Bible Ages and Time

Bible Ages and Time - Cain and Abel
Cain and Abel

One of the major issues in understanding the Genesis account is the issue of Bible ages and time. Any attempt to bring the biblical account in line with the scientific evidence has to deal with the time when creation occurred and when God created humans. A careful study of the Hebrew words used in Genesis 1 makes it clear that being dogmatic about Bible ages and time creates a conflict with the evidence and is not taking the original language literally.

One of our readers pointed out that we need to recognize that there are three different ages to consider. They are (1) The age of the universe, (2) The age of man, and (3) The age of civilization. We have often pointed out that the Bible does not tell us the universe’s age. That’s because Genesis 1:1, which deals with the creation of time, space, and matter-energy, is undated and untimed.

When considering Bible ages and time, are the ages of humans and civilization the same? The biblical answer is apparently “no.” Genesis 1 and 2 describe the creation of Adam and Eve and the animals people were familiar with. Genesis 2:8-9 tells us God planted a garden and made the trees grow. In verse 15, the man is assigned the task of dressing and keeping the garden. It would be logical to assume the planted garden grew, and Adam had to take care of it as it grew. Unfortunately, the Bible doesn’t tell us how long that was.

In Genesis 4, Cain and Abel are born in another time period as they raise crops and livestock. When Cain kills Abel, God places a curse on him. Cain says, “…I will be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth and everyone who finds me will slay me” (Genesis 2:14). There must have been other humans around, or that statement is meaningless. In verse 17, Cain builds a city, but you can’t have a city without a population. In Genesis 2:20-22, we read about the first formation of musical instruments and the smelting and working of copper, brass, and iron. These are items of civilization, and they are all undated and untimed.

Conflicts of Bible ages and times are resolved if we assume that Adam and Eve may not be the first humans God created. It appears that either humans were born in the Garden of Eden or God created them at an earlier time and place. Cain got his wife from those individuals, and they are the ones who would have been a threat to Cain. This also resolves the issues connected with the remains found of humans going back long before Adam and Eve. The age of civilization may be in the 6,000 to 10,000-year time frame, but the age of the cosmos certainly is not.

— John N. Clayton © 2022

The Meaning of Numbers in the Bible

The Meaning of Numbers in the Bible

To take the Bible literally, one needs to look at who wrote the passage, to whom they wrote it, why they wrote it, and how the people it was written to would have understood it. One especially interesting and complex area is the meaning of numbers in the Bible.

Throughout the Bible, numbers are used in different ways.
In the Old Testament, numbers become confusing when we look at the patriarchs’ ages, the number of people involved in an event, and the timing of events. In the New Testament and much of the Old, prophecy is rooted in symbolic numbers. Many bizarre interpretations of the book of Revelation result from a mistaken understanding of the meaning of numbers in the Bible.

The Mesopotamians were the first people to develop writing, astronomy, algebra, geometry, logarithms, a calendar, and accounting. Archaeological evidence shows that Mesopotamians used numbers for architecture as early as 5500 B.C. In these ancient cultures, people used real numbers for everyday business, but they had sacred numbers with a different base for religious purposes. For example, Sargon II wrote, “I built the circumference of the city wall 16,283 cubits, the number of my name.”

We see the symbolic use of numbers in many ancient documents. In Egypt, for example, the number “110” was used to commemorate a life considered to be “perfect,” meaning lived selflessly and benefitting others. Moses, Joseph, and Joshua are said to have died at age 110, which could be an Egyptian tribute to their character, not their longevity.

The writers of the Hebrew Bible gave special meanings to numbers. The number 3 symbolized completeness, while 7 and 70 exemplified fullness and completion. The number 12 and multiples of it, such as 144, had special meaning. The number 40 usually represented a generation.

