Today's sermon is from Richard Dahlstrom, senior pastor of Bethany Community Church in Seattle, Washington. The full sermon can be found here.

Is Genesis 1 describing material creation or functional creation? Pastor Richard Dahlstrom of Bethany Community Church beautifully articulates the insights he has received through John Walton’s book The Lost World of Genesis One and probes deep into the Biblical text with us . In his sermon “Gloriously Functional,” he highlights key Hebrew words that are often misunderstood by post-Enlightenment thinkers in order to generate a proper framework through which to grasp the original meaning of the text. He then examines each day of creation, explaining the function of the various created elements such as light, water, plants, animals, and people, according to the account. This enriching exercise brings the question of “Why has God made this very good, functional creation to begin with?” Dahlstrom affirms along with Walton that Genesis 1 is indeed about God making a temple to dwell in with His people, who he has ordained as priests, stewards over all creation. This is most clearly seen in the striking parallels between the creation narrative and the building of the earthly temple of God in the ancient Hebrew culture.

In addition to this clip from Dahlstrom’s sermon , there is a brief commentary by John Walton himself, which speaks about the functionality rather than materiality of Genesis 1. He states that the creation story is not one of material origins. If this is so, he explains there is no need to defend a Biblical account against an evolutionary account; the two are compatible with each other. What the creation story does offer, however, is a theology on the physical existence of what God has made; it reveals the divine purpose of God for his masterpiece, the universe.

Introduction

Today BioLogos begins a series that we think ought to have significant impact on evangelical churches far beyond the local congregation in Arlington, Massachusetts where it was first delivered. A recent editorial in Christianity Today stated that many Christians likely face another "Galileo moment." In that earlier era, finding that the earth moved around the sun--and not the other way around--caused the Church to reorient its understanding of certain scriptural passages. Today, interconnecting strands of evidence all of which lie at the heart of biology, geology, physics and astronomy require segments of the Church to carefully evaluate its magnificent creation narrative--it needs to be certain it is hearing God's message in the way that God intends for it to be understood. It is healthy for the conservative wing of Christianity to be carefully examining the genre of the creation narrative. It has had to do this once before and, it is appropriate to prayerfully seek clarity once again. Christians are truth-seekers and God's Spirit will guide the process as we sincerely seek that wisdom which is from above.

Oratory, at its best, has long been an important key in opening the door to new and dramatically important insights. Pastor David Swaim of Highrock Church in the Boston suburb of Arlington illustrates this poignantly. In fact his sermon is so significant, we've asked permission to post it in serial form so that each of us can deeply reflect on his words in a protracted fashion. We encourage you to let others who are conflicted over this issue know about the series so that they can follow it. Indeed, we believe It will be a great series for small group discussions--we need to lovingly support each other as we seek God's guidance in coming to understand God's truths.

In this sermon, Swaim discusses our belief in God as creator, or “Maker of heaven and earth”, as the Apostle’s Creeds so poetically states. To begin, he reminds us that some passages in the Bible, like the parable of the prodigal son, convey deep truths even though they are not historical accounts. Asking “the wrong questions”—questions that focus on arbitrary details—about such stories can cause us to miss out on their intended message. In a similar way, he says, it is possible that we might be asking the “wrong questions” about the opening chapters of Genesis. In recent years, conflict has erupted because a literal reading of Genesis seems to contradict the findings of science. Swaim suggests, however, that accepting scientific evidence about things like evolution and the age of the earth need not rule out faith in Scripture.

If you wish to jump ahead and hear the sermon in its entirety, you may do so here.

Introduction written by the BioLogos editorial team.

"Maker of Heaven and Earth" (transcript)

One of my favorite parables is that of the lost son. There’s a lot to it. Basically, it’s a story that Jesus told about a young man who insulted his father by demanding his share of the inheritance early, then ran off to spend that money on wild living, and found himself destitute when the money was gone. In desperation, he returned to his father, asking to work as a servant. But instead of being angry, his father joyfully embraced his lost son and threw a huge feast to celebrate his return. It is a great story that Jesus tells to help us understand God’s amazing grace.

