Creationism

Creationism teaches that the eternal, self-existent God created the universe, and this doctrine is attested to throughout the Old and New Testaments as a foundation of the faith. It stands as the first doctrine revealed in Scripture. The doctrine of creation makes a sharp distinction between the Creator and the creature. The triune God has revealed Himself to be the Creator of the heavens and the earth. God reveals His attributes in the creation of the universe. With the advent of the evolutionary theory of origins, creationism became a controversial doctrine. The materialistic and naturalistic worldview of evolution stands in stark opposition to the biblical doctrine of creation. Modern secular scientific theories in astronomy, biology, and geology have attempted to bolster a naturalistic worldview.

Although Christians have agreed that God created ex nihilo, “out of nothing,” there has been some disagreement on issues such as the age of the earth and what the six days of creation in Genesis 1 signify. One of the most widely held positions is that Genesis 1 teaches that God created everything in six ordinary twenty-four-hour days. Since the advent of scientific theories of origin and material aging, more proposals have been raised. Today, we can make a distinction between young-earth creationism and old-earth creationism. Young-earth creationists hold that the created order is relatively young, perhaps no more than about ten thousand years old. Old-earth creationists believe that the universe is much older, being millions or even billions of years old.

The doctrine of creation is the first doctrine revealed in Scripture. In Genesis 1, God reveals that He spoke the world into existence ex nihilo by the word of His power in the space of six days. God created the special universe and all that is in it cum tempore (with time). This doctrine is taught throughout the revelation of God in the Old and New Testaments (Gen. 1–2a; Job 26:13; 33:4; 38:4; Ps. 33:6, 9; 104:29–30; 148:5; Isa. 29:16; 40:13, 45:9; 48:13; Jer. 18:6; Zech. 12:1; John 1:3; Rom. 4:17, 9:20; Col. 1:16; Heb. 1:2; 11:3). The Scriptures reveal that the triune God is the Creator­; Father, Son, and Holy Spirit were all active in the work of creation.

God’s invisible attributes are revealed in the creation of the universe. As the Apostle Paul explains, “His invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made” (Rom. 1:20). This reminds us that men and women are creatures, not the Creator. Thus, the biblical doctrine of creation is essential for maintaining the Creator/creature distinction. The doctrine of creation is also foundational to our understanding of God’s goodness and revelation.

Toward the end of the nineteenth century, the Darwinian theory of evolution sparked controversy over creationism. Proponents of an evolutionary theory of origin reject biblical revelation about the distinct creation of man from other lifeforms. The Darwinian evolutionary theory of origins is antithetical to the teaching of Scripture about God’s work of creation. The evolutionary theory of creation is a bedrock of secularism, inasmuch as it advances a naturalistic worldview.

While scientific discoveries can uncover evidence that points to the special creation of the universe by God, this doctrine can only be truly understood through special revelation. The act of creation was the first of the supernatural works of God, and none of us were there to witness it. Therefore, it can be discovered only by a revelation of the Creator Himself. God must tell us that He made the heavens and the earth, and we must receive this by faith. This, however, does not mean that science and faith are at odds. It means that special revelation (what the Scriptures reveal) and general revelation (what the created order reveals about God) play two distinct but complementary roles in understanding the person and acts of our Creator.

Related to the debate over evolutionary theories of origin and creationism is the matter of theoretical proposals and empirical evidence about the age of the universe and the earth. This, in turn, has led to debates over the way that believers approach the relationship between science and their understanding of Scripture and whether creation is very old or relatively young. Keith A. Mathison, in his article “The Age of the Earth and Genesis 1: A Reformed Approach to Science and Scripture,” has helpfully explained:

The different conclusions to which Christians have come regarding the evidence for the age of the universe has led to an ongoing debate in the church about the interpretation of the nature and length of the days of Genesis 1. Just as those who were convinced that the evidence supported heliocentrism were forced to take a second look at Joshua 10 and other passages, so too were those convinced that the evidence supported an older universe forced to take another look at Genesis 1. This has led to much discussion and debate—some of it quite rancorous.

Since the early church era, Christian theologians have disagreed about what the six days of Genesis 1 mean. For instance, Augustine of Hippo believed in an instantaneous theory of creation. Rather than accepting the six days of Genesis 1 as six ordinary calendar days, he believed that God created the material universes in a single moment. Together with Origen, Augustine advanced an analogical reading of the days of Genesis 1. The Westminster Standards seem to reject instantaneous creation by including the words “in the space of six days.” Westminster Shorter Catechism 9 states, “The work of creation is God’s making all things of nothing, by the word of his power, in the space of six days, and all very good.” Other significant theologians, including John Calvin, have held a six-ordinary-day understanding of Genesis 1.

Today, a young earth or old earth creationist usually holds to at least one of four primary interpretive proposals regarding the six days of Genesis 1: the calendar day interpretation, the day-age theory, the framework hypothesis, and the analogical days theory. Evangelical and Reformed pastors and church leaders generally affirm one of these views.