The Proclaimer

What Difference Does It Make?

There are many in the religious world that claim to believe the Bible to be the word of God but who also believe in the theory of evolution. Feeling the pressure of academia and society in general, they feel the need to somehow reconcile the Genesis record of creation with this human hypothesis. Therefore, the Scriptures are manipulated to embrace evolution. Let’s look at one attempt to combine evolution and the Bible.

The Bible clearly says that God “created the heavens and the earth” (Gen. 1:1). Furthermore, this creation is accomplished in a six-day period of time (Gen. 1:2-31). In an attempt to bring the Bible in harmony with what is believed to be scientific fact, many take the evolutionary chronology and attempt to apply it to this six-day period of time. To do so it is said that the word “day” in Genesis chapter one does not refer to a literal twenty-four hour period of time, but represents millions of years during which the evolutionary chain of events occurred. There are, however, powerful arguments that force the objective Bible student to the position that the days of the creation period constitute an ordinary week – six consecutive twenty-four hour periods of time. The fact is, the theory of evolution and the Bible are contrary to one another, and any attempt to combine the two perverts the word of God.

We must remember an important rule of Bible interpretation: words must be understood literally unless the context demands otherwise. In Genesis 1 the word “day” is used in two senses: 1) “God called the light Day” (1:5); and 2) “there was evening and there was morning, one day” (1:5,8, 13, etc.). Obviously Moses used the term in precisely the same ways we use the term: 1) to refer to the daylight hours as opposed to night; 2) and to refer to a twenty-four hour period of time. To propose that there is anything within the context of this chapter to remotely suggest that a “day” consists of millions of years is totally unwarranted. Furthermore, notice that the text clearly distinguishes between “days” and “years,” for the “lights in the firmament of heaven” were to not only “divide the day from the night,” but the “days and years” (Gen. 1:14). If the “days” of Genesis chapter one signify millions of years, what does the term “years” mean?

Furthermore, notice that in recording the Decalogue, Moses writes, “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work; but the seventh day is a Sabbath unto Jehovah thy God . . . for in six days Jehovah made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is. . .” (Ex. 20:11).  By inspiration Moses shows that the Genesis record of creation is literal and not figurative as he compares the “six days” of the Jewish work-week and the “six days” of the creation-week. Clearly the Hebrew work-week was six consecutive twenty-four hour periods. Furthermore, the “six days” of the creation-week are equated to the six consecutive twenty-four hour periods of the Hebrew work-week. The only reason that anyone would ever conclude that the “six days” of creation actually lasted millions of years is to accommodate the evolutionary theory.

So what difference does it make?  What harm does it do if the record of Genesis 1 is not taken literally?  Consider this.  Science knows nothing of the resurrection of the dead.  What harm is there if one does not believe that Jesus was literally resurrected from the dead?  That’s different you say.  Why so?  Christ was either raised from the dead or He wasn’t.  And God either created the heavens and the earth in 6 days or He didn’t.  The Bible says both occurred.  Do you believe it?

                                                                          -- Clark Dugger

The Proclaimer