I appreciate your interest, and for giving me an opportunity to address your questions.
The entire premise of Jesus’ incarnation was to save humanity from sin and death, something introduced by Adam in the Garden of Eden (see 1 Cor. 15:22, Romans 5:12, Romans 5:17, and of course the first chapters of Genesis). Sin and death (a key element of evolution) did not exist prior to Adam’s sin, according to Scripture (”sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin”). Scripture is clear that the first human was Adam, and that He was intentionally created as the first by God, Eve then being created second (1 Cor. 15:45, 1 Tim. 2:13, and Genesis).
Jesus believed that the Old Testament was true, in fact and not just as metaphor. He spoke of Jonah as fact, for example, and not just as a story (Matthew 16:4, Luke 11:30). He spoke of Noah’s flood as a fact (Matthew 24: 37-39, Luke 17:26), and not merely as a metaphorical story. The burning bush, according to Jesus, was fact (Mark 12: 26). The destruction of Sodom was fact, according to Jesus (Luke 17:28-29). And so on.
And Jesus spoke of how God “from the beginning” made humanity “male and female” (Matthew 19:4, Mark 10:6). This doesn’t allow for a gradual evolution from slime, but an intentional creation of distinct sexes, “from the beginning.”
Something interesting to remember is that Jesus existed in spiritual form prior to His incarnation. He saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven, for example (Luke 10:18). He existed before Abraham (John 8:58). And through Him all things came into being (John 1:1-3). He was there prior to and during creation (John 17:24), so when He speaks of ancient history, he’s speaking as one who has witnessed it, not as one merely proposing or propagating a theory.
Note John 5:46-47, in which Jesus says that if you believe the words He spoke, you will also believe the words that Moses wrote. Jesus is giving His stamp of approval on all of Genesis, for example, including the creation account.
Moses wrote explicitly that each creature reproduced “according to its kind.” A pre-human didn’t have a human as an offspring, but humans produced humans. This term “according to its kind” is repeated numerous times, perhaps for such a time as this, when many think that creatures reproduce “differently from its kind.”
Jesus said, “For whoever is ashamed of me AND MY WORDS in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed ...” (Mark 8:38, Luke 9:26). His words are difficult, sometimes going against common sense. But I am not ashamed of His words, though they go against the prevailing through of today’s “wise men.” I pray you are not ashamed of His words either.
Thank you for that. Rejection of Genesis is in fact rejection of God and his word, case in point Christ’s references to the creation story). If Christ is God as he claims to be, he was there, and in fact initiated creation. To deny his deity is to deny his death burial and ressurection, the very foundations of Christianity. They can sugar coat it all they want and say that He allowed the evolutionary process, but that is a dichotomy if examined in light of the scriptures, and an opinion adopted by those that have no confidence in their own salvation as provided through Christ. I don’t know how someone who professes to be a Christian can swallow that. It is the height of heresy.
Thank you for a detailed and thoughtful analysis. I have been trying to figure out how to respond, without giving the appearance that I am arguing with you. I am not. I am neither a theologian or a scientist. I am just hoping to present my beliefs to you, so that you know that there are some that are serious about their faith, and believe in evolution.
To explain as simply as I can, I am not ashamed of the words of Christ. On the contrary, I am proud to be a Christian, and his words greatly influence my life.
The Bible, was written by men, not God. (I know that it is the inspired word) It has been translated and retranslated. Some translations have been destroyed because they were thought to be inaccurate. It is clear that scribes have included revisions and additions, as some information was not known during the time of Moses. (Num 32:34-42) The laws of Moses are also incomplete, as some laws are referenced elsewhere in the Bible, but not found in the Pentatauch. (2 Chron 30:16) Although, Moses clearly wrote many of the laws, exactly as God dictated, it is unclear which of the first 5 books are Mosaic. Many believe that Genesis was written by others. The OT is full of laws that are no longer followed, and punishments which are considered exceedingly severe by today’s standards.
I try to focus on the larger truths and messages of the Bible. Repentance, Salvation, the power and love of God. I accept that God has created the universe and all that is contained in it. I accept that all is possible through him.
I just can’t say with certainty that a day, as written in Genesis, is a reference to our 24 hour day. Nor can I say with certainty that when God “created” man and woman, that it was instantly complete, and didn’t involve an evolutionary process.
For that reason, I believe that evolution, as the scientific evidence supports, is the method through which man evolved. I cannot think of any evidence supporting evolution that would clearly disprove the existance or power of God. Religion is a different story. Some forms of “religion” might be disproved by evidence of evolution. I see those two things are completely different.
I'm late to this thread and when I came across the post you responded to, I clicked the replies to see if anyone had substantially rebuked the assertions. You seem to have done that, and more, in my opinion. Well done. Well done indeed.