The Fantastically Fun and Frustrating Fossil Record
Ryan Cox • April 23, 2021
Throughout the past school year, Matt Miles and I have been blessed to teach science class every couple of weeks for a Christian school in Oklahoma. Recently, we covered earth sciences with applications from the Global Flood (Genesis 6-9). As Matt taught about earthquakes, volcanoes, rocks, and minerals, he shared how the Flood laid down massive amounts of sediment around the world. Large deposits and formations of sedimentary rock span entire continents and could only have been deposited by the Global Flood.(1)
This session set up what I would cover in the following lesson – FOSSILS! Needless to say, the students and I thoroughly enjoyed studying the different types of fossils (petrified, preserved, carbonized, molded or cast, & trace fossils), all of which CTF was able to provide several examples for the students to hold or examine. This brought us to what has been discovered in the fossil record.
The fossil record is the cumulative knowledge of documented fossils. Excellent examples would be the data collected and provided by the Paleobiology Database and the Neotoma Paleoecology Database. These resources show the locations of documented fossil discoveries that have been submitted by contributors. The fossils span the globe with new discoveries constantly being added to these databases.
Now, as we taught the students, for a plant or animal to turn into a fossil, there needs to be (1) lots of mud brought by (2) lots of water (3) very quickly. If the specimen is not buried quickly in the sediment, it will be scavenged or decay.
Hmmm. Let’s see now: we have fossils found around the entire world on every continent, and they all had to be buried very quickly with lots of mud and water. Is there any explanation as to how every part of the planet at some point must have been covered by mud and water to produce fossils? The Global Flood.
Not only does the fossil record testify of the Global Flood, it does great disservice to the myth of biological evolution.
Dr. Mark Ridley, professor of zoology and evolutionary biology at Oxford University and whose doctoral advisor was Richard Dawkins, admitted in New Scientist, “In any case, no real evolutionist, whether gradualist or punctuationist, uses the fossil record as evidence in favor of the theory of evolution as opposed to special creation”.(12)
This session set up what I would cover in the following lesson – FOSSILS! Needless to say, the students and I thoroughly enjoyed studying the different types of fossils (petrified, preserved, carbonized, molded or cast, & trace fossils), all of which CTF was able to provide several examples for the students to hold or examine. This brought us to what has been discovered in the fossil record.
The fossil record is the cumulative knowledge of documented fossils. Excellent examples would be the data collected and provided by the Paleobiology Database and the Neotoma Paleoecology Database. These resources show the locations of documented fossil discoveries that have been submitted by contributors. The fossils span the globe with new discoveries constantly being added to these databases.
Now, as we taught the students, for a plant or animal to turn into a fossil, there needs to be (1) lots of mud brought by (2) lots of water (3) very quickly. If the specimen is not buried quickly in the sediment, it will be scavenged or decay.
Hmmm. Let’s see now: we have fossils found around the entire world on every continent, and they all had to be buried very quickly with lots of mud and water. Is there any explanation as to how every part of the planet at some point must have been covered by mud and water to produce fossils? The Global Flood.
Not only does the fossil record testify of the Global Flood, it does great disservice to the myth of biological evolution.
- Each and every animal or plant that appears in the fossil record is fully formed, showing no signs of any evolutionary processes.(2,3)
- Once something appears, it remains it stasis – it never shows any evolutionary change.(4)
- Numerous animals, plants, etc. in the fossil record believed to be millions of years old in the evolutionary scheme are found alive today having gone through no evolutionary change (i.e., coelacanths, gar fish, bowfin fish, tuatara, etc.).(5)
- Animals are routinely found out of evolutionary order (i.e., mammals and birds found with dinosaurs).(6,7)
- Fossils are frequently found in marine sediments(8) and/or buried with marine fossils (i.e., T. rex fossils buried with 5 species of shark and 14 species of fish in eastern Montana).(9)
- The continued discovery of preserved biomaterial in fossils consistently invalidates any possibility of millions of years as the materials could only have survived for thousands of years at best.(10)
Dr. Mark Ridley, professor of zoology and evolutionary biology at Oxford University and whose doctoral advisor was Richard Dawkins, admitted in New Scientist, “In any case, no real evolutionist, whether gradualist or punctuationist, uses the fossil record as evidence in favor of the theory of evolution as opposed to special creation”.(12)
Though the fossil record may be extremely frustrating and detrimental to the tenets of evolution, it is a consistent and faithful witness to Creation and the divine judgement of the great Global Flood.
(1)Tim Clarey, Ph.D. 2020. Carved in Stone: Geologic Evidence of the Worldwide Flood. ICR: Dallas, TX, pp. 378-399.
(2)E.V. Koonin. 2007. “The Biological Big Bang model for the major transitions in evolution”, Biology Direct, 2:21.
(3)S.J. Gould. 1977. “Evolution’s Erratic Pace”, Natural History, 86 (6).
(4)Ibid.
(5)John Morris, Ph.D. & Frank Sherwin. 2010. The Fossil Record. ICR: Dallas, TX, 6th printing 2020, pp. 113-4.
