By, Mike Riley

What we do with the Bible depends on what we do with the first sentence in Genesis Chapter 1. The sentence begins with this simple statement:

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1).

If we believe that statement, we can believe everything else that follows. If we reject that statement, we will also deny every other cardinal truth in the Scriptures.

The story is told of two friends who were arguing about Genesis 1:1. The friend who was a Christian, said he believed the record of creation just as it was written. The other friend “” a non-Christian “” went to great lengths in giving his own theory of how the world began and then how life developed from a primordial cell through reptiles, monkeys, and up to man. When he was all through with his explanation, the Christian looked at him and said, “Were you there?”

It was an excellent question. “Of course I wasn’t there,” he replied. “Well, God was there and I’ll take the word of the Eyewitness rather than the guesses of those who rely on their own imagination.”

In a court of law, eyewitness testimony carries the most weight. Hearsay testimony is thrown out. The same is true of creation. God asked Job this question:

“Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth?” (Job 38:4 – NKJV).

God was there, and His Word can be trusted (Psalm 104:1-5; Psalm 119:142; cf. Psalm 19:7-9).

I’ll trust my all to God alone,
Whose Word is truth and light;
I’d rather walk by faith with Him
Than go alone by sight. “”Anonymous