4. BIBLICAL CREATIONISM
BY DR. EARL PARVIN
June 3, 2019
LESSON FOUR: GOD CREATED SPACE POWERPOINT: 4- SPACE
I. OUTLINE
A. Gen. 1:1 “In the beginning GOD CREATED the HEAVENS”
B. Displays God’s OMNIPRESENCE [also His WISDOM [Prov. 3:19]
C. GOD CREATED SPACE
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 the cosmos % it Evolving by NATURAL LAWS
A. “In the beginning GOD CREATED THE HEAVENS [shamayim]”. We have already established that God exists and nothing else existed. Therefore, in the sequence of preparing to create a cosmos, He must first, create SPACE. Webster defines space as “a PLACE TO PUT THINGS”. That is exactly what God is about to do in creating the heavens, for there was no SPACE [place] to put anything.
1) The Hebrew term shamayim may be translated in several ways. Even as the English term ‘heaven’ may refer to the atmosphere in our Solar Bubble [Gen 6:17], sky, universe, abode of God [Gen 11:4; Ezra 9:6], or even supreme happiness. The context is to determine what the author intends. In the creation sequence of events, God is preparing a heaven [space] a place to put HIS CREATION. [Prov. 8:27 “He set {prepared- kjv} the Hs in place, Is 52:16]
i. We need to recognize an important characteristic of God the Creator: [Elohim…plural, but always used with SINGULAR verb]. This may well express concept GODHEAD as found in [Acts 17:29; Ro. 1:20; Col 2:9 KJV] for we know He exists in three distinct persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. [Mtt 3:16-7]. All three are active in the Creation account.
ii. God the Father, [ELOHIM] is the ARCHITECT of creation [Gen 1:1].
iii. Jesus Christ [Christos], the Son of God [I Jn 5:20], is the BUILDER of creation [Son = ‘bain’ from verb ‘banah’ = to build or make!] “Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made”. [Jn 1:3]. “…through whom [Son] He made U.” Heb 1:2] “I was the craftsman {gem cutter} at His side” [Prov. 8:30: Ex 28:11 ]. Is it not interesting that Jesus adopted human father was a carpenter? Col 1:16 “by Him all things were created:” [Jesus was with the Father before world began {Jn17:5}]
iv. The Holy Spirit of God, [I Cor 6:19] is the One ENERGIZING the elements. “And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters” [Gen 1:2]. [rachaf = eagle on nest {Du 32:11}3x]
v. The concept of ‘Godhead’, as expressed in the Hebraism of ‘Elohim’ [plural with a singular verb] reveals about God HIS “OMNI-“ [Latin prefix = ‘all + something. There is always ‘something more’ to be known about God].
vi. The concept of Godhead or TRINITY in the NT is expressed so clearly in the Great Commission command “baptizing them in the name of the Father & of the Son and of the Holy Spirit [Mt 28:19]. An expression of God ‘creating’ a new Creature in Christ in the salvation experience.
B. When God created, the HEAVENS [SPACE], He was displaying HIS OMNI-PRESENCE, for the HEAVENS… that is SPACE is only now beginning to be explored as VAST. God is present in the vastness of space or even the minuteness of subatomic space.
1) “Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens [SPACE], you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there...” [Ps 139:7-8; 107:26-28]
2) Paul routinely mentioned God’s creation [A.14:15 ‘living God who made heaven [SPACE] and earth & sea, & everything in them.” [Eph 3:9]
3) God said, “Only if the heavens [space] above can be measured…”
[Jer 31:37] Implying that it could not be measured.
C. God created SPACE which is something. It is a place. At this point in the creation accounting, space contains nothing and is a black void. But it will be teeming with life & light, when God creates something to put into it. We will see God do that in the next lesson. The PsaImist said, “”By the word of the Lord, the heavens [space] was made” [33:6]. Solomon said, God set the heavens [space] in place [Prov 3:19]. The Psalmist said, “The Heavens [space] declare the glory of God; the skies [Solar Bubble] proclaim the work of His hands” [Ps 19:1]. Peter proclaims, “…by God’s word the Hs [space] existed [II P. 3:5].
1) How large is space? Jeremiah reports that God said He would only reject Israel if “heaven’s [space] can be measured”… suggesting it is limitless. In Gen 2:1 “The heavens & earth were COMPLETED in all their [NIV = VAST ARRAY]; [KJV = HOST”]. [BDB = whole creation]. “…one end of heavens [space] to the other…” [Mt. 24:31; Mk 13:27;Du 4:37]. Job, Isaiah & Zechariah all said, “He alone ‘stretches out’ the heavens [space]…” [Job 9:8; is 42:5;51:13; Zech 12:1; Ps 104:2 {used 7 times}].
