Does the Bible Narrative Support a Young Earth?

 Growing up in conservative territory like central Pennsylvania I just simply assumed that Christians believed in a six-day, young earth creation. It wasn’t until late high-school that I ran across the “gap theory” that presented a time gap between Genesis 1:1 and Genesis 1:2. A gap of time that may have allowed for a previous world to exist before ours was created where angels were put on probation and where Lucifer first got his idea to “ascend above the heights of the clouds” to be like the most High. (Isaiah 14:14). For some it is difficult to imagine sin originating in heaven, the “gap theory” gives the option that possibly an earlier world existed where the angels could choose to reject or follow God. Whatever the case, if such a world existed, it was destroyed, leaving behind a shell that was without form and void which does not allow for a fossil record millions of years old.

So, with the “gap theory” set aside, what has troubled me has been recent statistics that show more and more evangelicals looking to blend evolution and creation. According to the Pew survey “1 out of 4 Americans believes God has guided evolution.”[1] This idea has been called theistic evolution. It was after the famous Billy Nye and Ken Ham debate that televangelist Pat Robertson declared, “There ain't no way that's possible. We have skeletons of dinosaurs that go back 65 million years,” Robertson said. “To say it all dates back to 6,000 years is just nonsense, and I think [it’s] time we come off of that stuff, and say this isn’t possible.”[2] Is it a fallacy to believe in a young earth? Does the 65-million-year dinosaur skeletons mentioned by Robertson debunk the Genesis narrative? I would like to suggest in this article that if we take the Bible as truly God’s infallible Word as true Christians should, then there is overwhelming Biblical evidence confirmed by science and archeology for a young earth.

24 Hours or Thousands of Years?

Christians have looked for all kinds of loopholes to allow for an old earth so as to not look like prehistoric cave men when pitted against so called “expert” scientists who claim the fossil record is millions of years old. Once such loophole is to say that the six days of creation in Genesis were actually long periods of time not just twenty-four hours. Verses like II Peter 3:8 are often quoted as evidence that a day for the Lord is like a thousand years. Just maybe each day of creation lasted thousands or at least a thousand years. First of all, scholars have made a strong case for twenty-four hour days of creation. To see a more in-depth study on this issue go to https://answersingenesis.org/days-of-creation/seventh-day-24-hours-long/.

But let’s say for a moment that God really did make the world over thousands of years. What would that mean? That would mean that the fourth day when God created the sun, moon and stars, it lasted thousands of years with only one morning and one evening. Do you know how slow the earth would have to be spinning to have only one morning and one evening during a period of thousands of years? One side of the earth would have been toast while the other side of the earth would have been in complete darkness and extremely cold. Conditions would have been incompatible with life. The plants and trees created on day 3 would have been on the dark side of the earth for centuries while on the other side the plants and trees would have been in constant sunlight without any rest. This scenario is impossible. We also must take into account the seventh day when God “rested”. If that too is to be considered a period of thousands of years that would mean that God  “worked” on the day that He rested when he made coats for Adam and Eve after they had sinned and judged both man and the serpent. There is good evidence to believe that the six days of creation were not ages or extended periods of time but literally 24-hour days as we know them.

The Death Factor

To accept that dinosaur skeletons are 65 million years old as Pat Robertson claims as part of an evolutionary process guided by God, would mean that those dinosaurs died long before Adam and Eve sinned. Does that theory fit into the Biblical narrative? Genesis 1:30 makes it clear that man and beast were both vegetarians before the fall.

Yet, the fossil record shows animals eating other animals. Fossils have also been found that show disease and deformities. If we are to stay true to Biblical teaching, there is no way these fossils pre-date the fall of man.

Part of God’s judgement upon Adam was that the earth would be cursed and it would produce thorns and thistles (Genesis 3:18). Yet, fossils of thorns have been discovered that contradict an old earth theory.

Conclusion

Christianity is not anti-science. Science and God’s Word go hand-in-hand and science confirms much of what is written within this sacred book. However, we are on dangerous ground when we forsake the clear Bible narrative and look to infuse evolutionistic theories with creation. Just as water and oil do not mix, an old earth just does not jive with the account of creation that is given to us in Genesis whether Pat Robertson says so or not.

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[1] Bruinius, Harry. “Pat Robertson rejects ‘young earth’ creationism. ‘Nonsense,’ he says. The Christian Science Monitor. https://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Society/2014/0206/Pat-Robertson-rejects-young-earth-creationism.-Nonsense-he-says (accessed February 23, 2019)

[2] Ibid