Basic Creation Training

TopicsTopics Genesis and time Establishing a biblical worldview The days of creation The issue of sin, death, and time Handling objections Did God use evolution?

Genesis and time Establishing a biblical worldview The days of creation The issue of sin, death, and time Handling objections Did God use evolution?

Genesis and TimeGenesis and Time

Genesis 1-11: Over 2,000 years1/3 of all history

CreationCorruptionCatastropheConfusion

ChristCross

Consummation

SINDeathDiseasePainSuffering

Restoration

God’s plan of

redemption

Perfect Creation

SINDeathDiseasePainSuffering

Perfect CreationThe First

Three Chapters

The rest of the Bible

A Biblical WorldviewA Biblical Worldview

Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God

with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.

Matthew 22:37

Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God

with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.

Matthew 22:37

All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.

2 Timothy 3:16-17

Galatians 2:4False TeachersGalatians 2:4False Teachers

And this occurred because of false brethren secretly brought in (who came in by stealth to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage),

And this occurred because of false brethren secretly brought in (who came in by stealth to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage),

Jude 4False Teachers

Jude 4False Teachers

For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.

For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.

Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.

Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.

Colossians 2:8 False PhilosophyColossians 2:8 False Philosophy

2 Timothy 4:3-4False Doctrines

2 Timothy 4:3-4False Doctrines

For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.

For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.

Genesis is the most attacked book of the Bible

Chapter 3

Genesis 3:1-5The First Attack

DID GOD

MEAN THAT?

Educationalorganizations

Political leaders

Universities

Public schools

Atheist- camps- media

Christianuniversities

Christian leaders

Newsmedia

6 Days

DID GOD

MEAN THAT?

Words Have MeaningHermeneutics

Words Have MeaningHermeneutics

A method of interpreting ScriptureA method of interpreting Scripture

The study of the interpretation of written texts The study of the interpretation of written texts

Context

GENESIS 1

ALWAYSMeans an

ORDINARY DAY

“DAY” WITH NUMBER

(in singular and plural)410 times

DID GOD

MEAN THAT?

evening and the morning were the first day.

evening and the morning were the second day.

evening and the morning were the third day.

GENESIS 1

ALWAYSMeans an

ORDINARY DAY

“EVENING” & “MORNING”TOGETHER WITHOUT “DAY”

38 times

DID GOD

MEAN THAT?

evening and the morning were the first day.

evening and the morning were the second day.

evening and the morning were the third day.

For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it.

Exodus 20:11

GenealogiesGenealogies

Genesis 5 Genesis 5

1. When they were born2. When the next person in the

timeline was born3. How long they lived4. When they died

Genealogical TimelineGenealogical TimelineYears After Creation

500 1000 1500 2000 2500

AdamLamech

Noah

Terah

Abraham

930

874 1651

1056 2006

1879 2084

2009 2184Year born after creation

Year died after creation Flood

~1650

Creation

About

Today Jesus 2,000

Jesus Abraham 2,000

Abraham Adam 2,000

6,000About

But from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female.

Mark 10:6

Literal Interpretation

Creation

6 Days (Perfect)

The Fall (Sin)

Non-Literal Interpretation

Creation

Millions of Years

No Effect

The Fall (Sin)

Adam Eve?

Genesis 1:31“Very Good”

Genesis 1:31“Very Good”

And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.

Perfect No deathPerfect

No deathVery Good

?

Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew and English Lexicon

Yom: “day as defined by evening and morning: Genesis 1:5”

Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew and English Lexicon, 9th Printing, 1906, Hendrickson Publishers, page 398.

Koehler & Baumgartner Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament

Yom “Day of twenty-four hours: Genesis 1:5”

Koehler & Baumgartner Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament, Volume 1, Koninklijke Brill N.V., 2001, page 399.

Handling ObjectionsHandling Objections

Christian universitiesChristian schoolsChurch leaders (pastors)“Christian” organizations

2 Peter 3:82 Peter 3:8

Figure of speechFigure of speech

But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.

But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.

Plant DeathPlant Death

“The death of at least plants or plant parts must have occurred before Adam.”Hugh Ross (Ph.D. Astronomy), A Matter of Days, 2004, p. 98.

Gap TheoryIn the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.

Genesis 1:1

And the earth was without form, and void;...

Genesis 1:2

GapMillions of

years

Genesis 1:2

And the earth was without form, and void;

And the earth became without form, and void;

היה hayah

Creation (was or became)

“It’s true that the word sometimes means ‘became’, but (a) such a translation is rare and (b) when it means ‘became’ it is normally preceded by a preposition meaning ‘to’.”

Charles Taylor (Ph.D. Linguistics, Professor of Theology), The First 100 Words, 1996, p. 6.

Creation (was or became)

“Recognized grammarians, lexicographers, and linguists have almost uniformly rejected the translations ‘became,’ or ‘had become.’”

Weston Fields (Th.D., Ph.D. Bible, Professor of Classical Languages), Unformed and Unfilled:A Critique of the Gap Theory, 1997, p. 111.

