The Wonders of Creation Week

OPEN: Bad preacher clips on Twitter (May 1, 2023) shows a short video clip (2:18) of Pastor Phil Hudson’s sermon. In the clip the pastor informs us that outer space doesn’t exist, the moon is a source of light that is too hot to land on, NASA is lying to us and keeping us all inside the ice wall (implication: the earth is flat)

Transition: This is an example of the difficulty of handling the Bible / scientific arena. This pastor is denying almost all aspects of observational science and is on the fringe with a flat earth hypothesis with NASA guarding the ice wall so no one can see what else is beyond.

I certainly don’t want to be included in the same arena as a believer, but at the same time I (and many other respected, credentialed Christians) hold to a literal understanding of the Bible that presents a 6 day creation model. How do we discern what is true?

We start with God’s Revelation and then compare that with what we observe. Let’s look together at God’s account of His Creation week.

READ the TEXT: Genesis 1:1-25.

God designed His Creation with structure

He used a parallel structure of separating and filling. Days 1-3 are the separating and Days 4-6 are the filling

Days of Separation (Gen. 1:3-13)

Day 1: Night is separated from Darkness (Genesis 1:3-5)

Explanation: This separation was covered in the message 2 weeks ago, so I will be brief. On the 1st Day of Creation God separated the Light from the initial condition of darkness. This was accomplished by starting the earth’s rotation on its axis. The earth’s rotation relative to a fixed light source is the mechanism for the periods of light and darkness.

Argument: The source of the fixed light on Day 1 is NOT our sun. The Sun is not created until Day 4. This can cause many to question whether the biblical account can be trusted, but it should not be too difficult to believe that God made a source of light apart from the sun. He is going to do it in the future (Rev. 21:23) so why is it so difficult to accept that He did it in the past?

Day 2: The Expanse separates the waters (Gen 1:6-8)

Explanation: The initial creation in Gen. 1:2 has the earth being a shapeless mass of waters. On the 2nd Day of Creation God makes a separation of the waters. He creates the firmament and places it between the waters. This division results in water being above the firmament and water below the firmament.

The word firmament “speaks of something that is spread out. . . so the imagery of Genesis 1:6 is that of a vast expanse a protective layer that overlays the earth and divides the waters below from the waters above.” (The Battle for the Beginning, John MacArthur, p. 89)

Whether we use the word Expanse or Firmament, it is still difficult to understand what it is. These words from Ken Ham may be helpful: “the expanse/firmament is the sky, which includes both the blue sky we see the birds flying in and the clouds floating in (what we call the atmosphere of the earth), and the night sky where the sun, moon and stars are (what we call outer space).” [Creation to Babel: A Commentary for families, by Ken Ham, p. 43]

Day 3: Dry land is separated from the seas (Genesis 1:9-13)

Explanation: The dry land is separated from the seas. The earth is now taking a more familiar shape. It is very possible that the dry land was one continent at this point, opposed to the current arrangement of 7 continents. [The explanation for the change is the global flood - but more on that later]

It is also important to note that Day 3 witnesses the first living organisms: plant life. God speaks and the grass, plants, and trees come into existence. They are created supernaturally yet God created them to reproduce naturally, according to their kind.

Days of Filling (Genesis 1:14-25)

Day 4: God fills the Night / Day with the sun, moon and stars (Gen 1:14-19)

Explanation: God creates our sun, our moon, and the myriad thousands of the stars. This includes our solar system of 8 (or 9) planets, our Milky Way Galaxy, the Crab Nebulae, and all of the other stuff in the universe.

Our sun is our chief source of light and it fills the day, while the moon and stars fill the night. God specifically states that He gave these celestial bodies for “signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years (Gen 1:14)

Our seasons are observed by the cycles of the earth as it revolves around the sun. The summer solstice was 4 days ago (June 21st) and marked the beginning of summer in the Northern Hemisphere with the longest day / shortest night of the year.

