11. BIBLICAL CREATIONISM
BY DR. EARL PARVIN
August 23, 2019
LESSON ELEVEN: GOD CREATED CELESTIAL BODIES PPt: CELESTIALS
GALAXIES
I. OUTLINE
A. Gen 1:14-19 “Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky… two great lights... to give light on the earth. He also made the stars
B. Displays: GOD’S RULERSHIP / LAW GIVING: [ESTABLISHING LAWS]
C. GOD CREATED CELESTIAL BODIES = STARS / GALAXIES / PLANETS
D. MEN OF SCIENCE.OBSERVE: DEDUCE BY EVOLUTIONARY FAITH
E. CONCLUSION BY CREATION FAITH
II. LESSON
INTRODUCTION: We have established:
1. That our God, Elohim, is a Godhead, which means He exists in three distinct Personalities, all of whom were active in the Creation week.
2. Our Eternal God started the clock of time for HIS cosmos.
3. God created EX-NIHILO % Evolution by Natural Laws from existing things.
4. Then He created Space [heaven] as a place to put HIS cosmos
5. Then He created Elements [earth] in suspension or solution in sphere water
6. Next He interjected Energy: that which in the U. could neither be created nor destroyed, yet necessary for the operating cosmos.
7. He created Light: many splendored & necessary for life forms------------ DAY 1
8. The Firmament: prepares Space to receive the created CELESTIALS in specialized planes in detailed order. ------------------ ---------------------------DAY 2
9. GRAVITY: created to hold everything to be created together --------------DAY 3
`10 First Life: vegetation, animals, birds, fishes in their KINDS.-------------- DAY4- 5
A. Gen. 1:14 “AND GOD SAID, LET THERE BE LIGHTS IN THE EXPANSE [FIRMAMENT] OF THE SKY TO SEPARATE THE DAY FROM THE NIGHT, AND LET THEM SERVE AS SIGNS TO MARK SEASONS AND DAYS AND YEARS.
V.15 AND LET THEM BE LIGHTS IN THE EXPANSE [FIRMAMENT] OF THE SKY TO GIVE LIGHT ON THE EARTH. AND IT WAS SO
V.16 GOD MADE TWO GREAT LIGHTS---THE GREATER LIGHT TO GOVERN THE DAY AND THE LESSER TO GOVERN THE NIGHT. HE ALSO MADE THE STARS. [SEE CH 2:1 “IN ALL THEIR VAST ARAY”{ FIRMAMENT = PLANE}]
V.17 GOD ‘SET’ [H. nathn = PERSONALLY PUT IN PLACE] THEM IN THE EXPANSE [FIRMAMENT = PLANE] OF THE SKY TO GIVE LIGHT ON THE EARTH
V.18 TO GOVERN THE DAY AND THE NIGHT, AND TO SEPARATE THE LIGHT FROM THE DARKNESS. AND GOD SAW THAT IT WAS GOOD
V.19 THERE WAS THE EVENING AND THE MORNING--- THE [FOURTH DAY].
