Purpose:
It was God's business to create the universe and our earth. It is our business to garden the earth and to protect the flora and fauna from harmful activities and pollutants. We probably should spend a lot more time on our business and less time on God's business.
The Lesson
Gene:1:1: In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
Gene:1:2: And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness [was] upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
Gene:1:11: And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, [and] the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed [is] in itself, upon the earth: and it was so.
Gene:1:12: And the earth brought forth grass, [and] herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed [was] in itself, after his kind: and God saw that [it was] good.
Gene:1:15: And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so.
Gene:1:17: And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth,
Gene:1:20: And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl [that] may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven.
Gene:1:22: And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth.
Gene:1:24: And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so.
Gene:1:25: And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that [it was] good.
Gene:1:26: And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
Gene:1:28: And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth. Gene:1:29: And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which [is] upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which [is] the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.
Gene:1:30: And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein [there is] life, [I have given] every green herb for meat: and it was so.
Gene:2:1: Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.
Gene:2:4: These [are] the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens,
Gene:2:5: And every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew: for the LORD God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and [there was] not a man to till the ground.
Gene:2:6: But there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground.
The Bible is not a scientific document.
God did not write the Bible, men did. These men wrote according to the teachings of their times, but with inspiration from God. Their objective was not science but religion: man’s relationship with God.
Still, the Bible account of the creation is fascinating, isn't it? It is full of insight, right? What the Bible is saying is what it says in the Gospel of John:
John:1:1: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
John:1:2: The same was in the beginning with God.
John:1:3: All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.
John:1:4: In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
John:1:5: And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.
If the Bible were a scientific document, it would contain the technologies used during different times. The object was not to preserve technologies, but to preserve religion. It says that God created all that was created. If we want to know the technologies during various past eras, we have to do what we have been doing for years. DIG!
The Creation
Creationism uses science tactics to pursue preset conclusions. It can be more speculative, than scientific. It is a worthwhile pursuit if true scientific arguments are used, as they often are. Stretching science is to be avoided. (Especially in thermodynamics. Some don't seem to know about nonequilibrium thermodynamics, etc.) Accepting truth when proved is integrity.
Science has not unraveled the creation of the universe in great detail. In fact, the history of science is full of false precepts and conclusions.
That's what science is all about.
You take a guess at what you think is right. You call it a hypotheses.
You test your guess. If lots of data make your guess look good, you call it a theory. You realize that your theory can never be proven, but if more and more data fits, you are happy with the theory. Many theories have held for many years, only to be abandoned when the data (facts) didn't fit.
Religion also had a history of false precepts and conclusions. Poor Galileo was right in his science but wrong in his religion. He paid dearly for that. The problem is that his church had false precepts about the universe, having thought they knew exactly what God had done. They didn't. They had to change, just as science has to change. Men are not all that smart about everything. They just think they are.
The Bible implies that the universe was created from nothing. My correspondence with one of Dr. Stephen Hawking’s (A Short History of Time) graduate students informed me that the Big Bang theory indicates that the universe was created from nothing and everywhere at once.
Dr. Henry J. Eyring, the noted physical chemist (Absolute Reaction Rate theory), pointed out that the Biblical sequence of events for the creation are in substantial agreement with the geological record.
During the Millennium, we will see how God created the universe and how long it took the earth to develop to a livable state for man. Until then, keep thinking and studying, but don't be surprised if you learn that no earthling had the slightest idea of what really went on.
God's ways are not man's ways, so says the Bible.
Man's ways are so far from God's ways that he had to set up an advocate for man. Jesus Christ is the advocate. We can't return to God except through him. We can't have eternal life unless we know God. We have to try to become like Him. So it's okay to use our heads and think about important things. The more we learn the better. But don't let your own learning and the misinterpretations of men cost you your faith in God.
Science has not proved or disproved God
That is not the purpose of science.
Religion has not proved God
Religion is based on faith. But faith is based on the reality of things.
God has proved Himself by leaving His fingerprints: His creations. He exists and it doesn't matter what any human thinks on the matter. Deciding that God doesn't exist does not make God disappear. And God rules and acts by His laws and will not behave according to what men want, but what He knows is right.
How are things created?
There are two ways to create.
One is by evolution. Darwin was one of the first such thinkers. He listed many problems with his theory, which some followers have chosen to ignore but not the “Intelligent Divine” generation of Creationist. Many modifications have been made to his theory over time. But we know that his finches changed down in the Galapagos Islands to survive. So far, however, they have remained finches. It's like dogs. All dogs are from the same original species, but they are still dogs and can interbreed with each other.
Men are great evolutionary designers. Look at the automobile, the airplane, the telephone, almost anything you look at has been designed by evolution after the original innovation. However, some do not allow God to design by evolution after His innovations. Why?
The other way to create, as we have mentioned above, is by innovation. Edison invented the light bulb by innovation. General Electric and other companies have been improving the light bulb for years, creating many new products. That is evolution. The Big Bang was innovation. What happened after that?
