Exposition by Max A Forsythe
Most of you realize how middle of the road most of my theology is. It is rare for me to take what is considered to be an extreme position. Well, today I am going to advocate what I feel to be the best theory of origins and that is the six day creation model. Several years ago I enjoyed hearing Dr. John Whitcomb speak here in Columbus, Ohio. His account of biblical creation was sincere, quiet and convincing. He was not argumentative in sincerely proposing the complete accomplishment of creation in six days. He is the author of several books in the area of creationism. One of the things that most impressed me about him was that he appears to be a man on the way to understanding a biblical theory of origins. He appears to be sincerely interested in understanding the truth and is willing to put out new editions of his books and articles when ever necessary.
How very unlike teachers from several other schools whose theories are already fully developed and prepared for being swallowed whole hog. Certainly any theory must answer reasonable questions to merit our devotion. Several authors detail such questions for our consideration today. While this is not a complete list, today we will consider three:
1. The apparent geologic ages of sedimentary deposits.All three of these areas have in common the element of time. And it is our modern understanding of time that most challenges Christians who would accept the Biblical revelation at face value. Of first concern today is the area of geology. Geology is the scientific study of the earth's crust. Modern geologists generally postulate the gradual build up of the various strata over long periods of time in the range of millions of years. Another science of paleontology is the study of life in the geologic past. This study of the fossil record began in the seventeenth century. One of these early scholars was John Woodward. Even today his early work is highly regarded. His careful and exact investigations convinced him that the various geologic strata were laid down by a single world-wide flood. So well presented was his work that virtually all of the early paleontologists opposed the theory of evolution. Two centuries later we are finally again beginning to take a renewed interest in his understanding of the geologic evidence before us.
2. The meaning of the Hebrew word translated as day.
3. The apparent ages and distances of the stars.
While I do not pretend to understand many of the scientific evidences here, Whitcomb reports that "Sidney P Clementson, a British engineer, has analyzed the published studies of rock samples from twelve volcanoes in Russia and ten samples from other places around the world which show ages from 100 million to 10 billion years by typical radioactive dating methods, whereas it is known that these volcanic rocks were formed within the past 200 years!" What I do understand is the hardening of concrete within three days. In our area an old Railroad overpass was being demolished. This structure was one of the first cement structures in our county where Portland Cement got its start. This structure was so hard and indestructible that the county had to dig a large hole and bury the pieces. Given continuing study and scholarship, I believe that the ages demanded by secular geologists can eventually be dismissed and buried as are our first attempts to make artificial rock.
Our second issue is our Christian understanding of the day in Genesis. Certainly, there are many impressive word studies on both sides of the argument to allow the word day to be understood as either a twenty-four hour period or a long period of time. I will not dwell on the details of those arguments because as I read them back and forth this summer my mind was attracted to each in turn. How do we honestly choose which teaching to follow? Is the day in Genesis one or many? I am reminded of Tolkein's tale of the Hobbit who had gotten himself into a riddle contest in which his life was at stake. As Bilbo Baggins pondered a particularly difficult riddle under stress, he shouted at his tormentor "time", "time" meaning to ask for more time to study. As it turned out, that was the correct answer to the riddle and Bilbo's life was safe.
One day as I was staring at the cover of Francis Schaeffer's book on Genesis in Space & Time, I suddenly came to the following conclusion. The Day/Age theorists make very much of the fact that until the Sun was created it would be meaningless to talk of a twenty-four hour period of time. However, look at the days in Genesis One which are recorded as "Evening came, and morning, came, a ... day." Can't this be the institution of the time cycle? Not only was God creating space, He was also creating a time frame for His creation. It is in this light that I affirm my personal belief that God "made everything in the world, visible and invisible, in the space of six days, and it was" as our confessions affirms "very good." Now the arguments for longer periods of time are impressive indeed so I will not condemn anyone who needs the freedom and time for further study. I have only wrestled with this issue for thirty years, so I can be patient with the "evolution" of other people's ideas!
Our third issue has to do with the apparent ages and distances of the stars. We understand from Genesis that these are mentioned almost as an after thought on the fourth day. Our astronomers keep telling us that the further out into the universe we see the larger and larger it becomes. Every time we think we are closing in on the edge of the universe, more powerful instruments keep pushing the boundaries light years beyond.
I am left confused with only questions on this issue. I cannot dismiss this issue as easily as the rest. I would like to know the following:
1. If the light of a particular star has been traveling for fifty thousand years, can we even assume that that star is still there? By logical extension, are any of the stars beyond Alpha Centari actually there?I am reminded of the questions of little children sometime put to their parents and teachers. Questions that involve complex answers, but which parents must fashion simple answers to meet the understanding of their children.2. Has the speed of light remained constant? After all, the same scientific minds that postulate such huge distances also entertain themselves with science fiction where warp speeds nine times the speed of light may be achieved.
3. Are the stars physical or spiritual entities?
Six years ago I began to remodel the outside of our old Farm House. As I planned the addition of 3/4" of Styrofoam and 3/4" of pine siding, I imagined the placement of each and every board. Then I made my lumber and hardware list and ordered the materials. At the end of the project I had to go back and buy one more six foot board to finish it up. My little ones were impressed. How did you do that Daddy? Well, I didn't do it like modern architects and carpenters, none of my waste pieces was much longer than six inches. So I just told them that I took the measures of the house and ordered the proper amounts of material. In the same way God's planning is more perfect. But, he didn't have to go to the galaxy lumber store.
When we ask our Father in heaven, how did you create the heavens and the earth? He tells us in simple language that we can understand. And just as my sons have grown and learned that there are so many board feet in a board, and so many nails of a certain size to a pound, they can begin to appreciate the labor and planning that went into our house. This summer the two younger boys quickly understood why their farm tractor display shelves had to be the same size as the doors cut out of the new paneling for my study. We were going to prevent waste and save money! As I laid out the design and described what we were going to do, they were able to take over and manage the project. Their shelves are a credit to their increasing skills.
In the same way, we are obligated to learn more and more about how God has worked in making our world. Hopefully as the younger generation is once again raised up and nurtured with God's revelation instead of the myths of evolution, we might once again return to a biblical appreciation of celebrating and caring for the beauty of God's creation. May God's Spirit guide us in our search of truth and understanding so that we might become better servants in His Kingdom.
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