The Bible as Genuine History

G. Thomas Sharp • March 16, 2017

The highly contested nature of Genesis, i.e., whether or not it is an absolute historical record, or it is a simple allegory, myth or just some collection of campfire stories told by ancient shepherds or nomads?  Nevertheless, the nature of Genesis has been the content of secular and theological debate and discussion for centuries.  This debate overflows the total aura and message of the Bible and demands an answer.  Of course, the enemies of an inerrant, inspired Biblical record and the absolute authority an almighty, omniscient Creator have always been opposed to Genesis as real history for obvious reasons, and they have to be for their godless position to be consequential at all.

If the record of Biblical origins is flawed in any manner, then the balance of Biblical narrative is flawed as well, and our faith and our preaching is in vain.  This includes the prophecies of Jesus Christ, His redemptive work on the cross and the promise of His second coming, among many, many other salient issues that comprise our faith.  The fact of the matter is that the most important book of the Bible is Genesis, the most important chapter of the Bible is Genesis 1 and the most important verse of the Bible is Genesis 1:1—everything else is based on the reality that this is genuine history.

In our contest with historical naturalism today (evolutionism), we must be able to defend the legitimate authority of the Genesis account of origins in all areas.  And as a reminder, I have learned that the primary topics at issue today are the age of the universe and the verifiable record of a worldwide flood event about 4359 years ago.  Our primary methods of documentation for either of these events is either through the use of human calculations that are terribly inept falling into the biased category of biased human opinion, or through the record provided in Genesis—the Word of God!  Ken Ham has said repeatedly that we must either trust the words of fallible man who were not there in the beginning and are only using their worldview to predict their account of origins, or the Word of the Creator God who was there in the beginning, did the work of creation Himself, and gave eye witness accounting to Moses for us to read.

The Apostle Paul reminds us that our weapons in this debate are not carnal but are mighty through God for the pulling down of strongholds, and evolutionary naturalism is definitely a formidable stronghold.  That we are to cast down any imaginative philosophy that opposes the knowledge of God, and thereby bring every thought that would influence our worldview into the captivity of the mind of Christ.  It is only from this foundation that we can accomplish anything redemptive in our work for Jesus Christ!

I remain yours in the thrill of serving Jesus.
GTS (Isaiah 40:28-31)

Signing the Mayflower Compact by Jean Leon Gerome Ferris, 1899
By Ryan Cox March 19, 2026
EACH OF THESE ARTICLES ARE EXCERPTS FROM AMERICA’S EPIC ADVENTURE TM - CTF'S NEWEST VBS CURRICULUM From Lesson 1: The Pilgrims, Walking by Faith in the Lord – Proverbs 3:5-6
model train engine
By Matt Miles March 19, 2026
There are moments in life that we experience the Lord’s Providence, which is the continual guiding and caring of us for His purposes. We may go though trials and suffering now to refine our faith in preparation for eternity. Other times we may see it for the here and now, with the aligning of plans for His purpose in our life, maybe with the opening or closing of a door. Many times we see Providence only in hindsight, looking back on life and seeing His hand working, molding and inspiring us for His plans and to His glory. I can see the Lord’s Providence at many times over the course of my life. Early in my grade school years I developed a love for building models I was recently reminded, along with my father, that we built a train set together in our basement. Following that, I began to build model cars and airplanes. I now know that love of building, tinkering and problem solving was Providence preparing me for this ministry. The Lord taught me early on how to stay focused and pay attention to detail. What I thought was only a hobby at the time is now something I must use on a regular basis in things such as fossil restoration, building crates, trailer and vehicle maintenance for our mobile museum. Later in high school, while active in church, the Lord called me to serve our children’s church ministry. I began to help teach others about Jesus. It seemed insignificant at the time. I remember helping in lesson times and the puppet ministry. I even was cast as “Pastor Rufus” in one of our ongoing puppet skits. My opportunities to share Christ and be an example to those younger than I was tremendous. Again through His Providence, the Lord was guiding me and calling me to ministry. He developed in me the love of teaching His Word to others, priceless to me today. Then in college Providence brought Theresa and I together. The Lord knew exactly who I needed to be my bride for life. She is strong in my weakness and more Christ-like than anyone I know. She is the perfect helpmate and partner for me in ministry as well, which has so far been 34 years, to be exact. Many times the Lord has used her discernment to direct me through a situation that I did not see correctly. I am thankful every day for Providence that brought us together in life and eternal work. As I look back on my life, there are more Providential moments than I have space to write. Most of those times have directly guided me to this specific ministry and my call to preach and teach His Word. Looking back on life and identifying those moments of Providence from the Lord is humbling and awe-inspiring. Please take a moment to remember your own moments when Providence has been evident in your life. This ministry is about identifying Providence from the beginning. His plan from the start is us spending eternity in His presence. Our sin messed some things up, but not His plan. He always has and always will know exactly how to guide and care for us so that we bring Him the glory, now and eternally. There is not a month that goes by that we here at CTF don’t praise the Lord for His Providence through you, our supporters and sustainers. Join with me in thanks for His Providence each day, guiding as only our Creator and Savior could do. Psalms 31:3-5 Blessings.
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