God and the Tsunami by Dave Miller, Ph.D.

http://apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=11&article=540

God and the Tsunami

by	Dave Miller, Ph.D.

The death toll is staggering: 150,000 and counting. On December 26, 2004, an underwater earthquake—which registered at 9.0 on the Richter scale—resulted in massive tidal waves from the Indian Ocean, wreaking death and devastation across portions of a dozen nations (Djuhari, 2004). Tsunamis are a series of very long waves generated by any rapid, large-scale disturbance of the sea. Most are generated by sea floor displacements from large undersea earthquakes (“Tsunamis,” 2004).
As shocking as this event may seem, many other natural disasters have occurred in human history that exceed the recent tsunami in their toll of death and destruction. For example, throughout China’s history, extensive flooding has occurred countless times as a result of the mighty 3,000-mile-long Hwang Ho River. Several of the most terrible floods, with their ensuing famines, have been responsible for the deaths of more than a million people at a time. The southern levee of the river failed in Hunan Province in 1887, affecting a 50,000 square mile area (“Hwang Ho,” 2004). More than 2 million people died from drowning, starvation, or the epidemics that followed (“Huang He,” 2004).
In reality, such events have occurred repetitiously throughout the history of the world, and continue to do so—constantly: hurricanes, cyclones, earthquakes, tornados, floods, tsunamis, droughts, and volcano eruptions. In fact, natural disasters kill one million people around the world each decade, and leave millions more homeless, according to the United Nation’s International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction (“Disasters...,” 1997).
This circumstance inevitably elicits the pressing question: “Why would God allow such loss of life, inflicted on countless numbers of seemingly innocent people?” The number one argument marshaled by atheists to advocate their disbelief in God is the presence of widespread, seemingly purposeless suffering. They insist that if an infinite Being existed, He would exercise His perfect compassion and His omnipotence to prevent human suffering (e.g., Lowder, 2004; cf. Jackson, 2001). Even for many people who do not embrace formal atheism, the fact that God apparently seems willing to allow misery and suffering to run rampant in the world, elicits a gamut of reactions—from perplexity and puzzlement to anger and resentment.
But the Bible provides the perfect explanation for such occurrences. Its handling of the subject is logical, sufficient, and definitive. It sets forth the fact that God created the world to be the most appropriate, suitable environment in which humans are enabled to make their own decisions concerning their ultimate destiny (Genesis 1:27; Ecclesiastes 12:13-14). We humans have been provided with the ideal environment in which we may freely accept or reject God’s will for our lives. All instances of natural disasters and nature’s destructive forces are the result of specific conditions that are necessary to God’s providing humanity with this ideal environment.
God is not blameworthy for having created such a world, since He had a morally justifiable reason for having done so. Human existence on Earth was not intended to be permanent. Rather, the Creator intended life on Earth to serve as a temporary interval of time for the development of one’s soul. Life on Earth is a probationary period in which people are given the opportunity to attend to their spiritual condition as it relates to God’s will for living. Natural disasters provide people with conclusive evidence that life on Earth is brief and uncertain. [NOTE: For further study on this thorny issue, see Thompson, 1997, and Warren, 1972.]
Christians understand that no matter how catastrophic, tragic, or disastrous an event may be, it fits into the overall framework of soul-making—preparation for one’s departure from life into eternity. Likewise, the Christian knows that although the great pain and suffering caused by natural disasters may be unpleasant, and may test one’s mettle; nevertheless, such suffering is not intrinsically evil. Nor is it a reflection on the existence of an omnibenevolent God. The only intrinsic evil is violation of God’s will. What is required of all accountable persons is obedience to God’s revealed Word (given in the Bible)—even amidst pain, suffering, sickness, disease, death, and, yes, tsunamis.

REFERENCES

“Disasters: A Deadly and Costly Toll Around the World” (1997), FEMA News, [On-line], URL: http://www.fema.gov/pdf/library/stats.pdf.
Djuhari, Lely (2004), “Asia Rushes to Bury 67,000 Tsunami Victims,” Seattle-Post Intelligencer, December 29, [On-line], URL: http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/apasia_story.asp?category=1104&slug=Quake Tsunami.
“Huang He, or Hwang Ho” (2004), Britannica Student Encyclopedia, [On-line], URL: http://www.britannica.com/ebi/article?tocId=9274966.
“Hwang Ho” (2004), LoveToKnow 1911 Online Encyclopedia, [On-line], URL: http://32.1911encyclopedia.org/H/HW/HWANG_HO.htm.
Jackson, Roy (2001), “The Problem of Evil,” The Philosopher’s Magazine Online, [On-line], URL: http://www.philosophers.co.uk/cafe/rel_six.htm.
Lowder, Jeffery (2004), “Logical Arguments From Evil,” Internet Infidels, [On-line], URL: http://www.infidels.org/library/modern/nontheism/atheism/evil-logical.html.
Thompson, Bert (1997), “Divine Benevolence, Human Suffering, and Intrinsic Value,” Reason and Revelation, [On-line], URL: http://www.apologeticspress.org/articles/198.
“Tsunamis” (2004), National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), [On-line], URL: http://www.noaa.gov/tsunamis.html.
Warren, Thomas (1972), Have Atheists Proved There Is No God? (Jonesboro, AR: National Christian Press).

