An issue that is continuing to be debated in our society is how the scientific theory of the beginning of the world jibes with the biblical story in the first eleven chapters of Genesis. The Big Bang theory says that all matter in the universe at the beginning was compacted into a “singularity” before it exploded and began an expansion that apparently will continue for eternity. The Genesis account says God spoke the world into existence.
Evolution theory says that life evolved from nonliving ingredients that became the various species over billions of years, whereas Genesis says God created the species in seven “days” without describing how or really specifying how long. In 2 Peter 3:8, it says “With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day”, so presumably “billion” could be substituted for “thousand” in that verse. Thus, there is no scriptural reason to insist that the “days” in GN 1 must refer to literal 24-hour periods. The belief that the current biosphere (life on earth) developed from nonliving ingredients should acknowledge the lack of proof and its lack of predictive value.
Regarding humanity, current scientific research indicates that all people descended from one couple. Genesis has two accounts of the beginning of humanity. In the first one, it teaches that mankind, both male and female, were created in God’s image without describing how it was done. In the second one, it says a man was created first and then a woman from his side. It names the man Adam, meaning “man”, and the woman Eve, meaning living”.
A view combining both biblical and scientific information is that God created the world, apparently using billions of years (theistic evolutionism), and that Adam and Eve (however they were created) were the first human souls, because they not only had self-awareness but also God-consciousness and conscience (per Gen. 3:7) and thus moral responsibility for their sins.
Schools should teach facts supporting creation as well as evolution.
Another issue that is only briefly mentioned in the NT is
Criminal Justice. In Rom 13:1-5 Paul says to obey godly rulers, through whom God works to punish wrongdoers, which is
TOP #66: Governments or rulers that are not tyrannical toward right-doers are ordained by God to punish wrongdoers and should be obeyed. [Rom. 13:1-5, Tit. 3:1] Those who stop reading the Romans passage at verse two might misinterpret what it means. The reason for obedience should not only be fear of punishment but also because it is morally right.
The current system of criminal justice in this country (U.S.) sometime seems to be more criminal than just. For one thing, it takes way to long to achieve court decisions, and "justice delayed is justice denied". In addition to speeding up the process via congressional laws, the key idea for reforming the federal system by making it more objective is for courts to
assess a minimal monetary restitution and identify the victim(s) for every felony crime, possibly including murder.
The punishment for people convicted of crimes would be to work for the minimum wage ten hours per day and six days per week and garnishee their wages 100% for sending to their victim(s) until the restitution was paid. Of course, no one could pay the penalty from other funds, so the length of the sentence is determined automatically. This system eliminates plea-bargaining, parole, innocent by reason of insanity and death row. It does not eliminate the need for lawyers, but their role would be changed to determining guilt and the just consequence/ restitution. Anyone who intentionally withheld information pertinent to establishing the truth and a fair penalty would be culpable of a crime.
The intent of this system is to maximize the probability of reforming criminals. The assessed restitution would be minimal on the assumption that the prisoner would reform until their behavior indicates otherwise. To the initial amount of restitution would be added a uniform surcharge to partially recover the costs involved in rehabilitating a prisoner: food, lodging, job training, counseling, supervision, etc. Ten percent of the surcharge would be put in a savings account, which the prisoner would be able to access when he/she is discharged.
The living situation would approximate as close as practical what the prisoner would need to function as a law-abiding citizen, including an efficiency apartment type of cell, so that the prisoner would do his/her own cooking and laundry. If a prisoner refused to work, then he/she would not be paid and thus the sentence would be lengthened; nor would food be provided (per 2Thes. 3:10).
Prisoners who failed to reform but instead damaged property, injured people or committed some other illegal act would have the restitution for that crime added to their original sentence. They may be viewed as committing suicide by degrees. When their misbehavior results in a sentence of 100 years, they would be allowed to complete their suicide or be executed. Of course, deciding on a crime’s just restitution for the myriad extenuating circumstances would require the wisdom of Solomon, as it does in the present system. However, this objective method should eliminate repeat offenders within a generation.
