[Music]
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Jesus is talking with His
disciples one day and He says
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to Philip, "He who has
seen Me has seen the Father.
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That's John 14:9.
On Father's Day - Happy
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Father's Day, Dads - some
people reflect on the fact that
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they didn't have a great
father while they grew up.
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Gone too much, to angry,
violent, abusive... Tragic.
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But there's a Father you can
love, and even if your earthly
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father didn't give you
a perfect picture of what
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a Dad should be, Jesus said
that if you want to know what
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God the Father is
like, just look at Jesus.
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Jesus reveals what our
Heavenly Father is really
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like. He's kind,
patient, merciful,
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forgiving,
accepting, healing, uplifting...
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If you want to know what
the Father is like, look at
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Jesus. And when
you do that, you'll
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agree that you DO
have a Father you can
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love and trust.
I'm John Bradshaw
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for It Is Written.
Let's live today by Every
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Word. [music]
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[Theme Music]
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It has stood the test of time.
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God's book, the Bible.
Still relevant in today's
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complex world. It Is Written
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sharing hope around the globe.
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Imagine growing up thinking
you were someone, and then
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discovering you
were someone else.
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And imagine if you found
out your own godfather was one
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of the monsters of
history. Guntram Weber was
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a 63-year-old teacher
living in Berlin, West Germany.
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Like many Germans his
age, he never knew his father,
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and that was because his
dad was killed during the war.
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Or, at least that's
what his mother told him.
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"Guntram, your dad was a
truck driver for the Luftwaffe
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in Croatia and he
died in the fighting."
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And that's all she told
him. For much of his life,
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Guntram remained
skeptical about what his mother
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had said regarding his father.
He could never quite bring
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himself to believe her story.
It always bothered him that
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she never talked about
his father, and when he asked
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questions, she would say
something quickly and then
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change the subject. And
to make things seem even
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more suspicious, there
were never any photos of his dad
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around the house,
and he couldn't find any
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documentation. Then
one day, following a hint
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his stepfather gave him,
Guntram did a little digging
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into his past, and much to
his shock he found the truth.
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Guntram was what they
called a Lebensborn baby, a term
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the Nazis used to describe
their plan to use selective
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breeding to create a
Master Aryan race that would
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eventually rule the
world. They'd pick out what they
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considered to be the most
Aryan-looking and racially
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pure men and women, and
under the direction of the SS
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and Heinrich Himmler, they ran
a special program where those
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people were essentially
sent to breeding farms around
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Europe to give birth
to supposedly racially
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pure children. And
when Guntram went to find
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the truth about his dad,
that's what he discovered.
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His dad wasn't a lorry
driver killed in Croatia.
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He was a Major-General in
the SS who had a wife and three
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children of his own when he
got Guntram's mother pregnant.
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His mother then went to one
of the "Lebensborn" clinics,
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and thus Guntram
came into the world.
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His real father was deemed
a war criminal and had to flee
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to Argentina after the war,
where he lived until his death
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in 1970. But as bad as that was,
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it wasn't the only
dark secret in his life.
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He discovered, to his
horror, that Heinrich Himmler,
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the infamous
director of the death camps,
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was his godfather.
Imagine: thinking one thing
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about your origins all
your life, and then discovering
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the horrible truth:
your birth was a part of
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a systematic eugenics
program. Thousands of Germans,
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after the war,
suffered the trauma of making
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that very discovery.
[Music] Some of the most
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basic questions people
ask during the course of their
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lifetime are things like "Who
am I?", and "Why am I here?"
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Anybody who lives long
enough and gives life even a few
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moments of serious thought
is going to ask those kinds
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of questions. [music] ...
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In his book Anna
Karenina, Leo Tolstoy presents
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a Russian aristocrat
by the name of Konstantin
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Levin who asks three essential
questions: (1) What am I?
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(2) Where am I?,
and (3) Why am I here?
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As the story goes, Konstantin
was looking at his estate
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when he suddenly
wonders: what does it all mean?
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"When these people are
all dead, and I'm dead, too -
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what will all of this
mean?" I had a conversation once
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with a philophosy professor
in London, England once told
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me that philosophers
still wrestle with the big
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questions. I said
"Michael, what are those
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big questions?" And he told
me: "Here are the big questions
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we are trying to
get to the bottom of.