I Don’t Have Enough Faith To Be An Atheist—Really? by Kyle Butt, M.Div.

http://apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=12&article=4157

I Don’t Have Enough Faith To Be An Atheist—Really?

by	Kyle Butt, M.Div.

As I travel around the country delivering seminars on God’s existence, I am frequently engaged in conversations with people who understand that atheism is founded on many disproven assumptions. In the course of the discussion, the person will often say, “Atheism is founded on so many unproven assumptions. It takes more faith to be an atheist than it does to be a Christian. I just don’t have enough faith to be an atheist.” This sentiment was explicitly expressed by Norman Geisler and Frank Turek in the title of their book I Don’t Have Enough Faith To Be An Atheist (2004). While I understand and appreciate the motivation behind such a statement, I would like to suggest that it is ill-advised, and would urge Christians to reconsider framing the discussion in such terms. Here is why.
It is unfortunate for Christianity that numerous people misunderstand the basic concept of faith. For many in Christendom, faith is a warm feeling in their hearts when they have failed to find adequate evidence to justify their beliefs. Dictionaries have done much to ingrain this false definition of faith into modern Christianity. For instance, Webster’s Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary states that faith is “a firm belief in something for which there is no proof” (1988). The American Heritage Dictionary gives as a primary definition of faith: “belief that does not rest on logical or material evidence” (2000, p. 636). The idea that faith is a fuzzy, emotional feeling that is divorced from logical thinking and “material evidence” does not coincide with what the Bible actually says about faith (cf. Sztanyo, 1996). As Sztanyo correctly noted: “There is not a single item in Christianity, upon which our souls’ salvation depends, that is only ‘probably’ true. In each case, the evidence supplied is sufficient to establish conclusive proof regarding the truth of the Christian faith” (1996, p. 7).
The false view that faith is “a leap in the dark” without adequate evidence is the concept that Christians have in mind when they say that it takes more faith to be an atheist than to be a Christian. According to a proper definition of biblical faith, however, it is only because of the rational justification and logical evidence available that true Christians hold to their beliefs (see Miller, 2003). What it takes to be an atheist is not biblical faith. To be an atheist, a person must choose to completely deny the concept of biblical faith and adopt an irrational allegiance to that which has been repeatedly disproven.
When Richard Dawkins states, “Christianity, just as much as Islam, teaches children that unquestioned faith is a virtue. You don’t have to make the case for what you believe” (p. 306), he manifests his lack of knowledge of what biblical faith is. Biblical faith is based on truth and reason, as the apostle Paul succinctly stated in Acts 26:25. The prophet Isaiah underscored this fundamental fact about biblical faith when He recorded God’s invitation to the Israelites: “‘Come now, and let us reason together,’ says the Lord” (1:18). Luke, in his introduction to the book of Acts, pressed the point that Jesus’ resurrection was attested by “many infallible proofs.” For one to believe in God, Jesus Christ, and the resurrection requires faith—based on infallible proofs.
Throughout the Bible those who had great faith were commended (Luke 7:9), and those who had little or no faith were sharply rebuked (Matthew 8:26; Mark 16:14). In fact, the Hebrews writer clearly stated that “without faith it is impossible to please Him [God], for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” (11:6). Faith is a desirable characteristic by which a person assesses the available evidence and comes to a valid conclusion based on that evidence. By allowing the greater religious world and the skeptical community to redefine faith as something negative, we have done a serious disservice to the biblical concept of faith.
If atheists truly have faith, they should be commended for it; but they do not have faith. Instead, atheism is a failure to assess the evidence correctly and come to the proper conclusion. It is the exact opposite of true faith. Romans 1:20 shows the contrast between biblical faith and atheism. That verse says: “For since the creation of the world His [God’s] invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse.” In this passage, faith means coming to the proper, rational conclusion that there is a God based on the evidence of His creation. Irrational belief in spite of the evidence leads one to conclude that there is no God. To arrive at this atheistic conclusion is to kick evidence, reason, and faith to the curb and adopt a baseless form of improper reasoning supported only by subjective human whim—an approach that, sadly, will leave atheists “without excuse” on the Day of Judgment.
 The philosophy of atheism is fraught with logical inconsistency and error. It cannot account for the beginning of the Universe (Miller, 2011); it cannot give an adequate explanation for the obvious design in our world (Fausz, 2007); atheism completely fails to offer a satisfactory explanation of human morality (Lyons, 2011); and human freewill defies an atheistic explanation (Butt, 2010). To cling to atheism in the face of such overwhelming evidence takes an irrational belief that is motivated by something other than a sincere quest for truth and knowledge—it certainly is not true faith. So, in order to help the greater religious world and the skeptical community to understand what true faith is, let’s not misuse the word or attribute to atheism something it cannot rightly claim to have.

