My good friend Doug Phillips, founder and president of Vision Forum (http://www NULL.visionforum NULL.com/), is a staunch conservative Christian, and he is also an innovative thinker and visionary.  (I say and rather than but because there’s no need for a conjunction of contrast here.)  Doug has a special talent for drawing knowledge and ideas together into a comprehensive and cohesive presentation.

His new CD series, Mysteries of the Ancient World: A Christian Interpretation of Great Controversies of Earth History (http://www NULL.visionforum NULL.com/browse/product/mysteries-of-the-ancient-world/?categoryid=179), is no exception.  In this series Doug draws upon his vast knowledge, gained from careful study and from his travels to places most people have only dreamed of, to give us over nine hours of fascinating lecture on thirteen compact disks.   I listened to these while driving, and they not only kept me awake behind the wheel, but also made traveling and commuting an enjoyable and edifying experience.

“The Mystery of the Moon: From Godsend to Goddess” intrigued me, as I had never heard sermon on the moon (nor had I ever preached one, but now I might).  Besides giving a wealth of factual information about the moon and its effects on the tides, agriculture, and human behavior, he explains the many naturalistic theories about the moon’s origin and demonstrates that Biblical creation is the only satisfactory explanation.  He surprised me by showing how prominent and widespread worship of the moon goddess was in the ancient world, worshiping the creation rather than the Creator.  And Christians are like the moon:  just as the moon has no light of its own but rather reflects the light of the sun, so we as Christians reflect the light of the Son of God.

Another fascinating presentation is “The Mystery of the Nephilim,” the “giants in the earth” of Genesis 6:2-4 and other passages of Scripture.  Who were these giants, and who were the “sons of God” who begat them?  Thirty-two years ago I wrote my thesis at Lutheran Brethren Seminary on this passage of Scripture, and my conclusions differ slightly from Doug’s.   But he presents the various theories of the sons of God very thoroughly and fairly, and I learned a lot from his presentation.  (And I won’t spoil the story by revealing his conclusions or mine!)

Then came my favorite:  ”The Mystery of the Incas,” the greatest empire of the Western Hemisphere.  Having explored the Inca ruins with his family, Doug vividly narrates the history of the Incas, their rise to power, their magnificent architecture, their religion of emperor-worship and human sacrifice, and their conquest by Pizarro and the “Famous Thirteen,” including the last Inca emperor’s conversion and baptism before his execution.  I challenge you to listen to this presentation and then resist the temptation to travel to Machu Picchu to see this land of wonder and mystery for yourself.

Last comes “The Mystery o the Galapagos: Laboratory of Evolution or Testimony to Creation?”   Doug tells how he retraced the famous voyage of the H.M.S. Beagle to the Galapagos Islands, where Darwin researched and developed his theory of evolution based on natural selection, and Doug demonstrates convincingly that Darwin’s theory and methodology were flawed and inaccurate.  And then he recounts the famous 1860 creation/evolution debate at Oxford between Bishop Samuel Wilberforce and Thomas H. Huxley.  During the tumult after the debate, a man in the back of the room held a Bible aloft.  The man was Vice-Admiral Robert FitzRoy, captain of the H.M.S. Beagle during Darwin’s voyage.  Like Darwin, he had observed the flora and fauna Darwin observed.  Unlike Darwin, he was a trained meteorologist, surveyor, and hydrographer, and his observations led him to opposite conclusions from Darwin’s.  He employed the audience to believe God rather than man, the Bible rather than Darwin, and he expressed his regret for bringing Darwin on the voyage.  Doug’s point is that facts are important, but the interpretation we give to the facts is of equal or greater importance.

With all of this, and with much, much more, you’d love Mysteries of the Ancient World.  You can order it through www.visionforum.com (http://www NULL.visionforum NULL.com/).