2) Paul exclaimed, “Christ ascended higher than all the heavens [space], to fill the whole universe.” [Eph 4:10]. [with His Presence]
3) God created the heavens [space] to declare his glory” [Ps 19:1] His righteousness [Ps 50:6; 97:6], to praise Him [Ps 89:5]
4) “Highest heaven [space] belongs to God” [Ps 115:16; 144:5] “Earth given to mankind”. Ezekiel saw heavens [space] opened… visions of God [1:1]. Chronicler declared, “highest heavens [space] cannot contain HIM” [II Ch 6:18]
5) Heavens.[space] for stars, planets [Neh 9:6] “starry host” [ Ps 33:6 ]
6) Are heavens [space] Eternal? Isaiah 34:4 “heavens [space] rolled up like scroll”. Haggai said, God would “shake the heavens [space] & e. [2:6,21]. II Peter 3:10 “…heavens [space] disappear with roar, elements be destroyed by fire…everything laid bare”. 3:12 “destruction of heavens [space]. By fire, elements melt in heat”. Rev 6:14 “Heavens [space] departed like scroll rolled up” [Is 34:4]. Rev. 20:11 “Heavens [space] open…White horse” There will be “new H” [II P 3:13]. Isaiah prophesied of “new heavens & earth I will make will endure…” [65:17;66:22].
-HEAVEN AS GOD’S DWELLING PLACE:
1) The same Hebrew word is used to designate God’s ‘dwelling place’ [Du 26:15; I Kings 8:30]; however, it should be made clear that God, the Holy Spirit, dwells in the heart’s of men in this world [Ro 8:9]. Yet, God is said to have a ‘throne’, [Is 66:1; 63:15] where Jesus Christ is sitting at His right hand [Heb 12:2; 8:1]. That throne is in ‘heaven’, but not the heaven of this world, cosmos or space. The Hebrew word Shamayim, which is the plural form, according to Girdlestone in his book, Synonyms of the N.T., suggests that “the form is neither singular nor plural, but dual” [p.265]. If so, this could imply here there are two heavens: one of the universe and the other God’s abode.
2) Rev 11:19 speaks of “God’s temple in heaven…”
3) Ezekiel speaks of a “guardian cherub” who had to be eliminated from the ‘holy mount of God’. Because of sin, he was thrown down to earth [Ez 28:12-19]. Isaiah also makes reference to a “morning star”… ‘cast down to earth, from heaven’ [14:12].
4) Israel understood that God spoke to them from His heaven [Ex 20:22; Du 4:36].
5) Jacob had a dream at Luz, in which he saw a ‘stairway from earth to heaven’. At the top he saw the Lord. He perceived this was the ‘house of God’ and this place was the ‘gate of heaven’; therefore, he renamed the place Bethel [Gen 28:12-17].
6) Elijah was taken up to heaven in a whirlwind [II Kings 2:1,11].
7) Since God has HIS heaven [space] and is complete in Himself, why did He desire to create a cosmos? We cannot fathom God’s purposes, but the writer of the Hebrews suggests: “…for whom and through whom everything exists… for family…whom Jesus calls Brothers” [H 2:10-11], sons [Eph 1:5; Rom 8:15].
-HEAVEN IN JEWISH LORE: Three-tiered cosmos…
1) Three heavens: a. Sheol or underworld, b. Earth, c. Heaven… the abode of God & righteous dead.
2) Talmud teaches seven heavens… the highest being Paradise, the throne of God.
-HEAVEN IN THE OTHER RELIGIONS
1) Hindus… 14 worlds, 7 higher = heaven
2) Islam… 7 th for prophets and martyrs
3) Buddhists… 5 heavens
4) Polynesians… 9 heavens
5) Greeks… 7, one for each of the visible planets
-SPACE FOR THE SCIENTIST operating with Evolutionary Faith
1) The infinite extension of the three-dimensional region in which all
matter exists.
2) The expanse in which the solar system, stars, and galaxies exist; the universe.
3) Within our Solar System the unit of measure is the ASTRONOMICAL UNIT or [au] = 93 million miles or distance between our Sun and the Earth. [note: a given known distance is used as a UNIT, for measuring other extensive, comparative distances, i.e. to the solar planets]
4) In Galactic Space [space outside our solar bubble] measurement is in PARSECS = [pc], & Light Years [ly]
5) Light Year [ly]. The distance Light travels at 186,000 miles per second in a year. This means it takes 63,241 au’s to make 1ly. Thus, we should begin to appreciate the great distance involved in SPACE. [5.8 trillion miles = 1ly].
