Friday, August 7, 2009

CAN EVOLUTION PRODUCE AN EYE?

The following is by Dr. David N. Menton, Ph.D. It is copyrighted 1994 by Missouri Association for Creation --

The human brain consists of approximately 12 billion cells, forming 120 trillion interconnections. The light sensitive retina of the eye (which is really part of the brain) contains over 10 million photoreceptor cells. These cells capture the light pattern formed by the lens and convert it into complex electrical signals, which are then sent to a special area of the brain where they are transformed into the sensation we call vision.

In an article in "Byte" magazine (April 1985), John Stevens compares the signal processing ability of the cells in the retina with that of the most sophisticated computer designed by man, the Cray supercomputer:

"While today's digital hardware is extremely impressive, it is clear that the human retina's real-time performance goes unchallenged. Actually, to simulate 10 milliseconds (one hundredth of a second) of the complete processing of even a single nerve cell from the retina would require the solution of about 500 simultaneous nonlinear differential equations 100 times and would take at least several minutes of processing time on a Cray supercomputer.

Keeping in mind that there are 10 million or more such cells interacting with each other in complex ways, it would take a minimum of 100 years of Cray time to simulate what takes place in your eye many times every second."

If a supercomputer is obviously the product of intelligent design, how much more obviously is the eye a product of intelligent design? And yet, evolutionists are dead certain that the human eye (and everything else in nature) came into being by pure chance and the intrinsic properties of nature! Evolutionists occasionally admit that it is difficult for even them to believe such a thing. Ernst Mayr, for example, has conceded that:

"...it is a considerable strain on one's credulity to assume that finely balanced systems such as certain sense organs (the eye of vertebrates, or the bird's feather) could be improved by random mutations." (Systematics and the Origin of Species, p. 296).

Evolutionists rarely attempt to calculate the probability of chance occurrence in their imagined evolutionary scenarios. While there is no way to measure the probability of chance occurrence of something as complex as the eye, there are ways to calculate the probability of the chance occurrence of individual protein molecules that are essential to life. Over a thousand different kinds of proteins have been identified in the human body, and each has a unique chemical composition necessary for its own particular function.

Proteins are polymers, whose chemical composition depends on the arrangement of many smaller subunits called amino acids. There are 20 different kinds of amino acids that are used to construct the proteins of all living organisms, including man. These amino acids are linked together end-to-end (like a string of beads) to form a single protein macromolecule. The average protein consists of a string of 500 amino acids. The total number of combinations of 20 different amino acids in such a string is, for all practical purposes, unlimited. Each protein in our body, however, must contain a specific sequence of amino acids if it is to function properly. It is the task of the genetic system in our cells to organize the assembly of the amino acids into precisely the right sequence for each protein.

Proteins have been called "informational" macromolecules because their amino acid sequence spells out information, in much the same way as the letters of the alphabet can be arranged to form a sentence or paragraph. We can appreciate the improbability of randomly assembling one of the essential proteins of life by considering the probability of randomly assembling the letters of the alphabet to form even a simple phrase in English.

Imagine if we were to try to spell out the 23 letters and spaces in the phrase "THE THEORY OF EVOLUTION" by using the evolutionary principle of "chance." We might proceed by randomly drawing characters from a Scrabble set consisting of the 26 letters of the alphabet plus a space (for a total of 27). The probability of getting any particular letter or space in our phrase using this method would be one chance out of 27 (expressed as 1/27). The probability of getting all 23 letters and spaces in the order required for our phrase can be calculated by multiplying together the probability of getting each letter and space (1/27 x 1/27 x 1/27 -- for a total of 23 times). This calculation reveals that we could expect to succeed in correctly spelling our phrase by chance, approximately "once" in eight hundred, million, trillion, trillion draws! If we were to hurry the process along and draw our letters at the rate of a billion per second, we could expect to spell our simple little phrase once in 26 thousand, trillion years! But even this is a "virtual certainty" compared to the probability of correctly assembling any one of the known biological proteins by chance!

