CREATION VERSUS EVOLUTION.
By Editor
WE are asked to notice an article from an esteemed contemporary, in which the editor says: "Any interpretation of the book of Genesis . . . which attempts to make the divine creative day and the twenty-four-hour day of the human calendar identical, is too narrow and too 'Jewish' to be entertained for a moment. The friends of the Sabbath do not entertain such notions, altho superficial investigators have sometimes attributed such notions to them." This appeared some months ago; but we did not notice it at the time. We have no disposition now to criticize our contemporary; but we do wish to place ourselves on record as one of "the friends of the Sabbath," who holds that "the divine creative day [of Gen. 1:5, 8, 13, etc.] and the twenty-four-hour day [beginning at sunset and closing at sunset] are identical." Neither is this a notion; it is as clear a revelation as that of the origin of the Sabbath. Let the reader consider:— 1. The days of Genesis 1 are composed of two parts, evening and morning, even as our day now. 2. These days, regulated by diffused light, perhaps because of the state of the atmosphere, for the first three days, are from the fourth day forward regulated by the sun. 3. The first seventh day, the next day after Adam's creation, came and went obviously, a brief period of time; and the succeeding seventh day of the cycle was afterward set apart for all time to come, because that in it God "had rested from all His work." This day was evidently a day, not a long evolutionary period. It was one day of many others of Adam's life. The only reasonable conclusion is that the other days of Genesis 1 were similar days. 4. The fourth commandment and other scriptures all refer to the six days as so many literal days, and the seventh day following as a literal day, which men were to observe in harmony with the example of their Creator. See Ex. 20:8-11; 16:23-30, et al. To say that this plain language of the Bible does not mean what it says, that "days" does not mean days, that "evening and morning" does not mean evening and morning, is to declare that we know nothing by the Word of what Genesis 1 does teach, and that it is but a beautiful myth after all. More than this: Throughout the entire Word of God the Deity is said to be Creator, not by a long process of evolution, but by creative power. God's power to create is set before us as the sinner's only hope; for the sinner who3has tried over and over in himself resolution and evolution, knows that evolution is a hopeless void. But one thing can work the change in character demanded even by an enlightened conscience, and by the Word of God, and that is God's creative power. God said, "Let there be light," "Let the earth bring forth," "Let the waters bring forth," etc. The result was, "it was so;" "there was light;" "and the earth brought forth;" "the waters brought forth." "By the word of the Lord were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of His mouth." "For He spake, and it was; He commanded, and it stood fast." So also Christians do not evolve into righteousness. "Of His own will begat He us with the word of truth." "Being born again . . . by the word of God." "If any man is in Christ, there is a new creation." R.V., margin. "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works." "Put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness." "For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ." How is all this wrought—by a process of evolution?—Not at all. Jesus Christ was the revelation of God to men. What was the teaching of His work? Read: "And, behold, there came a leper and worshiped Him, saying, Lord, if Thou wilt, Thou canst make me clean. And Jesus put forth His hand, and touched him, saying, I will; be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed." He spake to the dead at the grave of Lazarus, "and he that was dead came forth" at once. At a distance from the centurion's He spoke the word concerning the servant sick unto death, and the "servant was healed in the selfsame hour." The woman diseased with the issue of blood touched, in faith, His garment, and His power immediately healed her. He said to the dead daughter of Jairus, and the dead son of the widow of Nain, "Arise," and immediately they lived. So God wrought during the six days. To yield faith in the record concerning God's direct, creative power in Genesis is to yield it as respects man's spiritual regeneration. The evolutionist begins by rejecting the Mosaic account of the creation, and ends by rejecting the miracles of Christ and Biblical regeneration. Jesus spake truly when He said to the Jews: "Had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed Me; for he wrote of Me. But if ye believe not his writings, how shall ye believe My words?" Are not these words applicable now? Child of God, fear not. The old Book, with Genesis and all its records, will stand when all opposing contradictory systems originated of Satan to destroy man, are crumbled into the dust.