his place.
2Ki 15:15 Now the rest of the acts of Shallum, and his conspiracy which he made, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.
2Ki 15:16 Then Menahem struck Tiphsah, and all who were therein, and its borders, from Tirzah: because they didn't open to him, therefore he struck it; and all the women therein who were with child he ripped up.
2Ki 15:17 In the nine and thirtieth year of Azariah king of Judah began Menahem the son of Gadi to reign over Israel, and reigned ten years in Samaria.
2Ki 15:18 He did that which was evil in the sight of Yahweh: he didn't depart all his days from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, with which he made Israel to sin.
2Ki 15:19 There came against the land Pul the king of Assyria; and Menahem gave Pul one thousand talents of silver, that his hand might be with him to confirm the kingdom in his hand.
2Ki 15:20 Menahem exacted the money of Israel, even of all the mighty men of wealth, of each man fifty shekels of silver, to give to the king of Assyria. So the king of Assyria turned back, and didn't stay there in the land.
2Ki 15:21 Now the rest of the acts of Menahem, and all that he did, aren't they written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?
2Ki 15:22 Menahem slept with his fathers; and Pekahiah his son reigned in his place.
2Ki 15:23 In the fiftieth year of Azariah king of Judah Pekahiah the son of Menahem began to reign over Israel in Samaria, and reigned two years.
2Ki 15:24 He did that which was evil in the sight of Yahweh: he didn't depart from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, with which he made Israel to sin.
2Ki 15:25 Pekah the son of Remaliah, his captain, conspired against him, and struck him in Samaria, in the castle of the king's house, with Argob and Arieh; and with him were fifty men of the Gileadites: and he killed him, and reigned in his place.
2Ki 15:26 Now the rest of the acts of Pekahiah, and all that he did, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.
2Ki 15:27 In the two and fiftieth year of Azariah king of Judah Pekah the son of Remaliah began to reign over Israel in Samaria, and reigned twenty years.
2Ki 15:28 He did that which was evil in the sight of Yahweh: he didn't depart from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, with which he made Israel to sin.
2Ki 15:29 In the days of Pekah king of Israel came Tiglath Pileser king of Assyria, and took Ijon, and Abel Beth Maacah, and Janoah, and Kedesh, and Hazor, and Gilead, and Galilee, all the land of Naphtali; and he carried them captive to Assyria.
2Ki 15:30 Hoshea the son of Elah made a conspiracy against Pekah the son of Remaliah, and struck him, and killed him, and reigned in his place, in the twentieth year of Jotham the son of Uzziah.
2Ki 15:31 Now the rest of the acts of Pekah, and all that he did, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.
2Ki 15:32 In the second year of Pekah the son of Remaliah king of Israel began Jotham the son of Uzziah king of Judah to reign.
2Ki 15:33 He was twenty-five years old when he began to reign; and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem: and his mother's name was Jerusha the daughter of Zadok.
2Ki 15:34 He did that which was right in the eyes of Yahweh; he did according to all that his father Uzziah had done.
2Ki 15:35 However the high places were not taken away: the people still sacrificed and burned incense in the high places. He built the upper gate of the house of Yahweh.
2Ki 15:36 Now the rest of the acts of Jotham, and all that he did, aren't they written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
2Ki 15:37 In those days Yahweh began to send against Judah Rezin the king of Syria, and Pekah the son of Remaliah.
2Ki 15:38 Jotham slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David his father: and Ahaz his son reigned in his place.

From Mark Copeland... Paul's Sermon In Athens (17:16-34)

                          "THE BOOK OF ACTS"

                  Paul's Sermon In Athens (17:16-34)

INTRODUCTION

1. In Acts, we have several examples of gospel preaching; such include...
   a. Three by the apostle Peter - Ac 2,3,10
   b. Two by the evangelist Philip - Ac 8
   c. One by the apostle Paul - Ac 13

2. The sermons recorded thus far were to those who believed in one God...
   a. Like Jews and Samaritans
   b. Or Gentile God-fearers like Cornelius

3. Now we have an opportunity consider a sermon to pagan philosophers
   who were polytheists

[It was during Paul's second missionary journey, in the city of Athens,
Greece...] 

