creation evangelism with dinosaurs of eden

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Steve Müller holds B.A. and B.Ed. degrees from James Cook University, Queensland, Australia. He has served as a teacher, principal, and chaplain in Christian schools and has taught in various state schools. He was ordained in 1999 and is currently a pastor and a supply (substitute) teacher in Gladstone, Central Queensland. Steve is married to Sonya and they have five children. Steve engages in creation evangelism through his church’s monthly markets stall, which features his unique dinosaur artwork—inspired by the Bible, and also by dragon legends, dinosaur soft tissue finds, and articles from Creation magazine. Steve became a speaker for Creation Ministries International in Australia in 2019. Ron Neller interviews Ron Neller interviews Pastor Steve Müller Pastor Steve Müller CREATION CREATION EVANGELISM WITH EVANGELISM WITH DINOSAURS OF EDEN CREATION.com 36 Creation 43(4) 2021

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Page 1: CREATION EVANGELISM WITH DINOSAURS OF EDEN

Steve Müller holds B.A. and B.Ed. degrees from James Cook University, Queensland, Australia. He has served as a teacher, principal, and chaplain in Christian schools and has taught in various state schools. He was ordained in 1999 and is currently a pastor and a supply (substitute) teacher in Gladstone, Central Queensland. Steve is married to Sonya and they have five children. Steve engages in creation evangelism through his church’s monthly markets stall, which features his unique dinosaur artwork—inspired by the Bible, and also by dragon legends, dinosaur soft tissue finds, and articles from Creation magazine. Steve became a speaker for Creation Ministries International in Australia in 2019.

Ron Neller interviews Ron Neller interviews Pastor Steve MüllerPastor Steve Müller

C R E A T I O N C R E A T I O N E V A N G E L I S M W I T HE V A N G E L I S M W I T H

DINOSAURSOF EDEN

CREATION.com36 Creation 43(4) 2021

Page 2: CREATION EVANGELISM WITH DINOSAURS OF EDEN

STEVE BECAME interested in exploring the Christian faith around 1990 when he met a pastor/street evangelist in

Cairns (Far North Queensland) who invited him to his church. While Steve was not interested in attending, he nonetheless asked for a Bible so that he could explore the Christian faith for himself. The pastor gave him an NIV New Testament which Steve studied over the next year and a half. One evening, after reading 1 Corinthians 15, he became acutely aware that he was a sinner before a holy God, and that night he trusted in Jesus and committed his life to Him.

Receiving Christ prompted Steve to purchase a complete Bible and start from the beginning. He was immedi-ately impacted by Genesis 1:31—it was clear to him that God is good and that His creation was originally “very good”. Steve notes that “history may be divided into two parts—before Adam sinned, and after Adam sinned.” This was an integral part of Steve’s witnessing as a new Christian.

Like most others who give their lives to Christ as adults, Steve had been educated on evolutionary principles, and hence he pondered the idea of man only appearing after billions of years. He found Scripture taught otherwise:

People were there “from the beginning of creation” (Mark 10:6, 13:19). Prophets have been killed “from the foundation of

the world” (Luke 11:50). Man has been accountable “since the crea-tion of the world” (Romans 1:20).

Such passages, along with the genea-logical records of Genesis 5 and Luke 3,

“convinced me of the truth of young earth creation”. Creation is thus founda-tional to Steve’s evangelistic activity in Gladstone, where he lives. For example, his church sets up a stall at the local monthly markets held at the city’s beautiful Botanic Gardens. Featuring Steve’s dinosaur sketches on the theme ‘Dinosaurs of Eden’, as well as images of dinosaur soft tissue finds and ancient depictions of dinosaur-like creatures, the stall attracts considerable attention from the public.

Steve and the team use these illus-trations to show that science, history and the Bible all align with a young

Earth. This in turn lays a foundation for sharing that:

It was the sin of the first man, Adam, that resulted in death and suffering and the broken world we live in today, and our only hope is in the last Adam, the Lord Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 15:45). He not only died for our sins on the Cross but also conquered death through His physical resurrection, and one day He will return to bring in a New Heaven and a New Earth, restored to Edenic perfection.