The 500 amino acids that make up an average-sized protein can be arranged in over 1 x 10^600 different ways (that's the number ONE followed by 600 zeros)! This number is vastly larger than the total number of atomic particles that could be packed into the known universe. If we had a computer that could rearrange the 500 amino acids of a particular protein at the rate of a billion combinations a second, we would stand essentially no chance of hitting the correct combination during the 14 billion years evolutionists claim for the age of the universe. Even if our high-speed computer were reduced to the size of an electron and we had enough of them to fill a room measuring 10 billion light years square (about 1 x 10^150 computers!), they would still be exceedingly unlikely to hit the right combination. Such a "room" full of computers could only rearrange about 1 x 10^180 combinations in 300 billion years. In fact, even if all the proteins that ever existed on earth were "all different," our "room" full of computers would be exceedingly unlikely to chance upon the combination of "any one of them" in a mere 300 billion years! Evolutionists counter that the whole probability argument is irrelevant since evolution is utterly purposeless, and thus never tries to make anything in particular! They insist, more over, that "natural selection" makes the impossible, possible. But evolutionists were vigorously challenged on this claim by mathematicians in a symposium held at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (the proceedings were published in the book, "Mathematical Challenges to the Neo-Darwinian Interpretation of Evolution") Murray Eden, Professor of Engineering at M.I.T. said: "The chance emergence of man is like the probability of typing at random a meaningful library of one thousand volumes using the following procedure: Begin with a meaningful phrase, retype it with a few mistakes, make it longer by adding letters; then examine the result to see if the new phrase is meaningful. Repeat this process until the library is complete." I will leave it to the reader to consider the probability that an intelligent Designer and Builder can intelligently design and build an eye.


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Dr. Menton received his Ph.D. in Biology from Brown University. He has been involved in biomedical research and education for over 30 years. Dr. Menton is President of the Missouri Association for Creation, Inc. Originally published in: St. Louis MetroVoice PO Box 220010 St. Louis, MO 63122

August 5, 2009 (Fundamental Baptist Information Service, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061, 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org) -

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Wednesday, August 5, 2009

Seven Years to the Day (Part 3) - The Seventh Week of Daniel

As we read in Seven Years to the Day (Part 2), Almighty God has determined 70 Weeks or 490 years for the nation of Israel: 1) To finish the transgression; 2) To make an end of sins; 3) To make reconciliation (atonement) for iniquity. These events have been fulfilled. The remaining events which will be fulfilled in the the last week of the 70 will be; 4) To bring in everlasting righteousness; 5) To seal up the vision and prophecy; and 6) To anoint the most holy place (Daniel 9:24).

This last week of 7 years (the 70th Week of Daniel) is also called the Great Tribulation Period, the Age of Lawlessness, the Day of Wrath, and the Time of Jacob’s Trouble. Each and all of these titles do not suggest pleasant things to come. As a matter of fact, this Last Week of Daniel's 70 will be the most horrific episode ever experienced in the world since time began. Jesus said, For in those days shall be affliction, such as was not from the beginning of the creation which God created unto this time, neither shall be (Mark 13:19).

Think of how terrible The First World War was. Think about how exceedingly horrible The Second World War was. Think of the great famines, plagues, earthquakes and pestilences that have happened in earth’s history, with all their millions of casualties and devastating effects. All these events will pale in comparison to this brief time period of 7 years. Jesus said, "And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved [delivered]: but for the elect’s sake [Israel] those days shall be shortened" (Matthew 24:22). All humanity would be wiped out if Almighty God did not intervene and shorten this time. Today, we have reached a global epidemic as never seen before. Billions today reject the Word of God and the reality of their Creator. Today false and counterfeit systems of unreality and delusion dominate the philosophy and ideologies of billions. The inhabitants of the earth have violated the natural moral boundaries, and the consequences thereof have risen to a head. In this Last Week of Daniel, Almighty God cuts the leash of restraint and says, “Go ahead and do what you want!” (a paraphrase of 2 Thessalonians 2:5-7). Like a drunken, raging maniac the inhabitants of the world will hurdle to their own doom and ruin.

