“In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”
- John 1:4-5
With the winter solstice just weeks away, darkness squeezes more light from the each passing day. No wonder humans have traditionally viewed this time of year with fear and apprehension. Yet Psalm 139:12 reminds us: “even the darkness is not dark” to God, for His light triumphs over darkness, His grace over sin, His goodness over evil. How fitting, then, that the Church should celebrate the coming of “the Sun of Righteousness” during this darkest of seasons. Advent begins this Sunday, December 3, and runs through Christmas Eve. It is God’s invitation to us to re-enact, yet again, the age-old human journey from hopelessness to hope and darkness to brilliant light.
This Sunday, we have a special treat in store. As we enter this season of reflection on the wonder of Christ’s incarnation, we begin with a consideration of the wisdom, power and goodness of the pre-incarnate Christ evidenced in His work of creation. Our tour guide is the renowned Astrophysicist, Dr. Hugh Ross, who will give two different messages at our 9am and 11am services (see details below).
After earning his Ph.D. in astronomy from the University of Toronto, Hugh did postdoctoral research on quasars and galaxies at the California Institute of Technology. He has written dozens of books and articles on how science confirms the Biblical record and founded an apologetics ministry called Reasons to Believe. He also has spoken at 300 universities, 400 churches and numerous conferences around the world.
I have gotten acquainted with Hugh as a fellow adjunct faculty member at A.W. Tozer Theological Seminary and have been impressed by his genius, humility and Christlikeness. Bring your friends, especially those interested in science and are skeptical about Christianity.
May the mystery of our Lord’s advent fill you with wonder –Tom
Dr. Ross’ 9am Message: “Cosmic Reasons to Believe in Christ”
Astronomy is the only discipline where scientists directly observe history. Today, astronomers can see all the way back to the cosmic creation event itself. Thus, astronomy yields the most rigorous and compelling scientific evidences for a Creator who transcends space and time and personally crafts the universe for the specific benefit of human beings. This talk shows how the Bible accurately predicted the history and structure of the universe thousands of years in advance of the scientific discoveries confirming that history and structure.
Dr. Ross’ 11am Message: “More Than Myth: The Science of Genesis”
Most Christian scholars have abandoned Genesis 1 as a literal historical account of material reality because they see hopeless conflicts between its claims and those of established science. These conflicts arise out of a failure to apply the biblical testing method (aka scientific method) to both Genesis 1 and scientific findings. When applied, the biblical testing method transforms Genesis 1 into the strongest scientific case for the inspiration and inerrancy of the Bible. Since most non-Christians view Genesis 1 as Christianity’s Achilles heel, Christians need to become equipped to use it as one of their primary witnessing tools.