A Publication of Alpha Omega Institute Fall 2002; Vol. 19 No. 4

 

The Origin of Evolution
by Don Landis

Almost all people in the world today, including those in the Church, believe that Charles Darwin was the originator of the theory of evolution. However, a number of folks before Darwin held the same idea including Erasmus, Socrates, Plato, Homer, Nimrod, and even Lucifer himself. Although many would probably scoff at this, I propose that the theory of evolution is as old as, and is inherent in, the original fall of Lucifer.


For a number of years I have presented to my students the following scenario between God and Lucifer:
The time is sometime before the fall of Lucifer and the setting is the throne room of God. Lucifer is of course next to God, in fact he is closer to God than any other created being. Closer in proximity since one of his names is the cherub of covering and he appears to be the highest in the order of created beings. (Ezekiel 28:14 “You were the anointed cherub who covers.”) No other created being trumps him. Even Michael the archangel was and is not above him (Jude 9).

As he worshipped and wondered at God’s eternal nature and saw what he could not comprehend, Lucifer had two options: First, he could either take God’s eternal existence by faith or, he simply could arrive at the conclusion that God was not always God and that God became God somehow! If he rejects God as being eternally God the only choice left is to assume God became God somehow. If he had accepted that God really was eternal it would have made the thought impossible that he could become like God.

Lucifer must have thought if God was not always God but became God somehow, that meant there was a process of His becoming God! If God did it so could he!

Now the scripture comes to our aid and tells us that Lucifer looked at his own beauty and his heart was lifted up in pride and he said to himself, “I will become like God.” Ezekiel 28:17 says, “Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty; You corrupted your wisdom by reason of your splendor.”

Now remember, Lucifer was on the top of the “heap”, ...“Top Gun”... the most beautiful and most intelligent of all creation. If anyone had a chance to become like God it was he! He would find the secret and the way to evolve into a god. He believed he could because he believed God did!

We know from Isaiah 14 that he set out on this course and the first thing he did when we see him in the context of man is to sell the idea to Eve. “...your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God...(Gen 3:5).” The temptation to Eve is to also become like God.

By tracing this thread down through the centuries, we find it is common in all major world religions. In Mormonism you can become a god. In Hinduism and Buddhism you can become a part of the force. In New Age (which of course is modern Babylonianism) you can become god. John Denver spoke of his becoming god. Shirley McClain claims she can become god. Humanism is man’s quest to become god.

It is fascinating to trace the goal of becoming your own god from Genesis down thorough the centuries to our own time, and see its final conclusion in Revelation and the Anti-Christ.

To seek to become God is actually a counterfiet of God’s goal of transforming us into the image of His Son! When we understand the origin of evolution and its basis for a counterfiet worldview, we can understand the significance of this issue and begin to deal with it on a more foundational level. Little wonder the approach of “Creation Evangelism” is so important today!

Don Landis is the President of Jackson Hole Bible College and pastor of Community Bible Church. This article was condensed from the original version which can be obtained by contacting Rev. Landis at: [email protected]

Babies by Design
by Rachel Painter

Although medical technology has changed significantly over time, the birth process that God instituted for a new
life to enter the world has remained the same since the time of Adam and Eve. God has specially designed womens’ bodies, and their babies, to safely give birth. Although pain is normally what most people associate with childbirth (thanks to the Fall), God’s provision and care can still be seen throughout the entire birth process.

• False labor (Braxton Hicks) contractions prior to birth, help expand and contract the baby’s lungs which prepare them for breathing.
• The downward curve of the mother’s backbone, allows the baby to slide more easily through the birth canal.
• Increased pressure on human flesh decreases the circulation of blood to a certain area and, as a result, decreases pain. Therefore, during the second stage of labor, God has given mothers’ a natural incentive to push the baby out. The harder she pushes (more pressure she applies) the less pain she feels.
• The bones in the baby’s skull do not fully solidify until after birth—thus, the “soft spot” on the top of the baby’s head. As the baby is being pushed out, this flexibility allows it’s head to be squeezed and molded to the shape of the birth canal. The bones grow together in the first few months following birth.
• As the baby is squeezed through the birth canal, most of the fluid in its respiratory system, which it has been “breathing” during its aquatic life, is expelled, preparing its lungs to breath air.
• After it’s first breath, blood fills the left atrium of the baby’s heart closing the valve which used to bring blood from the placenta. This initiates a rerouting of the circulatory system so that the baby can now function on its own. (See related article in the Kids T&B.)
• During breastfeeding, the stimulation of the breast produces hormones that help in the detachment of the placenta from the uterus.
• Breastfeeding also stimulates the blood vessels in the uterus so that they begin to contract and return the uterus to its normal size. This also frees the mother’s blood to circulate and replenish her own body.
• Interestingly, the distance the baby can see clearly immediately after birth is approximately 8-12 inches. This is the distance from the mother’s face to the baby’s when the baby is being fed. The baby can see to make eye contact with the mother, further solidifying their bond.