How many of you know this story? Raise your hand, if you would. Okay. Now I want to make sure I’m clear…that’s a lot of you…I don’t mean just like, you know it because I just told it to you. I mean you know it because you’ve heard a sermon on this before, or maybe you’ve read it on your own. Raise your hand high if that’s true of you. Wow, still a lot of you. That’s perfect because I actually have a couple of questions maybe you can help me with. You see, it says that the father saw the son while he was still a long way off. Can anybody tell me how far off was the son at that point? Anybody know that? Because, you know, they didn’t have glasses back then, and the father was really old, so how far could he really see? It just doesn’t really add up for me. Can anybody tell me about that? Nobody? Okay. Well I have another question. Maybe this one’s easier. What town did that family live in? Does anybody know that? No? Nobody? What town they lived in? People, this is one of the greatest stories of all time! This is a story that has changed thousands of lives, including many of yours! How can you say that you know this story, that you understand this story, if you don’t even understand these basic facts? Okay, well maybe this is easier. Speaking of family, the Bible’s into family values, so I want to know—where’s the mother? Can anybody tell me? Is this family not intact? What’s wrong? Did they get a divorce maybe? And how come the father ended up with the custody of the sons? And why did they only have two? Families back then had much bigger families. Maybe they just got divorced too early? But I mean he seems so nice—why do you think she left? Anybody know these things? I mean I just don’t get it. You all tell me you know this story, and yet you don’t understand just these simple things about it.

Obviously, my questions miss the whole point of the story. There was no mother, or for that matter, no father or son either. This never actually happened. It’s just a parable. It’s one of the many marvelous stories that Jesus told in order to help us understand something that was hard to see. Now does that make it so that this story isn’t true? No, it is true. This story communicates some of the most important truths in the universe—about God’s nature, and the way that we relate to him. There are many passages in scripture that promise God’s love, or praise God’s love, or even try to explain God’s love. But this passage helps us grasp that truth in a way that’s much more effectively communicated than just through direct reporting. This way helps us feel it. This event never happened, but it’s one of the truest stories in the world. And what a shame for someone to dismiss it as irrelevant because it’s not literal history, or miss the point by asking the wrong kinds of questions.

Now I bring this up because just like my questions miss the point of the lost son parable, so, I fear, many of us ask the wrong questions about the beginning of the book of Genesis, which we read from just a few minutes ago. Not only does this generate needless confusion and division, it also makes us miss the point, miss the life-changing truths that we could see if we asked the right questions. Right now we’re in a sermon series studying the Apostle’s Creed, an ancient declaration of faith in the God of the Bible. And today, we’re considering the word “creator.” So, Genesis seemed like the right place to go.

Like the story of the lost son, most of you know the basic outline: God created the universe in six days and then napped on the seventh (so those of you who nap through my sermons every Sunday, you’re in good company!). But by adding up all the names of the people mentioned in Genesis, and throughout the rest of the Bible, seventeenth century Bishop Ussher determined that the creation of Adam and Eve, and everything else, happened in 4,004 BC—about 6,000 years ago. And that’s great. But you’re probably also aware that this creates some tension with contemporary scientists who suggest a different timeline. Considering the evidence offered by the size and expansion rate of the universe, plate tectonics, fossil evidence, and genetics, their best guess is that the universe was created by a big bang about 13 billion years ago, the earth appeared about 4.5 billion years ago, and the earliest humans existed about 200,000 years ago. In the past 300 years, this has become a very heated debate. Apparently, we need to choose whether we believe in science or in scripture. At least that’s the claim made by the most strident voices on each side, so the general population seems to have accepted that if you believe in God you can’t believe in evolution, and if you believe in evolution then you can’t believe in God.

