Participants:
Series Code: AU
Program Code: AU000045S
|
00:00 - It's hard to believe,
00:02 but there are still people in this day and age 00:03 who really think the world is flat. 00:05 Yep, that's right. 00:07 They think the world is flat 00:09 and some of them insist. 00:11 It's a key part of what the Bible teaches. 00:14 [upbeat music] 00:35 Back in 1838, a man by the name of Samuel Rowbotham 00:39 set up an experiment on the Bedford river in England. 00:42 What he hoped to prove 00:43 was that the earth was indeed flat, 00:46 despite, you know, 00:47 thousands of years of evidence to the contrary. 00:51 And sure enough, 00:52 his experiment seemed to prove that it was. 00:56 The concept was really pretty simple. 00:58 There's a six mile stretch of the river, 01:00 more of a canal really 01:01 that runs perfectly straight between two bridges. 01:04 He decided that if you placed a mark 01:07 on one of the bridges at a given height above the water, 01:10 and then backed up to the other bridge 01:12 and placed a telescope at exactly the same height, 01:16 you should be able to see the mark on the distant bridge. 01:18 At least you should be able to see it, 01:20 if the earth is flat, 01:22 if the earth is round, however, 01:24 six miles was far enough that the mark 01:26 should disappear below the horizon. 01:29 And sure enough, when they looked through the telescope, 01:32 they could still see the other mark, 01:33 which appeared to prove the earth is flat. 01:37 Now, why proving this was so important 01:40 to Mr. Rowbottom, I really, really don't know. 01:43 From what I can gather. 01:44 He claimed that he got the idea from reading the Bible, 01:47 which speaks about the four corners of the earth, 01:50 which to his way of thinking meant the earth 01:53 was a flat plane instead of a round globe. 01:56 Of course, that would also mean 01:58 that the language of the Bible 01:59 does not allow for figures of speech, 02:02 but for the moment, that's really beside the point. 02:04 Somehow he came to the conclusion 02:06 that people like Isaac Newton and Copernicus 02:09 were absolutely wrong. 02:10 And in 1881, he published a book names it 02:13 Zetetic Astronomy, Earth Not a Globe. 02:17 And of course, given the wild premise of his book, 02:20 he published it under a pseudonym. 02:22 He called himself parallax. 02:25 But the problem with publishing his theories in 1881 02:29 was that they had already been conclusively 02:31 disproven in 1870. 02:34 When one of his own disciples, 02:35 a man by the name of John Hampden, 02:38 put out a public challenge, 02:39 inviting people to come and prove 02:41 the earth was indeed a sphere. 02:44 He even wager the princely sum of 500 pounds 02:47 that nobody would be able to do it. 02:50 On January 12th, 1870, he published an ad 02:53 In the weekly journal Scientific Opinion. 02:56 And here's what the ad said. 02:58 What is to be said of the pretended philosophy 03:00 of the 19th century. 03:01 When not one educated man in 10,000 03:04 knows the shape of the earth on which he dwells, 03:07 why it must be a huge sham. 03:09 The undersigned is willing to deposit 03:11 from 50 pounds to 500 pounds on reciprocal terms 03:15 and defies all the philosophers, 03:17 divines and signs to professors in the United Kingdom 03:20 to prove the rotumdity and revolution of the world 03:23 from scripture, from reason, or from fact, 03:26 he will acknowledge that he has forfeited his deposit, 03:29 if his opponent can exhibit to the satisfaction 03:32 of any intelligent referee, 03:34 a convex railway river, canal, or lake. 03:38 So in other words, 03:40 if you could prove the curve of the earth, 03:42 he would pony up a considerable sum of money, 03:45 but alas for poor Mr. Hampden, 03:48 a professional surveyor named Alfred Russell Wallace, 03:52 took him up on the challenge 03:53 and publicly destroyed him. 03:57 What Wallace understood was the principle 03:59 of atmospheric refraction, which bends light, 04:02 and actually allows us to see just a little bit 04:05 over the horizon. 04:07 Refraction is the reason you can see the sunrise 04:10 just a few minutes before it actually comes up. 04:13 And it's the reason that stars 04:14 in the sky appear to twinkle. 04:16 It's the bending of light in the atmosphere. 