Well I believe...part IV
This is now week four of this post series. Let me recap the point...It seems like everybody has their own "religion" today. People say things like, "You might accept that as truth, but I believe..."
For the past few weeks we've been looking at different beliefs. We've been discussing whether they are things that ALL Christians MUST believe, or if they are things that we can agree to disagree on.
A few weeks ago the topic of Creation/Evolution was mentioned. It this one of those basic issues that ALL Christians MUST accept?
I say no. While your stance on this issue will impact other parts of your faith, this is not one of the basic/core beliefs that you must accept to be a Christian.
So, where do I fall? My views on this have "evolved" through my life. When I was a child I probably accepted the creation account of the Bible. As I went through school I began to accept the Big Bang Theory and evolution. As my faith started to grow I blended what the Bible seems to say, with what science seems to say. Then I started to research creationism and read books by Christian scientists. I now am 100% convinced that the earth began in the literal way that the Bible says. I believe that everything was created in 6 days, that man and dinosaurs roamed the earth together, and that the earth is only approximately 6,600 years old. Now I know that most people who read this will probably think I'm crazy, and might even be laughing now (up until 5 years ago I would have thought I was crazy too).
I challenge you to do two things. The first is post your views on this issue. I promise I will not challenge your ideas unless you ask for my opinion on them (like I said- I don't think this is a MUST believe issue). My other challenge is for you to do some Creation Science research. You've already heard all about the Big Bang in science class. Why not do a little research about the other side?
Thanks for reading.
posted by Darin @ 6:38 AM
6 comments
6 Comments:
I was just thinking about this topic last night. I spent 3.5 hours reading from my science textbook for one of my classes, and I got both confused and frustrated at first because it always seems to me that science is a way to try to disprove creation. But last night was different. I’m not saying that this course will not push the big bang theory. What I am saying though is that I gained a new outlook on science in general last night while I was reading. The course I am taking is a capstone science course ... the textbook calls it Earth system sciences. Basically this science was put together to take all that is known about the other sciences (geology, meteorology, oceanography, biology, etc) and put them together to understand how the Earth's environment works and what its present condition is. It’s a way to figure out how we can best take care of Earth for the time we have left here on it. The textbook says that in order "to make wise decisions about how to interact with Earth, people must understand the processes that act on Earth ..." When I read that sentence, you know what my first thought was? "God is so stinkin' smart!" We need scientists. They have spent countless hours, years even, in research to understand Earth and how it works and in doing so they are finding out the best ways to take care of Earth. That is what is important in my mind. I don't know what side of the fence I am on about whether it took 6 calendar days or not. What I do know is that God wanted to put us here to enjoy the Earth that He created and to take care of it and all that is contained in it. I agree that this is not a "must believe" issue. What I do believe is that we are here now and we need to do what God wanted us to do and take care of Earth the best that we can. I just reread the story of creation from Genesis. Reading this just reaffirms to me what I was thinking last night.
Genesis Chapter 1 verse 28 says this:
God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground."
My bible, the Life Application Study Bible (NIV), offers these explanatory notes:
"To rule over something is to have absolute authority and control over it. God has ultimate rule over the earth, and he exercises his authority with loving care. When God delegated some of his authority to the human race, he expected us to take responsibility for the environment and the other creatures that share our planet. We must not be careless and wasteful as we fulfill this charge. God was careful how he made this earth. We must not be careless about how we take care of it."
Great comments from both of you! Christy, I am with you about feeling the greatness of God when you study science. This world is a marvelous thing, and the complexity of it is...I'm having trouble finding a big enough word...pretty amazing! I really like science, and I feel closest to God when I'm admiring nature.
Jes- you bring up some awesome points too. It is obvious that you've read and studied the account. I won't challenge your beliefs, because at one time they were mine too (and I'm not saying that it was at a time where I was "less spiritually mature." I hate it when people say that. I feel like they are saying "well, when you become superChristian like me you will believe like I do now." I hate that! So, I'm not saying that at all.) I can respect those beliefs.
Here is something from the Gen. 1 account that you might not have noticed (it is easy to miss). You were half right about the light. The sun, moon, and stars weren't created until day four (like you said), but...light was created on the first day (Gen. 1:3). Gen 1:5 says, "God called the light 'day,' and the darkness he called 'night.' And there was evening, and there was morning- the first day."
Now, that brings up a few other questions. The #2 question is were the "evening and morning" 24 hours? If there wasn't yet a sun, how would we know?
But the biggest question is how was there light on days 1,2 &3 if the sun, moon, and stars didn't come until day 4?
There is a super cool answer that I'll share later, but I'd love to hear everyone's ideas on these things.
I've decided that I am not smart enough to take part in this discussion. That's all I got.
Love reading about what you smart people have to say, though!!!
I'm gonna have to go with Darce on this one. I will not try to seem smarter than I am by commenting!! However, I love reading all of your posts and learn a lot from doing so!
Keep it up!! Thanks for sharing all that you do!
OK, I wanted to wait so that everyone could post an idea about this, but I'm just too excited to wait any longer. To recap: the Bible says that God created light on day 1, but didn't create the sun, moon, and stars until day 4. How could there be light but no sun, moon, or stars?
In the book of John, Jesus refers to himself in many ways. These include Way, Truth, Life, Word and Light. In John chapter 1, it says that Jesus is "the light that gives life."
In Revelation 22:5 it is talking about heaven. It says, "There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun for the Lord God will give them light."
This shows two options. #1- God can show Himself as light. #2- God can just create light. Either way, the New Testament backs up the creation account in Gen. 1.
I am with you Jes. I hate gray areas. I am a black and white kind of guy. That is really what this series of posts has been about- what beliefs are black and white and MUST be accepted, and which are a little more gray.
I'm also with you that my beliefs on this subject are not as strong as my beliefs on other issues. I too sometimes wonder if I'm off about this.
The great thing is that since this is not an ALL MUST believe issue, we can still be strong Christians while having "shaky" views about this. (Don't get me wrong- I believe that there is one truth- I just also know that I wasn't there when God wrote the Bible) As long as our core beliefs are strong, we will be OK. (If anyone is just starting to read this, check out our discussions in Well I believe...I, II, & III)
Post a Comment
<< Home