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Genesis 1 -- Creation and a Gap?

Genesis 1:1-2
1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. 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.
KJV

See Genesis 1. Discuss and define your beliefs about the six days of Creation. Was this over a long period of time? Was it six 24-hour days? Was there a "gap" of unknown time between Genesis 1:1 and 1:2? If so, what occurred during this "gap"? If not, explain in as much detail as possible the fall of Satan and the entrance of sin into the universe.


The point most striking about even a cursory review of these three positions is that the last two are designed to allow for an “old earth” scientific perspective. Especially the day-age position calls for a view of earthly development that conforms to modern scientific thought. The universe could have been formed by a big bang. Planets evolve and develop over millions of years. Trees “grow” for a natural life span. Species grow and then become extinct, all within the timeframe of God’s rule. God created the big bang. God planted the seeds of the trees. God formed and reformed the various species. 

This viewpoint essentially comes from rationalism, science and the Bible. Science appears to be the true “god” for the intent of the approach is to fit the Bible into the scientific tables and periods rather than simply accepting the biblical account as true and viewing the scientific evidence as either incorrect or the result of a Godly miracle of some type. While the major proponents of this view claim a high view of Scripture, they always seem to speak of science first and God and the Bible second.

Much the same may be said about the literary framework approach. They read science completely out of the Scriptures. Having done this, they are left with no explanation of creation and nature, so they move as close to a mythological approach as possible. They still want to attribute sovereignty to God and recognize His power, yet, they seem to be without a structure to accomplish this. Their answer is to view the entire creation story as a literary device. God created, but He has told us nothing useful about the creation process. Those who follow this approach worry about the concepts of “light” in both Day 1 and Day 4, thus, they place science and reason before the word of God. In this sense, they are very close cousins to the generation-day view.

Does God use literary devices? Of course He does. But, these devices are always obvious or earmarked in His Word. He frequently uses poetry and figuratively language. He uses symbolism. He uses allegory. In doing so, however, His Word makes it clear when we are to read the words of Scripture in something other than their natural meaning. When one reads the first two chapters of Genesis, none of the literary markers are present that would call for a reading other than with a natural meaning.

 

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