THE BIRTH OF DEEP TIME
Psalm 78:15
“He clave the rocks in the wilderness, and gave them drink as out of the great depths.”
I was on an open-topped tour bus, seeing the sights of downtown Edinburgh—the capital city of Scotland. From this vantage point, our guide stopped frequently, to tell us about John Knox’s grave and house, the Royal Mile, and beautiful Edinburgh Castle. At one stop, there were three things to see. To our left was Britain’s ugliest building—the Scottish Parliament. Straight ahead was Holyrood House—where the Queen lives when she is in Edinburgh. And to the right was a cliff face, called Salisbury Crag. This rocky outcrop consists of a lower level of greywacke, topped by several layers of sedimentary rock.
The guide pointed the crag out to us, and said that in 1787, the crag was studied by James Hutton. In fact, the guide said that in 1787, it was by studying these rocks that James Hutton proved the Bible to be wrong.
Why would this guide think that Hutton had disproved the Bible? Hutton invented the concept of deep time; of millions of years. He supposed the unconformity separating the two rock sections must have been formed by erosion, millions of years ago. In fact, this smooth erosion is evidence consistent with a much shorter age. The lower rock would have been laid down early in the Flood, and turned over while still plastic. Powerful underwater currents would have caused the erosion that we see. Finally, the layers of rock would have been laid down on top. This model is fully consistent with the truthful account in God’s word.
Your word stands forever, O Lord. Nothing can take away from Your word. We pray that we might submit completely to Your word, that we might not sin against you. Amen.
Psalm 78:15
“He clave the rocks in the wilderness, and gave them drink as out of the great depths.”
I was on an open-topped tour bus, seeing the sights of downtown Edinburgh—the capital city of Scotland. From this vantage point, our guide stopped frequently, to tell us about John Knox’s grave and house, the Royal Mile, and beautiful Edinburgh Castle. At one stop, there were three things to see. To our left was Britain’s ugliest building—the Scottish Parliament. Straight ahead was Holyrood House—where the Queen lives when she is in Edinburgh. And to the right was a cliff face, called Salisbury Crag. This rocky outcrop consists of a lower level of greywacke, topped by several layers of sedimentary rock.
The guide pointed the crag out to us, and said that in 1787, the crag was studied by James Hutton. In fact, the guide said that in 1787, it was by studying these rocks that James Hutton proved the Bible to be wrong.
Why would this guide think that Hutton had disproved the Bible? Hutton invented the concept of deep time; of millions of years. He supposed the unconformity separating the two rock sections must have been formed by erosion, millions of years ago. In fact, this smooth erosion is evidence consistent with a much shorter age. The lower rock would have been laid down early in the Flood, and turned over while still plastic. Powerful underwater currents would have caused the erosion that we see. Finally, the layers of rock would have been laid down on top. This model is fully consistent with the truthful account in God’s word.
Your word stands forever, O Lord. Nothing can take away from Your word. We pray that we might submit completely to Your word, that we might not sin against you. Amen.
A NEW VOLCANO INSIDE THE OLD
Psalm 83:14
“As the fire burneth a wood, and as the flame setteth the mountains on fire;”
Many people know about the devastating and explosive eruption of Mount St Helens in 1980. Not so many people know that the volcano has erupted since then, but in less spectacular fashion.
Throughout the late 1980s and into the 1990s, lava continued to appear in the crater, with a dome of lava growing in the middle of the crater. On October 11th 2004, magma once again erupted from the volcano, causing a new lava dome to grow rapidly south of the existing dome. Many unusual but temporary shapes were formed, such as a large lava formation called the “whaleback”. On July 2nd 2005, the pressure of the magma resulted in an eruption, which broke the whaleback, and sent ash into the air, visible from Seattle. A number of other eruptions occurred during the period from 2004 through 2008. On July 10th 2008, there had been no activity for six months, so the US Geological Survey officially concluded that this eruptive period was over. There has been no significant eruptive activity since then.
The lava dome is now quite big. The summit of the lava dome is currently about 7,500 feet above sea level, so it is still below the 8,300 foot high crater walls. However, if the dome grows any larger, it could grow above the crater rim. Basically, the lava dome is a new volcano growing inside the ruins of the old one. It already takes up 6% of the space lost by the big 1980 eruption.
One thing is clear. Once again, even in less spectacular fashion, Mount St Helens has proved that the surface of the Earth can change rapidly at times, and that changes do not require millions of years.
Father God, You continue to witness to the truth of Your word, through natural occurrences worldwide, and especially at Mount St Helens. We pray that we might be faithful in pointing people, therefore, to the truth of Your word. Amen.
Psalm 83:14
“As the fire burneth a wood, and as the flame setteth the mountains on fire;”
Many people know about the devastating and explosive eruption of Mount St Helens in 1980. Not so many people know that the volcano has erupted since then, but in less spectacular fashion.
