Image by Alexandru Goman, via Unsplash.
The Process of Evolutionary Thought
How It’s Harming Our Youth and What to Do About It
Introduction
Nothing breaks my heart more than to see young people devalue themselves and others to the point of suicide and school shootings. My heart breaks over the lies these young people are taught in our schools and in our society, particularly the lie of evolution. Evolutionists teach them that there is no God, that they are the result of chance processes over millions of years, and that they share a common ancestor with apes; among other aspects of this belief system. These devastating lies poison the hearts and minds of impressionable youth and leave them with no hope now or for the future.
It is not hard for our culture, in particular our youth, to put two and two together concerning these teachings and come to believe that what occurs here on earth really has no significance and that they go into oblivion when they die. Is it any wonder that when their lives go awry, they choose death over life?
The numbers of troubled youth are growing.
The numbers of troubled youth are growing. A 2018–19 study by the NSCH (National Survey of Children’s Health) revealed that “13.2% of U.S. children ages 3–17 years—just over 8 million—had a current, diagnosed mental or behavioral health condition.”1 Very recently, the New York Times published an article titled, “‘It’s Life or Death’: The Mental Health Crises Among U.S. Teens.”2
But are their lives a product of chance over millennia of time and of no value?
Let’s use the engineering practice called “process control,” which ultimately comes to us and is patterned from the logical God of the universe, to help understand the impact of evolution and millions of years on the minds of our youth in today’s culture.
Process Control
I have worked as a research engineer and scientist in the chemicals industry for over 30 years, making products for paints, electronics, automobiles, house construction, furniture, and more. A common element in much of manufacturing is engineered process control and automation3 so that quality products can be made. For example, without process control and automation, your car paint may fade rapidly, your computer may crash, your couch may flatten, etc. You get the idea.
God is a God of logic and order (Colossians 1:17; 1 Corinthians 14:40), and He is the One Who has given us the logical foundations upon which engineering—including process control and automation—is built.
One of the aspects of process control can be described in a tabular format as follows:
| Action | Sequence | Example |
|---|---|---|
| A measurement is made. | Input | The temperature of your gas oven during baking (for example, 348oF). |
| It is compared to the target value. | Difference | The difference between what you set the temperature to (for example, 350oF) and the actual temperature. Here, the difference is 2oF. |
| What should be done about this difference? | Logic | Increase temperature so that the 2oF gap is closed, but do so in a slow and gentle manner, since the difference is only 2oF. Don’t want to overshoot and end up at 355oF, for example. |
| Tell the control element what to do. | Output | Send signal to the heating element (the gas valve) that more heat is needed. |
| Change the control element accordingly. | Actuate | The gas valve opens and closes in an appropriate way to best close the 2oF gap. |
As we will see next, this framework is useful to understanding what is happening in the minds of our kids and our culture due to the overwhelming indoctrination of evolution and millions of years and the vast darkness that it spawns. But in stark contrast, this framework can also be used to point our kids and our culture to the light and hope of Jesus Christ.
To illustrate this approach, let’s start by looking at the account of Noah and the ark.
Noah’s Ark
We know that God is the Designer of all creation (John 1:3; Colossians 1:16). He often uses common elements in His designs, somewhat similar to how a computer programmer will reuse pieces of code for different purposes. For example, we see that living creatures share many common design elements such as DNA and blood. Various groups of creatures share such marvels as the eye, the ear, or the wing.4
Just as we see design in God’s nature, we see logic and engineering: for example, the laws of physics (such as Newton’s law of gravity) and the absolutes of math (2+2=4). It follows then, that we can use the engineering framework of process control to understand the worldwide flood that God brought upon the earth and how He saved Noah and his family.
