In Six Days 2018/10/28 Pastor Dave Cottrell
In Six Days Genesis 1:1 – 31
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For thousands of years, people believed in the existence of a supernatural creator. They believed that some very powerful being created everything. It didn’t matter what they imagined that creator to be or look like, or even if they trusted in their creator in any way. They simply believed that everything was created by God, by whatever name they knew Him, and the evidence all around them supported what they believed.
Then early in the 18th century, the idea of a world where everything developed from a common ancestor via a process called “evolution” began to become popular. Finally, secular scientists had found an explanation for the incredible diversity of life on our planet through a natural, unguided, mindless process that worked purely by a never-ending series of fortuitous accidents. Even today, they do not even have a logical explanation for where the very material of the universe came from to start it all off.
But what is extremely sad is Christian theologians who try to make the Bible fit secular science, rather than examining how science fits the Bible record.
As we read chapter one of Genesis, we notice a phrase that is repeated multiple times. Whenever God repeats Himself in His Word, He is making sure we understand what He is saying. God always says what He means, and means what He says. The phrase that is repeated is “the evening and the morning.”
I The Evening and the Morning
- The first time we see the phrase, “the evening and the morning” is after God created the heaven and the earth in darkness, then the light. He divided the light from the darkness on that day. The words used mean that he made a distinct period between them. The period of light, he called Day, while he called the darkness Night.
- The Bible says that the evening and the morning were the first day.
- This is repeated at intervals throughout the entire creation record. God created something, then there was the evening and the morning, another day.
- The term evening and morning in Hebrew writing always means one, single 24 hour period. This term is founded upon the very beginning of creation, itself, which began in darkness in the very first evening, right at the beginning of time. Time on
Earth has continued ever since, the evening and the morning, another 24 hour day.
II Evening
- The Hebrew word translated evening is ‘ereb (eh’-reb). It means evening, night or sunset. It never refers to any period of time longer than the night. It includes the time between sunset and morning.
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To make this mean any period of time longer than part of a 24 hour day is to read something into it that simply isn’t there.
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III Morning
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- The Hebrew word translated morning is boqer (bo’-ker). It means morning, the end of night, morrow, next day, next morning. Clearly, this means part of a 24 hour day, not eons of time.
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IV Six Literal Days
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Secular science pushes back very hard against Biblical creation. The vast bulk of information on where we come from declares the Biblical record to be a mythological fabrication to help primitive people understand things far beyond their abilities. Almost all textbooks on cosmology, biology, geology, physics, etc. promote a multi-billion-year-old universe that was created by a sudden, mysterious event they call the “Big Bang.”
- Even with all the recognized problems with Big Bang cosmology, rather than dropping the idea entirely, secular scientists continue to search for a way to solve all those problems. They have created things like dark matter, black holes, singularities, quantum dots and even “a very unstable nothing,” to fill in the gaps and make the math work. The only possible reason for continuing on such a difficult path is a philosophical one.
- Unfortunately, many theologians have found the voices of secular science too loud to ignore. Erroneously convinced that something must be wrong with their understanding of the Bible, they have attempted to make the Bible fit science, rather than trying to determine how the science fits the Bible. From this has come something called the day-age theory. Simply put, the day-age theory supposed that the days described in Genesis Chapter One referred to indefinite and very long periods of time, in order to fit with the conclusions of secular scientists.
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The problem that immediately arises from this compromise is that not only does the Bible not agree with the conclusions of secular scientists on time, but the Bible also disagrees with their conclusions on the order of appearance of everything.
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Facts have show, on the other hand, that when highly qualified Bible-believing scientists look at the same data through a Biblical lens, there is perfect harmony. Sometimes that harmony takes some time to find, but confidence in the Word of God keeps Bible believing scientists looking until they find it. Science that accepts the Biblical record does not require “fudge” factors like dark matter and singularities to work.
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Having established that the terms evening and morning describe the periods of darkness and light in a single 24 hour day, it is clear that the Bible cannot be referring to long ages.
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Each time we read “the evening and the morning” in the Genesis record of creation, it is referring to a single, 24 hour day.
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God created each division of his creation in a single, normal day, not over a period of millions of years. The language used in Genesis simply does not give any room for anything but the normal meaning of a day. Therefore, God created everything in six literal days.
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V Confidence in God
- God’s Word is not a book of ancient myths for a primitive people who could not understand what modern science now tells us. God has declared that his word stands forever. “The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever.” Isaiah 40:8 This means that God’s word is for all generations. It has not changed with time or become irrelevant to a world with modern science.
- Furthermore, God’s Word is true. It’s not myths, stories made up to explain the inexplicable. God’s Word is truth. The Bible says, in John Chapter One, that the Word was in the beginning with God, that the Word was with God, that the Word was God and even more, that the Word is the only begotten of God the Father, who is Jesus Christ. Jesus said, “…I am the way, the truth and the life, no man cometh to the Father, but by me.” John 14:6
- God’s Word is Truth. It is not myth and cannot change, because it is holy and true. Unless we have confidence in God’s Word, we are in trouble.
- Remember that Big Bang cosmology is not based on fact, but on philosophy, the idea that the physical world appeared without a primary cause. Christian cosmology is also based on philosophy, the idea that the physical world began with a primary cause. Both philosophies require faith. However, logic based on everything we know and observe in our world dictates that there must be a primary cause. That primary cause must logically be outside of space and time and of infinite power. In fact, that Primary Cause has revealed Himself to us as God.
- We must have confidence in God and His Word. God created this perfect world that we’ve been reading about in Genesis, but we have rebelled and rejected him from the beginning. From the first man on down, every one of us has sinned, and so all die. “Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:” Romans 5:12
- The penalty we all face for sin is death, not just physical death, but eternal death, separated from God in the lake of fire forever. But God offers everyone a gift that frees us from that penalty and gives us eternal life. “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 6:23
- God has offered all of us forgiveness and eternal life. The requirement is for us to have confidence in God’s Word, Jesus Christ. “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.” John 1:14 We are saved by repenting, that is, turning from our own way to God, and putting our faith in the Word, Jesus Christ. “But as many as received him (Jesus Christ), to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:” John 1:12
- Jesus Christ is the living Word, the Word come in the flesh. The written Word, which we call the Bible, represents Jesus Christ from beginning to end. It is not Jesus Christ, but presents Him to us in written form. If we are to have confidence in Him to save us, we must have confidence in His Word in its entirety. To say we believe in Him and to reject the record He has given us of His creation is to reject Him. How can we, who have been so wonderfully and powerfully restored and given eternal life do such a thing?
Conclusion
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The Bible, God’s revealed Word, clearly tells us that the world was created in six, literal, 24 hour days. There is no ambiguity in the words. God used words to make sure we could not misunderstand him. It is only by rebellion and rejection of His Word as truth that we can understand the six days of Genesis 1 to be anything but normal days. God will not take away salvation from those who repent and put their faith in Jesus Christ if they are deceived into believing long ages or any other errors, but He will bless those who put all their confidence in Him.