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Genesis 6 day literal or not?

Discussion in 'Baptist Theology & Bible Study' started by Jedi Knight, Dec 24, 2009.

  1. Winman

    Winman Active Member

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    It doesn't, and that is the whole idea, to make people doubt the word of God.
     
  2. saturneptune

    saturneptune New Member

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    The latest scientific thought comes from flawed, created beings just like us. Not believing in a Creator shows a lack of common sense. Not believing in the Genesis account shows a lack of faith.

    I would say you are exactly right, that Jesus believes in a young earth, since He was there creating it.
     
  3. Crabtownboy

    Crabtownboy Well-Known Member
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    Rather dangerous statement there as current interpretation of scripture also comes from flawed created being just like us.

    It is not that those who do not agree with the 24 hour day do not believe in a creator, it is simply that they believe the creator did it differently than a literal interpretation of Genesis 1. If God had inspired Genesis 1 to be a scientific explanation no one would have understood nor believed it for thousands of years ... maybe not even now.

    To insist that everyone agree with a personally held doctrine and to restrict God is to make God too small.
     
  4. Bob Alkire

    Bob Alkire New Member

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    Even before I was saved, I didn't have enough faith to believe in evolution.

    I have found out over the years on this subject most that I've had meeting with or read their books or heard them speak or folks for the old earth theory, many are good folks, like the gap theory folks. Most were trying to keep up with science that was being taught at their time.

    But most disagree with much more of the Scriptures, even who Jesus Christ was and what He has done.

    I don't have enough faith to believe in evolution.
    I don't have enough faith to believe the army of Egypt drowned in the Reed sea which was less that a foot or so deep, I believe in the Red sea is where it happen.
    I don't have enough faith to think Jesus Christ was raised only spiritually, I'll take the Biblical account.
     
  5. Trotter

    Trotter <img src =/6412.jpg>

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    Trying to limit God to natural laws like time, that He created by the way, is making God too small.
     
  6. Crabtownboy

    Crabtownboy Well-Known Member
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    I have not said that God is limited to natural law. That is another and a very interesting discussion. But natural law is restricted to natural law.

    God created natural law. Will God violate that which He created?

    My point is we must always be open to learning more about God and how God works. We must never restrict God to our current level of understanding.
     
  7. sag38

    sag38 Active Member

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    How arrogant can one person be? The Bible in Genesis is very clear and concise. Only an arrogant and ungodly person would try to read between the lines and see which isn't there.
     
  8. Crabtownboy

    Crabtownboy Well-Known Member
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    It really is not that clear. If you read Genesis 1 and 2 and take a very literal interpretation there are problems reconciling the two creation stories that are contained in these two chapters. The important aspect of each story is that God did it.

    The arrogance is saying I understand Genesis completely and God cannot work in any way except to my understanding and interpretation ... and if you do not agree with me you are doomed, or completely mistaken, or arrogant or whatever else you may think. God is never limited to our understanding and interpretation. We are too small to really understand God and all of God's ways. We look through a glass darkly.
     
    #48 Crabtownboy, Dec 26, 2009
    Last edited by a moderator: Dec 26, 2009
  9. sag38

    sag38 Active Member

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    It is black and white Crabby. I'm not reading anything into the scripture. You are the one adding to it and reading between the lines that which isn't there. You are adding to the Word of God, over intellectulizing it, and casting doubt as to the validity of God's word as it is written. That my friend is arrogance and dangerous.
     
  10. Crabtownboy

    Crabtownboy Well-Known Member
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    What you are doing is insisting that everyone including God must conform to your understanding. That makes God your servant and makes God much too small. It also says that you know all there is to know and everyone must agree with me.

    How do you reconcile the problems in the two creation stories? Don't ask me to point them out. Read the two chapters, compare them and then show me how you reconcile them with a literal interpretation.
     
  11. just-want-peace

    just-want-peace Well-Known Member
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    No!!

    The arrogance is saying,
    "God said-----, but I think it really is-----", or
    "God said---, but that is impossible, so-----", or
    "God said----, but did He REALLY mean-----?"

    Now that's ARROGANCE!!
     
  12. just-want-peace

    just-want-peace Well-Known Member
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    God created time - is God contained by time????
     
  13. RevGKG

    RevGKG Member

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    The problem with doubting God in Genesis is it sets a pattern to begin doubting God throughout all of Scripture and where does one stop? It is no wonder that many youth and young adults struggle with God's authority in their lives. Things such as creation are taught as a "story" and we do not teach the power of God. Stating that God was not strong enough to speak creation into existence in a literal day limits Him. Stating that He needed help via evolution or thousands to millions of years is saying He was not powerful enough to speak and it was created.

    When we doubt God from the beginning we are more open to questioning other parts of Scripture and limiting Him.
     
  14. RevGKG

    RevGKG Member

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    You are the one doubting God's power and authority. It is not being said believe God my way or else - it is reading the Scripture and believing what God said!
     
  15. sag38

    sag38 Active Member

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    Exactly! Some simply cannot accept the Bible at face value but want to add to it, take away from it, and lead others into a nebulous salvation.
     
  16. Winman

    Winman Active Member

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    Yes, believing God used evolution robs him of his great power and infinite understanding. God could have created the universe in an instant. He used six days as a pattern and sign for us, not because he needed time to create everything.

    Psa 147:5 Great is our Lord, and of great power: his understanding is infinite.

    There is no limit to God's knowledge and understanding, it is infinite. That is beyond comprehension for man.
     
  17. Jedi Knight

    Jedi Knight Well-Known Member
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    Seem you really don't see God as SUPERnatural over His creation and can over rule at will. This is were people fall of the tracks with the scriptures.....using natural understanding vs SUPERnatural events. The things of God are foolishness to the natural mans thinking.
     
  18. Jedi Knight

    Jedi Knight Well-Known Member
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    Can a child understand what 6 days means? Was Genesis written for US to understand? Is God the author of confusion? Seems you believe the Bible makes you check your brain in at the door. Well you must be born again to understand spritual things but 6 days.....ask a kid what 6 days means. Humble yourself like a child "simple faith" and the obvious will become......well obvious!
     
    #58 Jedi Knight, Dec 26, 2009
    Last edited by a moderator: Dec 26, 2009
  19. saturneptune

    saturneptune New Member

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    You bring up an excellent point. The whole debate about young vs old earth assumes the element of time. In eternity, there are no works like when, where, or how long ago. Our minds are way too limited to grasp the concept of eternity. When God spoke the universe into existence, maybe it was from a perspective of no time.

    Someone once explained to me in school about how limited our minds would be either in a higher dimension or eternity. If a person in a two dimensional world (as opposed to our three) was going to try and communicate with us, how well would he do? Since a person in such a world lives on a flat plane, if I stuck my hand towards him, what would he see? Probably five small holes made by my fingers as they intersected his plane of existence. Is that what my hand looks like?

    At least I have sense enough to know that the mechanics of Creation are way beyond my understanding, so, given a choice of Genesis, or the great brains we have running around this world, I will take Genesis and how much the Lord chose to reveal to us.
     
  20. Marcia

    Marcia Active Member

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    But the context of saying one day equals 1000 yrs. is not a context of literally equating one day to 1000 yrs! It is in the context of time meaning nothing to God. That does not mean that every time the Bibles says "one day" it can mean 1,000 years.

    The 6 days in Genesis are reaffirmed in Exodus when it is repeated again (by God himself) that He created the world in 6 days. In that time, they would have taken it as literally six days and that is how we should take it. Why would God lie? If it was more than 6 days, He could have said He created the world in a long period of time or over thousands and thousands of years. He didn't say that.
     
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