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Who am I? Why am I here?
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There's something in
the human heart that cries
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desperately to know
what life is all about.
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What a waste to live here
without knowing why you're
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here and how you're
supposed to spend your time.
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Most people wander through
life not knowing what their
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life really means. And
then, when it's too late
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they discover what
they could have done.
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So let me ask you: how,
exactly, are you supposed to
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live your life if you don't
know why you're here or where
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you come from?
Richard Dawkins, the famous
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Oxford zoologist and atheist,
believes quite strongly that
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he's got the answer.
He says that we are cosmic
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accidents created by
chance through the unconscious
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mechanism of random
mutation and natural selection.
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In other words, more
conscious thought and purpose
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went into somebody scribbling
some graffiti under a bridge
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than went into the creation
of you and me - or the whole
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universe even. But
look at the world around
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you: everything
seems to have a purpose.
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Ears have purpose, the brain
of a dolphin has a purpose,
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the sun has a purpose, the
DNA of a flower has purpose,
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and yet we're being asked
to believe that everything
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around us is an accident
and has no purpose at all?
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After more than a century
of evolutionary theory being
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taught in the
classroom, millions and millions
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of Americans
still don't believe it.
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Most of us still believe
that God purposely created us -
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in His image. All
the hypotheses and
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speculations out there
about there being a "the selfish
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gene," or about
"natural selection," or about
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primordial soup - just don't
make the same kind of sense
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found in the first words of
the Bible: Genesis 1:1 says,
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"n the beginning God created
the heavens and the earth"
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You know, in those few words,
we have a radically different
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perspective on the question
of life than the stuff we
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learned in high school biology.
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Are we really just the chance
product of cold cosmic forces
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who never even saw us
coming? Or are we the purposeful
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creation of a loving God
who made us, as the Bible says,
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in His own image?
There's quite a stark
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contrast
between those two views.
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Guntram Weber thought he
had it pretty bad, having
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Heinrich Himmler
as his godfather.
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But at least his life had
some sort of misguided design
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to it. As bad
as the picture was,
00:08:04.35\00:08:06.61
I think it's even
worse to be told that your
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great-great-great-great-grand
father was a single-celled
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organism coming out
of a primordial soup.
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Suddenly, your life has
got no kind of meaning at all.
00:08:16.06\00:08:21.86
Now let me ask you this
question: Can a painting of a
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water lily suddenly
become an actual water lily?
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Are you sure you know
the answer to that question?
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I'll bring that answer
to you in just a moment.
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[Music]
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When you hear the
word 'heaven' what comes
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to your mind? If it's
little more than harps
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and clouds my guess is
you might not be too excited
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about spending
an eternity there!
00:08:54.73\00:08:56.83
But the Bible has
good news for you!
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Heaven is a very real
place for real people!
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And God has great
things in store for you there.
00:09:01.90\00:09:04.91
If you'd like to know what the
Bible says about heaven, let me
00:09:04.91\00:09:07.31
send you a booklet
called, 'Good As It Gets'
00:09:07.31\00:09:09.91
It's absolutely FREE. Just
call (800) 253-3000 and ask
00:09:09.91\00:09:14.95
for "As Good As It Gets."
If the line's busy, do keep
00:09:14.95\00:09:18.42
on trying. You can write to
00:09:18.42\00:09:20.66
It Is Written, P.O. Box
6, Chattanooga, TN 37401,
00:09:20.66\00:09:25.43
and we'll mail a free copy to
your address in North America.
00:09:25.43\00:09:28.73
Our toll-free number
is 1 (800) 253-3000 ,
00:09:28.73\00:09:32.20
and our web
address is ItIsWritten.com.
00:09:32.20\00:09:39.11
[Music] Time for today's
00:09:39.11\00:09:56.66
Bible question and thanks for
submitting Bible questions to
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us at It Is Written.
How can a person really
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believe the Bible is true?
It was written years ago, it
00:10:01.73\00:10:05.90
has been copied so many
times, it was written by
00:10:05.90\00:10:08.24
a lot of different people
and those people wrote different
00:10:08.24\00:10:11.01
parts of the Bible
at different times.