04:19 Wallace knew that the telescope 04:21 in Rowbotham's experiment had been set 04:23 eight inches above the water, 04:26 which enhanced refraction. 04:28 So what he did was add an important element 04:31 to the Bedford River that compensated 04:33 for this atmospheric optical illusion. 04:36 He put a pole in the water halfway 04:38 between the two bridges 04:39 and he put mark on the pole at the same height 04:42 above the water as the telescope at one end 04:44 and the mark on the bridge at the other, 04:47 then he put a second mark on the midstream pole, 04:49 just a few feet below that. 04:51 If the earth was flat, Rowbotham believed, 04:55 then when you look through the telescope, 04:57 the top mark on the pole 04:58 and the mark on the distant bridge 05:00 should lie up perfectly 05:02 because they were the same height 05:04 above the water as the telescope. 05:06 But if the earth was a sphere, 05:08 then the mark on the pole should appear to be higher 05:11 because the curve of the earth 05:13 between the bridges would lift it up. 05:16 Sure enough, Wallace was right. 05:19 Not only did the top mark 05:21 on the pole appear to be higher 05:22 than the mark on the bridge. 05:23 So did his bottom mark, 05:26 which is exactly what you would expect, 05:28 if the earth is a globe. 05:30 Appalled by the devastating results, 05:32 Mr, Hampden refused to pay the bet 05:34 and even ended up in court, 05:35 trying to get out of payment. 05:37 The humiliation of losing this bet publicly 05:40 was so overwhelming that Hampden went on 05:42 to budger Wallace without mercy for another 15 years. 05:48 In fact, he even issued death threats. 05:51 So in response, here's what Wallace wrote in 1905. 05:54 He said that the wager, "Cost me 15 years of continued 05:58 worry, litigation, and persecution 06:00 with the final loss of several hundred pounds. 06:03 And it was all brought upon me by my own ignorance 06:05 and my own fault, 06:07 ignorance of the fact so well shown 06:09 by the late professor de Morgan, 06:11 that paradoxes as he termed them 06:13 can never be convinced 06:15 and my fault in wishing to get money by any kind of wager. 06:18 It constitutes therefore 06:20 the most regrettable incident in my life." 06:24 Now here's what I want you to think about 06:27 for most of us, there's little doubt 06:29 the earth is a sphere. 06:30 We've known that for thousands of years 06:33 and we've even pretty much known 06:35 the exact circumference of that sphere 06:37 for thousands of years, 06:38 ever since Eratosthenes calculated it 06:41 in the city of Alexandria. 06:43 And I guess what I really want you to notice 06:45 is just how deeply vested Mr. Hampden 06:48 was in a very bad idea. 06:51 He took the loss personally 06:52 and spent years trying to destroy his opponent. 06:56 And you've gotta wonder why? 06:57 What is it in our human nature that attracts us 07:00 to wackadoodle theories and makes us so unwilling 07:03 to accept any evidence to the contrary? 07:07 I mean, I don't know if you've had any personal experience 07:10 with flat earth people, 07:11 but for some reason I have a gift 07:13 for attracting these folks. 07:14 I hear from them all the time 07:17 and I know sure I'm gonna get 07:18 a few letters after this show. 07:20 And the one thing I've learned 07:22 over the past few decades is that discussing this 07:24 is a complete waste of your time. 07:26 I mean, I used to slow down 07:27 and talk to just about anybody with any idea, 07:31 but I've got to admit, there's a subset of society, 07:33 I'm no longer willing to waste time on. 07:37 Last summer in the Northeast, 07:38 there was this guy who approached me 07:39 after I was done speaking in public 07:41 and he told me, "Man, I really, really 07:43 wanna talk to you." 07:44 And I said, "Look, I'm a little busy 07:46 because I've made some commitments this evening, 07:47 but I'm gonna be here for a few days, 07:49 and so maybe on another day, 07:51 I'll have a little time to talk with you 07:53 after I'm done in the meeting." 07:55 You know, my gut kind of told me 07:57 he wanted to talk about something weird 07:59 because well, after almost 30 years on the road, 08:02 you get a sense for it. 08:03 So I probably shouldn't have promised him anything 08:06 because sure enough, he proved very eager to talk. 08:10 The next day, 08:12 he approached me with a file folder full of photocopies. 