We had a great time yesterday at church. Karen and the worship team did a fantastic job. Cudos all around. I continued the teaching series "Q: questions people asked" talking about cavemen, Adam and Eve and dinosaurs.
The questions were "Did dinosaurs exist?" and "Why did cavemen who were not very bright exist when I thought we descended from Adam and Eve?"
The second question is a matter of world view. If you are a Darwinist/secular humanist then you would believe that the world was created by a big bang. And out of primordial soup a fish jumped on land, sprouted legs and walked. Then somehow it became a monkey which ultimately became cavemen. As soon as fire was discovered it was all down hill from there.
Now, if you hold a Biblical world view, you believe that "God created the heavens and the earth." (Genesis 1:1) And not only did he create the earth he created animals and plants and then humans. "So God created man in his own image; in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them." (Genesis 1:27)
Moses who wrote the Penteteuch, the first five books of the Bible, did not set out to prove God's existence nor to prove He created everything. It was assumed that his readers would already have that down in their heads and hearts. Rather he stated it matter of factly. But the more interesting thing is that he stated, "they were created in God's image..." It does not say that man was made in the image of a beast or beasts.
From a Biblical standpoint, man was made the crown of God's creation, and given dominion over all the animals of the earth. "Rule over the fish...the birds...and every living creature..." (Genesis 1:28) To say we descended from a monkey, although I have seen some who could challenge this with their looks, is to remove us from a priveleged position that God has placed on us.
If monkeys were our descendents than we really do not have a standard of morality with which to live our lives. We can do what we want, when we want, how we want, to who we want as long as it makes us feel good. Survival of the fittest. No one else matters.
But if we were created in the image of God we have a high standard of morality which we find starts in the 10 Commandments and Jesus summed up in the Greatest Commandment. Therefore, it's not about how happy we can make ourselves but how we can serve others out of a heart of love from God.
If we came from monkeys than there is no such thing as right and wrong. No such thing as sin. Therefore Jesus was not the Son of God, and he was mistaken and died for nothing. But if we accept and believe the Genesis story, then we are beholden to the "law of sin and death." Because Adam was the one who brought sin into this world. But Jesus is the one who paid the debt for that sin and imputed his righteousness on all those who believe in him.
Adam was seperated from God because of his sin but Jesus reconciled us back to God through his death on the cross. He lived a sinless life therefore the "law of sin and death" had no hold on him. He was the only one who could pay for that sin. He took the sins of the world upon himself so that we can once again walk with God.
One day all men will have to stand before God and give an account for their lives. For all their deeds and their words. So the question is, depending on your world view, are you willing to stake your life on it and your eternity?
The questions were "Did dinosaurs exist?" and "Why did cavemen who were not very bright exist when I thought we descended from Adam and Eve?"
The second question is a matter of world view. If you are a Darwinist/secular humanist then you would believe that the world was created by a big bang. And out of primordial soup a fish jumped on land, sprouted legs and walked. Then somehow it became a monkey which ultimately became cavemen. As soon as fire was discovered it was all down hill from there.
Now, if you hold a Biblical world view, you believe that "God created the heavens and the earth." (Genesis 1:1) And not only did he create the earth he created animals and plants and then humans. "So God created man in his own image; in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them." (Genesis 1:27)
Moses who wrote the Penteteuch, the first five books of the Bible, did not set out to prove God's existence nor to prove He created everything. It was assumed that his readers would already have that down in their heads and hearts. Rather he stated it matter of factly. But the more interesting thing is that he stated, "they were created in God's image..." It does not say that man was made in the image of a beast or beasts.
From a Biblical standpoint, man was made the crown of God's creation, and given dominion over all the animals of the earth. "Rule over the fish...the birds...and every living creature..." (Genesis 1:28) To say we descended from a monkey, although I have seen some who could challenge this with their looks, is to remove us from a priveleged position that God has placed on us.
If monkeys were our descendents than we really do not have a standard of morality with which to live our lives. We can do what we want, when we want, how we want, to who we want as long as it makes us feel good. Survival of the fittest. No one else matters.
But if we were created in the image of God we have a high standard of morality which we find starts in the 10 Commandments and Jesus summed up in the Greatest Commandment. Therefore, it's not about how happy we can make ourselves but how we can serve others out of a heart of love from God.
If we came from monkeys than there is no such thing as right and wrong. No such thing as sin. Therefore Jesus was not the Son of God, and he was mistaken and died for nothing. But if we accept and believe the Genesis story, then we are beholden to the "law of sin and death." Because Adam was the one who brought sin into this world. But Jesus is the one who paid the debt for that sin and imputed his righteousness on all those who believe in him.
Adam was seperated from God because of his sin but Jesus reconciled us back to God through his death on the cross. He lived a sinless life therefore the "law of sin and death" had no hold on him. He was the only one who could pay for that sin. He took the sins of the world upon himself so that we can once again walk with God.
One day all men will have to stand before God and give an account for their lives. For all their deeds and their words. So the question is, depending on your world view, are you willing to stake your life on it and your eternity?
Comments
The real puzzle is, how do people know how bright (or un-bright) they were?
Odd shaped skulls and bones could have been from people living extremely long lives. Everyone knows old men have big ears and noses - how big would they be after 5-900 years!? Dinosaurs? It is known that reptiles do not stop growing until their death. How big would they be if they lived much, much longer? At any rate, fossils of men have been found with those of the dinosaurs... that information is not much talked about in the "scientific" community.