Common Sense and Genesis
by
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In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. {Note that it does NOT begin, ‘In the beginning BANG.”}
The word used throughout the first chapter for creation is bâhrâh (sometimes spelled bârâ), a word meaning created from nothing (creatio ex nihilo.) We are told in many places in the Bible that in creating the universe the method God used was to speak it into existence. (Heb.11: 3 is the most definitive. There are also references such as Ps. 33: 6, and Ps. 33: 9.} He did not use existing materials for any of the things that were created in the first chapter. Therefore from the very beginning of the account of creation and reaffirmed over and over again is the fact that whatever exists today does so because it was spoken into existence by God. And whatever characteristic or peculiarity it may have (such as the semblance of age, or any other such manifestation) is a direct result of God’s having created it with those inherent qualities. A method of determining age such as carbon dating may indicate that the rock appears to be a certain age. Although there are some problems with the dating process itself, the fact is that for the most part the dating is accurate. The rock does have those characteristics. So the carbon dating just shows the way God made it! All the things that are spoken into existence from day one through day six are only one day old on the day they are created, but it would be absurd to suggest that all these things were created in their absolute infancy – they all had the semblance of age, to one degree or another. Surely it can’t be a stretch of faith to believe that if He can speak it into existence, He can also give it the qualities He chooses.
Common sense tells us it could never be ‘In the beginning Bang’ because bang could never be the beginning of anything. What material was there to go bang? How long had it been there? Where did it come from? Did it carry its age with it after the bang? What caused it to go bang? And on and on ad infinitum. It has now even been suggested that there may have been a series of bangs, with the universe expanding on and on until it finally implodes in on itself and starts the whole process all over again with yet another bang. But still no explanation of what caused the first bang, or where or how the material originated.
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About the Book
The purpose of this book is to offer a logical, common sense translation of the book of Genesis. It is not written as a dogmatic statement of absolute authority, but rather it is meant as a translation that conforms to the literal writing of Genesis. I am aware that it differs widely from conventional teachings. When I first read the book of Genesis, however, I did not have the benefit of much formal religious training, so I was not influenced by the opinions and interpretations of others. From the outset I formed the theories that are stated here based on the words I read, and further study has only served to strengthen those concepts. This is what the book of Genesis says to me. I offer it as a possible alternative to the interpretations that have been handed down unquestioned and unchallenged for several hundred years.
What this book is not is a work of apologetics. I have begun with the assumption that the Bible says what it means, and means what it says.
About the Author
Many years ago I was listening to a teaching tape by Pastor Chuck Smith of Calvary Chapel in Costa Mesa, California. He was talking about Jesus’s selection of the men who were to become His disciples. He said that Jesus did not choose perfect men for the job, but rather He used normal, everyday people, people with flaws and failings just like the rest of us. The phrase Chuck used was, “Jesus built with crooked sticks.” That phrase made a huge impression on me. My thought was, “I want to be a crooked stick. I want to do something useful, something that would be pleasing to my Lord.” After many years of thought and study, the result is this book. My hope is that this book can help resolve doubt or help restore faith or lead just one person to a path that will result in the acceptance of the truth of the Holy Scriptures. Along the way, an additional hope would be that someone out there would also become excited about being a “crooked stick.”