ChinChilla: << We only believe it because God said so >>
God did not say so. Where did the Bible say how old the earth is? It doesn't.
Where is the Garden of Eden today? As a child I was taught that God removed it from the earth. Yet there is no verse anywhere in the Bible that says that God removed the Garden of Eden. The removal of the Garden of Eden is just another story invented by creationists. If the Garden of Eden was a physical fact, it should still be here, or at least the Bible does not say otherwise.
The Bible is Against Old Earth Creationism:
#1.
The Genealogy of Jesus.
The genealogy of Jesus Christ can be traced all the way back to Adam in Luke 3 (Through Mary's line) (See Luke 3:23-38).
#2.
Jesus references the beginning of creation with the story of Adam and Eve.
Jesus marks the beginning of creation by referring to the story of Adam and Eve:
For Jesus said, "But from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female. For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave to his wife; And they twain shall be one flesh: so then they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder." (Mark 10:6-9).
We can see clearly here that Jesus is quoting from the story of Adam and Eve in Genesis 2. For it is written,
"Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh. " (Genesis 2:24).
3.
There is no Gap Theory, Day Age Theory, or 2nd Creation Account in the Bible.
The Bible does not mention anything about a Gap Theory. It is purely an addition to God's Word. Jeremiah 4:23-27 is future prophecy talking about the aftermath of this world after the Lord Jesus returns. The context is Israel (See Jeremiah 4:1). The Day Age Theory is also false. A day is defined as a 24 hour period of time by saying that there was an evening and a morning. The 2nd Creation Account Theory that says that Genesis 2 is another creation account (Separate from Genesis 1) is false because Jesus references the first male and female in the beginning of creation with the story of Adam and Eve. In fact, the existence of so many ridiculous theories proves man's desperate need to explain away the miraculous power of God in favor of secular thinking.
#4.
Most who accept Old Earth Creationism Deny a Global Flood.
But the Global Flood is clearly taught in the Bible. For it is written,
"And the waters prevailed exceedingly upon the earth; and all the high hills, that were under the whole heaven, were covered. Fifteen cubits upward did the waters prevail; and the mountains were covered." (Genesis 7:19-20).
2 Peter 3:6 is clearly talking about the global flood (and NOT about some previous world before Adam and Eve). The words "old" and "world" found in 2 Peter 3:5-6 is tied to talking about Noah with the words "old world" in 2 Peter 2:2-5.
#5.
Death entered the world by one man's sin (Who was Adam).
"Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: (For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law. Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam's transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come." (Romans 5:12-14).
It says death reigned from Adam to Moses. It does not say death reigned from before Adam.
Conclusion:
Old Earth Creationism is about trying to cram secular Science into the Bible that clearly does not fit. This belief is the result of having trouble of not letting go of the things of this world. For I believe many Old Earthers (and not all) are into secular movies, music, games, politics, materialism, etc. Granted, it does not mean Young Earth creationists cannot be worldly, but in my experience, Old Earth Creationists respect secular Science (Which is a thing that is a part of the world system). 1 John 2:15-17 says we are not to love the world and neither the things within this world. Secular Science would be included in that because it is something from the world.