| Sequence | The Ark (Genesis 6:5–8:22. Quotations from NASB 1995) |
|---|---|
| Input | Man, the pinnacle of God’s creation, has become thoroughly sinful: “Now the earth was corrupt in the sight of God, and the earth was filled with violence. God looked on the earth, and behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted their way upon the earth” (Genesis 6:11–12). All upon the earth, that is, except for Noah: “Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his time; Noah walked with God” (Genesis 6:9). Though a sinner like us, Noah was considered, by God’s grace, blameless and righteous before Him (see as reference, Romans 4:20–22). |
| Difference | Sin vs. Righteousness; the pervasive and ugly sin and violence of man grieves the holy, righteous, and perfect Creator God. “Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. The Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart” (Genesis 6:5). |
| Logic | God decrees that all terrestrial life (man, beast, bird, etc.) must be purged, except for righteous Noah. “Behold, I, even I am bringing the flood of water upon the earth, to destroy all flesh in which is the breath of life, from under heaven; everything that is on the earth shall perish. But I will establish My covenant with you” (Genesis 6:17–18). |
| Output | God tells Noah to build an ark (which is an engineering feat) to escape His coming righteous judgment and save himself, his family, and pairs (seven for a few) of every land creature. “Make for yourself an ark of gopher wood . . . you shall enter the ark—you and your sons and your wife, and your sons’ wives with you. And of every living thing of all flesh, you shall bring two of every kind into the ark” (Genesis 6:14, 18–19). |
| Actuate | Noah has faith in God, obeys God and builds the ark (Hebrews 11:7). God floods the earth. “All the fountains of the great deep burst open, and the floodgates of the sky were opened” (Genesis 7:11). All flesh was destroyed. “Thus He blotted out every living thing that was upon the face of the land, from man to animals to creeping things and to birds of the sky, and they were blotted out from the earth; and only Noah was left, together with those that were with him in the ark” (Genesis 7:23–24). |
God not only engineered the flood (via His spoken word) to judge sin, but He used it to foreshadow salvation through Jesus Christ. Just as the single door of the ark provided salvation to Noah and his family from the flood, so Jesus Christ is the only door (John 10:9) to salvation from sin for all who repent and believe the gospel (John 3:16).
Relevance to Today’s Culture
At the beginning of this article, I revealed how my heart aches for those in our culture who have bought into the lies of evolution and millions of years, especially our youth. I mentioned that it is not hard for today’s youth (or any person) to put the evolutionary two and two together so that they choose death over life. But how does our youth (and our culture, for that matter) put the evolutionary “two and two together”?
Again, one might use the sequence of process control to understand what goes through the minds of believers in evolution and millions of years when they experience great pain in their lives (anxiety, depression, illness, bullying at school, physical and mental abuse, drug addiction, etc.).
| Sequence | Our Culture, Our Youth (an example perspective of the individual) |
|---|---|
| Input | I am just another animal that is part of the animal kingdom (and others are too). I am the result of mindless random evolution over millions of years. I have no existence after death. (These messages are drilled into our culture through the public education system, colleges, and museums and are laced throughout movies and video games, etc.) |
| Difference | There is a huge difference between this reality and what I hope for (Jeremiah 29:11; Romans 15:13; Ecclesiastes 3:11). I yearn for significance and meaning in my life (Psalms 63:1), but there ultimately is none. I want to be unconditionally loved, full of joy and hope, and live for eternity without the ills of this world, but such a dream does not exist. |
| Logic | According to the teachings of evolution, I cannot attain what I yearn for. I am nothing more than an animal and have no unique or special value. Therefore, I have no ultimate hope. |
| Output | So live (or die) for today and do what I want to make me happy or to ease my pain, because tomorrow I die anyway (see 1 Corinthians 15:32). |
| Actuate | Do selfish or harmful things to myself (like doing drugs) and others (like abortion) as long as I believe it will make me happy and that I can get away with it. And if things aren’t going well in this life, end it. |
Great Hope!
Now that we have used the analogy of process control to better understand our culture and the hopelessness in the minds of many, let’s return to the question posed at the beginning of this article: But are their lives a product of chance over millennia of time and of no value?
As a research scientist and engineer, I can well attest to the fact that the mere processes to make organized, functional, valuable, and even beautiful products are highly researched, designed, and carefully controlled. No eons of time or happenstance can produce such things.
Man can only be understood as a being that has been wonderfully and lovingly created via the hand of the mighty God of all creation, Who spoke all life into existence.
Now consider that these commercial products are non-living and have an insignificant number of components relative to living organisms. The complexity and intricacy of the human body is infinitely more designed, engineered, organized, functional, and beautiful than any product made by human hands. Man can only be understood as a being that has been wonderfully and lovingly created via the hand of the mighty God of all creation, Who spoke all life into existence. This reality is simply the truth.
The Bible, God’s revelation to us, makes it very clear that we are fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14) and created in His very image (Genesis 1:27). All creation, including us, displays His glory (Romans 11:36). We are precious and valuable to God, and He made us to have a relationship with Him.
