Old Earth Creation Science
Discussion of Creation and Science
by Mike O'Neil
© Old Earth Ministries
First Published 15 July 2004
The common misconception among many Christians and
others is that the Bible’s descriptions of creation are inconsistent with what
mankind is learning from science. We are taught that as the word of God, the
Bible tells us the truth. This belief has driven many Christians away from
science. It has also driven some who have seen scientific evidence of
‘evolution’, away from God. Both paths are mistaken.
God’s perfection and the truth of the Bible do not preclude statements that
are not literally true. We must consider the facts of the time and place in
which the Bible and its stories were being written.
Let us suppose that God communicated to his prophets and messengers “IN THE
FIRST 29 BILLION, 369 MILLION, 859 THOUSAND SIX HUNDRED AND TWELVE YEARS, GOD
CREATED THE HEAVENS AND THE EARTH”. Would this message have been understood?
We are talking about a time in history when the average person could not count
far beyond the number of his fingers and toes. Counting into the hundreds or
thousands would have been the province of intellectuals and scholars. The
concept of Millions or Billions of years would have been incomprehensible. Could
such a message have been comprehended, let alone accepted?
When my 5 year old asks how our television works, I do not attempt to explain
radio waves, cathode ray tubes, transistors or satellites. I tell him that a
machine at the TV station takes the pictures, sends them through the air and our
TV catches them and turns them back into pictures.
Am I lying to my son? Am I misleading him? When he reaches college and learns
the science behind semi-conductors, radio transmission and imaging technologies,
should he accuse me of deceiving him. Should he dismiss everything that I’ve
taught him as suspect? Of course not!
When God explained creation in the early years of our civilization, he was wise
enough to understand that his message must be understood. He could not expect us
to understand, even today, all of the tools and mechanisms that he used to
create this miracle. He told us instead, “On the first day God created the
heavens and the earth”. The fact that we could not understand
the true time frame does not in any way, change the enormity of the miracle.
The theories of a big bang, expanding universes, and evolution do not contradict
God’s word to us. They merely give us a glimpse of the wonder and might of his
powers. When the Bible tells us AND GOD SAID, “LET THERE BE LIGHT”,
AND THERE WAS LIGHT he describes to his ‘children’ the miracle of
forming our universe. Could there be a simpler or more concise description of a
“Big Bang”?
Does the scientific fact that hydrogen collected into a mass larger than a
million Earth’s, and was then ignited into a raging inferno that would burn
for billions of years, lessen the wonder of our sun? Who but God could perform
such a task? When we learn that he created not one sun, but billions of them
should we not be even more amazed?
The thought that God slowly and carefully crafted us, and our world, through
painstaking geologic change and biological manipulation does not in any way
reduce the wonder and magnificence of his creation. Imagine the intelligence and
wisdom required to form life, from single celled organisms, through millions of
beasts and creatures and to finally create mankind.
Scientist’s and non-believers puzzle everyday over the millions of
‘coincidences’, ‘mutations’, and unlikely accidents that they imagine
happened to create the universe. But too many of us miss the obvious, that these
were not random acts of nature, but rather God’s carefully planned and
executed steps toward the creation of his children.
The thought that he so loved his children that he spent billions of years
working to mold us is amazing. To my mind, the thought that he whipped the whole
thing up in a week does not in any way show a more powerful or loving God.
The study and understanding of the laws of nature, the physics and science of
our universe is a necessary and valuable contribution to society. This knowledge
provides mankind with the tools we need to grow, develop and very likely survive
as a species. Knowing that these laws exist does not take away from God. It
simply demonstrates his wisdom, power and majesty.
As Christians we know that “On the first day God created the heavens and the
earth….”. Learning the way in which it was done, only adds to the wonder and
glory of his creation.
If you are not a Christian, and you have been holding out on making a decision for Christ because the Church always preached a message that was contrary to what you saw in the scientific world, then rest assured that the Bible is the inerrant Word of God, and you can believe in Christ and receive salvation, while still believing in an old earth. Click here for more.
Are you a Christian who believes in young earth creationism? Now that we have shown the many difficulties of the young earth creation science model in this and many other articles, how does this impact your Christian life? If you are a young-earth creationism believer, click here.
Old Earth Creation Science Articles
To learn more
about old earth creationism, see
Old Earth Belief,
or check out the article
Can You Be A
Christian and Believe in an Old Earth?
Feel free to check out more of this website. Our goal is to
provide rebuttals to the bad science behind young earth creationism,
and honor God by properly presenting His creation.