(6)National Science Foundation. 2014. “Scientists discover fossil of bizarre groundhog-like mammal on Madagascar: Newly discovered fossil alters thinking on evolution of early mammals”. Nov. 5, 2014 News Release, <https://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=133092>
(7)Dr. Carl Werner. “What Museums Aren’t Showing You”, Real Science Radio, updated list maintained by Bob Enyart, <https://kgov.com/434-mammal-species-in-dinosaur-layers#mammals-ate-dinosaurs>
(8)Tim Clarey, Ph.D. 2017. “Dinosaur Fossils Found in Marine Rocks… Again”, 25 May 2017, <https://www.icr.org/article/dinosaur-fossils-found-marine-rocksagain>
(9)Tim Clarey, Ph.D. 2015. “Dinosaurs in Marine Sediments: A Worldwide Phenomenon”, Acts & Facts. 44 (6).
(10)Brian Thomas, Ph.D. & Bob Enyart. List of Biomaterial Fossil Papers (maintained), <https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/u/1/d/1eXtKzjWP2B1FMDVrsJ_992ITFK8H3LXfPFNM1ll-Yiw/htmlview>
(11)Andrew A. Snelling, Ph.D. “Where Are All the Human Fossils?’, Creation14, no 1 (Dec. 1990): 28-33.
(12)Mark Ridley Ph.D. "Who Doubts Evolution?", New Scientist, Vol. 90; June 25, 1981, p. 831.
(2)E.V. Koonin. 2007. “The Biological Big Bang model for the major transitions in evolution”, Biology Direct, 2:21.
(3)S.J. Gould. 1977. “Evolution’s Erratic Pace”, Natural History, 86 (6).
(4)Ibid.
(5)John Morris, Ph.D. & Frank Sherwin. 2010. The Fossil Record. ICR: Dallas, TX, 6th printing 2020, pp. 113-4.
(6)National Science Foundation. 2014. “Scientists discover fossil of bizarre groundhog-like mammal on Madagascar: Newly discovered fossil alters thinking on evolution of early mammals”. Nov. 5, 2014 News Release, <https://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=133092>
(7)Dr. Carl Werner. “What Museums Aren’t Showing You”, Real Science Radio, updated list maintained by Bob Enyart, <https://kgov.com/434-mammal-species-in-dinosaur-layers#mammals-ate-dinosaurs>
(8)Tim Clarey, Ph.D. 2017. “Dinosaur Fossils Found in Marine Rocks… Again”, 25 May 2017, <https://www.icr.org/article/dinosaur-fossils-found-marine-rocksagain>
(9)Tim Clarey, Ph.D. 2015. “Dinosaurs in Marine Sediments: A Worldwide Phenomenon”, Acts & Facts. 44 (6).
(10)Brian Thomas, Ph.D. & Bob Enyart. List of Biomaterial Fossil Papers (maintained), <https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/u/1/d/1eXtKzjWP2B1FMDVrsJ_992ITFK8H3LXfPFNM1ll-Yiw/htmlview>
(11)Andrew A. Snelling, Ph.D. “Where Are All the Human Fossils?’, Creation14, no 1 (Dec. 1990): 28-33.
(12)Mark Ridley Ph.D. "Who Doubts Evolution?", New Scientist, Vol. 90; June 25, 1981, p. 831.
As we begin a new year, it brings new potential and a figurative “clean slate”. Yet at all times it is always good to remember that the Lord never changes and neither does His purposes. His desire is that all come to Him for salvation. As it is not all will seek their Creator, yet He is always at work around us guiding life through the present sinful, cursed world. His purposes are always to bring glory to himself as our Great Almighty Lord God. This divine guiding, moving, and protecting of His Spirit in the affairs of life is called Providence , our theme for the year here at Creation Truth. His Providence has always been at work since the beginning, guiding for the purpose he has designed us for. Over the course of history, we as people have missed it or chosen not to follow it. Providence of the Lord is what guided His people out of Egypt to the Promised Land. Even while suffering judgment for their sin in the desert, there was Providence , providing for their needs with daily manna and encouraging them on to the Promised Land. At just the right time, Providence bestowed to us a Savior, Jesus Christ. Never would we have planned or made provision for the Savior of the world in the manner He came to earth. All of His work while in the flesh was done to point us to Him and His Glory. Providence was fulfilled on the cross for all eternity with the way for all to find the Lord and salvation, to be guided out of death and overcome the trial of this life through His death, burial and resurrection. Providence , 250 years ago, guided our country’s forefathers to seek a land to freely worship their Creator and Savior, with freedom from tyranny and a pursuit of liberty for all. Even though not all were followers of the Lord, it was still more than evident that they knew His Providence had a protecting hand on us. Only by His great Providence did we become a country, for the Lord knew we would become a beacon of that freedom and, ultimately, the only true freedom that comes from Christ. Through many trials and failures in history we have sinned before our Lord, and we must continually repent and seek Him for forgiveness. His Providence has allowed our nation of people from many tongues and tribes to melt together. We have been, and I pray continue to be, the largest Christian nation in the world, proclaiming who He is before all else. This year, as we focus on His Providence , may you seek Him and be reminded of all the times He has guided, protected and blessed you for His name. David wrote in Psalm 31:3-5 of the Lord’s Providence : “For You are my high rock and my fortress; For Your name's sake You will lead me and guide me. You will bring me out of the net which they have secretly laid for me, For You are my strength. Into Your hand I commit my spirit; You have ransomed me, O Yahweh, God of truth.”(LSB) We at Creation Truth Foundation look forward to another year of opportunities to serve, champion, and exalt His Name. May you be guided, protected and blessed through Providence this year.
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