Gods of the Gaps

Thus shall you say to them: "The gods who did not make the heavens and the earth shall perish from the earth and from under the heavens." (Jeremiah 10:11 ESV)

Secular humanists believed that gods were created to fill our gaps in knowledge. When they did not know how rain was made, they created a rain god. When they could not explain the thunder, they created a thunder god. As our knowledge increase, there will be less and less requirement for divine explanation. Eventually, when we know everything, god or gods will cease to exist.

And this is exactly what the Bible said about the so-called gods who did not make the heavens and earth. They will vanish from the earth and from under the heavens (Jeremiah 10:11). And exactly as the Bible said, there is one God who stubbornly refused to go away. This is the God that created the heavens and the earth. Till today, science could not come up with a satisfactory answer to creation. So, the God that created the heavens and the earth is still keeping His job.

For thus says the LORD, who created the heavens (He is the God who formed the earth and made it, He established it and did not create it a waste place, but formed it to be inhabited), "I am the LORD, and there is none else. (Isaiah 45:18 NASB95)

The Beginning of the Times of Gentiles

Seventy weeks are decreed for your people and your holy city to stop their transgression, to put an end to sin, to make atonement for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy, and to anoint the Most Holy Place. (Daniel 9:24 BSB)

They will fall by the edge of the sword and be led captive into all the nations. And Jerusalem will be trodden down by the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled. (Luke 21:24 BSB)

I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers, so that you will not be conceited: A hardening in part has come to Israel, until the full number of the Gentiles has come in. (Romans 11:25 BSB)

Many philosophies and religions (Buddhism, Zoroastrianism, Jainism, Confucianism, Taoism, Platonism) come to birth around the year 500 BC. Socrates, Buddha and Confucius all lived at around that time. Has anyone wondered why is the period around 600 BC to 500 BC the age for sprouting philosophies and religions?

On 14th August 586 B.C. king Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon razed and burned the Temple of God in Jerusalem. The Glory of God had departed from the Temple some time before that happened (Ezekiel 10). Historians will not tell you this, but from that day onward, Jerusalem was trampled under the feet of the Gentiles and the times of Gentiles began.

According to some historians, this is the beginning of the second wave civilisations which lasted from 600/500 BC to 500/600 AD. The Islamic calendar began in 622 AD.

There were four civilisations at the beginning of this period, the Greek, Persian, Indian and Chinese civilisations. These four civilisations will persist in various forms until about seven years before the end of the times of the Gentiles. Then the ten toes kingdom from the Roman empire will conquer the other three civilisation to start a world government under the anti-Christ.

As for the Gentile powers ruling Jerusalem while the Jews are living there are represented by the statue in king Nebuchadnezzar's dream (Daniel 2:31-45) and also the four beasts (Daniel 7:1-28) in Daniel's dream. These would be Babylon, Persia, Greece and Rome. The Gentile powers that ruled Jerusalem when the Jew were not staying there were not listed in the dreams. They are the Arabs, Crusaders, Mamelukes, Ottoman and finally the British. Here is the full list of Gentile invaders from the beginning - Egyptians, Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Greek, Romans, Byzantines, Arabs, Crusaders, Mamelukes, Ottoman, British.

The Piety of the Persecutors

As you looked, a stone was cut out by no human hand, and it struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces. (Daniel 2:34 ESV)

Originally, the Romans persecuted Christians out of their belief that Christianity was a "superstition" or "atheism". Actually, Christianity is a dangerous religion. Roman beliefs, religion and culture were involved in an existential struggle with Christianity. If Christianity win, the Roman gods and Roman culture will die. Christianity did win and Rome and its gods died.

QUOTE
The Roman Empire was generally quite tolerant in its treatment of other religions. The imperial policy was generally one of incorporation - the local gods of a newly conquered area were simply added to the Roman pantheon and often given Roman names. Even the Jews, with their one god, were generally tolerated. So why the persecution of Christians?

In order to understand the Roman distrust of Christianity, one must understand the Roman view of religion. For the Romans, religion was first and foremost a social activity that promoted unity and loyalty to the state - a religious attitude the Romans called pietas, or piety. Cicero wrote that if piety in the Roman sense were to disappear, social unity and justice would perish along with it.

