Gods Big Bang Creation
Endless debates have taken place in the church over the last few decades about the acuracy of Genesis 1 version of the creation of the world. Some believe its just a story that should not be interpreted as actual events, (a bit like an Old Testamant version of a Parable), others hold onto it and refuse to even contemplate the possibility of Evolution or the Big Bang theory. Then there are those who avoid the subject altogether as irrelevant saying it matters not where we come from but only where we are going.
I would put it to you that actually the matter of where we come from IS very important and a central part of the Gospel. The simple reality is that if we can prove the origins of our existence, and in them prove that God does not feature, then the remainder of the Gospel story can also be discounted. The reliability of our destination very much depends on the acurary of our origin. You could put it like this, the Gospel story does not begin with John 3:16 “For God so loved the world… but with John 1:1 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” Prove that John 1:1 is wrong and you’ve also disproven John 3:16. Hence the atheist favourite topic will always be Evolution, they think science has proven the Bible wrong.
So me being very convinced of the existence of God how do I explain Genesis Chapter 1? Could all the scientists really be so wrong about the earth being billions of years old or are we missing something in Genesis 1
There are many things we could say about Genesis 1 but I’d like us just to focus on one part of it for now. We know it says that The earth was created in 7 days but look carefully again at this passage. in vs 1 and 2 “In the beginning God Created the heavens and the earth..”
- It was formless
- It was empty
- Darkness covered it
- The Spirit of God was hovering over the surface.
The first thing that strikes me is that this a pretty acurate description of the Big Bang.
Then in verse 3 ..
God said “let there be Light” and there was light and God saw the light was good. Then He seperated the light from the darkness.
In vs 5 God called the light “day” and the Darkness “night”. evening passed and morning came marking the first day!
You may have missed it but the first day” of creation was the creation of Light NOT the creation of the earth itself which occured in vs 1
Its very unlikely that vs 1 to vs 5 all occured on the same day. Its perfectly plausible to assume that vs 1 occured well before vs 5!!! quite possibly even millions or even billions of years before.
This is what Scientists call the Cosmic Dawn !!
Without light there is no life. no Life can be created until Light has been created! Interestingly Genesis also suggest the beginning of time occured at the point of the creation of light.
this is very consistent with the scientific explanation of the beginning of time!
So rather then science contradicting the Genesis version of Creation it is actually confirming its acurarcy, at least for this part of it
More could be said but we’ll save that for another blog another day!
One should consider that light is a form of radiation and that because of evolution, or in spite of it, we can sense and interpret it to match our surroundings. With special equipment, we can now see infrared to further our senses when ordinary light may be missing or diminished. The Bible is not aware of other forms of radiation and only dwells on the light. Other forms of radiation probably caused countless numbers of mutations of which only a few were successful in advancing adaptations to different environments and changing environments. I see no conflict between science and the Bible in these matters. I am aware of 3 versions of creation in the Bible, the last by Peter, who stated, “For they deliberately overlook this fact, that the heavens existed long ago [KJV has the heavens were of old], and the earth was formed out of water and through water by the word of God”. By his reasoning, the heavens existed long before the earth. The Bible does not dwell on the “how”, just the fact that God created everything. We distract ourselves from our Christian obligations when we turn these arguments into life engulfing agendas to convince others of a truth and to prove how strongly and correctly we believe it. It narrows the confines of our thinking, whereas discussion and debate stimulate the minds God gave us.
thanks Lambert I agree! The Bible was never intended to give us all the answers instead as it claims itself to be “God Breathed” its intended to give life.
the very essence of Life is that it provokes us to think for ourselves, to engage our intellect, much different from the often assumed blind obedience without any questions
I’m guessing we’re related 🙂
My Grandfather was Lambert Westera. He was the police chief in Doesburg. My Father was Hendrik Westera, eldest son of Lambert. My Mother was Teuntje Bastina Westera (ne Prins). We immigrated to Canada when I was 6 years old and I am now 72. My brother is Klaas Westera and my sister is Neeltje Adariana Lewis (ne Westera)
hi lambert,
We are cousins! it seemed likely to me when your first name was the same as my Grandad’s 🙂
I remember Henk Westera from Canada, I think the last time I saw him was at my dad’s funeral. my Dad is Joop Westera and my siblings are Evert-Jan, Bettine and Peter( who lives in the USA)
I’ve lived in the UK since 1981 🙂
Hi Cousin Maarten,
I’ve never been into recording although music has been a huge part of my life and at times a source of needed income. I thought I’d pass this recording on to you. Music runs deep in the Westera Clan. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OG8bZhIidQQ
Lambert