Two Men, Two Origins, One Question
Two men sat together discussing the origins of humanity. Both were intelligent, both were convinced of what they believed, and neither could quite understand how the other had arrived at such a different conclusion.
The Evolutionist:
“Well, you see, billions of years ago, the Earth was nothing like it is today. There were no people, no animals, no trees, and certainly no civilizations.
“Just a young planet with oceans, minerals, gases, and chemical reactions.
“Somewhere along the way, through processes we’re still trying to understand, chemistry gave rise to the earliest forms of life.
“Over immense periods of time, simple organisms evolved into increasingly complex ones. Life diversified in the oceans, some descendants eventually moved onto land, and countless generations later, mammals, primates, and eventually human beings appeared.”
The other man sat quietly for a moment, staring at his friend.
The Creationist:
“Wait a minute. Let me make sure I understand you.
“You’re telling me that my great-great-great-grandfather, multiplied by a few million generations, was some sort of microscopic blob floating around in prehistoric soup?”
The Evolutionist:
“Well, that’s a rather crude way of putting it, but essentially, all life shares ancient ancestry.”
The Creationist:
“So, somewhere in my family tree, before Grandpa was a monkey-like creature, before he was a fish, and before he was even something that could wiggle, he was a little oozy puff of chemicals?”
The Evolutionist:
“You’re oversimplifying millions of years of biological evolution.”
The Creationist:
“Oh, forgive me. I certainly wouldn’t want to insult my ancestors. Especially after everything that little blob went through to become me!”
The evolutionist shook his head.
The Evolutionist:
“You can laugh, but evolution is supported by substantial scientific evidence.”
The Creationist:
“I’m not laughing at your intelligence, my friend. I’m laughing at the picture you’ve painted of my existence.
“According to your story, my ancestry is an extraordinary chain of natural events, stretching backward through creatures that never knew I would exist.
“But let me tell you the story I believe.”
The creationist leaned forward.
The Creationist:
“In the beginning, there was God.
“Not a lonely speck of matter drifting through endless darkness. Not an accidental chemical reaction waiting for something extraordinary to happen.
“God.
“A Creator who spoke the heavens and the Earth into existence.
“He formed the stars, the oceans, the mountains, and every living creature.
“And when He made man, He did something remarkable.
“He formed him from the dust of the ground and breathed into him the breath of life.
“Then He made humanity in His own image.
“Imagine that!
“The Creator of the heavens and the Earth chose to make a creature capable of knowing Him, loving Him, speaking with Him, and walking in fellowship with Him.
“He gave humanity responsibility over the Earth, a companion to share life with, and a purpose greater than merely surviving another generation.”
The evolutionist listened before responding.
The Evolutionist:
“That’s a beautiful story. But beauty doesn’t necessarily make something true.”
The Creationist:
“You’re absolutely right.
“And I wouldn’t expect you to believe something merely because it sounds beautiful.
“But consider what you’re asking me to believe.
“You see human existence as the outcome of natural processes unfolding over billions of years.
“I see human existence as the deliberate work of a Creator who wanted us to exist.
“You look backward and see ancestry.
“I look backward and see intention.
“You see the emergence of consciousness.
“I see a creature made capable of knowing its Creator.
“And when I look into the eyes of another human being, I don’t merely see an organism that survived a long evolutionary history.
“I see someone made in the image of God.”
The evolutionist folded his arms.
The Evolutionist:
“But you said yourself that God made man from dust. Isn’t that rather similar to saying we came from the material of the Earth?”
The creationist smiled.
The Creationist:
“Ah! Now you’ve arrived at the very heart of it.
“You’re right. We both believe our bodies are made from the material of this Earth.
“Your account begins with matter and describes how life developed.
“My account begins with the One who created matter and gave life its purpose.
“To you, dust eventually became a man.
“To me, God took dust and made a man.
“But here’s the difference that matters most to me.
“I believe there is more to humanity than flesh, bone, blood, and chemistry.
“I believe God created us for fellowship with Him, and that our existence has meaning beyond our brief years upon this Earth.
“I believe there is something eternal about the relationship our Creator intended for us.”
For a moment, neither man spoke.
Then the creationist smiled again.
The Creationist:
“So, my friend, you may keep your ancient ooze, your prehistoric fish, and your monkey-like ancestors.
“I’ll keep my faith in the God who formed the heavens, breathed life into humanity, and called His creation very good.
“After all, if I’m going to spend my life wondering where I came from, I’d much rather contemplate the One who made me than spend eternity thanking a puddle of prehistoric soup!”
The evolutionist laughed.
The Evolutionist:
“Well, I certainly never said we should thank the soup.”
The Creationist:
“Good! Because I was beginning to worry you’d want to invite it to Thanksgiving.”
They both laughed.
But the creationist had one final thought.
The Creationist:
“All joking aside, there’s something I hope you’ll consider.
“If I’m nothing more than the eventual result of natural processes, I still have to ask what my existence ultimately means.
“But if I was created by God, then my life was never an accident.
“I was made with intention.
“I was made for fellowship.
“And I was made to know the One who gave me life.
“One day, this body will return to the dust from which it came.
“But I believe my story does not end in the dust.”
A Silent Truth
Two men may agree that the human body is made from the elements of the Earth and still disagree profoundly about the origin and meaning of human life.
One sees an extraordinary history of natural development.
The other sees the intentional handiwork of an eternal Creator.
The question is not merely what humanity came from.
The question is whether humanity was made for Someone.
“And the Lord God made man from the dust of the earth, breathing into him the breath of life and man became a living soul.” — Genesis 2:7, BBE
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