Monday, February 22, 2010

Darwin and Compromise




A Christian evolutionist argued that preparing Christians for college by first demonstrating that evolution and Christianity are compatible would better keep them in the faith: “When a house falls down in the wind, do we blame the wind or the shoddy foundation? In the case of YECs (young-earth creationists) who fall away in the face of a simple scientific theory, I would sooner blame the foundation [YEC] than the wind.”

You mentioned YECs, but instead, let’s take the worst case scenarios where the evidence might not seem to support the Christian claims:

1. Christ is supposed to change lives, but Christians seem morality worse than others.
2. Pain contradicts the concept of a loving God.
3. The exclusivity of the Christian faith produces arrogance and a lack of love.
4. Prayers aren’t answered.

What do we do when the “evidence” seems to contradict faith? Do we then compromise Scripture to accord with the evidence? Do we then conclude that God doesn’t answer prayer, that He doesn’t change lives, and that He isn’t just?

Probably not! If we have other compelling reasons to believe in Christ’s revelation through Scripture, we will probably decide to live with the tension until and if it is resolved. We will continue to believe that God is good even though it may not appear so. We don't compromise Scripture's teaching about the goodness of God!

If we are willing to live with some tension, why then do we run scared in the face of Darwinian claims and compromise the clear teachings of Scripture? The power of the university or media? Professional respectability? Group think?

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