The Test of Time

Miracle: “An event or effect in the physical world deviating from the known laws of nature or transcending our knowledge of these laws; an extra-ordinary, anomalous, or abnormal event brought about by super-human agency.” (early Websters) “The biblical concept of a miracle is that of some extraordinary work of God transcending the ordinary powers of nature and wrought in connection with revelation.” (paraphrase Herbert Lockyer..All the Miracles of the Bible)

What is the most prominent and the very first recorded miracle found in Holy Scripture? It is recorded in the first seven Hebrew words or the first ten English words... at Genesis 1:1--- “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” Creation ex-nihilo (out of nothing) is the first and most wondrous miracle of all physical miracles, the incarnation excepted. I have become more and more convinced, as billions and billions of nano-seconds have transpired in my life, (3.6 trillion nano-seconds per hour), that God created the heaven and the earth in six literal 24 hour days...simply to confound the wisdom of the world (hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?) ...so that mankind would be forced to “in all thy ways acknowledge Him”. “The creation is the heathen man’s Bible, the farmer’s instruction book, and the sailor’s telescope, through which he receives a representation of the infinite excellencies which are in God. The creation is a large volume, in which God’s works are bound up (in earth, sky and sea)...” (Thomas Watson, 1620-1686)

What does current science say about creation in 6 literal days? The current consensus is (as Carl Sagan would have said...and did many times over) billions and billions and billions of years. What does the current state of the liberal/mainline Church say? ...billions and billions and billions of years! I have a friend who continually reminds me that the Church in the 16th and 17th century was opposed to Galileo’s Copernican understanding that the solar system was not geocentric but heliocentic. It’s true...the Church at that time was on the side of “current science”. Current science at that time was Aristotelian or geocentric..meaning that the earth was at the center of the solar system not the sun (heliocentric). By the way, Aristotle (384- 322 BC) didn’t get geocentricism from the Bible any more than we should understand geocentricsm from the local weatherman that says “sunrise at 5:58am”. What do we see in the 21st century? The Church (liberal/mainline) is once again in full agreement with science about creation occuring over billions and billions of years. It’s de ja vu all over again. Where is Galileo when we need him?

The Holy Scripture in Genesis Chapter 1 says this: “And the evening and the morning were the first day.” Scripture says this six times...once for each day of creation. In Exodus Chapter 20 God tells us..” For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.” Outlined in Exodus chapter 20 are the ten commandments of which the phrase above has particular reference to the 4th commandment: Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. How are we to understand these words...”and the evening and the morning were the first day”? This is not a scientific paper. It is a common sense paper. We believe the Bible is God’s Word to mankind..” being God's own Word, written by men prepared and superintended by His Spirit, is of infallible divine authority in all matters upon which it touches; (Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy”).

How does science explain Jesus’ walking on the water? “...Jesus went unto them walking on the sea. Matt 14:25. How does science explain the virgin birth? “...for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. Matt 1:20. How does science explain the resurrection of Christ? “...He is not here: for he is risen. Matt 28:6. I could go on and on. Science has no explanations for these miraculous and true events. Now, I don’t expect unbelievers to understand the innerrancy and infallibility of scripture..but Christian brothers...you do believe these miraculous events revealed to you in God’s miraculous book concerning His miraculous incarnation, don’t you? The position of the Christian skeptic seems to be: “We shall strain out as much of the gnat of the supernatural as we can, and swallow as much of the camel of (science) and evolution as we can”. (Dr F. Johnson, Fallacies of a Higher Criticism) Science is a wonderful discipline and by God’s gracious providence has given us some marvelous things and expanded our understandings of many areas of reality but it knows nothing of the supernatural and the miraculous. To science god and mother-nature are one. To science naturalism, uniformitarianism and atheism is the holy trinity.

Science, the world, and most liberal Christians will scoff at you if you say you believe that the evening and the morning was a 24 hour literal day in the Genesis account. “....there shall come in the last days scoffers.... saying.... all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation. (uniformitarianism) So far, the liberal churches will not put you on trial as they did Galileo for your understanding. There is only one eye witness to the events of the creation week... and we all know Who that is. He has given us His Word and the Word understood in context without any preconceived notions or presuppositions or extraneous baggage simply says to us six times over, “the evening and the morning were the (first etc) day”. This can only be interpreted as six days consisting of one evening and one morning. If you’re depending on the latest knowledge of science for an understanding of God’s Word...you can be guaranteed that that understanding will change tomorrow. Just ask Galileo!