“Doesn’t Evolution Explain Creation?”
The Case for Faith Series
Genesis 2:1-7 (quotes taken from the NKJV unless noted)
Wakelee Church ~ February 20, 2005
Theme: Evolution explains little of the doubt surrounding creation while the Biblical account of creation remains the most trustworthy and faithful source.
Introduction –
OPENER - A doctor, an architect, and a lawyer were arguing over who had the oldest profession.
The doctor said, "Well the first operation was performed on Adam, so the medical profession is
the oldest."
"No," said the architect, "Architectural planning and design was needed to create the earth and
the universe out of chaos, so I represent the oldest profession."
"Where do you think the chaos came from?" asked the lawyer.
(Source: Brendon Bridges, www.sermoncentral.com)
The debate between creationist and evolutionist has been around for hundreds of years. Darwin in his book Origin of Species (1859) brought the debate to the forefront and people have been arguing both sides since.
Today, we take up that argument. But I want to do it in a way that doesn’t create chaos. First, if you’re dying for an answer to the “Doesn’t Evolution Explain Creation?” question, let me relieve your stress…the answer is no…it does not.
But if you believe that the Biblical account of creation answers all the questions that revolves around the creation debate…I would also have to say no. Hence, the debate.
In the Case for Faith, the prominent evolutionist William Provine of Cornell University candidly conceded that ”if Darwinism is true, then there are five inescapable implications: there’s no evidence for God; there’s no life after death; there’s no absolute foundation for right and wrong; there’s no ultimate meaning for life; and people really do not have free will.”
(Source: Lee Strobel , The Case for Faith, p. 90)
Of course, this doesn’t sit well with those who believe in Biblical account creation.
But it is also obvious that faith in Jesus Christ does bring people to a point of transformation that evolutionary theorist cannot explain…
IILUS. For example, An anthropologist was studying a primitive tribe in South America that years earlier had been reached by a Christian missionary. After having lived among the tribe for several weeks, the anthropologist met with the tribe’s leader. He said, “You have a wonderful culture, but it is a shame that the missionary came and infected your tribe with his religion.”
The chief replied, “See that rock? That’s where we would break the skulls of our enemies. See that tree? That’s where we would sacrifice them to our God. And if we had not learned Christ was our Lord, you would be our dinner tonight.”
(Source: Brian Mavis, www.sermoncentral.com)
THE QUESTION OF OUR ORIGIN THEN, MUST LIE IN BETWEEN THESE TWO THOUGHTS SOMEHOW.
I. What does the Bible Say?
Colossians 1:16 – For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on the
earth…”
Romans 1:20 – “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen,
being understood by the things that are made…”
Psalm 102:25 – “Of old You laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of
Your hands.”
QUOTE: Howard Hendricks said, “In the midst of a generation screaming for answers, Christians are stuttering.”
We shouldn’t be stuttering when it comes to creation. Simply, the message of Scripture is clear. What we can stake our foundation on is that ...
THE BIBLE SAYS THAT GOD CREATED IT ALL
We do need to answer the the how and when of creation,that’s up for deabte even among Christians.
But we can answer without a doubt the who, the what, and the why...that’s the Biblical message.
(Note: Time is debated (the when) in the Bible. God’s time is not ours....“With the Lord one days is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like one day.” – 2 Peter 3:8)
II – The Six Theories of Recent Years…
Over the past twenty years, evolutionary scientists have attempted to answer the how and when and they keep getting tripped up when the Biblical evidence (the who, what, and why.)
Some of their lame attempts are included below...
1. Random Choice…warm little ponds of water eventually leading to life. This lost support because the odds are infinitesimal (1 in 10 with sixty zeros behind it.)
2. Chemical Affinity…there is an inherent attraction that would cause amino acids to spontaneously link up in the right sequence to create living cells. This lost support because a computer model couldn’t make it work with all living cells.
3. Self-ordering Tendencies…under certain circumstances systems will actually rearrange themselves to a more complicated form. This lost support because the complexity to rearrange and improve could never make the leap from non-living to living cells.
4. Seeding From Space…the building blocks of life came from somewhere else in space. Lost support because it still doesn’t prove where life actually came from.
5. Vents in the Ocean…vents in the ocean actually provide a safe, continuos source of life particles. Lost support because the theory doesn’t explain how things came together, nor does it answer why life wouldn’t be destroyed by the same thing that created it.
