Replacing Darwin . . . During Reformation Month!

Five hundred years ago this month, the Reformation was initiated by a German priest and professor named Martin Luther and continued by others such as Calvin and Zwingli. Luther’s nailing of his famed 95 Theses to a church door in Wittenberg began the Reformation in October 1517.

It was a movement that called the church back to the authority of God and away from the fallible opinions of man, which had severely compromised the clear teaching of the Word of God. The Bible-upholding movement was so powerful that today we are still experiencing the effects of this historical earthquake that spread from Germany to the world.

Throughout history, whenever we witness a great work of God, our adversary, the devil, “the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience” (Ephesians 2:2), aggressively tries to undo this work.

I believe one of the major tactics that Satan uses to counter the good effects of the Reformation relates to the book of Genesis.

I believe one of the major tactics that Satan uses to counter the good effects of the Reformation relates to the book of Genesis. It began with a claim that the earth was very old, based on supposed geologic evidences (that grew out of a belief in naturalism and spread widely in the early 1800s) of slow, natural processes, with nothing supernatural involved. An old age for the earth was necessary to justify the ideas behind naturalism, and the publication of Darwin’s book on evolution titled On the Origin of Species soon followed in 1859.

Darwin’s book was an attempt to explain how animals and plants arose by natural processes, not the supernatural means revealed and documented for us by the Creator himself in Genesis. Ultimately, this led to the idea that man evolved from ape-like creatures. Armed with this cache of scientific “evidences” that the earth was supposedly millions/billions of years old and that molecules eventually gave rise to man, compromising theologians permeated the church, teaching that Genesis should be treated as myth.

From both inside and outside the church, the Darwinian revolution changed the hearts and minds of generations concerning biblical authority. To this day, most church leaders and Christian academic institutions are infected by the religion of naturalism.

The result has been devastating in our churches. Today, about two-thirds of our young adults are leaving the church in America, and very few are returning. Our nationwide study through America’s Research Group has shown that the lack of trust in biblical authority, starting in Genesis, has been a major reason.1 In England, church attendance has declined from around 50% of the population three generations ago to about 5%. In the USA, 53% of millennials who used to go to church no longer do.2

America’s once very Christianized culture is now divided between an aggressive secularist philosophy and a Christianized worldview.

Sadly, compromise in Genesis has undone much of what the Reformation had accomplished. It’s why at Answers in Genesis our theme for this year has been “Igniting a New Reformation.” We need to see a new reformation in the hearts and minds of God’s people in our churches before a much-needed spiritual revival can occur in this nation—a country that’s becoming increasingly hostile toward Scripture.

This month, to honor the Bible and the great Reformers, AiG scientist Dr. Nathaniel Jeanson (PhD in cell and developmental biology from Harvard) has launched what I consider a groundbreaking new book titled Replacing Darwin: The New Origin of Species.

We believe that this is the first major book to carefully research and offer a direct frontal attack on the very essence of the arguments Darwin used to promote evolution—arguments which have become popularized in our culture (including in much of the church).

About his new book, Dr. Jeanson states,

The goals of Replacing Darwin are audacious: to affect a scientific revolution and to set the research agenda for the next 50 years.

The goals of Replacing Darwin are audacious: to affect a scientific revolution and to set the research agenda for the next 50 years. In other words, Replacing Darwin seeks to accomplish a goal as big as its title—provoke a scientific shift of the same magnitude as Darwin’s seminal work did.

He added,

Replacing Darwin is a unique and unprecedented book in modern literature. It draws on the latest scientific research and tells three scientific accounts that have never been put together in one volume anywhere. Furthermore, the book is structured in such a manner that anticipates and answers evolutionary objections to its claims. Since the origins debate inevitably converges on spiritual themes, the afterword presents the gospel in a manner that flows directly from the preceding chapters.

Dr. Jeanson further explains,

Since the vast majority of the scientific community rejects creationist science, Replacing Darwin not only challenges and equips Christians with powerful and startling scientific information, but it is written in a way to especially reach non-creationists. Free of Christian and creationist jargon, this book assumes a readership that is resistant to its message. Via 10 chapters of detailed scientific content, the book begins at ground zero in 1859, and then builds the case for creation while building credibility with the reluctant reader.

Yes, this groundbreaking book includes in-depth scientific content. But even if you don’t understand some of the technical material, you will grasp the basic arguments against evolution that people need to learn today.

So I urge you to obtain a copy for yourself, and give copies to public school teachers; your pastors; professors at Bible colleges, Christian colleges, and seminaries; and to scientists you know in your community—especially evolutionists. In many ways, Replacing Darwin is written for those who don’t believe the Bible.

Help us start a new revolution—a new reformation, a creationist revolution—to undo the destructive consequences of the Darwinian revolution.

Hosea the prophet observed, “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge” (Hosea 4:6). Indeed, a lack of knowledge exists among God’s people today! You can help solve this major problem by sharing copies of Replacing Darwin with as many people as you can. Go to our online store for special pricing on purchasing several copies to give away to non-Christians!