08:14 And he said, "I want you to read this." 08:16 And as soon as I take a short break, 08:18 I'll come back to tell you what was in that folder. 08:25 - [Narrator] Dragons, beasts, cryptic statues, 08:29 Bible prophecy can be incredibly vivid and confusing. 08:33 If you've ever read Daniel or Revelation 08:36 and come away, scratching your head, 08:37 you are not alone. 08:39 Our Free focus on prophesy guides, 08:41 are designed to help you unlock the mysteries of the Bible 08:44 and deepen your understanding of God's plan for you 08:47 and our world. 08:48 Study online, or request them by mail 08:50 and start bringing prophecy into focus today. 08:54 - You know, I kind of find it fascinating 08:56 how people with really weird ideas 08:58 will beat around the bush 08:59 when they first start talking to you, 09:00 because somehow they sense, well, 09:03 you're going to reject them. 09:05 And that's the way it was with this guy 09:07 who approached me with his stack of photocopies. 09:10 He started talking about a biblical commentary, 09:12 he'd read on the book of Ezekiel 09:14 and how something in that commentary was bothering him. 09:18 And he never quite got to the point until I'll admit, 09:20 I got a little bit impatient. 09:22 I said, "Sir, what exactly are you getting at?" 09:25 And that's when he said this, 09:27 "Well, when I was in the army, I worked in cartography, 09:30 which of course, you know is map making. 09:32 And I spent a lot of time just thinking about geography. 09:36 And well, I eventually noticed, 09:38 when I looked off the ship that the water in the ocean 09:41 is completely flat and it shouldn't be flat 09:44 if we're sitting on a globe." 09:46 This guy was channeling Samuel Rowbotham, 09:48 and the Bedford experiment. 09:51 And I guess at that point, 09:52 I'd already run into enough flat earths 09:54 that I really did lose my patience 09:56 because there were a lot of people waiting 09:58 to talk to me about real issues. 10:00 And so, sir, if you do happen to be listening today, 10:03 let me apologize for cutting you off quickly, 10:06 but please do understand you are nowhere near 10:09 the first person who has approached me 10:11 with the flat earth and tried to convert me. 10:14 And that's what I told him. 10:16 This is flat earth theory, I said, 10:17 and I'm sorry, I do not have time to talk about this. 10:21 And so I took his folder of photocopies 10:23 and I handed it back, which of course 10:25 he wasn't happy about it, upset him. 10:28 But frankly, I've learned that continuing 10:29 that discussion is a huge waste of everybody's time. 10:33 "Oh" he said, "You know about the flat earth." 10:36 And he was skeptical that I knew anything. 10:38 I said, "Yeah, I've been through this 10:40 at least a hundred times, at least." 10:43 "Really?" He said, "A hundred times." 10:46 I mean, he thought I was exaggerating, 10:47 but I promise you it's at least a hundred times. 10:51 And I've discovered firsthand 10:52 that no matter what I say to prove the earth is round. 10:56 Most of these people have a care fully considered response. 11:00 They'll show me that I'm wrong. 11:02 I mean, if you tell these people 11:04 that the Apollo missions 11:05 took pictures of a spherical earth, 11:08 they'll tell you the pictures are manipulated 11:10 or they only appear to be round 11:12 because the astronauts were taking the pictures 11:14 through a circular porthole. 11:16 I mean, it doesn't matter, 11:18 what kind of proof you offer these folks. 11:20 I promise you, you are probably wasting your time. 11:24 And this guy with that stack of photocopies 11:26 was really disappointed when I gave them back 11:29 and said, "Sorry." 11:31 I just don't believe him. 11:33 "No," he said, "I'm the one who feels sorry for you." 11:36 And he stomped off. 11:37 And that was the end of the meeting. 11:39 And I'm sure that given the current resurgence 11:42 of flat earth theories, 11:44 that some of you probably have similar stories, 11:47 it's weird, this stuff is going around again. 11:50 And again the real thing I want to ask you is why? 11:53 how do people latch onto this stuff 11:55 like a bulldog and become so invested 11:58 that they feel personally threatened 12:00 when you challenge it? 12:02 Why does something so unimportant 12:04 seem so vital to these folks? 