There is still debate about the ages of the patriarchs. Was Methuselah’s days of 969 a real number or symbolic? If you say it was a real number, then you have all kinds of contradictions between the ages of the patriarchs and the time of Noah’s flood. Few would suggest that Methuselah died in the flood and that Abraham and Noah lived concurrently for 58 years. However, assuming real numbers produces those conflicts.

How the ancients used numbers and what the authors of the Bible intended for people of their day to understand about the significance of the numbers is a matter of debate. The ancients understood what their culture meant by the given times and ages, but for us to understand requires careful study. God could have performed a miracle and let Methuselah live 969 Gregorian calendar years. However, forcing modern time measurement on ancient writings is not taking the Bible literally. Tomorrow, we will look at Bible ages and times.

— John N. Clayton © 2022

Reference: A Worldview Approach to Science and Scripture by Carol Hill, Chapter 4. Kregel Academic Publisher.

Human Suffering Disproves God

Human Suffering Disproves God

One of the main contentions of atheists is that human suffering disproves God because a loving and merciful God would not allow it. Some Christian leaders have tried to counter this by promoting a prosperity gospel in their megachurches. But unfortunately, those efforts are misguided and demonstrate a poor understanding of what Jesus came to do and why God created us. The result is that when many people lose their faith when they don’t experience the promised “health and wealth.”

The fact is that when a population has massive suffering, the Christian population grows. In his book On Guard, William Lane Craig gives three examples of this (pages 164-5):

China – Mao Zedong’s Cultural Revolution killed 20 million Chinese and generated massive persecution of the Church. However, since 1977 Christianity has grown more than ever in history. Researchers say there were as many as 75 million Christians in China by 1990. Craig calls Mao “the greatest evangelist in history.”

El Salvador – A 12-year civil war, earthquakes, and market collapse caused 80% of the population to live in poverty. As a result, the percentage of Christians in El Salvador grew from 2.3% in 1960 to 20%.

Ethiopia – In 1960, Christians made up 0.8% of the population, and war, repression, and famine killed millions of people. Christian martyrs who tried to address the problems of that country were numerous. In 30 years, the Christian population grew to approximately 13%.

In all three of these examples, people found that atheistic forces in their countries were causing the suffering, and Christians were the one group trying to alleviate human suffering. In addition, Christians realize that the war between good and evil is the primary purpose of our existence, and what happens in this life is not significant in the framework of eternity.

People who believe human suffering disproves God turn to survival of the fittest as the only purpose in life. However, they may lose their will to survive when confronted with human greed, selfishness, and materialism. Christianity has the only answer to pain and suffering in this life.

— John N. Clayton © 2022

Emotional Debate on Abortion

Emotional Debate on Abortion - Adoption Alternative

With all the emotional debate on abortion, people are giving very little attention to finding a positive solution. Those who are pro-life give minimal attention to solutions other than expecting a woman to raise a child she doesn’t want. Those who are pro-choice loudly proclaim that a woman has a right to determine what happens to her body, even though the baby is not her body.

The data shows that for many women who choose abortion, the emotional and mental consequences of killing a child last a lifetime. Removing a fetus is not like removing tonsils or an appendix. Attempts to say that a fetus is an extension of the mother’s body are so at odds with all the scientific evidence that a thinking woman will know that the child she put to death was not a vestigial structure.

No one says this situation is easy, no matter what choice a woman makes. Both abortion and adoption tug at the heartstrings of a woman and are emotionally challenging. Adoption requires the strength to carry the child for nine months and then give it up to another family. However, that is an act of love because it involves self-sacrifice. By contrast, taking away a child’s life is entirely different from giving it a better life.

The debate between pro-life and pro-choice often ignores adoption. The latest numbers show that 36 families are waiting to adopt a child for every child available for adoption. Those of us who have adopted a child (and I have adopted three) have had to wait years for the child while wading through the adoption process. The Center for Disease Control reports that 57% of couples with fertility issues are willing to adopt, but the children are simply not available.