I. THE SETTING

   A. PAUL HAD JUST ARRIVED IN ATHENS...
      1. Known as a center of learning and artistry, but also for its
         idols
      2. Petronius said that it was easier to find a god than a man in 
         Athens
      3. Provoked by the idolatry, Paul began preaching at every
         opportunity - Ac 17:16-17
         a. Reasoning in the synagogues with the Jews and Gentile
            worshipers
         b. Reasoning daily with any in the marketplace

   B. HE ATTRACTED ATTENTION OF PHILOSOPHERS...
      1. In particular, Epicurean and Stoic philosophers - Ac 17:18
         a. Some of whom viewed him as a proclaimer of foreign gods
         b. Because Paul was preaching of Jesus and the resurrection
      2. They brought him to the Areopagus (Mar's Hill) and invited him
         to speak - Ac 17:19-21
         a. A rocky hill about 370 feet high, not far from the Acropolis
            and the Agora (marketplace) in Athens - Holman Bible 
            Dictionary
         b. A place where Athenians and visitors spent their time
            discussing new ideas
         c. Not having heard of the doctrine of Christ, they wanted to 
            know more

[With such an invitation, you can imagine Paul's delight to accommodate
them (cf. Ro 1:16-17)...]

II. THE SERMON

   A. THEME:  THE GOD THEY DID NOT KNOW...
      1. Acknowledging their devotion, he makes mention of one altar in
         particular - Ac 17:22-23a
         a. An altar with the inscription:  "To The Unknown God"
         b. So devout, they sought to worship a god they did not know
      2. He uses the opportunity to preach concerning the True God they
         did not know! - Ac 17:23b

   B. MAIN POINTS...
      1. God is the creator of the universe - Ac 17:24
         a. He made the world, He is Lord of heaven and earth
         b. As such, He does not dwell in temples made with hands - cf.
            1Ki 8:22-30
      2. God is the sustainer of life - Ac 17:25
         a. He gives to all life their breath and what they need - cf. 
            Jm 1:17
         b. Therefore God is not worshipped as though He needs it
      3. God is the ruler of all the nations - Ac 17:26-27
         a. He has created every nation and determined their rise and
            fall - Dan 2:20-21; 4:17
         b. Everything is designed to prompt men to seek God, who is
            not far from any of us
      4. God is the Father of mankind - Ac 17:28-29
         a. From God we come; and in Him we live, move, and have our
            very being 
         b. Therefore we should not think that God is like any idol of
            gold, silver or stone
      5. God is the Judge of the world - Ac 17:30-31
         a. What ignorance He may have overlooked in the past, such is no
            longer the case
         b. He now commands all men everywhere to repent
         c. Why?  Because of the coming Judgment, in which...
            a. God will judge the world in righteousness
            b. God will judge the world through Jesus Christ - Jn 5:22,
               26-27; 12:48
         d. As proof such will occur, God has raised Jesus from the dead
      -- These five points are from "The Spirit, The Church, And The
         World", by John Stott

   C. RESPONSE...
      1. Mentioning the resurrection provoked a response - Ac 17:32
         a. Some mocked (to many at that time, the idea of a bodily
            resurrection was foolishness)
         b. Others were more cordial, offering to listen again at another
            time
      2. As Paul left, some joined him and believed - Ac 17:33-34
         a. Specifically mentioned are Dionysius the Areopagite, and
            Damaris, a woman
         b. Others also joined Paul and believed

[Having considered the setting and the sermon, allow me to make some...]