6) 1 parsec = 3.26 ly = distance to the nearest star [for comparison] or it would be 206,265 au’s
7) To measure the distances between Galaxies they use Megaparsecs [Mpc] = million pc’s
-WHAT DO WE KNOW ABOUT SPACE?
1) VOID, DARK, AIRLESS, VACUME [Job 26:7 empty]
2) COLD = -474’ F OR or 3’ KELVIN
3) Full of PLASMA RADIATION = SOLAR WIND [Basis for Plasma Universe]
4) MICROGRAVITY = ISS weightlessness % Big Bang Theory
-WHAT WE NOW SEE IN SPACE IS:
1) The sky [near space = heaven] in our Solar Bubble [SB]. It is full of the stars and planets of our Solar System. The Milky Way [MW] with its Black Hole in the center and 200 billions of stars, is quite amazing. It DISPLAYS AN AWESOME BEAUTY that unquestionably reveals a designer’s signature. To speculate that SPACE & everything in it evolved by chance is completely incredulous, as it is becoming increasingly obvious.
i. Just how large is our ‘solar bubble’s space? We know that the SB exists within our MW which is 100,000 ly across & 2000 ly thick!
ii. Voyager 1 was sent out to explore our SB, and then move out into Galactic Space. It took 37 yrs for it to reach edge of our SB which is 12 billion miles
2) EXPLORING GALACTIC SPACE SEEMS TO REVEAL A COSMIC MICROWAVE BACKGROUND RADIATION. [CMB] The CMB is supposedly confirmed by NASA’s [WMAP probe] 9 yr, study [2001-10] published in 2012.
iii. Oldest light in the universe?
iv. Optical telescope sees only darkness between stars and galaxies
v. Radio telescope sees faint background glow in all directions [d 1964]
vi. Strongest glow is in the microwave region of radio spectrum [lesson 7]
vii. Space probes have been seeking information about this space between stars and galaxies:
1) (COBE) satellite that orbited in 1989–1996 [Cosmic Background Explorer]
2) WMAP [Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe ]2001 – 2010 published 2012
viii. How big is GALACTIC SPACE? NASA calls it DEEP SPACE. It is speculative of course, but they think:
3) It is expanding at a horrific pace…exceeding the speed of light… only applicable in super galactic space, beyond the SB and Gravity?
4) The largest galactic structure is called: Hercules-Corona Borealis Great Wall: it is 200 million ly away and is 500 M ly long, by 300 M ly wide and 16 M ly thick.
5) Currently it is thought that the edge of the observable U. is 93 BILLION ly in all directions [ly = 6 trillion miles]. Big enough for God-sized U.
vix. How small is SUBATOMIC SPACE. It was once thought that the atom was the smallest building block of nature, however, now it is known that there are subatomic particles which cannot be seen with the naked eye. The atom itself is about the size of a pin point, but is a teeming world of hyper- activity which we will explore in the next lesson. At this juncture, suffice it to say that sub-atomic space is so miniscule, that new instruments had to be developed to seek to discover the existence of these postulated particles. A whole new nano-industry is developing around regular newfound discoveries in the sub-atomic world of space.
D. Men of Science speculate by Evolutionary Faith, that SPACE has always been there. In space was eternal matter in a sea of plasma of hot gases. There is no explanation for its origin! But Quanta exploded in a Big Bang 13.8 billion years ago. That BB did not fill empty space, but space was expanded by it. [This opposes Creation Faith which postulates empty space before matter was created.]
They are continually surprised by their discoveries of the complexity of the sub-atomic world and the strange laws by which it operates in its miniscule space. On the other hand, astronomers by means of more & more powerful instrumentation are seeking to comprehend the vastness of galactic space. The complexity of space is compounded in scientific jargon as space-time continuum. Further, all of the conclusions made from their observations, are construed in the light of Evolutionary Faith; therefore, the product of natural laws over long periods of time. God has no place in their thinking. He is unnecessary for Natural Law does it all.
1. Scientists define Space MATHEMATICALLY. Euclid, 300 BC, defined space with three dimensions = [x,y,z or Cartesian Coordinates ] as in geometry. This system now has his name: Euclidean Space.
2. Isaac Newton [1700s] laid the foundation for what is called “Classical Mechanics” which include the laws of motion and GRAVITY. Gravity seeks to explain the motions of the planets in Space. He insisted that Space always existed & without matter in it.
