The challenge for Theistic Evolutionists

[Mr Strawberry]

To a creationist of my type, the best love you could extend to me is to convince me that evolution is true.

And I don't think you can love me enough on that.

Don't worry, juve, I think you love yourself enough for all of us.

 

[Aman777]

How exactly is theistic evolution divided against itself? Surely you've seen that the intent of this thread is how te's can be loving towards creationists?

Dear Sayre, Theistic Evolution is divided against itself because it is completely refuted by God's Holy Word. Genesis 2:4-7 shows that man was formed of the dust of the ground, the SAME Day the Earth was made but BEFORE the plants were GREW on the 3rd Day. Since man was FIRST made BEFORE any other living creature, this is Scriptural Proof that man did NOT evolve from any other creature.

They should take the Theistic out of TE since it is NOT God's Truth.

In Love,
Aman

 

[fireof god98]

Dear Sayre, Theistic Evolution is divided against itself because it is completely refuted by God's Holy Word. Genesis 2:4-7 shows that man was formed of the dust of the ground, the SAME Day the Earth was made but BEFORE the plants were GREW on the 3rd Day. Since man was FIRST made BEFORE any other living creature, this is Scriptural Proof that man did NOT evolve from any other creature.

They should take the Theistic out of TE since it is NOT God's Truth.

In Love,
Aman

yes i have always found it hard for Christians to believe in evolution because it makes their god such a small part of the processes.

 

[TLK Valentine]

Sayre,

By now you're probably seen firsthand where the most divisive elements are -- TEs and creationists have no reason to be divided amongst themselves if they share a belief in Christ. However, there will always be some who want to take the focus away from Christ and put it on tangential things in order to cause strife -- so that they can "win" that strife, thus glorifying themselves in the process.

The best way to love them is to overlook their flaws and love them as fellow brethren in Christ, even if they choose not to reciprocate --which many won't.

 

[biggles53]

Thanks that helps. Faith is more valuable than ego. Last thing I want to do is damage someone else's faith.

Why...? Why would it be the "last" thing you'd want to do...?

I would have thought that the last thing you'd want to do would be to promote superstition and mistruth......?

 

[Aman777]

Sayre,

By now you're probably seen firsthand where the most divisive elements are -- TEs and creationists have no reason to be divided amongst themselves if they share a belief in Christ. However, there will always be some who want to take the focus away from Christ and put it on tangential things in order to cause strife -- so that they can "win" that strife, thus glorifying themselves in the process.

The best way to love them is to overlook their flaws and love them as fellow brethren in Christ, even if they choose not to reciprocate --which many won't.

Dear Valentine, Thanks, but you don't realize the difference in Bible believing Christians and Theistic Evols who change God's Holy Word into Myth, Allegory, and Fiction, thus allowing their agreement with the Lies of the ToE which is being forced upon our innocent children in the Publc Schools of America.

Sure we all have faults, but one of them doesn't have to be changing what is actually written into Fables. See if you can find a TE who is also a Literal believer in God's Holy Word? We love our brethren in Christ but look suspiciously upon those who reject God's Truth in favor of man's False Theories which agree with Satan but not with God. God Bless you.

In Love,
Aman

 

[AV1611VET]

Why...? Why would it be the "last" thing you'd want to do...?

I would have thought that the last thing you'd want to do would be to promote superstition and mistruth......?

I love what my Sunday school teacher said.

He said that, if God would have wanted us to know exactly how He created the earth, He would have given us much more information in Genesis 1.

But He didn't, because He wants us to take creation by faith.

Hebrews 11:3 Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.

Creation is not science ... it is history.

 

[biggles53]

I love what my Sunday school teacher said.

He said that, if God would have wanted us to know exactly how He created the earth, He would have given us much more information in Genesis 1.

But He didn't, because He wants us to take creation by faith.

Hebrews 11:3 Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.

Creation is not science ... it is history.

And you bought that crap...?

Look, I've got this bridge..............................

 

[kellhus]

I love what my Sunday school teacher said. He said that, if God would have wanted us to know exactly how He created the earth, He would have given us much more information in Genesis 1. But He didn't, because He wants us to take creation by faith. Hebrews 11:3 Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear. Creation is not science ... it is history.

Your Sunday school teacher sounds unintelligent and unfamiliar with something called logic.

 

[Mariposa36]

I am a theistic evolutionist.

My two greatest struggles in faith are loving creationists, and not damaging the faith of creationists.

I half wonder why I bother trying to correct them. Evolution IS a fact of the matter, but sometimes I feel like, if I were to prove that to them, it would damage their faith. My mother is all or nothing - either there is a literal 6 day creation and a literal world wide flood, or there is no God. I would win the battle but lose the war if I were to prove evolution to her. Surely the end goal in all this is to encourage others to have faith, and for that faith to remain strong?

So the question for other Theistic Evolutionists is - why do we bother? Why don't we just let the creationists believe in 6 day creation and be done with it?

And how on earth are we supposed to LOVE them when, from my point of view, they are so dogmatic and deceptive in their arguments?

I think to truly reflect Christ, we ought to spend more time loving those we disagree with. If anyone has any suggestions on how to do this, I am all ears.

I am also a theistic evolutionist and have this same issue. I'm okay with people having different opinions (even if I disagree with them), my biggest quibble is their reasoning for their opinion. Some of them have really great evidence for creationism or evolution, but others cannot back up their position at all and have never put any thought into it.

To answer your question, I continue to bother with this just to get sheeple to think and step out of their subscriptions to ideas they cannot even explain the very basis of and differences of each.

 

[juvenissun]

I am also a theistic evolutionist and have this same issue. I'm okay with people having different opinions (even if I disagree with them), my biggest quibble is their reasoning for their opinion. Some of them have really great evidence for creationism or evolution, but others cannot back up their position at all and have never put any thought into it.