00:10:11.01\00:10:14.51
Help me believe the
Bible is believable.
00:10:14.51\00:10:18.05
Great question. Thank you.
00:10:18.05\00:10:20.05
I'll do my best.
You know what's funny?
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There are historical books
that not many people question
00:10:22.45\00:10:25.95
when it comes to authenticity.
00:10:25.95\00:10:27.96
Let me explain this a
bit. A historian named Tacitus
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wrote The Annals
of Imperial Rome.
00:10:31.53\00:10:33.96
Few people question its
accuracy or its veracity,
00:10:33.96\00:10:37.10
even though what is available
today comes from a copy and
00:10:37.10\00:10:41.44
doesn't NEARLY date
back to the original.
00:10:41.44\00:10:43.94
Now I'm not knocking Tacitus
at all - just pointing out
00:10:43.94\00:10:48.91
that there's a bit of a
double standard when it comes
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to considering the
accuracy of the Bible.
00:10:50.91\00:10:53.48
Now there are several
reasons you can trust the Bible.
00:10:53.48\00:10:56.28
I'll name just a few.
Historically it stands up.
00:10:56.28\00:10:59.45
Luke, who wrote Luke and
the Book of Acts, is a very
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accurate historian, and
the historical details found in
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what he wrote stand the
test of thorough scrutiny.
00:11:06.03\00:11:10.23
Archaeology has validated
the Bible again and again.
00:11:10.23\00:11:13.70
On numerous occasions it
has been said that portions of
00:11:13.70\00:11:16.24
the Bible couldn't be
trusted because they couldn't be
00:11:16.24\00:11:18.71
validated by the
archaeological record.
00:11:18.71\00:11:21.08
But again and again
archaeologists have found
00:11:21.08\00:11:24.28
records of cities or other
evidences that show the Bible
00:11:24.28\00:11:28.88
record was accurate after all.
00:11:28.88\00:11:31.75
It has happened
many, many times.
00:11:31.75\00:11:34.46
Then there are the manuscripts.
00:11:34.46\00:11:36.73
There are hundreds of old
manuscripts or portions of
00:11:36.73\00:11:39.56
manuscripts that show us
that what has come down to us
00:11:39.56\00:11:42.50
today is consistent with
what was written hundreds and
00:11:42.50\00:11:45.87
hundreds of years
ago. Tthe Dead Sea Scrolls,
00:11:45.87\00:11:49.24
discovered in the late
1940s and early 1950s are
00:11:49.24\00:11:51.81
compelling evidence
that the Bible is legitimate.
00:11:51.81\00:11:55.38
They date back as far back
as before the time of Christ,
00:11:55.38\00:11:59.68
and they show us that
the Bible we read today is
00:11:59.68\00:12:01.82
fundamentally the same
as what was written way back
00:12:01.82\00:12:04.09
then. Now the ‘differences' that
00:12:04.09\00:12:07.36
exist in manuscripts
are generally so small that
00:12:07.36\00:12:10.43
they're just irrelevant.
You don't find a manuscript
00:12:10.43\00:12:14.46
where Jesus says He is
not the Son of God, or where
00:12:14.46\00:12:17.90
Christ is
teaching something bizarre.
00:12:17.90\00:12:20.07
And consider prophecy.
Many prophecies of the Bible
00:12:20.07\00:12:22.07
are being fulfilled and
this demonstrates I think,
00:12:22.07\00:12:24.14
conclusively, that
the Bible can be trusted.
00:12:24.14\00:12:28.18
When you've got predictions
made that name a king before
00:12:28.18\00:12:30.98
he is born or that name a
certain invader or conquerer
00:12:30.98\00:12:34.18
before he is born and then
these things come to pass...
00:12:34.18\00:12:37.35
When you have got all those
prophecies about Jesus coming
00:12:37.35\00:12:40.89
to the world one saying He
would be crucified, another
00:12:40.89\00:12:43.39
saying not a bone would
be broken, another saying He
00:12:43.39\00:12:45.96
would be born in Bethlehem,
another saying He would die
00:12:45.96\00:12:48.60
in dishonour, another saying
He would be rejected by the
00:12:48.60\00:12:51.57
ones He came to
save, and on and on...