III. OBSERVATIONS

   A. REGARDING THE SERMON...
      1. Paul used tact - Ac 17:22-23
         a. He acknowledges their spirituality, though misdirected 
         b. We should not hesitate to acknowledge the devotion one might
            have; if in error, our task is to explain "the way of God 
            more accurately" - e.g., Ac 18:24-26
      2. Paul began with the present spiritual condition of his audience
         - Ac 17:23-27
         a. They believed in supreme beings, but didn't know the True God 
         b. With the Jews he began with the Law, with the Gentiles he
            began with the nature of God; we too should take into 
            consideration where one is spiritually
      3. Paul made use of an accepted authority - Ac 17:28-29
         a. He quotes from one of their own prophets to make his point 
         b. When appropriate, we can appeal to an uninspired authority 
            accepted by others
      4. Paul led his audience to the main themes of the gospel - Ac 17:30-31
         a. Such as repentance, the judgment, Jesus and the resurrection
            - cf. Ac 17:18
         b. So our ultimate goal in preaching should be the gospel 
            message - e.g., Ac 2:38; 3:19
      5. Paul used the resurrection of Jesus as ultimate proof - Ac 17:31
         a. God has given assurance of the coming Judgment by raising
            Jesus 
         b. Indeed, if Jesus truly did rise from the dead, it is proof 
            of:
            1) The existence of God
            2) The truthfulness of all of Jesus' claims
            3) The reality of sin, judgment, and the need to repent
         c. This is why we need to develop a strong apologetic for the
            resurrection of Jesus

   B. REGARDING THE RESPONSE...
      1. People responded in three different ways - Ac 17:32-34
         a. Rejection - "some mocked"
         b. Reluctance - "others said, 'we will hear you again on this 
            matter'"
         c. Reception - "some men joined him and believed"
      2. Of those who responded favorably, it is only said that they
         "believed" - Ac 17:34
         a. Are we to conclude from this that was all they did?
         b. Did they not also "repent", as commanded in Ac 17:30? 
         c. The term "believed" encompassed more than simply acceptance
            of the facts that had been proclaimed
            1) It involved a complete reception of the message preached
            2) It included an obedience to whatever conditions had been
               proclaimed by the apostles (such as repentance, baptism)
         d. Just as faith was not explicitly mentioned in Acts 2, or
            repentance in Acts 16, but is fairly inferred from what we 
            know in other passages, so also with baptism here
            1) "There is, indeed, much to be said for the contention,
               independently advocated by theologians of varied schools,
               that in the New Testament faith and baptism are viewed as
               inseparables whenever the subject of Christian initiation
               is under discussion, so that if one is referred to, the 
               other is presupposed, even if not mentioned." - G. R. 
               Beasley-Murray, Baptism In The New Testament, p. 272
            2) "Baptism and faith are but the outside and inside of the
               same thing" - James Denny (as quoted by Beasley-Murray, 
               ibid.)
            3) "Where baptism is spoken of faith is presumed, and where
               faith is spoken of baptism is included in the thought" 
               - N. J. Engelsen (as quoted by Beasley-Murray, ibid.) 

CONCLUSION

1. Whether Jew or Gentile, philosopher or simpleton, the gospel of Christ
   is for all...
   a. Where we begin may vary with the spiritual condition of our 
      audience
   b. Where we end must always be the same:  Jesus is the only way to
      salvation!

2. When one becomes convicted of their sinful condition and their need 
   for Jesus, the proper response should also be the same no matter who
   we are...
   a. Faith in Jesus as the Son of God, who died for our sins and was
      raised from the dead
   b. Repentance from sin
   c. Baptism into Christ for the forgiveness of sins through His blood

One's reaction to the gospel will always be one of three ways: rejection,
reluctance, or reception.  In Athens, people such as Dionysius and 
Damaris exemplified the proper response.  

Are you willing to imitate their example...?