12:07 Why do otherwise intelligent people 12:10 suddenly put on reality blinders, 12:12 and tenaciously cling to something 12:14 that doesn't make a lick of sense? 12:17 Is there a fault in the wiring of our brains 12:20 that makes us susceptible to these kinds of things? 12:23 Is there a downside to the parts of our brains 12:26 that help us recognize patterns? 12:29 I mean, think about this pattern recognition 12:31 is a really important feature in your mind 12:34 because it helps you navigate the world 12:36 and accumulate the resources you need. 12:39 And recognizing patterns is also the reason 12:42 that we can engage in any kind of empirical science, 12:46 but that very useful function 12:48 sometimes makes us see patterns 12:51 that aren't really there, 12:53 as an in the case of pareidolia 12:55 which makes us see faces 12:57 in places where there are none. 12:59 I mean, I don't know if you've ever seen this, 13:01 but there's a famous geographical feature in Canada 13:04 that you can find on Google earth. 13:05 And it's called the Badlands Guardian. 13:08 from outer space, 13:09 it looks exactly like the face 13:12 of a first nations native. 13:13 And the detail is absolutely astonishing. 13:16 I mean the eyes, the nose, the mouth, the hair, 13:20 it really does look like somebody 13:21 sculpted this thing on purpose. 13:23 And it even seems to be wearing 13:26 a set of Apple earbuds. 13:27 I mean, go on Google earth and look at it. 13:29 It's one of the most convincing things I've ever seen, 13:33 but it's an optical illusion. 13:35 The parts of the landscape that appear to be raised 13:38 are actually depressions in the ground and vice versa. 13:41 The whole thing is actually inside out. 13:44 And the reason it looks like a human face 13:46 is because our brains are very, very good 13:50 at creating patterns. 13:52 Same thing happened with that famous face on Mars 13:55 when Viking 1, first sent a picture back to us, 13:58 this feature looked exactly like a human face, 14:02 but then decades later 14:03 when Viking 2, went back with better resolution, 14:05 the face was gone. 14:07 It just disappeared. 14:08 It turns out it was only there because our brains 14:12 are so cleverly designed to recognize patterns. 14:16 And I suspect that's a big part of what happens 14:19 with some of these weird theories. 14:22 The brain is remarkably good at taking unrelated facts 14:25 and connecting them to the point 14:27 where it looks like something you recognize. 14:30 Then you add our natural predisposition 14:33 to be aware of potential threats in our environment. 14:36 And boom, you suddenly have a global conspiracy theory. 14:40 Now, I've gotta admit for the sake of complete transparency 14:44 that I really am a fan of conspiracy theories. 14:46 Not because I believe them, but because, 14:49 well, I find the phenomenon so fascinating 14:51 from Area 51 to Sasquatch, from JFK to the Illuminati. 14:57 I have a pretty good grasp of the nature 14:58 and history of conspiracy theory. 15:00 And I read these things for entertainment 15:03 because, well, look, there's little doubt. 15:05 They're very entertaining. 15:07 And for most of us, that's what they are. 15:09 They're just entertainment. 15:11 But when people start to take them seriously, 15:14 and unfortunately it seems like more and more people are 15:17 that's when the weird and wonderful 15:19 suddenly has an impact on real life. 15:22 And it suddenly begins to shape 15:23 the decisions you make and the life you lead. 15:27 And that's where it becomes a problem. 15:28 It leads to horrible outcomes. 15:31 It ruins friendships. 15:33 It adds unneeded tension to marriages. 15:36 It can lead to bad financial choices 15:39 and it can even endanger your health 15:41 depending on the nature of the conspiracy. 15:44 And one of the most tragic outcomes 15:46 I've witnessed personally is the way that 15:49 conspiratorial thinking can actually 15:52 compromise the teachings of the Christian faith. 