B. THIS FIAT DISPLAYS GOD’S RULERSHIP: The ‘SUN’ to RULE the day and the ‘MOON’ to RULE the night . The Psalmist speaks often of God’s rulership: over the world [Ps 9:8], the nations [Ps 22:26], with power [89:9], and His Millennial rule [Rev 1:5;12:5 & 19:5]. It also indicates He establishes “Natural Laws” by which all things function. [The Pentateuch = Books of Law by Moses for Israel]
C. NOW THE COSMOS IS PREPARED TO RECEIVE THE CELESTIAL BODIES, each in its own Firmament or PLANE. “He set them in place” [Ps 148:6].The Celestial Bodies are listed in two separate statements:
1. FIRST: THE TWO LIGHTS: The SUN and [Earth’s] MOON. The Earth has already been created from the Primeval Waters which were full of the elements [eretz]. The earth was delivered from the Waters by Gravity, after having been congealed as we saw in lesson # 9.[IIPETER 3:5]
2.SECOND: THE STARS: It is absolutely astounding that God mentions the 70 sextillions of stars in 170 billion Galaxies in galactic space, almost as an afterthought. Just one sentence! The Psalmist also off handedly says, “…the starry host [made] by the breath of HIS mouth” [33:6]. The reality is, His emphasis is on creating a HABITABLE PLANET, and not MANY habitable planets as the scientists would like to believe. In this lesson we shall seek to better understand our Galaxy. Then we will take a ‘peek’ at the Galaxies in fantastic Galactic Space. But Galaxies are Galaxies & primarily a repetition of our Milky Way. [Star gazing now called astrotourism
3. Notice the emphasis: the creation of the TWO LIGHTS:
i. The sun and moon[although not mentioned by name] are emphasized as LIGHTS… 5 X
ii. They separate Day from Night
iii. They are to be SIGNS: seasons, days, years: [We perceive the passage of time by the motion of the sun, moon & stars; ‘sun dial’ Stonehenge, now watches] {Ps 104:19}
iv. He doesn’t even name them… just calls them LIGHTS
v. We know that the Sun gives light = energy to the Earth. Without it, life would not be possible. [photosynthesis, Vitamin D] God’s plan!
vi. Also note: the Sun RULES [KJV] {GOVERNS [NIV]} over the earth & its moon by means of GRAVITY [v.16.]
vii. The Moon’s Light is the reflective light of the Sun. The “lesser light” as it is called, in fact is 1/700,000 of sun’s light. It is 400 times smaller and 1/400th distance from E. to S.
D. MEN OF SCIENCE HAVE OBSERVED MUCH ABOUT THE CELESTIALS
1. PLANET EARTH. At one time it was thought that the Solar System revolved around planet earth as GEOCENTRIC. However, as science progressed it became obvious that the Solar System is indeed HELIOCENTRIC, revolving around the Sun, which is a Main-Sequence STAR.
a. The earth revolves on its axis in 24 hour days, [v.14, days] ensuring optimal temperature between day and night. That time frame is also optimal for human life… 8 hour blocks: sleep, work, eat & relax. The E’s axis is tilted from its orbiting plane by several degrees which causes the seasons mentioned. The seasons influence animals to hibernate or migrate and plants to rest.
b. The earth is 93 M miles from the sun. That distance = an Astronomical Unit [AU] of measurement to use as multiples for other great distances. [i.e.-- distances to our planets]. To indicate distances to extraterrestrials we use Light Years [ly] for the nearest star, Proxima Centauri, would be 13,000 of AU, or 4.2 ly.
c. The earth orbits the sun in one year, [v.14 yr] in a NEAR PERFECT CIRCLE orbit, which ensures uniform temperature. It travels at 67,000 mph. Most other celestial bodies have an elliptical orbit.
d. The earth has a marvelous, self perpetuating ATMOSPHERE to sustain life. It allows for photosynthesis, but deflects lethal rays [lesson 8]
e. The earth’s amazing hot iron core establishes magnetism for navigation by compass, through its internal mass movements of materials.
f. Earth’s atmosphere would have escaped from gravity in billions of yrs!
g. Job noted that “He spreads out the northern skies over empty space, and suspends the earth over nothing” [26:7]. The Psalmist opines, God ‘founded it upon its foundation [H=koon] place = plane of rotation in my estimation.
h. The earth rotates counter clockwise as do most planets except: Venus + Ur
i. The earth was made to be inhabited. That statement requires ‘Fine Tuning” of the entire solar system, which is self-healing and regulating. Although ‘entropy’ is functional, God is sustaining HIS laws, including Gravity.