Throughout the late 1980s and into the 1990s, lava continued to appear in the crater, with a dome of lava growing in the middle of the crater. On October 11th 2004, magma once again erupted from the volcano, causing a new lava dome to grow rapidly south of the existing dome. Many unusual but temporary shapes were formed, such as a large lava formation called the “whaleback”. On July 2nd 2005, the pressure of the magma resulted in an eruption, which broke the whaleback, and sent ash into the air, visible from Seattle. A number of other eruptions occurred during the period from 2004 through 2008. On July 10th 2008, there had been no activity for six months, so the US Geological Survey officially concluded that this eruptive period was over. There has been no significant eruptive activity since then.
The lava dome is now quite big. The summit of the lava dome is currently about 7,500 feet above sea level, so it is still below the 8,300 foot high crater walls. However, if the dome grows any larger, it could grow above the crater rim. Basically, the lava dome is a new volcano growing inside the ruins of the old one. It already takes up 6% of the space lost by the big 1980 eruption.
One thing is clear. Once again, even in less spectacular fashion, Mount St Helens has proved that the surface of the Earth can change rapidly at times, and that changes do not require millions of years.
Father God, You continue to witness to the truth of Your word, through natural occurrences worldwide, and especially at Mount St Helens. We pray that we might be faithful in pointing people, therefore, to the truth of Your word. Amen.
FAST DEAD TREE OIL
Isaiah 55:12
“For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.”
Forestry organizations have a major problem with beetles. The Mountain Pine beetle infests many coniferous trees in the Western United States. Apparently 40 million acres of forest have been damaged by these critters. A fungus can get into the tree with the beetle, and this fungus prevents transportation of water and nutrients. The beetle lays its eggs in the bark, and beetle larvae can also cause the tree to die.
If this were not bad enough, forestry companies then have the difficulty of disposing of these trees, before they cause further damage from fire. The timber from the trees, however, is likely to be cracked and damaged, and is often stained by the presence of the beetles and fungus.
University of Washington scientists have come up with an ingenious solution. The damaged timber can still be used as a fuel. So the UW School of Environmental and Forest Sciences have come up with a way of heating this wood, and other organic materials, at very high temperatures, in the absence of oxygen. This treatment creates a type of fuel oil, which is a dark brown liquid. This fuel has been used in some countries for heating buildings, such as hospitals.
Different kinds of oil will have different compositions. While there is not necessarily a close similarity between this wood oil, and petroleum oil, the process at least demonstrates that fuel oils do not take millions of years to form. Similarly, petroleum oils need not have taken millions of years, but could have formed in conditions at the time of the Flood.
Thank You Lord, for the wisdom and ingenuity that You have given human beings, even when they do not acknowledge You as Lord. Amen.
Isaiah 55:12
“For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.”
Forestry organizations have a major problem with beetles. The Mountain Pine beetle infests many coniferous trees in the Western United States. Apparently 40 million acres of forest have been damaged by these critters. A fungus can get into the tree with the beetle, and this fungus prevents transportation of water and nutrients. The beetle lays its eggs in the bark, and beetle larvae can also cause the tree to die.
If this were not bad enough, forestry companies then have the difficulty of disposing of these trees, before they cause further damage from fire. The timber from the trees, however, is likely to be cracked and damaged, and is often stained by the presence of the beetles and fungus.
University of Washington scientists have come up with an ingenious solution. The damaged timber can still be used as a fuel. So the UW School of Environmental and Forest Sciences have come up with a way of heating this wood, and other organic materials, at very high temperatures, in the absence of oxygen. This treatment creates a type of fuel oil, which is a dark brown liquid. This fuel has been used in some countries for heating buildings, such as hospitals.
Different kinds of oil will have different compositions. While there is not necessarily a close similarity between this wood oil, and petroleum oil, the process at least demonstrates that fuel oils do not take millions of years to form. Similarly, petroleum oils need not have taken millions of years, but could have formed in conditions at the time of the Flood.
Thank You Lord, for the wisdom and ingenuity that You have given human beings, even when they do not acknowledge You as Lord. Amen.
PROGRESS IN TECHNOLOGY
Genesis 4:20-22
“And Adah bare Jabal: he was the father of such as dwell in tents, and of such as have cattle. And his brother's name was Jubal: he was the father of all such as handle the harp and organ. And Zillah, she also bare Tubalcain, an instructer of every artificer in brass and iron: and the sister of Tubalcain was Naamah.”
I was talking to a group of young children, perhaps 10 or 11 years old, and they were looking at a partly mud-covered house. This house had got covered in mud at the time of the 1980 eruption of Mount St Helens. Meanwhile, close by was a fridge, which had been washed out of the house, at the time of the mudflow. One boy was incredulous. “Did they really have fridges in 1980?”, he asked, genuinely shocked.
We all had a laugh at this. Yes, I confirmed, there were indeed fridges in 1980. However, our lives were hard, because we couldn’t report to the world on the details of our lives, using Facebook or Twitter. We were not carrying smartphones around with us in the 80s, so we were not permanently connected to the Internet. How did we get by without such technologies? Did we not experience deprivation?
Of course we did not, because we had no notion that such things would come about. So, technologically speaking, the world is getting better and better, while we see the world sinking downhill fast in terms of its moral standard.