Dinosaurs of Eden

What delighted me when I first met Steve Müller was seeing his sketches of dinosaurs in the most fascinating

Steve explains the relevance of young earth creation and shares the Gospel

Back: Donovan & Estie Müller, Sonya & Steve MüllerFront: Brandon, Jordan, Shani, and Ryan

Drawing dinosaurs draws people

CREATION.com 37Creation 43(4) 2021

Page 3: CREATION EVANGELISM WITH DINOSAURS OF EDEN

RON NELLER B.A., Ph.D.Dr Neller was for 28 years a university researcher in fluvial geomorphology. He now works for Creation Ministries International (Australia) as a speaker and scientist. For more: creation.com/ron-neller

of situations. Unlike most other dino-saur artists, he draws dinosaurs with people, mammals, and modern birds. For example, I have a print of his of a T. rex (his favourite dinosaur) chasing a chicken—a humorous dig at the evolu-tionary belief that dinosaurs evolved into birds.

Steve expressed that he sketches dinosaurs in these situations so as to challenge popular evolutionary assump-tions. He says his sketches provoke ques-tions and provide many talking points and witnessing opportunities. Some of his dinosaur art has been enlarged and printed on big signs for the market stall, with carefully worded statements of fact designed to arouse curiosity. People can read these signs while standing outside the stall, and if they’re interested they can come in and find out more. Steve’s dinosaur art is a real drawcard for young and old alike.

To promote broader discussion Steve has also created a Facebook page called Dinosaurs of Eden. There he posts his pictures with brief explanations and links to related articles on creation.com.

Love people, build rapport, build relationships

While he was for many years a Christian teacher and a school principal, Steve often touched on creation in weekly chapel messages. He endeavoured to instil a biblical worldview in staff, students, and parents, showing them how the Bible applies to every area of life in the real world—it is not merely ‘a book of good morals’. Furthermore, the Bible was not ‘added’ to the curriculum; the curriculum, for the most part, was built on the foundation of the Bible.

As for any advice he might give to Christian teachers, Steve shared:

Make sure your teaching is grounded in a biblical worldview. If your Christian school does not hold to a biblical view of crea-tion, pray about how God may use you to bring about change. Consider a Creation magazine gift subscription for the school library. Pray for your principal and co-workers that there may be unity in truth and clarity of mission. Pray for your students. Pray that the Christian ones may prepare themselves to stand firm in their faith and influence the culture of the school (Proverbs 12:26, 13:20); pray that they may have an impact upon non-Christian students and those who are wavering in their faith.

Above all, love people, build rapport, build relationships. Listen to people. The most effective evangelism often takes place with the people you know, and with people who know that you care. You never know what doors of opportunity the Lord may open.

Begin with the Bible

Because Steve Müller is a pastor, I asked him what advice he might give to other pastors who have not yet fully accepted creation or the truth of Genesis. He replied:

I would ask them whether they have considered the impli ca t ions for:

1. The moral character of God. Is creation over millions of years of death and suffering consistent with a God who is good?

2. The authority of Scripture. If Moses (John 5:46–47) and Jesus (Matthew 19:3–6) were mistaken about creation, how can anything else in God’s Word be trusted?

3. The Gospel. The physical death and resurrection of Jesus is tied to the historicity of sin and death entering the world through the first man, Adam (Romans 5:12–19; 1 Corinthians 15:21–22, 45–49). If death and suffering were normal for ‘millions of years’ before man, the very foundation of the Gospel would be undermined.

In other words, I would encourage such pastors to begin with the Bible and build all of their thinking on Scripture, rather than begin with the ideas of men and impose these ideas on the Bible.

It is a delight that Steve Müller is now a speaker for Creation Ministries International. With professional experi-ence as a teacher, a principal, and a pastor who is engaged in creation evangelism, he provides a wealth of experience in proclaiming the creation message.

CREATION.com38 Creation 43(4) 2021