How Old is Earth? 6,000 Yrs or 6 Billion Yrs...Or?

Some thoughts on this:

The creation story talks about the earth being in existence before God said "let there be light" and before God "separated the light from the darkness". So, read literally, the creation story itself does not support the argument that the earth was created in 7 days.

What could the Bible's story of the creation of light ("let there be light") mean other than the presence of the light-giving star at the center of the solar system, the sun, or the removal of light blocking dust and matter between the sun and the earth?

What separates the light from the darkness on earth? The earth's rotation on its axis. Outside the atmosphere, "the light" (solar radiation) is continuous unless a physical object is between you and the sun.

It doesn't make sense that "Let there be light" refers to creation of that limited portion of the radiation spectrum that is detectable by the human eye, an eye which wasn't in existence, according to the Bible, at the time when the Bible says God said "Let there be light"

The Bible itself says indirectly that Adam was not the only man and Eve the only woman during the time of the Garden of Eden story. Hint: After expulsion from the place where everything was provided for them and they didn't have to work, Adam's and Eve's kids, the ones who weren't murdered by their siblings, married other people whose origins are not discussed in the Bible.

The creation story is too vague to take literally as meaning that its use of the idea of a "day" means a modern 24 hours day, especially in view of the knowledge gathered through scientific observation through the past several millenia.

The argument that the earth is 6,000 years [a year being roughly 365 of our modern 24 hour days] is just silly and obviously not supported by the Bible itself and displays an unfortunate rigidity of mind by those who believe it.

Originally posted by RealTruthIsObvious
The Devil is a liar and wants you to deny God to have control over you. Obviously it's working on a lot of people.

God does not have any control over you. Thats what free will is all about! Or do you disagree?

reply to post by andy06shake


I agree, because that's what its all about. its the freedom to choose.

“God created things which had free will. That means creatures which can go wrong or right. Some people think they can imagine a creature which was free but had no possibility of going wrong, but I can't. If a thing is free to be good it's also free to be bad. And free will is what has made evil possible. Why, then, did God give them free will? Because free will, though it makes evil possible, is also the only thing that makes possible any love or goodness or joy worth having. A world of automata -of creatures that worked like machines- would hardly be worth creating. The happiness which God designs for His higher creatures is the happiness of being freely, voluntarily united to Him and to each other in an ecstasy of love and delight compared with which the most rapturous love between a man and a woman on this earth is mere milk and water. And for that they've got to be free. Of course God knew what would happen if they used their freedom the wrong way: apparently, He thought it worth the risk. (...) If God thinks this state of war in the universe a price worth paying for free will -that is, for making a real world in which creatures can do real good or harm and something of real importance can happen, instead of a toy world which only moves when He pulls the strings- then we may take it it is worth paying.” ― C.S. Lewis,

and another..

But suppose God is outside and above the Time-line. In that case, what we call "tomorrow" is visible to Him in just the same way as what we call today." All the days are "Now" for Him. He does not remember you doing things yesterday, He simply sees you doing them: because, though you have lost yesterday, He has not. He does not "foresee" you doing things tomorrow, He simply sees you doing them: because, though tomorrow is not yet there for you, it is for Him. You never supposed that your actions at this moment were any less free because God knows what you are doing. Well, He knows your tomorrow's actions in just the same way—because He is already in tomorrow and can simply watch you. In a sense, He does not know your action till you have done it: but then the moment at which you have done it is already "Now" for Him.[

this is one of the better books I've read that explains it in a nicely put together intelligent way

The world is not 6000 years old. Where people get that from is:

2 Peter 3:8-9

8 But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.

heyyy someone smart who knew where everyone gets that from. He gets it though.. that's the only verse that sheds any light on it.. then people take that inch and run miles, but with no real direction just whatever their imagination comes up with .. people take it so literally and try to solve it like a math equation. like this verse..

Matthew 18:
21 Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?”

22 Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.

most ignorant people will take this line in the bible and count exactly 77 times if someones being a dick before they snap on them and then say "i only had to excuse and forgive him 77 times cause God told me that was enough" but if you can really understand the bible that's when you will begin to get it. its not a book of calculations that need to be solved like an algebra problem. its saying to be ever forgiving..

people just prove this line more and more true all the time.

“Most of us are not really approaching the subject [scriptures] in order to find out what Christianity says: we are approaching it [them] in the hope of finding support from Christianity for the views of our own party.” ― C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

reply to post by paradox


Why should we trust someone like you who clearly caught the short bus crossing that border long ago?

reply to post by jude11

TextMy question is this...If it is generally accepted that the "7 Days" of which the Earth and everything else was created is most likely Millions of years (or Billions) that make up a day... The majority of Christians (including many Christian leaders) in the Western world, however, do not insist that these days of creation were ordinary-length days, and many of them accept and teach, based on outside influences, that they must have been long periods of time—even millions or billions of years. www.answersingenesis.org...

