Jack:
Again, I get back to the main point that however God did it, it was He that did it. It very well may be that God put a system in place whereupon life as we know it emerged through an evolutionary process. However, I also believe that there were points at which God intervened in this process to shape it, and accellerate the development of certain families, perhaps. One good argument against evolution is the fact that the process as we observe it today takes a very long time to produce meaningful changes in life forms. There does not seem to be enough time at given rates to achieve the diversity of life that we see today. So, rates must have varied through prehistory. An example of a very sudden change is the demise of the dinosaurs and many other life forms during the Messozoic Period. We know that many life forms became extinct during this Period, apparently due to a cataclysmic event or events. At one time, this idea was pooh-poohed by the scientific community, but now is a generally accepted fact. An asteroid struck the region near Yucatan, and that huge impact crater is still there! So, God permitted an asteroid or asteroids to strike the earth and exterminate many life forms. Why? Would you like a T Rex for a neighbor? I would not. Even more amazing is the change in cro magnon man 10,000 years ago. Suddenly this creature knows how to make tools, use fire, bury his dead, and develop many new technologies. I believe God intervened at this point in prehistory to 'breathe His Spirit into man'.
An interesting conjecture would be the effect upon the earth of Satan's banishment. He was 'thrown down' to earth, the Scriptures say. Would that explain the upheaval this ole' earth experienced during the Mesozoic? Now I have really gone out on a limb. Just some wild ideas. Certainly not Gospel, and I don't teach this EVER in SS classes. Some day I hope to see a replay of creation. I believe we will have the opportunity to see that, farther along. But then, we may no longer be interested in such 'mundane' matters.
Bottom line: A process of evolution may have been used by God to
produce life forms on the earth, but it was 'supervised' by an all-powerful, loving, and omnipotent God.
God bless,
Lee |