00:12:51.57\00:12:55.27
You've got a real problem if
you want to argue against the
00:12:55.27\00:12:58.64
inspiration of the Bible.
What are you going to do with
00:12:58.64\00:13:01.54
all that
evidence? But you know what?
00:13:01.54\00:13:06.11
At the end of the day we
accept the Bible by faith.
00:13:06.11\00:13:09.75
The Bible's critics do
raise fair questions at times -
00:13:09.75\00:13:12.65
sometimes questions
aren't very easy to answer,
00:13:12.65\00:13:15.16
especially to
everybody's satisfaction.
00:13:15.16\00:13:17.33
But there's enough
clear - what I would call -
00:13:17.33\00:13:20.86
"evidence" for us to know
that the Bible really is the
00:13:20.86\00:13:24.53
word of God. You
can accept it by faith.
00:13:24.53\00:13:26.94
Not blind faith, but
reasonable, studied faith.
00:13:26.94\00:13:31.31
There are many, many good
reasons to trust the Bible.
00:13:31.31\00:13:33.94
So many I"m not sure
how someone can really
00:13:33.94\00:13:38.08
be confident in
rejecting the Bible.
00:13:38.08\00:13:41.58
If there's a question you
would like answered, pleae
00:13:41.58\00:13:43.59
send it to me
at ItIsWritten.com.
00:13:43.59\00:13:45.89
I'll do my very best to
get your question answered.
00:13:45.89\00:13:50.39
[Music]
00:13:51.29\00:13:54.13
You know, one of the great
puzzles of modern science is
00:13:56.46\00:13:59.50
the question of life itself:
where, exactly, did it come
00:13:59.50\00:14:03.54
from? How did these chemical
00:14:03.54\00:14:07.14
products - water,
carbon, and protein
00:14:07.14\00:14:10.21
how did they make
the jump from being -
00:14:10.21\00:14:12.21
well, water, carbon, and
protein - to a living thing?
00:14:12.21\00:14:16.95
The idea of a painting
of a water lily suddenly
00:14:16.95\00:14:20.42
becoming a real water
lily seems impossible.
00:14:20.42\00:14:23.56
How would the painting
make that kind of jump?
00:14:23.56\00:14:26.59
It's not just a small
tweak here and there and then
00:14:26.59\00:14:28.90
suddenly the
painting comes to life!
00:14:28.90\00:14:31.03
It just doesn't seem feasible.
00:14:31.03\00:14:33.50
But the old, old story
you find the Bible DOES seem
00:14:33.50\00:14:37.37
feasible. God
CREATED life with purpose
00:14:37.37\00:14:41.71
and design - and with human
beings, He took special steps
00:14:41.71\00:14:45.51
to make something very special.
00:14:45.51\00:14:48.28
Listen to what the Bible
says, in Genesis 2:7 "and the
00:14:48.28\00:14:53.69
LORD God formed man of
the dust of the ground, and
00:14:53.69\00:14:57.06
breathed into his nostrils
the breath of life; and man
00:14:57.06\00:15:01.16
became a living
soul" (Genesis 2:7).
00:15:01.16\00:15:04.73
I want you to notice
the intimacy: it says God
00:15:04.73\00:15:07.64
breathed into our
nostrils the breath of life.
00:15:07.64\00:15:10.41
According to the
Biblical account, it wasn't an
00:15:10.41\00:15:12.97
accident.
Someone who cares deeply
00:15:12.97\00:15:15.38
about our existence
put us here on purpose,
00:15:15.38\00:15:18.65
for a reason. Now
take that version of
00:15:18.65\00:15:21.28
human origins and
contrast it with what the late
00:15:21.28\00:15:24.29
paleontologist Stephen
Jay Gould said about human
00:15:24.29\00:15:28.66
origins: He said, "We are
here because one odd group of
00:15:28.66\00:15:33.33
fishes had a peculiar fin
anatomy that could transform
00:15:33.33\00:15:37.77
into legs for terrestrial
creatures; because the earth
00:15:37.77\00:15:41.74
never froze entirely during
the ice age; because a small
00:15:41.74\00:15:46.37
and tenuous species,
arising in Africa a quarter of a
00:15:46.37\00:15:49.88
million years ago, has
managed, so far, to survive
00:15:49.88\00:15:54.75
by hook and by crook.