2. The MOON orbits the Earth in 30 days
a. Its gravity influences the tides of the oceans of earth
b. It is 250,000 miles from earth
c. Moon moves around the earth once a day, and rotates on its axis so that the same side of the moon always faces the earth in “synchronous rotation”.
d. There is no atmosphere on the moon; therefore, life support is needed by astronauts. Also to protect them from the vacuum and cold of space, as well as harmful radiation from the sun.
e. Islam has tradition which states that the moon split to verify Mohammed’s receiving the Koran. It is to further split during the end times.
3. The SUN [a star] rotates every 27 days
a. The sun is 28,000 ly from center of the MW Galaxy, a black hole.
a. It has 865 M mile diameter = 100 X the earth
b. 330,000 X mass of earth
c. The sun’s composition is hot plasma = H & He
d. Its core temp: by thermonuclear fusion is 27 million degrees F
e. Uses 620 million tons H / second = changes 4 mill T. matter to energy
f. IT IS IN SELF-CORRECTING EQUILIBRIUM!!! [How did that happen?]
g. Hydrogen supply will last 5.4 billion years!
h. Sun has 120 million yrs of life left before becoming a red star.
1) 13 billion times brightness of nearest star
2) Light from sun to earth takes 8 minutes
i. Sun’s magnetic field causes: sun spots, flares [cycle 11 yrs], earth’s climate
j. Sun’s surface temperature is constant at 10 million degrees F
k. Sun orbits black hole in galaxy in 200 million yrs @ 500,000 mph = “cosmic yr” [NOTE: NASA’s Parker Solar Probe to study the Sun, costing $1.5 Billion, lifted off 8/2018, to ‘kiss the sun’ numerous times, being assisted by Venus fly bys. The mission to end in 2025.]
e. THE STARS: Isaiah mentions that God “…brings out the starry host one by one and calls them each by name…” [Isaiah 40:26; 45:12]. The Psalmist opines: “God determines the number of the stars and calls them each by name” [147:4]. What a job, for they estimate that there are 2 - 400 billion stars in our Milky Way Galaxy alone. It is said that 2,000 planets in our MW rotate around a star. The Psalmist says God set each in place [8:3]. Paul says that each differs in splendor [I Cor 15:41]. {Ability to glorify God. [Job 38:7]}.
NOTE 1: God warned Israel not to worship what He created [Du 4:15-19; 17:3, but Israel disobeyed: [II K 17:16;; II Ch 33:3,5; Jer 19:13;Zeph 1:5]
These original stars were created by God, functioning in their orbital planes, not accreting in “star nurseries” in a stellar medium or Giant Molecular Cloud [GMU], from a postulated Big Bang billions of years ago. Evolutionists wonder why ‘star creation’ peaked about 9 billion years ago?
NOTE 2: Some evolutionists are suggesting that a fundamental feature of all matter is “consciousness” called ‘panpsychism. This means that stars can consciously alter their motions [2018]. A bit mystical for me!
4. THE STAR CONSTELLATIONS OF THE ZODIAK. Men have observed various positions of the ‘fixed’ stars at night and assigned shapes. Job mentions these: “He is the maker of the Bear and Orion, the Pleiades and the constellations of the south” [9:9; 38:31-3] From their observations, they noted seasons [v.14 seasons] when they were visible as the earth rotates on axis.
a. There are 88 defined areas of constellations
Ursa Major or Bear & Cubs or Big Dipper perhaps is the best known constellation, for the end two stars in the cup point to the north star… a well known star for navigation.
b. It is interesting to note that the cycle of our 7 DAY WEEK, has no celestial connection, as does the month and year and seasons. It is totally dependent on God’s establishing it with His creation cycle and day of rest!
