| Author | Message | ||
| Cortney Registered user Username: Cortney Post Number: 224 Registered: 8-2006 |
My husband and I occasionally discuss the Creation account, and my hubby believes that Adam and Eve may have been in the Garden of Eden for many years rather than what we were taught 'days'. We have also been wondering if the 7th day God rested may have been a perpetual state of bliss for Adam and Eve in God's rest in the garden, granted they had responsibilities, and that they could have been 'eternal' had sin not abound. The bible states Adam lived approx. 990 years, but our question is: did time start being counted before or after God kicked them out of the garden? Was there a need to keep track of time in the garden, if they were going to live forever-(that is until sin came in)? God commanded Adam and Eve to be fruitful and multiply-after they were kicked out God told Eve her labor pains would be multiplied, had she possibly experienced labor before to a lesser degree? I'm not not trying to be a heretic, I'm just looking for insight and scripture references that may answer our questions. | ||
| River Registered user Username: River Post Number: 6820 Registered: 9-2006  |
Good question Cortney, I can't answer them, but good questions keep me looking into the word. I am wondering why you were taught it was just days? I know of no scripture where it states that Eve had children before sin came in, where did you get that? One thing is for sure, yall get me to taking a long hard look at the Bible, and to reexamine, re-examine, then re-examine some more.  River | ||
| Cortney Registered user Username: Cortney Post Number: 225 Registered: 8-2006 |
Right, there is no scripture to support Eve had children before sin, but God commanded them to be fruitful and multiply, I guess I assumed that meant in the Garden of Eden. God told Eve her labor pains would be multiplied, so my question is had she experienced labor before, since God made known to her labor pains would now be multiplied.?? I grew up Methodist and later Evangelical, then SDA and back to Evangelical-so I'm not quite sure where I picked up the 'days' understanding, but my hubby was raised SDA and understood it to mean they were in the garden days or perhaps a few weeks. | ||
| Hec Registered user Username: Hec Post Number: 1431 Registered: 3-2009 |
What's the difference between evangelical and Methodist? Hec | ||
| Cortney Registered user Username: Cortney Post Number: 226 Registered: 8-2006 |
Methodist are more works based, I cannot speak for all Methodists! My parents left the denomination because the focus was on good works and also the pastor at the time didn't believe all the Bible stories like Jonah, Daniel, etc. were true, my parents believe the whole Bible is true and inspired. The Evangelical Church of America promotes the belief that one is saved by grace through faith, the law was done away with at Christ's death, and 'good works' are not based on the law but the Holy Spirit working in you. | ||
| Cloudwatcher Registered user Username: Cloudwatcher Post Number: 190 Registered: 5-2009 |
Cortney-- I've had similar thoughts and questions. You are right that the 7th day is not noted as ending (nor does God tell them to rest on that day). I concluded that if Adam and Eve had had a child before sinning, that child would have remained in the Garden and not been banished with them.... I don't think there was a child before. I've also wondered how long they were in Eden before sin...had to be long enough for the satan and his angels to rebel since they were also created during creation week. I don't want to derail your thread, but I am not convinced that creation HAS to be 6 literal days. I don't know why it matters either way (unless you're SDA) if each day was 1 year or 1000 years or 1 million years (ha!). If someone would like to shed some light on why it matters,...I'll start a new thread. If (as you say) time started being counted after they were dismissed from the Garden, then can we assume it's literal (24hour) days? | ||
| River Registered user Username: River Post Number: 6825 Registered: 9-2006 |
Cortney, Methodist was never a works based denomination, in fact their emphasis was always on faith, just as Baptist emphasis has always been on baptism by immersion. In later years it seems that they have become more liberal though. In the early years of the denomination they were very conservative and very biblical based. That is why Ellen White and her family was finally ejected for insisting on teaching the false doctrine of William Miller, all accept one of Ellen White sisters, who did not go along with Ellen, and was a member in good standing of that church until the day she died, if I remember the history correctly. They don't however, believe in 'Once saved, always saved', yet that should not be a matter of division between Christians. To the untrained ear it might seem like that is works, yet it is far from it. I know you all are so very sensitive to 'works' as it were. Methodist and baptists alike stand on the four pillars of the Christian faith, at least they did. I think for the most part, they still do. There has crept into the Methodist organization such a liberal view on Homosexuals that they have allowed practicing homosexuals to be Pastors, which has caused division within that organization, just as it has in the Lutheran organization. River | ||
| 1john2v27nlt Registered user Username: 1john2v27nlt Post Number: 184 Registered: 5-2009 |
Cloudwatcher quote: "I've also wondered how long they were in Eden before sin...had to be long enough for the satan and his angels to rebel since they were also created during creation week." That is something I was not taught. Is there a scriptural reference for this? J9 | ||
| Flyinglady Registered user Username: Flyinglady Post Number: 8617 Registered: 3-2004  |
Cloudwatcher, I was not taught that either and I was in sda schools all the way through to graduation from university. Diana L | ||
| Rossbondreturns Registered user Username: Rossbondreturns Post Number: 31 Registered: 10-2009 |
Actually I could've sworn there was a scripture in Psalms somewhere that alluded to The Stars (Angels) watching God's creation of the Cosmos...which means that Angels were created before at the very least...the Earth. | ||
| Cloudwatcher Registered user Username: Cloudwatcher Post Number: 199 Registered: 5-2009 |
We discussed the idea that Satan and the angels were created during creation week at length on this thread. http://www.formeradventist.com/discus/messages/11/10169.html No, it is not something taught in SDA schools...they teach just the opposite, that the rebellion of Satan and the angels was before the creation of the world... the whole drama is played out in living color in the book, The Story of Redemption by EGW. Google it, the full text is online. When I read it, knowing that I'd NEVER IN MY LIFE read that book before, knowing that I didn't go to SDA schools (after 1st grade) and knowing EVEN STILL I'd heard and believed that account all my life...made me sigh a great big sigh. |
