Lesson #3 "Bereshis" - In the beginning...Creation under attack Genesis 1:1, Romans 1:19-21, Genesis 1:27, Ephesians 2:10, Song of Solomon 2:15 As a believer, and I must emphatically say that I am a believer in special creation, I have had numerous debates with non-believers regarding the "theory" of evolution. I use the word "debates" because although the discussion always starts out civilly enough, they inevitably do escalate into near shouting matches. Why do most people defend evolution as if their very lives depended on it? In fact, I've found that in most cases people know very little about either the pros or cons of evolution. The answer is simple. Evolution is the chief doctrine of naturalism, which holds that every law and force operating in the universe is natural, rather than spiritual, moral, or supernatural. Naturalism is a religion unto itself and one does not tolerate his religious convictions being questioned, let alone attacked. With this in mind I decided that my attempts to disprove the validity of the theory of evolution, no matter how compelling, would not be sufficient to lead one to the L-rd. Besides, there is a great divergence of opinion even in the scientific community regarding evolution but there is no great rush into accepting special creation as an alternative. I therefore concluded that you must go beyond evolution. For the theory of evolution to be any way plausible there must first exist something to evolve...there must exist life in some shape or form. Even if you accept that the right number of amino acids were present at just the right time in some kind of pre-biotic soup, where did the amino acids come from? Where did any matter come from? If you put this weighty question to the naturalist the answer would be either that life arose "ex-nihilo," out of nothing, or that matter, ALL matter is eternal. Obviously, the former position is fraught with problems for the naturalist, not the least of which would be the possibility of special creation. Matter cannot simply arise out of nothing, at least not with a natural explanation. We then turn to the alternative, that matter is eternal. We have now left the realm of rational science and are stuck somewhere in the twilight zone of thought where philosophy meets science fiction. It is very simple, either matter arose ex-nihilo or it was there all along. So what we have are two rationally untenable positions. We are therefore left with no natural explanation for our existence. So how about the most logical one... Genesis 1:1..."In the beginning G-d created the heavens and the earth." The very idea of eternal matter is foreign to our thinking. All logic and common sense screams to us that everything had to have had a beginning! Hashem confirms this with the first three words of His revelation to man! Man also knows innately the veracity of the seven words that follow. This is made clear to us in the following passage of scripture... Romans 1:19-21..."because what may be known of G-d is manifiest in them, for G-d has shown it to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and G-dhead, so that they are without excuse, because, although they knew G-d, they did not glorify Him as G-d, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened." This is the heart of the matter. Naturalism does not mind a g-d, just not the G-d of the Bible. This G-d created man, contradicting the humanist view that man created G-d. However, G-d's opening statement to mankind is unequivocally stating that He is G-d, The Creator...and we are not! Belief in the G-d of the Bible means that we are accountable to a Higher Authority. In a naturalistic world view there is no moral accountability. After all, we arose on this earth strictly by chance and without any Divine Guidance. We are at the top of the evolutionary ladder (at least for now) strictly by accident. What we really have here is HaSatan's greatest, most pervasive, most persuasive deception since the temptation in Gan Eden. Naturalism, with the theory of evolution as its chief doctrine is nothing more than a counterfeit religion. So effective has this lie been that many professing Evangelical Christians hold to some sort of belief that you can make evolution compatible with the Biblical version of creation. You cannot! They are mutually exclusive! Either G-d created OR creation "happened." Either you believe that the G-d of the Bible IS who He says He IS and did what He said He did or you render Him powerless and you must accept the view that we are accidents. Genesis 1:27..."So G-d created man in His own image; in the image of G-d He created him; male and female He created them." What do you consider yourself; an anomally of nature or a created being, formed by a Loving G-d for a purposeful existence that He alone has planned for you? Ephesians 2:10..."For we are His workmanship, created in Yeshua HaMashiach for good works, which G-d prepared beforehand that we should walk in them." Having established that G-d is the Creator of all things is the first step, but just the first step. We must understand the importance of belief in special creation as it relates to our entire belief system. Think of our beliefs as a building. First and most importantly the foundation must be laid, and this foundation must be able to uphold and support the entire structure. This foundation is the Genesis account of special creation. Everything that follows will be the bricks added to the foundation and will complete our building. For instance, the creation of Adam and Eve, their subsequent fall resulting in sin entering the world and the condemnation of all mankind, the need for redemption, and finally The Redeemer, Yeshua HaMashiach who through His death reconciled us to Hashem! If we in any way compromise our beliefs in a literal Genesis account of creation...where do we stop? Was Adam a real person? If he wasn't, then perhaps sin never really did enter the world and Mashiach's sacrifice means absolutely nothing! Destroy the foundation and the building topples. This is the very foundation that is under constant attack as liberal philosophy (blasphemy) seeks to undermine the very underpinings of our faith. Therefore, it is up to each and every individual believer to stand firm in his convictions, to endure the barbs of criticism. Refusal to compromise comes with a price, but compromise comes with a much higher price, do not give the enemy an open door. As King Solomon said, "Catch us the foxes, the little foxes that spoil the vines, for our vines have tender grapes." (Song of Solomon 2:15) EXPLORE: 1. Is the Genesis account literal or an allegory? 2. Are the beliefs in special creation and evolution compatible? Why or why not and discuss the implications of each view. APPLY: 1. If you've had doubts, do you now have a better understanding of the importance of special creation and are you better equipped to stand up to the challenge?