15:56 Maybe some of you remember 15:57 the satanic panic of the 1980s 15:59 when suddenly it seemed like, well, 16:01 there was a demon hiding behind every bush 16:03 and there was this growing fear 16:05 that satanic coves were multiplying 16:07 like rabbits out there 16:09 and doing unspeakable things in an effort 16:12 to tear down the Christian faith 16:13 and maybe even Western civilization, 16:16 there were popular speakers, 16:18 visiting Christian churches, 16:19 telling wild stories of having been 16:22 a high priest of Satan or a devil worshiper 16:25 who escaped and lived to tell about it. 16:27 It was very popular. 16:29 Now, look, there's no doubt. 16:31 There are some very strange cults out there. 16:34 And I really do believe that some of them are dangerous. 16:37 It's true. 16:38 But the stories that were circulating 16:40 in the '80s really took the cake. 16:42 I mean, take, for example, the story of John Todd, 16:46 he became a popular speaker in a lot of churches 16:49 because he claimed that he was raised in a family 16:53 that practiced witchcraft. 16:55 And by that he didn't mean old world paganism, 16:57 like the druids in England, 17:00 he met actual devil worship. 17:02 He claimed to be a green beret who served in Vietnam. 17:06 And he claimed that he had been initiated into something, 17:08 he called The Council of 13, 17:11 this high ranking body of satanist 17:13 who were busy taking over the world. 17:16 And from that point, he began to tie just about 17:19 absolutely everything together. 17:20 The Rothschilds, the Kennedys, the oil companies, 17:24 the Illuminati, the entertainment industry, the government, 17:28 everything, you name it. 17:30 All of it he said, was being secretly controlled 17:33 by a highly organized and secretive group of Satanists. 17:37 Elton John claimed was using 17:39 some kind of witch language to write his songs. 17:43 Ayn Rand had been told by the Rothschild he said, 17:46 to write her books 17:48 and the Illuminati told her to spread her ideas. 17:52 And John Todd really was just the tip of the iceberg 17:55 back in the 1980s, 17:57 there were others like Mike Warnke, 17:59 who said he had been a witch 18:01 who was put in charge of a territory 18:03 to spread the message of sex, drugs, and rock and roll. 18:07 Copies of copies of copies of VHS tapes 18:10 were making the rounds in people's homes. 18:11 Maybe you remember some of these 18:13 and these tapes somehow proved 18:16 that somehow vast satanic networks 18:19 were abducting children 18:20 controlling the minds of the youth 18:22 and slowly demolishing Christian churches 18:24 by displaying al cult symbols 18:26 and placing hexes on church properties. 18:30 Kids, you might remember started playing 18:32 their records backwards, 18:33 looking for hidden satanic messages. 18:35 They only seemed to be there, 18:37 if someone told you exactly what you were listening for. 18:41 I remember the amazing buzz 18:43 that went through one town I lived in 18:45 when somebody said, "Hey, a satanic coven went to 18:48 a vacant church property in the middle of the night, 18:50 last night to curse it, 18:52 we found a circle on the ground 18:54 and now the church can never be built." 18:57 Rumors circulated in my city that on Halloween, 19:00 the hospitals had to post extra guards 19:02 in the maternity ward to prevent satanic abductions. 19:06 Now, again, I'm not saying there's no such thing 19:10 as a satanic covenant or destructive cult, 19:12 because believe me, 19:14 those things really are out there. 19:16 But the idea that they're all connected 19:18 in one grand conspiracy run 19:20 by the world's Jews or the Illuminati, 19:23 that's the work of overactive imaginations. 19:26 And I'll be right back after this. 19:32 - [Narrator] Here at The Voice of Prophecy, 19:33 we're committed to creating top quality programming 19:36 for the whole family, 19:37 like our audio adventure series, 19:38 Discovery Mountain, 19:40 Discovery Mountain is a Bible based program 19:43 for kids of all ages and backgrounds. 19:45 Your family will enjoy the faith building stories 19:48 from this small mountain, summer camp and town. 19:51 With 24 seasonal episodes every year 19:53 and fresh content every week. 19:55 There's always a new adventure just on the horizon. 20:02 - The real problem with the likes of 20:04 John Todd and Mike Warnky, is that 20:06 pretty much none of what they said was true. 20:10 Mr. Todd ended up in jail convicted of rape, 20:12 and after he was released, 20:14 he landed in a psych ward. 20:16 Mike Warnke who also did standup comedy for some reason, 20:20 was exposed by Christian journalist 20:22 who showed that he'd been making up the whole story. 