@ jude11

Jude, that question depends upon the doctrine of the organization which subscribes to your premise. In other words not all Christians believe that the universe is six thousand years of 24 hours of days. Some believe that the world was created in an existing universe while some believe that the entire universe was created at the time this world was created. To me it makes no difference in that respect but I also do not believe the creation was in 24 hour segments.

The reason I do not believe the world was created in 24 hour segments is that if it were created in 24 hour segments then we have a lot to explain as to the first three days before time was given to the universe. Those first three days (eras of light) could not have been marked in the time of 24 hours simply because there were no 24 hour days before the fourth day. Torah does not claim that a day is 24 hours in the era of creation. All Torah does infer is that a day is from one light to another light which is called a day.

This universe had a primeval light at the onset of creation. The primeval light is the Shekinah light of God and is the source of light that was shown in the first three days of creation. Some say that it was a pillar of light and that it is the creative light which still exists but has been reduced as the sun was placed in the heaven to mark time.

The seven eras of creation is an analogy to our time clock of this world today and should not be taken as a literal 24 hour time sequence. In other words let us suppose that all of this is 6 days of 24 hours per day creation. The Torah tells us that God created this universe in six days and then rested on the seventh day. Then by that understanding of 24 hr days, God has already rested and the 7th day has long gone over five thousand years of 24 hour days. If the world was to have ended at the end of the six thousand years then it would have also ended over six thousand years of 24 hour days.

So you see the fallacy of this belief? Actually no one knows time before time existed and no one really understands Torah when it says from one light to another is called a day. The 1611 KJV bible tells us that these eras are generations of generating or producing. By that I understand that it could very well have fluctuated from one era to another in what we understand as time, You should always remember that as time was created for this creation, there may be no time involved as God creates.

There are some who believe that God is not subject to time. If He were subject to time then He would also have a beginning and that would place another obstacle in our thinking. No, God is not subject to time and therefore creation was instant in a now existence. Hard to wrap your mind around that because we have no perception of infinite existence.

As far as millions or billions of years ago is concerned, we can't even say that with a fact because millions or billions of years ago did not exist either before time was created. If existence is timeless outside of the universe, then we are actually ignorant of understanding anything in all honesty. Science admits that the universe is expanding but does not understand what the universe is expanding into. The space that the universe is expanding into is what we call the third heaven or as some call it the celestial heaven. Some believe this to be the container of the universe while there are others who believe that there are six other containers (heavens).

We are like a dog chasing its tail and in all honesty we all are as dumb as a rock.

reply to post by paradox

There is no other explanation. They believe the bible word for word and believe fossils and such are put there as a way to "test their faith." Like I said, borderline retardation.

then why dont I believe that is why fossils are in the earth, yet im a Christian. I believe they are in fact old creatures etc.. soo wouldn't you say your borderline retarded for thinking all of us believe that?

reply to post by Agree2Disagree

To believe that anything that happened prior to the existence of all forms of Human Life is irrelevant is the HEIGHT of Human Conceit. Split Infinity

Considering the high levels of helium found in the rock of the earth the planet can't be more than twenty to fifty thousand years old. Helium is a "slippery" element meaning it doesn't bond of its own to other elements. Eventually it works itself free and enters the atmosphere. Curent levels of helium do not allow for a millions or billions year old planet.

reply to post by Agree2Disagree
The Yellow Stone Super Volcano erupts approx. every 750,000 years as the North American Tectonic Plate is subducted under the Pacific Plate. The Earths age tells us the approx. times that this Super Volcano will erupt.

Split Infinity

reply to post by r2d246

It is called FOSSILIZATION! The Bone Structure is replaced my Minerals. Geology 101.
Split Infinity

Originally posted by SplitInfinity
reply to post by Agree2Disagree

 

The Yellow Stone Super Volcano erupts approx. every 750,000 years as the North American Tectonic Plate is subducted under the Pacific Plate. The Earths age tells us the approx. times that this Super Volcano will erupt.

Split Infinity

Not at all. If you know that it erupts approx every 750,000 years, you don't need earths age to figure the math...You take the last eruption + 750,000....Very simple.