We may yearn for a 'higher'
00:15:54.75\00:15:58.75
answer - but none exists."
00:15:58.75\00:16:02.36
I can't imagine anything more
hopeless - and when it comes
00:16:04.63\00:16:08.30
to the really important
questions in life, it just
00:16:08.30\00:16:11.33
doesn't bring any
lasting satisfaction.
00:16:11.33\00:16:14.07
And with all due respect,
how could Dr. Gould be so
00:16:14.07\00:16:17.17
certain? He just
wasn't there when it
00:16:17.17\00:16:19.47
supposedly happened.
He didn't see any of his
00:16:19.47\00:16:22.44
hypothesis take place.
Instead, he took a few bits
00:16:22.44\00:16:26.82
of scattered data - a little
piece here, a little piece
00:16:26.82\00:16:30.09
there - and then building
on a whole bunch of unproven
00:16:30.09\00:16:33.39
assumptions, he cooked
up a theory of human origins
00:16:33.39\00:16:36.79
that just doesn't
really make sense.
00:16:36.79\00:16:39.59
When I listen to people
like Dawkins and Gould, and all
00:16:39.59\00:16:42.10
these other people who
seem to insist that life is an
00:16:42.10\00:16:44.83
accident, it reminds me of
a passage in the book of Job
00:16:44.83\00:16:49.27
where God asks some
pretty tough questions.
00:16:49.27\00:16:53.07
I'm turning to the book of
Job, Chapter 38 and verse 4,
00:16:53.07\00:16:57.55
Job 38:4 and it says
this, Where were you when I laid
00:16:57.55\00:17:03.55
the foundations of the
earth? Tell Me, if you have
00:17:03.55\00:17:07.19
understanding.
Who determined its
00:17:07.19\00:17:09.76
measurements?
Surely you know  or who
00:17:09.76\00:17:13.13
stretched the line upon it?
Just try to imagine standing
00:17:13.13\00:17:17.90
in front of God, attempting
to answer questions like
00:17:17.90\00:17:21.24
this. And the
rest of the chapter
00:17:21.24\00:17:23.47
has a lot more questions.
The point of it is really
00:17:23.47\00:17:26.21
pretty simple:
none of us were there.
00:17:26.21\00:17:28.91
We're building a theory of
human origins from scratch,
00:17:28.91\00:17:32.35
based on a tiny bits of
information and a whole lot
00:17:32.35\00:17:36.32
of human arrogance.
You know, I've heard people
00:17:36.32\00:17:39.15
say that it's arrogant to
suggest that human life is
00:17:39.15\00:17:41.82
special, and that Christians
are arrogant to suggest that
00:17:41.82\00:17:45.23
people have a special
place on planet earth, but
00:17:45.23\00:17:48.66
sometimes I really have
to wonder: when we want to be
00:17:48.66\00:17:51.83
smart enough to think that
we think we hold the key to the
00:17:51.83\00:17:54.90
universe, and we're too proud
to think that Someone might
00:17:54.90\00:17:58.81
just have a claim on our
lives, where does the real
00:17:58.81\00:18:03.18
arrogance lie? And
in the view offered by
00:18:03.18\00:18:06.82
Dawkins and Darwin and Gould,
the universe doesn't last.
00:18:06.82\00:18:11.42
Follow these guys' theories
to their logical conclusion,
00:18:11.42\00:18:14.66
and you get a
pretty hopeless picture.
00:18:14.66\00:18:17.16
Eventually, the universe just
collapses - and nothing will
00:18:17.16\00:18:21.23
have meant anything.
But the story given in the
00:18:21.23\00:18:24.10
Bible bubbless with hope.
It admits the sad condition
00:18:24.10\00:18:28.27
of our planet, it explains
the pain and suffering we're
00:18:28.27\00:18:31.94
living with, and it holds
out a promise that answers the
00:18:31.94\00:18:35.88
toughest questions we can ask.
00:18:35.88\00:18:38.28
To put it simply,
God offers us a future.
