The following "Question" was asked by a member of the congregation at Grace Community Church in Panorama City, California, and "Answered" by their pastor, John MacArthur Jr. It was transcribed from the tape, GC 70-13, titled "Bible Questions and Answers."  A copy of the tape can be obtained by writing, Word of Grace, P.O. Box 4000, Panorama City, CA 91412 or by dialing toll free 1-800-55-GRACE. Copyright 1992 by John MacArthur Jr., All Rights Reserved.

Question

I was recently startled by a couple of friends, who I thought were believers, when they started talking about the people who existed on the earth before Adam and Eve. I’d never been confronted with that before. Could you give us scriptures that confirm--well, straighten that out.

Answer

I just was looking in my Bible and just before Genesis 1, I have a blank page. Don’t you? So, mine doesn’t say a word about those folks. That’s a figment of somebody’s imagination. Probably--just to grab one little thought--probably, possibly…people like that have been influenced with the fact that maybe there was some angelic occupation of the earth.

Have you ever heard of the gap theory? The gap theory was the idea that there was, originally, some kind of creation, and then it become “tohuw” and “bohuw,” without form and void, and then God remade it. And in that pre-gap sort of creation, there was some kind of angelic constituency on earth. That is impossible to prove from scripture. It is highly speculative at best. There is no reason to assume anything other than the fact that you have six days of creation. Prior to that, you have nothing…nothing…then six days of creation, and on the sixth day, you have man, and that’s where the occupancy of the earth begins. There’s no reason to assume anything other than that.

Question (continued)

When we come back to earth for 1,000 year reign, will we be able to heal people or will [only] Jesus be able to heal people?

Answer (continued)

Well, when we come back to the earth, for the thousand-year millennium--will we be able to heal people or, will Jesus do it? Well, I think Jesus will do it, for sure, because when Jesus healed the first time He came, He was giving them a taste of the kingdom. Do you remember Him saying that? He said, “You have literally tasted the good things of the age to come.” Hebrews 6 says that. Now, did Jesus heal alone or did some of His disciples heal? Some of his disciples did, didn’t they? So, what do you think about that? Maybe the next time He comes, some of His disciples are going to heal too. That’ll be pretty neat, wouldn’t it? I think so too. So, it’s possible that we might be able to do some healing.

Added to Bible Bulletin Board's "MacArthur’s Questions and Answers" by:

Tony Capoccia
Bible Bulletin Board
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