An Ancient Man Surprise...

By Don Landis

Pastor Don Landis is the general editor of both The Genius of Ancient Man and The Secrets of Ancient Man. On a recent trip down to an Answers in Genesis board meeting, Don and his wife Bev stumbled across an unexpected ancient man site...

Reviewing "Noah": Bible-based Entertainment or Deceptive Heresy?

By Brian Mariani

Coming March 28^th, acclaimed director Darren Aronofsky will share with the world his newest movie, entitled Noah, which is supposedly based on the biblical account of Noah. People are abuzz with anticipation, but WAIT! Be forewarned…there is a lot of controversy surrounding this new movie starring Russell Crowe as Noah, among numerous other all-star actors and actresses. Is this “biblically-based epic” really true to Scripture?

Why You Should Watch the Debate

A response to the Ken Ham/Bill Nye debate
By Timothy Thornton

Two and a half hours could never have gone so fast! The debate last night with Ken Ham and Bill Nye was extremely enthralling. The topic of debate was: “Is Creation a viable model of origins?” Ken Ham proposed that Creation as described in the book of Genesis is the only model of origins, while Bill Nye presented that the mainstream scientific view of evolution and millions of years of natural processes should be the only model of origins taught in schools. 

While neither of the debaters could convince the other of their own views, the debate was not a frivolous event. Some may wonder why people would debate something that cannot be agreed upon or why people would even want to watch it. However, there are several reasons that the debate was not pointless; that it was actually valuable, and if you have not watched it yet, I highly recommend you do for the very same reasons:

The debate was a clear depiction of worldviews. 

Both Bill Nye and Ken Ham use the senses that God has given them to observe the natural world around them. However, they each interpret the data they can observe in the present differently, since it represents the past. The final question posed to both at the end of the debate was: “What one thing, more than anything else, do you found your beliefs upon?” Ken Ham succinctly responded that the Word of God is the basis for all truth, and that he believes in the historical account written by the One who created everything and was actually there to tell us about it. Bill Nye responded by saying that Science was the basis for his beliefs; he also mentioned that such observational science brought joy to him and motivation for discovery. This was a fitting wrap-up to a debate that, as a whole, clearly depicted the difference of worldviews and how they determine the way a person lives and interprets the world around them. 

Ken Ham pointed this out very clearly at the beginning of his presentation. It is interesting to note that when one starts with God and the foundation that His Word is Truth, then they can understand the world around them. On the other hand, when one starts with man and the foundation that his knowledge is truth, then they cannot understand the things of God. Two verses come to mind: 

“But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised.” (1 Corinthians 2:14)
“Always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth” (2 Timothy 3:7)

 The worldview based on the God of the Bible is the only one that can make sense of the world around us.

The debate gives stunning insight into our culture today. 

Ken Ham began the debate with a presentation on the indoctrination of evolution and millions of years in our western culture. He explained that the reason moral relativism is on the rise in our world today is because the foundation for moral absolutes has been thrown out—the Word of God is denied while science is upheld even subconsciously by many Christians. 

The undermining and trampling of God’s Word is nothing new; it’s been happening since Genesis 3 when Adam and Eve disobeyed God’s instruction, being deceived by the Devil who questioned God’s Word. As such, a society that does not believe in the One True God will act and think in a manner in accord with Romans 1:18-32—

“professing to be wise they became fools” 

"For as a man thinks in his heart, so he is" (Proverbs 23:7)

In reality, there are truly only two worldviews in the world: God’s and Satan’s. Any worldview that denies the God of the Bible and upholds something else as the authority is obviously not of God and therefore can be lumped into the same category. 

Under the umbrella of philosophies that are opposed to our Creator God is the pervasive worldview known as postmodernism: truth is what you make it, morality is relative, tolerance and acceptance of many kinds of ideologies and lifestyles is promoted. Bill Nye expressed this worldview when he was asked the question: “Is there room for God in science?” In his response he mentioned that there are many people of differing faiths and beliefs around the world that support his view and teach evolutionary origins. Nye even made the statement that because many religious people have held the “scientific view” they (science and religion) “are not incompatible”. He also did not want to offend anybody and thus respected the fact that some believe in evolution and yet are very religious. He ended his response, however, by saying that “Ken Ham’s model” was certainly not compatible with science. 

Indeed, there are a lot of problems with Bill Nye’s arguments logically and evidentially, but he remarkably displayed the growing philosophy of our day. Christians who believe in the Bible, especially those who take a strong stance on the literal history of the world as found in Genesis, are at odds with a world that will accept and tolerate almost anything else.

The debate supports the Christian faith and the Truth of the Bible. 