The Bible gives a picture of our relationship to God as an adoption. Galatians 4:1-8 and Romans 8:14-17 point out that we are the adopted children of God, and Ephesians 1:4-5 repeats that concept. Instead of the selfish and emotional debate on abortion, we need a solution, and adoption is a neglected alternative.

— John N. Clayton © 2022

Reference: AmericanAdoptions.com

Apologetics Is Not Apologizing For Faith

Apologetics Is Not Apologizing For Faith

In his book “On Guard,” William Lane Craig tells about a remark a woman made to him when she learned he teaches Christian apologetics. She remarked indignantly, “I’ll never apologize for my faith.” I have had similar experiences several times. In a society where we see a significant denial of God’s existence and the credibility of the Bible, apologetics is not apologizing for our faith.

The word” apologetics” may sound like “to apologize,” but it is not telling someone you are sorry that you are a Christian. “Apologetics” comes from the Greek word apologia, which means defense, as in a court of law. Craig says that Christian apologetics involves making a case for the truth of the Christian faith.

Many Christian preachers and Church members feel that there is no reason to be involved in apologetics. In their view, giving evidence in apologetics weakens faith. “If you have faith, you don’t need evidence” is a statement I frequently hear. The fact is that the Bible account shows that Christ and the apostles used apologetics. Examples of Jesus using evidence are when He appealed to miracles and fulfilled prophecy to prove that what He said was true. Read Luke 24:25-27 and John 14:11 to see this. When Jesus dealt with “Doubting Thomas,” His method was to show him the evidence.

When Peter gave his sermon in Acts 2, he appealed to the miracles of Christ in verse 22. In verses 25-31, he appealed to fulfilled prophecy, followed in verse 32 by using the resurrection of Christ. The apostles showed that apologetics is not apologizing when they used the handiwork of God to prove His existence (Acts 14:17). Romans 1:20 finds Paul referring to the evidence seen in the natural world. Paul also used eyewitness testimony of the resurrection of Christ in 1 Corinthians 15:3-8.

The world has entered what scholars are calling “the post-Christian era.” As a result, Christianity is becoming a minority belief system worldwide. In Europe, the number of Christians compared to the general population is very small – estimated to be under 25% and going down. In the United States, statistics show it is under 40%.

Apologetics is not apologizing, and the need for it is massive. This apologetics ministry believes that science is a tool to show the nature and actions of God and is not an enemy of faith. That message is biblical and logical. It is the purpose of this website. We hope you will see the need for apologetics in today’s society.

— John N. Clayton © 2022

Flies Provide Useful Functions

 Flies Provide Useful Functions
Green Bottle Fly

We are all familiar with houseflies except those readers in Iceland, where they don’t have any. We may not realize that, like all living things, flies provide useful functions and demonstrate incredible design.

Most of us know that flies can spread diseases such as salmonella, E.coli, chlamydia, typhoid fever, dysentery, cholera, polio, anthrax, leprosy, and tuberculosis. That’s because by using chemical receptors in their foot pads, flies can smell rotting organic waste. They land on garbage or dead animals, vomit digestive enzymes onto them, and lap up the liquified remains with a sponge-like tongue. In this way, they help to decompose and remove organic waste. However, they can pick up bacteria and carry them to humans.

Flies have glandular pads on the soles of their feet that secret a fluid that adheres to any solid surface. That adhesion is greater than the force of gravity, allowing the fly to walk up a wall or upside down on a ceiling. Flies can only fly about 4 miles per hour, so they become food for other life forms.

Flies in their larval stage are called maggots. Because they are sterile, green bottle fly maggots (Lucilia sericata) are used to treat wounds that don’t respond to antibiotics. The fly larvae also promote the healing of diabetic ulcers, gangrene, and burns by stimulating blood flow to the injured areas. In addition, they have been used to treat MRSA (a bacterial infection resistant to antibiotics) because they eat the dead and decaying flesh caused by the bacteria.

