The Gap Theory Essay
INTRODUCTION
In the beginning God! These are not only the first word of God to mankind concerning the origin but it is at the same time the last word also. At one point in time however, there was neither time nor creation. God spoke the word and all creation came into being just as he spoke it. Man has really tried to substitute philosophy and science for the word of God, but God’s statement still stands. Although Moses wrote the book of Genesis centuries ago, now there has serious debate over the nature and date of creation. Well what is creation? Creation is the act of creating; the act of bringing the world into ordered creation. With that definition some other questions seems to form. Who is the creator? Why did creation come …show more content…
Most versions of the gap theory place millions of years of geologic time (including billions of fossil animals) in between these two first verses of Genesis. The gap theory became increasingly attractive near the end of the eighteenth century and first half of the nineteenth century, because the newly established science of geology had determined that the Earth was far older than common interpretations of Genesis. Other names for the gap theory are: old-earth creationism, gap creationism, and the ruin-reconstruction theory. The gap theory was another significant attempt by Christian theologians to reconcile the time scale of world history found in Genesis with the popular belief that geologists provide evidence beyond the shadow of doubt that the world is exceedingly old. Thomas Chalmers who was a notable Scottish theologian and first moderator of the Free Church of Scotland, was perhaps the man most responsible for the gap theory which was introduced in 1814. Although proponents of the gap theory deny the concept of an evolutionary process, they do believe the earth is much older than the years accounted for in the Scriptures. In addition to the age of the earth, the gap theory presents possible solutions to other incompatibilities between scientific theory and the Bible record. Some scholars suggest, a cataclysmic event took place--perhaps a flood (indicated by the "deep waters" in verse 2) brought on by Lucifer's rebellion and fall from heaven to earth. As a result, the earth was ruined or destroyed, reducing it to the "formless and empty" state of Genesis 1:2. In verse 3, God began the process of recreating life. Those who hold to the gap theory clings to the statement that “the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep” (Genesis 1:2). The idea that God created a useless and shapeless earth is an uncomfortable position for
In the beginning God! These are not only the first word of God to mankind concerning the origin but it is at the same time the last word also. At one point in time however, there was neither time nor creation. God spoke the word and all creation came into being just as he spoke it. Man has really tried to substitute philosophy and science for the word of God, but God’s statement still stands. Although Moses wrote the book of Genesis centuries ago, now there has serious debate over the nature and date of creation. Well what is creation? Creation is the act of creating; the act of bringing the world into ordered creation. With that definition some other questions seems to form. Who is the creator? Why did creation come …show more content…
Most versions of the gap theory place millions of years of geologic time (including billions of fossil animals) in between these two first verses of Genesis. The gap theory became increasingly attractive near the end of the eighteenth century and first half of the nineteenth century, because the newly established science of geology had determined that the Earth was far older than common interpretations of Genesis. Other names for the gap theory are: old-earth creationism, gap creationism, and the ruin-reconstruction theory. The gap theory was another significant attempt by Christian theologians to reconcile the time scale of world history found in Genesis with the popular belief that geologists provide evidence beyond the shadow of doubt that the world is exceedingly old. Thomas Chalmers who was a notable Scottish theologian and first moderator of the Free Church of Scotland, was perhaps the man most responsible for the gap theory which was introduced in 1814. Although proponents of the gap theory deny the concept of an evolutionary process, they do believe the earth is much older than the years accounted for in the Scriptures. In addition to the age of the earth, the gap theory presents possible solutions to other incompatibilities between scientific theory and the Bible record. Some scholars suggest, a cataclysmic event took place--perhaps a flood (indicated by the "deep waters" in verse 2) brought on by Lucifer's rebellion and fall from heaven to earth. As a result, the earth was ruined or destroyed, reducing it to the "formless and empty" state of Genesis 1:2. In verse 3, God began the process of recreating life. Those who hold to the gap theory clings to the statement that “the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep” (Genesis 1:2). The idea that God created a useless and shapeless earth is an uncomfortable position for