REFERENCES

American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (2000), (Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin), fourth edition.
Butt, Kyle (2010), “Biologist Uses His Free Will To Reject Free Will,” http://www.apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=12&article=2855.
Dawkins, Richard (2006), The God Delusion (New York: Houghton Mifflin).
Fausz, Jerry (2007), “Design Rules,” http://www.apologeticspress.org/apPubPage.aspx?pub=1&issue=591.
Geisler, Norman and Frank Turek (2004), I Don’t Have Enough Faith To Be An Atheist (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books).
Lyons, Eric (2011), “The Moral Argument for God’s Existence,” http://www.apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=12&article=4101&topic=95.
Miller, Dave (2003), “Blind Faith,” http://www.apologeticspress.org/apcontent.aspx?category=11&article=444.
Miller, Jeff (2011), “God and the Laws of Science: The Law of Causality,” http://www.apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=12&article=3716.
Sztanyo, Dick (1996), Faith and Reason (Montgomery, AL: Apologetics Press), http://www.apologeticspress.org/pdfs/e-books_pdf/far.pdf.
Webster’s Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary (1988), (Springfield, MA: Merriam-Webster).

Obviously Not the Bible by Kyle Butt, M.Div.

http://apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=13&article=1489

Obviously Not the Bible

by	Kyle Butt, M.Div.

In the wake of the best-selling book, The Da Vinci Code, questions have arisen about certain “lost books” of the Bible. Many want to know why the books we find in the Bible are there, and why other books are not. The simple answer to such an inquiry is that the 66 books in the Bible can be proven to be inspired by God, while the others can be proven not to have come from God.
Numerous books allege to be part of the divine collection—books such as the Gospel of Nicodemus, the Infancy Gospels, the Protevangelion, 1 and 2 Clement, Shepherd of Hermes, and so on. Some of these apocryphal books claim to be “additions” to the gospel accounts of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Others claim to be epistles from men like Barnabas or Paul. A brief look at a few selected passages in one of these writings quickly reveals a few of the more obvious reasons why these books did not make it into the biblical canon.
In the first Infancy Gospel, Jesus is portrayed as a young boy who does amazing things. On one occasion, while playing with some other boys, Jesus’ playfellows ran and hid from Him. Upon finding them hidden in a furnace, He turned them into goats. The women watching the scene begged Jesus to turn the goats back into boys, which Jesus promptly did (1 Infancy 17:10 in The Lost, 1979, p. 54). About two chapters later, 1 Infancy states: “Another time, when the Lord Jesus was coming home in the evening with Joseph, he met a boy, who ran so hard against him, that he threw him down; to whom the Lord Jesus said, As thou has thrown me down, so shalt thou fall, nor ever rise. And that moment the boy fell down and died” (1 Infancy 19:22-24 in The Lost, p. 57). Narratives such as these directly contradict the personality of Christ as presented in the canonical gospels, and are evidence of the lack of divine inspiration in such works.
Jesus did not turn his playmates into goats, nor kill boys who bumped into Him. Neither did God allow any pertinent books to be left out of the canon of Scripture. Truly, “all things that pertain to life and godliness” can be found in the 66 inspired books of the Bible.

REFERENCES

The Lost Books of the Bible (1979), (New York: Random House).

"THE GOSPEL OF MARK" Jesus Questioned About Fasting (2:18-22) by Mark Copeland

                          "THE GOSPEL OF MARK"

                Jesus Questioned About Fasting (2:18-22)

INTRODUCTION

1. The nature of Jesus' ministry caught the attention of many...
   a. He healed the sick, cast out demons - Mk 1:34
   b. He traveled from city to city, preaching in the synagogues - Mk1:39

2. The attention of religious leaders led to close scrutiny...
   a. As when the scribes took issue with His claim to forgive sins - Mk2:6-7
   b. As when the scribes and Pharisees took issue with His dining with
      sinners - Mk 2:16

[Not just Jesus, but also His disciples were scrutinized.  When His
disciples were not fasting like other men's disciples, Jesus was asked
why...]

I. THE NARRATIVE

   A. JESUS QUESTIONED REGARDING FASTING...
      1. Why did His disciples not fast? - Mk 2:18
      2. Both disciples of John and those of the Pharisees fasted
         - ibid.
      3. Fasting was commonly practiced at the time
         a. The Law of Moses ordained one fast, on the day of Atonement
            - Lev 23:26-32
         b. But Jews fasted on many other occasions, for different
            reasons, lengths, and degrees of abstinence 

            - cf. "Fasting In The Old Testament"
         c. In the first century, many Jews fasted twice weekly 

            - cf. Lk 18:12; Didache 8:1
      -- Since it was so common, why did the disciples of Jesus not
         fast?