00:18:38.28\00:18:42.38
Listen to His promise, it's
found at the end of the book
00:18:42.38\00:18:44.62
of Isaiah: For, behold, I
create new heavens and a new
00:18:44.62\00:18:50.06
earth: and the former shall
not be remembered, nor come into
00:18:50.06\00:18:53.86
mind" (Isaiah
65:17). If life were really
00:18:53.86\00:18:56.56
meaningless, I don't think
so many people - for so many
00:18:56.56\00:18:59.53
years - would have
asked so many questions.
00:18:59.53\00:19:02.94
If you and I are just
machines that fell together
00:19:02.94\00:19:05.27
by accident, why would we
even care about the meaning
00:19:05.27\00:19:08.81
of life. But if
our lives are the
00:19:08.81\00:19:11.08
creation of a loving,
caring God, who has our best in
00:19:11.08\00:19:14.45
mind, the questions you've
got about life begin to make
00:19:14.45\00:19:19.49
sense. They're kind of a homing
00:19:19.49\00:19:21.59
beacon, steering you back
into a relationship with God.
00:19:21.59\00:19:25.03
Now in the book of Ephesians,
the Bible says, Ephesians 1,
00:19:25.03\00:19:29.63
He chose us in Him before
the foundation of the world,
00:19:29.63\00:19:33.60
that we should be holy and
without blame before Him...."
00:19:33.60\00:19:37.47
(Eph. 1:4) You
didn't just happen:
00:19:37.47\00:19:40.54
you were chosen,
and you still are.
00:19:40.54\00:19:43.85
Because of what God did for
you at the cross of Calvary,
00:19:43.85\00:19:46.58
you are free to answer
the call in your heart and
00:19:46.58\00:19:49.55
rediscover your
original purpose.
00:19:49.55\00:19:52.15
Here's another passage found
in 2 Timothy 1:9, where the
00:19:52.15\00:19:55.92
Bible tells us that you
and I have been called,  with a
00:19:55.92\00:20:01.10
holy calling, not according
to our works, but according
00:20:01.10\00:20:05.17
to His own purpose and
grace which was given to us in
00:20:05.17\00:20:08.77
Christ Jesus before time
began." Over and over again,
00:20:08.77\00:20:13.74
the Bible says that you
were chosen, you were called
00:20:13.74\00:20:17.18
before the
creation of the world.
00:20:17.18\00:20:19.65
There's a reason you
wonder about the meaning of your
00:20:19.65\00:20:21.78
life. Dig a
little deeper into your
00:20:21.78\00:20:23.99
past, and you're going to
make a remarkable discovery:
00:20:23.99\00:20:27.86
your life really
does have purpose.
00:20:27.86\00:20:31.83
You were put here
intentionally, and there are
00:20:31.83\00:20:34.36
forces at work in this
universe to keep you from
00:20:34.36\00:20:37.80
discovering the truth.
In a moment, an incredible
00:20:37.80\00:20:42.17
story about two men who
found out who they really were.
00:20:42.17\00:20:45.94
[music] It Is
Written is a ministry
00:20:47.94\00:20:50.11
dedicated to
sharing the gospel around
00:20:50.11\00:20:52.18
the world. God is
using It Is Written
00:20:52.18\00:20:54.22
to impact the world. Our
television program is only
00:20:54.22\00:20:57.32
one aspect of how we
accomplish that goal.
00:20:57.32\00:21:00.09
To discover more about It
Is Written, visit our website:
00:21:00.09\00:21:02.86
itiswritten.com, browse the
dozens of pages that describe
00:21:02.86\00:21:07.03
what we do and
how we're doing it.
00:21:07.03\00:21:09.46
You'll find an archive of past
television programs in script
00:21:09.46\00:21:11.77
form and as streaming video
and audio files along with many
00:21:11.77\00:21:15.24
other helpful
inspirational resources.
00:21:15.24\00:21:18.34
Let's get to know each
other better, visit our website:
00:21:18.34\00:21:20.78
itiswritten.com --today.
And follow us online, at
00:21:20.78\00:21:25.28
Facebook and Twitter.
00:21:25.28\00:21:28.25
Somebody doesn't want you
to know who you really are.
00:21:29.88\00:21:33.89
You know, a little while
ago, I came across a remarkable
00:21:33.89\00:21:36.06
story. In the
state of Maine, there
00:21:36.06\00:21:38.26
were two men - Gary and
Randy - working at the same
00:21:38.26\00:21:41.26
furniture company.