5. THE SOLAR SYSTEM [SS] revolves around the Sun in a Firmament or Solar Plane which includes: a. the Earth, spinning on its axis, and around which is orbiting the MOON; b. 7 planets; c. 659,000 minor planets, d. another 19 moons orbiting their planets; & e. 3300 comets. It is a busy place!
a. Men have observed and could predict the uniform movement of the solar objects and built huge structures to mark those occasions. Stonehenge is an example, built back in 3100 BC. It could predict the summer solstice of the sun and the passage of a year. Amazing, because each of the celestial bodies moves in its orbit exactly as God designed it to do. God’s ‘ordinances or laws’ are obvious.
i. Job 38:33 “Do you know the laws of heavens [NIV] ordinances
ii. Jer 31:35, 36 “who decrees the moon & stars NIV] ordinances
iii. Jer 33:25 “covenant with day and night, fixed laws of H & E” [NIV] ordinances [KJV]
6. PLANET JUPITER is close enough to planet earth that its gravity, protects the earth from many asteroids & comets which could impact it. It is known as ‘the Solar System’s Vacuum Cleaner’. [God’s design!]
7. PLANET MARS. [Somehow fascinates 21st C folks as a place to colonize]
8. MILKY WAY GALAXY [MW] is the location of our solar system.
a. The SS revolves around the center of our MW or Galaxy in a Cosmic or Galactic Year of 240 million years, at 500,000 miles per hr.
b. The MW is 100,000 ly wide
c. 2,000 ly thick = the Galactic ‘Plane’ or Disk
d. Our SB is 28,000 ly from center
e. The center of the MW is a huge Black Hole [BH], 14 million miles across. It is the source of astronomical radio emissions called Sagittarius A*. The constellation Sagittarius is also near the BH.
f. . 2-400 billion stars in the MW & as many planets
g. In 2000, scientists decided that the universe did not behave as one with the Milky Way sitting at the middle of a fixed-metric with a universal explosion of galaxies in all directions” [Wikiwand ‘Ex Space]
h. However reported in 2018 new studies of Galaxy Redshift may suggest that the MW is the center of “shells of spherical, concentric Galaxies surrounding the MW, evenly spaced in giant rings” [Dr.Hebert, Ph.D., A&F, p.9 Jan.2019]. That is what Christians would expect from God’s placing Galaxies in their prepared firmaments or planes. Those rings may include 54 Galaxies in the same plane as the MW. Scientists are still struggling with the lack of symmetry between Gravity and Quantum Mechanics.
9. GALACTIC SPACE GALAXIES. Those Galaxies beyond our MW or Solar Bubble. Galaxies are said to be ‘the large scale structure of U’.
i. There are said to be:
a. 50 Galaxies in LOCAL GROUP – 500,000 ly across
b. 100,000 IN LOCAL SUPERCLUSTER – filament, Gt Wall
i. Great Wall – 200 million ly long
ii. Boots super cluster – 700 million ly long
iii. Some may be 10 billion ly long
c. 200 BILLION Galaxies in observable U. [Galaxy Zoo, catalogued 50 million].
ii. The closest galaxy is: Canis Major Dwarf = .025 million ly
iii. The most distant: UDF 39546284 = 13.2 billion ly
10. COMETS: Originate in Kuiper Belt: 5,000 exist. ROSETTA PROBE [see]
11. PROBLEM OF MISSING MATTER [MM] IN U. Scientists have grappled with what they consider a major problem. In observing the motion of various galaxies, they have determined that light from them is being distorted or ‘bent’ by ‘GRAVITATIONAL LENSING’ by something. They speculate that it is Dark Matter. It cannot be seen, felt or interacted, but must be there. If it were not there, the galaxies would spin off into inter-galactic space. They speculate that this MM should be found in ‘filaments ‘ or strings of matter.
a. In 2012 a team of scientists report they found that MM. They located a Sculptor Wall of galaxies 400 million ly away. Behind this wall 2 Billion ly is a Super Massive Black Hole to account for the missing MM.
b. The Jan. 2015 issue of NGM has article entitled, “The First Glimpse of the Shadow U. around us, scientists are learning to detect THE OTHER STUFF: Dark Matter and Dark Energy.”
