Why the Doctrine of Creation Matters

Though I am a Six Day Creationist, I want to acknowledge the value of "just believing in creation." In other words, many people (Christians and non-Christians) believe that God made the universe in general and life in particular, yet do not accept the various details recorded in Genesis 1-2. Before explaining why I think the details do matter, allow me to emphsize the common ground shared by all people who believe that God is Creator.

Why "Creation in general" matters. If God is Creator...

1) Life has a purpose. If life arose through a random, natural process, life is meaningless. Only created things have purpose, meaning, telos, end.

2) Time is linear. The view of many religions that history is cyclical destroys all incentive toward cultural and intellectual progress. Cultures with such a view of time stagnate, since nothing anyone does can actually make a difference. But if the universe has a definite beginning point, our decisions and actions affect the future and therefore matter.

3) God is not one of us. This sounds a bit strange, but most ancient religions viewed the gods as part of our world. There existed no fundamental difference between the human and the divine. The Creator-creature distinction results in a radically different view of God. He is transcendent, set apart, possessing being as part of his very essence.

4) God possesses an absolute right to command us, judge us, and dispose of us and all our circumstances as he sees fit. If God is Maker of all things, visible and invisible, he is a debtor to no man, owing us nothing. We have (and can have) no claim upon him. No one has ever given to God that God should repay him. It is literally impossible for God to be unfair.

5) Likewise if God is Maker of all things, we have no right to complain about anything, or charge God with wrongdoing, or get bent out of shape, put out, feel imposed upon, etc., if God does not give us what we want when we want it. Any sort of bad attitude presupposes that God owes us something, that we are entitled or have a right to something that God is withholding. The doctrine of Creation forever destroys all notions of entitlement. God is free to do with us as he sees fit. No one can charge him with wrongdoing or say to him, "Who do you think you are?"

6) All religions are not basically the same. The creation myths of various religions show the gods (or nowadays, aliens) making the universe and life out of pre-existent matter. In other words, gods and/or aliens simply rework the basic elements that have always existed apart from their creative act. But the Biblical doctrine of creation is creation ex nihilo, creation from nothing. God spoke the universe into being. Before God created space, matter, energy, physical forces, etc., only God existed. Don't let the pluralists get away with saying all religions are the same. They are not.

7) We understand why all men possess an inherent need to worship. Because we are creatures, worship is hardwired into us. It is literally impossible for a human not to worship. The question is only ever a matter of what we will worship: our Creator, or a substitute. But the actual act of worship is unavoidable. To say it somewhat differently, only the doctrine of creation explains why we are the way we are. Thus apart from the knowledge of God as Creator, it is impossible for us to understand ourselves.

8) We have an explanation for why "general revelation" works. Romans 1 teaches that we learn about God's "invisible qualities, his eternal power and divine nature" through our observation of the world around us. The creation teaches us about God because that is what it is: creation! There is no such thing as "nature" or the "natural world." There is only God's world. All of it is made by him, sustained by him, and governed by him. Thus every bit of the creation teaches us something about the God who created it. Indeed, through our study of the world in general and ourselves in particular, we learn enough about our Creator's righteous requirements as to render all of us without excuse for our rebellion against him.

Perhaps you can think of other ways in which the doctrine of "creation in general" profits its advocates. If you do not agree with the details of Genesis 1-2, yet nevertheless believe that God is your Maker, you at least enjoy the eight benefits listed above.

But Genesis 1-2 does give us specific details about how and when God made all things. I believe these details matter.

Appearance of Age in Genesis 2

The Bible is supposed to be accessible to children. This is one reason the various tortured interpretations of Genesis 1 are so painful. No child would ever read Genesis 1 and come away with the Day-Age, Gap, or "It's-all-just-poetry-so-it-doesn't-really-mean-what-it-sounds-like-it-means" interpretations.

Contrast this with Genesis 2. Read Genesis 2, then ask a child to draw a picture of Adam and Eve. What do Adam and Eve look like? Invariably, the child draws a picture of two adults. The child realizes that although Adam and Eve are less than a day old, they are created with the appearance of age. In other words, they look older than they really are. And the great thing about this is that you don't have to read it into the text. It is obvious, right on the surface (unlike the gruesome gymnastics to which Genesis 1 is so often subjected).

Why is it reasonable to conclude that Adam and Eve are made with the appearance of age? Because they are given adult tasks to perform. Naming the animals, tending the garden, having children, and defending Eve from the serpent - all of this dominion labor requires a grown-up body.

Now is God being deceptive by making Adam and Eve look older than they really are? Is he like the fraudulant craftsman who specializes in making fake antiques? Or does God have good and necessary reasons for giving our ancestors the appearance of age? And if God had good reasons for giving Adam and Eve the appearance of age, is it not possible that he could have good reasons for giving the world (and universe) around them the appearance of age as well?

This is no way denies that God could have taken 14 billion years to create the universe. The question is why God would take 6 days to make a creation that looks 14 billion years old? What are his reasons for doing this? What advantages does he obtain that could not be achieved any other way?

Do not fight the obvious. The most straightforward interpretation of Genesis 1-2 is that we live in a young universe that has been given the appearance of great age. The fun comes in meditating on why God created it this way!