   B. JESUS' RESPONSE REGARDING FASTING...
      1. He first gave the illustration of friends and the bridegroom
         - Mk 2:19-20
         a. Friends with the bridegroom do not fast while he is with
            them, it is time for feasting!
         b. When the bridegroom is taken away, then they will fast
      2. He then gave the illustrations of new cloth and new wine 

         - Mk 2:21-22
         a. New cloth is not sown on an old garment, or the tear is made
            worse
         b. New wine is not put in old wineskins, or the old wineskins
            will burst
      3. Jesus' explanation was two-fold:
         a. First, it was inappropriate for His disciples to fast while
            He was with them
         b. Second, ritualistic fasting would be out of sync with His
            "new doctrine" (Mk 1:27)
      -- The trappings of Judaism would be incompatible with the
         religion of Jesus

[So was Jesus saying that fasting would have no place in the New
Covenant?  Here are some observations taken from the text and other
passages related to fasting...]

II. SOME OBSERVATIONS

   A. JESUS INDICATED HIS DISCIPLES WOULD FAST...
      1. With His illustration:  "...they will fast in those days" - Mk 2:20
      2. When Jesus' ministry on earth was over, some fasting would be
         appropriate
      -- Thus Jesus did not rule out fasting altogether

   B. HE TAUGHT FASTING THAT PLEASES GOD...
      1. In His sermon on the mount - Mt 6:16-18
      2. Done not to impress men, but to please God
      -- Thus Jesus expected His disciples to fast

   C. EARLY CHRISTIANS PRACTICED FASTING...
      1. The church at Antioch, as they ministered to the Lord - Ac 13:
         1-3
      2. The churches of Galatia, when they appointed elders - Ac 14:
         21-23
      3. The apostle Paul, as part of his ministry - 2Co 6:5; 11:27
      4. Husbands and wives, by mutual consent - 1Co 7:5
      -- When joined with prayer, fasting apparently is suitable for
         Christians

   D. WHEN FASTING WOULD BE PROPER TODAY...
      1. Whenever circumstances require God's help
         a. These may be occasions on an individual level
            1) When faced with difficult temptations
            2) When faced with the serious illness of a loved one
         b. These occasions might be on a congregational level
            1) As when appointing elders
            2) As when sending out missionaries
      2. Whenever circumstances call for much prayer
         a. Is not God more likely to answer our  prayers if we are
            persistent? - cf. Lk 18:1-8
         b. Is not God more likely to respond if we fast in the proper
            manner? - cf. Mt 6:17-18
      -- Not as some ceremonious ritual, but when appropriate for the
         occasion

CONCLUSION

1. Richard Foster (Celebration Of Discipline) wrote that in a culture
   where the landscape is dotted...
   a. With shrines to the "Golden Arches" and an assortment of "Pizza
      Temples"
   b. Fasting may seem out of place, out of step with the times

2. Views about fasting usually go to extremes...
   a. "Some have exalted religious fasting beyond all Scripture and
      reason, and others have utterly disregarded it." - John Wesley
   b. Some consider fasting unnecessary, something to be ignored; others
      think it should be bound as a matter of faith (like baptism)

3. From this brief study we have observed...
   a. There is a place for fasting, but its practice would not be
      ritualistic
   b. For the disciple of Christ, fasting is left primarily to
      individual discretion
   c. When properly understood and practiced, it can be a valuable
      spiritual discipline
   d. A way to humble oneself before God; when joined with prayer, a way
      to solicit God's help - cf. Ezr 8:21-23

We do well to carefully study the subject of fasting (cf. "Fasting - A
Special Study").  It would be a shame to have a spiritual tool at our
disposal and not make use of it as disciples of Christ...

Executable Outlines, Copyright © Mark A. Copeland, 2016

"THE GOSPEL OF MARK"Of Wine And Wineskins (2:22) by Mark Copeland

                          "THE GOSPEL OF MARK"

                      Of Wine And Wineskins (2:22)

INTRODUCTION

1. When Jesus was questioned about fasting, He replied with three
   illustrations...
   a. Bridegroom and friends - Mk 2:19-20
   b. Patches and garments - Mk 2:21
   c. Wine and wineskins - Mk 2:22

2. The illustration most remembered is that of wine and wineskins...
   a. Jesus used it to show the incongruity of mixing His gospel with
      the Judaistic system
   b. Others have taken the illustration much farther, often to teach
      things Jesus did not

[One might make a broader use of the illustration of wine and wineskins,
but the end result should not contradict Jesus' own use of it.  Taking a
closer look, let's first note some...]