To answer your question, I continue to bother with this just to get sheeple to think and step out of their subscriptions to ideas they cannot even explain the very basis of and differences of each.

Look at your group, some can argue better than some others.

In fact, the less one could argue, the stronger his/her faith is. This feature has nothing to do with the understanding of evolution/creation.

 

[Mariposa36]

Look at your group, some can argue better than some others.

In fact, the less one could argue, the stronger his/her faith is. This feature has nothing to do with the understanding of evolution/creation.

I mean they cannot even explain what evolution or creationism is or compare and contrast them, so I do not see how they can take a position. It's like saying "I'm member of ________ political party" when you don't even know anything about that particular political party or any of the others.

 

[fireof god98]

in the end evolution really challenges the faith of believers it seems. getting rid of the idea of special creation

 

[AV1611VET]

And you bought that crap...?

I've only been saying it here for almost eight years now.

 

[AV1611VET]

Your Sunday school teacher sounds unintelligent and unfamiliar with something called logic.

Groovy!

He's my kinda guy then!

For the record though, perhaps you would like to tell us where he's wrong?

I'm pretty certainly you're not implying the creation week is science in action.

 

[AV1611VET]

in the end evolution really challenges the faith of believers it seems. getting rid of the idea of special creation

How would you know?

 

[TLK Valentine]

Dear Valentine, Thanks, but you don't realize the difference in Bible believing Christians and Theistic Evols who change God's Holy Word into Myth, Allegory, and Fiction, thus allowing their agreement with the Lies of the ToE which is being forced upon our innocent children in the Publc Schools of America.

Sounds like you've got a serious issue with Theistic Evolutionists. I'm sorry to hear that.

Sounds also like you don't think God's Truth can be shared through myth, allegory, or fiction. I'm especially sorry to hear that -- those are great literary tools that are very effective at presenting deeper truths to their readers.

(on a side note, do you know that there are some people out there who are so caught up in literalism that they think that even Jesus' parables were actual historical events that He personally witnessed happening? Kooky, right?)

Sure we all have faults, but one of them doesn't have to be changing what is actually written into Fables. See if you can find a TE who is also a Literal believer in God's Holy Word? We love our brethren in Christ but look suspiciously upon those who reject God's Truth in favor of man's False Theories which agree with Satan but not with God. God Bless you.

And here I thought that the only piece of God's Truth that ultimately mattered was who Jesus was and what He died for. If you want to tack more on to that, that's your business, and neither I nor (I suspect) Sayre will stop you.

After all, Sayre will still love you as a fellow Christian no matter what else you think is important to salvation, and as for myself, well... who am I to try and strip away what makes you entertaining?

 

[TLK Valentine]

I am a theistic evolutionist.

My two greatest struggles in faith are loving creationists, and not damaging the faith of creationists.

You know, I've been focusing on your first struggle; I thought it was time to say something about the second.

if you're talking about their faith in Christ, then I would respectively suggest that there's no way you could damage that.

If you're talking about faith in something else -- maybe something they hold in the same regard or have associated with Christ that perhaps they shouldn't -- then I think you have an obligation to damage it whenever and however possible. Separate the grain form the chaff, as it were.

Some Christians like to say that anyone who deconverts was never really a "Christian" in the first place -- there is some truth to that, but not in the way they expect:

Contrary to what they say, nobody turns away from Christianity because of evolution -- they turn away because they've been lied to (either unintentionally or... not) by those whom they trusted about what Christianity was about in the first place.

If they were taught, "to be a Christian, you MUST accept X, Y, and Z, as the Truth," and then later find out that X, Y, or Z doesn't sync up with reality, then of course they're going to reject it. The truth is that Christianity is ridiculously simple -- believe that Jesus Christ was the Son of God who died for your sins. Period. Full Stop. If X,Y,and Z aren't about that, then what they've been taught isn't about Christianity.

Evolution, like many of the scientific discoveries before it, is simply the latest thing that exposes the Xs,Ys, and Zs for what they are -- unnecessary frou-frou and window dressing at best, a stumbling block for honest seekers at worst.

Get rid of it -- go back to basics. John Shelby Spong said it best: "Any god who can be killed ought to be killed -- and any god who must be protected from truth, form any source, is dead already."

Does a Christian need a young Earth to believe in Christ? Do they need a literal six-day creation or a global flood to think they're saved? Do they need you to think so, too?

If yes, why?

If no, then what are they fighting for? They're just... fighting.

 

[TLK Valentine]

I've only been saying it here for almost eight years now.

So you bought it and have been trying that long to re-sell it.

 

[Sayre]

Sounds like you've got a serious issue with Theistic Evolutionists. I'm sorry to hear that.

Sounds also like you don't think God's Truth can be shared through myth, allegory, or fiction. I'm especially sorry to hear that -- those are great literary tools that are very effective at presenting deeper truths to their readers.

(on a side note, do you know that there are some people out there who are so caught up in literalism that they think that even Jesus' parables were actual historical events that He personally witnessed happening? Kooky, right?)



And here I thought that the only piece of God's Truth that ultimately mattered was who Jesus was and what He died for. If you want to tack more on to that, that's your business, and neither I nor (I suspect) Sayre will stop you.

After all, Sayre will still love you as a fellow Christian no matter what else you think is important to salvation, and as for myself, well... who am I to try and strip away what makes you entertaining?

Have you read a book called "the skeptical believer"? It talks briefly about how humans learn best and it seems that is through stories. Very interesting. Based in psychology but I don't have it on me to quote ut.

It's amazing that a thread started by a Te wanting to love those who put the mental back into fundamental, is receiving such little love from them. Irony, right?

Love your enemies.