I wanted to respond to you're article in parts since there seems to be a lot here. I don't mean to be critical but I do enjoy a good Bible study and after a year of wrestling with the evolutionists in the debate forum this will be a welcome relief.
Evolution is not compatible with the Bible.
No its not compatable with the Gospel since the same supernatural working that saves us from our sin created the world and all that is in it. Now let me just say that evolution is defined as the change of gene frequencies in populations over time. There is little question that there were far fewer creatures at the begining of creation and that they changed over time. What is important to understand is that this is precisly what God planned for His creation to do. The originally created kinds had everything they needed to change and adapt to the many species we see today.
There could not have been millions of years of death before sin.
Well of course you are right and probably more so then you realize. Every cell in the human body contains some 120 mutations. Now most of these do nothing and are eventually deleted from the genetic code. This is why breeders must backbreed their hybrids from time to time because they have to reclaim the original genetic code as much as possible. If there were millions of years of the process we see going on all the various living systems would have accumulated so many mutations that we would all be extinct by now.
Rom 5:12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned
I don't really have a problem with this but I do have one question. Why was the tree of life put in the mist of the garden if there was no death?
MAN introduced death into the world because of sin
Rom 5:14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam's transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come.
Paul's letter addresses the issues surronding the law of sin (through the Mosaic law) and the law of faith (through the power of God in Christ). I have never really given any thought to how this particular passage relates to origins theology but it certainly has some merit.
If evolution is true, slow gradual changes over millions of years of death brought man into the world. The Bible and evolution are teaching 2 different things. Note that the Bible calls death an enemy.
Now that I understand, natural selection eliminates the weaker and the stronger survive. The Gospel tells us to turn the other cheek, go the extra mile, give asking nothing in return, and that God has chosen the weak things of the world to confound the strong. We seem very foolish to the worldly minded but from the many TE I have encountered there is not one mention of the Gospel. To get to the point you are right that they see death as a tool in the hand of nature that does not only improve characteristics of creatures but is actually responsible for perfecting them.
1Co 15:24 Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power.
1Co 15:25 For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet.
1Co 15:26 The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.
When reading 1COR15 you can clearly see that PHYSICAL death is being discussed and it is described as an enemy that Christ has defeated through his resurrection. PRAISE HIM!
So then you cannot have death in the world (as evolution teaches) millions of years before Adam's sin. BOTH EVOLUTION AND THE BIBLE CANNOT BE TRUE-they teach different things!
I debated a guy who claimed that evolution is taught in the Bible, actually Ecclesiasties. This book claims that all (under the sun) is vainty and striving after wind. This seemed strangly appropriate for a materialistic athiest since they choose a vain alternative to Christian theism. I am disappointed to see so many Christians taken in by the vain speculations of evolutionary biology.
Rom 8:18-19 For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.
When Creationism was the prevailing view of science and evolutionary biology was dwarfed by the hard sciences (geology, biology, chemistry) of their day teleology was a part of natural science. In the 'chain of being' all things were directed from the original creation, which was flawless, to the end to which things are directed (their teleological end). This is precisly what Darwin did and his whole claim to fame. This has had devastating consequences in our educational system and western civilization as a whole. Science is presented as a thing in and of itself and considered the product of a cold meaningless process that has no purpose except survival. This is not as God intened and as you have said God's glory will be revealed and the children of God will be manifest. This is not just something we have to look forward to but it has signifigance for the whole of creation.
Because of death and sin the whole creation is futile according to the Bible.
Rom 8:20-22 For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope, Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.
I thought you were going there with this, I don't think I have anything of substance to add to this.
But we know that during the Millennial Reign of Christ Or if you are an amillennialist during the new heavens and the new earth; the creation will be restored. DEATH because of sin is what wrecked the creation.
Creation will be renewed at this time. The Bible describes rivers in the desert, the reaper overtaking the sower, the lion laying down with the lamb. Death takes a thousand year vacation and we will get to see how the world is really supposed to work.