c. Dark Matter attracts other matter and thus keeps the U from expanding.
d. The search by the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer cost $2 billion. America’s Large Underground Xenon detector, is 4850’ underground. No luck!
e. DEAP 3600, installed a mile underground is still looking
f. Dark Energy on the other hand repels; therefore, the U. is expanding. Scientists think, this is somehow a result of the BB. They readily admit, “This ‘dark material’ is a label given for what we do not know about the large-scale properties of the U”.
g. Quantum Field Theory suggests that empty space is not empty, but full of ‘Quantum Fields”. When space is ‘excited’ it becomes alive with visible matter & energy. Scientists want to develop a new ‘quantum theory of space and gravitation. There is deep confusion about “Dark Matter and Dark Energy.” [I speculate that this DM is found in the planes, firmament God created.
12. THE PROBLEM OF THE MISSING EXTRA-TERRESTRIALS = FERMI PARADOX. The Evolutionist is absolutely convinced that this Cosmos is the result of a Big Bang and that life evolved on planet earth; therefore, it makes complete sense that there must be other alien life somewhere. The FERMI PARADOX merely states, if that is so, where is it? NASA has sent the ARECIBO MESSAGE and searches with the Kepler Space Telescope & NExUS. SETI has searched for 30 YEARS? In 2015, a Russian has given 100 million $ to keep looking.
13. INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION Not only are there objects in space which God has made, but also things man made. The ISS [2010] is an artificial satellite in low earth orbit, traveling at 17,500 mph,200 miles above E, is essentially a research laboratory, costing $150 B. Numerous other satellites operate such as GPS, Hubble Space Telescope & lots of debris. Now we know that numerous other nations are in the ‘space race’ putting satellites up there.
14. THE YOUNG/OLD EARTH CONTROVERSY. One of the strongest arguments for the Young Earth position is how the Spiral Galaxies have survived the ‘winding up’ reality. The spiral arms of the Galaxy would have disappeared in 5 billion years, let alone the 10 billion proposed. A second concern involves the Hot Blue Stars which would have burned up their fuel within 15 million years, let alone the 4.5 billion years supposed for our Sun.
E. CONCLUSION: God’s Rulership is clearly displayed in the orderly fashion in which the celestial bodies are in their exact plane in which God placed them [Jer 31:35;33:25]. For centuries men have measured time & found their way in the darkness of night by finding these celestials accurately in their place right on time.
The earth’s orbit is such that temperature and climate are stable for the sustenance of life. The atmosphere repairs itself. God clearly not only set this all in motion, but is actively sustaining those laws. He created our solar system such that it is finely tuned as one of a kind in the entire U. Our privileged planet is unique. The other celestials are beautiful, & give glory to God, but He created the earth alone to be inhabited. It is most interesting that Evolutionists have sought to downgrade the Earth and its location in the MW as only one among many. Now in 2016 scientists have discovered that our Solar System is in a very important arm of the MW called Persius, not just an insignificant ‘spur’.
Scientists find themselves continually distraught that their predictions just are inadequate to explain reality. Their ‘THEORY of EVERYTHING’ just never quite does it. The more they discover about ‘everything’ the less they are able to explain it. The Dark material of space, Gravity and Strong Nuclear Force still eludes them. Now they face DNA. That is the nail in the evolutionary coffin. [KNOWLEDGE]
Again, Scientists once thought the MW was the center of the Cosmic U. of Galaxies. Now it seems they feel that Universal laws are not universal. HOWEVER, God created the U to display HIS glory. He created the World, to be inhabited. It seems most logical from a Biblical aspect to believe that Our MW is indeed the center of the Cosmos. The Galaxies can be seen in all directions from our MW.
Secular scientists are still adamant that God is not needed, for Natural Laws have made it all happen. No explanation as to how it began… materials have always been. By Faith they explain that our solar system formed by gravity acting on a huge spinning flattened disk of gas and dust.