I. IMPLICATIONS OF THE ILLUSTRATION

   A. NEW WINE IMPLIES NEW BLESSINGS...
      1. Jesus implied His teaching would be like new wine, requiring
         new wineskins
      2. This "new wine" would include blessings for those who believe
         in Him
      3. For example, true forgiveness of sins through His sacrifice
         - cf. He 10:10-12
      4. Also, the blessing of the Spirit in some new way - cf. Jn 7:
         37-39
      -- New wine:  new blessings for those who would be His disciples

   B. NEW WINESKINS IMPLIES NEW STRUCTURES...
      1. Jesus intimated that His blessings would be packaged anew in
         new wineskins
      2. The "new wineskins" would be the means by which blessings
         are presented and preserved
      3. For example, through baptism instead of circumcision - cf. Co
         2:11-13
      4. Also, through a spiritual tabernacle rather than a physical one
         - cf. He 9:9-11
      5. Jesus gave His apostles the "structure" by which He wanted His
         blessings to be presented and shared (i.e., apostolic doctrine)
         - e.g., Ac 2:42; 1Co 4:17; 11:2; 14:33-37
      -- New wineskins:  new structures by which those blessings would
         be enjoyed

[Once we properly understand the implications of Jesus' use of wine and
wineskins, we are less likely to misuse it should we make broader
application.  Allow me, if I may, to offer four...]

II. EXTENSIONS OF THE ILLUSTRATION

   A. SOME PUT JESUS' WINE IN OLD TESTAMENT WINESKINS...
      1. That is what Jesus said would be inappropriate in regards to
         fasting
      2. That is, trying to force Jesus' "wine" into the wineskins of
         the Old Testament
      3. Even so, note some examples in which people have done this:
         a. Ritualistic fasting instead of appropriate fasting - Didache
            8:1-2
         b. Separate priesthood instead of the priesthood of all
            believers - 1Pe 2:5,9
         c. Instrumental music instead of making melody with the heart
            - Ep 5:19
         d. Infant baptism, based on the OT rite of circumcision - cf.
            Col 2:11-12
      -- Early on, many have tried to enwrap Jesus' "wine" with OT
         "wineskins"

   B. SOME PUT JESUS' WINE IN THEIR OWN WINESKINS...
      1. Others try to package Jesus' "wine" in the wineskins of modern
         concepts
      2. They respect the "aged wine", but feel it needs to be
         re-packaged
      3. Thus the frequent call for change, in such areas as:
         a. Church organization (denominationalism, sponsoring churches)
         b. Church worship (modern dance, praise teams)
         c. Church work (social programs, family entertainment)
         d. Church leadership (popes, metropolitan bishops, priests,
            team leaders, women pastors)
      -- This attitude fails to appreciate the value of the original
         "wineskin"

   C. SOME PUT THEIR OWN WINE IN JESUS' WINESKINS...
      1. Then some believe the Spirit is guiding them to new revelation
      2. While they may respect the "old wineskin", they want "new wine"
      3. Thus the call to update the teaching of the church, in such
         areas as:
         a. New doctrines (social gospel, liberation theology, health
            and wealth gospel)
         b. New lifestyles (divorce and remarriage, homosexuality,
            same-sex marriages)
      -- This attitude fails to appreciate the value of the original
         "wine"

   D. SOME PUT THEIR OWN WINE IN THEIR OWN WINESKINS...
      1. Some believe the Spirit guides them to make total changes
      2. Changing both the message (wine) and the organization
         (wineskin)
      3. Examples of such extreme makeovers include:
         a. Mormons, Jehovah's Witnesses, Seventh Day Adventists
         b. Others with their parachurch organizations
      -- This attitude reflects disregard for both the original "wine"
         and "wineskin"

CONCLUSION

1. Many believe we can simply discard the "wine" and "wineskin" Jesus
   gave...
   a. That we can repackage His wine with wineskins as we see fit
   b. That we can even replace His wine with new wines of our own

2. Dare we presume to believe that we can improve on anything Jesus has
   given us...?
   a. The blessings which are all-sufficient to life and godliness?
      - cf. 2Pe 1:3
   b. The structures which have presented and preserved these blessings?
      - cf. 2Ti 3:16-17; Jude 3

3. After two millennia, Jesus' "new wine" is now "old"...
   a. But like literal wine, the old is better than the new
   b. Best served from the container in which it has been preserved

Rather than coming up with "new wine" and "new wineskins" of our own
making, we should seek that given by Jesus and His apostles.  Therefore
the words of Jeremiah seem appropriate...

