26. So what’s the big deal with the age of the Earth? Why is it so important?

27. You guys say you are against abortion, but what about abortion in the case of rape or incest? You surely wouldn’t force a woman to keep a child in this case!

28. Does God really want us to prove everything? Shouldn't we take some things on pure faith?

29. If you get ten people reading the Bible, you'll get ten different interpretations of it, right?

30. Everyone's interpretation of the Bible seems different. How can you tell who's right and who's wrong?

26. So what’s the big deal with the age of the Earth, anyway? Why is it so important?

In the great scheme of things, the age of the universe and the Earth is no big deal. Of course, we would see it as a nonsalvation issue. The most important things are our relationships with God and others. But!

In our witness to the scientific community, the age of the Earth is a big thing.

Suppose for a moment you were a scientist. Suppose that every discipline of science, whether related or not, from geology to astronomy, from anthropology to zoology, told you the earth was billions of years old – not thousands. Now along comes a person of faith. This person says that in his Holy Book, in the very first chapters, it says that the entire universe was created in a week, several thousand years ago.

Many scientists disregard the Bible as myth because of the dogmatic approach by some believers that the scientist must accept their seven-day interpretation of the Creation to be a Christian.

There are dogmatic things about our faith, to be sure – the Incarnation, Atonement, Resurrection – but the age of the universe is not one of them.

Moreover, there is a non-compromising way of interpreting scripture that supports an old universe/earth. But you’ll have to go the Archives (Land o' Science) and check it out. It is too big to be here. ;)

27. You guys say you are against abortion, but what about abortion in the case of rape or incest? You surely wouldn’t force a woman to keep a child in this case!

Fair question. We believe the unborn child is a human being - an innocent human being who has a right to life like all those human beings already born. Under what circumstances the child was conceived, however horrendous, doesn’t change the fact that this is an innocent human being with a right to live.

Therefore, although the circumstance that brought about this child is evil to be sure, the resulting baby is not.

If the circumstance that brought about a child is what determines whether he or she should live or not, then why shouldn’t we be able to take the life of a “rape” child even after the birth? What if the woman decided that this child looks too much like her attacker and wants him/her killed? Using the reasoning implied above – that having the child is too traumatic, therefore killing the unborn child is acceptable – why not continue down the slippery slope and take the life of a child already born?

Rape and incest are evil things. The perpetrator of these crimes should be dealt with severely. (Castration comes to mind.) But the problem is not solved by taking the life of the innocent child. That is punishing the wrong person, which, last we looked, is a bad thing in this country.

28. Does God really want us to prove everything? Shouldn't we take some things on pure faith?

We believe there's a tight connection between proof and faith. The apostle Paul in I Thessalonians 5:21 exhorts us in his words to "test everything." Objective testing is our protection against deception.

Faith is never intended to be blind. Should we “just believe” all things coming our way? What if they are contradictory or illogical? We get upset with those who just believe the words of Joseph Smith and Brigham Young without examining what they have said; Should we expect any less from ourselves?

Faith involves action taken as a result of established facts. Hence, the exhortation to ?walk by faith" is entirely consistent with the command to "test everything." This doesn't mean, however, that we should never trust God to see us through new and uncharted waters. Past proof can be the basis for future trust.

For example, because we have so much past evidence for the reliability of the law of gravity, most of us are willing to trust it when we go up or down a ladder. Similarly, if we have taken the effort to establish the reliability of God in His Bible with respect to science, history, geography, and life principles, then we can believe in what we cannot directly see and we can proceed with confidence in God's leading for our future. More specifically, we can trust the Bible's instructions on how to form a successful relationship with God.

29. If you get ten people reading the Bible, you'll get ten different interpretations of it, right?

We say "wrongo-congo." Unlike the other Holy Books of the world's religions, the Bible is neither vague nor esoteric. We don’t need some guru to explain the plain truths of the Bible. (Pastors and priests are teachers; they are not revealing truths that were hidden from laymen.)

The Bible distinguishes itself by the frequency with which it makes definite, specific statements on science, history, and geography. In its history the Bible gives thousands of names, dates, and places. In explaining its more important doctrines, the Bible uses some of the most precise grammar and carefully worded prose that one can find in all literature.

Moreover, these important teachings are clarified over and over from a variety of perspectives. For each Biblical principle explained, many illustrations are added to demonstrate how each them is to be applied in different contexts.

The challenge however comes from the succinctness or brevity of the Bible. An enormous amount of information is packed into a few words. Therefore, to pick up all the details surrounding the main teachings of the Bible often requires a careful, systematic analysis in the original languages.

The main messages, however, are abundantly clear for anyone reading the texts with an open mind and a humble heart free of moral or philosophical bias.

30. Everyone's interpretation of the Bible seems different. How can you tell who's right and who's wrong?

One problem is that people have tried to apply conflicting rules or no rules of interpretation to the Bible. However, we do not need to guess who's right and who's wrong, for the Bible itself clearly lays out one set of rules for its interpretation, rules that yield total consistency among all 66 books of the Bible.

Get your pencil ready, here they are:

1) establish the correct frame of reference,
2) make no conclusions without examining and considering the whole of the Bible,
3) interpret narrative passages in light of instructive passages, and illustrations in light of principles,
4) take any passage literally unless its context clearly indicates that it should be taken figuratively or symbolically,
5) accept a symbol definition only if it is given as such within Scripture,
6) recognize that prophecies may be fulfilled more than once,
7) be prepared to draw more than one message or application from a passage, and
8) be alert to occasional problems in translating from the original languages.

Those who are free of presuppositional bias and who follow this set of rules will always agree on the meaning of the main doctrines of the Bible.