That relationship can’t happen when we are dead in our sin (Ephesians 2:1). That is why He sent His son, Christ Jesus, to suffer a horrible death on the cross to pay for our sins (Romans 5:8). Our yearning is, in reality, to have a loving relationship with our Maker and be unconditionally loved by Him, full of joy and hope both while we’re here on earth and then for eternity with Him, where there is no sin, no pain, no crying, and no death. Though life on earth may be difficult and painful (temptations, persecutions, rejections, disease, etc.), we are far from hopeless (Romans 5:5; Titus 2:13; 1 Peter 1:3–4). This is quite a contrast with the hopelessness that results from acceptance of evolutionary thought.
The answer to the question above is simple: None of us is a product of chance over eons of time but rather the crown of God’s creation. He has placed the knowledge of Himself in us (Romans 1:19–20), and He is Whom we yearn for.
Evolution: A Fairy Tale
God makes it clear in the Bible that the earth was created in six literal days, that the earth is around 6000 years old, that Adam and Eve were His special creation made on day six, and that they had a direct relationship with God. There was no pain, no despair, and no death; His creation was perfect. But Adam disobeyed God (which is sin) and brought pain and death into the world. Adam chose to do things his way instead of God’s way.
And it is the same today. Men don’t want to be accountable to God and instead want to live the way they want, doing what they think will make them happy. Evolution is a fairy tale and is one way, among others, that aids people to suppress the truth in unrighteousness (Romans 1:18). That desire to serve self rather than God is why evolution and eons of time was fabricated. In fact, evolution is a product of the problem, rather than the problem itself. The root is man’s sin and his rejection of God and His Word.
Evolution and millions of years have shrouded the eyes of those who are truly seeking purpose and meaning in life and hope for the future.
Evolution and millions of years have shrouded the eyes of those who are truly seeking purpose and meaning in life and hope for the future. Our youth, indeed much of our culture, have been poisoned with it to the point of despair and suicide. But the truth ultimately cannot be suppressed! That shroud falls away in the light of truth, Jesus Christ.
Take Hold
But how does one embrace the truth of his or her value? How does one embrace the love, joy, and hope that God wants us to have? How does one obtain forgiveness for sin to satisfy that yearning to be right with God? How does one take hold of Jesus Christ?
God has given us a way and a process to be forgiven of our sins, be right with Him, and share eternity with Him. It is simple and straightforward.
| Sequence | Salvation |
|---|---|
| Input | The Bible teaches that there is no one who is righteous, not even one; this includes me. I acknowledge that I have not sought God and that I have sinned against Him (Romans 3:10–12). |
| Difference | I am not right with God because of my sin (Romans 3:10–12, Habakkuk 1:13). There exists a great gap (a great difference) between what I need to be (forgiven and accepted by God) and what I am (unforgiven and not accepted by God). |
| Logic | I cannot span this gap between God and myself by anything I can do. However, He offers forgiveness and salvation to me as a free gift (John 3:16). I can only be saved from my sin and be right with God by faith alone, by God’s grace alone, in Christ Jesus alone (Ephesians 2:8–9). |
| Output | I want to take hold of that salvation (Acts 2:36–37). |
| Actuate | I confess Jesus Christ with my mouth and believe in my heart that God raised Him from the dead (Romans 10:9). I call on the name of the Lord to save me (Romans 10:13; see also “The Gospel). |
Footnotes
- “Mental and Behavioral Health NSCH Data Brief,” NSCH, October, 2020, https://mchb.hrsa.gov/sites/default/files/mchb/data-research/nsch-data-brief-2019-mental-bh.pdf.
- ‘It’s Life or Death’: The Mental Health Crisis Among U.S. Teens, New York Times, 2022, https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/23/health/mental-health-crisis-teens.html.
- R. Coughanowr, S. E. LeBlanc, Process Systems Analysis and Control, 3rd Edition (New York: McGraw Hill, 2009); and R. H. Perry, ed. et al, Perry’s Chemical Engineers’ Handbook, 6th Edition (New York: McGraw Hill, 1984).
- “Wonders of Creation—Common Designer,” Answers in Genesis, June 3, 2008, https://answersingenesis.org/media/video/creation/common-designer/.
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