Which Is the Investment with Eternal Rewards?

Now, I’ve mentioned the John Templeton Foundation before. It has given several grants to the BioLogos group to help promote evolution in churches and among Christians in general. BioLogos’ work—and the grant money it has received—has helped to undermine the truth of God’s Word by encouraging Christians to compromise on God’s Word with evolutionary teaching.

I find it interesting that there seems to be no outcry from the Christian community about the Templeton Foundation and its funding of BioLogos. While this $8.1 million grant is not tied directly to BioLogos, the project is still designed to help people learn more about our supposed evolutionary history.* No one seems to be upset that the money to study evolution could have instead be given to the poor.

Here is why I bring up the “money to the poor” reference.

When a Christian ministry stands on the authority of God’s Word and spends a lot of money to reach people with a world-class facility like the Ark Encounter—which will teach about the truth of God’s Word and the gospel (an investment with eternal rewards)—there’s often an uproar. I have often seen that accusation come from the millennials (and others) in our churches. Some people (perhaps misunderstanding the purpose of the Ark Encounter) argue that the money should be spent instead on the poor, as opposed to sharing the life-changing message of the gospel through a family-friendly attraction.

Of course, as Christians, we certainly should give to help those in need (1 John 3:17). But this doesn’t mean we shouldn’t use some of the resources we’ve been blessed with to further God’s kingdom and present the gospel in a unique and entertaining way, as we will to the hundreds of thousands of non-believers who will come to the Ark each year. After all, the gospel is the most important message the world needs to hear.

As we do God’s work to share His Word and His gospel with others, we can expect backlash and opposition. We saw it when we built the Creation Museum, and it has been even fiercer as the Ark construction continues. This reminds us that we’re not fighting a physical battle against flesh and blood but a spiritual battle against the forces of darkness (Ephesians 6:12). It’s also frustrating to note that some of the opposition comes even from within the church.

Please continue to be in prayer for us and our Ark Encounter project as we look forward to our July 7 opening date in Northern Kentucky. Pray that hearts and lives will be changed as people encounter Christ and the gospel.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,
Ken

This item was written with the assistance of AiG’s research team.

*The original post made an incorrect statement that BioLogos was the recipent of the funds.