   Thus says the LORD: "Stand in the ways and see, And ask for the
   old paths, where the good way is, And walk in it; Then you will
   find rest for your souls. But they said, 'We will not walk in
   it.'" - Jer 6:16

Executable Outlines, Copyright © Mark A. Copeland, 2016

neo-log-ism by Gary Rose

Definition of neologism

1. 1 :  a new word, usage, or expression
2. 2 psychology :  a new word that is coined especially by a person affected with schizophrenia and is meaningless except to the coiner

 https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/neologism

I read the list and laughed at some of them (especially the first few of them) and then realized that for some strange reason the Washington Post was dead-serious about this. So, I guessed that the joke was on me for not getting what was going on in all this, so I looked up the meaning of Neologism in the on-line Merriam-Webster. OK, people like "NEW" things... humm... and then I thought of those people at the Areopagus.

Acts, Chapter 17 (World English Bible)

   ¹⁶ Now while Paul waited for them at Athens, his spirit was provoked within him as he saw the city full of idols.  ¹⁷ So he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and the devout persons, and in the marketplace every day with those who met him.  ¹⁸ Some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers also were conversing with him. Some said, “What does this babbler want to say?” 

Others said, “He seems to be advocating foreign deities,” because he preached Jesus and the resurrection. 
  ¹⁹ They took hold of him and brought him to the Areopagus, saying, “May we know what this new teaching is, which you are speaking about?  ²⁰ For you bring certain strange things to our ears. We want to know therefore what these things mean.”  ²¹ Now all the Athenians and the strangers living there spent their time in nothing else, but either to tell or to hear some new thing. (vs. 21 emp. added GDR)
  ²² Paul stood in the middle of the Areopagus, and said, “You men of Athens, I perceive that you are very religious in all things.  ²³ For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I also found an altar with this inscription: ‘TO AN UNKNOWN GOD.’ What therefore you worship in ignorance, I announce to you. (vs. 23 emp. added GDR)  ²⁴ The God who made the world and all things in it, he, being Lord of heaven and earth, doesn’t dwell in temples made with hands.  ²⁵ He isn’t served by men’s hands, as though he needed anything, seeing he himself gives to all life and breath, and all things.  ²⁶ He made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the surface of the earth, having determined appointed seasons, and the boundaries of their dwellings,  ²⁷ that they should seek the Lord, if perhaps they might reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us.  ²⁸ ‘For in him we live, move, and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘For we are also his offspring.’  ²⁹ Being then the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold, or silver, or stone, engraved by art and design of man.  ³⁰ The times of ignorance therefore God overlooked. But now he commands that all people everywhere should repent,  ³¹ because he has appointed a day in which he will judge the world in righteousness by the man whom he has ordained; of which he has given assurance to all men, in that he has raised him from the dead.”

Now, we all have to learn the fundamentals of life and for the here and now there comes a point in time when we will first hear about Jesus. The question is: What will we do with that "new" knowledge; will we accept or reject it?  

PS. I am wondering if all this business about neologisms is just humor? Could it be that there are more people out there with a strange sense of humor that I ever imagined, or perhaps there are just a lot of people that fit into that second definition of the word that is listed by Merriam-Webster???

Bible Reading January 6, 7, 8 by Gary Rose

Bible Reading January 6, 7, 8 (World English Bible)

Jan. 6

Genesis 6

Gen 6:1 It happened, when men began to multiply on the surface of the ground, and daughters were born to them,

Gen 6:2 that God's sons saw that men's daughters were beautiful, and they took for themselves wives of all that they chose.

Gen 6:3 Yahweh said, "My Spirit will not strive with man forever, because he also is flesh; yet will his days be one hundred twenty years."

Gen 6:4 The Nephilim were in the earth in those days, and also after that, when God's sons came in to men's daughters. They bore children to them. Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown.

Gen 6:5 Yahweh saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.

Gen 6:6 Yahweh was sorry that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him in his heart.

Gen 6:7 Yahweh said, "I will destroy man whom I have created from the surface of the ground; man, along with animals, creeping things, and birds of the sky; for I am sorry that I have made them."

Gen 6:8 But Noah found favor in Yahweh's eyes.

Gen 6:9 This is the history of the generations of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time. Noah walked with God.

Gen 6:10 Noah became the father of three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

Gen 6:11 The earth was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.

Gen 6:12 God saw the earth, and saw that it was corrupt, for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth.

Gen 6:13 God said to Noah, "The end of all flesh has come before me, for the earth is filled with violence through them. Behold, I will destroy them with the earth.

Gen 6:14 Make a ship of gopher wood. You shall make rooms in the ship, and shall seal it inside and outside with pitch.

Gen 6:15 This is how you shall make it. The length of the ship will be three hundred cubits, its breadth fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits.

Gen 6:16 You shall make a roof in the ship, and you shall finish it to a cubit upward. You shall set the door of the ship in its side. You shall make it with lower, second, and third levels.

Gen 6:17 I, even I, do bring the flood of waters on this earth, to destroy all flesh having the breath of life from under the sky. Everything that is in the earth will die.

