Thursday, March 22, 2012

Does the evidence support evolution?


I’m not an expert by any means on evolution, so this blog post is not designed to be “expert” testimony. However, I do think that there is information available for the average person to have an informed position. My goal here will be to briefly explain what I believe the evidence shows us.

Creationism and evolution are really seeking to answer the same question: how did the universe and all life in it get formed? Creationism states that all things were formed by an all-powerful, always existing God. Evolution, which is derived from the principles of Charles Darwin, states that all organisms are descended from common ancestors by a process of branching. The theory continues that evolution took place over a long period of time.

Many people will look at the theory of creationism as unreliable, because there is no “scientific” proof to show it to be true. They will argue that there is much evidence in fossils and archaeological discoveries to give proof to the evolution theory of the origin of life. Yet, I believe this evidence falls short because there are no “intermediary” fossils that prove the evolving state of one species to the next. Even more, if evolution is true, why has the process ceased (i.e. we no longer see apes becoming human beings)?

In truth, both theories take an aspect of faith to believe. You need to have faith that evolution took place as believed, since we cannot experience this phenomenon first hand. You need faith to believe that God created all things from nothing, since we were not there when it was said to have happened. Yet, if you look closely at the human body, and see its complexities, it is difficult to believe that this just randomly happened through a series of mutations. The human body is a wonderful, and artful arrangement of organs and nerves and structure. It is clear to me that our lives, and this world that we live in, was designed by a creator who deeply cares for His creation.

Further evidence helps us to see that the man known as Jesus Christ was indeed God in the flesh, come to ‘save His people from their sin.’ You don’t have to look too hard to realize that human beings are sinful and corrupt. When Jesus Christ came to this earth as the Messiah, He fulfilled numerous prophecies foretelling His coming. After His death, there were hundreds of witnesses who saw Him appear again. Through the millions of believers who exist, there is great evidence of the miracles and power of this creating and loving God.

While faith is required to believe in creationism, it doesn’t take too long after one believes to know it is true. On the other hand, there are many gaps and questions still unanswered when it comes to evolution. My conclusion is that the evidence does not support evolution, but does support creationism. Blessings.