After the Rapture of the Church (1 Thessalonians 4:15-17), the beginning of this last prophetic week will commence with the "Confirming of the Covenant" (Daniel 9:27) between Israel and their enemies. The Anti-Christ or that Man of Sin (see 2 Thessalonians 2:3), will then be identified by his confirming (i.e., strengthening) of this covenant (i.e., agreement or treaty). Once this Covenant is signed, the Prophetic Clock of Israel will begin to tick again after 2000 years or so of being stopped. It is from this point that one can count seven years to the day (i.e., 2520 days in lunar years) for Christ to return to earth, destroy His enemies, and establish His Kingdom (see Revelation 19:11-21, 20:1-6). During this seven-year period God will be preparing His chosen people Israel for His soon coming and Kingdom reign.

The next prophetic event to occur will be the "Breaking of this Treaty" in the middle of the 7-year “week.” This is called in scripture “The Abomination of Desolation” (Matt 24:15; Mark 13:14-15). It is at this time (i.e., after 3 ½ years) that the Anti-Christ will set up his totalitarian state, initiate a global monetary takeover called the Mark of the Beast (Rev 13:16-18), and seek to establish himself as Almighty God (2 Thessalonians 2:3-4)! Then with insane, zealous fury will he go after God’s chosen people in the attempt to eradicate the nation of Israel (Revelation 12:12-17) before Christ's Kingdom can be established. The persecution of Jews under the Nazi regime will absolutely pale in comparison to this event. Millions upon millions of Jews will be wiped out (Zechariah 13:8-9). So catastrophically cataclysmic, so terribly devastating and awesomely horrible is this time that few will be left alive (Isaiah 24:17-21; Revelation 6:12-17, 16:18-21). From the time the Abomination of Desolation is set up to the return of Jesus Christ is exactly 1260 days or three and a half years. These last 3 ½ years are called the Great Tribulation (Isaiah 13:9-13)!

The Word of God gives much insight and information for this brief time period. God's Word has been preparing and warning humanity about this time since man’s fall some 6000 years ago. What is astounding is that Almighty God reaches out extensively to humanity during this time by miracles, revelation, preaching, prophecy, etc., yet humanity still refuses and rejects God's grace and love. They would rather die in their sins than believe and repent and be delivered from their fallen state. They would rather face the wrath of God and eternity in God's Hell than receive the love of God. The Bible says,

The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? I the LORD search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings (Jeremiah 17:9-10).

And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood: which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk: Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts (Rev 9:20-21).

And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness (2 Thessalonians 2:10-12).

It is God's absolute desire that no one should perish (eternally). Man was created to enjoy God in the beauty of righteousness, and for God to enjoy man. God has no pleasure in the death of the wicked (Ezekiel 18:23,32). God's great love is found in the Person of His Son Jesus Christ!

The Bible states, For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved (John 3:16-17).

God cares. He knows. He wants only the highest and best for humanity - which includes you! What can (and does) Almighty God do when a rebellious world and creation rejects and violates the eternal absolutes and laws of their Creator? There is only one solution left, and that is Judgment. Do you know The Lord Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior? Put your trust in Him today. Repent and ask God's Son Jesus Christ into your heart. He wants to save you! He will forgive all your trespasses (sins) and give you eternal life! Trust in Him today!

This has been just a brief study in the prophetic day coming up ahead. Even so come Lord Jesus!
A list of ordered events that will transpire during the 7-Year Tribulation period:

1. The Covenant is Confirmed to commence this 7-year period (Daniel 9:27). Christ's Return; Seven years or 2520 days to the day!
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2. God's Two Witnesses testify to the world their message of repentance (turning from sin), salvation (restoration of perfect fellowship with God) and the soon coming of Christ’s Kingdom
on earth (Revelation 11:3-12).

3. Great Wars, Pestilence, Famine and Death occur on an unprecedented, global level (Rev. 6).

4. The death and resuscitation of the Anti-Christ, The Man from Europe (Daniel 9:26, Rev. 13:3, 17:8).

5. The Abomination of Desolation takes place and the Breaking of the Treaty (Matthew 24:15, Mark 13:14-15, 2 Thes. 2:3-5, Rev. 13:4). Christ's Return; Three and a half years or 1260 days to the Date!
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6. Jerusalem is occupied by the Anti-Christ and his armies (Zech. 12:2-3,14:2, Rev. 11:2 ).

7. Jews must flee for their lives (Matt 24:16-21, Mark 13:14-19, Rev. 12:6,14).

8. All religious systems and philosophies are eliminated (Rev. 17:15-17) and replaced with the worship of the totalitarian global-state of the Anti-Christ and Lucifer (Rev. 13:4).

