One of the controversies being raised by those who refuse to believe and accept the Word of God as inspired and credible is the seeming discrepancy regarding the account of God’s direct work of creation in the Book of Genesis.

It is clearly described in Genesis 1 that God commanded the animals to appear through the spoken Word, in the same manner, He brought others to existence. In Genesis 2:19, it is also clearly described that “out of the ground, God directly formed” these animals. There seems to indicate a problem with these two passages. At the surface there appears to be a problem; but in actuality, there is none!

Another problematic observation they claim found in Genesis 1 is when Adam was described as the last one specially created by God; while in Genesis 2:19, it appears that God “formed” the animals after He created Adam. Again, there is the appearance; but in reality, there is none!

Without question, you and I trust the Word of God as credible and inerrant. That is, perhaps, why we do not spend much time to consider and understand some passages carefully. There is nothing wrong with being confident in knowing that the Bible is true. We have to realize, however, that the Bible was not only written for us to know what it says. It was given to us to learn and to proclaim the truth to others. It is a responsibility given to God’s people, to share and teach others the truth of God’s Word.

I must admit that I was guilty as well; until such time when people started to ask questions that I thought were unnecessary. I then realized that people are naturally inquisitive. They ask questions on issues they cannot understand. This reminds me of the story of the Eunuch who was reading the book of Isaiah whom Philip was able to help. May this encourage us to daily study and search the Scriptures.

2 Timothy 2:15 - “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”

The unbelievers do not have the capability to understand God’s Word. They do not have the faith to believe and the enemy always takes advantage of their spiritual blindness by using these apparent problem texts to doubt and question God and His Word. If God’s people, who claim to believe, will not study the Bible; how can the truth be shared with those without hope and how can we win them? God has equipped us with intelligence and the ability to think for the sake of reaching people with the truth and pointing them to the Light.

IBBC believes that the Bible is the inspired and the preserved Word of God, through the power of the Holy Ghost. It is credible, perfect, and powerful to bring the unbelievers to Christ. Others claim to believe but they give and stick to their private interpretation and opinion, instead of allowing God’s Word to provide the meaning. Our passages today are being used to question their veracity.

***The alleged problems - They believe the Bible has a lot of contradictions. The following are the examples:

1. Genesis chapter 1 and chapter 2 present a different narrative about the creation of animals. Were the animals formed or did they appear to exist through God’s spoken Word?

2. Both chapters 1 & 2 give a contradictory narrative regarding the time Adam was created. Was He created last or were the animals created after Adam?

These apparent discrepancies gave way to the idea of secondary creation. It provides a reason to accept the Gap theory; which states that there was a gap between Genesis verse 1 and verse 2, due to the destruction caused by the sin of the angel Lucifer that made the first creation totally void. Because of this, God had to re-create the world beginning in verse 3.

The Bible is not arranged chronologically. If it was, it would still not make sense since the book of Job was the oldest book written before the book of Genesis. It is therefore important to consider the Bible as a whole to understand what it declares. God has given us cognitive abilities needed to study and learn, but these God-given abilities are incapable of knowing God’s Word without the help of the Holy Spirit. It is necessary to always ask for His guidance.

Before reading God’s Word, have the faith to accept the Bible as true because it is impossible for God to contradict Himself. It is not proper to understand any passage based on doubts and conjectures. It must be read by faith, believing all it declares. Approach God’s Word, mindful of who God is. This mindset will help us depend on His guidance as we “rightfully divide the Word of truth.

***The proper understanding of the passages

Genesis Chapter 1 gives the proper sequence of creation. It began when God created time, space, and earth (matter) from nothing. From these basic elements, He brought all into existence by His Word. This is the pre-incarnate manifestation of Jesus Christ, the Living Word. (John 1:1)

God created the earth, universe, and man in 6 days/24-hour period as described by the phrase, “the evening and the morning.” This description dismisses the idea that 1 day=1000 years. Man was created (formed from dust) on the 6th day. He was the last created being and was the peak and the highest of God’s creation; higher than the angels. But because of sin, man became lower than the angels; which also made Jesus Christ (as a man) lower for He become sin for us. Praise God at His death, burial, and resurrection, He brought us back to our original spiritual status. On the 7th day, God rested to express His joy and satisfaction.

Genesis chapter 2 is not an account of re-creation. It is a general description of what happened in the 6 day of creation and it includes some more details that were not mentioned in the previous chapter. It mentions the creation of Eve when she was formed from a rib taken from Adam, and more.

This chapter describes the animals being formed by God and brought to Adam to be given names. This is the place of controversy. It is clear that the animals were formed and not the result of His spoken Word as described in chapter 1. It also appears that Adam was already created before God formed the animals. How can we make sense of these and how can they agree with the narrative in chapter 1?

In Chapter 1, it is clear that only Adam and Eve were personally and directly “formed” by God from earth; while others were all “spoken to existence.”

In chapter 2, God gave Adam the responsibility of naming all the animals He created. I could imagine that when God spoke these animals into existence there was a swarm of them scattered all over the world; including dinosaurs, dragons, and unicorns. Since Adam has to name each one of them, what God did was He formed a representative from each species before Adam and Eve, to show them that He was his Creator. As God formed each one, Adam started to name them as well. The animals that were formed were the ones who received names and because they were specially created, these formed animals were able to communicate their names to their own species.

Conclusion:

It is clear that there are no discrepancies in Chapters 1 & 2. Both chapters described what really happened. It is only a matter of understanding and considering what is sensible, reasonable, and possible according to God’s Word.

God from the beginning ministered to Adam and Eve. Everything God did was to allow the first men to use everything God gave them. The Trinity was not revealed in the Old Testament but they were there; all involved to bless men.

God, the Heavenly Father specially and directly formed Adam and Eve; He gave them life. The Lord Jesus Christ, the Living Word, spoke all creations into physical existence. The Holy Spirit moved in the midst of all creations. He was the Energy and the Light who brought everything in place.

God’s work of creation involved the Triune God. This expresses God’s interest in the affairs of men. The beginning of creation began TIME. We should always consider time as a wonderful gift and an opportunity to enjoy God in life and in service. We will never enjoy the gift of time when we only focus on the “passing of time.” For in our time and space, God gave us the purpose and countless opportunities and the greatest one is to give God all the glory!

Finally, God did not create us as individuals but as a family and social beings to have a relationship with each other and more importantly, with God. Today, we were placed in the local Church to learn the value of relationships. The purpose of the Church is to bless the family for every member to know God personally and to learn and experience godly virtues such as love, submission, obedience, and faithful service to work together, bless each other, and glorify God for all eternity