This topic arouses passions and anxieties in many people, including some in this room. No matter what your perspective is, I’m probably going to say something today that you’ll disagree with, and might even make you angry. There’ll be plenty of time for you to set me straight in the coming weeks. But for the next half hour, in order to allow the possibility that we might hear something new, or even learn from the Holy Spirit, let’s lay aside our defensiveness so that we can at least consider why we are so attached to whatever ideas we have, and evaluate whether our devotion to one truth may be blinding us to others. As scientists have discovered more and more evidence supporting the basic evolutionary theory outlined in Darwin’s Origin of Species, Christians have responded in a variety of ways.

Science has been right about so many things, so some Christians have embraced evolution and felt forced to abandon their trust, not only in the truth of Scripture, but also in the God it describes. Other Christians, including many renowned scientists, have fought back by pointing out the many flaws in evolutionary theory and proposing alternative theories of their own. These include Young Earth Creation, which asserts that the earth was created in six days six thousand years ago, and offers thoughtful explanations to reconcile the findings of science with the words of Genesis 1. Old Earth Creationists do the same thing, but contend that each of the days in Genesis could represent an epoch, or a million years, or whatever amount of time, instead of just a 24-hour day. This is linguistically legitimate—it’s a fine interpretation of the Hebrew word “day” in Genesis—and it recognizes that it’s hard to measure a day before the invention of the sun in day four, anyway. So, Old Earth Creationism opens up many possibilities to reconcile scientific claims about the age of the earth with a literal interpretation of Genesis. Theistic Evolution takes further steps to accommodate evolution while still honoring God as the one who created heaven and earth and everything in them through the evolutionary process. This is attractive because it eliminates the conflict between science and scripture, but it requires a very different way of reading Genesis. They suggest that, like I did with the parable of the prodigal son earlier, perhaps we’re asking the wrong questions about Genesis so that we’re inventing an unnecessary argument, and even worse, we’re also missing what the first chapters of Genesis really are all about.

In the next installment, to be posted tomorrow, Pastor Swaim goes on to discuss the Genesis passage in detail.

]]> Thu, 27 Oct 11 05:00:06 -0700 David Swaim http://biologos.org/essays/the-biologos-foundation-and-darwins-pious-idea?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication http://biologos.org/essays/the-biologos-foundation-and-darwins-pious-idea?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication In this paper, theologian John Wesley Wright reviews Connor Cunningham's book Darwin's Pious Idea, a work that deeply explores the integration of Darwinian evolutionary theory and Christian faith. Darwin's Pious Idea, a work that deeply explores the integration of Darwinian evolutionary theory and Christian faith.]]> Wed, 19 Oct 11 13:50:46 -0700 John Wesley Wright http://biologos.org/blog/saturday-sermon-genesis-1-called-to-full-humanity?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication http://biologos.org/blog/saturday-sermon-genesis-1-called-to-full-humanity?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication On July 27, 2011, renowned evangelical John Stott passed away at the age of 90. His work was an influential voice in conservative evangelicalism. In honor of Stott’s work in promoting “balanced and thinking biblical faith”, we feature an audio excerpt from Stott’s address “Genesis 1: Called to Full Humanity”.

Each Saturday, we present an ongoing series recognizing sermons (and the pastors who give them) that are helping to promote the harmony of science and faith. Today's sermon comes from the late John Stott, who passed away last week. In honor of Stott’s work in promoting “balanced and thinking biblical faith”, we feature an audio excerpt from Stott’s address “Genesis 1: Called to Full Humanity”, which he delivered at the Lambeth Conference in 1998. The full audio can be found here..

On July 27, 2011, renowned evangelical John Stott passed away at the age of 90. His work was integral in moving conservative evangelicalism from a minority faith movement, particularly in his home country of England, to one of the leading movements in modern Christianity. Stott was a man of many talents – teacher, pastor, author, leader, Biblical expositor – and many passions -- missions, social issues, evangelism, intellectual growth. He was a man regularly described as “brilliant”, “hard-working”, “confident”, “intellectually strong”, and, perhaps most importantly of all, “a man of integrity” (for more on Stott’s life and legacy, see Christianity Today’s wonderful eulogy).