There is no question that humans need to restrict fly numbers and avoid contact with them. At the same time, flies provide useful functions and demonstrate incredible design. They are an important food for frogs and other animals and helpful in treating the medical problems of humans. Nothing in nature is evil or malicious because God created all of life with a purpose and function. That is even true of the housefly.

— John N. Clayton © 2022

Reference: Sheryl Myers, founding director of Heart of the River Coalition in Anderson, Indiana.

What is the Aphelion?

Summer Heat and the Aphelion

Across the United States, on July 4, 2022, people celebrated the anniversary of our country in various ways. There were family picnics, parades, fireworks, and other events. However, most people did not realize that in addition to being the U.S. Independence Day, July 4 was also the day for aphelion this year. What is the aphelion?

Earth’s rotation around the Sun is not a perfect circle but slightly elliptical. When Earth is farthest away, that is called aphelion, and it occurred at 3 a.m. EDT (0700 GMT) on the fourth of July this year. At that time, Earth was separated from the Sun by 94.51 million miles (152.1 million km). We see this as another evidence of design in our planet. Aphelion always occurs in mid-summer. When Earth makes its closest approach to the Sun, astronomers call that perihelion. That happens in mid-winter, and the next time will be January 4, 2023, when Earth will be 5 million km closer to the Sun.

Why do we consider it a design feature that Earth and Sun are closest during the winter and farthest apart in the Summer? Look at a map or globe of Earth and notice that most of the land mass is in the Northern Hemisphere. The Southern Hemisphere is mostly water. Water absorbs and dissipates heat from the Sun much more efficiently than land does. In mid-summer, the temperature can, and does, become unbearably hot when the sunshine beats down on the land. It would be even hotter if the aphelion occurred at that time.

Of course, the summer and winter seasons are determined by the tilt of Earth’s axis, not distance from the Sun. However, distance plays a minor role in the concentration of the Sun’s rays on our planet. Our orbit around the Sun maintains Earth in the “Goldilocks Zone” within the temperature range where water can exist as a liquid. Summer and winter are tempered by the aphelion and perihelion to further stabilize our climate. That is an additional indication that our planet is well-designed for life. We don’t think it’s a coincidence, but evidence of a loving God.

— Roland Earnst © 2022

Historic Yellowstone Flood

Historic Yellowstone Flood
Flooding in Yellowstone National Park

You have probably heard about the historic Yellowstone flood that closed Yellowstone National Park earlier in June of 2022. On top of heavy rains, warm temperatures caused massive snow melt. The result was that Yellowstone River and its tributaries overflowed their banks, washed out roads in the park, and washed away buildings in the area. Thousands of people had to be evacuated from the park, and it was closed. The northern part of the park suffered the worst damage and is still closed at this time.

The Yellowstone River is the longest free-flowing river in the lower 48 United States. It flows for almost 700 miles without any dams to hold it back. Humans see this flooding as a disaster that will take years and millions of dollars to correct. However, from the standpoint of trees and animals, the flooding is a blessing. Cottonwood and willow trees along the river were declining. They serve to provide shade and shelter for bison, gray wolves, and grizzly bears. The flooding provided new moist soil and carried seeds, allowing new trees to sprout and grow.

When rivers don’t have an opportunity to overflow their banks, erosion deepens the channels, invasive plant species grow along the banks, and the floodplain wetlands dry up. When rivers run wild and overflow their banks, the surrounding wetlands store water and provide habitats for many birds and mammals. In addition, a raging river spreads new soil across the floodplain, reshaping and renewing the land. Scott Bosse, the director of American River’s Northern Rockies office, said, “As humans, we often think that floods are disastrous, and fires are disastrous, but they’re really only disastrous because we put human lives and property in harm’s way. They’re not disastrous from an ecological standpoint. Quite the contrary, they’re healthy for rivers, and especially for a river like the Yellowstone.”