A2D

reply to post by Agree2Disagree

You have to determine AGE BEFORE you can determine when it will erupt. Split Infinity

reply to post by SplitInfinity


No you don't. You have to take the intervals between eruptions and average them together and then you get a rough estimate of when the next eruption should theoretically occur. The age of the earth has absolutely NOTHING to do with it.

A2D

I'll be honest here, I've been looking into it and can't find a counter explanation to the soft tissue recently found in dinosaur bones. Most of the sites that talk about it are creationist sites.

reply to post by Agree2Disagree

As the Earth Cools the intervals between eruptions is of Greater Amounts of Time. Also the depth of the Earths Crust as well as what is the Ratio of the Tectonic Plates slowing their movement is also tied to the Age of the Earth as Tectonic Plate Movement is directly associated to where exactly the Plate is over the Mantle as if the Plate is over an area of much denser material the Volcano will not erupt.

We need to calculate the Plates movement as well as THE RATIO OF THE SLOWING OF MOVEMENT OF THE TECTONIC OVER BILLIONS OF YEARS...to be able to predict when it will erupt. Split Infinity

Originally posted by SplitInfinity
reply to post by Agree2Disagree

 

As the Earth Cools the intervals between eruptions is of Greater Amounts of Time. Also the depth of the Earths Crust as well as what is the Ratio of the Tectonic Plates slowing their movement is also tied to the Age of the Earth as Tectonic Plate Movement is directly associated to where exactly the Plate is over the Mantle as if the Plate is over an area of much denser material the Volcano will not erupt.

We need to calculate the Plates movement as well as THE RATIO OF THE SLOWING OF MOVEMENT OF THE TECTONIC OVER BILLIONS OF YEARS...to be able to predict when it will erupt. Split Infinity

the ratios don't have to be calculated from the age of the earth...in fact, the ratio of cooling is directly affected by external factors and CANNOT accurately be determined from comparing initial cooling rates and current cooling rates...for us to be ableto calculate cooling with simply initial and current status, it would need to be constant cooling...which it's not....

A2D

reply to post by Agree2Disagree

All Planets in our Solar System that are Rocky have cores that are cooling or in Mars case...have cooled to the point that they no longer are capable of generating an EM Field which is necessary for life to exist as well as for Liquid Water to exist.

Mars once had vast Oceans but after it's core cooled down to such a level that it no longer would spin it's once Liquid Metal exterior...the EM Field Failed...Solar and Cosmic Radiation bombarded and sterilized the planet as well as separated H20 into H2 and 0 and the Oceans were lost. Split Infinity

reply to post by MikeHawke

then people take that inch and run miles, but with no real direction just whatever their imagination comes up with

The Church is mirroring Israel, it's like the former in mosaic judaism, looking into the mirror as a child and seeing its grown up self staring back. Allegorically the 1000 years = 1 day is sound. It's not about people following their own imaginations, they are just catching glimpses of the puzzle pieces, while God is looking at the entire picture. The Church followed Israel right down the rabbit hole, and everything that happened to Israel, the wars, the apostacies, the idolatry was played out in the church exactly the same. When Jesus showed up he found Israel in the state of the luke warm church Laodicea and when he returns he will find the church in the same condition, hot mixed in with cold. The history of Israel is repeating itself, first these things happened to them and now it's happening to us and this is because we are the same people. We are the Lost Sheep of Ephraim (Israel) Jesus was sent to, which was swallowed by the gentiles and assimilated and who have forgotten who they are.

Originally posted by SplitInfinity
reply to post by Agree2Disagree

 

All Planets in our Solar System that are Rocky have cores that are cooling or in Mars case...have cooled to the point that they no longer are capable of generating an EM Field which is necessary for life to exist as well as for Liquid Water to exist.

Mars once had vast Oceans but after it's core cooled down to such a level that it no longer would spin it's once Liquid Metal exterior...the EM Field Failed...Solar and Cosmic Radiation bombarded and sterilized the planet as well as separated H20 into H2 and 0 and the Oceans were lost. Split Infinity

Exactly my point. The strength of Earth's EMF is VARIABLE (NOT constant). This is an indicator that cooling rates are also VARIABLE.

You can't use earth's age to determine something that is VARIABLE depending on circumstances...

Our sun forces Earth's climate system to CHANGE...meaning our climate or maybe you'd prefer RATE OF COOLING...VARIES. Earth's orbit and orientation toward the sun change over thousands of years. This orbital mechanic forces climate to change because the amount of sunlight that reaches Earth changes....Simply put, changing Earth's exposure to sunlight changes the rate of cooling....It has nothing to do with age.

A2D

Edit to add: Other VARIABLES include clouds, airborne particles, surface brightness, and of course, human interaction.