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The interpretation of scripture is a disagreement that has been going on for millennia. The Christian religion itself branched off of Judaism because the two have never agreed on whether or not Jesus met the qualifications for the Messiah. Even within Christianity itself, we have different denominations. Many which are based on specific interpretations of scripture.
Some believers seem to interpret the Bible as having all the answers in the known universe, and attempt to make any major discovery or event fit within the Bible. While I agree that the Bible is comprised of the most important literary works in existence, the nature of man is arrogant and they feel they are entitled to know everything there is to know about the universe. I cannot object to this, because I do enjoy electricity, television, and this computer. Furthermore, it would be difficult to argue against the importance of discoveries that have lead to such essential technological advances (computers, Internet, and the printing press for instance) that have helped immensely in spreading the Word of God.1
The main problem with trying to interpret every discovery from the Bible is you are forcing answers from it. No one on earth knows God's intentions when he oversaw the creation of the Word of God. We can reasonably conclude that God ensured the Bible contains what he wanted man to know, but we cannot conclude to know what details God wanted man to know. We can form logical speculations but cannot form logical conclusions unless we have sufficient available evidence. Furthermore, if we have multiple logical speculations, then we cannot form a logical conclusion.
What's the difference between a "logical and reasonable speculation" and a "logical and reasonable conclusion?" Before we continue, I would like to present the following simple illustration to clearly differentiate the two phrases " logical and reasonable speculations" and "logical and reasonable conclusions."
Below is a list of properties for an animal.
- Four-legged
- Has a tail
- Is a carnivore
Here are the presented animals. Which animal fits the above traits?
- Tiger
- Elephant
- Alligator
- Pigeon
Given the above traits, we can logically and reasonable speculate that the animal is a tiger as it has four legs, a tail, and eats meat. We can also logically and reasonable speculate that the alligator also meets the requirements. We cannot, however, logically and reasonable conclude that the animal is a tiger, or an alligator, or any animal from the list, for that matter, because there is not enough information. There is more than one logical and reasonable speculation that can be made on which animal it is.
If we are given a fourth trait, that the animal is a reptile, we can now only logically and reasonably speculate one possible animal from the list, and that is an alligator. We now have sufficient information to logically and reasonably conclude that the animal is an alligator.
Now let us move on to the first misconception.
Young Earth Believers
One specific example of this is the age of the earth. Genesis 12 does not indicate any specific date, or any specific age of the Earth. Some have concluded the age of the earth is roughly 6000 years old by calculating time references throughout the Bible, tracing back genealogies, etc.
Is the earth really less than ten thousand years old? Did we really go from no earth, to a full earth in six days? Or did God simply leave out specific details, unnecessary for his intentions, of the universe's construction that could potentially fill a book much larger than the Bible to describe?
If we examine Genesis 1:1-2 We see that, even taking the scripture literally, there is no specific age or even any mildly strong indication of the amount of time that has passed between verses.
Genesis 1:1 lets us know God created the heavens and the earth.
Genesis 1:2 lets us know that the earth is "now" formless and empty. Scientists theorize that the earth has undergone countless transformations in it's history. Could this be one of those transformations, and could there be millions or billions of years in between the two verses? What is time to an eternal being?
These logical questions and uncertainty are good examples of the logical flaw one makes when concluding beliefs based on one's interpretation of the Bible. There is not enough information given to make any logical or reasonable conclusion that God is giving us any sort of time frame between Genesis 1:1-1:2.
Genesis 1:3-19 describes the forming of the earth. These verses will certainly cause some controversy as it could be logically interpreted as the creation of the sun and stars, which would obviously conflict with modern scientific theories. However, many can also speculate that it was a modification of the atmosphere changing the properties of "day" and "night." Perhaps it was night time in the area of the earth God was working in and, as an eternal being, he transcended time to arrive 12 hours later when there was day light from the existing sun. One could speculate God gave the account of creation the way he wanted and decided to leave out the elaborate details, and only the ones that he deemed meaningful were given specifically.
There are many logical speculations that would fit here, but the only logical conclusion is there is not enough information to make any logical or reasonable conclusions. The only thing we can logically and reasonably conclude from the information given is that God created and formed the earth and stars.
Possibility of an Evolution-like Process
Another major disagreement between believers over the interpretation of scripture is the possibility of an evolution-like process.
Genesis 1:20-31 describes the creation of the animals and beasts of the world. We can make multiple speculations on the meaning of these verses as well. One could speculate that these verses are literal and that all families of animals were created in two days as fully formed animals. One could speculate that these verses are literal, and that God put in natural laws to govern a process of life similar to evolution. One could speculate that these verses are literal, and that God put in natural laws to govern a process of life similar to evolution, and that he fast forwarded the process to a point where full grown animals existed. One could speculate God gave the account of the creation of animals and beasts the way he deemed adequate and decided to leave out the elaborate details.
There are too many logical speculations that can be made to make any logical conclusions on how God created animals and beasts of the world. The only logical and reasonable conclusion we can make is that God is telling us he created all the animals and beasts of the world.
I would wager that these two illogically and unreasonably formed misconceptions have caused more confusion in the world about religion, in past years, than on any other topic in the world, throughout history.
