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Most of us are at least somewhat informed of the sharp distinctions between the Biblical account of creation in Genesis and the popularized theory of evolution. While some in our community may wrestle with their own questions regarding this debate, most are probably convinced that God is the Almighty Creator. However, the immense influence which this debate has had upon our culture, and especially our faith, is more significant than many realize. I recently came across a story that jokingly illustrates just how serious is this discussion.
An atheist was walking through the woods, admiring all the "accidents" that evolution had created. "What majestic trees! What powerful rivers! What beautiful animals!" he said to himself.
As he was walking alongside the river, he heard a rustling in the bushes behind him. Turning to look, he saw a 7-foot grizzly bear charge towards him. He ran away as fast as he could up the path.
He looked over his shoulder and saw the grizzly was closing. Somehow he ran even faster, so scared that tears came to his eyes. He looked again, and the bear was even closer. His heart was pounding, and he tried to run faster. He tripped and fell to the ground. He rolled over to pick himself up, but the bear was right over him, reaching for him with its left paw and raising its right paw to strike him.
At that instant the atheist cried, "Oh my God!"
Time stopped. The bear froze. The forest was silent. Even the river stopped moving.
As a bright light shone upon the man, a voice came out of the sky, "You deny my existence for all these years, teach others that I don't exist, and even credit creation to a cosmic accident. Do you expect me to help you out of this predicament? Am I to count you as a believer?"
The atheist looked directly into the light and said, "I would feel like a hypocrite to become a Christian after all these years, but perhaps you could make the bear a Christian?"
"Very well," said the voice.
The light went out. The river ran. The sounds of the forest resumed. Then the bear dropped his right paw, brought both paws together, bowed its head, and spoke: "Lord, for this food which I am about to receive, I am truly thankful."
In no small manner, the answers regarding our beginnings have an important impact upon the state of our lives today. God’s Word in Genesis declares that God is the Creator and Source of all things. His creation is good and mankind is made in His image, for His glory. The brokenness in our world is the result man’s rebellion against God, the outcome of God’s righteous judgment against our sin. These truths set the course for the rest of the Bible, the story of God’s redemption through the gospel of Jesus Christ. However, we are daily inundated with the findings of science which seem to contradict the world’s origin as described in Scripture. How do these conflicting viewpoints affect our faith? Does science disprove the clear order of events in creation as provided in Genesis?
Ken Ham’s book, Gospel Reset: Salvation Made Relevant, speaks to these important matters. Ham is a Christian apologist and president of Answers in Genesis, the organization which in recent years developed the Creation Museum and Ark Encounter. In this book he writes:
At church, students (and adults) are taught about Jesus and other stories…whereas at school, they are taught what they have been increasingly led to believe is the real history of the world in regard to geology, biology, astronomy, etc. Students have been conditioned to see the Bible as something that deals with morality and salvation, but what they are taught at school deals with supposed “real” history. It has been a subtle switch of religions in the school systems, secular media, and secular museums—from a Christian worldview to a secular humanistic religion.
Now the history in Genesis that encompasses this geology, biology, anthropology, etc., is the same history that leads to the message of the Cross – and out of this history come the rules (morality) by which we are to live. However, if geology, biology, etc. are not true – then ultimately neither is the history real.
The result today is that increasing numbers of people no longer see the Bible as relevant, and so they reject its morality and salvation.
I encourage you to get a copy of this book and to research www.answersingenesis.com as a resource for your faith. God’s creation account in Genesis provides the framework for the rest of God’s revealed truth. You will be amazed to find that rather than contradicting the Bible, new discoveries in science complement what God’s Word has always taught about creation. In doing so, we will lay the proper foundation for our own faith, and the faith of the generations behind us. “By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible…And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him” (Hebrews 11:3, 6).
Jason