Customers and coworkers alike
00:21:41.26\00:21:43.80
couldn't help but notice
that they two guys looked a lot
00:21:43.80\00:21:46.27
alike. Both of
them had light hair,
00:21:46.27\00:21:48.54
both of them had stocky
builds, and both of them wore
00:21:48.54\00:21:51.17
baseball caps and had goatees.
00:21:51.17\00:21:54.04
Their mannerisms and appearance
were so much alike that people
00:21:54.04\00:21:56.08
used to ask if
they were brothers.
00:21:56.08\00:21:58.31
But of course, they
weren't - because if they were
00:21:58.31\00:22:00.92
brothers, they would
have grown up together, right?
00:22:00.92\00:22:03.82
Then one day Randy asked
Gary if he knew the names of his
00:22:03.82\00:22:06.69
biological parents, and to
his surprise, they were the
00:22:06.69\00:22:10.66
same as his biological parents.
00:22:10.66\00:22:13.03
And the fact that they
were both adopted really started
00:22:13.03\00:22:15.66
raising some
important questions.
00:22:15.66\00:22:17.90
Randy knew that he had a
brother out there somewhere,
00:22:17.90\00:22:21.47
and so he asked Gary
what his birthday was.
00:22:21.47\00:22:24.17
It was June 10, 1974 -
the same year that his brother
00:22:24.17\00:22:28.08
had been born. Now
think about this very
00:22:28.08\00:22:30.61
carefully: what are the
odds that two brothers actually
00:22:30.61\00:22:34.75
worked together in the same
company all those years, and
00:22:34.75\00:22:39.25
didn't realize
that they were brothers?
00:22:39.25\00:22:41.46
What twists of fate had
to happen to bring them both
00:22:41.46\00:22:44.49
together on the same payroll
- and how many days - weeks -
00:22:44.49\00:22:49.43
years , had actually been
wasted because they didn't
00:22:49.43\00:22:52.97
realize just how close
their family really was?
00:22:52.97\00:22:56.81
And now think about
yourself here on planet earth.
00:22:56.81\00:23:00.11
Your heart tells you
that your life is important.
00:23:05.11\00:23:08.12
You've got this overwhelming
sense that you were put here
00:23:08.12\00:23:10.65
for a reason. You
might struggle to know
00:23:10.65\00:23:14.02
what that reason is, but you
just can't shake the feeling.
00:23:14.02\00:23:17.83
Maybe at night, you look
up at the stars, wondering if
00:23:20.16\00:23:22.26
Somebody is really out there.
Maybe, in the quiet moments
00:23:22.26\00:23:27.67
of your life life, you
find yourself wanting to talk to
00:23:27.67\00:23:30.07
Someone - wanting
to have a relationship.
00:23:30.07\00:23:35.14
In every human heart, there's
this feeling that we've been
00:23:35.14\00:23:37.41
disconnected - that
we're missing out on the most
00:23:37.41\00:23:40.12
important
relationship in the world.
00:23:40.12\00:23:42.85
Some people describe it as
feeling a little bit homesick
00:23:42.85\00:23:46.52
- as if we recognize that we
really belong somewhere else,
00:23:46.52\00:23:49.66
in a different
set of circumstances.
00:23:49.66\00:23:52.26
That feeling, according
to the Bible, is universal.
00:23:52.26\00:23:55.10
In Ecclesiastes 3:11, the
Bible says that God has put
00:23:55.10\00:24:00.67
eternity in the heart. In
the last century and a half,
00:24:00.67\00:24:08.08
there have been a lot of
voices telling us that our
00:24:08.08\00:24:10.81
existence doesn't mean anything.
00:24:10.81\00:24:14.12
But after all this time,
they're failing to convince
00:24:14.12\00:24:17.09
us. The call in your heart just
00:24:17.09\00:24:19.09
won't go away. New
theories of human origins
00:24:19.09\00:24:22.06
have failed to kill the cry
of our hearts to know who we
00:24:22.06\00:24:25.33
really are. And who are we?