This historic Yellowstone flood is not all bad. As far as the animals are concerned, they are probably relieved to have fewer humans around. The native cutthroat trout in the Yellowstone river can find new access to tributaries to spawn. At the same time, the introduced rainbow trout have had their eggs and fry washed away by the raging waters. The scouring of the river washed up a supply of invertebrates to provide meals for fish and birds. Ospreys, eagles, American dippers, and river otters benefit from a new food supply.

Meanwhile, the historic Yellowstone flood allows cottonwood and willow trees to release their seeds into the wet sandy soil to germinate. Cottonwoods are the dominant trees along the Yellowstone River, and the new trees will benefit breeding birds in the future. Because of the added soil moisture, the flood waters also benefit the grazing animals by giving them more plants to graze on.

Floods can benefit the ecosystem, but humans often build roads, homes, and other structures in floodplains. Or they build homes downstream from dams that have the potential to break and cause a worse flood. God gave us the responsibility to care for the Earth. To do that, we must first respect it and understand how natural systems work. In the long term, the Yellowstone River ecosystem and its tributaries benefit from the historic Yellowstone flood.

— Roland Earnst © 2022

Reference: National Geographic “Historic Yellowstone Flooding Brings Renewal Despite Destruction” by S.J. Keller

Activities and Science Experiments for Children

Activities and Science Experiments for Children

Several years ago, we produced some materials called “God Made It All Perfect,” suggesting various activities and science experiments for children at home or in a children’s class or worship hour. Jean Wiebe and Patty Parker wrote the material which focuses on seeing God’s wisdom and design in the natural world. We have it available free if you will pay the postage to mail it to you. If you are interested, email us at jncdge@aol.com or call 574-514-1400.

The Focus on the Family organization has produced some children’s activity materials with good scientific lessons that can be done at home. The series features “Dr. Fizzlebop” and is a part of the Focus on the Family Clubhouse program. In addition, the June/July issue of Focus on the Family (pages 38-45) has a series of experiments and explanations that just about any parent or grandparent can use with children. You can also use them in a VBS or children’s class.

Focus on the Family has released a book titled “Faith and Science With Dr. Fizzlebop.” You can find activities and science experiments for children in FAITH AND SCIENCE WITH DR. FIZZLEBOP. You can find more projects to do with your children in the Focus on the Family magazines CLUBHOUSE and CLUBHOUSE JR.

— John N. Clayton © 2022

Virus-Carrying Animals and Pandemics

Virus-Carrying Animals - Whitetail Deer Fawn
Whitetail Deer Fawn

When you read the hygienic rules for the nation of Israel in the Bible, you might think they are restrictive and unnecessary. However, we now understand that some 60% of known infectious diseases in humans came from animals, and over 250 known diseases have come directly to humans from virus-carrying animals.

We also know that 850,000 viruses exist within the bodies of mammals and birds, and 10% of rodent species host pathogens that can infect people. Seventy-seven known viruses can come from primates to humans, and bats are well-equipped to carry viruses to humans. For example, the SARS-CoV-2 virus in bats probably initiated the COVID virus in humans.

We are seeing significant increases in diseases carried by animals
and spread by mosquitos, ticks, and a variety of parasites. The Lyme disease incidence rate has doubled in the past ten years, and scientists have identified two new tick-carried diseases. Dengue fever has increased 30-fold in recent years. In addition, researchers have identified white-tailed deer as carriers of the Omicron variant of the COVID virus.

God gave ancient Israel restrictions and rules of contact with animals that reduced the probability of transmitting diseases to humans from virus-carrying animals. Likewise, we need to reduce the use of animals as pets and educate hunters and farmers about how to care for animals we use for food. In addition, avoiding extensive contact with animals by leaving them in their natural habitat and not raising animals that may carry harmful viruses can help protect us from diseases.

Massive vaccination is never going to eradicate the agents of pandemics. However, careful understanding of the creation’s design and maintaining separation between humans and virus-carrying animals can make a huge difference.

— John N. Clayton © 2022

Reference: The Week for July 1, 2022 page 11.