CREATION
Evolution - The Ultimate Compromise
By Kelly Hollowell, J.D., Ph.D.
Science Ministries - Many Christians believe that the world is very old based on fossil records that are presumably dated at millions of years. Indeed the dispute between an old earth and a young earth is hotly debated within the Christian community. Unfortunately, those who subscribe to an old earth theory do not realize the enormity of their compromise.
The compromise is that as soon as one allows for an earth millions of years old, then one has accepted death, bloodshed, disease and suffering before Adam’s sin. In other words, the Garden of Eden would have been seated upon a mountain of dead animal bones. This doesn’t sound much like paradise.
By stark contrast, the Bible makes it clear that death, bloodshed, disease and suffering are a consequence of sin. Sin entered the world through one man – Adam. And death entered the world by sin. (Romans 5:12) Therefore, no man or animal died before the original sin. So how did man and beast live so harmoniously
The answer is that both man and beast were strict vegetarians before the fall of man. Harken back with me, if you will, to those original peaceful pictures provided in the opening scenes of the movie Jurassic Park and you have a modern day image of Eden before sin. According to Genesis 1:29-30 we read that Adam and Eve and the animals were told only to eat plants. God said “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds of the air and all the creatures that move on the ground – everything that has the breath of life in it – I give every green plant for food.” There was only one exception. God warned Adam in Gen. 2:17 that if he ate of the “tree of knowledge of good and evil” he would die.
So it goes that after Adam disobeyed God, man was cursed to die and God clothed Adam and Eve with “coats of skin” (Genesis 3:21). But, let’s examine this scripture a little more closely.
We know that before they sinned Adam and Eve were naked. According to Genesis 3:10, Adam and Eve were made aware of their nakedness and were ashamed. This occurred as a result of their disobedience. Then, in verse 21, God “made them garments of skin … and clothed them.”
It appears, from this scripture, that the Lord clothed Adam and Eve with an animal skin. This signifies that at least one animal was sacrificed, possibly a lamb. This animal was, therefore, the first creature actually to suffer death after Adam and Eve’s sin. The event marked a change in relationship between man and animals and began the Jewish tradition of substitutionary atonement.
According to scripture, God required the shedding of blood for the remission of sins (Hebrews 9:22). Therefore we can assume that animal sacrifice was necessary to atone for the sin of Adam and Eve. More importantly, what happened in the Garden of Eden was a foreshadowing of what was to come some four thousand years later. Specifically, that Jesus Christ, the Son and Lamb of God would shed His blood on the cross to “Take away the sin of the world” (John 1:29).
Now if the world were millions of years old as suggested by evolutionists, blood was shed and death occurred before Adam's original sin. This would destroy the foundation of the atonement brought by the death of Christ on the cross. According to 1 Corinthians 15:54, sin and death have been swallowed up in victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Thus the enormity of compromise is revealed. To believe in evolution undermines the entire gospel message of Jesus Christ. All Christians believe that Jesus Christ suffered physical death and shed His blood because death was the penalty for sin. Therefore, teaching millions of years of death, disease and suffering before Adam sinned, is a direct attack on the foundation and message of the Cross.
This article is a product of scienceministries.org.
For more information the interested reader is directed to The Great Dinosaur Mystery Solved by Ken Ham.
Science Ministries - Many Christians believe that the world is very old based on fossil records that are presumably dated at millions of years. Indeed the dispute between an old earth and a young earth is hotly debated within the Christian community. Unfortunately, those who subscribe to an old earth theory do not realize the enormity of their compromise.
The compromise is that as soon as one allows for an earth millions of years old, then one has accepted death, bloodshed, disease and suffering before Adam’s sin. In other words, the Garden of Eden would have been seated upon a mountain of dead animal bones. This doesn’t sound much like paradise.
By stark contrast, the Bible makes it clear that death, bloodshed, disease and suffering are a consequence of sin. Sin entered the world through one man – Adam. And death entered the world by sin. (Romans 5:12) Therefore, no man or animal died before the original sin. So how did man and beast live so harmoniously
The answer is that both man and beast were strict vegetarians before the fall of man. Harken back with me, if you will, to those original peaceful pictures provided in the opening scenes of the movie Jurassic Park and you have a modern day image of Eden before sin. According to Genesis 1:29-30 we read that Adam and Eve and the animals were told only to eat plants. God said “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds of the air and all the creatures that move on the ground – everything that has the breath of life in it – I give every green plant for food.” There was only one exception. God warned Adam in Gen. 2:17 that if he ate of the “tree of knowledge of good and evil” he would die.
So it goes that after Adam disobeyed God, man was cursed to die and God clothed Adam and Eve with “coats of skin” (Genesis 3:21). But, let’s examine this scripture a little more closely.
We know that before they sinned Adam and Eve were naked. According to Genesis 3:10, Adam and Eve were made aware of their nakedness and were ashamed. This occurred as a result of their disobedience. Then, in verse 21, God “made them garments of skin … and clothed them.”
It appears, from this scripture, that the Lord clothed Adam and Eve with an animal skin. This signifies that at least one animal was sacrificed, possibly a lamb. This animal was, therefore, the first creature actually to suffer death after Adam and Eve’s sin. The event marked a change in relationship between man and animals and began the Jewish tradition of substitutionary atonement.
According to scripture, God required the shedding of blood for the remission of sins (Hebrews 9:22). Therefore we can assume that animal sacrifice was necessary to atone for the sin of Adam and Eve. More importantly, what happened in the Garden of Eden was a foreshadowing of what was to come some four thousand years later. Specifically, that Jesus Christ, the Son and Lamb of God would shed His blood on the cross to “Take away the sin of the world” (John 1:29).
Now if the world were millions of years old as suggested by evolutionists, blood was shed and death occurred before Adam's original sin. This would destroy the foundation of the atonement brought by the death of Christ on the cross. According to 1 Corinthians 15:54, sin and death have been swallowed up in victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Thus the enormity of compromise is revealed. To believe in evolution undermines the entire gospel message of Jesus Christ. All Christians believe that Jesus Christ suffered physical death and shed His blood because death was the penalty for sin. Therefore, teaching millions of years of death, disease and suffering before Adam sinned, is a direct attack on the foundation and message of the Cross.
This article is a product of scienceministries.org.
For more information the interested reader is directed to The Great Dinosaur Mystery Solved by Ken Ham.
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