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Conclusions
In no sense is it necessary to capitulate to the vociferous claim that the order in the fossil record is evidence of the progressive organic evolution to today’s plants and animals through various transitional intermediary stages over millions of years from common ancestors. While there are underlying thick strata sequences which are devoid of fossils and were therefore formed during creation week and the pre-Flood era, most of the fossil record is a record of death and burial of animals and plants during the Flood, as described in the biblical account, rather than being the order of a living succession that suffered the occasional mass extinction.
Asteroid impacts and volcanic eruptions accompanied other geological processes that catastrophically destroyed plants, animals, and people, and reshaped the earth’s surface during the Flood event. Rather than requiring long ages, the order of fossils in the rock record can be accounted for by the year-long Flood, as a result of the pre-Flood biogeography and ecological zonation, the early burial of marine creatures, the hydrodynamic selectivity of moving water, and the behavior and higher mobility of the vertebrates. Thus, the order of the fossils in the rock record doesn’t favor long ages, but is consistent with the global, catastrophic, year-long Genesis flood cataclysm, followed by localized residual catastrophism.
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The Biggest Question of All
I was only 19 years old and visiting my first foreign country. I witnessed firsthand the hopelessness of a world without the Lord Jesus Christ.
Hopelessness Abroad
My body trembled as I watched a young student from the University of Rome take a suicide plunge from the top of the Roman Coliseum. I was only 19 years old and visiting my first foreign country. I witnessed firsthand the hopelessness of a world without the Lord Jesus Christ. That young man had asked the question “Is life worth living?” Obviously, his answer was no.
That experience changed my life. I stood on Via Cavour in Rome, Italy, and promised God that I would spend my life telling others the truth about the loving Creator God so that people all over the world could have hope. For the last 40 years I have ministered on every habitable continent and have preached in 86 countries. But to this day, the image of the student in Rome still motivates me to be involved in spreading the good news of the gospel that gives people a reason for living and a plan for life and eternity.
The Biggest Question of All
Late in His life and ministry, Jesus wanted His disciples to articulate in His presence their beliefs about Him. So He asked them the biggest question of all time: “Who do you say that I am?” (Matthew 16:15).
In this book, you have read answers to many questions. As important as these questions are, they pale in significance compared to Jesus’ question. You can be wrong about your answers to many questions in this book, but you dare not be wrong about your answer to this question. You see, your answer to Jesus’ question will determine your eternal fate; it will determine where you will be living 200 years from now.
A Divine Answer
The disciples were a bit stunned by the question, and only the apostle Peter attempted an answer. His answer needs to be your answer: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16).
The amazing thing about this answer is that Peter did not come up with it on his own. It had come from the Heavenly Father (Matthew 16:17). God himself helped Peter mold the correct answer to this all-important question. So, when you read this answer, realize that it is a divinely given response! “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
Three Views of Christ
“Who do you say that I am?” Former atheist-turned-Christian C.S. Lewis tackled this question by coming up with three possible responses: Jesus Christ is the Lord (God); Jesus was a liar; or Jesus was a lunatic. As we look at the historical Jesus, we find His uniqueness in His birth (conceived by the Holy Spirit, miraculously born of a virgin), His death upon the cross, and His resurrection from the grave.
John Duncan, quoted in Colloquia Peripatetica (1870), put it best: “Christ either deceived mankind by conscious fraud, or He was Himself deluded and self-deceived, or He was Divine.” Who do you believe Jesus Christ is?
Your Answer
This chapter is the last chapter in this book, but someday you will face the last chapter of your life. Are you prepared for “The End”? About 6,000 years ago, a young couple by the name of Adam and Eve lived in a beautiful garden that their Creator had made especially for them. They were told by the Creator that they could enjoy this home fully with one exception: they were not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, otherwise they would die (Genesis 2:17).
Sadly, they disobeyed God, and sin and death came into the world. As a result, everyone is born in sin, and we all are under a death sentence because we sin, too (Romans 5:12). But God is a God of grace and mercy and He did the unthinkable. He took that punishment upon himself due to His love for each one of us. Jesus Christ came to earth and paid the penalty for sin. He offers himself to us as Savior (1 Corinthians 15:22).
The Bible is clear on the subject of salvation: “Whoever believes in Him [Jesus] should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:15). As you consider the world’s most important question, consider taking these action steps:
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Admit that you are a sinner (Romans 3:23; 1 John 1:8; Galatians 5:19–21).
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Repent of your sins before a Holy God and turn away from them (Mark 1:15; 2 Corinthians 7:10; Acts 20:21).
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Receive Jesus Christ as Lord of your life (John 1:12).
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Realize that eternal life is a gift from God (Romans 6:23).
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Receive God’s gift by faith—by taking God at His Word (Romans 10:8–11).
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Read and believe what the Bible says: “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast” (Ephesians 2:8–9).
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Express this to God in prayer. Although there is no one prayer that should be prayed, you may want to say something like: “Dear God, thank you for sending Your Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to pay for my sins on the cross. Thank you that He died for me. I acknowledge that I am a sinner and that I cannot save myself. I repent of my sins and I receive Your gift of salvation by faith. Thank you for loving me enough to save me. In Jesus’ name, amen.”
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