In this study we will identify key truths that are revealed through the Biblical account of creation. Comparing these with some unbiblical beliefs concerning the origin of man, the earth and the universe, we will be able to appreciated how God’s revelations of these key truths impact a person’s appreciation of God, one’s self worth the worth of others, and ultimately give the reason for one’s existence.
“in the beginning” implies that God existed before mankind. He is not a thing or a person or even a god who has been created or invented by mankind. The fact that God “said”, “saw” and “spoke” reveals that He is all powerful and the creator of all matter and life. Sire writes that God is personal, that “personality required two basic characteristics: self-reflection and self-determination (2004:26). The Bible reveals this to us. God determined (thinks and acts) what He was to create, and upon reflection of all created God looked at His work and said “It was very good” (Genesis 1:31). That God wants to personally interact with His creation is revealed through the account that He use to walk in the garden of Eden with Adam and Eve (Genesis 3:8-9). Being a holy God, He set parameters within which mankind could move and live and have the choice to obey or not. God’s nature as a personal God is revealed further through the fact that He is a covenant-maker as reflected by the Edenic (pre-fall) and Adamic (post-fall) covenants (Genesis 3:16-19).
If we consider deism, consisting of the belief that God is the creator but is not personally involved in His creation, then this leads to the following conclusions. “Sin is interpreted as breaking a rule, not betraying a relationship. Repentance is admitting guilt, and not sorrowing over personal betrayal. Forgiveness is cancelling a penalty, not renewing fellowship. A Christian life is obeying rules, not pleasing a Lord, a Person” (Sire 2004:131).
God knows good from evil (Genesis 3:5). This is a fact that as Christians we must believe as true as this influences our behavior. If we believe that God is inherently good, then we trust His judgements, His leadership and instructions as presented throughout the Bible, and we will believe in the forces of evil. If God knows what is good then there will be “an absolute standard of righteousness” (Sire 2004:29). But if one is an atheist, then ethics of the social good is whatever the individual may determine it to be. Sire writes that “the good is whatever those who wield the power in society choose to make it. If a person is happy with how society draws its ethical lines, the individual freedom remains (2004:227). But what if one disagrees? We see within our South African education system, in particular the Life Orientation study material, that this leads to much conflict and intolerance.
In Genesis 1:1-2 we learn that there is a creator who created the heavens and the earth out of nothing. God spoke the universe into existence ex nihilo – out of nothing. This was not a random form of creation but an orderly creation over six days and nights. God created for a purpose. He had an end result in mind. He created an environment conducive to human life. He gave man dominion over His creation. Man was created to be in relationship with His creator for eternity. Furthermore, in Genesis 1:31 we read that God “saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good.”
In naturalism one hold the belief that “matter exists eternally and is all there is. God does not exist” (Sire 2004:61). Carl Sagan, astrophysicist, expressed this even more clearly: “The Cosmos is all that is or ever was or ever will be” (2004:61). Those who are believers in abiogenesis (the development of living organisms from non-living matter) usually are supporters of the theory of evolution and micro-evolutionary change. The origin and the purpose of this “matter” is determined by the individual.
One of the key truths taught in the Genesis account is that man was created in the image of God (Genesis 1:26-28). This leads us to the conclusion that man and woman were created equal, that they have intellect, emotions, a sense of morality/conscience and creativity. Man also has value purely because he is made in the image of God. As Helmut Thielicke says, “God does not love us because we are so valuable; we are valuable because God loves us” (2004:34). This is a profound truth. When we realize that God is our source of creation, that He took the time to “form” us and to “breathe” life into us, we consider our fellow man with wonder and new respect. But if one is a naturalist one will consider one’s fellow man as nothing but a “complex machine”, with a personality that is “an inter-relation of chemical and physical properties we do not yet fully understand” (Sire 2004:64). An atheistic existentialist believes that people create their own value through their choices, whilst a Hindu considers people as manifestations of an impersonal god or Brahman without self-worth.
Man was created to be in relationship with God, to obey God, to serve God by taking care of His creation (Genesis 1:26), to be fruitful and to increase in number (Genesis 1:28), to be responsible and to be held accountable (Genesis 2:15). Man was given the freedom to choose to obey or to disobey God (Genesis 2:16-17). Man was also created to be in a relationship with other humans (Genesis 2:18-20).
As Christians, we realise that we are the created beings. We are not the source of life or the centre of the universe. New Age believers state that “the self – the consciousness centre of the human being – is indeed the centre of the universe” (Sire 2004:179). Thus man is elevated to be god, master of his own destiny. Man is not answerable to any higher being. Buddhism has a few beliefs concerning the origin of mankind. One of their beliefs is that creation is repetitive. At the start of each cycle a spiritual being takes on human form and starts the human race. “Unhappiness and misery reigns.......eventually the universe dissolves; all living creatures return to the soul life, and the cycle repeats” (Beliefs of World Religions about Origins, n.d. ¶ 1).
The Bible teaches that the origin of sin started in the garden of Eden. Eve and Adam chose to disobey God (Genesis 3:6). There were consequences to breaking God’s commands. Firstly, this led to the breakdown within their own relationship. They realized that they were naked, and in a sense hid from each other (Genesis 3:7). Secondly, they hid from God (Genesis 3:8). Their act of sin resulted in them being driven out of Eden, away from God’s presence, destined to physically die. Thus the key truth is that sin separates mankind from God.
In Hinduism there is no holy god; thus one is not sinning against god. Any acts of wrongdoing are considered a result of ignorance. Doing good will help the individual to be re-incarnated in order to do more good works and eventually be re-united with the “One”. A naturalist believes that man decides what is right and wrong. This is solipsism – the individual determines his own values. If there is no God, then who sets the standard but the individual. One is accountable to no-one but oneself. Sire writes that “ethics stems from human need and interest” (2004:73), whereas Christians believe that God sets the standard of morality. As humans we are unable to live according to God’s standards. But if one is of the belief that one may define one’s own reality, then one may even choose to believe that there is a God. This God could then subjectively be a God of love, and no matter how one lives, morally or immoral, His love will conquer all and forgive all. Nothing could separate such a believer from the love of such a god.
In conclusion, I quote Charles Rynie who said:
"If man is the product of evolution, then the extent of the effects of sin and the
need of a Saviour are played down, if not eliminated. If, on the other hand,
man was created by God, then this concept carries with it the companion
idea of the responsibility of man. If God created man, then there is
Someone outside of man to whom he becomes responsible......... A doctrine
of creation implies creatures who are responsible to that Creator. The
evolutionary origin of man relieves man of responsibility to a personal
Creator outside of himself.”
(http://bible.org/seriespage/basics-christian-faith-3)
Mankind was created to live in submission to His creator. It is only as mankind bows in heart and in deed to God that he will find the peace he is always striving to determine for himself. The foundation of man’s purpose and fulfilment are found in these early chapters of Genesis.
Works Cited
Sire JW 2004. The Universe Next Door. Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press
Kraft V n.d. Creation and Fall. Online article: http://bible.org/seriespage/basics-christian-faith-3-creation-and-fall, 2010-01-05
Beliefs of World Religions about Origins n.d. Online article: www.religioustolerance.org/ev_denom2.html, 2010-01-05
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