In Essentials Unity, in Non-Essentials Liberty, in all things Charity Biological Apologetic s 2015...

In Essentials Unity, in Non-Essentials Liberty,

in all things Charity

Biological

Apologetics

2015

George Tadros

Genesis 1-3

Can we reach a

agreement??

The question of beginning of the Cosmos

…to beginning of Life (Bios)

…to the beginning of man

The complexity of matters!!!

Biblical Interpretation

Scientific Interpretation

The Biological lay of the land

Creation vs.

Evolution

Creationists

Young Earth

Creationist

Old Earth/progr

essive Creationist

Intelligent Design

Theistic Evolution Evolutionist

Belief in Neo-Darwinist Evolution

Belief in Biblical literalism

The Biblical lay of the landBiblical

Literalism

Historical Literal

Young Earth

Creationist

Old Earth/progr

essive Creationist

Historical Figurative

ID/Theistic Evolution

Mythical

Belief in Evolution


What is the Genre?The use of Metaphors, similes and figurative speech.

What was the original audience’s understanding of the text?

Principles of Biblical Interpretation

Concordism: The Good and Bad. “the Creator of the heavens, who stretches them out” (Isa 42:5)

Is this the Big Bang???

Principles of Biblical Interpretation

The three Big problems

Challenges of the Biblical Interpretation: How to interpret Creation ex nihilo

How to interpret the days?

What to do with man

Pre-suppositions

Fact finding &

acceptance

Beliefs

The search for Truth

The Christian Lay of the Land

Biblical Inerrancy

Literal

Calendar Day View

Historical/Context

Gap Theory

Day Gap Theory

Day Age Theory

Framework Theory

Figurative

Theism/literal Biblical

Revelation

Scientific evidence for

ancient earth/evolution

Young Earth

Creationists


Challenge Calendar-Day View

Days of Creation Six 24 hour days

Sequence of Creation

As literally mentioned in Genesis 1

Age of Universe/earth

6000-7000 years

Creation of Adam Special Creation, Ex-nihilo, instantaneous, of age. Can be tracked using the genealogies.

Did death exist prior to fall?

No for all living beings

Interpretation of fall?

Physical and Spiritual death, expulsion from God’s presence, evil entering into the world

What does Salvation achieve

Through one man (Jesus Christ), the sin of the one man (Adam) was corrected

Most direct and easily understood meaning of the text.

Why would text say “So the evening and the morning of…”

Most uses of the Hebrew word “yom” refer to a 24 hour period.

Strengths of YEC

“ For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day” (Exodus 20:11)

Strengths of YEC

Jesus “Are there not twelve hours in the day” (John 11:9)

Not dependent on any changing scientific theory: “A theology wed to the science of one age is a widow in the next!”

Creation as is “according to its kind”

Strengths of YEC

How can there be days when there is no sun until the 4th day

Challenges of YECGen 1:11 ““Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb that yields seed, and the fruit tree that yields fruit according to its kind” in 24 hours!

How can you fit the events of the sixth day in Genesis 2 in a 24 hour period?

Not all the use of “yom” in Genesis 1-2 refers to a literal 24 hour period (Gen 2:4)

How would you reconcile the seventh day (whether in Genesis or Exodus) with a 24 hour period when it has no evening or morning? Is it days of week or a pattern to be followed?

Challenges of YEC

The theological validity of creation of “appearance of age”

Challenges of YEC

Theism/Context Biblical

Revelation

Scientific challenges for guided design

Progressive Creationist/Old Earth

Creationist


Historical/Context

Gap Theory

Day Gap Theory

Day Age Theory

Framework Theory

Genesis 1:1All

Creation was made

Genesis 1:2There is a Gap.The earth was

without form and void

Genesis 1:3

Creation was

restored to good in 6

days

Beginning of time

Billions of years 6 Days

Gap Theory

Challenge Gap Theory

Days of Creation Six 24 hour days after a Gap between Genesis 1:1 and Genesis 1:2


As literally mentioned in Genesis 1


Billion(s) of years

Creation of Adam Special Creation, Ex-nihilo, instantaneous, of age


Yes (Through Satan’s work)


Physical and Spiritual death, expulsion from God’s presence, evil entering into the world



The tense of the verb in Gen 1:1-2 is perfect tense, while in Gen 1:3 and onwards is narrative tense.

Strength of the Gap Theory

Genesis 1:1

Beginning of Creation

Genesis 1:2-27Creation on 6

undefined periods of time which

could be overlapping

Genesis 2:2,3

God rested on the 7th

day

Beginning of time

Billions of years

Day Age Theory

Challenge Day Age Theory

Days of Creation Six periods of prolonged time not limited to 24 hours.


Not necessarily literal sequence but does not exclude it. Days could overlap as well.


Billion(s) of years



Yes for animals.No for Man


Spiritual death, expulsion from God’s presence, evil entering into the world



Even if the days represent ages, a non-overlapping sequence does not match our understanding of the Universe: Earth (2) before Sun (4), Vegetation (3) before marine creatures (5), birds and marine creature together (5).

