The BBC recently released a short three minute video on the simple steps that made us human. The video presents fifteen supposed key changes detailing how, over the course of millions of years, humans evolved from ape-like creatures.
Of course, the video starts with the assumption that man has evolved from ape-like creatures. Interestingly, using the iconic image of a monkey progressively turning into an upright human figure, the video begins by asking the question, “How did we go from this to this.” However, even evolutionary scientists have long admitted that this image is an illusion.
Sadly, what many viewers of this clip may not realize is that the steps in the video are simply based upon the imagination of what evolutionary scientists think happened in the past rather than being based upon actual evidence. While the media captures people’s attention in talking about our “evolution” from ape-like creatures, we need to realize that the actual evidence simply does not stand up to scrutiny.
The Biblical View of the Origin of Mankind
When it comes to the issue of the origin of man, Christians need to begin with the revelation of God as their starting assumption. God has given us a reliable, historical account of the creation of the world and humanity (2 Timothy 3:16; cf. Exodus 20:11). The Bible tells us that God created the animals and man on the same day, Day Six (Genesis 1:24–28); this was confirmed by Jesus (Mark 10:6). It is, therefore, clear that no animal is the ancestor of man. Moreover, the context and language of Genesis 2:7 clearly rules out any evolutionary process for the origin of man.
And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.
Genesis 2:7 clearly tells us of the “simple” steps God took to create man:
- God formed man of the dust of the ground.
- He breathed into his nostrils the breath of life.
- And man became a living being.
It was not until God breathed into Adam that the first human life came into existence. Adam was the first man God created (1 Corinthians 15:45) and Eve the first woman (Genesis 3:20). Adam and Eve were created supernaturally and were unique from all other creatures.
Although some Christians want to say that God used the evolutionary process to create man, they must first think through several issues. If there were other pre-hominids prior to Adam, then in what sense was he the first man (1 Corinthians 15:45)? Also, evolution demands that there was never one uniquely created man—from whom all human beings descended—who started out good and rebelled against God. If these evolutionary ideas were true, consequently, there would be no one in need of a Saviour. Instead, according to evolution, the human race began as a group of hominids who had no knowledge of God or righteousness, struggling for existence in a world already filled with death. It therefore follows that sin and death cannot have originated with Adam. Yet the Bible clearly states that physical (and spiritual) death originated with Adam’s disobedience against God (Genesis 3:8, 19; Romans 5:12; 1 Corinthians 15:21–22).
From a biblical perspective, mankind is not just a random evolutionary accident or a glorified ancestor of an ape-like creature but is the crowning glory of God’s creation (Psalm 8:3–9).
No doubt this video from the BBC will be viewed by thousands of people and will only instill in them the myth that humans evolved from ape-like creatures.
The Apostle Paul tells us, as Christians, that we are to “destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God” (2 Corinthians 10:5, ESV). Therefore, we need to be able to destroy the argument that man evolved from ape-like creatures as it raises itself up against the fact that mankind is uniquely created in the image of God.