Chris Wright, the Langham Partnership International Director (appointed to the position by Stott), offers perhaps the best summary of Stott’s legacy:

His leadership of the evangelical movement, both in the Anglican Communion and in wider inter-denominational settings, was a major factor in moving it from rather narrow-minded fundamentalism after the Second World War, to the fastest growing part of world Christianity that it is today… His books have challenged and nourished millions of Christians into a balanced and thinking biblical faith.

Stott wrote about his views on evolution, which in many ways paralleled those of BioLogos. Here is an excerpt from his 1999 book Understanding the Bible:

“What may we say about the ‘how’ of God’s creative activity. Not many Christians today find it necessary to defend the concept of a literal six-day creation, for the text does not demand it, and scientific discovery appears to contradict it. The biblical text presents itself not as a scientific treatise but as a highly stylized literary statement (deliberately framed in three pairs, the fourth “day” corresponding to the first, the fifth to the second, and the sixth to the third). Moreover, the geological evidence for a gradual development over thousands of millions of years seems conclusive. …”

“It is most unfortunate that some who debate this issue (evolution) begin by assuming that the words “creation” and “evolution” are mutually exclusive. If everything has come into existence through evolution, they say, then biblical creation has been disproved, whereas if God has created all things, then evolution must be false. It is, rather, this naïve alternative which is false. It presupposes a very narrow definition of the two terms, both of which in fact have a wide range of meanings, and both of which are being freshly discussed today…”

“I myself believe in the historicity of Adam and Eve, as the original couple from whom the human race is descended*….But my acceptance of Adam and Eve as historical is not incompatible with my belief that several forms of pre-Adamic ‘hominid’ may have existed for thousands of years previously. These hominids began to advance culturally. They made their cave drawings and buried their dead. It is conceivable that God created Adam out of one of them. You may call them homo erectus. I think you may even call some of them homo sapiens, for these are arbitrary scientific names. But Adam was the first homo divinus, if I may coin a phrase, the first man to whom may be given the Biblical designation ‘made in the image of God’. Precisely what the divine likeness was, which was stamped upon him, we do not know, for Scripture nowhere tells us. But Scripture seems to suggest that it includes rational, moral, social, and spiritual faculties which make man unlike all other creatures and like God the creator, and on account of which he was given ‘dominion’ over the lower creation.” (John Stott [1999], Understanding the Bible: Expanded Edition; 54-56)

* Please note that in this regard, Stott’s view runs contrary to current scientific consensus and the BioLogos position. Although Adam and Eve may have been historical, the data indicate very clearly that there was never a time when there were just two human beings that gave rise genetically to all human beings on earth.

Though some may believe that moving the science/faith dialogue forward is best left to scientists, scholars, and theologians, we at BioLogos recognize that our pastors play an invaluable role in the conversation. Across the globe, pastors are helping their congregations work through difficult issues of science and faith with honesty, insight, and a gentle spirit. To this end we present an ongoing series recognizing sermons (and the pastors who give them) that are helping to promote the harmony of science and faith. Today's sermon comes from Rev. Tim Keller, pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church. Click above to hear an excerpt. Below, is a brief summary written by BioLogos editorial staff. The full sermon, which we highly recommend can be purchased from Redeemer’s sermon store. Finally, if you know a sermon or podcast related to science and faith that has especially spoken to you, please let us know.

Throughout the last 150 years or so, the interpretation of the creation account in Genesis 1 has been a point of contention within the Christian as well as the scientific community. Some say it is a poem or a song meant to be read in symbolic terms. Genesis 1 contains much repetition and many refrains in the text, literary devices that they strongly believe characterize poetic pieces. Others stand firm in their conviction that the text is quite literal in its description of the creative process. These advocates argue that what they perceive as the absence of traditional parallelism indicates that it is not poetry, but historical prose narrative. Still, most scientists remain skeptical of a literal reading because it contradicts the geological evidence concerning the age of the earth as well as the evidence for the manner in which life progressed on this planet. Despite one’s beliefs, Dr. Keller continues, it is necessary to remain humble and gracious as Christians. In this posture, Dr. Keller rises above these disputes as he seeks to illuminate the foundational principles of God’s creation. He poses and answers this question throughout his sermon: “So, what does the Bible teach about creation?”