Technological progress has always been available to us. Even before the Flood, we read about people like the sons of Lamech, who were pushing forward the boundaries of technology in husbandry, metallurgy and music. This is a part of the way God has made us, and we should thank Him for it.
Thank You, Father, for all the technology that we have. We are aware that we can use it for Your glory, or we can misuse it. Help us to glorify Your name, through our use of technology. Amen.
Image: Adobe Stock images, licensed to author.
Genesis 4:20-22
“And Adah bare Jabal: he was the father of such as dwell in tents, and of such as have cattle. And his brother's name was Jubal: he was the father of all such as handle the harp and organ. And Zillah, she also bare Tubalcain, an instructer of every artificer in brass and iron: and the sister of Tubalcain was Naamah.”
I was talking to a group of young children, perhaps 10 or 11 years old, and they were looking at a partly mud-covered house. This house had got covered in mud at the time of the 1980 eruption of Mount St Helens. Meanwhile, close by was a fridge, which had been washed out of the house, at the time of the mudflow. One boy was incredulous. “Did they really have fridges in 1980?”, he asked, genuinely shocked.
We all had a laugh at this. Yes, I confirmed, there were indeed fridges in 1980. However, our lives were hard, because we couldn’t report to the world on the details of our lives, using Facebook or Twitter. We were not carrying smartphones around with us in the 80s, so we were not permanently connected to the Internet. How did we get by without such technologies? Did we not experience deprivation?
Of course we did not, because we had no notion that such things would come about. So, technologically speaking, the world is getting better and better, while we see the world sinking downhill fast in terms of its moral standard.
Technological progress has always been available to us. Even before the Flood, we read about people like the sons of Lamech, who were pushing forward the boundaries of technology in husbandry, metallurgy and music. This is a part of the way God has made us, and we should thank Him for it.
Thank You, Father, for all the technology that we have. We are aware that we can use it for Your glory, or we can misuse it. Help us to glorify Your name, through our use of technology. Amen.
Image: Adobe Stock images, licensed to author.
WHEN WERE ANGELS CREATED?
Job 38:4-7
�Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding. Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? or who hath stretched the line upon it? Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? or who laid the corner stone thereof; when the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?�
Have angels always existed from eternity? The Bible says �No�. Only God, the One God in Three Persons, has existed for all eternity. So the angels and any other spirit beings that there might be must have been created by God.
If the angels were created, then when were they created? Were they, perhaps, created before the creation week? Perhaps God made them a long time before He made the world. Again, the Bible is very clear that this is not the case. We read in Exodus 20:11 that everything was made in the six days of the Creation Week.
So, we can definitely say that the Bible teaches that angels were created by God, they have not existed for all eternity, and that they must have been made during the creation week. However, we cannot be anywhere near as dogmatic about what day of the creation week God created them.
If we look in the book of Job, we read this: �Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth� when the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy?� It seems likely that these words refer to angels. If they were singing for joy at the foundation of the Earth, then they possibly saw most of creation happen. It is also my opinion that angels were created early on Day One of the Creation Week. At the end of the Creation Week, everything was �very good�. So all the angels were still good at the end of that week. No angel had yet fallen, though that would happen soon, before the events of Genesis 3.
Lord, we know that all things were made for You, through You, and by You. All of creation brings glory to Your Name. We thank You and praise You for Your creative power. Amen.
Ref: Hodge, B. (2010), What about Satan and the Origin of Evil?, in Ham, K. (ed. 2010), The New Answers Book 2, (Master Books). Image: Adobe Stock photo, licensed to author.
Job 38:4-7
�Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding. Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? or who hath stretched the line upon it? Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? or who laid the corner stone thereof; when the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?�
Have angels always existed from eternity? The Bible says �No�. Only God, the One God in Three Persons, has existed for all eternity. So the angels and any other spirit beings that there might be must have been created by God.
If the angels were created, then when were they created? Were they, perhaps, created before the creation week? Perhaps God made them a long time before He made the world. Again, the Bible is very clear that this is not the case. We read in Exodus 20:11 that everything was made in the six days of the Creation Week.
So, we can definitely say that the Bible teaches that angels were created by God, they have not existed for all eternity, and that they must have been made during the creation week. However, we cannot be anywhere near as dogmatic about what day of the creation week God created them.
If we look in the book of Job, we read this: �Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth� when the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy?� It seems likely that these words refer to angels. If they were singing for joy at the foundation of the Earth, then they possibly saw most of creation happen. It is also my opinion that angels were created early on Day One of the Creation Week. At the end of the Creation Week, everything was �very good�. So all the angels were still good at the end of that week. No angel had yet fallen, though that would happen soon, before the events of Genesis 3.
Lord, we know that all things were made for You, through You, and by You. All of creation brings glory to Your Name. We thank You and praise You for Your creative power. Amen.
Ref: Hodge, B. (2010), What about Satan and the Origin of Evil?, in Ham, K. (ed. 2010), The New Answers Book 2, (Master Books). Image: Adobe Stock photo, licensed to author.
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