Science says, Evolution! (Well, not all scientist)
The Creationist / Intelligent Divine group say, Innovation! (Well, perhaps very rapid evolution.)
Men create by both innovation and evolution. Why restrict God? We are God's children and we have many of His traits. (We lack many of His traits.) God can create as He sees fit. He is not restricted by what men think.
Does he pop you out as a perfect being? Innovation?
Or does he pop you out after a nine month transition from a zygote to a baby in a helpless state that requires years of nourishing and training by your parents, and others, before you can reproduce yourself, and many more years before you develop a substantial number of His traits? Evolution?
Some may think that the creation of a baby is high speed evolution. What do you think?
We don't know what God did because we either were not around to watch or our spirits can't remember such things in our present state. So why make such a big deal about the conflicts of science and religion? True science and true religion is simply knowing the truth. Why tie God down to man's invented time scale with its limitations?
Christ said that God could make Sons of Abraham out of stones. I would assume that He could create a 4.5 billion-year-old earth with a snap of his fingers if He wanted to. He also could take 4.5 billion years if He so desired.
What is the truth?
Truth is how things were in the past. How things are right now. How things will be in the future. God sees it all. We don't. Be we are promised that we will know in His good time. That should be good enough for most of us. (I’m not saying that we shouldn’t be trying to figure out what He did.)
Why not spend more time loving each other? What's the sense of so many different camps? Why do we blast other religions? All religions have a good measure of truth. All religions are made up of people who bring a measure of falsity with them. Why don't all God fearing people, Christian or Non-Christian, bury prejudice and find God?
We will find God when we find ourselves. We will find God when we start helping each other and stop killing each other. We will find God when we become honest in all our dealings and continually seek the truth of all things. We will find God when we live up to our responsibility to garden this great earth. We will find God when we treat wild things kindly and preserve the land, water, mountains, plains, animals, plants, and all that is good in the earth. We will find God when we are ready for Him.
For The Little Children
“Mommy, look at all the stars out tonight. Wow!”
“You can really see them up here in the mountains, can't you, Rosy,” her mother said. “See that large group of stars to the south? That is Orion the Hunter.”
“I don't see no Orion the Hunter. Just stars,” answered Rosy.
“Look, Rosy. See those three stars that are close to each other? That is Orion’s belt. The two big stars above the belt are his shoulders and the two big stars below the belt are this thighs. Now do you see Orion the Hunter?” Her mother pointed at each star to show her.
“Oh, I see it,” said Rosy. “Still doesn't look like a hunter to me, Mommy. To me it looks like a spider.”
Rosy’s mother laughed. “The star groups are called a constellation. They have been known since ancient times. You are right. What might have looked like a hunter to a Greek living long ago might have looked like a spider to you. The Chinese had names for the same star clusters as the Egyptians, but the names were different.”
“Are there more cancellations, Mother?” asked Rosy.
Her mother laughed again. “That is a big word for a little girl, isn't it? The word is constellations. Can you say it now, Rosy?”
“Yes, I can. Constellations. Show me a lot more, Mommy.”
“Well, Rosy, there are 12 constellations in the Zodiac. The Zodiac is a band that goes around the sky. The first is Arias the Ram and the last is Pisces the Fishes. The first one here is Virgo the Virgin. This is Pisces the Fishes. This is Scorpio the Scorpion. This is Taurus the Bull. This is Gemini the Twins. This is Capricorn the Goat. This is Aquarius the Water Bearer. This is Sagittarius the Archer. This is Libra the Balance. This is Scorpio the Scorpion. This is Leo the Lion, and this is Aries the Ram.”
“How did God make so many stars and get them to glow in the sky, Mommy? I want to see them closer with Daddy's binoculars. Will that help me see them better.”
Her mother got the binoculars and said, “Yes, it will help us to see the moon better when it comes, but there is something you can see that is special right now.”
“What is that, Mommy”
“Jupiter. It is a planet, not a constellation. We will be able to see four of its moons with these binoculars if the moons are not hiding behind the planet.”
Her mother studied the sky and said, “Yes, Rosy, we are lucky. All four moons are visible tonight. Now look for your self.”
It was hard at first for Rosy to find the moons, Then she said, “Oh, Mommy! I see them now. I see one, two, three, four. We only have one moon, but Jupiter has four.”
Her mother said, “Rosy, Jupiter has many moons, but only four of them are bright enough to see with binoculars.”
Rosy said, “God made pretty things, didn't he Mommy?”
“He certainly did, but something special is going to happen to the prettiest thing he ever made.”
“What is that, Mommy?”
Mother laughed and said, “She is going to bed.”
“Oh, Mommy, can't I stay up a little bit longer,” asked Rosy.
All you kids know the answer to that question, don't you?
Copyright©2001-2005 John Taylor Jones, Ph.D.
EzineArticles Expert Author John T Jones, Ph.D.
John T. Jones, Ph.D. (
[email protected])is a retired R&D engineer and VP of a Fortune 500 company. He is author of detective & western novels, nonfiction (business, scientific, engineering), poetry, etc. Former editor of international trade magazine.
More info:
http://www.tjbooks.comBusiness web site:
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