The early Roman writers viewed Christianity not as another kind of piety, but as a "superstition." Pliny, a Roman governor writing circa 110 AD, called Christianity a "superstition taken to extravagant lengths." Similarly, the Roman historian Tacitus called it "a deadly superstition," and the historian Suetonius called Christians "a class of persons given to a new and mischievous superstition."
UNQUOTE
Robert L. Wilkin, "The Piety of the Persecutors" Christian History, Issue 27 (Vol. XI, No. 3), p. 18

Now Christianity is involved in existential struggle with China. If Christianity wins, China and the Chinese culture and beliefs as we know it will cease to exist. Like the Romans, the Chinese are aware of this and they are trying very hard to stamp out Christianity.

In the days of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will shatter all these kingdoms and bring them to an end, but will itself stand forever. (Daniel 2:44 BSB)

Secular Humanists Thinks All Religion Are The Same

Secular humanist thinks all religions are the same. Here is a quote taken from "Humanism's faith in reason represents our best hope" by AC Grayling published on Sunday 3 March 2013.

QUOTE
Religions, despite what people think of as their personal consolations, have not served the world well. They create division and conflict, they impose unlivable moralities of denial and limitation, and they demand that we think of the world as our remotest ancestors did, thousands of years ago. The cry raised by defenders of religion is: but what would you put in its place as a view of the world by which we can live? The answer is: something far better, deeper, kinder and warmer - and far more rational - namely: humanism.
UNQUOTE

Secular humanists think religions exist for personal consolations. Actually I am not a Christian for personal consolations. I am a Christian because I think the Bible is true. If you can prove to me that the Bible is not true, I am happy to become a secular humanist.

Secular humanism is really just another religion that add to the many conflicting religions. They create new conflicts by adding their morality to the existing confusion. They imposed one-size-fits-all Western European based morality on all societies, thinking that whatever is good for Western Europe is good for the world. They insist on democracy and human rights on all societies, regardless of their religious and cultural background.

They refuse to see the fact that the Bible is different from the other religions and refuse to accept the proofs provided by the Bible.

The Bible does not impose unlivable moralities of denial and limitation.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. (Galatians 5:22-23 ESV)

Secular humanists refused to see that they doing the things that other religions do - adding to the existing conflict and confusion without authority and authentication, and thinking that they are the best hope. Don't all religions act the same?

The Problem With Secular Humanism

Problem 1 - God
Secular Humanism assumes that God does not exist. The Bible assumes that God exists. This is a problem for both. The existence or non-existence of God cannot be proven. We are too small and too brief for that.

Bible's solution
The Bible never attempt to prove the existence of God. But the Bible make strenuous effort to prove the authenticity and veracity of the Word of God. In fact, this is the area where Christianity really shines. Christianity is an auditable religion! Other religions were started by one founder who had an idea or a vision (unprovable) or visited by an unseen angel (unseen, therefore nobody know). Buddha, like the secular humanist, offer a solution that does not need God and we have no proof if nirvana is really a solution because nobody ever come back after death to say that nirvana is real. Islam claim that the Koran is the word of God but offer meaningless proofs.

Secular Humanism non-solution
Secular humanism assumes that God does not exist and then proceed to use that as a basis for all their beliefs.

Problem 2 - Reason for Being
Why are we here? If there is no life after death, why should I do good? Why can't I be a Hedonist? Let us face this - if God does not exist and our existence is only temporal, then we all can do evil. This is reasonable and logical. In the first place, why is there good and evil? Evolution is about survival of the fittest, not the noblest. Why should I accept the humanist definition of "goodness"? Why can't I create my own standard and call evil good and good evil? Why must I accept some moral authority which have no basis other than being from another human or from some Western European culture?

Creation Myths

Secular humanist believed that the Bible's account of creation in Genesis is the same as other creation myths. This article "The Top 10 Intelligent Designs (or Creation Myths)" is an example of such belief. They asked this question, "If they allow one belief system to be taught, surely they must also teach others?" Below is the full context of the quote:

QUOTE
Several parents won a lawsuit against a Pennsylvania school district in 2005 that had added the controversial theory of "intelligent design" to its curriculum. Unlike the theory of evolution which is taught at most schools as a fact-based science, "intelligent design" -- as argued by the plaintiffs -- was nothing more than a philosophy predicated on the Judeo-Christian belief that the logical sequences found in nature are not random happenings or surprising mutations, but deftly managed events created by a greater omniscient and omnipresent intelligence with a specific plan. In short, the work of God. A federal judge thought otherwise. But therein lies the rub: Which god? When the founding fathers established the Constitution of the United States, they chose to include the separation of church and state. This was to ensure that the state-sanctioned religious persecutions that plagued much of Europe during the 16th century would not despoil the young, yet grand experiment in democracy that was to become this Republic. Scientific research has come a long way since Charles Darwin first posited the concept of "natural selection." In the intervening years, humanity has learned much about how we became the dominant species on the planet, how the Earth and the solar system were formed and the ever-changing development of the Universe. Over that time, how we understand the theory of evolution has also changed. Scientists now think that there is an intrinsic logic to our reality, that there are absolutes, laws of nature. Much remains a mystery, and as one question is answered, many others arise. The question that faced Pennsylvania's Dover School District was whether or not the imposition of one creation belief on a multi-ethnic, secular student body is in keeping with the law that prohibits the creation of a state religion. If they allow one belief system to be taught, surely they must also teach others? To help out with this dilemma, LiveScience presents a list of those Creation Myths that helped define civilizations both past and present...
UNQUOTE