20:25 And at the end of the day, 20:27 Christians and Christianity ended up 20:28 with yet another black eye. 20:31 We looked utterly foolish 20:32 because we were out there selling these ideas. 20:36 And the actual message of Christianity 20:38 had kind of faded into the background. 20:41 It reminds me a little bit of a story 20:43 that you find over in the book of Acts, 20:45 which interestingly enough also has ties to the old cult. 20:49 You find it in Acts 16, 20:51 where Paul is visiting the city of Philippi, 20:54 an Asia Minor. 20:55 And he's plagued by this girl 20:57 who follows him around announcing his presence. 21:00 Here's what it says. 21:02 Now it happened as we went to prayer 21:04 that a certain slave girl possessed 21:05 with a of divination met us, 21:08 who brought her masters much profit 21:10 by fortune telling, this girl followed Paul and us 21:14 and cried out saying, 21:15 "These men are the servants of the most high God 21:18 who proclaimed to us the way of salvation." 21:21 And this she did for many days. 21:25 Now you would think Paul might be happy 21:28 for some free advertising because, you know, 21:30 there's no such thing as bad publicity, 21:33 but not so in this case, 21:34 it continues again in verse 18. 21:36 and it says, 21:37 but Paul greatly annoyed turned 21:40 and said to the spirit, 21:41 "I command you in the name of Jesus Christ 21:43 to come out of her." 21:44 And he came out of her that very hour. 21:48 So here we have a genuine Oke practitioner, 21:51 the real deal. 21:52 And she's telling everybody to listen to Paul. 21:54 This is a servant to the most high God, 21:56 and if you listen to him, you will find salvation. 22:00 Of course, that was true. 22:01 If you listened to Paul, you would, 22:03 but Paul shot her down 22:05 because this was a case of bad optics. 22:08 She was the last person he wanted 22:10 endorsing his message. 22:12 She was actively discrediting him, 22:15 making him guilty by association with her. 22:19 And in some ways that's what happens 22:21 when Christians go off message 22:23 with their conspiracy theories, 22:24 they read a few popular books, 22:26 or they lay awake at night, 22:27 listening to Art Bell and George Nory. 22:30 And they start to preach what they're hearing 22:32 as if it's true. 22:34 And as if it ties into the Bible, 22:36 suddenly there are hidden enemies everywhere. 22:39 And we become obsessed with exposing 22:41 the so-called secret enemies 22:42 who are pulling the world's strings. 22:45 And sometimes, sometimes occasionally 22:48 wouldn't you know it, they proved to be right. 22:50 Sometimes there are government scandals, 22:53 sometimes there are coverups, 22:55 sometimes there are plots to overthrow the government. 22:59 Now the real thing is seldom is juicy 23:02 as the elaborate stories people weave, 23:04 or the complex charts, 23:05 they create to link all the powerful people in the world, 23:08 but sometimes conspiracies do happen. 23:11 I mean, of course they do just look at 23:13 what happened to folks in Tuskegee. 23:16 But the question Christians 23:18 need to ask themselves is pretty easy. 23:21 Is this theory the message of the gospel? 23:25 or maybe we should just ask the question. 23:27 So what? 23:28 What difference does this story make? 23:30 Is there a chance when you find yourself 23:33 drinking at the fountain of global conspiracy 23:35 that you're actually causing harm 23:37 to the cause of Christ? 23:39 Let me go back to the flat earth thing for a moment. 23:41 And I know this is one of my favorite subjects. 23:44 More often than not, these people will talk about 23:46 a global conspiracy where NASA 23:48 is working overtime to keep you in the dark. 23:50 But as you probe it, 23:51 it begins to look a lot 23:52 like all the other conspiracy theories. 23:54 And occasionally when somebody assaults me 23:56 with their firmly held belief that the earth is flat, 23:59 I just ask 'em one question. 24:00 What does it matter? 24:02 Are you planning to go to space? 24:04 Are you landing to launch a satellite? 24:06 What does it matter? 24:07 And that's the important question. 24:10 I mean, it's easy to see why 24:11 the existence of God would matter. 