9. 144,000 Jewish believers go into the whole world and preach the Kingdom of God (Matt 24:14, Rev. 7:1-8, 14:1-5).

10. Multitudes are martyred for their belief and faith in The Messiah of Israel (Rev. 7:9-17, 12:11, 14:13).

11. Two thirds of Israel are wiped out by the persecution of the Anti-Christ (Zech. 13:2, Rev. 12:13,17).

12. The Battle of Armageddon occurs (Rev. 14:14-20, 16:16, 19:11-20, Zech. 14:1-4).

13. All "remaining" Israel will be Saved! (Zech 12:9-14, Romans 11:26,27).

14. Christ makes His glorious return to earth to destroy the armies of Anti-Christ and to deliver Israel from annihilation (Matt. 26:63-64, Rev. 1:7, 19:11, Isaiah 63:1-6 Zech 14:1-15). The Seven Years or 2520 days are fulfilled.
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15. The earth’s unsaved inhabitants of earth are judged and removed and The Millennial Kingdom of Christ is established in Jerusalem (Matt. 24:37-41, 25:31-46). 75 Days after Christ's Return (Daniel 12:11,12).
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16. Christ rules and reigns from His throne in Jerusalem for 1000 years! (Rev 20:4, Isaiah 11:1-9, Ezekiel 43:1-7, Zechariah 14: 16-21).

If you are one of the countless people that are left behind in that day coming up, may you not be one of the multitudes that reject the reality and revelation that is given to you by Almighty God. Christ said, Behold I come as a thief! (2 Peter 3:10, Rev 3:3 16:15). May His Glorious Second Coming catch you not oblivious in that day.

Click on the Chart link to view a brief detailed chart of this study and an outline of the Tribulation Period.

Chart Link

The Kingdom of heaven is at hand!

DJP I.F.

Part 1 Seven Years To The Day
Part 2 Seven Years To The Day

Seven Years To The Day (Part 2) - The Seventh Week of Daniel

In our last blog (Seven Years To The Day - Part 1) we saw that after the Rapture of the Church God will again deal with His chosen people – the nation of Israel - in a very special way.

The prophet Daniel was given revelation from God about the duration of His dealings with Israel called the 70 weeks of Daniel. In Daniel 9:20-27 we read:

And whiles I was speaking, and praying, and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before the LORD my God for the holy mountain of my God; Yea, whiles I was speaking in prayer, even the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about the time of the evening oblation. And he informed me, and talked with me, and said, O Daniel, I am now come forth to give thee skill and understanding. At the beginning of thy supplications the commandment came forth, and I am come to shew thee; for thou art greatly beloved: therefore understand the matter, and consider the vision. Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy. Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined. And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.

While Daniel was in exile, a period in Israel’s history known as the Babylonian captivity (606 BC - 536 BC), Almighty God gave him this vision: 70 weeks were to be determined upon the people of Israel and upon the city of Jerusalem. According to the quoted passage, this was to:

1. Finish the transgression
2. Make an end of sin
3. Make atonement for iniquity
4. Bring in everlasting righteousness
5. Seal up the vision and prophecy
6. Anoint the most holy place
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The 70 Weeks of Years

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The 70 Weeks are seventy “weeks” of years. Each week is 7 years. The total number of calendar years is calculated by multiplying 70 (total weeks of years) by 7 (the number of years in each week of years). The total number of calendar years is 490 years (based on a lunar calendar of 360 days a year). What Daniel and the believing remnant in Israel wanted to know was when would God's prophetic “time clock” of 70 weeks for Israel start? When Daniel received this divine revelation in about 538 B.C., he had absolutely no idea when God's prophetic time clock for Israel would commence. What he did know was that God's prophetic time clock would begin to tick as soon as "the commandment was given to restore and to rebuild Jerusalem." After Israel's 70 year captivity in Babylon was completed in 536 B.C., a small group of Jews went back to Jerusalem to rebuild the Temple of God (see the book of Ezra). About 90 more years would pass until the event would come for triggering the 70 weeks of Daniel. This extended beyond the natural life of the prophet Daniel.


