Tommy Nelson is the longtime Senior Pastor of Denton Bible Church in Denton, Texas, and someone whose teachings I have listened to and highly regarded for years. Tom sends out a weekly email in which he shares his thoughts on a topic or two.

For anyone who is a Christian, I thought this week’s note was a great apologetical reflection that reminds us of some of the basics of our faith- as they are shared in just the first eleven words found in Genesis.

To many, the Christian/Hebrew scriptures present one myth among many found world over about the origins and purpose of mankind. They contain some fascinating stories and some laudable wisdom about how one might approach the business of living. They are texts of great ethical and moral value.

To the believer, though, the Bible provides a very salient and well-supported explanation of life, a vision of the nature of God (who is love), and clarity about how our lives relate to him in all matters of being.

What is amazing is how short the leap from admirer to believer can be when the philosophical assertions of Scripture butt up against other philosophies. The assertions of Scripture challenge human thinking, and in this challenge, they stake a significant claim that the words in this book are worth trusting.

Tommy’s note strongly reminded me of this. If God is, and the Bible is his revelation, then these first eleven words of the Bible have a lot to say about the import of life.

Francis Shaeffer called it the most important verse in the BIble. For that matter it is the most important and essential sentence ever written or ever conceived. Without this sentence life as we hope it can be – ends.

“In the beginning…” Time begins

“…God…” an eternal Creator outside creation

“…created…” the Prime (or first) Mover who makes something from nothing

“…the heavens…” Space begins

“…and the earth.” Mass…in an ordered cosmos with a central planet

The time, space, mass universe from a final finished act of divine power from an eternal person. Here is the theologian’s, the philosopher’s, the scientist’s dream. The highest questions of origins, purpose, and order are answered. Now the mechanical nature of physics, chemistry, mathematics can be studied. Now their meaning has been established.

Do you understand now the statement that this is the most significant wording of any thought that has ever been written? With this knowledge all other facets of life can be studied. Without it all is in question.

– Atheism is ruled out in that there is a Creator.
– Agnosticism is ruled out in that He has spoken and declared that man is not without knowledge of Him.
– Dualism cannot be because God solitarily has created all things with no equal and opposite evil force co-existing.
– Polytheism cannot be because no other gods are present.
– Pantheism, the belief that God is everything and everything is God (also called “monism”), is cancelled as everything is not God but made by God. “Monism” means “all is one and one is all.”
– Hylozoism (nature is God) is ruled out in that nature is not eternal but had a beginning in God and is apart from God.
– Materialism (matter is all there is) is impossible with the deity before and above it.
– Humanism, that man is the measure of all things, is false as man is seen as a created thing accountable to the eternal standard of God.
– Animism, the belief in spirits within all aspects of nature, is ruled out in that nature is seen as having its meaning in a supreme Being and not through particular spirits.
– Panentheism, the idea that God is not the creation (pantheism) but is a spirit within creation who is growing and evolving as history develops, is ruled out in that God is perfectly God above and beyond a changing creation. This idea shaped German theological liberalism of the late 1800’s.
– Moral relativism, subjectivism, non-absolutism, also called utilitarianism or pragmatism (whatever works or serves the highest good for the greatest number) is ruled out as final truth is found in an eternal absolute of what is right – i.e. the eternal God.
– Evolution is invalid as nature has its origin and fixed design from a supreme intellect and not a mindless process.
– Existentialism, the idea that man wills and determines his own reality (the final stop of philosophy) is ruled out in that truth is found in the unchanging nature of God and not the opinion of a creature.
– Hedonism and capitalistic materialism are invalid as pleasure must now be evaluated against the person of God to judge its validity. Pleasure and wealth may not be seen as good and right if they are selfish, indulgent, and displeasing to God.

Any idea that is moral, wonderful, beautiful and good finds its root, if consistent, in that sentence. Without that sentence all will become errant, evil, ugly and dangerous. Get the drift? “Without an eternal reference point, all points are meaningless”, Jean-Paul Sartre. The first sentence in the Bible answers the critical questions within 4 words. An answer that all fields of inquiry long for and labor to establish; the eternal reference point for existence, order, beauty, right, dignity, and love. Any document that claims to be truth must begin with such a sentence.

“In the beginning God…”

Forever,

Tommy

Tommy Nelson’s quote from “From the Desk of Tommy Nelson”, a publication of Tommy Nelson, Senior Pastor of Denton Bible Church, is used with permission from Tom Nelson and Denton Bible Church. It is copyrighted material from June 11, 2013.