The article went on to list the top 10 "Intelligent Designs (or Creation Myths)" to demonstrate the problem if all these "myths" were to be taught.

1. Genesis of the Judeo-Christian and Islamic Faiths
2. Greek
3. Hindu
4. Japan
5. China
6. Aztecs
7. Ancient Egypt
8. Babylon
9. Zoroastrianism of Ancient Persia
10. Norse

False Monotheism And Idolatry

Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold of the dragon, the serpent of old, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years; and he threw him into the abyss, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he would not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were completed; after these things he must be released for a short time. (Revelation 20:1-3 NASB)

When the thousand years are completed, Satan will be released from his prison, and will come out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together for the war; the number of them is like the sand of the seashore. And they came up on the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, and fire came down from heaven and devoured them. And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are also; and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever. (Revelation 20:7-10 NASB)

The main opposition to God since the flood is the mystery religion of Babylon, which is idolatry or worship of idols. This mystery religion will be completely destroyed during the 7 years of tribulation. It will not be carried into the millennium.

Then why the reference to Gog and Magog war in Ezekiel 38-39 in the war of rebellion by Satan after the millennium? I think the Ezekiel 38-39 war is a war against Israel by false monotheists. Similarly at the end of the thousand years of rule by Jesus Christ, nobody will believe in idols anymore. But they will be ready to accept a false monotheistic god. That is why the rebellion at the end of the millennium also refer to Gog and Magog.

Evolution of Religion - Bible vs Western Liberals

For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things. (Romans 1:21-23 ESV)

Western liberals believed that religions were invented by men who were ignorant and feared the unknown. These ignorant men ascribed unknown phenomena to the supernatural and created gods as agencies of these powers. Then these gods was used to justify actions morally and to organize kingdoms. Then they discovered the concept of monotheism, which was more useful for moral justification and political control. Religion thus evolved from polytheistic to monotheistic. But as science broadens knowledge and reduce ignorance, the need for god's existence were reduced dramatically. Modern western liberals believed that religions are still useful for cultural and psychological functions, but science is more reliable. As knowledge increase, the hold of god and gods will reduce.

The Bible tells us that in the beginning, the people were aware of the one true God but they refuse to believe and obey Him. Instead, they choose to made gods out of their own imaginations. Even today, the monotheists create their own monotheistic god after their own image. Unbelieving Christians invent their own Jesus Christ according to their own beliefs. While no longer making gods out of animals and natural powers, the same unbelief that created idols now create false monotheistic gods and false Jesus.

People are naturally religious. They do not reject god or gods. They just refuse to accept the real God whom they cannot manage. They prefer to create god or gods in their own image, one that is manageable.

But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. (Galatians 1:8 ESV)

Christianity The Dangerous Religion

He put another parable before them, saying, "The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field. It is the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown it is larger than all the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches." (Matthew 13:31-32 ESV)

The New Testament is full of ordinary people, who would not have been known, if Christianity did not become a world religion. Who would be interested in Galilean fishermen who lived 2000 years ago?

In the first 300 years of Christianity, the religion was spread by ordinary people, unknown to history. No general took up the sword to force people to become Christians. No king got converted and made Christianity a national religion. In fact, in the first 300 years of Christianity, Christians were persecuted by good and wise Roman Emperors, who realized that the Roman culture was involved in an existential struggle with Christianity. If Christianity win, the Roman gods and Roman culture will die.

Christianity did win and Rome and its gods died.

This is the LORD’s doing; it is marvelous in our eyes. (Psalm 118:23 ESV)

Man Creating God Based On Artificial Intelligence

Half of it he burns in the fire; over this half he eats meat as he roasts a roast and is satisfied. He also warms himself and says, "Aha! I am warm, I have seen the fire." But the rest of it he makes into a god, his graven image. He falls down before it and worships; he also prays to it and says, "Deliver me, for you are my god." (Isaiah 44:16-17 NASB)

Anthony Levandowski, a former Google engineer, has founded a religious organization, called Way of the Future, that seeks to "develop and promote the realization of a Godhead based on Artificial Intelligence".