3. Einstein [1900s] formulated the Special Theory of Relativity which became the basis for Minkowski Space. Minkowski reasoned that EUCLIDEAN SPACE of three dimensions needed a FOURTH DIMENSION of TIME as a SPACETIME CONTINUM. He further postulated a “geometric theory of gravitation”, which makes gravity a “property of spacetime”. This means that time slows down as gravity decreases. [Time Dilation] & speed approaches the speed of light.
E. CONCLUSION…
We Christians understand that GOD has always been, not space. It is an awe inspiring experience to recognize the Omnipresence of Elohim as science expands our understanding of the vastness of space. Secular Scientists, by Evolutionary Faith remain adamant to believe natural causes can explain the BEGINNING & COMPLEXITY of our cosmos, The Big Bang explains it all without God scientists assure, even when the facts do not confirm their contrived ‘theories in progress’… seeking to rule out an ARCHITECT.
The question remains…is the U. CLOSED or ever EXPANDING? In the OBSERVABLE U. Gravity is actively keeping everything together. However, they postulate that there is a Total U. which is a ‘Metric’ expanding without Gravity beyond where light could not possibly have reached Earth. This means, other universes with other worlds, which scientists are desperately seeking to confirm.
John Hartnet, writes in an article, “Expansion of Space” – A Dark Science, 2014, that science does not support the concept that the Galaxies are speeding away at an ever increasing speed. The Galaxies are essentially right where God placed them. Now isn’t that comforting! Scientists are not always to be trusted, especially when they have a theory to prove, and that by Evolutionary Faith. [Answers Research Journal 7, 2014]
Up until WW2 around 1945 scientists had 2 options for the origin of the cosmos: 1. The Steady State which postulated that the cosmos always was and matter was being created as the cosmos expanded.
2. The Big Bang postulated that “if the known laws of physics are EXTRAPOLATED BEYOND WHERE THEY ARE VALID, there was a singularity [BB] 13.8 billion years ago for the BEGINNING of an ever expanding U.” [Wikipedia: National Geographic admits theory not been proven which suggests the reality of FAITH is necessary]. {At the least, they now admit to a beginning! That is a start.}
In 2001 NASA began a space probe called WMAP [Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe], 9 yrs later they claim to have PROVEN that the U. is expanding.
So, it appears that Time, Space , Matter have always been. Then mysteriously there was a great COMPRESSION of everything creating a massive Big Bang which caused space to begin an EXPANSION which seems to be increasing. [Science struggles with this concept. The BB demands it, but there is no credible science to prove it… including the so called Doppler Effect]. The Scriptures do not suggest an expanding U. Ps 104:2 “He stretches out [noseh] the heavens [space] like curtain. [Is 40:22; 42:5; 44:24;Job 9:8;37:18 “spreading out skies like mirror of cast bronze] {firmament}
The BB occurred some 13.8 billion years ago. Then, life somehow began 10 billion years later or 3.5 billion years ago. Talk about FAITH, for science is obviously missing. Remember, the observable U. is only visible up to the speed of light. Also, recorded history seems to find its limit at around 4,000 years ago. Prehistory may go back to 6,600 BC. Therefore, real science really begins somewhere less than 10,000 yrs.
So, I conclude with Dr. Henry Morris, that the cosmos God created clearly reveals His triune nature. Although men of science talk of the Space-Time Continuum, the reality is: Time-Space-Matter [Mass], just as presented in Gen. 1 “In the Beginning [Time], God created the Heaven [Space] and Earth [Matter = Energy]. To go one step further: Time is ‘past, present, future. Space is mathematically: x,y,z. Matter is: energy, motion & phenomenon.
Thus, the Tri-Universe which God created. [p179 Morris] Revealing triune God. The tapestry of U reveals the immensity of God’s architectural masterpiece.
TIME MAGAZINE [Jan 18, 2016, p.113] opines, “A Busy Year for Space”. Two NASA spacecraft to two worlds, Juno & Jupiter, will help answer “how celestial bodies came to be”. Leaving in March 2016, one will land on Mars in Sept. Juno is the Jupiter probe which was launched in 2011 to arrive this year in July. “Both spacecraft will die natural deaths, having spent their lives well”.
SpaceX [an American firm with emphasis on ACCESS TO space exploration] has signed 50 launch contracts worth $5 billion dollars. One trip is to the International Space Station. Another emphasis is on Mars voyages by 2035. Lots of takers!