As we speak, scientists are experimenting with SOLAR IMPULSE FLIGHT to seek to travel without polluting the atmosphere. The Swiss made plane, landed in San Francisco, CA, April 23, 2016, on its flight around the world. It is a single seat, non-pressurized cabin, which flies at 87 mph, powered by 4 – 17 hp motors running on photovoltaic batteries made up of 17,428 lithium ion polymer cells.
ONE FINAL NOTE: An article in Wall Street Journal 12/27/14 is entitled, “SCIENCE Increasingly Makes the Case for God”, by Eric Metaxas.
He opines that Evolutionists postulate that since life on Planet Earth evolved, certainly it should also have, on at least one of the ‘octillion’ [10 to 24th power] planets out there.
He reports that there are at least 200 ‘parameters’ for a planet to support life---every single one of which must be perfectly met, or the whole thing falls apart”. All efforts have failed!
He further exclaims that the great number of efforts made to discover extraterrestrial life have all failed also.
There’s more, he says: about the four fundamental forces of the universe, “they could not be altered, or the universe could not exist”. He quotes Theoretical Physicist Paul Davies, “The appearance of Design is overwhelming”.
Dr. Jn. Lenox has said, “the more we get to know about our U., the more the hypothesis that there is a Creator… gains in credibility as the best explanation.”
INTELLIGENT DESIGNER, ANYONE?
ASTRAL WORSHIP STRICTLY FORBIDDEN – “And when you look up to the sky and see the sun, the moon and the stars—all the heavenly array—do not be enticed into bowing down to them and worshiping things the Lord your God has apportioned to all the nations under heaven” [Du 4:19]. God created them to praise HIM [Ps 148:3], for each had its own splendor [I Cor. 15:41], not to be worshiped by man.
God recognized the Adamic Nature would seek to rule GOD as outdated. He also knew that He had programmed man to worship Him; therefore, if He was ruled out, man would substitute something else to replace HIM. How true that became. In Israel: ”the houses where they burned incense on the roofs to all the starry hosts” [II Kings 23:5;Jer 8:2 “they worshipped”; Zeph 1:5; Acts 7:42]. The Egyptians worshiped the sun [Jer 43:13]. The Muslim worship the Moon [Josh 24:2]. The Babylonians worshipped the stars. Astral or Astrotheological worship has a very ancient history, with its attendant ‘Star-divination’ & ‘astrology’ or zodiac as a ‘god-like science’ to seek to ‘divine’ the future. God’s antidote for this deviation from worshiping Him =
-- “take the man or woman who has done this evil deed to your city gate and stone that person to death. [Du 17:5]
--“…then you must inquire, probe and investigate it thoroughly. And if it is true and it has been proved that this detestable thing has been done among you, you must certainly put to the sword all who live in that town. You must destroy it completely, both its people and its livestock” [Du 13:14-15]. Pretty serious!
One final comment. There are several comments about the Sun, Moon and Stars ultimately being ‘darkened’, whatever that means in the end times. [Mtt 24:29; Mk 13:29;Is 13:10; Ez 32:7; Joel 2:10, 31; 3:15; Eccl 12:2. Even so, the Psalmist compares longevity with the existence of the Sun and Moon [Ps 72:5,17; 89:36]
I have put together a Power Point on the Evolutionist’ concept of how Natural Law is perceived to have brought the U together. They are quite clever at ruling God out.
I note that the Sun will not be needed in the New Jerusalem [Is 60:19].
1. THE PRIVILEGED PLANET, Gonzalez & Richards, Regnery 2004
2. IN SEARCH OF CERTAINTY, McDowell & Williams, Green Key Bks, 2003, Ch 7
3. ULTIMATE PROOF OF CREATION, Lisle, Master Books, 2009
4. THE EVOLUTION OF A CREATIONIST, Martin, 1994, 2004, Biblical Discipleship Publishers.