The Great Dinosaur Debate Series

The Great Dinosaur Debate

#5 Hot Potatoes the Church Won’t Touch

There is a aura of mystery surrounding the dinosaurs. Where did they come from? Did they evolve? Did they really live millions of years ago? What happened to them? Are there any living today? Has any human being ever seen a live dinosaur?

Children and adults alike are absolutely fascinated by these mysterious monsters. Numerous books and movies (Jurassic Park) have been produced to satisfy a seemingly insatiable hunger for information on these puzzling creatures. The truth of the matter, however, is that there are no real mysteries at all, once you have key information that is not generally know and is withheld from the public.

For many years, some thought the existence of dinosaurs discredited the Biblical account of creation. Dinosaurs are used more than almost anything else to indoctrinate children an adults in the idea of millions of years of earth history. The Bible seems to only speak of the earth being only 6 to 10,000 years old. (However, I will say there are Biblical Scientists who espouse an earth that is millions of years old, and still fit it into the Biblical framework. I won’t say they are wrong, but they haven’t convinced me. And they are in the minority.) The Bible gives us a framework for explaining dinosaurs in terms of thousands or years of history, and solving the mystery of when they lived and what happened to them. Let’s look at Genesis 1:24-25, and Job 40:15-24.

I Are Dinosaurs a mystery ?

According to evolutionists -Yes, millions of years before man they roamed the earth.

According to the Bible -Not really, God created them as well as mankind, and they seemed to dwell together.

Why Such different Views-The fact of dinosaurs existence is agreed upon by both, but the way they interpret the facts is determined by their preconceived notions.

II What Are Dinosaurs?

A. Did they really exist?

Dinosaurs certainly did roam the Earth in the ancient past! Fossils of dinosaurs have been found all over the world, and their bones are displayed in museums for all to see. Scientists have been able to reconstruct many of their skeletons, so we know much about how they may have looked.

B. When were they Discovered?

The story of their discovery began back in the 1820s, when Gideon Mantell, an English doctor, found some unusual teeth and bones in a quarry. Dr Mantell realized there was something very different about these animal remains, and believed that he had found an entirely new group of reptiles. By 1841, about nine types of these different reptiles had been uncovered, including two called Megalosaurus and Iguanodon.

At this time, a famous British scientist (and creationist), Dr Richard Owen, coined the name ’Dinosauria,’ meaning ’terrible lizard,’ for this is what the huge bones made him think of.

C. What Makes Them Different?

Other than the huge size of some dinosaurs, the major feature that really distinguishes dinosaurs from other reptiles (such as crocodiles) is the position of their limbs. Dinosaurs had posture that was fully erect, similar to that in mammals. Most other reptiles have limbs in a sprawling position. For instance, compare the way a crocodile ’walks’ with that of, say, a cow. Dinosaurs would have moved like a cow, with the limbs supporting the body from beneath. Crocodiles ’waddle,’ as their limbs project sideways from their body.

D. How Big Were Dinosaurs?

Some were as small as chickens, and others were even smaller. Of course, some dinosaurs were very large, weighing in at an estimated 80 tons and standing 40 feet high! The average size of a dinosaur, however, was probably about that of a small horse

III Are dinosaurs is found in the Bible?

Most of us loved reading about dinosaurs at some time in our lives. In 1993, the movie “Jurassic Park”(7th highest grossing movie ever at the box office),1997 “The Lost World”, 2001 “Jurassic Park 3" stimulated the public interest in dinosaurs far beyond its previous level. As a result, increasing numbers of people have thought, “Since we have found all these fossils and dinosaur bones, we know dinosaurs existed. How come they are not mentioned in the Bible?”

You will not find the term dinosaur. Remember the term was not ever coined until 1841 by Dr. Richard Owens. So if we find them referred to at all it will be by a different name or term, because the Bible was written thousands of years before 1841.

IV Where Do Dinosaurs Come From?

Evolutionists claim that dinosaurs evolved over millions of years. They imagine that one kind of animal slowly changed over long periods of time to become a different kind of animal. For instance, they believe that amphibians changed into reptiles (including dinosaurs) by this gradual process. This would mean, of course, that there would have been millions of creatures during that time that would be ’in between,’ as amphibians evolved into reptiles. Evidence of these ’transitional forms,’ as they are called, should be abundant. However, many fossil experts admit that not one unquestionable transitional form between any group of creatures and another has been found anywhere. If dinosaurs evolved from amphibians, there should be, for example, fossil evidence of animals that are part dinosaur and part something else. However, there is no proof of this anywhere. In fact, if you go into any museum you will see fossils of dinosaurs that are 100% dinosaur, not something in between. There are no 25%, 50%, 75%, or even 99% dinosaurs—they are all 100% dinosaur!