Why Old Earth creationism doesn't work

[BNR32FAN]

I haven't spoken to the meanings of words. Only to the creation account in Genesis. If we read the creation account, and really read it, not merely accept what someone has told us about it, it says God created heaven and earth, and the earth was without form. Then God created light, and separated the light from the darkness. The light He called day, the darkness He called night. "And the evening and the morning were the first day".

Note that the first day did not exist until after light was created. How long was the earth formless before light was created?

Exodus 20:11 says God created the heavens and the earth and the seas and everything in them in 6 days.

 

[BNR32FAN]

With the above said, to conclude. The 7 days of Genesis are really just about a temple inauguration, hence why God rests on His throne on the 7th day. It has nothing to do with the age of the earth. And for this reason, because the Bible isnt describing the age of the earth, an old earth view of creation becomes reasonable in light of external resources related to the age of the earth, that is, science.

Then you’re saying that the genealogy records in the scriptures are wrong or Exodus 20:11 is wrong.

 

[HTacianas]

Exodus 20:11 says God created the heavens and the earth and the seas and everything in them in 6 days.

If you ant to use that as a synecdoche for the creation account or to explain why the Jews had a Sabbath go right ahead. But it still remains that the creation account in Genesis does not support the idea of a literal six day creation. And as I said before, that is why Christianity has never had a defined teaching on the age of the earth.

 

[BNR32FAN]

If you ant to use that as a synecdoche for the creation account or to explain why the Jews had a Sabbath go right ahead. But it still remains that the creation account in Genesis does not support the idea of a literal six day creation. And as I said before, that is why Christianity has never had a defined teaching on the age of the earth.

Bottom line is in order to hold to an old earth you’re going to have to ignore scriptures.

 

[HTacianas]

Bottom line is in order to hold to an old earth you’re going to have to ignore scriptures.

Actually, no. I can shrug my shoulders and not think about it at all.

 

[BNR32FAN]

Actually, no. I can shrug my shoulders and not think about it at all.

Yes that’s basically what I said.

 

[Laodicean60]

They can’t date organic material 200k years old, carbon dating has a maximum half-life of 50k years and that’s based on their estimation of how much c14 was in the atmosphere 50k years ago. They’re not expecting c14 levels to be zero 6000 years ago which makes everything appear to be older than it actually is. Not only that but c14 has just been discovered 80 years ago and since then c14 levels in the atmosphere dropped dramatically in the early 19th century due to the use of fossil fuels then doubled in the 1960s due to nuclear testing. On top of that different organic materials have different c14 levels so do different biomes and different locations around the planet. What they have learned recently is that it’s actually extremely inaccurate and in the next 30 years could be completely useless. None of the dating methods are reliable they all rely upon assumptions and estimations. If man has existed for 200k-300k years as scientists suggest then why did it take man 195k-295k years to invent the wheel when he’s managed to invent everything we have today in just the last 5k years? That doesn’t make sense to me. For 195k years the concept as simple as the wheel completely escaped man then just 5k years later we have computers, smart phones, space travel, etc? Doesn’t make sense.

DNA sequencing?

 

[HTacianas]

Yes that’s basically what I said.

So I'm supposed to what exactly? Go around telling people they're going to hell for eternity unless they think the earth was created in six days?

 

[BNR32FAN]

So I'm supposed to what exactly? Go around telling people they're going to hell for eternity unless they think the earth was created in six days?

No, I’ve never said anything like that. Just discussing the topic of the thread is all.

 

[Fervent]

OEC and YEC suffer from the same hermeneutical issues. The Bible is not a science textbook:

It's true it's not a science textbook, but it has serious implications about interpreting science that go beyond the minutiae of theories developed from literal readings of the text. And the scientific presentations within it are part of the inspiration of it, just as Greek theories of internal light are critical to understanding things that Jesus says in the NT.

 

[friend of]

Why would God allow satan to live 6000 years? Apparently it was part of His plan otherwise He would’ve never created satan to begin with. It’s not as if He didn’t know that satan would rebel.

6 thousand years isn't that long. 4-5 billion years to let a being as destructive as Satan to live is ridiculous. Point blank ridiculous.

 

[Job 33:6]

It's true it's not a science textbook, but it has serious implications about interpreting science that go beyond the minutiae of theories developed from literal readings of the text. And the scientific presentations within it are part of the inspiration of it, just as Greek theories of internal light are critical to understanding things that Jesus says in the NT.

The implications are only serious, so far as ancient people's could speak on modern 21st century science. Which is to say, not at all.

 

[Fervent]

The implications are only serious, so far as ancient people's could speak on modern 21st century science. Which is to say, not at all.

Do you deny the inspiration of the Holy Spirit?

 

[Job 33:6]

Do you deny the inspiration of the Holy Spirit?

There is no evidence in the Bible, that the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, included advances in scientific knowledge. If there were passages in the Bible about the internet or space shuttles, I would change my mind. But in all my searches, I have not found such verses.

 

[Fervent]

There is no evidence in the Bible, that the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, included advances in scientific knowledge. If there were passages in the Bible about the internet or space shuttles, I would change my mind. But in all my searches, I have not found such verses.

I never intimated anything of the sort. All I am saying is that a believer's view of science should be different from an unbelievers, because what the Bible reveals about God and what God has revealed in the pages of the Bible have serious philosophical and scientific implications. We are essetially presented with two options:

1) Trust the theories and inferences of human beings as a collective
2) Trust the revealed word of an omniscient God

This isn't to say we have to believe a literalistic account in the pages of Scripture, as you point out there are hermeneutical questions involved. But it does mean we must examine the philosophies we take on board and ensure that they are built on a solid foundation.

 

[Job 33:6]

I never intimated anything of the sort. All I am saying is that a believer's view of science should be different from an unbelievers, because what the Bible reveals about God and what God has revealed in the pages of the Bible have serious philosophical and scientific implications. We are essetially presented with two options:

1) Trust the theories and inferences of human beings as a collective
2) Trust the revealed word of an omniscient God

This isn't to say we have to believe a literalistic account in the pages of Scripture, as you point out there are hermeneutical questions involved. But it does mean we must examine the philosophies we take on board and ensure that they are built on a solid foundation.

Ah yes, I would agree then.

 

[ARBITER01]

Exodus 20:11 has to be ignored in order to believe in a preademic era.

The earth was already created at the beginning of Genesis,...

Gen 1:2 And the earth was waste and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep: and the spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.

 

[BNR32FAN]

The earth was already created at the beginning of Genesis,...

Gen 1:2 And the earth was waste and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep: and the spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.

It was created on the first day.

 

[ARBITER01]

It was created on the first day.

Like I said, the earth was already created and suffered some sort of chaotic event as per scripture. GOD had to reform it because of this.

 

[BNR32FAN]

Like I said, the earth was already created and suffered some sort of chaotic event as per scripture. GOD had to reform it because of this.

Not according to Exodus 20:11. There is no mention of a chaotic event and it doesn’t say He that reformed the earth. It just says that when He first created the earth it was without form.