Day 5: God fills the Expanse / Waters with birds and all the sea creatures (Gen 1:20-23)

Explanation: God filled the skies with His creations with wings and He filled the oceans and seas with all that swim: the fish, the sea-going mammals (whales, dolphins, etc). It is important to recognize the distinction the Scripture makes between plant life (day 3 and animal life (days 5&6). The term living creature is used to differentiate plants from animal.

Notice that while God supernaturally brought them forth as mature creations, He set up the process of reproduction after their kind.

Day 6: God fills the earth with land animals (Gen 1:24-25)

Explanation: On the final day of Creation God supernaturally brings forth the living creatures that live on dry land. Day 6 is the creation day for dogs, cats, horses, bears, and the dinosaurs. Contrary to evolutionary teaching of millions of years, humans and dinosaurs were created on the same day.

God sustains His Creation within natural limits (Genesis 1:11-12;21;24-25)

Explanation: The events of Days 1 - 6 are supernatural; that is to say God created by Divine Decree. He spoke, and it came into existence. The plants and trees and all the animals were brought forth as mature creations - they were fully formed on the day they were created.

God sustains the continuation of His creation through natural means - that of reproduction according to kinds. In simple language this means that apple trees produce apples, not oranges; corn plants produce corn, not beans; dogs reproduce dogs, not cats; and eagles reproduce eagles, not monkeys.

Illustrate: In the movie ICE AGE, there is a scene in the ice caves. Sid the sloth is looking at different figures that have been trapped in the ice. This is the evolutionary pictorial progression of transitional forms. The idea presented so casually is that primitive life forms develop over time into more advanced and complex life forms.

Argument: The biblical creation narrative is directly opposed to evolutionary theory. According to Scripture, and observational science, plants and animals reproduce within their own kind. Evolutionary biologists and naturalistic scientists have never been able to reproduce any transitional creatures! Not one!

Regardless of having no real scientific proof, evolutionary theory is passed to our students as fact and they are required to learn it and be tested on it. The popular culture reinforces this worldview in all types of media every chance it gets.

The problem for Biblical Creationists is the incredibly short attention-span of the average believer and his or her reluctance to think critically. We may have been forced to think during school, but many of us approach the Bible with our minds in neutral.

Example: A geologist informs us that the rock structure in the Grand Canyon was laid down a long time ago so we believe it. “The dark black rock down at river level is a big leap back in time. This Vishnu Schist first appeared almost 2 billion years ago — as lava exposed to the heat and pressure of colliding volcanic islands with the North American landmass” (Geology Rocks: Grand Canyon Rock Layers, a blog post by Lisa Winters on April 22, 2021;www.grandcanyontrust.org/blog/geology-rocks-grand-canyon-rock-layers; accessed on 6/23/23)

It is vital to realize that both the biblical creationist and the evolutionary geologist are looking at the same evidence. The crucial aspect concerns interpretation. The facts are the same, but the conclusions are different based on worldview and starting points.

There IS a reasonable and logical explanation involving scientific analysis that yields ages in the thousands, not billions of years. Getting most believers, however, to pay attention while trying to explain the naturalistic, anti-theistic assumptions that are foundational to deep time results and discussing half-lives of isotopes is like trying to herd cats!

Many believers, at least in the West, just want to hear that God loves them and Jesus is coming back before it gets to bad. They want to be comfortable; they do not like to be challenged to think. And then we wonder why our children get liberal ideas and start accepting the moral insanity of the age.

This is why the final point in the message is so important:

God’s Word on His Creation is Authoritative

The Believer and the Naturalist are both looking at the same evidence. The different conclusions are the result of worldview (what is your starting point?)

There IS an eyewitness account to the beginning of the Universe. There IS a source that informs as to how our world was formed, why it looks the way it does, and how life began, and how life is sustained in its natural cycles. This eyewitness account is the Revelation of God and it is Authoritative.