Finally, in 445 B.C. King Artaxerxes of Persia made the decree to "rebuild" Jerusalem (see Nehemiah 2:1-8). At the very moment that Artaxerxes made his decree to rebuild Jerusalem, God's prophetic time clock began ticking for the nation of Israel. Up to this time the events and dates of Israel's 70 weeks were unknown by all, but once this key event took place, the 70 Weeks determined for Israel by Almighty God could now be easily calculated. This point is key for understanding the Biblical formula for our "7 Years to the Day” study.

As stated in the quoted passage (Dan. 9:20-27), the next event to transpire in God's prophetic 70 week calendar for Israel was the completion of the rebuilding of the city of Jerusalem in 396 B.C. This occurred exactly 49 years (or 7 prophetic weeks) after the Decree of Artaxerxes was given to rebuild Jerusalem in 445 B.C. - precisely as Almighty God had stated in His prophetic word to Daniel!

This very clear and accurate time-line given by Almighty God may be followed and fully trusted to give insight and understanding of the nation Israel and what befalls them in the future

The next prophetic event that would transpire in Israel’s 70 Weeks after the rebuilding of Jerusalem would be the rejection or "cutting off" of the long-awaited Messiah of Israel (The Lord Jesus Christ) in 32 AD. This prophetic event was fulfilled 434 years (or 62 prophetic weeks) later to the date*.
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(* Note that a calculated difference of ~ 6 years arises from when the year of the Lord’s birth in 1 A.D. was marked between the Alexandrian and Hebrew calendars, and also from the difference in counting lunar vs. solar years.)
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This very clear and accurate time-line given by Almighty God may be followed and fully trusted to give insight and understanding of the nation Israel and what befalls them in the future. This prophetic calendar was also given to encourage the believing remnant of Israel that God has a great plan and purpose for them.

According to our counting thus far, seven years (or one week) of the 70 total weeks determined for Israel are left to be fulfilled. With the rejection and crucifixion of the Messiah (Christ), the time clock for Israel stopped and the Kingdom of God was put on hold. It is at this time that Almighty God raised up the Church (i.e, the called-out assembly described in Acts 2,3) to be His witness to the world (Matthew 28:19-20, Romans 9-11). The Church is made up of Jewish and Gentile believers in the Messiah of Israel, who is also the head of the Church (Eph. 5:23).

"With the rejection and crucifixion of the Messiah (Christ), the time clock for Israel stopped and the Kingdom of God was put on hold"

The last 70th week is yet to be fulfilled. This prophetic last week is called the Time of Tribulation, the Time of Jacob's Trouble, or the Day of the Lord. It is during this last 7-year period that Israel and the world will be affected by great distress, trouble and turmoil, such as it has never seen in its history. It is during this time that Almighty God will use this great tribulation period to bring the nation of Israel to repentance and to a saving knowledge of their Messiah (Romans 11:25-27). At the end of these last seven years, Christ will return to earth at Armageddon and Israel will be saved as a nation. The Millennial Kingdom of Messiah will then commence, in which Jesus Christ shall rule and reign from His throne in Jerusalem. Below is a link to a brief outline and chart of the Seventy Weeks Of Daniel. "CHART LINK"
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The Trumpet Will Sound!
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Soon the trumpet will sound and Christ will come for His own and remove the Church from the earth. At this time the Church Age will end (1 Thessalonians 4:15-17).

Just after the Rapture the next major prophetic event will take place. This will be the "Confirming of the Covenant” with the Anti-Messiah (i.e., Anti-Christ) described in Daniel 9:27. When this Covenant (or treaty) is confirmed (strengthened), the prophetic time clock will once again start ticking. It is from this event forward that the time span pertaining to Christ's second coming to earth (i.e., Israel) will be exactly 7 years (or 2520 days) to the day. It is during this time date-setters will not be demeaned. It will be the sounding trumpet to the inhabitants of the earth. The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!! At the fulfilment of these days Christ (i.e., Israel's Messiah) will establishment the long awaited Millennial Kingdom in Israel! Amen!

In the next I. F. Blog we will conclude this brief study and look deeper into this seven-year period and its days, months and times that God has specifically described. It is terribly exciting and wonderfully awesome!! Even so come Lord Jesus! (Rev. 22:20)

The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!

DJP I.F.

To Continue this study, click on links below.
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