NASA scientists have discovered a planet they named Kepler-452b but which is also called Earth 2.0 because it is more like earth than any other planet yet discovered. Because of its similarity there is speculation that it might contain life similar to that found on earth.
Dr. Jeff Schweitzer wrote an article in Huffington Post called Earth 2.0: Bad News for God in which he claimed that the discovery of life on this planet would be evidence that the Bible is not true. Here is the link: Earth 2.0: Bad News for God .
The article shows he hasn’t read the Bible very carefully.
Let us be clear that the Bible is unambiguous about creation: the earth is the center of the universe, only humans were made in the image of god, and all life was created in six days. All life in all the heavens. In six days.
The Bible never says the earth is the center of the universe, it never says that humans are the only beings made in God’s image, and it only describes the creation of life on earth and says nothing about whether or not there is life anywhere else in the universe. Here is a Bible verse that needs to be kept in mind when studying the creation account in Genesis.
The heavens are the LORD's heavens,
but the earth he has given to the children of man.
(Psalm 115:16 ESV)
The earth is the only part of creation that belongs to humans and therefore it is the only part whose creation is described. The Bible starts with the statement, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” and in the next verse begins describing the formation of the earth with no further references to the heavens mentioned in verse one.
The creation account does use the word “heaven” but in a different sense.
And God said, “Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.” And God made the expanse and separated the waters that were under the expanse from the waters that were above the expanse. And it was so. And God called the expanse Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day.
(Genesis 1:6-8 ESV)
The word “heaven” has three different meanings in the Bible. It can mean the atmosphere of the earth as it does in the verses I quoted above, it can mean outer space, and it can mean Paradise.
I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows. And I know that this man was caught up into paradise—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows—
(2 Corinthians 12:2-3 ESV)
When you see the word “heaven ” in the Bible you must examine the context to see which meaning is intended. Dr. Schweitzer failed to do that and so his article confuses the different meanings of the word.
There is one statement in the creation account that is often misinterpreted.
And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons, and for days and years, and let them be lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth.” And it was so.
(Genesis 1:14-15 ESV)
Some think this describes the creation of the stars. Actually the Bible only says that lights appeared in the sky; it does not say that the bodies that were the source of those lights were created at that time. Many who believe the stars were created at this time also believe there is no life in the universe anywhere else except earth. If we found proof of extraterrestrial life their interpretation of the Bible would be proved wrong but not the Bible itself.
I think it is possible that there is a wide variety of life in the universe and not necessarily just on planets that resemble earth. The belief that only planets similar to earth can have life is a byproduct of the belief that life came into existence by the process of evolution and can only exist on planets where conditions make evolution possible. If God created life he can create organisms that are suitable for any environment. The existence of life outside the earth would be an argument for the existence of God, not against it.
The purpose of the Bible is to enable us to know God and to know how we must live if we want to please him. It is addressed only to members of the human race, the descendants of Adam and Eve. Other living beings, such as angels and demons, are mentioned because of their interaction with humans. The absence of any mention of intelligent life on other planets only shows that there will never be any significant interaction between them and humans. It says nothing at all about whether or not such beings exist.
Dr. Jeff Schweitzer wrote an article in Huffington Post called Earth 2.0: Bad News for God in which he claimed that the discovery of life on this planet would be evidence that the Bible is not true. Here is the link: Earth 2.0: Bad News for God .
The article shows he hasn’t read the Bible very carefully.
Let us be clear that the Bible is unambiguous about creation: the earth is the center of the universe, only humans were made in the image of god, and all life was created in six days. All life in all the heavens. In six days.
The Bible never says the earth is the center of the universe, it never says that humans are the only beings made in God’s image, and it only describes the creation of life on earth and says nothing about whether or not there is life anywhere else in the universe. Here is a Bible verse that needs to be kept in mind when studying the creation account in Genesis.
The heavens are the LORD's heavens,
but the earth he has given to the children of man.
(Psalm 115:16 ESV)
The earth is the only part of creation that belongs to humans and therefore it is the only part whose creation is described. The Bible starts with the statement, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” and in the next verse begins describing the formation of the earth with no further references to the heavens mentioned in verse one.
The creation account does use the word “heaven” but in a different sense.
And God said, “Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.” And God made the expanse and separated the waters that were under the expanse from the waters that were above the expanse. And it was so. And God called the expanse Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day.
(Genesis 1:6-8 ESV)
The word “heaven” has three different meanings in the Bible. It can mean the atmosphere of the earth as it does in the verses I quoted above, it can mean outer space, and it can mean Paradise.
I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows. And I know that this man was caught up into paradise—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows—
(2 Corinthians 12:2-3 ESV)
When you see the word “heaven ” in the Bible you must examine the context to see which meaning is intended. Dr. Schweitzer failed to do that and so his article confuses the different meanings of the word.
There is one statement in the creation account that is often misinterpreted.
And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons, and for days and years, and let them be lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth.” And it was so.
(Genesis 1:14-15 ESV)
Some think this describes the creation of the stars. Actually the Bible only says that lights appeared in the sky; it does not say that the bodies that were the source of those lights were created at that time. Many who believe the stars were created at this time also believe there is no life in the universe anywhere else except earth. If we found proof of extraterrestrial life their interpretation of the Bible would be proved wrong but not the Bible itself.
I think it is possible that there is a wide variety of life in the universe and not necessarily just on planets that resemble earth. The belief that only planets similar to earth can have life is a byproduct of the belief that life came into existence by the process of evolution and can only exist on planets where conditions make evolution possible. If God created life he can create organisms that are suitable for any environment. The existence of life outside the earth would be an argument for the existence of God, not against it.
The purpose of the Bible is to enable us to know God and to know how we must live if we want to please him. It is addressed only to members of the human race, the descendants of Adam and Eve. Other living beings, such as angels and demons, are mentioned because of their interaction with humans. The absence of any mention of intelligent life on other planets only shows that there will never be any significant interaction between them and humans. It says nothing at all about whether or not such beings exist.