For those who may have heard Ken Ham speak or have read anything by Answers in Genesis, the debate was an incredible refreshment and motivation. Although Ken Ham did not answer every single point or question raised by Bill Nye, he did clearly state that the Bible has the answers to all such things. The Word of an all-knowing and all-powerful Sovereign God is most certainly true, and though it cannot answer specifically every question in the world, it is the source of truth. Besides, Solomon once said, “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge” (Proverbs 1:7). The debate was a wonderful reminder that God’s Word can be trusted. And seeing Ken Ham boldly proclaim the truth of His Word and the message of the gospel encouraged believers to stand firmly upon the Bible and defend it.

The debate gives believers necessary apologetic knowledge to defend their faith in today’s culture. 

1 Peter 3:15 says,

“But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear”

Nye and Ham debated a hot topic that sparks much controversy in the western world. Bill Nye’s points were very typical of any unbelieving person, especially atheists. Ken Ham’s arguments and responses were a good example of how to approach such anti-God philosophies in our culture today. (For more on this read: Matthew Zuk’s review). 

Unfortunately, it is not just atheists and unbelievers that hold to Bill Nye’s worldview. When it comes to the issue of the origin of the universe and the age of the earth, many Christians believe the same as Nye. The view that the world is billions of years old and that humans evolved from unicellular life forms is prevalent in the church. The average person that professes to be a Christian does not believe that the six days of creation in Genesis 1 are six literal days and thus allegorizes the text to make it fit the mainstream “scientific” paradigm. 

What many true Christians do not understand is that this attacks the character and nature of God, undermines the gospel message of salvation in Jesus Christ, and also opens the door to further misinterpretation of God’s Word—the sustenance for our Christian life. For more on how the cross is attacked, read pages 105-107 in The Genius of Ancient Man. Ken Ham clearly explained the problems with accepting the view of evolution and millions of years towards the beginning of the debate. You may know someone who has mixed mainstream science with the Bible and doesn’t realize the problems that arise. This debate will help give you the answers you need to defend God’s Word to any who may question it, especially concerning origins.

The debate was also a reminder of our ultimate purpose on earth. 

Indeed, we were created by God to bring Him glory by the things we say and do (1 Corinthians 10:31, Colossians 3:17, Ephesians 2:10). He has given us the “Great Commission” to “make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19) and “preach the gospel to every creature” (Mark 16:15). We have a mandate as Christians to make the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ known to all people. This is the greatest message of all time; the importance is one of life and death (John 3:36). 

The entire Christian life is based upon this amazing truth that Jesus Christ paid the penalty for our sins by dying on the cross, and after three days in the tomb was resurrected from the dead. He is alive and now offers the free gift of salvation from sin and imparts His righteousness to any who would believe in Him, enabling them to enter into the presence of a Holy God after death. Ken Ham clearly presented this gospel and seemed to make sure that was the focus of the debate. 

Bill Nye was not going to be convinced by evidence, but after hearing the good news of salvation, the Spirit of God could draw his heart to believe in Jesus—and the outcome: eternal life! It is estimated that over 2 million people watched the debate in the last twenty-four hours—that means that if they were listening, they would have heard the gospel. The statements and responses made by Ken Ham are a great example of sticking to the task and not getting into fruitless argumentation. Indeed, if the greatest message of all time were not mentioned in this debate, then yes it would be pointless. 

(See our blog article on the gospel)

Paul said “to live is Christ and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21). Amidst increasing persecution in western culture, Christians need to take an uncompromising stand on the authority of Scripture (2 Timothy 2:15) and make known the gospel message. It is the dark and blind world that we live in that needs to hear the truth! The debate indeed is a tremendous encouragement and motivational reminder. We cannot change the culture or the hearts of the unbelieving world, but God is more than capable to work in the lives of those who have heard His message. We ought to live for the Lord and teach our children to love Him as well. 

The Proper Way to Engage

A Response to the Ken Ham / Bill Nye Debate
By Matthew Zuk

First of all I would like to praise God for giving courage, wisdom, grace and clarity of thought to Ken Ham. We must always remember to give God the glory for all of our accomplishments as everything we have; all of our gifts, talents and abilities come from our Creator God who made us in His image! I thought that Ken did a phenomenal job of standing firm on the authority of God’s Word and he presented the Gospel at least four to five times throughout the debate. He stayed on message and presented his position very well throughout the night. He remained gracious to Bill Nye and did not resort to ad hominem arguments to tear Bill down. Ken maintained composure regardless of what Bill said and simply stayed on the message that there is only one absolute authority: God, and only one door to salvation: Jesus Christ.

It is important to remember that it is not our job to “win” debates when we are talking to unbelievers. They are blind to the truth and so no matter what evidence we bring up it will never convince them. They will always find some way to refute the evidence we present, even if our evidence is conclusive and their points make no sense.

