Creation

Our Position On the Creation in the Genesis Account

We affirm that God’s Word, the Bible, is His special, verbal, infallible, inerrant revelation to man, and that it takes priority over the general, non-verbal revelation of His glory and greatness in creation (Ps.19; Rom.1:20). His special revelation explains His general revelation, and not vice-versa. This means that while science has the potential for illuminating which of several probable biblical interpretations might be more plausible, science is never to dictate which interpretation must be followed.

We affirm that the creation of the universe was miraculous, and as such, may not have any scientific explanation. This means, for instance, that the “Big Bang” theory might not have any usefulness at all as an explanation for how God created (see Job 38-39). Miracles are not subject to scientific (in the sense of “materialistic”) analysis, and it is risky business to speculate about how God did or did not use “natural” processes to accomplish them.

We affirm that the “days” of Gen.1 are intended to be understood as literal 24-hour days, as indicated by their sequential, ordinal numbering, by the phrases “evening and morning”, by other supporting references (Ex.20:11, 31:17), and by the affirmation of Jesus Christ to the words of Moses (Lk.16:31). There is nothing in the Genesis passage to indicate that the days are to be understood metaphorically or symbolically for millions or billions of years; nor is there anything in the Text which would imply that the creation account should be interpreted figuratively.

We affirm that death and suffering entered the world when Adam sinned, and not before, as is plainly taught in Rom.5:12 (where “death” means physical death, throughout the context). Other passages all confirm that death in nature is inextricably connected to sin (I Cor.15:21-22; Rom.8:19-21; Rev.21:4). This means that fossil remains of sentient creatures simply cannot predate Adam.

We affirm that Adam was created directly and immediately by God out of the dust of the ground (Gen.2:7). The “breath of life” which God breathed into Adam caused him to become a living creature. This means that there is no Scriptural basis for a pre-Adamic, evolutionary history for man as a living physical being.

We affirm that the Noahic flood was not a local flood, but covered the entire earth with water, as the language of Gen.6-9 repeatedly emphasizes. No local flood can satisfy the requirements of the Text. (i.e., Why should animals have to come aboard the ark to escape a local flood?). The flood caused massive destruction on a global scale, just as God promised in Gen.6:13. Hence, any scientific extrapolations in our interpretation of early earth history must consider the catastrophic effects a global flood of judgment would produce.