6. Life From Clay…life arose on clays whose structure had enough complexity to somehow encourage chemicals to assemble together. Lost support because a crystal is far short of the complex that living matter needs.
(Source: Lee Strobel, The Case For Faith, pgs. 100-106)
Now, I don’t want to tell you that evolutionary theory is completely useless. There is much we can learn from the study and origin of different species and how they’ve adapted.
Ex. I own two pugs. I doubt highly that pugs were included on Noah’s Arc. First of all, they would never survive 40 days and nights without preferencial treatment. Somewhere down the line, a mastiff (big dog that looks like a huge pug) must have met a good-looking Sharpei (small dog with many wrinkles!) :-)
Honestly, though, if evolutionists and creationist can come to together to accept that GOD CREATED IT ALL, than we can look at dinosaurs, big bangs, and other scientific discoveries without need to feel defensive.
QUOTE: Alan Shepherd, the very first American astronaut in space, was asked by a reporter just before he got into the capsule: "What is the one thing you’re depending on most in this space venture?" His answer was classic, "I’m depending on the fact that God’s laws never change." What if the rotation of the earth was inconsistent? What if gravity reversed every other day? When He made the whole universe, He established some universal laws. They never change. They never have and they never will…”
SCIENTIST ARE BECOMING FRUSTRATED BECAUSE THEY CAN’T ANSWER THE HOW AND WHEN QUESTION. WHEN WE OFFER THEM THE WHAT, WHEN, WHY ANSWER AND ITS ACCEPTED, THEN AND ONLY THEN CAN MOVE FORWARD.
III. The Most Reasonable Inference
WHEN ALL SAID AND DONE, THERE IS JUST ROOM FOR ONE REASONABLE INFERENCE...
QUOTE: There is no room for broad-mindedness in a chemical laboratory. Water is composed of two parts hydrogen and one part oxygen. The slightest deviation from the formula – not allowed.
There is no room for broad-mindedness when it comes to music. The skilled director will not permit his first violin to play even so much as 1/2 note off from what is written in the music.
There is no room for broad-mindedness in the mathematics classroom. Neither geometry, calculus, nor trigonometry allows any variation from exact accuracy, even for old time’s sake. The solution of the problem is either right or it is wrong (there is no tolerance).
There is no room for broad-mindedness in biology. If they are investigating a theory and – if one result out of a thousand is different from the rest – it will invalidate an entire theory.
There is no room for broad-mindedness on the athletic field. The game is to be played according to the rules with no favors shown for "charity’s sake."
There is no room for broad-mindedness in the garage. The mechanic says the piston rings have to fit the cylinder walls within one thousandth’s of an inch – and that’s the way it has to be. Even between friends there cannot be any variation if the "motor is to run smoothly."
(Source: Jeff Strite, www.sermoncentral.com)
THERE IS JUST ONE CONCLUSION…
Klaus Dose, noted scientist and author noted “More than thirty years of experimentation on the origin of life in the fields of chemical and molecular evolution have led to a better perception of the immensity of the problem of the origin of life on Earth rather than to its solution. At present all discussions on principle theories and experiments in the field either end in stalemate or in a confession of ignorance.”
(The Origin of Life: More Questions than Answers," Interdisciplinary Science Review 13, 1998, pg. 348)
Dr. Wlater L. Bradley,who co-wrote a book entitled, "The Mystery of Life’s Origin" (1984) wrote, “I think people who believe that life emerged naturalistically need to have a great deal more faith than people who reasonably infer that there’s an Intelligent Designer….I have been pleasantly surprised that what I’ve found is absolutely overwhelming evidence that points toward an Intelligent Designer. The evidence is not just convincing…it’s compelling…you really have to word hard not to get that conclusion.”
Evolution, while it attempts to answer all the questions, explains little of the doubt surrounding creation.
The Biblical account of creation remains the most trustworthy and faithful source…
GOD CREATED IT ALL…and I believe that’s all we really need to know.
For further evidence:
Johnson, Philip E., Darwin on Trial, 2d ed. InterVarsity Press, 1993.
Dembski, William A., ed. Mere Creation. InterVarsity Press, 1998.
Denton, Michael. Evolution: A Theory in Crisis. Adler & Adler, 1986.
Hanegraaf, Hank. The Face that Demonstrates the Farce of Evolution. Word Publishing, 1998.