Executable Outlines, Copyright © Mark A. Copeland, 2013

by Nathaniel Nelson... Plantae: A Kingdom of Light

 http://apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=12&article=1373

Plantae: A Kingdom of Light

by  Nathaniel Nelson

As you wake up in the morning, you set your feet over the edge of the bed and take a deep breath. Isn’t it magnificent to wake up to a striking sunrise, with the trees and plants in your front yard swaying in the breeze? On the third day of creation, God said, “Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb that yields seed, and the fruit tree that yields fruit according to its kind, whose seed is in itself, on the Earth.’… And God saw that it was good.” One day later, on the fourth day, God made the Sun and Moon. The reason you can take a profound gulp of air in the morning is because that beautiful Sun provides light for plants, so they can produce more of the precious oxygen needed to sustain life on the Earth. This ever-essential commodity is produced by a process called photosynthesis. The biochemical processes involved in photosynthesis are exceptionally complex, and yet an individual, diminutive cell can perform the complicated tasks many times over.
Our knowledge of the general workings of photosynthesis dates back to the 18th century, and, in some cases, even earlier. In 1772, an English chemist by the name of Joseph Priestly demonstrated that plants immersed in water give off a gas (oxygen), and that this gas is necessary for animals to live. Then, in 1779, Jan Ingenhousz discovered the essential aspects of what is known as the carbon cycle, a succession of events that allows the buildup of starch (a food storage product). Furthermore, Henri Dutrochet found that only plants containing a special, green substance called chlorophyll were able to form nutrient material (Garnder, 1972, pp. 381-383). Despite these discoveries, we still do not know some of the secrets of photosynthesis, even to this day. Does this life-sustaining process exhibit decisive design? Without a doubt, it does! Here are some of the facts that we know about photosynthesis:
Photosynthesis creates food by means of the following chemical equation:

[Symbolic Equation]

6 CO2 + 6 H2O+ Sunlight + Chlorophyll C6H12O6 + 6 O2

[Word Equation]