It is amazing to realize that all of these events are happening in an orchestrated sequence. From the moment that we begin our life, to the moment that we join Him in Paradise, God gives us all that we need. It is no wonder that David says we are “fearfully and wonderfully made.”

Of All The Nerves!
by Dr. Natalie Liesman, DC

There are many aspects of design that are evident in the development of a baby prior to birth—in what we call embryology. One of the most fascinating developments is that of the nervous system—the brain, spinal cord, and their lines of communication, the nerves.

At conception, the joining of the ovum and sperm starts a cascade of cell division that continues rapidly as this mass of cells, now a living being, travels to the uterus. After implantation, the mass of cells begins to organize according to a God-designed, specific plan contained in the DNA, or master code of each cell.



The little baby is first identified as an embryonic disc, because of it’s flat shape between two larger sacs—the yolk sac below the disc, and what will become the protective amniotic sac above the disc.



The first ridges, streaks, and creases that form on this human landscape are parts of the developing nervous system. Already there are parts that will become the spinal cord, and specific regions for sight, sound, and even hormone production in the brain as it matures. All these items are present by day 18—just 2 ½ weeks after conception and usually before the mother is even aware of this new little life!


Over the next few days, these ridges and streaks quickly lengthen as cell division continues and the disc begins, by an architectural plan, to fold in at the sides so that a tube is formed, which fuses from the middle out to the ends. This early structure, called the neural tube, is 2.6 mm long and is completely closed by 24 days—just three weeks old!



Inside the tube, a horizontal ridge develops, partially separating the tube into a lower section, or basal plate, and upper section, or alar plate. These will be important in later details.



By 28 days, the nervous system portion has grown to 3.6 mm and the bulges have begun to take on defining characteristics. A large swelling at one end will become the cerebral portion that we usually think of as the brain. On this swelling are two out-pouchings that will develop into the system for the eye. Other smaller folds areas will become the cerebellum and brain stem. There is a long portion that will become the spinal cord.

A short 8 days later, the “C” shaped nervous system has more than doubled its size to 8 mm. The nerves that control every part of our sensory experience and motor function are in place and growing. Even before the baby develops arms, legs and organs to use these nerves, they are in place, ready to grow as the baby matures. They are ready to control the beating of the tiny heart, and the waving of tiny arms and legs. As these nerves grow, another aspect of design becomes obvious, involving the basal and alar plates mentioned earlier. The motor nerves, ones that enable us to move muscles, grow only from the basal plate, on the inside of the “C” curve. Sensory nerves, the ones that are associated with our 5 senses, as well as temperature, light touch, deep pressure, and proprioreception (knowing where the body is in space even with eyes closed), all grow from the alar plate, or the outer edge of the “C”. So the baby can move, and feel by 36 days.



All that is necessary for the baby’s control of his own body is developed. It “only” must continue to follow its design, develop more ridges for specificity, fold over on itself a few more times, and continue growing and expanding its nerve pathways to innervate the rest of the expanding area of the baby’s body. Such a specific system, which will be the master system of the baby’s developing body (and for the rest of his life!) cannot have itself developed simply by chance. A system that controls such minute details as temperature, breathing, and even determining when the thinking brain should be made aware of such details, must itself be sustained in operation. The Lord, our Father is not only Creator, but also Sustainer and Provider of our very lives. He cannot be removed from His creation, but is integrally involved in its every function as the development of the nervous system so profoundly declares.