Gen 6:18 But I will establish my covenant with you. You shall come into the ship, you, your sons, your wife, and your sons' wives with you.

Gen 6:19 Of every living thing of all flesh, you shall bring two of every sort into the ship, to keep them alive with you. They shall be male and female.

Gen 6:20 Of the birds after their kind, of the livestock after their kind, of every creeping thing of the ground after its kind, two of every sort shall come to you, to keep them alive.

Gen 6:21 Take with you of all food that is eaten, and gather it to yourself; and it will be for food for you, and for them."

Gen 6:22 Thus Noah did. According to all that God commanded him, so he did.

Jan. 7

Genesis 7

Gen 7:1 Yahweh said to Noah, "Come with all of your household into the ship, for I have seen your righteousness before me in this generation.

Gen 7:2 You shall take seven pairs of every clean animal with you, the male and his female. Of the animals that are not clean, take two, the male and his female.

Gen 7:3 Also of the birds of the sky, seven and seven, male and female, to keep seed alive on the surface of all the earth.

Gen 7:4 In seven days, I will cause it to rain on the earth for forty days and forty nights. Every living thing that I have made, I will destroy from the surface of the ground."

Gen 7:5 Noah did everything that Yahweh commanded him.

Gen 7:6 Noah was six hundred years old when the flood of waters came on the earth.

Gen 7:7 Noah went into the ship with his sons, his wife, and his sons' wives, because of the waters of the flood.

Gen 7:8 Clean animals, animals that are not clean, birds, and everything that creeps on the ground

Gen 7:9 went by pairs to Noah into the ship, male and female, as God commanded Noah.

Gen 7:10 It happened after the seven days, that the waters of the flood came on the earth.

Gen 7:11 In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, on the seventeenth day of the month, on the same day all the fountains of the great deep were burst open, and the sky's windows were opened.

Gen 7:12 The rain was on the earth forty days and forty nights.

Gen 7:13 In the same day Noah, and Shem, Ham, and Japheth, the sons of Noah, and Noah's wife, and the three wives of his sons with them, entered into the ship;

Gen 7:14 they, and every animal after its kind, all the livestock after their kind, every creeping thing that creeps on the earth after its kind, and every bird after its kind, every bird of every sort.

Gen 7:15 They went to Noah into the ship, by pairs of all flesh with the breath of life in them.

Gen 7:16 Those who went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as God commanded him; and Yahweh shut him in.

Gen 7:17 The flood was forty days on the earth. The waters increased, and lifted up the ship, and it was lifted up above the earth.

Gen 7:18 The waters prevailed, and increased greatly on the earth; and the ship floated on the surface of the waters.

Gen 7:19 The waters prevailed exceedingly on the earth. All the high mountains that were under the whole sky were covered.

Gen 7:20 The waters prevailed fifteen cubits upward, and the mountains were covered.

Gen 7:21 All flesh died that moved on the earth, including birds, livestock, animals, every creeping thing that creeps on the earth, and every man.

Gen 7:22 All in whose nostrils was the breath of the spirit of life, of all that was on the dry land, died.

Gen 7:23 Every living thing was destroyed that was on the surface of the ground, including man, livestock, creeping things, and birds of the sky. They were destroyed from the earth. Only Noah was left, and those who were with him in the ship.

Gen 7:24 The waters prevailed on the earth one hundred fifty days.

Jan. 8

Genesis 8

Gen 8:1 God remembered Noah, all the animals, and all the livestock that were with him in the ship; and God made a wind to pass over the earth. The waters subsided.

Gen 8:2 The deep's fountains and the sky's windows were also stopped, and the rain from the sky was restrained.

Gen 8:3 The waters receded from the earth continually. After the end of one hundred fifty days the waters decreased.

Gen 8:4 The ship rested in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, on Ararat's mountains.

Gen 8:5 The waters receded continually until the tenth month. In the tenth month, on the first day of the month, the tops of the mountains were seen.

Gen 8:6 It happened at the end of forty days, that Noah opened the window of the ship which he had made,

Gen 8:7 and he sent forth a raven. It went back and forth, until the waters were dried up from the earth.

Gen 8:8 He sent forth a dove from him, to see if the waters were abated from the surface of the ground,

Gen 8:9 but the dove found no place to rest her foot, and she returned to him into the ship; for the waters were on the surface of the whole earth. He put forth his hand, and took her, and brought her to him into the ship.

Gen 8:10 He stayed yet another seven days; and again he sent forth the dove out of the ship.

Gen 8:11 The dove came back to him at evening, and, behold, in her mouth was an olive leaf plucked off. So Noah knew that the waters were abated from the earth.

Gen 8:12 He stayed yet another seven days, and sent forth the dove; and she didn't return to him any more.

Gen 8:13 It happened in the six hundred first year, in the first month, the first day of the month, the waters were dried up from the earth. Noah removed the covering of the ship, and looked. He saw that the surface of the ground was dried.

