What About the Dinosaurs?
Y’all, I asked you to send me difficult questions Jesus followers ask, and a BUNCH of you have come through. Thank you!! I’ll do my best to answer your questions, and if you haven’t sent in your questions yet, head on over to our contact page and shoot them my way!
This week’s question comes from my friend Matty Matteson. Now, he’s a great guy and I’ve known him since childhood. We spent several years just a few blocks apart living in the same small town. (Cue John Mellencamp.) Here is Matty’s question:
“Does the Bible explain evidence of dinosaurs or is this a faith test?”
A Little(?) Background
Now, there are a few things I need to say before I get into this topic.
1) When I told my lovely bride I’d been asked this question and that I planned to address it, she was a little….concerned. You see, we have friends and loved ones with opposing views on this, and both sides are sincere Jesus followers. Due to this fact, I’ve carefully avoided this topic on the Internet and social media for a long time.
2) I have a fair background on the science side. I’ve been studying astronomy since I was 10 or 11 years old. I also have a Bachelor of Science degree in geology. That degree included a lot of paleontology, which is the branch of science concerned with fossil animals and plants, including dinosaurs (yay)! No, it’s not lost on me that I have a geology degree and my last name is Stoneking.
3) My degree is from a very Biblical, private Christian institution, Olivet Nazarene University. Go Tigers!!
4) I served as an adjunct professor there for a period of time, running labs in the Geology department, teaching Astronomy and Planetarium Operations classes, and working as the planetarium director.
5) I also took several Bible and spiritual growth classes at Olivet. And, as you know from other blog posts, I’ve been studying the Bible and reading on biblical topics for many years.
All that to say, I have an odd amount of experience from both a science and Bible perspective to deal with this topic.
I’ve tweaked Matty’s question to, What about the dinosaurs? But, if you’ll indulge me, I’m going to expand it even more to:
How old are the Universe and the Earth?
Well, now that we’ve spent 400+ words on the introduction, let’s jump in!
The Basic Problem
Science says the evidence indicates that the universe is around 13 billion years old. Scientists also report that the evidence also points to the age of the Earth being around 4.54 billion years old. In case you’re interested, they believe the dinosaurs died out 65.5 million years ago, possibly due to a catastrophic collision between the Earth and a large asteroid. The vast majority of geologists, paleontologists, and scientists in related disciplines consider these to be facts based on irrefutable evidence. In fact, even many Jesus followers who are also scientists share these same beliefs.
On the other side are people who look at the timeline of the Bible and estimate the Earth (and the Universe) to be around 6,000 years old. Like the scientists who calculate much longer timeframes, these scholars and scientists have spent many years and worked very hard to reach their conclusions. The basic source of the estimate of 6,000 years is a combination of the first five days of creation, as noted in Genesis 1:3-27 then determining the number of years from Adam to Abraham, and Abraham to today. Those time spans (approximately 2,000 years and 4,000 years respectively) come from analyzing the genealogies and other Biblical and archeological data.
Here then is the basic problem. Are the universe and Earth billions of years old or are they thousands of years old? Both cannot be true.
The Sovereignty of God
Let’s step back a bit. We’ve provided ideas and links to content that support both ideas. But the most important truth in this conversation must not be ignored. No matter the age of the universe and Earth, God is sovereign.
Whether He created everything in 6 literal days or over the course of billions of years does not affect His sovereignty. God is still all-powerful, all-knowing, and all-loving, no matter which view you subscribe to.
The fact that God is the eternal King over all things is not threatened by the idea of either a very old universe, or a very young one. Whichever you believe to be true is irrelevant to the fact that God is still on the throne. God is God, no matter what we believe on this topic. Jesus followers are still Jesus followers whether they subscribe to a young universe or an old one.
What Does the Bible Say?
Let’s go to back to Matty’s original question for a moment.
“Does the Bible explain evidence of dinosaurs or is this a faith test?”
Here is the answer to that question. The Bible never specifically mentions dinosaurs. It could not have done so, as the term “dinosaur” didn’t originate until 1841, but the first Bible that was similar to what we know today was assembled around A.D. 400, some 1,400 years before. However, some passages of the Bible could be interpreted as referring to dinosaurs.
Now, for our larger question, we need to know, what does the Bible say directly about how old the universe and Earth are? Or another way to ask is, what does the Bible say about exactly when God created the universe?
The answer is it doesn’t. God has left it up to us to determine when creation occurred, and whether that is even important.
What Really Matters, according to the Bible
Let’s look at a couple of quotes from Paul.
“But avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and arguments and quarrels about the law, because these are unprofitable and useless. Warn a divisive person once, and then warn them a second time. After that, have nothing to do with them. You may be sure that such people are warped and sinful; they are self-condemned.”
-Titus 3:9-11 NIV
“Don’t have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels. And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful.”
-2 Timothy 2:23-24 NIV
A few years ago, you could have really gotten me to engage online on the whole Young Earth vs. Old Earth argument. But not anymore. As Paul says, Jesus followers are to “avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and arguments and quarrels about the law”. Jesus made it clear that the Law includes the first five books of the Bible, Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. Therefore, understanding that Genesis is part of “the law” Jesus followers should avoid arguments about it. According to Paul, if we are divisive people and don’t stop, we are warped and sinful. And we “must not be quarrelsome but must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful.”
Drawing People Ever Nearer is the Goal
If you caught me in a moment of weakness, you might get me to engage in such a foolish argument. But it is unlikely. Millions of dollars and years of life from faith-based scientists have been spent in the pursuit of “proving” to young Earth people that the Earth is old. And millions of dollars and years of life from other faith-based people (including scientists) have been spent in the pursuit of “proving” to old Earth people that the Earth is young.
But the truth is, this entire discussion is irrelevant. Whether you believe the Earth is young or old has no bearing on whether you are going to Heaven or Hell.
Jesus didn’t spend ANY time on this topic. Neither did Paul. In fact, no one in the entire Bible tried to prove how long ago the universe or Earth was created. Hear me clearly Jesus follower:
This is not a salvation issue! It only divides us!
Unless our efforts serve to draw people nearer to Christ, our efforts are at best, useless, and at worst, pushing people towards an eternity in Hell. Mike Burnette, the senior pastor at LifePoint church in Clarksville, Tennessee spoke to this issue very well in discussing exactly when creation happened.
“I don’t know. I wasn’t there, so I won’t argue with you about it.”
The Final Word
Here is the truth. Old Earth or Young Earth does not matter. What matters is this, following the direction of Jesus.
“Jesus replied, ‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.”
-Matthew 22:37-40 NLT
It’s not loving to God or other people to argue over non-salvation issues. Let us spend our efforts instead to draw people ever nearer to their Savior!
Love you Jesus follower!
-Troy
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