Creation Museum Founder Pens Book to Defend Bible Consistency
Does God change His mind? Can all sins be forgiven or are there some that are unforgivable? Why was Rahab praised for lying, when lying is forbidden in the Ten Commandments?
Ken Ham, founder of the Creation Museum, and a team of contributors respond to these questions and more in the new book, Demolishing Supposed Bible Contradictions, which seeks to defend the word of God against faith critics who claim the Bible is contradictory.
"When we think there are contradictions present, we look carefully and understand what Scripture is telling us in light of other passages," said Roger Patterson, a contributor to the book, to The Christian Post. "Then we can resolve those conflicts very easily."
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Claims of supposed inconsistencies in the Bible, mostly pushed by atheists, have contributed to a rise in the number of young people leaving the faith. Ham and his team hope that their easy-to-read book will help Christians to refute any alleged Bible contradictions.
Many people, noted Ham in the book, buy into the assertion that the Bible is "full of contradictions," but haven't bothered to look into the claim for themselves. Ham is also president and CEO of Christian apologetics ministry, Answers in Genesis.
Throughout the book, many alleged contradictions are quickly ruled out when simple logic, context, translational issues or several other considerations are taken into account.
In one chapter titled "Change of Heart," claims that the immutable nature of a holy and just God contradicts His relenting heart of judgment towards a nation or group are refuted. A notable Scripture from Jonah suggests God's "change" when He did not bring upon the nation of Nineveh the disaster He had threatened, following the nation's repentance.
This is rebuked by contributing author Stacia McKeever who notes that "nowhere in Scripture does it indicate that God is not emotive," but in fact "[His] actions and emotions are often described in terms of human actions and emotions."
"God's character does not change. However, He can change how He chooses to respond to an individual or nation's action."
What sets this book apart from other apologetics-based ministries and books is the shared view of the writers of a literal interpretation of the Book of Genesis.
"The ministry of Answers in Genesis is intent upon the entire Bible as an authority and not just picking and choosing certain parts," Patterson said. "The events of the flood actually took place and there was actually a Garden of Eden with a real Adam and Eve."
More than ever, society is questioning the credibility of the Holy Scripture and putting its accuracy under the scope. But Patterson believes that rooted behind attempts to discredit the Bible is a psychological problem of "accepting the truth of God's word over man's opinion of things."
"I think ultimately it goes to the authority that God has over life and every one of His creatures," he stated. "People want to rebel against that authority."
"They don't want to live life according to God's plan…so they try to discredit the Bible in an attempt to take God off of His throne and place themselves on the throne."
Patterson, a member of the curriculum development team at Answers in Genesis, is currently working on developing Bible-based curriculum resources including online courses. He often contributes to Answers magazine, web articles, books, and other apologetics resources from the ministry.
Ham recently announced AiG's support for the Ark Encounter Project, a full-scale Noah's Ark theme park in northern Kentucky, set to open in 2014.