Romans 1:18-23 “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. 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.” (Emphasis added)

These verses explain how we should expect the unsaved world to interpret the knowledge they receive. All people know that God exists, however they reject Him and exchange serving Him with serving themselves and other created beings. They exchange the Creator for the created, the infallible with the fallible, the righteous with the unrighteous, the perfect with the sinful, and the infinite with the finite. As believers we see how absurd this exchange is, however these verses explain that the people who reject God and suppress the truth have become futile in their thinking. I think last night’s debate was a great example of this; no matter what Ken said, Bill would always reject it for what he considers “real science”, even if it has no basis. He would rather reject logic than accept God, and thus, as Paul in Romans states, he was futile in his thinking.

This is why we cannot convince someone with evidence to accept Christ; only the Holy Spirit can change an unsaved person’s heart. He must change their desires and open their eyes to see the truth. And what is the truth? They are sinners who deserve eternal torment; they are hopelessly lost and cannot obtain salvation through works of their own. Only the sacrifice of Christ by the grace of God can save them and that all they need to do is put their trust and faith in Christ and repent of their sins.

Our mission whenever we speak to unbelievers is to properly represent Christ and to present them with the only means to their salvation: the work of Jesus Christ on the cross. We need to present the truth. That is our message, that is what we have been commanded to carry out to all ethnicities.

Matthew 28:19-20 “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

That is our purpose, to go out and reach people with the Gospel and to hold the Word of God as the supreme authority. We are to do all things to the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31) and I would like to thank Ken Ham for striving to reach this goal, for being a leader in taking a stand on the authority of the Word of God and for recognizing he can only achieve this through God’s grace and strength! Pray for Ken and all of the staff at Answers in Genesis and pray that God will open the eyes of Bill Nye and those who have rejected the truth. And praise God for all that He has done; He is truly awe inspiring!



Read more of our debate responses:

• An Answer to the Mysteries - Analea Styles
• Drawing Worldview Conclusions - Pastor Don Landis

An Answer to the Mysteries

A Response to the Ken Ham / Bill Nye Debate
By Analea Styles

As I watched the debate last night I was struck by the very real joy that Bill Nye has for science and discovery. No one can deny that Bill Nye, “The Science Guy”, has a deep passion for learning about the universe and desperately wants to figure things out “scientifically”. He mentioned that one of our greatest questions is “Why are we here?” In fact he was keen on pointing out that mankind has many big questions about life, the universe, and origins – things we don’t understand and he willingly admitted, “I want to know”.

Well, I think we would all agree that we also “want to know”. And the history of mankind testifies that we have a deep inner yearning to discover and learn. We know there is something more out there; there are great mysteries that we are eager to solve. Nye often used that very word, “mystery”. He claimed, “We go to work everyday to try to solve the mystery of the universe”. He admitted that consciousness is “a great mystery” to him and emphasized that it is the “joy of discovery” that drives humanity.

Indeed mankind has been driven to develop multiple fields of science through which to investigate the world, invent new technologies, and explore new places. We can all relate Bill’s enthusiasm for discovery, at least in part.

For Bill, these discoveries and answers must come from the natural world. He puts his faith in the “reasonable man”, believing that mankind can and will discover the answers on his own, in time, through mainstream scientific methods. Bill rejects any hint of the supernatural and said that for him, natural selection is “compelling and wonderful and fills [him] with joy.” But it can’t answer his biggest questions. And in the end, science can’t save “for the wisdom of this world is foolishness before God” (1 Cor. 3:19).

However, as believers, we can find the answers to many of these “mysteries” and deep questions that have plagued mankind. For Paul tells us in Colossians 2 that Jesus Christ is the great mystery “in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge (Colossians 2:2-3).

“For by Him all things were created, in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.” (Colossians 1: 16-17).

I love how Ken Ham repeatedly pointed to God’s Word as the answer. We do not back down on the reality that we base our beliefs on FAITH in God and His perfect Word. We have our confidence in Him. We know the compelling and wonderful truth of the Bible, the true joy that comes from the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:22), faith in God (Romans 15:13), and salvation in Christ (Psalm 51:12)!

If you have questions like Bill Nye; if you love to discover and ache to find the answers to those big questions of life; if you find that the naturalistic and materialistic response of secular science doesn’t solve the mysteries in your soul, I will join Ken Ham in saying “there’s a Book out there” which has the answers. And we pray “ that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him” (Ephesians 1:17).


Read more of our debate responses: 

• The Proper Way to Engage - Matthew Zuk
• Drawing Worldview Conclusions - Pastor Don Landis