A much better film than its predecessor, author Dan Brown's "Angel's & Demons" showcases Ron Howard's filmmaking skill. This fast-paced story is full of twists and turns, but It also brings up questions about history, art, science and religion. So we dove right into the debate and got matchless insight from God's Word.
We learned about some of the beautiful churches, buildings, and sculptures in Rome. Incredible artwork created by the likes of Michelangelo, Raphael, and Bernini. We got into the Creation debate, and discussed the scientific work of CERN, an international particle physics laboratory making incredible discoveries. We talked about Galileo and the opposition to his views about the Earth's place in the solar system. And then we covered the history and teachings of the Catholic Church, and what it means to believers today.
Finally, we opened the Bible and read what God has to say about all of this. His Word is full of references to creation, the order of stars and planets, the natural processes on Earth, and the empirical evidence for His existence. One set of verses stuck out in particular to me, mainly because we so often only hear the first part of what God is saying:
"For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways," declares the LORD.
"As the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts.
As the rain and the snow come down from heaven,
and do not return to it without watering the earth
and making it bud and flourish,
so that it yields seed for the sower
and bread for the eater,
so is the word that goes out from my mouth:
It will not return to me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire and
and achieve the purpose
for which I sent it."
ISAIAH 55:8-11
neither are your ways my ways," declares the LORD.
"As the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts.
As the rain and the snow come down from heaven,
and do not return to it without watering the earth
and making it bud and flourish,
so that it yields seed for the sower
and bread for the eater,
so is the word that goes out from my mouth:
It will not return to me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire and
and achieve the purpose
for which I sent it."
ISAIAH 55:8-11
So clearly here God tells us that we can begin to know Him by observing the natural processes He has set in motion on the earth. Paul picks up on this in the New Testament where he states,
The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven
against all the godlessness and wickedness of men
who suppress the truth by their wickedness,
since what may be known about God is plain to them,
because God has made it plain to them.
For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—
his eternal power and divine nature—
have been clearly seen,
being understood from what has been made,
so that men are without excuse.
ROMANS 1:18-20
This is one of those times that the Bible pulls no punches. "Men are without excuse." If people can't understand that God is the Creator, they "suppress the truth by their wickedness." Thankfully, God has plenty to say about his creation all through the Bible. You can dig into the book of Job for more insight into scientific matters (JOB 26:7-10 and JOB 37:11-15). The book of Isaiah is another great resource, showing the curvature of the earth more than a thousand years before Galileo ever looked through his telescope:
We also tackled the divisions between Protestants and Catholics, dealing with what constitutes spiritual authority in the believer's life. The Bible alone is the sole authoritative word, and each of us needs to individually read and study it carefully. Jesus alone is the Savior of the world, and a personal invitation is all He requires to transform your life. The church is full of broken, flawed people, but its goal is to spread God's love and compassion in tangible ways to the ends of the Earth.
At our closing we prayed for the talented and accomplished filmmakers and actors involved with this film; that God would intervene in their lives and they would use their gifts to honor Him.
We had a packed house this time, and I want to personally than each and every one of your for coming to THE DECODER RING. Merry Christmas! We'll see you in 2010.
------
my original review of Angels & Demons can be found here
my take on "The Da Vinci Code" is here
links to some of my research on "Angels & Demons":
The Truth About Angels & Demons
yahoo! movies
Science and the Bible
The Protestant Reformation
Catholic History page 1
Catholic History page 2
against all the godlessness and wickedness of men
who suppress the truth by their wickedness,
since what may be known about God is plain to them,
because God has made it plain to them.
For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—
his eternal power and divine nature—
have been clearly seen,
being understood from what has been made,
so that men are without excuse.
ROMANS 1:18-20
This is one of those times that the Bible pulls no punches. "Men are without excuse." If people can't understand that God is the Creator, they "suppress the truth by their wickedness." Thankfully, God has plenty to say about his creation all through the Bible. You can dig into the book of Job for more insight into scientific matters (JOB 26:7-10 and JOB 37:11-15). The book of Isaiah is another great resource, showing the curvature of the earth more than a thousand years before Galileo ever looked through his telescope:
"It is he who sits above the circle of the earth..."
ISAIAH 40:22
ISAIAH 40:22
We also tackled the divisions between Protestants and Catholics, dealing with what constitutes spiritual authority in the believer's life. The Bible alone is the sole authoritative word, and each of us needs to individually read and study it carefully. Jesus alone is the Savior of the world, and a personal invitation is all He requires to transform your life. The church is full of broken, flawed people, but its goal is to spread God's love and compassion in tangible ways to the ends of the Earth.
At our closing we prayed for the talented and accomplished filmmakers and actors involved with this film; that God would intervene in their lives and they would use their gifts to honor Him.
We had a packed house this time, and I want to personally than each and every one of your for coming to THE DECODER RING. Merry Christmas! We'll see you in 2010.
------
my original review of Angels & Demons can be found here
my take on "The Da Vinci Code" is here
links to some of my research on "Angels & Demons":
The Truth About Angels & Demons
yahoo! movies
Science and the Bible
The Protestant Reformation
Catholic History page 1
