The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-07-07
Sunday Study.
THE CREATION

THE CREATION
The international Sunday school lesson
for July is Genesis j.. J. to H.. g. The
golden text is Genesis t. The last les
son was review Of the last book in She
Bible, and here we begin with the first
The lesson is not a scientific account OF
the process of creation, but a brief par
oramic vision of it's development No
positive scientific explanation Of the
origin of the world and of the introduc-
| ton of life upon it is as yet possible
science is still engaged in sitting theories
Some time it may be able to speak with
some definiteness relative to the process
but 1t never can tell US how or by what
power the process was set in motion. The
inspired record, however, gives US ex-
pbcit information relative to two things
all things; second, we are created in
Gods image.
In substance, though not in form, the
account of the creation is a poem, or a
series OF word pictures. The most i'm
pcrtant thing about the whole lies in the
words God created. Students seek to find
indications of the process; the account
or Genesis relates only to results.
There have always been men who be-
Heved that the substance of which the
worlds are made was always in existence
Inc statement of denies that belief
Science does not go back to the origin
Of matter. but has theories about its
first development
By the term day is understood an
indefinitely long period The word is fire.
quently used to denote a longer time
than Is covered by a single revolution
of the earth. For example, we say, In
the day Of our foreathers' etc.
First Day Tvs. I'D. Light dlspelling
darkness. BY the word of God light came
to be. Scientific theory accounts for light
by the beginning Of movement among the
particles Of matter. The Christian be-
1eves that the motion was response to
Gods command. The first verse is q
ddtRleSS Of wi Co6
did perhaps tens of hundreds of thou
sands of years ago. The second verse
tells US Of how things were some 5000
years ago when God began to bring
order ard beauty and fruitfuiness out Of
the chaos and darkness. The interval be-
tween the first and second verses gives
room for all the geological periods which
may be desired.
Second Day Tvs 6-S). Appearance of
SKY. Clouds and sea, The ancient idea
vas that there was a material armament
AS the r. v margin indicates, the word
may mean simply the space between the
earth and the sky In the scientific theory
the establishing of the armament or the
eXpanse corresponds to the separation of
bodies from the great mass of matter.
Third Day (vs. 9-19. Appearance of dry
land. Vegetation, herbs, fruit Before
plants could grow, land must be defined
and separated from water. Science re-
Iates how a cooling process and volcanic
action brought this separation about
ready for plant life, and that presently
appeared. The dry land Is made to APP
pear, and He covers it with grass, HERDS
and trees.
Fourth Day Tvs. 14-19). Appearance Of
sun. moon. stars. Day and night. From
the very beginning of the separation Of
the worlds the heavenly bodies must have
had the same relative positions as now
But 1t was only when mists had cleared
away that the sun, moon and stars APP
peared as they appear now. No high
animal life could exist until the atmos-
phere had been thus cleared
Fifth Day Tvs. 1923. Life in the sea
and air. Fishes and birds. The order
of the development of animal life Is
found by science to be the same substan-
TALLY, as that recorded in Genesis
Sixth Day Tvs. A-3l. Life on land Ami
mails, man, cattle and creeping things and
beasts OF the earth are made and man
In the image Of Cod male and female,
to have dominion over all; man made Of
the dust of the earth, full grown, per-
feet man, and woman made Of a part Of
mans body and given to him TO be a
helpmeet for him, and He called their
name Adam.
Seventh Day III, 1-3). Rest from crea-
tive work; whence our seventh day OF
rest or Sabbath God ended and rested
from His work and blessed the seventh
day and sanctitied 1t. We have the prac-
teal teaching in Heb. w., where we
learn that we can only enter into rest
when We cease from our own works as
GOD did from His, Thus we may daily
ENJOY constant Sabbath while we wait
Tor the rest that remaineth.