GOD, ADAM AND YOU:
Biblical Creation Defended and Applied
Editor Richard D. Phillips
P & R Publishing. 212 pages. £9.99
ISBN 978 1 629 950 662
This publication is of a collection of papers presented at the 2013 Philadelphia Conference on Reformed Theology, sponsored by the Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals. It is a generally very readable and inspiring book on the theses suggested by the title. The theme is unashamedly based on a historical reading of the biblical creation account.
It is tempting to summarise each paper, but I feel that would spoil the impact of reading them in full – and at the price of the book, that would be a shame! Typical points made include the fact that Creation is fundamentally important to our standards of ethics and morality and to our worship (p.13). What God says in the opening chapters of the Scriptures defines what is right and what is wrong; outside of this, there is no argument against such practices as are becoming widely accepted today.
It is clear that the genealogies represent real people (p.22f). Joel Beeke presents several arguments for a correct understanding of the historical and real nature of the accounts. Many aspects of the account reflect our foundations in Christian doctrine, such as the nature of man. Another writer compares Eden and Adam’s role with the Temple.
Kinds and species
There are one or two ‘weaknesses’. For example, there is a confusion of the biblical ‘kinds’ with biological ‘species’ (p.87). This can lead to invalid arguments and creation-ists have long recognised that this equation is incorrect. I think there is also a tendency to confuse the time of creation with the age of the earth (p.128). The contrast between Creation and evolution is clear. The evolutionary approach presents the scenario as the Big Bang followed by the formation of fossils over millions of years (simplified summary!) whereas the biblical account is of a six-day Creation followed by millennia of earth history. The fossils are not a part of creation; it is generally accepted that the fossils are formed as a result of the Noahic Flood.
Another weakness I felt was in the discussion of the evening/morning argument (p.138), especially in regard to the day being defined by the movement of the Earth with respect to the sun (p.138). The same author favours a ‘mature creation’ view in which the Creator makes ‘the universe to look old’, rather than the catastrophic view of the Flood (p.139).
Historical Adam
An important point is made that a ‘historical Adam’ is not necessarily the same as a ‘biblical Adam’ (p.131). Though theistic evolutionists tend to dismiss the concept of Adam as described in the Bible, they are also often acknowledging that there is a historical Adam, though he is one of a pre-sapiens form who was touched by God and made into modern man, leaving other Homo species to gradually die out.
Back to the positive comments: Chapter 8 gives a biblical comparison and contrast of the first and last Adam, which I noted as ‘glorious’. It is a contrast lost in theistic evolution. The editor (in Chapter 9) expounds his understanding of the new heavens and new earth as representing a cleansed and renewed cosmos, rather than an entirely new creation. He does this by comparison with the Flood and an understanding of the concept of regeneration (p.172). A thought-provoking idea.
The final chapter will be of more limited interest as a survey of the approach to original sin in modern theology. It has been published elsewhere, but for those studying the theology of this subject, it is a useful resource.
As a whole, I would recommend this book as an inspiring and helpful publication.
