The Modern Creation Trilogy. Dr. Henry M. Morris

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СКАЧАТЬ you not read that he . . . made them male and female [quoting Gen. 1:27], And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and, they twain shall be one flesh? [quoting Gen. 2:24] (Matt. 19:4–5).

      1 He accepted the historicity of the creation record, basing His teaching concerning the integrity of the home, the most basic of all human institutions, on its truthfulness.

      Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder (Matt. 19:6).

      1 He believed that the creation of man and woman was at the beginning of the creation, not four billion years after the earth’s beginning and 15 billion years after the “big bang.”

      From the beginning of the creation God made them male and female (Mark 10:6).

      1 He believed that the cosmos actually had a beginning, and not that matter was eternal.

      Such as was not since the beginning of the world [Greek kosmos] to this time (Matt. 24:21).

      1 He believed that it was God who did the creating, not some natural process.

      From the beginning of the creation which God created (Mark 13:19).

      1 He believed in the fixity of the created kinds.

      Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? . . . A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit (Matt. 7:16–18).

      1 He believed in the Sabbath as a rest day in commemoration of God’s completed creation.

      The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath (Mark 2:27).

      1 He believed that the world had been “founded,” not just accidentally condensed from agglomerations of particles.

      For thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world (John 17:24).

      1 He believed that even the sun belonged to God.

      He maketh his sun to rise (Matt. 5:45).

      1 He accepted the record that God had made even the fowls of the air and had made provision for their food (as noted in Gen. 1:30).

      Behold the fowls of the air . . . your heavenly Father feedeth them (Matt. 6:26).

      These and other teachings of Christ, plus the complete absence of any reference by Him either to evolution or long ages (both of which beliefs were universally accepted by the pagan philosophers of His day) make it undeniable that He accepted the account of special creation recorded in Genesis as completely authoritative and accurate in the most literal sense. Therefore, no true believer in His authority and integrity can afford to do less.

      A Tale of Two Weeks

      The two greatest events in all human history are the creation of the world and the redemption of the world. Each of these events involved a great divine week of work and a day of rest.

      Creation week accomplished the work of man’s formation; the week that is called Holy Week or Passion Week (perhaps a better term would be Redemption Week) accomplished the work of man’s salvation.

      Creation week, which culminated in a perfect world (Gen. 1:31), was followed by man’s fall and God’s curse on the world (Gen. 3:17). Passion Week, which culminated in the death and burial of the maker of that perfect world, is followed by man’s restoration and the ultimate removal of God’s curse from the world (Rev. 22:3). A tree (Gen. 3:6) was the vehicle of man’s temptation and sin; another tree (1 Pet. 2:24) was the vehicle of man’s forgiveness and deliverance.

      It is fascinating to compare the events of the seven days of creation week with those of redemption week. The chronology of the events of redemption week has been the subject of much disagreement among scholars, and it may not be possible to be certain on a number of the details. The discussion below is not meant to be dogmatic, but only to offer a possible additional dimension to their understanding and harmony. The traditional view that Friday was the day of the crucifixion is further strengthened by the correlations suggested in this study.

      First Day. The first day of creation involved the very creation of the universe itself (Gen. 1:1). An entire cosmos responded to the creative fiat of the maker of heaven and earth. Initially, this space/mass/time (i.e., heaven, earth, beginning) continuum was created in the form of basic elements only, with no structure and no occupant (Gen. 1:2), a static suspension in a pervasive, watery matrix (2 Pet. 3:5). When God’s Spirit began to move, however, the gravitational and electromagnetic force systems for the cosmos were energized. The waters and their suspensions coalesced into a great spherical planet and, at the center of the electromagnetic spectrum of forces, visible light was generated (Gen. 1:3).

      In a beautiful analogy, on the first day of Passion Week, the Creator King of the universe entered His chosen capital city (Zech. 9:9–10; Matt. 21:1–9) to begin His work of redemption, as He had long ago entered His universe to begin His work of creation. Even the very elements that He had created (Luke 19:39–40) would have acknowledged His authority, though the human leaders of His people would not.

      Second Day. Having created and activated the earth, God next provided for it a marvelous atmosphere and hydrosphere, in which, later, would live the birds and fishes. No other planet, of course, is supplied with air and water in such abundance, and this is strong evidence that the earth was uniquely planned for human and animal life. The hydrosphere was further divided into waters below and waters above “the firmament.” The waters above the firmament (the Hebrew word for firmament means, literally “stretched-out space”) probably comprised a vast blanket of transparent water vapor, maintaining a perfect climate worldwide, with ideal conditions for plant, animal, and human longevity.

      Paralleling the primeval provision of life-sustaining air and water, on the second day of redemption week, He (the Christ) entered again into the city (having spent the night in Bethany) and taught in the temple. As He approached the city, He cursed the barren fig tree (Mark 11:12–14) and, then, in the temple, overthrew the tables of the money changers (Mark 11:15–19). This seems to be the second time in two days that He turned out the money changers (the parallel accounts in Matthew and Luke indicate that He also did this on the first day)

      Both actions — the cursing of the fig tree and the cleansing of the temple — symbolize the purging of that which is barren or corrupt in the Creator’s kingdom. He had created a world prepared for life (air for the breath of life and water as the matrix of life), but mankind, even the very teachers of His chosen people, had made the world unfruitful and impure. As physical life must first have a world of pure air and water, so the preparations for a world of true spiritual life require the purifying breath of the Spirit and the cleansing water of the Word, preparing for the true fruit of the Holy Spirit and the true temple of God’s presence, in the age to come.

      Third Day. The next day, the sight of the withered fig tree led to an instructive lesson on faith in God, the Lord Jesus assuring the disciples that real faith could move mountains into the sea (Mark 11:19–24). In parallel, on the third day of creation, God had actually called mountains up out of the sea (Gen. 1:9–10)!

      It was also on this day that the Lord had the most abrasive of all His confrontations with the Pharisees and Saducees. He spoke many СКАЧАТЬ