I wish my faith was stronger. I find that at times it's the small things that make me stumble, and I get frustrated that I don't have better answers for my questions. I'll give you an example.
The other day I decided to try and start reading the Bible from beginning to end (thanks Matt for the inspiration), and I got caught up right away in Genesis 1. I've heard many times that we're not supposed to read the Bible as a science textbook, and that certain passages are written as they are due to cultural context, but this one confused me. You might want to read all of Genesis 1 and Genesis 2:4-7 for reference.
God says "Let there be light" and separates light from darkness by creating day and night on Day 1.
On Day 2, God separates water (which interestingly water isn't mentioned as being created as God hovers over the waters in verse 2 before creation), and he calls the expanse which separates the water "sky."
On Day 3, God gathers the water under the sky and dry ground appears. Then He creates vegetation on the land. "The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds."
On Day 4 God creates the stars, the sun, and the moon.
And here lies my issues. How is it that there is light on Day 1, but the stars and sun aren't created until Day 4? What's producing the light? God creates the plants on Day 3, but the sun isn't created until Day 4. In 2:4-7, the account of the heavens and earth being created states that "no shrub of the field had yet appeared on the earth and no plant of the field had yet sprung up, for the Lord God had not sent rain on the earth..." It's here that I find myself stumbling a little.
If God creates the plants on Day 3 without the sun, how do the plants grow? Again, I know the Bible isn't a science book, but in chapter 2, it states that the plants couldn't grow because they didn't have water, so it seems to me that some scientific reasoning is being used. I've heard many people adamantly argue about the inerrancy of Scripture, but it seems like something isn't quite right about this sequence in creation.
I know we are called to have a child-like faith, but at what point does child-like faith become a naive-faith? I want to believe with every bit of who I am, but I find there are times when I falter. The issue is personal, but it's also relevant for the way I share my faith with others. How would I address this issue with someone like one of my teammates at work who is very much into science and logical evidence?
I really hate it that I get tripped up on issues like this, but I guess it's these kinds of experiences that ultimately make our faith stronger once we work through them. So, what's your take and response to these issues?
4 comments:
I get tripped up on the same kinds of things. I don't really know the answers. Immediately, though, I remember very vividly a time that has stuck with me for many many years. We were on choir tour and I was seriously struggling with similar-type things. I was all but giving up and so angry that I didn't get all the details. You sat down with me and said that you weren't too worried about me, angry as I was. You said you'd only be worried about me if I stopped asking questions and ceased to care. You told me that those questions and anger at not knowing the answers are what drive us to keep searching.
I guess that's what Jesus meant when he said we'd find him only if we seek and search with all our hearts. That doesn't sound like just a walk around the park to me. Sounds like a lot of work, but very worth the effort.
Sorry for the lack of answers, but I'm glad to know that you seek and search with all that you have.
My thinking is, that if you're considering the One who created everything, whose power is limitless, I wouldn't put it past him to be able to create light without creating something to be the source of it. It's like any of the numerous miracles in the bible–-the source isn't anything of this world, it's God himself (which would seem to make sense at this particular moment in history). So I don't really find any more naive to believe in something like the creation described in the Bible than it is to believe in the Creator himself.
The way that I see it is that God is the light. I believe Heaven to be something that is glorious and bright yet is there a sun there? When Moses was in the presence of God he had to hide his face because of the "Glory". How do we not know that the Sun is just a reminder of the Glory of God? Not a great answer but I am a man of simple faith. I don't have to know the why but I know a lot of people do and therefore I don't have a wow answer.
Kristin...thank you. I too remember that conversation quite clearly. I'm not afraid of the searching, more the inadequacy of me to find the way on a road that I myself like to fill with all kinds of ridiculous roadblocks.
matt...my view of God is often too small. I remember a talk by Louie Giglio where he talked about God's greatness being greater than our greatest perspective's view (as much as we can see with our eyes), and I forget that too easily.
mr g...simple faith can be the best wow answer. It may not answer the question of a skeptic, but it will please God when we simply believe.
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