PMW 2025-096 by Kenneth L. Gentry, Jr.

The postmillennial hope is rooted in the goodness of our loving God, who is our Creator. Thus, evidence of the postmillennial hope can be found in the creation account in Genesis 1–2.

Genesis is the book of beginnings, and for our purposes we will focus on its presentation of the beginning of the world, of man, and the revelation of God’s goodness to man. In order to properly understand our spiritual hope in a God-given salvation we must recognize our historical context in a God-created world. Neither Christianity nor salvation can be abstracted from the real world. Christianity is not a magical and mystical faith, but an historical and supernatural one.

God Creates the World

As Bible-believing Christians we do not hold that the universe mysteriously exploded into being from out of nowhere around 13 billion years ago. Nor do we believe that life evolved from the primordial ooze by chance processes beginning about 4 billion years ago. Nor do we believe man finally arose from animals by slow, gradual, random genetic mutations 2.5 million years ago. In short, we do not believe the world and life originated by the impersonal forces proposed in evolutionary theory.

As It Is Written: The Genesis Account Literal or Literary?
Book by Ken Gentry

Presents the exegetical evidence for Six-day Creation and against the Framework Hypothesis. Strong presentation and rebuttal to the Framework Hypothesis, while demonstrating and defending the Six-day Creation interpretation.

See more study materials at: www.KennethGentry.com

The world, life, and man were created by an infinite, personal, righteous God. He alone accounts for all reality. Because of this, we believe the world and life have meaning, value, and purpose. This is why we must begin our inquiry into salvation by God’s grace while first focusing on our creation by God’s greatness. We do not receive salvation as a result of an exploding universe, but as a result of a loving Creator.

Genesis is truly the foundational book of all Scripture, for it presents the origin of all things. And it presents that origin in terms of a personal, good, and righteous God. The rational universe is rooted in a rational God. In majestic simplicity the Bible opens with this astounding declaration: “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” These few words present us with the power, wisdom, and glory of God as the Creator. Thus, the God who saves sinners is the majestic Creator.

God’s Creational Name

In Genesis 1 we find the historical account of creation. And that creation account is dominated by the presence and activity of God Almighty. We not only see his name stated in the opening verse, but it appears thirty-five times in its thirty-one verses. In fact, it is in every verse except for verses 13, 19, 23, 30.

Understanding the Creation Account
DVD set by Ken Gentry

Formal conference lectures presenting important information for properly approaching the Creation Account in Genesis. Presents and defends Six-day Creation exegesis, while presenting and rebutting the Framework Hypothesis.

See more study materials at: www.KennethGentry.com

The name used of God throughout Genesis 1 is the Hebrew word elohim. It is actually the plural of el, which means “powerful, mighty.” The meaning of this plural form is called either the intensive plural or the plural of majesty. It underscores God’s manifold strength and majesty, and serves as a most appropriate presentation of the one who will be creating the entire universe in the following account.

The opening verse of Genesis is one of the best known verses in all of Scripture. Genesis 1:1 opens with the bold declaration that all the universe was created by God. Not only so, but throughout Scripture this is repeatedly reaffirmed, not only of God but even of God’s Son, Jesus Christ the Lord and Savior. For example, we see this in: Exodus 20:11; 31:17; Psalm 33:6; 89:11; 90:2; 115:15; 146:6; Isaiah 40:26; 42:5; 45:12; John 1:3, 10; Acts 4:24; 14:15; 17:24; 1 Corinthians 8:6; Colossians 1:16– 17; Hebrews 1:2, 10; 11:3; Revelation 4:11; 10:6; and 14:7.

Furthermore, the Bible always states that our powerful God alone created the universe. Nehemiah 9:6 is one of those glorious pronouncements: “You alone are the LORD. / You have made the heavens, / The heaven of heavens with all their host, / The earth and all that is on it, / The seas and all that is in them. / You give life to all of them / And the heavenly host bows down before You.”

The Goodness of Creation

Because a good God created the universe, the universe is originally “very good” (Gen.1:31). In fact, its goodness is declared all through the creational process, as we see in just two samples: Genesis 1:3–4a reads: “Then God said, ‘Let there be light’; and there was light. God saw that the light was good.” Genesis 1:10: “God called the dry land earth, and the gathering of the waters He called seas; and God saw that it was good.”

[Only Day 2 lacks this divine appreciation formula, “it was good.” This is not because Day 2 is not good. But because though God divides the water by creating the “firmament” which separates the waters into lower and upper realms on Day 2, he is not finished with the waters until Day 3. Then he separates the land and the water, forming what he only then calls “the Seas” (1:9–10). Then, and only then, does he declare his completed work with the water “good” (1:10). We should notice also that after God creates man, he says “it is not good that man should be alone.” So God creates woman separating him out of man to complete man.]

To be continued!

Creation according to the Scriptures
Ed. by P. Andrew Sandlin
This book is sub-titled: A Presuppositional Defense of Literal , Six-day Creation. It has chapters by R. J. Rushdoony, Andrew Sandlin, Kenneth Gentry, Cornelius Van Til, and others. It touches on historical, exegetical, theological, and philosophical implications of Six-day Creation.
See more study materials at: www.KennethGentry.com