Want to learn more about God’s Creation? Use these Bible Studies for personal devotion, group Bible studies, or teaching a church class. Below are links to the lessons in this 13-part series.
This week we begin at the beginning! Not only
do we start a new quarter and a new series of lessons, but
our study is Creation. It is my impression that many
Christians take the Biblical account of Creation with more
than a little skepticism. As with many other things, if you
start out on the wrong track, you are unlikely to get to the
right destination. The Biblical account of Creation is
critical to a correct belief regarding the nature and power
of God, the nature of sin and the importance of the Sabbath.
It also a mirror to determine your level of confidence in
God’s Word. Let’s dig in!
Have you ever heard someone say going out in
nature is as good as going to church? Maybe you have
skipped church one week to “commune” in nature?
I cannot say I completely understand this. Looking at
nature I understand. Being in nature is another thing.
Let’s review your last “commune” in nature. The first thing
you notice is the temperature (normally not optimum). Then
the biting, stinging, poking, sucking things notice you. If
I am in really deep woods, my mind turns to “food-chain”
issues: bigger animals eat smaller animals. So I have a
concern about coming across a bigger animal. The only book
of the Bible that readily pops to mind is Job! So let’s
explore the thesis of our lesson that nature is one of God’s
books!
Last week we looked at the way in which nature
affects our belief in the existence of God. We decided
nature proves that there is a power above mankind. We ended
on the note that it would be logical for the God who created
us to want to communicate with us. This week we continue
along our line of logic to examine the issue of the
reliability of God’s communication. Let’s dig in!
This week I sat down in front of the
television in time to see some sort of science program
explaining how areas of the earth are the result of a
massive flood.
Immediately I thought I must be looking at a Christian
station since a flood, and not ancient glaciers, was
described as the active force. It turned out I was not
watching a Christian station. The program explained how
great ice dams held back an increasing amount of melting
water (no explanation, of course, why the more southern dam
remained ice), until there was too much pressure and the
deluge that resulted reshaped the earth!
Man just has to have his own story! God’s explanation is not
good enough.
This week (and next) we look in more detail at the week of
Creation. Let’s explore God’s explanation!
In our last few lessons we have discussed
Creation vs. Evolution, and have explored the literal week
of Creation. This week we look at what the Bible and logic
have to say about the length of time since Creation. Was it
millions or years ago or about 6,000 years? Let’s jump in!
Introduction: Years ago, I regularly represented employees
in religious freedom cases in Indiana. My litigation
opponents, represented by the same lawyers, always agreed to
settle and accommodate my client’s religious beliefs.
However, before they would settle, they would insist that
the lawyers ask my clients, in an informal deposition,
questions about their religious beliefs. One of the opposing
lawyers knew something about the Bible. I remember on more
than one occasion, this lawyer asking a client about “which
creation” account he believed.
This week we examine a criticism of the six-day Creation
account based on the “two creation” claim. Before we jump
in, let me apologize in advance. Because the criticism and
some suggested answers are somewhat technical, this lesson
is more complex than normal!
For weeks now we have been looking at God’s
account of His Creation. We have discussed the logic of
evolution vs. creation. We have also discussed how evolution
affects our view of God. This week we study how a belief in
the Creation week is essential to a proper view of sin and
the destiny of man.
A note from last week: I suggested the lesson’s explanation
of the “two creation” problem and Genesis 2:5 was complex
and doubtful. One of my readers kindly passed my comments
on to the author of that section of the lesson. You will
find his response at the end of this lesson.
Last week we looked at how the Biblical
concept of sin did not “fit” the theory of evolution. This
week we consider whether the results of sin – death – are
compatible with the theory of evolution.
Evolution says that tons of pre-human and animal life
shuffled on and off the planet before man ever arrived in
his present state. If that is true, then death was “old
news” by the time Eve ate the fruit. Let’s dive into the
Bible and see what it has to teach us on this subject!
The world theorizes disasters of various kinds
to explain the present contours of the earth and the fossil
records. The Bible account records a world-wide water
disaster. Let’s dive into the details of the water
catastrophe!
These days we have designer clothes, designer
homes and designer cars. Some make a big point of having
the name of the designer emblazoned on their clothes. Are
man and the creation “designer label” or an accident? Is the
name of our Master Designer emblazoned on His work? Let’s
dig in and explore that concept together!
This week our study is about nature. Ecology
is a popular theme these days. Christians are sometimes
criticized for having too little concern about the
environment because they know ( Revelation 21:1; 2 Peter
3:10) this world is going to burn and God is going to give
us an earth made new.
How, then, should we relate to nature? Is the environmental
issue a campaign without a Biblical basis? Let’s explore
the Bible and find out what it has to say!
Do you remember concepts you learned as
children that, when you became an adult, turned out to be
wrong? Take the word “rendevous.” I knew from childhood
reading what “rends-a-vus” meant and I knew from listening
what “rond-de-voo” meant. It was only much later in life
that I was astonished to find they were the same word!
This week my secretary sent me the following statement from
an unidentified child: “In the first book of the Bible,
Guinessis [sic], God got tired of creating the world, so he
took the Sabbath off.” Aside from spelling, do we still
have that same childhood concept about the Sabbath? Let’s
jump into the Scriptures and explore an “adult’s” view of
the Sabbath!
This week we come to the last lesson of our
quarter’s study on Creation. We turn our attention to the
earth recreated, the earth made new. Now that is an
exciting thought, so let’s jump into our study!
