Dinosaurs in the Bible?!

Philip Robinson joined us again to consider the challenge many believers face against those who claim that God's creation of the world is a lie. This time around he focused on the topic of Dinosaurs, and how perceptions of these magnificent creatures have been shaped by many sources. For example, the tagline of the famous dinosaur movie, Jurassic Park, "65 million years in the making", presumes that the account of creation was not correct and that instead everthing evolved slowly over time.

While merely a Hollywood film, Jurassic Park, and other sources of a similar theme, have been instrumental in the belief that evolution alone has the answer to the origin and extinction of great beasts such as the Tyrannosaurus Rex. There is, of course, an alternate view to this one. It is a view that opposes evolution, ocurred within thousands of years - not millions - and places God in control of everything we see, feel and hear. It is the view of the world contained within the pages of Scripture; detailed for us in the book of Genesis.

While considering these two contrasting views, it is important to realise that these views are based, not on Operational Science (which which can be tested, repeated and observed), but on Origin Science (that which must be extrapolated from the evidence we see before us). Whether we believe in evolution or creation, the evidence at our disposal is the same. It's like putting together a jigsaw puzzle to see the final picture. The difference, for Christians, is that we know what the final picture looks like before we began fitting together the pieces. This gives a unique insight into the evidence and how it all fits together.

There are many challenges with the evidence. In particular, with dinosaurs, the fossils which have been found do not have labels that say how old they are, and with so much room for error in the dating process it is impossible to be sure of the numbers. It is then necessary to look for other things we are certain of. In some interesting recent discoveries, soft tissue and DNA have been found in dinousaur bones. While, again, it is not known exactly how old these finds are, it is well established that bone tissue and DNA would not survive beyond a few thousand years. This further piece in the puzzle supports the view that God created man and beasts (inlcuding dinosaurs) on day 6 of creation, around 6,000 years ago.

Another interesting piece of the puzzle is the existence of clear drawings and descriptions of dinosaurs made well before the first fossil discoveries. Carvings on walls, etchings on stonework, stories of dragon-like creatures being fought by brave humans and Biblical references to large grass-eating beasts with tails like trees and bones of iron. The evidence strongly suggests that dinosaurs and humans coexisted, once again supporting the presentation of Creation in Genesis 1.

So, then, what happened to them? If these mighty beasts (although not all were large), lived alongside man within the last few thousand years, why are they not still here today? Firstly, we can't say for certain they are not, as not all areas of the world have yet been explored. Secondly, since the book of Job was most likely written after the Flood, they must have made it on to the Ark, built by Noah. There are many who would mock this notion, but as Philip explains, it is perfectly reasonable that a range of dinosaurs would have been able to fit onto the Ark - perhaps up to 50 different types!

The dinosaurs, like all the other animals, would have then left the ark to find food and reproduce. It appears this happened successfully until at least the days of Job and likely much more recently (according the markings that have been found and the 'legends' uncovered), before they died out through natural means - and perhaps hunting - like so many other ancient species before and after them.

The Bible is true from the beginning. When we read of God creating large, land-dwelling beasts on the same day as He created man, there is no reason for us to doubt this. Nor should there be any reason to fear what scientists and archaeologists will discover under the ground. While the extrapolations and best-guess scenarios of many scientists have seemed to be in direct contradiction with what the Bible teaches, the actual evidence itself has been far from that. In fact, when viewed through the completed picture of the Bible, the evidence takes on much more meaning and makes a lot more sense than through evolutionary eyes.

Sinful man will not want to accept that God exists, that He created us and that He can both judge and redeem us. But the actions of sinful men should not taint our enjoyment and excitement of new scientific discoveries, for with every new discovery comes a further example of God's great power and His wonderful creation of the world. Science books change constantly as new evidence is found, highlighting errors in the previous versions. On the contrary, the Word of God remains the same, as yet another piece of evidence adds weight to the claim of God.

The Bible stands like a rock undaunted
'Mid the raging storms of time;
Its pages burn with the truth eternal,
And they glow with a light sublime.

The Bible stands tho' the hills may tumble,
It will firmly stand when the earth shall crumble;
I will plant my feet on its firm foundation,
For the Bible stands.