00:24:25.33\00:24:28.63
We are beings purposefully
made in the image of God, who
00:24:28.63\00:24:33.64
promised us eternal life
with Him long before the world
00:24:33.64\00:24:37.24
even began. So
right now, only one more
00:24:37.24\00:24:40.54
question remains: Are
you going to claim your
00:24:40.54\00:24:44.41
meaningful life with God?
According to the Bible, it's
00:24:44.41\00:24:49.15
yours for the asking -
and when you ask, you're going
00:24:49.15\00:24:52.82
to discover that
He's been there all along.
00:24:52.82\00:24:55.99
It's just that maybe
you didn't recognize Him.
00:24:55.99\00:24:59.43
But will you
recognize Him right now?
00:24:59.43\00:25:01.93
Let's pray. We
will thank God that he
00:25:01.93\00:25:04.27
made us for a purpose.
He made us in his image
00:25:04.27\00:25:09.30
and he made both you and me
so that we might spend eternity
00:25:09.30\00:25:13.14
with him.
00:25:13.14\00:25:15.11
Our Father in
heaven, we thank you that we
00:25:16.38\00:25:18.38
are not just accidents.
We thank you that life is not
00:25:18.38\00:25:21.48
meaningless, but that
it is full of purpose.
00:25:21.48\00:25:24.62
And we pray claiming your
purpose for our life right
00:25:24.62\00:25:28.56
now. You made us and not just to
00:25:28.56\00:25:31.73
live and die, but you
made us to live on this earth
00:25:31.73\00:25:36.90
and then die or not, live
eternally with you forever in
00:25:36.90\00:25:40.84
the place where it is good
where the flowers don't ever
00:25:40.84\00:25:43.91
fade and when we will
enjoy and where we will enjoy
00:25:43.91\00:25:48.81
meaning and purpose
beyond our ability right now to
00:25:48.81\00:25:52.78
comprehend and so we thank
you that you are our father
00:25:52.78\00:25:55.55
and that we are yours.
We belong to you and we are
00:25:55.55\00:26:00.12
glad and we pray
in Jesus' name, amen.
00:26:00.12\00:26:05.73
[Music]
00:26:16.64\00:26:18.94
When you hear the word 'heaven'
what comes to your mind?
00:26:40.46\00:26:43.26
If it's little more
than harps and clouds.
00:26:43.26\00:26:45.83
my guess is you might not be
too excited about spending an
00:26:45.83\00:26:48.17
eternity there! But
the Bible has good news for
00:26:48.17\00:26:50.74
you! Heaven is a
very real place for
00:26:50.74\00:26:53.07
real people! And
God has great things in
00:26:53.07\00:26:56.04
store for you there. If
you'd like to know what the
00:26:56.04\00:26:58.85
Bible says about heaven, let
me send you a booklet called,
00:26:58.85\00:27:01.15
'As Good As It
Gets.' It's absolutely FREE.
00:27:01.15\00:27:04.05
Just call (800) 253-3000 and
ask for "As Good As It Gets."
00:27:04.05\00:27:09.72
If the line's
busy, do keep on trying.
00:27:09.72\00:27:12.16
You can write to It
Is Written, P.O. Box 6,
00:27:12.16\00:27:15.43
Chattanooga, TN 37401,
and we'll mail a free copy to
00:27:15.43\00:27:19.43
your address in North America.
It Is Written is a faith-based
00:27:19.43\00:27:23.10
ministry supported
by people like you.
00:27:23.10\00:27:25.67
Your help makes it possible
for us to share God's good news
00:27:25.67\00:27:28.58
with the world. Your
tax-deductible gift can be
00:27:28.58\00:27:31.41
sent to the address on your
screen, or you can support us
00:27:31.41\00:27:34.05
online at ItIsWritten.com.
Thank you for your continued
00:27:34.05\00:27:38.15
prayerful support.
Our toll-free number is
00:27:38.15\00:27:40.99
1 (800) 253-3000 ,
and our web address
00:27:40.99\00:27:44.23
is ItIsWritten.com. [Music]
00:27:44.23\00:27:48.13
Thanks for joining me today.
And remember  It Is Written:
00:27:48.13\00:27:52.43
man shall not live by bread
alone, but by every word that
00:27:52.43\00:27:56.91
proceeds from the mouth of God.
00:27:56.91\00:28:00.51