Questionnaire for Christian Institutions

1. Does your institution insist that all Scripture as originally given was without error in all of its assertions including where these touch upon matters pertinent to science, history and nature?
[ ] Yes, we do insist [ ] No, we do not insist

2. Would you allow the following positions as consistent with Scripture or as a possible interpretation of Scripture for one of your teaching staff to hold, namely:

(i) That Noah’s Flood was not global in extent?
[ ] Yes, we would allow [ ] No, we would not allow

(ii) That God used evolution to create, starting with a simple form of life or simple matter, over a succession of long ages in which some of these creatures suffered, died and shed blood long before there was a man on the Earth?
[ ] Yes, we would allow [ ] No, we would not allow

(iii) That man's physical body has a genetic continuity with animal ancestors?
[ ] Yes, we would allow [ ] No, we would not allow

(iv) That Adam/Eve were not the literal historic father/mother of the whole human race but were merely representative of mankind?
[ ] Yes, we would allow [ ] No, we would not allow

(v) That human death/bloodshed did not only begin to be possible after one man's sin but was possible at all times in which any humans existed?
[ ] Yes, we would allow [ ] No, we would not allow

(vi) That the JEPD hypothesis on the authorship of the Pentateuch is definitely correct?
[ ] Yes, we would allow [ ] No, we would not allow

The inspiration of Scripture

1. Do you hold and insist that the inspiration of Scripture means that the Biblical texts as originally written were free of any human influence (were in effect a word-for-word dictation from God)?
[ ] Yes.
[ ] No, we generally/definitely hold otherwise.
[ ] We would generally hold this, but would not see it as binding on all of our staff and co-workers.
[ ] We accommodate a range of differing views on this among staff.

2. Do you hold and insist that the Biblical texts as originally written, though in the style of the human author and influenced by his background, upbringing and experience, were nevertheless exactly what God intended to be communicated to man?
[ ] Yes.
[ ] No, we generally/definitely hold otherwise.
[ ] We would generally hold this, but would not see it as binding on all of our staff and co-workers.
[ ] We accommodate a range of differing views on this among staff.

3. Do you hold that the Biblical texts, as originally written, may have communicated human weaknesses, cultural influences and effects which were thus not all “inspired” in the sense of being what God really wanted to be written?
[ ] Yes.
[ ] No, we generally/definitely hold otherwise.
[ ] We would generally hold this, but would not see it as binding on all of our staff and co-workers.
[ ] We accommodate a range of differing views on this among staff.

4. Do you hold and insist that the Biblical texts as originally written, allowing for the proper and appropriate use of metaphor, poetic devices, parable, figures of speech, “language of appearance” and the like, were free of any error or falsehood, or anything which would inevitably mislead?
[ ] Yes.
[ ] No, we generally/definitely hold otherwise.
[ ] We would generally hold this, but would not see it as binding on all of our staff and co-workers.
[ ] We accommodate a range of differing views on this among staff.

5. Do you hold that the Bible as originally written may have been inclusive of some human error, owing to the more limited knowledge of people at the time it was written, or to the absorption of information from the myths and legends of surrounding cultures?
[ ] Yes.
[ ] No, we generally/definitely hold otherwise.
[ ] We would generally hold this, but would not see it as binding on all of our staff and co-workers.
[ ] We accommodate a range of differing views on this among staff.

Other questions related to origins

1. Is God triune (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) or not?

2. When did death and suffering enter into the world?

When Adam and Eve rebelled, resulting in the curse and the sentence to die from Genesis 2:17/Genesis 3:17/Romans 5:12. If they believe death has been around prior to this, then they have a major problem. Please see Why Does God’s Creation Include Death and Suffering?

3. Do you believe Jesus Christ is the Creator?

Yes! See John 1, Colossians 1.

4. Do you believe the days in Genesis are literal, approximately 24-hour days or not?

Yes! This is confirmed by Exodus 20:11, Mark 10:6 (marriage came at the beginning of creation, thus only five days before, not millions of years otherwise it would be the “end” of creation.

5. Can one interpret Genesis to conform to their current theology?

No. 2 Corinthians 4:2 and Proverbs 8:8-9 make it clear the Scriptures should be interpreted plainly/straightforward. This means metaphors are metaphors, literal history is literal history, poetry is poetry, parables are parables, etc. This is called the historical-grammatical method.

6. Have human males and females been around since the beginning of creation or did they evolve from a lower life form or did God create them millions of year after creation?

See Mark 10:6, Matthew 19:4.

7. Do you believe there are intelligent alien life forms?

No. Please see “Nephilim: Who Were They?”

8. Did God use the Big Bang?

No. Please see “Rejecting Big Bang as Fact.”

9. Was the Flood of Noah’s day global or local?

Global—it is clearly stated that it was it was a worldwide event in Genesis 6–8. Also please see “Was the Flood of Noah Global or Local in Extent?”

10. Do you believe Satan/Lucifer rebelled before or after Day 7 of the creation week (Genesis 1 – Genesis 2:3)?

Satan had to rebel after Day 6 (probably not Day 7 because God sanctified that day). Otherwise, rebellion from God (sin) would have been declared “very good” in Genesis 1:31.

11. Why don’t people today believe the gospel when we boldly preach it?

They have the wrong foundation (evolutionary / millions of years) that teaches the Bible is wrong. We need to teach them the true history in the Bible so they will have a foundation for understanding why they need Jesus Christ as their savior.

12. How many races of people did God create?

God created one race, the human race, and each person is a descendant of Noah (and ultimately, Adam and Eve). Please see “How Many Races Did God Create?”

13. Was the fossil record primarily laid down by Noah’s Flood?

The global flood of Noah would have laid down billions of dead things buried in sedimentary rock layers. Of course, there have been some changes since then that have added and removed some sediment (places affected by the Ice Age, volcanoes, earthquakes, etc.)

14. Is Genesis important when preaching the gospel in today’s culture?

Yes. How can people fully understand the good news of being saved if they don’t understand the bad news (in Genesis) of why we are lost in the first place?

15. Are there any legitimate contradictions in the Bible?

No. Please see Bible ‘contradictions’ and ‘errors’ and http://www.tektonics.org/TK-GEN.php.