Challenges of Day Age • An overlapping

sequence, though makes sense with Biological evolution, it does not make sense with “So the evening and morning of…”

Genesis 1:1

Beginning of Creation

Genesis 1:2-27Creation on 6 “24-hour” periods with prolonged

gaps in between

Genesis 2:2,3

God rested on the 7th

day

Beginning of time

Billions of years

Day Gap Theory

Challenge Day Gap Theory

Days of Creation Six 24 hour days with unidentified gaps of prolonged periods of time in between


literal sequence with no overlap.


Billion(s) of years








Preserves the integrity of the 24-hour period Preserves the theological concept of “creation

by fiat” The first 5 days are labeled in Hebrew as Day

“One”, “Two”, “Three”,…

Pros/Cons of Day Gap

Belief in God/Naturalis

m

Biblical Revelation of

creation

Theistic Evolutio

n


Challenge Framework Theory

Days of Creation Six periods of unidentified time not limited to 24 hours (but not excluding 24 hours). The concept of the week is more crucial to the understanding


Not literally in sequence. The two most common alternatives are the logical/topical or the promised land theory


Billion(s) of years (Genesis is not at all related to the age of the earth)








Employs the Topical Arrangement: The Domains in the first 3 days and those who inhabit the domains in the second 3 days.

Pros/Cons of Framework Interpretation

Ties into the “Promised Land” concept familiar to the Israelites.

Ties in with the concept that God wanted to put everything that the neighboring nations worshipped as a CREATED being.

Hard to understand the historical fact of creation.

How to reconcile with the pattern of Exodus “ For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day” (Exodus 20:11)

Pros/Cons of Framework Interpretation

Challenge Historical Figurative

Days of Creation The days are not identifying time at all but rather How God made the earth functional


Not sequence but rather function: Time, weather, food


Billion(s) of years (Genesis is not at all related to the age of the earth)

Creation of Adam Could be ex-nihilo, instantaneous of age but more likely through natural processes. Adam and Eve are archetypal figures . They were not the only alive people


Yes as part of nature’s course. Immortality was a possibility for man but he was not created immortal


Spiritual death, alienation from God’s presence


Through one man (Jesus Christ), He restored the possibility for mankind to approach God

Creation Narrative within Ancient Near East

Creation of function, order and “home” for mankind not material existence.

The first 3 days were the creation of Time, Weather and food.

To name something is to give it a function or a role

Strength of Historical Figurative

The Creation is God’s Cosmic Temple “But will God really dwell on earth? The heavens, even the highest heaven, cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built!” (1Kings 8:27)

The Garden as the place of meeting of Gods


Very Appealing from the Biological Standpoint of Creation of Man.

EXCEPT


Who are Adam (Man) & Eve (Mother of all living being)

What is death?

From Days to Adam

Special Creation

Miraculous Modification

Evolutionary Creation

Creation of Man

A pair of recent ancestors < 10,000 years ago

A pair of recent representatives among humanity < 10,000 years ago.

A pair of ancient ancestors 150,000 years ago.

A pair of ancient representatives 150,000 years ago

Symbolic of humanity in its relationship with God.

5 Possibilities of Adam/Eve

What does it mean to be created on God’s image & likeness?

How does God participate in our creation at this point after Genesis?

How does sin get transmitted from generation to generation?

How do you interpret death (Back in Genesis & now)

The Theological challenges to an alternative interpretation of creation of Adam & Eve

What to make of the genealogies of Adam in Gen 7 and Luke 3

“before any plant of the field was in the earth and before any herb of the field had grown. For the Lord God had not caused it to rain on the earth, and there was no man to till the ground” (Gen 2:5)

The Theological challenges to Group Ancestry

From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth (Acts 17:26)

“Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned” (Rom 5:12)

So it is written: “The first man Adam became a living being; the last Adam, a life-giving spirit” (1 Cor 15:45)


What is the status of those before Adam; does “To be sure, sin was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not charged against anyone’s account where there is no law” (Rom 5:13) apply here???


The Biblical lay of the landBiblical

Literalism

Historical Literal

Young Earth

Creationist

Old Earth/progr

essive Creationist

Historical Figurative

ID/Theistic Evolution

Mythical

Belief in Evolution


How did the Church Father interpret Genesis

Challenges of the Biblical Interpretation

St Augustine stated in his books The Literal Meaning of Genesis, the Confessions, and The City of God in 400 AD:

“In matters that are so obscure and far beyond our vision, we find in the Holy Scripture passages which can be interpreted in very different ways without prejudice to the faith we received. In such cases, we should not rush in headlong and so firmly take our stand on one side that, if progress in the search for truth justly undermines this position, we too fall with it”

Pray for [email protected]

Biological

Apologetics

2015

George Tadros

In Essentials Unity, in Non-Essentials Liberty, in all things Charity Biological Apologetic s 2015...

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