6 carbon dioxide molecules + 6 water molecules yields
glucose (energy for the cell) + 6 oxygen molecules (what we breathe)
Despite the complexity of these numbers and symbols, this equation is fairly easy to understand. As we exhale, we expel carbon dioxide into the air. Plants use this gas, along with water, sunlight, and a substance known as chlorophyll, to create glucose (the energy molecule that plant cells need to survive) and oxygen (around 90% of the oxygen we breathe comes from photosynthetic plants and algae in the oceans). Basically then, we are dependent on plants, and they are dependent on us. This interdependent unity of life seems to be more than just a chance happening, does it not?
There are two fundamental reactions that take place during photosynthesis—the light and dark reactions. We will begin with the light-dependent portion. Light’s voyage takes it from the Sun, through the Earth’s atmosphere, and to photosynthetic plants or algae. In the case of a plant with leaves, the light strikes the leaf, penetrates the outer covering of the plant’s cells, and arrives at the first checkpoint of photosynthesis—the chloroplast. Chloroplasts, which specialize in photosynthesis, are often oval or disk-shaped organelles about two to ten micrometers long. Like mitochondria (the energy-producing organelles in animal cells), they have a double-membrane system. In the most common types, the inner membrane is the site where sunlight energy is trapped, and where adenosine triphosphate (ATP) is produced. The inner membrane is arranged as a system of stacked disks, called grana, which are surrounded by a semifluid matrix called the stroma (Starr, et. al., 1987, p. 67). Imagine a miniscule, bean-shaped structure that contains stacks of miniature pancakes inside of it. The individual pancakes that make up the grana are called thylakoid disks. It is at this location where photosynthesis does much of its work.
Illustration of Photosynthesis
The outer portion of the thylakoid disks is where light becomes useful to the plant. There are many structures that function in absorbing the energy and converting it to a form that is useful to the cells. The complexity of energy synthesis soon becomes almost inconceivable. Once the pure light energy reaches the thylakoid membrane, it starts a chain reaction that ultimately will result in the production of energy for the cell. The beginning of these reactions constitutes the electron transport chain. James Trefil explained it in this way:
The light reaction begins with Photosystem II, when light “hits” an electron in a specific chlorophyll molecule known as P680. The electron absorbs the light energy and becomes excited, meaning it has more energy than usual. The excited electron “jumps” to a higher energy level. Normally, the electron would immediately lose its additional energy and drop back down to its original position. However, it is met by an electron acceptor, Q, which sends the excited electron down a series of molecules known as a cytochrome chain. As the electron is passed from one molecule to the next, a series of coupled redox reactions occurs. The energy is immediately used to make ATP. The unexcited electron settles into a different chlorophyll molecule, known as P700, leaving behind a “hole” in P680. Photosystem I begins when a different electron in P700 also absorbs light energy and becomes excited. It too jumps to a higher energy level, where it is met by the electron acceptor Z. Z send the excited electron down a ferrodoxin chain, where coupled redox reactions occur. Meanwhile, back in Photosystem II, the ATP just formed supplies the energy used to split some water molecules into their component hydrogen and oxygen atoms. The oxygen is released into the air. One of its electrons is used to “plug” the hole in P680. The hydrogen atoms move over to Photosystem I, where they are picked up by the carrier molecule NADP+, along with the electron from P700 that went down the ferrodoxin chain and the energy that was released from the coupled redox reactions. The hydrogen and energy will be used to produce glucose in the dark reaction (2001, p. 383).
Your head may be spinning at all of the information packed into that quote, especially if you have never taken a biology course. Nevertheless, I hope you are beginning to see the complexity that is evident even at a microscopic level.
But we are not finished yet. As Trefil mentioned, the hydrogen and energy produced from the light reactions must now be transferred to the dark reactions (know as the Calvin-Benson cycle). If you refer to the description of the light-dependent reactions discussed by Trefil, two forms of energy are produced—ATP and NADPH. This energy, as well as an abundance of the carbon dioxide that we exhale, will now be needed by the dark reactions. The carbon dioxide is attached to a special molecule called RuBP. This combination will form a long chain of carbons (six carbons in length). This molecule, as it turns out, is extremely easy to break, and it will sever, forming two three-carbon chains. At this point, the ATP and NADPH are added to the mixture. This helps the three-carbon chain grab a few more molecules on its way to creating glucose. Finally, two separate molecules that have been created will form glucose—the energy molecule that the plant was working to produce all along. Purposeful design is seen in every aspect of this dazzling, life-giving cycle.
Could photosynthesis have occurred via chance processes? Scarcely. Biochemist Wayne Frair observed:
[F]or a cell to operate it must be able…to utilize this energy for the life of the cell. At the present time some single-celled organisms have chlorophyll such as is found in green leaves. This chlorophyll in cooperation with a whole host of other chemicals can utilize light energy which comes primarily from the sun. But these processes are very complex, and it is difficult to conceive how some simple functional device could have met the energy needs of any “first living cell” (2002, pp. 26-27).
Dr. Frair noted that it would be difficult to imagine how a “simple functional device” could have met the energy needs of any “first living cell.” How, then, could the “first cell” acquire the necessary energy without photosynthesis, and how could photosynthesis evolve without the energy? Those two questions present a paradox that is most likely insolvable. It is not reasonable to say that so many processes occurring in so many cells, over so small of a space, could have “evolved” merely as a result of time and chance. This natural wonder implies a supernatural origin. It needs a Designer.

REFERENCES

Broom, Neil (2001), How Blind is the Watchmaker? (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity).
Frair, Wayne (2002), Biology and Creation: An Introduction Regarding Life and Its Origins (Creation Research Society).
Starr, Cecie and Ralph Taggart (1987), Biology (Belmont, CA: Wadsworth).
Trefil, James (2001), Encyclopedia of Science and Technology (New York: Routledge).

