Creation Series

OUTLINE

1. Entrance of Sin on Earth, Ch. 1-11

A. Creation, Ch. 1-2

1. Heaven and Earth, 1.1

2. Earth Became Waste and Void, 1.2

3. Re-creation, 1.3-2.25

(a) First Day – Light 1:3-5

(b) Second Day – Air Spaces (Firmament), 1:6-8

(c) Third Day – Dry Land Appears and Plant Life, 1:9-13

(d) Forth Day – Sun, moon, stars appear, 1:14-19

(e) Fifth Day – Animal Life, 1:20-23

(f) Sixth Day – Fertility of Creation and Creation of Man, 1:21-31

(g) Seventh Day – Sabbath, 2:1-3

(h) Recapitulation of the Creation of Man, 2:4-25

CREATION OF THE UNIVERSE

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth (Gen. 1:1)

This is one of the most profound statements ever made, and yet we find that it is a statement that is certainly challenged in this hour in which we live. I think this verse is all we have of the actual creation – with the exception, as we shall see, of the creation of man and animals later on in the Book of Genesis. However, this is the creation story, and I will admit it is a very brief story.

I must admit that I stand firmly on the side of creation and against all so-called scientific theories like the Theory of Evolution. (Did you know that a theory is defined as something that cannot be proven.) I am not going to take the time to explain evolution because I do not believe in it, and I cannot teach anything that I do not believe in. It requires more faith to believe in evolution (speculation) than to believe GOD CREATED IT.

There is something I would like to ask you. If God had given a scientific statement of creation, How many people of Moses' day could have understood it? How many people even in our day could grasp it? You must remember that the Bible was not written only for learned professors but also for simple people of every age and in every land. It certainly would have been rejected if it had been written in the scientific language of Moses' time.

Therefore, men have proposed several solutions relative to the universe's origin. One is that it is an allusion... Well, that is undoubtedly contrary to fact. However, some people hold that theory. Others believe that theory. Others believe that it spontaneously arose out of nothing. (In a way, this is what the Bible states, although it goes further and says God spoke it into existence. He created it.) Another view is that it had no origin but has existed eternally. A fourth view is that it was created, which breaks down into many different theories that men hold to explain the universe's origin.

Another view is suggested by biologist Edwin Conklin speaking of evolution, who stated that the possibility that life originated by accident is "comparable to the probability that the unabridged dictionary originated from an explosion in a print shop." That sounds very unscientific coming from a scientist, but it is true.

There seem to be at least three different theories of the universe's origin that even astronomists have suggested, and it is interesting to note them. One is known as the "steady state" theory, one is the "big bang" theory, and another is the "oscillating theory."

A Caltech scientist at UCLA told the National Academy Of Science that new findings rule out the "steady state" theory that the universe has always existed and that new matter is constantly being created. Several years ago, that was the accepted theory; now, they have a new theory for the universe's origin. Dr. Baum held the "big bang" theory: a big explosion took place billions of years ago, and we are in for another probably in ten billion years. I do not think we have to worry about that much, but it is an interesting theory.

Several years ago, Dr. Louis Leakey, an anthropologist (the son of a missionary), discovered what we called a missing link in Africa. He dug up pieces of a skull with well-developed teeth, called it the "nutcracker man," and claimed it belonged to a teenage youth about six hundred thousand years ago. We have had theories like that before, and since we have heard no more of this one since 1961, I guess the scientific world did not fall for it.

There are other ways of explaining the origin of man; Dr. Lawrence S. Dillon, associate professor of Biology at Texas A and M College, says man is not an animal but a plant that evolved from brown seaweed. We are told we should be down at the beach pulling out seaweed because that is grandma and grandpa. Some of this speculation becomes ridiculous.

There is no unanimous acceptance of evolution even by scientists.

May I say to you that some of these theories are moving into the realm of speculation and some into religion? Evolution is speculation and always has been that. However, unfortunately, a significant number of folk have accepted it as fact. My friend, to be an evolutionist, you have to take it by faith.