So what does the theistic evolutionist propose? They will say that plants died before the fall of man. But plants are not alive in a Biblical sense. They are a self replicating food source. The haven't got the breath of life and they have no blood. Plants are never spoken of as dying in scripture. They fade and wither, but never die in the sense as humans and animals. All animals and man were vegetarians in the Garden, humans were not to eat meat until after the flood. This further proves that death was not part of God's original creation, but was an enemy, an intruder, brought in by sin.
Furthermore, insects may not even be alive in a biblical sense-I don't know. That's a good topic to study up on.
I don't think death was meant to be as prevalant as it is in our time and in principle I agree with you. As far as insects, just for their survival they have to be very busily reproducing in order to preserve their species. That is one of the reason we have so many of them, they must overpopulate in order to maintain their existance. Where resources more plentifull there would be no need for such vigerous procreation and I think there is a balance (equlibrium if you like scientific terminology) that is rare and in most cases impossible. When you look at natural selection in that light things start to come into focus.
What theistic evolutionists are really saying is that sickness, disease, death and suffering were here long before sin. What does this make God? How can we explain cancer, gout, heart disease? With the theistic evolution model and logic, this suffering and sickness was part of God's very good creation. Adam and Eve were in the Garden of Eden standing on top of thousands of fossils buried in the dirt. Adam and Eve were both destined to die physically even prior to their spiritual separation from God. Is this what the Bible teaches?
Belive it or not I have heard a number of fundamentalists say simular things. The fossils are the result not of millions of years but geologic processes that are obscured by worldly wisdom that is based on vain conceit. I think the Bible teaches that the world was very good but not perfect. Adam and Eve were innocent but the righteousness of God had not been revealed to them since they had to choose life over death. Prior to their eating of the tree of the knowledge of Good and evil death was not a threat to them. Knowledge, I might add, was something they were allready getting through their care of the garden and Adam's naming of the animals. The only real safty was to take hold of the tree of life and since death would have been an alien concept to them they never did.
However, when we believe that death and sickness were brought on because of sin, a light clicks. It makes sense that God is good and didn't create us to be sick and die. The effects of the Fall were enormous! We begin to see sin as it is. We see the ugliness and destructive nature of disobedience to God. We then have hope of the glorious resurrection and the restoration of all things through the atonement of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
I know what you are talking about and many creationist make this point. This is harped on by evolutionists, even the TE variety, and it is pointless supposition that God created the world as we see it today. The original creation has been systematiclly deveolved but for some reason people have trouble seeing this. From a famous TE:
"The evidence of fossils shows clearly that the eventual end of most evolutionary lines is extinction
Organisms now living are successful descendants of only a minority of the species that lived in the past and of smaller and smaller minorities the farther back you look
All this is understandable in the light of evolution theory; but what a senseless operation it would have been, on God's part, to fabricate a multitude of species ex nihilo and then let most of them die out!
It is also possible that there were several, or even many, origins of life; if so, the progeny of only one of them has survived and inherited the earth. But what if there was no evolution and every one of the millions of species were created by separate fiat? However offensive the notion may be to religious feeling and to reason, the antievolutionists must again accuse the Creator of cheating."
http://people.delphiforums.com/lordorman/light.htm
This is not New Testament theology it is a watered down compromise with worldly wisdom. What is more it is an attack on the essential doctrine that make up the Gospel and has undermined the faith of millions. Believe me when I say I am well aware of how this worldview is overtly hostile to the Christian faith.
THEISTIC evolution seriously downplays the fall of man. Without a clear understanding of how huge the Fall was, how can we fully grasp the work of the atonement? Evolution wars against the plan of salvation.
Thank you for you're reply, I thourghly enjoyed it. It's been a while since I have dealt with the theological implications of evolution from a Biblical perspective. I didn't mean to stray off topic but it's a little hard to get in sync after writting hundereds of posts countering evolutionary arguments.
Grace and peace,
Mark