Non-believers use evolution as an excuse to not believe in God. Believers use their interpretation of the Bible as an excuse to not believe in evolution, or an evolution-like theory.
Non-believers use Old Earth Theories to not believe in God. Young Earth believers use their interpretation of the Bible as an excuse to dismiss scientific discoveries.
It would be a great justice to the world and to mankind if people would not make conclusions based on their interpretations of scripture. If you put an orange through a vice, you are going to get the pits, and that is what is happening with the Bible. Making logical and reasonable speculations is fine, but squeezing illogical and unreasonable conclusions out of it, is producing bad fruit.
The last two misconceptions have given much of the world the viewpoint that science and the Bible are incompatible. Many non-believers and believers alike believe the illogical and unreasonable conclusion that the Bible teaches of a young earth.
I'm sorry my fellow believers, but if you believe in a young earth, I will have to side with the non-believers on just about everything other than the existence of God and the actual concrete logical and reasonable conclusions that can be made from the Bible, which includes the most meaningful and beautiful gesture one could ever witness. (I will not footnote this verse due to it's importance.) John 3:16 - "For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."
Young earth believers have backed themselves into a corner by trying to explain away dinosaur fossils, dating methods, the big bang theory and cosmos, any form of evolution-like process, and so on and so forth. The only way a young earth believer can logically or reasonably explain their position is to claim that Satan has deceived the world and planted fossils and has manipulated the cosmos and has skewed the results of numerous scientific studies.
Unfortunately, a non-believer will not buy that and for good reason. While it is somewhat logical and I acknowledge that Satan beholds the power to deceive mankind, it would be more logical and reasonable that All-Mighty God would not allow him to contort reality so much that the discoveries of the world and universe do not make logical or reasonable sense. At this point, young earth believers are left without a leg to stand on. However, there is very good news and that is there is a far more logical and reasonable explanation.
That far more logical and reasonable explanation is that scientific discoveries and the geniuses who have utilized it throughout the ages (to give us such sophisticated devices like televisions, computers, land sea and air transportation vehicles, space shuttles, advanced astronomy equipment, advanced medical equipment, not to mention the millions of scientific discoveries) are actually reasonably accurate and the numerous discoveries they have made indicate an old universe and earth.
Yes, science has truly made some extraordinary discoveries that have lead to extraordinary creations. There is a problem however; some people see the results that science has achieved through the years and have put all of their "faith" in science. Combine this with the misconception of illogical and unreasonable conclusions made through Bible interpretations and it is a recipe for disaster.
Why can we not put all of our faith in science? Because science is limited in that it can only study observations that can be seen in our natural known universe. Why is this a problem? Because there is so much that is unknown and unobserved and is unlikely to ever be observed before the end of the universe, that putting your "faith" in science, is putting your faith in ignorance.4 (There is also a problem for science when it comes to the Big Bang theory's indicative supernatural cause, which will be covered in a later post.) Ignorance is the lack of knowledge, and there is an unfathomable amount of unknowns in the universe.
So then the implication is religion has all the answers? Of course not. However, science is unlikely to ever give you the answer. If you are waiting on science for answers on this subject, then you are living and waiting for answers from ignorance.
What's the solution then? I feel it is to come with a completely objective frame of mind, analyze the existing evidence, and form the most logical and reasonable world view5 that fits the available evidence.
"Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind." - Albert Einstein6
God Bless
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1 - Matthew 28:18-22 - 18Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in[a] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
2 - Genesis 1:1-24 - 1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 Now the earth was [a] formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. 3 And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. 4 God saw that the light was good, and He separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light "day," and the darkness he called "night." And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day. 6 And God said, "Let there be an expanse between the waters to separate water from water." 7 So God made the expanse and separated the water under the expanse from the water above it. And it was so. 8 God called the expanse "sky." And there was evening, and there was morning—the second day. 9 And God said, "Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear." And it was so. 10 God called the dry ground "land," and the gathered waters he called "seas." And God saw that it was good. 11 Then God said, "Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds." And it was so. 12 The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. 13 And there was evening, and there was morning—the third day.
14 And God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years, 15 and let them be lights in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth." And it was so. 16 God made two great lights—the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars. 17 God set them in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth, 18 to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19 And there was evening, and there was morning—the fourth day. 20 And God said, "Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the sky." 21 So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living and moving thing with which the water teems, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 22 God blessed them and said, "Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth." 23 And there was evening, and there was morning—the fifth day. 24 And God said, "Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: livestock, creatures that move along the ground, and wild animals, each according to its kind." And it was so. 25 God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. 26 Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, [b] and over all the creatures that move along the ground." 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. 28 God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground." 29 Then God said, "I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. 30 And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds of the air and all the creatures that move on the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food." And it was so. 31 God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.
3 - Matthew 7:18 -"18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit."
4 - Main Entry: ig·no·rance
Pronunciation: \ˈig-n(ə-)rən(t)s\
Function: noun
Date: 13th century
: the state or fact of being ignorant : lack of knowledge, education, or awareness
5 - Explanation of the term world view
6 - It needs to be noted that Albert Einstein believed in Spinoza's "everything is god" philosophy and was not a theist.
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