Gap TheoryGenesis 1:28

And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth,…

To Fill

Gap Theory

Genesis 1:1

Genesis 1:2

GapMillions of

years

What was happening during this large gap of time?

Gap Theory

Genesis 1:1

Genesis 1:2

Gap Theory

Genesis 1:1

Genesis 1:2

And (waw)

waw-consecutive is used to express a consecutive sequence of actions

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void;

Gap Theory Problems The gap theory presupposes death

before sin. The gap theory turns God’s “very good”

in Genesis 1:31 to include death and destruction.

The gap theory talks of a re-creation which is not mentioned anywhere in the Bible.

The gap theory contradicts the words of Jesus in Mark 10:6.

The gap theory must relegate the Genesis Flood to a local flood.

The gap theory supports a false interpretation of science.

Genesis 2:4 and “Day”

These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens.

Genesis and Poetry

The framework interpretation of creation argues that God used imagery to serve as a framework for His acts of creation.The scheme of the creation week is meant to be poetic in nature and not real history.

S – V – O or V – S – O

Hebrew Sentence Structure

In the beginning created God the heaven

VerbVerb SubjectSubject ObjectObject

Narrative

The New Testament treats Genesis 1–11 as historical narrative. At least 25 New Testament passages refer directly to the early chapters of Genesis, and they are always treated as real history.

• Matthew 19:4; Mark 10:6• Romans 5:12-19• 1 Corinthians 15:20-22, 45-47• 2 Corinthians 11:3 • 1 Timothy 2:13-14• Luke 17:26-29

“My findings in this step were that the probability that Genesis 1:1 – 2:3 is narrative is between .999942 and .999987 at a 99.5 percent confidence level. I conclude therefore that it is statistically indefensible to argue that this text is poetry.”

Steven Boyd (Ph.D., Hebraic and Cognate studies, Professor of OT and Semitic languages), “The Genre of Genesis 1:1 – 2:3: What Means This Text?”, Coming to Grips with Genesis, 2009.

“Chapter 1 [Genesis] was written in the Hebrew language which is consistent in using one structure for narrative and quite a different one for poetry. Hebrew poets, like David in the Psalms, used an SVO structure like English. In general then, if the Hebrew goes VSO it will be narrative, but if it is SVO it will be poetic.”

Charles Taylor, (Ph.D. Linguistics, Professor of Theology), “Linguistics, Genesis, and Evolution”, www.answersingenesis.org/articles, March, 1981

“The sentences in Genesis read like narrative history (i.e., prose), not informational parallelism (poetry).”

James J. S. Johnson (J.D., Th.D.), “Genesis Is History, Not Poetry: Exposing Hidden Assumptions about What Hebrew Poetry Is and Is Not”, ICR Impact article.

Day Age Theory

Yom (creation days = long ages)

Day 1Millions of years

Day 2 Day 3Millions of years

Millions of years

Day Age Theory

Day with a number “Evening” and “morning” Exodus 20:11 Mark 10:6 The idea of an old earth is based on

a faulty view of the scientific evidence. There is much scientific evidence to support a young earth.

Day with a number “Evening” and “morning” Exodus 20:11 Mark 10:6 The idea of an old earth is based on

a faulty view of the scientific evidence. There is much scientific evidence to support a young earth.

Two Accounts of Creation

The Claim

Genesis 1 and 2 give different accounts. In chapter 1, man and woman are created at the same time after the creation of the animals. In chapter 2, the animals appear to be created after Adam and Eve (Genesis 2:19).

And out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them.

Genesis 2:19

3 Responses

1. Genesis 2 is not an independent creation account.

2. Genesis 1 and 2 use a style of writing called recapitulation (or recap).

3. The verb “formed” in the sentence can be translated as pluperfect (“had formed”) rather than perfect.

1. Genesis 2 is not an independent creation account.

2. Genesis 1 and 2 use a style of writing called recapitulation (or recap).

3. The verb “formed” in the sentence can be translated as pluperfect (“had formed”) rather than perfect.

Did God Use Evolution?

God could have used evolution

If God Used Evolution?The plain reading of Genesis 1 cannot be

understood.This presumes death before sin.This presumes the Genesis Flood was

local and not worldwide.Genesis 1:31 would indicate death and

suffering were part of God’s “very good”.The 10 Commandments (Ex 20:11)

would be open to interpretation.

The plain reading of Genesis 1 cannot be understood.

This presumes death before sin.This presumes the Genesis Flood was

local and not worldwide.Genesis 1:31 would indicate death and

suffering were part of God’s “very good”.The 10 Commandments (Ex 20:11)

would be open to interpretation.

In Mark 10:6 Jesus would be wrong.There is no foundation for the Gospel.Hermeneutics no longer applies.Logic no longer applies.

In Mark 10:6 Jesus would be wrong.There is no foundation for the Gospel.Hermeneutics no longer applies.Logic no longer applies.

The Law of Non-contradiction

Earth, stars Stars, earth

Birds, reptiles Reptiles, birds

Water Molten mass

LogicLogic

Sun, land plants Land plants, sun

Man before death Death before man

Bible Evolution