24:12 If there is a Supreme being 24:14 and he has moral standards, 24:16 that would be good to know. 24:17 If you and I were created by God, 24:19 that matters, but the shape of the earth, 24:22 it doesn't matter. 24:23 It doesn't affect my life today. 24:25 For 99.9% of people, 24:28 it doesn't make a lick of difference. 24:30 And by wasting your time on foolishness, 24:32 you may well be playing the role of the servant girl, 24:35 casting shade on real Christianity. 24:39 Most of the conspiracy theories 24:40 that circulate in churches, 24:42 remind me of the advice Paul gave 24:44 to a budding young preacher named Timothy. 24:46 And he says this in, 1 Timothy 1, he says, 24:50 as I urged you, when I went into Macedonia 24:52 remain an Ephesus that you may charge some 24:55 that they teach no other doctrine 24:58 nor give heed to fables and endless genealogies, 25:00 which cause disputes rather than godly edification, 25:04 which is in faith. 25:05 A apparently the spinning of fables 25:07 was already a problem in the early church. 25:10 People were engaged in pointless stories and disputes 25:13 and in the process, 25:14 they were experiencing the tragedy of mission drift, 25:17 where they were no longer focused 25:19 on the real message of Christ. 25:21 I guess on the one hand, 25:22 it makes me feel better about what happens today, 25:24 because it's been going on for long time. 25:27 But on the other hand, 25:29 I've gotta believe that the apostle was frustrated, okay? 25:32 Time for one last break, 25:34 and then we'll wrap this up. 25:37 - [Narrator] Life can throw a lot at us. 25:40 Sometimes we don't have all the answers, 25:43 but that's where the Bible comes in. 25:45 It's our guide to a more filling life. 25:48 Here at the Voice of Prophecy, 25:50 we've created the Discover Bible Guides 25:52 to be your guide to the Bible. 25:54 They're designed to be simple, easy to use 25:56 and provide answers to many of life's toughest questions. 25:59 And they're absolutely free. 26:01 So jump online now, or give us a call 26:04 and start your journey of discovery. 26:09 - Back in the earliest days of the Christian Church, 26:11 there were believers 26:12 who started to blend the teachings 26:14 of the pagan mystery schools 26:16 with the teachings of Jesus. 26:18 Today we call 'em the gnastics 26:20 a word based on the Greek word for knowledge, gnosis. 26:24 And the basic idea was this, 26:25 it's a special group, 26:27 the enlightened ones who had secret knowledge 26:29 that nobody else had. 26:31 And of course that was very appealing 26:32 because who doesn't wanna be 26:34 part of the intellectual elite? 26:36 The problem was their system of belief, 26:38 completely distorted the teachings of the gospel. 26:42 And unfortunately the same thing still happens today. 26:45 I think sometimes people just want to feel important. 26:49 They want to feel special. 26:51 And when they get the idea that they're the only ones 26:53 who understand the real nature of the world, 26:57 that they're the only ones 26:58 who can really see what's going on. 27:01 Well, that can be a little bit intoxicated, 27:04 but the problem is this. 27:06 It's not the message of this book, 27:09 conspiracy theorists like to preach things 27:11 nobody could possibly know. 27:12 You could just never prove them. 27:15 They have a message about what people 27:16 supposedly do out there, somewhere in secret. 27:20 And there's never any evidence, 27:21 never any real proof, 27:23 just whispers in the dark 27:25 and anybody who dares to disagree with these folks 27:27 gets written off as a shield 27:29 for the shadow government 27:30 or some other secret organization. 27:34 It's a pointless discussion 27:36 and it has nothing, nothing to do 27:40 with what it means to live an authentic human life. 27:44 Listen, let me just say this as I wrap up. 27:46 The message of the Bible is profound enough, 27:48 it doesn't need our help 27:50 and maybe it's time to pick it up, 27:52 especially if you claim to be a believer 27:54 and read it and see what it actually says. 27:58 God doesn't need us to add to it. 28:00 This book gives you everything you need 28:02 for an authentic life. 28:04 Thank you for joining me. 28:05 I'm Shawn Boonstra. 28:06 This has been authentic. 28:09 [upbeat music] |
Revised 2022-03-23