Tuesday, September 20, 2016

Deconstructing Al Mohler

A Baptist wrote:
But if you look in the first chapter of Genesis, you will there see more particularly set forth that peculiar operation of power upon the universe which was put forth by the Holy Spirit; you will then discover what was his special work. In the 2d verse of the first chapter of Genesis, we read, "And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters." We know not how remote the period of the creation of this globe may be—certainly many millions of years before the time of Adam. Our planet has passed through various stages of existence, and different kinds of creatures have lived on its surface, all of which have been fashioned by God. But before that era came, wherein man should be its principal tenant and monarch, the Creator gave up the world to confusion.
(Boldface added.)

That was written (and spoken) by the greatest Baptist preacher of all time, Charles Spurgeon.1 In 1855. That's right, 1855!

How we have fallen. How awful that we allowed ourselves to create a line in the sand where previously there was none. How we have made an enemy and a villain of science, which in Christian terms, is simply the study of God's general revelation--a complement (not a threat) to theology, the study of special revelation.

Al Mohler, who has done so many great things at Southern, is, on this issue, a big part of the problem. Here he is touting a truly bizarre apparent age theory.

It's not a problem that he believes in a young earth. It's a problem that he makes it a line-in-the-sand issue.

Digging in your heels on a young age should no longer be looked at as a quaint virtue. It is as harmful (probably more so) to Christianity as those who insisted, long after the case was settled, that our solar system was not heliocentric. Because the bible said so--or so they thought.

Love God with all your heart, soul, and ... what was that other thing?... oh yeah, mind.

1 The Complete Sermons of C. H. Spurgeon. Book 1 (Vol. 1-3), Sermon 30.

2 comments:

  1. Your link doesn't seem to work.

    That statement from Spurgeon can be found in other places, such as Google Books:
    https://books.google.com/books?id=BIOpCQAAQBAJ&pg=PA88&lpg=PA88&dq=%22We+know+not+how+remote+the+period+of+the+creation+of+this+globe+may+be%22&source=bl&ots=kANjjjd7Ki&sig=zyLz94hH6_sim14BehDcq9iNTR8&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi3hNOZq6DPAhVl7oMKHbhYAVoQ6AEIHjAA#v=onepage&q=%22We%20know%20not%20how%20remote%20the%20period%20of%20the%20creation%20of%20this%20globe%20may%20be%22&f=false

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