The Battle Over Origins: Is It Worth the Fight? Part 7 (Final)

Biblical Responses to Initial Questions

I began this message asking a number of questions about the teaching of the Bible with regard to the origin of the universe and whether it can be synchronized with evolutionary theory. Let us review those questions and ensure that we have a Biblical response to each query.

1. Could God have used evolution over long periods of time starting with the simplest forms of life in order to bring about the diversity and complexity of the various species that we see in the world around us today?

Response: No, God could not have used evolution in His creative process. Doing so would be at total odds with the revelation that we see in the Bible with regard to God creating things after their own kind and having them multiply according to those kinds to fill the earth. Furthermore, evolution is predicated on death and removes the connection between sin and death. If death is not the result of sin entering this world through Adam, then we have utterly destroyed the doctrine of salvation through Jesus Christ.

2. Has science proven that there are errors in the Bible’s chronology in its account of the origin of the created cosmos—particularly in regard to the book of Genesis?

Response: No, science has in no way disproved any jot or tittle of the Holy Scriptures. In fact, based on the dependence of life on information, science is consistent with the need for an omniscient, omnipotent Creator. In addition to the need for information, we observe in science that there are separate and distinct kinds—not only in the present world, but also in the fossil record.

3. Is it enough to uphold the belief that God is the Creator of the time-space-matter continuum without adhering to a literal interpretation of Genesis?

Response: No, it is insufficient to cling to the position that God is the Creator without also holding to the truth about what God has revealed to us about the manner in which His creation came into being. Rejecting a literal interpretation of Genesis results in an undermining of the authority of God’s Word and places the opinions of men in judgment over what God has written. The Christian needs to be using Scripture as the lens through which we filter everything that we see, hear, and think.

4. What specifically does the Bible teach about the beginning of the created world?

Response: The book of Genesis records for us that God spoke this world into existence through the power of His Holy Word and created everything in six, 24-hour literal days. God made man in His own image (known as Imago Deo), forming him from the dust of the earth, and gave him dominion over all the earth for the purpose of bringing honor and glory to the Almighty.

Conclusion

Knowing that God is the creator of heaven and earth and that His Word can be completely trusted should drive us to our knees in awe of His amazing power and provide us with all the more motivation to carry out the purposes and specific tasks for which He has made us. Our response should be that of the psalmist, who wrote:

When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him? For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour. Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet: (Psalm 8:3-6, KJV)