Man making gods is not new. Only the technology changes.

How Religions Got Started

Many believed that religion is invented because men realize that limitation of their understanding and control of the world they lived in. They created gods to explain the things that they cannot control or understand so that they would not look stupid, but instead, appear to understand certain mysteries. Many of these secular people believed that religions evolved first as a polytheism and evolved into monotheism as the thoughts of the people progressed.

And people became even more progressive and came up science and the scientific method that taught the people to think, to experiment and to prove. As science progress, ignorance was stripped away and the control of the environment increase. One by one, the gods started to lose their jobs. They were no longer required as an explanation for many things.

Secular people treat religion as part of the progress of mankind, something that may still have some good, but not always relevant to the modern world. Secular governments treat all religions as equal, tolerating them as long as they respect state control.

While the petty gods slipped away, one God continues to hold out against science, the God that created the heavens and the earth. While science has progressed to explained most things, science is still unable to explain creation. The best science can come up with is the Big Bang theory, but what caused the Big Bang? Nobody knows. So the God that created the heavens and the earth is still needed to fill the gap. Will He lose His job like the rest of the petty gods?

"Well," He said, "No." For He has another explanation on how religions were started. Men were created to believe in God. Religions were started when men refused to believe in the one true God. But since men were created to believe, something had to replace the true creator. Thus all kinds of gods were invented as a substitute. So first there was monotheism. Then it degenerated into polytheism. Since these gods are false, they could not withstand the scrutiny of science and they started to look stupid, giving all religions a bad name (called superstitions).

For God's wrath is revealed from heaven against all godlessness and unrighteousness of people who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth, since what can be known about God is evident among them, because God has shown it to them. For His invisible attributes, that is, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen since the creation of the world, being understood through what He has made. As a result, people are without excuse. For though they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God or show gratitude. Instead, their thinking became nonsense, and their senseless minds were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man, birds, four-footed animals, and reptiles.

Therefore God delivered them over in the cravings of their hearts to sexual impurity, so that their bodies were degraded among themselves. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served something created instead of the Creator, who is praised forever. Amen. (Romans 1:18-25 HCSB)

Christianity Is An Auditable Religion

There is a web page titled "Christianity, the World’s Most Falsifiable Religion." Actually, I think a better title would be "Christianity, the World’s Most Auditable Religion." Christianity would pass any audit, unlike many religions. Here are two interesting pictures from the above website on how religions are started:




In fact, the three major monotheistic religions, Judaism, Christianity and Islam are auditable, but one of them will fail the audit.

Old Testament
The authority of Moses as the prophet of God was established publicly in the sight of all Israel and Egypt.
No prophet has arisen again in Israel like Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face. He was unparalleled for all the signs and wonders the Lord sent him to do against the land of Egypt—to Pharaoh, to all his officials, and to all his land, and for all the mighty acts of power and terrifying deeds that Moses performed in the sight of all Israel. (Deuteronomy 34:10-12 HCSB)

New Testament
As shown in the cartoon above, the authority of Jesus as the Son of God was established publicly.
For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me. (1 Corinthians 15:3-8 ESV)

Quran
The Quran was given privately to Mohammed by the angel Gabriel, who then told his followers what the angel told him. We have no way to audit if the angel really did speak to him and if the words spoken were faithfully transmitted.

The Resurrection of Christ

Today we commemorate a unique event in history - the resurrection of Christ. All men are born. Some grew up to preach and start a religion. Then they died.

Only Jesus was born of a virgin, died on the cross and was resurrected on the third day. The resurrection of Christ is the proof of His divinity. The others just talked, they claimed that they are somebody special, but they have no proof. Sai Baba died on last Easter (24th April 2011). The death of Buddha was recorded in the Mahaparinibbana Sutta. Both of them are still dead. Buddhist claimed that Buddha attained nirvana, but it remains unproved and unprovable. Well, you may argue, religions are faith-based. Christianity is also faith-based. But certain things in Christianity are provable, so that you may believe those that cannot be proved.

Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you--unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve. After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep. After that He was seen by James, then by all the apostles. Then last of all He was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time. For I am the least of the apostles, who am not worthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me. Therefore, whether it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed. (1 Corinthians 15:1-11 KJV)