Throughout Genesis 1, it is important to note that God ascribes goodness to the creation unfolding before Him at the power of His word. In Genesis 1: 11 it says, “…and God saw that it was good.” While some eastern religions describe this world as an illusion that will one day fade away, the Bible is unique in that it presents a high view of “the material goodness of creation.” Not only does his universe display his glory, but also, it speaks of the unimaginable splendor to come when all creation is transformed. In other words, it is a mere shadow of the things to come! This idea is expressed in Isaiah 25 (NASB) when the scriptures say, “The LORD of hosts will prepare a lavish banquet for all peoples on this mountain; a banquet of aged wine, choice pieces with marrow…and on this mountain He will swallow up the covering which is over all peoples…He will swallow up death for all time, and the Lord GOD will wipe tears away from all faces…for the LORD has spoken.” Thus, it is right that humans should take pleasure in His good work, for God has placed us here in the midst of His goodness that we might experience him through what has been made.

The sermon further highlights creation’s finiteness. This fact has significant implications according to Dr. Keller. Although it is good and meant for enjoyment, it is temporary and fleeting. With this in view, Christians need to place all their delight and security in God, the eternal One. It is right to appreciate God’s earthly blessings as long as they do not displace God from the central focus. Nature exists to direct the believer to worship God, but the believer’s deepest fulfillment should be found in the Lord, who is its ultimate source.

Furthermore, it is understood from Scripture that a unity exists between the physical and spiritual realm. The natural has been infused with a divine spark. This concept that is established in the Word is revolutionary. A significant number of people would like to believe that the universe is purely material. Others hold to the Greek dualistic belief in which there is the natural and the spiritual, but the two are in opposition to one another. However, the Bible clearly states that the physical and spiritual realms are positively connected. This leads Dr. Keller to explain that both a person’s spirit and body are good, and everyone is created in the image of God. When the Fall occurred, the image was broken, but the image is there nonetheless. As he puts it, all people have been given “gifts of courage, wisdom, [and] creativity” that reflect God’s nature.

Next, Dr. Keller goes on to point out that not only is creation good, but it is beautiful! It ministers to our souls, and speaks of our eternal God. The scriptures speak of this concept frequently. For example, in the book of Psalms, the sun and the moon and the stars are described as declaring the glory of God. In addition, Romans 1:20 states that, “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made…”

Dr. Keller makes one last point. Everything in creation is accomplished through God’s mighty word. Things are brought into being and blessed by the word. However, as a result of the Fall, this benediction or divine pronouncement of goodness over humankind was replaced by the curse that sin brought upon humanity. From that moment, no person again received that spoken blessing until Jesus came in the flesh. What does this tell us about the sacrifice of our Savior on the cross? Well, in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus cries out to the Father in distress at His fate. He pleads with the Father to allow the cup of wrath to pass from him, but he receives no answer from God. Then, on the cross, Jesus exclaims, “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?” In these moments, Jesus received upon himself the condemnation that we deserved as broken people, that all might receive once again the delight and approval of the Father. Just as life came into being through God’s word, humans were brought again to life in our spirit through Jesus, the Word of God. The divine blessing is once again warranted to sinful humans because Christ has purchased it for us by his righteous blood.

Clearly, there are treasures of divine revelation in the Genesis account that provide a richer understanding of the purpose and destiny of what has been formed. It is helpful to recognize that this account is not meant as a scientific summary with precise details of the world’s beginning, but rather a text which is intended to illuminate and reveal important principles behind the creation we know and love.

