I don’t think we have sufficient info to speak to a lot of these
—assertions
—assumptions
—extrapolations
—inferences
We only have SUFFICIENT information
to understand our present world
—our present contingencies
—our present realities
—our present authorities
—our ‘present history’
—our present ‘laws’
—our present and future destinies
—our present requirements
—our present expectancies
—our present duties
—our present assignments
—our present responsibilities
—our present opportunities
. . .
SUFFICIENT for us to establish an ETERNAL RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD BY HIS GRACE, CHRIST’S BLOOD AND SPIRIT
TO BE MAINTAINED, FURTHERED, PERFECTED BY HIM as we cooperate with HIM in that maturing walk . . .
and thereby to end up reigning with Christ eternally.
Love God wholly
Love others as self
Do unto others as you’d have them do unto you.
Therein is Scripture sufficient to land us on Heaven’s shores. All else is details . . . occasionally important details . . . yet, already covered, details.
Much else is chaff—utter chaff.
Pontifical inferences, imaginings, extrapolations on what was before “BEFORE” . . . are mostly vain pontifical exercises in mental masturbation.
Pontifical inferences, imaginings, extrapolations on what meager phrases in early Genesis about early realities precisely were—relative to our time/space dimension, continuum . . . are mostly vain pontifical exercises in mental masturbation.
They do not add to my Salvific understanding and relationship with God.
They do not add anything significant to my loving God unsurpassingly.
They do not add anything to my loving others as myself.
They do not add anything to my doing unto others . . .
They are essentially vain distractions.
It is my conviction that every word of Genesis is true.
It is my belief that every word of Genesis—certainly virtually every word (99.99%?)—will turn out to have been literally true.
Lots of things in Scripture are puzzle pieces that don’t fit within the boundaries of the puzzle AS WE HAVE CONSTRUED THEM.
So?
Therefore?
So what?
Doesn’t shake God in His Heaven, in the least.
By the same token, ascribing to God convoluted mental gymnastic impossibilities such as “Can God create a rock so big He can’t move it?” . . . is an exercise in ascription vanity-to-the-max. God is unbounded, except by His Nature. He’s also not into nonsense.
He’s also not bound by our notions of linear logic.
Yet HE IS TRUTH, THE FOUNDATION OF TRUTH AND ALL TRUTH—ALL TRULY TRUEST TRUTH. And, I believe that eternity will show that HIS TRUTH is BEYOND “reality” as we . . . from that future perspective “knew it.”
From that future perspective, our understanding of truth will not appear convoluted . . . but instead . . . thoroughly clear and simple. God can be paragon complexity. Yet, I think, at His pinnacle of perfection (as though anything about Him was not His best! LOL), He’s simplicity personified.
As Corrie ten Boom used to illustrate with her bit of tapestry . . . on the underside, the chaos of tangled threads and colors is an ugly nonsensical tangle. Yet the top is a beautiful masterpiece.
We truly, TRULY see through a glass darkly, dimly, clumsily.
God can state truths unhampered by our myopic, constricted, extremely finite tunnel vision.
God understands eternal truths unhampered by our finite cogitations and mental capacities and mental boundaries.
Sometimes, I think He enjoys teasing us . . . with tantalizing bits here and there . . . to watch us play with the puzzle pieces . . . and to see WHETHER OR NOT we will UTTERLY TRUST HIM with 100% of ALL—particularly 100% of ourselves . . . as well as we, by His Grace are able . . . or not . . . but also with 100% of reality—past, present and future . . . TRUST . . . by FAITH . . . for without FAITH, it is impossible to please God.
I suppose BereanBrain, that I end up slightly the other side of center . . . feeling that the young earthers have slightly more explaining to do.
Sadly, it seems to me . . . that they do their faith a disservice by too often too easily and too wholesale making that faith appear absurd along side a long list of demonstrable facts.
I’m not at all averse to SOLID BIBLICAL FAITH APPEARING absurd to darkened minds and spirits. That’s the way the cookie crumbles.
However, to render faith unnecessarily to appear as absurd and thereby hinder earnest seekers . . . is to me . . . dangerous foolishness.
PLK, I think your point about . . . the point of Genesis is well made and well taken by discerning, perceptive folks.
Optimist . . . I agree that Deception is the enemy’s realm. I think the enemy’s deception is rooted in a destructive, arrogant heart motive, purpose and goal.
Scripture does speak, however, of God hiding some truths for man to dig out . . . Is gift-wrapping a gift, a puzzle a ‘deception?’ . . . and,
I think satan was deceived in some sense about Calvary.
SeekAndFind; I think it is important to hold Genesis along side other significant Scriptures that may bear on the realities involved.
If Heaven is filled with such as these,
Then Lord, please lift me from my knees,
And set my course for drink and sin,
'Cause if that's Heaven, I don't want in!
“However, to render faith unnecessarily to appear as absurd and thereby hinder earnest seekers . . . is to me . . . dangerous foolishness.”
Brother, be yourself very careful here. The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the very heart of the Gospel. That concept is “absurd” to many. The Gospel is to the world mind.....adbsurd.
Now, of course, your warning does make some sense in that if one makes belief in YEC a “requirement” in their soteriology they have gone too far.
Thank you for sharing your views, dear brother in Christ!