What about evolution?
Question 60002
Evolution causes quite heated arguments between Christians and Christians, and Christians and unbelievers. Is evolution the triumph of science over religion, proof that we do not need God to explain how life developed? Or for believers, particularly those who hold to the authority of Scripture, evolution raises profound questions about the reliability of Genesis, the nature of humanity, and the entrance of sin and death into the world. So what should we think about evolution?
Defining Our Terms
Before we can have a sensible conversation about evolution, we need to define what we mean by the word. This is where much confusion arises, because “evolution” can mean different things in different contexts.
At its most basic level, evolution simply means change over time. No one disputes that organisms change. We can observe bacteria developing resistance to antibiotics. We can see variations within species, such as the different breeds of dogs or the various finches that Darwin observed in the Galápagos Islands. This kind of change is sometimes called microevolution, and it is observable, repeatable, and uncontroversial.
But when most people speak of evolution, they mean something far more ambitious. They mean the theory that all life on earth descended from a common ancestor through a process of random mutation and natural selection over billions of years. This is sometimes called macroevolution or molecules-to-man evolution. According to this view, the same process that produces different beak sizes in finches, given enough time, can produce entirely new body plans, new organs, and new kinds of creatures. Fish become amphibians, reptiles become mammals, and ape-like ancestors become human beings.
This is a crucial distinction. Observing that organisms adapt to their environment is one thing. Claiming that unguided natural processes can produce the staggering complexity of life, from the simplest bacterium to the human brain, is quite another.
What Does Scripture Say?
The Bible is clear that God is the Creator of all things. Genesis 1:1 declares, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” The creation account in Genesis 1 repeatedly states that God made living creatures “according to their kinds” (Genesis 1:21, 24, 25). The Hebrew word מִין (min) indicates distinct categories of creatures, each reproducing after its own kind. This language suggests boundaries between different types of organisms, not a seamless continuum of descent from a universal common ancestor.
Genesis 2 provides further detail about the creation of humanity. Adam was formed from the dust of the ground, and God breathed into his nostrils the breath of life (Genesis 2:7). Eve was created from Adam’s side (Genesis 2:21-22). This is not the language of gradual evolutionary development; it is the language of direct, special creation. Human beings are unique, made in the image of God (Genesis 1:27), distinct from the animals.
The New Testament affirms this understanding. Jesus, when asked about marriage, quoted Genesis and affirmed that “from the beginning of creation, ‘God made them male and female'” (Mark 10:6). Paul, in Romans 5 and 1 Corinthians 15, treats Adam as a historical figure whose sin brought death into the world. The entire structure of biblical theology, from creation to fall to redemption, depends on the historicity of Adam and the events of Genesis. If Adam is merely a symbol or the product of evolutionary processes, the theological coherence of Scripture is undermined.
Scientific Concerns with Neo-Darwinism
It is important to recognise that questioning Darwinian evolution is not merely a religious position. There are significant scientific problems with the claim that random mutation and natural selection can account for the origin and diversity of life.
First, there is the problem of the origin of life itself. Evolution, strictly speaking, is about how life developed, not how it began. But the question of how the first living cell arose from non-living matter remains unsolved. The simplest known self-replicating cell is extraordinarily complex, containing thousands of precisely arranged molecules. The probability of such a cell arising by chance, even given billions of years, is vanishingly small. As the astronomer Fred Hoyle famously remarked, the odds are comparable to a tornado sweeping through a junkyard and assembling a Boeing 747.
Second, there is the problem of genetic information. Living organisms contain vast amounts of specified, complex information encoded in DNA. Information, in our uniform experience, always comes from an intelligent source. We do not observe random processes generating meaningful, functional information. The genetic code is a language, and languages require authors.
Third, there is the problem of irreducible complexity. Some biological systems, such as the bacterial flagellum, consist of multiple interacting parts, all of which are necessary for the system to function. Remove any one part, and the system fails. Such systems cannot be built gradually by natural selection, because natural selection can only preserve changes that confer an immediate advantage. A partially formed flagellum confers no advantage; it is useless until all the parts are in place. Michael Behe, a biochemist at Lehigh University, has argued that such systems are best explained by intelligent design.