Gen 8:14 In the second month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, the earth was dry.

Gen 8:15 God spoke to Noah, saying,

Gen 8:16 "Go out of the ship, you, and your wife, and your sons, and your sons' wives with you.

Gen 8:17 Bring forth with you every living thing that is with you of all flesh, including birds, livestock, and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth, that they may breed abundantly in the earth, and be fruitful, and multiply on the earth."

Gen 8:18 Noah went forth, with his sons, his wife, and his sons' wives with him.

Gen 8:19 Every animal, every creeping thing, and every bird, whatever moves on the earth, after their families, went out of the ship.

Gen 8:20 Noah built an altar to Yahweh, and took of every clean animal, and of every clean bird, and offered burnt offerings on the altar.

Gen 8:21 Yahweh smelled the pleasant aroma. Yahweh said in his heart, "I will not again curse the ground any more for man's sake, because the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth; neither will I ever again strike everything living, as I have done.

Gen 8:22 While the earth remains, seed time and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease."

 Jan. 5,6

Matthew 3

Mat 3:1 In those days, John the Baptizer came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea, saying,

Mat 3:2 "Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!"

Mat 3:3 For this is he who was spoken of by Isaiah the prophet, saying, "The voice of one crying in the wilderness, make ready the way of the Lord. Make his paths straight."

Mat 3:4 Now John himself wore clothing made of camel's hair, with a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey.

Mat 3:5 Then people from Jerusalem, all of Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him.

Mat 3:6 They were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins.

Mat 3:7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming for his baptism, he said to them, "You offspring of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?

Mat 3:8 Therefore bring forth fruit worthy of repentance!

Mat 3:9 Don't think to yourselves, 'We have Abraham for our father,' for I tell you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones.

Mat 3:10 "Even now the axe lies at the root of the trees. Therefore, every tree that doesn't bring forth good fruit is cut down, and cast into the fire.

Mat 3:11 I indeed baptize you in water for repentance, but he who comes after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you in the Holy Spirit.

Mat 3:12 His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will thoroughly cleanse his threshing floor. He will gather his wheat into the barn, but the chaff he will burn up with unquenchable fire."

Mat 3:13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him.

Mat 3:14 But John would have hindered him, saying, "I need to be baptized by you, and you come to me?"

Mat 3:15 But Jesus, answering, said to him, "Allow it now, for this is the fitting way for us to fulfill all righteousness." Then he allowed him.

Mat 3:16 Jesus, when he was baptized, went up directly from the water: and behold, the heavens were opened to him. He saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove, and coming on him.

Mat 3:17 Behold, a voice out of the heavens said, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased."

Jan. 7,8

Matthew 4

Mat 4:1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

Mat 4:2 When he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was hungry afterward.

Mat 4:3 The tempter came and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread."

Mat 4:4 But he answered, "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.' "

Mat 4:5 Then the devil took him into the holy city. He set him on the pinnacle of the temple,

Mat 4:6 and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written, 'He will put his angels in charge of you.' and, 'On their hands they will bear you up, so that you don't dash your foot against a stone.' "

Mat 4:7 Jesus said to him, "Again, it is written, 'You shall not test the Lord, your God.' "

Mat 4:8 Again, the devil took him to an exceedingly high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world, and their glory.

Mat 4:9 He said to him, "I will give you all of these things, if you will fall down and worship me."

Mat 4:10 Then Jesus said to him, "Get behind me, Satan! For it is written, 'You shall worship the Lord your God, and you shall serve him only.' "

Mat 4:11 Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and served him.

Mat 4:12 Now when Jesus heard that John was delivered up, he withdrew into Galilee.

Mat 4:13 Leaving Nazareth, he came and lived in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali,

Mat 4:14 that it might be fulfilled which was spoken through Isaiah the prophet, saying,

Mat 4:15 "The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, toward the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles,

Mat 4:16 the people who sat in darkness saw a great light, to those who sat in the region and shadow of death, to them light has dawned."

Mat 4:17 From that time, Jesus began to preach, and to say, "Repent! For the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand."

Mat 4:18 Walking by the sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers: Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew, his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen.

Mat 4:19 He said to them, "Come after me, and I will make you fishers for men."

Mat 4:20 They immediately left their nets and followed him.

Mat 4:21 Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets. He called them.

Mat 4:22 They immediately left the boat and their father, and followed him.

Mat 4:23 Jesus went about in all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the Good News of the Kingdom, and healing every disease and every sickness among the people.

Mat 4:24 The report about him went out into all Syria. They brought to him all who were sick, afflicted with various diseases and torments, possessed with demons, epileptics, and paralytics; and he healed them.

Mat 4:25 Great multitudes from Galilee, Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea and from beyond the Jordan followed him.