Sitting in the crowded auditorium, I silently listened as the gauntlet was thrown down.

“The issue is one of authority.”

The “issue” being who or what is in control of my life. Quite frankly, I spend a lot of my life trying to steer my own course under the pretense of God being in control. So when I heard the challenge come down before me, one thought went through my mind.

“Who or what is my authority?”

On the morning of Sunday, July 22, Ken Ham started the Answers in Genesis Family Conference with a passionate challenge: “If you reinterpret Genesis 1-11, you undermine the foundation of the Bible; you undermine the Word of God itself.” This thought-provoking statement set the groundwork for the two-day conference.

Part of Colonial’s Summer Series, Ken Ham, along with fellow speaker Dr. Gary Parker and musical funny man, Buddy Davis, spent July 22-23 challenging families to live a life that stands unapologetically rooted in God’s truth.

Through a variety of activities, the Answers in Genesis (AIG) team presented and reinforced the validity of God’s Word, with a specific emphasis on Genesis as the foundation of our faith. The busy schedule allowed participants a chance to hear from Ken Ham and Dr. Gary Parker during morning and evening sessions throughout the two days. Buddy Davis presented a family concert before each evening session, and he joined Ken Ham for the children and teen sessions Monday morning. Approximately 4,000 people (adults and children) had the opportunity to hear their important message.

As president and founder of Answers in Genesis, Ken Ham has become a well-known face in the world of Christian apologetics. He has based the ministry and his presentations on “the relevance and authority of the book of Genesis to the life of the average Christian, and how compromise on Genesis has opened a dangerous door regarding how the culture and church view biblical authority” (AIG, web). This emphasis is evident in the Creation Museum established by AIG, the countless resources sold by AIG, the radio ministry of AIG key speakers, the Answers magazine, AIG’s domestic and international conferences, and the Noah’s Ark project which is currently underway.

Mr. Ham pointed out that the first attack against God’s Word happened in Genesis 3:1 when Satan, as the serpent, asked Eve: “Did God actually say . . . ?” He calls this the “Genesis 3 attack.” He asked: “What is the Genesis 3 attack of our day?” In answer, Mr. Ham suggested that evolution and the Big Bang Theory is the Genesis 3 attack of our generation as skeptics get us to doubt Genesis 1-11. One of the key ways to combat their attack is to truly understand why we believe what we believe, and how to defend it. The key to our defense is apologetics, also defined as a “logical defense of faith.” Mr. Ham challenged the audience: “Our motivation should be getting back to the authority of God’s Word. In America, our starting point has changed. We took man’s ideas and tried to fit them [into] God’s Word – like the Israelites.”

So, what do we believe and what is our motivation for believing it? Can we firmly say that we stand on the authority of the Word of our Living Savior no matter the cost?

It’s time we gird ourselves for battle. Study the Word of God and equip ourselves with answers. That’s what Answers in Genesis is all about.

For more information on the Answers in Genesis ministry, visit www.answersingenesis.org