Fourth, there is the fossil record. Darwin himself acknowledged that the fossil record posed a problem for his theory. He expected that as more fossils were discovered, the transitional forms linking different kinds of creatures would be found. But over 150 years later, the fossil record remains stubbornly discontinuous. New body plans appear abruptly in the record, fully formed, without the predicted gradual transitions. The Cambrian Explosion, in which most major animal phyla appear suddenly in the geological record, is particularly difficult to reconcile with gradualistic Darwinian evolution.
Different Views Among Christians
It would be dishonest to pretend that all Christians agree on this topic. There are Bible-believing Christians who hold different views on the relationship between Scripture and the scientific claims of evolution.
Some Christians accept theistic evolution, also called evolutionary creation. They believe that God used evolutionary processes to bring about the diversity of life. They interpret Genesis 1-2 as theological literature, not scientific description, and see no conflict between affirming God as Creator and accepting common descent.
Others hold to progressive creation or old-earth creationism. They accept that the earth is ancient, as mainstream geology suggests, but reject common descent. They believe God intervened at various points to create new kinds of creatures, with the creation days of Genesis representing long ages rather than literal 24-hour periods.
Still others hold to young-earth creationism, believing that Genesis 1-2 describes six literal days of creation and that the earth is thousands, not billions, of years old. They argue that the scientific evidence, properly interpreted, supports a recent creation and that apparent evidence for an old earth can be explained by the effects of the global Flood.
For my part, I believe Scripture should be our starting point. The plain reading of Genesis, the genealogies that trace human history back to Adam, the New Testament’s treatment of Adam as a historical figure, and the theological necessity of a literal fall into sin all point toward young-earth creationism. I recognise that this puts me at odds with the scientific consensus (which, by the way, there isn’t), but the scientific consensus has been wrong before and will be wrong again. Scripture is the Word of God; scientific theories are the best current explanations of fallible human beings.
How to Engage with This Topic
When discussing evolution with unbelievers, remember that this is ultimately not about science but about worldview. The real question is whether the universe is the product of blind, purposeless forces or the creation of an intelligent, personal God. Evolution functions, for many people, as an alternative creation story, one that removes the need for a Creator and thus the accountability that comes with one.
Be prepared to ask good questions. When someone says, “Science has proven evolution,” ask them what they mean by evolution and what evidence they find most compelling. Often people are simply repeating what they have been told without having examined the evidence themselves. Engage respectfully and thoughtfully, and do not be afraid to point out the genuine difficulties with evolutionary theory.
Most importantly, remember that the Gospel does not rise or fall on this debate. A person can come to saving faith in Jesus without resolving every question about origins. Our task is to point people to Jesus, who died for their sins and rose again. The creation-evolution debate is important, but it is not the main thing. Keep the main thing the main thing.
Conclusion
Evolution, in the sense of molecules-to-man common descent, is not a proven fact but a theory with significant scientific and theological problems. Scripture presents God as the direct Creator of distinct kinds of creatures, including human beings made uniquely in His image. While Christians disagree on the details, we should not be intimidated by claims that science has disproven the Bible. The evidence, fairly considered, is far more ambiguous than the confident pronouncements of evolutionary popularisers would suggest. And the God who made the heavens and the earth is more than capable of creating life in whatever manner He chose.
“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” Genesis 1:1
Bibliography
- Behe, Michael J. Darwin’s Black Box: The Biochemical Challenge to Evolution. Free Press, 1996.
- Dembski, William A. Intelligent Design: The Bridge Between Science and Theology. IVP Academic, 1999.
- Ham, Ken. The New Answers Book 1. Master Books, 2006.
- Meyer, Stephen C. Darwin’s Doubt: The Explosive Origin of Animal Life and the Case for Intelligent Design. HarperOne, 2013.
- Meyer, Stephen C. Signature in the Cell: DNA and the Evidence for Intelligent Design. HarperOne, 2009.
- Morris, Henry M. The Genesis Record. Baker Book House, 1976.
- Mortenson, Terry, and Thane H. Ury, eds. Coming to Grips with Genesis: Biblical Authority and the Age of the Earth. Master Books, 2008.
- Sarfati, Jonathan. Refuting Evolution. Master Books, 1999.