From Jim McGuiggan... Wine: Fermented and Unfermented

Wine: Fermented and Unfermented


Numerous recent scholars and a long line of older lexicographers tell us that the Hebrew word tirosh is unfermented wine though on the basis of a single text (Hosea 4:11) some say it could be intoxicating. [I think that’s a misunderstanding of the text but leaving that question aside for now it’s true that the scholarly consensus is that the word typically speaks of unfermented wine.] A few scholars here and there tell us that in fact tirosh is the grape and by metonymy the juice it produces. This might well be the case and some versions render tirosh in just that way occasionally (vintage). Isaiah 65:8 speaks the proverbial remark that tirosh is found in the cluster and applies it to faithful Israelites in Israel.
[I don’t think enough attention has been given to this proposal: tirosh is a solid (the vintage) that produces wine.]
In any case, given that tirosh is most likely unfermented wine and is not intoxicating, when Psalm 4:7 tells us that harvesting it (along with grain) gladdens people’s hearts we can be sure it isn’t talking about it intoxicating them (see too Judges 9:13). Psalm 4:7 doesn’t even read as if a “drinking” experience is in view—it’s a harvesting experience; here’s the text (NIV and the rest): “You have filled my heart with greater joy than when their grain and new wine abound.”
I know drinking “grain” is not in view unless you think the psalmist had whiskey or something like that in mind. No, it’s a magnificent harvest of “dagan” (grain) and (tirosh) wine. [It’s almost amusing to hear, every now and then, someone claiming, “That’s what God gave grapes for—to make wine!” Grapes have, since ancient times, been a part of the staple diet of nations as they are to this day. Of course they give wine but they were and are used for food. Think of what the Islamic world does with them. Go to your nearest supermarket and see if you can find grapes to eat.]
However, Psalm 104:15 uses yayin and most scholars think the word “means” an intoxicating wine. It’s true that the word is used that way all over the place but there’s no reason to believe that that’s because the word itself “means” an intoxicating wine. The word yayin like the Greek word oinos is almost certainly a generic term and only the context determines whether or not it is intoxicating.
The Greek OT always renders yayin with oinos but it always renders tirosh with oinos. Scholarly consensus says tirosh is unfermented wine and yet the Greek OT translates it with oinos. What does that tell you? It tells you that they thought oinos can speak of unfermented or fermented wine. Since they used oinos to translate unfermented wine and since they used oinos to translate yayin we have every reason to believe that yayin like oinos is a generic term and that the context determines where intoxicating or non-intoxicating wine is in view.
Look, shelving for now what the word “means” means, note this.
The LXX translated tirosh (unfermented wine) with oinos.
Therefore to say oinos always means fermented wine is untrue.
The LXX used oinos to translate yayin in texts were it is clearly
 intoxicating.
Therefore oinos can refer to intoxicating wine.
This must mean that oinos is a generic term that applies to the juice of the grape whether it is fermented or not fermented. It’s like the word “water” which doesn’t “mean” salt water or sweet water or sea water or rain water—it simply means water and the context determines the specific form of the water. Oinos is the juice of the grape and ancient literature is saturated with illustrations of oinos in various forms (sweet, bitter, new, old, fresh, spoiled, drugged, mixed and so forth).
Jesus speaks of the universal practice of putting “new wine” in new wineskins to avoid the loss of the wine if and when it fermented and the old bags already stretched to the limit would burst (Matthew 9:17). This presumes that what they put in the bags was not fermented or intoxicating. But he calls it neos oinos (new wine). Manifestly, then, oinos can speak of a non-fermented wine. [There’s even more to learn from this “parable”. We often hear silly things said; “The ancients couldn’t keep grape juice from fermenting because they didn’t have modern chemicals.” You hear people say that intoxicating wine is all they ever drank. This is demonstrably false and in addition, even the naturally fermented wine was usually watered as a table drink. It was nothing like the high-octane stuff the booze industry sells so much of.]
Finally, for now, you hear people say that the English word “wine” is only used correctly when we use it of intoxicating wine. That might be the case today (my concise OED gives no other definition) but it wasn’t always so. [Think what has happened to the word “gay” and the word “baptize” and so many others.] To say that “real” wine is intoxicating is to give the word in a modern exclusive way and it ignores all the versions that render tirosh as “wine” or that render Jesus’ “new wine” remark as “wine”. The English word “wine” comes from the Latin “vinum”—juice that comes from the vine. [To be continued, God enabling]