Though some may believe that moving the science/faith dialogue forward is best left to scientists, scholars, and theologians, we at BioLogos recognize that our pastors play an invaluable role in the conversation. Across the globe, pastors are helping their congregations work through difficult issues of science and faith with honesty, insight, and a gentle spirit. This weekend, we begin an ongoing series recognizing sermons (and the pastors who give them) that are helping to promote the harmony of science and faith. Our first sermon comes from Rev. Tim Keller, pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church. Click on the picture above to hear a profound and very moving excerpt. This excerpt can be downloaded here, and the full sermon can be purchased from Redeemer’s sermon store. Finally, if you know a sermon or podcast related to science and faith that has especially spoken to you, please let us know.

Dr. Timothy Keller beautifully unravels the first three verses of Genesis 1 in his sermon titled, “Before the Beginning.” From these first verses, three fundamental truths are established. Before the beginning of God’s marvelous works, there was God, there was love, and there was darkness.

Dr. Keller provides a compelling argument for the existence of God. He opens with a discussion on an essay written by John Paul Sartre. This philosopher proposed that a created object or being can only be judged as doing the right or wrong thing if there is a definite purpose it is meant to fulfill. For example, one concludes that a paper knife is great if it indeed cuts paper. However, Sartre did not believe in a creator god or in an ultimate purpose for mankind. If humans exist for no particular reason, then there is no concept of right or wrong and no moral code by which one can be judged. Therefore, he inferred that humans had complete freedom to act in whichever way they pleased. However, Sartre spent his entire life making strong moral claims, and Dr. Keller asks, “Why?”—Well, the answer is clear: God does exist, and so value claims can be made since everything has a specific niche, an intended purpose. The implications of this truth are that each person has a destiny to live out, and it is only when that role is being fulfilled that a person will truly be free. The nature of freedom, then, is not the ability to do whatever one pleases; it is the ability to discover and realize the role for which one has been made.

Next, Dr. Keller makes this necessary distinction: there is not just a God of the universe, but there is a loving God of the universe. He explains that love existed before the beginning because God is a Trinitarian being. The first verses in Genesis mention God and the Spirit of God as hovering over the deep. Then, one reads in the gospel of John that Jesus is the Word of God made flesh. Therefore, Jesus is God’s word that is speaking creation into existence. Jesus’ prayer in this same gospel explains the relationship these three had before all creation. He makes it known that each distinct part of the Ttrinity was glorifying the others. It is from this glorious state of self-giving love that God’s creation is birthed. This means that love is the ultimate reality. If love is the highest goal, then relationships, not achievement or power, is what all creation was intended for.

Finally, before God acts, there is darkness and chaos. It is “under His word that there comes orderliness and light.” What is the significance of this truth? In order to find it, Dr. Keller turns his audience’s attention to the story of the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt. When God sends plagues on the Egyptians because of Pharaoh’s hard heart, the calamities are natural disasters rather than supernatural ones. God was showing humans the true effects of their sin on nature. It is sin that tears at the very fabric of His creation and causes chaos and darkness to ensue. Then, fast-forwarding thousands of years, Jesus dies on the cross. In His last moments, He cries, “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?” This is what was happening in those moments: the chaos and destruction and darkness that sin deserves were falling directly onto Jesus himself. In the words of Pastor Keller, “Jesus is the maker who was willing to be unmade so that we might be remade.” Thus, the result of all human actions apart from God is indeed darkness and death, and the result of all that God does is perfect light and life.

The conclusion when all has been heard is this: that God created and sustains all things in and through His self-giving love. It is in this divine love that one finds purpose, and in finding purpose, so also one finds the ultimate freedom that humanity deeply longs to experience.

ADDENDUM: Please note, although we do invite your comments as we explore the theological richness of God's word in the sermon series, the comments will be restricted to Christians who are genuinely seeking to enter into a deeper and more meaningful relationship with God. Those who are not Christians but are seriously seeking to explore the Christian faith as a possibility for their own lives are also very welcome to raise questions and make comments. However, this will not be a place to belittle Christianity. We ask that our atheist friends respect our purpose here. We realize that you think Christianity is irrational and we are willing to engage the profound rationality of our faith, but this is not the place to discuss that with you.