Chapter Three - The Book of Genesis
The book of Genesis is much more than just the first book of the Bible. The contents of the book serve as the foundation of all doctrines in the Bible. In reality, the rest of the Bible does not make sense, unless we understand the content of the book of Genesis. Truly, the most important events in the history of the world; primarily the life, death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, do not make any real sense unless you understand the foundations of the book of Genesis.The word, “Genesis,” means “beginning.” Therefore, the book of Genesis is the book of the beginning. It is the beginning of the world and the beginning (or origin) of all things, even the beginning of all doctrines. Genesis is not a myth, nor is it an allegorical (symbolic) account, but it is true written history. The stories and elements of Genesis are historic. All of the writings of Genesis are real andtrue, and the events of Genesis happened in true history. The events of Genesis spanned a history of over 2000 years that began approximately 6000 years ago.
It is impossible to believe in Jesus and the New Testament without believing in the historical accuracy of Genesis. If Jesus and his Apostles’ teachings were true, then the historical account of Genesis, which they referred to dozens of times must also be true.
Probably the most important aspect of Genesis, theologically speaking, is the account of the fall of man (Adam). According to the Bible, Adam (the first man), disobeyed God (his Creator). His disobedience is recognized as the first sin, and his sin brought death into the world (Romans 5:12). All men, as descendants of Adam, became subject to sin and death, and it is because of this fact that man needed a Savior. We needed a Savior to deliver us from the bondage of sin and death. We needed Jesus. However, without the historically accurate account of the book of Genesis, we would not understand why there is sin and death in the world. We could not properly understand that we need a Savior. The historically accurate record of the book of Genesis shows us that we do!
Genesis and Science
It is important to note, however, that the book of Genesis is not a science textbook. It is a history book. The reason that it has been subject to scientific scrutiny is because of the initial account of Creation in its first few chapters. We must remember however, that the purpose of Genesis is to explain with historical authority, what has occurred, and not what the scientific details were in regards to the occurrences.In the 50 total chapters of Genesis, only the first 11 of them deal with the origins of the world. The remaining chapters deal with the history of the chosen family; that is, the history of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. It is easily seen then, that the real emphasis of Genesis is the story of Abraham and his children, and not the scientific details of the account of creation.
However, since Genesis is historically accurate and God is the absolute authority on all things, the account of Genesis chapters 1-11 is not only historically accurate, but it is scientifically accurate as well. True science will show and give evidence that the stories and accounts of Genesis chapters 1-11 harmonize with science.
Therefore, when the Bible says that something happened, we know that it happened. The Bible may not tell us about the atmospheric pressure, the coefficient of friction, or the chemical elements involved, but when the Bible speaks, we can know with great certainty that what the Bible said happened, did happen. True science may add insight as to the scientific details involved in “what happened,” but true science will not take away from what the Bible says actually happened. True science will only explain, and may add insight, as to how it happened and what the details concerning the event were.
The Hydroplate Theory does just that, and it can therefore be classified as true science.